The Best of British

I am a self-confessed Italophile and will admit that I have not believed that any good food could ever come out of England. Put to the test by my other half who is of English descent, he was determined that he would show me that London restaurants could rival any of the best food I have ever eaten.  The bet was on – to try the best of British. First challenge – breakfast in London.

Touted as the best breakfast in London we booked a table at  Kopapa, a little Kiwi-owned casual bistro in the super funky Seven Dials district of London. Off the beaten track, the restaurant was very quaint and nestled amongst leafy trees in a chic avenue in the area.  I ordered their famous Turkish eggs, poached  free-range eggs served with whipped yoghurt and chilli butter with a slice of rye on the side. We also tried the spiced banana French toast with grilled bacon, orange blossom labne, tamarind raisin relish & orange vanilla syrup. The restaurant lived up to its fine reputation. The combination of the poached eggs with the whipped yoghurt was an extraordinary combination. Light, fluffy and savoury it felt like I had clouds floating around in my mouth.

The addition of the chilli butter provided a touch of richness and heat to the dish. The spiced banana French toast was equally decadent with the unusual melange of bacon and orange blossom labne that melted in our mouths. What let the restaurant down was the surly staff that grunted our orders at us and banged our plates on the table. This is a real let down for a great eatery. Their lunch menu looks fantastic too but the bad service meant that we are unlikely to return.

A fun breakfast spot we discovered was Muriel’s Kitchen in South Kensington. They served very simple fare but the homemade vanilla and whole chunks of strawberry jam was more-ish. This place is also known for its gorgeous cakes and muffins – whimsical looking fluffy, pastel coloured creations beckon and looked damn irresistible.

Next on the hunt was to find London’s best Sunday roast spot. Hawksmoor Spitalfields in Hackney was the place that had consistently been rated as number one. For 19 pounds you could order a traditional English roast beef dinner complete with Yorkshire pudding, braised leeks, potatoes, baby carrots and all the trimmings. We met up with my cousin there who has been living in London for a few years and is a local in the area. The roast servings were very generous with a huge Yorkshire pudding serving as a basin for the golden, fried potatoes.  

Whilst it looked impressive, this meal lacked flavour. I would have marinated the roast to give it some extra flavour. I don’t understand the English tradition of serving unseasoned meat and vegetables. Meat is so much better when it has been sitting in a gorgeous marinade for a few days. 

For our last night is London we went to a funky new eatery called Lardo. Housed in a renovated warehouse, Lardo draws its inspiration from Italian cooking and serves up tapas sized dishes of Italian favourites such as fresh peaches with parma ham, porcini risotto arancini, melanze al forno (baked aubergine) and a variety of tasty wood-fired pizzas. This was a simple, delicious meal and by far the best I had in London. 

Overall, London served up some creative, tasty fare that was surprisingly good. The reach of chefs like Jamie Oliver, Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay has gone a long way to begin to inspire a more adventurous cooking nation that has been previously synonymous with just plain boring. Your royal highness, for god’s sake give these guys a knighthood.

Hola de Barthelona!

Barcelona has been named the best gastronomic city in the world. Boasting restaurants with nine Michelin stars in Barcelona alone, it’s easy to see why visiting is a must on any die-hard foodie’s bucket list. Catalan cuisine relies heavily on local Mediterranean produce such as vine-ripened tomatoes, garlic, eggplant, local fish and seafood such as anchovies, tuna, salted cod and sardines and of course its legendary small goods like chorizo and aged jamon serrano. Just about every restaurant in Barcelona make their own desserts. Traditional favourites include crema catalana - the famous yellow cream made with yolks, milk and sugar, xuixos - fried pastries created in Girona and stuffed with crema catalane or one of my favourites, pets de monja - small nipple-shaped and sized biscuits also eaten at coffee time. At first they were called pits de monja (nuns' nipples) but time has changed their name to current pets de monja (nuns' farts).

I began my culinary adventure of Barcelona on a good recommendation at La Boqueria market just off the very fashionable avenue Las Ramblas which leads down to the port. Bustling, colourful and vibrant I felt like I had walked into Willa Wonka’s chocolate factory for adult gastronomes. Fresh fruit and berries piled high, stacks of freshly squeezed juices in every colour of the rainbow available for 1 euro, hams hanging from the ceiling, international cheeses, seafood and freshly baked breads, cakes and filled empanadas had us salivating. 

