Eaten at NAVA Pad Thai, Bangkok
Pad Thai 1
Category: Tasty bites
My fav eatery in Bangkok
I was a little bit worried about street food to be honest. We Westerners do have a different hygiene standard, however, I got salmonella in a 4 star restaurant in Hamburg once, so maybe not?
I think it’s best not to see the kitchen, just to enjoy the food. Well, having said that I actually enjoyed watching my food being prepared at NAVA Pad Thai. The kitchen is at the front of the restaurant, very open, very organised, very simple.
Open from 10am to 7pm they are cooking non-stop. Many locals order lunch in advance. Always a good sign when locals eat there.
Every day after my sightseeing I went straight to NAVA, and got greeted like a regular. I would get a watermelon smoothie from next door then settle down in the small, air conditioned restaurant and watch the magic happen.
Toast mania á la Thailand
Hello again! It’s been a while. Life and pandemics gets in the way. It’s just one of these things. But I am back now and will try to catch up on recent travels.
Came across a noisy queue yesterday in Bangkok. As it was in front of a fast food chain bakery my curiosity was piqued. To my amazement there was mainly toast on the menu. Toasted with different toppings or steamed with different dips. Special drinks and desserts were on offer too.
Would I queue for it again? Probably not, but it was fun to try and watch all the other excited customers.
For more information see mont-nomsod.com
Sandwiches and Toasts
Yesterday I talked about sandwich variations loved by Brits. If you are daring enough to try some more weird and wonderful sandwich/toast creations from around the world, check out this list by Mr Breakfast. Enjoy!
Sandwiches, Sandwiches
I often get asked by my contacts in Germany, how I can survive on the British food. Well, actually, pretty good! Believe it or not, the supermarkets do offer similar food, it all just comes down to what you do with it. It is not all fish & chips here. I can still cook Italian pasta or Indian curry or Chinese stir fry or the traditional Sunday Roast with vegetable, potatoes (roasted, not cooked), gravy and – very British – Yorkshire pudding. If you ask me, forget the vegetable, have more Yorkshire puds.
The bread assortment isn’t great and contains more air than sustenance, I’ll give you that, but what the Brits make with it is worth tasting.
The Brits love their sandwiches. The Germans excel in unusual bread loaf varieties such as onion, sesame, spelt, potato, caraway, apple, buttermilk, and poppy seed. The Brits lead in toast varieties: white, Danish white, brown, seeded, half and half, farmhouse, crusty, tiger, malted, sliced thin, medium, thick, extra thick and for difficult kids with no crust.
Order a sandwich in a tea room or restaurant and it will most certainly come with some salad leaves for decoration and crisps on the side. Traditional fillings are egg-mayo, tuna-cucumber, ham-cheese, cheese-pickles, chicken tikka and bacon-lettuce-tomato (blt). For those you have no time for a cooked full English breakfast there is the all-day-breakfast sandwich on the go, a combination of sausage, bacon, egg and ketchup. You won’t taste the toast, it merely serves to hold the filling together. One of my favourites.
For the more adventurous taste buds there is brie with cranberry, hog roast with apple sauce, salmon and cream cheese, chicken-chorizo and roast beef with horseradish.
But the best and most unusual ones you have to assemble yourself.
For a carb overload try Chip Butty: Fresh or cold left-over chips (preferably from a Chinese take-away) between 2 slices of white, buttered bread (not toasted) with ketchup, brown sauce or curry sauce.
I was introduced to this sandwich by a British colleague. I am not a fan of the other carb bomb loved by Brits – baked beans on toast – and therefore was very sceptic about this combination. But one bite and I was converted. Thank you Brad, for expanding my food horizon!
Another interesting sandwich version is the Fish Finger Butty: Yes, you’ve guessed it – fried fish fingers on white, buttered bread (not toasted), often with sauce tartar or ketchup. What’s not to like about that?
Even though originally considered a work-class meal, these two sandwich variations are nowadays rarely found on pub menus. I happen to know that the “Black Boy” pub in Winchester offers Fish Finger Butty. The size of the sandwich was enormous. The pub itself is worth a visit. Every available spots is filled with collections of stuffed animals, bobbins, bottle openers, miniature whisky bottles and stickers (see Table Art 07.12.2015). Visit the toilet and get watched by hundreds of doll’s eyes glued to the ceiling while reading the remarks on the walls. Unusual and hard to forget. I can truly say, this pub has left a lasting impression on me.
Wine tasting 1 – Hawke’s Bay
What is the first thing that comes to mind when asked “What do you associate with New Zealand?”
Oh yes, sheep, lots of wooly sheep. And after that? Wine? Or maybe Mānuka honey and Hobbits – not necessarily in that combination – but this is material for another post.
Let’s come back to wine. New Zealand is world famous for its wines and they constantly receive premium awards. A wine tasting tour is therefore a Must-Do when in the country.
The signature wine regions are Hawke’s Bay, Marlborough (best for Sauvignon Blanc), Martinborough and Central Otago. Smaller vineyards can be found around Auckland (Villa Maria headquarter), Gisborne and Waipara.
Many tour provider specialise in offering wine tasting with a twist, for example being chauffeured around in a vintage car or on a three-seater-trike, drive a 1960’s Moke or go by bicycle. Each tour provider favours different vineyards but offer bespoke tours as well, for an upgraded price.
For my wine tasting experience in Hawke’s Bay I opted for a small group tour in a minibus. ‘Vines & Views Wine Tour’ (link below) is the only tour going to Esk Valley, one of the Villa Maria labels. Ross, the tour manager, is a working vineyard manager, and well known at the wineries. Currently he is managing the vineyard at Esk Valley and gave us interesting insight into his duty as well as an exclusive tour of the barrel room and around the facilities, explaining the process of wine making.
This vineyard is a little bit outside of Napier which 
is why most tours don’t stop here. A mistake, I personally think. The location is stunning and the wine, oh well, I do look happy, don’t I? Esk Valley was our third stop and we had been tasting up to 5 wines at each cellar door.
We first stopped at the Church Road Estate with their open barrel room and the biggest entrance door made of railway sleepers I’ve ever seen (not that there are many around anyway!). Besides tasting beautiful wine you can dine al fresco under parasols. We didn’t see the Wine Museum but I have been told it is worth another visit. Some of the exhibits are said to date back 3,000 years.
Next on the list was New Zealand’s oldest vineyard, the Mission Estate. The former home to monks with its colonial style buildings is nowadays also well known for the summer concerts held on the estate. Starting back in 1993, the event is well received and tickets sell out quickly. No wonder with top head liners like Ray Charles, Dianne Warwick, Shirley Bassey, Engelbert Humperdinck (honestly), Rod Stewart, Tom Jones, Sting, Carol King, Billy Ocean and Eric Clapton, just to name a few.
Our last stop after Esk Valley was Linden Estate, which lies even further away from Napier, again making it very difficult to reach with any other organised tour. I found a 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon here. Exquisite!
Our guide Ross was well received everywhere and had a light banter with the winery hosts, adding to the overall pleasurable experience. To top it all off Ross has an exclusive viewing platform high up on the Esk Valley hills with stunning panorama. The complimentary cheese platter, cracker and another locally produced Sauvignon Blanc were the perfect ending for a splendid tour.
I can only highly recommend Ross and his tour! I am certain, my fellow tasters would agree.
Cheers everyone!
For more information and bookings through the i-site:
Vines & Views Wine Tasting Tour
For a detailled map of all wineries in and around Napier:
Hawke’s Bay Winery Guide
For a self-drive tour through three wine regions:
Classic Wine Trail – self-drive