A Weekend in Cape May!

To celebrate our one year anniversary (one year already!), Mr. J and I visited beautiful Cape May, located at the tip of south New Jersey. I had never been to Cape May, but was happy to find a beautiful beach town, complete with Victorian mansions, shops filled with fun knickknacks, and scenic streets to just wander down.

We sampled a few restaurants while we were there... which are described below. Some of the best food we had was actually at the B&B/inn we stayed at - the John Wesley Inn - where the innkeeper cooked up breakfast for us and the other guests. One of the highlights for me were thick, fluffy Belgian waffles topped with fresh whipped cream and strawberries and a side of peppery bacon. Yum.

And although these two aren't "reviewed" below, two other pitstops for us were Morrow's Nut House (salt water taffy, red hot dollars, all sorts of candy!) and... Dairy Queen. Dairy Queen is by no means a Cape May original, and there were PLENTY of ice cream places to choose from (there was one in particular we were looking for that Mr. J remembered from his childhood that made their own ice cream with all sorts of interesting ingredients, but we couldn't find it). But we both love Dairy Queen and very much enjoyed the Brownie Batter blizzard :)

And as for those other places we tried...

MAD BATTER
For our first dinner in Cape May, we visited the Mad Batter. Our innkeeper recommended it to us (and we had heard about it from a few other people!) so we thought it would be a good option. The Mad Batter has these adorable yellow and white awnings, covering a front porch that is perfect for people watching. Although the wind picked up and a storm was brewing, we sat on the porch (the storm did eventually arrive, at full force, but we were protected by the Mad Batter's porch's "walls").

The entrees were more expensive than we expected, but quite good, so we were pleased with the value we were getting for our money. The menu itself didn't offer too many dishes, but there were definitely many specials being offered. I had the crab bisque to begin with (this was my favorite part -- very creamy, not bland like many bisques, and large chunks of lump crab meat, yum...) and the hanger steak with potatoes & bacon (tasty, but I would probably opt for maybe a salad or other appetizer to go with my soup next time). We also shared (ok my husband mostly ate) the thai-honey chicken wings (yum, big juicy wings, not too spicy, kind of spicy and sweet) and he had the vegetable wellington -- layers of vegetables wrapped in a puff pastry and surrounded by fresh tomato sauce and slices of cheese. I think the vegetable wellington was a better option than the hanger steak.

The service was great -- very friendly and helpful. We decided to wait out the storm, eat slowly, and have a few beers...In any case, we were happy with our first dinner in Cape May. We'd likely come back, but probably try a few other places first.

HENRY'S ON THE BEACH:
Henry's was our choice for a lunch spot during our Cape May stay. It is the perfect location. We had spent the morning at the beach and planned to spend the rest of the afternoon there, so we decided to pop into Henry's for our lunch break.

We sat out on the porch with a view of the beach (and watched the dolphins swim by!). The service was friendly. The food was decent -- a good selection of sandwiches, seafood "baskets," and such. I had been craving deep fried seafood for some reason so I ordered the shrimp basket. It came with a good amount of deep fried butterflied shrimp, large handfuls of seasoned fries, and cole slaw. The deep fried clams looked excellent as well. We saw a few people order sandwiches -- in particular, the patty melt caught my eye. A good juicy beef patty in between two slices of toast.

Henry's is great if you are looking for a place right on the beach. The food isn't outstanding, but it was decent "beach" food!

UGLY MUG:
After a full day at the beach, we decided to grab something casual for dinner. We had walked by the Ugly Mug the day before, liked the name, and thought it would be a fun relaxed place to go. Plus, we thought we'd like a drink or two to go with our dinner (and didn't have anything to BYO to the BYO places...). So we found ourselves at the Ugly Mug.

We sat "outside" (under the awning on Washington St). Perfect for people watching. The food has a wide selection of "bar food" -- many different kinds of burgers, sandwiches, and such, as well as some seafood items (we are at the beach after all). We split the clams on the half shell (decent size, tasted fresh) and each got a chicken cheese steak (mine with mushrooms). Everything was good ... the chicken cheese steaks were HUGE, pippin' hot, and pretty juicy.

We recommend it for a place to just kick back and relax.

A little bit of glitz - Gordon Ramsey at the London - West Hollywood

(The Artichoke Risotto)

For quite awhile, I've been intrigued by Gordon Ramsey. I'm not so much interested in his over the top, ever yelling persona featured on "Hell's Kitchen," but rather like the Gordon Ramsey that is on the BBC version of "Kitchen Nightmares." I love the type of food that he puts together on Kitchen Nightmares, encouraging more clean flavors that focus on the freshness of the ingredients.

Sooo, that's how I found myself at Gordon Ramsey at the London in West Hollywood. Alas, there are no Gordon Ramsey restaurants in DC and I'm actually rarely in New York. So when the opportunity arose to check out one of his places while in LA, I jumped on it.

