PLATEFUL AND PLEASED
(Part 1)
[NOTE: This food story covers travels over the last three years- old to now. Basically archived pictures and notes that were shaken up, dusted and voila. .....]
Travel, they say, widens your mind and broadens your horizons
An unquestionable truth.
What however, is overlooked is that travel also widens and broadens your waistline!
There is that one line from 'A Room of One's Own" (Virginia Woolf 's essay) , 'One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well'. Sacrilegious it maybe to tamper with it, but one likes to add a little twist to it, 'One cannot think well, love well, sleep well and travel well, if one has not dined well'.
One's travel agenda is clear - see, admire, learn, praise or question, try and interact with the locals, specifically visit the local markets and eat! It is the eating that more than often tends to slip into the excess slot. For there is always that imp in the head that goes drumming constantly - you are on a holiday, enjoy the holiday and what is a holiday without feasting? Watching what is on your plate and matters of workouts can always be done once you are back home. Restaurant bookings are given equal priority with room and travel reservations. And the waistline ........
NEPAL NOSTALGIA
Who travel to the mountains during the raining season and especially Nepal in the Himalayas. We do and we did. Nepal is familiar territory after multiple visits over the decades and the local cuisines are quite the favourite.
The 'Thakali' thali has been done endless times and since the cuisine has travelled into other countries including our place of residence, we decided to give a go-by (initially that is!) and as suggested by local friends it was a full 'Newari' meal in Thamel, Kathmandu. Newaris are the indigenous people of the mountain nation an have a distinct cuisine. A Newari thali or Newa Ja Bhu. For all unfamiliar with the contents of a Newa thali, please get someone who is well versed in Newari cuisine to guide you especially when it comes to the meat items as buffalo meat reigns supreme. Or like me you might be eyeing the white conch shaped big dumplings or momocha only to learn that the fillings are spiced minced buffalo. Then there is chhoyla which translates into smoked buffalo meat that is sliced and marinated, haku chhoyla or diced, marinated and roasted buff - as the locals call it. Wait, there is is more to come. Kachilaa is the Newari version of tartare. Then, there are dishes with offal that include stuffed and fried lungs, steamed and sauteed liver, tripe stuffed with bone marrow and tongue fry too! No Newari meal is complete with Aila , a local fermented drink made from either rice or barley. Unlike they way alcohols are usually are served, Aila is served in shallow earthenware bowls or a pasta bowl sized earthenware container.
In keeping with tradition all Newari dishes were served on brass plates, side plates and bowls and the non-Newari ones on just plain china. For me it involved a lot of questions about the ingredients and a lot of pick-some-put-aside-some. Chatamari the Newari rice crepe is always a welcome dish and especilally when it comes with eggs. Of course the can't-do-without- it the perennial favourite momos. To me half the pleasure of gorging on momos is the chutney-sauce that is a must accompaniment and the more chili hot factor the better. Good food and good company is a blessing.
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The heavy June downpour notwithstanding, Pokhara it was next. While its Phewa lake and Machapuchare (Fishtail) peak on the Annapurna region of the Himalayas are its major tourist attractions, Pokhara has other lakes too and Begnas is equally bewitchingly beautiful. Machapuchare is strictly forbidden to mountaineers because a community of Nepalis regard it as the abode of Lord Shiva.
Begnas is much smaller than Lake Phewa but one finds it amazingly soothing; maybe because not all tourists throng there. The rains had thankfully halted and the small eating joints on one side were setting up chairs and tables again. Naturally the fish were from the lake itself. The simple fried fish platter, just salted and dabbed with turmeric and fried, with a small dipping sauce of roasted tomato and roasted white sesame seeds ground into a chutney was just perfect.
If you are in Nepal how long can you stay away from a 'Thakali Thali' ? Not very long. Thakalis have their roots in Mustang, further up in the Himalayas and have their own distinct culture, traditions, cuisine and language. The simple wholesome cuisine is quite delectable depending on where you have it and how authentic it is. So Thakali Thali it was at the quaintly named 'Jetho Budho Bhansa Ghar' which in Nepali literally translates into ' Older old man' and bhansa ghar is of course the kitchen.
If you are in Nepal how long can you stay away from a 'Thakali Thali' ? Not very long. Thakalis have their roots in Mustang, further up in the Himalayas and have their own distinct culture, traditions, cuisine and language. The simple wholesome cuisine is quite delectable depending on where you have it and how authentic it is. So Thakali Thali it was at the quaintly named 'Jetho Budho Bhansa Ghar' which in Nepali literally translates into ' Older old man' and bhansa ghar is of course the kitchen.
