Mum's Birthday: Aqua Kyoto and Aline of Lebanon

Last week was my Mum's birthday and, since she was away in sunny Spain on the day, I took her off for dinner over the weekend.

 We met out the front of Liberty before going for a bit of a wander in the Spring sunshine (which translate 'sunshine with the occasional flurry/downpour of rain), popping into shops and galleries along the way.

 The Mayfair Flower Show was kicking off at Sketch so we paused for a moment to snap a photo in their doorway...

 ...Before popping into Aline of Lebanon for a quick drink. The place settings at Aline of Lebanon were just so beautiful I had to grab a snap before any beverages had even made an appearance!

 I had a banana and ginger smoothie which was just delicious (and two flavours I wouldn't have thought to put together) whilst mum had a rosewater lemonade.

 Shortly however, it was time to head to the 'main event' - dinner at the Japanese restaurant Aqua Kyoto. Located on Argyll Street, to access the restaurant we were whisked up in a lift to the 5th floor, before finding ourselves in a large space with an open sushi kitchen.

 We took our seats at the bar where we could watch the chefs slice and shape all the tasty food on offer. Before long, our cocktails arrived - a delicious 'mojito', although I can't say I've ever had a mojito quite like it - it had sherry and passion fruit in it!

 Starters swiftly followed - a beautifully presented sashimi selection and an octopus salad. Mum and I quickly established that we would share all of our vibrant food in an attempt to try as much as possible!

 Mains arrived just as well presented - wagu beef with a yuzu dressing for me and mackerel with a ginger miso sauce for Mum. The mackerel was finished with a blowtorch at table which was a fun theatrical touch. We also had rather a interesting time trying to split up the filet with just our chopsticks - I think perhaps, we may need a little more practice....

 The beef however stole the show. Deliciously tender and rare whilst the yuzu sauce was sublime - I was practically licking my plate clean by the time I had finished!

 Pudding took on the form of a Japanese cheese cake. Not usually a cheesecake fan, I was surprised to find how much I enjoyed this one. For starters, the presentation was simply delightful, but I especially loved how the cheesecake topping almost had a 'mellow-y' texture, whilst the accompanying ice cream of sakura and strawberry cut through all the flavours deliciously.

 Dinner at Aqua Kyoto was a very enjoyable experience. The waitstaff were attentive, the food wonderful to look at as well as eat and the setting was vibrant. My only niggle would be that the bar was rather noisy. However, this wasn't the end of the world and we had a very enjoyable evening!

Malta: Part Six

Our final day's adventures took us off to Marsaxlokk, a traditional fishing village at the south of the island. After a fairly lengthy bus journey (and some slight confusion over stops!) we found ourselves walking along the pretty sea front of the village. 

Floating in the bay were brightly coloured, traditionally hand painted fishing boats. Many of these had eyes painted on their bows, which superstition says protects the boats from danger. These little traditional boats provide the fresh fish cooked up in the numerous restaurants spaced out along the sea front.

After wandering the length of the village, we settled down in one of these little restaurants and tucked into some of the local produce, all of which tasted wonderfully fresh! 

The village was incredibly pretty and it was interesting to see how the fishermen still used the traditional boats to catch fish. However, before long, it was time to return to our hotel and hunt down dinner!

That evening (our last evening!) we walked into the centre of St Julian's and chose a restaurant called 'Zest' which turned out to be a real treat! The menu was, as far as I was concerned, perfect. Advertised as 'east meets west', it was full of sushi, Thai curries, Japanese grills and noodle-y dishes. I was in heaven!

We ordered off one of their set sharing menus and tucked in to the mountain of food which then appeared.

Firstly, an amuse-bouche and cocktails.

Then, we started with sushi, sticky chelsea buns, chicken and lamb satay, dim sum parcels and a fantastic glass noodle salad. 

Followed by a trio of thai curries (Lu had another noodle dish as well but I can't quite remember what it was!).

And then delicious deserts which included a fiery chocolate and chilli fondant with raspberry sorbet.  

I just wish I'd had more room to eat more- by the end I was bursting!

