Natural wine along the way

This summer I drove from Nice in France to the Adriatic coast in Croatia and had two stops along the way where I starved for Natural wines and got lucky !

If you are in Nice , in south of France for one evening , and like me cannot drink anything else than natural beverages especially during hot weather – then your best bet is La Part des Anges in Nice , La Part des Anges website, where you can consume and take any bottle of wine away ! They have an impressive selection of wine and sell natural wines produced according to the Jules Chauvet method . The place is also stunning in its simplicity ( here don’t except quick service, only one person is dealing with the few tables ) , very intimate ,as it literally feels like having a wine tasting in a cellar.

Long comme un jour sans Morgon – Famille Marcel Lapierre

I have tried the following :

An orange wine from 2013 , Barral by Didier Barral , 35 euros : 80% Terret Blanc and Gris, 10% Viognier, 10% Roussane. Produced using an ancient method of extended pressing and skin contact for a deeply colored wine with some tannins. Satisfactory but not the most interesting orange wine I had lately.

 

Together with a mix of Cheese and ham platter.

Delicious food pairing : excellent cheese selection with this orange yummy wine

Together with a mix of Cheese and ham platter.

Delicious food pairing : the wine goes perfectly with the cheese selection this wine bar has to offer .

We went home with this ” valeur sure” ( a sure value) of Jean Foillard ( 35 euros) – tried and tasted at perfect temperature while spending time by the sea in Croatia : Jean Foillard Morgon Cuvee Corcelette. From a food pairing perspective, this elegant red will go well with neutral dressed sea food , tuna tartar/sashimi , or a light meaty dinner. Served at 15 degrees celsius .

My next stop was Bologna in Italy in the so-called Emilia Romagna region , the best region for food and wine in Italy .

Again, one evening only in Bologna and no plans whatsoever , and spontaneity has worked again in my favour as I ended up in this tiny wine bar which also offer food and had the immense pleasure to have drink…some natural wines of course !

Vineria Favalli in via Stefano is really recommended

This wine bar has a great selection of natural wines by the glass which is wonderful to discover new taste and new producers . This bar has very affordable prices , really cheap compared to if you want to go for natural wines in London or worst in Stockholm, so pure paradise here ! He has very good food to offer, we went for some mortadella and parmesan cheese of course with a drop of balsamic from Modena 🙂

Our big catch of the night was this unique and delicious orange wine Pithos Bianco from Azienda Agricola Cos in Sicily, Italy ; that I cannot recommend this wine enough for a warm summer aperitivo:

 

This delicious wine is made from 100% Grecanico which is at 11.5% low in alcohol. It has a beautiful nose and a fascinating amber colour as it has been fermented with the skins.Producers of this wine use amphora grounded in the soil , to ferment this wine the roman old way 🙂

 

Back in Stockholm and here is where you should go in Sodermalm for good food,worthy natural wines and good soul!

Woodstockholm, the highlight of this post – everything about this relatively small place is perfect, the monty theme ( I reckon we are in the middle of the Aphrodisiac menu of May..you lucky foodies 😉 ) – people would say the food is rustic ..and I would say the food is typical the closest food you can get in restaurant that feels and tastes like homemade food with a touch of sophistication that you can’t achieve at home. Voila.

And as if the changing themes and the wonderful and authentic flavours were not enough..here you can drink proper natural wines…and of course the service is top-notch !

So for me, it is a win and I have tried it twice- spot-on.

@woodstockholmAnd I will be back in June with more details and photossssss, Yes !

woodstockholm.com

The other restaurant to highlight for today is Delikatessen Bistro bar ..a french bistro which is not your typical , classic boring French brasserie but just a French restaurant which serves tasty,well-balanced food , with a twist. Both starters and mains were outstanding, fish, meat and desert succulent- Bravo for this yummy food in an airy and bright setting .

I also heard that they are also now distributing natural wines – mais que demande le people ? Keep it up guys and see you soon in June !

The bar of the restaurant, Bar Hommage, is worth a visit, talented barmaid on the mix – really good cocktail list and a very good pisco sour ! @barhommage

delikatessenbistrobar.se

Bangkok :24h culinary stop

Before getting into the serious business, let’s start by an afternoon tea at the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok  – where else ! “Immerse yourself in Bangkok !”

After a ride by the river, stop in this little oasis for a tea and some wonderfully prepared nibbles.

The set menu offers sweet and salty options and fabulous teas. The oriental tea is by far my favorite.The service is impeccable.

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For me Bangkok’s  street food is amazing , but if like me you have 24hours only to spend in this fascinating city and want to eat well at night but were not well organized enough to book at one of the 2 Thai restaurants selected by the chefs behind the World’s 50 Best Restaurants top 10 list then here is my pick :

Starting by the least recommended : Soulfood restaurant ( http://www.soulfoodmahanakorn.com).

“Honest cooking, serious drink” is this restaurant motto .

I think the food is decent but too americanized in my opinion . The chef behind this restaurant is American and you can feel that from the moment you step in. American crowd, American setting, American food !

Drinks are ok but nothing amazing as it is presented on the website.

For me, it was a decent experience but not one I would recommend if you are short in time.

Sorry @soulfood !

Now, let’s get to the serious option: ISSAYA Siamese Club ( http://www.issaya.com/issaya-index.php#)

This is a reference for sure !

