Eat Like Ushi

On the tapas trail was La Pineda, a charcuterie and cheese shop that also happened to have some tapas. Unfortunately it wasn't what I was expecting, but that's what happens sometimes when you write down the name of a place from a list and go there out of convenience.

The men serving us were friendly and non-English speaking and quickly informed me there was no hot dishes, only cold pinxtos. Nonetheless we sampled what they had available.

Anchovies served brined or in vinegar were a good standard as expected everywhere in Spain. Tuna with a very mild chilli oil was dry but at least substantial. Bread with a sundried tomato, mild cheese, anchovy and olive topping had a lovely combination of flavours. Roasted marinated artichoke was surprisingly good with a unexpected soft char outside and a crunchy raw inside. Lastly a pastry filled with tuna & egg and topped with a dry red pepper and olive was average but certainly different.

The only other options were cheese or jamon. I would recommend coming here for a drink and snack, but being aware that the range is limited and there is no hot food or any raciones.

It takes a pretty special restaurant to have me (or anyone for that matter) trudge through -6C cold and snow for 20mins just for dinner. Luckily for Nili they had the credentials to lure me and even force myself to make a reservation a month in advance during the cold January quiet season.

Other than the Tripadvisor #1 spot, reputation for serving Lappish cuisine, winning the award for 2012 Rovaniemi Menu and simply there didn't seem to be any other places in Rovaniemi that appealed to me. It also helped that the menu had less common items such as arctic fish, reindeer, snowgrouse and bear.

The Rovaniemi Menu is comprised of local seasonal ingredients agreed upon by the chefs of Rovaniemi and each restaurant creates their own menu with those core items. I couldn't decide between the restaurant's classic dishes (cep soup and reindeer cooked two ways) or the seasonal menu. The waitress opted for the seasonal on my behalf:

- complimentary rye bread and potato bread with homemade butter - continued the trend of dry friable bread in Finland, nothing but a filler;
- starter of salmon mousse on a cracker
- Powers of Bear (shot of bear consomme) - deliciously mild-game, slightly sweet meaty soup served with a slice of tasteless cheese;
- Autumn's Harvest (Holopainen´s creamy porcini mushroom soup and rosemary foam) - beautiful creamy mushroom blend with a hint of rosemary mixed in;
- complimentary crowberry sorbet - similar to a blueberry/cranberry cross, more sweet than tart;
- Forest Delicacies (tenderloin of elk á la Chef Kyllönen, strong game sauce, Rovaniemi cranberry jelly, potatoes fried with churned butter) - luscious tender medium-rare elk with a texture of quality beef eye fillet with a taste that reminded me most of a mild game kangaroo, meaty sauce and nice combination of roast potato, carrot and swedes;
- Glimmer of Sun (pannacotta á la Nili with cloudberries from Inari and buckthorn from Mieslahti) - very thick pannacotta filled with vanilla seeds, a layer of sweet cloudberry film and fresh buckthorn berries adding a very strong tartness.

Next time I would order the Rovaniemi menu again for a first timer - the ingredients, flavours and combinations were fantastic. For a second visit I'd be more curious to know what the other signature dishes are like, such as reindeer, snowgrouse and particularly bear steak.

Most of the Finnish restaurants in Helsinki (apparently there aren't that many to find) tend to be Michelin-star or at least equally expensive. Juuri seemed a change from the pack in that it specialises in a previously unheard of phenomenon called Sapas - defined on their website as an "authentically Finnish hors d’oeuvre, handmade according to Finnish culinary traditions." In summary it is the Finnish equivalent of a Spanish tapas. It seemed reason enough to try it above another more standard fine dining place (of which I would have chosen Olo).

I'm quite unfamiliar with Finnish food traditions but after what I've had in the previous two days it seems to be fresh fish, game meats and lots of local berries. The waiter suggested 4-7 sapas dishes for a meal without a main course. It is one of the reasons I like tapas or small-dish menus when eating alone so I can try several things without stuffing myself.

