Sushi? Trinidad? There is a reason that raw fish and Trinidadians doesn’t work!

Dec 302009

I have gotten this question in online forums a couple times, as well as seeing that people are actively searching the terms on my travelogue, so I thought I would write a reusable answer for this question. My first question to anyone even thinking about having Japanese food in Trinidad …

Why bother????

With the variety and fusion of foods in Trinidad that are excellent, why bother trying Japanese food in Trinidad? It’s not to say that Trinidadians couldn’t import a decent “Itamae-san” to create great sushi and prepare sashimi in the right way; but there is a fundamental problem with this cuisine in Trinidad. Trinidadians are “texture” and “savoury” type diners who like things with tons of herbs, spices and heat are the norm. Japanese food in its essence, values freshness and natural taste of the ingredients with very little addition in the way of tons of herbs and spices. See the problem, the two philosophies of cuisine are fundamentally different.

Trinidadians are also famous for “copy-catting” anything that is popular in North America; specifically the east coast, since the majority of Trinidadians have relatives who reside on the east coast (Toronto, New York, any place in Florida or Atlanta). The problem with copying North American style sushi/sashimi/maki … is in general, standard fare is not authentic because of east coast tastes and because of price point. Authentic sushi/sashimi prepared by a well trained Itamae with the right ingredients costs a lot of money. Try getting fresh salmon belly everyday flown in from the west coast and see how much it costs!

There are amazing and authentic Japanese restaurants across North America, where you will get sushi and sashimi prepared in the true fashion but the price point of a meal, typically runs 80$-100$ a person. That’s definitely not what I expect to pay for 13.95$ CDN “All you can eat” at Aji Sai or Island Sushi in Toronto. (Which by the way, is a spectacular value for the taste and meal – we’re definitely blessed in Toronto and Vancouver for this). In my opinion, there are two types of Japanese restaurants:

The first kind is what they would say, localized (for the local tastebuds) and this can be slightly fusiony but retaining Japanese elements. While at some of these places you can find the stupid name giant rolls equivalents, they incorporate local ingredients or elements from local cuisine. The ubiquitous “Spicy tuna roll” – this will taste different at 10 different restaurants and 10 different places, because local tastes and wallets drive what is popular.
The other kind is strictly traditional Japanese, even though a local interpretation, but in some ways catering to not just those with traditional tastebuds, but also traveling Japanese expats on business. These businesses spend the time, money, and resources to do it right (and at times cheaper). Some go to extremes to hire Japanese chefs, or send their own folks over to Japan to train (some even the old school way of apprenticeship).

The average Trinidadian cares more about the amount of food they get and how much pepper sauce they can put on it. So I ask again, why bother with sushi and sashimi in Trinidad? It is a setup for disappointments galore.

Additionally, finding the required ingredients for sushi is very difficult in Trinidad. Of course, in true Trini style, they never tell you they are out of an ingredient till you order. Sure there are a couple sushi restaurants scattered here and there in Trinidad, but after trying them and experiencing mismatched soy sauces, no ginger, terribly overcooked rice, (as if the only rice you can find is applicable to dhal, rice and bhagi), I have always been left with soul crushing sushi experiences … so why bother??.

This is all one person’s opinion … I’m not a food critic, but I have had sushi all across the world, from the US/Canada, Europe, South America … gotten ripped off in Ginza and woke up for 7am white bait sashimi at Tsukiji fish market, so at least I have had some degree of exposure. There is no right or wrong in this conversation .. I like 25 yr old single malts, my friends back home swear by Black and White scotch or Dewars, it is a preference. I’m sure there are those in Trinidad that love the “sushi” that they get and I have no problem with that, but those who ask me, whether I would have sushi/sashimi in Trinidad and my answer would be a resounding

Why bother????

If you still feel like sushi in Trinidad, here are a couple links, but don’t say I didn’t say so….

At the Copa! Copacabana….

