A sure way to keep the house clean. Toshiba’s been workin’ it lately.

Just woke up from a killer food coma, thanks to dinner at L’Albatros with the fam.  The recent addition to the Cleveland restaurant scene has taken up residence in the old That Place on Bellflower.  Great ambience, friendly and intelligent staff and food that blows the mind.  I’m just coming off finals week and therefore have averaged maybe 8 hours of sleep in the past week, so I’ve been eating cereal and crack.  That said, today was a total reversal of that routine: prato misto and a Young’s Double Chocolate Stout at Sergio’s and at L’Albatros; escargot, cassoulet and a canalé with cherry compote and a Reissdorf Kölsch.

L’Albatros has a decent beer list with some Great Lakes, Orval, Duvel, Old Speckled Hen, Gavroche but with LINDEMAN’S!  I have such a pet-peeve when places try to offer lambics but then offer the MOST crap one.  Ok that aside, the food is to die for and you’ll be fighting off the “itis” before you know it, but in such a good way.

Roni tries snails for the first time at a party that couldn’t be any more French. [2:25]

Escargot sounds better than snail, but whatever they’re called I’ve never summoned the courage to eat one until last night.

Then it came served to each diner on a china spoon as a pre-dinner offering and it would have been rude to turn it down.

I looked, lifted it slowly to my mouth, tasted it somewhat gingerly and to my surprise I liked it.

The dominant flavour was mild garlic and the texture was similar to a tender scallop.

The dinner was an end of year gathering at the Museum Hotel in Wellington. The meal was delicious – groper accompanied by steamed vegetables and followed by crème brulee. The service was superb and my fellow diners delightful.

After stuffing myself silly at my grandmother’s house on Thanksgiving, mom and I decided we’d get on the road to Gainesville. Eight hours, three stops and one diet soda later we made it to Titletown at 4:30 a.m. Whenever my mother comes to Gainesville I try to take her to a new restaurant that she’s never experienced. She’s the office manager for a Great Events Catering in Key West and is the reason I became a foodie.

Her first night in town we decided to go to Bistro 1245, a cute little pasta place with a great wine selection. The restaurant is small and cozy, and you can see right into the open kitchen. We snuggled into our table by the window with glasses of wine and relaxed to the sweet sounds of mellow jazz. My mom is a big fan of escargot, so naturally that is what we ordered first.

The escargot was delicious in its creamy garlic sauce, and it was even better paired with the lightly toasted flatbread for a satisfying crunch. I was so smitten with the food I completely forgot to take a picture until halfway through the course.

I’m a big sucker for pasta’s with light sauces and lots of ingredients. The Roma Tomato Pasta certainly didn’t dissapoint. The dish consisted of linguini noodles in a light olive oil, large chunks of roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and spinach. The citrusy tang of the tomatos mixed with the mozzarella was reminiscent of tomato caprice, another one of my favorite dishes.

My mother has been watching what she eats recently, but it doesn’t stop her from enjoying her meal when she orders out. Any meal at Bistro 1245 can be deconstructed and reworked to fit your dieting needs. Mom ordered the duck sandwich with a mixed green salad and chose to forgo the breading and mix the duck into her salad with feta cheese instead.

The next night, however, neither of us was counting calories. After the Gators whooped up on the Seminoles during Tebow’s last game, mom and I decided to head to Emiliano’s one of my favorite family owned restaurants in Gainesville. The restaurant specializes in Tapas and we made sure to order plenty.

The Picadillo Empanadas were melt-in-your-mouth good. The savory flavor of the ground beef with Latin seasonings inside made the flaky outside pastry taste even better. Mom stayed away from the fried yuca frita with garlicky mojito, but I couldn’t get enough. I wasn’t a huge fan of the crab stuffed portobello, a baked portobello mushroom cap with crabmeat stuffing, topped with queso blanco and served over a calabaza-jalapeño cream sauce. The crab was a bit fishy and there were too many flavors mixed together, it tasted too jumbled. The artichokes were extremely light and creamy, and easy to pop in your mouth. The last thing we tried was one of Emiliano’s signature tapas dishes, the Churrasco, or Argentinian Flank Steak. By itself the meat was juicy and tender, and mixed with a chimichurri sauce on top the flavor was even more intense.

For more about Emiliano’s, read my restaurant review in INsite magazine here.

Ah, do the French know how to eat. On the occasions when I want to indulge in French cuisine in a fun, casual setting, I go to Bistrot du Coin in Dupont Circle.

Bistrot du Coin’s cheery yellow space bustles with energy and sophistication, like a real French cafe.

My favorite dish is the Escargot à la Bourguignonne. It is an appetizer but makes a great light meal.

Served in a special pewter dish, each plump, oversized snail is nestled in its own pocket of savory, pungent garlic butter. There’s enough left over to sop up with some crusty French bread.

Or try the La Traditionelle Mouclade des Charentes if you like mussels. You get a whole pot of them, steamed in a curry cream sauce. The broth is so light and flavorful, I’d drink from the pot if it was socially acceptable.

