When traveling, you sometimes stumble upon the best places to eat without even trying.

This was our case with Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant on the corner of George and Gloucester Streets in Oxford. Moseying along, we noticed a long line of people coming out of this one particular restaurant – must be good, we thought. Soon enough we found ourselves in the crowd, not quite aware of what we were getting ourselves into (not necessarily recommended, but in this case it worked).

The line outside moved fairly quickly, as the place is rather large (two floors). Once through the doors, we were given a beeper and told the wait would be about 15 minutes. Not so bad, I’m thinking, as a young woman directs us to the bar and waiting area. As soon as we order some wine, the restaurant’s entire computer system crashes. That means no food orders, and no more seating until the problem is solved! This is where the impatient customers shout, “Pen and paper, pen and paper!” I agree, but I’m having fun sitting on a high stool overlooking the modern dining room with a glass of red wine in one hand and roasted almonds with chili and fennel salt in the other. These nuts were the only computer-independent food in the lot – lucky for Jamie, they were quite nice and tied us over until we were finally able to be seated.

The Oxford restaurant opened in 2008 and was the first in the line of Italian restaurants Jamie Oliver has opened around Britain. While the general atmosphere was contemporary, the smells coming from the kitchen (which you could peek into via a television screen) were reminiscent of old-fashioned Italian cooking. I think Jamie’s secret is garlic.

What we ordered: Monachelle Putanesca – a traditional sauce I have always been fond of. This version was excellent, slightly tangy with ripe Kalamata olives and juicy capers. I was disappointed with the pasta, though. A lighter noodle would have done better justice to such a delicate sauce. Instead, the putanesca was served with thick, heavy shells that were too overwhelming. Jamie’s Italian Spaghetti Bolognese – here, the chefs took a traditional dish and revisited it. My husband thoroughly enjoyed it, as there was a balanced combination of different meats, and the pasta was cooked just right – al dente. We continued drinking our wine (2003 Piemonte – Barbera d’asti superiore ‘Tere caude’, ca’ del matt), which was smooth and plumy -  highly recommend.

In sum, our experience wasn’t perfect, but the sauces, wines and smells were worth it.

Oh wait, I forgot to mention the Funky Chips with fresh garlic and parsley. These home-made fries were the tell-all and why I’m sure Jamie’s secret ingredient must be garlic.

Address:

Jamie’s Italian, Oxford

24-26 George Street

Oxford, OX1 2AE

Tel: 01865 83 83 83 (No reservations!)

This week, I checked out the two farmers’ markets at Gloucester Green in central Oxford.

Gloucester Green is a square surrounded by several stores, restaurants and some great coffee shops (Combibos Coffee and Caffe Nero both have excellent lattes). Located between Beaumont, St. George and Walton Streets, it comes alive during market times. Both markets are fairly small, but offer a nice alternative to the regular grocery store.

Oxford City Council Market

Every Wednesday, 9am-5pm

To be honest, this market wasn’t anything extraordinary (there were too many cheap clothing stands and not enough produce for my taste). This said, the foodie I am did manage to find a couple unique edibles. First, I stumbled upon some Turkish Delight – only the second time I’ve ever tasted it. I remember reading about this sweet delicacy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as a child. What better place to rediscover it than Oxford (where C.S. Lewis spent most of his adult life)? Then, I came across some free-range duck eggs. As I approached the stand, I overheard a man with a very English accent asking his son if he’d “eat a duck egg for lunch,” as though it was nothing out of the ordinary! The vendor told me these particular eggs had been picked up that morning and that the chickens (I mean ducks) drank running water (instead of still water), which gave the eggs a finer taste. They’d be good for about 2 weeks (chicken eggs last 3 to 4) and are great in omelets, thanks to the consistency.

