Zlatna Skoljka

My dear readers, Croatia is a wonderland. It makes perfect sense why the Romans made this their vacation spot. From the sparkling white marble city of Dubrovnik to the rough alleys of Split, it is something for everyone. I had many a food adventure, but the one noteworthy dinner during my travels was on Hvar Island.

Zlatna Skoljka, which translates to the Golden Shell, touts itself as a Slow Food establishment. I made a note to try this out, after sub-par meals recommended by others in Dubrovnik. We wandered only a few feet past the main square in town and found the entrance. I usually tense up at restaurants that are virtually empty, which was the case here, following that old notion that it equates to bad food. Not the case here! We were seated in the back patio with a couple celebrating their honeymoon after a wedding on the island of Lake Bled (not bad, not bad!). Overall, I think the four of us had the best meal in Hvar that evening.

I found the key to eating on the Croatian coast was focusing on seafood. They also take a cue from eastern European and Turkish cuisine, but I just can't get on board with heavy, artery-clogging dishes. Don't get me wrong...I can get down with the best of them, but I do that in the right places (see upcoming Berlin write-up), not in a fishing village.

Our evening at Zlatna Skoljka started with an octopus salad. At this point in the trip, I fancied myself a bit of an octopus salad connoisseur. You need the right amount of char, balanced with a steady dose of acid to really make this shine...and shine it did!

I then moved on to the goat cheese soup and let me just say, that soup and goat cheese are unlikely bedfellows....this is one of those situations where one would wake up in the morning and do a double take....and not in a good way! Yuck. The goat cheese kind of clumped a bit and every sip was painful. I left this one alone, but didn't have the heart to tell the server, who would relay it to the chef (who I could see by the way the entire evening...open kitchen) that I detested his soup.

Its ok, because next came the Mussels 'Buzara', which is a garlic, tomato, bread-type paste that is then cooked with either shrimp or mussels. A great 'Buzara' should be neither too thick or thin, but just the right consistency to "get stuck" inside each mussel, serving as a flavor complement to the mussel. It was a beautiful thing, this 'Buzara' and Dave and I sucked it all down.

Lastly, came the main affair....Amberjack in a saffron sauce and Squid in a wild orange sauce. Both were truly beautiful. The firm meat on the Amberjack filet somehow soaked up the rich, aromatic saffron sauce....each bite had a heady golden aroma. The squid was again perfectly charred. Each piece was delicate enough for fork only and further benefited from the accompanying tart orange sauce. I must say I wanted to steal both of these sauces to add to my fish repertoire.

We didn't make it to dessert and in retrospect I'm sad. Instead we hauled ourselves halfway back to the apartment and broke down for sub-par gelato. I guess the beautiful blue azure waters made up for the failed sweet;)

Coming soon....Venitian Chicchetti!

Les Papilles

I must admit, Les Papilles made it on the list due to another Anthony Bourdain episode. I watched that show with hungry eyes, itching to jump on a plane to Paris. I had been to Paris before, but felt like this was my chance to do it my way. I must say, since this is one of my last posts for this trip, that Paris is all that and more. Not only the food, but thanks to David I was able to experience the amazing art scene as well. Parisians deserve to be snobby...I would be too if this was my hometown. Instead, I get to be snobby about skiing and hiking :)

Les Papilles is in the Latin Quarter. Its teeming with students, French hipsters, and tourists streaming south from Notre Dame, looking for the "West Bank" experience. The night of our reservation David and I found ourselves caught in a blitzkrieg snow storm, so we jumped from cafe to cafe, waiting for the fooding hour.

Once 7:30 hit, we ducked from doorway to doorway until we finally made it to our spot. The inside immediately reminded me of Antico Roscioli in Rome. Small narrow space, with a larger alcove in the back. One side of the narrow space devoted to wine/beer/bites, and kitchen somewhere in the back.

The menu is set each night. Three courses for 30 some odd Euros....STEAL! This place is also known for its wine, which lines the walls. One word of warning....pick your own bottle. I let the manager pick for us, and then I noticed as I walked the restaurant, almost every other table had the same bottle. I am not disputing the wine was not good, but definitely not great, plus it makes everyone feel special if they think something was picked just for them....just some words of advice:)

The course break-up was as follows:

1. Sweet Potato Soup with Chorizo, Croutons, Paprika, Quenelle of Cream & Crispy Parsley
2. Beef Roast with Carrot, Snap Peas, Wax Potato, Sun-Dried Tomato & Onion in a Red-Wine/Beef Stock
3. Chocolate Mousse with Caramel Foam

The beef roast was achingly good. Perfect morsels of fork tender beef, dripping with rich and balanced red wine juice, cut with sweet medallions of carrot and peas. Everything about this was perfect, in the most simple sense. There was nothing elevated about this...It came out in a huge crock and could easily have fed two, but due to its sheer goodness, not one piece of meat was left. Unfortunately, this meant I could not finish the mousse, but I made sure to scoop out all the caramel foam, which had the ubiquitous French inclusion of the right amount of salt!

Would I come back to Les Papilles....Yes. It is on par with Le Chateaubriand, as one of those places that would be on regular rotation if I were to move to Paris. Ah, how I miss it!

Taillevent

As I said before, I could not visit Paris and not make at least one reservation at an old standby. I did my homework, scoured the "foodie" boards, and finally settled on Taillevent, mere steps from the Arc de Triomphe.

It is super white tablecloth...jacket required kind of place. Also, because I made the reservation for Turkey Day, the place was filled with wealthy WASP-y Americans. Dave and I kind of had a kick talking about and guessing what everyone else's story was.

So on to the food/service/ambiance.

Food was gooood. There was a lot of restraint in each dish. What could have been excessive use of certain new techniques came out with a great counter-balance of French culinary tradition. I am going to apologize in advance for my woefully inadequate descriptions of the food. I somehow failed to grab a menu and therefore only have my hand notes to go off of. Suffice it to say, this is another Sheila "must go" recommendation.

Amuse: marrow with celery mousse

1. Scallop with grapefruit marmalade

2. White fish with eggplant puree

3. Passion fruit souffle

I must say my favorite, was the scallop dish, which was raw brilliance cut with the nuanced acid of the grapefruit marmalade. Also, although I am not a souffle person, this one was great with a passion fruit cream.

I think I also owe a bit on the service at this place. Awesome! It was not in the ass-kissing sort of fine dining school of thought, but just seriously tight. It was a smooth symphony, with everyone chiming in when necessary. Dave is not a fan of any of this, but I appreciate it given my own service background.

Also, although the ambiance is a bit stuffy, the place has definitely gone through a decor overhaul in the last few years. It is done up in a non-offensive melange of creams and browns with comfy banquettes...which I like! They also sit people side by side, which is great if you are with a special someone...or close friend!

So all in all, this was a win, albeit an expensive win....save this one for a special occasion or holiday, but make sure to give it a go.

La Gabinoteca

Ok, so Dave and I follow Anthony Bourdain...a LOT! I have had a mini-crush on him since the publishing of Kitchen Confidential. Dave tried to clear out some of my books awhile back and this one was not going anywhere. When Travel Channel announced the inception of his show, "No Reservations," I nearly wept for joy. So it seems natural that when the Madrid show aired, conveniently a few weeks before our trip, that at least one (but in our case two) spot made my list.

La Gabinoteca is a cool place. Its one of those spots where you feel kind of awesome for finding it and even better after you try the amazing food. This place is headed up by chef, Nino Redruello and I would call the format, "nouveau tapas." Another thing that moves this place high up in the ranking is the affordability quotient. This was one of our favorite restaurants on our long trip, but also one of the cheapest at the end of the night.

So here is a rundown of our meal:

1. Tomate de Almeria en ensalada

2. Berberechos al natural

3. Huevo, patata y trufa

4. Bocata de calamares

5. Carne roja gallega con sal inglesa

6. Fideado con pulpo y sepia

In this instance I am going to recreate my notes for each course. This may seem unconventional, but I don't think I can really elaborate without giving you my first impressions.

1. Heirloom-esque tomatoes with a magic combination of salt, oil, + acid!

2. Cockles served in a can with homemade chips...super oceany; not a fan with the chip, but without it is a chewy, briny morsel

3. Wow...truffle mania...creamy potato; yolky egg; touch of salt

4. Calamari sandwich; Crisp and crunchy tentacles with mayo and a green bell pepper relish

5. Medium rare, rich, velvety, medallions paired perfectly with salty crystals

6. Pasta made from octopus...cross between pasta and octopus in mouth feel with a casserole-esque taste...kind of breadcrumb, cheesy goodness

Sorry if these descriptions seem disjointed, but first impressions are the ones that matter and these are mine. All I can say is La Gabinoteca is one of those places that would make a weekly rotation on any locals list. Anthony did not lead us astray!

Viva La France....Oh and We'll Throw Spain in There Too

Welcome back my dear readers...and once again, sorry for the short hiatus in posts. To be fair, I was out on the road eating, oh and on occasion hitting art galleries and museums with David. Poor thing, he is one of those humans who can eat for eating sake (unless pastries are on the table), and therefore, my food passion is inadvertently forced on him. To be fair, on this trip, as opposed to others, I left huge gaping holes for activity and even booked dinners and lunches in the vicinity of where we would be. So guess what?....I came back from this one 3lbs lighter!!! I have really no idea how that happened with what you will see was a daily food-a-thon. And to be fair, my last Europe trip this summer did not end with any noteworthy results, so I am taking this one as divine intervention.

In the next few weeks you can be expecting posts spanning Spain, including Barcelona, Grenada, Ronda, Sevilla, and Madrid and numerous spots in Paris. One caveat is they will not be underground in the traditional sense, but many are virtually unknown to tourists, so please use these to truly enhance your trip.

I must also make a short plug for the guys at LeFooding. They are revolutionaries in the Paris dining scene, highlighting those places that Michelin leaves behind or only bestows "Bib" status on. Unfortunately, for us Ami's it is only in French, but I hope this will change. Don't expect white tablecloth or spotless sequence of service, but who cares about that stuff anymore (well, some people do...just wait for the Taillevant review)...its all about the food, right? So without further ado...let the reviewing begin!