House on a hill

Jason and Anna were generous and kind to spend the day with me. We took a day trip to Helensburgh, west of Glasgow, to see a house designed by renowned Scottish architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The house is set on a hill, which is why the house is dubbed, Hill House. It was commissioned by a Scottish businessman by the name of Blackie. He gave Mackintosh free rein to design not only the house but everything in it, too. This included built-in and freestanding furniture, rugs, drapery, linens, and light fixtures. It’s not very often a client offers an architect such an opportunity.

The drive was about one hour. We arrived around 1pm, which is when the house is open to visitors. The sky was cloudy and grey, and the air was chilly. We took a quick stroll around the house before we headed indoors. Unfortunately, photography was not permitted so there will be no shots of the many design elements I admired of the house to accompany this post.

Upon entering the house, I immediately recognized the dark wood-paneled walls of the main hallway. Though the ceilings in the hall were tall, the dark stain of the wood paneling made the hall seem intimate and somber. One of the rooms that flanked off the dark main hallway, is the family room. In contrast, the family room is light; a kind of warm off-white or cream color with accents like rose-pink and purple heather. The windows look out into the garden and flooded the room with natural light. Even on the day we visited, the room seemed pleasantly bright.

What I enjoyed about this room was seeing the Mackintosh’s designs in person like the banquets by the window and fireplace. The upholstered banquet featured original needlework that was partially frayed from use, and the fireplace had intricate details of tiles that I have seen in a book of Mackintosh’s work. I can’t help but feel a sense of surrealism when I’m in the presence of original great design. It’s as though Charles R. Mackintosh was in the room with me, examining the details and making sure they were fabricated to his specifications.

Another room that I found impressive was the state-of-the-art bathroom. The bathroom looked as though it could have belonged on some futuristic nautical vessel. The shower was made up of perforated tubes that either provided the bather with hot steam while showering, or water spouts for an all around cleansing.

The other room which I also enjoyed seeing is the master bedroom. The room was also decorated with a light palette, similarly to the family room. The master bedroom also had a more feminine character. It was great to physically see Mackintosh’s designs of the freestanding furniture pieces. I also found it amazing how well the pieces survived from the years of usage.

We took a last walk around to appreciate the masterful design of Mackintosh’s Hill House. It was the only opportunity to capture a few pictures of the magnificent house. As I walked around the estate, I wondered what thoughts might have crossed CRM’s mind before and while he put his designs down on paper. I think I enjoyed the house from the garden. There were a few spots that offered interesting vantage points of the house. The house itself is expressed with varied shaped volumes. And so, every time you turn the corner or stand somewhere on the estate, you’ll see a different but recognizable house.

I would love to return to Hill House again, and see the house with the sun shining happily upon it as well as covered with white snow. I think I would love to see and experience the house in the snow – it is set on top of hill, of course.

Thank you Jason (aka @abbozzo_) and Anna for a great day at Hill House!!

 

4 and 1/2 days in Glasgow

The 4 and 1/2 days in Glasgow were spent dotting around town sightseeing, meeting people, consuming and imbibing on good food and drink! In fact, this particular visit to Glasgow took me to a couple of places I would not have considered if I wasn’t meeting people. For instance, I ventured to the south side of Glasgow to meet Allistair and Ann. Unbeknownst to me, the south side has a reputation of being unfriendly; at least, that was the impression I got from the concierge when I asked him for directions. I visited the BBC Scotland headquarters on the south side of the Clyde because I was meeting Scotland’s morning radio host and comedian, Fred MacAulay!!

I also ended up in the hospital, too — to see a friend. I never thought the opportunity to see him that day would be my only and last…

Not every moment was spent in Glasgow. I took a day trip with Jason and his girlfriend, Anna to Helensburgh. We went to see the famous house designed by a great Scottish Architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

These are just a few highlights from my trip to Glasgow. I certainly have more to share in terms of stories. Photos will be lacking because I took most of them with the iPhone and unfortunately, the iPhone crashed before I was able to back them up on iCloud or download them. So, please forgive me if my posts lack substantial photos to accompany the following posts. Hopefully, I will be able to illustrate vivid stories of my travels to Glasgow. Stay tuned…

The Kitchin

Dining at The Kitchin was unlike any culinary experience I have ever had, and I’ve eaten at many great restaurants in NYC and other parts of the world.

