Indian Summer

Critic Issue 13 - Num Nums

Indian Summer is my new favourite Indian restaurant. The cool floor to ceiling glass windowed restaurant front gives the place a comfortable casual-chic feel, making it the kind of place that you could just pop in for quick, casual meal on a whim, but also where you would think going for a special occasion. The genuinely polite, friendly, exemplary service shown by Ram and his staff is especially noteworthy because while the service at most establishments is generally polite, I am rarely struck by service that feels instantly sincere and unpretentious.

While exploring the detailed menu, which has useful little symbols identifying items that are vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, gluten free and contain nuts (makes no difference to me, but I had never seen that before and thought it was pretty awesome), I noticed that they offered a few items that I have never seen on other menus, which makes Indian Summer a little more interesting. In the five minutes that I took to decide what to order, D sneakily inhaled the entire lovely, mango-y, yogurt-y, super thick ‘Mango Lassi’ drink that I ordered. Ram noticed the offence and brought me another ‘Mango Lassi’, but D downed that one too. We started with the ‘Vegetarian Platter’ which comprised of samosas, pakoras, onion bhajis and tandoori mushrooms. I particularly enjoyed the delectable, juicy, vermillion orange coloured tandoori mushrooms. The pakoras and onion bhajis were tasty, light, and crispy, unlike the sometimes thick and doughy varieties found elsewhere, and we really liked the delicious, refreshing, light mint chutney that accompanied the platter.

On Ram’s recommendation (I would never have ordered it otherwise because I have never liked any Kadai curry anywhere else), I had the ‘Kadai Prawns’ (prawns cooked with sautéed onions, capsicum, tomatoes, cumin & coriander seeds and finished with lemon juice & fresh coriander) which was amazing and unquestionably the best Kadai I have ever tasted. The sauce had a certain depth and flavour that I can’t put my finger on, the ingredients tasted fresh, the capsicums were firm and crunchy (the vegetables in curries are often mushy at other places) and the decent sized prawns were nice and springy. I could not get enough of it. We also savoured the beautiful, melt-in-your-mouth tender pieces of lamb, in the blissfully rich, smooth but not sickeningly creamy spinach sauce that was the ‘Saag Lamb’ (a spinach based sauce tempered with fenugreek, ginger and garlic). This too, was the best Saag that I have tasted. At that point, we were in a state of prandial euphoria. Our third curry was the tasty, chunky ‘Chana Masala’ which is made with whole, firm, chick peas cooked with onion, garlic, ginger and spices. The curries were served with rice and on top of that, we had some ‘Garlic Naan’. Needless to say, we were very happily satiated.

If the fantastic service, pleasant ambience and great food weren’t reasons enough to keep me going back, I also noticed that after the meal, I did not experience any curry reflux (as is often the unpleasant but inevitable consequence of eating curry) or lingering aftertaste. Indian Summer must be doing something different because for the first time ever, I walked away from having a curry filled meal with a clean feeling palate (and esophagus), not groaning or feeling sick from ‘too-much-curry-itis’. Absolutely brilliant!

Indian Summer

Carnegie Centre

110 Moray Place

Dunedin

Quick and Easy Recipes

Critic Issue 12 - Num Nums

With the exams around the corner, I thought I would share a few really easy recipes that you can whip up when you need a 20 – 30 minute break from studying. These dishes keep relatively well so if you make enough to last a few meals, you will always have some proper food in the fridge when hunger strikes and will only have to mess around in the kitchen once or twice a week. NB: Always remember to taste as you cook and so you can adjust the flavours to your liking.

Thai Green Curry (re-posted): This is one of the easiest things to make, when you use the Mae Ploy Green Curry paste that you can buy at any supermarket. Just follow the instructions on the container. I used chicken thighs and added sliced water chestnuts (canned) and green beans (use whatever vegetables you like – I used frozen green beans because I was lazy). The thing I love about making this myself, at home, is that I can use as much of the paste to make it as spicy and/or potent as I like. Sautéing the green curry paste imparts a lovely pungent aroma which is then mellowed by the addition of the coconut milk. The result is a delicious, thick curry with a nice depth of flavour (considering that a store bought paste was used) and just the right level of spiciness to leave a little bite on your tongue. Mmm-mm!

Pasta Bake version

Pasta Bolognese: I know, I know, almost everyone knows how to make Bolognese so why am I wasting your time? Well, I think this version is probably better than most of the crap I have had at restaurants, so I am sharing. Just sauté minced garlic (lots!) in olive oil until fragrant, then add minced beef (you can substitute half the mince with grated carrots if you feel like upping your vege intake), an OXO beef cube and brown. Stir in store bought Bolognese sauce (I like Leggos) and simmer. This is what takes it to the next level – pour in red wine (something you would drink, around $15; twice or thrice around the pan) and simmer until sauce is thick. When done, sauce should be rich, velvety. Serve on cooked pasta of your choice. Alternatively, substitute the Bolognese sauce with one of the tomato based Pasta Bake versions, mix pasta and sauce in an oven proof dish, top with grated mozzarella and bake until golden brown.

