Negeri Paman Sam: QR51

Dad managed to get us three seats in the Business Class of Qatar Airways bound to Washington DC without costing an arm and a leg, thus we celebrate the beginning of our journey to the United States of America with some Champagne and Orange Juice.

Champagne and Orange Juice

Dad had a glass of Champagne, Mom had herself som Orange Juice, while I had a mixture of both. The combination of Champagne and Orange Juice was fizzy and bitter, I didn't like it. So, I trade my beverage with Mom's, which was a plain ol' Orange Juice that taste bitter in a good way, juicy and sweet, and refreshingly sour.

One of the steward pouring the Champagne

PROAST! 

My glass of Champagne mixed with Orange Juice

For 16 hours my parents and I were trapped inside the aircraft. But, how can one be bored when the plane provide food, entertainment service, bathroom, and foldable bed? Our trip to Washington DC turned out quite nice and comfortable.

We were given a pair of slippers, a set of pajamas, plus a thin mattress to sleep on 

Bright-colored flowers to decorate the aisle with

I wonder what these buttons do?

A remote control to operate the in-flight entertainment

Breakfast

Apple, Rocket and Celery Juice

The color of the juice had me questioned my decision in choosing the particular breakfast starter. It was dark green in color, kind of reminded me of the Evil Queen from the movie Snow White when she was brewing potion to make the poisonous apple. But, I took a sip, and took back everything I thought about the green juice.

It actually tasted good. The celery let out a very strong scent, but the flavor was dominated by carrot. I could savor a hint of apple in it and it was sweetly refreshing. It was a very healthy juice, judging from the ingredients used to make it. Not to mention liver and color friendly. It tasted sweet and fresh, and at some points, the apple juice dominated the flavor along with a hint of celery.

Apple, Rocket and Celery Juice

This juice tasted surprisingly good

Roobois Tea, with no Sugar

Robois Tea was very light and had mild flavor. To be honest, I cannot distinguish what kind of flavor it was, but it was a tasty one. I managed to get a hint of fruity flavor and a grass-jelly-like tang after a few sips.

A glass of hot Roobois Tea

Breakfast Vakery Basket: Croissant, date and walnut muffin, brown and white toast

I had me a Date and Walnut Muffin that tasted cake-like and slightly sweet, yet a bit savory. It had a very delicious nutty toppings and the sweet date went well with the muffin. Unfortunately, I'm not a big fan of dates, so I had to remove them from the muffin after my first bite. 

Which bakery goods would you choose first?

An excellent muffin to start my breakfast with

Smoked Trout with Apple Cucumber and Dill Salad
Apple Dressing and Puff Pastry Chutney

The trout was delicious, as it was drizzled with sour dressing, making it had a unique combination of flavor - savory and sour. There were fine-looking crisp greens on the sides, such as rockets, white lettuce and purple cabbage. What I love the most after the fish was the puff pastry. They were puffy and crunchy, simply delicious. What was missing from the dish was a small bowl of melted cheese to eat my pastry with. 

A plate of Smoked Trout, along with some side dishes

Cheddar Cheese Omelette with Chicken Sausage
Spring Onion Potato Cake, Grilled Field Mushrooms and Roasted Tomato

After I finished my trout, my breakfast was then continued with a plate of omelette. I was hoping for a fluffy and soft omelette, instead I got a stiff and tough one. It didn't matter though, it still tasted delicious, especially if you mix it with some chicken sausage and ketchup. Managed to finish everything except the potato cake. 

The not-so-fluffy Cheddar Cheese Omelette

On-Request Indulgence

Vegetable and Shrimp Empanada
Andalusian Sauce
(Chef Ramzi's Artwork)

To Indonesian, Empanada is like Kue Pastel, a pouch of baked pastry filled with foodstuff. The Empanada that I ate was filled with veggies and shrimp, yet it tasted like crab instead of shrimp.  Andalusian Sauce here is a classic Mayonaisse-based recipe from Britain. It was salmon in color and was garnished with a slice of tomato on top. The sauce tasted weird, very creamy and sour, so I didn't munch the rest of my Empanada with it.

Vegetable and Shrimp Empanada

Cut it open an voila! 

Spicy Seafood Soup
(Chef Nobu's Artwork)

Shrimp and Shiitake Mushroom were found on the bottom of the soup bowl. There were only a pair of shrimps and a piece of mushroom, when I was hoping for a plentiful. My Dad and I love the clear soup so much, because it was very flavorful and peppery. This kind of soup is suitable to be eaten with some warm rice and roasted nuts, according to my taste.   

Loving this soup because it was rich in flavor

Mixed Nuts

Mom and Dad had this as a companion to their cup of tea. There were Almonds, Pistachio and Cashew Nuts. All of those nuts that I mention were sprinkled with salt, making them tasted savory and salty. 


Walkers Cookies

Fancy some Walkers? During our flight, there were three kinds of Walkers cookies available, which were the Belgian Chocolate, Steam Ginger and Oat Crunch. My favorite is the Oat Crunch, followed by the Belgian Chocolate, then the Stem Ginger. Them cookies taste best to be eaten with some ice cream. 

A glass of tea, along with a plate of munchies, for Mom and Dad

Some mixed nuts and a couple packs of Walkers cookies

Freshly Baked Cookies

Probably the best on-request indulgence served through out the flight! Those sinfully good chocolate-chip cookies were thin, slightly burnt, and crunchy. It tasted very good you have to taste it for yourself to agree with me. The cookie went well with a glass of milk, or a cup of ice cream, but I prefer to have it without any companion.. because it tasted too good to be ruined by other side snack.

The last Freshly Baked Cookies goes to.. my Dad!

Ceylon Spice Chai Tea

Ceylon Spice Chai tea smelled strange. It had this spicy taste that kind of reminds you about Indian Curry, then followed with a weak bitter aftertaste. 

A glass of tea that reminds you of India

Mint Tea with Fresh Milk

I had my Mint Tea with fresh milk because I can. When I ordered me such warm beverage, the stewardess that took my order was a bit puzzled by my choice of combination. "Mint tea with milk," she asked with a confused tone, then followed by, "I'll bring some for you."

It tasted minty and milky, and not sweet because I didn't add any sugar into my tea. Yeah, that's how I roll. 

Mint Milk Tea because that's how I roll

Godiva Chocolate

We were given a box of luxurious chocolate courtesy of Godiva Chocolatier. If the Gods and Goddesses eat chocolate, then Godiva's chocolate will be it. This chocolate is physically beautiful and well present, not to mention the fact that it will shock your taste buds. 

Inside the box was two kinds of chocolate, one white chocolate and the other milk chocolate topped with crunch. Both chocolate tasted great and beyond sweet, my teeth was hurting from the sweetness, but it worth every toothache. My favorite was the milk chocolate, because it had an awful lot of crunch within the chocolate.  

My favorite chocolate is the one on the right

The anatomy of them Godiva's chocolate that I ate

Main Meal

Bakery Basket: Onion, Laugen, Sourdough and Whole Meal Roll

Of course my favorite bread was the Laugen roll! Needles to say that the bread is a pretzel in another form that lacks sea salt.

A selection of dinner roll especially for you

An Individual Selection of Baby Octopus, Smoked Tuna and Roasted Prawn Chickpea Salad
(Chef Ramzi's Artwork)

I enjoyed my opening entree. The Smoked Tuna was dark red in color and tasted delicious, not fishy. I had a hard time in chewing the Baby Octopus though. It was rubbery and elastic, it took me a while to finish the whole dish. 

An interesting sight of the seafood selection

It came with a stick of savory puff pastry

Release the Kraken!

Hammour Sayadia Sayadia Rice, Roasted Peppers and Stuffed Kousa

Loving the Sayadia Rice and the Hammour! Although the rice tasted slightly bland and the fish was a bit dry, the sauce on the side of the dish helped me indulge. Roasted pine nuts were found hiding in my pile of rice and they made my dish tasted even more delicious! 

