Food + Drink

Great Artisanal Ice Cream Parlors

Artisanal ice cream parlors across the country are whipping up innovative flavors to satisfy our ever-evolving palates. Here, four sweet spots.

Seattle: Molly Moon’s has gone mobile with a just-launched dessert truck that serves house-made flavors and ice cream sandwiches. Favorite flavor: Hibiscus sorbet. 1622 N. 45th St.; 206/547-5105.

New York City: Manhattanites can’t get enough of Italian import Il Laboratorio del Gelato—its new Lower East Side branch is five times the size of the original location on Orchard Street. Favorite flavor: Tarragon-pink peppercorn.

New Orleans: The cherry- and chocolate-walled La Divina Gelateria is known for its decidedly down-home ingredients. Favorite flavor: Peach Creole cream cheese. 3005 Magazine St.; 504/342-2634.

San Francisco: Owners Jake Godby and Sean Vahey have such a cult following at their retro-mod Humphry Slocombe that they’re currently penning a recipe book about their frozen treats. Favorite flavor: Blue Bottle Vietnamese coffee.

Photo by Davies + Starr

Just Back: Top Food Spots in Southeast Maine

I just returned from a long, 10-day retreat from the hustle and bustle of NYC, for a low-key, beachside getaway up in Old Orchard Beach, Maine with my good friend Peter. Aside from the absolute most perfect weather—which I used to try to trick my sensitive, Canadian skin into thinking that it actually does have the ability to tan—coupled with the calming sound of the crashing waves, we spent a good chunk of our time finding great places to eat. Because that’s what we do when we travel. These are my favorite eateries, all within a short drive of "OOB":

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Singapore's Seedy Neighborhoods and Warehouses Now Hot Spots

With its Art Deco style wet market and pre-War public housing, Singapore's Tiong Bahru neighborhood has been luring thirtysomething artists, architects, and other creatives in recent years, so it was only a matter of time that funky small businesses began popping up in the area.

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We Want Your Job, Diego Felix, Nomad Chef

Is ordering delivery to the office your idea of going locavore? Do your culinary travels consist of drive-thru windows after a long day of work?  If yes, then we invite you to put down the plastic fork and check out this different kind of job: meet Diego Felix, nomad chef.

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Editor Find: North Fork Fish Market

The North Fork of Long Island has been my family’s beach spot for over 30 years. Still, the suddenly chic spit of land 100 miles east of New York City still has a few surprises. The Southold Fish Market is very much a family shop slinging fresh scallops, flounder, and clams. But if you want some really local shellfish, don’t even bother driving home to cook your catch. This seafood shop has a take-out menu (and dockside seating) to die for.

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Montreal Musician Shows and Tells

Over the years, I’ve found one of the best ways to know a city’s best-kept secrets is to talk to its artists. I recently connected with one of Montreal’s rising stars—award-winning filmmaker and musician Daniel Isaiah, who's signed, appropriately, with music label Secret City Records.

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Rogue 24: A New 24-Course Tasting Menu in D.C.

Last month saw the opening of Rogue 24, a new restaurant by James Beard Award-winning chef RJ Cooper, in Washington D.C. Chef Cooper, previously the chef de cuisine at D.C.’s acclaimed Vidalia, was inspired to create his own restaurant concept after “going rogue” at his former post—creating a new, 24-course tasting menu for Vidalia diners.

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Shops from a Can: DeKalb Market Opens in Brooklyn

What do you do with a stack of pre-Credit Crisis megaloplex plans and a 1.5 million square foot, post-Crisis cement hole?  Why, make lemonade, of course!

Since 2008, not-Ft. Greene-not-DUMBO (NoFUMBO?) has awaited 60 stories of neo-ultra-Wow where Brooklyn’s Albee Square Mall once stood.  We’ve scanned the Brownstoner and wondered, watching that blue plywood fence sway in the wind.  Till now.

Now, from Manhattan Bridge to DeKalb, Flatbush Ave. is transformed.  Kiosks direct tourists and Manhattanites. That blue fence?  Gone.

Instead, broad steps descend past produce beds to a canopied dining area.  Shipping containers become boutiques, concessions, a radio station...

Downtown Brooklyn, meet DeKalb Market.  DeKalb Market, DoBro (as promoters say).  Lemonade, anyone?

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The Pour: Paris’s New Global Wine Bar Has a ‘Top Chef’ Connection

At a time when everyone’s a stickler for provenance, the wine atelier O Château has struck a chord with its wine-and-tapas bar concept on the Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau near Les Halles. The concept, in addition to regularly scheduled wine tastings, is to offer a selection of exceptional wines by the glass. The house wine list offers 500 varieties (!) from around the world, with a selection of 40 wines by the glass (!) featured daily. Adding to the charm is the location: this landmark building was once a hotel particulier belonging to Madame Pompadour. A more recent claim to fame is that the chef, Tiffany Depardieu, was recently a contestant on Top Chef. An ideal location and great excuse, as if any were needed, to get to know your Latours from your Margaux. 68 rue Jean Jacques Rousseau, 1st. tel 33-1/44 73 97 80.

Tina Isaac is Travel + Leisure’s Paris correspondent.

Photo Courtesy of O Château

Just Back: Tacos in Tamarindo

If you follow the dusty, pebble-scattered dirt road to Playa Langosta from Tamarindo on Costa Rica’s dense Pacific coast, you’ll observe a small stop sign jutting from tropical foliage, demanding you to halt—for tacos. The sign serves equal parts recommendation and warning, as it’s the last place to catch a bite before Tamarindo’s ubiquitous eateries give way to Langosta’s private beach estates.

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