Lounge Lover - Going to Shoreditch

Lounge Lover is a beautifully designed, with very eccentric taste, 

lounge bar hidden in a little street in Shoreditch. 

Known as the 'little brother' of the restaurant Les Trois Garcons, 

it was opened by the same owners to give a place to their customers 

to go for drinks before and after their meal at Les Trois Garcons.

To keep up with their style, Lounge Lover is as charming as Les Trois Garcons 

with big chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and very random eccentric deco 

such as Anatomy posters on one wall and hanging wooden horses on the side. 

A visit is needed to understand what I mean ...  

We were seated right in the middle of it all and it was pretty cool!

To be noted that Lounge Lover is not only a bar. 

It also serves food in the Japanese Tapas style and we headed there 

to try out their Winter Tasting Menu on a very cold Winter evening.

We started with a Cocktail and some Edamame served with rock salt and chilli ...

Then came the Winter Taster Menu Experience ...

Sushi Selection : Prawn & Salmon Nigiri, Loungelover Roll and Vegetable Roll

Lounge Lover Platter: Miso marinated fois gras, Duck Salad and Beef Tartare

The Beef tartare was a Winner for me! So pretty!

Beef Tartare 

Salmon Teriyaki : Pan fried salmon fillet with bok choi & Plum wine Teriyaki sauce

Rib Eye Steak : Grilled Rib eye steak served with wafu sauce and crispy sweet potato and pea shoots 

And finally ... Dessert ...

Creme Brulee Fondant and mixed berries

If you are looking for a funky place to hang out for cool cocktails and light food 

then I would definitely suggest that Lounge Lover makes it on the list ... 

but if you want to have a proper dinner with similar ambiance and atmosphere, 

then maybe Les Trois Garcons will fit better 

Portions are small here but they did warn us that it would be tapas style after all!

LOUNGE LOVER

No. 1 Whitby Street

London, E1 6JU

My Birthday Celebration @ AQUA

Yesterday was my annual special day - My Birthday!

To celebrate, Mr. A took me to a Restaurant I had yet to try: AQUA KYOTO

part of the well known AQUA Restaurant Group in Hong Kong, now in London.

Set on top of London's most iconic buildings along Regent Street, 

AQUA London is a destination for exquisite dining experience of cutting edge cuisines 

with very chic interiors. 

As soon as we made it into the entrance welcomed by a suited ' body guard' like host 

and we were promptly directed to the lift which took us to the 5th floor 

where AQUA KYOTO was located. 

As we stepped out of the lift, we were immediately greeted by 

very well groomed hostesses who offered to take our coats and 

then accompanied us to our table. 

AQUA KYOTO offers a very cool Japanese atmosphere in the heart of London 

and as we walked to our table, we passed the already buzzing stylish bar,  

the Fabulous sunken sushi bar and the famous sumibiyaki charcoal grill.

The Sunken Sushi Bar 

The atmosphere was great and in such lovely company, I was in for a memorable experience!  

Cheers to that!!

Virgin Cocktails :p 

Japanese Tofu

To start off, in addition to pancakes day today, it is also the International Women's Day!

I wish you all Ladies out there a very Special Day!!

Today, I will share with you one of the fine ingredients which I love and show you how I prepare it 'my way'. =(^.^)=

~ Japanese Tofu ~

A very delicate ingredient, soft and so delicious.

You can buy Japanese Tofu from the Chinese Supermarket in Chinatown and it comes in a sealed tube. The First step is to cut the Japanese Tofu into 1.5cm thick slices.

Then heat up some oil in a pan ready to shallow fry the Tofu. It will look like scallops at this stage!

Once the Japanese Tofu is nicely fried and golden like this ...

... it can be used in many dishes... mixed with fresh stir fried green chinese vegetables or with some bean sauce and mince pork and vegetables like the dish below :

Hmmmmmmm Yummmmmm!!!

Bon Ap!!

Deliciously Yours,

The Perfect Bento Box @Satsuma

I love Japanese Food.

The Japanese Cuisine offers a very wide variety of dishes, with different delicious
taste and textures. From its fresh tuna or salmon sashimi dipped in wasabi and soya
sauce, to a simple bowl of rice with grilled chicken teriyaki, or a bowl of miso soup
with tofu and seaweed in it ... one can never get bored of the Japanese cuisine.

I have tried quite a few Japanese restaurants in and around London and I have to admit
that being the greedy cow that I am, I usually end up ordering too much food wanting
to have little bits of everything and stuffing myself so much that often the whole
experience just loses a bit of its sparkles!

This time, I was happy to be able to combine most of the dishes I wanted to eat
- all in one Bento Box order- all in just the right amount ...

Sorry the picture is a bit blurry! 

So, on the menu :  Bento Box -  Salmon and Tuna Sashimi, Ebi Karaage
{ instead of the tempura because I like how super crispy this version is!  }
, yakilori { tender marinaded meat on stick with sweet teriyaki sauce } ,
California Rolls and a spicy seafood salad!

A very copious meal already but of course {bad habit} I had to order a bit more!

On the side, I could not resist ordering the soft shell crab roll ...
with the spicy mayo ... ooomfphh!!!
My mouth is salivating already just by the thought of it! :p

Ahh... well, with some green tea at the end of the meal, it was perfect!
Although I would have loved to have the green tea ice cream for dessert,
I just had to say No! Let's not be too greedy!

Oh and do try the Strawberry and Kiwi juice that they make fresh!
Had a sip from my other half's drink and it was pretty good!

SATSUMA Japanese Restaurant  

56 Wardour Street

London W1D 4JG