Sushi Zushi & Vincent

Sushi Zushi seems to be the place to eat sushi, and I can see why. Having heard many people praise it, I have to admit, the only thing that kept me from going there was its rather silly name. I mean Sushi Zushi? It sounded too mainstream and not very authentic. I guess it's better than

Not long ago my sister saw the menu of Sushi Zushi on the Glodni.pl catalog (food catering service), and decided that that's where we would be eating that night. All I have to say is, thank you Milena!

That lady in the glasses looks like a younger, prettier Sarah Jessica Parker. 

Sushi bar... YUUUUUM 

Sushi Zushi, not surprisingly, was brimming with life. Similarly to Papaya, it was filled with business men and women, foreigners and people that enjoyed good food. The decoration (interior, exterior, tables etc.) were modern Asian (if that phrasing exists). What I'm trying to say is that it's not your usual Chinese dragons, funny looking Asian ladies in sedge hats with very red faces, red signs and gold lettering. 

One really great thing I should mention about Sushi Zushi, is the fact that the food is out fast. And it's eaten just as quickly, mind you.

Sencha Sakura - Japanese Cherry tea

I didn't actually try this, but it looked pretty, so I put the picture on. My sister and mum said it was really fragrant -- like Japanese cherry blossoms. 

Duck Harumaki

This. Was. Awesome. And I know I am quite generous with my food compliments, but this was seriously really good. Reminds me of the amazing duck rolls in Lemongrass (and ex family favourite), which they annoyingly removed from the menu. That's one of the reasons we don't go there anymore.

The duck had that classic smoky, roast duck flavor, stronger than that of the spring rolls we had in Zen Jazz Bistro. I live for that flavor. Love, love, loved it. Combined with crispy, flaky pastry and sweet sauce, it was a definite win. The worst thing about this dish was that there was not enough of it. If we come back, I might not even bother with the other dishes and just order a lot of this. Not because the other were bad, on the contrary -- they were great, but because this was just so darn good. 

Bulgogi

This was Milena's main dish, which she said was "not that great". Personally, I think she was too hard on it, since it was quite good. The taste, which was slightly sour, sweet and... warm (I don't think this is a flavor, but that's what it tasted like. Slightly gingery accents of warmness), was interesting. It was great when eaten with the fresh watercress, which helped balance out the flavors with its grassy, refreshing taste. I have to say though, the texture of the meat wasn't amazing, too chewy in my opinion. 

Tai Teriyaki

Teriyaki sea bream. The simplest dish of all. No overwhelming sauces and sides that cloud the taste of the bream.  It came with an array of brightly coloured vegetables and segments of oranges, that soaked up and washed down the fish and teriyaki sauce.

Roast Duck Sushi

Firstly, the roast duck sushi. This was also one of my favourites, generally, duck is my thing. Again, there was that smoky roast duck flavor, complemented by the creamy mayo and sweet sauce. In sushi, I love the clash of different textures and tastes. It was perfectly made, and left me wanting more.

Tempura Shrimp and Eel

Next, was the tempura shrimp and eel. Another mind boggling (and oldie version of mind blowing) combination, crispy shrimp, tender eel and sweet sauce, with a few strands of cucumber and lettuce to balance out the heavier eel and shrimp. Amazing. Ah, how I love sushi.

St. Jacob's Mussel Sushi

Filled with a peculiar mix of mussel and salad, tempura'd and topped off with a funny dollop of bright orange mayonnaise, this was the strangest of them all. Nevertheless, it was good! The crispy exterior contrasted against the soft salad and mussel inside. The mussel meat was surprising sweet, and went well with the mayo.

We were given this at the very beginning of our meal, though we didn't use any of it. Two types of pickled ginger and wasabi but I thought the sushi was good enough without.

