Greece: Santorini, Sugar

Location:

Zoto's

It was the same place where we got the gelato. This time around it was for the magnificent and ENORMOUS sugared puff pastry.

YUM!

Greece: Santorini, Perissa Beach, Taverna Korali

Location:

Perissa Beach, Santorini

The ocean combined with time in the sun never fails to cause the biggest rumbling stomach, wouldn't you agree?

Souvlakis and beers all around, I say!

And while it certainly wasn't the best souvlaki in town, being right by the beach having a cold beer is more than one could ask for.

Greece: Mykonos, Catari

Location:

Aghia Anna | Old Port, Mykonos Town 84600, Greece

www.catari.gr

What a delightful and delicious find! After our sunset meal, and some window shopping and exploring of the island, we searched for dinner. Coming upon Catari and it's adorable outdoor seating and pretty lights made it an easy choice for a pizza dinner. Enough of gyros and fries, I say. As everything else in Greece, it was pricey, but the service, atmosphere and chilli flakes from home-grown chillis on a delicious pizza pie made for a wonderful evening.

Greece: Athens, Breakfast: Makriyianni 3

Location:

Makriyianni 3, Athens

Nile Guide

It's time for breakfast + the Acropolis! 

Who knew we'd have a view of the Acropolis from our breakfast nook situated on Makriyianni street?

Splendid. As was the sandwich and croissant. Greek coffee is going to take me some time getting used to though.

Great little cafe/deli, with a fantastic vantage point of the Acropolis. I'm happy to see the Nile Guide agrees!

Greece: Athens, Tzitzikas kai Mermigas

Location:

Mitropoleos 12, Athens 10563, Greece

tzitzikas-mermigkas.gr

MAP

As soon as we arrived in Athens, we were starving and decided to check out the Plaka district. We asked a group of cops at the corner (we did wonder why there were cops hanging around in that area) for a recommendation of tasty and authentic fare that would be casual but not "fast food". They directed us around the corner and down a street. We were skeptical, and unsure if we'd know where it was, but then we found it easily as it was the only restaurant on a side street that had light spilling out onto the street, cheerful patrons and the delicious smell of seafood.

The BEST. I finally found the name and map to the restaurant, with a little bit of sleuthing on Google Maps! I don't know how to pronounce it, but if you're ever in the Syntagma Square area of Athens, GO THERE!

We had red wine, Mythos greek beer, a giant Greek Tzitzikas (just found out that it means salad) which is my favourite type of salad and a giant fried seafood basket. 

Amazing service, and INCREDIBLE food!! Sigh..to eat those olives once again. 

Amsterdam: Hilton Hotel: Half Moon Lounge

It was raining pretty hard as soon as we arrived in Amsterdam, and it remained fairly wet and quite chilly throughout the trip. As soon as we got to The Amsterdam Hilton, made famous for John Lennon & Yoko Ono's "Bed-In-For-Peace", all we wanted to do was have a quick bite to eat and some tea.  So, while we waited for our room (not the John Lennon/Yoko Ono presidential suite, alas), we dined at one of the hotel's resturants, the Half Moon Lounge. We ordered some teas and a falafel sandwich with a side of fries.  How amazing was this sandwich?  And the service was wonderful and unintrusive while we relaxed by the huge canal side windows. Highly recommend this hotel, which has beautiful rooms and bathrooms with gorgeous canal views and a spectacular breakfast buffet, which may make an appearance on Foodhogger, later.

Boston: Temazcal Cantina

Location:

250 Northern Avenue
Boston, MA
www.temazcalcantina.com

We went to Temazcal to celebrate my BIL's birthday.
It was one of those early Fall September days, so the rain was coming down, and it was a Friday so we did get caught in rush-hour traffic.

On top of this, a few things to note:

Temazcal doesn't take reservations.

They have valet parking which is $20 (!) but you get it validated by the restaurant so it's actually $16 (!). (There will be much usage of exclamation points in this post).

We had to wait at the bar for our table, which was to be about a 45 minute wait. (!)

We had a round of cocktails - the mojitos were served in these giant glasses, with the thick rim, you know the kind, when the rim of the glass fills your whole mouth as though you won't be able to get a sip to drink? And the entire drink had far too much ice for enjoyment.

Then we were seated and given iPAD menus!

My BIL mentioned how unhygienic something like that would be to use - but then again, so are paper/laminated menus as well.  They say menus are the filthiest of all.

But I digress.

The light emanating from the iPads were incredible - all of our faces were highlighted in a blue glow, but as soon as we'd all ordered and the iPads were taken away, it was as if someone had turned off a light.  We were left to make conversation with ourselves, without the entertainment of swiping through the menu.