I wasn't sure what to expect. Obviously it wouldn't be your typical hotel restaurant (the London is a boutique hotel in West Hollywood). All I could tell from the menu was that he mixed together some interesting ingredients, ones that I may not usually mix together myself.

We arrived to a beautifully stylish, modern hotel, decorated in some of my favorite colors (as my friends call it, "Jackie Blue," because I'm obsessed with that color). We were directed down a dimly lit hallway to the entrance of the restaurant.

The restaurant itself carried over a similar decor as the hotel. Not rough and tumbled as some may expect from seeing Gordon Ramsey on tv, but very polished, modern, yet with a few vintage touches. I quite liked the design of the place, and it reminded me a lot of designer Kelly Wearstler's projects. The restaurant was fairly empty (although we were a bit on the earlier side), except for a table of 5 guests chatting in Portuguese (who we were seated right next to), a few tables of two (sounds of Japanese and French floated around), and then us. We were seated in one of the "booths" in the center of the restaurant -- S-shaped booths where one party would fill half of the S and then another party would fill the other half of the S at another table. I warn that the restaurant's lighting is quite dim too -- the table next to us in fact requested flashlights and magnifying glasses (that was funny).

We decided to get the full on tasting menu. Everything on it sounded amazing, and even better, the restaurant really allows you to customize your entire meal. Don't like the third course on the tasting menu? No problem! Find a dish on the a la carte menu to substitute it with. Want to try some of Ramsey's famous risotto? Of course, add it to the menu, to share, or for one. Not interested in the tasting menu? Lots of a la carte options in all different sizes for the diner to create a selection to their liking.

Our tasting menu (from my recollection with some help from the website!) (plus artichoke risotto -- we couldn't resist, and my favorite part of the meal):

• Steamed bamboo shoots and shiitake mushroom chawanmushi


• Dressed King crab, avocado and cucumber, basil puree, paddle fish caviar


• Pressed foie gras with fresh black truffle, braeburn apple, toasted biroche


• Tiger prawn ravioli, creamy fennel puree, light lobster bisque


• MAIN COURSE -- I substituted this with the pacific black cod with honshimeji mushrooms, leeks, and kalamansi lime broth (I love black cod)



• A mini dessert that came in a shot glass, that I can't recall at the moment exactly what was in it.




• Chocolate cream savarin with malted milk emusion and salted caramel ice cream

I loved the risotto (as aforementioned), the chawanmushi (kind of like a custardy consistency, below), and the chocolate savarin. The black cod was good, but lacked a bit of flavor.

Overall, I'm happy that we went for the tasting menu (a note to those who want to go there -- not everyone at the table has to order the tasting menu, once again in line with the limitless possibilities of customization). We got to taste such a variety of Ramsey's dishes in perfect tasting menu sized portions.

Would I go back here if I was in LA? Probably not. I enjoyed our meal there and am very happy that we went, but there are still so many restaurants to try, and such little time. So check one off the wish list.

Gordon Ramsey at the London - West Hollywood/1020 N. San Vicente Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069/ 310 358 7788

The ORIGINAL Bob's Big Boy

(Our trip to California continued...)

Yes, you read that right - the ORIGINAL Bob's Big Boy. You've seen it featured on the Food Network... perhaps you've been to other Bob's Big Boys (the Route 95 corridor perhaps?)... perhaps you've seen Big Boy featured in movies. While visiting Burbank, we couldn't resist a breakfast at the original Bob's Big Boy and a chance to take a photo with an over-life size Big Boy.

We came into a half-full Big Boy -- it was New Years Day so my guess is that everyone was either (a) moving very slowly from celebrating the new year or (b) traveling to Pasadena for the annual Rose Parade/Rose Bowl (which btw, we checked out the Rose Parade for ourselves later!). One step into Bob's Big Boy and it felt like we traveled back in time to the 1970s. Lots of golden colors - browns, yellows, and oranges -- the long diner bar complete with orange vinyl stools with booths lining the window walls.

We were seated in a booth and immediately dove into the menu.

After reading the short bio about this location (opened in 1949), we attempted to make our breakfast picks with our stomachs were rumbling from the time difference. Two of our party went straight for the "chicken fried steak" -- I mean, how could you go wrong? (My fork and knife ventured over to their plates...several times...throughout the meal...couldn't help it).

I am a sucker for corned beef hash (I think it is a continuing love from my childhood) so went for an egg platter with corned beef hash.

My dad, ever the one to go for sweet breakfast items, got the super strawberry waffle meal complete with a jumbo belgian waffle covered in strawberries, biscuits, and a side of sausage.

The whole feel of the restaurant reminded me of an East Coast diner... but California style. The plates were big and indulging, just the way a diner breakfast should be. The service was friendly, the coffee ever flowing, and we nearly had to roll ourselves out of Bob's. We posed with Big Boy on the way out (our bellies quite extended like his) and settled back into the car with a bit of a food coma as we journeyed to the Rose Parade.

