Alimentum, Cambridge

This is the second new restaurant we tried this month. Alimentum has caused quite a stir since it entered the Cambridge restaurant scene in 2007. It is not short of praising reviews but also pulls in some opposite opinions. This has been on our list to try and we did last Saturday.

Here is what we tasted:

Amuse-bouche:

Mushroom and porcini veloute

House bread with butter

Starters:

Mackerel encrusted with thin bread, horseradish and mooli

48hr lamb with anchovies, olives and broad beans

Main:

Sirloin beef, corn, warm lettuce salad with ranch dressing and potato mash

To finish:

Passion fruit tart with coffee ice cream and meringue

Assortment of British and French cheese from a cheese cart

The first thing that caught our attention is their nice décor, modern and elegant. We were seated comfortably with a table of plenty space. Live music was on all night during our visit. Lovely.

Shortly after we ordered, we were treated with porcini veloute and house bread. I have never tasted veloute before. The version from Alimentum consists of tiny fine bubbles, i.e. foamy. Sorry to say that this is not my cup of tea. The flavor was nice, with a deep earthy porcini taste. I would love it better if its texture were silky and creamy. The butter which came with the bread was very good. It has a hint of caramel when you eat it. The house bread was well made. Good start.

The Mackerel starter was very popular as it kept coming out from the kitchen. Hubby ordered one and he loved it. The combination was full of contrast and complement. Like crispy bread skin of mackerel contrasting with softly poached horseradish, or the rich taste of mackerel with the freshness of mooli. The whole dish is a brilliant design. My 48-hr lamb was less spectacular. It was tender all right but not stunning.

As for the main course, we both ordered sirloin beef, cooked to rare. I had great expectation before it's served but my heart sunk half way when I saw it. First, the presentation needs to be re-thought. The green skid mark in the middle of the plate was not very appetising for me. Secondly, our beef was presented in cubes of 2-cm, i.e. pre-cut. The carnivore inside me was howling already. Why on earth would you pre-cut my steak?!?! As a steak lover, I take pleasure in every second I spend with my steak. It starts from smelling its aroma with my nose, examining my whole steak from all angles with my eyes, cutting it with my knife to my desired size and savoring it in my mouth with all my senses united. That's the full process for me to enjoy my steak and now the process is broken. S.C.R.E.A.M.

Ok, let's try to stay positive.

The beef was tender. The warm salad with ranch dressing was delicious. The sweet note from the corn kernels was a nice complement to the whole savory dish. The concept was good but we probably won't order it again if the beef remains pre-diced before serving.

The highlight of our dinner was the cheese plate from their nicely presented cheese cart. The person who served us the cheese is knowledgeable and friendly. And their cheese selection is fabulous, with good representations from British and Continental providers. My passion fruit tart did cheer me up after seeing my beef diced without my consent.

Food aside, the service staff from Alimentum were a bit let-down. They are individually courteous (if feeling a bit pretentious) and that's the problem. The whole service staff should work as a team, not as singletons. And that's exactly how we felt during our visit. Getting someone's attention was not easy (the restaurant was not full during the 3-hr we were there). It took us a long time to complete the bill paying process. However, the menu is unique and creative. We like the food enough to come back again to see how the restaurant matures. Probably not with friends though.

food: 8/10
service: 6.5/10

Alimentum
152-154 Hills Road

Cambridge CB2 8PB

May the wind be gentle

Soave sia il vento from Così fan tutte composed by Wolfgan Amadeus Mozart



Soave sia il vento,
Tranquilla sia l’onda,
Ed ogni elemento
Benigno risponda
Ai nostri desir

This is for people who are rebuilding homes in Australia, bravely face the natural disaster in New Zealand, Japan and Burma, or fighting for a better life in Libya. Also for you, who is going through a dark moment in life and thought that there is no light at the end of the tunnel. 

Yes, there is. Hope is born when you stare at the hardship in its eyes. Keep going for that's the only way out.

Keep on trying

"If you didn't get an offer for a new position or client in February, then keep talking, presenting, and interviewing - it's coming"

Thank you, Ms Miller, for the kind words. I will keep on trying.

On your side

When I saw the disappointment in your eyes, it felt like a knife wound on me. When I hear you start doubting yourself, my heart aches.

Never ever doubt yourself's ability just because you choose not to get dirty with the rest. You know you are better than that. I know you are.

In sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow. I promise to love you, to support you, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you, to get crazy and blue with you. Like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down.

It is still vivid in my heart, darling. Don't you forget that.

