Best of 2011 (food-related)

A bit belated but here’s my best of 2011 list:

Best mushroom dish- we’ll start with mushrooms since they top my list of favorite foods–my favorite mushroom dish this year was the hongo la plancha con yema, or fried mushrooms with a poached egg yolk from Bar Ganbara in San Sebastian.  Sure, it was probably the spendiest mushroom dish I’ve ordered to date but it was worth it–where else can I experience the tastiness of local Basque mushrooms in a crowded tapas bar?

Best Thai find- I live in Queens which has an impressive selection of Thai restaurants.  After reading a number of positive reviews of Pure Thai Shophouse, I finally gave it a try over the summer and realized on what I had been missing out.  Well executed, fairly priced, uncommon Thai dishes like wok chili tumeric with beef, which I have tried to replicate at home with limited success.

Best sandwich- I’m not a big sandwich fan, but when I read about the bikini sandwich at Tapac 24 in Barcelona, I knew I had to try it.  Sandwich with melted cheese and truffle flecks–I’m there!  And the sandwich did not disappoint–to the point that when I finally came into possession of a truffle many months later, I tried finding a recipe to recreate the sandwich without much luck so I resigned myself to the thought the sandwich was one that can only be experienced in Spain or perhaps some other European country.

Best opening- I like high-end dining but I’m happy eating at The Meatball Shop any day so I was happy when they opened their second branch in Williamsburg, a neighborhood that I go to regularly.  Their restaurant in Williamsburg is way less crowded than the original one in the Lower East Side, which only makes this location even better.

Best new recipe- I’m always perusing Food Gawker and Tastespotting for new recipes but I would say my find of the year is this osso buco recipe.  Have I mentioned that I’ve been obsessed with braised meat dishes since last year?  The bone marrow is definitely a bonus.

Best grain discovery- I tried a gluten-free diet for a month plus and discovered millet in the process.  A good substitute for polenta that pairs well with hearty meat dishes like beef stew and osso buco.

The journey back

We headed back to the airport in the morning and hoped that our scheduled flight would not be delayed.  I took the opportunity to hop online to do a little research on Johannesburg and inform my job that I would not be at work the next day.  Fortunately, our flight was only slightly delayed and it was an easy flight back to Johannesburg.  Following the recommendation of one of the front desk people at our hotel in Cape Town, we took the high-speed train from the airport to Sandton City, an easy 20-minute ride.  We walked to Nelson Mandela Square and ate lunch at an African restaurant overlooking the square.  The food was quite good and we enjoyed a really good pinotage and Adam happily agreed that spending time this way was much better than killing time at the airport.  We checked out the adjacent mall which was huge and then walked back to the train station and caught a train back to the airport.

After checking out some of the airport shops, I made my way to the gate for our flight.  I started talking to a woman sitting near us who grew up in South Africa but had been living in the U.S. for the past ten or so years and to a guy who was taking his first trip outside of South Africa to visit his brother in New York and who had been working a guide at Kruger for seven years.  Then it was time to board the plane and part ways with South Africa.

Morning hike and hanging out with an elephant

We had some time before our departure, so we took the opportunity to walk along the Kruger Park fence in the morning.  It was lovely–there was a river along this part of Kruger and we saw Cape buffalo and hippos by the river and a few birds during our walk.  The first time we saw Cape buffalo, Werner told us that some people say that they look at you the way an ex-wife looks at an ex-spouse who owes her money.

Our lodge offered a number of excursions and I had been hoping to go to the Swaziland Cultural Village but, unfortunately, it was not open so we opted for the elephant interaction excursion.  When we got to the reserve with the elephants, we were informed that the female elephant had escaped the day before.  Unfortunately, this was also the more cooperative of the elephants and the one who played soccer.  But they talked about elephants and had the male elephant demonstrate his strong sense of smell by having us take off our shoes and having him return each shoe to its appropriate owner.  I had an opportunity to touch the elephant and take photos with it and the elephant happily cooperated since it was being fed pellets non-stop.  Then he decided he was thirsty and he walked over to the water faucet, turned it on with his trunk, and drank happily for the next half hour.

