Owner: Kiwi Lover URL:http://kiwi-lover.blogspot.com Join Date: Tue, 08 Aug 2006 22:42:07 -0500 Rating:1 Site Description: This is a blog about food of various ethnic and countries that I have tried and visited. There are even airplane meal pictures! Countries now include: America, France and Japan. Site statistics:Click here
Hiroko's Place 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:
Hiroko
's Place
75 Thompson Street
New York, New York 10012
212-625-1303
When:
January 6, 2007
I will post more about Hiroko's Place's food later. This time, I just want to show what makes Hiroko's Place a standard Japanese coffee shop, 喫茶店 kissaten.
Hiroko's Place
The Bookshelves
A kissaten's interior design does not need to be very modern or creative; it just has to be relaxing.
Weinwirtschaften Traube 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:
Weinwirtschaften Traube
St. Jakobs-Strasse 377
4051 Basel
Switzerland
(+41)61-377-94-44
When:
August 1, 2006
Weinwirtschaften Traube
On the same day as my dinner in Germany and brisk walk in France, RS treated me to Weinwirtschaften Traube in Switzerland.
Weinwirtschaften Traube means "Wine Bar Grape", but the only thing I drank was their Soup of the Day. It was a creamy vegetable
åˆèŠ±ãƒ‘ーク Hatsuhana Park 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:
åˆèŠ±ãƒ‘ーク Hatsuhana Park
237 Park Avenue
New York, New York 10017
212-355-3345
When:
January 11, 2007
åˆèŠ±ãƒ‘ーク Hatsuhana Park is one of those places that make me so glad that I am a girl. I ordered their Ladies' Set every time I went there. It always has four components: appetizers, noodles, sushi and dessert.
One of the Appetizers
Grilled Sardine
Eel on Fish Cake
Today's appetizers were
Pierre Victoire Bistrot 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:
Pierre
Victoire Bistrot
9 Little Clarendon Street
Oxford OX1 2HP
United Kingdom
(+44)1865-316616
When:
January 9, 2005
Pierre Victoire Bistrot
The first time I had a French meal was ironically in England. It was at Pierre Victoire Bistrot in Oxford.
For starter, I had Pork Rillette. It was strange. It was a huge lump of cold bland mashed pork sitting above herb sauce and jam made of
Lederhosen 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:Lederhosen39 Grove StreetNew York, New York 10014212-206-7691When:August 15, 2005My first encounter with German food was on SY's birthday. We had dinner at Lederhosen surrounded by murals of mountains.LederhosenI had Jägerschnitzel, which was veal with mushroom gravy sauce and several types of pickled vegetables. Both the portion and flavors were massive. I needed several glasses of water to accompany the food.JägerschnitzelAt the end of the meal, the hostess loved me, because I was the only one in the party who cleaned the plate.
Mandoo Bar 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:Mandoo Bar2 West 32nd StreetNew York, New York 10001212-279-3075When:January 24, 2007Mandoo BarI have walked by Mandoo Bar's display window and seen ladies prepared the restaurant's namesake for many years. Today, I finally tried them.ë§Œë‘ mandoo is the Korean word referring to dumplings. An order of Combo Mandoo had pork, seafood and vegetable dumplings.Pork MandooPork mandoo were the white ones. Inside, there were pork, scallion and chive. The meat to greens ratio was just right.Seafood MandooSeafood dumplings had orange skin. The fillings were mostly white with shrimp and imitation crab meat. They were al dente.Vegetable MandooVegetables ones were green outside and multicolored inside with carrot and zucchini shreds. They were very crispy.Combo MandooEverything in Combo Mandoo was steamed. But Mandoo Bar also makes fried dumplings and other Korean dishes. I will have to try several of them with other people later.