I bake - Banana bread with walnuts and chocolate ginger pieces

For unknown reasons, I can't associate banana with fruit. Fruit, for me, has to come with juice that flows freely when you bite into. Preconceived ideas, I know. Perhaps that's why I prefer banana's creamy fragrance to its texture. I rarely pick up a banana and eat but love everything made with it, in any form of dessert. Pudding, cream pie, banoffee pie, ice cream, milk shake, smoothie or any bakery item, you name it and I love it all. On the contrary, Hubby looks in horror when I make anything with banana. For him, banana has to be eaten plainly and straightly. Alas, I guess that's why they say Opposites Attract.

Here is one of my favorite banana bread recipes, adapted from this recipe.

Banana bread with walnuts and chocolate ginger pieces

- 500 g banana puree (roughly from 5 medium-sized bananas)
- 100 g butter, softened
- 100 g brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 250 g flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp mixed spice (e.g. cinnamon, nutmeg).
- walnut pieces
- chocolate ginger pieces, roughly chopped

Make banana puree from very ripe bananas. I prefer using a hand-held stick blender to create a very smooth texture. It is also possible to squash banana in a flat bowl with a fork to make a rather chunky puree. It's up to you.

In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and vanilla extract together until the butter is aerated and sugar is fully incorporated. Add in eggs. Start with one, mix well and add another.

Sift the flour and baking powder and add into the butter mixture. Pour in the banana puree. Mix everything with a rubber spatula. Fold the batter gently but thoroughly. Mix in the chocolate ginger pieces (if using). Pour into a cake tin. Smooth the top of the batter and decorate with walnut pieces.

Bake it in the oven of 200C for 60-65 minutes.

The simplicity of it

It all started from last Saturday when I was preparing ingredients for Hachis Parmentier. One key ingredient is cooked/boiled beef. I followed the instructions (almost) to the t. Into a pot of water, I put shin of beef, onion, garlic, bay leaves, black peppercorns, carrot sticks and celery slices. I brought the pot to boil, put the lid on and then turned the heat to low so that only occasional bubbles came to the surface of the pot. I waited patiently for at least one hour before opening the lid.

I could not believe how fragrant the bouillon was.

I kid you not. It's not like I have not made stew or soup before but I was truly blown away by the aroma of this bouillon. Because it was cooked mostly on low heat, the bouillon remained light colored and not cloudy. The smell is savory, soothing, curiously complexed. That's why it got me surprised because the number/type of flavoring ingredients are really kitchen standard and in fact less than I am used to. It made me wonder whether I have unwittingly obscured the true flavor of each dish by my over enthusiasm for herbs and spices.

That's when the thought of pot-au-feu came to my mind.

Pot-au-feu is French's version of boiled dinner. The English also has one called Gammon Stew. The Italian has Bollito Misto. I am pretty sure every country has its own version and the cooking philosophy is easy. It requires three sets of ingredients, meat, vegetables and spice/herb. Cooked simply in a pot of water and it is usually serves with salt, pepper and/or mustard. No complication needed.

The simplicity of pot-au-feu lends itself to a great basis for adaptation, such as Hachis Parmentier. I thought I was en route to Hachis Parmentier but I inadvertently ended up with two wonderful dishes, Pot-au-feu as a nice surprise side product. The beauty of trying new things. 

The only embarrassing thing was, Pot-au-feu ought to happen before Hachis Parmentier, well, at least the logical way. I did/ate it the other way around. It was still great.

Happiest time of a week

With so much expectation and excitement, Saturday is my happiest moment of a week. It is when I sit down, flip through cookbooks by sunny windows and plan the meals for the next 7 days. Without a fail, it always fills me with delight and suitably relaxes me every single time. I sometimes would start with a rough idea in mind before picking up a cookbook and firm up the cook plan with ideas from the book. Some other time, I would let myself be taken for a culinary ride by the author of a book and decide the cook plan later with whatever tickles my fancy.

This week I have been particularly inspired by Dorie Greenspan. As it happened today, I opened her book without any idea what I would want to cook and I couldn't take my eyes off some recipes of hers. Here are the meal ideas from her recent book, Around My French Table, of which I will make for us this coming week.

- Mussels and chorizo linguine

- Hachis Parmentier (Doesn't the name sound exotic?) As Dorie explains in the book, it's the French version of Shepard's pie (or rather Cottage pie because it uses beef and pork, not lamb).

