shrimp summer rolls

What do I crave when the weather gets warm? Food that doesn't weigh me down! I convinced my man to try summer rolls from a store a few weeks back, and my obsession with these rolls became contagious... I don't know which he likes more - the crisp, refreshing veggies inside (which I love), the succulent shrimp (which I also love), or the fact that he gets to dip them into sweet chili sauce.

It doesn't really matter which he likes more, because it means I get to eat these delicious rolls more often now! After a few searches at local stores, I found the rice paper wraps, and made the rolls as an appetizer for a recent dinner. I put lettuce, ribbons of cucumber, skinny carrot sticks, and sweet shrimp. Delicious!
P.S. Now I know what I need to have for an appetizer tonight. =)

Wagaboo, Madrid

tartare de langostas (prawns with avocado) and a selection of dim sum (not pictured)

Japan noodles Tsuyo no moto

Tagine Casablanca

Texas pecan pie & Bomba de chocolate (as suggested by our waiter)

Naru Asian Cuisine

Yesterday, my fiance and I made our first trip to Naru Asian Cuisine in Williston. Before we went, we read a few reviews online, just to get an idea of what to order.

The dining room is pretty small, and seems a bit more like a tiki bar than a restaurant, but I've learned not to judge a restaurant only by what you see when you walk in.

The menu has lots of pictures, which are especially helpful when you can't read the Korean names. For appetizers, we ordered the shumai (steamed shrimp dumplings) and the scallion pancake, of which we had read great things.

After you order, they bring you three small sample appetizers - we got broccoli with a sesame type marinade, spicy kimchi, and pickled daikon (I think). The kimchi was my favorite.

The shumai came out in a cute little steamer -- it was tasty but super hot.

The scallion pancake was bigger than expected, and in my fiance's words, was "amazing." I could only respond with the word "mmm."
I ordered the hot stone bowl bibimbop as my meal. It's made of seasoned beef, a variety of veggies, and a sunnyside-up egg -- all over rice. It comes with a spicy and yummy sauce. The whole dish was pretty delicious overall...... except for the mushrooms. I had read Alice Levitt's post about them, so I waited until I was almost full before trying them. She was right -- we should ask for the dish without the mushrooms.
My fiance ordered the orange (or was it lemon?) sesame chicken. Or was it General Tso's chicken? I can't remember. I didn't eat it... But I heard it was good. And it looks great!
Overall, the experience was good. I'd repeat it -- just without the mushrooms. Even if you think you like mushrooms (like me), you might not like these. Just take my word for it...

Restaurant Week

On our mutual vacation week, my guy and I visited a number of local restaurants. We tried to target places we hadn't been yet, and the places featured in this write-up were the results of a bizarre selection system that I'm pretty sure we couldn't repeat if we tried. These reviews are a combination of both of our thoughts.

Two Thumbs Up

The best meal we ate that week was, without a doubt, at Kong Chow in Shelburne. We were greeted enthusiastically by our awesome server Josh and the owner. We chose a table in the dining room (there's outdoor seating on the patio, too), and were presented with a dish of housemade fried noodles (Josh informed us that nearly everything -- sans soy sauce -- is housemade at Kong Chow), a sweet dipping sauce (similar to duck sauce), a pot of delicious tea, and of course, ice water. We started with an order of the Hot Oil Wontons, which are not fried, but steamed, and come drizzled with chili oil. My guy ordered the Tangerine Chicken, which was spicy, sweet, and perfectly cooked, and I ordered the Black Forest Shrimp. The shrimp was also perfectly cooked, came with a delicious array of veggies, and was covered in a fantastic black bean - based sauce. The portions were great -- the perfect amount for my guy, and just enough so that I could enjoy my shrimp for lunch the next day (when I asked for a box to take home my leftovers, Josh said "Actually, we try not to let the food leave the building..."). We were visited multiple times during the meal, both by Josh and the owner, both of whom contributed greatly to our enjoyable experience. The delicious food, comfortable atmosphere, and great service (not to mention the added entertainment -- both Josh and the owner are pretty funny) combined to create an overall positive feeling about Kong Chow. We highly recommend it (and wish we lived closer to it)!