- start of smoked perch mousse - heavily smoked fish cream;
- Beetroot Salad Juuri-style - very unusual take on salad with a square of boiled beetroot, pickled carrot and served with dehydrated slices of pickle;
- Baked Oregano Cottage Cheese (with gooseberry and green pepper jam) - Finnish cheese always seems mild and this was no exception without much discernible cheese taste;
- Smoked Bream & Potato Mousse (with fried rye dough) - a regretted recommendation as it was a milder form of the starter and the fried rye dough was a poor uncrispy form of bread;
- Seared Fillet of Horse (with horseradish & marinated red cabbage) - beautifully rare meat like a quality beef tataki but with a much milder game flavour compared with my previous horse meals. Couldn't taste any horseradish, but the red cabbage and onion added balance;
- Black Pudding with Lingonberry - bed of lingonberry sauce which uses tartness to neutralise the salty crisp black pudding;
- Red Currant Pie with Butter Milk (red currant sorbet, red currant curd) - refreshing and sweet sorbet and a nice red currant layer, but an odd thick heavy base and extremely sweet meringue.

Next time I would order the Fillet of Horse and Black Pudding. I think it would be best complimented by a formal main course (like Slow Cooked Neck of Wild Boar) for two reasons - 1) none of the sapas (I tried at least) are that remarkable; 2) very few are served hot (black pudding was warm, all others were room temperature). It makes you wonder if you should end up at that Michelin-star restaurant after all...

After eating at A21 the night before, the owner told me that very few decent restaurants are open in Helsinki. The only good one he suggested was Gaijin.

Doing a bit of reading, the head chef at Gaijin is famous in Finland for being a (great chef and also) judge on Finland Masterchef. His first restaurant named Farang (which is funny if you know what Farang in Thai and Gaijin in Japanese means) is modern South-East Asian themed whilst Gaijin is modern Japanese (with hints of Korean).

I read through the menu at both and thought Farang sounded better especially as it had one dish "Crispy fried pork with palm sugar caramel" which gave me sad smiles thinking about my much missed crispy fried pork hock at Longrain. A little more research and I discovered Tomi Bjorck actually worked at Longrain Sydney for 2 years! No wonder his menu appealed to me. Sadly Farang is closed on Sundays and so off I went to Gaijin.

Walking into Gaijin reminded me a lot of Longrain. The bar (although smaller) dishing out cocktails, the mood lighting, communal tables with backless chairs, private dining areas for small groups, a mixture of music for a faded but atmospheric background. It felt nice.

Sunday only allows a specific tasting menu. I was lucky that they allowed me to try a pork bun on top of this. The food was washed down with a warm Sakura cocktail (sake, cherry, cranberry, cassia) which was an alcoholic hot cherry drink with a hint of cassia. Excellent for a cold night.

- Green-Shell Mussel (with lemon-vanilla dressing, gari-ginger) - steamed mussel served cold surprisingly with an unusual citrus vanilla dressing;
- Pork Bun (pork belly, kimchi mayonnaise, pickled cucumber) - very thin pork slice with Japanese flavours making it unique and very delicious;
- Salmon Sashimi (with wakame salad, wasabi-yuzu dressing) - a dearth of beautiful quality Norwegian salmon, served with yuzu wakame but couldn't taste wasabi;
- Baby Back Pork Ribs (with soy-mirin caramel, togarashi) - finger-licking good tender pork ribs served on a soy-mirin-based liquid and a palm sugar caramel to spoon over;
- Salt & Pepper Crispy Butterfish (with wok-fried bok choy, radish, dashi) - the butterfish was a bit too oily in being fried and would be better served tempura-style. The dashi stock was a phenomenonal umami with bonito shavings that soaked into the spiced rice;
- Pork Ramen (with pork shin, pork belly, mushrooms, kimchi, soft boiled egg) - very simple stock (and disappointingly small amount of it) with decent meat, a cold egg and strangely out of place kimchi. Mixing the kimchi into the broth made it more interesting but still nothing that I'm used to;
- Sesam Geisha (chocolate cream, sesame-seasalt caramel, sesame ice-cream) - first taste of lovely sesame (not black sesame) ice-cream with a large selection of sweet, salty, crunchy, creamy and powder of variable quality.

Next time I would order the tasting menu for a first visit as the variety is great, and price:quality ratio is excellent especially for Scandinavia. The a la carte seems comparitively expensive if not shared between 3-4, but has good choices such as softshell crab, foie & unagi, miso salmon and miso eggplant. Alternatively eat at Farang.

