When you don’t speak the language
By Ann | March 11, 2008
I’m feeling a bit under the weather and not in a very posty or foody mood. But thanks to a recent comment from Emigre on my post Rome vs. Paris vs. New York, I’ve been thinking about language, travel and dining.
About my opinion of less-than-stellar food experiences in Italy, Emigre writes:
“If you don’t speak italian this is your problem. You cannot go yelling around that Italy cuisine is the “worst, tourist-trappy meals of my life” just because you can’t speak italian and find a way to get out of the touristic low-level restaurants!
French are know for being mono-language people. Please don’t let me think of you as of such a persone. I like people who travels, who learn foreigner languages and don’t limit themselves to speaking just english or french.”
First of all, let me say that I totally agree with Emigre — travel and dining are much, much better when you speak the local language! Aside from English, I am lucky enough to speak Mandarin Chinese, which greatly enriched my experiences of living and traveling in China.
Alas, I cannot learn the language of every country that I visit. But how much should speaking the language count? Do you need to be fluent in the local tongue to eat well?
Not so much in Tokyo, I’d argue, where my guidebook led me to a gem of a sushi restaurant (photo above) in the Tsukiji Fish Market, Daiwa Sushi, which was packed with locals and serving the most sparkling bits of fresh fish. I don’t speak a word of Japanese, but no one tried to rip me off, and people even pushed me to the front of the line when a spot for one opened up at the counter.
In Paris, New York, and, yes, Rome, I’d argue that speaking the local language is more essential. But as a tourist, how do you find your way out of the “touristic low-level restaurants” — particularly when you don’t speak the lingua franca?
Topics: Dining Out and About | 1 Comment »
Dining Out and About: Momofuku Noodle Bar
By Ann | March 10, 2008
Last night, I finally got a chance to dine at wunderchef David Chang’s New York noodle bar, Momofuku. Now housed in a new location, East Village hipsters are flocking to the 1st Avenue spot to slurp up Chang’s ramen. The crowd at 8pm on a Sunday night spilled out the door, yet thanks to a stroke of luck, we waited less than 10 minutes for a spot for three at one of the shared tables.
Topics: Dining Out and About | 1 Comment »
Rome vs. Paris vs. New York
By Ann | March 7, 2008
Which is the best food town? On his blog, Bitten, Mark Bittman has some interesting posts (also here and here) on his recent travels to Paris (and, geez, is the guy a prolific blogger! He sometimes has 3-4 posts a day. Long ones, too.) Essentially, he experienced several bad meals in Paris and is wondering — has the City of Light lost its culinary mojo? He left Paris thinking that New York was a better eating city, by far.
Topics: Dining Out and About, In the news | 3 Comments »
Martha, Martha, Martha!*
By Ann | March 6, 2008
*Pronounced as on the Brady Bunch.
Welcome to another edition of Cooking the Books: The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics (yawn). In an effort to review this cookbook more fairly, I’ve decided to try to make at least two recipes from each chapter (I can already cross out “soups and stews,” yay!). Hence, from the “fish and shellfish” section comes this recipe for sole rolls with spinach and lemon slices (pictured above).
Topics: Cooking the Books | 1 Comment »
Introducing: Trading Tastes
By Ann | March 5, 2008
Welcome to a new blog feature, Trading Tastes, in which we feature guest bloggers and their favorite cookbook(s). Today’s guest is Victoria Klein, who creates beautiful kitchens (and, indeed, homes) through her gorgeous interior design work, and is also an intrepid cook and discerning connoisseur of food, drink and books! (Full disclosure: Victoria is also Chris’s stepmother.) Victoria suggests:
June Platt’s New England Cookbook
This is my favorite New England cookbook. June Platt (pictured above) was a well-known cookbook writer of the fifties and sixties and had very sophisticated recipes of the time. When I found a copy of this book at a library book sale years ago I anticipated that these recipes would be excellent and authentic. She has a couple of wonderful recipes for clam chowder and also differentiates Johnny Cakes in terms of the areas they come from. And I appreciate that there’s no cutesy, folksy “ye olde” local color in the way she writes. I love the feeling of the old cookbooks of regional recipes that they have tapped into the sources of food as it used to be and saved the recipes for posterity.
