Restaurant Review: Jimmy's Farm

Jimmy's Farm

On the way back from our weekend in Aldeburgh we decided to stop at Jimmy's Farm for a spot of lunch.

Having watched Jimmy's Farm lurch from disaster to disaster on TV when it was first opened I was surprised to see the place looking so good!  The farm house is still boarded up (above), but the rest of the farm yard is looking very swish with nice landscaping and a couple of swanky shops.

We quickly checked out the the Field Kitchen (aka BBQ in the farm yard) selling burgers and sausages. Deciding that we wanted something a little more hearty we headed for the restaurant instead.

Roast pork with all the trimmings

The restaurant is located in a converted barn, which is large and bright with windows all along one side and the large wooden roof trusses exposed. Popular on a Sunday lunchtime we were quite lucky to get a table without a booking.

As you'd expect the short menu and specials board focuses on the free range meat on offer. I opted for the roast pork with all the trimmings (£14.50). Interestingly I noted that the meat claimed to be free range, but not from Jimmy's pig farm.

Beef and ale pie

The pork was very tender with a great piece of crunchy crackling. I enjoyed the gravy and the hints of apple too.

Vix ordered the rare breed beef and ale pie (£12). The open pie was definitely a generous serving. I had a quick taste of the pie and enjoyed the rich beef filling.

Butcher at work

Our restaurant table gave us a great view of the farm shop. A couple of times the butcher was out cutting meat on the butchers block which I loved. I can imagine it would have been a less popular seat if you were a vegetarian!

After lunch we headed into the shop to pick up some purchases. Back in Australia I decided that I wanted to meat free range meat as much as possible. I haven't found a good butcher near me in London yet so was pleased to be able to stock up.

Some of my purchases

I got some sausages (tasty but expensive), some beef mince that I made into a tasty chilli and a large piece of pork shoulder that I'm going to be experimenting with for my sister's wedding. I don't have the pressure of the wedding breakfast, but I'm going to (hopefully) be rustling up a few treats to keep the guests happy during the day.

Truck Festival 2012

Last Saturday night I was at Truck for my festival experience of the summer.

I was helping out in the largest catering tent on site, run by the Rotary Club of Didcot. A large band of volunteers put in some serious hard work to feed all of the festival goers and raise money for charity along the way.

I was impressed to see how much more organised they were than the last time I volunteered four years ago. While I've been away they've developed a 'system' of small teams working together in mini production lines. It seemed to work much better with everyone knowing what to do and I reckon we were more efficient too.

I was frying chips for the majority of the evening, cooking 130kg of potatoes on the night! Quite a few pink peopled filed through the tent, caught out by one of the first sunny weekends of the summer. There would have been some very tender people on Sunday morning from the booze and sun.

I only managed a couple of short walks out into the main field. The festivals small size, and amateurish feel, helps create friendly atmosphere.

I could hear the headliners Temper Trap from while manning the friers. I cranked the friers up to max as the set finished so I was ready for the post band rush. We sold out not long after the band finished and I was fearing a mutiny, but luckily all we got was a few sad faces. The fried egg sandwiches we put on offer seemed to mollify people's cravings.

Until next year!

Istanbul: Blockbuster day in the Old Town

Aya Sofyia

I posted a quick blog after I'd been in Istanbul for a couple of days. I was enjoying myself in the New Town, but Istanbal was feeling like any other southern European city with modern shopping streets and young teenagers in western dress. I was struggling to work out what was uniquely 'Turkish' about Istnabul.

On my third day in the city I headed to the Old Town for the first time and it was a blockbuster. Nothing like a bit of history to help you get the feel of the place.

The roof of the nave in Chora Church

My first stop was the Chora Church in the Western District. It was originally built as a church and later converted into a mosque. In recent years the church has been sensitively restored to it's Christian roots and is now open as a museum.

The small church was busy with tourist groups when I visited. Tour groups all staring skywards and gazing at the frescoes and mosaics could make the small church difficult to navigate.

During the restoration where the decoration couldn't be saved, the bricks were been exposed and beautifully pointed. I think I preferred the expert brick work more than anything else.

High on the city walls

After the church I headed to the nearby city walls. Climbing up onto the walls was an exhilarating and stomach churning experience at the same time. As high as a four storey building the walls were totally exposed with no safety rails to speak of. The views of the city were definitely worth it. Just don't look down.