Vikki Graves misses out on World Turtle Day, but just as she thinks it’s safe to venture out again, World Electronics Week hoves into view…

Originally I had planned to start writing this on World Turtle Day, but circumstances got the better of me and I bypassed not only the celebration of heroes in a half-shell but National Escargot Day too. And now here I am, deadline looming large, at the start of National Family Week.

Not heard of National Family Week? Neither had I – this year’s the first one. The week promises a celebration of, yep, you guessed it, “your family”. What a concept; positive, hopeful, with mass market appeal by the bucket-load. And a perfect way to attract a diverse range of businesses and D-list celebrities looking for a bit of free advertising – so perfect it could have been thought up by a PR company. Guess what? It was. Recently it seems like every day and every week is ‘National This’ or ‘World Appreciation’ that. This month we had only two days to recover between British Sandwich Week and National Vegetarian Week, which finished the day before National Family Week began. Is it just me, or is all this just a sophisticated PR exercise? Surely to be a vegetarian you are required to behave like one for more than one week a year; and probably also for more than one week at a time. And I would be willing to bet that sandwiches appear in the lunch-boxes of the majority of Brits daily rather than annually. Some of us even eat vegetarian sandwiches, which is probably why the two national weeks cannot happen at the same time. And the days and weeks just keep on coming. While you’ve got your diary out, why not make a note of National Running Day, National Electronics Week and National Badger Day, all coming up soon.

At first I thought I was the only National Week cynic, but there are others. Whilst idly googling creative names for other potential weeks, I stumbled upon a blog on an ethical website attacking National Watercress Week as pointless. Now, although I was thrilled to find a kindred spirit, I don’t think watercress is the worst offender – at least it is seasonal and thus has a ‘week’. Ok, a few weeks, but still.

The problem is that watercress is a plant; it grows in the ground and then we eat it. The family, on the other hand, is a social and moral institution which makes us feel warm inside. It’s marketing gold. Hence why family favourites from across the land, from Gordon Brown, to Richard and Judy, to Miss England 2008 are jumping on the bandwagon. Even celebrity saucepan endorser, sorry, chef, Antony Worrall Thompson is getting in on the act by choosing us a family recipe. Ain’t that sweet? And if all this wasn’t enough, on completion of this piece, I popped out to the shops and was greeted with a poster of a smiley, dark-haired beauty wielding a glass of branded fruit drink. Diaries out again folks, it’s National Mango Week.

Published in The Leither June 2009

por Vitor Oshiro

Apesar do título, não estamos falando da lentidão da Prefeitura em pagar os médicos, mas da notícia que saiu ontem no Jornal de Londrina sobre o crescimento da infestação de caramujos africanos na cidade. Quem encontrar o problema deve ligar para a Vigilância Sanitária no telefone 3376-1981.

Mas, a questão não é recente. Confira uma matéria que eu fiz há mais de dois anos (01/04/07) para o Jornal Online da UEL, Conexão Ciência. (Vale lembrar que os cargos citados na reportagem são daquela época). A edição é de Ludmilla Andrade.

Caramujos africanos: um desequilíbrio

Recentemente, houve uma infestação de caramujos africanos em Londrina. O molusco terrestre de nome científico Achatina fulica apareceu em diversos bairros da cidade e preocupou a Secretária Municipal de Saúde. Contudo, ao tomar conhecimento do problema, muitas questões devem ser abordadas, inclusive a participação humana neste desequilíbrio.

A Profª. Sirlei Bennemann, doutora na área de Ecologia e Recursos Naturais, disse que os caramujos são originários da África e foram trazidos ao Brasil na década de 80 para serem criados em cativeiros e substituir o escargot, de nome científico Helix aspersa. Como a espécie foi introduzida de forma ilegal, não se sabia os inúmeros malefícios que ela traria à saúde e, conseqüentemente, a total inviabilidade de seu consumo. A tentativa de substituição visava um lucro na indústria alimentícia, pois o caramujo africano é maior que o escargot.

Entretanto, a introdução da espécie no comércio foi um fracasso, devido à falta de hábito da maior parte da população brasileira em consumir moluscos. Com isso, os comerciantes jogaram os caramujos no meio ambiente sem pensar nos desequilíbrios que este ato poderia causar. “O homem por ignorância sobre o assunto – introduz animais e outros seres vivos em qualquer ambiente diferente dos locais de origem. Não buscar conhecimentos é uma questão cultural, isto é geral no Brasil, pois o interesse é apenas buscar lucros”, confirma a doutora.

O caramujo africano é um animal herbívoro, que causa muitos prejuízos no lugar onde se aloja. O molusco devora plantações, hortas, pomares e grãos armazenados, inclusive pode dominar outras espécies que ocupem o mesmo hábitat.

Além disso, os riscos à saúde proporcionados pelo animal são sérios. O molusco é capaz de transmitir o verme Angiostrongylus, causador da Angiostrongilíase meningoencefálica humana, doença grave que afeta o sistema nervoso central. Outra enfermidade é a Angiostrongilíase abdominal, cuja conseqüência é o comprometimento dos órgãos abdominais. Contudo, o coordenador de Endemias da secretaria municipal, Luiz Alfredo Gonçalves, disse que “nunca houve um registro oficial constando que o caramujo foi responsável por estas doenças no Brasil”.

