Hungry Travelers - Page 4 of 80 - Bringing the tastes of travel back home

A New Mexican take on The Bear’s omelet

Posted on September 3, 2023September 3, 2023 by Pat and David

Like many food-obsessed fans of Hulu's The Bear, we had to replicate the omelet that Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) makes in episode 9 of the final season as a gesture of love and comfort for a pregnant Natalie (Abby Elliott). Assuming you have a decent non-stick pan, it's an easy dish. But a few key elements set it apart from the standard omelet. For starters, Sydney whisks three eggs together and then forces them through a medium sieve. We'd never heard to sieving your eggs for an omelet, but it does break down the egg whites so they blend more cleanly with the yolks. That eliminates streaky white sections in the omelet. Sydney also uses three tablespoons of butter in the omelet pan. Pretty much anything...Read More

Pizza by the square, just like in Rome

Posted on August 25, 2023August 25, 2023 by Pat and David

The tavola calda at Panetteria Romana e Spaccio di Paste includes delicious pizzas topped with fresh vegetables. When we admit to people that we are food and travel writers, their eyes tend to get wide as they imagine that we sit down to multi-course gourmet meals every day on the road. But the truth is that we really like to find some local comestible that makes a handy light lunch or supper. In Rome, that's often a square of pan pizza (pizza al taglio) from one of the bakeries. We've read that more than 5,000 establishments in Rome offer pizza al taglio. Romans eat those slices for lunch and all through the afternoon as a pick-me-up snack. The crust for Roman pizza more resembles focaccia...Read More

Summer bounty summons taste memories

Posted on August 16, 2023August 16, 2023 by Pat and David

Unlike many Americans, we decided to stay home this summer rather than crowd the plazas of Europe. We've been enjoying the farmers market and garden bounty of a warm and wet stateside year. The rolling harvest reminds us of some of our favorite dishes we ate overseas. They taste as good at home, even if the ambiance is different. Cherries from the Pacific Northwest have been incredible. They are sweet, large, firm, and more inexpensive than we've seen in years. When we have a lot of cherries, we can't help but think of making clafoutis, a rustic dish we associate with French country inns (like the one above). Most of the recipes we've encountered were geared to rather large baking dishes and made enough clafoutis...Read More

Chicago-style Italian beef springs up near Boston

Posted on August 5, 2023August 5, 2023 by Pat and David

Like many food-crazed Americans, we were mesmerized by the Hulu TV show, The Bear. We even recreated the act-of-love boursin omelet in episode 9 of season 2. (The critical element, we learned, is not putting the beaten eggs through a sieve. Crumbling sour-cream-and-onion crinkle-cut potato chips on top makes all the difference.) Okay. We could do that. And did. And even made our own boursin substitute with goat cheese, Greek yogurt, grated garlic, and chopped chives. It was every bit as good as the original. But there was no way that we were going to experience the show's Italian-American Chicago beef sandwich without an expensive road trip. Or so we thought, until Devra First in the Boston Globe tipped us off to Culinary Delights (229...Read More

Summer in the City means party by the harbor

Posted on July 21, 2023July 21, 2023 by Pat and David

The public right to waterfront access has been enshrined in Massachusetts law since the days of the Puritans. Nowhere has that right been so vigorously asserted as along the wharves of Boston Harbor. When Rowes Wharf was developed in 1987-88, it set a template for public access. What does this have to do with travel and food? Everything. The hotel on the wharf, the Boston Harbor Hotel (617-439-7000, bostonharborhotel.com), has been a model host. And not just to the clientele for its luxury rooms and associated condos. For the 24th year, Boston Harbor Hotel is putting on a series of weeknight programs called ‶Summer in the City.″ On Tuesday through Friday nights through August 25, a live band plays from a floating barge stage. Artists...Read More

A Pinot Noir that turns expectations sideways

Posted on July 17, 2023July 17, 2023 by Pat and David

We confess to being skeptical when we first heard about Crossbarn 2021 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. Need a summer red for fish? Check. Need a summer red for spicy cold salads? Check. Need a wine that plays well with burgers or steak? Check. Need a summer red to sip on the back porch as the sun sets and the fireflies come out to do their darting dance? Check. That would be a red that seems too good to be true. So we got our hands on some of this alleged miracle wine and put it to the test. (Spoiler alert: It passed.) Roughly 20 years ago, the wine-soaked, bittersweet buddy movie Sideways nearly wrecked California Pinot Noir. On one hand, hordes of moviegoers began drinking...Read More

Going to the source for dinnerware design

Posted on July 8, 2023July 8, 2023 by Pat and David

Regular followers of HungryTravelers might have noticed that most of the food we present is served on the same set of dishes. Those of you who haunt flea markets and shops that traffic in collectibles might even recognize them. They're all ‶Iroquois Casual China by Russel Wright,″ launched in 1946. The dinnerware was meant to make modern design accessible to the masses. A teacher or a cab driver could afford the dishes. Decades later, so could freelance writers. Antiques malls and flea markets yielded our collection of Iroquois Casual in four colors: Sugar White, Charcoal, Oyster, and what we think is probably Chartreuse. True to the original advertising, they've proven surprisingly durable. Wright has been a fixture in our home for years. When we learned...Read More

Beard-honored chef draws on deep roots

Posted on June 27, 2023June 27, 2023 by Pat and David

Chef Sherry Pocknett broke new ground when she was named the 2023 Best Chef Northeast by the James Beard Foundation. Pocknett is the first Indigenous chef to win the honor. A member of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, she got her start in the restaurant industry years ago at the Flume in Mashpee, Massachusetts. Her uncle Earl Mills, who championed Native foods at the Flume, was famous for his shad roe preparations. She spent many years catering powwows and special events. She also served as food and beverage manager at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum & Research Center adjacent to the Foxwoods casino. Her current restaurant is a small spot on the side of Rhode Island's Route 2 with overflow seating at outdoor picnic tables. It's casual...Read More

Bar Enza’s breezy fare summons Italian summer

Posted on June 20, 2023June 17, 2023 by Pat and David

We explain the title of this website with the subtitle ‶Bringing the tastes of travel back home.″ Sometimes, though, tastes close to home can be transporting in themselves. It's the middle of June and we're already pining for summer on the Italian coast. But in our case, we can get a dose of that sublime experience by going to Bar Enza (Charles Hotel, 1 Bennett St.; 617-661-5050; bar-enza.com) in Harvard Square. It's nice that the food and wines of the Cinqueterre, the Amalfi Coast, or the beach at Capri are a 10-minute walk from our home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. We have chef Tony Susi to thank for that. Since he took over the helm at Bar Enza in April, he's crafted menus that embody the...Read More

Gavi is Italian for vibrant Piemontese white wine

Posted on June 14, 2023June 14, 2023 by Pat and David

Talk about terroir! Chiara Soldati (above) sums up her family's attitude about the Cortese grape and the village of Gavi. ‶I believe in the native grapes,″ she said at a luncheon at Lola 42 (lola42.com) in the Boston Seaport. ‶In Italy, we are caretakers of so many local flavors. By drinking wine, you understand more about the country.″ Since establishing La Scolca (lascolca.net/en) in 1919, the Soldati family has proven that the Cortese grape can make serious white wines. And they've done it in Italy's Piemonte region, famous for its reds made from Nebbiolo, Barbera, and Dolcetto. This is the district of Barolo and Barbaresco — big reds that rival their counterparts in France's Bordeaux and Burgundy regions. Working with the Cortese grape, the Soldati...Read More