Kaerajaan (Gourmet Chick in Estonia)

In a prime position on Raekoja Plats in Tallinn, Kaerajaan serves "Modern Estonian Food". This is actually a rarity in Tallinn where it seems that restaurants cater for every other cuisine except Estonian.

Kaerjaan is a new restaurant with a modern decor set in an historic building on the square. There is outdoor seating on the terrace and they even supply blankets for chilly days. It was lunchtime when I headed to Kaerjaan, and despite it being summer it was overcast and windy and so MTV boyfriend and I both opted for soup. MTV boyfriend had the roast pumpkin, smoked cream cheese and hazlenut soup. I went for the tomato soup with Estonian seafood and thyme flavoured rye bread.

MTV boyfriend´s soup was slightly too heavy handed on the cream cheese, however my tomato and seafood soup was perfect. The broth was light but tasty and garnished with spring onions and small pieces of fish. The accompanying rye bread was satisfyingly dense and sprinkled with fresh thyme. If Estonian food is all like that served at Kaerajaan, there should be more of it.

Details: Kaerajaan, Raekoja Plats, Tallinn, Estonia

Damage: Reasonable

7/10

Troika (Gourmet Chick in Estonia)

As an ex Soviet state it is only fitting that you can now sample Russian cuisine in Tallinn, Estonia at Troika one of the new waves of restaurants set up to cater to Tallinn's new capitalist tourist based economy. Situated on the main square in Tallinn, Raekoja plats, Troika has an outside terrace for sunny days and a cosy basement restaurant for when the weather turns grim.

Troika is homely with waiters dressed in traditional costumes (poor things) and the decor sports quirky touches such as an accordion playing toy bear. MTV boyfriend thought the bear was the highlight. Service was surly but brightened up slightly when our friend who is a regular ordered vodka shots for the table. The vodka was poured theatrically into icy shot glasses from a great height. Although it was lunch time and in my view not exactly vodka shot o'clock, the vodka was smooth and quite refreshing.

With its costumes, decor and position on the square Troika is super touristy. That said,the food was actually pretty good, a world away from what would have been on offer when Estonia was a Soviet state. MTV boyfriend and I both had the pelmeni which are Russian style dumplings. MTV boyfriend had the lamb dumplings which were served steamed with sour cream and a tomato chutney. The dumplings were reasonable but a little too plain. My house specialty of pelmeni with a creamy mushroom sauce and served in a terracotta pot was mouth watering. The pot was topped with a warm bread crust that you sliced open to get to the steaming goodness inside.

If you don't mind eating in a theme park atmosphere the vodka pelmeni combination at Troika is not the worst way to fill your belly.

Details: 15 Raekoja plats, Tallinn, Estonia.
Damage: Pricey (for Estonia)
6/10

Vinoteca

Vinoteca is primarily a wine bar, but that does not stop it serving damn good food with genuine hospitality. Vinoteca is situated on that gastronomic boulevard that is St John's road in Farringdon. It has large doors opening onto the street and an open kitchen. On nice days, tables spill on to the pavement as people dine alfresco, while in winter time the simple dark timber decor lined with shelves of wine is cosy and inviting.

Wine is of course a specialty, the wine list is comprehensive with many wines available by the glass as well. I was there for a work lunch so we could not indulge too much, but we ordered a bottle of the curiously named "Plan B!" semillon sauvignon on our waiters recommendation and it was fantastic. I opted for the entree of fresh figs, mozzarella, basil and walnut salad. I love fresh figs and these did not disappoint, the rich flavour highlighted by the creamy mozzarella and sharp vinaigrette dressing. My fellow working lunchers selected for the roasted tomato and red pepper soup (also a hit) and one intrepid luncher had the deep sand fried eels which he reported although very tasty had a weird taste sensation as you munched on the tiny bones of the eels.

As a main course I had the sea bass, tomato, saffron, clam and fregola stew. The sea bass was a crispy skinned fillet, perfectly moist inside and laid across the top of the fregola stew. I had no idea what fregola was but I have discovered that it a type of Sicilian pasta that is almost like cous cous. I can report that I am now a fregola fan. It had a delicious flavour as it had somehow soaked up all the fantastic tomato and fish juices.

We had to get back to work so were not able to linger for dessert and in any event we were too full. I didn't mind, I knew that I would be back as soon as I could as for me Vinoteca is everything I want in a restaurant even though it is really a wine bar.

