Come As You Are
Back in May I was thinking what to do with my birthday. It would be really nice to have a sit-down meal however not too formal. It would need to be a joyful atmosphere with no other group of parties interfering. And on top of all it got to be fun and special. All of those sounds quite like a mission to organize but with 2 months in advance I thought it would be manageable. The only question is where?
Then back from very beginning of 2010 I came across with this blog called Fernandez & Leluu and was instantly drawn to the brilliant idea of home cook and private dinning. I have been willing to attend the event long enough and suddenly I clapped my hands – why not ask them to host my birthday dinner party?!
The result was brilliant! It was a hot July Saturday. With guest slowing filling up the living room, which the couple turned into a little restaurant, the layout looked so cosy and welcome. Music was playing on Spotify with my birthday play list I made a week ago. After weeks of emails back and forth with Uyen on discussing the menu, we had finalized with a massive 7 course dinner plan called ‘Upside Down & Inside Out’… love it!
read full post after this jump
First one arrived was the ‘Egyptian Beetroot Dip with Turkish Bread’ was refreshing! The vibrant colour already drew all of our attention and easily opened up our appetite. It had a hint of garlic along with the sweet and sour flavour of beetroot. Dipped with crunchy and fluffy egyptian bread, it was yum!
Came secondly was ‘Feta, Zucchini & Cucumber Salsa w/ Mint and Parsley’.
Third course was a real charmer! ‘Pea Soup With Parmesan & Ham’ made me constantly having more of the ‘Hmmmm’ noise…
Following course was Bacon Swirl & Vegetable Terrine and the bacon swirl was Simon’s old family recipe. It was too delicious and only by the time it was gone I realized there was no photos taken. (but you could view the recipe with clicking on the link.) I’ve always loved Vietnamese food and the next course (I have lost count of how many course by that time) ‘Cambodian Steak Salad w/ Sugar Snap Peas & Chips’ was just how I would dreamt. Crunchy, natural sweet of the Sugar Snap Peas mixed well with medium-rare steak, really helped on opening more appetite for later on.
Everyone was chatting, laughing, smoking in the garden or playing with dogs…and for a perfect timing came in the big main dish—’Rainbow Trout Soup With Glass Noodles, Pak Choi, Corriander & King Prawn’.
To finish it all was the ‘Upside Down Apple Pie w/ Rose Cream’. Again was too delicious to remember taking a photo.
To nowadays I’m still grateful for Uyen and Simon’s help on hosting my birthday party. Supper clubs like Fernandez & Leluu are the new trend for private dinners held in someone’s home, where you get to sit with other guests, just like at a friend’s dinner party. You get to enjoy the surprising dishes the host is cooking up, you bring your own wine and you make a donation towards the cost of the meal. You then hear and spread the words through friends, through blogs. With eating experiences evolved and people getting too used to eating out, this new trend is boosting every corner. We would want to enjoy dinner and make friends simultaneously, wouldn’t we? So come as you are.