Bob's Big Boy

4211 Riverside Drive

Burbank, CA 91505

(818) 843-9334

Pizza Pizza LA Mario Batali Style - Pizzeria Mozza

To end 2008, we decided to go to Mario Batali's Pizzeria Mozza -- located at the edge of a residential neighborhood at Melrose and Highland, the brightly painted Pizzeria Mozza stands out (note Pizzeria Mozza's sister restaurant Osteria Mozza is right next door). In contrast, the inside of the restaurant itself is dimly lit (mood lighting?) and quite cozy. You would never know that a celebrity chef owned this casual eatery except for the fact that it was absolutely packed. (The seats are tightly packed, but we didn't feel overcrowded.)

We came to Pizzeria Mozza on New Years Eve -- we spent the day flying across the country, so we thought it would be a fun, delicious, yet relaxing way to end the year. Unfortunately, we were greeted by a few unfriendly and cranky hosts and a wait to be seated despite reservations. Note that if you are going to head over to Pizzeria Mozza - reservations are a must (the phone lines open at 10 am PST each morning and reservations fill up a month in advance, so call exactly a month ahead of time!) - also, whatever you do, don't show up early - other than the bar area (which seemed to always be packed), there is almost nowhere to wait for your table, except for the crawl space next to the private wine room (beware of the swinging door through which waiters coming in and out of the room). We huddled in the small "waiting" area, jumping every now and then to avoid the waiters, and trying to avoid being hit by the front door.

Our experience improved exponentially once we were seated. Although we had one rude waitress who kept trying to have us purchase the most expensive bottle of champagne, our actual waitress was charming, informative, and a breath of fresh air from other staff.

Then, we began to feast our eyes on the menu. The menu is packed with delicious sounding options with many types of antipasti, insalate, carni, bruschette, panini, plates of the day, and of course, pizza. We decided to sample several of the antipasti and two pizzas to experience a wide array of the dishes. The antipasti we ordered: mussels al forno with Calabrian sauce (tasty, but nothing to write home about), arrancine alla bolognese (essentially, small risotto balls, one of my faves), fried squash blossoms with ricotta (left; yum), and a board of proscuitto di parma.

Then the PIZZA. I mean, this is what you come to Pizzeria Mozza for right? The pizzas are large enough to be shared (2 pizzas plus our antipasti plus dessert satisfied our table of 4) and were cooked up just the way I like them -- thin crust, crispy, and flavorful. Our selections: (1) long cooked broccoli, caciocavallo & chiles (right) and (2) tomato, mozzarella, sausage, salami, bacon & guanciale.

With some stomach space to spare, we decided to just go the whole way and get dessert. We each got different dishes -- I had the butterscotch budino, essentially a butterscotch pudding, that I craved for days afterwards (this is truly for butterscotch fans!). The other desserts at our table -- "hot chocolate" (like a mix between thick hot chocolate syrup and a chocolate mousse) with toasted marshmallow and spiced ginger pigs (cookies!), gelati (pistachio, vanilla, and mint chip), and a banana gelato pie.

The restaurant was clearly meant to be fun. I admit that I loved all the little details that were incorporated into the menu, the placemats, and so forth. Interesting facts about pizza (favorite world toppings? Costa Rica loves coconut! Brazil - green peas, and Russia - red herring!), Italian comic strips, tidbits about the restaurant. From the conversation-starting placemats to the bundles of red balloons everywhere to the easily shared dishes, it is a place meant for celebrations.

I enjoyed Pizzeria Mozza for the most part -- I was sad that the staff's attitudes had to dampen an otherwise delicious meal. If I lived in LA, I would certainly come back if for no other reason than to try more of the food. But living across the country, I'm not sure if Pizzeria Mozza would be at the top of my list of re-visits.

Eating Local -- Kapiolani Farmers' Market

On the third day of Hawaii, my true love gave to me...

One of our favorite things to do while traveling is to make a stop at the local farmers market, to search for local crafts, tropical flowers, and more so, local eats. Hawaii, blessed with rich volcanic soil and a tropical climate mixing brilliantly sunny days and warm rains, offers so much to see and eat at their farmers' markets. What I love is trying all the produce and agriculture that I can't find at home.

Our favorite market to go to in Oahu is the Diamond Head Saturday Farmers' Market at Kapiolani Community College. The market is sponsored by the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation and the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at the KCC. Located up near Diamond Head, the Saturday Farmers' Market runs from 7:30 am to 11:00 am. It's best to get in early, as that the parking lot fills up quickly, and the best picks of the day disappear. That said, still come regardless of what time -- we've visited at all hours and still found plenty to fill our bellies and our suitcases.