Kitchin is a Michelin star restaurant in the neighborhood of Leith, within greater Edinburgh. I was very pleased to have secured a reservation…well in advanced. Dining at Kitchin was something I was savoring in my mind’s mouth.

My reservation was on a Thursday, my last evening in Edinburgh. I had forgotten to have lunch that day between my jaunts.

It began to rain again as I arrived at the restaurant. The restaurant was still setting up. The hostess welcomed me and invited me to have a cocktail in their bar lounge as they were preparing my table. Looking through their list of drinks, one cocktail piqued my interest – sea buckthorn & ginger (The Kitchin’s sea buckthorn coulis, tanquery gin, and lemom shaken and served tall over ice and charded with ginger beer). It was the sea buckthorn that caught my interest. I’ve never heard of it and I as curious about it.

While I enjoyed my cocktail, they also brought out a lovely plate of crudités with a wonderful blue cheese dip; creamy, smooth, and pungent! It was a shame I was enjoying this alone.

I also had a look through of the menu while I sipped my refreshing cocktail. Everything sounded delectable! I was gutted that I wasn’t able to order everything off the menu and eat it all. I had a terrible time deciding what to choose, and then I noticed the surprise land and sea chef’s tasting menu. There was no description of what would be served, hence the “surprise”. While I pondered what I would eat, I noticed a figure in white approaching towards me. I immediately recognized him. It was Thomas Kitchin! His presence was unexpected. He came over to say hello. He extended his hand out to me. I was in the middle of stuffing my face with a piece of breadstick. I was honored that he made an appearance.

When my table was ready, I was led to the back dining area. The restaurant in general is decorated in rich colors and patterns. The lighting seemed dim but was well lit at the tables with bright halogen down lights. The lighting created a nice effect where it highlighted each table, creating a vignette of the other dining parties surrounded by shadow.

I was seated at a corner table, which gave me a view of the dining area. It was the perfect spot to observe the other guests especially being a single guest. The kitchen is located behind me. There is a long glass window that lets guests view inside the workings of a Michelin star kitchen.

The menu was presented to me again and decided to go with the chef’s surprise land and sea tasting menu. I met Thomas Kitchin. I believe he will prepare something delightful and wonderful. I surrendered to his talents as chef.

Like many tasting menus, there was also a separate wine accompaniment. If I was not dining alone, I would have indulged in the wines. Instead, I ordered a recommended glass of Pinot Noir Hautes-Cotes de Domaine Delegrange to accompany my meal, and it was divine!

The first course was chicken consommé served in a small bowl. Floating delicately was a single thinly slice of radish, tiny diced apples, chives, shredded cabbage and at the bottom, wild rice. The apple bits added a nice sweetness to the rich broth.

The next course was personally explained by Chef Kitchin! The Shellfish Rockpool is a bowl of West Coast shellfish served with sea vegetables in a warm shellfish consommé.*

Chef Kitchin talked about his family vacation to the beach where he and his son collected various elements along the beach and placed them in a pool that they made. And he finished his story by pouring a broth over the seafood.

I took a moment to admire the beautifully arranged pieces of seafood. There were tiny tentacles and a small cluster of bright orange salmon roe. A langoustine was looking curiously up at me. Local herbs and seaweed delicately placed, completing the sea world in a bowl. Each spoonful was different, and a delight. Sweet. Tender. Savory. Playful. Herbal. Pure. Explosive.

While I waited for the next course, one of the wait staff offered Thomas Kitchin’s cookbook. I flipped through the book randomly and ended up on the page describing the scallops from the Scottish seas, and an accompanied recipe that involved a pastry crust. Coincidentally, the next course was the same dish I was reading in the cookbook – hand-dived Orkney scallops baked in their shell and served with a white wine sauce.*

The waitress placed the plate down and proceeded to pry open pastry covered scallop. The scallop shell was huge! I’ve never seen scallop shells as big as the one presented before me. Inside were two large lumps of buttered and herbed scallops with diced tomatoes. The wonderful aroma of the butter, chives, and diced tomatoes wafted up from the opened shell.

When scallops are good, they are sweet and tender, and these Scottish scallops were exceptional. It was only the third course, and I was beginning to feel full.