A forma de transmissão é feita por meio da ingestão de alimentos contaminados pelo muco excretado do animal ou com o consumo direto do molusco. Entretanto, o coordenador de Endemias aconselha não manter nenhum contato físico com o animal e chamar a equipe de saúde para efetuar o recolhimento.

Segundo o coordenador, Londrina é propícia ao aparecimento da espécie devido ao clima quente. “A infestação ocorre no verão e a média de ligações diárias para efetuar a coleta é de sete telefonemas, podendo chegar a quinze, em dias de pico”, confirmou o coordenador.

Após recolhidos, os caramujos devem ser incinerados ou enterrados com cal virgem para evitar a contaminação do solo e dos lençóis freáticos. O coordenador disse que uma empresa de Londrina cedeu um forno e, assim que recolhidos, os caramujos são incinerados.

Por fim, fica evidente que as visões de fontes de diferentes áreas coincidem no agente causador esse problema: o homem. E ambos complementam que é necessário tomar as medidas necessárias para solucionar esta infestação, mas, principalmente, atentar, para as atitudes futuras, que podem resultar em muitos outros desequilíbrios.

Love the ambience there. The food there is also very nice, especially their chicken wings and wedges. Never tasted this good wedges. The place is not air-conditioned but is cooling. It has a nice al fresco area, with duo-swings along the path way. There is also a mini stage for band, but it wasn’t playing the night I went. The escargots were special with a mushroom base.  But I was craving more for the usual baked garlic and butter escargots in their shells. I’m not impressed with their pizzas. Could have more taste.

There isn’t many parking lots, and you have to be careful while parking and driving out cos there is no fencing and there are 2 parallel drains on each side of the road.

I would love to go there again. Anyone drives? =)

San Miguel (1 pint) – $12
Hoegaarden (1 pint) – $14
Hawaiian Pizza – $20
The Big Five Pizza – $24
Escargot (4 pieces) – $12
Firestation Wings (half dozen pairs) – $14
Potato Wedges – $10
Exclusive of 7% GST

Stall name: Fire Station
Location: 274 Upper Bukit Timah Road Singapore 588213
Tel: 64650600

Je suis candide.  Je suis naïve.  Je suis crédule et mystifiable.
Faire confiance.  Avoir confiance.  Être confiant.
On m’a enseigné à l’être
à l’appliquer
à le donner
à l’obtenir
à l’offrir

On m’a enseigné à allouer cette vertu parce que sans se sentiment de sécurité, d’assurance et d’espérance, l’abandon est irréalisable.  Sans abandon : pas de solidarité, pas de tendresse ni de complicité.
On m’a appris à croire en la bonne foi.  On m’a appris à croire en la loyauté.
On m’a appris à accepter comme vrai, la franchise, la transparence et l’intégrité.

Je m’en veux parfois d’y avoir cru sans questionnement, comme jeunot, alors qu’on croit aux contes, sans les mettre en doute.  «Pourquoi nous rapporterait-on un leurre, un mensonge, une tromperie?  Pourquoi publierait-on des conneries fausses et enracinées dans l’illusion?  Pourquoi faire la promotion de quelque chose qui n’est tout simplement pas vrai?»

On m’a appris à faire confiance, à avoir confiance.

On m’a inculqué une vérité d’un monde qui en a pas.

On me réfère souvent en tant que personne confiante. Ouverte, exubérante, impliquée, expansive, extravertie : Confiante.  Je le suis.

Par contre, la confiance nous aveugle à l’hypocrisie.
C’est donc pourquoi j’ai une fente entre mes os de dos.  Une ouverture qui s’enfonce.  Dans ma colonne, j’ai des fragments de coutellerie.  J’ai des pépites de canif.  J’ai des échardes de poignards.  Au concave des mes épines dorsales on m’a versé des miettes de cactus.

Couteau à double tranchant.

Pourtant, j’ai une armure bien solide.  Un équipement de protection de bon aloi.  Toutefois, et j’en suis chroniquement surprise, les gens négligent un «détail» prépondérant… À l’origine, une carapace c’est une précaution pour se prémunir.  Notons bien : les animaux la portant sont en grand majorité des invertébrés.  Excluons la tortue ; il reste principalement les insectes, mais surtout, les mollusques.  Les bêtes au corps mou.  Les loques.  Les bestioles sans défense ni renfort.

en suisse, les jours de pluie on chante une comptine aux enfants :

“schneck schneck dors,

montre moi tes cornes

sinon, je te casse ta baraque…”

ensuite des escargots d’or sortent du four …

mais tout cela vient originairement d’alsace :

SCHNECK’, SCHNECK’

Schneck’, Schneck’, strecke
deine Ohren raus,
oder ich schlage dir
ein Loch ins Haus.

Once again there is a larger version of this comic [here]

New web comics have been posted at last! In fact there are two, so check back to the previous page for a little surreal-ish morsel. Or you can just click on this link.

Now for a brief newspost.

Firstly, apologies to anyone who doesn’t speak French… I’m hoping that it’s simple enough for anyone with a basic idea of the language to understand though.

