Het Zuid Experience

Instead of exploring the tourist spots of Antwerp, we opt for off the beaten track and head to area called 'Het Zuid'

. There are plenty of cafes, restaurants and also museums to soak in.

We first had our lunch at a bistro called Canal nearby the Modern Art Museum. The place already very crowded when we arrived, there is a terrace section but all occupied so we settled for a window seat inside.

I decided to start my day in style with bubbles. They actually poured my cava in Moet & Chandon glass as if I have ordered a glass of champagne.

Johannes decided to feast on Tuna steak which comes in a really huge portion with a bed of tomato under the tuna itself and the side dishes of potatoes and salad. What a feast for lunch.

I am absolutely happy with just a simple Chicken Ciabatta as I want to save some space for tea later.

In Search for Macaron

Yesterday 20^th March 2009 is Jour du Macaron in France. In search for macaron, I have gone that far to Antwerp today, just because I know a salon de thé that sells macarons in Antwerp and that is the closest to us.

These are pretty petit creatures that are hard to resist. Every bite that melts in my mouth is a complete indulgence, so crisps, so light and so pretty.

Eating macaron actually makes me feel sexy and no wonder thousands of French women fall in love with macaron.

Tell you more about the trip to Antwerp tomorrow. Good night!

Kusmi Tea@Café Zondag

Today I had a lunch appointment with a friend at Delft, we wanted to have bagels for lunch but the shop is no longer there. We dropped by a café called ‘Zondag’ nearby and what attracted me was the assorted teas they have in this café. The Kumis tea is a Russia and French mixed brand and blend. I ordered this Agothé tea, a blend of green tea with peppermints and seaweed which is quite refreshing and special. What is rather special is I decide on the amount of tea leaves I like.

Overall, good company, good chat and good tea. A rather relaxing way to begin the weekend.

KL Food: Purple Cane Tea Restaurant (紫藤茶艺)

5th February 2009

The Purple Cane Tea Restaurant (紫藤茶艺) – a healthy eating concept restaurant with a slogan such as ‘Tea brings feelings to life’ and almost all dishes they offer are cooked with tea leave or scented with tea.

We ordered the following:

Purple Cane Tea (紫藤茶) – since tea is their specialty, for a pot of tea we ordered we got two pots, one to brew the tea and one to pour the brewed tea to keep it. This is to prevent the tea from getting too bitter if it is left to steep for too long.

Pan fried egg with Anchovies and tea milli (银鱼煎蛋）- Basically omelets with little Krill (krill is smaller than anchovies). Very thin and crispy without much oil.

Green tea Rice (绿茶饭) - which is slightly brown in color as the rice is cooked in brewed tea. Bits of tea leaves are also found within the fluffy rice grains. Again taste wise, no taste of any tea involved except for the color.

Assorted vegetables (水仙罗汉斋) – a bit disappointed with this dish, as it is a bit too flat in taste and can smell or taste the tea.

Stir Fried black pepper beef in tea sauce (茶香黑椒牛柳) – both of us like this dish, nice bit size of tender beef and powerful black pepper spice up our appetite.

Stir fried bitter gourd with pickled vegetables and tea milli （咸菜凉瓜）- another healthy green dish, the combination of bitter gourd and salted vegetables did balance the taste.

We were there rather early that day as I need to work at night, so the restaurant was rather empty when we start eating. The dishes are very homely, not so much as a feeling of eating at home but the dishes (due to less oil and salt) gave a taste of home cooked food. The overall dining experience is acceptable, not particularly great in term of taste but the concept of healthy eating and healthy living with tea is rather innovative in Malaysia.



KL Food: Penang Fired Kway Tiaw (槟城炒粿條)

Penang fried Kway Tiaw (槟城炒粿條) or fried flat noodles Penang style. This dish could be spicy especially if there is more of the nyonya influence to it. But generally, a common dish we eat for lunch or dinner at the hawker stall. The common ingredients are prawn, Chinese sausage (non-halal stall), bean sprouts, fish cake, egg and clams. They are always oily but who cares when it come to great taste…

KL Food: Roti Canai Telur

Roti Canai, some kind of puffed bread served hot with curry or dhal. You can relate it to the French’s crepes. The people who sell this type of food is called “Mamak”, they are normally referred to the off spring of the intermarriage between the Indians and Malays.

There are different types of roti canai, this one that I ordered is called Roti Telur (with egg), if you want the extra oily and flavored one, you can order Roti planta (with extra butter). There are among other variety such as Roti Sardine (with canned sardine), Roti pisang (with banana) and the luxe version is called Mutabak.

KL Food: 1977 Ipoh Chicken Rice

It's lunch time and I am posting some backlog blogs on food again...bear with me...

We ate at Ipoh Chicken Rice restaurant twice. The first time we feast ourselves with half chicken, bean sprouts, fish ball soup and the half chicken apparently to be too much for both of us. Anyway, the chicken was smooth and soft, very delicate. The fish ball is so crunchy that every bite I take, it spring in my mouth and the taste of the fish is so real. The bean sprouts are fat, short and juicy too...

On a different occasion, we learned our lesson and Johannes ordered just normal chicken rice for one person and I had this Ipoh shredded chicken rice stick(怡保鸡丝河玢）. Out of my curiosity, I also ordered this Stewed Pork Belly dish (梅菜扣肉). A rather fat and oily dish which I refrain most of the time, but if I just pick and eat the meat and let go of the fat, it is okay, at least for this home trip. The dish is very nicely done, it is not greasy at all and if you happen to eat the fat, it just melts in your mouth directly.