Living the Travel Channel

Posts Tagged ‘food’

Fujairah Food Tour

October 6, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

Friends from Dubai came to Fujairah for a food tour of our favorite restaurants. We began Thursday evening with Nepal Kitchen House.

We started with the signature momos (steamed chicken dumplings).

Pictured above (upper right, clockwise) Aloo Jeera  (potatoes, cumin seeds, tumeric), Aloo Dum (potatoes, coriander, tumeric), Chicken tass (chicken, puffed rice, crispy onions), and Badam sandeko (peanuts, onions, tomatoes, chilies).

We also sampled vegetable rice and chicken rice – rice, lentil soup (daal) and curried vegetables/chicken.

After all that, we called it a night and headed off for a good night’s sleep before starting again with an 8 am breakfast of paratha (flat bread), chana (chick peas/garbanzo beans in a curry sauce) and tea at Al Khan Restaurant.

This breakfast cost 36 AED ($9.80) for 6 people ($1.63 each). They kept the bread coming and would have refilled our bowls, but we had to pace ourselves.

We headed to the corniche for a bit of sun. It didn’t take long to have gotten more than enough heat. It isn’t quite winter, yet. The temperature high that day was 97F.

“Second breakfast” was at Sizzling Restaurant which opened at 11 am. Doing this tour on a Friday was problematic due to Friday hours. Many businesses are closed, some until 4 pm. Any future food tours will have to be done on Saturday.

Sizzling Restaurant is one of three great Filipino restaurants in town. Breakfast entrées consist of fried egg, garlic rice and a variety of meats.

We ordered and shared three items – tapsilog (beef), adosilog (chicken), and tosilog (chicken).

Next, we attempted to explore the discount stores, but again ran into the Friday hours problem. Only one store was open.

We headed down to Kalba mangroves to look for turtles. The mangrove area has been closed since March due to plans to develop the area. We weren’t even allowed to walk out onto the bridge to get a better view of the turtles, but we still managed to see a few.

When we returned to Fujairah, it was a bit too early for the bull butting and too early for bread at the Afghani restaurant, so we were off to Oriental Restaurant for Singaporean/Malaysian food.

Pictured above is crispy shrimp omelet, egg plant sambal with shrimp, chicken and salted eggs, and mixed seafood soup.

Beef and kai lan is my personal favorite. Also pictured is hainanese chicken.

We returned to the bull arena in time for the last bout.

One last stop at a discount store ended our day around 8 pm. A long, busy, and tiring day. Great fun with great people.

If you would like to get Mita’s take on our tour, read this Mita56’s Blog: Fujairah Food Tour

Posted in food, Fujairah, restaurant | Tagged adosilog, aloo dum, aloo jeera, badam sandeko, bull butting, chana, chicken tass, Filipino, food, food tour, Fujairah, Kalba, mangroves, momos, Nepal, paratha, sambal, shrimp omelet, Singapore, tapsilog, tosilog | 1 Comment »

Shopping for the Easily Amused

September 17, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

Here in the cheeps aisle, they are not talking about marshmallow cheeps. Surprisingly, they didn’t call them “crisps.” It’s a French store chain, so it would probably be treason to use the British “crisps.”

We are surprised and pleased to see Thums Up soda on the Carrefour shelves. (Apologies for the blurry picture, but I am trying to take pictures on the sly.)

It is always interesting to see what two products are taped together to form a special deal. Here two bottles of water are taped to a six pack of soda pop. In the freezer section, there was a small tub of mango ice cream taped to a huge tub of vanilla ice cream.

The variety of pet treats is interesting. Hamsters, exotic birds, canaries, parrots, guinea pigs, chinchillas, rabbits, and cockatiels. No cheetah chews or tiger bites though. I was tempted to get rabbit treats to see if Oliver, our vegetable eating cat, would like them. Bert is the one we have trouble finding treats for.

And for your reptiles – mixed carnivore. Does this mean bits of carnivorous animals? Tiger bites? Chewy cheetahs?

I remember the good old days when the bagger used to put more than one item in each bag. I need to be more disciplined about taking canvas bags, but that always throws the bagger into confusion. What to do?!?!?! It doesn’t keep them from putting one item in each bag, however. (Yes, that is Oliver sniffing around the bags. He’s trying to find the curry leaves, one of the many things he loves to eat.)

Posted in food, Fujairah, Shopping | Tagged food, Fujairah, grocery store, shopping, signs | 1 Comment »

Ramadan 2012

August 7, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

Last week we revisited the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding for the iftar meal. This is an excellent program introducing tourists and ex-pats to Emirati food and traditions. The volunteers do a very good job of explaining traditions and are open to any questions.

