Mourne Seafood Belfast - Take 2

Mourne Seafood comes highly recommended by so many people, and I joined the crowd when I visited it for the first time last October. Each of our party ordered a starter, main and dessert; the food was absolutely delicious and came up to just £26 per person.

Most of our spread, from top left: Seabass with chorizo; queen scalloprs with pumpkin risotto; crab linguine; salmon cakes; sticky data pudding; peel-and-eat langoustines; seabass with citrus dressing

It was thus with excitement that I headed there again last weekend, ready to indulge in another round of good seafood – and I’m disappointed to say that I wasn’t as lucky this time.

I started with the pan-fried crab claws with chilli butter (£7). Still having vivid memories of the Dirty Duck’s unbeatable crab claws, I wondered if I’ll have a similar experience at Mourne Seafood. Unfortunately, the crab claws served did not come cleanly off the ‘bone’, and had a mushy texture associated with slightly overcooked and less-than-fresh crab meat. The dish was also somewhat bland, with barely a trace of chilli or butter.

Quality aside, the crab claws came in a good value for money portion, although the winner for this category has to be the Mourne Mussels. The medium pot (£6.75) is massive and is guaranteed to fill you up – although the white wine, garlic and cream sauce was described as (and verified to be) rather salty.

Fuelled by the moreish queen scallops and pumpkin risotto we had on our first visit, I went for the seared scallops and linguine in saffron cream sauce (£17) this time. Sadly, my immediate thought upon seeing the dish was “My, that’s a heap of pasta”, and the scallops weren’t as plentiful. The sauce was also a tad too eggy even for an egg lover like me, although there were just enough chopped tomatoes and wilted greens for me to eat it all (I was hungry).

Look at this risotto - chock full of scallops and mussels all over its top - and tell me that the scallop linguine doesn't look sad in comparison! If i recall correctly the risotto was about £17 too.

Thankfully, the delicious sticky date pudding (£5.25) I had previously was just as good the second time. Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drenched in fudge sauce, it was warm and moist, with finely shredded flesh of dates mixed evenly throughout the pudding.

Despite the somewhat disappointing second experience, Mourne Seafood is a place I’d eat at again. Our flawless first visit and its stellar reputation could not have come by chance, and its specials menu guarantees that you’ll never eat the same dish twice unless you want to. While dinner at Mourne Seafood always takes a while (at least 2 hrs for 3 courses), its service is impeccable and doesn’t feel slow. I’m just hoping that it’ll be third time lucky so that I can gush about it again.

CoCo Restaurant - A Review

We were out yesterday for a belated Valentine’s Day dinner, as E was away for work last weekend, and thought that CoCo’s “Date Night on a School Night” special would be a good way to celebrate the occasion.  

Upon entering the restaurant, I was struck by its décor – classy at the entrance, kitschy at the near wall, cosy towards the back with tea lights and rose stalks on the tables, and pop-arty on the other walls. It was a bit of a hodgepodge, but I loved it. I thought for a moment that we were the only customers in this large restaurant, until I spotted the couple in the curved seats against the wall – a good sign.


The dinner deal comprised 3 courses each and a bottle of wine for just £50 per couple. As there were so many menus on their website, I was pleasantly surprised to be told that we could choose anything at all from the ala-carte menu. Orders placed, we sipped the wine that had been served. It was a Spanish Grenache rosé, with a label that read “I ♥ Rosé”. E joked that with such a label the wine couldn’t be anything fancy, but it was nonetheless deliciously smooth and fruity, with no hint of a bite. 

The scallops were my favourite dish for the night.

I hadn’t had scallops (rp £8.50) in a while, and couldn’t wait to tuck into their plump flesh when my starters arrived. The scallops were done just right – seared and lightly caramelised on the outside, and firm and sweet when biting into their gorgeous flesh. The carrot puree enhanced the sweetness of the scallops, although the black pudding seemed a bit overpowering against the scallops’ subtle flavours.  

I would have slurped up more cream if it wouldn't have looked so unbecoming

I couldn’t take my eyes off E’s prawn linguine (rp £7.25) either. I felt that there was slightly too much dill in the dish, but still happily slurped down the fresh prawns and delicious cream. It was a sizable portion, and as much as I’d have liked some bread to soak up the cream, that might have proven too much for a starter.


I actually liked the simple salad with blue cheese dressing a lot.
 

I was in the mood for meat, and the choice was clear when I discovered that there was no top-up for the Hereford Sirloin (rp £22.50). It was my first time having steak served this way: topped with chopped chives and onion in a blue cheese sauce. Although I’m not a big fan of onions or chives, I found the toppings surprisingly juicy and flavourful, if just a little pungent.  

The fan-shaped arrangement of the baby carrots is adorable. Would've sampled more of the pigeon and venison if my main weren't much bigger

E meanwhile had gone for the Co. Wicklow wood pigeon and venison (rp £19.95), which was beautifully presented with potato fondants, baby carrots, Jerusalem artichokes and blackberry halves. The pigeon was succulent and not in the least gamey, distinguishing it from what we’d tried at Shu. The venison was just as divine - well seasoned with the right amount of saltiness. Comparing it with what I’d thought at that time was good venison just 3 weeks ago at La Bastille, it seems like venison could benefit from a heavier hand with the spices.  

My favourite part of the mains, however, was the home-made, double-cooked French fries that we didn’t manage to snap a picture of. They were crisp on the outside, soft without being soggy, and had the most addictive batter. I was quite full by then, but we polished off the entire bowl of the best fries – double-cooked or otherwise – I’ve ever had.  

Looks are deceiving: the parfait was delicious and the heap of orange peel marmalade was quite substantial too.

E is a big fan of the chocolate-orange combination, and it was no surprise that he went for the blood orange chocolate parfait (rp £5.50). The parfait was rich and creamy with just a hint of bitter chocolate, while the blood orange marmalade was tart and the peel lent a lovely texture.  

Doesn't this remind you of summer?

E had some of the marmalade left, and I actually liked how it went with my coconut pannacotta (rp £5.50), which was light, smooth and creamy. The pannacotta had a sweet and tangy accompaniment of chopped mango, passion fruit and kiwi; its tropical flavours making it all the more enjoyable being savoured in the middle of winter.  