We enjoyed another great meal at Papa Nick's Family Restaurant in Hinesburg. Their menu includes a mix of American, Greek, and Italian specialties, and they serve Greek dinner specials every Thursday night. We sampled quite a bit of food at Papa Nick's -- my guy was dying to try the wings, so we got an order of hots, and they were delicious! My guy got fried clams, which came with delicious fries and a house salad. I ordered the Broiled Stuffed Halibut special, which was perfectly cooked, stuffed with spinach (and artichokes?) and topped with a delicious Newburg sauce. Since it was a Greek special, it came with an assortment of Greek appetizers, a Greek salad, and rice pilaf. Both of our meals came with freshly-baked rolls. The servings are generous, and we had no complaints (while the place was packed, we waited only about a minute to be seated). It was a meal to remember!

Two Thumbs Down

The positive reviews on Seven Nights drew us to Rozzi's Lakeshore Tavern in Colchester. In hopes of finding delicious burgers, we entered Rozzis... It was a bit confusing at first, since we seemed to enter a bar, rather than a restaurant. The restaurant seating area was separated from the bar with a handful of stairs, and no wall, which we found a bit strange. The tables were very close to each other, which led to feeling crowded, even though there weren't many other customers in the dining area. We started with mozzarella sticks, which were pretty standard (aka tasty) and came with plenty of marinara sauce. My guy ordered the Western Burger -- well done, which came with bacon, cheese, and BBQ sauce. I ordered the Jamaican Jerk Burger -- medium well, which I expected to be spicy. My burger was decidedly un-Jerk-like, and overcooked to the point where it had an outer layer of charcoal. Our burgers were very similar in taste and texture, regardless of toppings. Our fries, unfortunately, were a bigger disappointment. They were salt-less, and only partially cooked. We could not finish either of our meals. My guy suggested we give them the benefit of a doubt and try dessert -- after all, we were already there -- so we ordered the "strawberry shortcake with local strawberries," the dessert special. My guy and I were joking about what would be on the plate... He guessed that it would be a storebought shortcake sponge base (the kind you can find at the grocery store -- pack of 6 for $1.99), frozen strawberries, and whipped cream from a can. Unfortunately, he was not far-off in his guess. Storebought sponge, un-fresh strawberries (and I'd wager they weren't local unless Price Chopper counts), and canned whipped cream. Pretty unimpressive when you're being charged $4.99 for each serving. Good thing we shared dessert. I have to add that the crowding issue reappeared when we were leaving -- we nearly had to climb over a couple to get out of the place.

We consumed another disappointing meal at The Rotisserie in South Burlington, which also got decent ratings on Seven Nights. They're famous for their prime rib, so we both ordered a dish that included it. My guy ordered the Prime Rib with a side of fries, which was tender, but unseasoned, and I ordered the French Dip Sandwich. Although the meat was sliced quite thinly on the sandwich, it tasted like the color grey. The "au jus" portion of the meal was beefy, but like a liquid salt lick. The fries here were better than those of Rozzi's, but not fantastic. Our service was less-than-stellar (we tried multiple times to get our server's attention, and were not the only ones waiting for our check), and the tablecloth (which was under glass) was dirty, which was a turn-off. We will not be patronizing this establishment again.

New Restaurant Adventures

On our mutual vacation week, my guy and I visited a number of local restaurants. We tried to target places we hadn't been yet, and the places featured in this write-up were the results of a bizarre selection system that I'm pretty sure we couldn't repeat if we tried. These reviews are a combination of both of our thoughts.

