Red Onion

It is Indian Cuisine this Wednesday night!!

Abdul has been wanting me to try this Indian restaurant located along Olaya Main Street...RED ONION. He's been boasting about the taste of the Chicken Tikka and Chicken Qorma. And he didn't fail me *smile*

It was really good, although the girls were not able to eat because their "very very mild spicy" is still too spicy!!! *water please* We got them a kiddie meal from Mc Donald's afterwards.

They have Indian, Pakistani and Chinese Selections in their menu.

Chicken Corn Soup. 

It was served hot though the taste is so and so.

I find it a bit watery with less chicken and corn.

SR12

Complimentary Crunch Bread with Mint and Yogurt Dip

Butter Nan

 Chicken Qorma

 Chicken Tikka

Butter Chicken

I was actually expecting a similar butter chicken from a Chinese restaurant

Red Onion

Babtain Bldg. No. 5                                                                                                                       Olaya Main St., Riyadh

Tel: 217-6644

2 in 1

It has been awhile since the last time we ate out on a Wednesday night. And since Ramadan is over, we are back into our normal eating habits.
For this week, we ate at 2in1. One of the best kept resto in Riyadh (atleast for me).
It has been years since the first (and last) time we ate here. I am just happy that we visited again.
Good food and big serving!!! **two thumbs up**

Nothing really fancy with the interiors but the whole place is clean and very neat.

Arabica Chef Salad ~ SR 26

(Chicken Breast, Cucumber, Tomatoes, Lettuce, Olives with Vinaigrette Dressing)

2in1 Mixed Starters ~ SR 36

(Mozzarella Sticks, Churchuri Roll, Quesedilla, Hot Cheese Fries with Spicy Meat)

Grilled Lamb Cutlets / Lam Chops ~ Sr 56

(Lamb Chops/ cutlets with Rosti Potatoes)

Chicken Zuricher ~ SR 44

(Strips of Grilled Chicken Breast with Onion and Mushroom mixed in  a rich Creamy Sauce served with Roasted Potatoes)

 Chicken Pita Supreme ~ SR 18

(Strips of Marinated Chicken Breast with Carrots and Onions served in Slices of Pita Bread topped with Cheddar Cheese Sauce)

Banana Blanket ~ Sr 18

(A Stuffed Crepe (Nutella) with slices of Banana served with Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry Ice Cream)

2in1 Restaurant

A. Along Dabab St. Near King Fahad Medical City (with family Section)B. King Abdullah Road Opposite to King Saud University - Tamimi Complex ( No family section)

Patchi

From Wikipedia

Patchi is a chocolate brand from Lebanon. Established by Nizar Choucair in 1974, it now has more than 140 locations in 28 countries.^[1]

They have wide variety of chocolates (dark, white, sugar free etc) plus different fillings like nuts, coffee, peanut butter, wafer etc.

Yesterday, we got our sweet dose of cookies and cream and chocolate wafer.

Price per kilo ranges from SAR 120.00 and up

Beautiful Chocolate Arrangements. 

Take your pick whether you want it to be placed and arranged in  crystal, silver or porcelain.

Patchino is Patchi's Gourmet Chocolates for Kids.

See the displays on the left??? Those are Patchinos.

Chocolates are placed inside colorful boxes and bags.

While, the display on the right are assorted gift boxes.

The lime green, black and white color theme is their new packaging. 

Previously, it was Dark Brown and Silver. It was more elegant looking (for me) 

A Beautiful Chocolate Arrangement like this will cost you SAR 2,250 (roughly around USD 600-700) 

Yes, you read it right! It is really expensive.

And a piece of a personalized chocolate would cost you around $4.oo and up depending on the decoration plus the kind of chocolates to be used.

Almond Pretzels

I love Auntie Anne's Almond Pretzel. I usually pair it with Caramel Dip and a Freshly Squeezed Lemonade.
I wanted to bake something new today, but not desserts or anything sweet. And I came up with Pretzels Auntie Anne's Style *smile*
I used the recipe from CD Kitchen

Note:
I am still looking for a bread flour though APF can substitute the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup bread flour
3 cups regular flour
2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons baking soda
to taste coarse salt
4 tablespoons butter (melted)
chopped blanched almonds

PROCEDURE:

1. Sprinkle yeast on lukewarm water in mixing bowl; stir to dissolve. 
2. Add sugar, salt and stir to dissolve; add flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic. Let rise at least 1/2 hour.
3. While dough is rising, prepare a baking soda water bath with 2 cups warm water and 2 Tbsp baking soda. Be certain to stir often.
4. After dough has risen, pinch off bits of dough and roll into a long rope* (about 1/2 inch or less thick) and shape. 
5. Dip pretzel in soda solution and chopped almonds , place on greased baking sheet. 
6. Allow pretzels to rise again.
7.  Bake in 450 degrees F oven for about 10 minutes or until golden. 
8. Brush with melted butter and enjoy! 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have to admit,  I am not fond of eating cookies. I still prefer cakes and cupcakes for an afternoon snack *smile*
But today, I tried baking a Chocolate Chip Cookie. I downloaded  2 different recipes but I decided to follow a tried and tested recipe from my online guru Joy of Baking.

