Teaser: Bali 2013, A Friend’s Wedding and A Foodie Trip

I recently attended a friend’s wedding in Bali.  Needless to say, it was extremely beautiful.  Dream location for sure, as her chapel in Ayana overlooks the sea!  Might get a post on her wedding if I can get some photos from her.  But for the rest of you food lovers, keep a lookout on this space as I got a chance to do some serious eating around town after the celebration.  Famous places like Naughty Nuris, Pak Dobil’s and Bebek Tepi Sawah were visited.  Till then :)!

WenY

Bites: Gaya Restaurant @ Applecross

Open just two months ago is Gaya Restaurant opposite Il Ciao in Applecross.  The brain behind this modern Korean-Western fusion establishment is South Korean native, Leo.  Since embarking on his culinary quest 13 years ago, he had always dreamed of bringing the best of South Korean flavors to table with a modern twist.  Seeing his passion reminds me of several other places in town such as Midori who’s Korean chef puts a spin to your everyday Japanese fare while Mr. Muneki of Nine Fine Food, another South Korean, makes fantastic Japanese food with his sidekick chef.  So what does Leo bring to the Korean food scene in Perth with his restaurant Gaya?  To that, I will have to judge the food we ordered that day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our meal started with a complementary steamed rice wine cake with honey.  Sweetish and fragrant with a mild bitterness thanks to the rice wine, it was hardly my favourite starter.  In fact, one might easily mistake it for bicarbonate soda which was what my friends and I felt.  Yet, this might still appeal to some.  With the appetizers, we ordered favorites like Korean Fried Chicken drizzled in a tangy sauce along with some sticky yet crisp rice cakes.  It was my dad’s favourite of the lot.

 

The next appetizer we had was the Arancini. Definitely not your typical Arborio rice stuff with smoky prosciutto.  Here it was filled with a basil pesto, topped with pan-fried kimchee and dollops of berry sauce on the side.  Fried to perfection, these arancinis were different from what I usually have.  It was a nice take on the classic, but was it a good rendition?  I liked the fragrant basil pesto and the mild acidity and heat from the kimchee but I was not too sure about it all.  In the end it was OK.

 

A more traditional Korean dish arrived after the Arancini.  Here, we had the Vegetable Jijimi or a term I am more familiar with, Vegetable Pajeon or simply just Vegetable Pancake.The reviews around the table for this was a little mixed. But that was no surprise as the cooking turned out to be very uneven for this lovely pancake.  On the outside, the pancake was very thin and crispy making each bite heavenly while the middle was quite soft and most of us would have liked it to be cooked longer.  On the other hand, having a side of chili mayo and balsamic soy instead of plain soy sauce showed ways that Leo tried to bring different flavors to the traditional Korean ones.  That bit I must insist I liked as it comes to terms with modern day dining cultures though chili mayonnaise tend to be overused quite a fair bit!

 

Despite the mild flaws in the fried chicken, arancini, and pancake, they were all very good appetizers.  However, it was the Japchae that pleased the crowd.Japchae is already a staple street food in Seoul.  At Gaya,it is brought to a whole new level.  With the noodles cooked to perfection, it is then wrapped and pan fried.  For me, the Japchae itself was really nice but to wrap it and pan fry it once more was rather unusual.  It became a little oilier but being Asian, my tolerance was rather high.  However, to present it on a bed of wasabi mayonnaise? Hmmm! I think it did not add much flavor to it.  Perhaps one little line across the plate would have suffice.  Nevertheless, the crisp skin gave the Japchae a change from its usual texture which was soft and chewy.  Something that was very much enjoyed across the table.

 

For the mains, I ordered the the braised short ribs.  The ribs were simply succulent with its meat cooked just right to the point before the meat would have fallen off the bone!  The sauce itself was superb with a good sweet flavor but felt overly reduced.  I expected it to be a little soupy rather than a thick sauce which I got.  This led to the dish being salty.  But this was not the end for the dish,as all it took to bridge hell and heaven in my mouth was a bowl of rice. While most of the faults were something I could live with, one bit which I did not enjoy was the parsnip chips which were overly soft.  I believe it was because the chef was waiting to serve 7 mains at one go, thus the chips were soggy when served. For $30, it was something I would definitely order again.  Absolutely moreish although fishman who also ordered this main found that it felt very un-Korean as the flavors of the dates did not really shine through.  Braised short ribs, parsnip and red dates.