This is about half of the section we were in; there was another section to the right.

CoCo’s service was leisurely and friendly throughout dinner – perfect for a date night. Our half of the restaurant eventually got a bit fuller with 5 couples in total, and there couldn’t have been more than another table or two on the other side of the walls. It was wonderful, and a far cry from last year’s experience of being wedged between two couples in Zen on Valentine’s night itself.  

The food at CoCo was absolutely delightful. The flavours and textures were great and I loved every dish. The “Date Night on a School Night” deal itself is a bargain – just the courses would have cost us £69 ala-carte, and the wine would have brought it to at least £80. CoCo comes highly recommended for anyone looking for a wonderful date night.

CoCo Restaurant

7-11 Linenhall St,
Belfast, BT2 8AA
028 9031 1150

Patisserie Mimi

Everything about Patisserie Mimi is stylish and elegant, from its store display right down to its logo. It has beautiful packaging too - macarons lovingly cupped in red scallop-edged paper adorned with a ribbon bearing "PATISSERIE MIMI" in its signature font.

Don't you just love the look of this?

Patisserie Mimi opened in November last year and is a welcome addition to the scene. Despite its proximity to France, there is a dearth of places selling French-style cakes and pastries in Belfast, with most bakeries favouring a more homely taste to their treats. In fact, Patisserie Mimi is self-described as the city's "first continental-style patisserie", and its beautifully designed store and website display all the sophistication associated with Paris and its pastries.

 

I tried my first macaron 7 years ago from La Duree - the best of the best when it comes to macarons, no matter what anyone might say about Pierre Herme - and have been hooked ever since. The moment I learnt that Patisserie Mimi sold macarons, I knew that I had to try some. At £2 each (or £10 for 6), they are undeniably pricey but deliciously chewy as a good macaron should be.  

 

Thanks to my colleague, I'd previously tried the passion, rhubarb and strawberry macaron, which was devoured so quickly that the only impression I have of it is an "Mmmmmmm". The peach and honey macaron was less remarkable with an overly sweet and almost cloying icing filling. It also had a blob of jam in the middle, which was not only superfluous (as if it wasn't sweet enough) but also incongruous - like the contents of a £1 packet of jam 'n' cream biscuits in a fancy French pastry.

 

Skip that, I'd say, and head straight for the ivory chocolate and Tonka bean macaron. There was nary a hint of chocolate - but who needs chocolate when there's the fresh, delicious aroma of the Tonka bean that fills every bite and wafts down your throat? I couldn't get enough of this and will definitely be returning for more.

 

Clockwise from top: Pear and Yuzu Tarte Bordeleau, Peach and Honey macaron, and Ivory Chocolate and Tonka Bean macaron.

 

My main reason for dropping by Patisserie Mimi was actually to order a large cake for a birthday. I couldn't wait till then to try one of its delectable looking sweets though, and was curious about the Pear and Yuzu Tarte Bordeleau (£4.50).

 

There was no tinge of yuzu, which might have been for the best as I'm not sure if its slight tartness would have gone with the refreshing sweetness of the pear. I didn't quite like the taste of the nuts either, but fully recognise its aesthetic value which my photos just don't do justice to! The juicy pear slices were the definite winner here and perfectly complemented the moreish pastry - I'd suggest to serve it slightly chilled to enhance the fragrance of the pear.

 

In addition, Patisserie Mimi has excellent customer service. An email query regarding opening hours resulted in a swift response - after working hours no less - and an amendment on its website. It also led to the discovery that Patisserie Mimi is actually owned by The Merchant Hotel, as is its neighbour The National. Patisserie Mimi also stocks a whole range of breads at very affordable prices, starting from £1.25 for a baguette.

 

With all that in mind, what are you waiting for? I'm already looking forward to collecting the cake and picking up more sweet treats at the same time. :)

 

Patisserie Mimi

56 High Street
Belfast
BT1 2BE
028 9043 4773

Wagamama - Victoria Square, Belfast

Wagamama was established in1992 and has branches in 17 countries across the world, so they must be doing something right with their food. Let this post, therefore, be mainly about what not to order at Wagamama.

We visited the Victoria Square branch last November as part of a group. The service was fast, although the staff got our order of Wagamama Ramen wrong and served us the Chicken Ramen instead.

Wagamama has the dubious honour of having the worst ramen I've ever eaten. The broth was thin and bland, as were the pieces of chicken breast accompanying it - some effort in marinating the chicken would certainly have helped. The serving size was also significantly smaller than the teppanyaki dishes that some of our group had ordered, a fact accentuated by the enormous bowl it was served in. The large bowl meant that there was a generous portion of soup, but was in this case an unfortunate turn-off with all of that tasteless liquid staring back at us.

Chicken karaage is another dish on my must-order list. While it's basically fried chicken and easy to make (theoretically at least; I've yet to try it myself), it's seldom found on menus outside of Asia. Hence, we jumped at the chance when we spotted it at Wagamama.

Sadly, the chef's hand must have slipped when preparing the chicken, as there was so much rosemary (which doesn't belong in karaage) that it overpowered all other flavours and had me spitting out bits of the dried herb. Wagamama also used breast meat instead of thigh meat, which was a tad dry after frying. Thankfully, our chicken gyoza was much better with a well seasoned filling, and the ebi katsu another of us had ordered was as crispy and as light as you'd get.

The dessert I had was delicious and the highlight of my meal - but unfortunately is no longer on Wagamama's website. It was a scrumptious tart with a tropical custard (mango or pineapple or both; I can't quite recall!) and raspberries, with dried coconut shavings that complemented the flavour.

The dessert E ordered is also no longer on the menu - and thankfully so. It was a taster trio of desserts, and a case of how less can be more. For example, wasabi does not add to the taste of chocolate fudge cake, ginger does not belong in a white chocolate cheesecake, and pistachio mousse doesn't really go with raspberry jam.

