Frivolitea on tour in Iceland – The Reykjavik Food Walk

I know I’ve said before that food was not the focus of our trip to Iceland but when I discovered that there was a walking food tour of Reykjavik I knew it would be the best way to see the city and an excuse to eat lots of food. Not that I ever really need an excuse…

We met our guide Egill outside the magnificent Harpa concert hall at lunchtime just as the sun began to make an appearance.

From the moment Egill spoke I knew that we were in for a real treat. His passion for his city and for food shone through immediately. I discovered later that it was Egill who started the Reykjavik Food Walk after leaving a job in journalism. I’m so glad he had the idea and drive to do it. I’m not sure we would have really got beneath the surface of Reykjavik without him.

Our first stop was at Islenski Barinn ( Icelandic Bar) for traditional lamb soup. Boy did we start with a bang, that lamb soup was off the chart and we could not refuse seconds. It reminded me a lot of the soups my mum makes as it used barley and seasonal root vegetables. It is amazing that something so simple can be so packed full of flavour and the lamb was so rich and soft. The bar keep family traditions alive by making a different family recipe every day.

We next headed on to Skolavordustigur, the street leading up to Hallgrimskirkja (the famous church)

and visited a delicatessen called Osta Budin to try a selection of Icelandic cheeses and meats.

Making cheese is relatively new in Iceland, starting in earnest in 1955 and although there are 5 x more sheep than humans on Iceland they only make cheese with cows milk. We had an Icelandic version of Gouda, Camembert and blue cheese and there was a selection of cured sheep fillet with rosemary, thyme and fennel, smoked goose fillet with a raspberry champagne vinegar and horse fillet. This was the moment of the tour with the moral dilemma. There was a mixed reaction in the group but Egill explained the context of Icelandic cuisine and why it was part of the tour.

Next we moved on a little cafe called Cafe Loki right opposite Hallgrimskirkja. The owner lives behind the church and takes a photo every day displaying them on the walls of the cafe. The cafe serves traditional Icelandic cuisine but what we tried was something that no other cafe does. Rye bread ice cream. Such an unusual idea but it really works. The crispy rye bread bits give wonderful flavour and texture and the rhubarb caramel that was served with it was divine. The owner makes the rye bread on site and uses yesterday’s rye bread for the ice-cream.

We then had a wander through the old town, by the pond and the cathedral ( much less impressive looking than Hallgrimskirkja)

admiring the vibrant street art along the way

and then headed to the old harbour to a restaurant called Kopar for a seafood soup. The restaurant is known for its rock crab which they get from the coastline north west of Reykjavik. They are the only seafood restaurant at the harbour that serves it and the soup was made with the rock crab, bean sprouts and spinach which I thought was an unusual choice but really worked. The soup was very much like a bisque and we had sourdough bread with an Icelandic violet and liquorice butter on the side. The butter was a revelation being both sweet and salty. My head said it shouldn’t work but it did.

You’d think at this point we couldn’t squeeze anymore food in but next up was the famous hotdog stand of Reykjavik. It has been serving hotdogs for 80 years and is a favourite of locals and tourists alike. The lamb hotdog is served with raw onions, crispy onions, a mustardy ketchup made with apples and a sort of dill mayonnaise. Really really tasty hotdog and the crispy onions, they were soooo good. So. So. Good.

Our last stop on the tour was at Apotek, an upmarket restaurant in the city, somewhere you go for cocktails and fine dining. Apotek also has their own bakery in the building and pastry chefs making beautiful patisserie and that is what we had to mark the end of the tour. A dessert so beautiful I didn’t want to eat it, just gaze at it. The chocolate mousse rose had raspberry gel hidden in the middle and was accompanied by blood orange sorbet. It was exquisite.

And so it was the end of the tour. We took our group photos and Egill gave us a treat of Icelandic chocolate and some Skyr to take away with us so that the tour lasted a little longer. What I particularly love about a food tour is not only learning about the places that locals eat and the traditions and tastes of the city but it’s also an opportunity to meet people from all over the world who are also exploring a place for the first time. We met people from Ireland, Canada and America. Some who had got off the plane without any sleep and came straight on the food tour, knowing it was the best way to experience Reykjavik. I have to say I admired them for being so full of life and making the tour lots of fun.

