Italian Hotel Breakfasts ..breakout for the pasticceria!!! Hotel Royal Santina

Do we all recognize the sorry plates that get passed out as breakfast?  No matter how many stars a hotel has, the breakfasts look dismally similar.  Plates of cold cuts (in these case few and not too appetising), pastries that somehow look nothing like the great ones in the cafe on the corner, and no espresso ...just a bad square machine that puts out everything.  Ok, more stars and the espresso appears on order but is additional on the bill and never tastes quite right.  More stars and the pastries are just as bad, and you get Nutella no matter what. Oh, yes a choice of weird flavoured yoghurts ..coffee?

Now this hotel has 4 stars and I chose it for one night because it was right where I had to meet a bus in the morning.  It has coloured LEDs in the room and you can change the colour as you wish ... red for rage,  blue for cold, green for fertile I guess ...and the white: 24hr convenience store.  The wi fi works (free) and the desk chair hardly pulls out because the bed is in the way.  But it is all very clean, modern and newly refurbished.  Near the Stazione Termini, on Rue Marsala the Royal Santina only costs around 150 euro for a double room for one person.  Could not fit two international bags so better travel alone!!!  

It does the job if you need to be in the area  .attentive staff.  There was a reception for some cruise line in the lobby when I checked in: full of Americans going on cruises.

Looking forward to my return to Rome and the Hotel Art ...boutique and cool, at the Spanish Steps.

Noodle ... shnoodle ..

Ok ..in Hong Kong ... so I expect some decent noodles from the Cathay Lounge Noodle Bar ... back in 1998 I tried their noodle bar in what was then a futuristic lounge in Hong Kong airport.
Well, now we have a new airport and several lounges.  The big one and latest to be refurbished is The Pier.
It has a big bar, a coffee bar, and a noodle bar.  The coffee was atrocious despite the big wonderful expresso machines any barista would have died for.  The guys back in Sydney in the Qantas Business lounge were just starting with a new coffee, Vittoria on the day I was there.  They made an excellent flat white.
Now back to noodles and Cathay.  They have four types only on offer ..one is Japanese and has a thickly breaded "shrimp" in it.  The rest are variations on chilli stock, plain and with egg.  All are ramen.  Back in1998 you could order anything from the chef.  Now they give you a wireless tag that lights up when the noodles are ready, which is about 30 seconds after they give it to you.  Points for being quick. I was there for 9 hours so tried all of them.  Disappointed, I did not finish any of them and turned to the steamed pork buns.  At least the place looks great and has great showers.

Eating's all up in the air ...Cathay Business Class

New business class on Cathay - flew it Sydney-Hong Kong. The next sector has the old business class.  The seats in this are better than QANTAS first class (though not on the new 380) ..lots of storage, nice and wide ..you forget you are on a plane. 
Food : lunch was a choice of beef with Paris butter or noodles with stir fry or chicken stuffed with fetta on a potato galette or vegetarian canelloni - all in little ceramic rectangular bowls rather than served on plates. A bit declasse and all looking overdone. Opted for the canelloni which was meant to be stuffed with ricotta and mushroom.  Could not eat it ...not sure what the white runny stuff inside was ...leave it there. Ate the "caramelised" (=baked) pumpkin that it came with. Thank goodness for the yum entree : Iberica ham and pickled artichokes with roasted red peppers and a roll ....rather filling.
A snack later on gave a choice of wontoon in soup, or hokkien noodle with vegetables, goat cheese tart, or a meat filled pastry topped with a crunchy layer of mashed potato. Also accompanied by the ubiquitous caramelised pumpkin.  Chose the latter and followed it up with Maggie Beer Passionfruit ice cream.  Now that was disappointing.  Having made passionfruit ice cream and overcome the problems of losing the intense flavour this was a bit artificial tasting for me.
Right now I am in the Pier Lounge (Cathay Business lounge) at Hong Kong and about to try their noodle bar ...let you know how it goes.

The Passage

of time ....this place in Victoria Street Darlinghurst used to be L'Hotel.  I went to the opening of L'Hotel.  That ages me. Groovy people, groovy drinks, groovy food.  Food aimed strictly at drinking, not fine or even medium fine dining ...actually just good "drunk food". Like the fries sprayed with truffle flavoured oil and topped with parmesan cheese - a big bowl for $10.  Or the zucchini flowers stuffed with goats cheese and dripping with truffle flavoured honey ($18 for 3 flowers).  
How about Ortiz anchovies with "Crusty" bread?  I love anchovies with bread ...but to make this dish worth having it really needs great butter and a piece of just baked bread (unless you are using a tranche of Sonoma Miche).
Cosy place with small areas spread over a long passage-like area that links Victoria Street to Darlinghurst Road.
Loud music so no intimate chats, somewhat grubby young but fairly attentive staff ..quick with the drinks. 
It's good a new generation is sampling this tres cool space.