Details: 7 St John Street, London, EC1M 4AA (Farringdon)
Damage: Reasonable
10/10

Pad Thai

Pad Thai is one of my favourite dishes, I learnt to cook this dish at the Thai Kitchen Cookery School in Chang Mai Thailand. The important thing to remember with Pad Thai (and with all Thai dishes) is that you have to try to balance the seasoning. For Pad Thai it is important to have fish sauce for saltiness, sugar for sweetness, lime or rice vinegar for sourness and chilli for spice. So, yes even though fish sauce makes your whole pantry smell, you do need it. Taste as you cook to make sure the balance is correct.

Ingredients

200g rice noodles

2 tb soya bean oil

100g tofu

4 cloves garlic

100g chicken

1-2 eggs

2 tb fish sauce

2 tb peanuts

100g beansprouts

1/4 lime

1 tsp sugar

1/2 - 1 tsp dried chilli powder

2 spring onions chopped

1. Place 2 tb of soya bean oil in a wok and turn the gas to medium. Smash the garlic and fry until you can smell it.

2. Add the chicken and sear and then add the tofu.

3. Add the egg and stir rapidly until it becomes scrambled.

4. Add 2 tb of fish sauce and 1 tsp of sugar.

5. Push the mixture up on the side of the wok, pour water into the bottom of the wok and add the noodles. Stir the noodles until they become soft.

6. Add the peanuts, bean sprouts and spring onions.

7. Squeeze lime over the noodles and then taste.

Crunchy muesli

Nothing is guaranteed to make you feel as smug and virtuous as making your own muesli. Plus this muesli tastes delicious. I have played around with a few different combinations and I think this one is the best.

Ingredients
60g whole unskinned almonds
40g brazil nuts
40g cashew nuts
600g whole rolled oats
60g pumpkin seeds
100g dried apricots chopped
60g dried cranberries
60g sultanas

Syrup
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup honey

1. Preheat oven to 140degrees, chop all the nuts and mix the oats, seed and nuts in a bowl.

2. Mix all the syrup ingredients in a small saucepan. Place over a low heat and stir while the syrup warms gently. Pour over the oats, seeds and nuts and stir.

3. Line a large baking tray with baking paper and spread the muesli over it evenly. Bake for 40 mins, turning and mixing the muesli mixture a few times. When ready it has a lovely golden colour. It will still be a bit soft, but will harden up once taken from the oven. While the muesli is still warm, but not hot, stir in the fruit. Leave to cool on the tray and then transfer to an airtight jar.

The Fat Badger

For a pub, the Fat Badger has received several column inches of critical attention over the years. I suppose that the Fat Badger is a gastro pub that does all the right things like focus on high quality seasonal produce and "old school" British dishes with an original twist. For these reasons it has been blessed or blighted by visits from every restaurant critic. Fay Maschler was charmed by the Fat Badger's name and Giles Coren was, true to form, focused on the wallpaper and the water rather than the food (in his defence, the wallpaper replete with scenes of bag ladies, shootings and the Gerkhin is rather eye catching). When they get to the food though, all the critics do seem to be in rapturous agreement as to its excellence and ingenuity. I am not sure that the Fat Badger lived up to these exalted expectations.

Don't get me wrong, our table was in agreement that starters of Celery and Cashel Blue Soup and Salad of Beetroot, Apple, Celery and Walnut hit the spot. They were innovative and unusual combinations of flavours that worked well together. However, the rest of our meal was satisfying, good food, but in no way was it ground breaking or even creative.


MTV boyfriend ordered the Marinated Bavette with Tomato and Cumin Chutney (picture above). This was a fancy way of saying that he had steak and chips, his favourite meal. Delicious he said. Melt in the mouth meat. Being more gastronomically adventurous than MTV boyfriend (this is not saying much) I opted for the Spatchcock Poussin with chilli, garlic and rosemary oil. What I got was basic chicken and chips. Not looking quite so adventurous now I admit.

Similarly, dessert options of Lemon and Elderflower Cake with Strawberry Preserves and Vanilla Ice Cream with Amaretti Biscuits and Chocolate Sauce sounded somewhat more exciting than what they were: cake and ice cream with biscuits on top.

It was all tasty food, in a cosy pub environment so I have no cause to complain. I just shouldn't have read all those glowing reviews before I went.

