Tapas Brindisa can be intimidating. Intimidating in that it is ALWAYS crowded, no matter what time you go past and that unless you flag down the manager, you’ll stand virtually ignored, a persona non grata. Brindisa doesn’t take reservations and given the roaring trade, it doesn’t need to. Reservations would simply hold up the process. I adore Spanish food and my gut instinct tells that it is taking over the world (or at least my little part of it). And the thing that has my tastebuds drooling is the idea of eating Jamón ibérico de Bellota, the Wagyu of pork where in Spain or Portugal Black Iberian pigs are raised on a diet of acorns and allowed to roam free in oak forests. The ham is then cured for up to 36 months in the fresh mountain air.

We’re back at Tapas Brindisa at dinner time after being the ignored subjects mentioned above at lunch time when people and plates were whizzing past at a furious speed and our presence caused not a single soul to look our way. We didn’t realise that we needed to get the attention of the manager so we stood there for 10 minutes before leaving as we realised that a table would not be forthcoming, not just because of the huge queue of people already waiting.

Tonight, fortified by false courage, I steel myself and approach the manager thinking that I’ll be dismissed but he gives a broad smile and apologises that there aren’t any table available but that one should be in about 45 minutes so we can come back in 30 minutes. We go for a walk around and take a peek at Neal’s Yard (who have a huge shower running in their store, presumably for moisture to aid in the cheesemaking process) and a Paul Smith store nearby before we return 30 minutes later. There isn’t a table yet although the manager tries to get another table outside set up for us. We wait outside as inside is chaos with bodies standing, sitting and waiting while waiters weave through them with plates of delicious Spanish Jamón and tapas.

While waiting, we ask the manager what time is good to come by and he says “5.30pm but once it is 6 o’clock, all of the tables are gone. At lunch, maybe 12noon?”. A friend who has been here previously has said that even 12 o’clock is too late, it’s 11.50am or nothing. Once the clock strikes 12, it’s musical chairs. He offers us all drinks on the house (wine or soft) for the wait which is a welcome and charming gesture. A table magically frees itself a few minutes later and we are sitting with our complimentary drinks (a gigantic bottle of sparkling mineral water, a Coke and a Rosé wine).

The prize, a food porn worthy shot of the Jamón ibérico de Bellota (Pata Negra)

We’ve already perused the menu having done so while waiting and we ask the waiter if any of the Jamón ibérico de Bellota (Pata Negra) is available and he smiles broadly as if we’ve said the magic words and says “Pata Negra?” and we nod enthusiastically. He points us to the “Gran reserva Joselito Ham-hand carved” for £20 which we immediately order. We also order the Regional charcuterie selection: Teruel Serrano ham, loin, chorizo and salchichon with bread and olive oil £10; potato, chorizo and pepper omelette with aioli £4.65; Deep fried Monte Enebro goat’s cheese with orange blossom honey £6.65 and for good measure, some spicy toasted broad beans £1.

Spicy toasted broad beans £1

The first to arrive is the small plate of spicy toasted broad beans, the beans dried and crispy with a liberal sprinkling of spice powder. They’re like good quality chips.

Gran reserva Joselito Ham-hand carved £20

Our prize, the Jamón ibérico de Bellota arrives next, hand carved and arranged on a plate. I’m surprised at how much we get, from what I’ve seen you get 3-4 slices of it in Australia for about $30 but this looks like more. Tasting it, it’s smooth and intensely flavoursome, a bit like a meat jerky but please don’t let that description put you off, it’s much, much better of course. I mean more as a testament to the intensity of the flavour.

Regional charcuterie selection: Teruel Serrano ham, loin, chorizo and salchichon with bread and olive oil £10

Our regional selection plate is certainly impressive and causes passing pedestrians to almost bump into each other and drool over our table. There is loin (the pale slices), chorizo (thinly sliced rounds), salchichon (another speckled sausage) and Serrano ham, the paler version of the Jamón ibérico de Bellota.

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Its an rainy day during Sydney’s Winter that I decide that the Spaghetti Pie recipe will get an look in. There’s nothing better than being inside when its raining and it becomes a little more gratifying when there’s something delicious smelling in the oven.