Two Thumbs Up

The best meal we ate that week was, without a doubt, at Kong Chow in Shelburne. We were greeted enthusiastically by our awesome server (Josh) and the owner. We chose a table, and were presented with a dish of housemade fried noodles (Josh informed us that nearly everything -- sans soy sauce -- is housemade at Kong Chow), a sweet dipping sauce (similar to duck sauce), a pot of delicious tea, and of course, ice water. We started with an order of the Hot Oil Wontons, which are not fried, but steamed, and come drizzled with chili oil. My guy ordered the Tangerine Chicken, which was spicy, sweet, and perfectly cooked, and I ordered the Black Forest Shrimp. The shrimp was also perfectly cooked, came with a delicious array of veggies, and was covered in a fantastic black bean - based sauce. The portions were great -- the perfect amount for my guy, and just enough so that I could enjoy my shrimp for lunch the next day (when I asked for a box to take home my leftovers, Josh said "Actually, we try not to let the food leave the building..."). We were visited multiple times during the meal, both by our server and the owner, both of whom contributed greatly to our enjoyable experience. The delicious food and great service combined to create an overall positive feeling about Kong Chow. We highly recommend it!

We enjoyed another great meal at Papa Nick's Family Restaurant in Hinesburg. Their menu includes a mix of American, Greek, and Italian specialties, and they serve Greek dinner specials every Thursday night. We sampled quite a bit of food at Papa Nick's -- my guy was dying to try the wings, so we got an order of hots, and they were delicious! My guy got fried clams, which came with delicious fries and a house salad. I ordered the Broiled Stuffed Halibut special, which was perfectly cooked, stuffed with spinach (and artichokes?) and topped with a delicious Newburg sauce. Since it was a Greek special, it came with an assortment of Greek appetizers, a Greek salad, and rice pilaf. Both of our meals came with freshly-baked rolls. The servings are generous, and we had no complaints. It was a meal to remember!

Two Thumbs Down

The positive reviews on Seven Nights drew us to Rozzi's Lakeshore Tavern in Colchester. In hopes of finding delicious burgers, we entered Rozzis... It was a bit confusing at first, since we seemed to enter a bar, rather than a restaurant. The restaurant seating area is separated from the bar with a handful of stairs, and no wall, which we found a bit strange. We started with mozzarella sticks, which were pretty standard (aka tasty) and came with plenty of marinara sauce. My guy ordered the Cowboy (or was it Western?) Burger -- well done, which came with bacon, cheese, and bbq sauce. I ordered the Jamaican Jerk Burger -- medium well, which I expected to be spicy. My burger was decidedly un-Jerk-like, and overcooked to the point where it had an outer layer of charcoal. Our burgers were very similar in taste and texture, regardless of toppings. Our fries, unfortunately, were a bigger disappointment. They were salt-less, and only partially cooked. We could not finish either of our meals. My guy suggested we give them the benefit of a doubt and try dessert -- after all, we were already there -- so we ordered the "strawberry shortcake with local strawberries," the dessert special. My guy and I were joking about what would be on the plate... He guessed that it would be a storebought shortcake sponge base (the kind you can find at the grocery store -- pack of 6 for $1.99), frozen strawberries, and whipped cream from a can. Unfortunately, he was not far-off in his guess. Storebought sponge, un-fresh strawberries (and I'd wager they weren't local unless Price Chopper counts), and canned whipped cream. Pretty unimpressive when you're being charged $4.99 for each serving. Good thing we shared dessert.

We consumed another disappointing meal at The Rotisserie in South Burlington, which also got nice ratings on Seven Nights. They're famous for their prime rib, so we both ordered a dish that included it. My guy ordered the Prime Rib with a side of fries, which was tender, but unseasoned, and I ordered the French Dip Sandwich. Although the meat was sliced quite thinly on the sandwich, it tasted like the color grey. The "au jus" portion of the meal was beefy, but like a liquid salt lick. The fries here were better than those of Rozzi's, but not fantastic. Our service was less-than-stellar (we tried multiple times to get our server's attention, and were not the only ones waiting for our check), and the tablecloth (which was under glass) was dirty, which was a turn-off. We will not be patronizing this establishment again.

sweet sushi :: sushi que hice completamente de dulces

I made this for my roomie, who also graduated last week from college.

Lo hice para mi compañera de casa quien acabó su carera al mismo tiempo que yo (la semana pasada).

Where Not to Eat :: Asian Bistro

I don't often make negative references to places that I've been, but something stuck out the other night when I was eating dinner. My boy and I had decided to go out for a dinner date, and we chose Asian Bistro (121 Connor Way, Williston, VT) since we had been wanting to try it out.