The fourth course was an interesting one. It is called the Pig’s Head and Langoustine – boned and rolled pig’s head, served with roasted tail of langoustine from the Isle of Skye and a crispy ear salad.*

I had noticed this in the menu and didn’t quite understand what it was. It wasn’t until one of the guests at the table next to me asked the waiter. The waiter explained that they took the meat of the pig’s cheek and rolled it in pig’s skin. I’ve never had anything like this before, and I thought it was an interesting way to serve the pig’s cheek. It reminded me of pulled pork but without the heavy BBQ sauce. It was rich and savory. The pig’s cheek paired well with the sweet langoustine tail. I also enjoyed the contrast between the textures of the shredded pig’s cheek and meaty wholeness of the langoustine.

The next dish was a lovely white fish called Turbot – fillet of wild turbot from Scrabster, served with a ragout of Swiss chard, lemon and basil.* The fish was fried to golden perfection, and served over some diced vegetables and an aromatic stock with fresh herbs garnished on top. The fish was fabulous, breaking off in large flakes.

The final entrée was Roe Deer – roasted roe deer from the Borders served with roasted root vegetables and a pepper sauce.*

As you can see from the photo, the roe deer was served with autumnal root vegetables, apples, grape, chestnuts, endive, sautéed spinach, and sauce. The meat was cooked to perfection. It was incredibly tender and flavorful but not gamey. The accompanied fruits and vegge added varying tasting notes that enhanced the natural flavors of the roasted roe deer.

My fine meal did not end without dessert, and I was curious what they would surprise me with. I requested a pot of mint tea to have with my sweet treat. To my pleasure, they brought out a glass tea-pot of mint tea with real mint leaves and green tea. That is how mint tea should be served, the Moroccan way. This level of tea service impressed me very much. No other restaurant that I have been to has served me mint tea this way. It’s always from a tea bag.

Dessert was a lovely pumpkin tart – spiced pumpkin pave served with maple and pecan ice cream and candied pumpkin*, and petite fours – mini blueberry tart, chocolate truffle, chocolate and pistachio nougat, and an orange macaroon with chocolate ganache filling. This was a perfect end to an amazing meal!

Service was impeccable as expected from a restaurant of The Kitchin’s caliber regardless of the Michelin star. The maitre’d and wait staff were all professional and attentive. I appreciated their warmth and kindness from the moment I walked through the door to the very last second when I departed.

Dining at The Kitchin was the best 3 hours I have spent, and I would rank this experience in the top 5 best moments of my life!

My favorite dish of the evening was the shellfish rockpool. I appreciated the personal experiences that Chef Kitchin drew from to create this wonderful dish. I especially loved the presentation of the shellfish rockpool; a miniature sea-world in a bowl. I find joy in eating things cute and small!

And I couldn’t leave without taking home a copy of Thomas Kitchin’s cookbook, “From Nature to Plate”.

For more information about The Kitchin, the Chef, and what is currently on the menu, please click here.

Eating in Edinburgh

Edinburgh is not short of restaurants offering a variety of quality, savory and sweet delights to satiate any foodie’s appetite for good eats. I only wished I ate more often during the course of the day. When I did eat, I indulged. One of the best meals I had in Edinburgh was at Kitchin in Leith. The head chef, Thomas Kitchin, is the youngest chef to have received a coveted Michelin star for his restaurant. Mr. Kitchin features fresh and local Scottish game, seafood, and produce on his menu. Dining at Kitchin was quite an experience, which I will share in more detail in the next post.

On our first evening, we ate at a place called Ghillie Dhu. I checked out the menu in advance and liked what I saw. They served mostly traditional Scottish dishes. I had the red currant and venison sausage with creamy mash. I was surprised by the amount of food they served; three sausages! I could barely finish two let alone eat all three and the mash! It was plenty of food for me. The sausages were not gamey but rich, which was complimented with the red currant sauce.

One of the things I also insisted on having was afternoon tea in Edinburgh. I did a bit of research and found that Hotel Missoni offered after afternoon tea. I liked the idea of partaking in the British tradition of afternoon tea in a modern setting. Details of my experience to follow in a future post.