While La Boqueria has some landmark tapas bars, we found them very crowded and opted for a little family run tapas bar that was less frequented. We ordered a range of small tapas dishes including potato tortilla, pa amb tomaquet (bread smeared with tomato and oil, and sometimes garlic), meatballs with prawns and escalivada – a selection of grilled vegetables which included aubergine, red peppers, boletus mushrooms, spring onions and asparagus. The tapas were delicious – if this is what the locals are eating at home, we got an insight into what we were yet to experience at some of the more well known locales. A couple of other memorable tapas spots we tried were Bar del Pla in the Ciutat Vella (old city) and Paco Meralgo, in Barcelona’s upmarket Diagonal area. 

Bar del Pla is a lauded tapas joint hidden off an alley way in the old, historic part of Barcelona. If I hadn’t read about it, I would have surely missed it given its hard to find location. The menu was really interesting with dishes such as octopus bombs, Iberian pig and mushrooms with goat’s cheese and wasabi. We were a little sceptical of the rave reviews as we had tried their new sister restaurant Pla a few days earlier which was underwhelming. We ordered a 400g t-bone steak, a serve of patatas bravas (deep fried potatoes with a romesco and aioli sauce) and a grilled vegetable flatbread with grilled goat cheese. After a lengthy wait, our dishes arrived. Overall, the food was less flavoursome as their other restaurant and definitely not worthy of the glowing write-up. Luckily for us, Barcelona is not short of choice. Next! 

Paco Meralgo was our next tapas destination and a real find outside of the usual tourist-heavy areas. We sat at the bar and shared some real winners. The highlights were the bombas – a potato and jamon serrano crumbed ball of tasty, crunchy ooze topped with a delicious romesco sauce. We also had succulent chunks of medium-rare sizzling peppered beef fillet and grilled, garlic razor clams. Tapas were a little pricier than at the holes-in the wall we had gone to previously but well worth it. Service was fast and very friendly.

This is a well run operation. When we left the restaurant, there was a line up to get in that went around the block. On an evening where it was pouring with rain, there’s no greater testament to how good the food is at this place. 

Perhaps the highlight of my Barcelona dining experience came at a fabulous little restaurant I found in the Gothic quarter of the city called L’Antic Bocoi del Gotic. Housed in an historic building flanked by ancient roman walls this charming restaurant serves up some of the best Catalan cuisine without use of an oven. The design of the space does not allow for cookers yet for fifteen years this restaurant has been serving up some of the best cold delicacies in the city. 

At this restaurant I indulged in by far the best grilled goat’s cheese salad I have ever had in my life. Warm local grilled goat’s cheese sitting atop a bed of mesclun greens, smattered with pinenuts, plum raisins smothered in a dressing of local mille-feuille honey, evo and sea salt. This was a simple and sinful dish that was truly one to savour. As sides we ordered a platter of ruby red, unctuous serrano ham and sampled the traditional coca – a Catalan speciality of grilled flat bread, pork sausage, pork loin, aubergine and manchego cheese. Washed down with a glass of vino tinto de casa (red house wine) the entire meal cost about 40 euros for two. 

What I have noticed about dining in Barcelona is that there is not one restaurant that has consistently great dishes. That is also part of the fun. Trying lots of different places and discovering their signature dish is really a better way to dine, if you can wait until 8pm to go eat your dinner. Restaurants in Spain don’t really open until after 8pm so if you get hungry best have a snack and then hold off until dinner. It’s well worth it! 

A great business opportunity in Barcelona would be to start a restaurant hopping tour where guests go out to 5 or 6 different restaurants just to eat their signature dishes. Five days in Barcelona is not enough to even scratch the surface of a culinary destination that is world class. Barthelona, hasta luego! 

Feed the Man Meat in Vancouver

Vancouver has topped the list as the world’s most liveable cities many times over. Known as the crown jewel of British Columbia, one step out of the plane and you can see why. Vancouver is flanked by two jaw dropping panoramas – a look to the west and you are able to marvel at the majesty of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains, a glance to the east draws you to towering green pine forests and the deep blue waters of the Pacific Ocean. Seafood is abundant and the temperate climate of the province creates the perfect conditions for year-round offerings of organic local produce such as forest fruit, asparagus, exotic mushrooms and local wine.

