LeVeLs UltraBar and Lounge

A dining experience is altered when you are invited to see a true Chef at work preparing your food. When skills displayed were honed over years and bare hands shape and form your meal, feeding the eyes before the mouth can taste. When knives work as an extension of the hand and raw is artfully combined with cooked in perfect balance, a meal is transposed to a pleasure.

Soft Shell Crab, Fresh Vegetables rolled in Rice

Usuzukuri - slices of Tuna with Ponzu Sauce

Yeah, I LOVE sushi. The pomp and circumstance of every roll, the performance art with the ability to satisfy and nourish and LeVeLs is may favorite place in Trinidad to get it.

Located at the western end of Ariapita Avenue in the capital of Port of Spain, this Ultrabar as they call themselves caters for a wide range of clients on four (4) levels, hence the name.

Beautiful Sushi Sandwich with Tuna and Avocado

My longstanding favorite - Acevichado Roll

Why My Favorite for Sushi

With a number of popular places in our small Republic now offering sushi, why is this my place to go to? Three (3) reasons: 1. Consistently great quality (head sushi Chef José rocks!) 2. Meaningful variety (no identity crisis reflected in the menu) and 3. Great, friendly service.

The LeVeLs menu serves up amazing quintessential hot and cold sushi items and includes LeVeLs specialty rolls, Specialities of the Itamae (japanese chef) from their kitchen like Japanese fried chicken - Katsu and their Epicurean delights - Guava Bar-Be-Que Ribs and Crab Cake Sliders alongside creative cocktails like Wasabi Martinis. What more could you want? Maybe something in your choice of atmosphere; outdoor spaces and a deck share the pulse of the avenue (great 'máco' points to see and be seen), the ground floor housing the sushi and drink bars are lively and at times loud, if that's your style, and the first floor with it's large comfy couches and leather armchairs more suited to the intimate art of conversation. The top level is a large private room opulently outfitted for those who can afford its exclusivity.

Classic Harumaki (Riceless) Roll

Must Tries on the Menu

The Acevichado specialty roll, a Tuna based roll topped with a white sauce so delicious I could drink it out of a cup. Ceviche Nikkei; Shrimp, Scallops and Octopus in their LeVeLs Ceviche Salsa topped with Sweet Potato Tempura. The Crunchy Roulette is LeVeLs' spin on pizza with Salmon, Tuna, Tobiko and Acevichado Sauce. The Curfew Roll with Octopus, Mushroom in Garlic Butter is fully cooked and flavorful. Try them all.

LeVeLs Specialty Crunchy Roulette -
a new spin on Pizza

Steak topped sushi

Visit LeVeLs any day of the week except Mondays and make new friends. 

LeVeLs is located at 1 Taylor Street and Corner of Ariapita Avenue Port of Spain and check out their Facebook page for details of their menu and specials.

For more pictures of the great food we've tried and highly recommend, visit the Belly in Hand facebook page and BellyinHand Foodspotting link.

Valentine's Day in Paradise

"There is no love sincerer than the love of food," so says George Bernard Shaw, playwright and Arch-Better Foodie and this Valentine's Day I want to express love with love.

I married a hopeless romantic on Valentine's Day (no less) and every year while dating and thereafter, we do a version of the romantic time away; just two of us with hotel, dinner, flowers and chocolates-the whole sha-bang. You would think I would get tired of it but no, any opportunity to be whisked away, wined and dined and I'm a happy victim. There is however, noted with each passing year a growing desire to reach out and share the love with the other sweethearts of my life in a meaningful and less commercial way than semi-home made heart shaped cookies or a Hallmark card, and in keeping with my Foodie quests of finding and sharing the best, enter Chef Khalil Ali for the occasion.

Mini Chocolate Créme Brulee

Individual Tiramisu: Creme de Cacao infused 
Mascarpone, Amaretto and Vanilla Bean Ladyfinger....Oh Wow

Chef Ali of Pêche Pâtisserie makes me want to be a better food writer and photographer. At present I cannot adequately convey the intoxicating scents of their Chocolate Creations, the amazing textures of his Danishes, the silky richness of their Vanilla Bean Mousse, the sensuous feeling you get from his Truffled Belgian Chocolate Cookies or the food porn-like compositions of some of his Miniature Desserts. He is an artist and this Valentine's his art will speak for me.

Strawberry Danishes: Light Flaky Pastry 
with Savory Sweet Fillings

BaBa Au Rhum: Pate a Savarin in Citrus &
Vanilla Bean Syrup & 1 Shot of Angostura 1919 Rum

Tucked away in the residential area of Chaguanas' Lange Park, Chef Ali's Pêche Pâtisserie is inconspicuous but its fame burgeoning. People of all stations seek out this shop which is off the beaten path for sure, but once there you are made to feel welcomed, French Pastries are demystified and secrets of taming Chocolate are revealed.

Most surprising to me at first was the accessibility to a pleasant and personable Chef Ali himself, usually busy at work in an open work area to the front of the Pâtisserie. If not totally engrossed in some intricate pastry or chocolate detailing, he'll answer a question or two or encourage you to try a sample of whatever is featured that day. It doesn't hurt that this Le Cordon Bleu and French Culinary Institute graduate, who worked at two of the finest Pâtisseries in Toronto and under one of the top ten American Pâtissiers is young and good-looking too.:-)

CoCo: Coconut Dacquoise
Sandwiching a Coconut Buttercream

Truffled Chocolate Cookies: More like a
cross between a Brownie and a Cookie with a
Velvety Chocolate Taste you also Feel (seriously)

My V-Day plan is to deliver some of these treats to special friends and family; a little ribbon and soft paper lining is all that may be needed; the Pastries are the star and I'll let them spread their joy, I know I'll be feeling it (a Danish and a Tiramisu for me please). 

Even if you don't have a sweet tooth or the commercialism of Valentine's Day gives you nausea, I guarantee you'll feel loved the moment you feast your eyes on one of these delights and taste what dedication, determination and truly loving food can make, no matter where you end up in this paradise on February 14th.

Vanilla Bean Eclair - Divine

Delicious Sweets for my Sweets with love
from 'Belly in Hand'

To learn more about Pêche Pâtisserie and Chef Khalil Ali visit his Facebook pages or visit the Pâtisserie at 1020 Soldado Road, Lange Park Chaguanas (phone: 1 868 223 2433).

The Pêche Pâtisserie in Lange Park Chaguanas

Check out more Pâtisserie Food items at Foodspotting or the Belly in Hand Facebook page.

Fried Chicken Fancy

Make no mistake, Fried Chicken is a beautiful thing. 

Though it may not be the healthiest of preparations, frying chicken certainly is one of the more delicious. The most epicurean of palates can appreciate the delights of chicken achieved in a way which could only come from being cooked submersed in fat. Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, some like it spicy and well battered, some prefer no batter at all, well seasoned and super crispy. Whatever the preference, it is beloved by Trinbagonians.

Trinidad Fried Chicken with Local Seasonings

Saying we love Fried Chicken would be an understatement. We consume it in large quantities; home-made, Chinese-style, from street vendors, from mega international fast food chains or our local brands. Chicken with fries is a staple here, and while we acknowledge its high caloric count and health issues if overindulged, the pleasures some recipes give must be termed as addictive. 

The Royal Castle Local Brand of Fried Chicken
is well known and liked on the islands

The Good, (which may also be the Bad, but never the Ugly): 

In keeping with the goal of this blog and presenting to you the best, I can't detail all the good places - tried and tested like Anne's Chicken at the old Piarco Airport concession stands, Georges (Chinese Style) in Tunapuna and Piarco, (their peppery version) or Royal Castle with outlets nationwide with its aromatic pepper sauce, crinkle cut fries and loyal following. 

Bar hoping around the country, to the neighborhood watering holes along the roadsides you stumble upon some great recipes which are perfectly matched with sunny weather, cold local beer and high spirited conversation. But a commercial giant has put a twist to their recipe making it the best in the land and unique to our islands: KFC and their Spicy Crispy.

Closeup of KFC's Spicy Crispy Coating

Peeping out of the KFC Box

I don't know for sure what is in the recipe that makes ours different (can't quite put my finger on it, and I have asked KFC employees, with no joy), it just is. Crispier, tastier and crunchier. It remains a phenomenon which fascinates me to this day, seeing visiting rational, health conscious professionals 'get down' on a Two Piece with Fries, while donning suit and tie after getting their first taste. Witnessing Caribbean Heads of State (yes more than one), when coming to Trinidad, have their staff purchase buckets of the stuff for them at the Airport outlet when leaving, though the KFC franchise exists in their own countries. I also did a great deal of leg work myself (awful, torturous stuff) testing KFC Spicy/Crispy in countries I visited around the world, UK, Germany, Singapore, Costa Rica, Guyana, US and Canada to name a few, revealing none is as good as ours!

Spicy and Original - And they Deliver Nationwide

Crunchy on the Outside and Juicy on the Inside

Referred to as 'Chicken and Chips', 'Fowl and Potato' or my personal favorite a 'Box of Dead' (as dubbed by the seriously vegetarian Rastafarians) two pieces with a side will cost you $25 TT (about $4 US) and a twenty one piece bucket $170 TT (or around $27 US). The well battered coating has an audible crunch and the spiciness brings a heat that is not so much a burn as it is a warming of the senses accompanying moist, succulent meat when you bite into it. Delicious!

Japs: Local Seasonings you can See and Taste

Japs' Menu at St. Helena Branch.
Love the Fried Chicken Border :-)

With a KFC Facebook page of over fifty-five thousand fans and many more bordering on the fanatical, loyal to and patronizing 52 outlets nationwide its hard to not say they are The Best (I may be lynched). Honorable mention must be made though to a growing brand Japs, which is slowly eating into the market share. With six branches in St. Helena, San Grande, Valencia and Rio Claro, Japs brings a few good things to the Fried Chicken fight on the local front: seasoned with our traditional 'Green Seasoning' (a ground up blend of herbs like chives, thyme, celery and garlic in vinegar or lime) and always large pieces of meat, their fried chicken has a home made, fresh familiar flavor. In addition, they manage to sell for less, a two piece with fries for $22 TT (always a crowd pleaser).

Chicken and Chips

This Carnival as with the Carnivals before in recent history, this great tasting and easily portable favorite will be on the lips and in the bellies of hundreds of thousands, I hope there is enough fowl to go around. :-)

For KFC Nationwide info visit: http://www.facebook.com/kfctt

For Japs info visit: their FacebookPage

For more pictures and food details check out the Belly in Hand Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/bellyinhand 

Taste the Possibilities

An amazing year indeed! With so many more high points than low, I must say 2010 was stellar. What made it so delicious was how unplanned and organic most events and milestones were (this from the quintessential project manager, slightly OCD'ed natural organizer) :-) This blog being a major highlight and joy in 2010, though only 'live' for the last three months, the positive feedback, growing following and requests dictates only good things for 2011.

Resolutions 2011

Without returning to over-planning and detailing every breath, distinct stories must be told, certain trips/visits made and specific fears overcome for Belly in Hand to attain its goals. To sum it all up, this is the year of perpetual improvement: we aim to eat, write and live even better in Trinidad and Tobago. To me that sounds like a great plan and I hope it does to you to and you will visit often to 'take a taste.'

Happy New Year and all the best for 2011!

Traditional Trinidad Christmas

As always, it has been a hectic, whirlwind of a Christmas with numerous tasks that are truly a labour of love. The cooking, cleaning, shopping are all worth it to see the smiles on the faces of family members and friends and feel the warmth of what is still a magical time for me. OK, enough with the cliches and feelings and on to what you came here for - the food! :-)

Shoppers amidst the Christmas decorations
at The Falls, West Mall in West Moorings

Modern Trinbago Christmas for most, reflects some aspect of the trends (mainly American) of today's holiday cuisine: Roasted Turkey with Stuffing and Cranberry Sauce, Roasted Lamb and/or Pork, Smoked Chicken and Smoked Hams, however traditional elements are always present and it seems Christmas can't be Christmas here without them.