Choo choo choo ...I know I can ... I know I can ....Thomas do it!!!!

Sushi trains ...remember when they were a novelty???? I eat sushi at least four times a week ... I am beginning to grow gills.  Where are the good ones??  A vexxed question that brings so many opinions.

The City:  a few years ago Sushi Tei opened across the road from Chifley Square. They were good for sushi but terrible for warm/cooked dishes.  Their noodles still leave a lot to be desired.  Their sushi has deteriorated and no fresh wasabi (augh)...but then again they are not run by Japanese.  Sad.  And to make it worse they now charge for green tea, even though they brought their prices up to OVERPRICED. Down the other end of town a few sprung up. I frequent the one on the corner of Liverpool and Pitt Streets, at World Square.  Reasonable, but you have to ask for the fresh wasabi and the ginger and avoid all those mayonnaise plastered nigiri ...something the Americans invented (didn't they also invent chop suey?)

Bondi Junction: two in Spring Street, Sushi Train (Chain store)...full of children and loud and ok but too much mayo again (hold the mayo ...as Jack Nicholson said in Five Easy Pieces) and Sushi Express at the other end, a bit  of a secret and INEXPENSIVE. Limited in range but you can ask for whtever delights you.  Tea is free, two types of ginger and fresh wasabi.
Coogee Beach: Sushi Goi ..ask for a discount frequent train traveller card ... get them to make you a hand roll of tuna or salmon (gigantic).
More to come ....

Mexican jumping beans

I always find Mexican restaurants disappointing.  a bit like those photos of hamburgers that never materialize.  They look great in the photos but they just do not deliver.  Anyone know a "good" Mexican estaurant in Sydney. Anyone know a good one in California?  In the US of A they have Tex-Mex, not Mexican.  They put Monterey Jack on their food..that is,some form of cheddar.  And they make their beans with some pre made seasoning. Hey, just like the one in the sachets in the supermarket.

When in Woollahra .... do as the Italians do

When I am in Italy I eat panzerotti for breakfast ...mouth watering doughnut pastry coated in finger lickin' sugar and stuffed with sweetened ricotta, with a hint of lemon. Sort of what a jam doughnut should have grown up to be ... if it had been brought up properly.
In Sydney, if I am lucky one of my friends will bring one to me from a secret cafe in Paddington (at the bottom of William Street).  
But now I have had one (actually many) from Buzy Bakehouse in Queen Street Woollahra.  OMG !!!! And their plain round doughnuts are to die for.  BTW their ricotta cake is nothing to be sneezed at, even if a little bit pricey.  Though at times their panzerotti filling varies and becomes too creamy, loosing that special ricotta texture.
Oh ... I forgot those people who have gluten intolerance  ..this place caters for them with a special range!!
However their service when you want to eat there or even buy at the counter is very remiss ... the coffee arrives about ten minutes after the cakes (makes you eat another!!) and the place is not even busy ..i just watch the staff fluff around and the barista looks lost ..because his coffee making skills have gone missing.

Absolutely NOT !!! Flavoured vodka ....

Funny thing happened on the way from the supermarket ... sort of.  I ordered some goodies from Woolworths Online.  Love the ease, they delivered it all that same afternoon.  I had clicked on a bottle of Absolut.  Unpacked, sat down, poured a hefty measure of Absolut.  

Strange ..it smelled like fake blueberry muffin ... and tasted, well ...just like fake blueberry muffin.

It says on the bottle it is also pomegranate.

Damn I thought. What a fool, clicking on the wrong thing!! What could I do with a bottle of fake blueberry essence? Started to think of martini concoctions. Maybe desserts.

It took me over a year to get rid of a bottle of Absolut Vanilla (found some desperate workers at the farm who wanted to get drunk). 

Then I thought of invoices. I looked at it and it said Absolut 700ml.  Looked on the Woolworths Online site and they did not even have this blueberry stuff !!!!  One phone call to the service lady, who said she also hates flavoured vodka and the next day a bottle of good old plain Absolut 700ml was delivered.  MUCH BETTER.

Fridges,stoves ...kitchen appliances that work

I have four fridges. One was made in the USA (GE) and has being going strong since 1990.  Two sit at the farm and are made by LG. They are now 8 years old and are humming along despite the irregular electricity supply which causes brown outs and kills appliances.  Water pumps there have died thanks to the electricity people.  But the fridges keep going strong.  The LG people delivered them way out of Sydney for a minimal fee of $40.

