Quimet y Quimet – Barcelona
High on my list of things to avoid is meat and fish from a can, so it comes as a bit of a surprise for me to say that my most memorable food experience in Barcelona was at Quimet y Quimet, a bar where instead of somebody standing over a hot stove sautéing a duck breast or chopping fresh peppers, there is a man standing [...]
Dans le Noir? – Barcelona
We entered the restaurant, sat down, and were promptly served our entrées. The ambiance of the room and its interior decor were a bit different to anything that I had experienced before. I was seated at a table with two people that I had never met before. Interior decor at Dans le Noir? Entrée at Dans le Noir? If I had [...]
Eslava – Seville
Tucked away on a side street, away from the crowds that gather in the city centre, is Eslava, one of the gems of the Seville food scene. This was a location recommended to us by Madrid Food Tours, and what a great recommendation it was. Being foreigners without much of a grasp on the local language, we decided to get there early before the crowds [...]
Restaurant Abantal – Seville
The Michelin Guide is somewhat of a notorious annual publication within the food community, and can make or break a chef's career. Each year, Michelin has its anonymous "inspectors" visit restaurants within a particular region for the purpose of rating and critiquing it. Michelin may then award up to three stars for outstanding dining (or remove existing stars if it feels the restaurant has dropped [...]
Eating Madrid 2013
Dinner at bedtime and pastries for breakfast--the Madrid way of eating is a bit of a culture shock to those who like eggs and bacon in the morning and dinner by 6pm. I spent just under a week in Madrid, my first time in Spain, which gave me a great chance to explore the city and the food culture by wandering and through guided tours. [...]
Wild Duck Restaurant Perth
The Wild Duck restaurant once upon a time lived in Albany, in the far south of Western Australia. In 2012, however, it relocated closer to the Perth city, where it now lives on Hampden Road in Nedlands, not far from The University of Western Australia. I studied at the university for six years and had not even once visited the Wild Duck, so it was [...]
Squid Ink Pasta with Calamari
To those who like their spaghetti white and their carrots orange, it can be a scary looking thing, but tagliatelle dyed with squid ink is nothing to fear. Typical of various regions of Italy and Spain, squid ink is used to give pasta and risotto dishes a mildly salty flavour with hints of the sea. Most notable, though, is the deep black colour that it [...]
East Cafe & Vietnamese Bistro
Studying medicine is no easy task. It requires at least six years of full-time university study (and when I say full time, I mean 25 hours a day), which includes endless rotations in hospitals, and shuffling through what might seem to the mere moral like never-ending textbooks. Starting a business from scratch is also no easy task, and brings with it a multitude of stresses [...]
Red Opium Perth
On an opium-induced high, surrounded by the bright colours used to mask what was once a gloomy and drab underground lair, we anxiously waited for the next hit, as the attendants scurried across the floor to the becks and calls of the other patrons. I am, of course, speaking not of a night filled with the narcotic alkaloids of the opium poppy, but an inspired [...]
Kaffir Lime Zabaglione with Galangal Tuile
I was chatting with a friend on Facebook recently (actually, Belinda from Why Yes, I Do Eat Constantly) about the green curry recipe that I wrote about, and the topic of an Italian-Thai fusion dish came up. At first I jokingly suggested a shrimp paste risotto, which is a dish that I hope nobody ever tries to create. Belinda then suggested, in a more serious [...]