London Road Clock

News

2010-10-15T09:46:00.002+01:00

Check out page 22. Thanks Martin - it was great to meet you. In other news - after a sixth month absence - we'll be moving back to Sheffield. Ecclesall Road - prepare yourself for the clocking of a lifetime. Can't wait to be back in grey, hilly sheffield. But in the meantime to whet your appetite I'll be updating soon on my birthday meal over in Thirsk.

No Posts

2010-06-23T14:18:00.002+01:00

Apologies for the lack of posts – it is purely down to the fact we’ve not been anywhere for food lately for one reason or other. One being we’re totally skintolla thanks to a holiday in Spain, moving house and other tempting treats of the non-food variety. The food in Spain was as diverse in quality as it was limited in choice – does that make sense. Basically there was the choice of tapas or fish/seafood and we ate likes kings in some places and swines in others. I’ll not go into it too much but I’ll just say at one cheap and uncheerful place on the seafront we ordered asparagus and potatas bravas and were presented with soggy, pale, flaccid jarred asparagus, tinned boiled potatoes with Tabasco sauce. The fruits of the sea salad was fish sticks with mayonnaise and lettuce. I can honestly say I’ve never been served such a pile a crap in all my life. Disgusting. Along the same stretch of street I ate one of the best steaks of my life and that’s saying something as I’ve eaten Kobe beef in the Bellagio. It was so simple yet so perfect. It was flawlessly seasoned, cooked to perfection and served absolutely drenched in fresh lime juice. Seriously. It was amazing, it works so well and I emitted numerous sounds of pleasure as I devoured it. Since then we’ve tried to replicate the taste sensation and lime and steak works great even with a cheaper cut of meat. Mmmmm. Mmmmm. Mmmmmm.

Anyway back to Sheffield, more specifically Ecclesall Road and the Spice Market Café. Here the menu is a rather confusing state of affairs that boasts all of my favourite Asian cuisines with a Britishy kinda twist, I wasn’t expecting much to be honest, I’ve watched too many of Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares to think that this would work out. We chose from the set menu £15 for three courses, there wasn’t much but just enough for me to choose from happily. I started off with sweet potato cake with chick pea relish and blue cheese sauce, he had ½ rack of bbq ribs. Once we’d ordered we decided to have another appetizer, duck croqettes with hiosin dressing and cucumber. It all arrived quickly and in large portions. My potato cake tasted great, though it was more like tepid sweet potato mash, the chickpea salsa was lovely, maybe too oily, and the blue cheese worked well. The ribs were massive, we shared and had about 4 large ribs each. The tender meat fell off the bone and was coated in a think black unctuous sauce more akin to black bean or hoisin than any bbq. Very nice. The duck croquettes worked surpsing well too, the duck had been shredded and looked more like tinned tuna, i had to finish this off as Steve was worried he'd fill himself up. I was starting to like this fusion of flavours. Next came our mains, Pork thai green curry and teriyaki veg noodles, my noodles were practically molten when they arrived and I literally had to sit there and wait for five minutes before I could even bring them to my lips. The noodles were great as was the sauce, which was deep but thin, the vegetables were sparse and those that I did find looked like they’d seen better days. This serving was massive and I barely consumed half. The thai curry was not great, it had spice but no depth of flavour and no creamy richness to it. Maybe I'm a thai curry snob but this was not great. When the dessert arrived I was already feeling quite full, maybe we shouldn’t have ordered the duck croqettes. In front of me was placed a generous serving of chocolate mousse with sorbet, he had sticky toffee pudding with clotted cream. Both were great. I sadly had to leave a lot of my half as I was totally full. All in all the food was good, especially the starters and desserts, if I was to venture here again this is what I’d go for. I’d choose a selection of the interesting starters and ensure I had enough space left to do full justice to the amazing desserts.

She Simmers

2010-05-07T13:17:00.003+01:00

I've just found the most amazing blog, I already have a huge list of recipes that I want to do; amazing hints and tips with great images. Mostly thai food but an interesting mix of others as well, she even has me wanting another go at cheese peirogi.

Return to Siam Inter Thai

2010-04-27T15:34:00.001+01:00

We returned to this London Road restaurant as the prospect of macaroni cheese from a box was unappealing to Steve, I’d have been quite happy to have this but as we were already in Steers Beers and in such close proximity it seemed almost rude not to. I was literally beaming with happiness when we entered; I’d had a pretty stressful day and was thoroughly chuffed about being treated to a meal, courtesy of my thoughtful and caring bf. I’d noticed as we walked up the ramp that the external signage has slightly changed and it now read Thai Cuisine rather than Siam Inter, inside too had been changed dramatically, gone was the fishy smell, instead the place had new décor and it looked great. We ordered curries this time, I had gaeng ge-ree gai, a delicate yellow curry with chicken and potaoes, he had red curry with chicken. We both ordered a portion of steamed rice and I ate the thai crackers as we waited.

As I looked around I noticed that every diner’s meal looked absolutely massive and when I was presented with by decidedly smaller meal I was very disappointed. This feeling did not last long though after I’d tasted my first mouthful, oooweee, it was delicious. A perfect thai curry, just the right amount of heat, sweetness and tang. I tasted the curry opposite and that was great too, a little too hot for me, after too much I wouldn’t have enjoyed it but it was great to taste. The portions were perfect too, just the right amount of each, as usual my eyes were bigger than my stomach.

This was a totally different dining experience from our first where we'd ordered a set menu, we had less choice but chose more for our own tastes and this served us well. The meal itself cost about £20 which I think was a great price for the quality of the food, surrounding and service, we both left extremely satisfied and slightly annoyed that we didn’t have enough change for a tip – not to worry we’ll make it up to them next time as we’re sure to return.

Cubana

2010-04-27T15:04:00.002+01:00

We have a new dining out regime that I’m sure you’re all mad to hear about, basically instead of eating out all of the time we’re limiting ourselves to one meal out per month in a bid to save money. So on the first of every month we’ll be choosing a place to dine, and it better be good as we have to wait another thirty days till the next opportunity.

