Newcastle

A and I have talked for ages about visiting Newcastle, and it happens that P is from there, so we finally got our act together and planned a weekend trip to coincide with one of P's visits home. We certainly lucked out and got one of the sunniest balmiest weekends of August 2012. It's always much easier to enjoy a place when it's aglow with warmth and sunshine, so I don't know if I would've appreciated Newcastle as much without the fortuitous weather, but who cares? We had a great time.

Centurion Bar

Grand Central Station
Neville Street
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 5DG

First stop upon arrival was the Centurion Bar, a pub set up in what was formerly the first class lounge in the train station. The interior is stunning, and a good collection of real ales meant that A was happy to try some halves while P and I arranged a meet up spot. Our first drink downed, we then wandered off to try some of the other pubs on A's list.

Bacchus
42-48 High Bridge
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 1EW

Bacchus was a recommendation that A got from someone (or maybe just from the Good Beer Guide). Again, really nice atmosphere inside, with an even wider range of real ales than the Centurion, so we settled in for a bit. I had a ginger ale from Marble Brewery that I liked (though I always think the ginger flavor could be even more pronounced - maybe because what I really want is a fiery ginger beer).

Brewdog Newcastle
16 Dean Street
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE1 1PG

No beer crawl list would be complete without a stop at Brewdog - the paddle above shows a range of their beers from light to dark. I have a particular fondness for their Dogma, which is dark and sweet yet still light enough to have before dinner. If it's after dinner, then I'm having Tokyo, which amps up the darkness and sweetness to the point of being what I think of as a dessert beer.

Simla Tandoori
39 Side
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 3JE

I realize this makes me a terrible food blogger, but I didn't take a picture of dinner. Let's blame it on the Brewdog beers. Since I am also ridiculously behind in writing this up, I can barely remember what we had, but I'm pretty sure it involved some tandoori chicken, and possibly saag aloo since I always order saag aloo. It was a small meal, as we were pretty full from beer and were meeting up with P afterwards for more drinks, but it was really pleasant inside and the waiter was really nice about the fact we wanted very little food - it came quickly and I certainly ate all of it so no objections here.

Once we met up with P, we continued on for cocktails at Popolo (they were ok, but nothing that special), cocktails on the balcony of a restaurant called Paradiso next to a venue with a pounding rooftop bar, and ended up at my favorite bar of the night, Tokyo - we sat in a stunning rooftop garden and enjoyed some really special drinks. I'd assumed Friday night in the city center would be a bit insane, but instead it seemed to be really calm everywhere. P assured me that this was due to it being summer holidays so all the students were gone, which apparently makes a huge different in the way Newcastle feels since the university is so big.

Willi's Coffee House
23-25, Clayton Rd
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE2 4RP

Obviously after the long list of drinking establishments we visited on Friday night, the first priority Saturday morning was to find a hearty brunch place. I had a ridiculously large omelet at Willi's (but will confess I was pretty jealous of A's choice of a "wimpy" English breakfast which included some damn good bacon.

Properly fueled up, we hopped on the metro to Tynemouth. It's pretty incredible to have such gorgeous beaches only 20 minutes away (and linked to the city centre by public transport).

Bill's Fish Bar
4a Victoria Crescent
Cullercoats
NE30 4PN

Of course, a trip to the beach isn't complete without fish and chips. Seeing the crowded line at Bill's, we joined the queue and were soon sat on a hill overlooking the harbor, happily munching away. We happened to be there during the Cullercoats harbor fair - there were rescue demonstrations (which we saw from afar, not realizing they were demonstrations, so were befuddled for a while as to why you would pick someone out of the water, then lower them back in, and do this repeatedly).

Byker Vista Cafe @ The Biscuit Factory

Newcastle upon Tyne
NE2 1AN

Once we'd had enough sea air and freshness, we headed back to Newcastle and ended up at The Biscuit Factory to have a nose around at the art. There were some incredible wire sculptures of Olympic sports, and then we stumbled upon the cafe and terrace, which had a table in the sun just calling out our names. A bottle of prosecco later, we were all grinning and basking in the beam of light, hoping for a tan.

Mr. Lynch
and
As You Like It
Archbold Terrace
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE2 1DB

To cap off a lovely Saturday, we grabbed P's sister and headed off to Mr. Lynch for some pre-dinner cocktails - the interior is all decked out in 50's furniture and wallpaper. Next to Mr. Lynch is a wonderful restaurant called As You Like It, where we proceeded to demolish an incredible baked Camembert to start, and then I had Korean chicken wings which I adored. Definitely worth a trip to the Jesmond neighborhood.

