Bu-Be Footprints: July 2014

Sunday, 27 July 2014

Cote Brasserie, Manchester

Time of visit: 8 July 2014

Creme caramel is to die for!

I usually get information about new restaurants around Manchester from Manchester Evening News newspaper or some mailing lists I subscribe to. But somehow, I missed the news about the new opening of Cote Brasserie. Fortunately, few weeks ago as I exited House of Fraser department store I saw this brasserie. Right away I approached it, and looked at the menu. I thought, oh they serve breakfast and set menu with reasonable price for lunch or early evening. Then I remembered, few days earlier my stepdaughter posted a photo on her Facebook showing a very nice scrambled eggs for her breakfast in Cote Brasserie in London. Hooray, I thought.. I am going to try it here.

Few days later I had breakfast here, delicious scrambled eggs with smoke salmon. I took photos, but accidentally I deleted them :(

I returned to this place with my daughter, RB, for lunch. I love this place, it is really cosy. It is also clean and elegant. All the staff are always nice. Amongst all food I tried here, my highlight was the creme caramel. It is to die for. It is so delicate, with right sweetness, with a strong flavour of 'burnt' caramel. I just love it!! Soon I am going to go back there to have just coffee and THAT creme caramel. Watch out, Cote.. you will have a regular customer!

Ceramic bottle.

Pissaladière: traditional warm flatbread from Nice with

caramelised onions, with Reblochon cheese

and thyme.

Steak Tartare: finely chopped raw beef mixed with shallots,

capers, cornichons, egg yolk and cognac.

Steak frites: chargrilled thinly beaten out minute steak

with frites and garlic butter (served pink).

Creme caramel.

Yang Sing, Manchester

Time of visit: February 2014

I heard Yang Sing is one of the oldest Chinese restaurants in Manchester. With so many competitors around, Yang Sing still survives.

We had fried dimsum (with vermicelli, duck and wood ear mushrooms), chicken feet, chicken in blackbean sauce (hubby's fave), king prawn crispy chow mein. Everything was tasty but perhaps because I find similar foods at other Chinese restaurants are as good as those of Yang Sing, I was not blown away.

Fried dimsum (with vermicelli, duck and wood ear mushrooms), chicken feet,

chicken in blackbean sauce (hubby's fave), king prawn crispy chow mein.

Kantipur, Stockport

Time of visit: 26 July 2014

Nepalese Food

We had meal at Kantipur for the first time in September 2011. We thoroughly enjoyed it. We went back there for a couple more times in 2012. We never had bad experience at all, but for the ground of 'trying something else' we abandoned Kantipur for nearly 2 years.

This evening, we went back there. Again, everything was brilliant. The staff were very nice, very attentive. They made sure that everything was alright. The food, as usual, was brilliant. In the past I liked chickpea salad. I asked for it, but they have changed the menu, they have chickpea sandheko instead. This is one of my Nepalese favourites, so I was happy to have it.
We had lamb sekuwa and chicken mustard for the starters, both were very delicious. For mains, we had lamb babari and lamb kantipur plus fried rice. I didn't like the lamb kantipur, I found it too much tomatoes in the sauce, but my husband loved it.

Thank you Kantipur!

On A6, Stockport.

Table setting.

Interior.

Gurkha beer.

The bar.

Starters: lamb sekuwa and chicken mustard.

Garlic naan and poppadums.

Condiments.

Chickpea sandheko.

Fried rice.

Lamb babari.

Lamb kantipur.

Sunday, 20 July 2014

Moretti Gran Tour, a Regional Italian Street Food Festival

Time of event: 19 July 2014

Moretti is a beer company, touring the UK (well, London and Manchester so far) introducing street foods from several Italian regions such as Aosta, Sicilly, Lombardia, Parma etc.

You pay £10, you are given a wrist band containing 5 vouchers: 2 vouchers for food, one for gelato (ice cream), one for coffee, and one for beer. You can get extra food by paying £3/portion.

We enjoyed the event so much. The atmosphere was great, and all foods we had (gnocchi, calzone, ravioli, arancini, torta fritta) were delicious.

I hope the tour will return to Manchester, and we will go again.