As someone who loves to travel, I have had some good and very average meals in the air. Whoever invented the Hot Pocket should be reported to the UN Human Rights Tribunal – it is an implement of torture. When I am lucky, and flush, enough to travel at the pointy end of the plane, I always opt for the cheese plate on the menu. Which had me thinking about how cheese manages to taste so good at altitude. When we fly, our taste buds simply don’t work properly. The low humidity dries out our nasal passages, and the air pressure desensitizes our taste buds, which is why airline often…
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Down by the River – a Cheesy Tour of Western Australia
Here’s the thing about Australia – it’s bloody big. So big that many Australians are more likely to have seen Bali than say, Perth. Although that may have more to do with the strong Aussie dollar.I am almost ashamed to admit I have seen more of Eastern Europe than my homeland. On my recent yearly trip home to Australia, my occasional travel partner suggested a trip to Western Australia to ample the vineyards. After a couple of days eating my way around Melbourne (Qatar Airways main gateway into Australia, I duly booked a ticket westward ho and in July we were soon tooling around the vineyards of the Margaret River,…
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Life on the Wedge…in the media
It’s always great when you realize that people, other than your mum and your friends who do so under duress, read your musings. This month Time Out Doha have featured my blog as part of their look into the online world in Qatar. Enjoy! Doha’s Best Websites
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Just in Queso You Need It
I had planned to review a new cheese I procured last week, but it seems that life and lethargy intervened. This morning I had to undergo a draining battery of tests required for my immigration status in this country. When I say I had to, I mean myself and 150 of my closest colleagues. Then I voluntarily drove to a place called the Industrial Area, which is also known as the seventh ring of hell, to pay a visit to my mechanic. The thing is, you don’t so much own a Jaguar, rather you live uneasily with it, like a bad, cheating boyfriend. You know the one, he spends all…
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Home on the Grange – Penfolds Wine Dinner at Hakkasan, St Regis Doha
Four Australians, an American and a Brit walk into a Chinese restaurant in the Middle East… Not a joke but the six of us heading to the Penfolds wine dinner at http://www.stregisdoha.com/en/hakkasan The evening was heavy with anticipation…mainly because of the promise of a glass of the legendary Penfolds Grange, perhaps Australia’s most famous wine. My enablers for the evening were Debbie, Ruth, Jamie, Brooke and Rachel B – all of whom acted admirably in the face of my demands they delay their eating until photos were taken. Hakkasan is one of the newest fine dining restaurants in Doha and has proven to be popular. The perfect mix of hip…
- American Cheese, Blue Cheese, brie, British, Cheddar, Cheese, Cyprus, European Cheese, Feta, Food, France, Goat Cheese, Gouda, Greece, Italy, Ricotta, Sheep Milk, Swiss, Travel, Unusual Cheeses, Washed Rind, White Cheese
Honor Roll – Huff Post Lists Best Cheeses
Every day I say a small prayer to a higher power for not being born lactose intolerant. I mean, it would have been difficult to do this blog in the first place. More importantly, what would I talk about at parties? I get asked a lot what I think the best cheese in the world is. The beauty is, there are thousands. The Huffington Post has a similar view to me, in that there is no such thing as a bad cheese. but they have also compiled a list of the 20 best cheeses (in their humble opinion). I agree with all the listed ones, maybe not the order. Check…
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South of the Border – A Taste of Chile
I have always had a fascination with South America. It could be the indomitable Latin spirit, its darkly handsome men, the mournful Tango or maybe the proximity to the end of the world – I’m not sure what holds me in a thrall, but it just does. When the W Doha asked me to attend their special Sommelier’s Dinner, themed around the wine and food of Chile, it was a no brainer. My dance card suddenly cleared. The dinner was centered around the food of Chile in honor of the outgoing Chef of Market, Rodrigo. He told me at the dinner he had been keen to showcase the food of…
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Taking a Pont (L’Eveque)
Summer has well and truly enveloped the Gulf region. I know this for several reasons: 1. It’s really hot. Like 46 degrees hot. Hotter than Satan’s private beach hot. 2. It is so hot it’s that time of year when expats take photos of the temperature readouts in their car and post them on Facebook/Twitter/everywhere 3. There is no traffic in Doha 4. I feel perpetually sniffly because of the Baltic air conditioning in buildings 5. There is a brisk trade in swapping and “borrowing” of the latest box sets and illegal film and series downloads among friends. It’s summer. It’s 46 degrees. What you gonna do? 6. I get…
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I’m Nacho Friend
There comes a time, in every girl’s life, when she must go to places that polite people don’t talk about at dinner parties. In Doha, one of those places is Paloma. The blurb says “where Texas meets Mexico”. It’s more like “Where Drunk People Meet More Drunk People”. Before 8pm, it’s a somewhat decent Tex Mex Restaurant. After then, when the hotpants-wearing Columbian band takes the stage, it becomes something different. I was there to celebrate a friend’s birthday and perversely because I had never been. And because we also had a coupon. The menu stretches the full gamut of tacos, enchiladas and some good looking fajitas. Spotting the opportunity…
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You Had Feta Believe It
Woke up this clear Saturday morning with a headache that tends to plague women of a certain age. A brisk walk and a swim failed to shift it. Lying in a darkened room likewise. After swathing my temples in Tiger Balm and taking a last chance Voltaren, I was finally able to see through the fog. My friend Kate had sent me this Gozleme recipe and having most of the ingredients, I thought this would go some way to making me feel better. The result was, as another friend dubbed it, “Hugs on a Plate”. Gözleme is a savoury traditional Turkish pastry dish, made of hand-rolled dough that is lightly…
