Meal and the Master
Typing this rather late, and distracted by the penultimate episode of the last series of Dr Who running on the telly. Derek jacobi has just turned into John Simm.
After getting back from the museum, We changed and went out to a good Italian restaurant, Machi's. A friend of Maki and Brian was celebrating his 50th birthday, and had invited about 20 people. We went through the restaurant and its kitchen to reach a lovelt courtyard garden hidden out the back, complete with small statue fountain and decent sized trees. There was no menu, you just had about six different courses, so if you didn't like something, you'd proably like the next one.
We started with elaborate displays of fruit and veg: fennel, celery, tomatoes, melon, huge radishes, along with garlic sausage, red cabbage and olives and bread. After this was pasta - a cannolini style dish. A lovely breadcrumb coated fish with optional runner beans was next. The biggest portiion was a piece of roast chicken plus veal, again with beans and beetroot. Dessert was lucious bowls of fruit, whirls of thin, deep-fried pasta coated in icing sugar and a lemon dessert, which was excellent. Then there was coffee. The meal lasted about four hours and is highly recommended. I"ve no idea how much it costs, since the host seemed to be paying. He seemed delighted to have me there,in spite of never having me me before. I think having an English visitor is something of a coup, or at least adds novelty value. It was a lovely evening, both in meal, company and weather.
After getting back from the museum, We changed and went out to a good Italian restaurant, Machi's. A friend of Maki and Brian was celebrating his 50th birthday, and had invited about 20 people. We went through the restaurant and its kitchen to reach a lovelt courtyard garden hidden out the back, complete with small statue fountain and decent sized trees. There was no menu, you just had about six different courses, so if you didn't like something, you'd proably like the next one.
We started with elaborate displays of fruit and veg: fennel, celery, tomatoes, melon, huge radishes, along with garlic sausage, red cabbage and olives and bread. After this was pasta - a cannolini style dish. A lovely breadcrumb coated fish with optional runner beans was next. The biggest portiion was a piece of roast chicken plus veal, again with beans and beetroot. Dessert was lucious bowls of fruit, whirls of thin, deep-fried pasta coated in icing sugar and a lemon dessert, which was excellent. Then there was coffee. The meal lasted about four hours and is highly recommended. I"ve no idea how much it costs, since the host seemed to be paying. He seemed delighted to have me there,in spite of never having me me before. I think having an English visitor is something of a coup, or at least adds novelty value. It was a lovely evening, both in meal, company and weather.