Afrobev's Guide To Eating Out: Christophe's Dublin

This is what you want for your money!

Phil and I stopped off at Christophe's when we visited Dublin earlier on in the year and to say we were impressed was an understatement. It was the type of food that we live for, it was as home cooked and delicious as you can get at an eatery and where I am usually quite fussy with my grub and the service, I left satisfied with a full belly and a feeling of wanting to return as soon as possible.

Located directly opposite the Jameson Distillery tour entrance, Christophe's is definetly highly recommended by yours truly if you decide to tour Dublin and if you hop on the Dublin Tour Bus it is well worth a stop off for food (You can hop off and hop on again at the Jameson's Distillery Stop). They have an extensive menu with such home cooked delights as bangers and mash, lamb shank, sheperds pie aswell as a huge range of desserts. I personally opted for the bangers and mash while Phil went for stuffed Chicken. It was proper food cooked like only the irish can cook it and the service was outstanding. Friendly and efficient is not always something that comes hand in hand but they certainly impressed these two Welsh foodies.

I also found the pricing to be very reasonable for what you were getting but I think what impressed me most was the very high standard of food that was available in a cafe that is open mainly around lunchtimes and in the afternoon. A big, big thumbs up all round really!

Afrobev's Ratings:
Food- A+
Ambience- A+
Waiter- A More counter based than waiter service but the service was outstanding
Presentation A+ I haven't seen anything like it for a lunchtime offering
Overall- A+ I am not easily impressed but I liked it...A lot!

Movida Spanish Restaurant

Located in Hosier Lane off Flinders Street and next to Swanton is Movida Spanish Restaurant. You would never guess there was a high rating restaurant there judging from the outside appearance. The restaurant sits in the lane opposite some very interesting but rather macabre graffiti.

Above: Some rather macabre graffiti opposite Movida

Inside, Movida has a comfortable feel to it. The room is buzzing with noise and the rich aromas hit me immediately as I stepped inside. The bar is filled with numerous bottles of Spanish wines. Some patrons are seated at the bar eating their tapas and racion (larger servings) while others are dining in the small adjoining room.

Above: A nice relaxed feel inside the restaurant

My friends and I had been waiting a month (it is an extremely small place and fully booked every weekend) to eat at Movida. The reputation, anticipation and expectation were high. I'm glad to say that Movida totally lived up to all three and was a wonderful dining experience.

After we were seated, the waitress immediately got us menus and water. I like restaurants that serve you water immediately, I think this should happen everywhere. She also gave us the wine menu and some time to decide what we wanted rather than ask immediately what we wanted to drink. All the wines were Spanish and we had no idea what was what. So we decided on the house wine and got the Pansanau Ceps Nous 2003 Red Wine. It turned out to have a very nice grape flavour and was very smooth.

Then we started to order all the different tapas and racion we wanted. The waitress was very professional while not being cold. She made a few jokes to lighten the mood but was very efficient as well. She was attentive without being overbearing and interrupting us all the time. Recently at one place, this waitress (she looked 15) interrupted us about 5 times with "So how is the food". How many times and ways can you say good? Experience really shows, with good establishments hiring experienced staff who make the dining experience so much better.

The Pulpo a la Gallega, Galician style octopus with kiphler potatoes & Spanish paprika was the first dish to arrive. The octopus was very tender and the potatos soft. The flavours on the octopus was very rich and it was very good.

Above: Pulpo a la Gallega, Galician style octopus with kiphler potatoes & Spanish paprika

The Tortilla de Patatas, Confit potato & onion omelette was nice and fluffy but wasn't too special. I have tasted better tortilla with more flavours.

Above: Tortilla de Patatas, Confit potato & onion omelette

The Embutido, Spanish smallgoods, including Angel Cardoso's jamon & salsichon was enjoyable. The salami type meats were nice but the ham was quite ordinary.

Above: Embutido, Spanish smallgoods, including Angel Cardoso's jamon & salsichon

The salted cod (I forgot the Spanish name) with blood orange and salad was a little too salty for my liking. The cod had a good firm texture and was cooked very well and when eaten with the blood orange gave a salty and sour burst in the mouth.