My fridge in the city is a Gaggenau and costs more than some cars. It is 11 years old. After two years it needed a $1600 repair.  Yes you heard it right.  And so did about another 30 Gaggenau fridges in my building.  Something wrong with the design? The service people refused to admit it was a warranty issue, citing installation as the cause.  Yet the design of the part that broke down was changed by Gaggenau.

Recently the water inlet valve died ..about $400.  And when the ice maker started to have problems the service company misdiagnosed it, charged me about $800 and it still did not work. They wanted another $1200.  Well after 4 months and many phone calls they refunded about $400 and the ice is now made in trays.  They still refused to admit they got it wrong.

All in all I could have bought a new fridge from LG or Samsung and had less despair. Why didn't I? because the stupid fridge was built in and the door covers were made to fit that silly fridge.

LESSON: check who services the appliances you buy.  Gaggenau is only serviced by one company because this company has a monopoly on the parts and the service manuals. 

Contributions anyone? NO, NOT MONEY!!!

If you have something to say about food email me !!!! 

email address is   the.food.perfectionist@gmail.com 

I would love to hear your ideas on food , recipes from grandma (or anyone else), places to eat or drink  (anywhere in the world) .... I will post your contributions with delight ..let me know if you want to be credited.

Thank you!!

The Food Perfectionist

Sir ..can I have a steak sandwich? an evening at the Sir Stamford at Circular Quay Hotel

 

Showing my age? The bar at the Sir Stamford Hotel on Macquarie Street is a well kept secret. Comfortable chairs, fire in winter, lounges to sit on and five star service ...no amateur waiters waiting for their break on the stage ... these people want to work in the hospitality industry!! And no loud music, so you can talk to your friends. 

So you get ambiance, attention, and wait for it ... a bar menu with some great food on it.  This place has the best steak sandwich I have ever had .. Sonoma bread which is buttered and grilled enveloping succulent beef topped with onion jam, roasted tomatoes and rocket ... salivating writing about it.  BTW it is priced at $18 and really hits the spot.  

Or have the Waygu beef burger. Plus you get hand cut chips or a salad or sea salted potatoes with rosemary. 

Did I mention that they have a good range of single malt scotches?  ... I could live happily at the Sir Stamford Hotel  ...actually when I get old I might just do that.

Sfogliatella

Yes more on Rome!!!  Coffee ...oops, cappucino in the morning with a sfogliatella ...ahhhhhh. Maybe at Antico Caffè Greco at 86, Via dei Condotti, which is around the corner from the Hotel Art, (new hotel for me in Rome so will let you know how good it is when I get back). 
Sfogliatella : these little puppies are filled with sweet ricotta and I love eating them.  The pastry as you can see from the photo is layered and it is crunchy on the outside and soft inside .. with a tongue numbing layer of icing sugar on the outside.  Goes so well with that aromatic coffee.
Hope to find a good supplier of these in Sydney so I can have them for breakfast here !!!

I Gelato.. you Gelato... we all scream for Gelato ...in Rome

In all my wanderings in Rome I have eaten Gelato ..eh .. I mean licked gelati. So far Giolitti at Via Uffici del Vicario, 40 is the one that I remember fondly ..no, not fondly but with expectatory salivation ... dreams of going back there and having some more.  In two weeks I will get my chance (and then again ten days later...heaven).  Seriously, this is one of the best.  Set in the old centre of Rome you can pick up your favourite flavour and wander the most beautiful cobbled streets and then walk past again on the way back to your hotel and get some more!!!! Afterwards I will have cooffee at Antico Caffè Greco which by the way also sells gelato and it is also fabulous.

Rome: Vatican or Pizza??

Best Pizza in Rome at Giovannini... by the weight, at 9 Via delle Grazie ..on the right as you turn in from Via de la Porta Angelica on the side of the Vatican. It is a hole in the wall where the locals get pizza for lunch and eat it on the footpath standing outside or sitting on the kerb/scooter/car bonnet (strictly take away). Very crowded and FANTASTIC. Go there and forget the Vatican ..you'll get to see God and the angels when you die but there is no pizza like this in heaven.

http://maps.google.com.au/maps?q=Via+delle+Grazie,+9,+00193+Roma,+Italy&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl 

The ROYAL treatment at Paddington

Hungry for a steak? Thought of the Royal at Paddington.  We tried the Fillet steak with Bernaise sauce and the Scotch Fillet with Pepper sauce. The first was meant to be medium rare which it was and the second was to be rare, which it was not. Is that rare? not really ...this often happens ..they often do this to "rare" people.  Both came on a bed of "potato rosti", which was really mashed potato made into a hamburger shape and grilled on the hotplate.  Disappointing ...what happened to real potato rosti ???? 
The steaks were $27 and $29 which I guess nowadays is reasonable for a pub (in the eastern Suburbs of Sydney that is).  The quality was better than some restaurants so I will let it pass.  The sauces were passable.  The fillet steak was good though the scotch fillet I would have rated at 5/10 ..probably because it was overcooked and also a bit tough.
This is a place for a drink and a steak, so pass on the desserts.  Pleasant atmosphere, a good place to spend a sunny Sunday with a bunch of nice people ..go to the rooftop terrace.

