Glasgow

Glasgow! I still need to write about our days in Glasgow (this was back in Easter!). Blogging has not come easy as of late though I am still prolific on Instagram. I think after a whole day of looking at a computer, I’m just not feeling as inclined to open up my laptop yet again at night. But there’s Glasgow to write about! And also a recent trip to Canada! And a day in St Albans too! Onwards!

On our arrival in Glasgow, it was first waiting out the rain in a bookshop and then our hotel before heading out for dinner – Paesano! This purveyor of authentic Neapolitan pizzas is rightly popular with the locals; there was a wait for our table but it was worth it. Our fresh Tuscan fennel sausage …

… and prosciutto cotto and mushroom pizzas were excellent.

A side of artichokes and sun blushed tomatoes were lovely – the tomatoes were particularly good.

Dessert was one of the cakes of the day – a chocolate fudge cake with a side of soft serve ice cream. The portion was massive for £4!

The next morning, we trekked out to Glasgow Cathedral – it’s magnificent! I’d never visited the cathedral despite spending a little time in the city 17 years ago and I was surprised by its size.

Across the street was the most interesting Provand’s Lordship, which I also highly recommend visiting! It’s a medieval building kitted out to be exactly like how it would have been around the 16th-18th centuries and it’s free to visit. Highly recommended if you’re visiting.

We then took the subway to the West End where we lunched at Kimchi Cult!, a kind of fusion Korean joint that’s quite popular. A bibimbap with pulled pork…

… and bulgogi brisket bao were both alright. The vegetables in the bibimbap were just raw and not blanched or seasoned which made it not taste entirely right to me.

Of particular note were the fries with kimchi mayo – they’ve hit on a winning formula here. I hear their fries topped with everything are very good.

The entire afternoon was spent in the brilliant Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, where we learned about the Glasgow Boys and their influence on UK art.

And then I was back at Crabshakk – or should I say, I introduced Blai to the brilliant Crabshakk. We noshed on a few things by the bar. Let’s see… first were salt and pepper tentacles and gurnard (what a combo!).

Octopus with onion puree, chorizo, garlic pesto (!!!).

Crab cakes (these are a must).

And finally seared scallops with anchovy (always go with the anchovy butter). Brilliant as always.

We walked all the butter off on our way to Crollas Gelateria, where we shared freshly baked chocolate chip cookies with two scoops of gelato. Yes. Yes. Yes.

As you can imagine, we rolled back to our hotel that night.

On the morning of our last full day in Glasgow (and Scotland), it rained cats and dogs and we could only sprint to the nearby Gallery of Modern Art where we spent a curious morning before we continued through the damp to Cup Tea Lounge where we shared a pear and orange salad and eggs royale.

While the food was average, the setting was absolutely gorgeous with its ceramic tiled walls and its impressive gin bar!

We continued up towards Sauchiehall Street, making a detour towards the Glasgow School of Art. Alas, the original Mackintosh building was under scaffolding for a refurbishment but there was an excellent exhibition about it all in one of the new buildings.

We dropped into Singl-end for coffee and cake – well, hot chocolate and coffee and a vegan (!) cake. It was the most delicious vegan baked good I’d had – a raspberry, chocolate and pistachio cake. All their baked goods looked excellent as did their savoury brunch options.

Our final dinner in Glasgow, in Scotland!, was at Bread Meats Bread, a popular and highly rated burger joint. My Wolf of St Vincent Street was a juicy patty topped with cheese, bacon, pulled pork, crispy onions and ‘nduja was almost too big to get my jaws around. But it was good!

As was Blai’s Full House burger which was topped with beef brisket and pickles. Our accompanying sweet potato fries and poutine were also excellent. I like the creativity they exhibit through their fries – our neighbour’s maple and bacon sweet potato fries looked brilliant!

The next day, it was back to Edinburgh and then back to London from there. We had a fantastic time in Scotland – everyone was very friendly, there’s plenty to see and do, and, gosh, the food was good. As is usual, all photos from our Easter trip to Edinburgh and Glasgow can be found in this Flickr album.