Being particularly time poor that day, I short cut the meatballs by using Chevups skinless sausages which are low in fat and high in meat. I added some fresh breadcrumbs to them to fluffify and lighten them, some milk to bind and stirred in the broccoli and oddly enough, we have a new meatball favourite.

I also couldn’t get by without using my favorites tomato pasta bake sauce, Remano Creamy tomato and basil from shock horror, of all places, Aldi. Its creamy and very tomatoey and we make special trips to Aldi to stock up our cupboards with it. My husband and I are those oddball people that actually love cottage cheese. We could eat it by the tubful so I need no convincing to use it. In fact the texture, once cooked, is like using mince. And since I’m not a fan of mozzarella, I used regular tasty cheese, nothing fancy there. It wasn’t as crispy as the recipe suggests that it would be - perhaps the addition of the pasta sauce instead of regular tomato sauce did it but it was still very good and a favoured alternative to spaghetti and meatballs.

(Rainy Day) Spaghetti Pie from Deceptively Delicious

This is a perfect recipe for that leftover pasta you’ve got in the fridge from last night’s dinner

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 3 ozs/90g whole wheat spaghetti or angel hair pasta (or 1 cup cooked leftover pasta) I used fettucine
• 1/2 pound/250g lean ground turkey or sirloin (I used 200g chevups sausages and 50g fresh breadcrumbs)
• 1/2 cup broccoli puree
• 1 large egg white
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan
• 2 cloves garlic chopped
• 2 cups bottled tomato sauce
• 1 cup lowfat cottage cheese
• 1/4 cup carrot puree
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• 1 cup shredded part skim mozzarella (I used regular tasty)

1. Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Coat a 9 inch pie plate with cooking spray

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain in a colander (Skip this step if you have leftover pasta)

3. In a small bow, mix the ground turkey or sirloin with the broccoli puree, egg white, parmesan and garlic. Form the mixture into 1/2 inch balls

4. In a large bowl, stir the cooked pasta, tomato sauce, cottage cheese, carrot puree,, and salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture into the pie plate and smooth the top. Scatter meatballs on top and sprinkle with mozzarella. Bake, uncovered until the centre is firm and the cheese is bubble, 25 - 30 minutes.

Prep: 20 mins Total: 45 mins serves 8-10

By Jessica Seinfeld from Deceptively Delicious

When my feet and back are sore from sightseeing, it’s a dream of mine that I am carted around in a pram like a child but unlike a child, I get a say into where I go. I am serious about this, if anyone is willing to do this for me, please call me. So after a morning pounding Paris’s cobblestoned streets in thin soled ballet flats, I come across a restaurant that peaked my interest. Ribouldingue, an Offal only restaurant. Offal only? Yes. It’s part of my “only in this country” theme that has me seeking food that I can only get in Paris and not at home. Although if you know me, you’ll say “But you hate offal” I convinced myself that I loved the Duck Liver at Drouant so other types of offal are also welcome on my palate.

It’s charming inside with lots of gorgeous fresh flowers, cream doors and large mirrors. The waitress is efficient and working alone. It’s empty when we walk in but it fills a bit more. At €27 for 3 courses at both lunch and dinner, many may feel that they would want to visit at dinner time while seeking lunch deals that give more savings.

The menu is in French and our waitress does her best to explain what the items are. I can understand the dessert menu but offal, well, I can’t say that I recognise any of those words aside from “tripe” and “veau”. We choose adventurous things, ones that I wouldn’t normally order but I figure if anyone can make these cuts delicious, Ribouldingue can.

Amuse Bouche: Pork Skin terrine

The Amuse Bouche, a pork skin terrine sliced thinly with a side of dressed leaves is interesting, the pork skin gelatinous and soft. It’s not chewy like some pork skin can be as it’s boiled rather than roasted.

Sabodet (commes a Lyon), lentilles vertes tiedes en vinaigrette (pig’s head and skin sausage with lentils)

Our first course, the pork sausage (pig’s head and skin specifically) and lentils is delicious, the sausage are three wide discs on top of some soupy perfectly cooked lentils.