The dessert trio reminded me of Wagamama's sauce accompaniment to their gyoza. In place of the traditional vinegar + soy sauce combination, Wagamama had a chilli garlic sesame soy sauce version instead. So many ingredients, yet none of the 'extras' were really necessary and also did little to bring out the flavour of the chives. There is a reason why certain combinations exist in food, and being innovative or modern does not necessarily mean mixing up many different things.

I might still be persuaded to return to Wagamama though, as their teppanyaki noodle dishes looked tasty enough and seemed to be the more popular items too. I'll just stay well clear from the ramen!

Shu

Shu, located on Lisburn Road, is among the first few restaurants in Belfast that were recommended to me. I've also heard a lot about how good it is since then, so we thought to splurge a little and head there for our anniversary.

The thing about celebrating special occasions in December is that restaurants tend to thrust their Christmas menu upon customers. Shu was no different, and instead of their usual set menu, we were only given the choice between their ala carte and Christmas menus. This would have been fine if the latter were half decent, but quick calculations revealed that the same items from the ala carte menu would actually cost more if we were to choose from the Christmas menu - well, sod that.

The restaurant was packed at its first sitting of the evening, and it took quite a while before we could get any attention from its staff. Being tucked right in a corner between a wall and a lively 8-person Christmas dinner group probably didn't help either. However, it wasn't too long after placing our orders that our starters were served.

I'm a sucker for crab on the menu, hence was dismayed by the size of the crab linguine with chilli, lemon and parsley (£9). It was tiny enough to be devoured in a few mouthfuls, but it was delicious and I forced myself to eat slowly and stretch out every moment that the flavourful broth was in my mouth. E's crispy duck confit with spiced red cabbage puree (£8.50) was a much more sizable portion. However, it was a bit dry and would have benefitted more from a sauce accompaniment instead of the puree.

(I left the picture uncropped to provide some context for size comparison with the mug of sugar in the background)

Our mains were served fairly quickly too. E was feeling adventurous and had ordered the wild pigeon with blackberry puree, potato fondant, purple carrots and chocolate malt (£18). It was served rare (as pigeon is apparently meant to be), and E thought it was "alright". I'm not sure if pigeon is a meat I'd enjoy though, as it had a gamey taste and I would probably have needed more sauce to mask the flavour.

On my side of the table was caramelised pork belly with cauliflower puree, potato gratin and cider-soaked raisins (£15.50). The sweet-salty pork was tasty, though a tad dry on the inside as well. The dish soon got rather heavy too, and I desperately needed the raisins and what little sauce there was on the plate to offset the saltiness*. The dish could definitely have done with a citrusy addition somewhere. We were happy with the size of our mains though - despite reviews that have said otherwise - and certainly did not need to order the sides of mixed salad and baby potatoes that went largely untouched.

 

We were stuffed but decided to complete our meal with dessert. It turned out to be an excellent choice, as the Valrhona chocolate and hazelnut brownie with warm Earl Grey infused chocolate and vanilla ice cream (£5.75) was utterly delectable. The Earl Grey lent a slight bitterness to the dessert, making it a light finish to dinner and was polished off in no time at all. Our glass of dessert wine, a La fleur d'Or Sauternes AC 2009 (£6), was also a very refreshing digestif with its notes of candied pineapple, lemon and crème caramel.

Our experience at Shu was undoubtedly saved by its dessert and wine. With all its awards and accolades, we were expecting more polish in its dishes but were wowed by none of the appetisers or main courses**. Nonetheless, Shu's prices are extremely reasonable (except for the crab linguine) for a restaurant of its reputation - and perhaps rightly so given its quality.

Shu
253 Lisburn Road
Belfast BT9 7EN
02890 381655

 *: Heavy-handed usage of salt is unfortunately quite common among restaurants in Belfast, with Birdcage on Stranmillis and Il Pirata on Upper Newtownards Road among the worst offenders.
**: The crab linguine came close but ultimately made me go 'wow' for the wrong reason.  

 

The Ginger Tree

We celebrated my birthday a few weeks ago with dinner at The Ginger Tree, a Japanese restaurant on Donegall Pass.

It looked promising enough upon entry, with Japanese sake, whiskey and beer bottles lining the shelves behind the cashier - just as in actual Japanese restaurants and an easy way to display the range of alcohol served. As we weren't very hungry but wanted to try a variety of their dishes, we ordered the Osaka Set Menu, sashimi moriawase and a side of croquettes to share.

The Osaka Menu boasts little in relation to Osaka and its regional specialties, and was probably named because it's the largest set on the menu and the hometown of the head chef and owner. It started with a tsukidashi appetiser - crunchy French beans topped with a dollop of sweet miso sauce.

The appetiser was followed quickly by the side of croquettes. Croquettes are among my many 'must-order' items on a Japanese menu, and these were fragrant and crisp on the outside. The potato and minced meat filling had a light curry flavour, which is probably more suitable for the palette of Ginger Tree's Belfast customers than the spicier curry I prefer. Unfortunately, the perfectly mashed filling was spoiled by bits of pork fat that accompanied every mouthful - while I love to chow down fat that accompanies bacon, steak and pork chops, I was neither expecting to find nor enjoyed the chewy fat in my croquettes.

The second of 3 appetisers from the Osaka Menu was next - the tonkatsu. I was probably too greedy in anticipating a full breaded pork cutlet and was slightly disappointed by the two strips of cutlet on skewers that arrived instead. The strips of pork were perfectly crisp on the outside but slightly dry on the inside, and lacked the thin layer of fat that a good piece of tonkatsu has, which serves to keep the meat moist and juicy. The pork was accompanied by the slightly sweet kushikatsu sauce and not the salty tonkatsu sauce - which seemed wrong until I was reminded that our tonkatsu, by virtue of being skewered slices of pork, was actually kushikatsu and should have probably been named as such instead.

When our next order arrived, I was surprised to see the sushi moriawase instead of our assorted sashimi. Sashimi was the one thing I was looking forward to the most, hence had to regretfully send back the sushi and insist on our actual order. This probably the reason for the sashimi, when it arrived, being unceremoniously dumped on the table similar to how wooden blocks are deposited during shuttle runs - I was not at all impressed. Thankfully the salmon, tuna and ika sashimi were fresh, delicious and all that I'd been waiting for, despite being oddly sliced and of uneven thickness. The pieces of cooked prawn and cooked octopus added further variety.