Zest was fantastic- the food amazing and the staff incredibly accommodating. They had delivered a truly wonderful last meal on Malta. 

I had a brilliant holiday visiting Malta. Not only was the island beautiful, but everyone we met was incredibly friendly and willing to share something about the island and its fascinating history. I learnt more than I could have expected from such a short stay and I would love to return in the future to find out more! 

Home Made Sushi

My lovely friend Grace bought me a sushi making kit and so I thought I'd show you how I got on with it and what ingredients it contained so you can do it your selves. But first, let me introduce you to my best uni friend, Jossi! I pretty much spend all my waking time with her and she is wonderful! She's also experienced in the sushi making department, so offered me a hand.

If you're anything like me, you probably love sushi. There's just something about those tiny gem like parcels which begs you to eat them! However, they've always looked so artistically presented that I doubted I could produce anything nearly as divine.  I'm glad to tell you, they're not as tricky to make as you may think. Then again, I did have a champion roller on hand, so maybe I had a slight advantage?

Ingredients:
300g sushi rice
rice vinegar
3 sheets of sushi nori (the seaweed for around the edges)
a pack of smoked salmon
a couple of carrots
a cucumber (or avocado)
Bamboo mat (for rolling)
pickled ginger, soy sauce and wasabi to serve

Firstly take your sushi rice. (This tends to be a short grain rice and gets sticky when it's cooked- the longer grain variety doesn't stick and so is no use.) Boil this up in a saucepan with double the amount of water to rice. When all the water is absorbed or boiled off, add four tablespoons of rice vinegar. Mix thoroughly. (See how sticky?) Now leave it to cool completely.

Chop the carrots, cucumber or avocado in to thin long batons and the salmon into slim slices. 

Next, lay out the bamboo mat and place a sheet of seaweed on it. Then cover two thirds of the seaweed with the rice- pat it down quite flat.  Layer strips of  the filling just under half way up the rice. All you need to do now is roll your sushi! Make sure you role it quite tight. Seal the seaweed with a dab of water and then cut the roll into bite sized slices.

                       

Serve with some soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger for dipping. Don't forget your chopsticks!

Hello Tokyo!

One of the best countries I have ever visited has to Japan- everything about it captivated me, from the beautiful countryside to the bustling city. As I was there on an exchange (which I truly believe is one of the best way to see a country) I was completely immersed in the fascinating culture. I stayed with a host family for ten days, visited their daughter's school (an amazing place which went straight through from kindergarden to university!) treated to traditional Japanese cuisine and whisked away to see some of the most beautiful sights.

One thing that really struck me was just how polite everyone was- everyone queued single file to get onto trains and spoke with respect to their elders, which was frankly refreshing after the everyday rudeness encountered on the streets back home.

I'm definitely a person who's not all that good with change and so although I enjoy visiting other countries, I could never see myself living far from where I live now. Well, until I visited Japan that is. Something about the places I saw captured a piece of my heart and weirdly for me, I have a strong desire to live there at some point in my life!

These photos were taken by the coolest photo booths ever called purikura- essentially you take your photo and then decorate it. This was also the first time I'd ever seen a QC code (they had them wayyy before us). By scanning the code with your phone, the photos could be sent directly to you as well as a print out copy! The arcades which housed these were full to bursting every day with teenagers (and some older people!) getting their photos taken.   

Disney Land Tokyo! We went on valentines day- you have never seen anything cuter than fully grown men and women with Mickey Mouse ears on running hand in hand to get to the rides before all the kids!

Traditional sushi - I have to say, this experience taught me I'm not a fan of eel

A beautiful temple

Cherry blossom

Stone monks

A view from a train

Prayer flags

An egg boiled in a volcano! 

We visited an art gallery and this was one of my favourite installations- a huge stain glass tower!

We stayed a night in a traditional hotel and slept on the floor on bedding we unrolled from the cupboard. 

I was taken to a fantastic restaurant in a skyscraper. It had 360 degrees glass windows and this was the stunning view!

The entrance to Harajuku street!