After we parted ways with the elephant, Werner dropped us off at the airport where we promptly found out that most of the day’s flights had been cancelled and our flight was postponed due to the fog that enshrouded the airport.  We waited by our gate for several hours before they decided to cancel our flight.  Fortunately, I had gotten a list of local hotels before our flight was cancelled, called one and found they had a vacancy.  One of the airline representatives found a taxi driver for us and we were on our way.  Our taxi driver was very nice and friendly and he agreed to take us back to the airport the next morning.

Our room was small but functional, we ordered in dinner, watched a little TV, and went to bed.

Kruger National Park, Day 2

Another day, another early morning.  We set off to the park and Werner, our guide, pointed out a jackal which I was excited to see.  As we drove on, we came across a group of giraffes which included two baby giraffes, probably less than a week old Werner pointed out because you could still see their umbilical cords.  It was fun seeing them running and playing.

This section of the park was noticeably more green.  Werner pointed out that the area had recently been burned and was starting to regenerate.  We stopped off at a bird hide and then made our way to a spot to have breakfast.  We spent much of the rest of the day driving through the park and spotting different animals.

Kudu

A highlight for me was definitely seeing this owl, a Pearl-spotted owlet, the smallest owl in South Africa and one of the few diurnal owls.

Before we left the park, we also saw some Cape buffalo.

After we returned to the lodge, we went for a short walk along the fence that marked the boundary between Kruger National Park and Marloth Park, the reserve that our lodge was located in.  We chatted with a couple that we met on our way back and were sad when they didn’t invite us to feed the bush babies at their lodge.  The sunset was lovely though.

It was our last night at the lodge and we enjoyed some conversation with Werner who talked about his experiences growing up in post-apartheid South Africa and shared a funny story about a previous guest who was a very brawny man who, on his first night at the lodge had the misfortunate of hearing a lion make some very ferocious noises, retreated to his room and didn’t leave his room for the rest of his stay, even taking meals in his room. 

Kruger National Park, Day 1

We woke up early for our first day at Kruger National Park.  We climbed into the open air vehicle intended for the safari drive and made our way to the park entrance.  The roads leading there were largely unpaved or under construction and very bumpy.  After stopping off at the entrance, we started our drive through the park and I noticed the landscape was dotted with many broken trees, the result of too many elephants within the park.  Sadly, by this time, my camera battery was pretty depleted so I took pictures sparingly but we were very impressed with the ease with which we saw animals, which ranged from herds of impala to wildebeest to white rhinos to elephants, giraffe, and zebras.

We were fortunate enough to have seven sightings of lions over the course of the two days we spent at Kruger though, unfortunately, no sightings of any leopards or cheetahs.

We made our way to a bird hide which, I was sad to find out was closed.  At one point, we got stuck in traffic behind an elephant that decided it wanted to walk along the road for some distance.  After our day safari, our guide dropped us off by the entrance so we could join the night safari.  At first, we spotted the same types of animals we had seen during the day but, as darkness set in, we began seeing nocturnal animals.  We saw a jackal, scrub hares, an eagle-owl, and a serval.  The sightings were cool but the spotlights we used to see the animals attracted tons of insects so we were pelted by them for the three hour ride.  The night safari ended and our guide drove us back to the lodge where we had a late dinner and retired to bed.

Panorama Tour

We had a tour booked for our first day and our guide, Justin, picked us up at the lodge that morning.  Our first stop was a town with a bunch of shops.  One of the stores sold silk products and made, processed, and wove its products in-house.

We stopped off at a scenic site and then to see a waterfall.

We then stopped off at another place with nice views of Blyde River Canyon and Justin was kind enough to bring us to a secret spot with his favorite view in the area.

Our next stop was at a small town for lunch, savory pancakes cooked South African style.  Then it was onto Bourkes Luck Potholes.

Along the way, Justin regaled us with tales of working as a guide on a 20+ day overland tour, getting kicked in the knee by a giraffe, and the perks of working as a guide in South Africa.  He took a short cut back and we encountered cattle on the road along the way.

We returned to the lodge, relaxed for a bit, and then convened for dinner at the side yard.  This time, we were joined by a group of Swedes staying at the lodge along with the resident guide.  It was nice conversing with other guests and, after dinner, one of them shared the photos he had taken during his safari drives.  They were extremely good and very impressive and made me excited about our upcoming safari drives.  Unfortunately, while standing outside in the deck, me and another woman seemed to be the target of many insects, which seemed content to fly around our faces and underneath our clothing.  Eventually, we retired and I was woken up by another thunderstorm, not as dramatic as the night prior but followed again by a loss of power which lasted until the morning.  This meant no air conditioning and uncomfortably warm evening.

New day, new location

We had a morning flight from Cape Town to Johannesburg and a later flight from Johannesburg to Nelspruit so we had a full day of flying and waiting around in the airport for our next flight ahead of us.  When we checked in, the airline representative coached us not to check in our luggage at Johannesburg until about an hour before the scheduled departure as we would be less likely to have our luggage rummaged through if we did so so we followed his advice.  We had four and a half hours to kill after arriving at the airport in Johannesburg but, as it turned out, it wasn’t such a bad airport to get stuck in.  It was surprisingly clean and had a lot of shops and a large food court.  Our first stop was Nando’s, famous for its peri-peri chicken.  I ordered some chicken for the both of us–it was surprisingly spicy.  After checking out some of the shops, we had the second part of our lunch, bunny chow–basically Indian curry stuffed within a block of bread.

Considering we ordered it from a fast food Indian joint in an airport food court it was surprisingly good.  Happily full, we boarded our flight to Nelspruit, where we were met by the owner of the safari lodge we were staying in.  As we exited the airport parking lot, we saw several impala on a small triangular lawn and sensed that we had arrived in the area bordering Kruger National Park.

Tim was quiet and soft-spoken but he impressed us with his story of kayaking the Zambezi River, contracting malaria along the way and ending his journey only when he was attacked by a crocodile and escaped by plunging an oar down its mouth.  On our way to the lodge, we saw kudu and when we arrived at the lodge we saw a warthog and its baby foraging around the backyard.  The lodge was nice–with a nice communal room and a deck overlooking Kruger National Park.  Our room was nice as well and we cooled down in the air-conditioned room before dinner.  We received a knock on our door when dinner was ready and we were lead to an enclosed yard to the side of the lodge that was lit with candles.  It was very romantic and probably the first time we’ve eaten by candlelight outdoors.  When we retired to our room, we noticed we had a number of insect friends that decided to keep us company and closed the curtain when we noticed the lights in our room were attracting a whole slew of insects.

In the middle of the night, I was awoken by one of the biggest thunder storm/lighting storms I’ve ever witnessed–light was flashing through our windows quite frequently and pretty soon, our power was out.  Adam slept through the storm like a baby.

Cape Town & Environs, Day 4

As with all our previous trips, I had done extensive research to find our guides, accommodations, potential restaurants, and to map out our itinerary.  Dissatisfied with the conventional resources on restaurants, I turned to local food blogs and came across a blogger who also did tours of the winelands around Cape Town.  Excited, I contacted her and booked her when she sent me a list of potential wineries based on our wine preferences.  Since she knew a lot about the local restaurants I also plied her with questions over the next few months and she always responded with enthusiasm and authority.  I was excited about meeting her and we knew we were fortunate from the moment we stepped into her van.  Pam had tons of insight in everything from politics to wine to share along with some good stories thrown in for good measure.  Our first stop was an annual craft fair at a winery outside Cape Town.  The grounds were lovely and I was super excited about going to a craft fair in South Africa which was not unlike the Renegade Craft Fair here in the States.  I went through the craft fair quickly, since we only had a limited amount of time, but managed to pick up a few things.

We had some wine to try so after the craft fair, we headed over to our first wine estate.  They had a courtyard so we sampled wines outside and chatted while Adam played with the resident dog, Lily.  We took a quick walk around afterwards, admiring the views.

The views around Stellenbosch were lovely.

Our next stop was Stark Conde, a wine estate with beautiful mountain views and a tasting room set within a lake, a tranquil setting to do some wine tastings.

We had reservations for lunch at a wine estate restaurant so we made our way over there.  The road leading up to the restaurant was lushly planted and the restaurant itself probably one of the fanciest ones we’ve dined in.  The salads were disappointing but I enjoyed my entree.

We walked around afterwards, taking note of the kitchen, which was well framed by its entrance.

The views were impressive.

We then made our way over to our next wine estate.  This one had a bucolic feel and I had to admire the numerous weaver’s nests punctuating the trees outside the tasting room.

After Delheim, it was onto our next and final wine estate, Simonsig.  We were treated to quite a number of their wines, many of which were quite exceptional.  After we returned to Cape Town, we walked around checking out various restaurants before settling on a restaurant which turned out to be lackluster but not at all reflective of our impressions of Cape Town and its lovely surroundings.