Details: 310 Portobello Road, London W10 (Notting Hill)
Damage: Reasonable
6/10

Petersham Nurseries

Given that our tiny apartment does not have a garden, MTV boyfriend found it slightly ridiculous that I was so keen to visit Petersham Nurseries cafe. However, with Skye Gyngell at the helm, this little cafe is a justifiable foodie hot spot. Skye is originally from Australia and she has a cookbook, A Year In My Kitchen, and a weekly column in the Independent. So on the weekend MTV boyfriend and I cycled over to Richmond Park (quite a trek from Notting Hill) and then to Petersham Nurseries. Of course, bike is the way to arrive - Petersham Nurseries licence is under threat from car parking issues and so everyone is encouraged to walk, cycle or public transport your way there. The problem with cycling is that you aren't able to purchase anything from the nursery as there is nowhere to carry it. MTV boyfriend knows my shopaholic tendencies and so he was slightly worried that purchases would nevertheless be made but I was happy to focus on the food.

We weren't eating at the actual restaurant (you have to book on the day a month in advance for that) but at the delightful cafe. The setting is gorgeous: you sit in a greenhouse packed with rickety old furniture and potted geraniums and importantly there is plenty of room to spread out the Sunday papers. The sun streams in and all seems good with the world. Even when you realise that you have failed to comply with the unofficial dress code of Hunter wellington boots and designer jeans.

The menu is limited to one soup and sandwich and several cakes and slices. This was no problem as both options were so good. MTV boyfriend had the sweet potato soup. It was a vibrant colour with a nice thick rather than watery texture and packed with flavour. I had the egg sandwich with rocket. It was light on the mayonnaise (I hate egg sandwiches awash with mayonnaise) and the bread was excellent sour dough. After all that exercise to get there we felt that we had earned the cakes - we went for the rich fudgy chocolate brownie slice and the deliciously crumbly lemon polenta cake. Divine.

Now I just have to work out how to wrangle a Sunday lunch booking at the restaurant.

Details: Church lane, off Petersham road, TW10 (Richmond)

Damage: Reasonable

8/10

Fifteen

The thing about Fifteen is that it is really good. Make that excellent. I have to admit that I expected Fifteen to be somewhat mediocre. After all, it is a celebrity chef driven restaurant and the main basis of the restaurant was to create a TV show (ok cynical of me I know) and to provide a training ground for disadvantaged young people. It didn't have to be that good, people would come anyway.

When MTV boyfriend and I enter there is no sign of Jamie Oliver, apart from copious copies of his books. However we are welcomed out of the rain by the maitre d' and even though we are 20 minutes early for our booking we are able to be seated immediately. It is a Monday night and the rain outside is that strange London torrential summer rain, but Fifteen is bustling.

Fifteen is split into two parts, the Trattoria and the Dining Room. The Dining Room is in the basement downstairs and it is the fine dining part of Fifteen where you have to order the degustation menu for £60 (although strictly speaking it is not a degustation menu as for the main dishes you get a choice of three options each time).

To begin with a board of bread, olives and four different types of salami are brought out. I was a bit disappointed that our waiter could not or would not identify which salami is which (one apparently contained truffles and another porcini). He told us we must guess ourselves. However, apart from this glitch, service was very attentive. I was particularly impressed by the sommelier who offered us tasting glasses of the two wines we were vacillating between. We opted a light Italian red in keeping with the Italian food on offer.

My next course was the peach and parma ham salad. The recipe for this is in one of my Jamie Oliver cook books so I was interested to see what it was like in Jamie Oliver's restaurant. The peaches used were absolutely tiny but quite sweet in contrast to the salty parma ham. Once the salad was finished I moved onto my entree of papardelle with a pork ragu. The pasta was perfectly al dente and the ragu was succulent and rich.

As we readied ourselves for our main course amuse bouches of scallop were brought out. This went well with my main which was the Fishermans Stew, a mix of langostines, mussels and fish with a chunk of thickly buttered bread wedged on the side. The langostines were slightly thin on the ground but the broth was flavoursome and fragrant. I had no shame and dunked the bread in to try and get every last drop.

Another amuse bouche of lemon granita appeared before our dessert. MTV boyfriend had opted for the panacotta which arrived glistening and quivering surrounded by delicious fresh berries. I went for the cheese selection comprising a cheddar and a blue along with crisp bread and chutney. There was not much to the cheddar but the blue was creamy and delicious.

It was a memorable meal even without a glimpse of Jamie Oliver, and the calibre of the food meant that I totally forgot that the restaurant was still a training ground. Nevertheless you were able to feel somewhat warm and fuzzy on the way home.

Details: 15 Westland Place, N1 (Angel)
Damage: Budget Blow Out
9/10

Roasted Pumpkin, Bacon and Fetta Frittata

The theme of Waiter There's Something In My... this month is picnic food. Which got me thinking about the perfect picnic food besides the essentials of strawberries and champagne.

