The London Report, part 2
Aug. 18th, 2010 05:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sevenswellsBack to Paris and I won't lie, I feel kind of sad I left. I hope this post will help me with my grieving! *sigh*
-How to spot a good Chinese restaurant
Not just in London, but these rules are almost available for any country, I think. They've never failed me until now, at least. The first rule is a very easy one: good Chinese restaurants have Chinese people eating in it. Yeah, I know this one is kind of obvious and mostly true for any kind of exotic cuisine; the natives know their stuff, generally. So, first, go to the restaurants where there are Chinese people seated at the tables.
Second, and this one is a little more original and maybe a little subjective: look for suspended food exposed in the restaurant's window. Lackered ducks, a whole pig's head, the more gross and the more dead animals the better. No, seriously. This really works. I'm ready to trust any Chinese restaurant that has animals on hooks in their window -- don't ask why. And if there are a lot of restaurants in the same place with stuff in their window, well, judge by the look of the food in it, then. Look for the shiniest ducks (it's the fat and honey glaze that give them that sheen, and a lot of fat and honey means good food, trust the girl who doesn't care about sending all that straight to her hips), the red-cooked pork that looks best to you (it should not look dry), the cripiest-looking chicken.
Third rule, and this one may be the most subjective, go for the shabbiest. Small, crowded restaurants where the chef practically cooks under your nose and you almost can't see because of the steam. The best Chinese cuisine to me is the popular one, that can be found on the streets, and I'm extremely defiant of fancy restaurants (this doesn't apply to French cuisine, though, good French restaurants generally can't be shabby; if the place if fancy, so would be the food. If the place is rustic, so would be the food too, depends on what you're looking for). Except maybe for dim sum (the vapor dishes) that are more refined food, and in my experience, the best are served in rather respectable places, unlike the ones I described XD
(sorry for the big fat stupid head on the foreground, that @#&*$ lady jumped in front of my camera and I only realized it afterwards, when I was looking at the photos at home =____=)
-How the British love executions
The National Gallery is truly incredible. It's somehow very unnerving to see paintings as famous as Van Gogh's Sunflowers at such short distance, where you can see how the brush strokes are fluid and graceful, or suddenly realize the genius touch of the blue backlight on the painting of his chair. What impressed me the most, however, where Seurat's paintings. I described him jokingly to my friends as the inventor of CMYK; it turned out the joke was practically true -- the guy only painted with primary colors, red, blue and yellow, and when you take a step back, there's, inexplicably, like a magic trick, a pastel scenery in front of you -- which should be impossible, because white is barely used and mixed with the colors. Many other artists tried pointillism after Seurat, but nobody mastered it quite like him -- the others used nuances, grays, pastel colors, or colors that aren't primary like green and orange; and the paintings are nice, but not quite as impressive. I can't even begin to imagine how anal the guy had to be to stick to three colors in mini-dots like that. FREAK.
Also a true delight, Caillebotte's Homme à son bain. A powerful and striking painting; this one was a shocker in its time, because nude male subjects were very rare (still are, in my opinion) and even rarer seen from behind like that. What's more, the subject's casually towelling himself off, and you can see the traces of wet feet on the wooden floor: it makes the picture more vivid, spontaneous, almost instant if you see what I mean -- which also was a complete novelty at the time. To me this painting still holds an incredible impact, even now:
It was lovely seeing some Ingres again, too, the guy sure knew how to paint "bedroom eyes". I know no other artists whose subjects' stares are so... languid. I was entranced by some details on other paintings, like quasi-imperceptible blue veins under very pale skin, or Lady Jane Grey's fingernails that I spent a good fifteen minutes observing on Laroche's painting. That painting was awesome too, by the way -- it was one of the huge-ass ones depicting an execution, which confirmed to me the love of the British for morbid stuff (I know, Laroche and Manet are French, but their paintings still ended up in London, heh).
(click to see a larger version)
The thing that amused me the most is the lady in the background on the far left -- when you see the painting up front you can see very well that she's passed out, and her face is the epitome of "derp".
Another execution scene, Manet's The Execution of Maximilian; I was surprised and, stupidly enough, thought that the cut-up pieces were on purpose. I was marvelling at how modern it was, and then I read that the painting had not been cut up by the artist, and that the missing pieces were just lost. *facepalm* Anyways, even though it's just chance that made the painting turn out like this, it looks totally fierce like that, I think.
(click to see a larger version)
I love the fact that all that we see of the guy being executed is his hand, I found it very touching.
Turner (my mom's and some of my friends' favorite, apparently, because when I told them I went to the National Gallery their reaction was the exact same: "Did you see Turner's paintings?") was nice, but Seurat kicked everybody's ass in my opinion.
