Flavor of the spring

It’s spring


In Korea, there are some special seasonal dishes purely for Spring. The representative menu are tansy soup with a flounder, shepherd’s purse soup, wild chive seasoned with soybean sauce and other condiments.

My daddy goes to fish wholesale market in NoRangJin near to my house for me. As I love fish and fish fits to my body against my allergy, he buys very fresh fish per season and my mother make delicious foods for me. Thank for them.

This time, he bought fresh soft shell clam for clam soup with tansy recently plucked on the mountain by herself with her friends. For me, she didn’t put red pepper powder, that Korean peoples love in general, therefore put almost always in the soup. Ours was just mild and white soup, which made us taste a real fish and a little bitter tansy.

We loved this soup, especially daddy loved that drinking with small cups of soju.

We could smell spring !

Italian brunch

About 3 years passed since I met jenny in hague. We looked for an italian resto to have a brunch.
As I don't know well Itaewon, we had to walk around up to Lium art center.
Near to that place, one resto attracted our attention. We ordered one pizza with four kinds of cheese and one cream pasta with zucchini and crab.
Pizza with cheese is fine, pretty good and creative. Pasta with cream sauce is so so.
Here is croweded with many guests - foreigners. Atmosphere and decoration are so simple and cozy however so expansive. Me who travelled a lot and jenny who has lived in Europe could compare quality and price.
We drank red wine also. Wine was so little and not too thick like watery juice.
Not so bad but not so much impressive ...

Today is St.Patrick's day Eve.
After parade, all peoples rushed to street. At the evening, young peoples went to bar crawl, especially of Irish bars.
As I didn't make a reservation, i had to visit different restos whether there were vacant seat for me.
Fortunately, not waiting long, a seat in Thai Basil was available for me at bar.
I ordered fresh basil as appetizer, pho tai as main along with red wine - pinot noir

Spicy hibachi shrimp

Last night, I drank a bottle of red wine. This morning, I feel so bad,,, I have a feeling that swollen stomach is empty,, therefore it should be filed with some stuffs.
As soon as I woke up, I rush to have a breakfast. 1 toasted bagel with cream cheese, 1 cup of coffee with milk. And some green grapes, and 1 croissant. However in 2 hours, I feel so hungry. I couldn't bear, I tried to have a lunch earlier around 11 o'clock.
Fried rice at Tintin noodles and rice drew my appetite. I chose the same menu - hibachi shrimp, fried rice, some mushrooms and vegetables. When I saw receipt to find my waiting number, I couldn't understand "1 spicy". As I didn't understand meaning of spicy, not literally but from their restaurant, I just got hibachi shimp.
When I went up to 2nd floor and open their lunch box, I could notice what spicy meant. They put many spicy red peppers. Yes, it was spicy, however it was so good. Bearably spicy but more tasty.
As I felt so hungry, I could enjoy their shrimp rice, so much... I exclaimed " oh my god, it's so awesome "
I won't be able to try any more hibachi shrimp.... So sad

Romantic afternoon tea at Ritz

After 24 hours before reservation, a table for afternoon tea was set. Everything was well arranged.
I tried afternoon tea menu in America.
There are main two course with tea or hot chocolate.
When hot chocolate was firstly served, I didn't like so much, because hot chocolate was so warm, not too hot like a feeling that cocoa was not well mixed with milk because of low temperature. It was not actually real melted chocolate. It was mixed with much milk. As I expected real real hot and dense chocolate, it didn't meet my expectation. However when 2nd pot was served, I enjoyed, because it was quite hot and denser than 1st pot. More interesting discovery was that they used ground almonds. That intensified a last flavour.
House mashmellow was served with Hot chocolate. However as I do not like at all mixing, I had some mashmellows not dipping in Hot chocolate. It was not so sweet and good.

1st course is composed of different mini sandwiches - traditional egg salad, Smoked salmon with Dill cream cheese, Main Lobster with Tarragon Aioli, Marinated Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil. Instead of tanglewood farms chicken salad, they served 2 cucumber salad without chicken. It was good. Especially Maine Lobster with tarragon aioli was great. Of course, I love traitional egg salad.
As I love egg salad without fresh onions, so spicy,,, whenever I took the flight at Dublin airport, I had alwasy egg sandwich with cup of coffee at Butler's chocolate shop. I loved their egg sandwich.
2nd course is by petit fours - opera, peanut chocolate tart, smores macaron, bar cocoa, tiramisu, and warm scones with house preserves ad davonshire cream. I love the harmonized spread of davonshire cream and very thick strawberry preserve. It is so nice. Although I wanted to have more,,,,,,

Why I love afternoon tea ?
Because whenever I have afternoon tea, I feel that I go back to old days like a movie ^^
It's so romantic, isn't it ?
However today, as I was alone, they didn't set real afternoon tea plates with different floors dedicated to afternoon tea sandwiches and cakes. They served normal plates.
To feel so thirsty, I ordered a pot of coffee taking together with petit fours.

