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Category Archives: Food
Anthony Bourdain’s & Chip’s 13 Places to Eat Before You Die
I am bringing up from retirement one of the first lists I ever put together on Chip and Company all the way from June of 2009. Its hard to believe we have been around 1 year and 1 month now. Happy Anniversary to Chip and Company!
I love watching No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain Monday’s at 10pm on the Travel Channel. <Plug>
Officially I have not eaten at a single place on his list. I have been close to a few of them but unfortunately went some place else. Of course I don’t travel the globe eating food either.
Which made me think of my 13 Places you should eat before you die from my travels over this crazy world. Most of them will be in places I have lived so if your not on the East Coast then sorry charlie. I will throw the link to Anthony Bourdain host of No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain Monday’s at 10pm on the Travel Channel <plug>list below my meager list.
- J. Basuls Nobels – High Point NC – Alot of memories here, plus the best Courvoisier & Currant Bread Pudding.
- Hector’s – Erie, PA – Best Italian Food by far! to bad they are closed.
- PJ’s Oyster Bar “The Original” – Indian Rocks Beach, FL – Best oysters and seafood in the Largo area.
- Boma – Flavors of Africa – Best all you can eat buffet I have ever eaten. Fusion of Asian, African & Indian!
- Ohana’s – Polynesian Resort – Disney World, FL – I love the meat skewers and bread pudding.
- Quaker Steak and Lube – Erie, PA – Best bar food and wings..Mucho Callente
- Cookout – North Carolina – Best burger ever, get the Cheddar Style with raw onions that is a Chip Special
- Sweet Tomatoes – Largo, FL & Durham, NC – I am a sucker for a salad bar, especially one this good
- Mellow Mushroom – Asheville, NC & Winston Salem, NC – Great Pizza! I love the Mighty Meaty the best!
- Le Cellier - Epcot Walt Disney World – Best steak I have ever eaten. From Start to finish a great meal!
- Doc Chey’s Noddle House - Asheville, NC – Great noodles, wonderful atmosphere and people.
- The Dog House – High Point, NC – Mom and Pop place in High Point, great hot dogs and sweet tea!
- Tommy Condon’s Irish Pub and Seafood Restaurant Charleston, SC – Great..I mean Great!! Crowne Float beer.
Here is the article from Anthony Bourdain host of No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain Monday’s at 10pm on the Travel Channel.
What are some places you recommend that you Must Eat before you die? Let us know in the comment section below.
The ‘Sunnyside’ of Disneyworld’s Sleepy Hollow
Walt Disney Imagineering Art Director Alex Caruthers recently shared a little-known piece of trivia with me regarding the inspiration for the Magic Kingdom Park quick service restaurant Sleepy Hollow, located in Liberty Square. I have been passing Sleepy Hollow regularly, since 1974, and never gave a thought as to a “story line” … (There is ALWAYS a story line).
Sleepy Hollow (the restaurant) offers tasty caramel corn, assorted cookies and refreshments, and is generally busy most of the time. Washington Irving is the author of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow – you remember Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman. In 1835, Irving purchased a tiny, two-room cottage situated on ten acres in Tarrytown, New York, along the banks of the Hudson River. He described the place “capable of being made a little paradise.”
Irving spent many years remodeling and expanding the residence, combining elements of colonial New York architecture and buildings he knew in Scotland and Spain. He named it Sunnyside in 1841, and history shows that the home was a busy place, full of friends and family most of the time – not unlike the restaurant.
Click here to keep reading this article from Disney Parks Blog.
Celebrating Culinary Adventures at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival
Celebrating Culinary Adventures from October 1, 2010 — November 14, 2010
The Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is an autumn special event that transforms Epcot Theme Park into a food and wine lover’s paradise with specialty food items, culinary events, sophisticated parties and live musical entertainment.
Epcot always features a remarkable collection of international dining opportunities and tempting spirits, but during the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival there is even more to sample, sip and love.
Try delicious cuisine from around the world at special food booths set up along World Showcase Promenade. Explore specialty marketplaces featuring regional foods, wines and beers. Learn from renowned chefs and winemakers at special programs and demonstrations, and sample the finest cuisine from around the globe at spectacular culinary events.
Plus, there is more to do than just enjoying great food and beverage. Enjoy the Eat to the Beat concert series and unwind with a stellar lineup of celebrated musical acts.