In another effort to not spend too much we ensured we got to Cubana during happy hour where you can order two tapas dishes for £5.95, which is practically half price depending on what choices you make. We ordered our food and drank San Miguel as we waited; the waiter commented that we must have been hungry as we’d ordered quite a lot. When the food arrived we had to manoeuvre plates around the table as there clearly wasn’t enough room for everything. The pollo y chorizo dish was delicious, heavily flavoured with the accompanying peppers, the chorizo looked more like pepperoni pizza slices than the massive chunks I’ve had there previously. The Cordero en vino tinto, was sublime, the lamb chunks were tender, the thick sauce was a savoury delight, so much so I was barely put off by its oily consistency.
Esparragos trigueros, the asparagus was lightly grilled, tasted fresh and well suited to the light and tangy cheese it was served with. Champinones con queso de cabra, button mushrooms served in a creamy white wine and goats cheese sauce, this was amazing too, the sauce specifically was excellent and once the mushrooms had been extracted served as dip for everything else. Mmmm. Jamon y queso de cabra was the next dish, the goats cheese wrapped in Serrano ham was devine, I love goats, especially when it’s been baked and it’s all gooey. We also had Pez espada con espinacas, this was from the cold tapas menu, the thinly sliced swordfish was pinky and almost transclucent, served on a bed of lemony spinach, which worked so well together, though this too was too oily. Also from the cold tapas menu we had Mozzarella y jamon, mozzarella sticks wrapped in parma ham, this was fine. Boquerones was the dish we were both looking forward to but were left slightly disappointed as the anchovy fillets marinated in vinegar just weren’t strong enough. We much prefer the version you can buy from the deli counter in Waitrose, we never buy enough of these and have usually devoured them by the time we get home! On top of all that we also ate the delicious Patatas bravas, the Spanish style potatos I always get, they were goooood! The food was great, if not overly greasy, the price was good too because of the deal. I’d recommend taking advantage of this as you can get twice as much food.

Eating in Krakow

2010-04-27T14:14:00.000+01:00

Last month we travelled to Poland, touching down in Krakow. The guy from our hotel recommended a couple of places, one of which was two doors down from the hotel we stayed at, so this was our first point of call. We were handed menus in polish and perused them for way too long despite our inability to actually read them. Once this situation had been corrected we ordered Pierogi, mine stuffed with cheese, his stuffed with pork and beef. When they arrived they look identical to the Chinese dumplings we’ve been noshing of late. They looked like huge ravioli except without a sauce, though mine had a little melted butter to soak up with the dough. When I bit into my ‘cheese’ Pierogi I found the strangest combination of flavours, sweet and savoury at the same time. At first I thought the butter was a kind of syrup, but after further inspection of the contents of the dumpling I worked out that the cheese was in fact the sweet ingredient, and tasted like soft cheese mixed with icing sugar. I think I ate a couple of them while I was making up my mind and then eventually gave up and tried the pork and beef variety, mercifully savoury. The texture of the contents reminded me of really flaky tuna or beef spread and tasted like a mixture of the two.

Krakow has a lot of fast food available to purchase on the street, practically on the corner of every street are pretzel vendors selling all sizes and shapes of lovely soft bread for about 40p. We also sampled the equally rife kebabs, in toasted pitta with hot sauce and oodles of cabbage. That was delish, though I managed to drip the yoghurty dressing all down myself leaving some worrying marks around my crotch.

In the evening we walked to a place near the Jewish Quarter that Steve had been to before, he was looking forward to the huge quantities of meat he’d been served last time. Once we were sat down one of the diners next to us told us we wouldn’t need two courses, only order one. Steve ordered the Officer’s Platter, which was a mixed grill and I ordered lamb sausages. His food was delivered on a wooden board with potatoes, all the meat was nice and there was quite pile a lot of it. Mine was also nice, with chips, we shared it and exchanged different meats and styles of potatoes romantically across the table. Accompanying the meal, accompanying most meals in Poland was the traditional polish salad of cabbage and beetroot in various guises, usually I’m not a massive cabbage fan, certainly not the traditional Yorkshire way of cooking it, where it’s boiled within an inch of it’s life and slopped onto the plate unseasoned as part of a Sunday roast, but I can usually manage pickled cabbage as I’m a huge fan of pickled everything (apart from eggs – that’s so wrong) but there was an undertone of something unfamiliar and unpleasant, I think it was mint. Not a fan of mint at all. All in all the meal was great and I was ravenous any way due to the epic fail of the meal earlier. All this was served up with large amounts of Polish beer, live polish music with an energetic atmosphere. Last time Steve was here for his cousins wedding the bride, a local, said it was the best place to eat in Krakow. We drank and ate too much and truly had a good night, I’ve just found their card in my wallet it was called Pod Wawelem on Gertrudy and I would recommend it to anyone visiting Krakow, just don’t order two courses, one course is more than enough.

On the last night we literally walked around for an hour trying to choose somewhere to eat, somewhere that served both borsch, a polish beetroot soup and bigos a rustic kind of stew, as Steve wanted to try them both before we left. Nowhere served bigos and our wanderings had made me hungry so we settled for somewhere else the hotel guy had recommended again, Miod i Vino, translated as Honey and Wine, he said it was lovely food just a little more expensive. Steve wanted to order a Dukes Taster Menu where you try a little bit of loads of different dishes, but unfortunately that was off the menu. Massive shame as we love our platter style food. We ordered starters, Steve had the borsch, served in a big mug and I ordered Krakow herring, served with sour cream and onions. I didn’t particularly like mine, the texture of the herring wasn’t nice, though I did like the sour cream and onion mixture on the top and spooned that onto the dark, dense bread we’d been given. Steve loved the herring so we swapped over and he hungrily shovelled my starter into his mouth while I hesitantly tasted the borsch. It was okay, but I didn’t want much of it, again there was a sweetness to it that I couldn’t come to terms with, I’d expected it to taste salty and acetous, so most of that was left untouched on the table. My main was pleat of pork tenderloin in a creamy sauce, and when it arrived on the table I realised that pleat meant plait and the meat had literally been plaited. There’s something either troubling or charming at the thought of a chef, hunched over the work surface, tongue out in concentration with slivers of meat between his fingers as he plaits my dinner for me. That, my friend is workmanship. It was great. Loved this meal, we got rice and polish style potatoes as well. Steve had stuffed pork with sheep cheese, this also was loverly, just not as good mine. Again the atmosphere in here was lively, the traditional band playing roused the diners.

We returned home with our favourite part of Poland, backpacks crammed with as much Zubrovka as we could afford/carry. This Polish Vodka, flavoured with bison grass, tastes great chilled or my favourite with apple juice. You can’t buy it in the UK and this is pretty much why we went to Poland.