飴細工 Amezaiku 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:日本岡山県新見市Niimi, OkayamaJapanWhen:October 12, 2003My Amezaiku Rabbit飴細工 amezaiku is the Japanese art of twisting and cutting melted sugar while shaping it into forms of animals and other things. Like many other folk arts, there are not many people skilled at amezaiku anymore.At å‚™ä¸åœ‹æ–°è¦‹åº„ã¾ã¤ã‚Š BitchÅ«nokuni Niiminoshou Festival, I was very lucky to see one. He took orders from other kids and me and delivered them very quickly. I asked for a rabbit. But he also made Pikachu and Hamtaro upon requests.The Amezaiku Artist Making My Rabbit
å¼å½“ Bento 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Where:日本岡山県新見市Niimi, OkayamaJapanWhen:October 12, 2003å¼å½“ bento is a box of prepared meal usually consists of rice and other dishes. The tendency of making food for consumption later in the day is seen around the world. But the history of bento can be chased back to 平安時代 Heian Period (794 - 1185). During the Heian Period, people carried with them small containers of dried cooked rice called hoshiii, which can be written as å¹²ã—飯 or ç³’. They can be eaten as they are or with hot water added. The concept is very similar to the modern day cup noodles. The beautiful wooden lacquered bento boxes originated from 安土桃山時代 Azuchi-Momoyama Period (1568 - 1600).My First Bento
in JapanIn the picture is my first bento in Japan. Starting from the lower right hand corner and going clockwise there are: rice with plum and pickles, salmon, stuffed squid, egg, shrimp, mushroom, wanton, radish, fish cake, scallop, seaweed, tomato, fried dumpling, fried pork
æ³ã€…æžœ Saisaika 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Saisaika inside its Wrapperæ³ã€…æžœ Saisaika is fruit based. More specifically, it is æž‡æ· biwa or loquat based. Its jelly shell is made from loquat juice, and it wraps around a piece of loquat. Saisaika
花ã¤ã¼ã¿ Hanatsubomi 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Hanatsubomi in its Packaging花ã¤ã¼ã¿ Hanatsubomi is supposed to be a flower bud. But this å’Œè“å wagashi looks like a 花柚 hanayu or Citrus hanaju because it uses a fruit's entire peel as shell to hold the filling called 羊羮 youkan, which is a gelatin consists of mainly beans. The peel is cooked so that most of its bitterness is eliminated while still emanating a lemony scent. Once inside the mouth, the youkan melts into a sweet sticky paste. Every bite of Hanatsubomi tastes like an actual slice of hanayu.Hanatsubomi
Crepe 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Crepe is a very thin pancake. Its origin is in France, its French name is crêpe, and, by the way, it is feminine. The crepe is la crêpe. It can be sweet or salty, even though in my mind only dessert crepes exist.My First Batch of CrepesFor my first and only attempt on crepe making so far, I searched the internet for a simple recipe. The Food Network’s "Sweet Crepes" recipe by David Lieberman has easy and clear instructions. But I only followed it loosely because I did not have whole milk and vanilla extracts. Here is what I did.Ingredients:¾ cup of flour1 teaspoon of salt1 cup of skim milk2 eggs2 tablespoon of sugar1 tablespoon of melted butterDirection:1. Put flour and salt into a bowl.2. Whisk the mixture.3. Add milk, eggs, sugar and melted butter one at a time while whisking.4. Cover the batter and put it in a refrigerator for one hour.5. Take the batter out of the refrigerator.6. Prepare a flat frying pan by heating a small amount of butter so the oil will cover the pan Read more:Crepe
中國國際航空 Air China 2007-02-18 05:59:00 Where: 中國國際航空 Air China
When:August 4, 2004Honestly speaking, 中國國際航空 Air China’s in flight meals cannot compare with 中華航空 China Airlines’. The food is around the same level as Continental Airlines’, but the packaging is worse.Chicken MealBeef MealAir China wrapped my meals with aluminum foil and saran wrap! The food was very coarsely made. The entrées tasted like chunks of salt.
