Without doubt this is the first time I have come across fried curry donuts. Served in a cellophane bag , making me wonder how long these have gone uneaten, in a Japan Airlines lounge at Frankfurt airport. I am afraid that I have no intention of eating these.
One of the things about travelling alone is that meals in the hotel are the easiest option so tend to be by default.
Berlin Marriott is a nice hotel. Fairly central and as one might expect from a Marriott. The first night I arrived fairly late and in reality wanted to sit in the bar and have a beer and a burger. Sadly this was not possible on two curious counts. Firstly the bar is not really a bar but the foyer of the hotel and secondly they served no food.
The Midtown Grill is the hotel restaurant and I was put off entering last time because the handwritten special board indicated some steak item with something else in German for 70 euros. This time I had little choice.
The ambience in the restaurant is acceptable but hardly special. The service was variable from very helpful to complete indifference. Curious. The first night I asked them for a Burger and beer without even seeing the menu. It came and was delicious . Arguably 15 euros for the burger was a bargain.
The food was nicely presented and bread was served free of charge as a starter. I was even more impressed when the second night I read the menu and saw that burgers were not even on the menu.
The second night I was feeling a little vegetable deficient and had Caesar salad with chicken. Again free bread emerged.
The Caesar salad was superb and not small and again a bargain for 14 euros. The chicken though was maybe less good. The portion strangely was too large and the meat was tasteless and probably could have done with another 5 minutes grilling
. As a side dish though I decided to have Mac and Cheese. In London I have had this a few times instead of chips and it works well. Here it was a disaster . In all honesty I cannot a worse restaurant dish ever. The portion was ridiculously large for 5 euros. The pasta was Penne not macaroni. The sauce at the bottom of the dish was water with a taste and consistency of what I imagine dishwater might taste like and worse contained enough salt to give one an overdose. There was a small amount of grilled cheese on the top. Simply inedible. In all fairness I told the waiter and he was very apologetic and said he told the chef. Ok. Five euros. No big deal. The happy ending though was the best baked cheesecake maybe ever given free of charge. It came with redcurrants, blackberries, blueberries and a cumquat. 
So would I return here? Sure if on business but not if on leisure. The prices on the menu for the steaks etc were huge. At those prices maybe I might need a restaurant with more ambience. Where a lot of hotels fall down with their restaurants is that they are simply too large and designed mostly for breakfasts or huge parties . A suggestion. Make a design change. Enable the restaurant to be partitioned off meaning that with perhaps 20 guests dining the room looks a little cosier.
Food sometimes comes in unpredicatable shapes and even an experienced baker was surprised his routine ciabbata came with a picture frame hook ready for hanging on the wall. The best baker in the UK is found at Panetteria Italiana in Merton 6 Merton Hall Rd, Merton, London SW19 3NT
Should I be a chef and that would be unfortunate to the whole population, I might not work in Paris. I am aware of food items eaten with regularity here that do not venture onto my shopping list . I am also aware of a few chefs who perhaps do deserve some sort of criticism. However are the French taking this too far? I leave that to your judgement
Roast cod has become a popular dish in restaurants over the last ten years. Yet somehow does not often find its way to the dining room table. There seems an erroneous belief that it is an expensive fish. This may not be true. Two portions of cod generously sized cost only £4 even in Waitrose not known for its discounted prices.
A good example of a recipe would be to place the cod in a baking tray and cover with a seasoning such as creole . A moderately spicy yet not overpowering taste. Roasted vegetables with a small amount of oil can be added in the same tray. To complete the meal a green salad with balsamic makes a quick easy and healthy dinner.
This is not the first time I have posted photographs of waffles from Waffle Jacks in Merton, and it will not be the last. But they do make excellent photographic topics. Enjoy
Maple Syrup and Ice Cream
Peanut Butter and White Chocolate
Maybe they could be the way in for football clubs to enhance their culinary range? Many have tried such delicacies as Chilli and balti pies, but where in UK have any reindeer hotdogs been seen?
Seems Reindeer oddly may be the alternative to fish. Reindeer meat is one of the leanest meats. It compares favourably with fish when it comes to omega-3 and essential fatty acids. If you want your diet to be low in fat and high in B-12, omega-3, omega-6 and essential fatty acids, you might think your only choice is a trip to the fish market but perhaps a few Reindeer hotdogs might be the answer. The Arctic University of Norway has also done its research and reindeer meat may have more than twice as much vitamin B12 than veal or lamb.
So come on football clubs, be adventurous and keep your fans healthy.
Could Reindeer hotdogs catch on at football?
There is little doubt that the Finnish are an attractive and healthy looking race. There was little or no sign of obesity anywhere in Helsinki despite the city having a plethora of the same restaurants that in UK seem to carry the blame for obesity. There were a few shocks however.
A typical Helsinki couple. Element of distance between them.
Helsinki Fashion
In all my travels I was not prepared to see a restaurant OLO Creative Kitchen in an ordinary central Helsinki street advertising a meal for 149 euros.
I stood there for 5 minutes pondering both my eyesight and my cognitive ability to recognise the currency, but in the end it was euros and the cost was 149 euros. The option of then paying a higher price 315 euros to have what I take to be unlimited drinks seemed a sensible one for the reason that drinking enough might allow one to forget the cost of the meal. Amnesia may have its benefits. But the maths are curious. 166 euros gives you these unlimited drinks, but wine by the glass is 21 euros , so essentially you need to drink 8 glasses minimum to get value.
The food generally here in restaurants is expensive compared with many other European cities, and substantially so. Eating a dinner in the Radisson Plaza hotel in Helsinki would be a nice event, nice restaurant and good service in good surroundings. Until the bill arrives. A few examples. Fried sole 36.5 euros, grilled Reindeer fillet ( like beef actually) 34 euros. An average starter such as reindeer mouse ( yes that is average here), 11.90 euros, the same as a cheese salad as a starter. Desserts again look particularly attractive but you will not pay less than 9.50 euros for Creme Brûlée, and “old-time” ice cream does not have an old-time price tag weighing in at 11.50 euros. Should we decide that reindeer and cloudberries are too exotic for a chilly and rainy April evening then a Club Sandwich will set you back 18 euros. The same price as a caesar salad with chicken.
There are a few ways around this if you are prepared to eat a main meal at lunchtime. There are a plethora of restaurants with either lunchtime buffet choices, which was my option, and in the Radisson Plaza I ate a nice lunch of unlimited salads and bread, and various choices that included Pork and Elk stew, fried trout and plentiful roasted root vegetables for 12 euros. Many other restaurants had their equivalent.
Street food was however plentiful and delicious and available in many places.
The real way to eat? Clearly sample The Reindeer hotdog.
Could Reindeer hotdogs catch on at football?
Helsinki street food.
Chicken and Leek Pie. Northumberland UK
Coffee Zurich Airport
Massive Croissant London UK
Massive Croissant London UK
Ice Cream Northumberland UK
Bread and butter Seahouses UK
Lemon Tart Zug Switzerland
Pizza London UK
Plum and Almond Tart Northumberland UK
Prosecco London UK
Sticky Toffee Pudding London UK
Treacle Tart Northumberland UK
Sticky Toffee Pudding London UK
Chickpea and Chorizo Warm Salad London UK
Omelette Hamburg Germany
Waffle with golden syrup Merton UK
Fruit Breakfast Hamburg Germany
Chocolate Cheesecake Gothenburg Sweden
Chocolate Muffin Gothenburg Sweden
Burger and Chips Gothenburg Sweden
Waffle Merton UK
chris1957
Arcticterntalk.org 