Our dinner started out with mixed shrimp and vegetable tempura for $6 (since we are both nuts about tempura). The batter was nicely done and in general, the appetizer portion of the meal was pretty delicious. However, after tasting the rest of the meal, I was a bit mad about the tempura, as it had given us false hope.

I opted for one of the chef's specialties: Crispy Scallops ($13.50). The menu described it as "scallops with honey glazed walnuts in a crispy crepe w/ spicy onion sauce on the side," but that's not quite what I got. First of all, I think "crispy crepe" is referring to the batter, which was quite raw-tasting and didn't have a hint of salt nor pepper. The spicy onion sauce consisted of about 1.5 cups of sickly-sweet but slightly odd-tasting teriyaki sauce. The scallops did not taste fresh and had an unappetizing mouth feel. After talking with friends and doing a little research, I'm guessing they weren't "scallops" in the first place, but rather some off-tasting shark meat cut into scallop-sized pieces. The honey glazed walnuts were a huge disconnect, and just thrown on top of the "scallops", which were in a greasy taco-salad-type fried tortilla bowl.

My boy also (unfortunately) chose a chef's specialty called Chicken with Honey Walnut ($11.50). It was described as "chicken crisp-sauteed in a tangy white cream sauce and topped with honeyeyed walnuts". Firstly, it was fried, not sauteed, and the batter tasted exactly like every other cheap Chinese restaurant's sweet & sour chicken. This batter was seasoned and without the sauce, the chicken wasn't bad. However, this "cream sauce" was clearly nowhere near cream at any point in it's short life. In the first bite, I was overwhelmed by the taste of mayonaise and my boy pointed out that it also tasted quite a bit like mustard. I don't know what else was in the sauce, but one bite was more than what I needed. Again, there were walnuts on the plate, which made no sense. Maybe they would have been alright with a cream sauce, but there was no cream sauce to be found.

After all, I would rate this meal "pretty terrible". It would have been "awful" were it not for the tempura. And, oddly enough, the honeyed (or "honeyeyed") walnuts, though disconnected from the rest of both plates, were the only enjoyable things on them. However, there are not enough walnuts in the world to make this $40 meal worth it.

As I said before, I don't often write about negative food experiences in detail, but today I spoke with a number of people that had similar experiences. One person visited the restaurant the same night that I did and had both bad food and a rude waitperson. Another person mentioned that they had only eaten there once and would not eat there again, due to the food-borne illness that resulted.

All in all, I will never set food in this establishment again, nor their Winooski location. It ranks in my top five worst Asian food experiences. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone, friend or foe. Save your money (and your stomach) and go somewhere else.

Bangkok!

Over break, Natty and I had dinner one night at Bangkok in Madrid (c/ Bordadores, 15 -- Metro: Sol or Ópera‎). (Side note: One night, we decided to visit Siam (c/ San Bernadino, 6 -- Metro: Plaza de España), only to find out that it has the EXACT same menu as Bangkok. Just go to the one closest to where you are!) We'd been to Bangkok a couple of times before (see this post for more info on Bangkok and other Asian food in Madrid).

This time, Natty got the old stand-by:












... sweet pad thai with roasted peanuts.













I got noodles Siam.

And finally, a dream was realized...

















...mango with sticky rice!!!
I've been ordering this for YEARS (including a few tries at Bangkok) and NO ONE has ever served me it. They're either "out" of mangoes or they are "not in season". Finally, I got to taste the dessert that has been a mystery for so long! It was well worth the wait. =)

In addition, Bangkok is one of those Asian restaurants that has taken on a Spanish tradition by offering a menu-of-the-day: their's is Full-screen11,50€.

きいりん (Kirin) Barcelona

If you find yourself in the need of some quick sushi, look no further than Kirin Japanese Restaurant in Barcelona, Spain.

Located on Carrer Aragó, 231, Kirin sells moving sushi -- that is, sushi that comes right to you on a conveyer belt. All you have to do is sit and wait while numerous tiny plates ride by, each holding a few bites of either rolled sushi, panfried noodles, seeweed salad, or even dessert.