Inside the Aya Sofya

My final stop before lunch was the Aya Sofya in the heart of Instanbul's historic quarter. The Aya Sofya is like the Chora Church on steroids. A church was first built on the site in the third century and it was the largest cathedral in the world for over a thousand years before being supplanted around 1500 AD. The huge basilica is breath taking.

Seemingly like most Christian buildings in Istanbul it was converted to a mosque before being secularised in the 1930s.

Chandelier in the Aya Sofya

The building still feels like a mosque with large Islamic symbols dominating inside the central dome. The nave is a little more Christian with exposed fescoes. You are able to look round the upper gallery too which is accessed via a long and winding ramp rather than staircase.

I was pleased that I had visited the Chora Church before the Aya Sofya as I think it would have been a little underwhelming to see second.

The Blue Mosque

Across the Sultan Ahmet Park from the Aya Sofya is the Blue Mosque. I have found visiting Mosques in other countries a slightly intimidating in the past; hawkers and hasslers ruining what should be a tranquil and reflective experience.

I'm pleased to report that the Blue Mosque was nothing like my preconceptions and was welcoming to guests outside of prayer times.

Roof of the Blue Mosque

The roof of the mosque was impressively painted. However, the enormous hordes of people meant it was almost impossible to stop and stare without being constantly jostled.

A beautiful building ruined slightly by the crowds.

Inside the Roman cisterns

My final stop of the day before my cookery course were the Roman cisterns which once supplied Istanbul with it's water supply.

My gosh the Romans were good at engineering and the cisterns are in great condition two thousand years later. The vaulted cisterns are the size of several football pitches. They provide cool respite from the heat of the day and are delightful to drift around.



View Istanbul July 2012 in a larger map Key: Yellow sights. Green visited on the Istanbul Eats food tour. Red eaten at and reviewed (outside of the food tour). Blue places stayed.

The best pide in Istanbul

 

Apprentice baker at Yoremiz in Beyoglu

At the bottom of the street where we stayed was a fantastic looking bakery that caught my eye every time we passed.

A large wood fired oven was surrounded by a horseshoe of marble slaps. Each morning the bakers were dusting their marble benches liberally with semonlina and then kneading and shaping the dough. Batches of lavas would be placed in the oven and once cooked they were piled up ready to be collected.

Master baker working the brick oven

On my final day in Beyoglu I couldn't resist any longer and visited the Yoremiz bakery for a late lunch.

I don't think they get many camera wielding Englishmen in the bakery. I was an oddity to say the least. With the lunch rush over I was the only customer in the shop and it wasn't until the cheeky apprentice beckoned me to take his photo that the ice was finally broken.

Slowly the other bakers warmed to me and realised that I was interested in bread making, demonstrating to me how they shaped the lavash before they placed them in the oven.

Kasarli Kiymali - meat with cheese pide

With a random point at the printed menu on the wall I ordered a Kasarli Kiymali, a meat with cheese pide. A thin smear of lamb and beef mince spiced with red pepper paste was placed on the dough, topped with white cheese, the edges folded over and then it was placed in the oven.

I was surprised how long the pide was baked for. It clearly operates at a lot cooler temperature than the wood fired pizza ovens I was expecting it to be similar to.

When the pide came out of the oven it was left to cool for a few minutes and then cut, stacked, wrapped and given to me to take away.

Yoremiz
Cnr or Kumbarachi Cadesi and Luleci Hendek Cadesi
Beyoglu
Istanbul

An usta at work

The second pide shop I visited was part of the Istanbul Eats Walking Tour that I took while on holiday.

Mavi Halic Pidecisi is located on a busy pedestrianised street close to the spice market. This baker certainly wasn't shy about having his photo taken and was quite happy to show off his skills to the camera.

It wasn't quite a intriguing to see someone work and shape the dough a second time round. But this time I managed to get involved!

The baker beckoned for Kish to touch some of the dough. Momentarily unsure if I should hold back, I overcame my hesitation and dived in to see if I could shape a pide. I tried my best to copy our host as he worked at light speed. It was a smooth and elastic dough, but my pizza shaping skills have never been that good.

Pide baking in the oven

I got the pide to around two thirds of the size it should be and stopped for fear of tearing the dough. My companions on the tour were laughing at my rather feeble effort so I got stuck in again, and although putting a small tear in the dough, I got it to the right size.

