Rosso: shrimp and avocado cocktail

shrimp and avocado cocktail by kattebelletje.

Last week, I was invited by Zestz to attend the book launch of Dutch tv-chef and restaurant owner Herman den Blijker. So I traveled to Rotterdam to see what it was all about. The launch was held in one of Den Blijker's own restaurants, Rosso in the Van Vollenhovenstraat. When I turned up I was early, and my early arrival turned out to be very fateful indeed. Five minutes after arrival, I happened to witness the outbreak of a cow, which was supposed to be tied to the entrance of the restaurant to create this rural feelilng. However, the cow bolted and ran off. After being caught by two men, and led back in the direction of the restaurant's entrance, it bolted again and hit three people, smashing a glass table on the go. All three were almost squashed against the wall and fell on the floor; one woman broke a finger, the other two men had bruises all over. It was like a Pamplona scene, very scary! view photoset on Flickr Luckily there weren't many guests around. More than one hour later, I felt happy I had escaped this ordeal by jumping behind a pillar, so the glass of Chardonnay I was given tasted heavenly. So did this shrimp and avocado cocktail. There were other small bites, like a steak tartare on an amuse spoon, a small cup of lobster bisque, scallops on their shells, and fresh oysters cut open by special Oyster Girls. The chef himself seemed not to have noticed the commotion outside his restaurant, nor did he comfort anyone later on. Instead, the poor men suffering the blow of the cow's horns were given glasses of mineral water by the helpful staff of Rosso.