We opted for “Eastern wear.”

We attended the event with some of our friends.

Arabic coffee served by a bedouin.

The meal.

Several young Emiratis volunteer at the center. During the dinner they mingle with the attendees to converse and answer any questions. Mohammed, from Sharjah, had his hands full in conversing with us. Our friends are all “old timers” in the UAE. DaddyBird and I, with our four years of residency, are the new comers. Mita came to Dubai about the time that young Mohammed was born.

After the meal, the group walked to the nearby mosque for a basic introduction to Islamic concepts and rituals.

 

After a walk back to the cultural center, it was time for dessert and a question/answer session.

Just in case you came to this blog for information on Ramadan, here are the basics: Ramadan is a month in the Arabic (lunar) calendar. During this month, muslims fast during the day (sunrise to sunset). This means no food or liquids. They also exercise discipline by refraining from things like sex or smoking. The goal is to focus on being a better person. Once the sun sets, the fast is broken with an iftar meal. This meal may be done in the home, at the mosque, or at a restaurant. Another meal, suhoor, is eaten in the early morning hours before sunrise and the beginning of the next fast. It is not uncommon to stay awake most or all of the night and sleep during the day. Work hours are usually reduced to 6 hours (8 am to 1 pm, or 9 am to 2 pm). Some businesses close during the day and open after sunset.

For those in Dubai, we recommend the meal related events at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding. During the other months (non-Ramadan) they serve both breakfasts and lunches. It is well worth the time and money.

Posted in culture, Dubai, food, mosque, Ramadan | Tagged culture, Dubai, food, iftar, Ramadan, Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding | 1 Comment »

Golden Fork

July 21, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

A new Golden Fork restaurant opened in Fujairah recently. Of course, we had to try it out.

Not knowing the size of items, we ordered too much food, starting with soup. I had the corn soup and DaddyBird had a seafood bisque.

Followed by vegetable spring rolls.

Then the rest arrived – grilled salmon, fried rice, and tapsilog (rice, fried egg, beef). The waitress was cute when DaddyBird ordered tapsilog. She didn’t think he understood what he was ordering because it is a Filipino dish and she didn’t expect a big white guy to order it. It wasn’t strange or spicy, so I am not sure what the potential problem might have been.

Golden Fork is a Filipino restaurant chain. Filipino food strikes me as a strange mix of the exotic and mundane. Seafood and white toast/peas/carrots. I suppose that from their perspective the seafood is the mundane and the white bread/peas/carrots are the exotic foods brought in by the colonizers.

Posted in food, Fujairah, restaurant | Tagged Filipino, food, Fujairah, Golden Fork, Salmon, Seafood | 1 Comment »

Singapore: Days Twelve & Thirteen

July 7, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

With only two days to go and a long list of things we hadn’t done, I had to beg off for a bit of a rest, so most of day 12 was spent with my feet up. Then, it was time for dinner.

Our friend, Adrianna, guided us on our evening repast adventure. First we stopped for a snack of sashimi. Our final destination was a small Japanese restaurant (Restaurant Chako) in which it is best to call/email ahead to get your order in, because everything is prepared fresh, even the sauces. Therefore, dinner can take a few hours to complete. (We all forgot to take pictures of the appetizers – oops! We had edamame [soy beans], shishamo [small grilled fish], and maguro yamakake [raw tuna with yam sauce])

DaddyBird’s dinner was yosenabe (claypot soup with seafood, chicken, mushroom, and tofu).

Adrianna’s dinner was unatamaju (broiled eel on scrambled egg and rice).

I had the Chako set meal (mackerel, breaded chicken, breaded cuttlefish, rice, cabbage salad, potato salad, miso soup, etc.).

We added tempura moriawase (shrimp and vegetables). It was all very delicious. Everything was prepared fresh and it doesn’t get more authentic than this.

We capped it all off with several desserts. Above is coffee flavored gelatin, below is green tea ice cream. Not pictured – cappuccino ice cream and black sesame ice cream. The black sesame ice cream was really interesting – almost more savory than sweet.

Our plan for the last day was to go to the bird park, but when we woke up it was raining heavily, so change of plans. The Asian Civilizations Museum was within walking distance of our hotel and offered an escape from the rain.

The rain had let up briefly, so it was a pleasant walk down the riverside.

We joined a tour that was starting when we arrived. The subject was the influence and use of Chinese art and style in other cultures.

This elephant is Chinese porcelain that was then modified in Turkey with the addition of the metal parts changing it into a hookah base (shisha pipe).