I’m now eager to return to Reykjavik, to explore more and go to all the places Egill recommended. Egill brought Reykjavik and Icelandic cuisine alive. Thank you Egill we had an absolute blast.

Aulis at Fera, Claridges

Have you ever exclaimed ‘How on earth do they do that’ whilst eating stunning food in a restaurant? Yep me too. Often when we eat out at places where chefs are at the top of their game I spend the evening not only enjoying every morsel of food but racking my brains trying to work out how it was achieved. I love the mystery and intrigue of well crafted food.

For Mr F’s birthday I decided to plan a special surprise. Mr F loves Simon Rogan’s philosophy of food and we still talk about the meal we had at Fera in 2014! Rather than book the same again I planned a special treat and booked in to Aulis, the development kitchen of Fera. This time not only would we eat skilfully crafted food but we would see it being cooked right in front of us.

We arrived and enjoyed a glass of Davenport at the bar. I mean why wouldn’t you? It’s a special occasion after all. I’d forgotten how stunning the dining room of Claridges is. The Art Deco design mixed with Simon Rogan’s ‘natural’ look is a sight to behold.

Once the other 4 guests arrived ( Aulis can only seat 6 people) we were guided through the working kitchen to the Aulis test kitchen. Just wasking through a bustling kitchen was excitement for me. I wanted to break free from the group and explore!

Our chefs for the evening explained how Aulis is used as a development kitchen and then got to work preparing the first of our dishes. The evening was typical of Rogan’s style with snacks, starters, fish, meat and desserts coming together to create a diverse tasting menu. It was fascinating watching the chefs at work, being able to ask questions about the ingredients and processes as well as having conversations with the chefs and other dining guests about the restaurant, food and life in general. We were completely immersed in a food bubble and fascinated by the range of kitchen technology on show.

The dishes:
Our first snack was buckwheat tart, mylar, almond, blackcurrant. I’ve never had mylar prawns before and they were wonderfully sweet alongside the sharpness of the blackcurrant.

Our second snack of Seaweed wafer, bergamot, smoked eel was a particular favourite of mine with the smoked eel really celebrated in the dish.

Next we had Goats cheese, Jerusalem artichoke, stout in a ceramic egg. I’m a huge fan of Jerusalem artichoke and this dish was bursting with flavour. The twice dehydrated artichoke crumb that topped the egg added a lovely texture to the dish.

The next dish was really creatively presented with raw scallop, barley koji, buttermilk on a ceramic dish with a red chicory and roe dish hidden underneath. It was fascinating to chat to the chef about the process of making the barley Koji and how this was used to marinade the Isle of Mull scallops.

The celeriac, cured yolk, creme fraiche taco style dish was one of my favourites of the evening. Surprising as it was one of the simpler dishes but the flavour and different textures of celeriac were delicious and the grated cured egg yolk added another dimension.

The Portland crab, oyster, carrots, black garlic, burnt chives was fascinating to watch being put together. The crab was delicious and the carrot juice consommé, made from barbecued carrots was a revelation.

The torched deer, semi dried beetroot, lovage dish was Mr F’s favourite of the evening. The saddle of roe deer was blowtorched to ensure it was still rare in the middle.

The mushroom, whey sauce, calcot onion, truffle was a fascinating dish. The Calcott onions were barbecued on the big green egg and the savoury mushroom custard was sublime. The addition of a little winter truffle really brought this dish to life.

For the monkfish, brown butter, baby leeks, coastal herbs dish the monkfish was cooked on the bone and the butter had some marmite added. The parsnip purée was the smoothest and silkiest purée I’ve had and added a lovely richness to the dish.