The view from the restaurant is quite lovely, and I must say the interior is really nice.  Watch out for the slippery floors though - not a friend of a lady and her heels!

Beside us, a table was served with an ENTIRE PIG (LECHON ASADO)!  Gross to the vegetarians of the table (and although I don't eat chicken anymore, but do eat bacon - don't ask - I was also not happy to catch the visual).

For the table we ordered the "GUACOMOLE DE LA MIXETA" which doesn't come with chips by the by.  Is this not weird to anyone?  We then had to order a couple of chip plates.

The guac was AMAH-ZING.  And very filling.

I ordered the HUACHINANGO A LA VERACRUZANA (red snapper with plantain mash).  It was incredible; the portion was huge and the entire thing was absolutely delicious.

My Mom got the POLLA A LA PERILLA MEXICANA which she loved (surprising, as she's very hard to please)!

Unfortunately those were the only dishes at the table that were good.

This is also largely due to the fact that 98% of the menu is non-veg, and although on the phone they said they'd be able to make any dish veg, our server didn't think so.  Thus, the only real veg option was the ENCHILADAS VERDES, which was not a huge hit; the BIL especially did not like it.

The QUESADILLA BOLILlOS (chicken) were average.  

The MOLE PABLANO (chicken mole) was served alone without any side of rice or anything.  Hard to eat that much mexican chocolate without any carbs, you know what I mean?

Our server, however, was good, and tried his best to accommodate our dietary restrictions as much as he could.

Still, most of the group, aside from me and my happy red snapper, felt like their meals were a huge rip-off in the end.  Fancy Mexican is apparently not for this family.  Maybe we're just happy with our version of Mexican dinners, with our Uncle Bens Spanish rice and refried beans.

OLE!

TRAVEL: Montreal: Nil Bleu

Location:

3706 Rue Saint-Denis
Montreal, QC

http://www.nilbleu.ca/

Hands down the best Ethiopian restaurant I've been to thus far.  But don't ask me, ask my Mom and Mom-in-Law who couldn't stop raving about it.  And they know how to cook, if you know what I mean.

The dishes we ordered were:

YETIMATIM SALAD $4.95 (tomatoes, onions, green peppers seasoned with lemon and olive oil dressing)





the VEGETARIAN PLATTER FOR TWO $27.00 (potatoes/cabbage/carrots, lentils, spinach)

and YEASSA TIBBS $14.95 (sole cooked with green peppers ginger).  

One thing to note is that the fish came on the same platter as the veggie platter, which may not be good for those who are strictly vegetarian so be sure to make this request when you order!

We also ordered the house wine, which was a Spanish red and quite good.

They gave out damp napkins to wipe our hands with but didn't take them away like one would with hot towels, so we realized we had to keep them, and it made sense later as we ate that it was easier to wipe our fingers with.  Be warned that you will leave with turmeric stained fingers nails (even after washing) after dining here, but let me assure you, it's well worth it! 

Everything was delicious...and the injera kept coming until we were completely and utterly stuffed.



The exotic decor, which is what I want my home to look like (think animal prints, African sculptures, white leather couches) is beautiful and seems very new. 



My hubby who'd eaten at Nil Bleu perhaps 12 years ago didn't remember it looking like this!  The fancy bathrooms round up the upgraded look.  



The service was a tad slow, but since we weren't in a hurry, it didn't bother us and overall the service was sweet and attentive.  Thank you to Chakib & Rahel for making our Moms very happy :)



Great place for dates or groups and has outdoor seating.  I've already recommended Nil Bleu to my family and friends who are visiting Montreal next month!

Outstanding in the Field

I love this concept, an outdoor dining experience set in a variety of wonderful locations with the focus on local ingredients and a meal prepared by a local gourmet chef.

Fantastic!

Check out their website.  Where can I sign up?



(Images from Outstanding In The Field)


Via exPress-o - Thanks Diana!

Frugal Fare #6: The Banknote

Location:
663 King Street West, Toronto

The Banknote is one of those work-lunch and after-work dinner/drinks places serving up burger & beer type meals in a bank setting.  Yes, aptly named The Banknote, as it used to a bank, they still have the ol' vault in the back and teller booths.  If that ambiance doesn't suit you, there's always their cosy patio on the King Street side.

It's a great place for post-rock-climbing eats as Rock Oasis is just around the corner!  I'd choose this over The Wheatsheaf, if you were wondering. :)



Burger and fries special



Pasta of the day:



Eggplant Parm Burger:



Penne:



Chicken Burg:



Fish n' Chips: