Review: Lamb and Cheesecake at Twiga

I was lucky enough to be invited to the South African restaurant Twiga by the owner. It is located behind the Crown Hotel and across from the Saudi Arabian Embassy. Located on the 5th floor, it doesn't seem like a restaurant at all but a dinner party at a friend's condo. 

On the evening, we were greeted by the owner's very cute daughter who decided to sit at our table to play with her "My Little Pony" and draw. Normally, I would find this quite distracting but she was so cute that we didn't mind the entertainment. 

The owner, Vanita, offered us menus and told us they were currently doing a bit of retooling. She said they were prepping brunch soon but for dinner she had some choice recommendations. We ordered the lamb chops that were topped with some micro greens and over risotto. The lamb chops were massive, juicy and grilled just right (27,000 won). The creamy risotto also went well with the dish and I enjoyed the bit of greenery on top for the dish was so rich. My only complaint was that it could have used a sauce or a mustard to break up the monotony of having so much meat. 

We also had the sausages which were nice handmade sausages served over mashed potatoes and grilled onions. The mashed potatoes were buttery and rich and comforting with the bangers. Such a simple dish, but one that was a pleasant reminder of meals back home. 

For dessert, we had a slice of their homemade amarula cheesecake. This was the star of the evening and the reason to dine here. Wow... A massive square of luscious custardy cheese that was creamy, tart, and voluminous.  The passion fruit amarula liquor added a sophistication to the dessert as well. I mean it was dense yet airy and velvety. It was moist and rich and the crust was snappy as you forced the fork through it. This is one of the finest cheesecakes I have had in Korea and on par with the ones i have had in Chicago and New York City. It was also served with rich dollops of chocolate mousse. 

Overall, a fine dining experience and a great place to take a loved one or for a business meeting. It is a bit hard to find so I recommend you use the mapping application. 

Twiga 
Geoloc: 37.53149,126.99180
Address: Seoul,Yongsan-gu Itaewondong 36-69 5th Floor
<br /><br />

Disclosure: I was invited by restaurant and they paid for my meal but I wrote of my own volition and the opinions are my own.

Popular posts from this blog

5 of the Best Jajangmyeon 짜장면 in the City of Seoul, Korea

Image
The Best Jajamyeon in Seoul by Daniel Gray Jajangmyeon 짜장면: Korea's favorite hand pulled noodles in an black sauce is also a favorite dish of mine. It's so famous they even have a holiday for it. It's filling and hearty like a bowl of spaghetti but with Asian flair. It's one of those dishes that you can get whenever you need a quick meal and it doesn't break the wallet. It's a pretty ubiquitous dish and every Chinese restaurant must have it. If it does it well, the place becomes famous. If it is just alright, it is just a meal and gets classed in with all of the other places in the city. I can't say I have had any seriously terrible jajangmyeons except maybe some delivery places (where the noodles are overcooked and terribly clumped together so it takes like 10 minutes to get the sauce mixed into it) but even then it is still edible. With the noodles, I love to get fried dumplings and a place is good fried dumplings or some other sides like tangsuyok
Read More, See More >>

Calories in Soju and other things I Know about Korea's Famous Swill

Image
Just in case you were wondering, one bottle of Soju contains 540 calories. That's like 4 beers. So to put it in perspective, you would need to walk about two hours to exercise it off. (Walking two hours with a soju hangover is not an easy task.) Soju originally was made from rice but whenever there were rice shortages, people were forbidden to make Soju. Alcohol producers the started to use sweet potatoes and tapioca to make an ethanol based alcohol. Overtime they doctored up the taste so it has a smooth, crisp taste that goes great with raw seafood and grilled meats. The world drinks a lot of Soju. 61.38 Million cases of soju were produced in 2012 with Korea consuming about 2.75 billion bottles of Soju a year. You would think that everyone would be falling over drunk in Korea, but this is not the case. The alcohol is only about 17-19% so a bottle won't wreck you (but two or more might.) Koreans judge how good of a drinker you are by the number of bottles o
Read More, See More >>

5 of the Best Gamjatang Restaurants in Seoul: Korean Potato and Pork Stew

Image
Seobu Gamja-guk One of the dishes that came out of necessity is gamja-tang or pork-bone potato stew. This dish has its origins from the Incheon dock area where laborers that were working in the construction wanted to have a cheap and hearty food after a long day of work. The soup consists of pork spine that is slowly cooked with potatoes and topped with sesame leaves. The result is a satisfying dish that goes great with a bowl of hot rice. This was often cooked throughout the day and then eaten at the end of the work day. This dish goes perfectly with a chilled shot of Korean soju. After the first train line was built that would connect the Incheon area with Seoul, one entrepreneur decided that he wanted to make a restaurant focused on this dish. The first restaurant of this type was built near Noryangjin station, which was near the end of the han river railway construction. The dish became a big hit and soon many copycat restaurants started popping up all over Korea. The name gam
Read More, See More >>