Canadians also love their meat particularly beef and chicken which they love to grill and barbeque. Enter any Canadian home and you will find an outdoor patio or yard complete with barbeque ready to grill winter, spring, summer and autumn. Consummate carnivores my partner and I really noticed this national fetish for all things meat in the plethora of fabulous new eateries popping up all over Vancouver offering a superb array of meat dishes. 

Recommended by our concierge at L’Hermitage, a luxurious boutique hotel in downtown Vancouver, we went for dinner to L’Abattoir (www.l’abattoir.ca) in the historic district of Gastown. The restaurant was built in the 19^th century and is the site of Vancouver’s first jail. The name L’Abattoir pays homage to the district’s colourful past. 

The restaurant has undergone a contemporary refurbishment and has made good use of wood, glass and steel finishes offset by the more classic white and black French tiles area on the ground floor. It also offers an elevated dining room with a green-house style glass roof. Food at L’Abattoir was gorgeous and tasty. The close attention to detail on every dish was evident right down to the bread basket which is definitely one of the best I have ever had.

Served in a bark basket, we were delivered warmed house-made cheese and bacon brioche, seeded lavosh and puff pastry twists smattered with anchovies and grated taleggio cheese. For entrée, we shared a beautiful dish of roasted foie gras with stonefruits poached in wine, thyme streusel and yoghurt mousse. Our main meals were equally elegant. The roast lamb loin and stewed shank with mint pistou and potato fritters was multi textured and provided a ripple of flavours in our mouths. The cool mint against the crunch of the potato fritters with a velvety sliver of rare, pink lamb was divine. We also enjoyed the more unassuming pork shoulder cooked in milk with turnips and salsa verde which was an honest dish but lacked the wow appeal of the lamb.

The dessert menu was overwhelming – I am normally hard pressed to find a dessert that entices me. At L’Abattoir I would have ordered every single one. We finally settled on apricot mousse with cherry sorbet, lemon meringue and sponge cake. The soft, fluffy mousse fizzled against our tongues and contrasted well with the sweetness of the cherry sorbet and the tanginess of the apricot and lemon meringue.

Next on our food adventure was to Yaletown one of Vancouver’s hippest districts and home to some of the city’s best restaurants. I love the area so much I came close to moving in to one of the many converted warehouse loft apartments before changing my mind and returning to Australia a couple of years ago. We had heard a lot about Flying Pig (theflyingpigvan.com) a funky little eatery, known for its AAA dry aged striploin and crispy brussel sprouts. I am usually not a big fan of sprouts but I am always ready to be converted. We ordered the steak as well as a side of brussel sprouts and matchstick potatoes. I couldn’t go past the T.F.P. Signature Pork Chop complete with a rendition of pulled pork poutine and apple cider jus.

For those of you who have never been to Canada, poutine is a national French Canadian made with French fries, topped with brown gravy and curd cheese. It is definitely an acquired taste, but you cannot leave Canada until you have at least given it a go. Over the last couple of years I have noticed the humble peasant poutine making a grand comeback with more sophisticated variations – chefs are making a star out of this dish.

Another trend in Vancouver was the  uses of jam jars for everything – to serve cocktails, desserts such as trifle, as vases to hold flowers and funky lighting creations.  Very quirky but adding to the granola, ‘tree-hugger’ vibe that is Vancouver. The menu at Flying Pig was fantastic, so many tempting choices with interesting twists. Our meal was homely and tasty but overall did not meet our expectations. The highlight for me had to be the fantastic crispy brussel sprouts, served in a little black and white checkered basket they were delicious!

To finish off our Vancouver adventure we couldn’t go past a long-time favourite of mine Cardero’s- We are fish, Chops & a Wok at Coal Harbour. The marine pub is situated on the waterfront at Coal Harbour and looks out to the Rocky Mountains. 

For starters we shared a classic - Forno Baked Flatbread with goat cheese, sundried tomato, onion and arugula. Served on a cedar plank this is a beautiful and delicious starter. It’s magic lies in its simplicity. Chargrilled, house-baked flatbread smothered in fresh, soft herb marinated goat cheese, dressed with raw purple onion, sundried tomatoes and vibrant, green arugula. For mains we both had the 16 oz "Bone In" Rib Steak served with organic market vegetables and local potatoes. Succulent, these steaks earned Vancouver a top destination for meat dining. We went back for a second round a few days later. 

