The Epicurean Visits the Acropolis in Greece

Greece

We didn’t get to sample much of Athens local cuisine as it poured most of the day we were there. Actually, it didn’t start raining until we were on the Acropolis marveling at the Parthenon. The thunder, lightning, and torrential down pour, I’m sure, was Zeus telling us to get the hell off his sacred hill.

However, on the Greek island of Rhodes there were many small restaurants with menus that we would expect to see back in the states. Gyros, souvlaki and dolmedes were part of the standard fare as was the Greek salad which was probably a tourist thing. However, we did notice that vegetarian cuisine was getting to be more prominent the farther east we went.

The Rhodes produces olive oil and we brought back a bottle for Chef D to compare to several others we purchased in Italy. Maybe he will give us his opinion on  Beyond the Kitchen in the near future.

The Epicurean Video Blogs from Italy- The Cannoli Hunt Begins

The Epicurean for Beyond the Kitchen

My wife and I and several other couples recently spent several weeks in the Eastern Mediterranean visiting Rome, Naples, Athens, Rhodes, Kusadasi, Turkey, Israel, Alexandria and Cairo. Before we left home, Chef Gilbert asked if we would take note of any culinary experiences or observations that might be of interest to Beyond the Kitchen aficionados. As it turned out in nearly everyplace we visited there was something worthy of note. We took pictures and shot some videos, which Ben edited for prime time.

Italy

As our mode of transportation between these distant places was by ship, we arrived in Rome several days before we sailed. We didn’t hit Naples until the end of the trip, but some of the things we found there are linked to what we learned and experienced in Rome, so I put the two together. Naturally, we took in all the tourist attractions we could in Rome, including the Vatican where we had a private tour of the public areas, which avoided having to wait in the ticket line that ran for several blocks around the high walls that make up the country’s border.

Our guide first took us to the Vatican’s collection of ancient Greek and Roman artifacts, before going down the long tapestryed halls to the Sistine Chapel and finally into St Peter’s and the famous square where the Pope appears in his bedroom window on Wednesdays, I think. I was disappointed it was Thursday, because I wanted to yell up to him and ask if he had been given the original recipe for Eggs Benedict when he took the name. Rumor has it one of the Popes named Benedict came up with recipe during the middle ages! Or maybe it was Benedict Arnold.

Anyway, beside the well preserved statues and busts of emperors, senators, and wealthy Romans in the Vatican museum there was an odd looking stone table with 8 hollowed out holes about 6 inches deep and about 10 inches in diameter. Georgiana, our guide, told us this was the forerunner to the chaffing dish and used to keep food warm. The large number of holes indicated that it probably was used for banquets rather than in a home. Maybe it was on the line at Libby’s Cafeteria. Or is that Lubby’s? We also visited Pompeii and saw several homes with 2 holers. It probably took a lot of sterno to heat up the granite they were made of to keep the food hot!

Travel Summary of Africa to Amsterdam. Flights. Miles. Time. Kilometers. Climate. Weather. Find it all Here!

Time to call this one a wrap!  Ben and I are just totally beat from the intense  traveling. Here we are at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam awaiting our flights.  Its 5am here, and Ben and I find ourselves watching the cleaning crew and graveyard shift getting ready to leave. We sit here reflecting on this trip, this was a trip of a lifetime!  I am heading directly back to Dallas, Ben to Atlanta then to Birmingham, AL, so saying adios in Amsterdam (shortly), until I see him in Dallas in January.

In 23 days we covered the following ground-

14,058.8  air miles

3 continents (US, Africa, Europe)

Crossed over 3 massive bodies of water

drove 2,394 miles (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana) map of our driving trip

consumed roughly 6 pounds of wild game biltong

walked roughly 40 miles each

drank 41 gallons of water

crossed 6 borders

experienced 8 climate & terrain changes

ate zebra, giraffe, gimmsbuck, warthog, ostrich (and egg), panakoken, and many other treats- (you will just have to go back through all the food finds in the blog from the trip!)

saw some of the best sunrises/sunsets, wild animals, art, & architecture in the world!

That is some intense stats to produce in the better part of 3 weeks!  Stay tuned for more  adventures, we spent the countless driving hours figuring out where next.  And of course how to  become a full time tri-lingual  “Ninja”-

Travel.Cook.Eat.

Thanks for following the Africa to Amsterdam Adventure,

Chef David & Ben

Amsterdam Red Lights. Amsterdam at Night. Simply Amsterdam!

When dusk falls in Amsterdam the city begins to buzz in a whole other light.  The working class gathers at one of Amsterdam’s many squares and enjoys a few cocktails with friends and colleges before returning to their respective homes.  The city’s subculture emerges slowly and surely.  The restaurants fill up, the pubs and street cafes get crowded and the sounds of Dutch club music begin to heighten throughout the city.

Amsterdam has something for everyone- there is no shortage of great finds and if you do enough digging there are many speakeasy’s and private clubs to indulge in.  I took Ben to visit some old haunts from the younger years.  Some were still up and running, sadly  others had been laid to rest.  Here are some great night shots from our time out in Amsterdam.

Best Restaurants for Quick Fresh Food in Amsterdam. Falafels in Amsterdam.

Ben and I were craving some good quick food after walking around all night.  I kept raving to him how I used to eat falafels from this little shop just a few blocks from Restaurant Vermeer.  It seems as time changes so do the storefronts, so we had to seek another local.  We discovered this great place just by Dam Square on the East side.  Ben and I could hardly control ourselves when we came across this food find.

The falafels were packed with just the right amount of herbs and fried up perfection.  They were rolled up in warm flat bread and served with a variety of toppings.  I ate mine with some simple yogurt, cucumber and chili sauce.  It brought back all the memories from the old days in Amsterdam.

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