Review- Matou

Well folks, it was my birthday yesterday and guess what? I felt like celebrating!
I'd heard great things about Matou situated at the Pier Head and decided it was well worth checking out seeing as it was a special occasion and all...

We arrived slightly early and were welcomed into the vicinity by a cheerful chap who directed us to the lift. With this in mind, my expectations had been raised somewhat, you know, start as you mean to go on etc...

When we got to the second floor, I was stunned by the architecture of the restaurant, as well as the views. But despite the restaurant being only half full, the waitress seemed exasperated and stressed when performing such a simple a task as showing us to our table.

But it was my birthday and I wasn't going to let anyone spoil it! The service continued to be chaotically disorganised as we waited about with our menus, our parched mouths getting drier by the second.

We decided to each have a soup course and share a tempura seafood platter and I decided to have the duck breast as my main course. But before the starters (and our drinks) arrived a gentleman who was very sure of himself approached with three steaming hot plates of Pad Thai and proceeded to clear our side plates... We kindly insisted that we hadn't ordered these dishes and he left for the correct table....

A waitress approached the table and informed us that the seafood platter was for a maximum of two people (even though it stated on the menu minimum 2 people), but by that point, I was so confused and hungry I just nodded and smiled...

Our starters arrived and all I can describe them as is mediocre... the soup was vaguely oriental flavoured, but nothing special. Then another waitress informed me I'd been misinformed about the duck dish I'd ordered... again, I smiled and nodded to avoid any further complications.

Once our soup bowls were cleared, our 'seafood platter' arrived... Now usually with Tempura, you expect a light, crisp batter simply coating the fish without impeding on the flavour. However, we received a mound of battered bits that looked like a blind child had been let loose on the deep fat frier and piled the greasy seafood tit-bits on our plate that simply slipped through my chopsticks...

A considerable amount of time elapsed before our main courses arrived, which provided a little breather. My father's dish arrived as a bland, flavourless plate of food drained of all colour and texture. When my dish arrived, I had to check that the correct meal had been delivered to me as my duck was so over-cooked, it was unrecognisable.

Despite the duck breast being sliced onto the plate, the chef failed to spot that there wasn't one pink bit in sight and decided to send it to my table all the same. Some people just don't have standards, but I do...

Needless to say, my birthday wasn't ruined as it's the company that counts... my advice, order in a takeaway, there's more flavour in a stock cube than all the food in Matou put together!

Review- Chaophraya

Firefox, Talk Talk and Blogger have a lot to answer for, as I'd practically completed this review yesterday and in the blink of an eye, it was gone....

So here I give you my rescued, re-written review of Chaophraya (which should have been posted yesterday....)

After being granted the day off yesterday, it felt like a Sunday (as I was working on Easter Sunday). I woke up late, without setting alarm (something which I haven't done in some time) and rolled out of bed. I showered and got dressed (this is all after midday by the way!) and headed for town on the bus.

I trudged through the shops like many others, weighed down by my umbrella which is now part of my essential, everyday kit. I never leave the house with the threat of the impending rain on my newly straightened locks....

After waking up so late and having 'brunch' we found we weren't hungry at the customary times. I'd planned for some time, to take my partner out for Sushi as a treat, but unfortunately, Etsu was closed and I'm thoroughly fed up of Yo-Sushi!...

So, we continued clumping along the windy streets of Liverpool searching for somewhere good to eat. For some reason, we honed in on Liverpool One.... even after passing the San Carlo on King Street and salivating over the wide seafood selection.... We thought it was a bit too formal for our attire, so we thought we'd go down the casual route...


My boss, Candice Fonseca and my work-mate Emma Morris had been raving about Chaophraya since it opened and I can see why- Candice loves exotic cuisine (especially when they don't scrimp on portions) and Emma is a keen vegetarian and they have an extensive menu dedicated to those of us who choose not to eat meat.

Upon our arrival we were seated in the waiting area, but were quickly chaperoned to a table. You could just tell they'd had a busy lunch service, as lots of tables were being re-layed, just in time for the next influx of diners.

Before ordering, I thought I'd make use of the 'facilities' and boy am I glad I did! If you visit Chaophraya, I urge you to take a trip upstairs to the 'Royal' dining suite (the toilets also happen to be on this floor too!)