 

Yv on the other hand ordered the 36 Pork.  If you have not guessed it yet, this was cooked for 36 hours sous vide before being crisped on the skin.  Things we loved about the dish was its presentation. It looked beautiful and the pork was really nice in a way that it was not too fatty yet extremely tender.  Its skin was good but we would have loved the skin a notch crispier.  Here it was crisp just nice but not really enough.  Its accompaniment of apples and sweet potato puree was interesting as it evolved to the classic roast pork and apples meal.  But for some odd reason, the sweet potato puree and apples did not quite live up to my expectations as it sweetness was insufficient.  This made the pork feel rather 1 dimensional.  Still good but definitely have space for improvement.36 hour pork.   Pork belly, sweet potato puree, chive salad, glazed apple, soybean.

 

Bullgolgi Ginseng Bibimbap was what my sister and XL ordered.  Again, this was another dish that emphasizes on Leo’s impeccable attention to detail while bringing quality Korean flavors to the dining table.  Despite being an eye candy, was it a mouth pleaser too?  I have not tasted a phenomenal bibimbap before and there was little differences that separated this and the ones I had in Seoul.  Essentially, it was a beautified Korean classic.  Lovely textures, flavors and colors.  But one thing which did not stand out was the ginseng.  I was hoping for a taste of Korea’s highly regarded ginseng but the flavors were absent.  Which made me wondered, where did it go? Hmmmm…   Bibimbap, assorted vegetables, ginseng chili paste sauce.

As my parents were not a fan of beef, they ordered a seafood stew and a spicy chicken.  I have to say, while the dishes my friends and I ordered were a mix of above averages and good, the same cannot be said for the seafood stew and spicy chicken.  The chicken for starters felt like a soupy version of Jeayuk Bokkum which is a spicy pork bulgolgi, this time with the addition of glass noodles and instead of pork, chicken was used.  Its taste was OK, but I definitely found that the quality of this dish felt underwhelming, it needed a lot more to impress.  With the seafood stew, it looked OK, but my parents were not sold by its taste.  It left them wanting for something more than what was served.

 

Then comes the sweet ending.  If you have read my post on South Korea’s street food in Winter, one of my raves was the Hott-teok.  A divine disc shapped Roti/Prata filled with a delicious sugary cinnamon syrup.  Only available in winter, it is simply a must have when one goes to Seoul.  At Gaya, Leo makes it every day.  AND IT IS ONLY 8 BUCKS.  Are we Perth-ians spoilt or what?   But how did it fare compared to my Korean experience?Presentation, once again received full marks without questions.  Now comes to most important bit, the taste.  Its pastry?  Flawless.  For us, it was fluffy and the consistency of the pastry when bitten into was spot on.  Also the flavors of cinnamon was apparent.  However, I questioned the amount of syrup that dripped when I bit into the Hott-teok.  I can immediately tell that this was a trade-off between presentation and taste.  But as I am a die hard believer in “taste before looks”, I would rather have an ugly piece of pastry filled with a large amount of syrup rather than these petite ones.  Nonetheless, I really loved this dessert.  I could have more for sure.  Perhaps a little change to the slightly charred caramel shards.

 

Despite the Hott-teok setting high standards, Gaya produced another stellar dessert that night; the Red-misu.  Another sensational $8 dollar dessert presented as if I was eating in a fine dining establishment.Just look at it.  Little chocolates resembling stones in a garden with a baby basil stalk as its plant.  On its surface was a chocolate sand that complimented the mild sponge fingers layered carefully with the mascarpone. And why was it called Red-misu?  It is because there were  bits of red beans in this which in many ways resembles little seed/stone found in soil.  Simply perfect.  It is not the most generous in mascarpone like other places and neither is it strong in alcohol but this was, in my terms, a delicious tiramisu.  One which shouts childishness instead of the deep liquor laced ones.  It was safe to say that at $8 bucks each, the desserts at Gaya Restaurant were a steal.

 

 

How does Gaya Restaurant fare as a whole?  Speaking to Leo earlier on, his motivation was clear; good Korean flavors with a modern twist.  Commenting on foods having a modern twist probably requires one to discern between gimmicks and techniques.  With the many different cuisines around, it was hardly a modern twist.  However, it was definitely enough to differentiate itself from ALL the other Korean places in town.  Then comes the harder bit which is widely contested around town;  good Korean flavors.  I felt that it was.  My housemates reckon Leo felt more like a man doing what he does best.  He cooks and he puts love into what he does.   The food here is different and in some ways did many things which were beyond the Korean food I have tasted in Perth.  The pork, and the short ribs were clear examples.  They were modern and significantly different.  Maybe contemporary? I do not know.  Essentially I liked it.  Then comes the bad bits like the spicy chicken, and seafood stew.  If I had one word, it was underwhelming.  But fortunately, regardless of what came out for the mains, the appetizers and desserts were lovely.  Additionally, I felt that the interior could do with a makeover to reflect the cuisine which was more contemporary than usual.  Lastly, the price is always a deciding factor when it comes to eating out.  For just over $50 dollars, it was a complete 3-course meal in the expensive suburb of Applecross.  For me, this was a place worthy of calling good.  Returning for seconds? Definitely!