The final appetiser from the set menu was a generous portion of tempura, consisting of two king prawns and a slice each of courgette, aubergine, red pepper and carrot and onion strips. It was a treat to have tempura again, although the honest opinion would be that the tempura was merely passable. The batter was slightly soggy and lacked the lightness that tempura should have, while the items were a tad overcooked.

It is here that a few words on The Ginger Tree's service are in order. While the restaurant was at full capacity that night, the crowd did not justify the long wait we had between courses as the place gradually filled up. Our entire dinner - that comprised neither alcohol nor dessert - took about 1.5 hours and we must have waited at least 15 min for the main (and final) course to arrive. Such a long wait was unacceptable, especially since we'd ordered a set menu that should have taken less time to prepare than a range of ala carte items.

When our Nabeyaki Udon finally arrived, we dug right in, savouring the warm, delicious broth. We were pleasantly surprised to find a slice of sweet beancurd in the bowl - something we've missed from udon in Japan - until we realised that the udon did not come with unagi as described on the menu and website. Again, the udon and tempura were overcooked too, but the broth tasted so much like what you'd get in Japan that we were willing to overlook the other aspects.

Ultimately, The Ginger Tree is a place I'd visit again, purely for their sashimi and perhaps to also try their sushi and some other items. If the craving is too strong to deny, I'd also order their tempura and udon - just not the nabeyaki unless they can guarantee unagi in it. The Ginger Tree would also be a far more pleasant dining experience if they can improve on their speed and delivery of service, as well as turn the lights up a little so that diners can actually take some photos!


The Ginger Tree

23 Donegall Pass

Belfast, UK

028 9032 7151

The changing normal

I nearly died from my lunch today.

I occasionally forget that starter portions here are fairly big, while mains can be downright enormous. So, I order what I think is a fair amount until the food comes and I end up bursting at the seams – without even finishing everything on my plate.

Granted, we had a late breakfast of pancakes at about 11am, but it was nearly 4pm when we ordered lunch and I couldn’t resist starters that cost just £2 – part of the Carlito’s meal deal where a main is £5.95 and two courses are only £7.95.

We got some chicken tempura – two pieces of tender chicken breast coated in crisp fish ‘n’ chips batter, served with Thai sweet chilli sauce – and gorgeous deep fried brie served with berry compote.

We were happy and satisfied by the very delicious food, until the mains came and we were horrified -they were giant portions! Here’s my Fussilli ala Carlito’s – pasta in white wine cream sauce with chicken, mushrooms and peppers:


I looked at it, wondered how I was going to finish everything, but plunged on anyway. The pasta was even better than it looks, and somehow the combination of cream, mushroom and chicken made for an extremely tasty sauce. I wanted so very badly to consume every last bit of it, tried my very best, but failed anyway – it’s been 3 hours since lunch but I’m still feeling the effects of overeating :S

I was very surprised that the food turned out to be so good, as Carlito’s is in the middle of Botanic Avenue – a very studenty place which is full of cheap eats. I thought it was gonna be pub grub – which is pretty good here anyway – but the interior looked nicer than I’d imagined and the food far surpassed my expectations.

But the above review of Carlito’s is a long introduction to thoughts that have repeatedly occurred to me since I came – that what was normal back home is far from what’s normal here. And I don’t mean the quirks of the country, but what things like ‘fast’ and ‘average’ means.

For example, I’m considered a big eater back home. Everyone I know can attest to the fact that I eat a lot for a girl, and my appetite is often joked about among my former colleagues. I used to be hungry all the time and out-ate everyone on my team – but it seems like I can’t eat much more than a main course here. And it’s not like the women here don’t eat much. Head out and you’ll see them order starters and mains and finish everything on their plate – and it’s not because they’re bigger than I am, as I’ve had the opportunity to see a girl smaller than me eat a lot more.

Also, I’m considered to be a fast walker (also frequently joked about), a fast eater, and the owner of a loud voice. Unfortunately, when I came over I realised that my walking speed is very slow in comparison, that I don’t eat particularly quickly but am actually on the slow side, and I struggle to be heard over club music when other girls don’t seem to face a similar problem. Again, I don’t think it’s to do with me being smaller in built than most others – there’re many people my size here as well.

I suppose it’s welcome to the ‘real’ world, as someone joked, but it’ll be interesting to see where other Singaporeans - whose appetite, walking speed, eating speed and voice volume are ‘normal’ or ‘below average’ - stand when they come over :)

The Dirty Duck Alehouse

Good food has to be shared – and The Dirty Duck Alehouse is definitely one of those.
We dropped by the Dirty Duck the other day after a trip to the transport side of the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum. The alehouse is a large but busy place; it was nearing 3pm but it was still full of customers.

We were seated upstairs by the window. E settled for standard pub fare – the Dirty Duck Angus burger (£9.25), which was a large, juicy burger with generous toppings.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t but order seafood given our view overlooking the sea. As I’d been completely off seafood (apart from fish) for more than a month, I jumped at the chance to have Crab Claws (£10.50). The crab claws are actually on the starter menu, but I love that restaurants here tend to offer some, if not all of their starters in main-sized portions.



The crab claws were absolutely divine – no points for guessing that the reason why there isn’t a picture of the Angus burger is because I was too absorbed in and excited about my meal! There were so many crab claws that I actually got a bit tired eating them at one stage, and – to my own disbelief - gave at least 4 of them to E. I estimate that at least 12 crabs gave their lives for my wonderful meal.

The ciabatta was a brillant touch. It soaked up the flavours of the garlic butter-infused broth, and complemented the textures of the tomato and leek perfectly. The portion of bread was just right too – I dipped it in the broth, scooped up leek and tomatoes with my fork and placed it atop the bread, and dunked bite-sized bits of it into the broth at the end to absorb all the garlicky seafood goodness. E teasingly offered to get me a spoon – but who needs spoons when you have ciabatta!  ♥♥

Be prepared to get your hands dirty when you have this dish – as there’s no way to eat crab claws without using your fingers – but the warmth in your tummy and your garlic seafood insides (yes, I do love the combination) will make it more than worthwhile.