The End?

2010-03-17T15:58:00.001Z

As we’ve consumed our last morsel of food for London Road Clock, we’ve experienced some great meals and uncovered some true gems, there’s been highs and lows, laughter and tears! I’m not even over dramatising either, I feel I should say that this isn’t necessarily the end of my little musings on my little blog. We’re considering an Ecclessall Road Clock, so stay tuned for updates on that, and I’ll let you all know where’s good to eat in Krakow. We might have to wait a while for our purses and waistlines to return to normal as both have received some punishment over the last 6 months. While chowing down in Golden Lee and toasting to a successful clock (don’t stop until you clock) we wondered how much we’d actually spent, we could probably work it out as I’ve written a detailed account of everything we’d eaten. We decided it wasn’t the best idea as we’d feel horrible with guilty once we knew. So next Ecclessall Road, and who knows what after that possibly the world.

Golden Lee

2010-03-17T15:34:00.002Z

It is a rather gloomy post this week i'm afraid as this signals the final eatery on London Road. We were somewhat surprised when we realised that the Golden Lee was in fact the last place to dine, we thought there were a couple left. We were suprised by the news that the polish restaurant had closed, we were looking forward to that one! So instead we’re travelling to Krakow to sample the polish delights there.

The inside of Golden Lee was looking decidedly worn, and a little sad, as we entered the host turned on the heaters to warm the place he told us, I presume they weren’t expecting many diners as the place was cold and had a faint greasy smell. We ordered our drinks and perused the menu, settling for the rather boring but tried and tested option of Set Menu, C I think. We had the starter platter, followed by duck pancakes. Then out came the tea warmers and the rice, swiftly followed by sweet and sour chicken, Tokyo chicken and sirloin in black bean sauce. The starter was good, it contained the usual suspects, all fine, nothing special to be honest as I’ve been consuming this fair every week. The duck went down nicely – as always, and they served just the right amount for two. Sometimes if there is too much I can tend to gorge myself on that before the main even arrives. When they came, in decidedly chipped and forlorn crockery the black bean was sizzling away and I’d forgotten how much we ordered. The sweet and sour was the first I tried, and it was very nice, there were bite size chunks of battered and deep fried chicken and a nice tasting sauce. The chicken in the Tokyo sauce was soggy and weird, the sauce tasted good though, similarly the sirloin steak had been boiled. Why on earth you would do such a thing was beyond me. It had been cut into strips and looked as though it had been fried and when I bit through it I was vaguely annoyed that it had not been. The rice was ‘special’ and had lots of tiny bits of meat and peas through it, there was enough for about 17 people. But I suppose the chef was a little like myself, I always get rice wrong, either too little or too much! While we were eating the guy in charge spent quite a lot of time talking to us which I felt was rather odd. He was a genuinely nice guy but I wasn’t entirely happy that he was stood chatting to us throughout an entire course. While dining in a restaurant I’ve experienced brief chats with waiters but I’ve never in my life had long conversations such as in Golden Lee. It made me feel quite uncomfortable and it would definitely deter me from returning there. The food wasn’t spectacular and the surroundings were dated and showing their age.
There was quite a few people in and out of the place while we were there , ordering and collecting take away, and it felt more like a takeaway with chairs in than an actual restaurant.

Yama Sushi - Finally

2010-02-26T11:53:00.002Z

We finally made it to Yama Sushi and after all the postponing and putting off we've had with this place in the end it turns out I was pretty excited about the whole thing. So I was pleased as punch when we got there the shutter were indeed up, inside was populated yet with enough space to seat two more slowly swelling backsides. I have had sushi many times before, I don’t think it was real sushi though, more like a western version of sushi, where everything is cooked, I’ve always enjoyed it. Steve on the other hand has put his foot down and decreed he doesn’t like it, it has no flavour (if there was anything I'd complain about it would be the unfamiliar texture).
This said he decided to follow my lead and order a bento box, containing a variety of tempura, chef’s sushi selection, steamed rice and a main of your choice served with miso soup. My choice was chicken teriyaki and Steve chose beef in Tokyo sauce. At this point I became overwhelmed by the menu and wanted to order practically everything, I also wanted the majority of the crockery too. So on top of that I ordered a couple of side dishes, salmon and bacon skewers and assorted tempura (why I ordered this I don’t know as this came with our bento boxes as well). We sipped our green tea while we waited and admired the surroundings; I pretty much love the Japanese aesthete and find the history fascinating. I’m currently reading a book about the history of Japan so maybe that inspired me to finally visit Yama Sushi and get thusly thrilled by it. First to arrive was the miso soup, I’ve always like this hearty broth, always been slightly disconcerted by the floating leaves and tofu. Then the side dishes arrived, the tempura with dipping sauce, this was great, I truly loved it, thin slices of sweet potato, courgettes and pepper with king prawns, coated in a light batter and fried, and it was delicious. This is not a descriptive word you’ll hear me say often referring to veg and I’m a keen avoider of most, but this seems to me the most excellent way to deal with it. Then came the Salmon and bacon skewers, described rather appropriately by Steve as fishy lollipops, these too were enjoyable. After the empty dishes had been cleared our bento boxes arrived, worryingly larger than the picture had made us believe. I laid in to yet more veg tempura, and tried my chicken teriyaki. The flavours were discreet but nice, the chicken however was not to my liking as it was full of gristle, the skin and accompanying fat was still on, I can’t stand the texture of this, which made it’s consumption even more tricky with my awkward handed chop sticking. I ate as much of it as I could as the flavours were fine. On the other side of the table Steve’s beef was delicious, yet again his order out did mine, this time both in flavour and substance, the Tokyo Sauce was so flavourful and deep and rich, the beef nice and chewy like larger fried strips. The sauce reminded me of a Jack Daniels sauce I once had, mmmm. The sushi selection was nigiri, a little bed of rice with fish or vegetable resting on top, mine was salmon, prawn and squid, Steve had tuna instead of salmon. I bit into the sake (salmon) nigiri and tried to break through the soft tissue with my wanting nashers, made even more difficult by the weak pincer that was holding onto the other end, I made a bit of a mess of it to be honest. The rice fell apart and I had to slurp up the rest of the salmon into my mouth as it was impossible to bite through. I’d learnt my lesson with my next piece, the squid, totally raw, I picked up the scored white piece and bit down hard, it came away fairly easily, as I chewed I was delighted by the mild fishy flavour, not by an oily coating my mouth received. I placed the rest of it down having decided not to continue and immediately picked it up again and devoured the lot without compunction. I stole the tuna nigiri off of Steve’s plate as he didn’t want any sushi, in the end he had a mouthful, has face afterwards (like that of a child eating broccoli) signalled his dislike. All in all it was pleasant. I wish I’d had the beef in Tokyo Sauce, the sushi was okay but I think I like the novelty of it rather than the food itself. Check out this awesome Bento Box Blog.