Adam’s given me some new material to be working on, so I’ll be getting round to that as soon as possible – hopefully we might be able to get back into our old routine at some point, fingers crossed :]

Bye for now

Bave Circus

Voici Bave Circus une animation 3D superbement réalisée par des étudiants de Supinfocom de Valenciennes.

Découvrez l’univers féérique d’un petit garçon dans une grange et qui se met à rêver d’un cirque avec des escargots!

Exercice d’équilibre sur un fil, jonglage et autres acrobaties en tout genres vous émerveilleront, tant par la précision et les détails du graphisme que par la maîtrise de l’histoire!

Cette animation est digne des plus grands !

A voir et à revoir !

Hi, the Tenant is back! I hope you were at the Bistro last night for the Julia Project Wine Dinner, because if you were, you know it was fabulous. If not, here’s a little taste of what you missed (too bad you can’t lick the screen!).

First, to give you an idea of what preparation for the dinner was like back in the kitchen earlier in the day, here’s a little video:

By 6:30 in the evening, everything was ready. Our feast began with the Amuse-Bouche appetizer of Escargot with Toast Batons. I must admit, I’ve been hesitant about trying escargot because it seemed to me from when I had seen preparations at other restaurants that it was a bit rubbery and extremely garlicky. What a surprise to try it at Bistro 185! Their escargot (we received three apiece) were not rubbery at all, and only slightly garlicky — the fresh, slightly earthy flavor of the escargot came through and tasted great with a little squirt of lemon. The hardest part was getting them out of the shells! The toast baton that came with each serving was perfect for soaking up some of that buttery garlic sauce on the plate.

This dish and the following seafood dish, Coquilles St. Jacques, were paired with a Chandon Brut Classic champagne — light, bubbly and crisp. The Coquilles St. Jacques was as delicious as the original Julia Project version, and made extra-special by being served in the classic manner: inside a shell, and surrounded by a “sandy beach” of sea salt and peppercorns. A few shrimp kept the scallops company in the white creamy sauce, and were very good too.

Then it was time for the Boeuf Bourguignon, and was it delightful! First of all, boneless short ribs are some of the most tender, tasty beef you will ever eat, and when they’re braised in this burgundy wine sauce, they’re phenomenal. We all detected a hint of cinnamon in the sauce this time around, and I loved that because cinnamon is a key component of my family’s spaghetti sauce recipe handed down from my father’s father (we suspect there’s a bit of Greek mixed in with our Italian side of the family). It also went especially well with the wine, Bridlewood Central Coast Syrah, a really fascinating wine whose notes and flavors change with every sip. It’s a full-bodied wine that didn’t get in the way of the complex flavors of the dish. And every bite — especially those soaking-up-sauce mushrooms — was exquisite!

After such a heavy dish, though, we needed something light and easy on the stomach, and the Frisee Salad with poached egg, lardons and croutons fit the bill. As Todd mentions in the video, it was finished with a light, gently sweet sherry vinaigrette, and the Bridlewood Reserve Viognier, a slightly flowery, airy white wine, was an ideal complement.

The salad was followed by another one of the popular Julia Project dishes, the Salmon and Halibut en Croûte with Tarragon Beurre Blanc Sauce. As before, the crispy browned puff-pastry crust was shaped like a fish, and enclosed deliciously sauced layers of salmon and halibut accompanied by sautéed asparagus. For this, the accompanying William Hill Chardonnay was, again, just right.

The final entree was a savory-sweet treatment of duck, the Duck Confit with Roasted Figs and Port. This one also was a true taste celebration. The rich fruit flavor went all the way through the crispy skin cradling the tender duck meat, and the combination of kasha and tiny bowtie egg pasta on the side was a good choice for a fall game dish. The wine paired with it was Lapis Luna Romanza Zinfandel, and it was a very good match — a robust red Zin for a dish with such strong flavors.

Last and very welcome, as always: the dessert plate! Here, the mini-chocolate mousses — served with a kind of honey “lollipops” usable as spoons to eat the mousse — were just the beginning. As the video hints (and in some cases shows), there was much more: a delectable little scoop of pumpkin ice cream on cranberry sauce, an apple-nut cake with caramel topping, a square of angel-food cake with raspberry puree and chocolate ganache with a sprinkling of crushed nuts, and a little marzipan candy. The dessert course was served with Presidential 20 Year Porto: a fine finish to an outstanding meal.

Afterward many guests were heard to say that of all the wine dinners they have attended at Bistro 185, this one featured the best pairings of wine to each course. Kudos are definitely due to Superior Beverage Group Ltd. for assisting the Bistro in coming up with and providing these inspired selections. If you weren’t at the dinner last night but would like to learn more about any of these wines, or try one for yourself, ask your server the next time you stop by.

So there you have it: the Julia Project Wine Dinner was a smashing success. If you missed this one, keep an eye on this blog to find out about the Bistro’s next special wine dinner, because whatever and whenever it is, it’s sure to be just as much fun.

It’s amazing how much you can fit into a weekend. Granted, my weekends are longer than most, especially this one, since I didn’t have to work on Thursday or Friday…but all the same, I saw quite a bit in four-ish days!