The lamb saddle, chervil root, quinoa, cocoa nibs used Cornish lamb and was served with a chervil root purée that had three types of quinoa running through it giving a lovely crunch to the dish. The 100% chocolate in the sauce gave a lovely richness and the barbecued white kale finished the dish beautifully.

For the last three dishes we moved to desserts.
The first of forced rhubarb, honeycomb, sheep’s yoghurt, rose looked fascinating. The large piece of what looked like white chocolate was actually aerated frozen sheep’s yoghurt and much lighter than expected and it was great to see Yorkshire forced rhubarb on the menu.

The chocolate, sweet clover, Jerusalem artichoke, earl grey dish was the biggest surprise of the evening and the flavour of the Jerusalem artichoke worked beautifully.

Our final dish of Goldrush (Apple), caramel, hazelnut was accompanied by coffee prepared and served by a coffee sommelier in front of us. Served without milk it was interesting to taste the fruit notes in the coffee accompanying the apple ‘snack’

Being so immersed in the preparation, the ingredients and plating of the food really made us appreciate the skill and creativity of the Fera, even more that we had appreciated already. This was a unique experience, not one you would be able to do often, but definitely worth every penny. The memories of the evening will certainly last a long time.

(By the way if you go, make sure you visit the toilets. A thing of beauty. It’s not often I say that in a food blog but well, its good advice on this occasion.)

Gin and Food Pairings with Sara Danesin and Still and Heart

You’ve probably worked out by now that I love gin and I love food. However I have never thought of having the two together. Gin is something I normally enjoy as a pre dinner drink, a way to mark the beginning of a great evening. So I was really intrigued when Sara Danesin joined up with Catherine and Claire of Still and Heart to run Gin tastings that pair the gin and garnishes with food. The evening was a complete revelation to me and opened up so many possibilities for expanding my gin collection!
The evenings are a relaxed affair at the home of Sara Danesin (where she runs her supper club) and led by Still and Heart with fun and flair.

The theme of the evening was Scottish Gins, a nod to Burns Night and we started the evening off with a drink of Strathearn heather rose gin with prosecco and a quiz about the history of gin. As a Northern Irish girl I was rather surprised to learn that William of Orange was significant in the the growth of gin in the late 1600s.

After the quiz and a fantastic overview of the history of gin we had our first gin: Makars gin (Gaelic for poet) with a garnish of green chilli and a mixer of Doctor Polidori’s cucumber tonic. Sara paired this with heritage sourdough topped with a ‘jam’ made from Ndjua (Calabrian) sausage tomatoes coriander and fennel seeds and some halloumi. The spiciness of the food went really well with the strong juniper hit and spiciness of the gin.

Our second gin was a Rock Rose navy strength gin from Caithness that had a garnish of mint and a mixer of Rocquette cider. Sara paired this with a wood pigeon carpaccio and horseradish mayonnaise on sourdough. A perfect accompaniment for this time of year.

Our third gin was Lassie’s toast by Dunnel Bay distillery, the same distillery that makes Rock Rose. This gin specifically designed for women at the end of Burn’s night, is based on a Moorland tea recipe and has already sold out. I’ll certainly be looking out for it when they release it again as this was a favourite for me. The gin had a garnish of thyme and Sara paired it with haggis croquettes and Dijon mayo. The croquettes were simply out of this world. I could have eaten a bowl full.

Our last gin of the night was Persie Old Tom gin from Perthshire that Sara paired with Bakewell tart. A great way to end the tastings.

Following the tastings everyone was given the option to have a long drink and I chose to have Whittakers pink peculier with hibiscus and pink peppercorns, on Sara’s recommendation. Wow! What a gin. I’ll be ordering a bottle. Still and Heart bring a great selection of gins alongside the ones that are a focus of the tastings and are great at recommending things to try to expand your range of gins. What they don’t know about gin isn’t worth knowing!

The partnership between Sara and Still and Heart is a fantastic opportunity not only to learn more about gin but also a way to experiment with flavours. I’d highly recommend booking yourself in to one of the evenings this year and bring a few friends as it’s a great night out!