Dim Sum

2010-02-26T11:50:00.002Z

We headed up the road to Yama Sushi, wanting once and for all to get it out of the way, yet we find the shutters well and truly down. Not this time. Instead we head to one of the few restaurants left on London Road, Dim Sum. Inside was so much nicer than it looks and the service was quick and courteous. Complementary prawn crackers, mmmmm, there are never quite enough of these, as we perused the menu. We ordered the mixed platter to start and when it arrived it had our old favourites along with some newbies. I ordered dragon & phoenix, he ordered mixed seafood in XO sauce. His was better than mine. It was ages ago and I can barely remember but I know that his, yet again was nicer than mine and I wish’d I’d ordered satay prawns. Apologies for the delayed and rather rubbish post, I'll try to be more prompt next time so I don't forget.

Yuen Shan

2010-02-16T15:09:00.001Z

We inadvertently celebrated Chinese New Year at Yeun Shan, by that I mean we’d not realised till afterwards that it was actually Chinese New Year, or Valentines Day. Ooops. The table we were sat at had a hot plate thing in the middle and a large and slightly off-putting extractor overhead. We were compelled to order from the £4.95 lunch menu, the thankfully shorter lunch menu. I decided to be daring and order wonton soup. Steve ordered Sweet and Sour Chicken. And as soon as both arrived I realised I’d made a heinous mistake. My watery noodles were what I expected yet ridiculously unsatisfying when compared to the flavourful and bright looking dish opposite. The insipid soups' only flavour came from the soppy wonton, and I've quickly become conscious that my love affair with Chinese dumplings was swiftly waning. Instead of ‘little parcels of heaven’ I find the texture vaguely grotesque, both the innards and the outtards, especially in this broth, the parcels completely broke down and practically melted. The meat inside, which I once found revelatory, I now find rough textured, salty and off-puttingly pink. I think I may have over done it and sickened myself with them. Instead of eating my own I ate surreptitiously off of the other plate – to begin with was a delight, but after some time it was rather too sweet, not enough sour. It was a shame.

Saim Inter Thai Restuarant

2010-02-03T10:30:00.002Z

The clock is winding slowly down, not stopping, we’re just taking our time as it’s coming to an end. There are fewer and fewer places left and we’re still putting off Yama Sushi, maybe next time. Instead we went to Sian Inter, a Thai restaurant, the few times I’ve walked past it I’ve noticed that the dishes are embellished with peculiar carved vegetable flora and I was eager to investigate. We entered into the empty restaurant, it smelled fishy, I wondered whether it was the food or the fish tank with huge goldfish. We quickly ordered our bottle of wine and began looking at the large menu. As usual we feared our task, choosing food, was too great. The mammoth menu got the better of us and we fell back onto our tried and tested method, the set menu, menu B. Kicking it off with our old friend the mixed starter. The delicious platter arrived consisting of, Gai Satay, Po Pia Tord, Gung Hom Pla, Tord Man Pla and Kha Nom Pang Na Gai. All were great, the fish cakes were fresh and zingy, prawn toast is becoming a new favourite, accompanied with some of the gluiest looking sweet chilli dipping sauce I’ve ever encountered, it was slightly of-putting though not enough to deter. I was so eager to consume the delivered goods I think I may have burnt some of the skin off the roof of my mouth. Still good though. The second course was delivered by the lovely waitress, Gaeng Kiew Warn Gai (Chicken and Aubergine Green curry), Ped Sam Rod (Duck in Tamarind Sauce) and Guay Tiew Pud Thai (Stir fried noodles with prawns) served with fragrant rice. All three of these dishes were great. The curry was nice and hot and sour, if not slightly too sweet. Not too sure about the soggy aubergine though. The duck was a little too fatty for me and the tamarind sauce, which I don't think I've had before was nice, if not slightly too sweet. The noodles were great, they’d absorbed that familiar slightly scorched flavour/smell combo you get with stir-fried food cooked in a much used wok. Was loving the different combination of textures as you bit through the soft noodles, the crunchy bean sprouts, and succulent prawns, this was also slightly too sweet. This meal was one of those occasions where you think that the dish you’re eating is your favourite, until you try the next one in line and then that one is your favourite. All were very enjoyable, I was hoping there’d be some left to box up and take home but alas all was devoured. Next we were given the dessert of the day, the waitress introduced it as tarot custard pudding and explained tarot was like a sweet potato. Honestly it was scrumptious, since eating it I’ve looked up the recipe and am planning a visit to the local Chinese supermarket to purchase me some taro, a great way to end the meal, as it wasn’t too sickly or even slightly too sweet.