Thursday morning I went to the Gare du Nord to pick up my birthday present, i.e. the Brit, to begin our whirlwind tour of Paris. After dropping his bags off in the apartment, and a quick trip to the grocery store, we headed to the Luxembourg gardens for a post-lunch walk in the park.  Our tour on Thursday included a lot of walking, we made it from the Luxembourg gardens up to Notre Dame, then down along the Seine to La Place des Vosges, then back across the Seine to Ile St. Louis (where we ate the most delicious ice cream in Paris, at the original Berthillon shop, all decked out in purples and gold), then waaaaaaaay down the Seine to the Musée d’Orsay (where we learned that I can use my teaching ID card and he can use his EU passport to get in for free – and where we spent half our time watching Asian men take pictures of their wives/girlfriends posing suggestively with sculptures).  We were really knackered by the time we left the museum, so we grabbed something to eat at a restaurant in the 5e, in a small maze of streets bordered by the Seine, Bld St-Michel and Rue St-Jaques (lots of cheapish places to eat there, in case  you’re planning a visit to the city and looking to eat well on a budget).

The Brit in the Luxembourg Gardens - that's the Luxembourg palace behind him, there. Basically, the gardens were somebody's yard. Awesome, eh?

The best ice cream in Paris. Worth the money, and the wait.

The Gare is beautiful...the 1980s architectural intervention looks like it should be either a fortress or a bank, but certainly not an art museum.

Staying up late on Thursday and the subsequent late start the next morning became somewhat thematic of the Brit’s visit across the Channel. That’s not such a bad thing in Paris, where nothing opens until 10am anyway.  On Friday, as I had another training session out in Créteil, the Brit wandered around town by himself, getting into all kinds of trouble.  When I finally got back, it was almost half past seven and so we scrapped our plans to see the Eiffel tower and went to the Louvre instead (getting caught in a rainstorm along the way, so that by the time we got to the pyramids we were thoroughly soaked and my moisture-wicking socks had nowhere to wick the moisture to).  The museum was all but deserted, which meant we actually got to see the Mona Lisa (or La Joconde as the French call her) instead of a throng of Asian tourists. I must say, though, getting caught in the rain before a night visit to the Louvre is not a bad way to spend your birthday, especially for an art fiend like me!  The Louvre was followed by another late night dining experience in the 5e, this time at a restaurant where I was spoken to in Spanish twice, because I’m brown, and where the kitschy Franco-Greek themed décor was only rivaled by the 70s pop music playing over the speakers.  The food itself was quite tasty, I had escargot, duck and chocolate mousse – all good things in my book.

The pyramids at the Louvre are impressive during the day, but exquisite at night.

Another late start Saturday had us going to the 1pm showing of Funny People at the Pathé in Montmartre.  After two hours of giggling, sniggering and snorting, we wandered past Moulin Rouge (no free show there, but wait till I tell you what we saw on Sunday) and through Montmartre towards Sacré Coeur.  Turns out there was a once-a-year festival at the top of the hill, Les vendange, a celebration of the local Parisian wine grown in that quartier.  If the stalls had been giving away tastings, rather than asking for our limbs in exchange for un goût, I might have something to report with regards to the quality of Parisian wine, though my coworkers tell me it’s nothing to write home about…but we got a good view of the city from the steps leading to Sacré Coeur, and sat for a while to listen to the Afro-French musicians singing American songs: at one point, they even had a guest singer from the audience, a girl from Spain, help them with “Bohemian Rhapsody”.  After that number, we went down to the Jardin des Plantes, got kicked out at closing time by a guard enthusiastically weilding his whistle, and strolled down to Chinatown to grab dinner with some assistants.

On Sunday we thought we’d be French and take our lunch to a park.  A brief detour to the Eiffel Tower, to learn that you cannot, in fact, purchase advance tickets, though you will be able to soon (when is soon in this country, I don’t know…), we walked (a very long walk) down to the Parc André Citroën.  Now, I visited this park when I studied at Fontainebleau in 2007, and it’s one of my favorite parks in Paris. It has beautiful proportions, the side gardens are leafy and inviting, with a balance of views to promenaders and privacy, the latter of which is what probably provoked an incident in French PDA to the extreme.  The Brit and I had slipped into one of the aforementioned small gardens to grab our lunch.  There we sat, having just consumed a sandwich jambon fromage, chatting quietly, when I looked up across the garden to see a curious sight.  It’ll suffice to say that necking in the park is one thing – in fact, an intense make-out session seems to be the default mode for couples in a Parisian park – but addressing romantic issues below the belt (literally speaking) should really be done in the privacy of  your own home.  Needless to say, after a few speechless moments, the Brit and I gathered our belongings and made our exit.  Like two teenagers, we slunk away, giggling, only to happen upon a group of boys leaning over a ledge to observe the sight we had just escaped.  Their surprised yells only made us laugh harder, and by the time we had walked across the park, we were breathless with glee.

One of my favorite mini-gardens at the park. A picture from a few years ago, because I decided it would be more fun to hang out with the Brit than take pictures all day.