After a more than satisfying dinner, which left us all sated, we decided to head out to Nowy Swiat, which was nearby. There, after what seemed like an hour of searching, we went to Cafe Vincent. Both my sister and I, by then, were in great need of something sweet, to finish the night off with. The bakery/patisserie/cafe was dainty, very french and absolutely adorable. Crammed inside this quaint little shop were all sorts of breads, pastries, cakes and puddings. I was craving a lemon tart, while my sister wanted something with strawberries. This is what we ended up getting.

"Lemon" Pudding

Okay, here is where I will start to rant about how I feel cheated. In the little glass case, I was almost completely sure I saw a tarte au citron which was what I wanted. When I asked the shopkeeper about this, she denied it, and handed me this "lemon" pudding. Apparently the next best thing. All I can say is: this was not lemon pudding. It tasted like cold creme brulee without the crispy caramelized top. Quite nice actually, but that is not the point. I wanted to get a refund, or perhaps just an explanation, but I decided it wouldn't be quite so convincing, seeing as by then I had already eaten everything.

Tarte au Fruits

This was my my sister's. This was extremely summery and light. The crust was delicate and buttery, while the filling tart and creamy. All topped off with a sprinkling of summer fruit, in hues ranging from bright red to blue-black, it was the perfect dessert for a summer night like that one. Mmm. I couldn't help but pinch some of the fruit.

So that's a wrap of our evening. Overall, it was nice, laid-back and it made me feel like summer has really started, as I hadn't been that convinced before.

Also, photo credits to my sister, Milena! She's in the stripy shirt in the Sarah Jessica Parker photo...

I stole the contact info off the site out of laziness... it IS 2am. Cut me some slack. 

Papaya

Not long ago, during our amazingly long easter break, my family and I went to Papaya. I've heard about it from many people before (like, surprise surprise... Jasmina! Trang's mum etc.) and have never given it much thought. One day, I thought I might give it a try, so I got my parents to take me there.

When we got to the street, embarrassingly enough, we couldn't find. We ended up asking some passer-byer, who looked at us like we were clinically stupid, and pointed directly in front of him. When we turned away, I heard him laughing to his friends...

Just in case you decide to go there, the Papaya sign is not actually outside, so to avoid looking stupid, when you see the Sabat sign, walk through the entrance/gate and on the left will be Papaya.

Inside, it was nice and cozy. A place where you can easily talk and eat oriental food, with international chatter buzzing around you.

By the way, though the pictures are from the normal tables, we didn't actually eat there. That was another time, which I might talk about on another post. The "foodventure" I'm going to talk about is the Teppanyaki bar.

Fire burning on the teppan (this should be a song, or parody)

Teppanyaki is " a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food, including steak, vegetables, shrimps and other seafood. In Japan, many teppanyaki restaurants feature Kobe beef, but you don’t have to visit the far east do eat this delicious meal. (You can simply come to Papaya. The Thai master cooks in front of your eyes the most appetizing dishes. He creates a show, throwing knives, setting the table on fire! One of the options is joining him and try to prepare an aromatic meal yourself. It is the best way to spend your time in Papaya with your friends and children. The Thai master knows few tricks to cheer them up.)"


Yeah, as you can probably see, I got this directly from the Papaya site...It's funny how they call the chef the "Thai Master" though this style of cooking is Japanese. 
Actually just the fact that they call him the Thai  MASTER, is pretty funny.


Anyways, the Thai Master's tricks were really awesome and "cheered us up". I tried to take videos, but only two of them uploaded. I wanted to try uploading the other ones again but my mum said it's "a waste of time". MY BLOG NOT YOURS. Will try uploading the rest later on.


He started off by lighting a fire on the metal surface, which was to sanitize it. Quite smart. And also, extremely cool. He poured some sort of a spirit on the teppan and lit it. The flames burst out, flickering for around 7 to 8 seconds. My parents (being closest to it) drew back, absolutely terrified - especially my mum, but my brother and his friend, Net, oohed and ahhed appreciatively. Sadly, I only managed to get a picture.


With the teppanyaki menu, we also got complementary Shiitake Consomme and Salad (they had a name for it, but I forgot). And seasoned peanuts.

