Stop by Washington, D.C.’s Farmers Fishers and Bakers for the best (vegetarian) sandwich in the city. It is a meal, much like many of its fellow menu items, that is emblematic of the city’s wholly American integration of its multicultural influences. If I had to pick a restaurant that truly represents Washington, D.C. and the…
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That time I ate crocodile at Victoria Falls
There’s nothing like an exotic safari and near-death experience to make one open-minded about food. Travel back with me to the time I ventured to eat crocodile in Southern Africa. Victoria Falls is one of the world’s great natural wonders. The wide Zambezi River thunders majestically along the borders of four countries: Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana,…
Il Casaro – A cosmo-Neopolitan newcomer to San Francisco’s Little Italy
San Francisco’s Little Italy might not have the notoriety of New York’s. Within the city, it takes a backseat to SF’s more famous Chinatown. But newcomer Il Casaro is one example that proves it is worthy of the neighborhood monicker. It has added more youthful vibrance to a neighborhood steeped both in tradition and the…
Blackwood: Trendy Thai fusion in San Francisco
San Francisco is well known for its food culture. Its history of Asian immigration has made Asian cuisine -both traditional and fusion particularly strong. While the city’s Marina/Cow Hollow neighborhood is not exactly the place to go for authentic international dishes, its trendy cafes and enthusiastic crowds are the perfect atmosphere to play with modern…
Keeping cool and carrying on with chilled cucumber-avocado soup
Sometimes, salads get to be a bit mundane in the middle of a summer heat wave. That’s when a chilled gazpacho or other cold soup variant is a nice change of pace. My adaptation of a Martha Stewart Living recipe is a summer must-try: Summer-fresh English cucumbers add lightness and volume to the richness and…
Salt and Straw: Portland’s haute ice creamery
Lines stretching far beyond the door are commonplace at each of Portland, Oregon’s Salt and Straw ice cream shops. Locals and visitors alike flock to them – and for good reason. Salt and Straw is an ice cream innovator, concocting dairy and non-dairy ice cream varieties you won’t find anywhere else. By now, you know…
A tale of two cities’ taquerias: Portland vs. San Francisco
Within a week, I visited two taquerias in two American West Coast cities. Both specialize in delicious street style tacos, and both allow for a fast casual order/pay first and tacos are delivered by number to the table. Yet they each bore little resemblance to one another in all other areas. Which wins? Read on…
Stella Tacos – “Austin-style” Street tacos in Portland
Stella Tacos, a new storefront on eclectic Alberta Street in northeast Portland, is a great example of Portland’s vibrant food scene. Fresh ingredients, artful execution, and accessible prices make this Mexican an authentic Portland – if not Mexican – experience. Portland has an amazing food scene. But try to define Portland’s truly “local” or native…
Steinernes Haus: Steak on a hot stone
Steak on a hot “lava” stone is a fun, interactive way to enjoy a meal. My one and only introduction to the genre left me wishing it was common outside of Germany. When you think about it, it’s a bit odd that we humans seek out restaurant experiences in which we pay to cook our…
Sweet and spicy Thai-inspired chicken sausage and arugula salad
Sweet and spicy. That might describe my own personality a bit, but it definitely fits this salad. An easy, healthy meal for a hot summer day, or if you’re like me, year round! Another salad? Isn’t this kind of cheating? Perhaps. The cook-from-scratch purist in me is embarrassed to pass off my go-to salad as…
The Culinary Diplomat 