The Thakali fare too was served in a brass plate. While the metal used for making the plates is usually brass sometimes, it can be alloy of five metals or paanchdhatu -gold, iron, zinc, silver . Naturally paanchdhatu dinner sets are not within everybody's budget. Rice ,which is the mainstay of the meal, is served in the centre surrounded by accompaniments, some in metal bowls and some on the dish itself, that go from freshly made radish achar, tomato chutney, sauted greens, cooked vegetables etc with non-vegetarian options- mutton, chicken and pork. One's favourite is always the dal that is slow cooked for hours on simmer; no overdose of spices , just jimbu and seasoning with a tempering of pure ghee and garlic slivers. Jimbu is an aromatic Nepali herb of leaves and stalks of wild onions/garlics that grow in the upper mountainous terrains. The dal is a comfort food of no other kind. Did Jetho Budho meet the criteria? Yes, every which way
RUSSIAN RENDEZVOUS
We were called crazy, traitors, and all kinds of names but when one accepts that one's past years will be longer than one's future ones, there are some 'have-to' where one only listens to one's heart. And so it was with Moscow and St.Petersburg. The Russian trip had many eyebrows going up and quite a bit of nay-sayers and even questioning of our sanity. The Russia-Ukraine had been raging for over months and, ' Who goes visiting a country at war?' was repeatedly thrown at us and most vociferously on the home front . But one when one knows that with age travelling will one day have to be curtailed and so Carpe Diem or just seize the day. And we did.
What can one say of Moscow? Maqnifique! Grandiose! Everything superlative. The Tsars and the then bourgeoisie knew what the best of everything meant and thankfully, the Marxists and the proletariat left the awe inspiring architecture, the metro stations, the museums, the arts and all things beautiful unharmed or damaged. Unfortunately, that cannot be said about some other nations after a revolution. And when it comes to St Petersburg just double up the adjectives!
A little confession - a misconception one had was that the Russians are dour, sour, borscht, blini etc thanks to the stereotypes dished out by Hollywood movies, TV serials and popular crime fictions and strangely where nearly all male characters are called Boris. And this, despite having been a regular Sputnik reader while growing up. And now lovingly nursing Vodka-tonic. Russia threw every misconception flying out the window. To all those putting up their noses at Aeroflot , take one flight and then we will talk!
There are cafes, restaurants, specialised restaurants, bars, lounges, patisseries and virtually every mode of dining and eating out. The Michelin Guide Moscow 2022 (the first one for Moscow if I am not wrong) included 69 restaurants.
The one dining place that was a 'must-do' was the Cafe Pushkin, housed in a century or two old baroque building. It goes without saying that the Pushkin here is none other than Alexander Pushkin, poet. novelist, dramatist, short story writer and generally dubbed the founder of modern Russian literature. The building housing the Cafe in the 1780s was built by a nobleman in the court of Catherine the Great. Later on it was purchased by a German aristocrat and its last avatar was as a pharmacy of all things. The Cafe came up in 1999 and serves 'noble cuisine from the 19th century' besides classic French dishes. The building with white and salmon pinkish exterior and wrought iron balcony and antique lamps, by itself does not stand out maybe because there are similar ones all over and the cracks on the walls at the entrance don't help. The interiors of course immediately say aristocracy even if the shine is somewhat dimmed.
As the food, well it was novelty including wild boar. The dish called Sala turned out to be wild boar fat, salted and flavoured with garlic and chilled, shaped like rolled curls of white butter. Our companion at the table, someone who has been living in Moscow for decades , told us that the Russians preferred to have neat vodka with Sala or the curled wild boar fat. If it is Russia, there has to be caviar and there was, served on little roundels of blini or Russian pancakes with sour cream. Not exactly a fan of beetroot but the salad served was delicious. While the other two opted for heavy servings of meat, one's choice of fish soup was a clear dill favoured consome with potato chunks, potato bits and cubes of fish, a couple of varieties, the ginger vodka shots upped the experience. Another must have was piroshki. One learnt that that piroshki (pirogi) translates into pielings or little pies. Since the meat version had mixed meat fillings, one had to opt for the potato and mushroom filled variety. An oh! sour cream is the perennial accompaniment and the spirit naturally vodka. The dessert was pirozkhi and yes, it is the sweetened version of piroshk with the casing being the same leavened dough with only the fillings moving from savoury to sweet. Ours was apple. Would I go for second helping. Nah
Goergia might be a former Soviet Republic but its cuisine is thriving in Russia and not without reason. It comes with a fascinating history- as the Tsars extended the country's boundaries, they also incorporated cuisines from those regions and Georgian topped the list. The Tsarist dynasty might have met a tragic end but the Georgian cuisine found a strong supporter in of all the people, Joseph Stalin! The general secretary of the communist party was a Georgian native. So, Georgian food continued to be on the 'elite' list never mind the political leanings. The Khachapuri Cafe near Aptekarskiy Ogorod or the Apothecary Garden had both indoor and outdoor seating. The outdoor was a long narrow verandah like structure overlooking the garden.