The Dirty Duck Alehouse
2-4 Kinnegar Road
Holywood
Co.Down
BT18 9JN
Tel: 028 9059 6666

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo (aka The Trocks)

I'm meant to be sending in some job applications, but today has been really bleh so I'll blog about The Trocks instead.

I saw The Trocks perform quite a few years back^, but when I noticed how cheap the tickets were selling for stall seats in Belfast, I could'nt not watch them again. For the price I paid for stalls here, I would have only gotten seats in – at best – Circle 2 back home.

I love the cover photo of The Trocks' programme, as it conveys everything about the company in this one picture of one of the founders and current ballet master - grace, elegance, poise, and underarm hair. Yes, The Trocks are an all male ballet troupe, don't really hide their masculinity, have awesome makeup skills, are hilarious and great fun to watch, and in certain respects are just as elegant as female ballerinas*.

While it was such an experience watching The Trocks from up close – the tickets are absolutely worth it as their facial expressions are key to the comic effect – the highlights for me were the open rehearsal before the show and the post-performance Q&A session. All that I will share below is what I learnt from those two extras.

The Trocks are on tour a lot, and their practices and rehearsals are all done while on the road. Before each show, they spend some time doing class (going through allegros, turns, etc), then run through some of the dances that will be performed that night, as well as some of those that will be performed at the next venue. For example, we were treated to a rough cut (but still very good!) of the famous Don Quixote pas de deux, which I've never seen them do before. It was fun trying to remember the faces of all the dancers and the positions they took during rehearsal and then trying to recognise them in the evening with all their makeup on.

I learnt that professional male dancers only take about a day to get used to dancing in pointe shoes – a shockingly short time given the difficulty that I face in my futile attempts at anything – because their feet and muscles are already very well developed and used to the movements.

I realised that a good number of their dancers are from Spain and Italy, although they're a New York-based company.

I was impressed by the knowledge that all the dancers are expected to know the steps to all the parts, as the roles are rotated among the dancers (except for the Dying Swan). This means that there is no competition among the dancers to score the title roles.

I was treated to the surreal sight of half the troupe of professional dancers (that's 8 of them) doing as many fouette turns as they could (the target the teacher set was at least 16), followed by the next half, then the first half, and then the second half again. I can't remember if they went for the pirouettes a third time, but oh. my. goodness. I couldn't breathe from the excitement of how special and once-in-a-lifetime that was.

Also, I found out that there isn't really any trick to making the feathers of the Dying Swan fall on cue – if their Artistic Director is to be believed – except stuffing lots of loose feathers between the many layers of tulle in the tutu. I was also informed – to my shock, horror and utmost admiration – that their ballet teacher, who was en pointe for the entire duration of the Dying Swan piece, has been doing this for more than 20 years and continues to do it today at the grand age of 52.

(O_O)

Indeed.

*      *      *      *      *      *

^: I can't for the life of me remember whether that was back in Singapore, or a long time ago when I was on exchange in London.

*: I'll share what their artistic director said in response to a question posed to him about the difference between men dancing en pointe and women dancing en pointe. He said that it's like tennis; while Steffi Graf had finesse, Andre Agassi had lots of strength.

2Taps Wine Bar

If the waiter at 2Taps tells you that a table should free up in about 15 min and suggests that you could have a drink and wait – don't believe him. We got our seat after 45 min to an hour, thankfully with a drink in hand (stand at the bar while your sangria is being prepared, and you'll get a nice amount of alcohol in it).

The good thing was that the food that came made up for the long wait. Their pan fresco was an assortment of breads – including a very delectable garlic bread – accompanied by two delicious pestos and olive oil with balsamic vinegar. The cinnamon spiced lamb and potato tagine arrived just before we started on the last slice of bread – a good thing, as the dish was a rich, sweet and spicy stew. A must try is the serrano ham salad with rocket, melon, pear and walnut – I loved the combination of flavours, particularly the strong burst of sweetness from the pear.

 

We ordered the half Paella Valencia, which turned out bigger than we'd expected as it was piled up high and chock full of ingredients. The rice had absorbed all the essence from the meats and was irresistible, but unfortunately the prawns, chicken and sausages were a tad overcooked, while some of the mussels weren't very fresh.

While we had a good meal – even with the disappointing meats in the paella - I think it might have been due to a lucky choice of tapas. The table next to us had ordered many things which we didn't and their tapas didn't appear as appetising. The tiger prawns, for example, came in a small ramekin and judging from their size probably weren't even tiger prawns.

That said, I'm quite keen to return to 2Taps on a week night – I believe they have a deal where you get two tapas and a glass of wine for £10.95. I think they're worth another shot, and with their extensive menu I'm certain there're more good dishes to be had.

2Taps Winebar
42 Waring Street
Belfast BT1 2ED

(Don't be put off by the unappealing website and shoddy photos of the restaurant interior – with the dinner lighting it had a warm, cosy ambience.)

Addendum (3 Jan 2014)

We returned some time in May 2013, taking advantage of 2Taps' deal which offered 2 tapas + a glass of wine for just £10.

Again, we ordered the serrano ham salad with rocket, melon, pear and walnut, which was just as good as before. The goats cheese wrapped in Serrano ham with fig relish was also delicious, and I particularly loved the piquant fig relish.

 

I don't particularly recall the mussels steamed in butter, cream and leeks, which is probably a good thing as if the mussels weren't fresh it'd have stuck in my mind. I do however, remember that the pan-fried sea bream on a bed of sweet onions and new potatoes was light and fresh, with the fish done just right.

Feeling the need to return to 2Taps again!

Hoshino Coffee, Singapore (Plaza Singapura)

*I’d also posted this on HungryGoWhere.

There had been so much media coverage about Hoshino Coffee that we decided to give it a try. The experience was, overall, disappointing.