It's all-you-can-eat for only 9,90€ mid-day and 14,90€ for nights and holidays.

The buffet even includes a create-your-own-meal option. Go to the raw bar and choose your seafood, meats, and veggies, and they grill it for you hibachi-style. Delicious!

For more information, check out their website here.

new eats :: Drunken Noodle Thai

Last night, my boy and I were in the mood for some Asian flavors, so we hit up the newest place in the area for some take-out -- Drunken Noodle. Located at 9 Park St in Essex Junction, VT, the Drunken Noodle serves up tasty Thai cuisine. The ambience is much classier than its location's predecessor, and the waitstaff is very helpful. You can eat-in or take-out.

They offer a selection of appetizers, salads, soups, stir-fried entrees (choose your protein and your sauce), duck entrees, curries, and noodle dishes. They also have lunch specials and desserts.

We highly recommend the crab angels (fried crab wontons served with a delicate sweet & sour sauce), the som tum salad (made with green papaya and carrots), the stir-fried chicken entree with spicy garlic sauce (tip: add rice to your order for an extra $1. you'll want it!), or the pad woon sem (cellophane noodles with egg, bean sprouts, tomato, cabbage, onion, and carrots).

Service is quick, and prices are reasonable:

Appetizers - $4-6
Salads - $5-7
Soups - $3-4
Stir-fried Entrees - $9-11
Duck Entrees - $12
Curries - $9-11
Noodles $9-11

the egg roll incident

(I was thinking about the String Cheese Incident...)

While working at Paulino's in Madrid, I learned how to make pastelitos de langostinos y gambas en su jugo-- delicious morsels of prawns and shrimp, sauteed together then rolled into thin pastry with a bed of sauteed vegetables. I simply cannot get them out of my head...

So, on a whim, I embarked on an egg roll journey and used the knowledge and technique I learned at Paulino's to create some delicious pastelitos with more of an Asian flair.

I sautéed onions, julienned carrots and some savoy cabbage, just simply with a little bit of olive oil, salt & pepper. Then I sauteed peeled, deveined shrimp with olive oil, pepper, and a little bit of Jin Ji's Happy Hot Sauce. I put it all together in some egg roll wrappers, and shallow-fried them in olive oil.

Don't worry -- the oil wasn't dirty -- the bits on the outsides are from the residual Happy Hot Sauce in the pan.

I served them up with a carrot and savoy cabbage slaw -- dressed with soy sauce, lime juice, peanut oil, sesame oil, and toasted sesame seeds. Yum!

sesame peanut chicken over rice

I cooked up some brown rice (with chicken stock instead of water), topped it with stir-fried carrots and celery (made with peanut oil and a little sesame oil), topped that with some chicken strips (marinated in sesame and peanut oils, sweet & hot chili sauce, soy sauce, and a little rice wine vinegar-- then grilled or broiled until golden brown), then drizzled the whole thing with a sesame-peanut-chili sauce. Verrrry tasty!

Bites in Lisbon/Sintra, Portugal

I just spent the weekend in Portugal, and I have to tell you... The rumors are true! The Portuguese sure know how to do pastries... Walk into any local pastelaría (pastry shop) in Lisbon and you will find yourself surrounded by a mountain of pastries. Sweet or savory, bite-sized or the size of your head, you are bound to find something that appetizes you. Just a few tasty suggestions:

• Pastéis de Nata or Pastéis de Belém (traditional pastry made with flaky crust, custard filling and bruléed top... click here for a pic... so popular that now Brazil's fast food chain Habib's actually has their own version on the menu)
  
• apple-stuffed pastry (not too sweet, just right)
• empanada-type pastry with shrimp & creamy filling
• puff pastry squares baked with ham (fiambre) and cheese (queijo) inside
• fish fritters (made with whitefish & herbs... hard to explain, but delicious)
• croquetes (made with seasoned ground beef and chouriço (chorizo in Esp)
• roll stuffed with sliced chouriço (delicious choice for breakfast)
• roll/bread with chunks of chouriço baked right in

