Reviews
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What’s in a beer?
Plenty, it seems. A lot of times, people from around the world have a reason to visit a destination. For some, it is a chance to reconnect with their past including family and friends. For others, it is to relive a magical moment from a long time ago. Plenty others visit to experience the sights and sounds of a city or country, one they haven’t been to before. View of Pilsen town As for me, all I wanted to have was a pint of beer. Specifically, a Pilsner Urquell beer. To be more specific, a pint of Pilsner Urquell beer at the Pilsner Urquell brewery, in Pilsen. There, you have…
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Welcome to the People’s Socialist Party of Wong
Step back in time and have a drink or three in a setting that takes you to the 1920s. Step into Miss Wong in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The interiors are a tasteful nod to its history Sure, a pint of beer at 50 cents is ridiculously cheap on Pub Street in Siem Reap. And that means, a few pints and hours later, you are still sitting on the same seat, in the same bar you have chosen to make your preferred spot for the day, or evening. A pint doesn’t get any cheaper But it’s not every evening that you can tolerate doing the same thing, only changing the bar…
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A cup or eight of tea please
I’ve only drunk tea the way I know to make it, using tea bags dipped in hot water for a couple of minutes and then adding milk. Refreshing and satisfying it is. But is it necessarily the best tea I’ve had? That is open to debate. Inside the tea shop at the factory (Photo credit: Neel Mitra) While I’ve been drinking tea since I can remember, it was would always be a cup for breakfast and another one later that evening. However, once I got into university, all that went for a toss. Sitting in the canteen, it would be anywhere between 10 to 15 small glasses of tea through…
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What’s in a name?
Plenty, it turns out. Among the many things I was looking forward to in Sri Lanka was to sample a variety of its cuisine. Thankfully, this small family run business on a hill in Kandy didn’t disappoint, barring its odd name – No Name Restaurant. The seating inside the restaurant The pleasures of dining locally One of the joys of travelling to another country and its cities to so experience its varied cuisine. Sri Lanka was no different. The last time I was there on the beaches of Hikkaduwa, we had hired a tuk-tuk. Hungry for a decent meal after our tour of Galle, we asked him to take us…
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Relax at Live Oak Brewing Co’s Taproom
If you are looking to try out some great food, drinks and music, then I’m not sure if there are too many places that beat Austin, Texas. Sure, I missed out on the music. So, I won’t comment on that. But the food and drinks are something else altogether. Selection of beers for the day A few years ago, when visiting a friend’s mom there, we decided to go check out a craft brewery. Without having done any research, I was at a loss, trying to figure out the best place where we could head. Thankfully, our host knew of a couple of places. Outdoor picnic table and benches with…
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Vienna’s friendliest bartender is at Centimetre VII
The next time you are in Vienna Austria, why not take time off your sightseeing and make a trip to Centimetre VII. Once there, find yourself a comfortable table with a view, or sit at the bar, order your favourite pint and get down to feeling right at home. A customer sits by himself enjoying his lunch at Centimetre VII Vienna That’s what we did when we were in Vienna. On our first full day in the city, we found ourselves outside Alser Strasse Station. As we tried to figure out how to reach our first destination for the day, figuring whether we go north, south, east or west, something…
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Sivukirjasto in Kallio is cool
A good indication of how expensive a city Helsinki can be on your wallet is to order a pint of beer, for starters. Helsinki Central Station Having just crossed the Baltic sea, from, well, the Baltic States, I noticed a gradual rise in the price of beer – from Vilnius (cheapest), through Riga (cheaper) and into Tallinn (cheap). However, once we were across the sea and had finally set foot in Helsinki, I thought 7-8 euros was daylight robbery. A tram line in Helsinki While the first few days went discovering all that the city had to offer, and spending those hard-earned euros, it was only a few days later…
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A visit to Pasteur Street Brewing taproom in Hanoi
There is a revolution that has been slowly brewing in Vietnam since 2015. In a reverse of sorts, it’s been so contagious that it has finally spread from Ho Chi Minh City all the way to the Hanoi. Not to fret though. It’s a revolution of a different kind. Say ‘cheers’ to Pasteur Street Brewing taproom and their excellent selection of craft beers. The Coffee Porter and Jasmine IPA When I first visited Vietnam in 2007-8, there weren’t any craft beers available. At least none that I was aware of. To be honest, I wasn’t too aware of craft beer myself. It’s only in the last 10 odd years, on…
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NAM Vietnamese Kitchen, BBQ & Beer
It was the last leg of our Indochina trip and with money running low, we wanted to stay in an area that wasn’t expensive. Which is why any decent place around Bui Vien Street made sense. It is, after all, the backpacker quarter district in Saigon, Vietnam. View of Bui Vien street from NAM Kitchen We also wanted it to be in District 1, which is what most reviews recommended. We chose a hotel next to Bui Vien Street. It’s where all the action is, we were assured by some well travelled friends. On hindsight, we should have asked what kind of action it is that they had in mind.…
