The Malaysian Insider :: Food
The Malaysian Insider :: Food |
| Posted: 26 Nov 2012 04:38 PM PST  The champion baristas behind the espresso bar. — Pictures by CK Lim and Kenny Mah  27 — When in Rome do as Romans do. So when we find ourselves in São Paulo, the largest city in Brazil (and indeed South America), we knew we had to take the lead from the locals. This means starting the day late like a real Paulistano (what São Paulo residents call themselves) and lingering for a while longer than necessary in bed before strolling to a café for breakfast at a time when most folks elsewhere are considering their lunch options. We could hardly do better than dropping by Suplicy Cafés Especiais in the stylish neighbourhood of Jardim Paulista for a spot of coffee and an early dose of people-watching. The morning after Don't worry about walking into the café like a zombie after one round of drinking too many the previous night, with your shades on like a movie star. Other café customers are likely to be wearing their shades too, but mostly to hide the fact their eye bags are heavier than regret. São Paulo is not a city of early risers but some brave souls will do anything for their coffee. Not much conversation is needed either (verbal skills being somewhat limited before noon). This is not a café where you need to know the baristas by name to get some service, nor is it one of those anonymous come-gulp-and-go dumps that litter the city's morning espresso boulevard. You don't even need to smile. The baristas will be more than happy to take your order, pull perfect shots, foam milk to a creamy finish, and delight you with their latte art. (They take requests, if you're lucky.)  The industrial-chic decor (left); a perfectly crafted cappuccino doppio. There are the A.M. gym rats pounding the pavement with their pale, muscular Argentinian mastiffs. You have deeply tanned women of wealth and middle years strutting down the street with decades-younger male models and King Charles spaniels; a toy dog on one leash, a toy boy on the other. There are the grandfather types, silver-haired or completely bald, always with a cigarro in their mouths and their Campeiro bulldogs, as grumpy-looking as they are. The only ones who don't seem to have a canine companion are the fashionable young parents with their double baby strollers. (Their children seem inordinately well-behaved, as though it would be improper to squeal or wail in public.) But enough about the people; we're here for the coffee.  Magazine and orange juice... perfect start to the morning. I would certainly recommend ordering their cappuccino doppio which has enough of a kick to ward off most hangovers. Pair that with one of their crumbly, clove-scented banana muffins for a light morning bite when you really can't handle anything more substantial. And don't forget some freshly squeezed orange juice for your recovery vitamins (you will need them after partying in São Paulo's many night clubs). There's nothing quite like a leisurely cup of coffee and something to read. Certainly owner Marco Suplicy had precisely this experience in mind when he first opened the café in 2002. Suplicy comes from a venerable família de café (coffee family) as his grandfather was a coffee broker in the 1920s. Meanwhile he also gets beans for his café from a small farm in the Minas Gerais state of Brazil. This farm had been in his wife's family for over seven generations; these folks are serious about their coffee.  A yummy banana muffin (left); enjoying the coffee and the view. Suplicy also emphasises the skilful preparation of coffee so he invests heavily in training his crew. One of his baristas, Rafael Godoy, is this year's Brazilian Barista Champion. Today our cappuccinos are carefully crafted by another competition barista, Plínio Eduardo, who also manages the Jardim Paulista café. Small and sustainable Eduardo asks us if we'd like a tour of some of their coffees and we nod our heads eagerly. Showing us the coffee-bagging area at the back of the café (the coffee roaster is here too), he shares that Suplicy only selects beans that are produced in estates with certified sustainable environmental and social practices.  Suplicy's coffee roaster. I spot a smaller batch of coffee hidden in the corner. "What about that?" I ask, curious. Eduardo smiles approvingly, "That's our Santa Alina micro-lot. We don't have much of that as it comes from a hill farm. Due to the steepness of the slope, the harvesting is more difficult because machines cannot get to the coffee trees easily. Therefore most of the picking is done by hand." We decide this is the coffee we will be bringing home with us and Eduardo obliges by packing fresh bags of the roasted beans for me. Micro-lot coffee tends to be more expensive not only because of the small quantities produced but also because coffee grown in micro-climates offers more unique flavours. After paying for our coffee, we walk out into the streets of São Paulo and spend a few more hours absorbing the sights and sounds of the city. We want to remember everything but we know we won't. Sometimes we don't have to. Just one or two exceptional memories will do.  Freshly roasted Santa Alina micro-lot beans being packed. The only thing better than bringing a small bit of your travel experience back with you is discovering it's as wonderful as you remember it to be. This will do, you tell yourself, until you can return again. Suplicy Cafés Especiais Alameda Lorena 1430, Jardim Paulista, São Paulo 01424-002, Brazil. Tel: (+55) 11 3061 0195. Website: http://suplicycafes.com.br * Kenny drinks a lot of coffee. Read more of his caffeinated musings at http://lifeforbeginners.com |
| One chef, one ingredient: Georges Blanc on Bresse chicken Posted: 26 Nov 2012 07:28 AM PST PARIS, Nov 26 — If you are what you eat, then it could be said that chefs are what they cook. In an exclusive weekly series from Relaxnews, some of the top chefs from around the world share their favourite food ingredient to cook with, and eat. Whether it be peas, asparagus, squash or sea urchin, the answers are as varied as the chefs themselves. French chef Georges Blanc — from the Michelin three-star restaurant that bears his name, located in the French town of Vonnas — went for a special breed of poultry from the Rhône-Alpes region, Bresse chicken. Georges Blanc. — ©Antoine Maillon Georges Blanc: Because it's an iconic product from our region. I've presided over its Interprofessioal Committee for nearly 30 years now, and I'm also the region's ambassador. Bresse chicken has been given the AOC (Appellation d'origine contrôlée), the most prestigious sign of quality for a food product. R: What's your favourite memory or anecdote associated with the product? GB: Bresse chicken has been cooked with cream by three Blanc mothers (referring to his mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, who were all acclaimed cooks) who settled here way before me, since 1872. R: When is the ingredient in season? GB: All year round. R: What's the best way to prepare or cook it? GB: Keeping it simple, with cream. R: What other product can you combine it with to surprise your guests? GB: A yellow wine sauce with spring morel garnish. R: What are the most common mistakes people make when cooking it? GB: Make sure you don't overcook the breasts so as to keep them juicy and tender. R: How would you integrate it into your restaurant menu? GB: Bresse poultry with a foie gras and Champagne sauce, royale de foie blond (a creamy poultry liver preparation) with artichoke, a sweet garlic wafer and Vonas crepes, inspired by the official G7 dinner for heads of state that was held in Lyon on June 27, 1996. R: What wine is best paired with it? GB: A Moulin-à-vent, from the Beaujolais region. — AFP/Relaxnews |
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