Sketts Farmers’ Market

1st and 3rd Thursday of each month, 9am-3pm

Sketts is a market and events organizer in the UK and has pretty strict trading criteria when it comes to farmers’ markets. Local produce, for example, must come from within 50 miles. I liked this small and friendly market. I spent time looking at old antiques, second-hand books, and, of course, the various food stands. Nearly every one caught my attention and had something enticing to sell. Fresh and smoked trout, vegetarian mushroom pâté, apple and pear juices, traditional Indian samosas (try the Mirch, filled with potatoes and chili- spicy!)… My favorite stall was the Windrush Valley Goat Dairy. They offer a handcrafted selection of soft goat cheeses (the pepper one is nice, and the fresh herb even better). I’d also recommend the pro-biotic yogurt (thin enough you can drink it or poor it over muesli) and the quite perfect cheese cake.

]]> http://thetomatoknife.com/2010/07/farmers-markets-at-gloucester-green-oxford/feed/ 0 http://thetomatoknife.com/2010/07/oxford-blue-and-marksbury-cheddar/ http://thetomatoknife.com/2010/07/oxford-blue-and-marksbury-cheddar/#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:45:48 +0000 Joy Anna Becvarik http://thetomatoknife.com/?p=1391 It’s the Quatorze Juillet back in France. A good day to write about cheese, no?

I haven’t been in Oxford very long, but I’ve already noticed quite an admiration for France – in culinary terms at any rate. Walk down the streets in the city center and you’ll come across many French-style bakeries selling croissants, crepes, baguettes…. Since I’m only in England for two weeks, I’m trying to avoid anything that I can find back home (except Dijon mustard – just couldn’t convince myself otherwise when it came to making salad dressing). This friendly “boycott” goes for cheese, too.

Thus, I headed to the Oxford Cheese Company (located in the Covered Market) to pick up some local cheeses. They have a wonderful selection and the young woman behind the counter was more than happy to point out her favorites. I ended up with five different types, and these two stood out as being especially worth trying:

Oxford Blue

This is an award winning blue cheese made from cow’s milk – and not nearly as strong as French Roquefort. It’s soft, creamy and has a salty tang. This is a fairly new cheese, created in 1993 as an alternative to stilton – and still made in a Stilton dairy.

Marksbury Cheddar

The first cheddar originated in Cheddar Village in the county of Somerset, England. There is record that it was being made (and purchased by the King) back in the 12^th century. Check out the British Cheese website for some interesting history – including the fact that Henry II once purchased 10,240 lbs. of it!

Marksbury Cheddar (from Somerset) is among the best cheddars I’ve ever tasted. It’s fairly strong and sharp. Although it’s a hard cheese, it seems to melt in your mouth. It really tastes like it came directly off a farm in England!

The cheddar was especially nice with the malt bread I picked up (a common find here in England).

Address:

Oxford Cheese Company

17 The Market
Oxford OX1 3DU
Tel: 01865 721 420

Two weeks of exploring and getting to know this city. This is the first time I’ve actually had Internet access while traveling. That’s exciting since I’ll be able to share my adventures and discoveries along the way. I’ll most definitely be checking out the food scene – as well as delving into some history, of course. We’ve already had quite a culinary welcome – from a modern British pub,  to a full English breakfast and my very first Russian meal. Here are some great spots to eat while visiting Oxford:

The Oxford Retreat is a “boutique pub” located on the Oxford Canal. If you check out their website, you’ll see this restaurant/bar prides themselves on using fresh, seasonal produce from local vendors. We didn’t know this when we stumbled in just after arriving last Saturday evening. Since the restaurant was full, we enjoyed our drinks and meal in the bar, on a comfy sofa. For drinks, we tried: Staropramen, a golden lager from Prague. Brothers Pear Cider, a slightly sweet hard cider from the UK – made from pear, obviously!  We ended up going tapas style and ordering several “starters”: scallops (maybe the best I’ve ever had), calamari, and creamy mushroom bruschetta. The food was excellent and the service very friendly.

Address: 1-2 Hythe Bridge Street, Oxford, OX1 2EW

Tel: 01865 250309  (Reserve for the restaurant)

Combibos Coffee is a great place to go for breakfast. It’s a coffee house that also serves such delights as eggs benedict and a “full English breakfast” (a veggie version is available). I also noticed they have scones with clotted cream, jam and tea for £2.99 – will have to go back for that! What’s an English breakfast by-the-way? Eggs, hash browns, tomatoes, (veggie) sausages, mushrooms, beans, toast. Yum, yum. Nice, relaxed atmosphere and great choice of music. Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” is displayed on the wall, along with other famous quotations.

