Cafe' Review: Seahouse Cafe'

Yes, yes, fine, very well. So I have been absent. I deserve two black stars and a questionable-looking vermin in my coffee for the neglect I have shown to this blog, but, more importantly, I am back!
With a new review!
I present to you: Seahouse Cafe'!
I know that most of you don't actually go here for the food, but rather for the atmosphere, the Red Bulls, and to empty a carton of Camel Lights (or Hards if you're hardcore).
But, in the case where you do decide to eat here, let this be a guide :)

To start off, some pictures!


I went with a fellow friend for breakfast there, and we were pretty tired walking in the sun (the sun after ten is no longer good) and we were parched and hungry, and had preh-teee high expectations of the food.

There was a breakfast buffet available, but we skipped it. I have this thing against buffets, it makes me feel like some poor beggar who has to wait in the bread line for food, and there is the thing about having to get up every single time to cater to yourself whenever you want a different course, but I am not passing judgment on those who like buffets. In fact, rich folks eat from them buffets :D

Some hot grandma wearing a hot dress.

The place was not overly crowded, but I have come across several occasions where the place is full to the brim (and then some more), so I have had to turn on my heel and leave the place after scanning it for 5.2 minutes (I have bad eyesight) leaving my dignity on that spot.

Behold! The breakfast menu.

Sorry about the bad photo quality lor. Blame my phone.

I had the Seahouse breakfast while my friend opted for the French toast set.
Had the hot chocolate (MEGA DRAMA AHEAD) and my friend opted for the Cafe' latte.

This is my Hot Chocolate. The waiter first served it in a bigger cup, half-full, and I asked him to pour a bit more, since I didn't think the amount in it was worth 35 Rufiya. Lo and behold, Thor himself came from the kitchen and told me the coffee machine (which I assume is a dictator with a mind and entity of its own) did not dispel any more liquid than what was in the cup. I didn't give up either, and Thor walked off, and the waiter came back with a cup full to the brim. Hor! Smaller cup la! They try to fool me with this trickery! I just decided to let it go then.
Meanwhile, the cafe latte.


After a few hours (my stomach was keeping time then) the food arrived: Take a look.

Readers, you should know. I. Love. Mashed. Potatoes.
I have spent many a night cuddling a big tupperware bowl of homemade mashed potatoes. I see as much beauty in a good serving of it, as Dr Faustus found in Helen of Troy.
So, instinctively, I shoved a spoonful of that thing on the plate into my mouth.



Now.



Let me try to put into coherent words what the taste was like.

I had this text book in Seventh Grade, for Social Studies, and God knows I loathed it and would abuse it and all. Now, this dollop of mashed potatoes tasted like someone had gone back 13 (let me exaggerate) years, retrieved that book, put it into a blender, threw in some herbs and warm milk, and then served it to me.

I think they use the powdered mashed potato mix (LOATHE IT).
My oesophagus handed in its resignation then and there.

So, yes, avoid the potatoes, the rest of it is quite tolerable.

Now, the french toast set.

My friend's verdict on this was that it was quite ok, except for the part where they doused, i mean, soaked the toast in honey, the taste was too sweet and overpowering.

My friend immediately asked for some ketchup. The waiter only brought it once we had finished eating. Meh.

So, what is my overall verdict? I would not recommend that you come here solely for the food, though they have some good snacks, like the wraps. The staff is not very customer-friendly, and seem indifferent, some of them. The view is superb though, and it is considerably cool for an open-air cafe'. I also love the music they play there, the 80's hits. I will still come here. Just for the coffee :)

Food: 4/10
Service: 3/10
Atmosphere: 8/10

Forgive the Connoisseur!

My most sincere and humble apologies. I have been on a long absence the whole month of Ramadan. I have a confession, I haven't frequented many eateries during the month, as I have developed an aversion to breaking my fast in any outside place. There is the fact that the food may turn out to taste like crap, or you have to wait 23 eons and then some in the queue to get your food from the buffet table, and well, a hungry connoisseur is an angry connoisseur.
Though, I did visit the Beehive Restaurant of Nalahiya Hotel and the food was quite nice. But I felt like I had time warped all the way to Depression era America, standing there in line waiting for the people to move up, and when I finally got there, some hongray fool has already finished the roast beef I had been having my eye on since entering the place and I could just imagine the taste of the meat and the gravy and... oh, I digress.

Back to normal publishing with the next post, I promise.
Til then, whatever you eat, Bon Apetit!


ps. Here is a hint to the place I will review next...

CAFE REVIEW: Cafe' City Boulevard

Welcome readers, to my second review.
This time I have chosen a cosy cafe I frequent quite often.