When you arrive at Epcot, visit the Festival Welcome Center to plan your day. You’ll also find the Festival Wine Shop and the Wonders Bar—where you can purchase champagne and wine or attend official book signings with celebrity chefs and authors. The Stockpot shop offers marvelous merchandise, including the collectable marketplace cookbook.
Epcot Theme Park admission is required. Some Epcot International Food & Wine Festival events require ticket fees in addition to admission to Epcot. Availability is limited for some events. Events may be rescheduled or cancelled at any time.
You can even pick up a Food & Wine themed Disney Gift Card — a fast, easy and secure way to carry your money on your wrist, and simply the best way to experience the Festival. Just load or reload the card with any amount you desire, swipe — and you’re spared the trouble of getting out your credit card or cash any time you want to pay for food, merchandise and more. Get it throughout Epcot at ticket booths, Guest Relations, the Festival Welcome Center and a variety of locations in the theme park where food and merchandise are sold.
The thrills at the ultimate dining, drinking and music event don’t stop. Discover the many taste adventures that await:
Marketplaces & Promenade
More than 25 international marketplace kiosks are serving up tapas-sized portions of regional specialties. Explore countries on 6 continents through their most mouthwatering foods and beverages!
Eat to the Beat! Concert Series
Musical entertainment pairs perfectly with culinary fun during the nightly Eat to the Beat! Concert Series. Enjoy a varied lineup of classic rock, soul, R&B, jazz and funk hit-makers, from Boyz II Men to Big Bad Voodoo Daddy!
Schedule:
9/25–9/27 — Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
9/28–9/29 — Richard Marx (NEW!)
9/30–10/3 — Starship starring Mickey Thomas
10/4–10/6 — En Vogue
10/7–10/8 — Better Than Ezra (NEW!)
10/9–10/11 — Sister Hazel
10/12–10/13 — Kool & The Gang
10/14–10/16 — Spyro Gyra
10/17–10/18 — Jon Secada
10/19–10/20 — Sister Sledge
10/21–10/22 — Vanessa Carlton (NEW!)
10/23–10/25 — Taylor Dayne
10/26–10/28 — Boyz II Men
10/29–10/31 — John Waite (NEW!)
11/1–11/2 — Taylor Hicks (NEW!)
11/3–11/5 — Billy Ocean (NEW!)
11/6–11/8 — Los Lobos
Seminars and Demonstrations
Learn from the masters with the Festival’s exciting schedule of seminars and demonstrations featuring the fresh ingredients and secret techniques that go into some of the world’s most extraordinary dishes and drinks.
Special Festival Experiences
A special series of programs and experiences brings you renowned winemakers, guest chefs and speakers. Wine and beer tastings let you sip from the best in the world while delicious experiences such as the Party for the Senses dish up unforgettable tastes.
Festival Welcome Center
The Festival Welcome Center hosts wine seminars and book signings and offers sparkling champagnes and wines at the Wonder Bar. It’s also the place to pick up Festival keepsakes, including limited edition Festival pins and cookbooks. And while you’re there, be sure to check out the lists of famous personalities who will be appearing plus the times of their scheduled signings.
Visiting Guests and Sponsors
An impressive and diverse list of breweries, wineries, chefs, speakers and industry professionals are participating in and sponsoring this year’s Festival. Discover the guests and partners who help make the event possible.
Festival Shopping
Before and after the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, you can find merchandise that celebrates the 14th annual Food & Wine Festival. While you’re in the park, visit the Festival Welcome Center, which offers commemorative gifts, specialty kitchen items, a book shop and a wine bar. You can also visit the shops located around World Showcase Promenade for additional Festival merchandise offerings and artisans.
Disney’s Race for the Taste 10K & 3K
Experience the sights and sounds of the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival as you race to the finish through the Walt Disney World Resort. Afterword, enjoy incredible tastes from around the world. With Kids’ Races and the new 3K distance, the whole family can get in on the fun.
Via Napoli Opens Next Month at Epcot – Menu First Look
First look at the Via Napoli menu thanks to Pam Brandon at the Disney Parks Blog. As an added bonus the Pizzeria will be opening next month ahead of schedule!
