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A Few Days in Paris – 2025 Edition
We generally have an opportunity to plan our lives.
By this, I mean deciding that we want to visit a place or a country. And sometimes, our travel is planned for us when we need to travel for work. And then, occasionally, we get a lucky break – for example, when your work travel takes you to Paris.
I’m typing this on the plane, coming back after spending a week in Paris – yes, for work. And I will not lie to you – I enjoyed the experience. As you know, when I travel, I take lots of pictures. And then I love sharing those pictures – and this is exactly my plan for this post.
We were in Paris last May, when the city was getting ready to host the Summer Olympics 2024. Coming back a year later, at the end of October, and outside of the busy tourist season worked rather well.
I stayed at the hotel located within a 5-minute walk from the Eiffel Tower, thus I had an opportunity to take pictures during the day, during the night, from 100 meters away, and even from underneath the tower. And now, I can share them with you.
One of the experiences we missed last May was visiting Notre Dame. It was just reopening after the restoration, and we didn’t have a chance to see it. I was very lucky as we managed to see her in all of her renewed beauty.
Let me explain the “lucky” notion here. We initially planned to visit Notre Dame on Wednesday night. It was raining on Wednesday, so we decided to wait until the next day. Then, we got a recommendation to reserve our visit time online – the admission is free, but if you have timed tickets, your wait should be minimal as opposed to the live queue. When I tried to reserve tickets for the time in the evening (our work was ending at 6 pm), all the tickets were sold out for Thursday and Friday, the only two days when we could visit. So we decided to visit on Thursday night, which also appeared to be the only day of the week when Notre Dame is open until 10 pm!
When we arrived, close to 8 pm, there was literally no line, so we were able to go in and fully experience the beauty of Notre Dame.
We also wandered by the Musée d’Orsay after dinner. It was too late to enter the museum, but at least we snapped a few pictures of the hippo:
At last, a few words about food and wine.
Talking about food experiences, it was my first time trying frog legs! I must say that I liked them. I usually hear a reference to “tastes like chicken,” but to me, they most resembled fish, such as trout, and not chicken. Also in the highlights were Beef Bourgogne (great flavor), oxtail terrine (very tasty), and veal liver with wild mushrooms (perfectly done, not something you can easily find in a restaurant in the U.S.). From the food let-downs, I want to mention steak tartar premixed with … wait for it… ketchup (sigh). You couldn’t taste anything except ketchup in that dish…
And then I found a perfect delicious gelato…
Now, the wines.
As always, I started by visiting the store. I picked a bottle of 2022 Club des Sommeliers Saumur-Champigny AOC (13.5% ABV), a perfect opportunity to taste the beloved Cabernet Franc. I understand that this is a supermarket brand, and on the first day, the wine had no resemblance to the classic Loire Cab Franc (no cassis, no bell pepper whatsoever). On the second day, the wine improved, offering at least some hints of the classic flavors.
Ah, and here is the obligatory picture of the supermarket wine shelves – you can zoom in and study if you wish.
The 2024 Le Sudiste Chardonnay Pays d’Oc (12.5% ABV) was outstanding. Classic Chardonnay, vanilla and apples profile, just a hint of butter, round, silky, and refreshing.
While visiting Basque restaurant (probably best meal of the trip), I found some delicious wine by the glass from the appellation I’m not familiar with at all – 2020 Domaine Abotia Rouge Irouleguy AOC (65% Tannat, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc) – the wine was a standout, dense, full-bodied, an interplay of wild berries, well integrated tannins and perfect balance.
Passing through the duty-free at the Charles de Gaulle airport on the way back, I had an opportunity to platonically enjoy some of the lovely and very expensive views, such as a line-up of Krug Champagne, Hennessy Cognac for measly €39,393, and a nice display of Louis XIII Cognacs (only €7,450! How many would you like?).
And then there were some unplatonic pleasures, despite early morning hours (who said you can’t enjoy wine at 8 AM?). I had some time to stop by the Star Alliance lounge, and I found a few of the Gérard Bertrand red wines being offered.
I was sure that I wrote about Gérard Bertrand wines on multiple occasions, but apparently it was only one blog post from 2 years ago, also talking about … yeah, visiting Paris.
Gérard Bertrand makes very reliable wines, usually at quite reasonable prices. First wine I tried was 2021 Gérard Bertrand Kosmos 888 Languedoc AOP (14.5% ABV, Grenache/Syrah/Mourvèdre blend), which was outstanding – generous, supple fruit, full body, perfectly accentuated tannins, luscious and delicious. I actually want to cite the description of the wine from the back label here, as it explains the name of the wine: “Kosmos is a tribute to the two most emblematic cosmic stars in organic viticulture, the Sun and the Moon. These two stars come together to represent the symbol of the infinity of the Kosmos, 888”.
