Jul 18, 2013

Review for Lobster Gables Restaurant in St. Andrews, Canada

For dinner, we went to the restaurant Lobster Gables on Main Street.

Lobster Gables entry

We sat out on the patio with a beautiful view over the bay.

Most times, I only order seafood or clam chowder, because my traveling companions tend to order full platters. Supersize me, everytime…. dinners tend to be big, especially the side of french fries. When I asked the waitress about it, she said, “People pay a lot for their food, so they expect a lot of food.” Remember this as a guideline: the side dishes mentioned in very fine print tend to be the biggest part of your meal.

Anyway, back to the restaurant. The service and menu were very good. We had seafood chowder, a BLT sandwich, a fish platter, and shrimp.

seafood chowder

seafood chowder

There are quite a few restaurants on Main Street, most of them facing the water. But this one you can’t miss if you look for their sign.

Lobster Gables in St. Andrews

Lobster Gables in St. Andrews

The entryway to the back patio is lined with typical maritime knick-knacks such as lobster buoys.

lobster buoys

The best part of the dinner though was my suggestion to have a pitcher of Sangria! I saw two ladies at a neighbouring table having one and they looked very happy. When I asked them about it, they immediately toasted to us, so I knew I wanted that stuff too.

Sangria

My husband was not too keen on it and I learned, after having been married to him for 23 years, that he had never even tried Sangria. I have to admit, I’m a bit of a late bloomer myself, because I had Sangria on Mallorca (November 2012) for the very first time myself.

The end of the story is – we ordered a pitcher of Sangria and we ended up looking as happy as the two ladies at the other table. My husband liked it so much, I’m beginning to think I should make it myself on hot summer nights on our balcony in Germany.

 

So if you stop by the Lobster Gables, try their pitcher of Sangria (27 CAN$).

Jan 12, 2013

Review for Japanese Restaurant Mangetsu in Frankfurt

Thanks to a longtime friend’s birthday celebration, we had the pleasure of spending an evening with good Japanese food and drink in Frankfurt.

We were invited to the restaurant Mangetsu (full moon), a typical Izakaya-Restaurant.

In general, an izakaya (居酒屋) is a casual Japanese drinking place which also serves food. As a matter of fact, having food with your drinks is encouraged.

Japanese restaurant Mangetsu in Frankfurt

We had plenty of plates on our table, ranging from bite-size eggplant, jidori (grilled chicken), hotate (scallops) to edamame (beans). Each one of our “appetizers” was delicious.

scallops

For an Izakaya, there was plenty to choose from the menu. Here are two of the pages:

For a complete view of the menu, visit Mangetsu menu.

The Mangetsu sushi is one of the best I have eaten in years (I had also spent three years in Japan). Very litte seaweed, fresh ingredients, and dipping each piece into the mayo/brown sauce streak made for a very smooth taste. This could be addictive.

Mangetsu sushi in Frankfurt

Last, but not least, we washed down our food with Kirin beer and some Sake.

Kirin beer in Frankfurt

If you are looking for good food served in a casual atmosphere, then you should try Mangetsu. I know, I will be back.

Dec 8, 2012

Review for Greek Restaurant Tante Anna in Oberursel

This family-run Greek restaurant carries an unusual name for selling Greek cuisine. But the name Tante Anna fits the building and interior, which is old-style German on the outside, and a bit more modern on the inside.

We have been going there for many years. On hot summer days, sitting in the Biergarten under very tall chestnut trees is great. That’s when beer tastes really good. But I am digressing… There are plenty of tables and service is efficient, even on their busiest days.

“Tante Anna” in Oberstedten/Oberursel

Here we take a look into the main part of the dining area. The main part of the dining facilities are on the right and a bit more modern than the room on the left, reserved for smokers.

Gaststätte Tante Anna

A peek into their menu.

My husband’s choice, Juwetsi, a lamb leg with Greek pasta and baked with a cheese topping.