A21 Cocktail was awarded the World's Best Bar 2009 and continues to maintain itself at the top of the game. In 2010 they expanded into a restaurant called A21 Dining that based a menu upon the seasons and their cocktails, which was a first in the world of dining.

Winter brings around the journey up north to the Lappish region and so similarly food and drink on the set menu are designed with this in mind.

I had the pleasure of meeting and being served and educated by one the owners Nikos. He spent diligent time with me explaining the history behind A21, the concept, the menu, and each individual dish and cocktail as he brought them out. It was refreshing to see a manager interacting with the customers.

A21 Dining also has a spectacular lounge area which was recently adorned with a continuous "fireplace" on the tables themselves (which I discovered later is a machine with steam, a computer-programmed LED light show and plastic "wood") which I want to mimic for my living room or outdoor setting back home.

The menu allows you to choose between 3, 5 and 7 courses with or without matching cocktails or wines. I chose the full 7-course with cocktail experience.

- starter of marinated herring, thick blob of squid ink and a shot of warm onion broth;
- Ruska (beauty of the fall) - creamy pumpkin soup, roast pumpkin, pumpkin puree, walnuts (for texture), cep mushrooms, pickled vegetables, medium-strength Finnish blue cheese, bland pumpkin bread. Served with a bitter cocktail of carrot, orange, cinnamon. Definitely a standout dish with divine soup and presentation;
- Tunturipuro (pure mountain stream) - lighltly roasted white fish, apple & fennel ice, mustard seeds, white fish caviar, bread crumble, seaweed caviar, snow crab. Served with potent clear spirit (?vodka) apple, fennel, coriander cocktail;
- Lumi (snowland) - slices of snow glazed grouse, heavy-flavoured mushroom porridge, oatmeal cracker, cauliflower 4 ways (raw, boiled, dehydrated, foam). Served with a blackcurrant & rosemary cocktail - odd but nice;
 - Loimu (a moment in the Kota) - delicate Norwegian wood-smoked salmon, herb crackers, horseradish veloute and cream, salmon cream, radish & salmon roe. Served with a coffee bean, cocoa bean & crowberry cocktail in a kuksa - like a sweet berry coffee with alcohol. Salmon was a second standout - this was not smoked salmon, this was salmon wood-smoked as a whole piece and lusciously light and delicate;
- Revontulu (dance of the northern lights) - elk glazed in its own juice, beetroot 'risotto', beetroot puree, liquorice sauce, liquorice crumble, olive crumble, honey and homemade rosemary focaccia. Served with an intensely alcoholic lingonberry & liquorice cocktail. Spectral presentation, tender elk with a slight game flavour and nice beetroot;
- Kevataurinko (spring sun) - sea-buckthron tart, berry sorbet & sauce, white chocolate muesli, salted peanuts, meringue, berry candy. Served with an exotic spring sun cocktail of orange, passionfruit with vanilla foam;
- Jaakarpalo (jewel of the snow) - cranberry slush/sorbet/parfait/jelly/jam, caramel crisp, pistacchio & peanut earth. Served with a maple leaf, cranberry & vanilla cocktail;
- petit four - orange passionfruit marmalade, homemade chocolate truffle.

All-in-all a great experience partially due to the host, the venue, the food and the journey.

Next time I would order all the courses in the Scenery Path given the time. If you want to stick to something shorter, the Arctic Path covers the best 3 dishes. The essential dishes are Ruska and Loimu. Revontulu and to a lesser degree Lumi were also good. They apparently have the option of smaller tasting portions of the cocktails, which I would recommend unless you like to drink a solid amount of alcohol.

La Tegala is seemingly regarded as the best restaurant in Lanzarote by almost every available list. It has a location closest to Tias and Puerto del Carmen, but located far enough away from the towns that you wouldn't want to walk there. It is actually on the major highway connecting the airport to any of Puerto del Carmen, Playa Blanca and Timanfaya making it relatively easy to find and plan a time suitable to go, especially given the unrestricted opening hours (Monday-Saturday 1330-2300).