When you enter, you'll receive a "TIP SHEET" for the day pointing you to the day's specials and also a list of all the day's vendors. This past Saturday's specials include: Breakfast cooked up by Grandma G, the Wailea Agircultural Group's Hawaiian hearts of palm, avocados, and fresh nutmeg, Gourmet Island's Hamakua mushrooms, and Big Island Bees' local honey products. After purusing the Tip Sheet, just enjoy your morning wandering through the stalls, picking up free samples, chat with local farmers and eaters, and pick out your favorite treats.

The range in items is incredible -- Kona coffee, braising greens, tatsoi, lowfat fruitcake with gogi berries, mango, pumpkin, and pecan oatcakes, sea asparagus, holiday music, fresh roasted Kahuku corn (mmm), marinated fresh seafood, Waialua Big Wave Tomatoes, pineapple and macadamia nut cakes, fresh strawberry mochi, jams, jellies, salad dressings, Maui kaki (persimmon), bok choy, papayas, roses, orchids, hibiscus plants... and that's only "Row A."

Some of my favorite places include:

PacifiKool: Fresh Island Ginger Ale
Two Hot Tomatoes: fried green tomatoes, sweet Maui onion rings
North Shore Cattle Co: naturally raised hormone free beef from Haleiwa (North Shore), all beef Portuguese and andouille sausages

What better way to explore a new (or an old favorite) place than visiting their farmers markets?

Cheers!

On the second day of Hawaii, my true love gave to me... malasadas!

On the second day of Hawaii, my true love gave to me... malasadas!

My family and I had traveled to Hawaii for years before discovering the magical breakfast item known as the malasada. If you haven't heard of it, then you're in for a real treat (and a new love in your life). A malasada is essentially a Portuguese donut. Not to be confused with the ubiquitous Dunkin Donuts or Krispy Kremes (which don't get me wrong, I love those donuts too... I mean, we specifically drove to Portland from Hood River to eat at Voodoo Donut... but that's a story for another time), malasadas are served piping hot and somehow manage to be airy and doughy at the same time.

Malasadas were first made by inhabitants of Sao Miguel Island in the Azores. Deep-fried in oil and coated with sugar, they were traditionally made to use up all the "bad stuff" (fat and sugar!) in the house before Lent. They're often eaten on Mardi Gras -- Mardi Gras is also "Malasada Day" in Hawaii.

I don't even recall exactly how we came across the malasada, but all I do know is that every time we are in Oahu now, we find ourselves promptly on the doorstep of Leonard's Bakery at 933 Kapahulu Avenue. The lines are often long, but they move quickly...and are worth it. Step up to the counter, contemplate to yourself -- sugared or cinnamon? Filling or no filling? Everyone has a personal favorite. My dad loves the traditional, plain sugared malasada. My mom could go for the cinnamon. Me, I love the fillings... I'm not a jelly-donut person, but there's something about those tropical cream fillings that Leonard's pipes into their malasadas that makes me want to come back every month to try a different filling. When last there, I had the mango filled malasada... I am awaiting to try the lilikoi (one of my favorite tropical fruits!) malasada. (I just heard from my parents who just came back from Hawaii that this month's "fillings" are strawberry and pumpkin... mmm, pumpkin).

We've tried other malasada bakeries around Oahu, but none of them quite live up to Leonard's. I'm sure it is just a personal preference, but all the other places were too doughy or too cakey or too yeasty. We've also tried to seek out malasadas elsewhere, widely doing google searches for malasada offerings nearby or in places we've visited. My dad eventually found a place in Los Angeles that occasionally will sell them (you have to call to make sure), but he was rather disappointed with the results. My parents tried to find them in Macau, thinking that these Portuguese donuts may be found in a former Portuguese colony. No luck. We tried to find them in Brazil, thinking again about the Portuguese history... although no "malasadas" were found, we did learn on the last day of a pastry called the "solhnos" (my spelling is probably quite off...).

In any case, I suppose I'll just have to go back to Hawaii. Darn.

On the first day of Hawaii, my true love gave to me...Alan Wong's!

In celebration of the holidays, I decided to do my own version of the "12 days of Christmas" as the "12 days of Hawaii" as that would be my ultimate Christmas gift (a trip... or rather an extended stay in Hawaii!). But, as always, as the holidays approached, life became busier, and my "12 days of Hawaii" have now shrunk to "5 days of Hawaii." Originally I was going to end this on Christmas Day, but figured why not add an extra day?

So, here is the kickoff! I can think of no better way to kick off my "5 days of Hawaii" than with an entry about my favorite restaurant in the world - Alan Wong's. I never thought I could pinpoint one particular restaurant as my favorite in the world, but after many repeat visits to Alan Wong's, I think I can safely say that I've found my number 1. Located on the third floor of non-descript building in Honolulu, from the moment you step into the restaurant, you feel welcomed. Perhaps it is the aloha spirit or just the "Wong Way," but you just know that it is going to be a good evening once you enter. I've yet to encounter an unfriendly staff member at Alan Wong's - from the hostesses to the servers, everyone is there to make you feel right at home.