Catch and Sea

We had the fantastic opportunity on Saturday morning to go on the maiden Catch and Sea trip with Causeway Coast Foodie Tours. Our morning started very early, we met at 6.15am at the Causeway Lass in Portrush Harbour and we were taken out towards the Skerries and Dunluce Castle in time for sunrise. That experience in itself was worth the cost of the trip but it got better and better.

Our host was Wendy Gallagher from Causeway Coast Foodie Tours who made us feel so welcome and fed us lots of delicious local breads from Tony’s Griddle Goods.

Our fishing experts were Richard and Charlie. They put us at ease straight away and even though I have never fished before they gave me such confidence to have a go. It worked. I caught the first and largest mackerel. It was one of the best feelings!

We spent a couple of hours fishing and Charlie regaled us with local stories and lots of information about wildlife. We even spotted a sunfish. They are a rare sight and it was amazing to watch it swimming around the boat. Later we also watched a gannet circling the boat majestically. You can’t put a price on opportunities like this, I was grinning from ear to ear. Charlie and Richard also taught us about filleting fish and we were given a really helpful information pack at the end of our trip.

After a couple of hours fishing we returned to dry land and headed round to Babushka for our breakfast. Richard presented the mackerel and then the lovely people at Babushka cooked our breakfast with mackerel as the star of the show.

Even at this point in the trip when I knew we had got our money’s worth, there were more little treats in store. Babushka gave us a glass of their home made naturally fermented redcurrant soda to start our breakfast experience

and then we tasted 3 different coffees: Workshop Gachatha AA, Koppi and Pernodby Grecencio. I was having a ball and breakfast hadn’t even arrived yet. Then breakfast arrived. Oh my! it was a thing of beauty. The mackerel drizzled with a little Broighter Gold lemon infused rapeseed oil, Ursa Minor Sourdough, lashings of Abernethy butter, a poached egg and finally some crumbled Broughgammon Farm goat bacon. We also had some Northern Smokehouse smoked dulse to sprinkle over the dish if we wanted. This breakfast was a showcase of everything that is wonderful about local producers. If you haven’t tried any of the producers and products I’ve just mentioned then you need to, they are seriously good. It’s no wonder these producers have been winning stars.

What I particularly loved about this tour was the passion and knowledge that came with it. Everyone involved was a real advocate for the Causeway Coast wanting to share all it has to offer. Wendy was able to highlight the local food producers who have recently won taste awards and Babushka ensured that whilst mackerel was the star of the show other local producers were included. Quality shone through the entire morning. The goodie bag was another lovely touch to remember the morning by. If you get an opportunity to book on one of these tours, do it! You won’t be disappointed. We’ve definitely caught the fishing bug and are already planning a trip on Causeway Lass next time we are home.

Causeway Coast Foodie Tours: http://www.causewaycoastfoodietours.com

Causeway Lass: http://fishportrush.net

Tony’s Griddle Goods: https://www.facebook.com/tonysgriddledgoods/photos/pcb.605250119632281/605250009632292/?type=3

Babushka: http://www.babushkakitchencafe.com

Broighter Gold: http://www.broightergold.co.uk

Abernethy Butter: http://abernethybuttercompany.com

Ursa Minor Bakehouse: http://www.ursaminorbakehouse.com

North Coast Smokehouse: http://www.northcoastsmokehouse.com

Broughgammon Farm: http://broughgammon.com

Isle of Harris Distillery

We have been on numerous distillery tours over the last few years. I love whisky and I love the opportunity to find out more about how each distiller crafts their whisky (and of course its nice to have a wee dram too) However this tour was unlike any we have been on before. I can honestly say it was the best (though I feel the need to apologise to my home country and Bushmills Distillery which is very good too!)

What made this tour stand out from the rest was the story and how every aspect of the distillery, from the fabric of the building, the people that work there and the whisky and gin they are producing brims with pride for the Island and really shows the uniqueness of Harris as a community island.