A piece of my 'Macaroni Pie'

Macaroni Pie: This is to us what Mac and Cheese is to Americans. We have it for any special occasion and for Sunday lunch. Its a staple that seems to never get old and everyone has a recipe variation of this baked 'pasta casserole' which of course, their Mom or Grandma makes best. Its basic ingredients are Pasta, cheese, butter and milk, layered or mixed together, topped with cheese (sometimes crushed crackers or breadcrumbs) and baked till liquid is gone but still moist. Some add eggs, some don't and how you season is up to you, but common is garlic, onion and prepared mustard.

Top view of our Top Pie

My recipe (still evolving) calls for either elbow macaroni or small shells, two kinds of cheese (sharp New Zealand cheddar and Parmesan reggiano), eggs, half and half and Dijon mustard, of course seasoned with garlic and oregano. I top with a mixture of Panko flakes, Parmesan cheese, garlic and smoked paprika mixed with a little olive oil.

Traditional Ham and Chow-Chow

Ham: There are local Christmas songs (many) dedicated to this element of our tradition (hey, its pork - could less be expected?) You must have Ham! The custom is salt cured with a good rippling of fat, kind of Ham. A country Ham, not smoked. Condiment of choice for this is a 'Chow-Chow': A savory, yellow pickled mixture of vegetables and/or fruit with vinegar and yellow mustard as the dominant flavors (English influenced). As part of a main meal or snack in between you have to have the Ham (I said that already didn't I, it's worth repeating). :-)

Pure Beef Pastelle made with White Cornmeal

Pastelle: Without a doubt a Spanish influenced Christmas staple! Seasoned cornmeal stuffed with meat, olives, capers and raisins, wrapped in banana leaves and steamed. Yum! Simple sounding but complexed in flavors and delicious. A good Pastelle is moist, the cornmeal outer layer thin (especially at the folded edges), meat grounded to an even consistency in texture and well seasoned, and not overly stuffed. Olives, raisins and capers included in the right amounts and not too greasy (oil or butter is used in preparing the cornmeal).

A Banana Leaf Wrapped Pastelle

Black Cake: Not to be confused with Spice or Rum cake common to many of the Caribbean Islands, our Black Cake is permeated with 'Browning': burnt brown sugar done just so as to not be bitter but produce a smoky flavor and color the cake a rich and very dark brown. Cherry Wine (usually cheap and sweet) soaked dried fruit (currants, prunes, cherries, orange peel etc.) incorporated with Rum (a lot of rum, so much so that the cake can last for months without refrigeration). 

Trinidad 'Black Cake' laden with Cherry Wine
Soaked Fruit and laced with Rum

Many good Restaurants offer special Christmas Menus with these standards incorporated, but for a taste of true Trinidad and Tobago tradition, home made and shared with ones you love is always the best. 

Visit the Belly in Hand Facebook page for more Trini Christmas love 2010: http://www.facebook.com/BellyinHand 

The Best Fish Sandwich Ever

The things people do for love. Would you drive about an hour over mountainous terrain in sometimes hazardous conditions for love? Love of the perfect fish sandwich that is - many have and many more will!

Famous Bake and Shark

Trinidad and Tobago can boast of many things, but for over fourteen years we have claimed a title to my knowledge unrivaled: having the Best Fish Sandwich in existence - Bake and Shark.

Naked Sandwich

Basic Components Skillfully Prepared

Fried round bread about the width of a large hamburger bun but half it's thickness holding flakey, mild tasting, moist fillets of well prepared fried shark meat. Undressed, this sandwich is already in a class by itself, topped with some unique condiments (as well as some of the usual suspects) takes it over the top.