2009, Brazil, Rio de Janeiro 1 Response »

Dec 092009

So after a long day’s work, Jeff and I decided to try and head up to Sugarloaf for some nightshooting. We thought that we had enough time to make it from Caesar Park to the mountain but of course Rio’s famous rush hour traffic put paid to that thought. So as a detour, we decided that it would be feasible to try and hit Copacabana beach for a little nightshooting.

One of the most palpable things about Rio thus far was how unsafe I felt. Now to me, manageable travel safety is defined as the following:

“The combination of high travel experience, confidence to diffuse an unexpected situation, moderate to high ability to negotiate in a foreign language without knowing that language and low situation of risk”

In Rio, for all the days I was there, I felt that while I had all the other skills, I felt like I had very low ability to negotiate and high situation of risk; hence this to me makes it somewhat unsafe. However on Copacabana beach at night, with tons of tourist police around, I definitely felt a bit safer. So after aborting our Sugarloaf mission, we jumped out just before the Copacabana Palace.

This is the most famous hotel in Rio, having been featured in movies and of course, we being the rockstars that we are, sauntered into the hotel with not a care in the world. From the outside, the hotel definitely looks a bit posh and inside reflects that; of course if one is trying to be cool walking in, you don’t take pictures like a gawking tourist, hence no pictures on my camera.

One does get a drink and take pictures by the pool though..

So after a caipirinha at the hotel bar, it was time for some beach walking. It’s amazing the level of activity on the beach at night. People run on the beach or play soccer or futevole (sp) till the late hours.

Drinking on the tourist beach is a given, with all the little bar shacks along the waterfront

And all along the beach, there are intricate sand sculptures

and then there are some that just defy the imagination

and of course one makes new friends

After all that walking along the beach, it was time for dinner and the dish of the night was the famous Filet Oswaldo Aranha

Filé à Oswaldo Aranha, one of Rio de Janeiro’s best known dishes, is a tradition created by a Brazilian minister in the Getúlio Vargas government in the 1940s, when Rio de Janeiro was still the capital of Brazil. Like many other politicians of his time, Oswaldo Aranha liked having lunch at Cosmopolita, a Lapa restaurant opened in 1926 which used to be called Senadinho (“Little Senate”) during the Vargas government thanks to its clientele.

Oswaldo Aranha always ordered a thick slab of filet mignon, prepared in a frying pan with sliced garlic and served with sliced potatoes, farofa and plain white rice. I ordered a side of extra garlic in the end.

After that gut busting meal, it was back to the hotel for the night.

Copacabana at night…

View photos at SmugMug

Feijoada at where else….Casa de Feijoada!

2009, Brazil, Rio de Janeiro 1 Response »

Dec 082009

After starting off the trip with wanting to try Feijoada at the Caesar Park (since it is reputed to have some of the best in the city), Laura and I went off for dinner at one of the only places in Rio that serves the meal daily – Casa de Feijoada. With little more than a couple slices of mango and juice in my tummy, we went looking for a late lunch there… it was 5pm btw. I had been practicing my pronounciation of “fay-zho-a-da,” all week, so now the same way I say “Ho-do-via-ree-ah” for bus station and sound almost like a native, elicits a stream of Brazilian Portuguese to which I then give up all hope of understanding.

Facts I knew about the dish:

You get a lot
It is beans and meat
There is some fat in the dish
You only get it on Saturdays – who knew why?
They give you orange slices with your food.

So we get to the small little restaurant and it wasn’t terribly fancy. It was a 6 block walk down the beach from the hotel, nestled in a little nook intersecting three streets.

We were ushered to a corner table by the window. Immediately, food started to appear at our table… olives, toast, teeny little pots of black bean soup (the waiter demonstrated that we should be sipping this soup)… soon after appeared scoops of fried little sausages … and quite soon after the waiter appeared with two glass bottles. One had an orangey colored liquid in it and the other a pale green. The orangey colored liquid turned out to be passion fruit liquor… or the passion fruit version of a home made, aged and high-powered caipirinha. Caipirinha… mmmm. The pale green liquid was “lime” flavored, and the flavor that I normally associated with the caipirinha. So introductory batidas out of the way.

