nikkib

Wow! That looks great!

It doesn't bother me when I'm at work - so many of our guests do, but they are mostly discrete - we are not talking huge flashes or anything like that - I did ask someone to put their tripod away as it was blocking the walkway to other tables and was really a bit ott in my opinion. As a diner, I snap everything with my iPhone - no flash and I do it quickly do it doesn't disturb anyone. I generally don't bother if the light is bad enough to warrant a flash although people take pictures of friends/dates etc so am not sure why I hold back really! I think the key is to be quick and discrete - if it was going to cause a distraction/wasn't allowed by the restaurant I wouldn't do it and wouldn't sweat it.

Hassouni mentioned one in his recent travelblog on beirut - The sahyoun brothers in lebanon who together ran a falafel stall called sahyoun(the best in beirut according to many)had a huge falling out only for one brother to leave and buy the stall next door opening up yes, you guessed it a falafel stall called Sahyoun! http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Feb-02/161877-sahyoun-brothers-chose-falafel-over-family.ashx#axzz1p0N2RWNB has more details...

I think it sounds like fun but would clarify terms - they talk about being fit and lugging bags of shopping around - how far away are the shops when you get to the mainland? Would you be able to use a car/ have taxis paid for should you be catering a big event etc...Are meals included? Obviously you're the cook but what about your own meal requirements? Will that have to come out if your pocket? Doubtful but I'd still check- sounds like an interesting food blog in the making :-)

If you're keen on a pizza type thing maybe pissaladiere? Eliminates the need for cheese/cream altogether and it's delicious!

Wow pilori - all looks great and I bet your parents were impressed!

Lyonnaise salad with frisée lettuce, bacon lardons, croutons and a poached egg. Still light but tasty.... I do like the idea of a beet root gazpacho as mentioned above as well though!

Near the hotel danna, on the harbour front is a collection of restaurants, including a Malay restaurant called Privalege - billed as "Trip advisors no1 restaurant in Langkawi" This was again, recommended to us by the hotel staff and i was keen for some Malay food so we gave it a shot. WOW. This was not what i was expecting, a crisp modern interior, friendly, profossional and attentive staff not out of place in any of the big city eateries, a large but not overwhelming menu and a great wine/cocktail list to boot. Langkawi is a duty free island so a G&T or cocktail in our hotel was around $4 btw! To start i had the Nyona platter of otak otak (spiced mackerel in banana leaf) Kueh pie tees (pastry cups with stewed sweet turnip and shrimp) and a slipper lobster wonton. All were delicious, especially the wonton and i was happy i had chosen this. For mains i went for a shrimp sambal dish which i was warned was very spicy (something my parents agreed with but to my palate it was great) and for dessert an ice cream selection of gulu melaka, chai (spiced tea) and smoked banana. Also pictured is the spiced duck and bok choy my father had (and didnt want to share it was so good!) and my mothers malay platter with aforementioned spiced duck, some of the shrimp i had, beef rendang (cooked beautifully) as well as a vegetable pie, a fish & coconut curry and a lamb samosa. Not one dish was a dud - i would have happily eaten anything on the plate.... Complimentary amuse bouche of a mint/rice dish, a middle palate cleanser of a herb based sorbet and a post dinner sot of "cello" a herb based liqueur added to the almost "fine dining" feel of this restaurant. I was so pleasantly surprised with this restaurant and the high quality of staff, service and food made this a real treat - an unmissable restaurant if visiting Langkawi in my opinion and i hope they continue to thrive.

From the tourist maps of the island (big on "sights" not so big on street names im afraid) there is a daily night market in differing locations. We opted to go on a Monday night, the market seems to be in a more rural, location on this night than others. We were heading out for dinner so regrettably couldnt persuade my folks to try some of the dishes we saw, but it was an interesting expereince all the same

I'm in!

A slightly fancier dinner at the Bon ton resort, a boutique hotel where you stay in beautiful thatched huts. Nam, the restaurant has fusion food leading towards the local with additons such as chermoula, dukkah, sosoties etc. I wasnt too hungry so had 2 starters, a mezze plate with hummus, dukkah and chermoula and tehn a prawn appetizer platter with prawn fish cakes, bbq slipper lobsters and sugar cane prawns which was very tasty, especially the slipper lobster which up until now i have found rather overrated. For dessert i had a dessert platter with black burned rice pudding (excellent and nutty) a gulu melaka creme caramel (palm sugar) banana, mango and coconut ice cream. This meal probably cost us the same amount as 3 or 4 other dinners combined (helped by a nice australian riesling) but was definitely worth it. The owner rescues stray cats - we literally saw 100 or so, they all seem to have their own spots around the resort, one even sat on the lap of the lady next to me for the duration of her meal!

WE took a fantatsic tour into the mangrove forests in the Kilim nature reserve - really unbelievable. The Asian Tsunami had such a minor impact on the island despite the terrible havoc it caused elsewhere mostly due to the natural protection of these mangrove forests and the loacl community is keen to educate people on this. It really was a truly educational and fascinating tour - we saw vipers hanging from tree branches, monkeys and eagles which was amazing! Lunch was at this little floating restaurant in the reserve and was included in the tour. We had been given an option of prawns or chicken - i opted for prawns. A delicious and flavourful tom yum soup followed by fried rice with succulent juicy prawns was a huge success.

Breakfast at the hotel - there was a buffet with a selection of fruit, yoghurts, cheese, braeds and cereals and tehn you ordered a hot dish from the menu. There was a mix of local (congee/roti prata etc) and international (waffles/pancakes/eggs etc) As i have plenty of local food i opted for mostly western breakfasts (had my first scrambled eggs since i was in lebanon!) Here is the daily "eye opener" juice which is the green glass with lime, yoghurt and apple and also an orange with ginger and banana. Then a small plate of fruits and mackerel on toast. Obligatory bucks fizz (mimosa) with the addition of some mango juice too.

Not far from the Danna is a cable car that takes you right up to the very top of the highland, high above the tree canopy for some simply outstanding views. At teh bottom of this is what i believe was called the Oriental village, a small tourist site with shops, a foot spa and a small hawker centre. I told my Dda to have a look around and see what he liked teh look of and was not surprised when he picked an Indian stall (Indian food is far more familialr to us than Malay) and as i wasnt particularly hungry, not really in the mood for noodels or rice thsi suited perfectly. I was tasked with the ordering so chose (for 3 as a light snack) an "Arabic Salad" Some Onion pakoras, samosas and chana poori (chickpea curry with indian bread) It actually seemed like the chef was making quite a lot of it to order (samosas from scratch) and we were very satisfied with our choice which i think came to about $10 including 3 soft drinks and a large bottle of water.

Ok so a week long trip to Langkawi saw plenty of great food which i will try to upload here. We stayed at The Danna Hotel, a new hotel on the west coast of the island. Dinner on the first day was at Orkid ria a seafood restaurant in Pantai Cenang which was recommended to us by the barteder. Predominantly Chinese, this restaurant was packed full everytime we went past it which is often (although not always) a good sign. We started with crispy squid to share, crunchy, un greasy and very good indeed. Then we shared a small grilled pomfret, Chilli prawns, sizzling chicken, bee hoon noodles and some sambal belacan kang kong Whilst pantai Cenang is a typical tourist strip without much to commend it, our meal at Orkid Ria was very good indeed and i would recommend it to anyone in Langkawi

Thanks hassouni! Lovely trip down memory lane and some new sights too - have loved reading this blog :-) sadly Beirut airport lacks anywhere great to eat - hope you picked up a last almaza though! Safe journey home!

Tickets booked for mid may :-) loving the blog hassouni, had forgotten how much I liked basma!

Newton hawker Centre one of the most famous and well know hawker centres in singapore, open 24 hours and also outside seating which is a lovely relief in the cool evening breeze. We shared cereal prawns - huge juicy prawns cooked in the shells and coated in cereal crumbs. A lemon chicken dish (my friend chose this - i wasnt too fussed but it was pretty good) Sambal kang kong, a spinach like leafy green vegetable in chilli, fried rice and some satay. We had a weird ice kachang dessert - it had sweetcorn and beans in it - not to my taste but at least i tried it :-)

A great meal in Joo Chiat, Chilli Padi Nyonya restaurant where you dine on Peranaken food (created by intermarriages between chinese and malays) WE started with Otak Otak - a dish of curried mackeral which was by far the best i have tried here in singapore, juicy and flavourful. Kueh pie tees (little pastry cups filled with sweet turnip and shrimp) were sweeter than im used to but again, very good. Achar (pickles) and then shared mains of assam pedas (fish and tamarind curry) Chicken rendang, honey pork and Sambal petai squid were all (with the exception of the squid that was oddly bland and seemed to have been boiled) very tasty indeed. The honey pork in particular which we ordered on a whim was delicious as was a betel leaf and cashew rice dish recommended by the waitress. Dessert was a shared sago and gulu malaka (palm sugar) concoction that was completely addictive. Highly recommend Chilli Padi for anyone visiting Singapore and wanting to sample authentic, local cuisine.

Singapores hottest opening (until the arrival of his next restaurant later this year)is jason athertons ESQUINA. A Tapas bar around the Barrafina mould this converted shophouse in chinatown is packed every night and after visiting last week i can see why. Pan con tomate was ok - i prefer it with raw tomato rubbed on it, but this was still pretty tasty. Mackeral with romesco & aioli was delicious - the BBQ flavours of the fish really shone. Bone marrow with snails, parsley and horseradish pesto was perfection and the heritage tomato salad a hit as well. A pre dessert of sangria ice cream was a lovely surprise and my dessert of strawberry gazpacho & black olive sorbet was outstanding, it worked really well. With a few sherries (fino) coffee and water this came to $170 so not cheap but definitely value for money. Individul dishes were around $20-$30 so could be done for less and i will definitely go back

Brasserie Balzac, a newly opened brasserie on bras brasah/Prinseps street. I was looking forward to this opening and was not disappointed - very trad French brasserie, done beautifully. Delicious warm bread with salmon rilletes and butter, Lillet Blanc fizz (from a short but interesting cocktail list @ $18 or so) Charcuterie platter ($22) and a side of asparagus with hollandaise (cooked to perfection) (£10)Add a glass of (French Languedoc $12) wine and coffee as well so the bill topped $70 all in but well worth it.

i never actually saw any dishes with the courgette flowers (thats not to say there arent any though) however courgettes nearly always seemed to have them still attached. The ones i saw were always very small though so i didnt buy any (despite LOVING stuffed courgette flowers)

How are you finding the snow? Is it as full on as everyone is making it out to be? We only had a little snow in central Beirut when I was there - never realised how intense it got in the Bekaa and elsewhere. I actually got stuck near zahle once and had to spend the night owing to the snow storms, really stunning if not a little inconvenient!

Great review - thanks! Are there other (cheaper!) offerings here? Sounds worth a vist but at $750 sgd.....

Great week so far hassouni, kebabji in ashrafieh was around the corner from where I lived and I was on first name terms with their delivery men to the extent they would even deliver glasses of arak! Wish "chains" like this were more frequent elsewhere. also love the fact in Lebanon you can get almost anything delivered at almost anytime, which for someone who works odd hours and is extremely disorganised is a life saver. Planning my next trip hopefully for may/june and will have this blog until then :-)