Milano Eats

Since I have such a backlog in photos, I'm just going to post random meals in non-chronological order.  My blog, my rulez, with a z.

I had a delicious piadine with cotto, arugla, tuna, and cheese for lunch one day near the office.

piadine split

I don't know why toasty things are so tasty.  But they are.  Crispy tortilla-like shell shattered into the creamy cheesy and bitter arugula, a nice light lunch.

For dinner one night, we sat by the lovely Navigli enjoying the breezy summer night while chomping down on pizza.

pizza

I had one with mozzarella di bufala, prociutto, and porcini.  I like prociutto, but it was a bit much for me.  The crust had a great chew but got soggy in the middle.  But the mozz and porcini were tasty.

I also ate various pasta dishes while in Milan.  My favorite being the gnocci with shrimp and zucchini.

clouds of taters

The gnocci was like little pillowy clouds of potatoes.  It was lightly tossed with olive oil.  Definitely one of the lightest gnocci dishes I've had.

Going on my mushroom and shrimp kick, I also ate tagliatelle with shrimp and mushrooms.

noods

The noodles were good but I thought the dish was a little too buttery overall.  It was an interesting mix of earthy mushrooms with the light shrimp.

At Malpensa airport, I scarfed down a simple but delicious sandwich.

sandwich

Just some nice crusty focaccia, smeared with a bright pesto and layered with slices of tomatoes and mozzaralla di bufala.  Sometimes, the most satisfying meal is also the simplest.

Copenhagen is Mighty Tasty Part 2

Damn, I have so many delicious meals that have not joined the cyberworld of ChubberBlub.  Sorry meals.  You were tasty and should be shared with the world.  First up, 3 more meals in Copenhagen, a mighty tasty city.

Dying for some roughage in the forms of greens after too much overindulgence, I happily stumbled on Riz Raz, an casual and cheap (in Nordic standards) in the Latin Quarters (according to the guidebooks) or Piss Quarter (according to the locals).  Riz Raz was awesome.  They had a veg-heavy lunch buffet to be enjoyed while sitting in a beautiful garden/courtyard.

i ate 2 of these

The food leans Mediterranean, with pita and falafels (eh), fresh hummus and tabbouleh (yum), and a number of salads.  Unsurprisingly, my favorite was the watermelon and cucumber salad (bottom right).  Look at those watermelon chunks!  Aren't they gorgeous in their ruby glory?  

For lunch one day, I randomly picked a place that had seats and looked traditionally Danish, and had the best name.  Restaurant Puk.  Interestingly, both Restaurant Puk and Riz Raz are featured in my guidebook, but I didn't know it until after the fact.

more herring!

I ordered their smørrebrød of herring with chives, onions, raw egg yolk.  I loved it.  I am very smitten by smørrebrød.  It's perfect for a person who likes to dissect her sandwiches and plan the perfect bite each time.  Also, you should remember that I love the hearty Danish bread, which was a perfect vehicle for the loads of stuff that topped it.  The herring was light and slightly tangy, offset by the super fresh egg and pungent but sweet onions and chives.  I want to eat it again now.

more fish

So smitten by smørrebrød, I ate it again the same day at Axelborg Bodega.  This time I went for the whole shebang, smørrebrød with fried fish, grilled fish, and little shrimps.  The avalanche of seafood completely covering the bread.  The fried fish was so flaky and light.  I especially loved the crispy edges.  The little shrimps were refreshing, similar to the shrimp salad I had in Norway, with a squeeze of lemon to bring out the freshness.  The grilled fish was nice and buttery, good but my least favorite of the three.  And yup, that's a dollop of caviar and mayo on top on top.  

Now, I'm on a hunt to find smørrebrød in NYC.  Please do share if you know of any!

Copenhagen Part 1

Copenhagen is Mighty Tasty

Copenhagen is a tasty tasty city.  I don't know what I was expecting before I went there, but what I was greeted with was a whole lot of fresh and clean flavors, with an emphasis on seafood - my first and last love.