In fact, the distillery refers to itself as a social distillery and that is exactly what it is. The distillery was built by the people of Harris for the people of Harris and that is what will make it successful. In fact one of the builders involved in building the distillery is now a distiller. The ethos of this place is to train and grow local people to become experts rather than bring people from outside. Photos of those that work in the distillery adorn the walls showing them at work and in their daily lives.

Unlike other tours we began in the tasting room, a wonderful room reflecting a whisky cask. The Harris tweed abacus was used to explain the flavour notes of the Whisky they are producing called Heurach. They are aiming to bottle at 4 years but will only bottle when it is ready. It was also explained that they are planning a full voice and softly spoken whisky. (the names again being a reminder about the connection to the island)

From the tasting room we then had the opportunity to learn more about the flavours of the whisky and gin up in the gallery and then a chance to look at the stills and the warehouse. The interesting thing about the Isle of Harris gin is the addition of sugar kelp to the botanicals, giving it a unique (and really lovely flavour) There is only hint of the sugar kelp but the distillery also sells sugar kelp water that you can then add to your gin if you want more of the flavour.

We had a great opportunity to chat with those that work in the distillery and you really felt a part of their community when on the tour.

After the tour we went into the ‘canteen’ for lunch. A fantastic little place where even in here the island is reflected in the oak tables and metal legs in the shape of an H. The canteen has a simple menu of soups, cakes and scones. Today’s choice was Broccoli, cheddar and basil soup and Haddock Chowder. We had one of each and they were really delicious

When we returned back to the croft at Arivruach we decided to have a gin looking out over Loch Seaforth to toast a great day out!

Guest blog – Brew Lab training lab

For our anniversary the ever thoughtful Mrs Frivolitea bought a session at Brew Lab in Edinburgh on artisan coffee brewing. I’m not sure what this says about my coffee making skills but it was, nonetheless, most welcome. A nice surprise ahead of the day was a message that I was the only person booked in. Rather than cancel, we were offered free places for any friends who might care to join. Nice. So Mr and Mrs Frivolitea brewed some coffee together under the expert tutelage of the delightful Emiliya Yordanova. We were shown pour over technique (with the Kalita wave), immersion brewing (with clever dripper) and Aeropress.

In many ways we barely scratched the surface of this craft and I left with a renewed respect for the skill of someone who makes coffee with the level of attention to detail displayed at places like Brew Lab.

The class itself was a great mix of explaining concepts, such as over and under extraction, then demonstrating this and letting us taste the results. We played with how tiny variations of a recipe (changing the quantity of coffee by a few grams) dramatically affect the result of the brew and the different qualities extracted from the coffee at different points in the process.

We also tried the same coffee brewed with the different methods, again tasting the very different results. Artisan coffee is still a pretty small market, although rapidly growing, and often parodied as the domain of arrogant hipsters; attracting the man who perfects just the right bounce to his cappuccino and his beard but cares for little else.

I admit that I don’t know as much about the world of coffee as many and I was a little worried I might be looked down on, as if I might be someone who thinks Costa serve something worth drinking… None of that at Brew Lab. Emiliya was a great tutor. Clearly passionate about good coffee and wanting to share and encourage. She patiently handled our newbie questions and it was a pleasure to spend the morning with her.

My day to day, practical coffee brewing probably isn’t going to be dramatically changed as a result… In an office where Nescafé is the default option I’m already gently lampooned for my hand grinder and Aeropress. But we definitely learned some techniques and tips that will make a difference; a clever dripper is on our purchase list… And I am gaining more of a taste for the delicate flavours to be extracted from pour over brewing.

So that does sound like I’m taking away more than I suggested… Probably. The passion for all of this, demonstrated by folk at Brew Lab, is quite infectious.

Spa and Dine at Cedar Court Grand

Recently I met up with a friend for a catch up. We try and do something nice together a couple of times a year and had in the past enjoyed a spa day. Unfortunately we didn’t have a day to catch up this time so I was on a mission to find something that felt like a treat and was similarly relaxing. We’d agreed York was the best place to meet, so I had a look on the Cedar Court Grand website for what they offered on an evening and was excited to see a new package called ‘Spa and Dine’. An opportunity to have a treatment, use the spa facilities and then enjoy a 3 course meal in Hudsons restaurant. Definitely my thing!