Vietnamese Noodle Bar

2010-01-20T11:58:00.002Z

Monday nights at the Vietnamese Noodle Bar was not rockin’, nor did we expect them to be. The place was not exactly inundated with guests, this meant we were able to site where we pleased, it turned out to be directly in the line of fire of some kind of mega super massive heater, which was welcomed in the cold climate. To be honest it was a little too hot in there, which I’m loath to say as I spend half my life complaining about being too cold. The service was prompt if not slightly uninterested and indolent, the surroundings modern and clean. The menu’s were small in stature but tediously massive in content and after perusing the oversized menu for a remarkably protracted time I was still undecided when the waiter came to take our order for the second or third time. Luckily Steve had decided we were having the Imperial mixed starter to share, so I only had to choose my main, I went with Honey Prawn. This was a snap decision and I was hoping it would be the same fresh and zingy sauce I used to have at this amazing place when I lived in Stirling. Steve ordered Scallops with garlic and chilli (the meal that I’d originally settled for) with noodles to share. Choosing the meal should have easier as we where informed on arrival that they were not serving any Vietnamese food from the menu, only Chinese, in the Vietnamese Noodle Bar, it didn’t help though. The platter was great and while eating it I realised how far I’d come in my appreciation for Chinese grub, it wasn’t that long ago I was distinctly unimpressed by it, not so anymore. The ribs were great Steve managed to refrain from noshing down on the bones this time, at the weekend we went to the exceptionally well priced Wong Ting in town where we shared a similar starter, he was complaining about the colour and taste of his rib compared to mine before we realised he’d actually bitten into the bone, his nashers must be made out of adamantium. I’m totally in love with prawn toast, spring rolls, crispy seaweed (cabbage) which was lucky as that was the feast that overwhelmed the platter alongside another favourite, the delectably nutty Satay chicken skewers, done to perfection, if not rather messy. The mains were delivered and the sizzling scallops perfumed the surrounding air with the tantalising smell of garlic and I immediately started to salivate. Tempted by his dish but eager to try my own I clawed and pincered with my chopsticks at the yellow goop covered king prawns and as I placed it into my mouth the realisation surged over me ‘I’m not a honey appreciator and this honey sauce tasted of honey.’ It was disappointing but I tried to make the best out of it until I tasted the tongue tingling flavour punch of the other dish. The garlic and chilli sauce looked a little like a translucent wet PVA glue but it tasted divine, the scallops melted perfectly in your mouth. Now my green eyes keep darting greedily at his dish, of course we usually share meals anyway but it didn’t stop me from wishing I’d ordered it, then I’d have the larger claim over it. Nonetheless both meals were consumed, along with another new favourite of noodles; I’d picked out the prawns and drizzled with the garlicky sauce to help aid its ingestion. The food was good and the only thing I didn’t like about it was my own choice of meal. It was a little annoying that we had to run out to the cash machine to pay as they didn’t take card, Steve took so long I thought he’d legged it and it left me pondering how long I’d wait for him before I’d skip too. Luckily I didn’t have to make that choice as he returned with some Steers Beers purchases. By the time I’d returned home my stomach realised how much I'd eaten and began punishing me for it.

Jabulani

2010-01-04T11:40:00.002Z

Back onto London Road proper we had a few choices, deciding to to ip, dip, do it the fates decided Jabulani, meaning ‘happy’, the newest restaurant on London Road serving African cuisine. We’ve had our eye on it for some time now but this has been the first instance that we’ve passed and it has been open (also Rhea had granted us permission to eat there without her). It was bright inside, highlighted by the emptiness, we were the only diners and feeling slightly awkward we were seated. It was an exciting experience perusing the alien menu, for once I had absolutely no idea what to order, having never eaten African food before. Despite thoroughly reading the descriptions we needed advise from the waitress, apparently I’d chosen cow offal, I’m glad she had helped as I think I would have been slightly perturbed by a plate full of innards. We chose Gizzard (turns out this is also innards, this time belonging to a bird) and Suya for starters, along with Pondu and Egusi accompanied with yams and plaintain. The waitress then went off to cook the food. Both of the starters arrived looking more or less the same, thin strips of meat on skewers, heavily seasoned with the few onions and peppers thrown in. My Suya was lamb meat and it tasted delicious, the Gizzard had a richer flavour, reminding me of liver, which I’m not particularly fond of though the seasoning was good on this also. The main courses were delivered and savoured, both tasted amazing, like a curry but without the heat. The plantain looked like a large banana that had been roasted or fried, it was great to eat with the Egusi and Pondu. The yams, like a bland potato was also a perfect accompaniment. The goat meat in the food was slightly tough but it was so full of flavour that it didn’t matter at all. I've nothing to compare the food to as I've not eaten anywhere else serving simliar food but I definately would again. The portion size was perfect as we managed not to feel ill after we had eaten. I can safely say the meal was great though the atmosphere was lacking, I’ll definitely be going back to try the food again, probably with more people to try and infuse the place with more ambience. This is a great addition to London Road, I just hope that not every night in Jabulani was like last night, so few customers can’t be good for business and this is a restaurant I’d like to see stay and visit again.

Rossi’s Italian Restaurant

2009-12-22T10:38:00.000Z

We were out celebrating again, I’d overcome all odds and conquered hazards, Steve was gleeful his horrid module was over as he had handed in his final assignment, so London Road was our oyster. We could choose tonight’s eatery out of the few restaurants left. To be honest, we’ve defied the predetermined order of the clock so many times at this point it seems rather futile to even comment upon this. Anyway, ended up in Rossi’s, not officially on London Road but we’d always intended to dine there as we’d heard nothing but encouraging comments about it. It was a week night so no doorman greeted us, we had to let ourselves in! We left the icy, grey of Sheffield and entered into the temperate and dazzling room, which was more Grecian than Italian. The room had the appearance of a tasteful 1950s, continental brasserie which was unfortunately concealed underneath the ostentatious embellishments, had the room been stripped back the intended Italian homage would have been successful. We ordered our wine, house White, I’ve learnt my lesson, and perused the menu. I couldn’t decide upon a starter, nothing seemed appetising, so Steve chose for me, mountain and sea prawns, with mushrooms cooked in tomato with mozzarella cheese and garlic, in addition Steve chose for himself, ricotta cheese with fresh basil wrapped in parma ham. My starter was nicer, a little like a prawn and mushroom pizza without the base, the parma ham was good also. Our plates were cleared by the Frankenstein waiter, who grunted at us in heavily accented English, I found it impossible to understand any of his questions and looked to my companion to translate and answer. The mains course of Napolitana and Calzone were brought but I’d forgotten the cardinal rule of fish/pizza combo – ie. don’t frigging do it! As much as I love anchovies having them all dry and crusty on top of my pizza did them a disservice I will not be repeating, the calzone seemed to have every possible ingredient stuffed inside, slightly too many flavours and textures going on for my humble palate, though the doughy base was great to munch on. Too much wine had been drunk and I could not tell you how much the meal cost or whether it was good value. We began the necessary layering of outerwear to depart our cheeks already ruddy.

