UMAMI THE NOODLE BAR : JAPANESE CUISINE

Umami according to the wikipedia page is the term used to describe the savory taste one experiences when eating good food. It's one of the many terms foodies use to explain the great flavor they are going through at the moment.

To start, I would like to say the japanese game here is very bad. It's been a long time since I had decent japanese cuisine in this country. I think there is very few japanese restaurants in Manchester which is probably why it's hard to find a good restaurant.

The restaurant I am talking about this week is the one on the Oxford Road in Manchester. It is a long stretch of road that many students find themselves walking through daily. There's definitely places to eat along this road, it is littered with affordable prices with meal plans.

This restaurant is located in basement. I've always like underground restaurants. It becomes an adventure to walk to the bottom, it's almost like discovering a hidden treasure.

It was during the lunch hour which is very busy. We came before the line started, which made me feel very lucky.

It wasn't very crowded at the time, but the tables were arranged so you had to share among st strangers. Which to be honest, is a fun way to eat.

My brother and I had a lunch meal. I ordered spring rolls, malaysian satay, and ramen for the both of us. My ramen was with dumplings, and his was chilli with slices of beef.

At first glance it was together a very pleasing looking meal. It was arranged nicely and placed properly on the plate.

The rolls were crunchy, not to oily. The malaysian satay as well, wasn't like the real thing but it was delicious either way. It had a bits of peanut in the sauce and was creamy but not to.

The real let down was the ramen. I always thought what makes a good bowl of noodles, especially in ramen, is the soup, the broth that enhances the noodles to a whole new level. Unfortunately this bowl of noodles, did not have such. The only thing it got going was the fact that it was that the noodles were cooked properly. The chilli was slightly better, with the spices helping the broth as well with the beef cooked with it. 

Overall I have to say that the food wasn't bad with the price given for it. It has a nice atmosphere with a good lunch plan. 

 Opening times : Monday to Saturday 12-11pm
                            Monday to Sunday   12-12pm

 Location : 127/153 Oxford Road, Manchester, M1
7EE

This is Sharon signing off this week's blog. Stay tune for more next week. 

LEVENSHULME MARKET: FOOD ADVENTURES (UK)

The markets are what I really looked forward to when I came to the UK. I have been told stories of good food and excellent atmosphere and so far I haven't been disappointed. I've been to the ones in London but that was awhile ago before I started this food blog. But I've been to this one in Manchester.

It is called Levenshulme Market and it produces local sourced food and other commodities. My friend and I got lost on the way there and this elderly couple come to our need. They gave us a ride to the market and they told us that the place was well attended. Every Saturday night starting from the beginning of March when it's not as cold, but still cold.

The locals who live there as well visit every week, a person we met told us that he comes every Saturday after walking his dog. He recommends the freshly baked pizza which had a line, actually every stall in the market seemed to have a line. The food there caters to all sorts of diets, vegan, vegetarian, lactose intolerance but you have to asked them first if so. They usually have a sign that tells you whether or not they cater though.

I've been told of this market by friends who visited the place and they came back happy and full. Levenshulme is a little way outside the city of Manchester, it isn't very far, it would take half and hour or so by walking and less with the bus. My bus stops right near the market and I was glad of that, but somehow we managed to get lost even so.

When we arrived at the market, it starts at 10, it still was busy with people. The place was filled with families and grown up walking their dogs. The dogs were adorable, there were babies too but I'm more of a dog person. I can't handle babies.

So the first thing that caught our eye as we wandered, the market wasn't so big so it didn't take very long to get around, was the duck panini. It was a medium rare duck patty, melted blue cheese, with caramelised onions. The man serving it was a very friendly guy, talking to the customers as he cooked. The ingredients all complement each other and the duck meat was soft and not chewy and easily digestible. The blue cheese, salty and not overpowering.

