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The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” – G.K. Chesterton

Wednesday 27 November 2013

That bun in the oven

Things are quiet around here for a good reason. As you may know, I'd been baking a little bun for the past 9 months, and last Thursday was the time for that little bun to pop out. I am totally in love with my little girl, and will have my hands full for a little bit. I will get back to regular blogging and work on that backlog of photos once we've established some sort of a routine.

Tuesday 19 November 2013

Lacklustre lunch @ Wong Chi Kei, Hong Kong

I love a good bowl of congee, and my mum and sisters all share my common love for congee with preserved egg, however both hubby and the boy are not too keen on congee. I have a favourite congee shop in Hong Kong where I go on my own to enjoy a bowl of preserved egg and beef/pork congee with some you tiao (Chinese cruller/doughnut). However, this congee joint is as local and no-frills as it gets in HK - sharing a table with strangers is expected, and it is definitely not ideal for a leisurely meal with little kids who has multiple food allergies. At HK$17 or less for a tasty bowl of congee, it is popular with the locals and this expat here. When I first read about the crab congee at Wong Chi Kei (also known as Wong Chi Kee on the internet), it went on my list of things to eat in Hong Kong. We were in Central on Sunday, heading towards our favourite teahouse for some yum cha lunch, when we walked past Wong Chi Kei on the same road. I proposed to hubby that we try some place new for lunch, to which he agreed, and we walked down the steps with our 5-year-old boy in tow into Wong Chi Kei.


Wong Chi Kei specialises in noodles and congee, and it is quite nicely presented for such a restaurant. The location is convenient, and the service we got was professional enough. There was a wide variety of dishes on the menu to suit all tastes and diet requirements, and prices were reasonable. After a brief flick through the menu, we settled on three items that we thought would make up a fairly balanced meal.

Yung chow fried rice (HK$69) for the boy who requested rice over noodles that day. I liked the fried rice, which was tasty with a good amount of shrimps. The boy ate at least half of the generous serving:

Meat and Vegetable Platter (HK$200). We ordered this mostly for hubby who wanted a protein-rich dish, but unfortunately he did not like anything on it. The dumplings were floppy and barely warm and the mushrooms were just edible (but cold). The braised pork trotters and stewed pork tasted good enough, but hubby is not a big fan of the gelatinous texture, and he literally only took one bite (my dad would have cleaned off the trotters if he was here). I think this platter could be vastly improved if everything was served piping hot:

Fresh Crab Congee (HK$90). The congee texture was good and not watery, but I thought flavour was lacking. The crab itself wasn't that great - not much flavour and definitely lacked the sweetness usually found in good crabs - which would explain the lackluster congee. Perhaps the addition of a preserved egg could have improved the congee, but hubby isn't a fan of the green egg:

I am loath to write a not-so-positive review, especially when the restaurant is highly favoured by a blogger who I regard as a discerning foodie. In all fairness, our different experiences could be put down to the fact that the kitchen staff on duty on the day we visited were not great at food preparation, or that we just ordered the wrong dishes for a first-time visit, or that the quality was just bad on our visit. Or perhaps a combination of all three. I would be reluctant to come back for a second try.

[Prices quoted above excludes the 10% service charge.]

Wong Chi Kei
Basement Level
10-12 Stanley Street
Central, Hong Kong
Tel. +85 2 2869 1331

Sunday 17 November 2013

French seafood dinner @ Le Cantorbery, Dinan (France)

French cuisine is one of my favourite types of food, and I was in foodie heaven during our week-long stay in France during the summer. The food we had in the medieval Breton town of Dinan may not be as sophisticated as some of the food we ate in Paris, but it was nevertheless delicious in its own way. After a long day of walking and sightseeing around Dinan, we were grateful to finally sit down for dinner at Le Cantorbery.

Le Cantorbery just before the start of dinner service at 7pm. The dining room was full within an hour:

Le Cantorbery is a small and charming restaurant in a 17th-century townhouse. The warm and cosy atmosphere was inviting, and staff were friendly and spoke good English. The menu was in French, but our waiter was happy to explain the dishes and answer any questions we had. Ordering was simple; there were two types of set menus available for 29 euros and 40 euros, and ordering from the a-la-carte menu was also an option. Hubby and I both went with the 29 euros menu, and there were seven choices for each of the three courses. The food was delicious, well-presented and top-notch quality.