Cafe Royal
8 Nelson Street
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
NE1 5AW

For our last meal in Newcastle on Sunday morning, I looked up brunch recommendations on my phone and came across Cafe Royal, which wasn't too far from the train station. My eggs benedict with smoked salmon was perfect - amazing runny yolk in the poached egg, a bright yellow hollandaise that tasted like the best butter and lemons, and two toasted English muffin halves, with a lovely sprig of dill on top. A and I talked about how enjoyable the weekend was and how we really need to get north more often - scenery! food! drinks! affordability! Newcastle for the win!

Dynasty Indian Cuisine

57-59 Brookley Road

Brockenhurst 

Hampshire

SO42 7RB

On our second night in the New Forest, we were looking for a place to have dinner that would be a little different from all of the British pub fare we had been eating for two days. Dynasty Indian Cuisine fit the bill and after walking past and seeing other happy customers inside, we decided to give it a chance. I am so glad we did - we had one of the best Indian dishes I've had in recent memory. The Murgh Noorjihani, described as succulent pieces of chicken and minced lamb cooked with oriental spices and cream served with fresh coriander, was fantastic and really different from standard Indian dishes. Each flavor was distinct and balanced well against the rest of the dish - we polished this one off with no problem. The Sag Ghoost (lamb with spinach) was good as well, but we then made the mistake of ordering Sag Aloo as well, since it's basically the same dish except with potato instead of lamb. Anyway - this was a surprising gem of a restaurant in Brockenhurst, which is not exactly full of dining options, so if you're there, I'd definitely give this a try.

Chicken, Lemongrass, Cauliflower and Potato Curry

When I saw this recipe on Serious Eats, and found out the little fruit and veg shop at the end of the road had lemongrass, I knew I would try this out - I was given several different curry powders by a friend and am always looking for interesting ways to use them. The original recipe didn't include cauliflower, but I thought it would be a nice addition (and it was). I also didn't have as much chicken as the original recipe called for, but you know what, with the extra cauliflower, I didn't miss it.

Chicken, Lemongrass, Cauliflower and Potato Curry
Adapted from Serious Eats
Serves 4 generously

Ingredients

3 to 4 hefty lemongrass stalks, trimmed and coarsely chopped (about 2/3 cup total)
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons Madras curry powder (or other curry powder)
1/2 teaspoon dried red chile flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
One 13 1/2-ounce can coconut milk
800g bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
1 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
1 lime, cut into wedges
4 cups cooked long grain or basmati rice
Handful cilantro

Method

Toss the chopped lemongrass into a food processor. Process until it turns into a "fine, fluffy mass," scraping the sides with a spoon occasionally, about three minutes. Add the ginger, and pulse until it is chopped finely. Then add the onion. Process, scraping the sides with a spoon occasionally, until it is a paste.

Pour the oil into a large saucepan set over medium heat. When shimmering, add the lemongrass paste. Cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until very fragrant, about two minutes. Add the curry powder and red chiles flakes, stir well, and cook for a minute. Add the salt, pepper, and coconut milk. Stir well with the wooden spoon, and then add the chicken pieces. If the liquid does not cover the pieces add a little bit of water to do so. Once liquid starts to boil, reduce heat to maintain a slow simmer. Cook, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Add the potatoes and cauliflower, stir well, and turn heat up again to bring to a strong simmer. Then reduce heat to maintain a bare simmer, and cook until the potatoes and cauliflower are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. When done, turn off the heat, cover the saucepan, and let rest for at least 10 minutes. (This dish just got better and better in the fridge - by day 3 the leftovers were incredible.)

Serve the dish with the lime wedges, cilantro, and white rice.

Diwana Bhel Poori House

121-123 Drummond Street
London
NW1 2HL

I really dislike being so behind with blogging, but all I can do at this point is attempt to catch up. This was a dinner with F, H and S after an interesting talk regarding speech and brain patterns at the Wellcome Collection. Apparently the three of them had been to the restaurant before and really enjoyed it, so I happily tagged along. It's vegetarian, but South Asian food is one of the cuisines that I don't miss meat in - I ordered the dosa pictured above and it was enormous and crisp and spicy in just the right way. There was a fantastic starter too, of tiny little puffed balls of dough that you broke into and then spooned in a sweet/sour chickpea sauce. If I find myself looking for food around Euston again, this will certainly be on my mind.