I went for a very late lunch at 4pm on a Friday and a Spanish group of 4 were finishing up leaving the place empty. I picked the best seat in the house next to the front corner window which gave a perfect sky of the evening sun. The south view is over PDC and ocean and the north-west is the mountains. I imagine sunset would be the ideal time to come here.

The menu is supposedly a "twist" on traditional Canarian cuisine with quality ingredients, skillful cooking and modern presentation.

- Chorizo Pate with Bread (bread starter) - an unusual and very nice mince of chorizo;
- Spanish Omelette (complimentary) - the smoothest potato omelette served piping hot but with a tasteless drizzle of Mojo Verde;
- “Ropa Vieja” (stew of cuttlefish & chickpeas) - typically a stew made with beef or pork in tomato base, but La Tegala does it with a flavoursome seafood stock, cuttlefish chunks (which I mistook for potato on first inspection), red peppers and two prawns to garnish;
- Lanzarote-Style Fried Kid (with potatoes and vegetables) - they describe this dish as lamb rather than actually being true kid (ie. goat). What they serve is boneless lamb meat pressed together and pan-fried. The meat is tender and mildly flavoured, the skin not particularly crispy but still nice, and the fiery-looking Mojo Rojo sauce is rich with red pepper flavour and no chilli heat;
- 70% Dark Chocolate Soufflé - a molten dark chocolate souffle served with a small piece of brownie and what tasted like refreshing apricot sorbet.

Overall the meal was great and certainly different to the standard similar dishes served everywhere else in Lanzarote. The prices are equivalent also and you get the advantage of a beautiful view and a convenient location to plan for. Would certainly recommend.

Next time I would order any of my 3 dishes again - all were good and unique for Lanzarote without any being essential. Other delicious-sounding options include Fried Goat Cheese, Seafood Cazuela, Stone-Bass Loin Steak and rabbit/lamb/beef/pork dishes,

Teguise is regarded as a classic town with old character charm. It is true that there is a nice church and plaza in the middle, cobbled streets with bars, cafes and shops along, but without the ocean next to it there is almost something missing compared to the rest of the island. There is a market on Sundays (0900-1400) where apparently much of the island attends and the place is jumping. Otherwise I get the impression is a much less visited place other than a drive through to Mirador del Rio way up north.

On my particular night, I was the only guest between 1800-1930. A couple of Spaniards came in for a drink towards the end but that was it. Maybe I was too early, but even the waiter confirmed it was a very quiet week.

Nonetheless I could eat and take pictures in peace.

- Canarian Stew - a very typical tasting Spanish stew of unusually tender pork cubes, chickpeas and more potent flavour from chorizo pieces and thyme. A bargain for €6.95;
- Grilled King Prawns - quite nicely cooked tail-on prawns with burnt saffron threads that I didn't feel added any flavour. They were nice on their own or with lemon or the paprika mayonnaise;
- Zoe's Famous Chocolate Brownie - an incredible dark chocolate brownie with the delicate moist texture that collapses under the palate. The caramel sauce is strong and optional and the vanilla ice-cream is standard without any vanilla seeds visible and served with 4 nice little frozen berries.

A lot of the other dishes are more international just to be aware - Uruguayian beef, Kangaroo (assumably from Australia), Spanish beef, Western-style chicken.

Next time I'd order the Chocolate Brownie which will leave you satisfaction and memories. Canarian Stew was a decent option also. Otherwise I think it comes down to reading the specials and selecting something - the Spanish Beef was the only one that appealed to me because it seemed like a more local dish.

Driving around Lanzarote looking for food is difficult. The free map from the airport is actually very good and accurate going from town to town using the signs posted at all the roundabouts. But navigating within a town is quite hard especially given Google maps doesn't particularly work often (1 trip in 7 it could locate me).

El Lago is along the road connecting Arrieta and Punta Mujeres. Most likely you'll drive along this route going from the Jardin de Cactus and the stunning Jameos del Agua. My advice is enter the town of Arrieta and drive along the coast until you see El Lago on your left. The address lists it as Calle de Los Morros 27, but note that you'll see 26 and 28 on your right separated by nothing and get confused - just keep driving another minute until the road bends right and it is there.