Address: 93 Gloucester Green, Oxford, OX1 2BU (near the bus station)

Arbat is an authentic Russian restaurant located a short walk from the Magdalen Bridge.  I can’t compare to other Russian food, but this was a fun discovery. Drinks to try: Baltika, a beer from Saint Petersburg. The house red wine, from near Makhachkala, the capital of the Republic of Dagestan in the North Caucasus region. I just learned this is an important wine growing region due to the mountainous terrain. What did we eat? Starter: Grenki, fried garlic rye bread (had never seen such dark rye before). Mains: Kartoshechka s gribami, a vegetarian potato and mushroom dish served with a very fresh mix of raw veggies on the side. Shashlyk, a combination of marinated meats (served on skewers) and veggies. This restaurant has a whole slew of traditional dishes, from Borsh (soup) and Plov (slowly cooked meat and rice) to Medovik (honey cake) – too bad we were too full for dessert!

Address: 84 Cowley Road, oxford, OX4 1JB

Tel: 01865 236376

Parking hint: parking is difficult in Oxford. I’d recommend going straight to one of the outdoor parking lots. During the day you pay by the hour, but from 8pm-8am there is a flat rate (a few pounds max). Come with change to put in the machine and then display your ticket in the window of the car. You can also easily get around by foot, bicycle or bus.

Why I’m happy: tea is always served with a side of milk – you don’t even have to ask!

In Bracieux, France, the same small village that inspired Alexandre Dumas to write about the fictive musketeer, Porthos, you’ll find a chocolate factory.

Not far from Blois in the Loire Valley, chocolate-maker Max Vauché, has set up a chocolatier worth visiting. We took a tour of the contemporary facilities (where dried cacao beans stuffed into canvas sacks are rather mesmerizing transformed into fine, high-quality chocolates). The tour will take you through the entire chocolate-making process, from the harvesting of the beans abroad to the final artistic touches in France.

The tour was especially interesting for its focus on the company’s solidarity-based collaboration with the African Island Sao Tomé and Principe (nicknamed “Chocolate Island” and located just off the Gabon coast).

We visited the factory on a Sunday, so no one was actually making chocolate, but we were able to peek into the large “kitchens” and peer at the numerous machines used throughout the process. A weekday visit might be worth it in order to see (and smell) the grinding, churning and oozing chocolate.

At the end of the visit, we tasted chocolates from all over the world- and learned that, like wine, chocolate really does have a different taste depending on where it’s from. Although cacao trees originated in Brazil, they are now abundant in tropical climates around the globe. Among the nearly endless samples, was some rather bitter 100% pure cacao.

There were lots of helpful hints and tidbits to pick up. Some of them were about properly storing chocolate: keep in an airtight container (in a cool, dark place) and avoid putting in the refrigerator- faux pas I have to admit to. The reason: chocolate is very fragile and will take on the odor of the foods around it. Also, (like wine) cold temperatures will inhibit its aromas.

To learn more, visit the Max Vauché website.

In this post, I’ll be talking about Greens, an upscale vegetarian restaurant, Pauline’s Pizza and Dragon Well, a hip Chinese spot.

Greens

My new favorite restaurant (in the world, I think) is Greens at Fort Mason. It’s located in an old warehouse overlooking San Francisco Bay. According to their website, they were one of the pioneers in establishing vegetarian gastronomy in the United States. Today, this is a fine-dining restaurant that serves only the highest quality vegetarian cuisine.

On Saturday nights Greens proposes a four-course set menu ($49, not including drinks). It may be a splurge, but is well worth it. Vegetarian or not, I’m convinced the pickiest of diners will leave feeling quite satisfied. You may choose from a variety of appealing (and wholesome) appetizers, main courses and desserts. You may also opt for a selection of wines, most of which are organic and are paired with your meal choice ($28 for 2 glasses of wine, plus an aperitif).