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Eating in Edinburgh

It was yet another Easter weekend and we weren’t going to let these free days off go to waste. On Blai’s request, we headed up north to Scotland, a country I’d visited briefly but where he had never set foot. Off we went by train from London to Edinburgh, a pleasant few hours journey which saw us deposited right in the centre of the Scottish capital. We dumped our bags at our B&B and then immediately set off up the hill to the castle.

While we didn’t visit Edinburgh Castle on this trip, we could still marvel at its impressive location.

We criss-crossed the city, walking all the way down to the Scottish Parliament and the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Of course, such an appetite that has been worked up must be addressed! Dinner! And it would be at The Dogs, a well priced British bistro that was packed with locals and tourists alike. Home smoked trout, fennel and mint slaw, capers was a lovely little starter of lots of textures and flavours – that toasted trout skin was wonderful against the soft trout flesh.

Pork cheeks in cider, celeriac + pear mash, buttered Savoy cabbage were served in a very thick sauce that seemed to consist of apple puree. While the mashed was a bit too texturally similar to the tender pork cheeks and its sauce, the cabbage added a nice little crunch.

Ling, prawn + spinach pie, herby potato crust was a very comforting fish pie.

A side of mangetout, honey and pumpkin seeds was great! I think I’d been expecting the usual boiled veg but here the mangetout was sauteed. Much better!

Desserts were outstanding. A fruit crumble was the furthest away from the usual institutional crumbles I’ve encountered. As well, their pear cheesecake was incredibly light and flavourful.

The next morning, we woke up to a full Scottish breakfast at our B&B – the B+B Edinburgh. Turns out I do love me a potato scone and a square sausage. Love ’em.

A couple hours were spent first at the wonderful National Museum of Scotland. I think it was more crowded that usual that weekday as the was a science festival taking place within. Either way, loved it. Definitely recommended.

We looked for a light lunch and found it at Ting Thai Caravan. We got spaces at a shared table and tucked into fried rice noodles and this lovely light beef noodle soup. Yes, those are pork rinds on top… They were very good but didn’t really add anything to the dish.

After wandering around Victoria Street and Grassmarket, the rest of the afternoon was spent at the excellent Scottish National Gallery.

We were chased out of the museum at closing time and came out to see this over the city!

We ended up at First Coast for dinner (our second choice restaurant) when we couldn’t get into our first choice Sushiya (we made it there the next day though).

A Middle-Eastern inspired aubergine and flatbread was a nice little cold starter. Perhaps it wasn’t the most inspiring but it was tasty.

We loved the Octopus, saffron aioli, black rice. The rice was gorgeous, as was the ridiculously spoon tender octopus.

A Brazilian seafood stew, coconut milk saw off more of the cold in our bones.

A Middle Eastern vegetable stew, apricots, olives, bulgar, pomegranate felt very healthy after the morning’s full Scottish breakfast! Of course, there was another one the next morning…

The next morning after breakfast (oof), we headed around behind our hotel to see the very picturesque Dean Village, a former industrial part of the city. We could have followed the path along the path all the way to the north of the city but turned around as our remaining time in Edinburgh was limited.

Lunch was in nearby Haymarket at Sushiya (yeah, we made a reservation this time), which turned out to be one of the best Japanese restaurants I’ve tried in the UK. Everything we had was brilliantly prepared and exceptionally fresh. Here was our perfectly crisp and greaseless squid tempura.

Grilled nigiri and a dragon roll were both superb, both perfectly put together and melt-in-the-mouth delicious.

There was a scoop of white sesame ice cream as well – excellent, and strangely quite unusual as I felt more used to seeing black sesame used in ice creams and desserts. Delicious! We highly recommend Sushiya and reservations are necessary for lunch or dinner.

And then it was on to Glasgow! (And that’s the next post.)

But there was one more Edinburgh eatery to report on – on our way back to London from Glasgow, we stopped in Edinburgh to change trains. The stopover gave us enough time to have a relaxing lunch at Edinburgh Larder, a cafe specialising in locally sourced produce.