Brittany is where good French cider comes from, so hubby took the opportunity to order a local cider: Val de Rance Cidre Bouché Brut:

The amuse bouche of a chilled tomato soup:

For entrée, hubby chose Croquant de lapin aux petits légumes et mesclun de salades (crispy rabbit with vegetables and mesclun salad). Prepared like a spring roll, it was a nice way to eat rabbit meat, which did not have a gamey flavour at all:

I went for the Assiette du mareyeur (seafood platter) for my entrée. Large serving size, and the seafood was fresh and delicious. It was messy eating, but well worth the effort:

Hubby's main - Pavé de lieu jaune au vinaigre balsamique (pollock with balsamic vinegar sauce). The white-fleshed fish was similar to cod, and it was beautifully cooked. The dark balsamic sauce was perhaps a bit too heavy for this mild-tasting fish, but it was nice in its own right - rich, thick and sweet:

I got the Pavé de saumon grillé au feu de bois, sauce béarnaise (wood-fired grilled salmon with bearnaise sauce). I was glad that the bearnaise sauce was served separately on the side because I didn't care too much for it, though hubby liked eating the salmon with the sauce just fine. The salmon was great with a lovely lightly charred flavour:

One dessert was Soufflé glacé é l'Izarra Verte (frozen soufflé with Izarra Verte, a sweet peppermint-flavoured liqueur). The frozen soufflé was like ice-cream but with a lighter texture. I liked the combination of the minty flavoured soufflé with the chocolate disc and sorbet:

The other dessert was Croustillant aux fraises (strawberry croustillant). Layers of sweet fresh strawberries with crispy sweet biscuits in a pool of smooth custard. It was a refreshing and light choice for dessert:

We were very happy with our meal at Le Cantorbery with nothing to complain about. It is a popular choice for dinner, so reservations are highly recommended.

Le Cantorbery
6 rue Sainte-Claire
22100 Dinan
France
Tel. + 33 2 96 39 02 52

Thursday 14 November 2013

Dinan (Part 2): Rue de Jerzual and the old port

Continuing on with our sightseeing walk around Dinan, we headed down Rue de Jerzual, the steep and scenic route down to the old port by River Rance. I wouldn't like to do the walk back up this road into town, unless I was looking for a good workout. Instead, we walked south along the River Rance, through the viaduct, came up alongside the outer rampart walls and went through an entrance that brought us to Jardin Anglais (English Garden). At the top of the rampart wall, we enjoyed a beautiful view of what's beyond Dinan's wall and River Rance. On our walk we also got to try the delicious Breton cake, kouign-amann, which was a much welcomed afternoon snack to fuel our walk (that took longer than planned due to outdated information on the guide map). Without much further ado, here are the photos!

Beautiful medieval houses along Rue de Jerzual:


One of the many gates along the rampart walls that surrounds the town of Dinan:

Stripey paintwork is a common theme:


At the bottom of Rue de Jerzual, opposite the bridge, was a small boulangerie called La Maison de Tatie Jeanne, offering all sorts of delicious-looking pastries, cakes and breads:

Kouign Amann translates to "butter cake". Crusty on the outside, layered puffs on the inside - simply yum:

By the River Rance:

Shops and restaurants opposite the port:

A huge viaduct spanning the valley across the River Rance:


I think the viaduct makes a pretty road bridge:

Walking up the pathway along the rampart wall:

The panoramic view out from the top of the wall (click on image for larger view):

The garden simply known as Jardin Anglais (English Garden):

Saint-Sauveur's Basilica, which we'd seen earlier from a distance in the clock tower:

The clock tower, viewed from inside the courtyard:

There are lots more to show and tell from our Europe trip, and I hope to get through them in good time.