First, the table that ordered after us was served before us - it was only when we noticed this and asked to check on our order did our first dish arrive. This is plain unacceptable, considering we had ordered similar items (the famous pancake), as well as spaghetti and coffee - which should have been served sooner than the pancake anyway.

Also, the staff got our order wrong - twice. We ticked our selections on an order list, which was confirmed by the staff member while we were still in the queue. Yet, when we were subsequently handed the order printout, it was missing our matcha softee and our double pancake was a single pancake instead. We clarified this with a staff member - who managed to rectify the softee but not the pancake order. This was finally settled on the second time we approached the staff.

That said, one particular staff member who was serving our table was very attentative. She kept offering to top up our glasses of water, cleared the dishes promptly and was very friendly. Thumbs up to her for her initiative and attitude.

Foodwise, Hoshino Cafe is good but overpriced. The friend who ordered the Hoshino Spaghetti ($14) found it good but a but a bit oily. Their cafe latte ($7.00) was small, and while it was good, it wasn't any better than other good coffee I've had. Their blended coffee ($5.80), which I didn't try, received no complaints - except for the teeny cup of milk which accompanied it. We had to ask for more milk, although the really tiny cup provided some amusement.

For some reason, the coffees took quite long to arrive even though you wouldn't think it'd take too long to prepare. More puzzling is that our matcha softee ($5.80) took the longest to arrive - even longer than the famed pancakes which require at least 20min to prepare. The matcha taste wasn't very strong, and at that price, I certainly wouldn't recommend ordering it. Good thing that ours was redeemed due to a Stanchart promotion (1 free softee with every drink and main ordered).

The double pancake ($12.00), made souffle style, was indeed fluffy and delicious. However, the whipped cream that came with it was a bit too salty and the serving of maple syrup was too dainty for the amount of pancake served. Luckily, the pancake batter is sweet on its own, hence we didn't need to ask for more syrup.

Having tried the double pancake, I'm not sure what the huge fuss is. While it may be interesting that such a thick pancake still manages to be fluffy, fluffy pancakes on their own aren't too hard to achieve in your own kitchen. For that, I recommend The New Otani pancake mix, available at Mediya, Liang Court. It works like a charm for making fluffy pancakes.

Bene Spaghetti ベネ・スパゲッティ

Be warned: your ears will be assailed by the deafening chirps of the staff as you walk through the doors of Bene Spaghetti at 84 Circular Road.

And throughout your meal, you will continue to suffer rude shocks from the staff’s shouts of welcome or acknowledgement of a customer’s request for service. While the service is friendly and prompt, we felt that the jarring noise marred our experience. It doesn’t help that Bene is a small place, and the echoes of conversation and the staff’s loud voices got somewhat irritating after a while.

For an idea of how cosy Bene is: there are just two more rows of tables to the left of hte below picture, and my back was up against the wall:

The food was fusion Japanese-Italian, which meant that it was neither the best type of Japanese nor Italian cuisine. While there are many authentic Italian restaurants owned and run by Japanese this one attempted to mesh both styles together.

What resulted was a Clam and Mussels Risotto in Tomato Sauce presented Japanese style – like kamameshi (釜飯) -  that didn’t quite have the full bodied flavour that Italian risottos have from the slow-cooking of the rice. Bene also gave customers the choice of eating the risotto like ochazuke – by pouring into the pot some soup with herbs mixed in – but I felt that further diluted the flavour of the risotto.

The restaurant’s signature dish is mushi pasta (蒸しパスタ) – or steamed pasta – which is said to make the pasta soft without being wet. It’s also meant to be healthier and lighter as the pasta is cooked without oil. We ordered the Smoked Pork with Blue Cheese Cream Sauce Mushi Pasta, which scored points for its presentation:

After waiting for 5 minutes as the pasta continues to cook at your table, the dish itself was unearthed. It was indeed quite light, although the pasta was not al dente and was too soft. I felt that the pork ended up a bit too wet and lost its smoky flavour from the steaming. Boo.

A more satisfying dish was the Chicken Thigh and Bacon in Tomato Sauce Gnocchi Gratin. Though it looked a bit oily, the tangy tomato sauce was delicious and we enjoyed soaking it up with the bread given. The gnocchi was also soft and tasted great with the bacon and chicken flavours. The crunchy vegetables added a healthy touch to this dish.

My favourite dish, however, was the wonderful Bacon with Onsen Egg Pizza. I absolutely loved this as the flavourful bacon slices were fairly thick with a good bite, there was a generous amount of runny egg white and the yolk, though a tad overcooked, was still moist on the inside. I also loved that the thin crust was just the right thickness to taste substantial.

While the food wasn’t the most authentic or the best tasting around, Bene wins on its value for money. Their dinner sets cost $25 and are accompanied by a salad, a plate of assorted antipasto (olives, greens, parma ham) or homemade focaccia, a main and a choice of dessert or drink. The bread is replenishable and servings are big - our party of 6 were stuffed with four dinner sets, an assorted antipasto platter and a serving of garlic bread.

The salad is quite large:

And their Assorted Antipasto Platter ($26++) wasn’t too bad. (From left: mozzarella and tomatoes, thic omelette, grilled chicken thigh, smoked salmon, vegetables in tangy thin tomato sauce, parma ham, and olives and assorted vegetables.)

I really liked their Garlic Bread ($8++) too, as the thick slices of bread soaked up all the olive oil and garlic flavour. While Bene terms its bread accompanying the sets “homemade focaccia”, it’s the same bread that’s used for the garlic bread, which is anything but focaccia. No complaints though, as it was soft, fluffy and complemented the sauces.

All in all, I have mixed feelings about Bene. The food was okay, the service was good but had some really annoying aspects, and they have some nice quirks like presenting a frozen hand towel upon arrival and writing your name down at your table for reservations:

While this warmth of service extended to two members of staff standing outside the door to wave goodbye and hand you a complimentary slice of homemade bread each, we got slightly self conscious at the loud volume at which they said “Goodbye Simon! See you again! Thank you! Have a nice time!!”. It’s a bit too genki and over zealous, and I wonder if the staff go home with a sore throat from all that shouting.