Thanks, Victoria!
Do you have a favorite cookbook that you’d like to share? Leave me a comment or send an e-mail by clicking on “contact.”
Topics: Trading Tastes | 2 Comments »
Two soups
By Ann | March 4, 2008
Welcome back to another edition of Cooking the Books: The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics (every time I type that title I think how boring it is).
I have been industrious the past few days, making not one, but two, soups from the book’s “Soups and Stews” sections. The first, spiced red lentil soup with crispy fried ginger (pictured top), was a rave. Fragrant with cumin, curry powder and ginger, I loved the exotic yet soothing Indian flavors of this healthy soup. My only quibble is that the soup was slightly too thin — in the future I will reduce the liquid to seven cups. Full confession: I was too busy (lazy) to make the fried ginger, but it would provide a delicious, crunchy contrast to the soup’s velvety texture.
Topics: Cooking the Books | 1 Comment »
Dining Out and About: When in Rome…
By Ann | March 3, 2008
When I think of Italy, my mind drifts to… food. I have enjoyed some of the best meals of my life there (an al fresco lunch at La Frasca in Frascati (oops! wrong La Frasca! thanks to Jessica in Rome for the correction! actual address of the La Frasca of my dreams: via Matteotti, 34, 47011 Castrocaro Terme, Forli; tel: 0543 76 74 71) outside of Bologna, particularly stands out). I have also endured some of the worst meals of my life in Rome (specifically the scrambled egg mess of carbonara served at La Volte, Piazza Rondinini 47 — AVOID). Following, are a few of the places and foods I enjoyed on my recent visit.
Topics: Dining Out and About | 4 Comments »
Rome with a view
By Ann | February 29, 2008
I’m back! And oh, Rome was so beautiful… the gentle sunshine, narrow streets, crumbling buildings… the gelato, pizza and artichokes… the coffee, freshly squeezed blood orange juice, and wine…
But I’ll write more about the food later. For now, here are a few pictures.
Topics: Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Cooking the Books hits the road
By Ann | February 20, 2008
Please pardon our molto brief hiatus, while we journey to Rome (photo above taken during our last visit to the Eternal City in 2005). We are looking forward to eating lots of food (pasta! gelato!), drinking lots of special beverages (espresso! cappucino! wine!), wandering around and taking lots of photos… And rest assured that we will share all food/drink/wandering/photographic discoveries with you!
(We may even try to sneak in some on-the-spot blog reporting — fingers crossed!)
Upon our return look for:
- New Dining out and About: Rome
- More Cooking the Books recipe reviews of The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics
Ciao!
Topics: Dining Out and About, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Which wine with Sichuanese food?
By Ann | February 19, 2008
Eric Asimov has an interesting post on his NYT wine and spirits blog, The Pour, in which he discusses which wine pairs best with Sichuanese cuisine. If you’re a regular reader of Cooking the Books, you’ve probably guessed that I am an ardent fan of Sichuan food. I also like wine. But together? Not so much.
The hallmark of Sichuan cuisine is the careful balance of heat, derived from chilies, and numbing, from Sichuan peppercorns. Also known as huajiao, or prickly ash, the peppercorns have a unique flavor, sort of an initial pine-y scent, followed by a tingling numbingness, and a lingering after-effect that (to my palate, at least) makes everything taste oddly tart. Combine this with wine and you’ve got one hot (tingly) mess.
Asimov sampled four wines with his Sichuan dinner, two whites and two reds. None of them were a good fit. He says he’ll keep trying – perhaps a Chinon, maybe a Beaujolais — but my advice would be to stick to beer. Some foods just aren’t meant to be eaten with wine.
Any oenophiles out there care to weigh in?
Topics: In the news | 1 Comment »