Top 10 Food Experiences
We are not really foodies and but we compliment each other perfectly in this area, Graeme finishes everything I don’t or won’t eat.
My husband is a carnivore and eats absolutely anything. Once on a Ho Chi Minh City food tour our guides told him he was eating rat and he just kept on eating it. It wasn’t, but still!
I am primarily vegetarian with a little fish thrown in a few times a year and I ate morning glory for three straight weeks in Thailand. Morning glory (water spinach) is like a cross between spinach and broccoli/broccolini and its delicious sautéed with garlic. I should know.
We don’t typically seek out restaurants, we tend to go with what is convenient and local or places we have stumbled upon. All of that said, we don’t have an extensive list of meals that blew us away but the ones that did were memorable.
Here are the best meals we’ve had on our travels:
1. At Home with Sahar, Fez, Morocco – This definitely deserves the number one spot because it was the absolute best thing that happened to us in Fez. We found Sahara through ResiRest, a platform for connecting travelers with local cooks. We dined with Sahar and her husband in their beautiful riad and it is still one of the best travel experiences we’ve ever had. It was an evening of delicious vegetarian food and great conversation. We highly recommend giving this a try on your next trip.
2. Blue Elephant Royal Thai Cuisine, Bangkok, Thailand – We walked right by this restaurant on our first day in Bangkok and decided to pop in to see if we could get a table for lunch. We lucked out and they could seat us. The interior is divine and the tableware and tea sets are gorgeous. It was a fabulous meal and we will definitely go again and take advantage of the cooking school.
3. Il Ristorante, Phuc Quoc, Vietnam – This restaurant was located at the Chen Sea Resort and Spa and the meals we enjoyed there were fabulous. The chef did an amazing job with sea bass en papillote. Delicious!
4. The Warehouse, Alexandria, VA – She Crab Soup! That is all I have to say about this restaurant. We’ve been several times and it only gets better.
5. Beirut, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – This restaurant was across the street from our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City which made it convenient enough that we ate there several evenings after long and full days. The best labnah I’ve ever had and a mezza that included every appetizer on the menu along with some surprises. We had nearly twenty plates and bowls on our table. It was amazing!
6. The Olde Pink House, Savannah, GA – The shrimp and grits were unlike anything I’ve ever eaten. I spent the day in Savannah on a girls trip and lunch here was something else. The grits were lightly breaded, formed into a small cake and fried and served with shrimp, ham gravy, and a side of collard greens. Heaven!
7. Al Biernat’s, Dallas, TX – This is our spot for anniversaries and birthdays and we love it. Its not far from home and the service is impeccable. Graeme usually gets pork or beef and I opt for the salmon or a vegetarian plate. We’ve never had anything that didn’t make us feel that dessert was necessary but we usually do.
8. Food Stalls in Hanoi, Vietnam – We enjoyed wandering the streets of Hanoi’s Old Quarter and sampling food from the street vendors. One of our favorite things was a savory crepe, cooked on a griddle, stuffed with pork or veggies, rolled, folded, and cut into bite-sized portions. I can’t remember the name of this dish but it’s a good one for a chilly day.
9. Hoi An, Vietnam – Banh Xeo (Hoi An pancakes), the signature dish of the city was my favorite thing to order in Northern Vietnam. It consists of a crepe stuffed with shrimp (or not), bean sprouts, herbs, and other fillings. All of this deliciousness is wrapped with lettuce then rice paper and enjoyed. We learned to make this in a cooking class outside of the city and unlike other recipes we’ve tried to replicate at home, this one translated very well.
10. Bangkok, Thailand – Pad Thai at the street market, yummy!
