Food in Madrid

Living in London, I rarely eat seafood anymore as it tends to be quite expensive and not very good, but being half Italian I am constantly craving all the seafood in the world, especially if it's cooked in a Mediterranian style. Well Madrid fulfilled all those cravings!

1€ tapas at the mercado de san Miguel

           
Eating out in Madrid is really really cheap. Ok not as cheap as Hong Kong's $13 congee or noodles, but for Western Europe, it's cheap, especially in comparison to Italy who is essentially Spain's long lost brother. In many of the cafes/restaurants they had lunch deals for 10€ which included an appetizer, main course, dessert and a drink. The food wasn't that great in these places and tended to be quite basic (salads, paella, soup for appetizers. Chicken escalopes, fried fish or steaks for mains and then flan, ice cream or store bought mousses for dessert), but it was still a good meal, and a very good price.

At one of these restaurants.

Cheapest Sushi In Town (with Froyo for dessert!)

This place is one of my favourite places to drop by whenever I'm needing a quick sushi pick me up (let's be honest, when don't I) and also me and my best friend's favourite place to hang out at.

This is me and my sis' FAVOURITE (We call it the jizz salmon roll)!

 When this bad boy starts making its way down the conveyer belt we just stand up and walk over to where it is and snatch it before anyone else gets it. Yup we're crazy!

Why? Its only $8 (hkd) a plate!!!! That's $1USD!! For everything and anything !!!

There's no menu here, just grab whatever you fancy off the conveyer belt! The service is rather mediocre but the sushi isn't bad (considering the price!!) And even sashimi is the same price.

It does get busy here during peak hours, especially on the weekends, but the wait is usually no more than 15 minutes but there is a 50 minute time limit until they evict you. 

Not fat at all (ok we shared that)

They also have dessert like cream puffs, cheese cake or puddings!!  But we usually skip dessert here so that we have just a little bit of space left for some delicious frozen yoghurt across the road at tuttimelon. yum yum!

Green tea, passionfruit, Angel something (Strawberry and coconut) and japanese yoghurt flavoured froyo with blueberries, mangoes (trying to be healthy here!), strawberrry flavoured crunchy dots, GREEN TEA MOCHI and mango flavoured popping bubbles. YUM YUM YUM. yes i realized that I went overboard after I threw everything in...)

Sushi Express

G/F, Taurus Building, 21A-21B Granville Road, Tsim Sha Tsui  

(Opposite The One) 

Tuttimelon

Shop L308, TheONE, 100 Nathan Road

PS: Some exciting news! I have been invited to London Fashion Week which will be coming up in less than two weeks! So watch this space guys! 

xx Vagabond Girl

Paris : Brunch at Angelina's

Angelina is a beautiful cafe/restaurant  on Rue de Rrivoli right opposite the Jardin de Tuleries, often featured on TV and magazines with a shop selling tea time goods and a patisserie filled with with goodies.

We decided to go for the brunch set which consisted of :

Tea, coffee or their renowned hot chocolate.

I highly recommend the hot chocolate as it is what Angelina is famous. It is like no other hot chocolate I've ever drunken. It's dense, creamy and oh so chocolatey without being so sweet it gives you diabetes.

Orange, grapefruit or lemon juice. 

My mum decided to be gutsy and go for the lemon juice, and lemme tell you this, its definitely not for the faint hearted. It is literally just a squeezed lemon....

Bread and jam/honey

A selection of pastries : raisin pastry, pain au chocolat and a croissant.

Eggs, and you could choose between scrambled, boiled, fried or omelette. I got the omelette. For 3€ extra you can add ham and cheese and that's what I did (but only cheese since I don't eat meat).

An entree : Foie gras pâté with toast and fig chutney or Norwegian smoked salmon with creme fraiche and blinis (which is what I got)

Fruit salad  (which I forgot to take a picture of...but it is just some chopped fruits in a bowl....instead...here is a photo of me and my mum.)

2 macarons (which are rather mediocre as they didn't melt in your mouth Pierre Herme style...)

All for 39€! Definitely cheaper than individually ordering different things (just the hot chocolate is 7.50€, or the omelette is usually like 15€!)

We also got tried the truffle ravioli (24€) as it sounded so tempting and good but I was a little disappointed as the fillings of the ravioli were very cheesy but not very truffley :(

Overall it was a lovely Sunday brunch experience, and I think that the brunch set is really worth it as me and my mum actually shared it (as well as the ravioli) and by the end we were absolutely stuffed! There is also a very lovely ambiance and decor (so very French!) but it tends to be rather touristy (but if you're a tourist too, why the hell not!)

xx Vagabond Girl

Summer in Forte Dei Marmi

One of the main problems of doing something interesting instead of sitting at home, is that I have to sacrifice internet and my connection with the world.

