Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Foodie's food concern
A thought occurred to me one day and I felt an urgent need to voice my concern to a friend...Considering that I love to try new food, regardless of what type of stuff it is.... considering that I'm used to all sorts of strange and unusual flavours...
What if... what if... one day I ate some rotten food and still think that it's meant to be like that?!
Imagine me keeling over from food poisoning without even understanding what had killed me in the first place... what a wonderful prospect. (-_-)"'
... ... ... ....
What the heck, when it comes, it comes. At least I can say that I have savoured all the flavours of life, even the "taste" of death.
Concern voiced and point taken, I think my stomach can still survive new challenges.... I think.
Whatever.
Anyway, I was suddenly reminded of my concern when I sat down for lunch at the hotel while traveling around Tohoku.
It felt ok when I bought the stuff at the supermarket.
But as I surveyed my meal, a sudden flash sparked through my mind and it became strangely clear to me that probably no one else furnish their meals in such a manner...
Carol's budget lunch: Clockwise from bottom
1. Chinese Bean Vermicelli Salad seasoned with brown rice vinegar
2. Gyuukaku Kimchi (Half price because it's expiring in 2 days' time)
3. Kiwi fruit for dessert
4. Sliced Fresh Seaweed from Miyagi province.
Since I'm in the Tohoku region, I figured that I should definitely try their local produce. And fresh seaweed is one of them :) (Close-up below)
Now, as long as the packaging says 生食用 (For fresh = raw consumption), I get the stuff.
They have it for chicken eggs, different types of seaweed, seafood, fish, fish eggs, beef, chicken, horse meat, etc.
Organic food without any seasoning, what a great way to head back to nature.
0 Comments:
Friday, May 04, 2007
Barking Crab Restaurant
One certainly needs to bark up the right tree when searching for the holy grail of delicious food.
And this restaurant does has the potential to be listed in King Arthur’s search map.
You know that it’s safe territory when a restaurant’s crowded even on a Monday.
Actually, Barking Crab is more like a pub cum restaurant. Lotsa nautical stuff which range from paintings, buoys, statue of mermaids, decorate the walls.
Bustling but not too noisy. The place was abuzz with life but we managed to get a private area by the window that faced the river.
½ & ½ Twisted Tea
I wanted a non-alcoholic beverage and I got… alcoholic tea?!
And I thought something with “tea” attached to the name would be safe but I had obviously forgotten about Long Island Tea (a cocktail name), plus the fact that this restaurant operates in tandem with a pub…..
When I first took a sip of the drink, I thought my taste buds had finally succumbed to frost bite and lost their ability to fulfill their sacred duty.
Looked hard at the small heading, “‘Hard’ iced tea & ‘Hard’ lemon.”
My first reaction was “What the hell… ?” How ‘hard’ can iced tea and lemon be except frozen hard?
Then the second heading announced, “Malt beverage with select teas and natural flavours”…..
Malt beverage, hmm.... sounds like an obvious hint.
Then the ingredients provided the answer: 5% alcohol.
I didn’t want to travel back in the dark, in a daze while in a foreign land so I had to banish it to a corner of the table.
Anyway, the “tea” tasted quite nice with a malty beer taste.
A bit bitter but still acceptable.
Fresh Oyster with Spicy Sauce
When things are in season, it’s almost compulsory that one should get a taste of them to celebrate their existence.
……… that didn’t make much sense but what the heck.
For this seasonal dish, VERY fresh succulent oysters are fried in thick batter such that they looked like chicken nuggets.
The spicy sauce that accompanied it was sweet and very spicy, like a stronger version of Thai chilli sauce but with an herb undertone. Almost like Japanese curry, only thinner and sweeter.
It’s wonderful to bite into hot, freshly-cooked oysters and feel the heat pierce your tongue.
Follow it with a hot, spicy sauce and you have a fiery celebration of this season’s best.
Sweet and Spicy Beer-Battered Shrimp
Seriously, the first bite felt like I was eating goreng pisang (Malay fried banana snack)
Again, VERY fresh seafood that was plump and satisfying to the bite.