みかん Mikan 2007-02-16 05:59:00 Where:日本岡山県備前市Bizen, OkayamaJapanWhen: November 15, 2003みかん Mikan
is a fruit with many names. Its full Japanese name is 温州蜜柑 unshū-mikan; it is named after 溫州 Wenzhou - a region in China famous for producing the fruit. Its scientific name naturally is Citrus unshiu. To the western hemisphere, however, the fruit is known as satsuma.MikanNo matter what you call it, mikan is still very juicy and sweet. It is similar to tangerine in both flavor and size.
そば Soba 2007-02-22 05:59:00 そば soba means both buckwheat and buckwheat noodle. According to 日本農林規格 Japanese Agricultural Standard, excluding water, if more than thirty percent of a noodle’s ingredient is buckwheat, then it is considered as soba. If it is one hundred percent buckwheat, then it is called 生そば ki-soba or 十割そば jyūwari-soba. The origin of soba is unclear; but it is said to be developed between late 16th and early 17th century. Since then soba has gained popularity all over Japan, especially in 関東 Kantou area. Recently, I learned how to cook soba. Each pack of dry soba noodle from your local market should have simple directions on the back. As for me, I follow the following steps.Ingredients:WaterSobaDirection:1. Fill up two pots with enough water in each to submerge the soba you are planning to cook2. Bring one pot of water to boil3. Put the dry soba noodle into the pot4. Keep the water boiling5. Let the noodle cook for five minutes6. Move the cooked noodle fr
鬼が島 Onigashima 2007-02-20 05:59:00 Where:Onigashima43-45 West 55th StreetNew York, New York 10019212-541-7145When:February 18, 2007鬼が島 Onigashima is one of my favorite noodle places in New York. Its food is not fancy fusion. It is down to earth and authentic Japanese dishes. Today, DH and I arrived at Onigashima just before it closes to prepare for dinner, so we placed our orders very quickly.Curry Nanban Udon SetDH got Curry Nanban Udon Set, which consists of a bowl of rice covered with a thick and dense layer of curry duck, a bowl of udon in warm soup, and pickles. I got a whiff of the delicious curry every time DH took a bite.I asked for the Lunch Tasting Set – a four course set that includes appetizer, sushi, soba, and dessert. The appetizer itself already has three parts: tuna sashimi, cold tofu, and hijiki salad. Tuna SashimiCold TofuHijiki SaladThe sushi pieces were tuna, yellow tail, and real crabmeat that single-handedly made the entire meal seem more luxurious. The soba and its company, sea eel
吉野家 Yoshinoya 2007-02-24 05:59:00 Where:吉野家 Yoshinoya253 West 42nd StreetNew York, New York 10036When:January 12, 2007吉野家 Yoshinoya is a Japanese fast food restaurant known for its 牛丼 gyū-don, which is a bowl of rice covered with sliced beef. It is founded in 東京 Tokyo by 松田栄吉 Eikichi Matsuda who is from 吉野町 Yoshino-Cho in 大坂 Osaka. Now, it is one of the largest and most inexpensive fast food chain that open twenty-four hours a day in Japan. It is a great place to wait for the sun to rise after a night spent on the train.Gyū-DonThe name, Yoshinoya, brings back many of nice memories of Japan. But its Times Square location looks nothing like the Japanese ones. It looks like any other Chinese food vendor in shopping malls. In fact, its food selections are not the same as well. Everything is heated in high power microwave and served in Styrofoam bowls. In Japan, rice is prepared through out the day, and the bowls are ceramics.But, nonetheless, it is comforting to pass by its o
Hiroko’s Place: My Favorites 2007-02-26 05:59:00 Where:Hiroko
’s Place
75 Thompson StreetNew York, New York 10012212-625-1303When:September 28, 2006Kiwi JuiceI may not have an appetizer with every meal at Hiroko’s Place. But I begin every one with a glass of kiwi juice. Real, fresh kiwis are put into the blender upon every order making the flavor unbeatable and addictive.Hiroko’s Place’s curry also has a strong flavor. But do not expect an Indian taste. It is Japanese stylized, just like the loaf of minced beef served together in ハムバーグカレー Hamburg Curry. The meat loaf is called ハムバーグ hamburg; it is a very common dish in Japanese households.Curry HamburgAnpanman Omuriceオムライス omurice is another common Japanese dish. It is egg wrapped rice. Hiroko’s Place has a variety of omurice, even アンパンマンオムライス Anpanman Omurice. Although I have never watched a single episode of アンパンマン Anpanman, I have grown somewhat attached to the animated character over time. Anpa