-How to make crazy cakes
I swear we don't have cakes like that in Paris. It was my second visit to London -- on the first I only spent a week-end there, but I spotted crazy cakes all the same, in fancy pastry shops.
This is a photo I took during my first time in London:
And it seems the cakes just got crazier and crazier while I wasn't there. Why on earth did the pastry chefs feel compelled to put entire fruit bowls upon the cakes, and then decorate them with fifty different colors?
I wouldn't eat any one of those if my life depended on it, but it sure was a sight. *_____*
-How to spend your Sunday afternoon
Last Sunday I was visiting Camden! The Northern Line was closed for works, so I had to take the Piccadilly Line and walk from St-Pancras. Took a few interesting pictures on my way:
(the poster with the black silhouettes entwined on the first one, how very Alan Moore!!! I couldn't help but squeal when I saw it)
Then I finally arrived in Camden. There were so many people there, it looked like a pilgrimage.
I didn't buy any clothes since nothing really caught my eye; the very touristic thing that I did do, though, was having lunch near the canal, and if there's only one thing you need to do in Camden, that's the one. It was enchanting. I usually hate crowds, but there it rather held a certain charm.
My own picnic turned out to be a little bit of a failure, though; not bad, but chick peas and minced beef without some sauce isn't the most mind-blowing dish ever. Would've been nicer with a little bit of rice, I suppose, but it was all that was left from previous dinners and I had to find some way to empty the fridge, so I just quickly put it together before heading to Camden. Oh well.
Chop up one red onion (British ones are super tasty) and fry it in a pan with a little bit of olive oil, then add a can of chick peas after having emptied the can of its water. Let it cook for a few seconds, then add cut-up slices of thick back bacon (as many as you like. Personnally, I cut up three slices of thick bacon). And ~ ta-daa! It's ready when the chick peas look a little bit roasted (and the bacon is cooked, of course). You can add cayenne pepper in the mix for a little bit of fire (I told you I like my spice); a few drops of Lea & Perrins go well with it too. I made a great dinner out of that dish watching the last episode of Sherlock on BBC One - perfect dish for a perfect evening ^^
After Camden I went for a long stroll in Regent's Park and it was lovely, so maybe I can bore you a little with cheesy pictures of plants and flowers:
(I know, for some reason, I seem to take better photos when it's food that is the subject. Hmm.)
This sleeping couple amused me a lot, so I took creepy stalker photos of them, but it was for nothing else than artistic purpose I swear:
-How to say goodbye
Before leaving London yesterday, there was one last dish I needed to taste:
Fish and chips, served with tea, and bread and butter.
I was OK, but not exactly the best I've ever eaten. Actually, I made a better fish and chips at home -- say "oye" in the comments if you wish to know the recipe (I swear it's super simple too ^^).
Here ends the London report, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention, and see you next post for the second amuse-bouche to The Art of Love and Cooking.
-How to spot a good Chinese restaurant
Not just in London, but these rules are almost available for any country, I think. They've never failed me until now, at least. The first rule is a very easy one: good Chinese restaurants have Chinese people eating in it. Yeah, I know this one is kind of obvious and mostly true for any kind of exotic cuisine; the natives know their stuff, generally. So, first, go to the restaurants where there are Chinese people seated at the tables.
Second, and this one is a little more original and maybe a little subjective: look for suspended food exposed in the restaurant's window. Lackered ducks, a whole pig's head, the more gross and the more dead animals the better. No, seriously. This really works. I'm ready to trust any Chinese restaurant that has animals on hooks in their window -- don't ask why. And if there are a lot of restaurants in the same place with stuff in their window, well, judge by the look of the food in it, then. Look for the shiniest ducks (it's the fat and honey glaze that give them that sheen, and a lot of fat and honey means good food, trust the girl who doesn't care about sending all that straight to her hips), the red-cooked pork that looks best to you (it should not look dry), the cripiest-looking chicken.
Third rule, and this one may be the most subjective, go for the shabbiest. Small, crowded restaurants where the chef practically cooks under your nose and you almost can't see because of the steam. The best Chinese cuisine to me is the popular one, that can be found on the streets, and I'm extremely defiant of fancy restaurants (this doesn't apply to French cuisine, though, good French restaurants generally can't be shabby; if the place if fancy, so would be the food. If the place is rustic, so would be the food too, depends on what you're looking for). Except maybe for dim sum (the vapor dishes) that are more refined food, and in my experience, the best are served in rather respectable places, unlike the ones I described XD
-How the British love executions
The National Gallery is truly incredible. It's somehow very unnerving to see paintings as famous as Van Gogh's Sunflowers at such short distance, where you can see how the brush strokes are fluid and graceful, or suddenly realize the genius touch of the blue backlight on the painting of his chair. What impressed me the most, however, where Seurat's paintings. I described him jokingly to my friends as the inventor of CMYK; it turned out the joke was practically true -- the guy only painted with primary colors, red, blue and yellow, and when you take a step back, there's, inexplicably, like a magic trick, a pastel scenery in front of you -- which should be impossible, because white is barely used and mixed with the colors. Many other artists tried pointillism after Seurat, but nobody mastered it quite like him -- the others used nuances, grays, pastel colors, or colors that aren't primary like green and orange; and the paintings are nice, but not quite as impressive. I can't even begin to imagine how anal the guy had to be to stick to three colors in mini-dots like that. FREAK.