I was at Greens celebrating a group birthday party (that’s how you do it when you, your family, and friends are scattered all over the world). Our toast to turning 30 (we were 3 college friends in the lot) started off with Alsatian crément rosé (Lucien Albrecht)- essentially rose-colored champagne. We enjoyed this with goat cheese, olives and a fennel-Satsuma salad.

Next on the list was the appetizer (and the beginning of my new-found love for Italian butter beans). I chose: grilled asparagus, artichokes and radicchio, over the aforementioned beans and topped with shavings of Andante Dairy’s Etude goat cheese. (Andante, by the way, is a California-based, single-woman-run dairy farm, that produces numerous specialty cheeses. You can find them, for example, at the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market that I mentioned in my last post).

My main dish: wild mushroom ravioli- so decadent it made me wish I was actually one of the mushrooms I was eating. Really. The homemade ravioli and mushrooms melted in my mouth just as much as the herbed butter that accompanied them.

And for dessert: a cheerful almond, honey tart.

No matter how much I rave about the quality of Greens’ cuisine, it won’t do it justice.

What I remember most: every single bite, the wine pairings and the view overlooking the bay.

Pauline’s Pizza

Pauline’s isn’t just any pizza restaurant: partly because they have their own organic vegetable gardens- which provide for many of the toppings on their pizzas. They also have their own vineyards. The house red, a 2006 Mourvedre, (an earthy, kind of leathery wine), accompanied the special house pizza (pesto) and the special house salad (a flirtatious combination of organic produce), quite well.

What I remember most: the noisy bustle, the crayon jar on the table, and the friendly wait staff.

Dragon Well

You can never forget a restaurant that introduces you to something new. At Dragon Well, a rather refined Chinese restaurant on Chestnut Street, it was stir-fried peas shoots. I had eyed them earlier in the week at the farmer’s market, but had never actually eaten them. I let the fact that I’m actually writing about them speak for itself. In addition to the pea shoots (a side dish), I’d recommend the Steamed Black Bean Salmon (cooked in rice wine and garnished with spinach) and the Stir-fried Curry Mi Fun (with five-spiced tofu and vermicelli noodles). At the end of your meal, you get to choose from either a traditional, or chocolate, fortune cookie.

What I remember most: the inviting smell of spices coming from the kitchen.

Addresses (all in San Francisco):

Greens

Fort Mason, Building A / Tel: (415) 771-6222 (Accept online reservations.)

Pauline’s Pizza

260 Valencia / Tel: (415) 552-2050

Dragon Well

2142 Chestnut Street / Tel: (415) 474-6888

Back from San Francisco- with lots of foodie stories to share!

When I travel, it’s all about food- well, at least 85%. It’s about trying new fare and seeing what’s in, what’s local. It’s about color and spice and just plain satisfying the palate.

Food-wise, San Francisco is a beautiful fusion of culture. I felt like I traveled the world in only a couple weeks. Sometimes I almost felt like I was back in France (French-inspired cafés and bakeries run rampant, as do fine red wines and decadent cheeses). Other times I was transported to far-off places like China, Italy, and Thailand. San Francisco is definitely the place if you like variety- high quality, healthy variety that is. What struck me most about the city is its abundance of fresh, organic produce and gourmet-style vegetarian cuisine.

You can’t write just one post on an entire trip, so I’ll be spreading my San Francisco food adventures over several days. I’ll talk about a few excellent restaurants, including my new all-time favorite, Green’s. I’ll also fill you in on tea, coffee, fortune cookies and cupcakes. Let’s start with farmers’ markets, though- essential when visiting this vibrant , farmer-friendly city.

I made it to two a couple open-air markets, but the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market was my favorite: a definite must if you’re in San Francisco on a Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday. Overtaking the Ferry Building Market Place in the Embarcadero neighborhood, this market has a great community vibe. It’s happy. It’s bustling. It’s full of mouth-watering samples.

My mom and I started our morning out at Frog Hollow Farm’s café just inside the Ferry Building back doors. Actually, we ended up spending more than just one morning here- thanks to the cherry almond scones and well-made coffee drinks.

Revved up and ready to go, we headed to the clock tower to meet up with a good college friend of mine and take in the humming sights, sounds and tastes of the market.

