The Empress, Wapping

In a shock departure from the norm, I decided to have a chicken vindaloo and a keema naan for lunch today...(I usually - and for that you can read - every curry I have eaten out in the last 25 years - have a chicken tikka dansak and garlic naan)...what on earth is going on...? <;O

Oh and it was Chicken Chettinad today...

...in the staff canteen (absolutely delicious spicy curry from Southern India) served with Saag aloo, steamed cardomom pilau rice, mango chutney and raitta...£3.57...going to need to top up my payment card again soon at this rate, lunch is normally a bit cheaper than that... ;)

Off to Brighton tomorrow for the company conference/awards ceremony (they have laid on a bunch of coaches to get everyone there) at the Grand Hotel (and then some water-based -out at sea- activities in the afternoon - hope my wetsuit still fits after all this fine grub!), plus they have paid for *everyone* to have a free hotel room for the night afterwards! Amazing!  What a pleasant way to segue into the weekend... :)

Walkers "Do us a flavour" - Onion Bhaji vs Cajun Squirrel

Okay, here we go again...! First off the Onion Bhaji (thanks for recommeding it, previous commentors! But - ) I'll be completely honest here, the first crisp to enter my toothy test environment just screamed out "This is Cheese and Onion!" - and after that it was rather tricky to get the thought out of my mind, so they have obviously just kept the same strong dried onion ingredient with it's tardemark sweetness...oh well...However, if you wait, the curry spices *are* there, even if they don't manifest themselves (and then only *very* gently) until a few have been consumed. I think the most surprsing bit is that the *aftertaste* is almost identical to that you would have after eating a real bhaji, right down to the slightly burnt, sweet taste where the onion has caramelised around the edges (and minus the ghee)...so, jolly nice, but rather too close to normal cheese and onion flavour to merit knocking the Builders Breakfast on the head (I would seriously doubt anyone in a blind taste test would say "Onion Bhaji" until *maybe* half way down the bag when the Fenugreek starts to trickle in)...these are, however, a crisp I know I could happily eat all day long - since my initial appraisal I have had some doubts about craving the complexity of the Breakfast crisps *very* often, as it's a challenging combination I'm not sure I'm actually going to crave all the time (but I can't take my vote back now)...oh well...

Anyway, from the pedestrian on to the "interesting" (yes, that sort of interesting)...With Cajun Squirrel flavour I felt that we were immediately off to a bad start, as it's frankly (I hope) materialised from the realms of fantasy (rather than inbred family BBQs in the smelly swamps of Hicksville, USA)...I know what Cajun spices taste like (and they are fine), but why not add in an element that people might actually hear and think "Ooo, that sounds tempting!" (like perhaps -Chicken- for example) rather than frowning and echoing "Squirrel?" in a slightly confused voice...but anyway...I once saw Hugh Fearnley Wittingstall bother to pick the tiny flecks of meat from a dead squirrel (I think he found it by the side of the road), which means *some* people *somewhere* do actually take the time, so with a bit of a funny expression on my face I bit my tongue and opened the bag...no real overwhelming aroma, first taste had a lot of thyme and oregano and quite a lot of sugar (a bit too much for a bag of crisps actually), you then get just a hint of lemon (which reminded me of lamb tikka for a second) a little BBQ taste and then a very healty dose of chilli arrives on the sides of your tongue...unfortunately it mingles with a little stale garlic...which isn't a good way to leave the palate...I did a blind taste test on this one with a few people in the office, and *no-one* could guess what it was supposed to be, just a lot of flavours (some of them slightly unpleasant) not heading in any one particlular direction...

So, in the second fight of the evening, the referee stopped the match in the 6th round thanks to an untreatable cut above the right eye...the winner - Onion Bhajiiiiiiiiiiii - but it was a close one...

The last two I don't hold out much hope on (Fish and Chips and Chilli and Chocolate), but I suppose I should try them just to complete the set (now I have started)...

Lal Akash, Reigate - Stag Do

*Somehow*, I am still alive...this keg got polished off *well* before we even made it anywhere *near* Lal Akash (in Reigate) where the beers are enormous -

- and the food is absolutely fantastic -


- the Indian waiter spoke to us largely in Spanish (which was a little confusing), only one car broke down, and bed didn't occur on Saturday night morning until around 4am...I honestly think I'm going to need to take a half day today and just go home and sleep...and if that isn't a stark insight into what an *excellent* weekend was had, I don't know what would... ;)

Thank you everyone for making it special...(and for letting me come out of it without ending up naked in Aberdeen tied to an alsatian)... ;)

Fink's Stag Do - Lal Akash Reigate

Mmmm, free mineral water today, thanks Dot2Dot (they do cheap mini-bus trips between the Wharf and Heathrow)... ;)

