I'm quickly learning that the weather is quite temperamental round here...
We had some crazy lightning storms- taken from my dorm window...
but after the rain subsides, one understands why the land is so lush and green!Thursday, July 30, 2009
Temperamental
We had some crazy lightning storms- taken from my dorm window...but after the rain subsides, one understands why the land is so lush and green!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
When Dorm Food just doesn't cut it anymore
Life isn't so bad when the next town over happens to be Gruyere....
Gruyere Cheese, fresh chevre, fresh bread, some vino, and some charcuterie... Way better then whatever slop they were trying to feed us at the dorm restaurant....Monday, July 27, 2009
Five Guys
One of the advantages to airports these days is that they aren't simply limited to the huge fast food chains. After boarding my airplane from Washington Dulles to JFK, we all got kicked off the airplane. This was a perfect chance for me to get some much needed, good old fashioned american burger and fries.
Five Guys is an institution here in Washington DC. With a variety of toppings, what Five Guys is REALLY famous for are their french fries. My burger was good.. not great. Needed seasoning but the melty sauteed onions, mushrooms and jalapenos... all the things I miss about America. I tried to limit myself on the french fries but OMG! these french fries were AMAZING! Crispy on the outside, moist and soft on the inside and full of flavor.
My take on five guys- go for the fries.. It's definetly worth the wait...
Five Guys
Numerous Locations including Washington Dulles Airport- in the commuter terminal.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Last Supper..
For my last meal before I headed off to Switzerland, I decided I really needed to get some good mexican grub.
Since Nick's Crispy Taco is in the city and I had a craving for Fish Tacos, this was the instant winner.
Needless to say- this is my favorite fish taco joint in SF. Yes, It is much better then Rubios. Needless to say if you use good ingredients, you just get good tasty grub.The guacamole is delicious, creamy- everything I love about avocados.
One taco with their sweet, smoky, spicy hot sauce is always enough to fill me up. An obvious delicious last meal choice (besides Stan's donuts...)Nick's Crispy Taco
1500 Broadway
San Francisco, CA 94109-2516
(415) 409-8226
just past broadway tunnel
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
The Argentinian Donut
So,with all the traveling that I've been fortunate enough to do recently, I have to take a little detour from Taiwan. Not to worry, there is plenty more of Taiwan that I will be sharing with y'all.. but first.. tid bits from South America.
While in Beunos Aires, I didn't get the chance to find some facturas but.. I got close enough to the Argentinian version of a donut- the churro. Ok ok, so churros are actually from Spain, but I did the best I could with the time allotted ok (I didn't even get to eat my Gelato!!!)?
The original Churro was said to have been invented in the region of Castile (very grassy cow grazing land) with the churros curling to look like the horns of cows. For those of you who have tried to make churros at home, you will know that the long piece of dough instincively wants to curl resembling the horns of bulls. Typically a breakfast item, churros are sprinkled with sugar and dipped into a warm rich cup of hot chocolate.
So where does one go and get Chocolate con churro's? The most famous place to go is Cafe Tortoni, with over 150 years history in Beunos Aires- they are THE cafe of Beunos Aires and of most of South America for that matter .I have to admit- Cafe Tortoni's churro's are OK at best. Kinda hard, not fluffy and just a little eh. The hot chocolate on the other hand was delicious.
The hot chocolate.. oh the hot chocolate! in Argentina, they drink real Leche. None of this non fat, 2% skim, watery, tasteless, hormone pumped milk that we get in the US. You don't have a choice in your leche in Argentina- you get what you get. What you get is a delicious, rich , thick, milk flavored, creamy well.. milk! At Cafe Tortoni the hot chocolate may be a little sweet but it's so chocolately , dark and rich that one can't help but to finish all of the hot chocolate they bring to your table. Real milk makes real hot chocolate. honestly.
Even though the churros and the Argentinian donut experience was mediocre at best, the hot chocolate and in dad's case cafe con leche made up for it.
Cafe Tortoni
825 Avenida De Mayo
Beunos Aires, Argentina
54-11-43424328
While in Beunos Aires, I didn't get the chance to find some facturas but.. I got close enough to the Argentinian version of a donut- the churro. Ok ok, so churros are actually from Spain, but I did the best I could with the time allotted ok (I didn't even get to eat my Gelato!!!)?
The original Churro was said to have been invented in the region of Castile (very grassy cow grazing land) with the churros curling to look like the horns of cows. For those of you who have tried to make churros at home, you will know that the long piece of dough instincively wants to curl resembling the horns of bulls. Typically a breakfast item, churros are sprinkled with sugar and dipped into a warm rich cup of hot chocolate.So where does one go and get Chocolate con churro's? The most famous place to go is Cafe Tortoni, with over 150 years history in Beunos Aires- they are THE cafe of Beunos Aires and of most of South America for that matter .I have to admit- Cafe Tortoni's churro's are OK at best. Kinda hard, not fluffy and just a little eh. The hot chocolate on the other hand was delicious.