Ravioli des champignons, couers de canard Poetes, pequillos (Mushroom ravioli with duck hearts and capsicum)

The mushroom ravioli with duck hearts and capsicum almost stops my heart but I talk myself into it “Don’t be gutless, be adventurous” (no pun intended). My husband loves this dish and his reaction spurs me on. It’s softer than the heart at the Yurakucho Yakitori Alley but still not quite to my taste. I do try some and it needs the ravioli and strongly flavoured sweet capsicum to help mask it or complete it whichever way you’d like to look at it.

Rognon de veau roti (roasted veal kidney)

Gratin dauphinoise (potatoes with breadcrumbs and cheese)

Thew Veal Kidney with Potato Dauphinoise is certainly an arresting sight. I was expecting something more …conventionally kidney shaped. I take a small bite and it’s that unmistakable kidney taste (yes I realise how stupid that sounds but I was wondering if they would do something to it to reduce the offal flavour) and small bites of this with the Potato Dauphinoise is actually quite good although if I am to be honest, I much prefer the potatoes to the kidney.

Tripes au vin blanc

The tripe soup is getting appreciative murmurs from my husband. I ask him how it is, never intending to try any as I dislike tripe and he says “The soup is great” and I ask him how the tripe is and he repeats “The soup is great”. I try a little tripe with some potato and soup and it’s not bad although the strong smell is too much for me and I pass the plate back.

YAY no offal on the dessert menu!

Cremeux de citron jaune, macarpone, crumble

Our desserts which I gratefully see do not feature offal arrive, the lemon curd and cream layered dessert topped with toasted flaked almonds sprinkled with icing sugar. The lemon curd is just on the right side of tangy and my husband usually fearful of lemon curd readily eats his share.

Blancmange au lait d’amande, salad de framboise et son coulis

The almond blancmange with minted berries is good, the blancmange quivering and mildly flavoured against the ultra thin slivers of mint and fresh berry. It reminds me a bit of Chinese almond jelly.

Petit Fours

The puffy icing sugar dusted homemade marshmallows and glossy dark chocolate coated almonds are delicious. Although it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, I’m sure to offal lovers, it is Nirvana.

And because this was our last meal in Paris, allow me to offer some tips on Paris.

• Purchase a carnet of Metro tickets (10 tickets), it’s the easiest way to get around Paris. Sure it smells a bit and is crowded but trains run very frequently and it is very easy to master. The distance between stops is very small too and sometimes walkable.
• Walk everywhere, it will really, truly help counteract the effects of copious pastry and cake consumption
• When you walk into a boutique or store (not a department store) say “Bonjour” or “Bonsoir” and when you leave say “Merci, Au Revoir”. Unlike Australia where you may be met with silence, they’ll always respond.
• You may get the occasional snooty waiter but on the whole the service is good, often friendly and charming (I think we were just lucky). I actually found service in high end/gourmet food stores a bit stiffer and snootier than high end restaurants.
• Department stores are closed on Sundays. Yes, believe it.
• The Dali museum in Montmatre is well worth a visit, and you can buy sculptures and Lithographs there.
• Take advantage of lunch specials and the Plat du Jour. Even Michelin starred restaurants will often have a very well priced lunch deal.

Ribouldingue

10, rue Saint Julien Le Pauvre, 75005 Paris.
Tel.: 01 46 33 98 80.
Métro: Cité, Maubert Mutualité or Saint Michel.
Open Tuesday-Saturday for lunch and dinner.
Fixed-price menu: €27 for lunch and dinner
Cash, Visa and Mastercard only (no American Express)

No, dear souls, Chartier is not Cartier (I too actually got excited for a second when I first saw it as it has the same logo), but rather a former soup kitchen or bouillion that now services as a restaurant for one and all. It’s vast and reminiscent of a train station, not helped by the baggage stands above the tables. It’s said to be fast and furious and you go there for a good quality, economical meal in surroundings that have elements of splendour. In 1989 it was classified as a historic building. Their aim is to “satisfy the bellies without hurting the wallets”

Baggage racks

According to Chocolat and Zucchini’s book, Clotilde’s Eating Adventures in Paris, with careful menu selections, you can eat dinner here for under €15 per person which is an absolute steal in this city. And even though it’s on Rue de Fauborg Montmatre crossed by Boulevard Montmatre, it’s not actually in Monmatre central (go figure) so while we had hoped to combine it with a tour of Montmatre, we had to get on the Metro for two trains to get here. From their window full of stickers, it seems that every travel book and food journal recommends a visit here.