It is interesting how the second wine couldn’t be any more different. 2022 Gérard Bertrand Héritage An 560 Côtes du Roussillon Villages Tautavel AOP (15% ABV, a blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan) was much leaner despite higher ABV, tight, restrained, with firm structure, firm body, and more pronounced tannins – also perfectly elegant, but requiring you to slow down a bit to savor the beauty. Here again, I feel compelled to cite the description on the back label: “Gérard Bertrand reveals the history of South of France greatest terroirs. At the origin of humanity, 560 000 years ago, our ancestors already lived on the lands of Tautavel. The magnificent and secular landscapes are home to a vineyard in a limestone and schist clay amphitheater”.
On this happy note, it is time to conclude the travel story.
Hope you enjoyed some pictures!
Beautiful Hungarian Wines, a Deep Immersion
Hungarian wines need no introduction to the wine lovers.
Or they actually might.
Hungary is one of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world, going back to the Roman times (also the Hungarian language is one of only three European languages outside of Latin that have wine terms in the language). It is not for nothing one of the better-known wine brands in Hungary is called Royal Tokaji. Tokaji, the dessert wine produced from the local white grape called Furmint, can give the run for money to the best BA and TBA Rieslings and best Sauternes. It used to be a treat suitable and available only for the royalty, with its official appellation classification predating Port by a few decades.
Then it all came to an abrupt halt. First, the Phylloxera epidemic which destroyed literally all vineyards in Hungary at the end of the 19th century. Then, as the wine industry started to recover, came two world wars, and the communist regime right after. Thus while we can say that Hungary has very old wine traditions, the Hungarian wine industry is very young, with its modern history not exceeding even 40 years.
I just came back after spending 4 days in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. And while working 9-5 all 4 days, I still managed to get a good taste of the Hungarian wines, and I have to say that it was one delicious and very impressive experience. And even as most of these wines would be hard to find outside of Hungary (okay, that should be reasonably not difficult for the people in Europe, but very difficult in the US for sure), I still believe the experience is well worth sharing.
I will simply recount my experience in chronological order, as I was tasting the wines. And by the way, I made my inner grape geek very happy, by adding 5 new rare grapes to the collection.
I started my “deep immersion” on Monday night at a dinner. The restaurant had a few interesting (read: made from rare grapes) wines which I was happy to order by the glass.
2022 Bussay Pince Csörnyeföldi Csókaszőlő Zala (11.5% ABV, certified organic, rare grape: Csókaszőlő)
Fresh herbal nose
Fresh acidity, Beaujolais-like mouthfeel, sour cherries, gamey, nice, food friendly
2021/2022 Bóka Birtok Jakab Kadarka Tolna (12.5% ABV, Jakab Kadarka, a.k.a. Jab Kadarka a.k.a. Italian Kadarka, rare grape: Jakab Kadarka)
Red fruit on the nose
Bigger and more round body than a previous one, dark fruit, good balance, good acidity, thoroughly pleasant
Upon returning to the hotel after dinner, I didn’t feel like going to sleep yet, so I decided to get a glass of wine, and the Tokaji looked very attractive – and at about $11 for a glass, a pure steal.
2017 Royal Tokaji Borászat Mad Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyous (11% ABV)
Delicious nose of sweet, ripe fruit – white peach, pear, a touch of honey.
A symphony of flavor on the palate – beautiful ripe fruit, layers of flavor, perfect acidity, perfect balance, pure delight.
Superb.
On Tuesday, we had a short bus tour of Budapest, and our tour guide mentioned that if someone likes wine, he highly recommends visiting a wine bar called Vinlkli. The name was easy to remember – a cross between Vino and Bicycle, and the bar was also conveniently located about 2 minutes walking distance from the hotel where I was staying, so it was a no-brainer decision to visit the place. Boy, what a right decision that was…
When I came over, there was literally no space to sit at this tiny bar. Not speaking the language, I got rather a cold shoulder from both bartenders, so I was intimidated, but determined. A space in the corner opened up so I was able to take it, and then I just pointed to the wine I wanted to taste strictly based on the label (there was no printed wine list of any sort, and I couldn’t understand anything written on the board hanging on the wall).
I happened to choose skin contact wine, and it was excellent:
2023 Turay Családi Pincészet Borsementa (11% ABV, 4 days with skin contact, natural wine, rare grape: Borsementa)
You can assume skin contact once you smell the wine – a touch of herbal notes on the nose with a hint of the freshly fermented fruit, following by lemon/apple/peppermint medley on the palate. Fresh, energetic, delicious.
As a few more people left the bar, the bartender finally got a bit more time, and he understood that I was actually at the bar on purpose, so now he started suggesting wines to taste. Next wine white wine was literally out of this world:
2020 Mariasy Tokaji Furmint Hungary (13% ABV)
Wow. Is “blown away” is sufficient wine descriptor?
This wine was truly something else. A hint of honey on the nose, white fruit, fresh and inviting. The palate was mind-blowing – generous, plump, supple, crisp honey and lemon notes, layers and layers of pleasure. This will be easily a “wine of the year” contender. Just superb.