I've also yet to encounter a restaurant where nearly everything on the menu makes my mouth water. I've done meals of solely appetizers -- a medley of Hawaiian/Asian flavors ("Hawaiian Regional Cuisine"), with sizeable portions where even just two appetizers satisfies your hunger (everyone seems to have their favorite -- mine is the "Chinatown Roast Duck Nacho," my dad's is the "Da Bag" -- steamed clams with kalua pig, shiitake mushrooms in a foil bag, and my mom's the "soup and sandwich" -- Foie Gras and Kalua Pork Grilled Cheese Sandwich w/Yellow and Red Tomato Soup). I've done your typical three course meal.

And most recently, I've been coming back to the five course meal time and time again. The five course consists of:

• Appetizer Duo : the "Soup and Sandwich" and "Poki-Pines" (Crispy Won Ton Ahi Poke Balls on Avocado with Wasabi Sauce)


• Ginger Crusted Onaga with Organically Grown Hamakua Mushrooms and Corn, Miso Sesame Vinaigrette (My favorite dish at Alan Wong's, I love every ingredient in it!!)
  
• Butter Poached Kona Lobster with Nagaimo Potato Cake, Green Onion Oil


• Twice Cooked Shortrib, Soy Braised and Grilled "Kalbi" style with gingered shrimp and Ko Choo Jang Sauce
  
• Dessert Duet : Chocolate "Crunch Bars' (my favorite dessert -- for you Washingtonians, similar (but betterrr) than Michel Richard's Kit Kat bar) and Coconut Tapioca

We've celebrated many events at Alan Wong's from birthdays to anniversaries, and most recently, our honeymoon! It's such a small detail, but I loved the "Congratulations" dessert and the personalized copy of the menu, titled with our names and signed by all of the Alan Wong staff.

Maybe that's what I love so much about Alan Wong's -- all the little details that add up into an amazing experience. It's the chili aioli accompanying the warm bread. It's the smiling servers, happy to answer your questions. It's Chef Wong himself coming around to say hello to his guests and making them feel welcomed. It's the food, the drinks, the atmosphere.

Alan Wong's isn't a stuffy, over the top restaurant -- instead, it is a place that you can and WANT to come back to time and time again, where although the menu may be infused with some new dishes, you know that the experience itself will live up to the last time you were there and the time before that and the time before that. I know that I often speak positively about the restaurants I try, but Alan Wong's is a place that I simply love and would urge you to try.

And in case you don't want to take my word for it, perhaps several accolades will help :) Alan Wong's Restaurant was listed on Food & Wine Magazine's Go List 2008, listed as #8 in Gourmet Magazine's America's Top 50 Restaurants in 2006, named as "2008 Best of the Best Winner" Best Pacific Rim Food by the Honolulu Advertiser Annual People's Choice Award, and received multiple times the Best Restaurant 'Ilima Award.

Simply 'ono-licious.

Alan Wong's, 1857 S. King Street, Third Floor, Honolulu, Hawaii 96826, (808) 949-2526

(Btw, if you don't have time to try out Alan Wong's, perhaps stop by his slightly more casual outpost at the Ala Moana Mall - The Pineapple Room. Some of the same dishes are offered there, plus, my favorite, Maui onion soup with kalua pig and gruyere cheese. That soup by itself could be a whole meal.)

Swords of meat in Ipanema -- Carretao Churrascaria

I have been meaning to write this entry for months now (unbelieveable that it has now been MONTHS, how fast time flies...)

One of my favorite meals we had in Brazil was at our second churrascaria -- Carretao Churrascaria. We decided to take the late flight back from Brazil so we could have a full day on our final day. Sadly, the storms rolled in and the weather wasn't exactly ideal for beaching or meandering around. So what was the next best option? Lounging around at lunch of course ... at least as long as possible.

We decided to go to Carretao in part based on recommendations and in part because it was across from Shopping Leblon (and nestled amongst numerous other stores). We hadn't shopped very much during this trip and what better time than right before we planned to leave!

We didn't know what to expect when we arrived at Carretao -- although it was fairly late for lunch, the entire restaurant was full and bustling. Long tables were filled with families celebrating birthdays, couples were dining on the sides hailing over the waiters, an electric model train chugged along the ceiling, and the general mood was energized and cheery. I secretly was happy to see the waiters carrying around swords of meat (as oppose to just presenting the food on wooden planks as at Marius from our first foray into Rio churrascarias) and was slightly mesmerized by the wide selection of food.

(My first plate...)

In any case, we were seated at a side table, right next to the buffet (hello sushi! 20 types of fresh salad! bacalhau a bras -- a Portuguese dish of codfish stew with potatoes, olives, and egg! fresh shrimp! hello gigantic leg of serrano ham!) and right next to where the waiters popped out of the kitchen with their sizzling cuts of meat. We had our trusty cards to flip over to "green" for "please feed us with lots of meaty goodness!" or to "red" for "must... take... a... break." We had our cold beverages and ordered our side dishes (sweet plaintains, rice and beans, polenta...). We were set.

