茶碗蒸

While English cuisine has long been associated with the myth of being bland and boring, in my opinion that is precisely what it is – just a myth. Perhaps the strong colonial influence on the Kiwi diet has equipped me with realistic expectations of what can be found in England despite having never been there before, and thereby allowing me to make more informed decisions – such as steering away from the "quintessentially British" fish and chips, not only because we can enjoy ones that are just as "authentic" back home, but also because we know how hard it is to even find a decent one! However, educated guesses aside, the cultural melting pot that England (and London in particular) has gradually turned into has also introduced some innovative talents into the culinary scene and opened up a refreshing dimension to the definition of English cuisine that challenges the current stereotypical view. Though we had neither the insatiable appetite nor the inexhaustible wallet to trial every single restaurant that caught our fancy, we did thankfully have plenty of time to carry out some careful research and narrow down our options - unsurprisingly most of these final candidates ended up in London since we were staying there for the majority of the second half of the trip. A week was not long by any standards, but I dare say we did manage to get a taste of some of London's very finest.

Without a doubt, the most creative culinary experience we had in England was at the Modern Pantry franchise in London. I first heard about this popular dining spot from a Japanese documentary on London featuring the elegant actress Amami Yuki. The owner Anna Hansen not only has a Nelson connection (apparently she is a relative of Jens Hansen – the legendary ring maker for the LOTR film trilogy! What's more, she worked for a catering business on Hardy Street when she was a teen), but her adventurous approach to combining flavours across a wide variety of cultures had me immediately intrigued. Not willing to miss out on either one of her two restaurants, I decided to book in first for lunch at the original Clerkenwell restaurant, then for afternoon tea a couple of days later at the newer Finsbury Square location.

And by golly am I glad I did!

The food – where do I even start? The unique blend of flavours was pure genius and acted not only in harmony, but in synergy to propel the dishes to astonishing new heights. Although I loved every single dish we ordered, my favourite at the Clerkenwell restaurant was the sugar-cured New Caledonian prawn omelette – the balance of sweet and salt was perfectly accentuated by the freshness of the spring onion and coriander, and I simply couldn't shovel the whole plate into my mouth fast enough! I was also particularly excited to see the many asian(especially Japanese)-inspired twists that some of the dishes subtly incorporated – such as ponzu mayonnaise and yuzu tofu cream. While it's easy enough finding a steak in just about any restaurant in New Zealand, it certainly isn't everyday that you can enjoy it with a grilled miso and tamarind marinade or cassava chips! Even the feature cocktail was a fantastic surprise – "Palomita", with Stelacello Pompelmo liqueur, lemon, and Eau De Vie Mirabelle, was literally a burst of sweetened fresh air in a glass despite its suspicious green colour and the rather exotic concoction of difficult-to-pronounce ingredients.

However, if I was impressed by the food at Clerkenwell, I was totally blown away by the afternoon tea course at Finsbury. The setting of the Finsbury branch was actually a lot more spacious and comfortable, but what really overwhelmed us was again – the culinary expertise. Also far from traditional, the delicate morsels of mouth-watering creations were rather more like little lovingly wrapped presents that held things that you hadn't even known you wanted. From the warm poached quail egg on a bed of Kashmiri masala beetroot, carrot, potato and spring onion hash and drizzled with moromi miso and yuzu hollandaise, to the rich but divine chocolate, peanut butter and miso caramel shortbread, the anticipation built dramatically with the arrival of each course and yet each one somehow managed to upstage the dish that came before – either that or each course simply surprised us in a completely and delightfully different way. That was the other radical demonstration by the restaurant – rather than presenting all the savouries and sweets on tiered plates like you would expect for any traditional English afternoon tea, the Modern Pantry decided to serve theirs in a six-course degustation style that allowed for a choice of pairing specially-selected teas or – wait for it – CRAFT BEERS with each of their tasty creations. While I opted for the tea option, you can probably guess which option Dad pounced on in a heartbeat (and he's still raving about it I assure you). As if all that wasn't amazing enough, the fact that the lovely Modern Pantry staff could cater for Mum's vegetarian preferences amongst all these complicated combinations of ingredients was just the icing on the cake. The feta-filled pai tee with tamarind yoghurt and puffed wild rice? Astonishing.

Yet most importantly, I will never forget their clever take on the traditional English afternoon tea staple – the scone. The warm rush of euphoria that coursed through my veins as I took a bite of the lemon and ajowan scone with gooseberry jam and clotted cream, then washed it down with the 2014 Winter Qin Xin Oolong tea from Taiwan's very own Jade Mountain – sheer and utter bliss. I think this afternoon tea is the one, folks. If the world is ending tomorrow and you are looking for an afternoon tea that will send you off free from all the worldly burdens, I would look no further.