Mom’s Black Pepper Chicken: Marinate chicken thigh pieces in dark soy sauce, some pepper and sugar. Coat potato slices (about 0.5 cm thick) in a little oil and salt and pan fry until golden brown (won’t be cooked through), then remove from pan. Marinate some Sauté sliced garlic in oil until fragrant then add marinated chicken and potatoes. Stir fry until chicken is cooked. If you like lots of sauce, add more water, dark soy sauce, pepper and sugar to taste. Otherwise, just taste and add whatever you think is necessary. This should yield delicious savoury, peppery and slightly sweet juicy chicken pieces with tasty gravy. Serve with steamed rice, or if you can’t be bothered, on bread.

Mexican Café

Ceviche

On M's recommendation, S and I visited the Mexican Café when we were Christchurch in March to see (dare I say it?) Cliff Richard. If M, who is American, a foodie and was once my very critical supervisor, thinks that the food at the Mexican Café is a decent representation of Mexican food, then it must be all right - I have to take his word for it because I haven't been anywhere near North America. The restaurant was charmingly rustic, and filled with bottles of alcohol - I am not kidding, the structural beams across the ceiling and the entire back wall of the bar were lined with bottles of alcohol of all shapes, colours and sizes (but unfortunately, I have no evidence of this as I stupidly did not take proper photos). The theme, decor and entire feel of the place just made you want to throw hands up in the air, toss your hair and scream 'PARRRRR-TAAAY' (and this was 5:30pm in the afternoon when there were only a few other patrons)!

S began squealing as soon as she spotted Ceviche (fresh fish cold cooked in a marinade of lemon juice, chillies and coriander) on the menu. I must admit, I too have always wanted to try Ceviche, so that became our starter and we loved it! It was beautifully clean and fresh tasting, tongue tingling-ly acidic, had an incredible 'zing', and was eye-widening-sit-up-straight-wake-you-up refreshing! I have never had anything like it before and it was a revelation. I think I speak for both of us when I say that we would probably jump on any excuse to go back to Christchurch just so we could have this again.

Fish Taco

M told me that he had the Fish Taco and it was good, so that was what I ordered. While I appreciated the fact that it was light and clean tasting (i.e. fish and tacos weren't at all greasy), I felt that the flavours were just a tad too subtle. Maybe that's what it is supposed to be like, what do I know? Otherwise, everything else was executed perfectly and I would have been raving about it. S had the Chicken Flauta (pieces of chicken breast marinated with garlic, onion and olive oil then sautéed in Mexican Cafe salsa, wrapped in a flour tortilla with lettuce and tomato and topped with guacamole and sour cream and served with beans and rice) which, if I remember correctly, she quite enjoyed. The thing she couldn't stop gushing about was the beans that came with it. The first words out of her mouth after she tasted them were, "Mmmmm! So this is what beans are supposed to taste like! You have to taste this!". Luckily for her, I am impartial when it comes to beans, so she did not have to fight me off. I am sure I tasted the chicken as well, but nothing stands out in memory for me. S reports, however, that "it was well seasoned and did not taste like the Fish Taco, which is a good thing", meaning that at least not everything tasted the same, which is what you get at some places.

Chicken Flauta

The verdict: The Ceviche carried the team. I would definitely go back for that, and to try some of the other items with bolder sounding flavours. S, when are we going on our next road trip?

Mexican Café

Upstairs

110 Lichfield Street

Christchurch

Table Seven

NB: Sorry, I couldn't take good photos because of the low lighting.

Critic Issue 11 - Num Nums

Barbecued Prawns and Scallops

Table Seven is probably one of the closest posh restaurants to campus. Located above the SBS building on George St, the large windows that surround the restaurant afford a nice elevated view of all the activity on the main street below, without actually having to be a part of it. With three distinct sections – the dining, the bar/sofas and the ‘entertainment’ areas – the overall ambiance is modern, sleek, chic and very appealing. The one thing that I really appreciated (and is a rare find these days) is that the tables were very well spaced so diners had their own private space and were not bumping elbows with the next table or having to squeeze between tables to get by. I also noticed that all the diners received personal attention from the manager Steven, who not only made food and wine recommendations, but also explained the background of particular dishes. It is finer details like these that make Table Seven the sort of place that I would think of going to after work for coffee and drinks and to relax and unwind with friends.