Delhi Grill

21 Chapel Market
London
N1 9EZ

P had raved about this place a while back, and I had also heard wonderful things about it, so it was an easy choice when we were thinking about places to go for dinner. I do love Tayyab's but the wait and the atmosphere can leave much to be desired - and now that I have found a place that is polite, clean, and also serves a fantastic mixed grill, there is no need to drag myself out to Whitechapel anymore! We enjoyed gnawing on the bones of that giant pile of meat and also treated ourselves to dhal and aloo gobi - all of this with pilau rice and a couple of beers came to just a little over a tenner a head, which is also just as much of a bargain as Tayyab's - so long live Delhi Grill, you've taken over as my go-to place whenever I need some tandoori lamb chops.

Tangy Chickpea Curry & Bengali Yogurt Fish

Ok, let's be honest - I've always been a little intimidated by recipes for Indian food, probably due to the many spices that are required. However, I like to tackle my fears, and ever since a blissful week eating my friend V's mom's homecooked Indian food several years ago, I've wanted to try and make some at home myself. There's a different quality to homecooked food that you just can't get in restaurants, no matter how good they are. Thankfully, Anjum Anand, author of I Love Curry, has come to the rescue with a book full of curry recipes that are done with a lighter touch on the oil. While it was hard to pick which recipes to try first, I went with a couple that wouldn't require me to purchase too many new things to start off with. Both came out wonderfully - the spicing was distinctly different and flavors were delicate yet full - not like the takeaway curries I've had before. I can't wait to try out more, and while I'm writing out the recipe for the Tangy Chickpea Curry here, if you're interested in trying out more Indian dishes at home, get this book.

Tangy Chickpea Curry
From I Love Curry by Anjum Anand
Serves 4-5

Ingredients

12g fresh ginger, peeled
4 fat garlic cloves
2 largish tomatoes, quartered (I used 3 smallish ones)
5-6 tbsp vegetable oil (I used slightly less than 5)
4 cloves
4 green cardamom pods
1 black cardamom pod (I didn't have this so just used an extra green cardamom pod)
2 large shards of cinnamon
2 tsp cumin seeds (I used ground as I didn't have whole seeds)
2-3 green chillies, whole but pierced (I used 2 birds eye chillies since that's what I had)
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp ground coriander
1/4 - 1/2 tsp chilli powder (I used closer to 1/4 tsp due to the birds eye chillies)
salt, to taste
2 x 400g cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 1/4 tsp garam masala
1/2 -2/3 tsp tamarind paste, or dried pomegranate powder (sadly I had to omit this as I didn't have it)
handful of finely chopped fresh coriander

Method

Blend together the ginger, garlic and tomatoes with a little water until smooth with a stick blender. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the cloves, cardamom pods, cinnamon and half the cumin seeds and cook until they release their aroma and start to crackle. Add the green chillies and onion and cook until the onion is well browned. Add the tomato paste with the turmeric, ground coriander, chilli powder and salt and cook over a moderate to high heat until the oil comes out at the sides (around 15 minutes), stirring often.

Meanwhile, use the remaining cumin seeds to make roasted cumin powder. Put them in a small dry pan for about 40 seconds, stirring constantly, until they have darkened quite a bit. Grind to a fine powder. Add this to the pot.

Add the chickpeas and 500ml water. Bring to a boil then simmer over a medium heat for seven or eight minutes. Stir in the garam masala and tamarind paste. Mash a few of the chickpeas on the side of the pan to thicken the sauce a little. Taste for seasoning and tartness, adjusting if necessary, then sprinkle with the chopped coriander and serve.

*Thanks to Quadrille for sending me a copy to review.

Chilli Chutney

20 - 21 The High Parade
Streatham High Road
London 

SW16 1EX

I was lucky enough to get invited to a Qype event at Chilli Chutney - we learned how to make samosas (those are my attempts above, the potato filled one on the left and the lamb filled one on the right). The chefs are experts - they make loads of these every day from scratch, so their demonstration was deft and graceful. Once they let us normal folk have a try, things went a bit haywire, but everything still tasted nice after it was freshly fried. We're supposed to get recipes for these so I will add those to this post if I get them. After our samosa lesson, we sat down to eat some curries and naan and rice - looking at their menu I think we had tarka daal (yum) and chicken achaari, along with keema naan, roghni naan (my favorite, covered with sesame seeds) and regular naan. I was stuffed at this point but when shahi keer (similar to rice pudding) came out, I had to try a couple of bites of that as well. Everything tasted fresh and was distinctively spiced - I'll have to go back and try more of the menu. 

