Stuff To Do This Summer, When You're Not On A Beach Holiday

I hope this is going to be a long and hot summer, so let's make some plans. I'll try to give few international suggestions, so no friends of mine are left off.

Art, for example:

• Green Architecture for the Future 29/5-4/10 - Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen
• Super Contemporary 3/7-4/10 - Design Museum, London
• RA Summer Exhibition/Venice Biennale, Italy
• The Tates: Tate Modern,Tate Britain & Tate Liverpool, UK
• Picasso museum in Barcelona, Spain

Classical, for example:

• Salzburg Music Festival 25/7-30/8 - Austria
• Maggio Musicale Fiorentino 21/4-2/7 - Florence, Italy
• Stars of the White Nights at Mariinsky Theatre 21/5-19/7 - St. Petersburg, Russia
• Drottningholms Opera Festival 30/5-23/8 - Stockholm, Sweden
• Savonlinna Opera Festival 3/7-1/8 - Finland

Clubbing, Dance & Concert, for example:

• Space, Ibiza, Spain
• Docken, Nordhavn, Copenhagen
• Depeche Mode - live in Copenhagen (30 Jun)
• Find and visit a Beach Party

Around Town, for example:

• Visit Formula 1 race, like Valencia (21 - 23 Aug) or Monza (11 - 13 Sep)
• Copenhagen Cooking (21 - 30 Aug)
• Weekend Escape, see what Berlin can deliver over a weekend
• Visit Portobello flea market in London

Outdoor, for example:

• Grilling on the beach
• Outdoor movie screenings
• Go diving in Kullaberg, Sweden
• Catch a free outdoor concert like performance by the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera in Central Park, NYC

Of course, the best element during summer, by far, is the company around you... So, go for it and enjoy!

Sushinho, an Japanese restaurant with a subtle Brazilian twist

Surprisingly, Brazil has the largest Japanese population outside of Japan, and Sushinho is all about celebrating exactly this fact.

In short, contemporary Japanese cuisine with a subtle Brazilian twist, but also some... well... funny creations like for example the cocktail sakerinha: caipirinha with a saké base :-/


Outside...


Inside... darkish and exciting decor forms and sexy lounge bar downstairs.

What we had:


Up: Hijiki sashimi pizza, anchovy aioli, jalapeno
Down: Sweet potato gyoza, shitake & oyster mushrooms, shaved truffle


Wagyu beef, wasabi mash, romesco sauce


Same dish, different perspective...


Crispy sea bass, avocado puree, sushinho salsa, confit tomatoes

The starters ware delicious and main courses, especially the wagyu beef just perfect. Fairly priced, about 60€ per person, including wine. Don't miss it when in London as it is a real fun. Advance reservations are essential.

Rating: 8.0 (out of 10.0)

Sushinho
312-314 King's Road
London SW3 5UH

Quilion Restaurant, an Indian restoran awarded with a Michelin star

Quilon Restaurant in Victoria has been awarded their first Michelin star in the 2008. It is one of the only five Indian restaurant in London to win a Michelin star, and more over, the only South Indian restaurant in the UK to achieve this and it is also a wonderful delight.

The southern Indian coastal cuisine is a unique cuisine and it main ingredients are rice and sea food, especially shellfish. An interesting trivia; the Indian cuisine has had a remarkable influence on cuisines across the world, especially those from South Indian.

What we had:


Crispy Potato and Smoked Mushroom Chop with plum and mint sauce
(we thought it's lotus roots, but it's said "mushroom" on the menu...)


Quilon Salad, chef’s creation: mixed greens with patty pan dressed in lavender and kokum infusion


Spiced Stir-fried Oysters - rock oysters tossed in mildly spiced coconut paste


Up: Lemon Rice; Basmati rice tossed in lime juice, roasted cashew nut, curry leaves, split bengal gram and pure ghee

Down: Squid and Shrimps Allepy style; Squid batons and shrimps stir-fried with spices with touch of coconut


Upper left: Coconut Rice basmati rice tossed with grated fresh coconut, mustard and chilly

Upper right: Mixed vegies

Down: Goan Chicken chicken supreme cooked with Goan spices, vinegar and chilly


Jackfruit pudding (a mixture of ripe jackfruit, jaggery, milk and egg baked on a layer of crispy bread served with jackfruit and mango sauce)


Bibinca (a multi-layered goan specialty made with coconut milk, refined flour, egg yolk, nutmeg and sugar, served warm with vanilla ice cream)

One can taste the Chef Sriram Aylur passion and love for cooking, he is obviously a master in his kitchen, and these dishes had been one of the freshest ingredients I've tasted for a while.