Facts: Located right along Sosun Magu, near the City Bakery.

Its next to this aquarium place. I assume they sell fishes. Or something.

The cafe is located on the first floor of the building. You have to climb the stairs, obviously.

I know it looks like an abyss here, but trust me, its steps. The name is spelt 'City Blvaa' in Dhivehi. Hard to miss eh?

The interior

I love the fact that its an open air cafe. Its never too hot or too cold. Almost each table has a hoisted wall fan aimed over it, with varying speeds. You can walk in and pick some pastries from the pastry shelf. I helped myself to a donut this visit. You have quite a number of choices with the seats. There are bar chairs, normal chairs, and leather seats (seen at the very back). Also, you can choose...

... to sit at the bar!

There is not a lot of space there if you intend to eat a meal. Maybe a donut and a drink :)

The mugs on that shelf are for sale! Quite nice I must say, but beware, some of them are chipped.
The painting with the sun is over the stairs.

If you're sitting at my seat, and you're vain, that mirror overhead can be quite distracting. I was pulling too many Coco Rocha's and Olga Sherer's for my health.

Le Menu.
Le Battered-wallet-i-cant-quite-discard-due-to-a-greater-love.

The donut in my banner!

This is actually pretty nice. The donut is quite fresh. Most of the donuts I have tasted, its like chewing on carpet. This one was quite soft.

Cheese Baguette.

My order. I have to say it was good, without being too heavy. The taste of cheese is just the right level, without the baguette being too stale or too rich in cheese.
I also tried a pepper steak here. The sauce was damn amazing, trust me, even though the meat was pretty thin and dry. It was good value for the money I paid it.

My friend's order, the continental breakfast.

She wasn't quite satisfied with her eggs, because they came too raw. But it wasn't any trouble because they fried the top as well, without any extra charge. The drink that came along with this was an apple juice, not fresh, the ones from juice cartons.

My mixed fruit juice. Damn nice wei. Look at the size of it compared to a 500ml bottle of water. Loved the juice, it was so thick and had the right balance of all fruits.

The aftermath. What would any meal in a Maldivian dish be without the mandatory serving of areca nuts?

Now, my favourite feature of this place:

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TAKEAWAY COFFEE!!1!11!!!
Yes, I am trying to trump Kanye West as the CAPS king with that phrase.

Finally!
Coffee!
To be enjoyed at work!

The machine at work. Gaggia. Such a zexy name. I will name my first-born Gaggia.

Double- shot espresso! No longer will I look like a mutilated corpse in the morning at work.

The staff are nice enough to pour a little more coffee in the take away cups without extra charge. Have I mentioned I love this place?

And we're set to go!

OK, what else have I to say about this place? If you're planning to split the bill between yourselves, alert the waiter while giving your order, because otherwise they get pretty excited at the fancy billing machine and combine it all under one bill, and you can't alter it later on.
I would recommend you come here in the day time because the atmosphere is set for a such a time. The lights are pretty dim at night, and kind of has a shady quality about it.
The staff are not local, they are foreign, and they are quite friendly and informal when addressing you. The food is not overwhelmingly expensive, we paid around Rf170 for two meals, 2 pastries, 2 drinks plus two espressos. Overall pleasant environment and pleasant food ;)

Food: 7/10
Service: 6/10
Atmosphere: 6/10

RESTAURANT REVIEW: Sala Thai

My first review!

I have chosen the majestic Sala Thai Restaurant. Facts first. Its located on the block right next to the President's Office, right infront of Velaanage, Ameer Ahmed Magu. Me and a friend went there for lunch.
The place is small and cosy, the space is not huge, and somehow, manages to add to the charm of the place.

The lights overhead.

The decor is- obviously- in a very thai theme. I love it, it really adds to the experience.
The restaurant has two floors, you can sit at normal tables downstairs, or head upstairs.
This is how the seats are upstairs:

It's pretty comfortable to stretch out on these after you're full post-meal.

We sat on the deck, at the table right along the banister, where we could see the tables downstairs.
You have to sit cross-legged. Your legs can get numb a few times, but you have ample space to shift around and adjust :)

Mind you, if you are planning to sit upstairs, don't come to restaurant with your stinky Nike Dunks. You will have to abandon your footwear at the bottom of the stair case before heading upstairs.

For starters, we ordered our drinks.
I ordered a good old herbal tea (lemongrass) while my friend opted for an iced lemon tea.

My herbal tea. Notice the little lemongrass thingies inside? That thing that looks like a chunk of toffee is some natural sweetener. It melts in you tea.

There is the host! He is one friendly guy. I seldom experience the owner being so hands-on with his customers.