I'm very lucky in that I have some of the sweetest and most welcoming coworkers around the world, who all indulge me in my obsession for food.  See that spread below?  See that?  Yep, I ate that, washed down by way too many glasses of beer and schnapps.  (seriously kids, don't attempt a self-imposed schnapps tasting, no matter how intriguing schnapps dripped over amber sounds)

i blame the schnapps for my blurry pic

This awesome meal was partaken at København Caféen, a classic Danish restaurant.  The spread above is for 4 to share and came with *deep breathe* pork chops-herring-salmon-fried fish-pickled veggies-cheeses-chicken salad, and probably other stuff that I can't remember.  My favorites were the fried fish and various herrings.  I LOVE HERRINGS!  So fresh and tasty, with that tang that only herrings have.  The fried fish was super flaky, moist, and tender.  The platter came with a bunch of delicious Nordic breads - dense, hearty and studded with nuts.  Slather on some lard, they were the perfect accompaniment to the meal.

Thanks guys for the awesome time!

Another night, we ate at Skipperkroen in Nyhavn, the beautiful harbor of Copenhagen.  It was a beautiful late summer night to sit outside while enjoying... MORE HERRING!

obsessed

Yep, I got the herrings 3 way - curried, with capers, and traditional.  I liked the curried and traditional the best.  The sweet curry went well with the sweet and tangy fish.  While the traditional one really lets the herring flavor shine.

Along with the herring sampler, I also got the half lobster salad.

roe roe roe

Just a super fresh lobster prepared simply garnished with a tangy mayo sauce.  Check out that roe!  That totally made my day.

I ate more herring during my stay in Copenhagen, but you'll just have to wait for the next post.  muhahaha

Sweets of Belgium

Belgium is a tasty city.  Really really tasty.  Even the simple waffle is a revelation.  I'm not a huge waffle fan, but now I know I'm not a huge American waffle fan, but Belgian waffles?  Yes please!

oh so good

Belgian waffles are much denser, with a crackly outside and chewy inside.  You can get them plain on the go, or topped with a bunch of stuff.

embellished!

Like strawberries and powder sugar, with a little bit of syrup....

pierre marcolini

Macarons are my favorite cookies.  So when I went to Pierre Marcolini to get chocolates and saw macarons, I had to get a box for myself.  Damn, they were good. There were a couple of pistachios, a mojito (bright and citrucy), vanilla, chocolate, and others.  All of the flavors were awesome and all of them had the perfect texture - crackly outer cookies and creamy insides.  YUM

pastries

I also ate a lot of pastries in Brussels.  I pretty much ate a lot of everything.  Exhibit A, my breakfast one morning was a pain au chocolat and an egg tart.  The pain was perfectly light and flaky.  The egg tart reminded me of the Chinese egg tarts that I love.

sweet finale

When you get an espresso or cappuccino in Belgium, they usually give you a small piece of cookie or chocolate to nibble.  At some places, they also give you a bit of chocolate mouse and cream.  Free dessert!   I love Belgium.

L'Orangerie du Parc d'Egmont

I ate at the most beautiful garden during a recent trip to Brussels.  You don't believe me?  Check out the view from my seat on the patio of L'Orangerie du Parc d'Egmont.  Told you so.

L'Orangerie du Parc d'Egmont

For my eats on that beautiful day, I had the filet americain and frites, basically a steak tartare.  It was delicious.  

filet americain

Tender and fresh.  Mixing in the gherkins, chopped onions, capers, and the mustardy mayo, it was the perfect light lunch. There was no stringiness and no gumminess, which are the common issues with steak tartare.  A light salad rounded out the plate.

Golden Delicious

Gotta get frites with every meal in Brussels.  Super crispy skin holding in the fluffy soft potato innards, dipped in some creamy mayo.  So very simple and so very tasty.  Look at those golden fries.  Best when fresh, but still good to nibble on when cold while relaxing in L'Orangerie with a nice Belgium ale.