Pho 68

2009-12-11T15:59:00.003Z

I’ve been craving dumplings; almost every night since dining at Jabu I have requested them for my dinner. Apparently they’re very easy, I think I should try and make them tonight. With this in mind you can tell my second venture into dumpling consumption has done nothing to put me off, in fact it has only encouraged me to seek them out all the more. Tonight we dined at Pho 68 a Vietnamese restaurant, I was content as long as the served dumplings, and of course they did. Bliss. Fried dumplings for starters begrudgingly shared with Steve and his aromatic crispy pork. Both starters were charming, the dumplings differed from those of Jabu, the frying made them darker and more like tiny Cornish pasties, the frying had given them a slightly charred flavour but ultimately did them no harm. Their contents tasted heavenly, exquisitely flavourful with the distinct taste of ginger and soy sauce. The pork was also nice, I usually refrain from eating anything with a noticeable amount of fat in it, the texture just creeps me out, but here the bite in the pork and the crispy crackling works well with the soft layer of fat, and the taste was great too. That was until I heaped on a molasses smelling dip that was on the table that had an unpleasant flavour of chilli infused tea leaves.
The next course was brought without much of a wait and we tucked into Vietnemese green curry, chicken with lemongrass and chilli and noodles. The chicken was delicious with subtle hints at warmth and sharpness, the curry was more powerful, and unfortunately overwhelmed the flavours of the other dish. The chicken itself was soft and slippery, the prawns in the curry had just the right amount of bite, although the flavours were great they both had a bizarre thickness to the sauce, with a glueyness one associates with gravy not curry. The meal was lovely, with plenty to spare for today’s lunch – and reheating did it no harm I can tell you.
Despite all of these gastronomic treats on show Steve still manages to out do our dining out experiences without fail in our hovel of a kitchen. His pork with actual gravy is better, his curries are even more tasty and he leaves out the gloop factor, if he can master dumplings I'll never have to eat out again, after we've concluded the clock of course.

Jabu

2009-12-07T13:23:00.003Z

Until last night I had been scarcely able to glimpse inside the huge windows of Jabu, a house serving Beijing cuisine, largely due to their being consistently steamed up whenever I'm passing. The reason for this being that it was a fondue style restaurant where you cook the meal at the table, Steve had already eaten here but had found the whole experience fairly baffling as he’d been unsure what to order and what to do when the food had arrived.
The menu essentials were vaguely explained to us and we were able to make a respectable choice, when the waitress returned to take our order she ensured we had ordered the necessary broths and dipping sauces. We’d also ordered some chicken and spinach dumplings, there were far too few of these to share, which came in a portions of twelve, they were delicious little parcels of savoury delight. I could have eaten more of these, they were a revelation. I’d not had them before, perhaps I’d been put off by their appearance, wan and soggy, they’re not exactly appetising but apparently ‘good things come in small packages’ and ‘appearances are deceiving’ these were wonderful.
The second course was delivered, we’d chosen the fragrant thai and satay soup bases along with various meat, seafood, noodles and vegetables to submerge and cook in the broth. We cautiously placed the uncooked food into the simmering stock and eagerly waited, while plunging raw carrot into our accompanying dips, the delicious sweet chilli and brawny garlic. The beef balls, again not so inviting, once cooked were delectable, as were the scallops. The meal was miraculous; the aromatic soups infusing the raw ingredients, provided exquisite food as entertaining the diners, large groups and parties would enjoy this kind of fun interactive dining experience. We also found the place well priced, you could cherry pick which raw food you’d like so potentially you can make the meal as economical or expensive depending on your pocket. It seems my aversion to chinese food is fading, Jabu is now a London Road favourite, I would definitely return here, with a group of people, it is unquestionably an experience I want to share with friends.

Noodle Inn

2009-12-01T12:36:00.000Z

Noodle in is one of the few places on London Road that I had previously ventured. The first time was one of those impulsive decisions one makes when in good company and spirits. We purchased a couple of bottles of wine and took them in we had a brief wait at the bar, where they served us our own wine, as they prepared our table. It was busy; the huge windows at the front were steamed up and we were treated like kings throughout the meal. I was incredibly satisfied with the food; it was simple but tasty and served in abundance with plenty left over at the end to take home, it was hastily boxed up and returned to us with complementary ice cream. All in all it was an excellent evening we returned home to finish off our wine and cause a substantial scene as we argued over a bloodthirsty game of Carcasonne.
This initial dining experience was great and I’m not going to befoul the place by abusing it here, it’s hard to expect every dining experience in the same place place to be equally good. Again the place was busy, so much so that we were seated at the end of a long table running the length of the restaurant, I wasn’t a massive fan of this as I could hear literally every word of the foursome we were placed next to, it felt rather intrusive and made me feel uncomfortable.
For starter we had ordered ½ a crispy aromatic duck to share and when she brought it to the table and started to shred it I thought that we’d been too greedy and over-ordered, but I suppose the amount was misleading as we managed to nosh down four or five pancakes each without any difficulty. After rather a long wait our mains were delivered, they were comparable to our past experiences, simple but tasty. I’d ordered sizzling satay prawns which arrived angrily on the table spitting and fussing, Steve’s meal was the triple roastie big plate, and it was big. As always we just shared the meals though I preferred my prawns. The sauce covering my meal was distinctly not satay but nonetheless enjoyable, more like thick gravy than anything else, the sauce on both meals and on previous excursions was identical. After the meal had finished, we waited and waited the plates were finally taken away without the offer of taking away the leftovers. No ice cream was brought and neither was our bill. In the end we were sick of waiting and paid at the bar.
This experience at Noodle Inn was inferior to the previous, but can be blamed upon our eating out so late on a Saturday night, the service was otherwise excellent, the food satisfying but it’s also the best value we’ve had on London Road so far.

Our Big Fatty Greek Wedding at Parthenonas

2009-11-26T15:51:00.000Z

Instead of just the usual mid-weekly clock last week saw our second outing down London Road as we were entertaining guests and were too hungover to do anything other than share our challenge with our visitors. Welcome Gilly & Rhea to infamous London Road Clock. As perfect hosts we let the interlopers decide where to dine so instead of stopping off somewhere on the ‘noodle corridor’ we bypassed the oriental mecca that is situated on London Road after Zeugmas and found ourselves seated inside the leafy Greek eating place Parthenonas. The atmosphere inside was that of a family owned restaurant, the décor typical apart from a wall of greenery covering the window onto London Road, blotting out reality and transporting you away to a Mediterranean veranda. For starters our guests ordered the meze for two, while Steve and I shared Parthenonas Feta and Spanakopita and I was filled with a murderous rage, barely able to control my anger when I was asked to hand over half eaten delightful feta baked in tomatoes sauce. All of us were left thoroughly satisfied and sated by the first course and were somewhat dreading the following. It arrived and was duly tackled, probably not enjoyed as much as it could have been had we not stuffed our faces/bellies with our starters. The Stifado I had chosen was lovely, though there was slightly too much cinnamon it was positively festive. The leftovers were hastily boxed up for us as we were ushered to the bar, for there was a wedding party awaiting our departure. As we paid we were offered and compelled to imbibe the lethal, traditional Greek tipple Ouzo, apparently it fights swine flu.

Zeugmas Mark II

2009-11-26T15:19:00.000Z

The second Zeugmas on the clock is literally five minutes walk away from the first. The restaurants were similarly decked out, both no frills with an allusion to Mediterranean style, in the air hung the fragrant perfume of char grilled meat and spices. Again we were presented with bread and olives, again they were greedily consumed as we ordered our meal. Making a distinct point of choosing different meals from our previous venture I chose a chicken dish with a sauce that I can’t remember the name of. It was interesting and very enjoyable but I ended up swapping meals with my co-clocker as his dish was superb. Another chicken dish but this time with a yoghurty rice accompaniment which rocked my tiny little world. The collection of flavours worked perfectly together and despite ordering a starter, which I’d eaten all up, I was able to finish my meal and was indeed left wanting moor.

Thai Punna

2009-11-04T09:46:00.001Z

The second Thai restaurant so far and we ordered the set menu, now experience should have taught us moderation, instead we ordered the generous three course meal for two at £19 a head. The starter platter was of a great standard, a varied selection of spring rolls, prawn toast, chicken skewers, along with plenty of dipping sauces, one to note was the sweet and sour plum. Next was my favourite Dtom Kaa Gai, the spicy chicken soup. This was okayand I’ve had better, but it’s not an easy dish to get wrong, even I’ve been known to be able to throw this satisfactorily together, with the necessary tantrums that occur when I enter the kitchen. To me this soup typifies and embodies Thai cuisine, an exciting and soothing broth infused with heat and zest which tantalises every part of the tongue, the Thai Punna soup was enjoyable but slightly too vapid to inspire more effusions of pleasure than that. The three main courses, were greeted with fewer still, both of us now looking upon the meal as a challenge to conquer rather than enjoy. My favourite was a very sweet red curry with duck, I’ve decided Thai curries need no meat they are so full of flavour and the meat absorbs the flavour so little it is not required. The other two dishes were rather disappointing, to me they were too greasy and lacked the usual Thai flair. I’m starting to believe that no restaurant will come close to the first in the clock, Baan Thai, I’ll always be disappointed when comparing the following meals to the first, Thai Punna has double the impediment in this regards as it is another Thai restaurant falling significantly shorter than it’s predecessor.

Aroma

2009-10-30T15:56:00.000Z

Further up the road we entered the gilded Indian restaurant Aroma, safe to say this is by far the largest restaurant we’ve dined in. Within there is not a trace of traditional curry house décor, it’s mien instead modern brothel. Glossy red, white and black, sleek and masculine.
The stand out moment was when they brought the pickle tray with its six different choices, all of which are great and better than any I’ve had before, even the weird chunky orange one that no one ever likes was edible.
The starters were pleasant but the main course was practically toxic, the flavour itself was fine and the meal would surely have been bearable were it not for the gristle and toughness of the meat. I chose the lamb Karahi and it left me feeling vaguely ill, the hideous crunch as you bite into a hunk of meat signals the start of a terrible meal. Only in one other restaurant have I experienced the same thing the atrocious and egregious India: The Restaurant (now closed down) on Kirkstall Road in Leeds. It too was also style rather than substance, serving such dreadful meat is unforgivable in a restaurant so obviously decked to impress. Perhaps if there were fewer puma statues littering the place they might be able to purchase decent meat. It was just terrible and cheap, full of cartilage, tough and unappealing, so after I’d pulled the third bit of knuckle out of my mouth I decided to stop eating it and move onto the plate opposite, King Prawn Karahi. Here again I was woefully disappointed the king prawn seriously overdone and suffering from it, flavourless and dense, practically a crime.
After leaving half the meal I wanted to make a quick exit lest we have to eat another course even more crude than the last. Had we left after the starters the meal would have been amazing but crap produce mixed with lazy chefs left an unsatisfied and slightly nauseated Jane, ug.

A Romantic Meal

2009-10-22T15:33:00.002+01:00

Feeling full of remorse for our previous and repeated rule breaking this week we headed back to La Romantica for an Italian meal for two. On this excursion they able to accommodate us and only another two diners littered the room. We ordered a carafe of wine to sup while we studied the brief menu, I was allowed a few brief sips of the former and fewer glimpses of the latter before the contents of my glass were tipped dramatically onto my lap. After a quick mop up and descreet bawl in the loos I returned my damp posterior to my seat and ordered pate and steak Diane to accompany whatever was left of my red wine. The wait for food was excruciating as I will ill disposed to accept the apologies of my companion and instead sulked and stared at the hideous wallpaper. Luckily the stale atmosphere was broken with the arrival of the starter, which was satisfactory, when it comes to pate I can only compare it to my mothers Christmas efforts which will never be improved upon. If I’d have eaten the main with my eyes I would have derived much more pleasure from it, the creamy sauce covering a plump and sizeable steak alongside fat chips all looked great, it tasted fine but fell slightly short of expectations. It was Italian food by numbers, all the right ingredients without any of the art, the portion, again was too large and I found myself feeling ill after I'd admitted defeat. This has been a recurring feature of the clock, it can be denoted to my substantial gluttony, or as I would like to believe, down to the inability of restaurants to measure a correct portion size. I think we are unprepared to leave any food that has been bought and paid for and as a result we gorge ourselves and ruin an otherwise satisfactory meal. We as diners cannot be expected to portion out our own food, the chefs have more experience and should therefore know what is acceptable. You'll be glad to know that the temperature of the establishment was fine. The waiting staff was excellent and I left an appropriately British tip as we hastily departed the restaurant so I could rinse off my crotch.