Khachapuri translates into 'cheese bread' in Georgian; khacho or cheese and believe it or not puri is bread!. So Khachapuri it had to be. It's a roundish bread that is stretched at one end which tapers to a little point. The roundish portion has a little well in it containing the fillings that go from meat, chicken, lots of varied cheese, some salted and egg yolk. The Imeretian (named after Adjara, a region in Georgia) was quite salty. The juice however came out of a can. The pear lemonade that one had came with a pronounced aniseed flavour. The Georgian tea was served accompanied by three small glass bowls containing walnuts dipped in honey, a halwa made from sunflower seeds and the last something which we couldn't figure out at all.
Arbat Street, about a kilometre long, is a pedestrian street in the historical centre of the city and dates back to the 15th century. The street is described by almost all tourists brochures and reviews as an atmospheric historical area and sure enough there are tourists galore and most of them Russians themselves. And if it is a touristy hotspot, it naturally means quite a number of souvenir shops and some quite kitschy .After trying out Russian and Georgian fare, we settled for the perennial favourite- Japanese. The rather prosaically named Corner Cafe and Kitchen is indeed in a tucked away corner, a few steps down and once inside, the prosaic gives to charming interiors, quaint angles et al. The winner of course was the food- delicious edamame, salmon and avocado salad, pork ramens and chicken with rice. The Japanese really know how to turn out bucketful of flavours. Oishi indeed!
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A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (2016) is one book that started slow, for me that is, and before one could say vodka, it became simply captivating. The 1917 Bolshevik Revolution is on and the protagonist Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is sentenced to spend his life under house arrest in Moscow's Metropol Hotel. Naturally, a check-out was called for. This was one of the rare instance when fiction and reality gelled beautifully. The hotel is a work of art alright and the ambience equally enchanting. Unfortunately, it was a post lunch visit so a meal was ruled out. It was coffee and sweet treats at its ground floor coffee shop
Off we went to Homep 15 Wine Bar &Shop, Stretenka Street. When they named it wine bar, they meant it every which way. Almost all the walls are lined with glass fronted cabinets packed to the gills with spirits of every kind and as per their claim, the best wines of Russia. The food is very modernistic but again as per their claim, made wholly from local products. We were lucky that our very voluble steward certainly knew his business and how. The wines flowed, each quite impressive and as his suggestions we went with dishes that looked like lessons in chemistry but packed in whole of flavour and sensory experience. Enthralling!
It has been said oft time that when as a traveller you begin to know where you get the best breakfast, it's sadly time to leave. We discovered ours by chance. It was the delicious aromas wafting that lured us in.. Natural light streaming in, a bustling happy ambience and endless spreads of freshly made eatables. If we had to miss breakfast there for some reason or the other, we would gravitate towards on the way back for some coffee and a bite or two of something dessert-y. Unfortunately, one seems to have failed miserably at photographing it. Of the two, one is of the floor!
ST PETERSBURG
If Moscow is grandeur in full glory, St Petersburg is majestic coupled with breath taking. To actually experience breath taking in every sense, just go to the Hermitage. It is a treasure trove that belies imagination. And to think it took birth in 1764 as the court museum of Tsarina Catherine 11 better knon in history books as Catherine the Great. Often dubbed the 'enlightened despot' the over 3 million art establishes without doubt that it is a befitting moniker for her. It was only after the Russian Revolution of 1917 that ended the rule of the Tsars (Romanov Dynasty), the the Hermitage was opened to the public. It is impossible to visit every room and see every work of art there. Our guide tells us that one would need eleven years to view each exhibit on display for only one minute and that too without taking any breaks!
But breaks are called for especially of the food and the feeding kind. August in Russia is apparently peak holiday season with warm weather and school breaks, so it naturally follows that even for the Russians, St Petersburg is a favourite getaway which in turn translates into packed eateries. And those on the Neva River side are packed to the gills. We manage a table at a restaurant (don't ask me the name) because the dishes looked good. Yes, going by face value. After the usual drink, naturally vodka especially in Russia, the salad comes with boiled pork, greens, tomatoes, avocadoes in a spicy mayonnaise. Funnily, while we asked for the said salad, the steward kept warning us that the dressing was really spicy. In fact, I requested him to to increase the spice factor to the maximum. Hah! Poor Scoville Scale died a thousand deaths. Overlooking that, it was a wholesome dish. Even irony must have chuckled when it came to the Shrimps New Orleans style of all the places in Russia. Clearly Taste Sans Fontieres! Back at the bar of the hotel we were staying in , it was decided that another round of zah zdah or simply cheers was called for. The caramelised peanuts came in the most lurid colours, neon greens, pinks and every repulsive shade. Ugh! The comfort of pretzels compensated.