Next door to him was the popular pizza stall, we ended up having a mushroom pizza, with truffle oil. Delicious might I add. The man freshly bakes it in front of us, and grated the Parmesan cheese on top of the pizza once it's done. It wasn't a very long wait, and it was baked in the stone oven in front of us which is impressive. The crust wasn't so thick but it was fluffy and had that slight brownness at the edges, which were crispy to the taste. The cheese stretched as we pulled at it and the truffle oil gave it some scent and taste.

The market was also a place for locals to sell their own products. There were stalls selling trinkets, antiques, old books, clothes, paintings, jewelry.

I bought two rings from a sweet old lady. She told me the ring's stones she found somewhere in another market and bought it so she could use it to make the ring I bought.

I had a green tea latte, which is a rarity here in the UK. If there is green tea latte here though, it wouldn't be a really good as matcha is expensive here. The green tea latte wasn't so bad, I could actually taste the matcha in it.

There was also vegan blueberry waffles, that we ordered. I didn't have the chance to take a picture of it. But it was made on the spot, the ingredients which is mixed in front of us.

The lady was very friendly, chatting with every one of her customers. The waffles were warm and had a good fresh and crisp texture. It doesn't need any maple syrup, it was sweet enough by itself. We finished it quite quickly.

I got ice cream from a woman in a cool ass van. I had a chocolate mocha ice cream. It had a thick concentrate of chocolate and coffee, but wasn't bitter but sweet. It hit the right spots and was delicious.

The day wasn't so bad, the weather was grey but it didn't rain. My friend and I had a really good time.

I really recommend, if you live in Manchester, to go visit Levenshulme Market.

Their website is http://www.levymarket.com/

Address: 
Farm Side Place, 
Off Stockport Road, 
Levenshulme, 
Manchester.

Opening hours: 
Everyday
10.00 am to 4.00pm





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This is Sharon signing off on this week's episode. Tune in next week for more.

SWEET MANDARIN: CHINESE CUISINE (UK)

Sweet Mandarin is an award winning restaurant, having won many coveted prizes including the AA Rosette, the F word which is a Gordon Ramsay Local Chinese Restaurant competition, and the chefs, sisters, also served the Prime Minister and Premier Li. They have published a cooking book and is sold in their restaurant here in Manchester and also on Amazon.

Their journey is shown on their website and also in their memoirs which is also available to be bought online. The restaurant is located in northern quarter between the many bars and restaurants. Northern Quarter in Manchester is known for being where the young will venture to. It's abundance of cafes, bars and restaurants make it a busy hub of interesting cuisine, merchandise and services.

Sweet Mandarin was right across from a Mexican themed bar. It was a rainy day, a day when we were celebrating our friend's birthday. It wasn't so bad as we got to hail a cab for the journey down to the northern quarter. We were meant to go to this pizza joint, but it was closed for renovation and we had to look about in the rain to find another place to eat, and we stumbled upon Sweet Mandarin.

It wasn't very big place but the atmosphere was warm with lanterns hanging above and oriental screens planted about. The waiters were friendly people and we greeted immediately at the door. The place didn't need a reservation and we were placed to a table.

I discovered halfway through the meal that one of the people who served us was actually one of the sisters, the very owners of the restaurant. I was surprised to find her face on the menus before us, with her sister behind the bar making drinks.

We ordered a platter of dishes, my friend being a vegetarian and I myself loving tofu, had some vegetarian dishes, and the birthday girl also ordered
some other meals as well. She loves meat. We decided on vegetarian fried rice, vegetarian appetizers, braised tofu and mixed vegetables, lemon chicken, and a creative new dish that puts a spin on the classic peking duck.

The vegetarian appetizers were vegetarian spring rolls, salt and pepper mushrooms, with seaweed. The fried rice was served with mixture of vegetables, like cabbage leaves and chestnuts. It was a well seasoned, taste great served hot and with the claypot tofu, which had braised tofu and vegetables, cabbage leaves, spring onions, ginger, onions and mushrooms. The claypot had a healthy portion of vegetables and tofu, with a generous amount of gravy.