The hot chocolate.. oh the hot chocolate! in Argentina, they drink real Leche. None of this non fat, 2% skim, watery, tasteless, hormone pumped milk that we get in the US. You don't have a choice in your leche in Argentina- you get what you get. What you get is a delicious, rich , thick, milk flavored, creamy well.. milk! At Cafe Tortoni the hot chocolate may be a little sweet but it's so chocolately , dark and rich that one can't help but to finish all of the hot chocolate they bring to your table. Real milk makes real hot chocolate. honestly.
Even though the churros and the Argentinian donut experience was mediocre at best, the hot chocolate and in dad's case cafe con leche made up for it. Cafe Tortoni
825 Avenida De Mayo
Beunos Aires, Argentina
54-11-43424328
Friday, June 19, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Taiwan Street Food: Mango Shaved Ice W/ Condensed Milk- 芒果牛奶冰
One of the most common Taiwan street food stands is shaved ice. Shaved ice is literally a huge block of ice, shaved into tiny bits and flavored with a variety of goodies from red bean, mung bean, peanuts, taro, yams to fresh cut fruit. Due the humid and hot nature of Taiwan and the lack of cows, shaved ice is the staple cold dessert- on every Taiwan street food street is at least one if not two ice/ juice stands.
One of the most popular fruit flavors for shaved ice is Mango with condensed milk. Lucky for me, I happen to be in Taiwan for the beginning of Mango season. I was also fortunate enough to visit Tainan and Kaoshiung and took advantage of it by doing a side by side by side comparison of the different food styles of each city. One Taiwan street food that I knew would be easily found in each city was Mango Ice with condensed milk ( 芒果牛奶冰).
The first place I went to was Ice Monster (冰館) on Yong Kang Street (永康街) in Taipei. Known for their mango ice, Ice Monster (冰館) usually has an outrageous line of people waiting for take out or dine in of their Mango ice. The sounds of Japanese indicated that this was a foodie destination. Dad and I opted for the Mango shaved ice with pudding and condensed milk (新鮮芒果酸冰). Within minutes, we had a gigantic bowl of Mango pudding ice before us.
The pudding was rich and creamy but the use of brown sugar water and condensed milk was a bit of overkill. The natural flavor of the mangos got lost underneath all that sugar. We tried our best to finish the bowl but alas, the amount of sugar on the dish won it's power and we gave up leaving a milky watery residue of sugar water behind.
One of the first things I got to eating while visiting Tainan (台南) was to go to Lily Sway Guo Dien (莉莉冰果店). This establishment has been around since 1947 and was popular to the kids even when my father was a child. We arrived to a line spilling out into the sidewalk. Also on the sidewalk were numerous street side tables and chairs set up- all filled with tourists and locals alike enjoying ice on another sweltering hot day in Tainan.
My uncle ordered two Mango shaved ice dishes. Two heaping plates arrived shortly despite the masses of people around. I found it interesting that with the ice came a lime wedge- a little acid to go with the sweet- genius!!! After a little drizzle of lime, we dug in. The mangos were full of flavor, sweet and the ice helped to cool off the stickiness from humidity of the day. This was delicious. I tried to gauge myself, not eating too much (becuase of all the eating that would be ensuing after this) but found myself staring at an empty plate of ice. Unlike the shaved ice at ice monster- this was not too sweet and the natural flavor of the mangos were only accented from the lime wedge. This was everything mango shaved ice is suppose to be.
On my quest for Mango shaved iced (it is mango season in Taiwan...), when arrived in Kaoshiung (高雄) I knew that I had to go to A Po Ah Bing (阿婆仔冰) A Po Ah literally means old lady in Taiwanese. This establishment has been around since chinese calender 23 years ( I believe it's plus 11 for western calender so that would be 1934). This ice house was somewhere that holds fond memories for my father.
Hoping to capitalize on the trip to the store, I was hoping to also have some of their mochi (麻糬) which they are also very famous for but alas, they only have mochi (麻糬) during the winter time. I settled on just the mango ice. Suprisingly not busy (mainly becuase they opened a much larger store just around the corner from the original one), I got my mango ice instantly. Condensed milk - check, black sugar water- check mangos- check. You would think that all these mango shaved ices taste the same but they don't. The mangos were cut into huge chunks- slightly unmanageable for me. The mangoes though fresh and had good flavor but were not as intense as the ones I had in Tainan. They were also cut a little but too close to the seed, leaving many stringy pieces attached. Still good- sweet but not too sweet, it lacked the kick that Lily's in Tainan gave with the extra bit of lime.