The museum presents all cultures and religions of Asia.

This bowl was made in Iraq attempting to emulate Chinese porcelain, but instead creating a unique and beautiful piece with a style of it’s own.

We left with a long list of places we didn’t go and things we didn’t do, but we enjoyed Singapore very much and will probably go back again.

Posted in food, museum, restaurant, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged food, Japanese restaurant, museum, sashimi, Singapore, tempura, travel | Leave a Comment »

Singapore: Day Eleven

July 4, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

The day began with a metro train trip to Chinatown and pork buns.

These were not just steamed, but also seared for a crusty outside. Tasty!

These pigeons had found the motherlode in the food court and were eating as fast as they could.

DaddyBird chose his lunch based on the length of the line at this food booth without knowing exactly what he was going to get.

This is what he ended up with -soup with fish balls and tofu.

I got a similar soup with greens and noodles from a different food stall.

Our tourist activity of the day was to go to the top of the Marina Bay Sands Towers to the Skypark observation deck.

We purposely got there just before sunset so we could see it in daylight and night time.

The view straight down (Kris this one’s for you.)

This is what people think of the “Do Not Sit on the Deck” signs. Let me rant a bit here about how stupid it is to create a tourist attraction without places to sit down. It is really rude, in my opinion. Tourists are on their feet all day and deserve a place to rest, especially if you want them to stick around (and spend money).

The Singapore Flyer lit up at night.

The view across the bay.

Dinner included burgers.

They claim to be healthy, but the only clarification in the menu or signage was that they are not prepared ahead and kept under a heat lamp. No claims of organic or low fat ingredients. No whole grain buns. So, there is room to improve the “healthy” factor. (Correction: DaddyBird says that whole grain buns were an option listed in the menu.)

It looks more like a Dagwood sandwich than a burger. The patty was savory, which seems to be hard to come by in my burger experiences.

The chili cheese fries also beg the “healthy” factor. They tasted good, but the chili was not hot enough to melt the cheese.

Posted in food, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged burgers, chili cheese fries, food, Marina Bay Sands Towers, Marina Bay Skypark, Singapore, travel | 1 Comment »

Singapore: Day 10

July 3, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

We opted for an uncharacteristically touristy activity – riding the site seeing bus. Let’s face it, we’re getting old and walking everywhere in humid heat is a bit exhausting. This way, we got to sit in air conditioning, see the sights, and learn some details from the canned tour commentary that we wouldn’t have known otherwise.

We started on the Heritage route which took us through Little India, Chinatown, and other older parts of the city.

There is a lot of high density housing here. At least they try to make it attractive.

We hopped off at Suntec City Mall for lunch.

DaddyBird had the “white carrot cake” which is a big, spicy omelette with white radish and shrimp in it. I had char siew and roast duck.

In the absence of lime juice, I tried the delicious celery juice.

Our ticket also included rides on water taxis, so we took another ride on the river on one of these.

We got off at the Marina Bay Sands complex. The complex includes hotel, shopping mall, conference center, casino, and probably more.

There is even a canal with boat rides.

We were headed to the Art and Science Museum for the Harry Potter Exhibition. No photography was allowed, so you will have to imagine what we saw. I stood three feet from Snape’s costume, unfortunately Alan Rickman was not in it. It was a well designed exhibit, although it was aimed at a younger demographic than DaddyBird and I. The Sorting Hat sorted us – I am Ravenclaw and DaddyBird is Griffyndor.

By the time we finished the sun was down and we were exhausted from a long day of tourism, so it was off to Brewerkz again for dinner. Above is potato skins appetizer with cheese, bacon bits and dip.

DaddyBird opted for the Cowboy Burger – bacon, cheese, and BBQ sauce. I had the Bangers and Mash. I am certain that the sausages were good, but they were overshadowed by the cheesy mash potatoes and sauerkraut. I very nearly asked for additional sauerkraut. Yummy!

Below is the sign that is posted in the area where the brewery vats are visible. We found it amusing.

I think they mean business.

Posted in food, malls, signs, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged food, museum, shopping, signs, Singapore, tourist, travel, water taxi | 1 Comment »

Singapore: Day Nine

July 2, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

The day began late with a late lunch at Songfa Bak Kut Teh, our new favorite restaurant which just happens to be about two blocks from our hotel. DaddyBird opted for the pork stomach soup and I had the pork ribs.

… and tea.

We took a short Singapore river cruise. It was cooler on the water.

