Green Tangerine Hanoi

The schedule is packed out, but there are pockets of time which I can capitalize on, especially if I choose to sleep less. Heh. I managed to steal some time away to have dinner with the friends. We went out to Green Tangerine.

The restaurant doesn't exactly serve delicate, dainty sort of food. It dishes out hearty fare with its Asian flavors coming through much stronger over its western basics. The menu makes for a very interesting presentation and interpretation of French-Vietnamese cuisine.

There were eight of us and we ordered everything on the menu. The mains didn't blow my mind although this concoction of grapefruit and Cointreau-baked Alaska cake that accompanied a Provencal candied quail was tartly delightful. I didn't bother with the quail, but stole the concoction to try it out with my fish. It was very decent food.

The best food in Hanoi, honestly, is found in the kitchens and homes of the people and expatriates. The food at the restaurants, is always a little lacking in that oomph to make me declare it "wonderful". Often, the street stalls offer tastier food. The dining scene in Ho Chi Minh City is much more exciting. I'm not too hot about Vietnamese food or intrigued enough to squat by the roadside on one of those tiny stools which are smaller than my butt to slurp pho. I like pho, but not that much because the taste of chicken, pork and beef are dominant ingredients. EEEEPS. The seafood pho isn't too bad, but it depends on the mixture of ingredients and of course, the freshness isn't guaranteed.

The friends are whisky lovers too, and brought along a bottle of lovely Laphroaig quarter-cask. It was with much merriment that we sipped from the tiny glasses. We didn't finish it of course! The quarter-cask is meant to be savored just that little bit after a satisfying dinner. Conversation was fabulous. I love these friends and how we've managed to keep in touch all these years. I'm in admiration of how they've left a familiar life dictated by social norms in pursuit of another calling elsewhere.