(Not so) blind tasting

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It's been a while since the MNSC boys last got together for dinner, and what made tonight special was the fact that all 7 of us were able to come together.  This is a very rare occurrence nowadays, as 2 of us are stationed outside of Hong Kong, and another one of us is only in Hong Kong half the time.

Dr. Poon was our gracious host this evening, and unsurprisingly (to me at least) the chosen venue was the Hong Kong Club.  The unfortunate outcome of this choice of venue was that I was unable to bring my camera gear with me into the private room, and I'd been carrying the stuff around for an entire day! Sheeesh!

We started with some jamón ibérico, which was fine on its own but didn't work so well with our aged white Bordeaux… bringing out the waxy, plasticky flavors from the fat.

The delicious fragrance of blé noir

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I made a date to have lunch with a friend, and was given the task of choosing the venue.  While I thought about going somewhere to get some good local Canto stuff that I would have no hope of having in Taipei, I had a tough time choosing the right place.

I wanted a place where the two of us can actually sit for a while and talk, without being rushed to vacate our seats right after we're done with the food.  Dim sum would have been great, but kinda tough for just the two of us.  And I'd already gone to my old neighborhood favorite Tasty Congee & Noodle Wantun Shop (正斗) yesterday for my stir-fried flat rice noodles with beef (干炒牛河)…

So it seemed like the perfect solution when La Crêperie de Hong Kong popped into my head.  I haven't had a good galette in long time, and it sure ain't somethin' I'm gonna get in Taipei!

A-salting the palate

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I'm back in Hong Kong spending some time with Tigger and family, and we went to Sushi Kato (寿司加藤) for dinner.  It's a little out of my usual patrol area, but apparently Mrs. Tigger used to come here a lot many years ago.  Given I'm with old regulars, I decided it would be wise to let them do the ordering.

The amuse bouche was herring roe (数の子) with Chinese cabbage.　The young sansho leaves (木の芽) provided a really nice kick...

Destination wedding Bali day 3: lunch and go

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A lazy morning after a late night of partying.  Hung out in the villa cabana and surfed the net, while I waited for lunch time to roll around.  My two-day stay in beautiful, sunny Bali is coming to an end.

I head back to the Warung for lunch, and take in the wonderful view of the deep blue sky.  I enjoy the last few moments I have at the Alila Villas Uluwatu.

Destination wedding Bali day 2: east over west

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After a late night, it was late morning when I opened my eyes.  I decided to hang out in my villa and get some use out of it for once…

There was a plate of local fruits in my room, and I decided to have it as breakfast.  The mini bananas were somewhat ripe.  The carambola was ripe and reasonably juicy.  Salak has never been my favorite, as it's always too sour and I don't like the texture in my mouth.  The mangosteen was ripe and juicy, and it's been a while since I last had some.  My favorite fruit in Bali is the local passion fruit.  I just love the fresh, subtle fragrance and delicate flavors - in stark contrast to the intense flavors of "normal" passion fruit that we are used to seeing.