As we'd never eaten here before we decided to order from the set menu so we could sample a few different items. So we ordered the Set Sukhothai (at £25/head). This consisted of a shared starter platter including the most succulent, honey glazed satay skewers and fresh, juicy deep fried prawns.

After that colossal first course, I was genuinely quite full, but we pressed on with our mains. We were served three dishes- a beef dish with garlic and pepper, a Thai green curry and a duck stir-fry.

As individual dishes go, the beef was my favourite, by far. The meat was dark and flavoursome, not a strip of sinew in sight! The sauce was thick and tangy, without being overpowering.

The Thai green curry was excellent as well. The chicken was extremely tender, contrasting well with the crunch from the green beans. The sauce was piquant and a wonderful shade of green.

The duck was a little on the bland side, despite it being cooked to perfection, but I ate it all the same. After finishing what little I'd put on my plate (through fear of not having enough room for dessert), we asked the waiter if we could take the remaining food home. Shortly before dessert arrived, we were presented with three large takeaway tubs of food!

Dessert was light and refreshing, just what we needed after that mammoth meal! Again, this was a shared platter which consisted of; fresh fruit skewers (and a chocolate sauce to dip them in) a square of cake and a scoop of ice-cream to share.

Once we had fought it out as to who got the last strawberry, we settled up and were on our merry way....

We'll certainly be coming back to this place, as every minor detail in this restaurant has been considered. From the incredible food (and a sneaky window so you can see into the kitchen), to the tranquil water features, and baskets of towels in the bathrooms- nothing is left to chance. We were treated politely and well, and as the staff bid us farewell, one lady bowed graciously to us, which we both thought was a nice touch.

I bet you can guess my verdict... Book It!

Chilli Banana Review

Having spent the afternoon frolicking about at a baby shower, I felt I needed to wind the day down with a good spicy meal to ward off the remnants of this awful cold.

Having been to Chilli Banana before (on my birthday), I knew that this was a place synonymous with good value, great tasting, authentic Thai food. So we sat down amongst the many customers in the bustling environment.

We were promptly given menus and informed of the specials. We opted to share two starters; the Kow Giap Gung (Thai Prawn Crackers) and Tempura Gung (tempura prawns and vegetables with dipping sauces).

The prawn crackers made a nice change from the often polystyrene-like texture of the Chinese counterpart. The hot kick of chilli was complemented by the sweet chilli dipping sauce and added more of the Thai twist to this crunchy cracker.

The tempura batter was crisp, crunchy and not greasy in the slightest! As well as King Prawns, we had aubergine, courgette, carrot and green beans. The aubergine was by far the nicest vegetable tempura. No sogginess, just pure flavour encased in a crispy shell.

For my main course I ordered the Nua Sawan (or 'Heavenly Beef'). But before ordering this dish, I did enquire as to what makes the beef so heavenly.... I was told the beef was marinated in sticky Thai sugar, making for a very tender piece of meat.... and that it was!

When our main courses arrived, the waitress served us two scoops of the fragrant rice and I piled on mounds of my syrupy meat. My partner ordered a sizzling beef dish with mounds of chillies, onions and a very strong aniseed flavour, a lovely aftertaste once the burn of the chilli had subsided. Needless to say, he had to pace himself on this one!

My meal on the other-hand was sumptuous and not overpowering in the slightest. Despite the sugar being the main flavour, the crispy Basil on top was easily recognised on my taste buds. The crunchy texture made a good contrast to the treacle-like consistency of the sauce. 

Some might say I'm a sucker for cute things and I'd probably agree, but the flower carved from a carrot was such a sweet touch to the dish. The chef obviously has talent, as well as creative flair!

My advice, book it! This place gets VERY busy, but it  produces consistently good quality food with professional, un-intrusive service.

 

The Bay, Penzance

To celebrate our engagement, my father offered to take us to a highly renowned and recommended restaurant in the town of Penzance upon our return for the festive period. Being an employee of the restaurant, one of my friends had spoken of The Bay, and with her sister cooking in the kitchen, who was I to argue? The Bay it was!

Having survived the day on relatively meagre offerings (compared to the hoards of food I'd wolfed down on previous days)- a couple of slices of toast and a turkey and ham sandwich, I was quite ready to indulge in some fresh, local seafood.

