Tag Archives: Matcha

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Review

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I love Asian food and was quite excited when we got invited to review Moshi Moshi. It was their 20th anniversary, an impressive achievement in London where restaurants can struggle.

20 years ago, Caroline Bennett brought the first Japanese kaiten (conveyor belt) restaurant to the UK and opened in Liverpool Street Station to an astounded and hugely positive reception from critics and diners. It is fair to say that most Londoners had never seen anything like it. Caroline went on to pioneer the ideals of good sushi in the UK and democratised this beautiful Japanese cuisine which 20 years on, has become ubiquitous with the UK dining scene.

Our initial reaction was that the venue was beautiful. Very trendy and in a great location. Where we sat we could watch the trains come and go. The chairs are also very comfortable. After we took our seats we ordered some Prosecco Brut, Terra Di Sant’Alberto NV Italy Bottle. This was very good Prosecco and was a great start to our meal.

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewdumplings

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewprawns

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewliverpoolstreet

For our starter we had Gyoza dumplings, Organic prawn tempura and Cornish crab & avocado sushi. These were all just stunning and came with wonderful sauces. The prawns were nice and juicy. The batter was perfect and crispy: Fresh & plump. The dumplings were amazing and I loved the sauce they came in. The sushi was as amazing as expected.

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Revieweel

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewsteak

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewcola

For our mains we had Rib eye steak teriyaki: 21 day hung Suffolk grass fed beef, sweet potato chips, seasonal greens and Cornish kabayaki: the sustainable answer to unagi eel teriyaki. The steak is very good, it is little pieces rather than a huge chunk of meat. The chips were also amazing and very unique as they were very thin. The seasonal greens were good and the sauce was brilliant but I would have liked just a little more. Not much, just a little.

My colleague had the eel and said she would have liked it to have been softer and more tender. This could just be the Japanese way of cooking it however. The sauce was good, sweet and tangy as expected, but there was not enough of it and she ended up putting some soy sauce on her meal. So, more sauce!

After our prosecco we had some Fentimans Curiosity Cola. We had never had it before and it was brilliant- like a fizzy cola bottle.

For our dessert we had the Dessert Platter.

This included Lemon Panna Cotta, Matcha and Black Sesame Ice-Cream and some Mochi, which is a traditional delicacy from Japan.

Moshi Moshi Restaurant Reviewdessert

The dessert was very different from our usual desserts and was a lot less sweet. The mochi was tasty and interesting. Lots of coconut and a little bit chocolaty. The panna cotta was good, very sweet. The ice cream was interesting: we loved the sesame side but the matcha tea ice cream was too bitter for our taste. It was very unique though and if you love green tea, you would love it.

We liked the food at Moshi Moshi. It was very good and the location and venue were also great. Prices are reasonable. Their sushi is also great and should definitely be tried.

MOSHI MOSHI
Unit 24, Liverpool Street Station, London EC2M 7QH www.moshimoshi.co.uk
Tel: 020 7247 3227
Email: liverpoolstreet@moshimoshi.co.uk
Monday to Friday
11.30am – 10pm last orders Monday to Friday

 

 

Chocolate Winner Announced.

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I don’t want to delve into cliche, but I am quite partial to chocolate. I could never choose a winner from all of the chocolate I have tasted so thankfully there are experts to do that.

The organisers of the International Chocolate Awards have managed and have announced the winners of the European Semi Final round, which received over 260 entries. These prestigious awards give out just one Gold in each category and a number of silvers to the winning products, which have been through three rigorous rounds of judging, first in Sussex and then at The Marriott Hotel, County Hall in London.

The Gold in the Dark Bar category went to Michel Cluizel, Los Ancones. Made in France using beans from the Dominican Republic, a 67% cocoa solids bar and one of their origins range and impressed the judges as a bar that was complex and sophisticated whilst also being a chocolate that has mass appeal. In the Milk category Michel Cluizel also triumphed with Gold for their Maralumi milk. France continued to pick up awards with Pralus the only Gold winner in the Milk filled chocolates category for their Bar Infernale Lait and Bonnat picking up a Silver in the dark bar category.

Micro batch producers did well at the awards with Akesson, Original Beans and Friis Holm all winning silvers for their bars.

The British entrants excelled in the filled chocolates categories with Golds to Paul a Young and Damian Allsop and silvers awarded to Boutique Aromatique, Matcha and Rococo. Hotel Chocolat also did well in the awards with a silver for their St Lucian 70% milk, salted caramel éclat in the flavoured milk bar category, a category where Damian Allsop picked up another Gold.

The organic Gold awards were won by Michel Cluizel, once again for their Los Ancones bar, by Akesson for their Madagascan 75% & Voatsiperifery Pepper a flavoured dark bar and by Francois Pralus for their milk Melissa bar.

To celebrate the International nature of the awards, Country Golds were also given for those categories where more than 10 products from one country were entered and went to Domori (Italy) for their Guasare bar and to relative newcomer Idilio (Switzerland) for their no 2 seleccion Amiari Meridenha.

This is the first year of the International Chocolate Awards, set up to recognise the best fine quality chocolate from around the world. The awards are designed to reflect international tastes and offer a level playing field for international entries. An Italian round was held earlier this year with a US round planned for September in New York and the World Finals back in London in October. The European Semi Final received over 260 entries from more than 50 different brands. Entries came from all over Europe – from countries more traditionally associated with chocolate such as France and Switzerland, to up and coming countries including Israel and the Czech Republic.

The judging panel is made up of experts, food journalists and pastry chefs from the host country, overseen by a Grand Jury who travel to each competition. The Grand Jury members who attended the European awards are: Martin Christy (Seventy% founder, UK), Maricel Presilla (Cuban American chef and author of The New Taste of Chocolate), Monica Meschini (Italian expert and taster), George Bernadini (German author and ex-chocolate maker), Nancy Gilchrist (Master of Wine, UK) and Alex Rast (Seventy% contributor and reviewer, UK).

The categories, which range from flavoured bars to filled chocolates to spreads, are designed to reflect the current chocolate industry. Prizes are separated according to category, with Gold and Silver awards available. Winners go through to the International Grand Final, in October 2012 in London. World finalists have also been indicated – these are products which have achieved a highly commended and will be invited to enter the judging of the World Finalists.

For the full list of winners visit http://www.internationalchocolateawards.com/2012/06/european-semi-final-2012-winners/