Salads, Vegetables and Anti Cancer Food ..Organics anyone?

Recently someone reminded me about broccoli, brussel sprouts, lemons, tomato concentrate mixed with meditation and yoga practice.  OK ..how do we make all this taste good? Not hard if you want to. The CSIRO has tons of research on food and how to make it healthy eg do not cook it. The Japanese had it right.
Oh yes ..organic produce.  Problem? Yes!!! Organic certification allows a number of pesticides and chemicals and none of these have been tested in regards to cancer.  I know .. I grew grapes for wine and we met organic rules but still used a large number of chemicals which had BIG warnings on the labels about contact with these chemicals. I wore masks and large special gloves and had big carbon filters on the tractor cabin air intakes.
Answer: grow your own ...how in the city? 
The fresher the food the more the natural anti oxidants are preserved. It is these chemicals that wipe up the free radicals that are believed to cause damage to the cells' DNA and lead to abnormal growth ie cancer.  Cooking also increases chemicals in food which stop the anti oxidants from working.
I grew my own herbs and vegetables but I had a farm.  I could pick them out of the garden as needed ..FRESH and I did not need to use chemicals on those, just a close eye for bugs which you needed to pick off by hand or spray with innocuous stuff like pepper infused water etc etc. 
I am suprised at how many people in the city live in houses, have gardens and do not grow even herbs.  They buy them in greengrocers.  Ok, so you are restricted to what is in season but the variety is enormous and the taste is out of this world. JUST BUY A POT AND SOME SOIL.
PS: rocket grows like a weed - it self seeds and easily takes over the garden.  You can grow it in long narrow pots if you have a balcony with sun. Raspberries grow by themselves and taste nothing, absolutely nothing like the rubbish in the shops.  I did not even like raspberries till a neighbour gave me a plant and grew them myself. The list is endless.

Potts Point AGAIN ...pointing to a good meal? La Vecchia Cuccina ???

Wandering along Macleay Street faced with a decision on where to eat came the thought of that old standby. Why not eat at La Vecchia Cuccina?  This is a place with tiles on the floor and posters on the wall as well as a ceramic (or was it stuffed?) chicken on a shelf ...very Italian.  The floor staff were very attentive and even served water though had to be reminded to refill.  Place is crowded in a bit so squashy and loud because of the number of people in a room with no soft furnishings.
The food: this is the important bit.  Excellent gnocchi though the Napoletana sauce was mundane ..go for the Gorgonzola.  The tortellini in a cream sauce were fabulous.  Ordered a rocket salad and it was big and came with large slices of Parmesan (bit of a problem with this ...plenty of them but stuck together and rectangles ...hmmmm) ....but the salad was $17.50 !!!! (you get a great rocket salad at Luccio Pizzeria for $7.50).  
The prices were a bit over the top ..their pasta plates were the same price as Buon Riccordo (which has two hats and excellent service) that is around $28 to $32
To tell the truth I cook better Italian than this place (recipes coming soon.....)

In Victoria Street Potts Point? Ms G's or Jimmy Liks?

Went to Ms G's.  Not sure why it was recommended to me. 
  ..they serve drinks in plastic cups with a seal on top and  a straw to break through it. This is meant to be groovy but is just plain demeaning. I mean you do that in a kindergarten.  Also it is a rip off and especially so because you are paying a premium price for a cocktail. . The drink did not taste good either (just plain watery concoction that was truly forgettable).

The food is the usual EuroTrash version of Asian ... good if you are drunk, not good if you are a food lover.  All sweet and not particularly sophisticated.  The customers are sophisticated though.  Full of loud fun people looking perfect. 
Hard to tell who the service staff are. No uniforms, very casual and somewhat undertrained or overworked. not sure which. To top it off they were in a hurry to kick us out even though we had spent up big. We were still drinking!!! The guy at the table behind hardly ate or drank anything (probably due to chemical assistance) but because he was some "celeb" jeans "designer" they did not disturb him.  This is one of those places.

On the other side of the road, at Jimmy Liks I had a very enjoyable meal the day before and I wish I had gone back there, instead of Ms G's.