Birthday Treat

2009-10-22T14:31:00.002+01:00

We again defied the rules we had ourselves set in place, this time venturing to Wasabi Sabi, much further up the road than we had yet reached. Today being my birthday I had a choice of any restaurant or cuisine on London Road and I had chosen teppenyaki. I had for some time been eyeing the place and felt that it was the right sort of establishment to host my birthday celebrations. We sat at, not on the iron griddle awaiting our chef meanwhile we were sufficiently impressed and entertained by the skilful chef opposite. We ordered the from the set menus and awaited our food and fire show. I was left severely unimpressed by the manoeuvres of the man sent to cook our food. Lacking entirely in charisma and enthusiasm he dutifully but dispassionately prepared and cooked our food. The food afforded more character than he and was found to be excellent. The scallops fresh and juicy, the lobster perfectly succulent, all the meat was seasoned to perfection and though the steak was asked for rare and delivered medium the meal was superb just firework deficient. The waiting staff were on hand when needed but stays at an appropriate distance. I found myself sat directly under an air conditioning grate and as soon as the hot plate had cooled I began to feel a chill, I have found that as someone who is vaguely related to someone who may or may not have worked with coal I feel the cold much more and am eternally doomed to be placed in the way of an odious wind of natures or man’s making. We were more than contented with our experience at Wasabi Sabi until minutes before we exited when the very same chef that had left us temperate donned a fine hat and proceeded to execute an enviable culinary show at the table behind us. He began to juggle utensils, flip lobster tails into his hat and light alcohol on the plate with volcanic results to the whoops of appreciation from his diners. They were encouraged to get involved and instructed to toss food around and into each others mouths while he himself exhibited a somewhat disturbing groinal rotation whilst emitting curious whines. Apparently the cooking of oriental cuisine at Wasabi Sabi arouses the chef and disturbes the diners. We left satisfied by the food but feeling disappointed that our experience had been less enthralling than that of the other diners.

Zeugma's

2009-10-22T12:34:00.002+01:00

I'm just catching up with the clock as I’ve been to America trying to get back into the swing of things – time for an update. After Candytown we ventured across the road to La Romantica, entering through the domestic looking door and were surprised to be turned away as they were full to capacity. Grrr. Our need for food and progressing with the clock led to a tiny distortion of the rules and we headed up London Road to Zeugma’s. A Turkish restaurant that looks and feels a take-away offers a healthier and superior calibre variation from the tradition London Road kebab. Seated and ravenous we were grateful to be presented with complementary bread and olives, which were hurriedly consumed and sated a growing hunger starting to grumble from inside the darkened corridors of my gut. It’s traditionally Turkish victuals were aromatic and tender, they enticed the nostrils while stimulating the saliva glands. The lamb kebabs were full of flavour and served in a substantial quantity. As usual there was too much provided and my plate was decidedly not clear at the end. We were well served and well satisfied by the end of our meal, even more so when the bill arrived. The meal was well priced to for the food and service provided. There distinct and unsolicited cool breeze that meandered occasionally through the tables which carried upon it the abrosial smells from the stove. The smells were pleasing the siberian tempest less so. I suppose the open cooker warms the surrounding air to an acceptable temperature for others but I, as a miner's son's daughter, remained bundled in a winter coat throughout. I'll not prattle on about this slight inconveniance more than necessary, and state it was a lovely meal.

Candytown

2009-09-01T13:37:00.001+01:00

Literally across the road from Tin Tin is Candytown, a Cantonese family restaurant. Inside is a scarlet welcome, colourful and friendly. The staff enthusiastically hustled us to a table, the service throughout was efficient and courteous. Choosing the Al a Carte menu option the starter arrived swiftly and was devoured with equal speed, the spring rolls were stood out as excellent. Next arrived the crispy duck pancakes, which were expertly served with chopsticks and were my favourite course of the meal. Next arrived two tea warmers and four separate dishes and a bowl of rice. The Sizzling Beef with Special Sauce arrived at the table bubbling away noisily with a flourish of steam though I preferred the flavour of others in front of me: Chicken & King Prawns in "Phoenix's Nest", Sweet and Sour King Prawns (I’ve already exposed myself as a sweet and sour enthusiast) and Chicken with Peaches and Cashew Nuts. The most outstanding thing about this meal was the massive quantities of food presented and the feelings of gluttony and subsequent fullness. Again the leftovers were boxed up and now lie in the fridge awaiting consumption. Agreeable service and surroundings alongside fine food made this clock enjoyable.

Tin Tin

2009-09-01T12:58:00.002+01:00

Next stop – China! In stark contrast to Baan Thai, Tin Tin has more of a canteen feel, not excessively welcoming and somewhat uninspiring. Generally I am unconvinced by Chinese food as it is my least favourite fare, in all probability due to my previously timorous meal choice. Despite the huge variety of dishes I tended to repeatedly elect to consume the same meal; sweet and sour chicken. Shaking off this tiresome attribute I ventured into new and flavoursome terrain. The satay beef was discreetly nutty and thinly flavoured, the meat was succulent but tough, Kung Do Pork was more enjoyable, the pork wasn’t too fatty and the flavours were richer and more distinct. Alongside a portion of rice there was plenty to eat at a very reasonable price and the excess was boxed up and eaten the next day for lunch. I doubt I would revisit to Tin Tin despite my new found daring I remain under whelmed by this restaurant and it’s food.

Baan Thai

2009-08-26T10:05:00.001+01:00

Not wanting to waste any time whatsoever, I ventured to the first restaurant at the bottom of London Road, Baan Thai. Inside was exotic and plush, the service was affable without bordering on the side of sycophant. Traditional Thai food that was absolutely divine. I had a red Thai curry with prawns, it had the perfect blend of hot, sour, salty and sweet flavours – scrumptious. My one disappointment was that I would be unable to venture back there until the clock was completed. I would truly advocate Baan Thai if you like authentic Thai cuisine. Yum yum yum. Clock number one down, numerous to go.

Rules

2009-08-17T16:00:00.000+01:00

Apart from the strict rules of clocking which I must adhere to (the first rule of clocking is: don’t stop till you clock, the second rule is: a clock is a clock is a clock) I felt it essential to set down another guideline to ensure I duly completed the clock. London Road is home to a multitude of establishments where food is on offer yet I was limiting the clock to restaurants. The pleasure from the challenge derives from the substantial cultural mix of cuisine available and omitting takeaways allows me to skip over the flavour necropolis that is kebabs and overly fried burgers.

Introduction

2009-08-17T10:43:00.000+01:00

Walking down London Road in Sheffield one is overwhelmed with the number and variety of eateries, being thus stricken I decided it was time I take action and challenge myself to a cruel trial of gastronomic endurance. The test; clock London Road. In other words visit and eat in every restuarant on said road, the odyssey will start at the bottom and work upwards and I'll chronicle my experiences in this blog becoming a counterfeit critic. The first rule of clocking is: don’t stop till you clock!