A veggie plate contained hummus and roasted vegetables, plenty of salads and little locally baked oatcakes.

A fish plate was filled with variants of Scottish salmon (that now luxury good): cold smoked, hot smoked, paté. And again, there were countless little oatcakes. Delicious little oatcakes! You should see their sandwiches too – proper doorstopper constructions one can barely get your jaws around it.

Finally, an unusual honey and camomile cake was the perfect send off for our trip back to London. It was sticky and chewy and very very good.

 

Back to Bordeaux

I was back in Bordeaux early last month, this time with Blai as we were there for his work. There wasn’t much sightseeing as we both saw the city without each other but instead lots of general strolling and, of course, eating. Friends and family came along too and we were often a small group, always a challenge for me as the restaurant responsibility tends to fall on me! Luckily, Bordeaux has numerous fantastic restaurants and we visited quite a few of them. For a group of 4 or more, I would definitely recommend booking, even if it’s an hour ahead; we were turned away from a couple spots when we hadn’t made reservations.

There was an outstanding first meal on our first night at the Corsican Le Petit Mignon with pumpkin soup with a crusted soft boiled egg…

…and my favourite salade de gesiers (confited duck gizzards).

Then a fabulous faux filet with a Corsican wine sauce …

…followed by their chocolate cake (more like a ridiculous rich chocolate torte)…

and a bavarois de poire.

We liked it so much we returned another day for lunch. There’s a good value lunch menu with dishes like this tender grilled cuttlefish with vegetables.

Le Petit Mignon
33 Rue Saint-Rémi
33000 Bordeaux, France

For more classic Bordelais dishes, we went to La Table Bordelais, a very friendly spot with a set lunch that’s available all week. There was another salade de gesiers…

…and another steak, but this time with a sauce bordelaise.

And a confit de canard! Oh yes, and those potatoes – fabulous.

Blai and I shared this simple tarte aux poires but another dessert option was coffee with that classic Bordeaux pastry – the canelé!

La Table Bordelais
10 Rue Piliers de Tutelle
33000 Bordeaux, France

There was one evening where we came out of a concert and it was absolutely pouring down. Hungry and wet, we stepped next door to Le Régent, an old style brasserie on Place Gambetta. Many of us were coming in like drowned rats and somehow there was room for all. Portions were big here!

We shared half a roast chicken…

… and a brandade de cabillaud (made with fresh cod and not dried salted cod). The food was simple but it was all well prepared and hit the spot. They do pizzas too and those appeared to be very popular with locals.

Le Régent
46 Place Gambetta
33000 Bordeaux, France

There was another visit to Le Scopitone where we all opted for the excellent value prix fixe. There was a lamb spring roll to start…

… as well as an excellent cream of turnip soup (I’m growing turnips for the first time this year and I hope to recreate this!).

There was a fish fillet (I can’t remember the type of fish but I recall it’s one not familiar to these shores) cooked very simply but beautifully with tomatoes and capers.

There was an emincé de boeuf as well, with a sauce bordelaise, and it’s where I realised that no, emincé isn’t a mince but thin slices of meat. In this case, these were thin slices of a very rare piece of beef that would be boot leather if cooked any other way!

Desserts were simple but excellent: tarte tatin…

… and an outstanding mango cheesecake.

Le Scopitone
5 Rue de la Vieille Tour
33000 Bordeaux, France

For me, one particular highlight was a lunch at Le Cagette, a beautifully light and airy restaurant. They too had a set lunch with plenty of choices. Watercress soup to start (this was an eye opener for me as I’m only familiar with Chinese pork and watercress soup)…

or a beetroot and orange salad (yeah, this wasn’t mine…I’m still not a fan of beetroot).

For mains, a mushroom risotto…

… or my favourite, an excellent slice of meatloaf with the most impossibly airy mashed potatoes.

Tarte tatin here too! Not sure if you can tell but dessert portions were ridiculously generous.