Saturday 9 November 2013

Molecular gastronomy @ Bo Innovation, Hong Kong

I celebrated my birthday this week. To be honest, I don't like much fuss over my birthday - it's just another day, and after reaching a certain milestone last year, I don't think there's much to celebrate about adding another year to my age. Hubby insisted on doing something nice for my birthday, so we had a movie & dinner date on Saturday, which was special because this is something we don't often get to do since our son was born five years ago. And with another bub due to arrive any day now, we cherished this date even more so since it may be the last one for the months to come. After some thought about where to go for dinner, we decided to pop our molecular gastronomy cherry with Chef Alvin Leung's Bo Innovation. Some is of the opinion that Leung is riding on the success and hype of the science-and-cooking cuisine associated with famous chefs like Ferran Adrià and Heston Blumenthal (although said chefs have repudiated the term "molecular gastronomy"), but I wanted to experience Bo Innovation's food first-hand and form my own opinions. Leung ditched engineering to become the second self-taught chef in the world to be awarded Michelin stars (after Blumenthal). While Leung's food is modern and experimental, it is fundamentally Chinese and inspired by classic dishes, using select traditional ingredients. We are always keen to try out food that are interesting and different, and we eagerly looked forward to this dinner.

Outdoor patio dining at Bo Innovation - check out the huge tiled portrait of Alvin Leung!

Six seats at the Chef's Table by the kitchen:

The medium-sized restaurant had a sleek and modern interior, and the atmosphere was relaxed and cosy. The service was impeccable, and every effort was made to ensure that this girl and her bump was comfortable (the cushion in my chair was highly appreciated). Diners could choose to eat at the Chef's table (only six seats available, so this must be booked early), inside the main dining room, or outdoors. When hubby called up Bo Innovation one week before, the indoor tables were fully booked, which left us the choice of seats at the Chef's table or outdoors. Eating at the Chef's table gives the diners the privilege of being seated by the kitchen and interacting with the chefs, however the menu is limited to only one choice - the Chef's Table Menu (HK$2380). Eating at other tables gave us more flexibility of menu options, so we chose outdoors. The restaurant knew our preference for indoor dining (the weather last weekend was slightly affected by a nearby tropical cyclone), and a last minute cancellation for an indoor table meant that we could eat our meal without worrying about the weather. Aside from the Chef's Table Menu, there was also the option of the Chef's Menu (HK$1680) and the Tasting Menu (HK$1080). All three menus had a few common elements, and there was the option of wine pairing for an additional HK$700. After much consideration, I decided that I liked the Tasting Menu the best of the three, with a couple of optional extras added on. Unlike the other two menu options, the Tasting Menu is only available for the entire table, so hubby also had to have it (which he was fine with). I liked that every dish was explained in good detail and that special ingredients used in each dish were brought to the table for us to see, which helped us appreciate the food as we were eating them.

Hong Kong-style Egg Waffle (aka eggette), spring onion-flavoured. This was served in place of the breadbasket. It was interesting trying a savoury flavoured waffle, and it was very moreish!

Mao Tai Sour. The waiter assured me that there was not much alcohol in it, just enough mao tai to give a hint of flavour. I've never had the Chinese liquor before, so I cannot comment on that aspect of the drink, but it was tartly sour from lime juice:

The interesting goblet that held the Mao Tai Sour. We were instructed to grab the metal holder and tip the drink into the mouth, which felt a little awkward as I had to tilt my head right back to get the drink out of the deep vessel:

Dan Dan Noodles with chili pepper, pine nut, crispy egg noodles, preserved chinese mustard, iberico ham 36, ikura, green apple. This was quite a different take on the traditional noodle dish with a few unusual ingredients. I liked the crispy noodles, the foam scented with preserved vegetable, and the sweetness of the green apple. Great textures and flavours in one dish:

Foie Gras with "mui choy", an interpretation of the traditional Chinese dish of pork belly braised with sweet preserved mustard greens (mui choy kau yoke). The seared foie gras was imported from France, and it didn't have an overpowering gamey flavour, nor did I find it too rich as I usually do. The dehydrated mui choy sheet was crispy, and the mui choy-flavoured ice cream was quite a pleasant accompaniment to the foie gras. I particularly enjoyed the ginger granules that gave a nice crunchy texture:

Scallop with Shanghainese “jolo” sauce, crispy woba, sugar snap peas. Juicy scallops, sweet crunchy peas, crispy rice, and a drizzle of 'jolo' sauce (fermented red rice vinegar). Delicate presentation and a textural delight for the tongue:

Molecular "xiao long bao" - one of the signature dishes at Bo Innovation. The liquid essence of the Shanghainese soup dumplings were encased inside a spherical membrane and topped with a strip of preserved ginger. The warm liquid filling had a gorgeous smooth body with all the flavours of a soup dumpling but minus the meat and flour wrapping, and the membrane was slightly crunchy (though hubby said his wasn't crunchy at all):

Tomato with “pat chun” chinese vinegar, fermented Chinese olives “lam kok”, marshmallow with green onion oil. This was the dish that stood out the most for me. The red tomato had been stewed in "pat chun" (a sweet black rice vinegar) for 45 minutes, to be eaten whole. One bite released all the richly flavoured juice within the tomato. The middle piece was garnished with dehydrated fermented Chinese olives, and honestly I don't remember much of this one because my tastebuds were still in overdrive from the red tomato. The white marshmallow had the texture of a soft meringue but the savoury flavour of a tomato with a shot of green onion oil within it:

Red Fish with Yunnan ham, mandarin peel, potato, shiitake mushroom, onion puree. I thought this was the most ordinary dish of the meal. The fish was superb quality, the shiitake mushroom chip was fun to eat, and the dehydrated Yunnan ham was novel, but this dish was not as remarkable compared to the other dishes on the menu:

White Truffle with duck egg yolk, “cheung fun”, yak milk cheese (HK$480 supplement). This was the optional dish offered on the Tasting Menu featuring imported white truffles which are in season at the moment. Our waiter had suggested that we order one to share between the two of us. We were instructed to mix everything up before eating. It was quite an indulgent savoury course, with the richness of the runny duck yolk and the creaminess of the yak cheese (which did not have an obnoxious flavour like goat's cheese). The white truffles shavings were of course gorgeous:

For our main course, we could choose from a list of five dishes. Hubby very nicely asked me to pick two dishes that appealed most to me, and he would choose one of them so that I could get both of my preferences.

Langoustine with english mustard, salty egg, cauliflower, black truffle, duck jus. This is reminiscent of the indulgent Chinese dish of fried prawns with salted egg yolk. Hubby, though not a big fan of salted eggs, said he enjoyed this dish. I'm still undecided on the use of foam in food, as it doesn't add any texture, substance nor flavour to the dish, only the scent of the ingredient's essence the foam is made from. I enjoyed the truffled cauliflower bits, and I adored the salted yolk scampi:

Organic "Long Jiang" Chicken with 7 years aged Acquerello rice, yellow chicken stock, wooden fungus, sand ginger (HK$200 supplement). This was perhaps the most rustic-looking of all the dishes in the Tasting Menu, and it packed such a flavour punch. The aged Acquerello rice from Italy was prepared risotto-style with yellow chicken stock, and it had a gorgeously smooth but al dente texture, if that makes any sense. The roulade-style chicken was succulent and flavoursome:

The "Long Jiang" chicken served with a drizzle of sand ginger sauce:

Coconut with palm sugar, young coconut, chocolate, pineapple. My dessert plate came with a personalised birthday greeting. I loved the palm sugar ice cream as it reminded me of everything delicious made with palm sugar in my childhood growing up in Malaysia. The cocoa granules added a crunchy texture, and the coconut were presented two-ways: as liquid spheres similar to the Molecular "xiao long bao" dish, and crispy meringue. We enjoyed this tropical-style dish:

We thought we were finished with the meal after the dessert, but we were pleasantly surprised to be served the Eight Treasures Petit Fours presented inside a lovely birdcage and a bamboo steamer, along with a refreshing cup of ba bao cha (aka Eight Treasures Tea). The eight petit dim sum was based on the Chinese ba bao cha, which are made with a blend of eight ingredients that varies depending on where you get the tea from. At Bo Innovation, the Eight Treasures Tea was made with chrysanthemum, Chinese red dates, Chinese wolfberries, dragoneye fruit, rose buds, lotus seed and mandarin peel.