But I found it a little lacking on the sweet and spicy side. Maybe because I had traumatized my taste buds too much with the “twisted tea” and fiery seasonal celebration, haha.
Clam Chowder
Somewhere in this pict... hmm.. sorry, in my stomach
It’s a different version this time, thinner and more sour in taste.
Probably because it was cooked with celery and herbs.
I preferred 8/10 Restaurant and Legal Seafood’s hearty, creamy versions. But still, the sour tinge was quite appetite-inducing.
Big ¼ Pound Lobster
If I have to admit it, the entire food trip in Boston was rather decadent.
I actually ate lobsters twice within 2 days, more frequent than all the years added since I learnt how to spell this crustacean.
This lobster tasted sweeter than Legal Seafood's bland version.
Same as Legal Seafood, it came with a liquid made from melted butter and the broth that the lobster was steamed in.
I need to make a special mention that this sauce does take some getting used to because of its pungent sea smell.
Luckily, I had recovered sufficiently enough from my jet lag to start appreciating the taste of pure nature in it.
0 Comments:
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Legal Seafood
Legal Seafood fulfilled my criteria of a place that was worthy of visiting.
My friend and I walked past it as we were shivering to our hotel.
Fishing for the right spot... and we got it!!
In the dark, lonely and quiet streets, this restaurant simply shone like a beacon with its warm, welcoming lights and crowded interior.
The queue that lined the doorway did make us curious and led to our presence within the place.
Clam Chowder
We actually ordered only one serving but the restaurant kindly served it in two cups.
A creamy soup with generous portions of clams… I can definitely fall in love with Boston’s clam chowder.
It came with a packet of tiny bun-like biscuits which you can pop into the soup for an added crunch. (I suspect that this is a Boston thingy since 8/10 Restaurant also served the same biscuits with their clam chowder.)
Instead of croutons, you get a healthier low-fat version that soaks up the clam chowder beautifully to give you a delicious mouthful.
New England Lobster Bake
This came with a whole lobster and tons of mussels and steamers (a type of shellfish)
The dish was so fresh that the mussels and steamers really smelled and tasted like the sea.
It came with a sauce that was made from melted butter and the juices left after the seafood was steamed.
Apron and tools considerately provided to ensure a clean and easy meal
It really should be good but I was too overcome by jet lag and exhaustion to properly appreciate the food.
The pungent smell of seafood in the sauce didn’t do much except make me feel more nauseous...
... such that I had to leave Nana to valiantly stuff down the rest of the food all by herself while I crumble in wimpy surrender beside the table.
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Sunday, March 04, 2007
8/10 Restaurant: A score to reckon with
After a long evening of waiting in the blizzy, cold weather, Nana and I decided to reward ourselves with a good meal after we had reached the hostel.
In a foreign land, always try what the locals highly recommend.
In tune with this principle, I headed for the 8/10 Restaurant, as recommended by the Prescott International hostel’s manager.
Seriously, I would give it the same score (or even higher) as its sign board for very good food at reasonable prices.
Clam Chowder
When in Rome, do what the Romans do. When in Boston, eat lobster and clam chowder.
At least that’s what my travel companion persuaded me to do in New England.
The waitress told me that they had started serving this dish only after overwhelming demands by visitors. I can tell that she was rather amused by the visitors’ unexplainable obsession with clam chowder.
Let’s talk about clam chowder.
Not that I’m an expert on it since my tangential relationship with it only comes about courtesy of Campbell soups.
But to make chowder taste like well, chow-der, I presume the soup needs to be thick, creamy, stew-like with loads of ingredients such that the soup is more of a main meal, rather than an appetizer.
And 8/10 Restaurant’s clam chowder didn’t disappoint. :)
A thick, creamy soup with CHUNKS of clam in it.
I was expecting tiny pieces that occasionally surface from the bottom of the bowl (much like some canned soups) but obviously, the clams live well in Boston.