On a completely unrelated note, Lisbon is also home to some amazing Asian food. Restaurant Ton Xin (Av. Brasilia - Edificio Espelho de Agua) is on the water, between Ponte 25 (bridge) and La Torre de Belém. They have three parts to the restaurant: 1. You can enjoy a sit-down meal of Chinese food. 2. Sit-down meal of Japanese food. 3. The WOK. I recommend the WOK. It's all-you-can-eat, and the food is fabulous. They have cooked-to-order wok food, a hot Chinese food bar, cold food bar, sushi bar, and dessert bar. For the wok food, you select your own ingredients from a buffet-style line-up, choose your sauce, and the wok chef cooks it for you in a number of minutes. They have seven sauces to choose from... Try the Gon Bao sauce if you enjoy make-you-cry spicyness or if you are congested, or try the Thailand sauce, which is fantastic. They have less-hot sauces, like sweet-and-sour or garlic, and they even have a curry sauce. All in all, it is inexpensive (13.90€) and worth the trip out to the shore. As it says in their brochure, "If you want to taste the really Chinese food, came and visit us."

If you are in the mood for food from the other side of Asia, check out Bengal Tandoori on Rua Pendôa 11 in Sintra. It's got a sort of bizarre combination of Indian and Italian food, but it works if you have friends with different tastes. As far as Italian goes, the spaghetti/rigatoni con carne is recommended. As far as Indian goes, check out the chicken tikka masala (very saucy, not like others that we've had, but very delicious), the malai kofta (specialty of the house -- veggie patties sort of like falafel with a creamy and spiced sauce), veg soup (that's really what it's called, and it's good), and the paneer naan (flatbread stuffed with homemade cheese and cilantro). Avoid the tap water.

Asian Food in Madrid

Ok, in general, my experience with Asian food in Madrid has not been good. If you are in the mood for Asian food, I recommend that you do some research first, and ask around to see what the opinions are of certain establishments. I have had some seriously bad food, but there are three places that I have visited that have had really great food. The first place, Rey de Tallarines, has excellent homemade noodles and tasty green curry (see entire blog entry here). The second place, Bangkok, has delicious pad thai and let me tell you, it is a HUGE portion of noodles. And thirdly, if you are looking for Indian cuisine, check out Tandoori's for delicious curries and vegetarian dishes (see entire blog entry here). I know it can get tough here if you are craving a little Asian flavor, but don't worry, good Asian food in Madrid DOES exist. =)

Wagaboo, take 2!

Went to Wagaboo again... Definitely loving their Pizza Mikonos (see earlier post for description). Delicious... =)

Wagaboo

Excellent dinner last night! We ate a Wagaboo (General Martinez Campos, 26 -- check out the site for their other locations). Talk about "fun eating"! The atmosphere is really chic and fun, with low-hanging lighting and brightly colored everything. The food was really delicious. I had a the pizza Mikonos -- super thin crust with pesto, topped with raw halved cherry tomatoes, raw arugula, chunks of feta ("feta" here is not really the salty feta I know and love, but it was delicious anyway), and a few curls of parm. Ended the meal with a few scoops of light mango sorbete. The food was great, service was quick (to say the least), and you can watch them make your food (the kitchen is enclosed only by glass). They have a number of locations in Madrid... Pick one and check it out!

Rey de Tallarines

If you are craving yummy housemade noodles, try Rey of Tallarines (Calle de San Bernardino, 2 :: metro stop Plaza de España or Noviciado). They offer a lunch menu-of-the-day, which includes a first course, second course, dessert, and beverage. For the first course, I recommend the ensalada de aguacate (avocado salad), and for the second course I recommend anything that comes with their tasty fried noodles (my picture shows saucy beef strips, served with fried noodles, vegetables and shrimp), or their chicken with thai green curry sauce. The guys at the table next to us were eating tempura (but they call it "fried vegetables") and that looked delicious as well. They also offer dim-sum, and if you are lucky enough, you might get to see them making the noodles! (click here for photos from a friend's blog)