Also a true delight, Caillebotte's Homme à son bain. A powerful and striking painting; this one was a shocker in its time, because nude male subjects were very rare (still are, in my opinion) and even rarer seen from behind like that. What's more, the subject's casually towelling himself off, and you can see the traces of wet feet on the wooden floor: it makes the picture more vivid, spontaneous, almost instant if you see what I mean -- which also was a complete novelty at the time. To me this painting still holds an incredible impact, even now:
It was lovely seeing some Ingres again, too, the guy sure knew how to paint "bedroom eyes". I know no other artists whose subjects' stares are so... languid. I was entranced by some details on other paintings, like quasi-imperceptible blue veins under very pale skin, or Lady Jane Grey's fingernails that I spent a good fifteen minutes observing on Laroche's painting. That painting was awesome too, by the way -- it was one of the huge-ass ones depicting an execution, which confirmed to me the love of the British for morbid stuff (I know, Laroche and Manet are French, but their paintings still ended up in London, heh).
(click to see a larger version)The thing that amused me the most is the lady in the background on the far left -- when you see the painting up front you can see very well that she's passed out, and her face is the epitome of "derp".
Another execution scene, Manet's The Execution of Maximilian; I was surprised and, stupidly enough, thought that the cut-up pieces were on purpose. I was marvelling at how modern it was, and then I read that the painting had not been cut up by the artist, and that the missing pieces were just lost. *facepalm* Anyways, even though it's just chance that made the painting turn out like this, it looks totally fierce like that, I think.
(click to see a larger version)I love the fact that all that we see of the guy being executed is his hand, I found it very touching.
Turner (my mom's and some of my friends' favorite, apparently, because when I told them I went to the National Gallery their reaction was the exact same: "Did you see Turner's paintings?") was nice, but Seurat kicked everybody's ass in my opinion.
-How to make crazy cakes
I swear we don't have cakes like that in Paris. It was my second visit to London -- on the first I only spent a week-end there, but I spotted crazy cakes all the same, in fancy pastry shops.
This is a photo I took during my first time in London:
And it seems the cakes just got crazier and crazier while I wasn't there. Why on earth did the pastry chefs feel compelled to put entire fruit bowls upon the cakes, and then decorate them with fifty different colors?
I wouldn't eat any one of those if my life depended on it, but it sure was a sight. *_____*
-How to spend your Sunday afternoon
Last Sunday I was visiting Camden! The Northern Line was closed for works, so I had to take the Piccadilly Line and walk from St-Pancras. Took a few interesting pictures on my way:
(the poster with the black silhouettes entwined on the first one, how very Alan Moore!!! I couldn't help but squeal when I saw it)
Then I finally arrived in Camden. There were so many people there, it looked like a pilgrimage.
I didn't buy any clothes since nothing really caught my eye; the very touristic thing that I did do, though, was having lunch near the canal, and if there's only one thing you need to do in Camden, that's the one. It was enchanting. I usually hate crowds, but there it rather held a certain charm.
I suggest you don't eat food from any of the numerous shops there (didn't spot anything that looked particularly good), just bring your own food and have your little picnic on the banks of the canal, it's a very nice experience.
My own picnic turned out to be a little bit of a failure, though; not bad, but chick peas and minced beef without some sauce isn't the most mind-blowing dish ever. Would've been nicer with a little bit of rice, I suppose, but it was all that was left from previous dinners and I had to find some way to empty the fridge, so I just quickly put it together before heading to Camden. Oh well.
What does really go well with chick peas, though, without having to add anything else, is bacon. And there's a super simple and incredibly tasty recipe you can try:
Easy and tasty chick peas recipe:
Easy and tasty chick peas recipe:
Chop up one red onion (British ones are super tasty) and fry it in a pan with a little bit of olive oil, then add a can of chick peas after having emptied the can of its water. Let it cook for a few seconds, then add cut-up slices of thick back bacon (as many as you like. Personnally, I cut up three slices of thick bacon). And ~ ta-daa! It's ready when the chick peas look a little bit roasted (and the bacon is cooked, of course). You can add cayenne pepper in the mix for a little bit of fire (I told you I like my spice); a few drops of Lea & Perrins go well with it too. I made a great dinner out of that dish watching the last episode of Sherlock on BBC One - perfect dish for a perfect evening ^^
After Camden I went for a long stroll in Regent's Park and it was lovely, so maybe I can bore you a little with cheesy pictures of plants and flowers:
(I know, for some reason, I seem to take better photos when it's food that is the subject. Hmm.)
