yunnermeier

I'll be visiting Istanbul next month. This thread is a little old so I'm just wondering if the recommendations remains the same? We'd like to try something really delicious and Turkish in a restaurant setting. We will stay in the Sultanahmet area but are more than willing to travel anywhere within the city:D Thanks in advance!

Enjoyed the food very much and the normal menu is surprisingly very reasonable. Too bad the service wasn't great.

Hi, I am not a chocolatier so I am not competition! I'm a student in The Netherlands and we're working on a project (fictional) which involves plenty of chocolates;) I would be very pleased if you could tell me something about the fine chocolate industry in New Zealand (I have tried Google but no relevant results) , facts & figures and about New Zealanders' attitudes towards premium chocolates in general. If you do not want to post your information here, please send me a private message. Thank you!

Mmmmmmm In Melaka, you'll find : amazing satay (the one I go to moved but I'll get dad to give you the new address if you're interested!) chicken ball rice (dirty place oppposite a bank- I think OCBC? in the center) Nyonya food (no recommendations because I eat this at home) Lok Lok (Chinese style fondue). I don't really like this so can't tell you where to go. I know there's a street with a whole row of shops. Penang Asam Laksa (Ayer Itam) Char Kuey Teow Nasi Kandar You can find any kind of hawker food in Penang I'm drooling, just thinking about it!

Lovely pictures..I really want to go there now ^^

Heads up! Reservations have started and scored a one-star restaurant ('t SchultenHues in Zutphen) this time:) Will also try to reserve De Steenen Tafel but only weekdays left so not sure if it'll work with my schedule.

Because Chinese New Year food is expensive, hard-to-get and I don't find it particularly tasty, I have decided to cook what I like to celebrate Chinese New Year with some Dutch friends tomorrow. I'm not quite sure if this would go together so please tell me what you think: i) Kari Terung (Aubergine curry) ii) Ikan Bakar (grilled fish) served with a tangy sambal iii) white rice iv) Roti Canai (frozen, they are awesome for pre-packaged stuff!) v) Kangkung belacan vi) Kai Lan with garlic vii) Ayam Masak Merah viii) Sweet & Sour Pork for one friend who cannot eat anything spicy (even Dutch curry flavoured- ketchup). How many people: 6 What do you think??

In The Netherlands, every Chinese restaurant serves babi panggang (grilled pork covered with sweet,thick, gloopy sauce) and you can pick between bami, nasi or white rice (this being the least popular!). The other dishes (not very exciting.. black bean chicken, koe lu yuk, kung po etc.)do not at all taste authentic (lots of sauce, same vegetables in everything, lots of starch and too sweet), However, authentic Chinese food is easy to obtain if you happen to be Chinese. Most Chinese (by this, I mean Chinese, not Indische restaurants) have separate menus for Chinese (or Chinese looking!) patrons (and I'm sure anyone who asks for it will be given one as well).

wagashi really fills you up. one is enough, really! 2-3 is about the maximum I can swallow...

i heard about the cookie which will increase your bust size 0_0 It has hormones or something in it and comes in vanilla and chocolate...

usually matcha

I made kim chi fried rice today yum. also bought gochujang last week and can't wait to try some dishes:)

I love curry but can't eat it almost everyday as I used to because I live in Europe now. I sometimes get a takeaway from an Indian restaurant but at 20 euro per person, it's not something I can do often! The ready made spice packets sold at tokos are very milky and lacks the complicity and depth of the real thing. The Knorr packets are even worst (not at all spicy, apples, sweet etc.). I'd really appreciate it if someone could give me an authentic recipe for Madras chicken curry (post here or PM me). Thank you!

Yes, that is a pity. I had a wonderful dinner (esp considering the price!) at Villa Sonsbeek / Restaurant "van Heeckeren" for restaurant week earlier this year and had high expectations this year. I also know that Restaurant Sophia (Ron Blaauw restaurant in Amsterdam) for example is not making any money and is possibly making a loss for restaurant week (not including drinks). I would definitely go back to Villa Sonsbeek (paying full price of course!) and already have plans to take friends and parents there when they come. As mentioned, De Watermolen was not completely terrible but I would classify it as a '3-gangen for 20 euro ' sort of place (I think they normally charge 50 euro for a 3-course meal). I have no problems with spending hundreds of euros (obviously not anymore beginning this month..ik ben student:( ) but the food better be good! Edited to add: nice website, Knoopjelos