It cost us about 75€ per person, including aperitifs and wine. It is absolute must when around London, as to my knowledge, this is the best place to taste Indian cuisine.

Rating: 8.8 (out of 10.0)

Quilon Restaurant
41 Buckingham Gate
London SW1E 6AF

My thoughts on Osterys

Same as for example wine and cheese, the flavor of oysters is tightly dependent to terroir, that is, the environment in which they grow.

There are at least a thousand of unique oyster terroir. Having on mind that I've tasted just a few different oyster "appellation", makes me an absolute beginner, but I'm willing to learn ;-)


Swedish delight from Grebbestad, town north of Gothenburg, known for superb Norway lobster and natural oyster banks in the Bohuslän archipelago.


My fancy metal oysters glove.


Of course you don't need fancy gloves and you don't even need fancy knives, but you absolutely need a clam/oyster knife and that will not not break your wallet.


Ready to satisfy my oyster craving

If you have tried once and you are not enthusiastic about it, give it another shot as you may tasted the wrong ones. There so much different flavors from salty to super sweet and from lemony high-acid finish to a petite oysters best for Champagne.

Make sure oysters are still alive (their shells must be tightly closed), scrub oysters with a stiff brush under running water, and use a towel as a protection. Always try to catch the oyster's juices by positioning shell cup-side down so its flatter side faces up.

Enjoy.

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants

Once again El Bulli, Ferran Adria’s restaurant on the Costa Brava north of Barcelona is at first place.


The kitchen at El Bulli

Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck is second and this is fourth year in a row.

But for me, the most exacting moment is actually Noma! This is chef Rene Redzepi’s restaurant in Copenhagen. Noma has jumped from from 10th to 3th place and he also took the Chefs’ Choice award.


René Redzepi @ Noma

He is the half-Danish, half-Macedonian and the head chef and co-owner of Noma. Noma is the only two-Michelin star restaurant in Copenhagen and one can freely say that he, together TV chef Claus Meyer (probably the the godfather of New Nordic cuisine) have reinvented the Nordic cuisine. The third partner in Noma is Swedish sommelier Pontus Elufsson. I guess that's a good receipt for a restaurant...

The worse surprise is Gordon Ramsay. His flagship restaurant in London dropped out of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list and failed even to make in the Top 100!

Bit trivia, The Fat Duck (2nd), was closed for a month earlier this year after ca. 500 guest reported sick. Anyway, according to the health officials, reason was a virus Winter Vomiting Disease.

This is the Top 100 list (the change in position from 2008 in brackets), made by 800+ food writers, critics and commentators and I can conclude I'm a lucky guy as I've been in quite few of them...

Enjoy:

1 El Bulli, Spain (=)
2 The Fat Duck, U.K. (=)
3 Noma, Denmark (+7)
4 Mugaritz, Spain (=)
5 El Celler de Can Roca, Spain (+21)
6 Per Se, U.S. (=)
7 Bras, France (=)
8 Arzak, Spain (=)
9 Pierre Gagnaire, France (-6)
10 Alinea, U.S. (+11)
11 L’Astrance, France (=)
12 The French Laundry U.S. (-7)
13 Osteria Francescana, Italy (New Entry)
14 St. John, U.K. (+2)
15 Le Bernardin, U.S. (+5)
16 Restaurant de l’Hotel de Ville, Switzerland (+11)
17 Tetsuya’s, Australia (-8)
18 L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, France (-4)
19 Jean Georges, U.S. (-2)
20 Les Creations de Narisawa, Japan (New Entry)
21 Chez Dominique, Finland (+18)
22 Ristorante Cracco, Italy (+21)
23 Die Schwarzwaldstube, Germany (+12)
24 D.O.M., Brazil (+16)
25 Vendome, Germany (+9)
26 Hof van Cleve, Belgium (+2)
27 Masa, U.S., (Re-entry)
28 Gambero Rosso, Italy (-16)
29 Oud Sluis, Netherlands (+13)
30 Steirereck, Austria (New Entry)
31 Momofuku Ssam Bar, U.S. (New Entry)
32 Oaxen Skaergaardskrog, Sweden (+16)
33 Martin Berasategui, Spain (-4)
34 Nobu U.K. (-4)
35 Mirazur, France (New Entry)
36 Hakkasan, U.K. (-17)
37 Le Quartier Francais, South Africa (+13)
38 La Colombe, South Africa (Re-entry)
39 Asador Etxebarri, Spain (+5)
40 Le Chateaubriand, France (New Entry)
41 Daniel, U.S. (=)
42 Combal Zero, Italy (Re-entry)
43 Le Louis XV, France (-28)
44 Tantris, Germany (+3)
45 Iggy’s, Singapore (New Entry)
46 Quay, Australia (New Entry)
47 Les Ambassadeurs, France (-2)
48 Dal Pescatore, Italy (-25)
49 Le Calandre, Italy (-13)
50 Mathias Dahlgren, Sweden (New Entry)