Clarke Quay

Asian Civilization Museum

Cavenagh Bridge

Marina Bay, Singapore Flyer

Marina Bay Sands Towers, Art and Science Museum

South bay skyscrapers

Tree

Boat Quay – this used to be the area where cargo used to be loaded/off-loaded. Now it is restaurants.

Posted in food, restaurant, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged food, river cruise, Singapore, Singapore River | 1 Comment »

Singapore: Day Five

June 28, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

Yes, we are eating again. Every day, it seems. This is Indian food from a restaurant next door to our hotel. Chicken tikka, malai kofta, onion pakora, garlic naan, and butter naan. (Around $20.00 / $16 US)

We ventured out by way of metro train and our feet. I love the trees here. Lovely, old growth trees with ferns growing in their joints.

This bus stop was covered in red octopi. Apparently, Octo is the mascot for a bank.

Then we reached the motherlode – Kinokuniya Bookstore. I brought three books with me (actually four because one is two books bound together). They won’t last me the entire trip. I have already finished two. So, this necessitated the acquisition of MORE.

The fact that they separate Science Fiction from Fantasy makes me love this bookstore even more. Lumping these two genres together is just dumb.

Have I mentioned that I love the trees here?

Then, to Food Road Chinatown. Yes, I really did see a sign that said “Food Road Chinatown.” It is lined with restaurants and food booths. We had pork buns ($1.00 each).

Then we walked past this Buddhist temple, which, according to the map, is Buddha’s Tooth Relic Temple.

Have I mentioned the TREES? Behind these trees is the Maxwell Food Centre.

Food centers (or hawker centers) are roofed areas with many small food booths and most anything to eat or drink. This is where the best chicken and rice is, according to Adrianna and Anthony Bourdain (TV travel/food show host).

There was a long line, a good sign.

Here it is. It was cheaper than the chicken rice we had previously ($7.00 / $5.50 US for both servings). The soup, however, did not have peanuts and lotus root in it, just broth. It was not served with as many cucumbers, either. Tasted very good, but I did not see a significant difference from the previous meal.

We headed back to the hotel with our books for an early evening.

Posted in food, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged Buddhist temple, food, octopi, Singapore, travel, trees | 2 Comments »

Singapore: Day Four

June 27, 2012

Posted by Kanga.

I almost ended the last post by telling you what we planned to do today. I am glad I didn’t, because we had to scrap our A Plan for the day and then we had to scrap our B Plan for the day. So, here is what came to fruition.

First, DaddyBird woke up with an abdominal pain. So, we got a slow move and late start to the day. Too late for Plan A.

We stopped at this eating establishment and had:

Lime juice

Chicken rice – which is supposed to be the quintessential Singaporean dish – boiled chicken and rice. It is not as bland as it sounds.

The soup had peanuts and lotus root.

We walked on to a shopping mall to follow the instructions of a friend (Shelina) who insisted we needed to try “food on a stick.” We did finally find the “food on a stick” and dutifully tried some.

DaddyBird was still not feeling too good, so we decided that Plan B would be to ride on the metro and just see where it went. We could do this air conditioned and sitting down. However, it became fairly clear that DaddyBird was probably passing a kidney stone, so Plan B was also scrapped and we headed back to the hotel. After some rest, he felt better, so at dinner time it was out again to the metro station.

We noticed a good piece of advice on the floor.

But it turned out to be a map of the river and Read is just one of the bridges. Still a good piece of advice, though.

We ended up at Clarke Quay, a river lined with restaurants.

This was our destination – Brewerkz, a rather large brew pub.

These were our brews – Black Pig and Fruitbrewz (raspberry beer that does not compare to a McMenemins Ruby).

DaddyBird opted for the spicy whitebait (small fish) as an appetizer (which were not spicy after all).

I ordered the edamame, not having read the menu description which indicated it was spicy. It was indeed spicy (who would do that to edamame?) so I spent time wiping the spicy bits off before eating it.

Then came the burgers. DaddyBird had the King Brew burger which had bacon, chili, onions, mushrooms and cheese. There was also a hamburger patty in there somewhere. He says it is the second best burger he has ever had, second only to the legendary Carolina Ale House burger of 2011.

My burger, the Wallaby, was also hidden under an egg, beet slices, pineapple, bacon and cheese.

We did not get away cheaply on this meal – $163.70 ($128.10 US). It was a pleasant splurge, however. Even the music playing was good – classic rock, alternative rock and decent pop. DaddyBird also reported that there was bluegrass playing in the restroom.

Posted in food, Singapore, travel adventures | Tagged beer, burger, food, Singapore | 1 Comment »

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