Above: Salt Cod with blood orange and salad

The Patatas a la Pobre, (Poor mans potatoes) slow cooked nicola potatoes with peppers & garlic was divine. I never knew pototoes could taste so nice. The potatoes were slightly crispy on the outside with the inside very soft. The potatoes also had some sort of sugar coating which made them a little bit sweet. Added with the sweetness of the roast peppers and the garlic flavours, it was a very tasty dish.

Above:Patatas a la Pobre, (Poor mans potatoes) slow cooked nicola potatoes with peppers & garlic

The Paella, seafood, chicken and calasparra rice was another triumph. The seafood in the fish, calamari, prawns and mussels added their rich sea flavour to the rice, which already had other flavourings in it that I couldn't identify beside the tomato flavour. The pan fried chicken added another dimension to the usual seafood paella dish. The rice was cooked to perfection, not still hard and lumpy like at a few other places I've had.

Above: Paella, seafood, chicken and calasparra rice

The slow cooked lamb (again, forgot to note the Spanish name) with vegetables and mint was beautifully done. The lamb literally fell apart and we used a spoon to break it up. It was juicy still and had a fairly strong lamb flavour without being overpowering.

Above: Slow cooked lamb with vegetables and mint

The two best savoury dishes of the night had to be the beef. The first dish, Cecina, Air cured beef thinly sliced with a truffle foam and poached egg was spectacular, even in small portions. The beef was wonderfully rich in flavour and the truffle foam so delicate in texture but strong in flavour. The slightly undercooked egg when broken oozed out like a volcano. Having a mouthful of the three flavours together was totally delicious. I don't know if I can do it justice with my description. This is a must have dish if you go to Movida.

Above: Cecina, Air cured beef thinly sliced with a truffle foam and poached egg

The seocnd beef dish was the Bistec, chargrilled grass fed moondarra wagyu porterhouse served on crushed garlic potato. We asked for the beef medium to well since some people didn't like to eat raw beef. However, unlike some places, the beef was cooked to perfection. The crispy exterior gave way to melt in your mouth soft meat inside. It was served simply with just potato, but as commented by everyone, the potatos were so delicious. Movida certainly know how to cook potatos. Quite a few dishes we ordered had potato but not once did the potato taste the same or was boring and there just to fill up the plate. The potato was always used to enhance the dish.

Above: Bistec, chargrilled grass fed moondarra wagyu porterhouse served on crushed garlic potato

For dessert, we all wanted to try everything so that's what we did, got every dessert and shared them. I have placed my personal preference for the desserts from least liked down the list to most liked.

The first dessert was the Churros, Rich hot drinking chocolate and Spanish doughnuts. The chocolate was rich but not too sweet so went down well. However, the Spanish doughnuts were not too good and tasted almost stale in my opinion.

Above: Churros, Rich hot drinking chocolate and Spanish doughnuts

The next dessert was the Apple cake (again forgot to note Spanish name. I think I should bring a note pad next time and take notes hahaha). The cake was ultra rich and sweet. It was also a bit dry and crumbly, which I didn't like too much. There was raisins and dates in the cake I think.

Above: Apple cake

The Helados de la Casa, Homemade ice-creams served with an almond biscuit was very good ice cream. The three flavours of ice cream were fig (top), honey and saffron (middle) and boysenberry (bottom). My favourite was the fig ice cream. The figs were dried and provided a strong flavour to the ice cream. The honey and saffron ice cream just tasted like honey ice cream. The slightly sour flavour of the boysenberry ice cream helped to break it all up. The chocolate almond biscuits were dark chocolate so again help to contrast with the sweetness of the ice cream. The sour cream foam thing though didn't work well for me. The sour cream just didn't blend well with the ice creams. I think just using nice rich regular cream would have been better.

