Food + Drink
11.24.09
This past August, I traveled as a writer and social networker with Green Living Project, a non-profit organization that films sustainable programs across the world for inspirational and educational purposes. In GLP's two-year history, the organization has documented over thirty diverse projects in ten countries across Latin America and Africa. I joined Green Living Project’s first domestic trip in the land of plump lobsters, historical small-town reminiscing, and tongue-staining summer blueberries in Maine.
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11.17.09
Though down almost a million visitors from last year, Las Vegas is gearing up for next month’s debut of MGM Mirage’s CityCenter, an $11 billion, 68-acre megaplex that seals the city’s reputation for over-the-top innovation. T+L checks in with Vegas expert Howard Lefkowitz, CEO of booking site Vegas.com, on America’s top vacation destination.
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11.12.09
Every city, it seems, has its own follow-up question, that line that comes after “How are you?” when meeting someone for the first time. In New York City, it’s “What do you do?”; in Austin, it’s “Who are you listening to?”; in D.C., it’s “Who are you voting for?”; and after only one day of visiting my sister in Charleston, that South Carolina city’s question rang out as loud and as clear as the hourly bells on Church Street: “Welcome to Charleston! Grab a seat! Now…what will you have to drink?”
The answer, alas, does not roll off the tongue as easily as the question, and as my sister quickly discovered, locals need to be prepared—with shaker in hand—for almost any answer.
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11.06.09
Behold, in all its glory: my idea of heaven on a plate. Stone crab season officially opened a couple of weeks ago, and I took that as the perfect excuse to head down to the Florida Keys for a blissful weekend of sun and serious seafood binging. Three jumbo claws from the Islamorada Fish Company market, plus a cold Corona or two, made the perfect warm-weather lunch—just the thing to break up a day of snoozing in a hammock and frolicking in the surf.
Stone crab meat is not only amazingly succulent and sweet, it’s also a sustainable food product. (Only one claw is harvested at a time from each crab, which is returned to the ocean to regenerate its claw.)
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10.12.09
Sure, sure, Siesta Key, Florida, is known for having one of the world’s nicest beaches, but it's also home to some of the world’s best breakfasts. The Broken Egg (140 Avenida Messina) came recommended to my breakfast-deprived boyfriend and me upon our arrival at our Sarasota hotel after taking one of those ridiculously early LGA to TPA flights.
“It’s where the locals go,” said the hotel manager (and sure enough the BE’s website plays “Where Everybody Knows Your Name”).
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10.08.09
Travelers to Morocco usually check out the typical attractions: the ancient alleys of Fez, the snake charmers of Marrakesh, the dunes of the Sahara. But on my visit, my friends and I were fortunate enough to discover a relatively little-known escape: the charming, blue-tinged village of Chefchaouen in the Rif Mountains about four hours from Fez.
After a few hectic days getting lost in Casablanca and dodging donkeys in Fez, this relaxing retreat was just what we were looking for. The tiny town is known for its stunning medina, bathed in breathtaking shades of blue. It’s the kind of magical place you plan as a 12-hour detour and wind up staying for three days.
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10.05.09
No one who knows me would ever mistake me for a mountaineer. Though I’ve happily met all manner of challenges on flat ground (including Patagonian glaciers, Australian desert, and Costa Rican rainforest), high-altitude adventures have always set me whimpering.
So recently, I decided to test my fear of heights in the cushiest possible way: with a customized, weeklong guided foray into the Italian Dolomites.
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10.02.09
I received an email invitation to this event a few days ago, got exceedingly excited, and will literally remain excited until the big day: the Chocolate Show, a worldwide celebration of All Things Cacao, is starting its world tour.
Over 65 exhibits include chefs using the miracle ingredient in unusual culinary creations, a Chocolate Beauty Pavilion (with mini-massages!), and—obviously—copious opportunities to taste. $28 to feel like a kid in a candy store again? Count me in.
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09.29.09
"Every time I visit San Francisco I ask out loud 'Why don't I live here?'," traveler-artist-musician-blogger David Byrne recently confessed to the Wall Street Journal. I could not agree more. And I know exactly where I'd live: The Mission.
Two weeks ago I discovered all the basics that I would need in a four-block radius: a perfect grocery store (with an outpost for homemade ice cream), an ideal neighborhood gastropub, and a surprising boutique featuring young designers.
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09.24.09
If you’ve ever traveled to Mexico, you know that—contrary to popular belief—the cerveza más fina south of the border is not Corona, that ubiquitous and admittedly tasty siren of beer. Nor is it Dos Equis (meh), or Tecate (God forbid). No, the country’s best beer is Negra Modelo—a German-style, exceedingly palatable, complex amber lager.
Now you don’t have to go to Acapulco—or even to your best-stocked corner store—to find your favorite Mexican beer. Just grab a pint at your local bar.
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