Luckily we’re relatively early so getting a table isn’t a problem. The menu is in French only so we muddle through what we can read and order with some recommendations from the waiter who is a gruff but smiling fellow. I want to try Andouiette sausage (made from tripe, I’ve had it before at Claude’s) but he dissuades me from ordering it as does my husband who knows that I don’t like tripe. We order a selection of what they have recommended as well as a green salad (I’m craving salad having not had a big salad in a long time) and a roasted chicken (Ok yes I know it sounds like the most boring dish ever but I honestly wanted to see if roasted chicken in France is prepared any differently with different flavours-it’s not, more on that later).

The waiter scribbles the order on the plastic throwaway tablecloth.

Salade verte melangee €2.20

My husband is especially impressed with how quick he brings the starters out and we figure they must be pre-prepared to deal with a restaurant this size and to have them ready so quickly. Still the green salad is fresh with a mix of salad leaves and a oil and light vinegar dressing. I am happily crunching on this, missing my greens.

Crevettes roses mayonnaise €3.70

The prawns, although they look unspectacular are deliciously sweet and fresh with a mustardey mayonnaise. I only wish there were more prawns but for that price, I cannot argue.

Poulet roti froid garni pommes frites €8.70

The roasted chicken, the one that I was curious about is actually just like the roasted chicken at home, with gravy and chips. It’s good but honestly I wish I had ordered something a bit more adventurous. *Sigh* food choice are always clearer in hindsight.

Sausages and Lentils

The lentils and sausage are not bad although the lentils have been cooked for too long. The sausage is tasty and goes well with the lentils. I remember the lentils at Sel et Poivre much, much more fondly.

Service lags while two large groups sit down around us and our waiter attends to them. During this time, two men gesture to share our table as the restaurant, enormous as it is, is packed to the brim.

Creme de marron vanillee €2.70

The marron vanille is a pot of sweetened chestnut puree with the lightest hint of vanilla. It’s incredibly rich and although we should have probably ordered the Coupe mont blanc (creme de marron chantilly). With just the puree, it’s too rich to finish such a large portion.

It’s not fine dining and I’m not certain it warrants a special visit but if you’ve spent too many Euros like we did and are in the area, a drop-in will fetch you a decent meal - that is, if you can get a table.

And if you wondered what those drawers were for, they were for regular customers to store their napkins although this was many moons ago!

Chartier

7 Rue de Faubourg Montmatre 9th arrondisement
Metro Grands Boulevards Use Exit 2
Tel: 01 47 70 86 29 (no reservations)
www.restaurant-chartier.com
Open 7 days 11:30am-3pm, 6pm-10pm

My husband says that I can shop for almost anything, and it’s true. Even supermarket shopping holds joy and excitement for me. I could stroll the aisles of a supermarket, especially in overseas countries, picking up item after item and not get bored. So when I came upon a tractor selling restaurant I was immediately intrigued. My husband was relieved in that he knew that I wouldn’t be interested in a tractor because a) it’s a tractor and b) a tractor would exceed our baggage allowance. In the city centre, Zetor is said to be a slice of what the Finnish countryside was like a few decades ago. Indeed my husband’s Finnish born and bred uncle confirms this fact.

No hidden bottles please!

There’s a sign at the front, asking us to leave our bags, coats and any hidden bottles of alcohol behind. Hmm I get the sense that this isn’t your usual sort of place. My husband’s cousin said that it was more a “quantity over quality” place which pleased my husband to no end. Yes folks, no matter how hard I’ve tried to persuade him, he still prefers a larger meal to a quality meal.

We’re shown to a booth, past enormous tractors with flames painted on them and a gigantic cow. My husband’s uncle also explains that the name Zetor actually refers to a Russian tractor that was notoriously unreliable and thought to have been a poor quality one so the name is a joke.