Anyway, Stag Do (yes, it's not long to the wedding now)! We are going to try out the new curry place in Reigate called "Lal Akash", it looks absolutely amazing, the menu has a *load* of things I've never heard of, so it's bound to be a bit of an experience (if I can resist the lure of Chicken Tikka Dansak), for my starter I'm contemplating the "Chingri Roshan" which is described as "Tender cold water prawns pan fried with fresh garlic and coriander" (mmmm!), or perhaps "Lamb Momo", "Tender lamb marinated in a secret sauce, gently cooked in the tandoor and then pan fried with aromatic herbs and spices", main course how about the "Nawabi Masalla" - "Chicken roasted with onions peppers and fresh oranges, cooked in a puree of carrots and fresh mint stir fried in an unforgettable sauce" (wow!)...you are almost on the last page of the menu before anything familiar (like vindaloo) turns up! Other interesting things on the menu "Bullet Nan", which is "stuffed with fresh green chillies", or how about "Special Nan" which is "stuffed with paneer, capsicum and chicken tikka" (sounds like a meal in itself)! If you are feeling *really* adventurous, check out the "Mutter Paneer" - "Peas with home made cheese"...! Can't wait!

Anyway, really looking forward to it, I have a table for ten booked for Saturday night, fifteen people have been invited, eight confirmed so far, hopefully everyone can come...we'll do a few beers before, and then xbox/movies afterwards, should be a good craic...! ;)

Friday and Cardamon, Cranleigh (curry) review

Another really late night (working) on Thursday meant I was looking forward to my break on Friday with the same earnest desperation as you can clearly see reflected in the begging eyes (and trailing drool) of a hungry dog (seated directly below you, resting it's chops on your leg) under the dinner table when (said hound) is perfectly aware that you are about to enjoy an extra large, extra rare, fine and juicy steak dinner (and they are so obviously hoping you haven't quite the heart to push them away)...

I was up at the crack of dawn with Flyingpops, got to the station 40 minutes before my train, so I popped over for a cheeky McDonalds Double Sausage and Egg McMuffin for breakfast (because I could)...I ate it sat right here watching a succession of college students arriving, blocking the top of the stairs while they waited for their trains to Reigate College (totally ignoring the increasingly desperate station announcements begging them to "*please* use the whole length of the platform and not prevent other passengers from leaving the station!") apparently quite oblivious (not that it bothered me) -

- Tommo picked me up right on schedule at Chilworth and we proceeded directly to his new country mansion (the hall by the front door could double as a perfectly reasonable living room), we spent the morning slavering over Elder Scrolls Oblivion on his exquisite video card, as always (blissfully) reminising on old times, catching up on new discoveries (literary, cinematic, televisual, interactive and virtual), oh, and sinking a beer or two (all of which to great mutual delight), and then (when hunger called) off for lunch (not Chinese for a change!) -

- we happened, quite by accident on an unexpected Indian (right by the car park in Cranleigh) called "Cardamon"...we got there pretty early, but even so, it took the staff a few minutes to wake up to the fact we had arrived (I guess a lot of these places operate more at night than on lunch covers, apart from Sunday of course), we made our selection from the menu, I had a special request for my main course (Chicken Tikka Dansak, not on the menu) which was "No problem Sir"...and at a pace (perfect for our circumstances, but not otherwise (had we been on a work lunch we might have been in trouble) as it was) somewhat leasurely, the first courses arrived -

- I had ordered Lamb Tikka (starter), which seemed to be a little on the small side, and was certainly on the chewy side, but perfectly spiced...Main courses arrived, and considering my dish wasn't even on the menu, they did a wonderful job...

If I were to have one minor compaint it would be that the Dansak gravy was a *little* on the dry side...

If I were to have one minor compliment, it would be that the Dansak gravy was nicely on the spicy side...

The Garlic Naan was flawless... ;)

Popped to the "Gentleman's Salon" (before our departure), and noticed (what I am *sure* is just a borrowed) shopping trolley full of recycling (from the local supermarket) in full view in the courtyard behind the kitchen...could have probably lived without that experience... ;)

Rest of the day was spent mostly on the xbox, drinking some *more* beer, watching an *amazing* NT single actor monologue (that Tommo had recorded using Sky Plus) covering (sorry Tommo, can't remember the chaps name) a Jewish chemist's (obviously unpleasant, but occasionally ludicrously hilarious) way through the Auchwitz experience...through to late night Derren Brown mimickery (by me) (which *almost* worked)...I tried the card suggestion thing and we were one number away (on my first go)!!

Then I passed out while trying to read the first few pages of Tad Williams - Otherland...which has just lost me all respect for the guys that thought up "Second Life"...get to chapter 3 and all their inventiveness suddenly seems, well, a bit "second hand"... ;)