Yes, my today's challenge ? was good...
I took too much drinks - hot chocolates, and coffees. Happy time

Tintin - hibachi shrimp

By chance, I discover tintin thai fusion rice and noodle bar.
It's not purely thai food, not so expansive, however quite good to try
I love hibachi shrimp. With rice or fried rice, there are shrimps. As side dish, some vegetable salad with tomato mayonase base sauce. It should be ordered as extra along with mush room also. Fried rice was a little salty, I didn't like their typical smell however I love their salad. Everyday I wanna take that ^^

Crepe Cellar

I visited Noda street. Sombody introduced Noda street like New York.
Although I didn't visit yet New York, that street was very short with a few restaurants. However decoration and interiors were very creative and animated, I could see the difference from uptown.
I tried a restaurant Crepe cellar. Frankly speaking, I thought that this bar is specialized in Crepe, however it's just casul bar serving crepe and other light meals also.
I ordered crepe with mushroom and spinach. I wanted to try crepe of 4 kinds of cheeses, however actually this menu was not on the list. I had to select another.
Crepe was not what I imagined because it was cut into two slices differently from normal crepe. It was very lighter, for me,, so so.. Purple slaw as side dish was wonderful. Very fresh and savory... It was made by them with using their own recipe. Great. I ordered 2nd menu Fish and chips recommeded as "Best of Best" by Charlotte Magazine. In general, I do not like fish and chips, it is so greasy, however when I tried in Ireland and England, because of vinagar sauce, I could enjoy that. Here, vinagar sauce is too sweet, maybe mixed with honey. I didn't like. Fish was not cut,, whole fish was fried. Not bad,, but it was so difficult to cut, Thanks to purple slaw, I could finish that. Of course, as I already emptied a plate of Crepe, I was already full. When I tried 2nd dish, it was a challenge for me. As I couldn't go back to Noda street, I tried different dishes as much as I can.. So full ~~
Decoration looked very young, energetic, I could see many young or mid generation to have a brunch.

Amelie's

I discovered a very small but so cozy and romantic french bakery and cafe
They sell a few kinds of breads - twice twisted croissant(chocolate/almond), eclair(vanilla/chocolate), palmier, turnover, macarons, etc.
I tried twice croissant - almond, turnover, palmier, eclair - chocolate. All were so good. Eclair looked so sweet, however it was not so sweet, and dense in vanila, I missed eclair with chocolate. Next time, I'll try it.
Their rich coffee goes well with these simple but tasty pastries.
At morning time, there are too many peoples, although it's so small, it is croweded with peoples, sometimes, we can see some peoples standing with a cup of coffee, chattering with colleagues or friends. Therefore, I visited there around lunch time. It was better with less peoples, not so much busy.. I could enjoy coffee time with sweet pastries.
I had a lunch with very spicy thai noodle, which was mixed with pepper seeds. I needed something to consolate my surpring stomach with something sweet.
Their decoration looks a romantic royal living room, however so cozy...

Majorca bread at Starbucks

After napping soundly, I had a brunch at Starbucks.
With a hot cup of americano, spinach, egg, cheese wrap and majorca bread.
Although the wrap was so so, majorca bread which sugar poweder was spinkled on the top of the bread, it was so tasty.. Frankly speaking, I wanted to take one more, however I had to contro myself a strong appetite. I gained already a few kilos..
Quiet and pacific morning time went well with this bread and hot coffee..
Whener I go to Starbucks, the saying of its founder "let the peoples taste a delicious and rich coffee as he discovered it so fantastic, to share the opportunity of enjoying coffee, he opened this international coffee shop.
Thanks to him, we can meet our morning with this flavoured and hot coffee... Happy time !!
Of course it 's so different from European coffees



Mini sandwich of black bean

I've wanted to go to have a pizza, however the pizzeria I've looked for was closed. Actually, it was opened, not to public because of private event.
I had to find out alternative... what ?
By chance, my feet were going to Dandelion market.
When I had a brunch last Saturday, I was so happy to try very creative and f'resh menu.
Today's menu was sandwich with fresh house made guacamole, grilled green tomato called as Chef Anthony's Black Bean Sliders with salad as side dish. I drank two cups of coffee.
Decoration of mini sandwich looked so nice, and taste was so good,,, There were too many peoples, waiting for take out menu also.

The atmosphere of this restaurant is very different and casual, intermediate between restaurant and bar. Their light menu for dinner draws also my attention. Last time, I've already tried with my colleague ; Artisanal Cheese Boards with apricot preserves, almond cake, honeycomb,  Butter Sauteed Sea Scallops with arugula, pomegranate drizzle, toasted macadamia, Shrimp & Grits with goat cheese, red pepper cream sauce, Sweet & Spicy Green Beans with house made spicy szechuan sauce, macadamia nuts
As I love to taste different small dishes like Tapas, I liked so much their arrangement of menu.
Although it was very short time for lunch, I appreciated chef's craft even for sandwich.

Address: 118 W. Fifth Street, Charlotte, NC 28202


http://www.dandelionmarketcharlotte.com/