I’m literally salivating as I’m writing this post – I would love to have a glass of this wine right now. Just now.
From here on, the new wines were arriving without interruption:
2022 Szentezi Prince Fekete Muskotály (12.5% ABV, rare grape: Fekete Muskotály)
This wine was light and fruity. Somewhat similar to Beaujolais Nouveau but with a bit more substance, loaded with fresh wild berries. Good acidity. Refreshing. Should be great with food.
2022 Sziegl Pince Kadarka Bisztró Hajós-Bahai Hungary (11% ABV)
Yet another light and fruity red, red fruit, simple, clean, light. Well balanced, good acidity.
2020 Nyolcas és Fia Borház Turán (13% ABV, rare grape: Turán)
Dark fruit on the nose, dark fruit on the palate, good mid-palate weight, good structure, excellent wine.
2016 Heumann Syrah Villányi Védett Eredetú Prémium (14% ABV)
Really was not expecting Syrah, but this was an excellent choice. Dark, concentrated, brooding, cherries, a hint of pepper, round, good balance, perfectly well drinkable.
Truth be told, I didn’t have much luck with the food at the restaurants. Yelp is unavailable in Hungary, and I find that TripAdvisor restaurant information is subpar, so the only option left is Google.
Through my search, I found a restaurant called Parisi 6. I almost skipped it at first, as I thought that based on the name it would be a French restaurant. But the menu suggested that this would be a traditional Hungarian restaurant, so I decided to give it a try on the last evening.
The food was excellent (finally had a goulash soup that I enjoyed), and the service was even better than the food if this is possible – ultra-friendly, attentive, and helpful.
Here are the wines we had at a restaurant:
2022 Skrabski Furmint (13% ABV, low histamine (!) wine due to a special strain of yeast used for fermentation)
Whitestone fruit on the nose, Chardonnay-like appearance on the palate, vanilla, fresh apples and hint of apples, fresh acidity. Food friendly.
2022 Szemes Villányi Cabernet Sauvignon Villányi Védett Eredetú Száraz Classicus Vörösbor (14% ABV)
I actually thought asked for a different red wine on the list (Kadarka), but somehow this wine appeared at our table, and the very first sip suggested that mistake or not, this was an excellent choice.
Beautiful core of dark berries, cassis, cassis, and a hint of bell pepper on the palate, round, medium to full body, delicious.
2023 Tokaj Nobilis Szôlôbirtok Kövérszölö Edes Fehérbor
I asked for the dessert wine to have at the end of the dinner. Our waiter suggested that Tokaji would be very expensive, and suggested that this wine would be a more reasonable but still a good choice. Wow. This wine literally delivered an experience. The wine was all into a sweet apple profile – ripe apple on the nose, ripe sweet apples on the palate, perfect sweetness balanced with perfect acidity. And the best part? Our dessert choice was apple strudel, and my oh my, was this a heavenly combination…
That’s my deep dive into Hungarian wines in a good amount of detail. If you have an opportunity, definitely look for the Hungarian wines, I’m sure you will not regret it.
And before we part, two more little tidbits of my experience in Budapest.
I walked a few times to the river, going past this building:
and thinking that this was a museum or some sort of historical building. On my last day, I was looking for a place to get some specialty Hungarian foods, such as Pick salami for example (when fresh, might be the best salami in the world). Somehow, google suggested that there is a supermarket inside that “historic building”. Surprised but obedient, I crossed the road and read the “Central Market” sign above the entrance! The building might be historic, but inside I found lots of small shops offering all types of Hungarian specialty food. The place was somewhat similar to Chelsey Markets in New York – if you ever visited you would get the idea. I was happy to find a pick salami to bring home and much more.
And last but not least, a few pictures of the beautiful Budapest town:
Budapest is a beautiful town, and Hungarian wines are delicious and evolving. Did I just set up your next travel itinerary or what? Cheers!
Travel Diaries: Cote d’Azur, Pink Sunsets and Rare Grapes
Cote d’Azur.
French Riviera.
One of the most coveted vacation destinations in the world. I didn’t know that, but according to Wikipedia, “Riviera is an Italian word that originates from the ancient Ligurian territory of Italy, wedged between the Var and Magra rivers. Côte d’Azur is originally a nickname given by France to the County of Nice after its annexation in 1860, because the climate was similar to that of the north of Italy, even in winter, with “a sky as blue as its sea”.” I know it is summer, but here is my illustration of the point above:
An evening in Antibes
Over the past 10 years, I had to travel to Nice a good number of times, and always for business. As a business traveler, I always held a grudge against these trips to the South of France – I don’t like Nice airport, it is one of the most uncomfortable ones, and I had my share of bad experiences in Nice. But the last trip was admittedly better perceived – I stayed at a brand new Marriott property, Moxy in Sophia-Antipolis, which was very nice. And we spent most of our free evenings in Antibes, which is a beautiful small town – still with lots of tourists, but overall incomparable to the crowds of Nice itself.