Bangkok House 2007-02-28 05:59:00 Where:BangkokHouse
42A Hythe Bridge StreetOxford OX1 2EPUnited Kingdom(+44)1865-200705When:January 22, 2005Bangkok HouseThai food is surprisingly popular in England. Even a small college town like Oxford has several Thai restaurants. I only got to try Bangkok House on this trip though.Bangkok House’s wide decorated roof makes it stand out among Oxford’s antiquated buildings. Its interior is even more ornate. Statues of all sizes are here and there. Tables and chairs are carved with delicate patterns.The InteriorA StatueThe FurnitureSC and I had their Tom Yum Goong for appetizer. I remember it well because it almost flooded with mushrooms and prawns. All of them were juicy and fresh. Tom Yum GoongAs entrée, there was Green Chicken Curry and mixed vegetables. The curry was very smooth due to the coconut milk added.Green Chicken CurryMixed VegetablesWe completed our lunch with a plate of sweet and crispy Fried Banana with Kirsch Custard. Kirsch supposes to be a clear brandy
Basta Pasta 2006-04-22 06:33:00 Where:Basta Pasta
37 West 17th StreetNew York, New York 10011212-366-0888When:April 12, 2006Basta Pasta is the most French Italian restaurant I have ever seen. Everything from the wait staff’s black and white attire to the open kitchen says French to me. But it is Italian, Japanese style Italian to be exact.According to Basta Pasta’s website, the restaurant is ‘designed after the TV program “Iron Chef”’ with the kitchen as visible as possible. It is so visible that you can see it from outside of the restaurant. The KitchenNext to the kitchen, there is a wall of wooden planks with big metal handles and hindges. That is the kitchen's refrigerator. The RefrigeratorHere comes one big French factor. Calamari alla GrigaliaFor antipasto, appetizer that is, my two friends and I ordered Calamari alla Grigalia, which is grilled squid with cherry tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and many other things. Everything including the pistachios tasted great sulked in balsamic vinegar. But each of u
Hall 2007-03-04 05:59:00 Where:Hall @ St. Catherine’s CollegeManor RoadOxford OX1 3UJ(+44)1865-271700United KingdomWhen:January 19, 2005There are meals that cannot be had just by paying money The ones at St. Catherine’s College are such examples. Thanks to SC, I was able to experience dining at St. Catherine’s College’s Hall. Unlike other schools I visited, breakfast, lunch, and dinner are only served once a day at St. Catherine’s College’s Hall, and it is only opened to students and their guests. Tables at the HallJK, SC and I arrived at St. Catherine’s College at seven o’clock for dinner. We filed into the Hall with other students and took seats on the long benches placed along the equally long tables. After everyone was seated, the professors entered the Hall, and all of us stood up again until they sat down at a long table perpendicular to the students’. Once we were all seated again, the meal began.The ProfessorsThe Wait StaffWaiters and waitresses first revolved around the table
The Rose 2007-03-02 05:59:00 Where:The Rose51 High StreetOxford OX1 4ASUnited Kingdom(+44)1865-244429When:January 20, 2005The one thing I regret not doing more when I was in England is having tea. Tea rooms are everywhere, and, with prices listed in pound, they seem a lot cheaper than the ones in United States too. But I only went to The Rose.The RoseThe Rose is a standard modern tea room. It has a relaxing atmosphere with no particular theme. SC and I had a Light Afternoon Tea, which comes with a pot of leaf tea and two toasted teacakes. I think we chose Earl Grey as our tea.Before the food, there came the utensils: knife, teaspoon, leaf filter and leaf filter rest. The leaf filter has a hook that allows it to hang peacefully on a cup’s rim as your pour tea into it. When the pouring is done, the leaf filter can sit right onto the leaf filter rest, so that there will be no dripping all over the place.The UtensilsA Cup of TeaA Pot of TeaTeacakesTeacakes resemble bread more than cake because they are round