Spot any pine nuts hiding underneath the rice pile?

The delicious Hammour 

Warm Honey Roasted Pinnaple
Almond White Chocolate Fudge served with Ginger Ice Cream
(Chef Vineet's Artwork)

This dessert had a very weird taste. The pineapple cubes were glazed with honey, making it tasted sweet and sour at the same time. On the other hand, the Almond White Chocolate Fudge was very heavy. There were ginger cubes inside the fudge that made me feel nauseous. I don't think the component used to make the dessert work out well, or maybe I haven't figured out the unique combination of flavors just yet. 

And it is said on the menu that the dessert will be served with Ginger Ice Cream, yet I didn't see any ice cream on my plate? 

Great presentation, don't you think?

Enjoy your dessert! 

Finally, after a long flight, my family and I arrived at Washington DC. Thus, began our journey at the home of the brave.

Another Michelin-starred Meal

Breakfast

Mango and Raspberry Smoothie

Smoothies are nice, including this one. I'm not a big fan of anything that has raspberry in it, but this one is an exception, mainly because the mango dominated the flavor. The smoothie was very thick and milky, and not too sweet for my taste. 

Breakfast Bakery Basket: Croissant, Cherry Muffin, Arabic Bread, Brown and White Toast

Who doesn't love a bakery basket, right? There were Cherry Muffin, Croissant, and a couple of toast in my bakery bowl, but I didn't see any Arabic Bread. Either the stewardess ran out of bread, or she forgot to put it in there. 

I started with the Cherry Muffin. Fresh cherries are delicious and juicy, but not the preserved ones. Preserved cherries are bright red in color and tasted like an explosion of sugar. The texture is very different compared to fresh cherries in a bad way. I had to remove it from my muffin. It's a good thing that the cherries were only on the surface of the baked good.

The muffin itself was very enjoyable. Not too sweet, not to tasteless. Very fluffy and soft on the inside, yet somewhat stiff and toasty on the outside. I managed to finish the whole thing because it was just that good!

While I was having my muffin, Mom was having herself some Chicken Curry and a plate of fruits. I didn't get to taste Mom's meal, but I bet they were superb.

Lemongrass Chicken Curry, with Nasi Lemak, Sauteed Green beans, Bell Peppers, and Tomato Wedges

Nobu Fruit Plate (Chef Nobu's Artwork)

Cherry Tomato and Chive Frittata, with Grilled Chicken Sausage, Creamed Shiitake Mushroom, and Sauteed Spinach

The first thing that I ate was the Frittata. The egg-based dished was added with cherry tomato and chive, which didn't made it tasted monotone. It was very solid, similar to a hardened pudding but more stiff, when I was hoping for a more creamy texture.

Them side dishes were delicious as well, except the mushroom. My most favored green from the plate was the sauteed spinach. It was well-cooked and tasted bland in a good way. The crisp leafs were also nice, but it was lacking of dressing. 

I tried my best to like the mushroom but my attempt was to no avail. My first bite of the creamy Shiitake Mushroom was horrible. The creamy sauce was nice though, especially if it was with a plate of steak, but not the mushroom. 

Grilled Teriyaki Salmon

The best and my most favorite part of the meal! The salmon tasted great, although not as sweet as it usually tasted like. The skin on the side of the flesh was not crunchy, it became wet and sloppy from the teriyaki sauce, but it was still enjoyable. The only thing that it lacked was another portion.

Main Meal

Nasu Miso (Chef Nobu's Artwork)

The first thing that popped in my mind when I read the name of the food is a bowl of Miso Soup, or Misoshiru. For those who are not familiar with what Miso Soup is, it is a soup made out of broth and fermented soybean paste. It taste savory and salty, most of the time also fishy in a good way. Smelled nice and spicy, and is often added with diced tofu and seaweed, or nori. Other than the fact that the soup is high in protein and vitamin, it is also full of mineral and nutrition. This is why Miso Soup is very popular among Japanese and is considered their cup of tea.