Meyer lemons were everywhere, from Frog Hollow Farm’s zest-filled lemon marmalade to lemon-flavored quark cheese. These sweet, fragrant lemons are originally from China, but are the craze in California today.

Quark cheese, originally made in Eastern Europe, proved to be a special, and addictive, find. It’s a soft cheese, kind of a cross between ricotta and cream cheese. While the garlic, lemon and vanilla flavors were all fun, we all ended up favoring the latter. The cheese naturally has a slight tang which gives a subtle kick to the vanilla. Such quark is great at breakfast, spread over warm toast or homemade scones.

We eagerly wandered from stand to stand in awe at all the edible originality for sale. Tangled kiwi vines- well, those aren’t actually edible, just a sight for the eyes. Stinging nettles- yes, those are edible, when cooked. Cap’n Mike’s Indian Smoked Salmon, (basted in honey). Herbal sugars- such as lemon (there it is again!) verbena and rose petal- and dried Thai basil at the Allstar Organics booth. Crispy, juicy Asian pears (which had a slight lemon flavor by the way).

I could go on and on, but I’ll just mention a few more finds…

On more of a French note, we encountered huge bundles of fragrant, organic lavender; some not-so-ordinary mushrooms; rich, creamy cheeses; fine red wines; and excellent renditions of real French bread. Just inside the Ferry Building doors, for example, lies Far West Fungi, a small shop that offers all sorts of intriguing mushrooms I’d never heard of before (like Nameko and Pioppini). Also inside the building is the Cowgirl Creamery, the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant and the Acme Bread Company. The best way to combine it all (and feel a little French) is to sit down for wine, cheese, marinated mushrooms and baguette at the wine bar.

We ended up going back to the Ferry Building several times. On one such occasion, we enjoyed two 2007 Californian reds: a Scribe Pinot Noir, Carnezos-Sonoma and a Nalle Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley. The cheese: a ½ round of Mt. Tam. The bread: an entire, fresh épi baguette.

Whether you start the day or finish it at the Ferry Plaza Market and Ferry Building merchants, you can’t go wrong. The market itself gets my “kudos for sustainability” for it’s support of local farmers and various other environmentally-friendly initiatives. The vendors, for example, only dispense bags that are compostable or recyclable- important since, as I learned, the City program doesn’t recycle just any old plastic bag!

All the market excitement almost made me wish we didn’t have dinner reservations that evening. I wanted to shop and cook, shop and cook- especially some of the stranger looking mushrooms. Fortunately, Green’s restaurant, and their mushrooms, was well worth the sacrifice.

Next post: favorite San Francisco restaurants…

We didn’t really know if we were supposed to eat the heads or not!

Looking back at our most-recent two days in the Loire Valley, I’m still proud of myself for trying the tiny fish you see in the photo.  Friture de petits poissons was listed as an appetizer on La Croisette’s menu.  We were sitting out on the restaurant’s terrasse in a very small town called Béhuard, looking over the River Loire and enjoying one of the last warm evenings of late summer.  I was in the mood for culinary adventure and began setting up my rules for the evening: (1) I wanted to eat something I’d never tried before and (2) I wanted it to be something typique de la région.  Our waiter told us these little guys had been fished right out of the River Loire.  They were then battered up, fried and served to us with fresh lemon juice and tartar sauce.  Of course, the first thing I noticed were the beady eyes and I was slightly hesitant at first, but once I got cracking, I was having fun.  When the waiter came to clear the plate, all was gone- except for a few (yep, only a few) conspicuous-looking heads.

After this came the filet de sandre au beurre blanc, a white fish in a thick butter sauce.  According to the dictionary, sandre is “pikeperch” in English (I’d definitely never heard of that one before).  We’d been told it was not only native to the River Loire, but also the best thing on the menu.  We’d also been warned not to drink water with it- because the sauce was so rich (remember oil and water don’t mix!).  Instead, one was to drink wine.  When it comes to dining, we like to follow local advice.

