Archives for category: Food & Drink

The Summer House is a pop-up restaurant near Little Venice. With tables by the canal, it was a great hit last summer. Back then, I went there with a group of friends and it was a lovely evening. It took me a month to arrange as it was so popular!

This year, the Summerhouse was the top of my list when I came up with this impulsive idea of meeting my friend E on the longest day of the year. I was surprised that I could still book a table with only a day’s notice. Though it did not take me long to understand why. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags canal, London, pop-up, restaurant, review, seafood, summer, waterway

Categories Food & Drink, My Bad Book

Coca Cola 125th Anniversary Special Edition Hutchinson bottles and 50’s style soda bar at Selfridges

By winkypedia

June 22, 2011 //

I went to check out the Selfridges sale and got distracted by the heritage inspired Coca Cola bottles! They are special editions to celebrate their 125th anniversary, sold at £1.99 each.

Some are straight long bottles called Hutchinson, which were first created in 1899. Others are classic curvy ones with the words ‘Coca Cola’ cast in the glass. They are sold in special white paper boxes at the Selfridges Food Hall or chilled at the Soda Bar on the Ground Floor, in the fashion department. It is manned by 50’s styled waiters and waitresses. Continue reading >>

Tags 125th anniversary, Coca Cola, Hutchinson, London, review, Selfridges, Soda Bar, special edition

Categories Food & Drink, my good book

The Bonnie & Wild – creative, and dark

By winkypedia

June 19, 2011 //

Bonnie & Wild is a ‘part-time’ (they insisted that it is not ‘pop-up’!) restaurant named after Bonnie Gull Ltd and Wild Game Co. The former specialises in fresh Scottish seafood and the latter Highlands seasonal game. It is not hard to imagine what the menu of the Bonnie & Wild would be consisted of and I really looked forward to it.

It will open on Saturday evenings from July 2nd but we managed to get a preview meal!

The venue blew me away. It is at M.Manze’s in Chapel Market, Angel. Between 11am to 3pm, this 1905 Grade II Listed shop is a traditional English pie and mash shop. Apparently even David Beckham goes there!

Not much light was turned on the night we went. It kind of created an old English charm. We were led to one of the classic wooden booths in the middle of the hall, with seats that were not very deep- a bit like the pews you would find in old churches. As I am petite, I found it comfy. But I cannot imagine how anyone bigger than my size could squeeze in there! In fact, the seat bounced up and down when the diners behind tried to get in and out- kind of charming! Continue reading to see the food >>

Tags BBQ, Bonnie Gull, London, pop-up, restaurant, review, Scottish, Wild Game Co.

Categories Food & Drink, my good book

Chinese bamboo leaf-wrapped dumplings 糉子: my grandma’s recipe

By winkypedia

May 30, 2011 //

Dui Ng Festival 端午節, better known as Dragon Boat Festival in English, takes place on the 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar on which the Chinese calendar is based. Around that day, we have bamboo leaf-wrapped sticky rice dumplings 糉子 (zong zi) and dragon boat racing. (Why? You can find out at the end of this article.)

Anyway, I am too lazy to do dragon boat racing but I love eating, so 糉子is my highlight around this time of the year. You can buy them in Chinatown or Chinese supermarkets but I prefer to make my own as I can put more of my favourite ingredient inside! Here is my grandma’s recipe:

INGREDIENTS (to make 21 dumplings):
1. Dry bamboo leaves (photo above)
~ 4 leaves per dumpling, get a few extra as some might split in the middle
~ available in big Chinese supermarkets, e.g. the ones in Chinatown.
~ pick the pack with larger leaves as it makes wrapping easier.

2. Salted duck egg yolks (photo above)
~ my favourite ingredient!! In fact, I decided to make my own 糉子 because Continue reading about how to make Chinese bamboo leaf-wrapped dumplings 糉子>>

Tags bamboo, Chinese, 糉, dragon boat festival, dumplings, recipe, sticky rice, zong zi

Categories Food & Drink, my food experiments

Alphonso mangoes- everyone’s secret favourite mangoes!

By winkypedia

May 28, 2011 //

I did not realise that I was surrounded by closet alphonso mango lovers until I happened to order a box of them while making an order online for my Lock & Lock airtight containers (curiously my suppliers of Lock & Lock containers also sell boxes of mangoes) . I started to get requests for add-on orders from my mango loving colleagues! And when the boxes of mangoes arrived, I received moans from others for not letting them know I was ordering in the first place. Apparently, alphonso mangoes are everyone’s secret favourite mangoes! (Ok, at least by those who sit around me in the office!)

What is so special about Alphonsos mangoes?
They are Continue reading >>

Tags alphonso, flavour, india, indian, mangoes, review, sweet

Categories Food & Drink, my good book

Spanish Jamón (dry-cured ham) taste- off: Ibérico de Bellota Vs Serrano Bodega (most expensive Vs cheapest)

By winkypedia

May 23, 2011 //

A trip to Spain is incomplete without having Jamón, which is the Spanish dry-cured ham. You can just see them everywhere- bars, restaurants and markets. They look a bit like the Chinese version on the outside but while we cook ours, the Spanish do not. They love pairing it with melon which is sweet and moist.