The baker left my dough sitting on the marble slap for an uncomfortably long time and I thought he was going to throw it out as soon as we'd left! However, he turned it into a cheese pide ready to sell to a lucky customer. I'm sure it would have been the best thing the luck punter ate all day.

My cheese pide

Mavi Halic Pidecisi
Kutucular Cadesis
Sultanahmet
Istanbul


View Istanbul July 2012 in a larger map Key: Yellow sights. Green visited on the Istanbul Eats food tour. Red eaten at and reviewed (outside of the food tour). Blue places stayed.

Aldeburgh Weekend

 Lifeguards hut in Southwold

Last weekend I was lucky enough to be invited to Aldeburgh in Suffolk with a couple of friends. I always enjoy getting out of London for the weekend and when your destination is a picturesque seaside village you really can't go wrong.

On the Satruday we drove across to Southwold to take the Adnams brewery tour. Our tour was run by a very friendly lady who walked us through the beer making process.

I couldn't help thinking that the brewery is full of intriguing contrasts.

Over the past few years Admans has gone through a huge modernisation program. Rather than relocating away from the centre of the village to a purpose built brewery, they have crammed high tech machinery into their old buildings. Pipes link buildings under the road and bottling plants hide behind the facade of terraced houses.

Beer taps on the Adnams brewery tour

I couldn't quite decided if they are a big or small scale operation. They produce an average of six batches of beer a week, with each run making 80,000 pints, but seem to have built the capacity to produce a lot more. I was surprised how few people they seemed to have making all the beer.

At the end of the tour we got a few tastings of beer and wine, as well as a bottle of Sole Star to take away. It was a fun couple of hours.

After the tour we had a wonder round Southwold and a walk on the pier. An increasingly rare British treat.

Local fishermen selling their catch

In the evening we had some great fish and chips from my friends local in Aldeburgh. One of Aldeburgh's charms is that local fishermen sell their catch from huts along the beach. Although I have to confess I'm not sure where the chippy we visited gets their fish from.

While I was in Aldeburgh I also managed a couple of runs. I ran along the coast to Sizewell Nuclear Power Station and back again. Not the most glamorous of destinations, but the views along the beach were very good!

The front in Aldeburgh

It was great to get out of London for the weekend. I always think that the weekends feel longer when you go away.

Bosphorus Cruise, Istanbul

A cruise on the Bosphorus comes as one of the most highly recommended things to do while in Istanbul. With our three guidebooks highlighting it so fervently I thought I'd check it out.

All of the books warn that the ferry gets very crowded so you need to arrive forty five minutes before departure to nab a good seat on the boat. Despite being a government ferry there wasn't a single local on board making guide book warnings a self fulfilling prophesy. Could all the books agree to take out the warning so that we can have a lie in?

The ferry takes one and a half hours to travel from the centre of Istanbul along the Bosphorus to the Back Sea. It stops a handful of times on both the European and Asian sides of the Bosphorus. Passing palaces, grand hotels, amazing private clubs, smart houses and forts before reaching Anadolu Kavayi. It was very pleasant to sit under some shade on the top deck and watch the world slip by.

After stepping off the ferry I charged straight up the hill to the ruined medieval castle of Anadolu Kavayi Kalesi. The castle has sweeping view up to the Black Sea and across the river. Three quarters of the castle grounds were closed for an archaeological dig which limited my wondering.

Aside from the castle and a few tourist restaurants, the small town of Anadolu Kavayi has little to tempt the visitor.

Rather than getting the ferry back to Istanbul I decided to go on a bus based adventure along the Asian side of the Bosphorus back to Istanbul.

My first stop was the small town of Kanlica. Just outside of the town is Hidiv Kasri, a villa built the former Egyptian Royal family as a summer palace.

I had a quick look round the gardens. Turkey seems to have one designer of public gardens and the flower beds were remarkably similar to those in Yildiz Park. They even had a large concrete squirrel.

I decided to have lunch in Kanlica before continuing on my journey. I bowled into a local restaurant and was immediately floundering with my lack of Turkish. My aimless pointing didn't seem to help, but luckily one of the other customers spoken English and help me order lunch. "That looks good, can you order me the same thing?"

My plan was to visit the Beylerbeyi palace before returning to the city. Checking the opening times as I left the restaurant I discovered it was closed on Mondays. Oh no!