But then, the stewardess came to my seat and served me a plate of a grayish round object, along with a chocolate-colored dipping sauce. "The last time I checked, Miso Soup is liquid," I thought to myself, "what in the world is this?". The gray dumpling-like object had sesame seed on its' surface. It let out a crispy sound when I tried to cut it into half. I don't recall the scent of the food the same as the Misoshiru that I know, it had an alien smell.  

My Mom decided to have a bite first. It didn't take long before she found out what the dish is. It turned out that Nasu Miso is actually Fried Eggplant. "Try it with the sauce, it tasted funny," said Mom. I stick my fork into the eggplant and dipped it into the sauce provided. True, it tasted funny, but in a bad way. The sauce was sweet, as if it was made out of palm sugar and nuts, and it didn't go well with the eggplant. I couldn't finish it, so I gave the remaining appetizer to my Mom.

Bakery Basket: Laugen, Onion, Sourdough, and Wholemeal Roll

My favorite would be the Laugen bread! Laugen bread and Pretzel share the same main ingredients, hence the same flavor and texture. What was lacking from the Laugen bread that night is a sprinkle of sea salt on it. Fortunately, salt was available through out the flight, so I poured some on the bread and indulged.

Clear Soup, with Crispy Rice and Mushroom (Chef Nobu's Artwork)

Why did I ordered a mushroom dish when it's obvious that I dislike mushroom? Well, I hate the fact that I don't like mushroom, so I was determined to make me like it. 

The clear soup was dark red and slightly orange in color. It has various kinds of mushroom decorating the surface of the soup and as well as the bottom. The soup itself was nice, very flavorful and spicy, not to mention hot. At the bottom of the bowl was another food stuff beside mushroom, which was a couple Crispy Rice. Cripsy Rice is, well, a clump of rice that has crispy texture. It share the same texture with slightly burnt rice, all chewy on the inside and slightly crunchy on the outside. Now, this particular Crispy Rice tasted sweet, similar to the kind of rice that we found in sushi. I like it so much, I think it tasted delightful and amusing. 

I ate the mushroom and I tried to enjoy it, but I couldn't seem to like it.. not even the slightest bit! It seemed like another attempt of mine to agree with people about how mushroom tasted nice failed once again. I ended up didn't finish the soup. Fortunately, Mom is a mushroom lover, so I gave my dish to her. 

Braised Bean Curd with Shimeji and Shiitake Mushroom in Soy Sauce, with Vegetable Fried Rice, Kale, Steamed Carrots, and Asparagus

Vegetarian meal tasted bland. The rice was bland, as well as the bean curd, and don't get me started on the steamed veggies. Luckily, there was this gooey soy sauce that made the dish had more flavor in it. The asparagus and the carrots were well-steamed, they were not stiff and tough, yet soft and teeth-friendly. Even if the braised bean curd tasted bland, it was still enjoyable if you eat it with the rice and soy sauce. I like the dish, despite the fact that it was tasteless, because it was made entirely out of healthy food stuff.

Vanilla Pannacotta, with Passion Fruit Sauce (Chef Tom's Artwork)

Pannacotta, ladies and gentleman, is a type of pudding that originated from Italy. The basic ingredients to make Pannacotta are milk, cream, sugar, and gelatin. The Vanilla Pannacotta that I had was my first Pannacotta that I have ever eaten, and it didn't taste that bad.. good actually!

The sweet and stomach-filling Pannacotta had an egg-y and milky flavor in it. Luckily, the sour, yet sweet, Passion Fruit Sauce helped neutralizing the flavor. Pannacotta share the same texture with pudding, but more firm and slightly less creamy. In my opinion, one portion of Qatar Airways' Vanilla Pannacotta will make you feel full, yet only filled half of your empty stomach.