The peking duck, which is called crispy aromatic duck on the menu. It was exactly as named. Crispy, with the duck dried to the bone, along with the skin, which had been marinated for a whole day with a blend of spices. It was served with pancakes, thinly sliced cucumbers and spring onions, and sweet bean sauce. This is all wrapped neatly into a roll and eaten by hand. It was crispy and though dry, you could still savor the taste of the spices left in the duck.

My friend who has never tried the peking duck found it to be delicious and ate most of the duck, to my amusement.

The lemon chicken had crispy skin and the lemon sauce has all the elements of a lemon sauce, not sweet like most chinese restaurants would do it but enough to complement the dish.

We also had drinks with the meal. A bunch of cocktails which were named after the zodiac. I had one in the year of the pig, which I was born in and my friends decided on monkey. Mine was lychee infused vodka, lychee juice, fresh lemon and a splash of ginger juice. The monkey was spicy ginger infused beer, lime and vodka. They were both delicious and best of all hid the taste of the alcohol.

I really recommend this place for those seeking chinese cuisine in Manchester but it is fairly pricey. The whole meal had a higher price than expected but I think it was worth it.

Location:
19 Copperas St, 
Manchester, M4 1HS,
United Kingdom

Phone:+44 161 832 8848


Opening hours:

Sunday

12:00 - 14:30

16:00 - 23:00

Monday

12:00 - 23:00

Wednesday

12:00 - 14:30

16:00 - 23:00

Thursday

12:00 - 14:30

16:00 - 23:00

Friday

12:00 - 14:30

16:00 - 23:00

Saturday

12:00 - 14:30

16:00 - 23:00

For more information go to this website:http://www.sweetmandarin.com/



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This is Sharon signing off on this week's episode. Tune in next week for more.

BAKCHICH LEBANESE STREET FOOD : LEBANESE CUISINE

I have never had Lebanese food before. It isn't something that I have much expertise in but I do believe it is a middle eastern cuisine, therefore it has meals like, sharwama, falafel, kofta, and so much more. The restaurant we had decided to go to is a chain restaurant, popular in Manchester and as well as Liverpool.

The decoration in the space was very stylish. The type that is modern and chic and incredibly spacious. The tables were made in this bronze colored metal, with visible stamps of nails across. The light was bright but the not the flashing in your face kind but the warm and inviting sort. They had food cans, condiments, jars of food, and utensils used for cookinf middle eastern cuisine, decorated around the place. There was a visible kitchen, and a bar where they would show how the food and drinks were made.

Not only is the decoration on point, the service staff was friendly and professional. They would often check up on us during our meal, asking us if we needed anything. The food also arrived quickly and was dressed up so nicely, it seemed to be a shame that it had to be eaten. The drinks were also nice, I had lemonade with rose syrup, which is refreshing, enough sweet and sour and fragrant with rose scent and taste. 

We ordered Kibeeh Shamiya, which is a grilled minced lamb meat wheat parcel with onions, pinenuts and served with yogurt sauce. As well as bourkhouri Halloumi, a type of cheese that has been harden to a point and grilled slightly, sliced and served with a salad. Kabsa blaham, a traditional rice meal served with stew lamb. 

Kibeeh Shamiya, the minced lamb was well seasoned, mixed with spices making it tasty. The salad was fresh and mixed with a simple vinaigrette. Bourkhouri Halloumi, the cheese is not to hard and easily broken apart, eaten with the salad and vinaigrette. Kabsa blaham, rice cooked with tomato puree with herbs and spices, the lamb stewed with the rice. It isn't dry, but it is definitely not wet like a risotto. Overall the food was made well and I felt the authenticity of it even though it is a food chain. 

For dessert we had upside down pineapple and almond cake. Which in the end looked more of a tart than anything, served with vanilla ice cream. It was warm and able to cut through easily with a fork, the pineapple giving sweetness as well as this tartness to the dish. I think the crust of the tart was crumbly but not too, well made and therefor did not fall apart immediately when cut through. 

