Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Netherlands, Amsterdam: High Tea

HT wife's first high tea experience...ever...


lovely, posh, delicious...a nice way to bond with girlfriends. :)

Amstel Hotel (Hotel Intercon)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Paris, France: Food trip

Living in Europe makes Paris - a top choice for a quick romantic getaway...Watching the Eiffel Tower while holding hands with your sweetie, walking hand in hand while strolling Champs-Elysées or admiring together the great artworks in Louvre.

February is love month...Paris - a romantic place...HT couple - hungry...Off we go to Paris!

Paris is a food haven.  My foodie friends invited us to go with them (Thanks guys!) and basically we just ate, ate and ate (ok, we did see the catacombs and the Notre Dame to check out their 850 years - but really just to digest what we've stuffed ourselves).  We also did the so-called sightseeing - walking 2-3 km from our previous food destination to the next.

It was cold and after sometime, it started raining.  Who gave up on a falafel not to get wet? Nobody...

Here's why.
Falafel - deep fried ground chickpeas in balls and the spicy sauce gave it more kicks - it was so garlicky that we used our garlic breath to shove off people in the metro :D.

Address: 34 rue des Rosiers, Paris

And there's always rainbow after the rain.

After the rain and with temperature of 5 degrees...we devoured Berthillon ice cream and worry about being cold later on.



Cassolette of escargots - i think the chef forgot the garlic

Lamb Shank - the best of the night
 
female deer steak
 
We ordered duck breast cooked medium and it was a bit on the hard side.  It could have had a little bit of flavor too. 
 
Chez Toinette has very good reviews in tripadvisor.  I would say, it's a bit touristy as all the diners are English speaking and we all started dinner before 8 pm (which is not typical French).  There was a few hits and misses.  Main courses are less than 20 euros per plate.
 
 
We spent our Sunday morning in the Bastille Market (from 7 till 3 pm on Sunday) - I love going to markets when I visit places and sometimes my too much excitement leads me to being a good prospect for pickpocketers.  Take note of your pockets and purses!  Thanks for finding this place, R!
 
 
check out how they don't waste the fats from the chicken...
 
 




yummy Tartiflette - potatoes, Reblochon cheese, onions...

 

Stuffed cabbage
 
 
 
Buckwheat crepes - gluten-free, delicious and healthy!

 
potatoes, reblochon cheese, bacon, cream (almost like tartiflette) with salad on top
 
bretonne - mushroom, cheese, bacon and creme fraiche...all that is un-healthy..

with egg, cheese and andouille sausage
 
*savory crepe is always with buckwheat...in Breizh cafe (unless requested otherwise)

wash it down with organic cider...what could be healthier than that? Ok we had our 2nd bottle after 5 minutes...

with buckwheat caramel, bananas and chantilly cream
*for sweet crepes, you have to state you want it with buckwheat

chocoloate mousse wrap with ginger caramel dip
 

Breizh Cafe - 109 Rue Vieille du Temple, Paris
*reservation is a must...after 3 pm, it's free seating but expect to wait as locals take their every meal seriously.  Check out their shop a bit further and there's a small table where you can dine but no guaranteed seats.  We failed to get seats on our first day.
 
 
quack was our last and best dinner in Paris -  Le Petít Canard (19 Rue Henry Monnier, Paris) only serves duck dishes.  And there was only 1 table aside from us who quacks differently from the French.

the place has its own charm...homey and comfy

onion soup for HT hubbie

check out my duck confit!!!!  Crispy...tasty...perfect!

 Duck a l'orange - the house specialty.

Duck Cassoulet - sausage, stewed beans and duck meat falling from its bones
 
The heavy dinner didn't stop us going to this bolulangerie...first thing in the morning.  Ok, we got lost because of my expertise in navigation.  (34 Rue Yves Toudic)

love the bread and the combination of figs and bacon..thanks for the recommendation R! - 1+ euro per piece

chocolate pistachios escargots - it was so good that a gluten-free guy stuffed himself with this while his gluten-free wife goes to the grocery to buy fruits. 2+ euro per piece

my 250 g take home Brioche - around 4 euros.
 

 Saravanan Bhavan - yes, the same one in Singapore is also in Paris -  a good place to grabe delicious meal near Gare Du Nord (train station) before the trip.
South Indian meal 

my ghee masala dosai

 
playing with the coffee...
 
It was a great food trip!!! Thanks R&R.  Now, time to do kickboxing again...
 
Love, love love, guys!