My clear winner in my Mango Shaved Ice (芒果牛奶冰) quest was definetly Lily's in Tainan.
Locations for Mango Shaved Ice with Condensed Milk (芒果牛奶冰) :
Ice Monster (冰館):
台北市永康街15號 (No.15 Yong Kang Street Taipei,Taiwan)
Tel:
(02)2394.8279
Lily Sway Guo Dien (莉莉冰果店):
台南市中西區府前路一段199號 (No.199, Fucian Road, Section 1, Tainan City, Taiwan)
Tel:(06)213.7522
A Po Ah Bing (阿婆仔冰):
高雄市鹽埕區七賢三路150號 (No.150, Cisian 3rd Road, Kaoshiung City, Taiwan)
Tel:(07)551.3180
One of the most popular fruit flavors for shaved ice is Mango with condensed milk. Lucky for me, I happen to be in Taiwan for the beginning of Mango season. I was also fortunate enough to visit Tainan and Kaoshiung and took advantage of it by doing a side by side by side comparison of the different food styles of each city. One Taiwan street food that I knew would be easily found in each city was Mango Ice with condensed milk ( 芒果牛奶冰).
The first place I went to was Ice Monster (冰館) on Yong Kang Street (永康街) in Taipei. Known for their mango ice, Ice Monster (冰館) usually has an outrageous line of people waiting for take out or dine in of their Mango ice. The sounds of Japanese indicated that this was a foodie destination. Dad and I opted for the Mango shaved ice with pudding and condensed milk (新鮮芒果酸冰). Within minutes, we had a gigantic bowl of Mango pudding ice before us.
The pudding was rich and creamy but the use of brown sugar water and condensed milk was a bit of overkill. The natural flavor of the mangos got lost underneath all that sugar. We tried our best to finish the bowl but alas, the amount of sugar on the dish won it's power and we gave up leaving a milky watery residue of sugar water behind.
One of the first things I got to eating while visiting Tainan (台南) was to go to Lily Sway Guo Dien (莉莉冰果店). This establishment has been around since 1947 and was popular to the kids even when my father was a child. We arrived to a line spilling out into the sidewalk. Also on the sidewalk were numerous street side tables and chairs set up- all filled with tourists and locals alike enjoying ice on another sweltering hot day in Tainan. 
My uncle ordered two Mango shaved ice dishes. Two heaping plates arrived shortly despite the masses of people around. I found it interesting that with the ice came a lime wedge- a little acid to go with the sweet- genius!!! After a little drizzle of lime, we dug in. The mangos were full of flavor, sweet and the ice helped to cool off the stickiness from humidity of the day. This was delicious. I tried to gauge myself, not eating too much (becuase of all the eating that would be ensuing after this) but found myself staring at an empty plate of ice. Unlike the shaved ice at ice monster- this was not too sweet and the natural flavor of the mangos were only accented from the lime wedge. This was everything mango shaved ice is suppose to be.
On my quest for Mango shaved iced (it is mango season in Taiwan...), when arrived in Kaoshiung (高雄) I knew that I had to go to A Po Ah Bing (阿婆仔冰) A Po Ah literally means old lady in Taiwanese. This establishment has been around since chinese calender 23 years ( I believe it's plus 11 for western calender so that would be 1934). This ice house was somewhere that holds fond memories for my father. 
Hoping to capitalize on the trip to the store, I was hoping to also have some of their mochi (麻糬) which they are also very famous for but alas, they only have mochi (麻糬) during the winter time. I settled on just the mango ice. Suprisingly not busy (mainly becuase they opened a much larger store just around the corner from the original one), I got my mango ice instantly. Condensed milk - check, black sugar water- check mangos- check. You would think that all these mango shaved ices taste the same but they don't. The mangos were cut into huge chunks- slightly unmanageable for me. The mangoes though fresh and had good flavor but were not as intense as the ones I had in Tainan. They were also cut a little but too close to the seed, leaving many stringy pieces attached. Still good- sweet but not too sweet, it lacked the kick that Lily's in Tainan gave with the extra bit of lime.My clear winner in my Mango Shaved Ice (芒果牛奶冰) quest was definetly Lily's in Tainan.
Locations for Mango Shaved Ice with Condensed Milk (芒果牛奶冰) :
Ice Monster (冰館):
台北市永康街15號 (No.15 Yong Kang Street Taipei,Taiwan)
Tel:
(02)2394.8279
Lily Sway Guo Dien (莉莉冰果店):
台南市中西區府前路一段199號 (No.199, Fucian Road, Section 1, Tainan City, Taiwan)
Tel:(06)213.7522
A Po Ah Bing (阿婆仔冰):
高雄市鹽埕區七賢三路150號 (No.150, Cisian 3rd Road, Kaoshiung City, Taiwan)
Tel:(07)551.3180
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