What to Eat Around the World | Page 67 of 70
Bar Nonna Emilia: Aperitivo in Sorrento's Fishing Quarter
Bar Nonna Emilia sits right on the waterfront of Marina Grande, the fishing quarter of Sorrento, which as late as the 1950s you could only reach on foot down a stairway. A limoncello spritz or a Bellini here comes with a view of the sea and the fishermen at their nets - and with the riddle of two Emilias who between them have been feeding this one street for nearly eighty years.
Limoncello: The Lemon Liqueur from Sorrento and Amalfi
On the label limoncello looks like a centuries-old heirloom, but its documented history only starts in 1988, when someone on Capri registered the first trademark. What kind of liqueur it is, why the IGP mark belongs to the lemon and not to the bottle, how the Sorrento and Amalfi versions differ, and how a bottle carried home from the square below the cathedral in Amalfi tastes.
Torna a Surriento Restaurant: A Sorrento Trattoria Named After a Neapolitan Song
The name is borrowed from the most famous song ever written about Sorrento, but the cooking is Neapolitan. Torna a Surriento is a family trattoria opened in 2017 by a couple from Naples, on a quiet lane a short walk from the main promenade. I ate ragù with polpette, gnocchi alla sorrentina and scialatielli there - and I'd call the bill a lot of music for a song.
Saint-Aubin: The Sunday Market in Toulouse
We got the best food tip in Toulouse over a beer: the bartender sent us to the Sunday market at Saint-Aubin. Once a week the streets around the church fill up with Pyrenean cheeses, a pot of aligot and loaves of pain d'épices sold by weight - plus a flea market and musicians. I came away with a loaf studded with orange peel, and I tasted the aligot.
Aligot: French Mashed Potatoes with Cheese
Aligot is mashed potato from the Aubrac plateau with nearly half a kilo of fresh cheese stirred into a kilo of potatoes. You work it until it trails a rope behind the spoon. Whose dish it actually is, when potatoes entered the recipe and how the truffle version tasted at a Sunday market in Toulouse.
L'Air de Famille: A Toulouse Bistro With a Menu Written in Chalk
L'Air de Famille is a small family bistro in the center of Toulouse that keeps no fixed menu - chef Georges Camuzet chalks the dishes of the day up on a board every morning, depending on what the market has to offer that day. Michelin gave the bistro a Bib Gourmand for it. I explain why half of France fits on a single board, and how we managed to decipher the six courses we picked off it.
Vrátnice Restaurant, Český Krumlov: Lunch Away from the Tourist Traps
Two million tourists a year come to Český Krumlov, and its center is riddled with tourist traps. Vrátnice Restaurant, in a former hospital gatehouse on the edge of town, was the opposite: a place for locals, with a lunch menu and a terrace looking out over the historic center. It closed in August 2024 - today a self-service canteen runs in its place.
Mlýnec Restaurant, Prague: Weekend Brunch
The weekend brunch at Mlýnec Restaurant ranks among very popular events. Guests gradually taste three different appetizers, three main courses, and two desserts. The experience is complemented by unlimited consumption of selected wines, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages. Advance reservation is a necessity due to high demand.
Le Marché: A Tasting-Menu Restaurant in Karlovy Vary
Karlovy Vary is one of the most touristy places in Czechia, and yet you can eat well here, far from the tourist traps. Le Marché, a tasting-menu restaurant on the bank of the Teplá, changes its menu every day depending on what the market has to offer that morning, and it has about ten tables. Without a reservation, though, getting a table is hard.
Spa Wafers: A Crisp Sweet from Karlovy Vary and Other Spa Towns
Spa wafers are two thin round sheets of crisp dough stuck together with a sweet filling of sugar, nuts, cinnamon or chocolate. Karlovy Vary has the oldest record of baking them, and a protected designation that demands thermal spring water in the dough, but it was Mariánské Lázně that gave them the shape they have today. Where the wafers got their name, why three countries fought over them, and why you should buy the warm one on the colonnade.