The package was fantastic value for money and we could select from the full menu. Before our starters arrived they brought a lovely selection of bread.

I chose the hand dived scallops, wakame, sunflower seeds, sea herbs, dill mayonnaise, salmon keta it was beautifully presented and had fantastic flavour.

My friend chose the poached ocean trout, hay smoked heritage beetroots, watercress cream, beetroot sourdough. What you cannot see here is the beautiful glass cloche it arrived in, that when lifted released the hay smoke.

For my main course I chose Fowlers of York’s Atlantic Stone Bass, fennel, langoustines, coastal herbs, buckwheat, bisque. Another beautifully presented dish with great flavours.

My friend chose the roasted fillet of East Coast halibut, caramelised cauliflower, brassicas, verjus and brown shrimp sauce. She commented that she partciualrly enjoyed the texture of cauliflower and how it lifted the dish.

Finally, for pudding my friend had inspiration of ‘Ferrero Rocher’ pralines, almonds, burnt white chocolate, candied pistachios. She enjoyed it but it was richer in chocolate than the description suggested and a bit too filling. Definitely one for the chocoholic.

I had lemon posset, macerated berries, basil, crispy raspberry cake. The lemon was sharp and refreshing. Just right to end the meal.

All in all, it was a great package and a fantastic opportunity to try the food at Hudson’s restaurant. I can highly recommend it.

Lakes Distillery

I have to admit, I was particularly excites about this visit as part of our most recent holiday in the Lakes. A distillery visit is always something I enjoy and one that also makes gin is a particular win.

The Lakes distillery has not been open long. Everything looks new but still somehow connected to the landscape around it thorugh the use of slate and stone.

We decided to go on the distillery tour before heading to the bistro for food. The tour had some great elements to it and clearly a lot has been invested in the displays and rooms. However some elements I didn’t particularly enjoy including the attempts at interactivity through a ‘character’ appearing to tell the history of the area. I think aimed at children but it just didn’t work for me. I wanted to know more about the people involved in the distillery, the connection to the local area and what pride they take in their product. The tasting session was good but again I didn’t feel it made the most of immersing us in the process or the flavours of the drinks.

After the tour we went into the bistro. I really liked the feel of the place and the design.

We had opted for the 3 course Sunday lunch menu whilst there, though the later evening menu looked particularly interesting. For starter I chose the Cumbrian air dried ham, compressed melon, mozzarella and heritage tomatoes dish. I particularly enjoyed the freshness of this dish and the Cumbrian ham was delicious.
Mr Frivolitea chose the smoked mackerel pate, pickled cucumber and sourdough. A simple dish but full of flavour.

For main course Mr Frivolitea chose the roast beef dinner, something he can rarely refuse! He really enjoyed it but it did swim in gravy a bit!

For main I had the grilled cod with minted peas and tartare sauce. This was ok but I felt it lacked flavour. I love simplicity but this felt almost too simple!

The puddings were the best it of the meal all in all. Mr Frivolitea had the chocolate brownie toffee popcorn and salted caramel icecream.

I simply had salted caramel icecream with almond tuille.

Though in some ways I left disappointed, I think the Lakes distillery has lots of potential and certainly the bistro evening menu looked fantastic. I reckon we will return to give ti another go.

Sara Danesin supper club photo blog

We visited Sara’s supper club for the first time in 2012. It’s a fantastic experience eating great Italian food with a small number of people you have never met before and be able to watch Sara work and explain her food with such passion.

15th September 2012 (not the best photos)

Amuse Bouche of quail egg on rye with truffle butter

Starter of red pepper and parma ham bake with a warm pearl barley salad

Main course of confit aromatic belly pork, lentils, micro-apples and vanilla mash

Pudding of butternut squash bavorois, bitter chocolate sorbet, hazelnut praline, fig caramel