As you already know, I’m here to inundate you with pictures. As we visited Antibes (and Nice once) only in the evening, the majority of the pictures are related to the sunset. Here you go:
It is not only the sunsets that provided a source of enjoyment during our walks. Thought-provoking, creative statues by Nicolas Lavarenne were another great entertaining element of the Antibes boardwalk – I have to say that I really enjoyed them. Here are a few of the highlights:
Here are more of the sunset pictures:
And now my most favorite, the one I promised you in the title of this post – pink sunset:
Before we part, a few words about the wine. I had a few of the decent wines during the week, some local, some not. 2023 Estandon Brise Marine Blanc Méditerranée IGP (Clairette, Ugni Blanc) and 2023 Estandon Brise Marine Rosé Méditerranée IGP (Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah) were both on point, crisp, refreshing and light. 2020 Caves de Rauzan Mascottes Olga Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot Bordeaux AOC (13.5% ABV) was also very good, on par with the excellent 2020 vintage, and overall very generous and supple.
My personal highlight was the 2020 Château de Bellet Rouge Bellet AOP (14.5% ABV, 35% Folle Noire, 25% Braquet, 40% Grenache). This was a super-local wine, with the vineyards and winery located in the Nice area. The wine had a nice core of dark fruit, a hint of my beloved barnyard and a silky-smooth texture. Not only the wine was delicious, but it also added two new rare grapes to my collection, inching closer to the coveted Hexavin goal.
That’s all I have for you today. Hope you enjoyed looking at the pictures as much as I had fun taking them.
Travel Diaries: Europe 2024: Paris
And now it is the time for pictures – lots and lots of pictures – from our European adventure 2024, starting from our first stop – Paris.
Paris needs no introduction – an eternal city of love, a source of inspiration for all things art, a coveted destination for millions every year.
So what did we do in Paris? First, I have to mention the hotel where we were staying. Whenever possible, I’m the Marriott guy. During this trip, I used a serious number of points to pay for our stays in Paris and Rome. In Paris, we stayed at the Marriott Ambassador Opera Hotel, and I have to say that this was one of the best hotel experiences ever. Spacious rooms, the whole hotel appointed with pictures of the fragments of the sheet music, elements of ballet and dance. Just beautiful. The concierge lounge on the top floor offered great views of the city, excellent food, lots of comfortable sitting. If you are planning a trip to Paris and can figure out the way to stay there, this is an excellent hotel.
Our sightseeing included all of the usual suspects – Père Lachaise cemetery (we went there in the morning – an interesting way to start your day, but definitely worth a walk through); Louvre (no we didn’t try going inside while having only 2 full days in Paris); Montmartre with an insane amount of people – I wanted to walk around to see the painters, but it was physically impossible to get through the crowd – well, at least we saw the basilica.
We also managed to visit the Rodin Museum and Gardens on the first day (Thursday), and again we had to work our way through a significant crowd – but at least walking through the gardens was quite pleasant.
Eiffel Tower (I’m guessing freshly painted for the Olympics but I might be wrong) was, of course, an important destination – we walked around and also took a cruise to see the sunset and the Eiffel Tower brightly lit at night. A short stroll through Champs-Élysées through the scaffolding of some construction for the Olympic Games completed the experience. In the evening, we took a cruise on the Seine – just a cruise without dinner (I had a dinner cruise last year, and it was not worth it in my opinion), and I captured some beautiful sunset moments.
The next day we went to Versailles, but before we talk about it I need to lament about Paris Metro. On one hand, I believe the Paris subway is literally one of the best in the world, for sure for the tourists. At each track, there is a full list of all the stations for a given direction – as long as you know the name of the station of your destination, you have no problems orienting yourself. However, everything has two sides. To enter the subway station, you need to use a ticket which is a tiny piece of paper with a magnetic strip. Even if you buy a day pass, it still comes in the same format. Now, if this little piece of paper gets anywhere near your phone, it gets doomed. And it is doomed in a funny way – you can’t enter the station, but when you ask an agent to check it, they run it through their machine and tell you that there are no issues. I ended up storing all the tickets in my wallet and this was the only way to get those tickets to last throughout the day.
Now, Versailles. I bought timed tickets with an audio guide a few months before the trip (we had only one day available for the visit, so I couldn’t take any chances), so we had no problems getting in.
Honestly, I was reasonably unimpressed with the palace (feel free to ostracize me, but the palace was very similar to the Newport mansions). However, the gardens were absolutely beautiful – except literally none of the fountains were working, so it definitely took away from the experience.
Just to touch on food and wine – we visited a few restaurants, but didn’t have any standout experiences, so below is just a quick summary as it simply feels wrong to talk about France and not to include any pictures of the food.
Then it was Sunday, and time to go to Orly airport…
Beautiful Lights, 2023 Edition
While I don’t celebrate Christmas, I still love the lights. I grew up celebrating the arrival of the New Year, and while this was borrowed from the Christmas traditions, there was always a tree for the New Year, ornaments, and lights.
It might be just me, but it seems that the holiday light displays are becoming more widespread, for sure when made as attractions. Or maybe it was always around and I just never took my time to notice them – but I definitely do now.
Newport Rhode Island is one of our favorite travel destinations in general, and particularly during Christmas. We visited Newport back in 2017 to see Christmas decorations, and thinking about that visit, I couldn’t believe that that visit took place 6 years ago. This year, we also decided to visit the Sparkling Lights display which was shown in the evening at the Breakers. As you can imagine, I have a bunch of pictures to share with you. But before we visit Newport, I would like to mention my hometown – Stamford, Connecticut.
Stamford always has some beautifully decorated houses we loved to visit over the years. But this year, we had a “notch up” experience. Driving back from our local supermarket, my wife said “hey, wait, I want you to turn around”. When I asked why, she said that she saw a glimpse of a nicely decorated house on a parallel street, and we should go see it. When we got there 2 minutes later, the view greatly exceeded my expectations – might be the best Christmas lights display I ever saw at a private house – and the best part was that we could park the car and just walk around the decorations. So let me start my inundating display with these pictures:
And now, here are the pictures from the Breakers, the Sparkling Lights display:
Here are a few pictures from the Elms:
And probably my favorite of the whole Newport trip – the Marble House:
Hope you enjoyed!
A Few Days in Paris
If you have followed this blog for some time, you know what the “a few days” title means. Yes, pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. This post will not be an exception – get ready to scroll.
Pictures have such an important role in our lives. Pictures solicit emotions, bring back memories and moments, and let us re-live those moments. Pictures can also serve as a personal journal, keeping all the dates in perfect order.
Probably my favorite shot of the entire week
Based on the pictures stored on my computer, I was able to figure out that the last time I was in Paris was almost 13 years ago, in October 2010. Of course, even if one is not familiar with Paris from the books, once you visit, that memory will be with you forever. Yes, I knew what I will find in Paris in a general sense, but the particulars, such as navigating this sprawling city, became rather blurred.
Once I arrived, though, it all came back rather quickly. Paris has one of the very best subway systems in the world when it comes to navigation – before every entrance, there is a full list of stations which you will find in a given direction – as long as you know where you are going, getting there is really easy.
This was a trip for work, and I was definitely lucky with the location of the meetings – a stone’s throw from the Eiffel Tower. For 5 days straight, I could look at the Eiffel Tower any time I would want. We even took some pictures from the roof of the building, admiring it from an even closer distance.
We also had a dinner cruise along the Sienne, allowing this photography junky to take a beautiful picture of the well-lit Eiffel Tower during the night – despite the rain which was going on the whole night but conveniently stopped as we were passing the Eiffel Tower, allowing for some magnificent pictures to be taken.
And then there were numerous strolls around the streets of Paris, allowing more magic to be captured. Remember I promised to inundate you with pictures? Here you go – and when you will be done scrolling, we will switch our attention to – yes, you guessed it – food and wine. See you in a minute or so.
Now, food and wine, as nobody can talk about Paris without paying attention to food and wine. And wine and food.
Let’s talk about wine first.
First of all, I now did what I usually do during my trips, especially the European ones – visited the supermarket to see the selection of wines. Considering the location in the center of Paris, I think the prices look quite reasonable – good luck finding $3 wines in New York.
I grabbed two bottles to enjoy in my hotel room during the week. 2020 Rasteau AOP Cru de Cotes du Rhone at €7.23 was a very nice find. The wine needed a bit of time to open, but then offered a smokey, concentrated, powerful mouthfeel with a good amount of dark fruit. My second bottle was a bit more expensive – €9.28. It was 2021 Gérard Bertrand Solar 6 Syrah Cévennes IGP, a certified organic (Bio) and bee-friendly wine from the South of France. Along with Domaines Paul Max, Gérard Bertrand is one of my “safe choices” for situations where I need to pick a decent bottle of wine for a modest amount of money. This Syrah was quite generous, good amount of fruit, a tiny hint of black pepper, round and well-balanced. I run into the Gérard Bertrand wines a few more times during the trip – last time at the airport lounge in the form of the 2021 Gérard Bertrand Crémant de Limoux An 825 Brut, a blend of Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, which was delicious in its own, but also perfect in Mimosa, with its firm structure and consistent bubbles.
I need to mention a few more wines. Of course, when in France, you should drink French wine. Except, maybe, when you are in a kosher restaurant. We visited L’As du Fallafel restaurant twice during the week (one of my colleagues eats Kosher, and then, of course, the food is just tasty), and an Israeli wine was a perfect option in my opinion. 2020 Gamla Cabernet Sauvignon Galilee was well approachable from the get-go, nice amount of dark fruit, good acidity, good structure, well-integrated tannins – a very nice wine overall. Last but not least was Chablis I had at the restaurant called Au Petit Marguery.
2021 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Vieilles Vignes de Sainte Claire was excellent. First, there was the nose of sapidity, minerality, and a touch of gunflint. I spent a good few minutes just admiring the aromatics before taking the first sip. The wine continued on the palate offering savory and complex mouthfeel with good acidity and restrained expression of the white-stone fruit. While working on this post, I looked up this wine – turns out that the grapes for this wine are harvested from the 70 years old vineyard with the roots of the vines extending for 25 meters into the Kimmeridgian soil. Now that will guarantee some complexity.
Now, let’s talk about food. There are two restaurants I want to mention. First called Suffren was an accidental find, as we were walking around looking for a place for dinner. I’m glad we stumbled upon it, as the food was outstanding, and the service was even better – happy and friendly. It was fun sitting at the table close to the entrance and observing the people waking in, shaking hands and talking with waiters – truly a neighborhood spot. The steak tartar was my choice of main course, and it was delicious. Everybody also got desserts, and polished their plates – profiteroles, baked Alaska, Crêpes Suzette (made tableside, of course).
The second restaurant was Au Petit Marguery. I found the restaurant via search as an affordable restaurant offering traditional French cuisine. The food was good even though it didn’t leave me speechless. Foie Gras was good overall, but it was served with some sort of a sweet toast which I didn’t appreciate at all, and I was really expecting more condiments to accompany such a rich dish.
My main course was fish (have no idea which one), which was not bad, but again, not truly memorable. For dessert, I got an oversize profiterole which was not bad but not amazing, but again maybe it was competing with my overinflated expectations.
I also stopped by a few of the cheese stores – this is literally a mandatory activity when in France. Tea is something I love, but talk much about tea in this blog. I found my favorite tea store, Mariage Frères, a short walking distance from my hotel, and I got a few teas to bring home. Around the corner from the tea store, I found another one of my favorites – Le Café Lenôtre. I was really hoping for a cup of hot chocolate but was laughed at as nobody else wants to drink hot chocolate in July.
And now you have my full report. It was definitely fun to spend a week in Paris and see how your memories are coming back to you. Before we part, I would like to leave you with one of my favorite pictures, taken during the rainy trip along the Seine. I think it gives you a perfect Paris mood in one shot…
A Few Days In Seattle
You know how you can look at something but not see it? Or think that you know something but really not knowing it at all?
I’m sure I don’t make much sense, but let me try explaining it better. I had been visiting Seattle for many years now, considering that Seattle had been a high-tech hub for ages. Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, space needle, Pike’s Place. So in my mind, I was sure that I was well familiar with Seattle and all it has to offer to the visitors. I knew that in Pike’s Place there is a famous Russian-style eatery, Piroshky Piroshky, and that Pike’s Place Chowder, the winner of all of the New England Chowdafest competitions is also coming from Seattle. But turns out that lots of it was the knowledge, but not the experience. I knew that these places exist, but I actually never experienced them firsthand.
Until now.
I visited Seattle to attend a conference. That conference was actually supposed to take place 2 years ago, but as you are all acutely aware that happened to be the time that never was… The event was hosted by Amazon at their downtown offices, thus I guess for the first time I actually stayed in downtown Seattle and had a little bit of time to explore the city – and gain firsthand experience.
A picture worth a thousand words. So below you will see many, many thousands of words – in the form of the pictures of downtown, Pike’s Place, and the seaside.
The original Starbucks at Pike’s Place
Now, a few more words about the food experiences.
Piroshky Piroshky had been around for 30 years, and it is definitely one of the staples of the Pike’s Place market, always adorned with a line of hungry guests. I was lucky as I walked up to the door because for some reason there was literally no line – or I simply was a jerk and cut people off without knowing. Either way, I tried two Piroshky, one with salmon, and one with beef and onion (the selection there is quite substantial, including sweets and vegan concoctions, but all the Piroshky are rather large, so there is a limit to how many you can have). Both were tasty, but I wouldn’t say that I was blown away. I would be happy to try them again but it is not something I would crave.
After trying to walk off all some of the calories of Piroshky I came across the Pike’s Place Chowder. I had an image of a nice-looking restaurant in my head, as Pike’s Place Chowder always competed in Chowdafest against actual restaurants – but the place was rather a “hole in the wall” style. Well, “hole in the wall” is synonymous with tasty food more often than not.
I never thought of it, but walking around Pike’s Place and looking at what is offered in all of the numerous eateries I was surprised by the similarities of the food offerings with what I would find on a typical visit to Newport or on Cape Cod, the quintessential New England – fried seafood of all sorts, fried oysters, clams, shrimp, scallops, fish, and yada yada yada. So the coast is a coast, whether the east or the west. Taking this revelation into account, it is not surprising that New England clam chowder was offered pretty much everywhere – and of course, it shouldn’t be surprising that Pike’s Place Chowder can successfully compete at the Chowdafest in New England.