Overall the food was made well and I felt the authenticity of it even though it is a food chain. The price isn't cheap but nor is it expensive. 

Bakchich Lebanese Street Food is located on Chester St, near Oxford road. It is very near the university. 

Bakchich Lebanese Restaurant,
4 Chester St,
Manchester,
United Kingdom.

Opening Hours:

Sunday — Thursday

11am–11pm

Friday - Saturday

11am-11.30pm

This is Sharon signing off this week's episode on The Makan Post. Stay tuned for more episodes coming your way.
The Makan Post brings to you weekly food adventures, so be sure to catch us every week for new episodes and dont forget to subscribe to us. Just click on the Follow button below. Also, check out our instagram page @themakanpost. Cheers.

themakanpost@gmail.com

YUZU RESTAURANT: JAPANESE CUISINE (UK)

I've only been in Manchester a fair amount of time, and I still do not know the city as well but I luckily do have friends who do. I've been brought to lots of asian food places and one of them is this japanese restaurant called Yuzu. Literal translation sour mandarin. I think the hardest part is naming something and trying to get it what you want it to embody. Well to me it is, I'm pretty sure everyone else find it easy to name like their book or something. I'm always making things harder than it seems, I do not know why. I'm trying guys.

Okay, so we go down to Chinatown. It's very near chinatown and right after the japanese restaurant we went to an asian dessert place nearby.

So anyway, going to it. The restaurant is quite a high class place, but not very big place with seating but I think that is what they're trying for. Cause as I have read in manga, yes I read mangas, I know, I'm a huge nerd, I love comic heroes too by the way. Anyways, it is always to my knowledge that food places aren't so big, they have to maintain a specific size, not sure why, also have seating near to where the chef is cooking because, well I don't entirely know, maybe to get closer to cooking experience, the show of it? I can't seriously tell though.

So we have like a few dishes to order. It was kind of pricey, but I really didn't mind. I had my favorite like order when I eat Japanese food, Udon with tempura platter, but there was like a different type of noodles, it's called Kishimen. It's flat and broad like a fettucine pasta. It of course does not have the same texture as a pasta, less sticky and more slippery since it's soaked in the broth. I love soup noodles, because of the flavorsome and wholesome taste you get because it's boiled with lots of ingredients and it's brought into the very spoon in which you drink it from. Oh the shivers of delight.

I have a love for tempura, it's meant to be not oily, and crunchy to the taste. Usually good restaurants do it very well, while others make it kind of heavy and oily. This one is really good, light, and definitely crunchy. It was an array of sliced eggplant, sweet potato and beans with giant shrimps. So there's always an extra plate of a type of dipping broth for tempura, well for some restaurants, not this one though.

I did not try the miso soup in the restaurant, not going to lie, dislike miso soup. I think there was a trauma when I was kid that brought me to dislike it so much but I can't remember what it is, and has cause me to hate it forever.

Overall, the meal was good, though I don't know if it was worth 16 pounds but they did use quality products from the taste of it.

They do not serve sushi just meals. So if you wanna eat that you could go to one of those rotation types of sushi places.

You could check out their website. This place is quite well known, and has a good reputation in Manchester. I, however had the best udon ever in Brighton, and ever since it cannot compare to anything else.

WEBSITE: http://www.yuzumanchester.co.uk/

Open: Tuesday — Saturday
Lunch: 12pm — 2pm(Last order 2pm, 2:30 on Saturday)
Dinner: 5.30pm — 10pm(Last order 9:30pm)

This is Sharon signing off this week's episode on The Makan Post. Stay tuned for more episodes coming your way.

The Makan Post brings to you weekly food adventures, so be sure to catch us every week for new episodes and dont forget to subscribe to us. Just click on the Follow button below. Also, check out our instagram page @themakanpost. Cheers.

themakanpost@gmail.com