Raj Moni

279 Upper Street
London, N1 2TZ

A was incredibly organized this week and managed to pick up four tokens from the Times, which meant we could eat out at several restaurants for 10 quid a head. After a fun bit of wine tasting at The Sampler with P, the three of us headed off to Raj Moni for some Indian food. The manager didn't seem familiar with the tokens but he offered us an incredible deal - we could each get a starter, a main, a side, pilau rice and nan. Considering that the mains alone would have cost over 10 quid each, we were quite pleased. For starters, we ordered king prawn on jay puree, onion bhajis and bengal crab cakes. The bhajis were a little greasy, but I really enjoyed the prawns and crab cakes. For mains and sides, we ordered two tandoori mixed grills and a tandoori machili massala (whole trout), saag aloo, aloo gobi and bombay potatoes. We probably should have gotten something other than bombay potatoes, as I realized when three potato-heavy dishes appeared. This was really too much food for three normal people, but we are not normal, since we finished almost all of it. Everything tasted pretty fresh, and I was pleased with the trout because I have never had anything like it. Not somewhere I'd go out of my way to eat at, but I'd certainly suggest it if anyone wanted some Indian food on Upper Street, especially if you can snag one of these deals.

Rasa Samudra

5 Charlotte Street
London
W1T 1RE

This belongs to a chain of Keralan Indian restaurants called Rasa - I've been to the original vegetarian one in Stoke Newington. This one specializes in seafood and J and I were surprised to open the menu and see almost nothing familiar. We picked out one fish and one vegetarian curry, with lemon rice and a paratha to share. While I thought the prices were a little high for lunch, I think they use the same menu at dinner. Also, once the food came out and we tasted how unique the dishes were, I thought it was worth the extra cost - each dish was clearly freshly made and had a distinct flavor profile, unlike at some cheaper Indian restaurants where all the dishes taste similar. We had the Varatha Meen Masala (A specialty of the Travancore Christians. Lightly fried and juicy pieces of King Fish cooked in thick tomatoe sauce with ,fresh curry leaves onions, fried chillies, turmeric and ginger) and Bagar Baingan (A Hyderabad recipe of aubergines cooked in a ground paste of roasted onions, coriander seeds, chillies and tamarind, mixed with yoghurt and cashew nut sauce). Maybe not a place to have lunch regularly but it was certainly a treat!

New Tayyabs

89 Fieldgate Street
London
E1 1JU

D picked Tayyabs as his reward for his generous DIY help. Unfortunately, we were unable to get a reservation and therefore had to wait in line for over an hour to get a seat. We also had the terrible misfortune of being seated next to an enormous stag party, who in addition to the usual beer and wine had actually brought in a giant bottle of vodka. Basically, food was awesome as usual, but atmosphere was crazier and rowdier than usual, including thumping nightclub music that made it difficult to hear anyone at the table.

But back to the food, which is why I'm writing this. We ordered loads of seekh kebabs (minced lamb with spices, one of my favorites), lamb chops (definitely my favorite), tandoori chicken (bland compared to the spicy, delicious lamb chops), dry meat curry (really moreish with complex flavors), lentils and aubergine (yummy - wonderfully tender lentils with fresh spicing) and a baby pumpkin curry (my least favorite - the pumpkins were a bit sour and bitter and the whole dish was quite salty). While I like the food here and it is super affordable, it is such a hassle to get a table that I'm not sure it's worth it except for special occasions, like when you're trying to pay back a good friend - or if you're doing your 100th post...

Mirch Masala

213 Upper Tooting Road
London SW17 7TG

So we set off to Tooting Bec to say goodbye to T, who is moving to Peru. He picked Tooting because it is where is favorite curry house is, so a dozen of us headed off to Mirch Masala after a couple of beers at a nearby pub. It allows you to BYO so cans of lager and bottles of wine were quickly pulled out of bags when we got there. T recommended the lamb chops and karahi ginger chicken, so those were quickly agreed on, and then we tacked on tandoori chicken wings, butter chicken wings, prawn rolls and onion bhaji. I was surprised by how spicy the lamb chops and chicken wings were but they were delicious and smoky (though I still prefer Tayyab's tandoori lamb chops). Prawn rolls were the least interesting of the starters. Then mains started pouring out - kahari ghosht (lamb), kahari chicken, kahari ginger chicken, kahari chicken keema, dal, kahari fish, kahari aubergine, kahari paneer, rice and loads of different naans. All delicious with very vibrant spices - the ginger chicken had lots of fresh ginger, the lamb was tender, the fish was flaky and the dal was lovely and creamy. Too bad Tooting is so far away.