Friday, February 1, 2013

Welcome to the Resistance

Playing: Angels-The xx
Reading: Brave New World Revisited by Aldous Huxley
A friend of mine, Naomi, recommended the Playground, an experimental restaurant focused on offering new and exciting food made with the finest ingredients, to me. Everyday they have a new menu, so you can expect something different every time you go. For starters, I shared the Smoked Cod Chowder with my dad, which was amazing. Chunks of bacon, clams, and smoked cod were plentiful and they actually mixed sour cream into the chowder too.Event he cabbage in it tasted good and I normally hate all leafy greens.
One of the things that the Playground is currently doing is a quest for ramen perfection. This is Day 35: Quest for Ramen Perfection, which was served with double pork in the form of crisp pork belly and pork shavings. The pork belly was perfectly crisp and moist, while the broth was almost like a pork au jus. After awhile the broth was a bit salty, but overall I really enjoyed the bites I stole from my mum.
One of their most popular dishes according to the waiter is Uncle Lou's Fried Chicken. Since I'm on the constant search for the best fried chicken, it was a no brainer choosing this. The waiter described the chicken as being really potent like salt and vinegar chips, since it's cooked with so much cinnamon and vinegar. I was actually looking forward to having a very salty and vinegary chicken. However, I found it fairly mild even though the vinegar and cinnamon was clearly there. Unfortunately, I wouldn't say this was the best fried chicken I've ever had, especially since the breast was really dry and stringy.
The main complaint I have with the Playground is the wait time. Just getting a seat took 15 minutes, even with half the restaurant empty and my chicken came out around 20 minutes after the other dishes. My parents were literally done with their meals by the time mine came, so the Playground served us up a complementary Black Mission Fig Sticky Toffee Pudding, which was undoubtedly the best part of the meal, to make up for the wait. The pudding is moist and sticky, while the toffee sauce is freshly made and still bublling as it's brought out to you. It was so good that I actually regret not getting a second one. Overall, I probably will go back to the Playground. Other than the wait time, the service was great and the waiters really knew the menu and were ready to explain everything to you. Be warned however that the prices are very expensive, considering the portion size.

6 comments:

  1. A restaurant that changes menu
    everyday? That's madness! The
    food looks good in the eye,
    too bad the fried chicken aint
    the best :c
    I don't like to pay much for
    little portion food tho..

    xx

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  2. OMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMG

    sticky toffee pudding is like one of my top 3 favorite desserts of all time.. but it's so hard to find!! argh yours looks sooo sooo good! omgosh actually the entire meal looks amazing.. i love love any type of creamy/watery seafood chowder!!!

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  3. haha I love all sorts of fried chicken!! yum!

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  4. Ice Pandora-I like restaurants that change their menu a lot. However, I've never heard of one doing so daily! :o

    Lisa-IT WAS SO GOOD. I WANT TO TRY SOME MORE NOW. :D

    Pop Champagne-Same here! (:

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  5. what's the best fried chicken you've had, then?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sarah S.-Po' Folks? It closed though. D:

    ReplyDelete

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