In the famous Boqueria Market in Barcelona, I was curious to see the large price differences among all the Jamón, which ranged from Euro 35/kg to Euro176.60/kg. I decided to do a taste test between the most expensive Jamón, Jamón Ibérico de Bellota , and the cheapest one, Jamón Serrano Bodega.

Sample 1 (photo above):
The meat was dark red and beautifully marbled with fat, with a subtle golden colour. It was moist and smooth in the mouth. The fat was soft and rich in flavour with a hint of sweetness. It felt like it melted in my mouth! It was not too salty which was fantastic! Amazing! Continue reading about Jamón blind tasting >>

Tags Bellota, ham, Ibérico, Jamón, review, Serrano, Spanish

Categories Food & Drink, my food experiments, my good book

Dining with Alice- my magical evening in Wonderland

By winkypedia

May 16, 2011 //

Just what happened to the characters in Alice’s adventures when they were no longer needed in her dreams?

I went with five friends to find out as they hosted a special banquet at Elsing Hall, Norfolk. This banquet, Dining with Alice, was organised by Artichoke and Sky Arts, as part of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival.

Built in 1470, Elsing Hall‘s landscape and architecture formed a great backdrop for the evening. On the way to the dinner reception, we bumped into Alice who was hiding in the maze. We also saw a lot of long dining tables, reminscent of the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, scattered around the beautiful gardens. ‘Is this where we are going to eat?’ I wondered with excitement. {If you are going to attend, stop reading now as I am about to reveal some of the surprises}

While we waited for the Royals to appear (photo above), we nibbled on the Plungent Fleck (Kettle game chips and Victorian Dips, photo below) with the Hendrick’s Buck (Gin and Ginger Ale) in hand. Continue reading >>

Tags Alice, Artichoke, Bompas & Parr, Dining, Elsing Hall, Norfolk and Norwich Festival, review

Categories Art & Design, Food & Drink, my good book

Pineberries- a cross between pineapples and wild strawberries

By winkypedia

May 13, 2011 //

I was curious and excited when I first saw these white beauty- pineberries. They are about the same size as wild strawberries, except that they look like their albino cousins. White body and red seeds- very odd looking indeed!

I like how they played tricks on my senses. While they looked like strawberries, pineberries actually carried an amazing sweet fragrance similar to that of pineapples. This aroma was even stronger at room temperature.

Just when I thought they would taste like pineapples, I was wrong again. Continue reading >>

Tags fruit, pineapples, Pineberries, review, strawberries, Waitrose, wild

Categories Food & Drink, my food experiments, my good book

Gilbert Scott by Marcus Wareing at St Pancras Hotel- architectural marvel and great British pride

By winkypedia

May 7, 2011 //

4 stars
Gilbert Scott is 2 Michelin starred chef Marcus Wareing’s second restaurant. Situated in the newly renovated St Pancras Hotel, which was originally opened by Queen Victoria in 1873, the restaurant is named in honour of the building’s original architect, Sir George Gilbert Scott.

He apparently designed the hotel just before the internal plumbing system was invented. Not long after the hotel was opened, it was deserted by guests as people preferred not to share toilets. It was then left unoccupied and gradually deteriorated for over 70 years.

I am glad to see that there is now modern plumbing at the restaurant. The dining area has been beautifully restored and is filled with great historic features. The huge windows drew a lot of natural light into the double height space. It is grand and charming.

Like Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Gilbert Scott is set to celebrate British cooking. Though unlike Heston who spent a long time exploring old traditional British recipes, Marcus focuses on British regional culinary history and stays closer to the original recipes. Its website claims that they are ‘subtly modernising traditional dishes to unusual effect’. Did it live up to its claims? Read the rest of this entry »

Tags Grand Stairs, London, Marcus Wareing, Michelin, review, Spice Girls, St Pancras, the Gilbert Scott

Categories Food & Drink, my good book

The Riding House Café- great drinks but with little surprise on food

By winkypedia

April 16, 2011 //

The Riding House Café is the third project by the team behind Village East and The Garrison. We went on its official first day of opening. (Btw, 50% off food bill till May 2, 2011!)

It was an interesting cross between a bar, a pub and a restaurant.
This concept can be observed from the layout of the space as well as on the menu. On the left of the entrance is the restaurant (photo below), with the bar (2nd photo), wooden seating (like a pub) and a big shared dining area on the right.

The menu was created to allow flexible ordering. Instead of the usual ‘starters’, we were presented with a selection of 17 small plates, which cost £3, £4 or £5, to choose from. I can imagine this is fantastic for customers at the pub, bar food to munch on with a glass of drink. Continue reading>>