Veal Shanks

We started with the ‘Barbecued Prawns and Scallops’ which were marinated in garlic and lime oil accompanied with a roasted red pepper arancini, which is IMO quite an interesting and unusual combination. According the Steven, they tried to remove this from the menu once and were met with vehement protests from their customers. The prawns were tasty and springy, the scallops were smooth and soft (i.e. not overcooked, which is common when ordering scallops) and the arancini, which is basically an Italian style fried rice ball, had a nice crispy coating and lovely, rich flavoured rice within.

Chicken Breast

We then moved on to our mains - my friend was delighted with her ‘Veal Shanks’ which were beautifully tender, had great natural flavour and were complemented well with the very tasty horseradish mashed potatoes and smoked olive cassoulet. I too enjoyed my succulent ‘Chicken Breast’ stuffed with lovely, yummy, buttery asparagus and Parma ham. The only disappointing item of the whole evening was the risotto that was served with my ‘Chicken Breast’, which was stiff and cake-ish.

Panna Cotta

Even though at that point we were already full, we decided to try some of their desserts and luckily we did, because my dessert was the highlight of my meal. The vanilla and lemon ‘Panna Cotta’ with almond tuilles and poached fruit was luscious, creamy, subtle, smooth and the perfect exclamation point with which to end my meal. I must admit that as I observed my beautifully wobbly ‘Panna Cotta’, all I kept hearing in my head were the words of Top Chef Masters judge Jay Rayner: “Panna Cotta, when set right, wobbles like a woman’s breast”, so I kept prodding the poor thing just to amuse myself. My friend’s hazelnut and white chocolate ‘Gianduja Semifreddo’ was equally delicious – sweet, smooth and creamy – served with gorgeous hazelnut glass biscuits.

Gianduja Semifreddo

Our entire meal, plus a nice glass of wine, came up to only slightly over $100, which is reasonable (and cheaper than some places) considering the impeccable service, pleasant ambience, good food and larger portions that they serve compared to other posh restaurants. We were both completely stuffed and satisfied and I will definitely be returning for more Panna Cotta (and then some).

Table Seven

Upstairs, Corner of George & Hanover Sts

Dunedin

five0nine

Critic Issue 10 - Num Nums

At just over two months old, five0nine is probably the freshest face (in more ways than one) in the Dunedin ‘café’ scene. Specialising in Taiwanese bubble tea, a sweet, flavoured tea based drink, five0nine offers a pleasant alternative to the usual coffee/tea options at other cafes. For the uninitiated, there are generally two kinds of bubble tea – the ones with milk and the ones without. The flavours for the non-milk variety are usually fruity (e.g. peach, lychee) and the flavours for the milk teas are typically non-fruity (e.g. taro). The thing that makes these drinks special is the addition of ‘pearls’ or jellies which give you something to suck up and chew on intermittently while you enjoy the flavoured tea. The ‘pearls’ are actually little, chewy, slippery, tapioca balls, about one centimetre in diameter each, that rest at the bottom of the drink, waiting to be eaten. It is the apparent similarity of these ‘pearls’ to bubbles that gives this drink its name, although some sources believe that it is more accurate to attribute the name to the foam that is created due to the shaking method of making bubble tea.

I tried the ‘Original Milk Tea’ with pearls and the ‘Lychee Black Tea’ with mango jelly. Both the black and milk tea, surprisingly, were light and delightfully refreshing. For some reason, I had expected the milk tea to be thick and heavy, and was happy to be proven wrong. Both drinks had pleasant, clean flavours but I preferred the texture and the extra burst of fruity flavour that I got from the mango jelly pieces, which is made out of nata de coco, compared to the pearls. Besides bubble tea, five0nine also offers some quick and easy Taiwanese snacks like steamed pork/pork & vege/vegetarian/red bean buns and the deceptively small but hearty ‘Braised Pork with Hard Boiled Egg on Rice’ for only $3 - 5. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to try any of the buns but I did get a taste of the pork on rice, which was a decent, filling meal for under $5. The meat used was a little too lean for this dish, which compromised the flavour and texture slightly, but as it turned out they were unable to add the usual portion of pork belly into the dish that day because it was unavailable.

The best thing about five0nine is that its opening hours are from 11 am – 11pm, which means that hungry students traipsing home from the library won’t have to go hungry anymore. That is one of the main reasons that the young proprietors, Ariel & James, have decided to keep their doors open late, having been Otago students themselves. They have taken great efforts to ensure the quality and authenticity of their products. Their bubble tea ingredients are imported directly from Taiwan and they have practised their drink making skills so that their drinks always taste consistent, no matter who makes them. So if you’re feeling peckish, try something different and visit five0nine.

five0nine

7 Frederick St

Dunedin

Zwilling J. A. Henckels

D did well - 17.5 inches of glorious, gorgeous, gleaming, irresistible, razor sharp steel. Oh just in case you hadn't noticed, I have a thing for knives.