From the moment you enter this place, you think : this is gonna be good !

Set in an old colonial house, in the middle of what seems to me like a doggy area , this restaurant is really an experience to have when you are in Bangkok.

The story of this restaurant is about a boy who has been assisting his mother selling food in the streets of Bangkok and one day decided to open his own restaurant ! And now the little boy’s restaurant appears within the Asian top 50 restaurants in the world . Magical story isn’t it 🙂

My pictures depicting my experience at Issaya will speak for themselves.

The service is outstanding, the setting totally dreamy ,and the food wonderfully prepared – the evening set menu is highly recommended !

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Let’s reconfirm the obvious : you can’t go wrong with Barrafina & Terroirs

My post today is about 2 restaurants/wine bars in London I re-discovered this month( November 2015) and thought they deserve a note from me.

Barrafina : http://www.barrafina.co.uk ( this is a review of the Charing Cross branch only )

Super smart concept of seating 32 people around a simple yet bistro-type bar , all eating tapas and drinking Spanish wines.

My experience was very positive for the following reasons:

Food is good and fresh; great variety of wines and excellent service.

Food to try :

-the Jamon Iberico – a classic to revisit here

-Special of the day Cuttlefish croquetas ( made of squid black ink ) : an alternative to the ham croquetas – oh-so-delicious

-Ortiguillas – very good alternative to oysters ( to taste the sea ..but i reality it has nothing to do with oyster)

-Pork ribs : not my favorite as the sweetness of the sauce was too pronounced I found and the vegetables that come with it overcooked

-Entrecote tapas was good –

Wines :

Start with this magnificent white Rioja : Hacienda del Ternero 2013 ( 8 pounds the glass and 42 pounds the bottle ) – this wine is worth it , it transforms in the palet being dry and gentle at the same time – it transforms with food too of course . It is a big win !

Then switch to red for your main dishes – I recommend the organic Granacha El Mago 2013 Terre Alta – very satisfactory and very good value for money ( 4.5 pounds the glass, and 24 the bottle ) . Exquisite.

Let’s move next door at the French Terroirs ( http://terroirswinebar.com)

This post is not to compare my two London picks of the month but let’s be clear : food at Barrafina is clearly better , taste better, better cooked and better mastered but wines at Terroirs – especially naturally wines – can’t be beaten here . And let’s put it this way : it is hard to find natural wines in London .

The Master of natural red wine is here : try the M La Pierre 2014 “Raisins Gaulois” – Beaujolais – 6.5 pounds the glass, 18 pounds the carafe and 26 pounds the bottle – A must have here .

Then in terms of white, I would recommend the 2013 Moscatel Viejas Tinajas from De Martino Single Vineyard in Chile – 7.25 pounds the glass, this is a great natural muscatel – fully bodied white full of texture and floral aromas while staying perfectly dry.

For food, I would advise you to try the Pork and Pistachio Terrine, it is to die for .

The rest is good but pretty standard ( shrimps. squids etc ) .

Enjoy 🙂

 

 

 

Agriculturismo is what’s missing to the London food scene

I have just returned from a trip to Sorento and Positano on the Amalfi Coast , near Naples and I had the pleasure to go again searching for the best Agriculturismo around me . I realized that this fantastic concept , only known to food lovers hasn’t reach London and the UK yet.

What is Agriculturismo ? As the name indicates it is the combination of Agriculture and Tourism . How can we be a tourist and enjoy the local products of a country we visit. This is my own definition.

When you go to an Agriculturismo , there isn’t such thing as a Menu as the owners serve you only what is available, usually from their own farm where the restaurant is also located. You eat only what is fresh and you drink the local , natural ( if you are lucky)  wine , olive oil and fruits. It is rare to be disappointed after a lunch at an Agriculturismo, although it is getting more and more popular in Italy so one needs to be aware of new potential “tourist traps”.

Usually an Agriculturismo acts as a B&B , a few rooms around the restaurant.

So one could argue that the UK has seen this concept many years ago and now similar places like the Pig in Hampstead is doing this : rooms around the restaurant, with products from the garden. But there is still a menu to choose from and the hassle of deciding which comes with it !

Near Sorento , I went to l’Angolo Di Paradiso. It was decent but certainly not the best in the region nor in Italy. Perhaps because it was too close to Sorento and the food served was too much carb related so not enough vegetables and meat or fish to my liking . The local wine was good though.

Eating with this view is fantastic and cannot be found in London – that’s for sure :

Positano

Typing Room : who said this restaurant was going for a Michelin star ?!

Greatly disappointing , this Bethnal Green restaurant has indeed good google reviews but when it comes to try it I am not so sure who rated it..Pretentiously overpriced , the food here does not taste much despite an effort of presentation – what you get in your plate will not make you smile . The service is amateur and the menu not inspiring and tasteful at all . Sadly not at the level of our expectations- I will personally not recommend this place to anyone.

Here is our menu dated September 16, 2015 : This was not good . Wrong mix of ingredients and spice. No “mouth explosion” here, very dull , neutral taste. This chef has not succeeded transporting us for the night with new senses and flavours. Shame.

The wine we have selected was decent – a Birgit Braunstein Pinot.

Our 75 pounds per person menu

The restaurant scene with views on the kitchen