As Sunday was our six-month anniversary (now a day to remember, for sure), we went out to Montparnasse, where we soaked in Breton culture and cider, along with some delicious crêpes, at the Crêperie Josselin.  The dessert crêpe was amazing, a combination of chocolate, bananas and coconut ice cream flambeed in rum: mmmmm.  Perfect for the not-so-hidden sweet-tooth in the both of us.

I did have to work on Monday, my first day with students of my own, which was interesting in its own right and will warrant its own post later this week. I managed to wriggle out of work earlier than planned and met up with the Brit to grab dinner and Skype my aunt and uncle in India.

Monday was our last night together in Paris, so we thought we’d splurge by having a glass of champagne while taking in Paris aglow. After only 30 minutes waiting in line to purchase our tickets, we packed ourselves onto the first elevator – I say packed because the close quarters on that journey up the Tower has made quite clear to me the meaning of the phrase “like sardines in a can.” It’s a (mostly) glass elevator, and I was pressed firmly against its clear doors – a great view, to be sure, but for someone with my slight acrophobia, a somewhat terrifying experience.  Nonetheless, we shuffled off the first elevator and onto the second; within minutes we were at the top of the tower with a dazzling view of the City of Lights.  While we were taking in the sights, it seems we were a sight ourselves – a group of children followed us around the second floor and during our descent, whispering amongst themselves and trying not to look as though they were watching us, looking away and giggling when we caught their wide-eyed stares.

Looking East from the Eiffel Tower. My apartment is just beyond the brightly-lit dome, before the not-so-brightly lit dome (the latter being the Pantheon).

One of my professors has made it his mission to take "the right" picture of the Eiffel Tower. This might not be it, but I think the composition is quite interesting...

This morning we woke at the crack of dawn to shuttle the Brit back to Gare du Nord, and poof! at 7:15am he was gone.  It’s a strange thing, a long-distance relationship, where the highs of meeting your loved one are so quickly tugged down by your longing upon their departure.  It won’t be too long until I see him again, though, we’ve already planned a trip to Loughborough and Edinburgh at the end of the month.  Traveling the world is certainly one of the advantages of living in two different cities.

All in all, a very romantic anniversary outing indeed – it’s going to be a hard one to top!

11 octobre

Starters
Soup of the Day
Gravlax (house cured salmon) with potato pancakes, capers, chopped red onion and sour cream
House Smoked Duck Breast with mango chipotle glaze, sun-dried cranberries, potato pancake and sour cream
Chicken and Vegetable Pot Stickers with sesame-soy dipping sauce
Asian Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes
Romaine Wedge Salad with Gorgonzola dressing, chopped hard-boiled eggs, red onion, bacon and tomato
Warm Pecan Crusted Goat Cheese Salad on a bed of field greens with balsamic vinaigrette
Roasted Organic Beets with goat cheese, honey and balsamic drizzle
Calymarna Brown Figs stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped with prosciutto, field greens and balsamic vinaigrette
Warm Wild Mushroom Salad with pistachios, field greens and raspberry vinaigrette
Coquilles St. Jacques: Baby bay scallops and shrimp in creamy Alfredo sauce with a Parmesan cheese crust
Escargot with Garlic Butter
Puff Pastry Wrapped French Camembert served warm with grapes and toasts
Medjool Dates stuffed with almonds and wrapped with bacon with balsamic drizzle and crumbled goat cheese

Entrees

Lamb Shanks with Baby Fall Vegetables (a Julia Project favorite)
Lamb Moussaka with Greek Salad (a Julia Project favorite)
Sautéed Pork Tenderloin in Prune and Port Wine Sauce with Mashers (a Julia Project favorite)
Steak Oscar: Medallions of beef filet topped with crab and shrimp, hollandaise sauce, tempura green beans and mashers
Boeuf Bourguignon: Boneless Black Angus short ribs slow-braised in a rich burgundy wine sauce with carrots and onions on a bed of mashers
16-oz. Bone-in Cowboy Ribeye Steak with onion straws, sautéed redskin potatoes and house tempura vegetable
Calves’ Liver, pan sautéed, with onion gravy, mashers and bacon
Roasted Half Duck with orange sauce, organic wild rice and house tempura vegetable
Limoncello Chicken: Pan-seared chicken breasts finished in a limoncello cream sauce, Meyer lemons, asparagus, artichoke hearts and snap peas with penne pasta
Chicken Parmesan with pasta marinara
Pan-Seared Day Boat Scallops with black truffle, chanterelle mushrooms and roasted butternut squash risotto
Sesame-Crusted Pan-Seared Wild-Caught Ahi Tuna with wasabi aioli and ginger mandarin drizzle, Israeli couscous and house tempura vegetable
Pecan-Crusted Bay of Fundy Salmon with sweet potato mashers and sautéed spinach
Pan-Roasted Wild-Caught Alaskan Halibut with tropical fruit and nut rum sauce and butternut squash ravioli
Wild-Caught Canadian Walleye finished with a lemon herb butter sauce, mashers and house vegetables, OR tempura style with sweet potato fries, slaw and tartar sauce
Lobster Ravioli with Seared Day Boat Scallops and Shrimp finished with a creamy lobster sauce
Ricotta and Spinach in Fresh Manicotti Pasta with marinara and a touch of cream

New image in the inventive salads photoshop contest

Une Salade française complétée avec une sauce Rouge de Vin

Hoping that my French is not TOO rusty- English trans:

Title: Frog and Snail Sala …
Grenouille etSalade d’Escargot photoshop picture

I found several of these snails in the day lilies that I was cutting down.