That said, I’m not sure if I’ll return to Bene again, and if I do, I will need to be mentally prepared for the full assault on my ears.

For a look at their menu, check out Bene’s Facebook page.

Taiwanese Oyster Omelette

Looking through some recent food photos and wanted to post this – it was the best ever oyster omelette which we had at Liaoning Night Market (near Zhongxiao Fuxing Metro station):

The oysters were so plump and fresh, and the omelette was generous with egg and contained just the right amount of starch.

The night market also had the most delicious ever 臭豆腐 (smelly tofu). It was fragrant, just the right texture and not too dry. The sauce was great too – a mixture of chilli, sweet sauce and garlic. I think I loved it largely for the garlic, as it gave a wonderful flavour to the tofu – a colleague commented that it’s doubly smelly tofu. The tofu was so delicious that it occupied my thoughts for the rest of the night and much of the next morning.

Biotherm Eye Makeup Remover

I tried the sample of this Biotherm eye makeup remover other day and it has gotten my thumbs up:

I didn’t notice the price of it at the counter though, but I’ll consider it as good, together with my favourite Kanebo and Kate eye makeup removers (reviews here).

While the Kate remover is not available in Singapore, they’re readily available in just about any Watsons store in Taiwan for less than $20, which is cheap. The bottle looks like this:

Give them a try and you’ll be converted, particularly if you use layers of stubborn – and hence water and oil-proof – mascara like Majolica Majorca.

Ten Restaurant (Japanese) @ Central

We were looking for a place to have Japanese food for dinner before heading to Cuba Libre at Clarke Quay, and settled on Ten Restaurant due to its good reviews on Hungrygowhere.

I feel that the quality of a Japanese restaurant can be judged by a few items on its menu: the freshness of its sashimi, how crispy and light its tempura batter is, the firmness and chewiness of its udon, and how juicy and tasty its saba shioyaki is.

The Ten Special Bento ($20++) was a good set to order for a feel of the food at Ten Restaurant. Most of us ordered it due to the variety in the set:

 

Given its name, the tempura don is the signature dish at Ten Restaurant and the reviews on Hungrygowhere rave about how Ten’s tempura is the best in Singapore. Unfortunately we weren’t very impressed by the tempura – though it more or less retained its crispiness even towards the end of the meal, we found the batter to be a bit thick and heavy. I felt that the prawn was a tad overcooked too, and we were only given a shallow dish (like the one holding the pickles above) instead of a bowl for dipping the tempura in sauce.

 

The saba shioyaki was a bit tough and slightly dry for me, although the skin was quite crisp. Given how immensely fussy I am about saba, I’d still rate it a pass. I think we were most surprised by the quality of the sashimi here. We all agreed that it was fresh and delicious – while the swordfish could be better, it was more than good enough and the salmon was perfect.

Considering the price, we were satisfied with our dinner at Ten Restaurant. I wish the miso soup came with a lid, as my soup was mildly lukewarm by the time I got to it, but I think the impression of the sashimi was strong enough in my mind to override the average experience with the other items. We’ll be looking out for set lunches for even better value!

The Prague @ Amara Hotel

I’ve always had the impression that restaurants in hotels offered a certain quality in their fare. After all, it makes sense for a hotel to want to have good restaurants in their establishment, and there’re many famous restaurants peppering the local hotel scene. Specific to Amara Hotel, the Hyang To Gol Korean restaurant is very good too, so I thought that The Prague couldn’t be far off.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

The Prague is a strange place. It is a restaurant with live music which serves homemade Czech beer - so it feels like a restaurant, bar and lounge at the same time – which, based on the menu, seems to serve a mixture of traditional Czech food and local fare (like ngoh hiang, otah and briyani).

I think the fact that it appeared to serve both Western and local cuisine should have been a warning sign. Our group wasn’t going to have local food in a restaurant, hence we went for what appeared to be the more traditional Czech cuisine: the pork schnitzel, crispy roasted duck – which the menu claimed was a traditional Czech dish – and pork knuckle.

We were stunned when our pork schnitzel came out – pardon the poor images as my phone’s camera sucks:

Was that achar we saw masquerading as sauerkraut? (Oh yes it was indeed.) And what was Thai sweet chilli sauce doing in a Czech dish? And who would have thought that you’d see those fries outside of kopitiam western food mains? Luckily the schnitzel didn’t taste too bad, and we were kinda hungry then.

The crispy roasted duck was altogether another level of nonsense. Unfortunately I don’t have pictures, but it was so authentically Czech that its “dumplings” were three thin slices cut from a larger mantou (the steamed kind you can get with your chilli crab) and it came with SWEET HOISIN SAUCE.

The roasted chicken we ordered when another member of the group arrived was equally kopitiam-like – just think of the spring chickens you can get from the Western food stalls, and was again accompanied by achar and Hoisin sauce, as well as Thai chilli + mayonnaise in one of those sauce dishes pictured below. Besides the utter lack of authenticity, the half birds were passable at best – they were too dry and the meat was not flavoured with seasoning of any kind.

Again, the only things authentic about the pork knuckle were its size and the mustard – there we had some Hoisin sauce again. The entire knuckle was a bit dry due to to the batter around it, and the unseasoned meat had a gamey taste.

To be honest, the beers at The Prague weren’t that worth shouting about either. Its light beer had little taste and was more like a mildly alcoholic soft drink, its half-and-half (half light, half dark) was still a little too much on the light side, and though its dark beer was nice it would have been considered a half-and-half elsewhere.

And the strangest thing was that no one else at The Prague seemed to mind the complete lack of authenticity of the food and it was nicely filled on a Friday evening. How could anyone visit this restaurant, which claims to serve Czech food but actually doesn’t?

I thoroughly enjoyed the company and it was fun laughing at the sheer ludicrousness of the food at The Prague, but the restaurant itself has definitely gotten a big fat black mark from me.

The best place in the world to be creative

Why would an international best-selling writer on creativity live here? Because while New York may call itself 'the capital of the world', Singapore is the world

by Fredrik Haren

04:45 AM May 14, 2012

I have lost count of the number of times I have been asked: "As an author of creativity books, how on earth can you live in Singapore?"

