What I ate in September
There's this independent bakery here that does various stuff. I used to go to their other place very often for their big slices of foccacia.
They are really tasty and this location was no different! Unlike the other location this one has an indoor seating area which kind of has this hipster-esque grungy feel to it. You know kind of like those burger places from the stereotypes. But don't let it fool you because the prices here are actually honestly not bad. While the coffee is pretty standard in both quality and price the baked goods are honestly really affordable.
They have a seasonal rotating menu, daily items and solid regulars. Interestingly enough this location in particular offers more foccacia flavors as well as a warm kitchen open during standard restaurant times (but never when I have time to go there >:( ) Their standard flavors are like a margherita type thing but with much less cheese, one with olives and herbs and one with meat (this one has salami and honey, it's really tasty!), unique here are the potato and zucchini flavored ones that seem to have a lighter sauce. I will make sure to try them next time.
Another item I really enjoy is their arancini. Theyre surprisingly much bigger than the standard ones I have tried before, and filled with much more bechamel than rice. They have one with mozzarella and peas, and one with mortadella, both of which I really enjoyed, however I wish they were a little warmer!
Something that I find really lacking in where I live in is the lack of Latin-American (and Carribean!) food. Most of the places you do end up finding are actually Tex-Mex that are often not led by locals and the food is either heavily focused on BBQ or, not very good..
So one day while browsing around I discovered someone mentioning a food truck that sells "authentic" tacos (Honestly as long as they are good I dont care about authenticity that crazy anymore like I used to). It was kinda located in this cozy, backyard-esque area with really nice seating opportunities that I would love to return to.
The menu was pretty small but did offer vegetarian options. From the tacos you could choose flavors: Lamb with Guacamole, Fried Shrimp on pickled cabbage and Mushrooms with beans and queso fresco. I can't comment on if its the real deal but man these were really good!! At first I was kind of miffed about the mushroom one thinking I would not enjoy it but I have to admit it kind of blew me away and contended really well with the other two! It had this meaty, beany flavor to it topped off with a cheese which kinda reminds you of eating a chili. The guac was really citrusy and fresh and the lamb kinda tasted like pulled pork! You could really not tell it was lamb, I know that many people are thrown off by the slightly gamey taste (but I love it!). The shrimp offered a really nice textural crunch which the other tacos didn't really have, combined with the cabbage that reminded you of coleslaw all of them felt really well thought out and balanced out. I feel like you have to go for all three whenever you order them because they all balance each other out but maybe there is people with much stronger opinions on each of them out there than me. Would defintely go here again :D
I went to this event that had stands with a lot of different Southeast Asian dishes. I've been here before a couple times and enjoyed it, however theres so many to choose from you get choice paralysis x.x
Last time I tried their Pad Krapao which I enjoyed very much (don't ask me how much money i spent that day though!). This time I decided to try a dish I was desperately eyeing last time: Boat Noodles! I have to admit though, it was kind of a letdown :( it's supposed to be this brothy rice noodle soup with greens and pork sausages and meatballs that you can add various toppings onto like sriracha, chili oil, peanuts soy sauce, vinegar etc. etc. I disliked the grainy texture of the soup and the noodles were really overcooked. Rice noodles usually have this like slightly chewy bounce to them but these ones were just bland and mushy and tasted kinda cheap? Like instant noodles in a way. I did really like the sausages though, which had a very nice smoked flavor, as well as the leftover last bits of broth at the end, it got a little spicy though! I technically have a decent spice tolerance, however I had to reduce my consumption of spicy food as it was really bad for my health :(
I then also tried two desserts that they sold: one was a stuffed rice cake wrapped in leaves. It was alright. It kind of tasted pretty much like mochi but less chewy and a bit softer and sticker as it wasn't dusted in rice flour like mochi. It's called Khao Tom Mud i think? Its supposed to have a banana and coconut taste to it but I could honestly not taste that at all, if it wasn't a bit expensive I wouldn't be as critical as I am as it was honestly not bad!
The second dessert I tried is kind of a twist on Cendol. Cendol is a south east asian dessert/drink type of thing. If you know bubble tea I would say it's like its very distant cousin in a way. You get things like mango, jackfruit, tapioca strands and red beans which are inside of a black sugar + coconut milk mixture with ice. It's a little earthy and very light as they don't use heavy coconut milk and I honestly really really enjoyed it! This dessert (I forgot how its called sorry D:) used similar toppings, with more emphasis on mango, but instead of syrup and coconut milk it was topped with coconut ice cream and whipped cream. It was really delicious and personally I think more "familiar" to someone with a more European palate, however I did find the ice cream a little too sweet and didnt find that that went well with the earthy and also already sweet toppings. If I had the choice next time I would always go for regular cendol instead!