Note:
I didn't know that the cookie dough will spread so much that is why my cookie turned out to be  gigantic hehehe.

Ingredients: 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar 3/4 cup (160 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar 2 large eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 cups (270 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips 1 cup (100 grams) pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped (optional) Procedure: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) with rack in center of oven.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the white and brown sugars and beat until fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until incorporated, adding the chocolate chips and nuts (if using) about half way through mixing. If you find the dough very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (from 30 minutes to two hours). For large cookies, use about a 2 tablespoon ice cream scoop or with two spoons, drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (35 grams) onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake about 10 - 14 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Cool completely on wire rack.

Sushi Yoshi

My first choice for dinner last night was a Japanese restaurant, Sushi Yoshi. I was having second thoughts of dining here since Abdul doesn't eat any kind of seafoods. Although I assumed that they would served either chicken or beef. I asked him if he wants to eat at Chilis, instead. He refused, he wanted something for a changed ( meaning not American food) so we ended up having dinner at my first choice.

The family section of the resto has a simple and sleek design..minimalist and neat.

There were also many choices for their maki's and sushi's but we ended up ordering these: Crispy California Maki, Chicken Katsu Curry, Shrimp Tempura and Chicken Cushi Katsu.

All good! *two thumbs up* Although the serving is quite small.

I only managed to take few photos since there were other diners when we arrived. Enjoy!

Shrimp Tempura

It is really good in the sense that I can taste the shrimp at first bite 

(di tulad sa iba paubos na di mo pa matikman yung shrimp hehehe)

The batter is just right and not too oily.

5pcs/order

Crispy California Maki

This taste good though it is quite pricey for 3pcs at 24SR (roughly $6.50 /$2.00 per pc??? seriously!!) 

The size is just the regular slice for a Maki. It is just half  of the whole sushi roll!!!

The photo is grabbed from their official website

This is Abdul's order ~ Chicken Katsu Curry

This is also good. Well seasoned and the chicken is cooked to perfection *smile*

Chicken Cushi Katsu

Fried Chicken Cutlets with Onion Leeks 

3pcs per order

It was okay but the sauce is really good and tasty.

Waiting for the food.

Excited to try the chopsticks

She enjoyed eating with chopsticks!!

I hope to visit them again, soon!

• SUSHI YOSHI 

• Al Hayat Newspaper Building 
• Dabab Street Corner Tahlia Street 
• Olaya District Riyadh
• Contact No.: 01-8120055
• Opening Hours: 1.00PM - 1.30AM

Coffee Bun

Coffee Bun can really be addictive, but with its price???  I would rather get a burger meal from MC Donald's although I would still buy it when my cravings arises hehehe. We have here in Riyadh,  Pappa Roti
Yesterday, I was really thinking of what to bake. Abdul doens't like sweets (desserts) anymore..maybe for this month hehehe. I was thinking of baking a bread. I tried baking ensaymada before but I failed..sad! The bun ended up like "monay"..its texture and the taste.
I tried baking coffee bun this time, I researched through the internet for the recipe and the procedure. Unfortunately, I do not have bread flour so I used All Purpose Flour which they say can substitute it. I made couple of mistakes while making it but Abdul and the kids liked it.
This recipe is copied from  BELZY'S KITCHEN

Roti Boy (Coffee Bun)

Ingredients:
Filling:
200g butter (softened)
1 tsp coffee mixture (1/2 tsp granulated coffee dissolve with 1/2 tsp water)
70g brown sugar

Topping:
100 gr butter
80 gr icing sugar
80 gr beaten eggs (2 small eggs)
2 tsp granulated coffee dissolve with 2 tsp water
100 gr plain flour

Bun:
500 gr bread flour
2 sachets (@7gr) active dry yeast
35 gr granulated sugar
25 gr dry milk powder
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
50 ml evaporated milk
175 ml water
1/2 tsp salt
75 gr unsalted butter 

Methods:
For the filling: 
Using an electric mixer beat the butter and brown sugar until light and pale until the sugar totally dissolved. Add in the coffee mixture for the final beating. Place the mixture into the fridge until it harden. Divide the harden mixture into 10 portions and sit in the fridge until ready to use.

For the toppings:
Beat the softened butter with icing sugar until everything well combine. Gradually add in beaten eggs then the coffee mixture. Add in pinch of cinnamon powder with the flour and beat until everything well incorporate. Place the mixture into a piping bag and keep in the fridge until ready to use.