And when I reply, "Because I think it is the best place in the world to live for a creative person", most people think I am kidding and everyone asks me to explain.

But no, I am not kidding. And yes, let me explain.

I moved to Beijing from my native Sweden in 2005 because I wanted to be in Asia when Asian countries truly started to embrace creativity.

The defining moment for me was when Hu Jintao gave a speech to the Chinese people in which he said that "China should be an innovative country 15 years from now".

Since I write books on business creativity, I just had to move to Asia and see this shift happen.

After two years in Beijing, I learnt two things: Firstly, I wanted to leave Beijing, which is a fascinating city, but has too much traffic, too much pollution and too little water for a Swede brought up in the Stockholm archipelago; and secondly, I wanted to remain in Asia.

So I went on a grand journey. While doing research for my book The Developing World, I constantly travelled over a period of more than 10 months.

I went to 20 developing countries and when I came to each new city that I thought had potential to become my new home, I made sure my schedule allowed me to stay a few extra days to get a feel of life there.

I spent two weeks each in Seoul, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Shanghai, Mumbai, New Delhi, Istanbul and Singapore.

Then I made a list of positives and negatives about each city. Obviously, Singapore won in the end.

SINGAPORE VIRTUES

Why? Well, for many reasons.

Such as quality of life - I now drink as much fresh mango juices in Singapore as I did beers in Beijing, weather (no, I do not mind the heat; I love it), security (I love countries where there is a good chance you will get your iPhone back if you left it behind in a restaurant) and convenience (like the fact that Changi Airport has extensive connections to the world, since my work involves a lot of travelling to different countries on a frequent basis).

Those are the usual reasons that attract most people to Singapore.

But the main reason I live in Singapore is because this city-state, to me, is the one place on earth where it is the easiest to have a globally-creative mindset.

Some people say Singapore is "Asia for beginners". I do not agree. I think Singapore is "globalisation for beginners", or rather, "globalisation for early adopters".

With a diverse mix of races, religions and nationalities, Singapore not only represents the cross-section of the world, it is also a time capsule of what the world will look like in the future.

And I love that.

New York may call itself 'the capital of the world' but Singapore is the world. Unlike New York, which is a global city in the United States, Singapore is a global city - a global city-state. Singapore is a city in the world, not a city in a country in the world.

And this makes it easier to have a global outlook here since nationalistic barriers do not block the view as much.

A BEAUTIFUL MIX

A positive side-effect of this is that Singapore is one of the least racist countries in the world.

Now, that does not mean that there is no racism in Singapore, but I have worked in more than 40 countries, and I have never experienced less racism than I do in Singapore.

That is important to me. Not only because we are a mixed-race family - I am from Sweden, my wife from the Philippines and my son a happy mix of Stockholm, Manila and Singapore.

As an European, I am ashamed and disappointed when European leaders recently proclaim that "the multi-cultural society does not work". I just wish they would come to Singapore.

To live in a place that is celebrating "Western New Year" and "Chinese New Year" is not only twice as fun, it also gives you the feeling that there is more than one way of doing things.

On a recent New Year's Eve party, we realised our group consisted of 10 people with 10 different passports.
A friend told me how they had had an after-work beer at his company and 14 people - from 14 different countries - showed up.

At our wedding, we had 40 guests from eight countries, comprising at least four religions and four races, and, at the time, no one was counting.

It all just felt as if it was the most natural thing in the world. The point, of course, is that it is not the most natural thing in the world. Unfortunately, in most places in the world, it would be rare, strange and exotic to have such a natural mix of backgrounds.

For people living in Singapore, it is so natural you do not grasp how unnaturally natural it is, and how valuable.

OF ROOTS AND BRANCHES

Now, do not get me wrong. I am not saying that knowledge of your own culture and background is not important. It is.

It is often said that a person without roots is fickle, doesn't know how to connect to who he is and can be easily manipulated, because there are no basic values keeping him grounded. Roots are important.

But if one is going to use a metaphor (in this case, of likening a human being to a tree), one has to use the whole metaphor. Because it is equally true that a tree without branches also perishes.

A tree that does not spread its branches out in all directions to gather as much sunlight and energy as possible might have deep and strong roots, but it will eventually still wither and die.

In other words, to be rootless is dangerous, but so is being branchless.

And if your own culture is the roots, the cultures of the rest of the world is the energy that your branches need to reach out to, so that you can get new ideas and ways of doing things by learning from others, be inspired to try new foods, acquire new habits and try new customs.

It will make you curious of other ways of doing things, be inspired by different ideas and energised by alternate points of views. And that is what creates creativity.

And nowhere in the world is it easier to let your branches spread out than in Singapore.

Want some exposure to American influence? Watch American Idol the day after it airs in the US.

What about a dose of Indian culture? Join in the Deepavali celebrations together with thousands of Indians in Little India.

Want to practice your Chinese language? Go and order frog in Geylang.

HEIMSKUR MEANS 'MORON'

The Icelandic Vikings, who lived a thousand years ago, had a word for people who never left their farms on Iceland and never ventured outside. The word was heimskur. It means moron.

As they saw it, a person who did not open up to the world to find new ideas from other cultures was a moron. I think the Vikings would have loved Singapore. I sure know that I do. It is the one place with the fewest heimskurs that I have found .

Too many people limit their potential, their creativity - and in the end - their lives, because they are not embracing the whole human spectrum of creativity.

They are not taking full advantage of the potential of the world, because they are not living in the world. They are stuck in their own corner, looking inwards, seeing whatever that is different as "foreign".

And I think that answers the question of why I am living in Singapore - because Singapore makes me more human by making me more a part of the world, a part of humanity. And by being part of the world, I have a bigger chance to be inspired and have new ideas.

Ideas that will benefit us all.

Fredrik Haren, an author and speaker on business creativity, has lived in Asia since 2005, and has been in Singapore since 2008. His work The Idea Book has been included in The 100 Best Business Books of All Time. This article appears in the Singapore International Foundation's book aimed at bridging communities, Singapore Insights from the Inside.