 

WenY

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Bites: No. 4 Blake Street @ North Perth

Ever since the opening of No.4 Blake street, I have seen many positive reviews that swear by the quality of the food this place churns out.  Having missed the Press Invitation on launch day, it was safe to say that I felt rather down to know how I have missed out on such a sensational event.  But all is not doom and gloom as the day has come where I can have my chance to try out the offerings of No. 4 Blake street.  It goes without saying that I was super excited.

 

Starting with the bread, it came in two flavors which was the plain bread and the olive bread.  To get the best of the butter I opted for the plain one.  When it came to the texture, I found it to be a little dense and not as fluffy as I hoped it to be.  Plus that lingering sourness after each bite made it hard to appreciate the butter.  And while the trio of butter looked amazing whilst seated on the plate like that, it was ultimately the truffle and caviar one that had enough flavor to be eaten with the white bread.  With 5 courses coming up, I only had the plain one and left the olive one in the capable hands of my dining companions.  For the olive bread, they commented that it was a little over salted and hence, it was more suited to the orange zest and the other one, which I am guessing was pistachio.  Not the best breads in town for sure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The amuse bouche for the night was a shot of turnip froth with beef jus and a side of crumbled tendon.  In this dish, I found that every element despite complementing each other, did not work by itself.  The turnip froth was mildly bitter and the jus extremely salty.  But when eaten together, it pronounced a good concoction along with the chewy tendon covered in a crisp batter.  Though not bad as a whole, I was not sure whether it built a good enough first impression.  It felt lacking the in your face factor.  Needed something to lift the whole mood.

 

As for our appetizers, the first one was the buttered yabbies, blood orange gel, “boudin noir”, purple potato crisp.Buttered yabbies, perfection.  Sweet, moist and perfectly cooked. Fruit and seafood? Acceptable though some of my dining companions found the orange gel a tad too strong.  Then comes the “boudin noir” or the black pudding.  So ignorantly did we order this dish without trying to decipher its ingredients.  For me, having the pudding which was made out of blood was very physical, bold, heavy and to a further extent uninviting.  A massive clash of identities which I did not like.  Fruits, and seafood for me translates to foods which are light, fresh and naturally sweet without much need for too much.  Anyways, this for me was a case of too many things on the plate.

 

Seared squab, green buckwheat, crisp apple, endive.Whilst the meat was well-cooked for a small bird, it suffered from a massive salt overdose.  The sautéed buckwheat sauce was just overly seasoned and killed the squab in an instant.  Definitely something which could have been easily outstanding if not for the salt overdose.

 

The last appetizer on the table was the Venison pie & fresh tartare, quail yolk, petite salade.The venison pie was definitely not my favourite.  The pie crust felt doughy and the taste was over all very mundane because it was bland.  Paired with the liquor gel, it was an even harder bite to swallow.  But its pairing just on the other end of the plate was out of this world.  The tartare was fresh and the use of a small yolk to sit on the tartare was just sensational.  It tasted fresh and light despite being so very meaty.  In the end I found it funny how this was paired.  One was so very good such that it was to die for but on the other end was a sad looking slice of pie.  I was bombed.  No idea what happened right there.

 

After the appetizer, No. 4 Blake street adds a personal touch to the dinner by introducing a course called Al Dente, a pasta course to showcase the chef’s best skills with pasta.  One of the lovely things that night was how we had our dietary requirements met by the helpful staff.  Very considerate!  Before serving this course, the waitress reconfirmed that some of my friends were not able to eat shellfish.  For them, their Al Dente course for the night was a Gnocchi ala Funghi.The gnocchi in No. 4 Blake street is flawless.  Fluffy little pillows of pasta made this a winner course.  But the mushroom sauce was a tad too salty.  For XL who ordered the squab and had this after, her eyes was seen rolling in salt-coma.  Even Jim felt so too.  However, for the rest of the table who was lucky enough to have the crab gnocchi, it was simply fantastic.  The crab was sweet and the tomatoes ripe.  The bisque was super rich and for some, it might be a tad too strong.  But I like strong flavors and this for me, was the perfect accompaniment for those fluffy gnocchi.  This was my sister’s highlight of the dinner at No. 4 Blake Street.Gnocchi with Crab, Tomatoes and a Seafood Bisque

 