For a quick lunch or snack other gems in Vancouver included a fabulous sandwich joint - The Dirty Apron or a stroll around the Granville Island Public Market for awesome local produce, charcuterie, artisanal breads and great locally roasted coffee. 

Overall, Vancouver is a fabulous city to visit - it offers world class dining, sensational produce and great flavours all with a touch of quirky playfulness. All this set against a spectacular natural setting. Best months of the year to go are between April and September. If you go in April you will catch the first buds of spring - pink and white scented cherry blossoms and the abundance of tulips in every colour line the streets and walkways. For me Vancouver remains one of my top 5 cities in the world. 

Food Paradise Made in Bali

Ever more people today have the means to live, but no meaning to live for —Victor Frankl

 The path to food happiness is a simple one. Food has the power to evoke some of our most profound and nostalgic memories. We have the capacity to store the past in our meals in the smell of our grandmother’s freshly baked olive and walnut bread to the taste of freshly cut figs drizzled in warm honey sampled on a romantic Greek island holiday.

On the Indonesian island paradise of Bali I recently discovered an abundance of restaurants committed to elevating pedestrian comfort fare to the sophisticated palate. Psychological research on comfort food explains that related dishes positively pique emotions, relieve negative psychological affects and increase positive feelings.

One lauded comfort food restaurant is Mamasan Kitchen Bar Lounge in Kerobokan. A super chic restaurant minus the hefty price tag, Mamasan’s Asian menus include Chinese, Indonesian, Indian, Malay, Singaporean, Thai, Cambodian and Malay cuisines. We began our dinner with Kachoori with yellow dahl,coriander & mustard seeds served with mint & tamarind chutney. Crispy and fluffy these mini samosa-like creations were filled with a soft and deeply fragrant dahl filling. I bit through the flaky pastry casing to experience a warm, melt-in-your-mouth sensation and my nose tickled from the spices.

For main course we ordered the crispy pork hock on the bone with nahm jihm jauw and nam pla prik and Sichuan slow braised beef short ribs cooked with chili bean paste served with a hot and sour salad with a side of steamed jasmine rice. Massive, smoky-glazed and juicy, the pork hock was was an impressive dish. The contrasting flavour of the pineapple-glazed pork hock with the crispy pork skin made for a stunning food experience. Feeling like Neanderthals we tore strips off the hock and gnawed every last morsel of meat from the pork bone. The beef short ribs were also delicious. More subtle in flavour with a bit of bite from the chilli, we relished the warmth the dish provided to our bellies.We ended our meal with a caffé latte sitting in buttery, camel-coloured arm chairs and enjoyed watching the vibrant throng of international tourists gorging on the sublime food at Mamasan.


Next on our list was the highly recommended Sarong. Sarong and Mamasan have the same owners so our expectations for an unforgettable meal were high. Sarong is a more formal restaurant than its counterpart and is situated in Seminyak about 15 minutes down the road. Like Mamasan it has been inspired by Asian street food and is housed in a more elegant setting with the option to sit in a tropical Balinese garden, next to a splashing fountain or, in a more formal dining area lit up by antique chandeliers and gilded gold mirrors.

For starters we opted for crispy pork belly with baby mandarin ginger chili and black vinegar caramel and grilled scallops with sweet crispy duck Thai basil young coconut and peanut nam jihm. The combination of the crunchy pork belly with the sweetness of the black vinegar caramel fizzed in our mouths and was out-of-this-world. The scallops were delectable and contrasted perfectly against the tartness of the sauce and the gamey duck flavours.

For main course we had the black bean crusted grilled barramundi with garlic green chili lime and fresh coriander and the lamb shank twice cooked in western Sumatran spices with sambal dabu dabu. Both dishes were so heavenly we had to pinch ourselves that we were truly having such a celestial food experiences. Palates exploding with heady Sumatran spices on melt off the bone lamb shank and deliciously sooty black bean chargrilled barramundi with a cloud of fluffy coconut rice and vinegared cucumber salad took us to another world. 

Chef Will Meyrick did not disappoint, we ended our meal elated and on cloud 9.  It’s not surprising that the Singapore World Gourmet Summit placed Sarong in the top five best Asian Restaurants in 2011. It has definitely earnt it’s place in my foodie heaven.

PassionRating★★★★★
Food:★★★★★
Service:★★★★★
Ambiance:★★★★★
Overall:★★★★★