For the buns:
In a mixing bowl, mix all dry ingredients until well mixed. Add in egg, egg yolk, evaporated milk and water. Knead with hook attachment over speed 2. When the dough become a smooth dough add in salt and butter and continue the kneading process until the dough become smooth and elastic but not sticky. Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes or until doubled in bulk. 
Pinch dough to let the air out. Divide the dough into 12 little doughs, shape it into balls. Fill it with the butter filling. Seal it tightly. Place each doughs on a greased baking sheet, leaving about 3 inches space between each one to avoid sticking to each other during the baking. Cover the doughs with cling film and proof for 50 - 60 minutes.
Before baking time, pipe out the toppings in a spiral start from the top center of each buns. Then, bake it for 12 minutes at 400F preheated oven.

**Note:**

• Since I like my Coffee Bun to taste more like Pappa Roti, I would add more sugar to the bun and topping next time. Also, I would used a stronger taste of coffee into it. If not available, I would double the amount of the coffee ingredient.

• I also need a heavy duty stand mixer to properly knead my dough. My existing mixer cannot perform its function very well that is why I ended up having a grainy dough and not a smooth one.

• I need more time to let the dough rise and not be in a hurry to bake it hehehe.

• More milk should be added so the bun would be softer and fluffier. I would also look for a bread flour instead of APF and see if it will make a difference.

• I should've tap the dough flat for it to cook evenly.

Chatime in UAE

Chatime has finally opened in the Middle East. In Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE) to be exact.
When I learned that they have branched out in UAE, I kept bugging Abdul to go there for a short vacation and have Milk Tea *smile* He didn't disappoint me *love*
We spent 6 days in UAE with juggling trip to/from Sharjah and Dubai. I made sure to have my Pearl Milk Tea every  morning and at night.
I tried their Hawaiian Tea, Chocolate Mousse( Abdul's Favorite) and their Taro Milk Tea. All are equally good, however, Pearl Milk Tea is and will always be my all time favorite *smile*
I do hope things will work out and would be able to bring Chatime to Riaydh. InshaAllha (God Willing)

  It's CHATIME!!!

 You can visit their facebook page ~ CHATIME ME

 Thirst Quenchers!!!

A healthier alternative to coffee *wink*

Look what I brought home with me!!!

CHATIME 

2nd floor Megamall

Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

AL Fakhar Turkish Restaurant

This weekend, we dined at our favorite Turkish Restaurant, AL Fakhar. An all time favorite resto of ours because of their good food and affordable prices

They have 3 branches in Riyadh.

1. Al Hamra

2. Hayat Mall

3. Thalateen Street

 

Elements @ Four Seasons Hotel, Riyadh

I had a wonderful birthday dinner at Elements . This is one of the in-house restaurant of 

Four Seasons Hotel located in Al-Mamlakah Tower (Kingdom  Tower ~ the iconic landmark of Saudi Arabia)

Source

Beautiful Entrance

 Source

Wednesday is Mid Eastern Night Buffet

Although other cuisines are available (International Buffet)  like Indian, Japanese and Chinese Cuisines

Source

We were seated somewhere over here 

The dessert station is my favorite (",)

I only got the chance to take photos of our plates because the resto was full packed when we arrived.

Nahiya ako mag picture hehehe

Price per head: SAR 225.00 ($60.00)

A can of softdrinks is SAR30.00 ($8.00)

1. Ice Cream Tepanyaki ~ Rocher Royale. This is one Delish Ice Cream! TDF! I ate 3 scoops
2. Assorted Dessert ~ Creme Brulee, Chocolate Mousse & Lemon Meringue 
3. Japanese  Cuisine ~ Maki's and Salmon Carpaccio
4. Peking Duck Wrap ~ Another Fave of Mine
5. Mid Eastern Cuisine ~ A Little Bit of Everything 
6. Indian Cuisine

Pappa Roti

First time I've tasted a coffee bun was about 10years ago in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. My good friend Julie introduced me to this addictive bread while in search for a good snack in KL. Well, the rest is history as they

say :-) I also tried it in Singapore, Bangkok and Philippines. Althouhg it has different brand names like Roti Mum, Kopi Roti, Roti Bun etc still the tastes never cease to satisfy my palette. 

Just yesterday, after running some errands with Abdul and Rania, I wanted to have a light snack. A coffee to go and a croissant will do since I didn't have lunch yet. But the coffee shops were closed because it was prayer time (Shops are close during prayer time). We decided to drive around instead of waiting for the coffee shop to open. Then, I saw this!!

Pappa Roti Cafe! Yahooooooo!

The counter is  quite small

Dining Area. Not sure though if they have dining area for family. Will ask next time

Coffee Bun

Honestly, price per bun is quite pricey. It costs SAR11 roughly $3.00 / pc

But if you buy 5pcs you can get it for SAR48 ($13.00)

We ordered Mochaccino and Caramel Machiato

The drink costs SAR17 ($4.50)/ drink
Still pricey compared to other coffee shops like Starbucks, Dr. Cafe and the likes

I have yet to try their Milk Tea :-)

Pappa Roti

Tahlia cor. Takassusi

Near Panorama Mall

Tel: 2936452