Above: Helados de la Casa, Homemade ice-creams served with an almond biscuit

Fighting for my favourite dessert of the night but just narrowly losing out was the Ganache Caliente Con Turron, Hot chocolate ganache pudding with vanilla bean ice-cream and nougat. The pudding was crisp on the outside but rich smooth chocolate flowed out when it was broken. Eaten in one mouthful with the ice cream and nougat was such a taste sensation. The different textures and flavours swirled around in the mouth, but the chocolate pudding was definitely the star and you could taste the hot melted chocolate.

Above: Ganache Caliente Con Turron, Hot chocolate ganache pudding with vanilla bean ice-cream and nougat

So this brings us to my favourite dessert of the night. It was the Flan Con Pestinos, Creme caramel served with spiced sherry pastries. Creme caramel I hear you say, that's boring isn't it? Not when it's done well is what I say. Usually the caramel sauce is so overpowering that it spoils it. I'm not a big fan of caramel but this time it was subtle. The creme caramel itself was such a smooth texture and the right consistency. The egg flavour was very strong but there was some other flavour as well that I couldn't work out. I loved the creme caramel so much that I didn't even try the sherry pastry. I ate the majority of the creme caramel but everyone was very understanding as they know my love for a good dessert.

Above: Flan Con Pestinos, Creme caramel served with spiced sherry pastries

As you can guess, from my very long and extensive review of this restaurant, I thought it was excellent. For once, reputation and expectations were met. It might be a little restaurant located in a dark laneway, but no wonder people still know about it and book for weeks to come and eat. When the food is this good, the service done well and the atmosphere enjoyable, it's definitely worth waiting for. The price is also very fair for the quality of food you get.

Overall Rating: 17/20, The food and service were excellent. I'll definitely be going back as soon as possible.

Scores: 1-9: Unacceptable, don't bother. 10-11: Just OK,some shortcomings. 12: Fair. 13: Getting there. 14: Recommended. 15: Good. 16: Really good. 17: Truly excellent. 18: An outstanding experience. 19-20: Approaching perfection, Victoria's best.

Afrobev's Guide To Eating Out: Merolas

Blimey we seem to eat out an awful lot!

Wednesday night date night is upon us again and for this occasion we chose the Theresa special...Merolas! It was very much a last minute decision as it often is with us and to be honest we only opted for our favourite little Italian restaurant because it was only up the road( by car at least) to where we live.

But I think we were both very glad that we did! We arrived at the side entrance, rang the doorbell and stood well back as it advised us on the door. We were warmly greeted by the man that Phil and Theresa fondly call 'Mr Merola'. A real character with kind eyes and a Super Mario Bros moustache whose only drawback is being a Manchester United fan. We can't all be perfect.

I must confess to being a little bit biased in this blog as Merolas is one of our favourite haunts and we are very often ringing up for a takeaway, cue the banter between Mr Merola and myself about opposing football teams. He sat us down at a table near the radiator so that Phil (my forever freezing cold girlfriend) could warm her back before taking our order. We then relaxed in the cosy little Italian setting as we sipped soft drinks and admired the Garlic hanging from the wall whilst staring longingly into each others eyes! Okay so maybe it wasn't quite like that. In reality I actually got caught up in a debate that Mr Merola was having with another customer about whether or not Alex Ferguson should be sacked as the Man Utd manager and their failing youth policy, but after a few stern looks from Phil, I was pulled back into realization that this was date night and that any talk of men kicking a ball around a pitch was strictly off limits.

The food, as ever was exceptional. We both had Penne Vegetarian Pasta with Chilli, Chippy things (that's what Phil calls them so I must stay true) and a hefty side order of Garlic Bread (some topped generously with cheese). We thanked Mr Merola for our feed (we paid him as well...it wasn't free or anything) and then we skipped off down the road to our car with a spring in our step and a joyous beat in our hearts!

Actually we were both moaning that it was bloody freezing and then we picked her mother up from Bingo...

...I think I preferred my version!