Although the beach along the coast (Forte dei Marmi, Cinquale, Massa, etc.) all claimed to have wifi, it was obviously a piece of shit and never worked (unless I started walking up and down the shore waving my ipod touch around like a lunatic).

I have been going to Forte dei Marmi since I was 5 or 6, so here are some things to do in the area.

• The boardwalk is filled with "bagni" or beach clubs, all complete with a restaurant/bar, cabins and umbrellas with loungers for you to rent for a day, a week or the whole summer. Of course, prices vary and so do the facilities. On a budget? Look around for the communal/free beaches. You will have to either burn to crisp in the sun or bring those huge umbrella things. 

Photo found here

• Apart from basking in the sun and ogling hot lifeguards while running up and down the beach trying to stalk celebrities or the famous footballer, Buffon at his own Beach Club, Forte dei Marmi is well known for it's shopping. With many cute boutiques and typical designer shops. But beware, the stuff here isn't cheap. 

Photo found here

• Tired of the sky high prices of the shops and boutiques mentioned above? Well on Wednesdays and Sunday mornings, there is a huge "mercato" or market in the square/area (don't worry you'll find it), selling branded/designer bikinis, shoes, clothes, fur coats, cashmere, accessories and everything else that constitutes a woman's wet dream. (Seriously, prada shoes for 80 euros!) There are also a lot of stalls selling home stuff, so table cloths, plates, glasses, whatever. I recommend you go early, like 8:30/9ish as it gets packed already at that time, and it gets hotter and... (going onto my next point)

Photo found here

• There is never enough parking, so I also suggest you rent a bike if your beach, house/hotel and the shopping area is relatively close by. Forte dei Marmi is always filled with stylish tanned women, with 6 inch wedge heels cycling around on bicycles. How they do it? Even I don't know (believe I've tried, and had to run back home to change into flip flops)
• The Clubbing here is supposed to be quite good. With some really fancy clubs with footballers and celebrities. There are also a few parties on the beach and I went to one one night, but it was rather average, it was so dark I couldn't see the faces of the guys who tried to dance with me 
• There's also a luna park in between Forte dei Marmi and Cinquale every summer. They have some really thrilling rides (which are sort of expensive as you pay each ride you go on), but it's always great fun with a group of friends. 

Then there's the food. To be precise, the SEAfood. There are a whole range of fancy expensive restaurants for the rich (Russian tourists) to splurge all their cash on, as well as a small little shack on the beach serving plates of fresh calamari at very low prices

 Looking for something impressive but more in the middle? Try Gilda. It looks fancy actually, but the prices won't force you to sell your house and camp out under a bridge for the next month. A bagni/beach club in the daytime, it transforms to a beautiful candlelit restaurant on the beach, in the sand. Remember not to wear heels as you'll look like an idiot  (like me).  

Service was kinda iffy. They seemed to be understaffed, as they were all running around frantically, while yelling at each other. Not to mention there were enough tables for the people waiting, but not enough people to prepare the tables for the customers. But they apologized and all.

Since we're asian and like to try each other's food, we ordered three dishes to share. 

Grilled Tuna. There was so much tuna that I kind of got sick of tuna for the day. (There was more tuna under that mountain)

Raw fish antipasto. The closest to sashimi i've had in weeks. Pardon the empty oyster shell, I have an oyster obsession and ate it the second it arrived. Personally I thought that the oyster wasn't cold enough.

Steamed seafood salad. With cuttlefish or squid, I can never tell the difference. Each dish cost 15 euros, and was quite a big portion so it filled me up quite nicely!

The website of the bagni/beach clubf and restaurant can be found here

Medieval Festival in Briançon, France

I apologize for the lack of posting in the past 2 weeks! Normally, I tend to sit at home a lot doing nothing, hence allowing time for me to blog to the extent that I don't know what to blog about. However, the past few weeks, I have been going out so much, everyday, with friends, eating, drinking, shopping to the point that although I had loads to blog about, I had no time to blog! I guess we can't have it all in life!

Anyway, I finally left Hong Kong for her annual summer vacation in Europe. For the first week, I will be staying in Bardonecchia in Italy, which is in the Piedmont region . I have to admit that I am more of a beach girl than a countryside/mountain girl, and I generally have more fun at the beach, meeting new friends and swimming. In the countryside..I don't really know what to do (well now I can catch up on blogging I guess!). I like taking walks, but mainly around town/shops! The only plus to the countryside and the amazing mountains that surround me is the fact that they are much more fun to photograph.

Bardonecchia is only about 10 minutes away from the French border, and 30 minutes from the city with the highest altitude in the European Union, Briançon, famous for it's UNESCO World Heritage site - a huge citadel/fort built in the 1700s. And what luck! The day we went was during the weekend of the Medieval Festival!

