In December I visited Albert Adrià’s Bodega 1900, the go-to alternative to Tickets across the street. I was new back then to the world of vermouth with canned things, and thus very lucky to have stumbled upon one of the best representations of this Catalan dining tradition at Bodega 1900. It’s where I first learned an important…
Reus. It’s where Gaudí was born. It’s also home to the market where my coworkers and I used to buy fresh produce, the laundromat where I had my clothes sent for dry-cleaning, the hospital where my tooth was filled when I chipped it on a fork eating a fresh summer salad with figs and mató that one time. I…
The pristine, blue gem that is the Siurana Lake offers a wonderful escape from the sticky, salty seawater and looming influx of summertime tourism on the beaches of Barcelona. It’s a place to get away and enjoy fresh mountain air, while sunning on a dock, surrounded by silence. Every once in a while a family or two will set…
A few days into my father’s visit to Barcelona we had grown a bit weary of tapas. We were craving the opposite, a thoughtfully assembled entrée complete with a protein and a side or two. No more bar snacks, no more homogenous mounds of just one thing, no more small plates designed to share. Of course, our relationship…
Further south of Calella de Palafrugell on the Costa Brava is the town of Blanes, perhaps best known for hosting a spectacular fireworks competition during the Santa Anna festival in late July. I’ve heard there are also some neat botanical gardens there to visit and, of course, beaches that stretch far and wide. We didn’t see too…
Not a very long drive north of Barcelona is the coastal town of Calella de Palafrugell, one of the three coastal towns forming the Costa Brava. The seashore boasts a beautiful string of pebble-floored coves, naturally U-shaped beaches that look as if small bites of coastline were taken by a hungry sea. Bright beads of sunshine glitter white…
In discussing the myriad of culinary experiences I’ve been part of in the past few years I generally make it a point to avoid delving into the quality of the service, especially when it does not significantly affect the atmosphere of the venue or the quality of the food. I’d like to avoid being mistaken for the narrow-minded, overprivileged snob tourist…
As another summer approaches I instinctively get to thinking about returning to Hungary to visit the family and sinking my toes into the sodden, silken sludge of Balaton Lake. I think perhaps too much about where and what I’d like to eat: velős pirítós (herbed calf brain on toast) in Balatonfüred with a crispy cool glass of Irsai…
A visit to Château Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape during my recent trip to Provence was a major check off the wino bucket list. The boo and I toured the impressive estate, learned about the various Grenache-dominant blends of thirteen varietals, heard the spiel on the region’s history, traditions and terroir. I badgered our knowledgable guide with an endless…
We crossed the French border and arrived in the sleepy Pyrenean town of Vernet-les-Bains about one hour later. As he shuffled around bananas, snack bars, pyjamas and warm gear in the backpack that rested in the trunk of the car, I set about changing in the backseat, slipping on my tight but supportive sports bra, airy trail pants and hiking boots.…
That Best Bite 