105mm f2.8 Sigma Ex

( click on picture to see Large on black )

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It was Saturday afternoon, 3pm or thereabouts, I’d managed to convince my food loving sister to go out for dinner with me (she has a family, a mortgage and I’m a bad influence) and neither of us were keen for the usual quick and cheap Vietnamese fare in her area.

I called around a couple of places and was pleasantly surprised when I was able to secure a booking (at such late notice) for 4 + a baby at Belle Epoque, a French Bistro in the Emporium, Valley – a trendy eating ‘emporium’.

The Emporium is, I guess, a medium density residential luxury apartment block, with retail on the ground floor surrounded by car parks.  It attracts a mix of clientele, including uni students, lunching mothers, girlfriends, couples, a place people stop to eat at before heading out for the night…everyone really.

Belle Epoque is located next to the very trendy The Emporium Hotel which is a mix of daring textural wall pieces and bright red colours.  The restaurant itself has a patisserie attached (not opened at 8pm at night but usually has some tempting pastries in the display cases) and red awnings at the front.

I’ve been there a couple of times, and each time, I’m always taken slightly aback by the high ceilings and the muted warm lighting.  They have brass ceiling fans, foggy mirrors on the walls, lush looking round, red booths (which usually goes first as patrons usually specially request them), tiled flooring and all the wait staff had long aprons, collared shirt sleeves and vests.

We were seated at a round table, which is great for conversation.  The menu was extensive, with lots of different choices that doesn’t appear on the usual, every day menu.  Our waiter was also especially enthusiastic and friendly.  Water came without being requested (tick) and our orders were taken and it wasn’t too long before our food arrived.

The scallop ravioli with crawfish broth was absolutely delicious.  It wasn’t what I ordered, but I had serious food envy and was very tempted to steal it from my sister.  The ravioli was soft, pasta wasn’t too thick…but it was the broth that really won me over.  Full of crawfish flavour and the flavours just kept developing in your mouth.  It was a portion that just kept you wanting more.  The way it should be.

Our other entrée was escargot with garlic butter which came in plate with individual ‘holes’ for each snail.  The texture was tender – I’d describe it as almost prawn like and the garlic butter was mild without being too oily or pungent.

My entrée was sweetbreads with a cheese foam (sorry forgot what kind).  I’ve never had sweetbreads before, all I know about it is that it is the throat glands of younger animals, like lambs or calves.  It doesn’t sound very appetising, but this one was cooked really well, it actually has the texture of a Chicken McNugget – for those purists out there, I am a fan of a freshly cooked McNugget, so to me, was a good thing.  I thought the creamy ‘foam’ was way too excessive and it was more a thick yoghurt texture rather than a foam.

After spying some diners at the next table with breads, we also ordered some breads, bit pricey, at $3 a roll, we got four varieties.  They were all soft on the outside, crusty on the outside, but in terms of excitement, it didn’t rate highly, but all of us enjoyed the olive bread with the olive oil and butter.

Our mains came shortly after. The lamb was cooked as requested and was tender, juicy and delicious, it didn’t have a gamey taste either (which I usually describe as ‘stinky’).  The creamed polenta has a lovely creamy,  slight grainy texture and it was gorgeously buttery and I couldn’t get enough of it.

The duck d’orange came in a gimmicky blue crock pot.  You open the blue lid and spoon everything onto your plate and consisted of sliced duck breast, a generous serving of confit duck leg and potato rosti with a sweet orange jus.  The duck breast were ok, but the duck leg was tender and fall off the bone delicious, the rostis were more like potato gnocchi and the rich fatty meat were cut nicely with the slightly tangy and rich orange jus.  Perhaps a bit too orangey for me but I enjoyed it.

A venison – served two ways was also ordered, served in a big, square plate.  I could only managed a small bite and the only thing I remember was that it was not gamey and the chestnut puree that accompanied it was rich and stuck to the roof of my mouth.

I thoroughly enjoyed the varied menu with the choices that aren’t regularly featured on the menus of other restaurants.  I must say, my first encounter with a ‘throat gland’ was an enjoyable one.

So, what is the most unusual food that you’ve tried and enjoyed?

I just returned from the BEST vacation of my life!  Let me tell you, it was amazing.  Words can’t describe the time I had but I will try my hardest for you…

I initially had from Tuesday September 12^th – Friday September 15^th to enjoy the city.  Not nearly enough time!  So, I missed my flight on Friday and was able to extend until Tuesday of the following week and I’m so glad I did.  My flight was from Atlanta, to Chicago, Germany and finally France.  Which I enjoyed seeing each and every airport.  Most people would complain of the layovers but to me, it was another learning experience.   They rode bikes in the German airport, how cool is that?  And there were lots of windmills in Germany.  How could I have learned that without my layover?