While the Modern Pantry clearly focused on keeping their creative juices flowing in the food department, other places chose elsewhere in the restaurant to keep their guests entertained. Bel Canto, an underground restaurant near Hyde Park was a hidden gem that boasted not only of beautiful food in the form of a two- or three-course "opera package" set menu that included a starter, main course, and dessert (all perfectly tasty but nothing particularly out of the ordinary), but also of spontaneous opera aria performances by all the waiting staff at the restaurant! All the performers were all, of course, vocally trained and possibly rising stars in the operatic world. Yet there was just something quite moving and surreal about listening to the arias (famous or not) in such an intimate setting as opposed to seeing them from twenty (or more) meters away as you would in a theatre. The duets worked particularly well under such conditions, the heart-wrenching longing and simmering passion were almost tangible as the tenor and soprano sang to each other across opposite ends of the restaurant before finally meeting at the end of a long table, but not until after a shy dance around each other amongst the spellbound audience. My favourite performance of the evening, though, was a bass singer from Turkey who sang a deeply thoughtful aria – it was possibly my first time to hear a solo bass performer sing an entire piece and his voice was like a delicious pool of warm honey, gradually drawing us into its depths with a tender intensity. However, the interactions of the Italian soprano with all the male guests also made "Habanera" from Carmen incredibly playful and endearing at the same time, not to mention the fun and unforgettable "Brindisi" from La Traviata in which we all joined in singing amidst the celebratory clinking of our complementary glasses of prosecco. The only downside of the evening was perhaps the fact that the dim lighting, obstrusive columns in the restaurant and constant motions of the singers made any record of photography or video challenging. However, in some ways this liberated us to immerse ourselves in the phenomenal acting and singing that was literally happening right before our eyes. It was, without a doubt, an exhilarating experience that I am unlikely to forget for quite some time.

As exceptional as these new generations of restaurants are at providing consistent momentum at the innovative front and setting new directions for the growing industry of London cuisine, these pioneers would no doubt have had a longer and rougher journey had there not existed a rich heritage of English culinary traditions to draw on. The inspiring twist the Modern Pantry incorporated into their afternoon tea, for example, would not have been half as astounding had we not known what a traditional English high tea consisted of. It was all the more logical, then, for us to also book in for a "proper" high tea experience with all its fine trimmings in the heart of England, where this elegant ritual had possibly become one of British Empire's more civilized means of conquering the world.

But of course, conquering the world is never that easy. Especially when there is always such heated debate about which afternoon tea style, setting, menu, and provider is the most authentic. Our first hurdle, then, was to select one experience out of the thousands available in London to induct us into the world of English tea taking. In the end, my impression of Claridge's Hotel from reading Sarah-Kate Lynch's "On top of everything" and promising reviews online that highlighted its status as not only the "Queen of Afternoon Tea" – having pocketed the prestigious Tea Guild Best Afternoon Tea award in 2006, 2011 and 2012, but also as a less touristy alternative to the legendary Ritz hotel where sitting through an afternoon was rather like being ushered into an audience with the Queen – all strictly-enforced dress code, self-consciously hushed chatter, and impeccably polished silverware.

In addition to an extraordinarily long tea list paired with the classic combinations of finger savouries and pastries Claridge's claims to only make from top-notch ingredients, the splendid Art Deco décor of the hotel - particularly in Thierry Despont's Foyer where the afternoon tea takes place – is also a unique feature that sets the Claridge's afternoon tea apart from the likes of the Savoy or Goring. Despite a humble beginning in 1856 under the ownership of William and Marianne Claridge, the hotel was redesigned in the late 1920s to cater for the public's entertainment needs post WWI and the building was adorned with the "bold lines and sweeping curves" of the popular Art Deco style, giving it the characteristic "air of timeless elegance" seen today. Indeed, even the abundance of stunning photos circulating on the Internet failed to prepare me for the dazzling sense of awe as I stepped through the threshold of the main hotel entrance and felt my jaw drop, instantly losing all air of regality that I had managed to muster for the doorman. The soft golden lighting illuminating the sharply geometric glass screens and pristine checkered marble floor felt absolutely surreal – especially accompanied by the mellow whispers of a violin floating out from the afternoon tea lounge. It was difficult not to immediately think of the rather romantic depictions of the era in The Great Gatsby, and half-expecting Daisy to greet us with a fluttering feather in her hair and a luscious string of pearls at her throat. The magic was then complete with the mint-and-ivory striped bone china that has become a signature of Claridge's and it was not hard to see why – its simplicity was a perfect touch of humble elegance amidst all the rich glamour, allowing the delicate morsels of food and steaming swirls of tea they presented to shine from the glorious efforts of the Executive Chef, Martyn Nail. The warm dream-like quality of the space was unmistakable, and I had to consciously shake myself out of a dazed stupour on more than one occasion so as to not lose myself in the flood of light that was powerful enough to help wash away the darkness of the Great War.

