A Dog's Heart at the ENO

Saw 'A Dog's Heart' about a fortnight ago - and in the mean time life and work got in the way. Looking back, it didn't feel like an opera - more like a theatre piece with some intriguing music. It was very good theatre too. The puppetry was great representing the dog before the anthropomorphism. There was humour (blood gushing out during the ops) and good choreography. I think it's a work that's worth seeing but would be pretty hard work just listening.

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Square One, Park Hyatt Saigon

OK - if you want to go somewhere sleek in Saigon - Square One will pretty much fit the bill. Rather than just one open kitchen (a la Caprice at the Four Seasons in Hong Kong), there are SEVEN! Each focusing on a particular cooking technique (grilling, baking, steaming, etc.). The decor is comfortable (armrests of armchairs too high) and the Vietnamese food is actually good and well presented. What was enjoyable? Pho Beef Soup with rice vermicelli - nice clear stock, flavourful. What was not enjoyable? Trying too hard perhaps? Everything is just a bit out of place - you could be any where - New York, London, Hong Kong ...

Buddha Jumps Over The Wall (佛跳墻) at Tim's Kitchen

There are many interpretations of "Buddha Jumps Over The Wall" - but here is a rare opportunity to sample this sumptuous dish at Tim's Kitchen last night. It arrives in a beautiful white-and-blue porcelain bowl. Here is the first "eat" - a demi-cuit pigeon egg with rehydrated abalone in a supreme chicken broth. Fish maw appears in the second "eat". I have to confess I forgot about what fish maw tasted like and it was a very strange sensation to be re-acquainted with it. De-boned goose-web, pig's knuckle tendon and sea cucumber forms the third "eat". And the soup ingredients were presented on a plate - black chicken with lean Jin Hua（金華） ham. This is undoubtedly a sumptuous and luxurious dish - using highly priced ingredients. And I consider myself fortunate to have the opportunity to experience it again. One could not help but wonder whether a top notch chef such as Tim could concoct the same dish with ...

Eugene Onegin

I did not think much of the last Eugene Onegin in the 90s - a bit too baren - too literal. The latest production which I saw tonight at the Royal Opera has improved quite a lot. For a start, we had Dmitri Hvorostovksy and Amanda Roocroft singing Onegin and Tatyana respectively - two strong well matched voices that sparked off a reasonable amount of passion between the two! The production was exciting too - with a believably real "river" running on stage. It's not often you get Tatyana jumping into the river and splashing about on stage. Then there was the frozen river with Moscow in the background - there was almost real ice skating on stage just before the Imperial Ball scene. Much fun. Very enjoyable.

Diary of a Culture Hedonist

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