Other planned meal ideas are:

- Cod coated with light bread crumb, with steamed rice and blanched green beans

- Tortellini with creamy Dolcelatte sauce

Those little pleasures in life, how can we live without them?

Have a good weekend, you all.

Oak Bistro, Cambridge

There are many wonderful things living in Cambridge. The youthful energy, the many colleges of historical importance and architectural allure, great adult education system and the opportunities to listen to many great scientists whom you have only heard of their names before coming here. I enjoy every minute of living my life here.

Unfortunately, eating out is not one of them. Most restaurants are either boring chains or simply not good. Maybe I have become picky over the years but really nowadays we are out of ideas as where to go for a quiet Friday night dinner or a relaxing Saturday lunch.

That may be about to change. There are few new independent restaurants popping up over the last two years. We decided that we will try them all this year.

We paid a visit to Oak Bistro last Friday. Right across the landmark Catholic Church (of Our Lady and the English Martyrs), behind the wooden door and warm light coming through the window panes is Oak Bistro. It is a Grade II listed building, nicely maintained. When you walk inside, you see the bare brick walls and big wooden (oak?) beams on the ceiling and dividing the dining area. With a lively atmosphere and warm candle light, I like it already.

After being led to our table, we ordered a bottle of still water and started to read the menu. Wow, it's been a long time since I read a restaurant menu which excites me. I want to try almost everything on the menu. Here is what we ordered:

Starters: 

Pan-fried scallops with mixed leaves, crisped pork belly with mustard and apple compote

Mains: 

Cajun sword fish with potato, tomato&green bean salad and guacamole, pan-fried calves liver with red wine shallot jus and potato mash

Desserts: 

Coconut panna cotta with brandy flambée prunes, Blackberry and apple crumble with custard.

Everything was cooked flawlessly and nicely presented. More importantly, they all tasted delightful. The juicy and plump scallops are lightly seared on both sides and dressed lightly with pesto, just enough to bring out the savory and sweet notes of scallops. The mixed salad on the side, I was told, was nicely seasoned and a great companion to the scallops. My crisped pork belly got my attention back to my plate. Crisp outside and tender inside. I only got a tiny smear of yellow mustard on my plate which didn't last long. A bit more would have been nice. Apple compote was a bit too sweet for me but a nice contrast to the pork. Now we couldn't wait for our main courses.

My Cajun sword fish came sitting on top of mixed salad and with a dollop of guacamole on the side. Mine oh mine oh mine, how did they get the sword fish so juicy and tender? Very lightly seasoned with Cajun spice, the fish steak was grilled to perfection. Firm without being chewy, the fish remained fork tender. I felt the luscious juice coming out from every bite I took. Really, this must be the best fish I have had for the past 10 years. The bed of salad which sat underneath consisting of crushed potato, blanched fine green beans, tomato dice and mix leaves did support the overall American southern style well. The guacamole bit was an interesting one. Before I tasted it, I thought that it was an odd combination to mix sword fish and guacamole. After tasting it, I realized that without avocado, the whole dish would have been too light. Guacamole brought the note of richness and creaminess into the mouth which made us feel satisfied. It still feels a bit odd to see sword fish and guacamole but it does work for me. As for calves liver, a liver aficionado did say that it's also one of the best he has tasted in a long time.

Lastly, dessert. You always have to have dessert, don't you? I absolutely loved my coconut panna cotta with brandy flambée prunes. The brandy flambée part was a genius stroke from Oak Bistro. It not only provided an elegant twist for the prunes, but also complemented the panna cotta perfectly. Even the hubby usually not the dessert type ate up all his crumble. I think that said it all.

All in all, Oak Bistro is certainly one of the best restaurants I have tasted in Cambridge. The service earned a top mark for me too. Attentive without being pushy. Every dish was served and taken away in a good rhythm. You will definitely see us go back for more and even with friends too.

food: 8/10
service: 8/10

Oak Bistro
6 Lensfield Road

Cambridge CB2 1EG
Closed on Sundays

It's (already) March

- Time flies.

- Daffodils and tulips are late this year. Daffodils should have come out this time already.

- I want to re-start gardening this year. Have neglected my little garden for several years.

- This year will be the Cambridge-tasting year. Have spotted a few new restaurants in town. Oak Bistro this Friday. Midsummer House is next.

- What is my professional future? Still haven't got a clue. After 10 years, can I still figure out? Is it so hard to have a satisfying job with a good pay in a nice location together with hubby? Yup, I know I am asking too much.

Just some random thoughts but I guess you already figured.

Enjoy the Spring.