We were taken back in time to the Medieval times,with people and children dressed up in costumes. All waiters and waitresses included! There was a marketplace, full of stalls selling jewellery, food (medieval style), costumes and shoes for those willing to join in and even weapons and armours for kids (or adults) wanting to try out the medieval way of life. Hay and straw was scattered throughout the streets, and there was live music and dancing, not to mention very entertaining "beggars"/tramps to really enhance the theme.

I must say the kids running around the town were simply adorable! The little boys all holding swords and bows, trying to fight each other. The little girls in long dresses and pink or purple head dresses with flowy bits running around living their dreams as princesses in a castle. It made me want to be a kid again to join in the fun! 

We decided to go for some crepes to rest our legs and have a snack. Instead of going for the regular Nutella and banana that I love, I decided to try something new. The crepe flambee with triple sec and vanilla ice cream particularly caught my eye. 

It was basically a crepe with a scoop of ice cream on top, which was drenched in cointreau, and then set on fire! However it didn't burn very well, so a lot of the alcohol remained, so I basically had a crepe drenched in alcohol, but the burnt bits tasted orangey and made the crepe kind of crispy too. At first, they brought me a crepe with grand marnier, but they misunderstood and didnt give me the ice cream, so they brought me another one. Thank god, since the ice cream really helps balance out the flavours.

My dad on the other hand had a crepe with honey and walnuts. I didnt really like it (but maybe it's because I dislike honey and I'm not a big fan of walnuts either), but he thought it was good. I personally prefer crepes which have the ingredients inside the crepe, not folded and just dumped on top. For mine, I think it's acceptable for the ingredients not to be inside the crepe as it wouldn't really work otherwise.

From the outer walls of the citadel, there are some spectacular views of the hills, as well as these little cubby holes, presumably used in the past as lookout posts. 

We soon got thirsty, and decided to go for a glass of wine...and French fries too! (Diet? What diet?)

It sure was a great outing for the afternoon, and the old citadel is stunning, with it's quaint little streets, and water flowing down the middle of the main road in a little canal thing. And being lucky enough to witness the fantastic Medieval festival was more than I could ever ask for!

The best waffles (格仔餅) in Mong Kok, or even Hong Kong?

So today I want to talk about my favourite Hong Kong style waffle aka 格仔餅 shop. I have surveyed pretty much all the shops in the Prince Edward/Mong Kok region, only to run flying back to this one. For those who do not know what Hong Kong style waffles or 格仔餅 are I shall explain!格仔餅 literally means "grid cakes" or "grid biscuits" and are usually made by street hawkers and eaten warm on the street. Hong Kongers live a very fast paced lifestyle, and people don't always have time to sit down and eat. So it is very common to see people eating while walking, shopping, and chatting with friends. This is also another reason why I always gain weight when i'm in Hong Kong (due to the highly captivating aromas that surround me, not to mention the sight of everyone munching away) . The waffles (which are different to eggettes, the waffles that look like a collection off balls stuck together) look like traditional waffles but they come in circles with the grid parts divided into four quarters. The waffles are then  spread with butter, peanut butter and then sprinkled with sugar, and then folded in half and served hot. They are a delicious treat especially in winter. These waffles are more floppy than Belgian waffles, and more bouncy/springyin texture. They usually range in $7-$20.

  

So the shop that I will be reviewing today, lies on Mong Kok Road, on the block in between Fa Yuen Street (fashion heaven! Blogpost soon!) and Tung Choi Street (also known as goldfish street due to the fact that it is full of goldfish shops (duh!) and pet shops full of cute puppies and kittens!). It is directly opposite the road from Fa Yuen Street Market and is exactly where the crossing is. 

Apart from making the best waffles in the area, they also make fresh smoothies and juices. My favourite here is the coconut sago drink which is only $8 and is a perfect way to cool down during a hot day while shopping at Fa Yuen Street.

Service is quite slow and it usually takes a while to wait for your food as there is usually only one lady making the waffles, although the shop is quite big and also has another side selling siu mai, fishballs and other various typical savoury street food.

The price is very good! It is one of the cheapest in the area, with the average waffle price being $10+. I have yet to try the other more exotic flavours, as I prefer the original. I have this thing where once I find something that I like I always choose the same thing over and over again! 

One time, I tried the eggettes (in chocolate and original flavour mixed together). Sadly they were extremely disappointing and lacked that eggy taste that they were supposed to have. It feels as if the mixture was watered down too much, so I would go for the waffles here. They make the best eggettes in  Tsim Sha Tsui on Nathan Road. 

Voila! Le waffle! The waffle itself is crispy on the outside yet soft and moist in the inside (which I think is the best). Although, I think that the waffle lacks eggyness, the lady always generously drowns the waffle in butter and peanut butter without putting too much sugar (just the way I love it!)

And for some reason, everytime I eat a waffle here, I always manage to get peanut butter on my clothes. I guess this is just proof that they put enough sauce!