Eight Treasures Petit Fours with the Eight Treasures Tea. Inside the bamboo steamer sat the Wolfberry and Tianjin Pear Crystal Bun and the Osmanthus Steamed Sponge Cake. On the top level of the birdcage were (starting from top left in a clockwise direction) the Chrysanthemum Meringue, Red Date Marshmallow, Dragon Eye Coconut Jelly, and Mandarin Peel Chocolate Truffle; and on the bottom level were the Rose Macaron with Lychee Butter Cream and the Lotus Seed and Pistachio Sticky Rice Dumpling. I liked them all!

We really enjoyed our meal at Bo Innovation. It certainly was an interesting and different experience, and we've never had Chinese food like this before!

[Prices quoted above excludes the 10% service charge.]

Bo Innovation
Shop 13, 2nd Floor
J Residence
(Private lift entrance on Ship Street)
60 Johnston Rd
Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Tel. +852 2850 8371

Tuesday 5 November 2013

Dava @ AYANA Resort and Spa, Bali

We were in Bali not too long ago to attend a friend's wedding. Bali was not on our travel radar, and if not for my friend's wedding, it would probably be many more years before we visited Bali. The wedding was held at the AYANA, a truly magnificent site for a wedding by the coast. It was a beautiful wedding, and we enjoyed a delicious reception dinner at Dava, the French restaurant inside the resort. The food we had rated as one of the best wedding food we've ever eaten, and this was partly due to the fact that we had the reception at an actual fine dining restaurant (inside a luxurious 5-star resort no less), and the kitchen also didn't have to handle a large number of wedding guests. We were served a 3-course meal of our choice, which we were asked to choose a few weeks prior to the event. Everything we experienced in Dava was top-notch - excellent service, beautiful decor, and delectable food.

The beautiful setting of the AYANA resort:

Dava is lotus-shaped, with a floating garden that surrounded the restaurant:

European-style mini-sized raisin bread loaf, served to each guest:

The amuse-bouche, a cold pumpkin cream with a smattering of caviar on top - just enough to whet the appetite for the courses to come:

Hubby's entree of Escargot au Gratin with mushrooms fricassee, lentils du puy, tomato fondue and parmigiano reggiano. This was not a looker, but it tasted really good! Who would have thought that snails and cheese make a good combination?

For my entree, I chose the Seafood Bisque with red claw crayfish, brioche, avocado relish and confit tomato. The soup was so good, full of umami seafood flavours, and the avocado relish and confit tomato on the brioche was lovely:

The boy enjoyed his main course - Pan-roasted Black Cod with prawn butter gratin, crab cannelloni, ricotta pudding and lemon basil emulsion. The black cod was cooked to perfection with a nice crust and moist flesh, and the crab cannelloni was divine!

For his main course, hubby got the Seared Scallops with Marcona almonds, potato fritters, eggplant caponata and romesco sauce. The presentation was lovely, the scallops were cooked just right, and everything on the plate was in perfect harmony with each other:

My main course of Lobster “au gratin” with zucchini carpaccio, wilted spinach and mushrooms, goat’s milk feta and preserved lemon mignonette. Interesting presentation, but this one didn't grab me as much as the other two main dishes I tried. Still, it was enjoyable, and great for those who appreciate lobster meat (which I frankly think is quite over-rated):

Hubby's dessert was Valrhona Chocolate Fondant with raspberry and white chocolate parfait, milk sorbet and bailey’s Irish cream pudding. It worked well enough, but I thought the Irish cream pudding was an unnecessary garnish:

I chose the Pumpkin Butternut Pumpkin Crème Brûlée with candied sunflower seeds, chocolate crèmeux and spiced honey ice cream. This was a beautiful dessert, and was actually a three-in-one dessert as each component would've stood well on their own:

We really enjoyed the wedding reception food at Dava. It's definitely a good choice for a special occasion or a romantic dinner.

Dava
AYANA Resort and Spa
Jl. Karang Mas Sejahtera
Jimbaran, Bali 80364
Indonesia
Tel. +62 361 702222