Afrobev's Ratings:
Food- A+
Ambience- A+
Waiter/Mr Merola- A+
Presentation A+
Biased Opinion Of Blog Author- A+
Overall- A Very Positive Thumbs Up For Merolas Restaurant, Clare Road, Cardiff- A+

Exotic Drinks

Thai Style Tropical Drink
Lately, I've been drinking this Thai Style Tropical Drink a lot. I absolutely love it, the flavours are so intense. So I thought I would write about some other slightly more exotic drinks that I like. They're probably not exotic to Asians but will most likely be to Westerners. The photo on the left is the Thai Style Tropical Drink. It's extremely easy to make and consists of durian, jack fruit, water date palms, lychees and jelly strips all mixed in with coconut milk and crushed
ice.

If you have never heard of a durian, it looks something like the photo below left. It is an extremely pungent fruit, and people who don't like it describe it as smelling like a rubbish tip. For lovers of durian, such as myself, the smellier the fruit is, the better. There are actually a number of varities of durian but since it is not grown commerically in Australia yet, we only get the one type known as the Golden Pillow imported from Thailand.

A jack fruit, pictured below right, looks kind of similar to a durian. It's usually very large and also has very sweet flesh. While a durian is extremely creamy in texture, jack fruit has a texture that is slightly crisp and slighty chewy. More people tend to like jack fruit as the flavour is just sweet and clear, rather than pungent.


The flavours of all these exotic fruit mixed together create a drink that is different with every bite. You can always put in other fruits and leave out things you don't like. Its up to you what you put in it, but I do find these flavours are very nice together.

Bubble Tea
Another drink that I have grown to love is bubble tea, otherwise known as milk tea with sago pearls. This drink is extremely popular in Asian countries. Traditionally it's red tea mixed with milk and sugar and then with black sago pearls added to it, like the one pictured on the left. However nowadays, there are a million and one combinations of flavours. I really love the honeydew melon tea with coconut pieces. The drink is red tea again, but with added honeydew flavourings. Then there is the milk but instead of sago pearls, I like to have coconut pieces that have been soaked in sugar. The coconut pieces has a nice crunch to it and adds its own flavour.

Milk tea with sago pearls is very easy to make at home. Just get your regular Lipton tea bags and make yourself a cup of tea as usual, then add your milk and sugar to taste, then go and buy a packet of sago pearls from your local Asian grocery store, cook them as instructed and add those to your tea. Add lots of ice and drink away. For something a little bit different, add a cup of milk coffee to your tea. It's a very interesting mix, and if you get the right amount of each, makes for an extremely nice drink. Milk tea mixed with milk coffee is known as "Ying Yang", as in the black and white circle you always see since it a mix of two very different things.

Avocado Milkshake
Finally, there are the exotic milkshakes. You've probably had a banana milkshake or even a strawberry one, but how about an avocado one. I've been mixing these for years and only until recently did the Chinese cafes around my area start to sell them. An avocado smoothie is made by blending avocado, milk, condensed milk and ice. If you want it a little bit richer even, add a spoon of vanilla ice cream. Trust me, its delicious, so give it a try.

Want even more exotic than an avocado milkshake, how about a durian milkshake. Same ingredients as the avocado one, but omit the avocado and substitute with creamy pungent durian. In fact, any tropical fruit can be substituted. I've tried lychees, jack fruit (another good one), custard apple, longans or even red or green beans.

The Life Of A Krispy Kreme Doughnut

My name is Glazy and I'm an Original Glazed Doughnut from Krispy Kreme. I start my life at the Krispy Kreme store in Fountain Gate Shopping Centre, the only store so far in Melbourne. People from far and wide come and queue to see me and take me home.



I am made by first mixing the special Krispy Kreme ingredients with water and yeast. I am then passed through a high pressure "extruder". Depending on what has been decided for me, I will either have a hole or not. It turns out I had a hole in my centre. My friends who don't have a hole will be filled with custard, strawberry, raspberry or cream. After I am extruded, I take a ride up and down in a humid escalator so that I can "proof" and rise to my full potential.

The next stage in my journey is where I get a nice hot bath in vegetable shortening. I then go through a water slide where I get flipped over and bathed on the other side.



