#q-nuggets

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Prawn Katsu, Chilli Squid, Kimchi Pancake & Raw Fillet Beef Bibimbap @ Bibimbap, Soho

Mix of friend starters. I think the chilli quid was probably the best. It tasted different from just normal calamari, less batter but it was still nice. 

Mmmm.. bibimbap! Classic. I know it might look 'scary' - raw beef and raw egg.. OMG DEATH. Lol, not quite, it's served in a hot stone bowl so the food actually stays warm AND cooks the raw ingredients if you mix it up well once it arrives on your table! In some restaurants the waiter mixes it for you (I think it's a politeness thing?) So when you're eating it, it's not raw, it's cooked! IT'S YUM. Defo a try if you haven't tried Korean food, it's pretty healthy; underneath the egg and beef is a bed of vegetables (beansprouts, spinach, carrots) on a bed of white rice. I think this place is pretty cheap too so it's good for something quick and easy. The decor of the place is typically Asian, there's polaroid photos of what I can only assume are past customers which fill the walls, it's pretty cool.. it can feel a tad boxy or claustrophobic when you're looking at them as you eat though lol. 

(Link: http://bibimbapsoho.co.uk/menu.php)

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Steak @ Chapter One, Kent

  The is by far the best steak I have ever eaten. I've been to Steak & Co (not all that), Gauchos (amazing and 2nd favourite) but this takes the cake! It is from a Michelin star restaurant after all! My first venture to one and it's actually decently priced, considering (I've actually been twice but only got the steak once lol). I don't remember exactly what it was called on the menu as it always changes - seasonal menus. I know it has caramelised onions, mash potatoes... something else. I just remember it was SO GOOD. I mean, it's expensive for just going out to a meal but for the right celebration like a birthday or something, it doesn't break the bank like you'd think a Michelin star restaurant would even though it is a highly regarded establishment. 

The lighting wasn't great for the picture but it's not exactly a place you go taking flash snap shots of food if you know what I mean lol. 

(Link: http://www.chapteronerestaurant.co.uk/section.php/6/1/michelin-star-restaurant-menus-kent/130ce913d6ba31d088ed51d3f89fb488) 

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Vietnamese New Year Feast @ Home!

Sorry I've been away, end of January - February was a busy time with Vietnamese New Year and other projects and things I've been focusing on! But I'm going to try and catch up - bear with me. I've still got a massive backlog of food places =D 

Here's a selection of food my family eat on Lunar New Year. Happy (super belated) Lunar New Year.

For lunch we have salt and pepper lobster, home made bánh tét (the traditional Lunar New Year cake), canh khổ qua (stuffed bitter melon soup), chả (Vietnamese 'pork roll/sausage' - I don't know the correct English term for it), Thịt kho (pork braised in coconut juice with eggs) and roast duck, eaten with white rice. These dishes can vary but staple for my family every year are bitter melon soup and the pork braised in coconut juice with eggs. I'm not 100% sure but I think it stems from the fact that my parents, particularly my dad came from quite poor family backgrounds back in Vietnam and these were little luxuries, though to the average person now, these foods seem very basic and modest foods. So, when we cook and eat this for Lunar New Year, my dad makes enough to feed about a dozen people, when we're a family of four + my brother's girlfriend so five, and we eat it over a course of a few days. I like to think the principle of having it along with, you know lobster or roast duck etc, is to humble ourselves even though we are better off now than they were back then.

Bánh tét (the traditional Lunar New Year cake) is made up of pork wrapped in green/mung bean paste with a thick layer of in glutinous rice all the way around, wrapped in banana leaves and boiled.

For dinner, traditional hotpot! Seafood - including prawns and octopus - hotpot with mushrooms, vegetables and vermicelli noodles. Fundamental for any Vietnamese feast and of course we're Asian so our food is, more times than most, communal.

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Home Baking: Salted Caramel Macaroons

So, I <3 macaroons. Like, if they weren't so expensive for such a tiny thing that just gets digested, I would probably eat them everyday. They are yum. In sight of this, I decided to try and make them myself! Of course they're not going to be as amazing but hey, I like to experiment and I like to learn new things. I was pretty pleased they turned out okay for a first try.. thought I'd share it lol.