L’Ecole 2007-03-06 05:59:00 Where:L’Ecole @ The French Culinary Institute462 BroadwayNew York, New York 10013212-219-3300When:February 25, 2005L'EcoleL’Ecole is the restaurant of The French Culinary Institute; its kitchen is run by the school’s students who may one day become New York’s top chefs. As compliments from the future top chefs, DH and I received three tiny pieces of finger food. They are all made with different types of bread and topping. I wish there were more.Compliments from the Future Top ChefsFor our own appetizers, we had Salad Greens with Marinated Goat Cheese and Country Pâté with Foie Gras and Truffles. Pâté is a cold meat pie. I am not too fond of pâté’s texture, but I did enjoy the potato, pickles and watercress also in Country Pâté with Foie Gras and Truffles.Salad Greens with Marinated Goat CheeseCountry Pâté with Foie Gras and TrufflesThen there were lamb and seafood for entrées and Crème Brûlée Le Cirque Style and Chocolate Ganache Cake with Mocha Sauce for
Yolato 2007-03-12 04:59:00 Where:Yolato120 MacDougal StreetNew York, New York 10012212-228-6303When:March 10, 2007YolatoDessert crepes are relatively hard to find in New York City. There were crepe shops, but many of them closed one by one like Mon Repas. You can imagine how surprised I was when I saw Yolato’s crepe advertisement. “That is very brave of them!” I thought. To encourage them to stay open, I decided to have a crepe. Making of My CrepeBesides crepes, Yolato also sells yogurt and gelato, hence the name Yolato. While in Italy, I learned a rule of thumb for judging gelato. Decent gelato does not use artificial flavoring and coloring, so it should be of the same color as the actual ingredients. Banana gelato, for example, should have a beige grey shade rather than a yellow one. It is a good representative of the gelateria’s authenticity.Yolato's GelatoYolato did not have banana gelato on my visit, but they had banana kiwi! It was green grey and had black seeds. The scent of banana ove
稲ぎく Inagiku 2007-03-10 05:59:00 Where:稲ぎく Inagiku111 East 49th StreetNew York, New York 10017212-355-0440When:March 9, 2007This year, besides the usual seasonal restaurant weeks, there is Japanese Restaurant Week. Some of its deals are much more expensive than the ones offered during other restaurant weeks. However, 稲ぎく Inagiku is one of the few who offers a reasonable prix fixe dinner. And it shares a building with Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.VG invited two friends and me. Then one of her friends invited another two friends. With a total of six people, we tried almost everything on the prix fixe menu.As appetizers, there were 海老アボカドカクテル Shrimp and Avocado Cocktail, サーモンタルタル Salmon Tartare, and ねぎま焼 Negima.Shrimp and Avocado CocktailVG expected the Shrimp and Avocado Cocktail to have alcohol, while I expected it to have slices of avocado sitting on a cocktail glass’s rim like shrimps. But we were both wrong. There are no avocado slices in the dish, just avoca
Café Zaiya 2007-03-08 05:59:00 Where:Café Zaiya18 East 41st StreetNew York, New York 10017212-779-0600When:March 6, 2007Being next to my favorite secondhand bookstore and Japanese easily makes Café Zaiya a place that I frequent. I always enjoy looking at their cake display. But I never had a slice until I finally tried their Mango Coconut Mousse. It has a ¾ inch thick layer of mango mousse and another of coconut mousse lying between thin sheets of mango jelly and cake. There is no fattening icing or cavity inducing richness – just a mango’s sweetness and coconut’s creaminess. Mango Coconut MousseWith the fruits on it, Mango Coconut Mousse makes me think that it is okay to have another piece or two.
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