Since we were trying everything else local, we went for two (well, four in the end) different glasses of dry white wine from the region.  According to this site, the Loire Valley is France’s leading producer of white wines.  Here’s what we ordered: a Savennières (Domaine des Forges, Clos du Papillon) and an Anjou blanc (Domaine Mosse). Unlike many other French wines, those of the Loire Valley tend to be made from a single cépage (grape variety).  Both of these were of the variety Chenin and, served chilled, went extremely well with the sandre.  As usual, I was on the lookout for a candidate for my “extra kudos for sustainability.” This trip’s winner: Domaine Mosse, since they practice organic farming techniques in their vineyards.

Our meal came between a visit to the Chateau de Serrant and a night in the bed and breakfast La Tour Girault.  This lesser-known castle was especially impressive for two reasons: the 135-square-meter kitchen (with its eight-oven kitchen range and 900 pieces of copper cookware) and the equally large library (with its 8,000 leather-bound books, including an original copy of Jean de la Fontaine’s Fables).  Apparently, this collection is one of the largest in France and actually counts 12,000 books total.

We have yet to be disappointed with a bed and breakfast in the Loire Valley and now have another favorite to add to our list.  Ask for the room “Sampan” for the very original charpente (the A-frame woodwork coming down from the ceiling).  Our hostess was especially welcoming and even made our dinner reservations for us- knowing the only restaurant open on a Monday evening!  And, as usual, I paid special attention to the homemade green plum jam at breakfast.

Two days was way to short, but that’s probably why we keep going back to the Loire Valley…

Hasn’t everyone dreamt of biking through the French countryside?

Imagined themselves rolling up and down inviting hills, a gentle wind blowing on their face?  Ripe vineyards on one side, lush forest and blue Atlantic waves on the other?  Don’t leave out the baguette and bottle of Bordeaux nestled in the basket on the front of the bike. Perfect, no?  What we tend to forget in our little fantasy is the next day, and the sore back that comes from 20 km of spontaneous biking.  Another word for my current state: summer vacation.

When we left Paris nearly two weeks ago, two of the three boulangeries in our neighborhood were closed until the end of the month.  The other one didn’t seem to have the energy to make enough chocolate croissants for the handful of residents still lingering in the city- a sure sign it was time to do what most Parisians do during the month of August: go on vacation.  Some go to the mountains, others to the countryside, even more to the seaside.  Sébastien and I have been gallivanting around Aquitaine (yes, in part on bike), getting some much-needed sun and, of course, trying some local cooking techniques.  I’ll have stories when I get back: from our first-ever whole fish cooked over open flames to using sarments from local vineyards to make a barbecue.  What are sarments?  I’ll be writing all about them next week.

Here’s one last post in my series on the Loire Valley.

Now that we’ve seen where we stayed and what we saw, this one’s about what we ate.

Part 4: Asparagus Invasion

A primeur is a young fruit or vegetable that starts off the season. This is what we were eating during our trip in April. March through June is asparagus season in France and the Loire Valley is known for its production of this favorite.

In France, you find asparagus in three different colors: green, purple or white. I grew up eating the green ones and was taught to search out the skinny tender stalks. I’ve noticed, however, that the fat white ones seem to be the most common here in Paris- I’ve actually been on many an excursion around town trying to find slender green asparagus without any luck. The white stalks are white because they have never been exposed to sunlight and are picked as soon as they start popping out of the ground. They are tougher than the green sprigs we tend to eat in the States and need to be peeled before cooking. Though I’ve tried, I still have a preference for the stronger taste of the green ones.

Thus my excitement when I saw slender green twigs continually coming out of the restaurant kitchens on our trip. Even without trying, I had fresh asparagus at almost every meal: on top of pizza, as a side dish, in sauces…

Our most memorable meal was in Langeais at a restaurant called Au Coin des Halles (9, rue Gambetta). Here, I had bar (European sea bass) with seared asparagus and asparagus/lime sauce. At first I was a bit skeptical when I saw the color of the sauce: bright green like sherbet; but I was in asparagus heaven as soon as I started eating.

Over the last couple of months, I’ve noticed that even Parisian grocers have been subject to the asparagus invasion.

Looking in the grocery store today though, I sadly had to admit that the season has come to an end- all I could find where bunches of white stumps from Belgium. Guess I’ll have to wait for the next primeurs in March.