Zetor’s menu-printed as a newpaper with pages in several languages

And their menu, designed in the style of a newspaper with a menu page in Finnish, English, Swedish, German and Russian certainly has a sense of humour to it with dishes such as “2. Plastic Blinnery: Now, it is finally possible to acquire a DD cup by a safe, natural method. The orally ingested filling includes a blini fried in clarified butter, served with herring caviar, salmon roe mousse and boiled egg. No danger of rejection.” as well as desserts such as “34. This Is Your Captain Speaking: Welcome to this chartered flight to Torremolinos! In order for you to be able to achieve the requisite holiday spirit, we will be serving chocolate cake and strawberries in brandy. And don’t forget to give a hearty applause when we land.”

Booths

The waitress comes to take our order and we order the Cliche Soup, ZETOR C2007I and the fawn reindeer roast (”Slip into something more comfortable”) and for dessert the “Hidden Agenda”-oven baked cheese with caramel sauce and brandy marinated arctic cloudberries.

Cliche soup (large) €12.90

All three dishes arrive at once and they smell fantastic, particularly the Cliche soup which I have chosen. Described as: “It’s a deja vú all over again, said the man, and didn’t skin his bear, because on the same token, he went back to business: Smoked reindeer and cheese soup, vegetable butter and crispbread. The portion took the feet right out of his mouth. Available also without reindeer” A spoonful into it and it’s creamy and velvety and the flavour much like a cheese and bacon roll in a liquid form. The tiny smoked reindeer pieces taste just like bacon and it’s gorgeously voluptuous although you get the feeling that you are eating for Everest and that the calories in this bowl could sustain you for a trek to the summit and back. The crispbread is much like a Pringle shaped Finncrisp with some carrot puree butter on it.

Zetor C2007I €11.70 little tinned fish

I next try the “ZETOR C2007I An updated version of our best-selling product. The components are smoked Pielinen vendace in tin can and bread. Optional extras include a schnapps (4 cl), and you can also get take-away vendace components from the hat check girl. Suitable for two. This product will not be outsourced to Asia” which arrives in a tin with one of those little openers that you try and master in order to reach your food. The smoked fish are interesting and the bread very dry and crispy. We find this best when you spoon the fish on and let the oil from the fish permeate the bread somewhat-and even then it’s a n earth shattering crunch when you bite into it. The fish are much like an oily smoked fish-not bad at all.

Slip Into Something More Comfortable €27.80

The last savoury dish is the “Slip Into Something More Comfortable: The reindeer fawn roast slipped into a potato hash and poured cranberry red wine sauce all over itself.  Then it burned the midnight oil so that the country cheese got warm. This caused the sauerkraut to stew in its sour cream, and the mood was set for the evening. ” This dish, a little more expensive than the rest of the menu, which is mostly less than €20, but it is rewardingly good, the reindeer fawn is gloriously soft and the perfect companion to the sweet and mild sauerkraut and potatoes. The cranberry red wine sauce and country cheese also complements the reindeer and we are in unison impressed with this dish. My sister particularly loves the cheese, called Leipäjuusto, literally translated into Bread Cheese which is like a less salty version of Halloumi. Said to be made from rich milk from a cow that has recently calved it is used in both sweet and savoury dishes.

Hidden Agenda €9.20 Caramelised cheese

Hidden Agenda €9.20 Cloudberries marinated in brandy

Which brings us to our dessert featuring Leipäjuusto with caramel sauce and brandy soaked arctic cloudberries. It comes in a baking dish and looks like a gratin but a spoonful in and we are all nodding our heads in agreement. There is the caramel squeaky cheese on top but underneath is a milky caramel flavoured sauce. The brandy cloudberries are gorgeous alongside this creamy cheesy spoonsful and although it’s unusual, it most certainly works.

Pail of cutlery

We leave and of course it is bright and sunny. We see some people toting beers - they don’t come in 6 packs here, they come in 12 packs for the serious drinker. And the colloquial term for these is “Dachshund” for the shape as they resemble the sausage dog. And no, I didn’t buy a tractor!

Restaurant Zetor

Mannerheimintie 3-5, Kaivopiha, 00100 Helsinki - tel. 010 76 64450
Table reservations: S-groups sales service 020 1234 800 (mon-fri 8-18) -
Open: mon 11-24, tue 11-03, wed-sat 11-04 sun 13-23
http://www.ravintolazetor.fi/etusivu_en.html