We began by sitting in the lounge, simply perusing the menu. We were then offered drinks and some appetisers of prawns with aoli- a simple sample of the quality of the food yet to come. The toast was crisp, the prawns fresh and juicy with the tangy mayonnaise dressing to complement.

Upon ordering, the manager informed us, to our surprise, that my lovely friend, Jenna, had bought us a bottle of Prosecco to go with our meal- a jolly good start to the night!

We were ushered through to the restaurant where we were seated by the window. We shared a toast over the tall, bubbling glasses of fizz and looked forward to our courses to come. Crusty onion and poppy seed bread was served to us from a wicker basket- in keeping with the nautical interior, and we readily ploughed through the dish of Cornish butter, lavishing every corner and crust.

The evening menu was very good value for money, £24 for 2 courses or £29.95 for 3. To start I had pan-fried south coast scallops, butternut squash ravioli with a hazelnut and shallot dressing (paying a small supplement for the privellege). The contrasting flavours and textures between the plump, juicy, scallop and the nutty, crunchy toasted hazlenuts was superb. The ravioli was somewhat lost with its delicate flavours and velvety texture amongst the crunch of the green micro-salad.

For my main course I had pan-fried free range West Country Duck, chicory with proscuitto ham, pickled plum and red wine jus alongside panache of vegetable and potatoes boulangere. I asked for my Duck medium, and it was cooked to perfection. Pink, plump and juicy with crisp, hazel coloured flesh. The wonderful jus that accompanied it was bitter-sweet. The plums provided the acidity which cut cleanly through the rich, dark meat of the duck. Simply divine!
The vegetables were al dente- as they should be, and the potatoes were rich and creamy, as to be expected.

All in all, the meal was fabulous, the only thing that was noticeably absent, was the presence of my friend, so I could thank her for the unexpected bottle of bubbly!

My advice- book it (if you're in the area of course!)

Review: An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage

For my birthday, way back in July, I received An Edible History of Humanity from my mother. She recommended it to me, and mentioned that it featured in New Scientist magazine. So was it written by an educated man, a food writer, a historian, a scientist, perhaps? I pondered...

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't expecting a flowery book all about how Marianne Toinette may or may not have been misquoted about proclaiming; "let them eat cake". Or how something completely facile reminded the author of a certain dish that his grandma used to make him, way back when. I knew there had to be more substance to this book, just from scanning the cover.

My fascination with anthropology has been fuelled by this book, containing stark tales of people being scalped for growing certain crops and spices, about how the stubbornness of political leaders and generals led to the starvation of millions. And how we actually have food stored away within the icy realms of the Arctic, should nuclear war break out and civilisation need to start again.

This is food in relation to survival, in relation to the intrinsic shaping of societies. In coherence with the fall of one tribe, and the success of another.

Author Standage proclaims, this book is about everything but food. He speaks of its growth, production, refinement, distribution. Of how it is used as a weapon to control your enemies and strike while their defences are down, and their soldiers weak.

Standage, voices with some regret, our savage history, and how we as a nation gained position and power through the slave trade exploitation, import and export.

This book has so many facets to it, each one so wide and varied, you could easily get lost in it. This is the reason I didn't want to finish this book. This is also the reason why I want to continue reading his other works.

So raise your glasses to Mr Standage, and spare a thought for your ancestors the next time you raid the kitchen cupboard.

Elif Turkish BBQ restaurant

Hey guys, just a quick note; apologies this review is a couple of days old- I've been up to my eyeballs in freelance work, plus the slog of the old 9-5... anyway, enjoy!

You know that Sunday morning feeling? You're hungover, tired, can't be bothered to even get dressed? Definitely don't want to cook, or simply can't cook (due to the delicate nature of the stomach after a night on the tiles!)

I know what you need... something to soak up all those nasty spirits you consumed, something a little classier than your Donner or Shish kebab... you need to go to Elif's!

This was the situation I found myself in. Sunday night. Bored, hungry, hungover, so a little pick-me-up was in order, and my stomach wanted one thing, and one thing only- meat, meat and more meat! Considering we were on our merry way to a kebab house, we were certainly going to the right place!

