Posts tagged “Food”

Guangzhou Gluttony

Posted on December 22nd, 2008

I spent last weekend in the culinary capital of southern China; Guangzhou. To say I ate a lot of food would be an understatement. It felt like a two day non-stop tour of east-asia cuisine with my stomach bearing the brunt of all manors of Chinese, Japanese & Vietnamese delights! Before visiting Guangzhou I was warned by many friends to be careful with tales of thievery and general social disorder so it was with some anticipation that I stepped off the train on Saturday morning. Whilst the city is a bit grubby around the edges it wasn’t as bad as I had been led to expect and indeed the city has a far richer history and culture than Shenzhen (being founded in 214BC). It was…

Maxim’s Palace

Posted on December 10th, 2008

If Dim Sum is your thing then Hong Kong is the right place to go. On my last visit I went to Maxim’s Palace, reputably one of the best restaurants to sample this delicious delicacy, strangely located in the City Hall. As it’s so popular be prepared for a wait when you arrive – you’ll be given a ticket with a number on which will invariably only make you more hungry as you soak up the sights and smells from the enormous dining hall with a great view over Victoria Harbour. “Traditional dim sum includes various types of steamed buns such as cha siu baau, dumplings and rice noodle rolls (cheong fun), which contain a range of ingredients, including beef, chicken, pork, prawns and vegetarian options… Dim sum can be cooked by steaming…

Ma Luan Shan Mountain

Posted on November 25th, 2008

Last weekend I joined some colleagues to climb another mountain, this time near the coast in Yantian district and more of a scramble rather than a walk! The path took us around a large reservoir and then up a rocky river bed which provided for a pretty unforgiving obstacle course. Due to the volume of other people on the same route the pace was a bit slow but luckily we had perfect weather; not too hot, not too cold. There were one or two hairy moments, especially at a steep waterfall where an old rope had been provided to climb up, the only problem being that water was still running over the rock face. The sensible ones in our group opted for the detour…

Mega Banqueting

Posted on September 29th, 2008

Last week had to be one of the busiest I’ve had in a long long time. Aside from climatic extremes of heat and rain food has to rank a close second in my new life here. Chinese cuisine encompass such a wide palate from across its many regions that you’re always spoilt for choice. Wednesday night celebrated the anniversary of the new company I have joined with all 500+ Chinese employees gathering together in a massive banqueting hall for an evening of mass catering and performance. I’ve never seen anything quite like it – after initial speeches and dinner various people got on the stage to sing their favourite songs which went on for about two hours! Thursday ended with a delicious meal in…

6000 Flavours

Posted on September 22nd, 2008

Yesterday for lunch I went to a restaurant called “6000 Flavours” which certainly lived up to it’s name judging by the voluminous menu. We had some special pork bone & sweetcorn soup along with fried eel and some curious vegetable balls containing a kind of mustard. The bones were cut in half and a straw provided so you could suck out the bone marrow which on the face of it is a bit disgusting but I gave it a go! The fun bit came when we ordered fresh noodles – a waiter came over with a strip of some kind of dough and proceed to make them in front of us but swinging it vigorously around in circles. Even the locals enjoyed the performance…

Xiabu Xiabu

Posted on April 5th, 2008

One of the best part of traveling is undoubtedly the food and trying new cuisines. Being such a large country China has a particularly rich array of options to choose from, with almost all regions being represented in Beijing and numerous local varients. On the evening after my day wandering through the north of the city I went for hot pot at Xiabu Xiabu (a popular restaurant chain) in Wangfujing. Here you choose from a selection of vegetables, meats and seafood to cook in your own individual hot pot containing stock of varying degrees of spiciness. Once cooked you usually dip the food in sesame sauce before eating with a bowl of rice. It’s not the first time I’ve had hot pot, but this…

Return to Beijing

Posted on March 30th, 2008

After saying goodbye to Seoul on Sunday morning it was soon time hop over the Yellow Sea and say hello to Beijing early afternoon. With some excitement my plane descended through the thick smog and the city emerged to once again reveal its mystical intrigue… I was lucky enough to be met by some old friends at the airport who helped me find my hotel (not far from Xizhimen subway station) and familiarise me with the local busses which are near impossible to use as the route signs are only written in Chinese. After this it was high time for dinner so we headed for a rather stylish Sichuan restaurant in a local department store. My last encounter with Sichuan food was mind blowing…

Nami Island

Posted on March 28th, 2008

The plan on my second day in Chuncheon was to visit a waterfall and then get a ferry to an inland island. This was all going to plan until we got off at the wrong train station and ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere which also happened to be devoid of any type of public transport. Walking back was definitely out of the question and so against my better instincts it was time to ask for help. In the end a pair of exotic peaches saved the day when we used them as a bribe to hitch a lift to the nearest town. Luckily the driver wasn’t a crazed psychopath! A bus trip and a hike up a snow laden trail later…

Chuncheon & Soyang Dam

Posted on March 23rd, 2008

On my fifth day in South Korea I headed east by train to Chuncheon, the capital of Gangwon province, a much quieter affair than Seoul with more of a country feel to it – they obviously don’t see a huge number of westerners here as the stares I got were far more pronounced. I’ve often been mistaken for an American whilst in Korea due to the massive US Army presence there but in general I’ve found people to be a little more gracious if they know you’re not one of them! Arriving around lunchtime it was time to find some food and as Chuncheon is famous for its “dak-galbi” (닭갈비), a spicy stir-fried chicken dish with vegetables (as seen before), it only seemed a…

Jackie’s Kitchen

Posted on March 23rd, 2008

So it turns out the Jackie Chan, the venerable Hong Kong action film star, has his own chain of restaurants serving his “favorite noodles & dim sum”. One branch can be found in the massive COEX mall located in the Gangnam district of Seoul, South Korea. With over 800 restaurants to choose from (yes, eight-hundred!!) the mall is a little hard to digest and unless you are heavily into shopping (I’m not) then there isn’t much more to do than marvel at the scale of consumerism on display here (with the possible exception of the Kimchi Museum). Photo by riNux Getting back to the food… we ordered a selection of (rather expensive) dim sum and noodles but I have to say I was disappointed.…

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Exploring asian culture, travel and technology

Posts tagged “Food”

Guangzhou Gluttony

Posted on December 22nd, 2008

Maxim’s Palace

Posted on December 10th, 2008

Ma Luan Shan Mountain

Posted on November 25th, 2008

Mega Banqueting

Posted on September 29th, 2008

6000 Flavours

Posted on September 22nd, 2008

Xiabu Xiabu

Posted on April 5th, 2008

Return to Beijing

Posted on March 30th, 2008

Nami Island

Posted on March 28th, 2008

Chuncheon & Soyang Dam

Posted on March 23rd, 2008

Jackie’s Kitchen

Posted on March 23rd, 2008