Rather annoyingly as the bus drove past the palace it looked distinctly open. Just after the palace the bus swings into a tunnel and there isn't another stop for ages. There wouldn't have been enough time for me to get a bus back to the palace before the last tour of the day. My chance to visit the Beylerbeyi palace had gone.....

The end of the bus route was in Uskudar. I had a quick look round, but I was hot, tired and annoyed at missing the palace so it wasn't long before I decided to get a ferry back to the city.

After a quick recharge in the hotel it was off to the roof top bar at the Marmara Pera hotel to watch the sunset. The hotel has stunning views from the top. Definitely worth an expensive drink for the view.


View Istanbul July 2012 in a larger map Key: Yellow sights. Green visited on the Istanbul Eats food tour. Red eaten at and reviewed (outside of the food tour). Blue places stayed.

Cookery course: Cooking Alaturka, Istanbul

Imam bayildi: aubergine braised in olive oil

With my travel partner at a conference dinner I made the most of my evening free and signed up for the cookery course at Cooking Alaturka.

I was expecting a cookery course at the restaurant, creating and eating my own dinner. I wasn't expecting to be cooking the dinner service for a whole restaurant!

Cooking Alaturka's model is to use the students to create a set menu to be served to all the customers. A fact that only dawned on me when I was making my umpteenth stuffed vine leaf and I thought to ask how many were in a serving!

Ezogelin corbasi: red lentil and bulgar soup

Chef Feyzi was a real character. A stickler for precision and a hater of waste (I got in trouble for throwing the end of an onion in the bin) he had a cheeky sense of humour. Several times he got us going on totally pointless tasks just to see how long it would take for the penny to drop and we'd realise he was pulling our legs.

Kabak mucveri: courgette fritters

Lentil soup, aubergines (cooked in a variety of ways) and stuffed vine leaves are dishes common on lots of Istanbul menus, so it was good to learn how the Turks cook them.

I'd never made wrapped vine leaves before. It was a bit fiddly (or is that monotonous?) to prepare all of the vine, but easier than I thought to wrap them. I hadn't realised that you boil vine leaves as the ones I've eaten in the past have never felt particularly soggy.

The course also gave me the confidence to be able to buy some Turkish spices and to know what to do with them back home.

Etli yaprak dolmasi: vine leaves stuffed with mince meat

I think the course could have been a little more structured as we jumped around a lot and I wouldn't say that I saw any of the dishes from start to finish. That's ok if you just want a fun holiday experience (which I suspect is the majority of the clientele). However, if you are slightly more recipe minded like it would have been good to see the recipes end to end.

They also gave us a list of restaurant recommendations for Istanbul which was great. Receiving it at the time you make the booking would have been even better so you could plan restaurants to try a bit more in advance.

Incir tathsi: walnut stuffed poached figs

Overall it was a fun evening. All of the food was tasty, relatively easy to make and used traditional Turkish recipes. Feyzi was a real character and all of the other staff were helpful too.

The braised aubergines and stuffed vine leaves were my favourites. The night I was there only a few other customers were in the restaurant in the evening eating our food. However, they were kind enough to say nice things about the food!

Making Turkish coffee

View Istanbul July 2012 in a larger map Key: Yellow sights. Green visited on the Istanbul Eats food tour. Red eaten at and reviewed (outside of the food tour). Blue places stayed.

Istanbul: Yildiz Park, Beyoglu and Galata

Before departing for Istanbul I read about weekend brunches being held in some of the cities historic buildings. It sounded like a great way to spend a relaxing first morning in the city so we decided to check out one of the brunches.

The walk across to Yildiz Park was further than I expected, but strolling through Besiktas we got to orientate ourselves with some of the wharves and palaces I visited later in the week.

Yildiz Park seemed to be a popular venue with the locals who were setting up picnics under the trees or, like us, heading to Malta Kosku for brunch. There were several small concrete statues in the park of non-native animals (e.g. a kangaroo) which was an odd touch.

Brunch on the terrace of Malta Kosku was a fun experience. The buffet was constantly swarmed with locals who seemed to be taking pride in piling their plates as high as possible.

After brunch we walked back to our hotel and had a quick siesta during the heat of the day.

In the afternoon we followed the Rick Steves walking tour of Galata, walking across the two level Galata bridge and in the areas immediately on either side. Rick was a new travel guide to me, but I enjoyed the detail he went into on his guided walks.