Soy Sauce Chicken

This Soy Sauce Chicken was made according to a recipe from Rasa Malaysia. It didn't turn out as well as we hoped - I was expecting it to taste more like my favourite Soy Sauce Chicken from Mei Wah (which I already have pictures of and will write about soon hopefully) but it actually tasted more like 'Tau Yew Bak' (soy sauce pork), except with chicken. I know there is little difference in the name, but in my opinion, Soy Sauce Chicken and Soy Sauce Pork (should) taste very different. 'Tau Yew Bak'/Soy Sauce Pork is heavily spiced with cinnamon and star anise and is sweet whereas the Soy Sauce Chicken that I love from Mei Wah is savoury and has a subtler soy flavour. This Soy Sauce Chicken turned out smelling like 'Tau Yew Bak' and was far darker than the Soy Sauce Chicken that I am used to. It was quite salty, yet also carried the sweetness of the star anise and cinnamon spices. It was edible, but I wasn't crazy about it and I won't be using this recipe again. I also didn't think that the (again quite salty) ginger and scallion dip was necessary since the chicken was very strong tasting as it was. Usually these garlic/ginger/scallion toppings complement the plain/mild tasting chicken in steamed/boiled chicken rice dishes.

Oh well...my hunt for the perfect Soy Sauce Chicken recipe continues...

Mamma Mia Pizza

Critic Issue 9 - Num Nums

Magherita

I have been fantasizing about biting into a slice of pizza from Mamma Mia Pizza since the craving struck at mid-afternoon yesterday. You know you got it bad when you try to weasel a ride to Wakari out of at least three people and fail… and then you start thinking about buying a car. I visited Mamma Mia Pizza several weeks ago and was immediately hooked. Everything about this quaint little pizza takeaway is charming – from the rustic, fresh, light and incredibly tasty thin crust pizzas to the affable pizzaiolo and owner, Michal Rozenberg.

Vegetariana

We had the ‘Bread Sticks with Aioli’ and the ‘Magherita’, ‘Quattro Stagioni’ and ‘Vegetariana’ pizzas. The rich, tangy homemade garlic aioli was delicious, as were the pizzas, but my favourite was the Magherita. Though crispy and thin crusted, the pizzas retained a nice chewy texture and had beautifully balanced flavours. What was most noticeable to me was the how light and clean tasting the pizzas were, compared to the more common, heavy, thicker based, over flavoured varieties.

Quattro Stagioni

Michal achieves the great authentic texture and taste of his pizzas by baking them in a traditional stone floored pizza oven, with no trays, at up to 400˚C and uses only the freshest ingredients for his toppings. He takes no short cuts in the pizza making process and it is this commitment to authenticity that makes Mamma Mia Pizza unique, thus garnering a loyal following. Michal trained in his native Slovakia under the chef of the best Italian restaurant in town, who apparently would make even Gordan Ramsay seem approachable. He then went on to work in Austria and Italy and found that no matter where he went, good pizzerias used basically the same techniques and offered simple menus.

Napoletana

Michal has staunchly refused to adulterate his pizzas with the barbeque sauce swirls and cranberry/apricot flavours that are so popular at other pizzerias and believes that some pizzas, with the right ingredients, can be even healthier than vegetarian dishes. Mamma Mia’s menu comprises of mostly traditional Italian pizzas and was designed to give customers a flavour tour of Italy, from the lighter South Italian pizzas like the cheese-less ‘Puttanesca’ (olives, anchovies, capers and garlic) to the richer Northern Italian pizzas like the tomato sauce-less ‘Tre Formaggi’ (ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, basil, prosciutto). Michal also maintained the original Italian names of the pizzas to amuse him when his customers place their orders.

al Pesto

I succumbed. I stopped writing in the middle of the last paragraph and my friend and I have actually just wolfed down the ‘al Pesto’ (rich, nutty and garlicky) and ‘Napoletana’ (salty anchovies scattered over a bed of lovely fresh, subtle tomato sauce) pizzas and some bread sticks and aioli. Even stone cold, his pizzas are delicious and so satisfying, though I wish Mamma Mia had some space for a few fold out tables and chairs where people could just buy a cold drink and eat their fresh, hot pizzas right away. Go get some immediately. If you don’t have a car, take the 51/32/33 bus from Hoyts to Helensburgh. It is definitely worth the trouble.

Mamma Mia Pizza Takeaway

124 Helensburgh Rd

Wakari