I think this Roasted Pumpkin, Bacon and Fetta Frittata pretty much hits the spot as you can prepare it beforehand, it is sturdy enough that it will not fall apart on you en route to your destination and it is just as good cold as warm. Leftovers are equally delicious for breakfast.



Ingredients
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
600gms pumpkin (or as they say in the UK "squash") scrubbed and chopped into medium pieces.
1 tb olive oil
6 green onions sliced into 5cm pieces
6 bacon rashers chopped
1 clove of garlic crushed
2 teaspoons of cornflour
1/2 cup cream
6 eggs
100gms fetta cheese
Salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Grease a cake tin and sprinkle the base and sides with half the Parmesan cheese.
2. Combine the pumpkin and oil in a large roasting tray. Bake uncovered for 15 mins. Then add the bacon, garlic and green onions to the tray and bake for a further 15 mins or until the pumpkin and bacon are deliciously golden.
3. Spoon the pumpkin mixture into the cake tin and reduce the oven temperature to 180 degrees.
4. Whisk the eggs and remaining Parmesan with the combined cornflour and cream in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pour this over the pumpkin mixture and crumble the fetta over the top.
5. Bake uncovered for about 45 mins or until the frittata is set.

Recipe based on an old Australian Women's Weekly recipe. Which is not really the coolest source, but those women know how to cook.

Crazy Homies

Crazy Homies is a fairly casual Mexican restaurant/bar but you will be hard pressed to get a seat because of its reputation as a party venue. I suppose that Mexican food always does have an association in my mind with celebrations and fiestas and Crazy Homies did nothing to discourage this view. The relaxed crowd sip on margaritas and coronas and you know the sort of night you are in for when some dishes on the menu are recommended as being "good with Tequila shots". I am not sure that anything combined with tequila shots is a good thing, but you get the drift.

Crazy Homies is a Tom Conran restaurant along with its sister restaurant Lucky 7 next door (an American burger joint) and it does appear to have the Conran magic touch. The decor is quite dark and quirky with touches such as Mexican day of the dead skeletons adorning the walls and padded buckets of corn oil used as seats. Music pumps and everyone there seems to be with a group of friends, talking loudly and wildly gesticulating.

Mexican food is great for sharing and our group of three opted for a huge plate of nachos which were dripping with melted cheese, salsa and tangy guacamole to begin. In Mexico itself nachos are generally just served with salsa however I must admit to preferring this not so authentic version which is a staple of all Mexican restaurants outside Mexico.

We progressed to steak tacos and chicken burritos. The burritos were probably the highlight, served in a large cast iron pot with cheese, chicken and salsa all jumbled in. We all raced to get forkfuls in before it was all gone.

As we ordered another round of Coronas I could feel that the atmosphere of the place was infectious. Perhaps Crazy Homies is somewhat over priced and over popular for what is standard Mexican food, but what price do you put on a party.

Details: 125 Westbourne Park Road, W2 (Bayswater)
Damage: Reasonable
7/10

Tea Palace

Just as elaborate ritual surrounds ancient Chinese tea ceremonys, the English have their own commemoration to the practice of drinking tea and it is known as afternoon tea. My sister was in London for the weekend and we had a girly afternoon of pedicures at a spa followed by that quintessential English experience of afternoon tea.

Our chosen venue was the Tea Palace, on chi chi Westbourne Grove. The ladies who lunch appeared to also comprise the ladies who do afternoon tea. On this Saturday they were out in force, the palace was full. In order to assuade for its no booking policy on weekends, the Tea Palace takes your number once you turn up and promises to ring once a table is free, leaving you free to indulge in some retail therapy in the nearby boutiques. It is a practice I think more places should adopt.

Our phone call was not too long coming and we headed back to the Tea Palace. To say that the Tea Palace is a palace somewhat of an exaggeration, but it is a decent size room with big glass windows facing onto the street so that everyone can see and be seen. Purple plush seats and heavy white table cloths are presumably a nod to the rooms regal aspirations.

We plumped for the "Champagne Tea", for £22 each you get a glass of rose champagne, sandwiches, scones and cakes but no tea. This was a bit rich I thought, surely the tea should include tea. Oh well, we ordered two pots of tea for £5 each and placated ourself with the rose champagne and the heavily laden tiered cake stand that had been placed before us. Resisting the temptation to start with the cakes and work backwards, we began with the finger sandwiches which included smoked salmon, chicken, egg and of course the traditional cucumber. The sandwiches were decent enough although slightly dry. The next tier hosted plain and raisin scones. They were delectable. Lightly browned, nicely warm and deliciously fluffy on the inside. I was in scone heaven.