Which in effect, results in generous, chunky clam meat swimming around in the tasty chowder.
Delicious and satisfying.
Coconut Shrimp
Coconut slices and peanut bits flaked the outside of the deep-fried shrimps and complemented by a dollop of sweet tangy pineapple sauce.
Fresh, crunchy taste charmingly enhanced with the tantalizing fragrance of coconut and peanuts.
Who ever gave the chef the idea to put Hawaii into a dish?
Highly recommended for a taste of great cheer and holiday-ish mood (particularly important during this cold weather in Boston :) )
8/10 Mixed Grill
This consisted of steak and turkey tips, sweet Italian sausage with vegetable stir-fry and rice.
You get several choices such as rice or mash potatoes, salad or stir-fry. It’s a definite value for money since its huge portion just dominated our view on the dining table.
The friendly, matronly waitress was amazed at our appetite.
In summary, we were stuffed when we finally finished the whole meal. Had to leave the rice since we couldn’t squeeze in another grain.
It was a pity that we’re only staying for one more night at the hostel or else it would have been great to eat at this friendly place again.
1 Comments:
This is great info to know.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Dempsey's Pistachio Muffin
My survival tips on finding great food:
1. Avoid a shop if it is empty.
2. See long queues outside a shop? Be curious but be discerning.
Sometimes, people queue just for the sake of queuing. The food may be just so-so.
3. DO go into old shops, especially if it looks like it's been there for generations.
4. Be open to trying anything and everything.
Your taste buds may be more adventurous than you have imagined it to be.
5. Share with a friend.
Food always taste better when you share it with someone close (especially the calories).
My jaunt in America was another trip of new gastronomical experiences.
The super-friendly manager of the Prescott International hostel that we were staying in recommended this for breakfast, so Nana and I decided to head for it before we venture on our
Salem trip
The Shine of Approval :)
It felt like it has been there for some generations.....
… which is always a good indication of the high food quality. Hey, it must be GOOD to have survived the fickle taste buds of different generations of youngsters and onslaught of cheap fastfood joints, right?
Homely, simple place with a selection of the finest
Simple, no fuss, homely interior, which is also another indication that the place relies on the virtue of its tasty food rather than on splashy, fancy decorations.
Honestly, the green color of the muffin was a bit disturbing at first sight. But it's Pistachio Muffin, whoever heard of pistachio muffin?!
Off-putting green notwithstanding, I HAVE to try it.
The soft, rather moist interior is stock-chocked with chunky pistachios. Not tiny slivered or stingy minute pieces but big wholesome nuts are packed into this green softball.
Working in tandem with the pistachio jewels, the thin crust added a nice texture which balanced perfectly with the moist softness of the inside.
Seriously, this muffin is quite addictive and can easily persuade one to eat another since it’s not too sweet and the almost almond-jelly-like fragrance simply titillates the senses.
Finished the entire muffin although it’s bigger than my palm.
Even the crumbs are patiently picked up and popped into my mouth, coz it’ll truly be a shame to waste them.
Btw, it costs US $1 which comes to around SIN $1.50. A definite must-buy when compared to the quality of certain international cafes’ muffins.
0 Comments:
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Munch the sugar crunch
Muesli Munch: Fig and Pecan Cookie
My morning snack aboard the plane.
My philosophy is "Rather be full and happy, than hungry and cranky" which is the reason why I ate the snack even though I'm not hungry.
This philosophy is especially true when you're not sure when the next meal will be.
To sum up the snack's description, it is VERY sweet. Although it's "reduced fat", it is definitely not reduced sugar.
Diabetes-alert: Do eat this if you wish to die even earlier.
A 2 inch wide, ½ inch thick murder device. And silent too. Satisfaction guaranteed.
The description on the wrapping read "Crammed with figs and pecans and delicately flavored with orange oil."
Ok... very delicate indeed.
Didn't really notice any orangey aroma except for the sugary taste.