True to its reputation, all the food was beyond delicious – although my preference was perhaps with the savoury sandwiches (who could have thought a plain cucumber sandwich – when paired with buttermilk and chamomile – could taste so sublime?). Of course - as with any traditional English afternoon teas - I believe the true test lay with the scones. Well, needless to say, both Claridge's freshly baked plain and raisin scones were faultless – especially when smothered in curls of Cornish clotted cream along with another of Claridge's signature – the divinely fragrant Marco Polo gelée. It was also my very first time to be served a palate cleanser at an afternoon tea - some lovely refreshing berry popsicles! It really was such a shame that our Asian stomach had such limited tolerability for refined sugar that it prevented us from finishing all four of the sweet pastries – particularly since they were specially designed as part of the "Wimbledon seasonal afternoon tea package" that was mandatory during the period of our visit to celebrate the said tennis tournament being held at the same time (and with an understandably eye-watering price tag to go with it). However, there was not a moment's hesitation as our waiting staff swiftly took away the chocolate cakes and returned with a lovely packaged box, along with three beautiful baskets of complimentary flowers to take home as souvenirs. Although the flowers were equally swiftly re-gifted to the helpful elderly staff member at the hotel who guided us through the Tube map (we couldn't imagine the customs staff at Taiwan would be very pleased to find they had let that slip through their watchful eyes), the memory of this thrillingly sophisticated high tea experience was one we would be taking away (back to the civilian world) with a relishing fondness unrivalled by any other.

Returning to the modern scene, another restaurant that excelled at incorporating great food with stunning setting was Duck and Waffle. Situated on the 40th floor of 110 Bishopsgate building close to Liverpool Street Station, the 24-hour restaurant and bar boasts of a stunning panoramic view over London that constantly shifts according to times of the day and atmospheric conditions. Although we were not assigned a window seat, the fine weather conditions made up for this and we were able to admire the stretch of metropolitan scenery below with perfect clarity. In fact, we should probably be thankful that we managed to reserve a table at all judging from the bustling popularity of the place and its fame amongst both locals and tourists that I had gathered from online reviews - hardly surprising, for the food they served was also nothing short of spectacular.

Most of the dishes included in the menu at Duck and Waffle encouraged the format of shared dining - where a number of options are ordered and each plate is divided amongst the guests. I can't imagine too many people would have any complaints about this, because the description of each dish was simply bursting with so many intriguing details that to simply narrow the choices down to one per person would take most of the two-hour time slot allocated to each table. Take the Spicy Ox Cheek Doughnut for example. I think I have good reason to believe it would be pretty damn hard to find ox cheek paired with apricot jam and paprika sugar AND fried in a crunchy batter that melted in your mouth anywhere else, and that was just one out of twelve equally tasty-sounding options in the "Small Plates"/entree section! Although I think for the more substantial "For the table" or main dishes section of the menu at least, the problem of indecisiveness might be marginally better - surely no one would be skipping the restaurant's signature dish from which it obtained its name. The dish Duck & Waffle was as simple as its name suggested - warm waffles and duck leg confit topped with a fried duck egg and a drizzle of mustard maple syrup. But God help me, it was to die for. I can't even begin to describe the sublime harmony they created in my mouth - so rich with fresh flavours and yet striking a delicate balance between sweet and savoury, as well as velvety and crispy. The same could be said for the Torrejas we ordered for dessert - the soft crunch of the maple caramel apples moulded magically with the smooth texture of the cinnamon ice-cream. As comatised as my stomach was after the meal, my heart at least was kept singing long after we stepped back into the chill of the late evening air.

Fantastic food, brilliant music, and unforgettable company. I don't think any first trips to England can claim to pack so much luxury into two short weeks and an ending on a more inspiring note. I cannot wait until my next oppotunity to step on British soil and build on these wonderful memories, knowledge, and experiences. Until next time, ladies and gentlemen!

"Travel does what good novelists also do to the life of everyday, placing it like a picture in a frame or a gem in its setting, so that the intrinsic qualities are made more clear. Travel does this with the very stuff that everyday life is made of, giving to it the sharp contour and meaning of art."

- Dame Freya Stark (1893-1993, British travel writer)