Pastas, wood-fired pizzas, scoops of sweet gelato – here’s a first look at the menu for the new Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria at the Epcot Italy Pavilion. Opening next month the 300-seat restaurant expands dining choices (our favorite Tutto Italia stays). Created by the Patina Restaurant Group’s CEO Nick Valenti, the menu is based on his travels in Southern Italy and his time developing and overseeing the successful Naples 45 Ristorante e Pizzeria in New York. Valenti spent time in Naples studying the art of dough, crust, sauce and oven temperatures at the famous pizzerias Da Michele and Trianon. A feature at Via Napoli is its wood-burning ovens, cleverly named after the three active volcanoes in Italy – Mount Etna, Mount Vesuvius and Stromboli.
Appetizers: Sicilian eggplant with olives and raisins; salad of lettuce, fagiolini (string beans), fennel and tomatoes; arancini (fried saffron risotto balls) with meat ragù, mozzarella and pomodoro sauce; corn-crusted fried calamari; and minestrone with basil pesto. Or share a plate of arancini, mozzarella, calamari, portobella mushrooms, asparagus, zucchini and carciofi (artichokes).
Main course salads: Manzo (filet of beef) with greens, red onion, gorgonzola, apple and cucumber with a red wine-mustard vinaigrette; chopped salad with lemon chicken, greens, cantaloupe, cucumber, red pepper, green beans, onions, almonds and pasta crisps with honey-citrus vinaigrette; calamari with arugula, carrots and fennel with orange vinaigrette.
Pastas: candele (long, tube-shaped pasta) with sausage ragù; linguine with seafood; malfadine (ribbon pasta) with guanciale (unsmoked Italian bacon) and pomodoro sauce; lasagna verde.
Piatti alla Parmigiana: (dishes topped with Parmesan and mozzarella gratinée): veal, chicken and eggplant.
Wood-fired pizzas: made with caputo flour imported from Southern Italy, San Marzano tomatoes, handmade mozzarella and water from a local spring just like in Italy’s Campania region – 10-inch, 20-inch or 1/2 meter to share: a dozen choices, from a simple pizza Margherita with tomato, mozzarella and basil to carciofi with artichoke, potato, pecorino cheese, prosciutto and cantaloupe.
Sweets: tiramisù, zeppole di ricotta (ricotta cheese-fried dough, whipped cream and chocolate sauce); apple cake with almond sorbetti; gelatie; and vanilla gelato with almond cookies and amarena cherries.
Plan Now for Magical Disney Dining in December
While summer is in full swing here in the US, if you will be visiting Disney World over the Christmas holidays, I have an important question for you? What are your dining plans? Have you made those Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs) yet?
When making your dining plans….and yes, you should make dining plans….you need to realize that, if you are visiting during the week between Christmas and New Years, you will be at Walt Disney World during the busiest time of the year. There will be more people than you have probably ever seen.
Now if your plans to visit Disney are to go before Dec. 24, there will be less people. In fact, historically from the week after Thanksgiving until the week or so before Christmas, crowds are usually lighter, and so it can be a delightful way to experience all that the holidays have to offer at Disney World. But at the same time, many Disney veterans travel during these weeks, and these folks typically have made dining plans far in advance of their trip.
So either way, make your Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs) before you get to Disney World. And if you are going during Christmas week….Make. Them. Now.
I can’t stress this enough. The 180-190 day window to book ADRs opened for Christmas week a couple of weeks ago. The popular times and restaurants fill quickly, especially on the big days of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, and New Years Day. We have visited during this week several times, and it always makes me sad to see the many folks who are turned away from restaurants because they did not make plans in advance. Understandably, they are frustrated and unhappy about it. So if table service is something you want to do, don’t delay on this.
If for whatever reason, you can’t get ADRs for any of the restaurants you want, don’t worry though, as there are still some good options. Consider some of the lovely and lesser-known restaurants at the hotels: many are wonderful, and it is a great way to see some of the fantastic Holiday decorations at the resorts. They are a little off-the-beaten path, but it can be nice sometimes, during all the hustle and bustle, to have a little peace and quiet.
Also consider eating meals at “off” times. Try having your main, table service meal for lunch instead of dinner. Or eat early…lunch at 11, dinner at 4…or late…lunch at 2, dinner at 8. You may find crowds to be a little lighter during these times.
Taking the time now to plan your dining at Disney World for your December vacation will insure that you eat where and when you want and minimize the frustration in the process.
Nancy, her husband and college-age daughter live in the Baltimore MD area, but consider Walt Disney World their second “home”. She started her site, The Affordable Mouse, as a way to share ideas about how to plan affordable Disney vacations.