After the bridge we headed up the hill to the Galata Tower (top picture) for 360 degree views of the city. The walking platform had a slightly unnerving downward slope to it, but once I'd got over that it provided some fantastic views of the city.

After a little bit more exploring it was back to our apartment. Despite our siesta the heat was sapping my energy and it was quite a tiring day!


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The best kebab in Istanbul

 

Kebabs hold a special place in the stomachs of Turks. I was told while I was Istanbul they are placed in a category all of their own, distinct from the rest of Turkish food.

I was lucky enough to try two of the best while I was there.

My first stop was Durumzade in the district of Beyoglu. Open all night, it is a popular haunt with Istanbullians on their way home from a big night out.

Durumzade only offers four types of kebab meat (which was a common description for a beef and lamb mix), chicken, lamb and kidney. Chicken wings are your only option if you don't fancy a kebab.

We started with the meat, chicken and lamb kebabs. Usually served whole the waiters kindly cut them up for us so that we could share.

The BBQ meats were wrapped in a thin lavash that had been flavoured with a red pepper and chilli spice mix. Sumac flavoured onions and fresh tomato complete the wrap. The meat kebab was the clear winner. The kebab was juicy and flavoured with spices, it packed more punch than the other two we tried.

Unable to stop at one kebab each, and spying the next door table eating a kebab plate, we ordered another meat kebab and some chicken wings. The kebab plate came served with grilled chillis, sumac onions and a tomato salad on the side.

The 'meat' again eclipsed all else. Despite the kebab plate having essentially the same ingredients I prefered the wrap. There is something primal about eating meat wrapped in bread.

Durumzade
Kalyoncu Kulluk Cad. 26/A 
Beyoglu
Istanbul


My second kebab was at Bereket Doner which I disovered courtesy of the Istanbul Eats Walking Tour I went on while I was in Istanbul.

Bereket serves a doner unlike any other. Every day the own makes a fresh doner by layering lamb, lamb fat, pepper, tomato and spices. A process which takes two hours. The result is a colourful kebab, far removed from the factory produced kebabs you see elsewhere.

Bread from a local bakery is quickly toasted against the element and then the cut side is pressed against the kebab to soak up some of the gorgeous juices.

The kebab is served simply with just the addition of some fresh onion and tomato. I loved the soft and slightly chewy bread. I found the kebab was over powered by the raw onions, but once I'd pulled them out the kebab was fantastic. Moist and light from the mix of meat and vegetables.

Check out the colourful layers of the kebab.

I couldn't resist a sprinkle of the chilli and isot mix that was on our table for the second half of my kebab. I was a little heavy handed, but the extra smoke and punch was a welcome addition.

Bereket Doner
Cnr Haci Kadin Cd & San Beyazit Cd
Demirtac
Istanbul 


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Istanbul

I'm currently in Istanbul for the week.


Istanbul seems to be a real confluence of styles and influences. Which is unsurprising in a place which has been the meeting point of east and west and various empires during the centuries. However, it does leave the tourist slightly confused. What is the 'real' Turkey? Is a stupid question even to be asking?


In the road where I'm currently staying there are women who lower wicker baskets from their balconies and people in the street below pop in bread or other produce and then they pull them back up.

The local shop is selling apricots like I've never tasted before.

Sometimes I think it's a very European place and then I hear the call to prayer.

I can't put my finger on what Turkey 'is' yet, but I like it.

Running: new shoes and some time on the track

Ever since I started running seriously I've had two pairs of shoes in rotation at any one time. As I was leaving Australia I 'ran out' one of my pairs of shoes so there was less to pack.

When I've needed new shoes previously I have ordered some Brooks Adrenalines on auto pilot. However, my run coaching session made me think of a more minimalist shoe. Keith warned of not transitioning too quickly and I was very unsure of what to get.

The running geeks at Run and Become came to my rescue and sold me a pair of Mizuno Wave Elixers. I thought it might take me a transitional shoe before I got to something this minimal (5mm v a 12mm heel to toe drop), but so far it has worked out well. I don't feel any less stable in the new shoes as long as I concentrate on a mid foot landing.

After the coaching session, another running experience I've always fancied, was to run on a track. During my local runs I realised there was a track in Battersea Park and the casual runner can use the track for £3.80. Bargain!

I visited a couple of weekends ago for one of my sprint sessions, some drills and also a few laps of barefoot running. It wasn't as exciting as I thought it might be. I think it would be more fun with a running partner, but it was still good.