08.11.08: Boiled egg, miso and cuppa

After hours upon hours of travel we arrived back in London early in the morning, totally jet-lagged. We slept slept thru the entire day after which She proceeded to conjure up this late night snack/dinner at 2am (US time). The meal for Her consisted of miso soup with glass noodles and spinach with a side of boiled eggs sans soldiers and a freshly brewed cup of tea. For Him, a Marmite bagel with boiled egg was on the menu (not pictured) plus sips of Her soup and his own cup of cha.

HE SAYS: Ooooh, that tea tasted good. Oh, and the egg and Marmite combo is only second to the grilled cheese and Marmite option in my pantheon of delicious midnight munchy food. I helped Her finish the soup and noodles and it was also tasty, in fact, what with the Marmite and miso I nearly went into umami diabetic shock.

SHE SAYS: I pretty much sank into that soup, still feeling really fragile, and dipping into the egg with a teaspoon, sprinkling salt along the way, seemed pure plain-food heaven. Glass noodles are not ideal in miso, but they filled the role of life-giving starch nicely. This meal gave me just enough energy to stumble back to bed for a few more hours!

31.10.08: Kiki Sushi, San Diego, CA

Nothing spooky about the offerings at Kiki Sushi, tho' raw food on Hallowe'en is entirely appropo. Nothing fancy about the locale or location, either, but it was nice to sit outside on the deck and watch the revelers parade by (pirates are a big theme in a city by the bay, doncha know). And now, on with the show:

Miso
Salmon and tuna sashimi
Veggie roll: cuke, avo, some kind of mushroom stuff, sesame
Eel roll
Tomago (egg, for Him)
Crunchy roll: shrimp, crab, tempura crumbs

HE SAYS: The sushi was pretty good, not spectacular. Highlights for me were the tomago, which was better then most, moist and not too shweet, and the crunchy roll, which looked pretty, had loads of crunchiness to it and gooey crab filling.

SHE SAYS: All quite good, with the crunchy roll standing out for its juicy shrimp. I didn't care for the mushroomy bit in the veggie roll, but it was more than passable, and at least half of it passed my lips.

The salmon sashimi was far better than the tuna, with the languorous mouthfeel provided. Tuna was a little oceany, but again, passable. Eel in the roll was warm, flaky and sweet, not bad, but nowhere near as good as the ho-made kind. All in all, I was satisfied if not blown away as I'd hoped to be by CA sushi.



Best bit: The thousands (I kid you not) of costumed cyclists flooding the road, weaving between the cars, guarding the intersection expertly in the wildest occasion of Critical Mass we've ever witnessed - and all while deciding on the next piece of sushi to munch. Live footage from MasonMaysun above (we were dining in Hillcrest, but didn't make it into the frame).

16.02.08: Cereal and miso soup

We made ourselves a little sick chomping down on deep-fried tortilla chips and spinach-artichoke dip at the Kensington Whole Foods (overpriced, overhyped and over here). It was meant to be a snack to tide us over, but the resulting ick-bloat put a real dinner out of the question. She had some of her new Rude Health spelt flakes cereal with yoghurt and sultanas, and he had a soothing miso soup with spinach. Later we had some some baguette slices with olive oil and salt, plus remainder of the dip (we never learn).


HE SAYS: I really enjoyed the spinach-artichoke dip from Whole Foods, probably too much, as I felt sick all the way home. But after the miso, in a couple of hours I was ready for more, only this time with the fresh-baked baguette.

SHE SAYS: I second the sickie feeling, but those chips were sooo good. My cereal was greatly improved by a handful of sultanas - when they say 'trace' of sugar, they're not kidding. But the yoghurt soothed my tummy enough for some v. enjoyable baguette-dipping later.

27.01.08: Out to Giraffe

Early pit stop with B+G+C after trawling Spitalfields and Sunday Upmarket.

Shared halves of 'Mexican' chicken and chorizo burger, Deluxe falafel burger with halloumi cheese and harissa, and chips.

HE SAYS: Not a bad meal. Enjoyed the company. Halloumi in the falafel burger was a nice touch, and I enjoyed dipping my chips into the harissa. Overall, nothing spectacular but not dreadful, either.

SHE SAYS: The company was the best part. Chips were crisp and fluffy, nice treat. Chicken burger was overwhelmed with cloying corn relish and other sweet sauces. Decent option for a child-friendly restaurant. Thanks to B+G+C for a fine day out.

And a couple of hours later, a top up of miso soup (made from the paste, not a powder packet), with spinach.

HE SAYS: Mmmmm. Tasty umami flavour. I much prefer white miso to the darker, barley variety.

SHE SAYS: Soothing, just what I wanted to wind down on a Sunday. I prefer white miso to barley, too, but sometimes in deep winter the more robust barley flavour can tempt me...