Occasionally, the slide doesn't do a proper job and a friend will not get bathed on the other side. This means they are still all dirty and white still. The doughnuts that are not properly cleaned get teased badly by the other doughnuts and called names such as "whitey" or "lumpy". Usually a staff member will protect the "whitey" doughnut and take them to another place to play with all the other "whitey" doughnuts.



The rest of us continue our journey to the fun part of the whole process, the waterfall. I just love that part. The nice warm waterfall covers me completely in a sweet sugary mixture. I get a nice smooth feeling all over and smell so nice. My shiny exterior attracts many people, who I see appreciating my new coat when their eyes light up.



After my relaxing waterfall experience, I get packed neatly into a box ready to go home with my new owner(s). The other doughnuts that keep going on the journey get filled with all other wonderful ingredients to make them even more attractive.

On this particular day, I am taken home by an intelligent looking guy who I get to know as Thanh. He has also taken home another 47 of my friends. We chat amongst ourselves happily in the car ride home. Occasionally some of my naughty friends let off some gas. Through the crack in the box, I can see Thanh lifts his nose and do this weird stiffing action when a friend lets off some gas.

When we get home, all of us are lined up neatly for a photo shoot. We get photographed from all angles. My friend Jammy and I even get solo close ups. I loved being the centre of attention and felt very proud.









Finally I was hand picked first by Thanh and fulfilled my destiny in my short but spectacular life. I was loving consumed by my owner and the joy that I provided made my journey into Doughnut Heaven all the more fun.

Mmmmm....Pizza!

I decided against going out last night and instead opted for staying in and watching crap on TV and had a Large Ham and Mushroom Domino's Pizza and a share size bottle of coke...Mmmmmmm!

It was probably for the best as I neither felt well enough or in the mood for socialising last night. The only regret was not being there for my mate Hicksy's birthday but he understood when I text him and I think there were plenty of other people out to help him celebrate. Phil went to her brother's birthday barbecue with her family in Newport and came back about 8ish.

A bit of peace and quiet for the day. Just me in my pad watching The Simpsons, football or basically anything I wanted to watch with mmmmm....Domino's Pizza!!!

What more can you ask?

Engagement Party

I went to my friend Upneet's engagement party on Saturday. She was going to get married to Dhawal later in the year, congratulations to them. The reception started off with finger food of chicken, fish and mushrooms and an open bar.

Above: There was a variety of cocktails and I tried the a few of them and they were very nice.

Entrees consisted of two options, something for the carnivores and something for the sheep, um I mean the vegetarians. There was only one vegetarian on our table so the rest of us helped him eat the vegetarian food because we were all pretty hungry. The vegetarian entrees were Hara Bhara Kebab, Paneer Tikka and Alool Bharvan while the meat entrees were Fish Amritsari, Chicken Tikka and Seekh Kebab.

Above: Half eaten meat entrees. I was too busy eating and forgot to take a photo until later on.

Dinner was lots of different curries and vegetable dishes. Dinner consisted of Chicken Nilgiri, Lamb Kesari, Prawn Chilli Fry, Palek Paneer, Daal and Bhindi Masala with side dishes of Naan, Rice and Garden Salad. The Naan was very popular and our table finished ours very quickly and get a second serving.

Above: From the Naan going clockwise, Palek Paneer (I asked someone on the table and they said it was Spinach), Bhindi Masala (Lady Fingers cooked and were suprisingly delicious, I generally don't like vegetables), Chicken Nilgiri, Lamb Kesari, Daal and Prawn Chilli Fry in the centre.

To help wash all the food down, I had the Rosemount Estate 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon. It was very smooth and went down well with the food.

To finish off the meal, dessert was Cassata (I thought that was Italian) and chocolate cake. The Cassata was nice but the cake was extremely dry and lacked any flavour. All in all though, it was a great night of entertainment (lots of Indian dancing, see More Thanh Words for details about the dancing) and great food. Thanks to Upneet for inviting me and here's wishing her a happy wedding.

A State Of Delayed Shock

Definition: Shock which appears some time after the trauma.

The McDonald's Drive Thru down the road from me closed a couple of weeks ago and it's just hit me...It's gone forever!

