Bahn Cuon and pho at Viet2go

To be honest, I am not a fan of Vietnamese food because Hongkongized Vietnamese food has put me off it especially the cloyingly sweet broths which are a recipe for disaster but loved by the locals there.
Anyway, went to Viet2go for pho which was recommended by someone as they said the broth was very hydrating.

I have been planning to go for a year but due to Covid I had to wait.

You can get takeaways but it is not the same as eating it fresh from the kitchen.

Finally made it one evening.

Ordered two pho noodles, one was Tofu and the other was Rare Beef where both broths are the same.

The beef was surprisingly good and I liked the way they were thinly sliced.

The tofu was to my liking as it was lightly fried on the outside.

However the star of the show was the BBQ pork Bahn Cuon, again the bbq pork was thinly sliced like bacon with the belly cut which was enjoyable as it was not too dry or tough.

The bahn cuon had this lovely thin and elastic texture so as a whole it was so tasty with the crispy garlic and shallot toppings.

Also had the summer roll but I thought they were a bit plain as it was like 20% avocado and pork and the rest was noodle and salad.

Overall, I will be back for the Bahn cuon.

Traditional and modern rice dumplings from Hang Heung

Hang Heung 恆香老婆餅 is an old school brand where wife cakes come to mind but now they have so many treats to offer like crispy rolls.

For dragon boat festival, they have a range of zongzhi to offer.

Each rice dumpling is individually sealed in its own bag and I love the way it has pictures with English description which makes it expat friendly.
Out of the three I got, the Nyonya rice dumpling is my favourite filled with pork belly, candied bittergourd, mushroom and my favourite fragrant pandan leaf 風味娘惹粽.
The other two are traditionally filled with red bean tangerine peel 陳皮紅豆沙梘水粽 and lotus paste 恆香白蓮蓉梘水粽.
Get now them as there is an early bird discount.

To order:
https://bit.ly/3yKK2PY
#恆香老婆餅 #恆香 #端午節

Nyonya rice dumpling:

Glutinous rice dumpling with lotus seed paste:

Glutinous rice dumpling with red bean and tangerine peel:

London's first blue rice stall Eat Lah now at Boxpark Croydon, UK

Nasi Kerabu (blue rice) is a popular Malaysian dish in Asia.

It is blue because of the butterfly pea flower which is also used in drinks for instaworthy colour changes when lemon juice or something acidic is added changing the pH.

Now you can get Nasi Kerabu at Eat Lah, Boxpark Croydon in UK which is the first stall to serve blue rice.

They started off as a stall in June 2019 which proved so popular that they have now opened a permanent shop at Boxpark.

The only frustrating thing was that the unit is near the speakers that pump loud music so if you have a vocalcord abduction problem you can virtually give up asking any questions or ordering.

As a foodie, I still had to go to try the Nasi Kerabu to see how it fares with the ones I have tried in Asia.

At Eat Lah, they have vegetarian version with tofu and aubergine or the regular one with chicken satay and turmeric chicken.

I got the ayam percik with extra tofu.

Nasi Kerabu

The combo here is filling and balanced but I think the prawn crackers and toasted coconut was missing according to the recent photos and menu.

Anyway as a rice fan, I dug in the pyramid of blue rice first.

It was soft and fluffy, the star of the show was the ginger puree which is similar to the paste you get for Hainan chicken but here there was interesting salty kick which tastes like salted fish but it was pink.

The salted fish appears to be the budu according to the menu.

I was so glad I added the tofu because they were so generous with it, the tofu was soft and supple in this creamy coconut sauce.

Moving on to the chicken, you could really taste the chargrilled flavours, both the texture of the chicken satay and coconut chicken were quite firm as there was some resistance to the fork.

Overall, worth trying 

Saturday:  Lloyd Park E17 10-4pm

Sunday: Crystal Palace Market SE19 10-4pm

Sunday: Victoria Park E3 10-5pm 

Boxpark Croydon

Airsoft shooting in London at Alpha Guns London

Lockdown is over so time to go airsoft shooting again.

At Alpha guns, it is an indoor Airsoft shooting range, whether you are a complete beginner or just want to try something different. Their extensive and constantly changing selection of Rifles, SMGs and Pistols means you will always see something new to try!

They have various packages which includes rifles and guns but as a gun girl I requested for gun only and they were happy to accommodate.

I enjoyed the electronic targets which can be adjusted according to how well you shoot.

Overall, I had an amazing experience so will definitely go again.

https://agl-airsoft.co.uk/shooting-range
Alpha Guns London

84 Camden High Street

NW1 0LT

Mon - Sun: 11am - 7pm

[Bad Axe Throwing] New Axe throwing experience in Croydon

Axe throwing is the trend in Canada and the USA and it is now getting popular in the UK.
Before lockdown I had planned to go to one in Central London.
Now you can go axe throwing in Croydon located at Box Park.

The Bad Axe Throwing group is the world's biggest urban axe throwing club.

Their mission is to bring the thrill of a traditional Canadian backyard pastime to urban communities. 

With the help of their talented axe throwing coaches, hundreds of thousands of people have been able to share our passion for throwing axes. 

They pride themselves in delivering outstanding customer service to all of their clients whether it's for walk-ins, leagues, private parties and team building events.

Bad Axe Throwing was founded by CEO Mario Zelaya in the fall of 2014. Mario is based in southern Ontario, therefore the first doors we opened were in Burlington, Ontario. 

In just a few years, they've expanded across Canada and the United States with over 40 locations!

I was so glad, I tried Axe throwing which is quite physical because the axe is quite heavy.

In that respect, it would be great if you they had axes of different weight and sizes for people of different physiques just like bowling balls.

It was all about getting the physics right and standing the right distance according to your throw.

The coach Andrew was really detailed and helpful explaining the techniques so after many misses and a few successes I finally got a bullseye which was only captured on their CCTV because I accidentally did not press record that time.

Overall, I had a super fun time.

After some strenuous axe throwing, I had the Bullseye Bubble that was thirst quenching and instaworthy to finish off a great day!

UNIT 53-57 BOXPARK CROYDON

0208 103 0300

11am - 8pm

Restaurant area with an Axe Throwing view:

Axe Throwing in action:

Official pictures from Bad Axe: