Screw you vegetarians:
While London’s bipolar weather continued to decline into some kind of post-apocalyptic nightmare I thought it a good idea to escape and join the family in a little Roman adventure.
I spent the weeks leading up to my visit to Rome researching things to do in Rome, this mostly lead me down the usual path of spending many wasted evenings browsing food sites, blogs and ”No Reservations” episodes.
(Seabass and an amazing chocolate covered dessert at Pierluigi)
As Rome is a major tourist destination you will have no difficulty finding some truly awful places catering to the tastes of the average tourist who seems to have no problem shelling out a rather substantial amount of money for truly awful food.
Luckily, by sticking to quieter back streets, doing some research and avoiding big boards in front of restaurants promoting discount meals in English (very obvious advice, but it would appear still a necessary one) you can find some truly great restaurants and trattorias to dine at.
On our first day we were lucky enough to find such a place in one of the quiet streets located behind our apartment in Campo de’ Fiori. Being treated to truly simple dishes which focus on using the few ingredients they contain and doing so extremely well is what really excited me about Rome and its food culture. Add to this the cheap prices (especially compared to cities such as London) and you can find some great food for relatively little money (€10 for a main + €6 for half a litre of white housewine).
For those who want to splash out a bit you can get some really amazing food in Rome at places such Pierluigi and Al Bric. Pierlugi, which specializes in serving up the freshest and best seafood, caters more to the suit wearing, champagne popping Western European crowd while Al Bric is my personal favorite which allows for a truly Roman dining experience with quintessential Roman dishes like ”cacio e pepe” which is, for lack of a better word, the dogs fucking bollocks! It truly is a celebration of what I consider be the Italian way of cooking. By only using a few ingredients (spaghetti, Pecorino Romano cheese and fresh cracked black pepper) and using these extremely well it is, with the help of some superb Barolo wine, able to romanticise the great city that is Rome.
(Note some of the outrageously expensive wines on the ridicilously large wine list, and slow cooked lamb in red wine sauce at Al Bric.)
Besides eat amazing food and drink some suprisingly cheap Peroni (€3 for a 660 ml. bottle) I was also forced to dive into the architectural and cultural beauty that is Rome, Fortunately this isn’t too bad when you are walking around in what basically is one massive open air museum. I visited the usual places; the Colloseum, the Forum, Pantheon and saw some pretty amazing frescos in my many walks during the city. I even had a little look inside the Vatican. But in the end it seems my mind is only truly satisfied with the hunt for and devouring of tasty shit so I dragged my parents and sister through the Prati district behind Vatican city to go hunt down the famous Pizzarium. This hole in the wall place has been made rather famous by the great Anthony Bourdain and prices reflect this, but fuck me does this place bake up some amazing pizza slices! The fact they sell some amazing cooled wines only made our retreat from the sun sweeter.
After a week of gaining several kilo’s in body and destroying my liver even further I was forced to return the city I call home, leaving Rome’s 27 degree weather and glorious sunshine it sure was fun to step back into a torrential downpour back in London just to once again make me question why the fuck I live in this city/country. It might have something to do with my rather amazing super power to turn as red a lobster as soon as the sun touches my face. I should pitch this amazing ”Lobster Man” superhero to Marvel for their next Avengers film, it would sure do well. - Van Der Kock.
Some amazing stuff from the mind of the great and crazy Anthony Bourdain.
anthonybourdain:
Generally speaking, there are two distinct audiences for this show: people who like to look at images of food and are interested in where it comes from and how it got to the plate—and people who like to travel—or like the idea of travel—and enjoy watching images of faraway places and cultures.
8 seasons of No Reservations in 80 seconds
Will have to try this amazing looking dish out soon!
Vegetarian Moussaka
This is the best vegetarian Moussaka I’ve ever made. I couldn’t have been more pleased with this dish. The flavors worked perfectly. The texture of the chickpeas and soy beans is simply excellent. The thin aubergine slices melt in your mouth, just like they’re supposed to, and the “bechamel” sauce adds a glorious touch of smooth and tangy creaminess.
I returned to London at the end of January, just in time for my friend Mark’s birthday. For a celebratory meal we ventured to Hawksmoor on Commercial road where we indulged in what has got to be the best steak I’ve ever had (and I’ve had my fair share of these heart disease inducing bad-boys).
After a few Indian Pale Ale’s I ended up going for a rib-eye steak and a side of Mac ‘n Cheese (a love of Mac ‘n Cheese is one of many new food obsessions that New York has provided me with).
*apologies for the less than clear photo’s, I was rather drunk by the time dinner was served*
The perfectly cooked medium-rare steak blew my mind, even though the total cost of the meal was a staggering £50 for just myself, I would have no difficulties going back again real soon.
It has been 2 months since I left New York but due to technical issues it has taken me this long to finalize my pictorial journey of New York’s food heaven.
On my very last day in New York, before heading to the worst airport ever (Newark), Jason took me to Amy Ruth’s in Harlem.
I had never before experienced the delight that is good soul food so I was keen to delete this from my to-do-list in New York (In actuality it is more of a ”where-to-eat-list”).
We started off with amazing complimentary corn bread before deciding on fried chicken and waffles for myself and Jason got the smothered chicken.
It was an amazing closure to an amazing 3 months in New York, and the homeless guy taking his clothes off outside only made it a more noteworthy departure.