Maracas Beach Trinidad

The Most Popular place to buy Bake and Shark - Richard's

At Maracas Beach on the north coast of the island of Trinidad, you will find many Bake and Shark vendors, but the most popular is Richard's Bake and Shark. Easily distinguishable from the other vendors, not so much by the extended sales hut branded in electric blue, but by the long lines of customers which seem a permanent fixture any day if the week.

Richard of Richard's Bake and Shark

Richard's is open every day, it's namesake manning the cash, slicing open the hot bread and inserting the fillets of fish with robotic precision. Richard at first glance may look unapproachable, but engage him in any casual conversation and a broad smile appears though his hands never stop moving. He is at this post every day save Mondays (his day off) and on weekends he stands from morning to evening serving thousands.

Amazing Complements

All Dressed Up

Ask any ten Trinbagonian how they top their Bake and Shark and you may get ten different answers; some like it super sloppy with sauces of garlic, cilantro (shadon beni) and tamarind, others love the salad like additions of cabbage slaw, tomatoes, sliced pineapple and local lettuce. Anyway it is dressed it still remains surprisingly light and immensely addictive. 

The Best Sandwich Made Ultimate
When Enjoyed at Famous Maracas Beach 

With its own fan page and a following of over forty-seven thousand on Facebook, where daily declarations of love are made from locals and foreigners alike, this fish sandwich undoubtedly is unparalleled and Richard's on Maracas Beach - 'the' place to get it.

A Sandwich and A View

Saltfish Buljol

Trying to capture the essence of true Trinidad and Tobago culture and cuisine is going to be a challenge. Seizing a moment; any given time, a snapshot of what its like to be here-now and transposing the real everyday wonders and miraculous nothings. I will forever endeavor to do it justice.

Saltfish Buljol Trinidad Style

In Trinidad and Tobago, when someone offers you Saltfish, or you see it on a menu it means a Buljol of Salted Fish. I have seen a number of meanings for the word Buljol, but from my experience of Caribbean Fusion expect the meal to be prepared almost like a salad with sea food as the base. Usually a fleshy fish is used (though I have had it with squid), it is cooked and chopped finely or flaked, mixed together with chopped onions, garlic, tomatoes, tossed in olive oil and fresh lime or lemon juice and served at room temperature. Buljol recipes using salted fish, all over the Caribbean are really not that different, their variations are subtle; adding hot peppers, sweet peppers, chives or avocado. 

Salted Pollock

To me these are all things you can add to the base recipe if that’s your preference, and if you are purchasing it prepared from a restaurant in Trinidad, you ain’t getting avocado in it (expensive and popular item) nor are they lacing the whole public offering with hot Scotch Bonnet Peppers (the local flamer measuring 100,000-350,000 on the Scoville Scale).  

Clockwise from top: Onions, Garlic, Salted Fish, Tomatoes, Thyme Leaves (centre)

Trini Saltfish Buljol is made from either salted Pollock or Shark. In earlier years Cod was used until the Atlantic Cod population began to decline and its price skyrocketed. You can buy salted fish here at any grocery, established market or any self respecting neighborhood shop (we call them parlours). Easy to prepare and enjoy any time, it is considered a breakfast item and accompanied by your choice of a variety of bread like sides. 

Saltfish being prepared (boiled & flaked)

Done right, the taste of the fish is not salty, but the salting process concentrates the essence of the fish such that it is infused and fragrant with the good fish flavors. The dish is balanced with the aromatics; onion and garlic while the tomatoes add texture and their acidity enhances taste. The oil and fresh lemon put it over the top, cleaning and sharpening up the flavors. The liquid that springs from these ingredients marrying is best eaten by sopping it up with torn bits of fresh bread, bake or nann held with your fingers grabbing the flesh then shoving it into your mouth with lip smacking delight. 

Plan to eat this when you don’t have to make out with anyone soon after, but do plan.

Saltfish Buljol and Garlic Nann (w/red pimento)