It wasn't as if I used it very often (and if that's the general attitude then that's probably why it closed) but I knew it was there anytime I fancied wandering five minutes down the road to grab something 'terribly bad for you' to eat. I always thought to myself that on one Weekend morning I would get up early enough to nip down the road and get myself a McDonald's breakfast or a Sausage and Egg McMuffin with a Hash Brown and a regular coffee.

I could really go for a Quarter Pounder With Cheese and Large Fries right at this very moment...

...But I guess that ship has sailed! Goodbye McDonald's Drive Thru and I am sorry I didn't make enough of you!

Anyone fancy a Jacket Potato?

Afrobev's Guide To Eating Out: Sushi at 'Zushi'

With my blogging friend Thanh starting his new food blog soon 'I Eat Therefore I Am' and with all of us fellow bloggers adding our food experiences to the blog. I thought I had better get back in to the swing of it by posting one of my World famous Eating Out Guide's.

However, Philomena opted to go for Sushi (yuck). Sorry but I'm not loving the sushi!

Phil, Theresa and I couldn't decide where we wanted to go to eat last night and after a lot of "umming" and "aaahing", Phil turned around to Treez and said "Do you like vegetarian sushi?". Neither of us were that enamoured to be honest but as Phil had been working so hard all week and we had been out on a relaxing jolly all day we decided to let her get her own way (which happens more often than not if it's just the two of us so why change the habit of a lifetime?). So the three of us headed off to the sushi bar in town - 'Zushi'.

I have never been to a sushi bar before and have only ever seen it on american cop shows but it all seemed a bit surreal upon arriving. Just lots of little different coloured plates of raw fish and rice going around a conveyor belt type thing all around the restaurant, whether you were sat at the counter or at a booth. That along with some really spaced out music made it feel like you were dreaming of food going around you. Although if I was dreaming about all that food going around me I am pretty sure I would dream about something other than rice wrapped in seaweed, like cakes or ice cream or something. Mmmm Ice cream!

The colour coded plates meant that they were priced differently and you could just help yourself to anything that takes your fancy. Phil was in her element and was picking out mini plates of sushi with avocado and cucumber in it while Theresa and I sat there bemused and she looked decidedly green around the gills. I must confess to trying a fair bit of Phil's numerous plates and dipping it into soya sauce but I just wasn't really enjoying it to be honest and neither was Treez. The only way I can describe the taste is when you are abroad and swimming in the sea and a high wave hits you in the face and all you can taste is the salty ocean.

For our hot plates the girls went for noodles while I had a curry with chicken in breadcrumbs and rice which was quite tasty and very well presented but again I wouldn't go overboard and say it was the best thing I have ever tasted. The breaded chicken with the sauce was nice though. Overall, the service was friendly and the establishment was very clean and I suppose the food was good if your taste buds actually like sushi, but I am afraid that mine don't very much and unless there was nothing else to eat in the World I doubt that I will be doing the sushi thing again. I am quite sure a sushi lover would have a different opinion altogether as Phil thought it was delicious so I suppose if she likes it she can always either go with Leanne (another sushi lover) or she can get one of the take out boxes that they do.

Still, you have to try these things!

Afrobev's Ratings:
Food- B- (the rating is for the chicken in breadcrumbs with curry sauce. The sushi is just not me but I am sure a sushi lover would have a different opinion)
Ambience- B (certainly different and I did like the food going around but the music was at times a bit unsettling)
Waiter- A- (the male waiter was very helpful and efficient. Especially as we told him it was our first time at a sushi bar)
Presentation and Price - B (Phil had about four plates of sushi and we each had drinks and a hot plate and the total price was £33.50. Not bad for three of us I suppose)
Overall- B- (I am sorry that it's not more and I really wish that I completely fell in love with the whole sushi experience but I'm afraid I didn't at all. I can completely understand those who do love it but for one reason or another it's just not my bag baby!)

Philomena Cakes

I am sure Miss Meep won't mind me stealing from her blog. But these are the delicious cakes she made Philomena for her birthday.

Thanks Emma xxx