It had a nice texture though. Very muesli but I don't really appreciate muesli much since my last episode in Japan where I had to survive on this snack (food ration courtesy of my eldest sis) for nearly 2 weeks. Dreadful memory.
I gave up 2/3 of the way and jumped to the apple.
Again, VERY sweet and crunchy.
But I'll rather keep my digestive system fully functional during the trip, so I resolutely crunched on.
Probably will be on a sugar high after this... sigh...
0 Comments:
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Basashi: Horse Sashimi
I didn`t know it existed either.
I was pretty taken aback when I first encountered it in a Japanese oden restaurant in Kagoshima, Kyushu.
Raw horse meat. Frozen stiff. The image of the survivors` main nourishment in the movie `Alive` came to my mind. I wondered how my conscience could survive this...
But apparently, my conscience had long degenerated so there weren`t any ethics to consider about.
Besides, my host family highly recommended it so it would be rude to reject their warm kindness (they treated me to chicken sashimi when I first arrived in Kagoshima).
And it would prove to be my downfall.
I fell in love with it.
雪降りの馬刺し
`Snow-descending horse sashimi`
It`s strange how frozen food can still be a culinary miracle. The horse sashimi I ate was chilled till hard and sliced into 5mm thickness.
They called it 雪降りの馬刺し or `snow-descending horse sashimi` (now this really associated with ` Alive` -_-""" )
It`s eaten with thinly sliced white radish and soysauce that`s flavoured with minced garlic and shallot.
I understood why they named it as such when I savoured the dish. It did have an uncanny feeling of snow melting in the mouth.
Absolutely fantastic feeling. And delicious too.
I supposed the marbled fats assisted in creating the sensation of melting ice.
To say the least, when I saw that horse sashimi was available in a menu after I returned to Tokyo, I immediately ordered it.
3 Comments:
(O_O)!! surely u hv SOME idea how grosse that sounds, much less looks and tastes...urgh...Jau
n i guess there are just SOME animals i refuse to eat after all...and horse probably falls under that category...haha...dun ask me why...i simply won't...Jau
oh... wat a pity coz it was good!
About Carolyn
Female
Dog year
Pisces
Now in:
X America
X Australia
X Japan
0 Singapore
X Taiwan
X other parts of the world
X bed
Fav:
Travel, photography, eat strange food, getting lost, jogging, staring at the sky,
reading, real-life ghost acounts, spacing out, zzZ!
Warning: Never disturb her just before and after sleep, NEVER.
About life... :
Live without any regrets.
My rules:
LIVE hard, appreciate little things and be contented with what you receive.
Food that I`ve tried so far:
abalone, ants, bird's nest, caterpillar, century egg, chicken, clam, crab, crocodile, duck, eel, emu, fermented tofu, frog, fugu (puffer fish), ginseng, goose, grass,
horse, jellyfish, kangeroo, limpets, lobster, mussel, natto, octopus, ostrich, ox tongue, oyster, pig, prawn,
salmon, salted duck egg, scorpion, sea cucumber, seaweed, shark, shrimp, snails, sparrow, squid, stingray, tuna, turtle, venison, whale
apple, aronia berry, artichoke, avocado, banana, blackberry, blueberry, cherry, coconut, cranberry, dates, dragonfruit, durian, fig, gooseberry, grape, grapefruit, guava, honeydew, jackfruit, kiwi, lemon, lime,
mango, mangosteen, nectarine, olive, orange, passionfruit, peach, pear, pineapple, plum, pomegranate, prune, rambutan, raspberry, sago, soursop, starfruit, strawberry, watermelon, wintermelon, wolfberry
almond, broadbean, caraway seed, cashew nut, chick peas, flax seed, green bean, lotus seed, macademia nuts, peanut, pecan, peppercorn, pine nuts, pistachio,
poppy seed, pumpkin seed, red bean, sesame seed, soyabean, sunflower seeds, walnut, watermelon seed
chamomile, cherry blossom, chrysanthemum, echinacea, elderberry flower, hibiscus, lavender, lily, lotus, rose
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