When the waiter finally came over to ask for the order, we saw the menu and ended up with the “traditional” feijoada but the choice of meats included some of the following and you had the choice of one, some or all of them

Pig ears
Pig Tail
Pig knuckles
Jerk Meat
Chorizo
Regular sausage
Bacon
Beef

Of course, I am just not about eating the non business parts of the animal, so I asked for the Sausage, beef and Jerk, while Laura just ended up with the bacon … we were the only ones in the restaurant at the time and we truly had no frame of reference for the size of the ship that was going to hit us.

Then the food tsunami hit us.

and the video above the picture below don’t capture how much it was.

By this time, it was too late, because the parade of food began again. To our table appeared white rice, black beans, “collard” greens (bright green cabbage), yuca fries, “farofa”, pork rinds, and two large steaming bowls of stew. One bigger bowl contained my concoction of meats , while the other was just filled with huge thick slabs of bacon for Laura.

The overall meal for meal was like a huge hot Creole meal in Trinidad, so I was pretty much in my element. The collard greens by the way…. DELICIOUS … just like pan fried Bhagi without the sada roti. My plate ended up like this …

After eating and eating and barely denting the huge amount of food.. we packaged the leftovers (you have to pay for the containers), we started our waddling back to the hotel. This is the reason, they serve this on Saturday’s only… you need the entire weekend to digest.

Casa de Feijoada

View photos at SmugMug

Where’s the girl from Ipanema?

2009, Brazil, Ipanema 2 Responses »

Dec 062009

Ipanema and its beach are known for its views, waves and beautiful bodies. Walking along the two mile beach, it was impossible not to notice the Brazilian men with chiseled bodies (If you base Brazil on what you see on this beach, you’ll thing that all Brazilians run, have 8-packs and do weights and exercise on the beach) and skimpy speedos (This must be the european thing to have your junk hanging out) all playing volleyball and tanning. Tall, bronzed, statuesque Amazonian women in even skimpier thongs lay on squares of colourful cotton under the blazing sun, aligned carefully for the perfect tan. Someone said that you should just go with your shades to the beach; how weird I must have looked with my camera backpack wandering the sand and climbing rocks at each end of the beach.

Two mountains called the “Dois Irmãos” (Two Brothers) rise at the western end of the beach. The view of the “Dois Irmãos” below is from the rocks at the eastern end of the beach, where the fishermen and surfers all go from.

The beach is divided into segments by marks known as “postos” (lifeguard towers). Each “posto” supposedly means something and has a specific crowd. There are only 3 postos on Ipanema beach; I managed to find a “Posto” index to help me:

Posto 1 (Leme) – Between Aurelino Leal and Anchieta
Posto 2 (Copacabana) – In front of the Praça do Lido (the only one in the original location)
Posto 3 Between Paula Freitas and Hilario de Gouveia
Posto 4 (Copacabana) – In front of Constante Ramos
Posto 5 (Copacabana) – In front of Sá Ferreira
Posto 6 There is no Post 6!!!
Posto 7 (Arpoador/Botafogo) – At the end of Arpoador
Posto 8 (Ipanema) – In front of Joaquim Nabuco
Posto 9 (Ipanema) – Between Vinicius de Moraes and Joana Angelica
Posto 10 (Ipanema) – In front of Anibal de Mendonça
Posto 11 (Leblon) – Between Almirante Guilhem and Carlos Garcia
Posto 12 (Leblon) – Between Queen Wilhelmina and Aristides Espinola
Posto 13 (São Conrado) – Próximo ao Hotel Intercontinental Tour 13 (Sao Conrado) – Next to Hotel Intercontinental

All along the beach there are interesting vantage points and tons to see and photograph

In true tradition, there is an area for everyone, so there is an area specifically called “the gay beach,” situated near Rua Farme de Amoedo; which is well-known for being a gay-friendly area, I didn’t know they had to specifically label it

Beer is sold everywhere on the beach along with the traditional cachaça. I have to say that on a hot day, the ridiculously cold coconuts are amazing. I thought only in Trinidad, could I get a coconut straight from the freezer..