This sleeping couple amused me a lot, so I took creepy stalker photos of them, but it was for nothing else than artistic purpose I swear:
-How to say goodbye
Before leaving London yesterday, there was one last dish I needed to taste:
Fish and chips, served with tea, and bread and butter.
I was OK, but not exactly the best I've ever eaten. Actually, I made a better fish and chips at home -- say "oye" in the comments if you wish to know the recipe (I swear it's super simple too ^^).
Here ends the London report, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention, and see you next post for the second amuse-bouche to The Art of Love and Cooking.
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no subject
Date: 2010-08-18 04:24 pm (UTC)I'm Chinese and you are absolutely right about the clues to a good Chinese meal. You just have to chuck your ideas about proper hygiene aside and go for it. In Asian countries, at least the Chinese populated ones, you can get good dim sum on the streets too!
I remember I had horrible Japanesse food when I was in London, I was fooled by the Japanese speaking staff )))):
no subject
Date: 2010-08-18 05:38 pm (UTC)OMG, so true. Good music is so easily found there, too, what with the concerts and music events, it's incredible!
I'm Chinese and you are absolutely right about the clues to a good Chinese meal.
Ah, thank you for confirming it! I've built these rules upon my own experience, but I never actually cross-checked it with actual Chinese -- thank you!
You just have to chuck your ideas about proper hygiene aside and go for it.
Hahaha, exactly!!! And that has never been a problem for me, I must say XD
I remember I had horrible Japanesse food when I was in London, I was fooled by the Japanese speaking staff )))):
Ha, haven't tried the Japanese restaurants there, I must say; I'm quite satisfied with the ones in Paris already, that can be extraordinarily good, so I didn't feel like trying my luck. I'm sorry you had such a bad experience though! :(
no subject
Date: 2010-08-18 05:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-08-18 05:51 pm (UTC)Bon ben ça va être simple pour toi, puisque j'aurais pas à traduire la recette dans mon anglais approximatif! En fait c'est une recette de marmiton:
http://www.marmiton.org/recettes/recette_fish-and-chips-la-vraie-pate-a-friture-anglaise_22308.aspx
Avec quelques recommandations, ceci dit: il ne faut en effet pas "casser" les blancs montés en neige. Pour ce faire, tu verses seulement un quart de tes blancs montés en neige dans la préparation, puis, doucement, gentiment, avec une cuillère en bois, tu fais passer un peu de pâte au-dessus en effleurant à peine le bout de blanc monté. Et tu recommences, et tu recommences. Le blanc s'incorpore vraiment lentement et c'est casse-couille à faire, mais faut avoir de la patience et pas s'énerver, ça en vaut vraiment la peine. Tu y vas quart par quart jusqu'à ce que, logiquement, tu n'aies plus de blanc
Ensuite, il faut que l'huile soit vraiment chaude pour que ça marche (sinon tu vas avoir un vieux beignet détrempé et dégueulasse). Tu peux tester la température de l'huile en plongeant une cuillère en bois (BIEN SÈCHE, attention) dedans; si le bois se met à "frire" (il va pas frire pour de vrai, hein, rassure-toi XD) en principe c'est bon.
N'importe quel poisson peut convenir, moi j'ai une préférence pour les filets de colin tout cons.
Pour les frites, mieux vaut en prendre du genre épaisses - Picard en fait de très bonnes en surgelés (et comme ça tu peux les faire au four pour te donner bonne conscience). Et pour la sauce tartare, n'importe laquelle peut faire l'affaire, ils en vendent en supermarché en France -- Bénédicte ou Amora, c'est selon ta préférence.
La recette a été testée et approuvée lors d'une soirée Misfits à la maison - la friture est légère et délicieuse, pour moi c'était WIN sur toute la ligne!
Si tu veux venir manger du fish and chips à la Geek House, on peut s'arranger, ceci dit. XD Textotte-moi si ça te branche, baby!
no subject
Date: 2010-08-18 06:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-08-27 03:59 pm (UTC)En tout cas, merci pour la recette ! Je suis pas très douée en cuisine (euphémisme) du coup y'a beaucoup de choses que je n'ai jamais fait auparavant. Mais bon, c'est en forgeant que l'on devient forgeron !
no subject
Date: 2010-08-27 04:32 pm (UTC)