La Cagette
8 Place du Palais
33000 Bordeaux, France

One more, one more! I became a temporary regular at the Patisserie Artisanale Gaston Bordeaux, which I can highly recommend. Their viennoiserie is outstanding: all the usuals plus combinations like pistachio and raspberry or vanilla and apple. I tried many of them but my favourite is always the croissant. I never got to try their pastries (as they were laid out after breakfast time) but they looked fantastic too.

Patisserie Artisanale Gaston Bordeaux
34 Rue du Dr Charles Nancel Penard
33000 Bordeaux, France

We fell in love with Bordeaux and I sure wouldn’t mind returning again!

 

Two Restaurants and Two Libraries in Manchester

I was up in Manchester at the beginning of this month for work. There were two nights, a presentation, and walks here and there throughout the city as I made my way from the conference venue to my Travelodge room. Here were the highlights for me.

There was lunch the Thai supermarket Siam Smiles (48A George Street, Manchester M1 4HF), where I had a large plate of khao kha moo (the sweet and salty stewed pork knuckle with rice) for £9.50. There was hot and sweet Thai milk tea too.

A visit to the John Rylands Library was a necessity as I have a passion for libraries and I was not disappointed!

The Victorian building was utterly gorgeous and I only wished I’d had more time in there. If you do stop by, make time to have a peek at the working original loos in the basement!

The Christmas markets woven through the city streets were exceptionally charming, lending a festive air to the quiet city. There were plenty of stalls from the European continent as well as more local treats. I wished I had more space to sample the boreks I saw at one stall.

The Mancunian specialty I wanted to try was rice and three and I chose to have it at Kabana (52 Back Turner Street, Manchester M4 1FP). For £6, I could choose from the curries of the day; my choices were lamb, keema and potatoes, and channa. The food isn’t highly spiced but is very comforting with lots of fresh ginger and coriander. You won’t leave hungry!

From a tip from a kind man at the John Rylands, I made my way to Chetham’s Library for a free tour just prior to catching my train back to London. This library is the oldest public reference library in the English speaking world and is part of Chetham’s School (specialising in music). The library dates from the 17th century but is housed in a building dating from the 15th century.

There was first a glimpse at the freezing cold but impressive medieval hall with its humongous fireplace.

The library itself is upstairs and looks like something out of a certain fictional wizarding school. It’s such an important bit of history and I’m so glad to have seen it.

And that’s the very short report of how Manchester fed me and charmed me this festive season!

 

A Return to Athens

I can’t believe it’s already been 4 years since I first visited Greece. This time I was there for almost a week – Saturday night to Thursday night – and it was mainly for work. And this time, the quality of the food we had everywhere really made a big impact on me; I came back to London thoroughly missing the food and the weather.

I arrived at my hotel at about 9pm on the Saturday night and after dropping everything off in my room, headed straight out again for nourishment. Nearby to my hotel is Ravaisi, a souvlaki place with outdoor seating (packed) and a long queue for takeaway – promising signs indeed! At €2 for each sandwich, I thought things would be petite and hence ordered one pork gyros sandwich and one of chicken too. They were huge – each the size of London burritos – and, of course, I couldn’t finish them. They were excellent though!

The next day was a free day for me before work would kick in. The weather was beautiful and I spent the morning wandering around the Ancient Agora …

… and then the Roman Agora.

Lunch was at a suitably Greek time of 3pm and I headed over to Oineas, which seemed to have good reviews on Google. I wasn’t disappointed.

The restaurant had a good selection of meze and main courses and solo diners can still have a selection of meze by just choosing those that are offered by the piece. The cuisine is Greek but with a modern twist. Highlights for me were the incredible cheese pie made with kadaifi pastry and then sat in a pool of melted cheese …

… and this homemade little burger patty with a delicious spicy sauce.

My main course was a tender grilled calamari and homemade fries and its size did defeat me after all that initial cheese and meat.

I thought I couldn’t fit in another bite but when a little slice of syrup soaked walnut cake was deposited on my table along with the bill, I tucked into that too!