I would recommend getting an herbal tea if you come here. It complements the taste of the food so much better, and you have an agenda against your stomach and bowels if you order a cola/ fizzy drink along with spicy Thai food. Honey, the bathroom will be your best friend the next day.

ON TO THE FOOOD!

The items on the menu come in complex Thai names. Rather than make a complete fool out of myself, I just mumbled the Thai names (mmfar.. looook...sswwrrt....par lok*grin*) under my breath and said the item number (F6!) out loud.

We ordered half an pot of jasmine rice, steamed (Kaow Plaow), the Som Tom (Papaya salad), Phu Phud Phong Ka Ree (Crab in sauce) and the Plar Lard Prik (Fried Fish)

Plar Lard Prik

This is a deep fried fish dish, with a sour/ sweet and spicy sauce. I thought we would have to pick the meat off the fish, but it was already done for us. One small thing though, the fish has soft bones in it, so I didn't like that part. I absolutely cannot tolerate fish bones of any density (I know some people who happily chew away and just swallow soft bones), but I still kept on eating through the bones, because, well, the fish was AMAZING. I love love love the gravy, it was just the right blend of spices. You could taste all the herbs in it very well without any one ingredient being too overpowering.

Oh, by the way, see that bowl of water there in the top left corner? They gave it to us so that we could wash our fingers after dealing with the food. Sure, they provided the cutlery, but its difficult to eat a crab with a fork and knife.

Som Tom

Downright the best salad I have ever tasted. I was initially very skeptical because, well, I never had a knack for salads where the prime ingredient was a fruit. It tasted too much like a dessert. But this salad was so good! It didn't have an overwhelming papaya taste as I feared, and I like the the whole combination of the green papaya, the chili, lime and tomatoes.

Now, for the mother of it all...

Phu Phud Phong Ka Ree

I died.
I went to heaven.

I have a huge thing for crabs. When this dish came, I had to pretend I wasn't hysterical about it, but as soon as the host turned around, my hands dove in ma! Cannot control that kind of urge. Sorry the photo turned out like that, I got oil on half of the lens. See how excited I was!.
The crab is made in a yellow sauce, tamarind I guess. They put beans and something else, oh I don't know. I kind of had a spasm and I still can't think very straight with that photo there. This is the kind of crab you deserve after spending your previous life as a nun, OK? The crabs were of good size too, I more than often have been offered fetus crabs that are like, half-formed.
The crab crackers (top left) were my weapon of choice. I laughed like Dr. Evil cracking the stuff. No wonder the group sitting upstairs (in the photo with the seats) later headed downstairs. I was a villain-in-the-making then.

The crab was the single highlight of the entire meal for me. Being a sea food lover, I always feel at peace when I receive a good dish made of it.

Now, behold the aftermath:

I was so content and full.

Afterwards, we just sat there and really stretched out on the seats, and the ambiance of the place helped make us relaxed.
I know how some of you are paranoid about washing your hands after touching your food. Call me disgusting, but I didn't wash my hands except in that bowl of water they put on the table. My hands didn't stink so much of fish or crab or anything, it just had this very aromatic smell, of herbs. Actually reminded me of an Aesop hand balm tube I had.

Now, lets talk about the staff there. It was just three of them when I was there, along with the owner himself, but we felt like we were served by ten people. They regularly came to us to see how we were enjoying the food (my answer was always the same, 'Mah-vellous') and I like how they come and sit beside you table and really explain the menu. They recommended which dishes complemented each other, and really understood the menu.

Now, what do I have to say in critique? Well, the prices in the menu are quoted in USD, so you have to do some math in your head. The food is pretty expensive too, all our dishes came to a total of Rf.600+

But if you want to experience a great restaurant with a great atmosphere, excellent service and food to match, I would recommend you come here at least thrice in your lifetime.

Food: 10/10
Service: 9/10
Atmosphere: 9/10

I EAT. I BLOG

Welcome friends, countrymen, decapitated rabbits!
I, your host, call me J (I like to shroud myself in mystery), am a budding foodie, that is trying to make a diary out of her experiences with the many (ha!) restaurants, cafe's, and hawker stalls in Male'.
Basically I like food lah. I have eaten some goooood shit and some baaad shit.

I hope to one day amass so much information about the cuisine of Male' that I become the first ever food critic. Or maybe just sit here recommending a good restaurant and a good meal until I am 80. My future is in your hands!

So, fellow foodies, give me your feedback NOW! *glares threateningly*
I need you to give me a list of restaurants, meals, drinks that you recommend from local eateries, and I shall rate them! Share the knowledge of good food!

Cook away with the comments!

ps. I hope to make my first review within the next week :)