Champagne dispensed with, we moved onto the tea to acompany our scones. Avoiding the "Builders Brew" which the tea menu disparagingly informed us was "best served with milk" I had opted for the Organic Rose Grey and little sister went with the Royal Oolong. The tea was served with little bowls of tea leaves on the side so that you can sniff at the leaves like the tea connisseur that you evidently are. Given that my tea contained rose petals, the tea leaves smelt like rose petals. Little sisters leaves smelt like tea.

Finally it was time for the cakes, the selection was tiny chocolate eclairs, a strawberry sponge cake and a chocolate cake with layers of earl grey. The cake was good but tasted and looked somewhat mass produced. In any event, we were defeated. We could only eat half the cakes, I think it was the two scones each which had done us in (they were too good to resist). We could only sit back, rest our hands on our bellies and wriggle our newly pedicured feet.

Details: 175 Westbourne Grove, W11 (Notting Hill)

Damage: Pricey

7/10

16/2/09 - Note the Tea Palace is currently closed and is moving to the centre of London to a site still to be announced - I will keep you posted.

Cha Cha Moon

I know that queuing patiently is an admirable and much vaunted English tradition, however I draw the line at queuing for half an hour to get into a mediocre noodle bar. Unfortunately, that is what you have to do to sample culinary maestro Alan Yau's latest offering, Cha Cha Moon. The combination of the Yau name and the £3.50 opening prices (which seem to have been going for several months) meant that queuing appeared unavoidable.

As you queue you can entertain or torture yourself (depending on your level of hunger) by peering through pink plexi glass to your left and into the busy kitchen. Our group of six queued adjacent to the dumpling station and so it was entirely predictable, and a triumph of behavioural psychology that when we finally were seated we immediately ordered several serves of dumplings to start.

We were allocated two wooden benches at the large communal tables so it was three to a bench. After queuing for so long, I had hoped to get at least a whole seat to myself. Nevertheless, balanced precariously with one cheek on the edge I sampled the much anticipated dumplings. The dumplings did taste as good as they looked - tiny bundles of translucent pastry stuffed with minced chicken and vegetables.

Things went somewhat downhill from here though, there was some confusion with the mains we had ordered with the wait staff giving the wrong meals to the wrong people, meaning that meals had to reordered. Despite this being the error of the wait staff we were charged for all the meals, however given the super low prices I did not have the heart to complain. When my meal of Zhajian mian finally arrived it looked fairly uninspiring. I have to say that the combination of minced pork and mushrooms was filling but somewhat monotonous in taste. MTV boyfriend had the roast duck noodle dish which boasted noodles with an identical flavour to the Zhajian Mian and was topped with dry and sallow looking roast duck.

In my view it is better to stick with Yau's high end restaurants, there are plenty of better cheap and cheerful places to get a Chinese noodle fix in London. Better still, most of them don't involve a queue.

Details: 15-21 Ganton street, W1D (Soho)
Damage: Such a bargain that even my mother would approve
3/10

Fennel and Fish Soup

This looks very impressive but is really quite easy, the only tricky part is getting fish stock. I love the licorice taste of the fennel combined with the cod - it is an unusual flavour combination but it works. This soup could be served as an entree or for summer time it could be a light meal in itself accompanied with a big green salad.

Ingredients:
4 cod fillets
1 bulb of fennel chopped, and sprigs removed (but save these)
2 shallots sliced
4 star anise
100ml white wine
1 litre fish stock
100ml double cream
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Salt and pepper
10g butter
10g vegetable oil
4 slithers of orange peel

1. Sweat the shallot, fennel and a star anise in the olive oil until soft but not coloured. Add the white wine and reduce until the mixture thickens. Add the stock and simmer for 25 mins.
2. Remove the star anise and add the cream. Bring back to a simmer and remove from the heat. Allow to cool slightly before using a food processor to blend.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan on high heat. When almost smoking place the cod in and cook until golden on one side, however the fish can still be uncooked in the centre. Lower the heat and add the butter. Replace the fish coloured side up in the pan and cook by spooning the frothing butter over the fish until just cooked through.
5. Ladle the soup into shallow bowls and place the cod in the centre. Sprinkle with the reserved fennel sprigs and some orange peel to serve.

This recipe is from John Benbow at Food at 52.