Dinner at de Watermolen was not as good as expected. I would probably give the food 6 out of 10 due to a very boring menu which tasted okay but not particularly good. The restaurant itself was lovely though! First course: Salmon tartare with lemon mayo sauce. Boring Main: Rack of lamb with rosemary sauce (this was a bit of a pity. I love lamb and I like my meat pink or even just seared with uncooked middles). This one however was almost completely uncooked except for the skin (very very thin brown layer or for all I know, it could possibly be the brown sauce). It was extremely tender but not tasty. I like the gaminess of lamb. If I wanted tasteless meat, I'd have chewed on flour balls. Again, not very interesting. Dessert: creme brulee. This tasted okay but again, I was expecting something a little 'different'. No amuses except tapenade with some toasted bruschetta bread (like the ones you get from the supermarket) and olives

The College Hotel sounds very interesting! I was told today that restaurants taking part could pre-reserve other restaurants and American Express cardholders were also given a head start so it's difficult to get a table at a starred restaurant. I'm crossing my fingers anyway. I think it's a wonderful event and maybe the list of restaurants taking part in Gelderland will be longer soon... p/s: made reservations for De Watermolen in Velp

Hoi! Reservations for Restaurant Week started at 10a.m. today. A 3-course menu is only 25 euro (35 euro at restaurants with Michelin stars). I had a very good dinner last year at Villa Sonsbeek. I thought it'd be nice if those who are participating could post pictures and reviews! Anyone going this year? I have so far reserved a table at a restaurant (I'm in the Gelderland region) and will probably reserve another if a table at a Michelin star place opens up (all fully booked now!).

Thanks for all your help! I will make the lemon tart, some pretty cupcakes and possibly the green tea sables(if I can find matcha). I also like the cake+cream idea so I'll probably do that for Farmboy's birthday this weekend.

Whoops sorry, I am in The Netherlands. What's popular here: pies and tarts of all kinds,lots of whipped cream or mousse, in general, there's usually a lot more cream than anything else. I don't think cheesecakes are weird but lots of people here do think so. Quark/Kwark is common in desserts though. Cakes are considered boring because a cake in The Netherlands is a pound/coffee cake. Cakes with frosting are called tarts and pies are pies but cakes can also be pies (does not necessarily have a crust). To make it even more confusing... To finish of dinner, you have 'toetje' . This is usually yoghurt, mousse or something very light. You never eat pies or cakes after dinner but have it with coffee a few hours later or before. I like the idea of the chiffon cake layers soaked in some kind of liquor and fresh fruits. I'm sure they'll like that. The carrot cake sounds good too.

I will be baking for a small birthday party(no kids) 2 weekends from now. The guests are very down-to-earth rustic sorts who aren't too comfortable with fancy stuff (this means no cardamons or spices etc. design is fine tho) but also not American-style cakes/cookies (which are deemed too sweet) or cheesecakes (too weird). Yet, I want something different from the usual stuff you can get at the bakeries or cafes here. I'm thinking: i) Dorie Greenspan's Applespice bars ii) cupcakes (vanilla and chocolate with a variety of frostings) iii) a very fudgey chocolate cake (or would that be boring as there are chocolate cupcakes as well?) iv) a lemon tart (is that common in NL? Chufi? I do find citroentart at some cafes ) v) cookies (chocolate chip/ green tea sables) Anything else? There will only be 12 people or so who do not particularly like very sweet things so I might have to tone down on the sugar. Do you think what I picked will be too heavy (after dinner, about 8pm, to be taken with coffee as is typically Dutch)? There will also be 2 additional pies (one is probably apple, not sure about the other). Thanks in advance:) **Edited to add: Would be lovely if you could let me know which ones can be baked in advance as I only have one small oven and limited supplies*

I made cupcakes with the little boy I care for last week. He (almost 18 months old) decorated them:) Cake with red currents, cherries and raspberries

My favourite is the salty,pickled greens. I don't know what it's called. It's chopped quite finely and is not photogenic. I think it's sometimes eaten with duck rice. About OP's condiment, could it be the hard-ish small brown wrinkly things? I don't know what they're..possibly dried/pickled bamboo?

Thanks Julian. Had a look at Lafite's April menu and it seemed more interesting (except for the dessert) than Third Floor . Have decided to go to Lafite and splurge. I guess it just surprised me that eating out in KL can be so expensive as for just twice the price, you can dine at a 3-star Michelin restaurant in The Netherlands

Simple dinner last night courtesy of Mr. Oliver Pasta alla Norma

I made the Peanut Butter Crisscrosses too. It's lovely and my idea of what an American cookie should taste like (very sweet, a bit chewy).