Slightly Peckish
April 26, 2011
Slightly Peckish: Mitsukoshi Restaurant (LDN)
In Junichiro Tanizaki’s celebrated novel, The Makioka Sisters (or Sasameyuki (細雪), loosely translated as ‘light snow’ or ‘a flurry of snow’–titles in translations are always so different but I guess it’s as much about nuance as meaning), the four Makioka sisters, Tsuruko, Sachiko, Yukiko and Taeko, all born and bred in Osaka, take a trip […]
April 12, 2011
Slightly Peckish: Wattalappan (Sri Lankan Coconut Custard Pudding)
You may think that coconut custard pudding sounds quite ordinary or not your thing, but trust me, you haven’t tried one of Sri Lanka’s best-loved desserts. I’m a self-confessed dessert-aholic and one of my favourite sweets is crème caramel (pudding or purin in Japan). Wattalappan (or wattalappam, the spelling seems to vary) is similar except […]
March 29, 2011
Slightly Peckish: Vegetable Shopping, Sri Lankan Style
My parents do their daily and weekly shopping at the vegetable shop just down the road from their house. The thing about South Asian countries is that even though their produce is fresher than fresh, but because of the heat, things go bad very quickly (who wants a bunch of wilted greens?). The main market […]
March 8, 2011
Slightly Peckish: Currified!
It’s been a while people, and I hope you’ve all been having a blast (as I’m sure you have). I, on the other hand, have had a slightly manic time especially since the worst thing that can happen to a food blogger has occurred. I may be allergic to seafood. NOOOOO! And to compound my […]
December 21, 2010
Slightly Peckish: Christmas Pudding and Mince Pies
You know it’s the festive season when you start seeing images of Christmas puddings and mince pies everywhere in London. This year Heston Blumenthal of the three Michelin starred The Fat Duck in Bray produced an extra special Christmas pudding with a whole Valencia orange inside for Waitrose (an upmarket supermarket) but it sold out […]
December 7, 2010
Slightly Peckish: The Gentleman’s Relish
One of the things I keep coming across when reading English literature of the early 20th century is reference to something called ‘the Gentleman’s Relish’. Often in stories similar to those of P.G. Wodehouse or Evelyn Waugh where lazy gentlemen are served gentleman’s relish spread sparingly on hot buttered toast by their butlers. How so […]
November 9, 2010
Slightly Peckish: Lyons Biscuits and Cakes
Lyons used to operate teahouses all over England in the early 20th century, only to begin shutting them down in the 1980s. To my eternal regret, I arrived in England too late to visit them. These teahouses turn up in all sorts of novels, especially before, during and after the war. In a bleak social […]
October 19, 2010
Slightly Peckish: Gimme a Kati Roll! (LDN)
My daily dilemma as soon as I step through my office door is this: what to have for lunch? I work in the slap bang centre of London surrounded by loads of restaurants, cafés, pubs and delis. Chinatown is just down the road. But everyday my mind goes blank and I end up shoveling down […]
October 5, 2010
Slightly Peckish: Sunday Roast at York & Albany (London)
You might have heard of a foul-mouthed chef named Gordon Ramsey. No? Just turn on the tv and you’ll see him either swearing his head off at some poor sous chef or cosying to some celeb. I’ve heard his food is amazing but I’m too poor to eat at his restaurant at Claridges and I’m […]
September 21, 2010
Slightly Peckish: Namban Nasu (aka Barbaric Southern Aubergine)
Aubergines are one of my favourite vegetables and I will always choose an aubergine dish if I can at restaurants (except if there’s beef, and I have to admit baba ganoush still defeats me). And nothing goes better with aubergine than oil. Life is tough. I grew up with a mother who cooked something different […]