Let’s go back to the Pike’s Place Chowder. The eatery also offers a full variety of seafood, fried and not. But as their menu boasts 8 or so different types of chowders, that is what I was interested in trying. Luckily, the restaurant offers sample packs, so I went for the 4 samples pack, as I was by myself and there is a limit to the amount of New England clam chowder one can consume (especially when two Pirozhki are still occupying the majority of the available stomach space). Another option was 8 samples pack, but that would be a waste of money and food. I decided to get New England clam chowder, Smoked Salmon chowder, Seared Clams chowder, and Market chowder (whatever the chef feels like on a given day). I got the sample pack to go for two reasons – there was absolutely no space to sit, and I still needed to lose at least 5–10 calories, so a walk to the hotel, albeit short, seemed like a good idea.
Remembering my Chowdafest experiences, Pike’s Place Chowder was never my top favorite, and nevertheless, for many years that I attended the Chowdafest, they have always won the New England Clam Chowder category. I only have two explanations for that phenomenon. Factor 1 – intimidation. They always bring a full display of medals to the competition, and when people see it, they are instantly inclined not to argue with success. I’m absolutely positive that same as with the wine if the tasting would be done blind, the results would be totally different. Factor 2 – customer service. At the Chowdafest, there is always a long line to each vendor’s stand. Pike’s Place always brings enough people to be able to carry their chowders around so the people wouldn’t have to wait in line.
See, I got really on a tangent here. As I got to my hotel room and took a first sip of the classic New England clam chowder, my first thought was “it’s okay, but this is not great” – hence the reminiscence on the subject of the Chowdafest. I can name a bunch of clam chowders (including the one which I make – yep, I have the nerve, I know) which I would unquestionably prefer – Grand Central Oyster’s Bar, Rory’s (a local restaurant in Darien, CT, always serving chowder with a tiny bottle of Sherry), and I’m sure many others. All four chowders were fun to try, with Seared Scallop chowder being my favorite. However same as with Piroshky Piroshky, I can eat it again, but that wouldn’t be something I would crave.
Now, to complete my culinary escapades in Seattle, here is one more, now truly unique experience.
I love the concept of “food in season”. Don’t get me wrong – I need my blueberries 365 days a year, whether they are grown locally in Maine or in Chile or Peru. But if you ever being to the “foodie heavens” in Europe – France, Switzerland, and the likes – there are always products which are only available for a short time – as, for example, white asparagus in Geneva which you can find on the restaurants’ menu only for about 3 weeks in the spring.
I never heard of Copper River Salmon before. Copper River is located in Alaska, and the salmon which is caught there is usually available in its fresh form only for a very short time in the spring, from mid-May through June. Copper River salmon is usually equated to the best Japanese marbled beef in its exquisite, luxurious flavor profile. Pier 66 Anthony’s seafood restaurant had just received their shipment of the Copper River Salmon two days prior to our visit, and it was on the dinner menu. We happened to dine at that restaurant on the last night in Seattle, so it was impossible to avoid such a rare treat.
Was that the best piece of salmon I ever had? Probably. It was soft, fluffy, airy, and full of flavor. This is probably something I would crave, and this is definitely the experience to remember. If anything, you should remember the name – Copper River Salmon – just in case the opportunity would present itself.
That’s my account of the few days in Seattle – well worth a visit even without taking the wine into account. But if you like wine like me, the visit to Seattle might be something you should simply crave. Why? I will tell you all about it in the next post…
Where Did The March Go?
Just like that.
March 2022 is anything but gone.
Last day of the month – where did the whole month go?
Yeah… What’s a month… It is just one month, right? As long as this is not a lifelong sentiment, we can deal with it…
So this particular March happened to be very busy. A weekend trip to Fort Lauderdale for close friends’ daughter’s wedding. A week in Cancun right after. Work trip to Las Vegas for the conference. Month started. Month ended.
My self-directed frustration is largely driven by the fact that I’m getting behind on my blog posting plans – again. Last December I played catch up. I really, really, really would like to avoid the same situation again.
Yes, I said it. Will see.
Before we talk about the wines again on this blog – you know I’m a sucker for sharing my experiences through pictures. So here it comes – our trip to Fort Lauderdale through the pictures. many pictures. Hope you will enjoy. Here it comes…
First, with the late afternoon departure from La Guardia, we had an opportunity to experience an amazing sunset in flight:
The next morning, we took a trip to Flamingo Garden – here are flowers, birds, and more.
Did we say Flamingo?
And a few peacocks:
Have you ever seen a peacock like this?
