I like trying new fruits and vegetables. Be it ones I never got around to tasting in the past for whatever reason, ones I'm not sure if I've tried or not, or ones I don't remember if I liked when I tried them.
So, when the opportunity to do so presented itself, I tried a sharon fruit recently... After I Googled it to learn how exactly one goes about eating such a fruit.
Have you ever had one? If you have, what did you think of it?
For those who haven't tried a sharon fruit: it has a strange sort of taste... Sort of makes me think of a cross between a watermelon and a pear, and has the consistancy of a soft pear. Sorry, but that's the best way I can describe it.
Anyway, I thought it tasted OK. Not amazing, but OK. I mean, I didn't dislike it, but it won't be making its way in to my favourite fruits list any time soon, that's for sure.
I read somewhere online - when I was looking up what exactly one does with a sharon fruit - that adding a little lime juice to it can improve the taste. So, I tried doing that, and do agree that it improves the taste a little; makes it a bit sweeter. But still not enough to make it a new favourite fruit of mine.
I still prefer grapes, cherries, and berries of various types (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries, in that order). Oh, and rhubarb too... I love rhubarb... Especially if it's made in to a crumble, although cobblers and pies are also acceptable, and so is just a bowl of sweetened stewed rhubarb (either sweetened by adding yogurt to it to take away some of the tartness to the taste, or sweetened using sugar or something... I'm not fussy).
***
There's a cafe that's technically below the front of our building, right on the seafront. We can smell the food cooking from our apartment, and have been meaning to try it out since we moved in here a little over a year and a half ago. Honestly, if I had a penny for every time I've said I'd like to try the place to see if the food's as good as it smells, I'd be rich! We never did get around to trying the place out though... Until this month.
Alittle over two weeks ago, Kelly and I finally went for lunch at the cafe. We'd hoped to actually sit at one of the outside tables, and have our lunch out in the open, literally across the road from the beach. But it was a beautiful day, and there wasn't an empty outside table in sight, despite it being a weekday after the school term had started back. Even a few of the inside tables were already occupied, as well as a couple of the comfy sofas and chairs they had for people who just wanted to sit and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee, and didn't need more than a coffee table.
Anyway, it was a really nice little place. We tried out one of the sofas first, but moved to a table to eat, since there was no way I was going to be able to eat my food without a table. The sofa was more comfortable than the chair at the table, of course, but even that wasn't too bad when it came to comfort. They had it cool enough in there that it being a nice day didn't make it too hot inside, even with them cooking, but also had several fans available if needed, which is nice. We also noticed they had a couple of bowls on hand - stacked up not too far from the door - to use for water for dogs (though I think the dogs are only allowed at the outside tables). Not really something that's an issue for us these days, but still something we thought was a nice touch.
When it comes to drinks: they do a variety of hot and cold drinks, including homemade lemonade, herbal and regular teas, a couple of different kinds of coffee, and a variety of other soft drinks. Kelly had a coke as well as trying their American style coffee, which he really enjoyed, while I tried one of their herbal teas as well as their home made lemonade (which had lime and mint added to it) and I really enjoyed both.
When it comes to food: they do a variety of sandwiches, croissants, toast, and a selection of meals. Most of the meals seemed to be Indian dishes, but I'm not complaining, since they had several vegetarian options available, and I always love when a place has a good vegetarian selection (I think some of their dishes were vegan friendly too). Plus, I do like Indian food. Kelly tried their cheese and tomato toastie, while I tried a dish that was a form of chickpea biryani served with salad and mango chutney, and we both enjoyed our food. They also had a variety of cakes available, so Kelly had a piece of chocolate cake, while I had a slice of carrot cake, and we really enjoyed those too.
The service was excellent too. They were friendly, didn't mind explaining to me what the different dishes contained so I could know for certain what I was ordering, and we didn't have to wait long for our food or drinks even though they were quite busy. They were also content for us to linger as long as we wanted over our food and drinks, and made no move to attempt to whisk away plates or cups until they were absolutely certain we were done with them.
Plus, unlike some people, who obviously speak differently to me than to Kelly, just because it's obvious I can't see (especially when I walk through the door using my cane) they actually spoke directly to me as if I was any other customer, which gives them extra brownie points in my book to start with, since I hate when people either speak to me differently, or won't speak directly to me.
All in all, it was a very pleasant lunch out: great atmosphere, great service, and great food.
Would I go there again? Absolutely! Would I recommend it to a friend? Yes! After all, it was so good that even Kelly - who doesn't really like Indian food, and therefore was the one limited for meal options - enjoyed it enough to want to go back.
For my part, I actually said while I was there that if I could still see to write with a notebook and pen, I'd quite happily have just stayed there for the afternoon to write while they brought me drinks. In fact, if the battery lasted better, and using touch screen keyboards for long stretches of time wasn't so frustrating, I might have just done so using my phone to do the writing on. I have Apple Notes, after all... Haha!
Of course, we'll still make our regular visits to the cafe up the street from us, which also has a friendly atmosphere, and does the most amazing cheese omletts and egg baguettes. As well as the odd visit to the one by the train station that also has friendly staff, and does absolutely fantastic garlic bread. But it's nice to have another option. Especially when it's another option with both staff who will speak to me like I'm any other customer, and several vegetarian friendly meals for me to choose from.
By the way: no, that's not all those other cafes do... Those are just my favourite foods from those particular places. I just thought I'd point that out, in case you were wondering.
***
Don't forget, my website has a
recipe section, which you may want to take a look at (if you haven't already done so). Most of the recipes listed there are vegetarian friendly, and several are also vegan friendly.
You may also want to check out
these three simple recipes, which my friend, Dorkys, posted last month.