See those three people in the corner? Yeah, that's Mrs. Rogalska and her family. Awk...

 Firstly, in the second picture you can see Mrs. Rogalska. My science teacher. Yep, and with my luck, she obviously ended up sitting directly in front of me. I spent the whole night trying to avoid eye contact. I said hi, though, twice actually. But the second time she didn't hear. So that was fun.

Let's get to the actual food. We got our complementary dishes first: savoury cashews (or peanuts... I'm nut so sure. Hah. So funny... No it wasn't...), shiitake mushroom consomme and a salad.

The, er, peashew nuts were not oversalted (Thank God) and ever so slightly crunchy. It wasn't just salt, it was some sort of coating, that was savoury, but with a sweet aftertaste. Honey, maybe?

After that, the shiitake mushroom consomme arrived. Yum. And very simple. It's a sweet broth, quite similar to pho, with aromatic shiitake accents. Freshly cut chives swum around on the surface and gave the "consomme" a little edge to its taste.

Lastly, the salad. Sadly, I have to admit, I have no idea what was in it except, carrots, vinegar, cherry tomatoes and... that's pretty much it. I adored the bright colours and the bright flavours that matched it. Fresh would be a keyword to this dish. All the vegetables merged together in a harmony of textures. The vinegar dressing was the best,  all tangy and refreshing.

These three dishes were fillers, while we waited for the Thai Master to get ready.
He started off with these awemazing (welcome back old friend) knife tricks, which I filmed, but obviously it failed.

I would try to describe it but it wouldn't sound as impressive as it really was. So I'm not going to kill it for you, so I guess you have to suck it up and wait. Or if it doesn't work, well, just suck it up.

On the bright side, I did manage to get two videos!

Hope you enjoy it! 


I can't say what is in the videos right now, because I can't see them myself. But I'll just publish this, then watch it and add on. Also, I might be shaking, if that happens, that's because I was eating and filming at the same time. Again - fun. 


UPDATE: Great, just great. Why am I not surprised that only the shortest, worst videos uploaded. That was just not impressive. After seeing this, I have vowed that whatever I do, I WILL GET THE OTHER VIDEOS. NO MATTER WHAT. Disgraceful. 


I didn't take as much care with the pictures as I thought that all the videos would have worked, so I didn't take as much care :( You're probably thinking "Excuses, excuses" but I swear, it's true!

Stir-Fry

This was fantastic. I love stir fries enough as it is, but this was really good. The noodles were tender and very well-seasoned, still piping hot off the stove with precious little gems of vegetables and egg mingling in between. My whole family and my brother's friend, Net, who came with us, loved this. 

Teriyaki Chicken

My brother and his friend, got the teriyaki chicken and butter fish. Proof that it was delicious: they had managed to scarf it down of it before I could take more pictures or try it myself. This was actually the last piece of anything teriyaki. Notice the fact that the fork is already pierced into the meat. So possessive...

Lamb chops

These weren't so great, slightly chewy and not very flavoursome. What a disappointment, after so many lamb chop successes.

Calamari (Squid)

My parents insisted on this. I'm not much of a fan, but I can't deny that these were made well. The onion was a nice touch, which added more dimension to the slightly "crunchy" (as we call it in Vietnamese) smooth feeling of the squid. My parents said it was really good though, so I'm taking their word for it, since they're major seafood lovers.

Sea Bass marinated in Pesto (X-large to show how much I liked it)

Mmmmmm! Soft tender flakes of sea bass, merged with the earthy, herby pesto sauce. Just perfect. This was my dish, and I can honestly say it was absolutely amazing. The fish managed to retain it's sweet juices, whilst still being falls-apart-in-your-mouth soft. The pesto merged well with sea bass, without overpowering it. It went great with the sauces provided on the table. Especially the sweet, creamy white one on the right, which I couldn't quite figure out, but loved. The other sauce was my parents favourite, slightly sour and very "Vietnamese" as they called it.