The higher rated option in the area is El Amanecer (according to TA, both seem to have equivalent good mentions in recommended restaurant lists) but that is closed on a Thursday.

Also notable is that El Lago does not have a website. As per usual I've taken a picture of the English version of the menu.

- Fresh Marinated Anchovies - fresh butterflied anchovies in olive oil, garlic & vinegar. A far difference from the canned or salted kind with large chewy pieces and a light tart vinegar;
- Steamed Mussels - excellent chewy sweet mussels allowed to be alone with their own juices rather than the typical white wine & garlic. Some weren't debearded but that's the way it goes sometimes;
- Fresh Grilled Pompano - a local fish half grilled perfectly on both sides to create a salty burnt skin on one side and a tender strong pure flesh on the other. The first time I've been served proper Canarian potatoes warm in their wrinkles skin.

Lastly the Canarian typical sauces of Mojo Verde and Mojo Roja are the best versions I've tried. Especially the Verde has a punchy garlic and coriander taste which was great on bread.

Next time I would order any local seafood that they recommend. There are too many choices on the menu to select - be aware that some fish are caught immediately local whilst a lot of others are imported from Morocco (which is very common in Lanzarote and I suppose they do share an ocean) whether it matters to you or not.

On my one trip to Playa Blanca, choosing somewhere for dinner proved a quandary. I spent 90mins walking between my final two choices of Almacen de la Sal (recommended as the favourite restaurant on a website of someone who looked like they knew what they were talking about) and Los Hervideros (TA #4 for Playa Blanca and the highest rated Spanish entry for the resort).

I was torn between the recommendation and specials board of Almacen (although it was located right on the waterfront, which is almost always a negative for me) and the good reviews of LH (although the menu is quite plain and the restaurant seems to only be attended by middle-aged tourist couples).

In the end I chose Almacen thinking that their specials gave them an advantage. Unfortunately I regret my choice.

- Mejillones Tigre (special of chopped up mussel meat into a stuffing then deep fried) - I chose this special instead of the usually reliable Mussels in White Wine. The stuffing only had a minimal amount of mussel flesh and even less taste drowned out by the fried coating;
- Croquetas de Centollo (special of housemade croquettes of spider crab) - minimal crab meat with even less taste drowned out by the fried coating and the other filler;
- Langoustines al la Cava (king prawns in champagne sauce) - slightly overcooked, not particularly large prawns saturated in a very creamy oil sauce which did have a champagne taste but therefore there was no prawn taste.

Next time I would order from Los Hervideros or try and find somewhere else. If you are determined to eat here, perhaps the paella/rice/stew dishes (must be ordered for a minimum of 2) or unadulterated seafood would be a much better idea.

Cesar Manrique's architectual influence on Lanzarote is equivalent to Gaudi on Barcelona. His structures include sculptures, a volcanic cave turned nightclub/concert hall/swimming pool, a cactus garden and iconic symbols for the island's national park. Luckily he also had the brilliant idea of using a volcano's natural heat as a grill.

Timanfaya National Park is the most visited attraction for good reason. A stunning landscape of black volcanic rock, red sanded mountains, the occasional resilient shrubs, the meeting coastline of the blue ocean. Touring through such scenery is hungry work and so unexpectedly the visitor at the top has a restaurant. The attraction of the place is the volcanic grill designed to use the constant heat with intermittent bursts to cook meat and fish.

It was almost certainly designed for tourists, but who can resist a volcano steak?

- Sardines - simple whole sardines with a touch of salt. Same as a normal grill;
- Sirloin - honestly like a slow cooked steak over an indirect grill served with a meaty gravy. The outside didn't have a very solid crust (perhaps the result of not having a direct heat but more circulating hot air) but the inside was beautifully rare and warmed through, revealing a really outstanding quality piece of tender meat. Unexpectedly impressed.

The restaurant also had large pieces of chicken cooking beforehand in preparation given the slow cooking time. I've read reviews of others not liking the steak as it isn't cooked enough for them - I think this is probably a reflection of the slow cooking time for this style.

Next time I would order any of the beef (Entrecote, Sirloin or Rib Eye) and try a piece of slow-cooked Chicken. If rare beef isn't your thing, stick with the chicken, try fish, or eat elsewhere.