Cape Town & Environs, Day 3

Another morning, another full day lined up of birdwatching, whale watching, and enjoying the scenery surrounding Cape Town.  We stopped off at a gas station where we saw red bishops in the reeds lining one side of the property.  Our next stop was Rooiels, where we hoped to catch a glimpse of the Cape Rockjumper.  Unfortunately, we didn’t find the elusive bird, but I enjoyed the scenery immensely–on one side there were mountains, on the other, the ocean, and on both sides, interesting local vegetation.

The next stop was Betty’s Bay to see a very large and impressive colony of African Penguins.  It was our first time seeing wild penguins and it was great being able to see them so close.

After chilling with the penguins, we went to Harold Porter National Botanic Garden for some more bird-watching.  We didn’t see too many birds but the flowers and the backdrop of the mountains were striking.

Then it was onto Hermanus for some whale-watching.  Mariana informed us that we would not see whales displaying as they typically displayed during the breeding season around August.  We made our way to the primary viewing spot and saw one whale briefly surface close to where we were.  After this whale, we saw a whale off in the distance doing exactly what Mariana warned us not to expect–the whale breached multiple times and then resurfaced to do some tail flips.  When the whale wasn’t displaying, I focused on a seal that was bobbing up and down by the surface of the ocean.

Before we headed back to Cape Town, Mariana took a detour on a side road flanked by wheat fields so we could search for blue cranes, the national bird of South Africa.  We happily found a number of them and were simultaneously treated to picturesque golden fields.

After relaxing at our hotel for a bit, we headed out for dinner–I had made reservations at Myoga, a fancy hotel restaurant.  We each took advantage of their seven course tasting menu, which despite my initial excitement, was a bit of a disappointment.  Some were well executed, others lackluster.  But the hotel was a nice one and brought back memories of a similar restaurant experience in Anton de Valle, Panama.

Cape Town (& Environs), Day 2

I love going bird-watching when we travel, and looked forward to doing some birding around Cape Town, with the assistance of a local guide I had found online.  Mariana picked us up bright and early on Monday and took us straight to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens.  Located at the foot of Table Mountain, the garden boasts mountain views and local flora, including the Cape’s two most well-known flora, Protea and fynbos.

Mariana and I focused on bird-watching while Adam focused on the flowers with his new camera.  The garden is an expansive one and, according to Mariana, a popular picnic spot for Cape Townians and, with the beautiful surroundings and flowers, it was easy to see why.

Mariana mentioned one of owls had owlets so we went to see if they were still there when we encountered the mother.

Adult Spotted Eagle Owl

I was thrilled with this encounter–it’s rare to see an owl during the day, especially one so out in the open.  Apparently, she was keeping an eye out for her owlets, which were confined to the ground since they weren’t yet able to fly.  Mariana talked to one of the gardeners about the owlets and he kindly pointed out their location.  We walked over to see them, taking care not to alarm their parent, who was now perched on a tree nearby.

Baby Spotted Eagle Owl

After walking through the garden and getting acquainted with its flora and fauna, we drove through Chapmans Peak, a scenic coastal route, and took in the views.

We arrived in Noordhoek and went to Foodbarn for brunch.  We then made our way to Cape of Good Hope.  We passed by baboons near the roadway, fields of flowers and other flora, and, finally, the ocean.

We saw ostriches by the ocean and on the road.

We got out at a scenic spot and took in the views.

After walking around for a bit we did some more bird watching and Mariana searched for a mountain zebra that had joined a herd of antelope that she had seen previously which she found for us.

Sacred ibis

We had one last stop to make on our way back to Cape Town and that was Strandfontein Wastewater Treatment Works, to do some more bird watching.  The grounds of this wastewater treatment plant were surprisingly picturesque but the main attraction for me were the flamingos, which I had never seen in the wild.

Greater Flamingoes

We had dinner reservations at Bizerca Bistro and, after circling around, we figured out where the restaurant was likely located.  A guard was kind enough to walk us there and we looked at the chalk board with the day’s specials.  Everything we ordered was excellent–we shared a tuna tatare with wasabi and guacamole and oxtail ravioli appetizers, and my braised beef cheek entree was very good.  It was a great way to end a busy day of birdwatching and sightseeing.