People say macaroons are really hard to make because they're very easy to get wrong during several steps in the production. Bearing this in mind, I went slowly, steadily but surely.. they came out pretty good! I didn't wanna mess around with too much, too soon right off the bat of it, since it was my first time so I concentrated on the macaroons and cut the frills of colours and extra flavours. Hence, I present to you my proud accomplishment - my first attempt at macaroons with a homemade salted caramel filling! =D

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Pineapple Rice @ Thai Silk, The O2 (North Greenwich)

Pineapple rice.. served on a pineapple! So, this particular branch doesn't actually exist anymore lol, they got bought out and replaced but the brand is still around. Before this I had not really eaten Thai food too often before, but it was a good treat! The most unusual thing was the rice! I didn't think you could really jazz up rice, a staple I eat almost everyday if not more than once a day but apparently, you can, and the Thai know how to do it! It tasted really flavourful! Since, I've also tried coconut rice and it is THE BOMB. Thai food is fast becoming one of my favourite cuisines. Especially Thai curries, talk about taste!

(Link: http://www.thaisilkrestaurant.co.uk/whats_on_the_menu.htm)

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Pad Thai Wrapped in an Omelette (YES!) @ Lambeth North/Waterloo

Behold this masterpiece of food! Pad Thai is made up of soaked dried rice noodles which are stir-fried with eggs and chopped tofu, and flavoured with tamarind pulp, fish sauce dried shrimp, garlic or shallots, red chili pepper and palm sugar, and served with lime wedges and often chopped roasted peanuts. It is delicious on it's own but I saw it combined with an omelette and just could not say no. It is usually served as street food and that's exactly how I got it. 

A workmate of mine from a place I volunteering at took me along a strip of road where there were a bunch of stalls serving a variety of cultured dishes on our lunch break, it was incredible! It is somewhere around Lambeth North Station and Waterloo Station. I don't remember the street name which is a pain but it's not even a 5 minute walk from Lambeth North Station and only a road or two away if I remember correctly. 

This was actually my last lunch before I took part in the 'Live Below The Line' Challenge last year so yes, I kind of indulged. I don't usually do things by halves when it comes to food. Definitely check out the challenge, it was very eye-opening and a test of discipline to do, especially because I love, love, love food ;P

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Hokkaido Curry Ramen @ Shoryu, Regent Street

Priced at about £12 a bowl, it consists of rich curry-soy pork broth with crispy kara-age chicken, nitamago (egg), nori (seaweed), menma (fermented bamboo shoots), naruto fish cake and spring onion. The curry taste is a nice touch to the broth. A lot of the times in Asian dishes, I know especially Vietnamese dishes is that the taste, and the time put in goes into the broth. This is always, to me, worth remembering when you're eating such food. Hearty serving with a twist in taste of the classic ramen noodles!

(Link: http://www.shoryuramen.com/stores/1-regent-st/categories)

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Mussels & Chips @ Belgo's, Covent Garden

Firstly, Happy 2014 all! Sorry I've been neglectful, it's been a busy festive few weeks. Not my best start, I must say, I was ill on New Years and now I've sprained my ankle.. "sprained" anything for the first time ever. I've never broken any bones or anything *touches wood* but hey ho! I'm on the mend now, limping around like a jackass on the road lol, definitely take for granted that I walk an awful lot on a daily basis but onwards and upwards. So let's go!

My first taste of mussels in a restaurant that actually specialises in mussels and I have to say, they were pretty amazing! I got the 'SNOB' which is mussels in a rich lobster, champagne and cream bisque (I don't know what 'bisque' means, I'm assuming sauce/soup) with a side of chips. It's definitely all about the 'bisque' sauce. It's rich and creamy and just yum! Couldn't get enough. It was really filling too considering it didn't look it to me, I though "oh it's mainly shells so ofc. it looks like a big serving", it was a big serving. I was stuffed! It's a decent meal, it's seafood so tad pricey but I think it's a good deal at around £15, before drinks. I'm not an alcohol drinker but my friends did mention this place just especially good fruit ciders and beers, I think? I tried some and they weren't too bad considering I don't like alcohol. Really worth a try, if you fancy tickling your taste-buds and treating them to something a bit different =D (no innuendos please!)

(Link: http://www.belgo-restaurants.co.uk/menus/belgo-centraal/main-menu)