51 Zuma, China
52 Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley, U.K.
53 Spondi, Greece
54 L’Arpege, France
55 L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, China
56 Hibiscus, U.K.
57 Aqua, Germany
58 Le Gavroche, U.K.
59 Chez Panisse, U.S.
60 Les Amis, Singapore
61 El Poblet, Spain
62 Maison Pic, France
63 Cafe Pushkin, Russia
64 Le Meurice, France
65 Bukhara, India
66 Varvari, Russia
67 Schauenstein, Germany
68 RyuGin, Japan
69 La Maison Troisgros, France
70 Wasabi, India
71 The River Cafe, U.K.
72 Enoteca Pinchiorri, Italy
73 Le Cinq, France
74 Allegro, Czech Republic
75 Quintessence, Japan
76 Restaurant Dieter Mueller, Germany
77 Geranium, Denmark
78 Caprice, China
79 Jardines, South Africa
80 Amador, Germany
81 Biko, Mexico
82 L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon U.S
83 Fasano, Brazil
84 Mozaic, Bali
85 Obauer, Austria
86 Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee, France
87 L’Ambroisie, France
88 Maison Boulud, China
89 De Librije, Netherlands
90 Babbo, U.S.
91 Maze, U.K.
92 Zuma, U.K.
93 Manresa, U.S.
94 Pier, Australia
95 De Karmeliet, Belgium
96 Aubergine, South Africa
97 Bo Innovation, China
98 Rust en Vrede, South Africa
99 Del Posto U.S.
100 Reflets par Pierre Gagnaire, UAE

Rambles in Skopje, in a thousand words...

Some of my friends making remarks like I’m more or less focused on Japanese kitchen... that’s absolutely not true ;-)

So, I decided to present you a few Macedonian dishes.

I’ve arrived in Skopje just in time for the weekly after work late lunch at Kamin Camo (Fireplace Camo), a small family restaurant serving traditional Macedonian cuisine. Happens each Thursday and it starts quite relaxed and easy going... but always end ups with a small band coming and playing some traditional urban music...


A part of l'equipe Kamin Camo...


and me with Emil.

There isn’t any a la carte order, so one gets what’s freshly made. This is what we got…


Calf in a sauce with boiled potato @ Kamin Camo


Baked beans; it has a creamy texture and delicate flavor @ Kamin Camo


Polenta (made from cornmeal) with white cheese @ Kamin Camo


Stewed chopped pork with vegetables @ Kamin Camo


Dolmades in large grape leaves and yogurt @ Kamin Camo


Skopski kukurek (lamb intestines and sweet-bread, paprika, garlic and bay @ Kamin Camo


Kitchen utensils @ Kamin Camo

Next day, it is time for a lunch on the terrace of the restaurant Meana B. Their signature dish is a lamb.


Lamb cutlets @ Meana B


Calf filler with potatoes @ Meana B


Lamb kidney and pluck @ Meana B

Of course... next day at Urania...


Catfish cutlet @ Urania


Chopped pork tenderloin, with dried chili paprika and spring onions @ Urania

That's all… now I'll use next couple of weeks for digesting :-)

Restaurant & Enoteca The Hunter's Lodge

Time for a leisure lunch on Monday during Easter holidays… and if you are in Skopje, one of best place is enoteca/restaurant “The Hunter’s Lodge”. It is a part of the Hotel Hunter's Lodge "Kamnik" and it is located at the entrance to Skopje.

This is a restaurant where one can enjoy wild game specialties and approximately 100 different wines from all over the world including wine made at the same location by Kamnik.

I'll mention that by my humble opinion, Kamink’s wines are probably one of the best in Macedonia and wider in the region.


Traditional haters lodge interior ...


with all necessary elements…


A perfect antipasto dish: different types of wild boar & deer salami, smoked deer and fresh and tasty porcini


Main dish a slow cooked deer escalope…

And the star of the day:

Chateau Kamnik Cuvée de Prestige 2006 Barrique
Eye: Deep dark red
Nose: Blackberry, coffee, dark chocolate…
Palate: Very ripe, silky style, intense and same as on the nose, plus some licorice and spice.
Finish: Very long and nice mouthwatering feel.
Decanted: ca. 30 min.
Note: Amazing elegance. It will definitely gain complexity from aging. (89 pts.)

What is the verdict? If you are around, go for it!

Rating: 7.5 (out of 10.0)

Hotel Hunter's Lodge Kamnik
Kamnik b.b.
1000 Skopje, Macedonia