To counteract my throbbing headache, I started off with a beer, we certainly did the trick (hair of the dog...) My partner and I chose to share a couple of Mezes- we opted for the char-grilled peppers with Feta cheese, olive oil and garlic and the Calamari tubes stuffed again, with feta and parsley. My goodness these were tasty! Just thinking back to them now is making me salivate! The contrast between the fresh textures with the smoky, charcoal aroma was phenomenal- and that was just for starters!

For our main course, we decided to opt for the popular Southern Turkish dish, Adana, made with succulently spiced lamb, chili flakes, peppers and flat leaf parsley. Again, the range of textures and flavours were very palate pleasing, along with the sharp sourness of the jalapeno on the side!

After failing to finish my meal (due to the colossal size of it) I decided I still deserved a pudding- or to share one at least... Simply ice-cream. I don't think my stomach would have thanked me had I put any more chillies its way...

My advice- book it! This place gets very busy, very quickly. Not your fanciest of restaurants, but a great place to socialise and recover!

Bistro Franc- 16th August

You know what they say; "better late than never"... well I visited Bistro Franc on Sunday and have only just got round to doing the review today- oops!

Bistro Franc is the third addition to the expanding family of French restaurants in Liverpool City Centre. With the same laid back French vibe seen in Bistro Jacques and Bistro Pierre
Bistro Franc holds its own, with it's quirky charms and make-shift wine bottle candle holders.
It was on a whim that my partner, my friend and I decided to go to this restaurant, as it had reached the crucial point in our evening out when we would either continue the festivities, or simply go home early.
We knew the outstanding reputation that the locally established duo of French Bistro's held, and were amazed at the incredible Sunday dining deal- 2 Courses plus a bottle of wine per person for only £13.95!- definitely a deal we wanted to take advantage of.
We started with a bottle of house red and perused the menu, so many dishes took my fancy and I reached the crucial decision of having a starter, rather than a pudding (usually unheard of for me!)
I chose the Wood Pigeon and Beetroot Salad, with Hazelnut Oil dressed Salad, as I'd never tried pigeon before. The nutty notes from the slightly overdone bird, complemented the hazelnut oil, as the acidity from the beetroot cut through the richness of the dark, gamy meat. I thoroughly enjoyed my starter, although it was over in a bite or two!
For our main course, we all liked the look of the Fillet of Beef (which we payed a supplement for) and enquired with our attentive waitress, as to how they cooked the steak i.e was the steak English medium-rare, or French medium-rare. Upon her advice, I decided to have my steaks rare.
And when those three plates of sizzling steaks arrived, we simply couldn't wait for their accompanying vegetables. One bite of this melt-in-the mouth steak was enough to know that this was a fantastic choice of restaurant.
Served in a brandy, pate and mushroom cream sauce, on a crouton, to say this was cooked to perfection would be very cliche, but indeed, it was. The gratin dauphinoise, was garlicky and creamy, the cabbage rich and flavoured with red wine, and the al dente mangetout and carrots complemented the meal as a light side.
Every mouthful of this meal was a sheer pleasure to eat, as we washed down the final mouthfuls with more wine. Regrettably, I had to pass on the final morsels to my fellow diners, as I couldn't finish it and wouldn't hear of one scrap being wasted!
On a separate note, my partner opted for the cheese board instead of his started and was severely disappointed in what he received- not a Brie de Meaux or indeed any French cheese in sight. So my advice, stick to the desserts- or sort your cheeseboard out!
My overall verdict- BOOK IT!

Bistro Franc
Church House
Hanover Street
Liverpool
L1 3DW
0151 708 9993

The Famous Birmingham Balti

After dating a Brummy for nearly 5 years, it seems strange that i've never had one of the famous- Birmingham Balti's before, doesn't it?
Well, tonight that's going to change. We're back in Birmingham for a couple of day's and tonight's the night! So stay tuned
for my review!

Welcome!

Hello, and welcome to my restaurant review blog- with a difference.

Please bear with me as I get this thing up and running and try to get my head around August's review.

In the meantime, expect the unexpected and prepare to be educated and enthralled in all things food related!

To keep you tantalised for the time being, does anyone remember this oddity of a show? Absolutely bizarre! Wonder why it didn't catch on?