We ventured to the buffet to start with and stocked up on a bit of everything. I started off with some sushi (never can get enough of it), roasted red peppers, hearts of palm, fresh steamed shrimp (see above!)... We were sure however not to stock up TOO much (and with the knowledge that we could always come back for more, we felt like we could indulge more as the afternoon wore on...).

It was time to flip to green! Almost instantaneously, three waiters arrived at our tables (it reminded me somewhat of when first sitting down for dim sum and the swarms of carts that come to your table...).

The selection of grilled items as extensive. Standouts included the picanha (my favorite -- salty slice loin served with garlic), maminha (beef tri-tip roast, best medium rare or rare!), Argentine contra-filet, miolo de alactra (rump steak), pork ribs (see right)... The meats, to me, were perhaps juicier than those at Marius. There were a number of more unusual dishes including grilled chicken hearts (many many tiny hearts on each skewer!).

One of my favorite surprises was the grilled pineapple -- the grill technique brought out the extreme sweetness of the pineapple with a bit of tartness to wake up the tastebuds. It was perfect after eating so much protein.

(The heavenly flavorful pineapple)

The experience was different than that at Marius - but not necessarily better or worse. I'm glad that I tried both of the churrascarias and I would urge other Rio visitors to try out multiple churrascarias to find one to suit their liking (that is, if you can find time between all the other appetizing restaurants!).

Overall, I thought that Carretao was a very satisfying place to end our Brazilian adventure. We got to order our "chopps" that we learned about on our first day, sample Portuguese and Brazilian treats, and enjoy a relaxing afternoon out of the cold rain. The prices were reasonable as far as churrascarias go in Rio, the service was friendly and helpful, and the food was delicious (and offered some pleasing surprises along the way).

Carretao Churrascaria (Ipanema)
Rua Visconde de Piraja, 112
Rio de Janeiro - RJ - Brazil
Phone: 55 (21) 2267.3965

The best day in Brazil - Morro Branco

Now that the days are starting to get colder and snow seems to be "imminent," I can't help but daydream about warmer beach days. It is hard to believe that the Brazil trip was almost two months ago now, but I still think about my favorite day in Brazil. So, consider this a little cold weather break...

During our stay in Fortaleza, Brazil, we decided to take a day trip to one of the outside "beach towns." We heard that they were a must when visiting Fortaleza (...and, to be honest, we were growing a bit bored of Fortaleza... four days there definitely was plenty ... probably more than plenty). After some discussion, we decided to go to the Morro Branco, an area about 1.5 - 2 hours away from Fortaleza and famous for its colorful sand cliffs.

Morro Branco was, hands down, my favorite adventure during my trip to Brazil. We arrived at the "dune buggy" spot and were paired with our very own dune buggy driver. He didn't speak a lot of English, but was friendly, energetic, and pointed out all the important sites to us... he drove us to the town of Beberibe and where we were greeted by local tour guides.

Our tour guide, although not very fluent in English (and we knew very very very little Portuguese, except maybe "obrigado" and "bom dia") was quite charming, and led us through Beberibe, showed us the vistas of the sand cliffs, introduced us to a local craftsman who was creating a sand masterpiece -- the landscape of Morro Branco in a large glass jar. Our final stop on this tour was the "labyrinth."

I LOVED it and found it just breathtaking. I wondered to myself at every turn why had I never heard of Morro Branco before -- the labyrinth essentially was part of the sand cliffs and, over time, water had eroded a path through the cliffs. The colors were so vibrant, especially under the bright sun and against the blue sky. I could have stayed there all day. It was so peaceful, quiet, and awe-inspiring.

At the end of the labyrinth, we were greeted by our dune buggy driver and AWAY WE WENT! We zipped down the beach, along the ocean, with twists and turns, up and down hills. We ended up at these HUGE sand dunes and it was like nature's rollercoaster. At the bottom of the dunes was an expansive lagoon where we were left to go swimming for half an hour... After our quick dip, our dune buggy took us back to the beach, to feast on lunch.

This whole time, you were probably wondering (if you even got to this point) where is the food in this story? Our meal at Morro Branco was the perfect end to what was an unexpectedly perfect day. We found ourselves sitting about 15 feet from the ocean, at a table on the beach. We sipped on caipirinhas ($2 a caipirinha!) ... dug our feet into the sand... watched the fishermen bring their boat in from the sea with their catches.

We purused the menu, quite extensive with many seafood options and settled on starting with a bowl of crab soup to share and then fresh steamed shrimp with garlic and a mixed platter with lobster, grilled fish, and more shrimp!

We played on the beach while we waited for our food to come, picked up some shells, checked out the fishermen's catches. When the food came, we were blown away by the sheer amount of food we ordered. All of the dishes came with rice, beans, and farofa (below!) (toasted manioc/yuca flour -- found everywhere in Brazil!).