Another place I was curious about was a place called Chocolate Soup where they serve (as you may have guessed) hot chocolate! It was a perfect treat or reward after hillwalking up Arthur’s Seat.

The hot chocolate at Chocolate Soup is a meal in itself! It is served in cups as big or bigger than soup bowls! And should you like to add whipped cream and marshmallows, you better be hungry! I had to pause and think about how I was going to attack this cup of decadent liquid chocolate, dairy, and sugar. Luckily they provide spoons because sipping this thing was not an option.

Although Starbucks did not originate in New York City, there are plenty of locations in Manhattan. So when I spotted a Starbucks seconds away from where I was staying, I couldn’t help but be comforted by the sight. The drinks are the same but served in ceramic cups (to drink in store) but I would ask to have my drink in a to-go cup. Unlike NYC, the Starbucks in Edinburgh still offered Starbuck’s signature hot chocolate. Oh, how I missed Starbucks Signature hot chocolate.

One night I found myself hungry. Mainly because I had an overly filling late afternoon tea. Most restaurants in Edinburgh close their kitchens around 9 or 10. It was not easy to find a place that opened after 10pm and still serving food but I was fortunate to find an Italian restaurant and pizzeria that was still serving food. I got myself a pizza pie to-go at Bar Napoli. The pie was about 15″ in diameter and thin crust. I was able to finish the whole pie except for the crust. It did the trick to satisfy my late night hunger.

Another place I was excited about was The Allotment, formerly known as Juice Almighty. It’s basically a juice bar. I had a berry smoothie one morning, which was pretty good although slightly tart. The next day, I had an amazing hot pear juice. It was better than any hot apple cider I ever had! I highly recommend this hot beverage over coffee or tea to warm you up in the morning.

I barely scratched the surface of Edinburgh’s food scene. I know I missed out on some fabulous cakes and other pastries that I’ve read about. I also didn’t get a chance to have porridge, which seems to be a popular and traditional breakfast. At least, when I return, I will spend less time on the sights and set my eyes and appetite on some good eats around Edinburgh.

A ride in a whisky barrel

I didn’t plan on visiting any whisky distilleries during this trip however, I did leave open for a visit to The Whisky Experience. I heard The Whisky Experience included a barrel ride. My imagination wandered to childhood memories of the rides at Disney themed parks. When I arrived in front of the building, I could not comprehend how a barrel ride functioned behind the Georgian facade.

The admissions price included a whisky tasting and a souvenir cairn glass; the glass tailored for the appreciation of whisky. There were different levels of admissions, which offered additional tastings as well as other perks. I opted for the silver admission.

The whisky experience basically takes you on a ride through a brief history and process of making whisky. The journey is accompanied by a ghostly guide who reminds me of character of Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.

When the ride ends, you are directed into a room with more interesting facts and information about whisky. And then you enter another room for the tasting with another video to watch and more explanation from one of experts on hand.

On the table is a glass and a scratch and sniff card. The card has four scents and each scent is a character typical of the whisky from that region. I won’t get into detail of the presentation but the four regions represented on the card are: Highlands, Lowlands, Speyside, and Islay.

Our expert explained the different characters of each region and we would compare his comments to what we smelled. From this exercise, we would determine which whisky to try. I wanted to try something different so I selected the Lowlands, and I was poured a tasting of Auchentoshan Classic. To be quite honest, it did not appeal to me, and I prematurely crossed Auchentoshan off my list. I have since then enjoyed an Auchentoshan three wood so I am open to trying more and understanding the flavored of the Auchentoshan collection.

Then our expert leads us into a room with probably the largest collection of vintage whiskies. It was quite amazing to see bottles and more bottles.

The tour concluded in a bar area, which featured novelty bottles of whiskies as well as an opportunity to try more whiskies but at a price, of course. I headed straight for the gift shop where more experts were at hand to assist in suggesting some fine brown spirits. I got a few miniatures with the help with one of many sales assistants after I advised her that I have a preference for sweet things.

I was tempted to buy full sized bottles but it was more convenient for me to buy miniatures. Besides ease of transport, I was still inexperienced to the complexities of whisky and I could not risk buying something I ended up not appreciating.

I left The Scotch Whisky Experience with several mini bottles. I was excited to bring them back to New York and do my own personal tastings.