Here are some bees – for the iPhone photography, I’m pretty proud of these pictures:
a butterfly (she is perfectly alive, just caged)
and then this…
Yep, this is exactly what you think…In a broad daylight…
We stayed at a great location, Marriott Westin, right on the beach, with some of the best ever views I had from the hotel room:
I spent probably 20 minutes in the local Publix, trying to decide on the wine for the evening (we had dinner in the room) – the end result was quite decent:
Bodegas Lan Rioja never disappoints – especially if it is a 7-year-old Reserva for under $20. Beautifully integrated, young, and perfectly well structured.
I love Lodi wines, I love Zinfandel wines, but not a big fan of the Michael David Freakshow wines. But I have to admit that this 2019 Michael David Freakshow Zinfandel was well balanced, blackberry forward, and perfectly attuned to the expectations of the fresh, juicy, and smoky Zinfandel. Two out of two.
To finish the story, the next morning we went to Vizcaya, a beautiful estate and gardens near Miami. I have to honestly say that when I visited last time 8 or 10 years ago, the whole place was in a lot better shape – this time it felt run down. I’m sure the pandemic didn’t do it any favors – but I hope it can be restored to its old glory…
If you are still here – thank you, that’s all I have for you. Until the next time…
A Few Days In Florida
Last weekend we were lucky enough to avoid fighting with the cold here in Connecticut and instead spend the weekend with our friends in Naples, Florida. We had a great time so I want to share that with you – in the form of pictures, of course.
We were flying out of the La Guardia Airport, and our excitement started as soon as we walked from the garage into terminal B, as we were greeted with a stunning mosaic display. I was flying from La Guardia for the past 20+ years and all the time this was a dingy, run-down place you didn’t want to spend an extra minute at. In 2016, a huge construction project started, which seems to be almost complete right now, and the result is a beautiful, modern, stylish airport, very much comparable with some of the best in the world I had an opportunity to see. The terminal had lots of great food and shopping options, including even the F.A.O. Schwarz store! I was really excited to see the bear and Patrick The Pup!
So what was exciting in Florida besides, of course, the warm, sunny weather, beautiful flowers, palm trees, and the beach? A few things. First, a huge tomato bush growing on our friends’ property. It turns out that the development where they bought the house was built on the land of an abandoned tomato farm. Apparently, the tomatoes found their way out and considering Florida’s consistently warm climate, instead of a plant these cherry tomatoes grew into the huge bush. There were lots and lots of tomatoes on that bush, and I can’t even describe how sweet they tasted.
Next was our very first experience of eating bananas directly from the tree. We are used to buying green bananas in the store which need some time to ripen. The taste of banana which was fully ripened on the tree is absolutely uncomparable with our store versions here in Connecticut – it has a different taste even with the acidity which I was able to taste very clearly. I’m generally not a big fan of bananas, but I couldn’t stop eating these.
We enjoyed beautiful surroundings and beautiful sunsets.
I was even able to add to my list of states I tried the wines from. I had a little bit of time and stopped by the local Total Wines store. These stores typically have a tiny section of “local wines”. In Florida, I obviously found the wines from Florida, but also from North Carolina, Virginia, and, to my joy, from Indiana! I got a bottle of Oliver Vineyards Cherry Moscato, which is a blend of Muscat Canelli and Muscat Alexandria with the addition of a little bit of the Montmorency cherries juice, produced in Bloomington, Indiana. At 6.6% ABV, the wine was very light and had an excellent acidity to balance off the sweetness, a perfect quaffer for any hot day. And of course, I was able to check out one more state in my Wines of 50 US states list.
Two days went by quickly, and we are back into the cold, but armed with new, heartwarming memories. Hope your travel will take you somewhere exciting very soon!
New England’s Fall Colors, 2021 Edition
And here we are again in my favorite season – fall. It is still warm enough to enjoy the outdoors lightly clothed; running the air conditioning is no longer a necessity to survive indoors. And the colors, the abundance of colors – every season has its beauty, but fall offers the most profound expression of it.
This 2021 fall season is interesting (it is not over yet). It is still continuously warm, and so the leaves are still mostly green – it is occasional branches and individual leaves which all of a sudden offer a full brilliant display of red, golden, and orange. In this traditional New England fall post, I usually share pictures from my neighborhood walks, a tiny circle of two streets next to the house. Yesterday we wanted to get out of the house, and so we took about an hour drive to New Milford up north in Connecticut to visit Lover’s Leap State Park. We spent there about an hour, slowly walking the narrow path covered with fallen leaves, and admiring, or rather indulging, on absolute silence, crisp fall air, and views of the Housatonic River.
Absolute silence is a rare treasure – somehow, in the middle of the park you are far enough from the road, and maybe we just got lucky, but it was really an amazing feeling – not being disturbed by anything. It is hard to convey the silence and the smell of the autumn leaves through the words – so I have pictures for you – many, many pictures. Yes, pictures also don’t do justice to the perfect fall day outdoors but let me at least try…
Without further ado, here they are for your viewing enjoyment:
Here are more of the river views:
The trail:
Few of the random tree mushrooms:
And now, the color display:
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