I dug straight into the shrimp -- so sweet and succulent -- and then the lobster -- and then... the fish. The fish was my favorite part. So fresh, flaky, and flavorful. The skin was crispy and the meat, although flaky, was not dry. I could have eaten the entire thing.

With full bellies, we rested on the beach for another hour and then began the journey back to Fortaleza (promptly falling asleep in the van). If you're ever in Ceara, please go to Morro Branco! It was simply a magical, beautiful place and well worth the journey.

Giovanni's Shrimp Truck - Hawaii

For no good reason, I'm posting about Giovanni's Shrimp Truck today... or really, for no other reason than I love Hawaii, wish I was there right now, and adore the shrimp truck. Located on the North Shore of Oahu (this is the Kahuku one, but I've heard rumors of a Hale'iwa one...), the drive is worth it to get these sweet, fresh, dripping in garlic shrimp with two scoops of rice. If you are brave (and enjoy spicy food!), get the spicy version... be prepared with loads of napkins!

For more shrimp truck details, check this out...

Happy Pumpkin Day! - Pumpkin Gnocchi in Brazil

Now, when you think of Brazil, you think...beaches, ocean, teeny swimsuits, and, well, warmth. But, while I was there this past month, it was cold. At least, part of the time. And rainy. Brazil is coming off of winter and in the midst of spring right now...

The night we arrived in Rio, we were tired ... and starving. It was a bit chilly and all I wanted was something warm and delicious. We ended up at Bar d'Hotel at the Marina All Suites in Leblon/Ipanema. The food there was fabulously fresh and even better, deliciously decadent. After much debate, I went with my craving and got the pumpkin gnocchi. It was covered in this creamy cheese sauce, had crunchy onions on it, and each gnocchi melted on my tongue.

Delicious success!

Carnivorous much? Churrascaria Take One

So, I've plunged into the state of the "meat coma" on several occasions -- our location of choice was always Fogo de Chao for the infamous meat coma. "Avoid the salad bar! It's a trap!" were always the warnings before heading to Fogo - don't get me wrong, the salad bar at Fogo is QUITE delicious, but that is its danger ... filling up too much before settling down with the little red and green card, for the onslaught (ok, no pun intended) of men with swords of meat.

So of course, I had to go to a churrascaria in Brazil. We asked around, trying to find one that wasn't OVERLY touristy to go to, but one that would also satisfy our steak cravings. We decided on Marius (note: as oppose to Porcao, a chain that has also found itself in Miami and New York), known for both their meat AND their seafood. We kept in mind the warnings again - avoid the salad bar! Don't fill up! We take a cab up Copacabana Beach to Marius - it was pouring rain and the gentlemen at Marius happily brought us from our taxi under umbrellas. And in we walk... and what a surprise. Of course I had in my head images of Fogo - dark wood, spacious surroundings, very classic looking... and of course I had images in my head of, well, a steakhouse. At least an American steakhouse? Little did I realize that I actually had these visions... didn't really realize it until I entered Marius. Marius is wonderfully ... kitchy?

I loved how it looked. We sat in the room with high ceilings that had all sorts of housewares hanging from the ceiling - old car parts, an old bed frame, pots, pans...flags of random countries... and then a wall covered in colorful porcelain plates...
and then the bathroom floor covered in semi-precious gemstones (unpolished but identifiable... i loved it... for someone that was once very interested in geology, this was a very unexpected, yet pleasant surprise). Another room looked to be covered in shells.

In any case, I digress. The waiter asks us, meat or seafood. We exclaim, in unison no less, "meat!" We are seated and are invited to try to the buffet first and then the steak/meat would follow. We were familiar with this procedure and dutifully inspected the "salad bar." Much to our delight, the salad bar was not so much "salad" but a seafood bar. Think piles of raw oysters, crab legs, broiled lobster, raw calamari, raw shrimp, steamed shrimp, grilled fish, sauteed mussels... the list could go on and on. Irresistable... and resist we could not, so we filled our plates with seafood (and I added some asparagus and hearts of palm to my pile...). When we arrived back at our table, our plates were stacked two or three high, in preparation for switching out plates. We dined on our seafood, without any regret although our stomachs were filling up... and then the meat started to arrive. One chef in particular kept coming around with a cutting board of different cuts of meat... there were no swords here. I admit, the tourist in me wanted to see swords. But the presentation was still very nice and the meat itself very good. I mistakenly said that I liked my meat "medium" ... medium resulted in well-done meat every time and at some point, I just stopped getting meat for myself, and ate off my companions "rare" (read: medium to medium rare) cuts. We had many parts of the cow - sirloin, filet mignon, rib eye etc... chicken legs, pork loin, and sausages also came around. The meats were generally tasty, albeit a bit salty and some dry (we found that much of the food in Brazil is saltier than we would normally prefer). The selection was less so (meat-wise) compared to Fogo, but the smaller selection of meat was made up for by the seafood selection (although I will admit that I missed the bacon wrapped chicken and bacon wrapped steak that I always looked for at Fogo).