That afternoon was spent at the National Archaelogical Museum, which is truly worth a visit if you have the time. The treasures within are indeed jaw-dropping.

Dinner that evening was with an old friend I was meeting again after many years and he took me to spiti, an Italian restaurant in the outskirts of the city. Now here was where the locals eat! We split a couple of excellent salads. Here’s a tomato and caper leaf salad with a local cheese …

… and a refreshing salmon and avocado salad.

My main course was a grilled croaker served with a little mound of Swiss chard and tomatoes and an excellent lemon sauce.

We couldn’t fit any more after this, which was a shame as the food really was very good. I loved seeing another side of Athens.

On my first night after work, a colleague brought us to Efxaris, around the corner from Monastiraki station. Despite its super touristy location, our colleague had been brought there in the past by an Athenian and the restaurant was indeed filled with locals. Between 6 of us, we split a fine moussaka, …

… a ridiculous meat platter (grilled meat, more grilled meat, grilled chicken, grilled kebabs, gyros, etc), …

… an equally ridiculous seafood platter (fried and grilled and boiled things galore), …

… a Greek salad (not pictured), and finally a couple mountains of Greek yogurt with honey. Prices were extremely reasonable and I’d definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a place in the heart of the city.

Sometime the next day, I discovered Greek spoon sweets, the jammy candied fruits traditionally served with a spoon to guests as a sweet welcome. These little figs were insanely delicious and I after this introduction, I bought a couple of jars of spoon sweets to take home and we’re enjoying them with Greek yoghurt at home.

The second evening, another Athens resident referred us to Scholarchio, a highlight of my trip. Yes, it’s quite touristy but you do find locals there too and after our meal, my Greek friend did deem the food very good and the flavours correct. And best of all is the price – for groups, it’s €15 a head for a set number of dishes to share, mineral water, another drink (ouzo, beer, wine or soft drink), bread and dessert. To aid with selection of dishes (we got to choose 17 between 7 of us), the waiter brings a massive plate of the available prepared dishes …

… and also recites what can be ordered freshly made from the kitchen. You make your selection, start with what’s already ready to go, and wait for the rest of the dishes to be prepared. Let’s see, clockwise from the right in the photo below, we have giant beans, stewed pork in wine, dolmades in lemon sauce, and tyrokauteri (a fantastic spicy cheese).

Let’s see, left to right below, we have fava (one of my favourite dips, Greek yellow split pea puree), tzatziki, taramasalata, and spicy pork sausages.

More! Clockwise from the bottom: a new favourite – horta (boiled wild greens), another meat dish (beef?), meatballs in tomato sauce.

It didn’t end there! The freshly fried stuff coming out of their kitchen was all excellent. Fried whitebait was crisp and non-greasy.

Saganaki (fried cheese) was very popular at our table …

… as were fried aubergines.

One of our other meat dishes was a tigania chicken, a sauteed chicken dish made with lemon and mustard. There was also a tigania pork with balsamic vinegar and honey.

Courgette and feta fritters were also delicious if a bit salty; nothing a lot of tzatziki couldn’t solve though!

There were other dishes too – too many to keep track of! I recall a Greek salad and fried courgettes and fried potatoes. And maybe another meat dish. How many is that already? Dessert was another slice of the typical syrup-soaked cakes I’d been seeing – this time orange.

It’s a fun place to eat and to eat well too. I enjoyed working my way through an excellent spread!

On my last day, a quick trip to the supermarket about a 2 minute walk from my hotel ensured that my dried oregano supplies are now at their freshest. I also loved seeing the impressive range of feta and Greek yoghurt available!

Before heading to the airport to catch my flight home, I also couldn’t help popping back into Ravaisi to get one last stick of pork souvlaki (they call each souvlaki stick kalamaki) – this was a perfect snack!

Ah, I really do miss Athens and all the amazing food I had there! One thing I did notice was how fabulous all the tomatoes were at all restaurants, even at the cheapest places. Actually, all the ingredients were top notch everywhere…this is some excellent Mediterranean cuisine! As usual, all my photos can be found in this Flickr album.