With the mains, we were spoilt for choices.  There was fish, beef, and a whole other variety of proteins.  But upon hearing how the duck was their signature dish, my mind was decided. Duck pave, smoked breast, duck fat Brussels sprout, sprout kraut, chestnut veloute.Seeing the ingredients, you would expect a few things.  A slightly crisp duck, salty at the same time and hope for the best that the Brussels sprouts has not gone grey so it all works together.  The chestnut typically I would expect it to be naturally sweet with the sprout kraut bringing some acidity.  But was it what I expected?  Well the duck pave for me was right.  I thought it could be a tad more tender on the inside but no.  Small issue.  The Brussels sprouts came out green but a tad bitter.  Bad on that, but it’s a natural trait.   For me, the biggest problem was the strip of ? running across the plate.  It was thick, bland and with the chestnut seasoning left minimal, I found that the flavors of the dish were very light and felt lacking as the thick strip of puree that ran across the plate killed the dish.  Textural wise it hit all the right notes but without the right flavors, satisfaction was rather low and left me wanting for more to be done.

 

Ranger valley beef flank, textures of parsnip, candied kumquats, brandy braise Textures of parsnip? Checked.  Tasty beef?  It left those who ordered this wondering.  After a spell of strong salty flavors from the start, it left them wondering where did it go this time around.  But the beef itself was cooked to perfection which gives the middle a beautiful pinkish red.  Over all, not bad.

 

Pan fried Coral Trout, smoked sardine pate, mussels, Chenin emulsionA special touch when the mussels are topped on an edible shell, doused with wine emulsion.  The boys liked this bit but found the trout a little tough with the sardine pate a little mushy.  Over all?  They still thought it was nice.

 

Palate cleanser was a table pleaser.  Refreshing :)!

 

As for our dessert, we worked our way through several of their offerings.  For me, I had the fresh pear, Pedro, pistachio sponge, wild figs, bay and white choc sorbetThe mild bitterness of the Pedro put a mature touch to this dish.  Its presentation was sophisticated but mixing it all up together gave it a pleasurable bite.  The springy pistachio sponge went well with the aromatic sorbet and Pedro mousse.  Crunchy cocoa powder and fig matched the textures this nicely.  Not a love at the first sight, but it was something that I learned to like and love spoon by spoon.

 

Winter Jar: Tonka bean and vanilla panna cotta, burnt orange jelly, malted crumb, cinnamon ice creamA moment of suspense arose when the waitress said “I will be back to finish the dish.”  It made us wonder for a moment about what was going to happen.  She then comes back to spray the perfume which sets the scene for the winter jar.  If you are a big fan of spices you would be blown.  This dessert has a strong cinnamon and nutmeg flavor from the Tonka bean and the ice cream.  Good balance of flavors but definitely not a simple man’s dish.  The girls who were more used to sweet, fruity desserts or plain chocolaty desserts found this a little hard to finish.  Funnily, all three of them ordered the same dessert. @@!

 

Passion fruit parfait, chocolate gel, passion fruit caviar & curd, chocolate shardsJim’s choice of dessert for the night was the textures of passion fruit.  The passion fruit came in the form of a crisp, a mouse, caviar, dust and something else. I officially voted his dessert the best one of the night.  I voted for its fruitiness and lightness as well as a balanced sweetness courtesy of the rich bitter chocolate.  Definitely a winner this one.  He too loved his dessert but wished that the chocolate was sweet instead of bitter.  I guess that is what you would expect from a sweet tooth hahaha.

 

Rhubarb, white chocolate cremeux, orange ash, blood orangeThis was easily the night’s second best dessert if all you want for the night is something simple, refreshing and not too cloying.  The rhubarb is a natural sweetheart and when used in desserts, have one of the best flavors of all time.  The white chocolate cremeux was creamy and not overly sweet.  For fishman who ordered this, he found the pairing just spot on.  He truly enjoyed his dessert!

 

At the end of the night, the satisfaction around the table seemed somewhat mixed.  A few of us had a good time while a few people, in particular, my sister found the food here rather average.  It is true even for XL who had a salty pairing all the way till her main.  To the extent that at one point, it felt rather sickening.  From the olive bread to the squab followed by the mushroom pasta, it was all too much salt.  The appetizers here were definitely not a strong point but as the meal progressed, things started changing and I found the desserts here to be outstanding along with their pasta course, the Al Dente.  But is it truly worth the hype?  I find it rather questionable.  It was OK and with the bad start evened by the good end, it falls right in between.  Even then, it really depended on what you chose.  On my side, I found that my main had the most potential to be the game changer.  It was nice to see all the different things on there but it could be a tad simpler with more seasoning in the veloute to counter balance that bland strip of rich puree.  Even for the yabbies, it definitely could do without the black pudding.  Sometimes, less is really more.

 

WenY