Next time, we decided we would do it differently. One of us (or perhaps two) would get the "seafood" option and the other two (or one) of us would get the "meat" option. We spied on the tables near us that got "seafood" and instead of having steak brought to them, different types of seafood made with many different preparations were brought to them. Think the buffet but even more.

There was also a dessert bar... I wandered over there to check it out, but my belly was way too full. The dessert selection didn't look as promising, plus it costed extra. One thing I wished I would have tried there was a caipirnha... I've yet to have an actual one here (I don't count the teeny one with the feijoadas), and there was this push tray of glasses and caipirinha ingredients next to our table. Marius actually has their own cachaca. Next time. We've seen churrascarias everywhere in Rio and Fortaleza. I'm not sure if they are actually filled with tourists or locals... or perhaps both. Marius seemed to have a mix of company -- we arrived on the earlier side, and two large tables of who appeared to be locals were finishing up birthday celebrations, before several waves of non-locals arrived. We head back to Rio after our stay in Fortaleza... I admit that I am curious to try another churrascaria. Perhaps we will venture back. As for now, we are eyeing some of the restaurants in Ipanema for more modern fare... We'll have to see.

A Day's Worth of Eating - Feijoada

It was our first day in Brazil - we flew in overnight and arrived at 8 am that morning. With little more than two cantaloupe slices and a yogurt in our stomachs, we were in search of lunch. We had heard about the "national Brazilian" dish - feijoada - and definitely had it in our plans to try it... We had also heard that it was only served on Saturdays (the day we arrived) and that it was... rather filling. There was one place though that offered feijoada every day - very uniquely named, Casa de Feijoada, so we thought that we could always go the next night... In any case, equipped with no other knowledge than a basic idea of the pronounciation, "fay-zho-a-da," we ended up at Casa de Feijoada that afternoon. We had someone that was showing us around Rio and we asked that he take us to a low key restaurant that served traditional Brazilian fare, with plans to enjoy a churrascaria that night. He dropped us off at Casa.

No worries! We were quite hungry and some solid food would probably be a good plan before our (rainy) journeys to the Corcovado (the Christ statue) and Sugarloaf mountain that afternoon. We were ushered into this surprisingly small and cozy restaurant, to a corner table by the window. Immediately, food started to appear at our table... olives, toast, teeny little pots of black bean soup (the waiter demonstrated that we should be sipping this soup)... soon after appeared scoops of fried little sausages (salami!) (delicious)... and quite soon after (and notably after we ordered our very tall beers), the waiter appeared with two glass bottles. One had an orangey colored liquid in it and the other a pale green. We spied these at other tables, poured into little sipping glasses. The orangey colored liquid turned out to be passion fruit liquor... or the passion fruit version of a mini, high-powered caipirinha. Caipirinha... mmmm. The pale green liquid was "lime" flavored, and the flavor that I normally associated with the delicious caipirinha.


We tried the "traditional" feijoada (although I admit that I don't know what the "non-traditional" feijoada would have included) -- our waiter asked us repeatedly if we wanted it for three people... naturally we thought well yes, we are three people, so we would want three feijoadas. But after we agreed to three, we started to look around at the other tables, and became worried by the sheer amount of food coming to these other tables. Did they also order one for each person? Were they sharing one feijoada amongst five people? By this time, it was too late, because the parade of food began again. To our table appeared white rice, red beans, "collard" greens (bright green cabbage), yuca fries, "farofa" (more on this later), pork rinds, and two large bowls of meat. One bowl contained a medley of meats -- salted pork, sausage, bacon, dried beef, pork ribs... the other bowl also contained a medley of meats, but other parts of the pig... ears, feet, perhaps tail? I generally stuck with the first bowl (I am a bit squeamish about certain animal parts) but my family dove right into the second bowl.

We found the feijoada to be quite tasty (a bit salty...but as you'll see, that's the theme with our Brazilian food experience), but overwhelming in quantity! After feeling slightly tipsy from the "chopp" (beer) and the mini caipirinhas (and very little food for breakfast) and then filling our tummies with pounds of food, we had no idea how we were going to run around Rio's famous mountains all afternoon. Dessert, at least for me, gave me an extra boost of sugar-filled energy... yes, they look like three blobs of unknown origin (or baby food like), but I actually found them very flavorful. My favorite was the dulce de leche (mmm, so happy to find this everywhere in Brazil!) -- this is the bottom one. The others were (I think) banana (left) and papaya (right).

By the time we waddled out of Casa de Feijoada, the restaurant was filled with other guests happily eating away. I can see why this is usually a one-day a week meal... it is an experience within itself and could surely fill you up for an entire weekend and perhaps an entire week.