Juwetsi – lamb, Greek noodles, cheese

I often order Souvlaki, one of my favorite dishes. They used to serve the meat on a skewer, but now it is removed before being served. This has definitely been changed  for the patrons’ convenience and it has also improved our eating etiquette.

In the past, occasionally a piece of Souvlaki had landed on my husband’s plate, or worse, in my beer.

Souvlaki

Someone told me they use frozen french fries, but I am OK with this (if it is true). They taste great with tsatsiki.

Last time we patronized Tante Anna, we saw the Greek restaurant monarch residing in the dark cubbyhole, reading his newspaper and talking to the cooks through a little window, while both grown off-springs were busy running the place.
This is the way (semi)retirement used to be and always should be.

We are regulars there. And I do appreciate family-run restaurants. Their food, price/value balance, and service, are good.

 

Nov 25, 2012

Review for Hotel&Spa S’Entrador Playa in Cap Ratjada, Mallorca

Through the German tour operator Neckermann, we booked our short trip to Mallorca, which included round-trip airfare with Air Berlin, 2 overnights with half board, single room, and airport – hotel transfers.

We did not expect much as it was only euro 277,– per person, but we were in for a real nice surprise.

This little arrangement welcomed us to the room.

Breakfast and dinner were buffet style. The breakfast selection was even more impressive than dinner. Even in late November, we were able to have breakfast outside and chose to have dinner inside.

breakfast area

The rooms were small and ours faced the tennis court, but even though it had a balcony, we did not have plans to spend much time in the room. We only had 48 hours to amuse ourselves on Mallorca.

Single room at the S’Entrador Playa in Cap Ratjada

By the afternoon, we could see some pale Germans sunbathing around the pool in about 20°C weather.

S’Entrador Playa pool

The hotel service (reception desk, restaurant staff, cleaning personal, etc.) was superb. The last thing I remember, is the maid wishing me a Tschüs und gute Reise! when I passed her with my suitcase. Guess I had been accustomed to maids usually looking the other way when passing them.

The hotel caters to mostly German patrons, therefore most of the staff speak German.

For more photos and information (in German), visit Hotel&Spa S’Entrador Playa on holidaycheck.de

Jul 21, 2012

Review for Vacation Rental in Biarritz

On Homeaway.com, we booked our vacation rental for the most recent holiday. Our vacation home, a renovated fisher home, was in the best location we could have hoped for.

We had the one with the blue doors and shutters. What might look like weeds in front of the houses are actually wild flowers. They do look prettier on sunny days. There is a little sign above the door – Suliko (little soul) – which is the name of the house.

Everything was in walking distance – the beach, the town centre, the market, and cafés and restaurants. Sitting on the little terrace, I only had to turn my head around the hedge to see the ocean across the street.

Biarritz beach – one minute away from 9 rue Cité Cany

Our landlady, Anne, was most forthcoming in everything we needed. And she was still kind after we had to report a minor damage caused by one of our children. She was most helpful in helping settling this, like a friend.

The home had most amenities except a hair dryer. I guess we could have asked for one. We had good internet connection, plenty of coffee and wine on our arrival, and the house, though centrally located, is in a very quiet neighborhood.

Parking is a challenge during this time a year. We flew into Bilbao/Spain and had to get a rental car. The rental car lady tried to sell us all kinds of stuff, such as an upgrade to a station car (we could hardly find one parking space in Biarritz, let alone two!), she tried to sell us navigation for 99 euro a week (by golly, we are on holiday, I do not need to know where I am going) and she tried to sell us full-coverage insurance (we had the car parked 12 out of 14 days).

We used our legs most of the time. There is a lot of up and down walking and we felt it in the evening. Free exercise.

A couple of evenings, my husband and I grabbed a bottle of wine and just walked across the street to the beach to enjoy the sunset. There is nothing better than that.

Biarritz is a lively little town and actually, I could have stayed a bit longer.

For more photos and information about this rental home, visit Homeaway.com. Highly recommendable.

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