Gäuboden Volksfest, the Fest of Summer

Gäuboden Volksfest in Straubing is the festival of Summer that is ranked just behind the biggest event of Octoberfest in Munich. From the city faraway or from the town nearby, people with regardless of age are eating, drinking and having fun at the fest. The elders are enjoying the 1L mug of cold beers while the kids are riding on the Ferris Wheel.

We've randomly picked a tent to stop for a drink, at the RÖHRLBRÄU Straubing. Attila and I have shared a mug of Radler that is the mixture of beer with Zitrone or lemon. It tastes very refreshing and cooling during a hot Summer day of 30 °C. This is indeed an easy drink as the lemon has added sweetness to "smoothen" the bitterness of the beer and with an extra refreshing taste from its sourness. Being known traditionally, we've taken a Pretzel and the Milder Emmentaler 45% Fett i.Tr. hauchdünn aufgeschnitten mit Salz und Pfeffer 100g. In short, it's actually the ribbon-shaped bread and the mild Emmentaler Cheese that has been thinly sliced that is then garnished with salt and pepper. I do usually remove the big rocky salt from my Pretzel but I've definitely enjoyed the Emmentaler Cheese for it's dryness and crunchiness whereby the taste has been further enhanced with the slight saltiness and spiciness of salt and black pepper.

Additionally, my favourite snack is the Mandel or the Almond that has been coated with a layer of sugar. It's commonly available in paper cone and it's warm! I don't really like it from the Gaby's Leckereien because the nuts are quite soft.

We've a fun family day at the Gäuboden Volksfest with a relaxing time of eating and drinking. I'm indeed very happy as I've tried the sugar coated Mandel here, even though it's not the best almond that I've ever tasted.

RÖHRLBRÄU

Gaby's

Summer Evening at Spitalgarten

Summer and it's definitely the time to feel the warm weather at outdoor or to enjoy a mug of cold beer at a biergarten. Meeting up Berndie in Regensburg and we've decided to visit Spitalgarten that is located at St. Katharinenplatz or somewhere that is nearby the Steinerne Brücke or Stone Bridge. Spital is not only a restaurant but it's also a brewery here. It's about 18 °C yet the strong wind does make it such a cold evening to be underneath the jacket. Anyway, it's still a beautiful scenery of the Cathedral Dom.

I've decided to order the Schweinemedaillons mit Rahmpfifferlingen mit Spätzle und Salat or the Pork Medallions with Egg Noodle and Salad in creamy sauce of Chanterelle Mushroom. This is my first trial to this special and edible fungus that has an excellent taste to be used for sauce-based and I'm indeed amazed by its deliciousness. The creaminess of the sauce completes the dryness of the meat but it's of course slightly too salty for my taste bud. Wondering... the "spiciness" of the meaty mushroom that has created a very special and refreshing taste together with the pork meat? Besides, I do love the soft texture of the egg noodle and to have it with the sauce that I've not finished the remaining big portion of noodle that is just too dry. 

(Source from Wikipedia: Chanterelle)

I've enjoyed the dinner so much. I've fallen in love with the "new" mushroom for its deliciousness. It's a relaxing evening to enjoy a delicious dinner with a mug of cold beer, too bad that I've caught a cold that I'm eliminated from any alcohol...

Official Homepage

Mango Tree in Bangkok

Transit in Bangkok Airport during our home trip to Germany each year, Attila and I are looking for a meal before departing on the journey of 10 hours to Munich. Thanks to Attila to fulfil my wish to have Thai food even knowing that the spiciness may kill his stomach during the long flight.

We've chosen mango tree that has claimed as "thai cuisine at its best". They do serve sandwiches here but we're more attracted by the Thai menu. I've ordered the Gaeng Khiew Wan Gai or the Green Curry Chicken while Attila has taken the Phad Thai Goong or the Fried Thai Rice Noodle with Prawn. I'm definitely satisfied with the thick and creamy green curry but I dislike the peas as they taste hard and "powderish". The slight spiciness is just sufficient for the deliciousness of the curry that it's just not too much to damage our stomachs. Besides, I like Thailand rice for the rice aroma and its stickiness. The Phad Thai is not too dry and the tastes between the spiciness and sourness are just balanced to bring out the deliciousness of this dish. Some small disappointments, I dislike the "greenish" smell of the raw bean sprouts while Attila is unhappy with the plenty of sliced red onions. Anyway, he has still picked out the onions willingly as the fried rice noodle is indeed tasty.

They may have not been the best Thai cuisine in Thailand. But, this is definitely the best Thai food that I've ever had in Bangkok Airport and we're definitely satisfied with our meals before starting the long journey.

Steakhouse of the Cruises

It's sad that Ah Meow is going to leave us. Yet, we're happy that she has finally found herself a new job that comes with higher salary and better benefits. We've decided to treat her to a farewell dinner at The Cruises Steakhouse that has newly opened a branch at the 1-World by Bayan Lepas area.

As a starter, we've shared the Garlic Cheese Escargot芝士烤法国蜗牛. I don't really like the soft escargot meat but the sauce is definitely tasty. It's using the mushroom based sauce that both the creaminess and saltiness go well with the tasteless escargot.

For main courses, the girls have taken the D'Cruises Snow Steak雪花牛肉 from Australia. The beef steak is offered in the categories such as R(25%), M(50%), MW(75%) or W(100%) that mean Raw, Medium, Medium Well or Well. Alternatively, it can be prepared based on customers' requirement of "done-ness". I've got the permission to take the picture of Su's plate of steak. I'm not really amazed by the taste of the beef steak here but it's still considered okay at the pricing of RM 39.90. The M(75%) is indeed too dry while the "done-ness" is not really uniform across this whole piece of beef. The steak is served with the black pepper sauce that tastes quite good. I've ordered the D'Cruise Combo Set that consists of Chicken and Prawn. The chicken has been marinated so well that the saltiness is completely absorbed into the meat. The meat is very soft and tender. The mushroom sauce is quite okay but I'll definitely opt to try the grilled chicken without any dipping sauce. I'm not so happy with the prawns as they're not so fresh whereby the meat is just too fluffy.

I'm grading the meal at The Cruises Steakhouse as normal. It's not very outstanding but it's also not too bad with its pricing and the friendly service from the Chef.