Chocolate Volcano

My brother's and his friends, but this time, I was smart enough to tell them to leave me a piece. The outside was spongy and slightly too dry for my liking, but the chocolate-y center made up for it. Hot oozing chocolate... just the thing to end the night. 


Sorry about the abrupt ending and for putting it off for so long!

p.s. A shout out to JC Chou AKA ChouChou (if you don't like being called that, just give me the word and I will get rid of it)! :)

PAPAYA Restaurant
16 Foksal Street
00-372 Warsaw

booking: 022 826-11-99
office, phone/fax: 022 826-48-51
email: papaya@papaya.waw.pl
Restaurant open every day
from 12:00 to 24:00
Delivery by site www.glodni.pl


Site: http://www.papaya.waw.pl

p.s. A shout out to JC Chou AKA ChouChou (if you don't like being called that, just give me the word and I will get rid of it)! :)



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Pavlova Magic

Firstly, to Rachel, thank you for the present. It was awesome! Sorry that I didn't wait to make it during our cooking meetings, but I really couldn't take it any longer.
Okay, what Rachel got me was... magic. PAVLOVA MAGIC.

 You might be confused as to why Rachel gave me cake mix, but it's an inside joke. And I'm glad she did, since I have always wanted to try pavlova and never got a chance.

Making it was incredibly easy. I didn't even have to measure anything! But more on that later.

THE INSTRUCTIONS (word by word)

PAVLOVA MAGIC


All you need: 


130g caster sugar


140ml water 


1. Preheat


Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius conventional or 150 degrees Celsius fanforced. Line a 37 x 25 cm baking tray with baking paper.


2. Mix


Fill the bottom of the "plastic egg" with lukewarm water (140ml) and pour into a high-sided large mixing bowl. Carefully add the Pavlova Magic mix and mix on low speed for 15 seconds. Mix on high speed for 4-7 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally, until the mixture is stiff and forms peaks. Switch mixer to the slowest speed. Fill the top of the "plastic egg" with caster sugar (130g) and sprinkle evenly into the mix. Mix on high speed for 1 minute. Pile mixture onto prepared lined tray, shaping it into a high dome shape. Pavlova Magic will spread during baking.


3. Bake
Reduce the oven temperature to 120 degrees Celsius conventional or 100 degrees Celsius fan-forced., place the baking tray on the middle shelf and bake for 1 hour.


4. Rest


Turn off the oven and leave pavlova in the oven until the oven has completely cooled down. Do not open the oven door at any time during the baking or drying process.

Decoration Ideas:


Top with fresh whipped cream and fresh fruit (strawberries, kiwi fruit, banana, passionfruit, raspberries or blueberries), ice cream topping or choc chips or drizzle with liqueur and melted chocolate.


I'm not sure why I copied that all out. I mean, you can't really make it since you don't have the mix, and if you did you'd have the instructions yourself. That was so pointless...

For the first time ever, I actually managed to follow all the steps without tweaking/changing/messing anything up!

Except for once, when I managed to cover my whole camera with the sticky mixture while beating it. At least it didn't get on the lense, but it took ages to wash out.

Back to the not having to measure anything, the whole plastic egg bottom and top thing, I think that's just genius. Just pure genius. Measuring may be the most boring, annoying thing on earth, and they managed to make it easy and fun in the form of a cutesy plastic egg.
HUZZAH for plastic measuring eggs.

Here are a few of the shots:

 It collapsed at the end, which was extremely depressing, but it still tasted really good. The top was crunchy and not too sweet like some meringues are, and just melted in your mouth. This was, in my opinion, the better part, and I kept eating it by itself and taking it off, leaving the rest. The bottom bit was also really good, it tasted a bit like a more spongy version of marshmallow fluff.
The whole cake itself tasted gorgeous with cream and fruit, all these different textures and flavours blended together perfectly.

Again, thank you Rachel!

p.s. Milena! Send me the lasagne pictures!