Ever wondered how bar and restaurants proprietors name their establishments? Maybe, just count the number of chairs in the joint? The Jazz bar, 48 chairs on Nevskiy Prospekt, thankfully hasn't let its bland name get in the way. Housed in an old mansion with two big rooms, one a a bar and the other with of course 48 chairs. The jazz musicians perform on a small stage and everything is old world charm - wall papers, wooden parquet flooring etc. The perfect ambience to drink, dine and listen to the live music. They do mean desserts too. The Belgian chocolate and cranberry combination as well as the one with mango were smack
If Cafe Pushkin in Moscow was old traditional Russian cuisine, that too of the noble class, Banshiki in St Petersburg is an amalgamation of old and some 'innovative' new ones said to be the reinterpretation of traditional cuisine by Chef Stanislav Levoho. It has been called the best restaurant for local cuisine in St Petersburg. The ambience is said to be recreation of a Dacha or a country house. Well, never having into a Dacha, we accept the claim without any murmurs. This is one place that will remain etched in one's memories because the spirits on offer were not just eye opening but mind boggling. Hrenovuha or horseradish wine! Kvass (low alcoholic) beverage produced from all things -dried rye bread that is naturally fermented and said to be good for the gut. Hell! it seemed like the Russians could turn every ingredient into exquisite tipples. And sometimes they pack in so many ingredients that after a point one loses count. Krasnaya Polyana liqueur is one - cherries, tons of herbs, galangal like ginger, endless spices and honey said to be collected from the mountainous area around the Black Sea. The Kvass was 'out of this world' for yours sincerely, The Hrenovuha quite potent and the Krasnaya Polyana too overpowering. After that, one went into a hazy world even as other varieties followed. As for the food - in that spirit induced feeling of all 'hail to the world' - recollections are of a turkey pate with a touch of sweetness, a herring sauerkraut potato and quail egg appetiser and a prawn dish
Georgian food.? Ah we had it in Moscow, I told our guide Nadia. Not the kind where I am taking you was the prompt reply. Her pride was fully justified. There was no khachapuri and it didn't even register that it was missing from the spread till much later. There were soups, breads, salads, big dumplings and varieties of protiens and the addictive fruity wines.
In St Petersburg it is next to impossible to miss the Kupetz Eliseevs Food Hall. Firsts, its facade is a oh-my-god-what-is-that? And no, not in a very complimentary way. The bottom half has huge display windows and guess what, they are curtained with stage curtains like drapes which one thought had gone into extinction and figurines are lined in a row to public view. The supporting pillars and window frames are ornamented . I guess it is supposed to be reminiscent of the imperial past of the city. Kupetz is Russia's oldest food hall which started in the 1930s as trading house dealing in the best or rather the exotic and rare foods, fruits and wines. Even during the Soviet food shortage in the second and third decades of the twentieth century, Kupetz is said to have remained open catering to the ultra rich.
The tradition of only the best on offer continues and under its roof there are said to be over 3000 varieties of exclusive goods covering the whole whole gamut of caviar to coffee, charcuterie to cheese etc and etc. On the mezzanine floor is a la carte restaurant called, what else, but Mezzanine and a fine dining restaurant Sklad No5 apart from the Coffeeshop. There is just one word for the product and the display - fascinating. We didn't eat, we bought. A little suggestion : tighten your purse strings. And above all, remember that non-Russian credit cards do not work (thanks to the blockage of payment getaways) and the exchange rates for US dollars are dismal.
How many can one honestly say that they are familiar with all historical monuments, tourist magnets and the like in their own city? Somehow, the tendency seem to be give what's around everyday a pass. One pleads guilty and the same attitude stretches to cover restaurants in the hotel you are staying in. This time, one decided to buck the trend if one can say that in this connection. And dinner it was at the Paulaner Bar and restaurant in the hotel we were staying. The claim is that they offer the full Bavarian experience with German beer to homemade sausages. The beer, the partner claimed, was good. The food - the salad was nothing to get excited about and the main course of roast ribs and potatoes had tonnes of potatoes but oh so so bland.
Pancakes must be one breakfast item with universal appeal. Just that in Russia it is called Blini and is not necessarily made from wheat flour only, buckwheat flour seem to be popular. It can be both sweet or savoury and again the accompaniments are not the regular butter and maple syrup or honey. One can have it with sour cream and caviar too or just with the sour cream. Breakfast indulges can be salmon on rye with berries/fruits and sour cream . Incidentally, rye bread appears to be very popular. And sometimes there's nothing more comforting than croissant and coffee With a little bit of caviar on the side!
