Having been connected to the hospitality business in Winnipeg most of my life, it is difficult to surprise me with a restaurant that serves food that I have never tasted. But such was the case with Saperavi (709 Corydon Ave.), the first Georgian restaurant on the prairies. This is a statement made on their website and I for one would not dispute it.

My good friend who once lived in Georgia was my dining partner on the evening we visited. After once eating Georgian food in her home, I had to look up its location on a map. Bordered by the Black Sea, Russia, Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Georgia is a mountainous country with a rich history.

Since I could not even pronounce most of the items on the menu i.e. Chkmeruli, I let my friend make the decisions for our meal. She explained to me that there are as many Khachapuri recipes from Georgia as there were provinces and regions of the country. Saperavi’s version dubbed-Adjaruli, was a cradle of freshly baked shiny-surfaced bread stuffed with a cheese that resembled a mild feta and a partially cooked egg. As the egg was stirred in with the cheese, it continued cooking and provided a gooey mass of deliciousness. She demonstrated how to break the bread around the edges into pieces to scoop up the egg and cheese. I had a hard time sharing, as I kept snapping off hunks of bread until the dish was quite literally gone.

We had a difficult task choosing between the traditional Khinkali (dumpling) filled with pork, beef, onion and herbs and the Mushroom Khinkali containing mushrooms and mint, so we ordered both! My friend educated me that the more folds there were in the top of the dumpling, the more skilled and practiced the cook was who prepared them. I loved them both but especially the latter as it reminded me of a mushroom turnover that my Mom would make at Christmas time.

Lastly we chose Shashlik which resembled a Greek souvlaki and was equally fine. I look forward to visiting again when I may have room to try their eggplant stuffed with walnuts and cheese.

Both the owner and his son came over to check on us and ensure that we were enjoying our evening. “Enjoy” was an understatement. I was so impressed with the inventiveness of Georgian cuisine but also the skill that went into the preparation of Sapervai’s dishes.

Kath’s quote: “Exotic, mysterious, unique.” Describing Georging food on a Georgian website.

Love never fails.

Korean culture is making a splash in North America.  Not only does PSY’s song Gangnam Style flood our radio airwaves, but Korean food is starting to establish itself in our neighbourhoods.

This winter I had the privilege of hosting the most delightful young lady from Korea.  Yujin was as excited to introduce me to Korean food, a I was excited to learn.

We started simply, as she made me authentic Ramen Noodles that she brought with her from Korea. Unlike the over salted, chemical tasting version, we all ate too many of in college, these were hearty noodles in a delicious spicy broth into which an egg is dropped at the end of cooking to add a scrambled texture and further enhance the yumminess.

One night I decided that we should try the Korean restaurant that is on my block of Corydon while I had access to an expert to advise me on menu choices.  Platea at 590 Corydon is a quaint little place in a house much like my own.  Maybe that is what made me fall in love with it the minute we walked through the doors.  I also loved the touches of beautiful pottery that adorned the table and was used to serve our tea and food.  Owner Sun Me, was very attentive and so pleased to meet such a lovely fellow country woman.

We started our dinner with an eggy pancake called Chun.  It was filled with spring onion and shrimp and served with a great sauce for dipping.

Next we ordered our mains: Osam Bulgoki – a combination of pork and squid with a sweet and spicy sauce served with fluffy white rice and Dol Sot Bibimbap – served in a very hot stone bowl, it was a combination of rice, beef and vegetables cooked in gochuchang paste, topped with a raw egg.  As you stir the ingredients together, the heat from the bowl finishes the cooking process and the egg makes the rice a bit crispy the longer it cooks.

A few nights later, Yujin would get brave and try her hand at making Chun and Bibimbap at home.  After a quick visit to the Korean market, she was ready to get busy in the kitchen to tackle two dishes she had never actually cooked before. Yujin put kimchi (fermented cabbage) and green onion into her chun and I was amazed that she was able to replicate the texture of the pancake by guessing the amount of egg and flour.  For her Bibimab, she cooked numerous items, one at a time including: pork in soya sauce, carrot, onion, kimchi, mushrooms and eggs.  Placing each item in a section over her large bowl of rice, she added a good sized portion of chopped nori type seaweed and topped it all with a mixture of gochuchang paste and honey and at tableside mixed it all together to serve.  The results were shocking, especially to Yujin – absolute perfection!

Kath’s quote: “One of the delights of life is eating with friends, second to that is talking about eating.  And, for an unsurpassed double whammy, there is talking about eating while you are eating with friends.”-Laurie Colwin

Love-that is all.