1. Dropped a bit of cash at Kazu Bar (newish) last Friday night and had a brilliant night with Ms. Brown. Enough sake to get a salaryman slurring, delicious and brilliantly varied yakatori (barbequed to perfection on the dinky little barbeque under our very noses by the chef in the comedy head-gear), very fine and spicy ramen, and plum wine sorbet, which was delicate and quite lovely. The service was exemplary, and over our 4 or so hour session, the ambience delightful.
I thought I had a picture of the colossally juicy King Prawn yakatori, but it appears not. These will have to do:
Note the pom-poms.
2. Juniper for lunch yesterday - a martini and 2 bread rolls. The bread rolls were delicious - little long sourdough rolls, served hot and with olive oil and butter. On the other hand, the martini was verging on miserable, and this I related to the barman on my way out. (To be fair, he asked. I gave it to him with both barrels.) (I even - somewhat disingenously - enquired whether he'd ever made a martini before.)
This bar continues to disappoint in the way that only a bar purporting to specialise in your favourite drink - but doing it poorly - can. Was forced take refuge in The Feathers, where I gorged on Island Bay English Sausages (very fine, if that's your thing; it is mine) and mash and gravy; my companion demolished a huge and fanstastic-looking steak sandwich.
Horses. Courses.
3. A beer you must try, if you like dark beer, is the (sadly unimaginatively named) Hog Dark, on tap at The Loaded Hog and One Red Dog, down on the waterfront. It's not too heavy, and has an absolutely divine bouquet of malt extract, treacle, molasses - that kind of thing. The body and the finish do not disappoint, either. Somehow it manages to be refreshing and more-ish, which are not traits I would usually associate with a dark ale like this.
Oh, and props to Tom, imbiber-extrordanaire, for assistance with an urgent alcoholic problem yesterday.
(click an image to enlarge)
5 comments:
I'm banned from Leuven, the Feathers and the Black Harp.
I suspect they may have forgotten by now though.
Ha ha.. I'm trying to imagine what you could have done, there, at the intersection of Johnson and Featherston streets, to get yourself barred from all three. And I'm stumped.
Unless it was to open a competing nationally-themed pub, with a kitchen, on the fourth, hitherto untaken corner?
If Petit Bordeaux turned themselves into a bar (like J'Aime Bordeaux sort-of is), that would do it.
And good to see that Kazu continues to do the business. Love that Plum Shochu (the Taro one is more of an acquired taste).
Pity about Juniper: the barman that I've generally struck there is eager and reasonably experienced. Once, we asked for a Lolita, and since he hadn't come across that before he asked for the recipe. We couldn't remember the exact proportions of tequila, honey and lime, so he kept making variations until he got it spot on, and only charged for the last one. My mediocre Martini was probably the result of my misguided attempt to try an unfamiliar brand of gin than a problem with technique.
Oh, and ask any time for bar advice, though bear in mind that I've only drunk at 54 bars so far this year so I don't know everything! I could have been known for my extensive knowledge of perceptual neuropsychology, American experimental poetry, geographic information systems, 18th century French philosophy, 1980s synthesizers, contemporary architecture, Spitalfields' history or mesoscale meteorology; but if it's my fate to become known as an authority on alcoholic beverages and Wellington bars, then so be it.
Hog Dark. Used to be my drink of choice in Timaru, so many many years ago at the Loaded Hog. (There weren't many places to drink down there and they have a particularly good garden bar.) I beleieve it used to be called Hogshead instead of Hog Dark.
mmm - I have had a very tasty Pink Lady at Juniper. I enjoyed it so much that when I went to powder my nose I smiled at the other woman who was in the bathroom and then realised I was smiling at myself in the mirror.
Go Martha!
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