I arrived in France at around 5pm Tuesday and headed towards the cabs.  Recalling the movie “Taken” I was scared to death of all the cabbies and told one particular shady cab driver “no thanks” after he directed me to an elevator with some other tall, 6’5 character that was smoking a cigar.  I went back out to the cab area and found another guy whom seemed legit and got a ride from the airport to my hotel.

The ride was amazing!!  The interstate, signs, cars, people, everything was so different.  Cars were whizzing by, in between lanes!  Mopeds too!  I’m surprised I didn’t witness someone getting smashed.  They were all very much in a rush to get where they were going.  The cars were all very compact and I don’t recall seeing one pickup truck and just a few SUVs.  It was something else riding down an interstate, with two strangers, not knowing their language or where exactly you are going.  All I knew is that I was in Paris and was about to have the best experience of my life. 

Upon exiting the interstate, the first thing I noticed is that all the buildings are older – no new pop up office buildings or rows of subdivisions.  Everything looked so romantic and original.  My cabbie dropped me off by my hotel and I drug my enormous pink bag towards a tiny sign that read “Hotel Nord.”  I was terrified at this point!  Praying that the front desk lady would understand me, I inquired “do you speak English?”  She laughs and says, “par lay voo Francais?”  I just shook my head, no and giggled back.  She then started to speak in almost perfect English; I believe she had a British accent.  She checked me in, gave me my key and instructed me on where to go.

I get in a TINY elevator, about the width of a medium sized bookcase (I could barely squeeze in this thing with my giant pink bag) and press the button to the top floor.  I take my key and enter.  I’m astonished at this little room.  It is not at all what I expected!  Twin beds pushed together, strange toilet I didn’t know how to flush, even the knobs on the sink were different than in the U.S. but I now had a place to lay my head and shower.  Thank goodness!  I called my mom, a little scared still and explained to her how the room was.  She just laughed and told me to be careful.  I unpack very few things and decide it’s time to go explore!

I knew I had to meet J at the Eiffel Tower at 8 and I left the room around 6ish.  I walked for about 30 minutes and couldn’t see the Eiffel Tower from anywhere so decided to hail a cab.  I had spent 55 of my 80 Euro on my airport ride so I showed the next taxi driver my 15 and he nodded his head and agreed.   On the way he cussed in French, shook his fist at other taxi’s and almost ran down 2 pedestrians.  I thought wow, what a way to begin the first day.  He got me to the Eiffel tower and I bid him farewell! 

My heart skipped a beat when I first beheld that amazing work of architecture.  It was much larger than I had ever imagined it to be and there were so many people gathered under this beautiful creature.  Yes, she had taken a life form of her own!  I felt like I was dreaming as I strolled along under it.  I walked and thought and walked and thought, “am I really here?!”  I felt dizzy so I headed for a nearby bench, feeling something wet splatter on my pants I look down to notice a pigeon had gifted me with his white stain.  Laughing about it I thought, “hmmm… welcome to France Lindsey!”  I sat on the bench and stared for about 15 minutes and then walked the little strip behind the Eiffel Tower to get a broader view of it. 

After returning from my walk, I stole a post at the base of the tower, the front left base.  I sat on a stoop with a Spanish girl awaiting my bah-cooh to come along.  Boy was it good to see him!  A friendly face in a new and strange place.  We immediately headed for the top.  The view was breath taking and I will never forget that moment for as long as I live.  I felt as if I were on top of the World.

I won’t go into this much detail about my entire trip as I would like to keep some of my experiences private but I will tell a few…

Pigalle is a fun area!  All pigs go to Pigalle…
The Louvre is truly gorgeous and the building itself, to me, was the most amazing work of art.  Amongst the Mona Lisa and Venus Di Milo. 
Escargot isn’t half bad!  Neither are frog legs.  Duck pate sucks!  Twizzlers rule! And chocolate monsters.
Notre Dame gave me chills, Sacre Coeur had a prettier view though.
LOVED Versaille, city & the palace
Never, never, never accidentally leave a book bag w/ laptop + $600 camera inside on a bench as you wave goodbye from a train.  You may not have a bah-cooh to get it back for you!
Get fruit and croissants for breakfast.  Best strawberries I’ve ever tasted!
Mont Marte is one of the best sections, in my opinion
Bring warm, stylish clothes!!!
The metro (subway system) will start to suck after a week but it is nice to have & cheap
Stay at least a week, if not longer.  It would be a shame to have to cancel a flight and stay longer

And I’ll never forget Evelyn from Maine.  I met her in Washington and she had a heart of gold.  She had just returned from a 6 week vacation in Germany, her husband had passed away 5 years ago and she was 80 years old.  What an inspiration!!  She didn’t complain about her journey a bit, she was just eager to have someone to listen to her story.  Her best piece of advice was LIVE, cause you only get to do it once.  And I did.

I present to you, Paris!

Versaille Palace - The hall of mirrors

Me at the entrance to the Louvre

Drunken Serb that sketched my portrait - whilst enjoying wine

Our frog legs & wine

Bar hopping, France style!

The window panes told the stories of the bible

At Cafe Richards enjoying a fine cup of coffee and listenting to music

The beauty by day...

And in the blink of an eye *POOF* She was gone...