Best thing I ever ate

iab, I didnt know you were in Chicago? I have never made it to any of the places you mentioned, but i will have to try when Im there next.

The best ‘restaraunt’ food I have had was a small vietnamese place in Chicago called simply it. The Pho and Simply its beef is amazing! It is a traditionally marinated slab of filet mignon that is sliced onto a bed of veggies, and it just melts away when you eat it. Then when you are done you can get the deep fried bananas…Im getting hungry just thinking about it! Every time I go back to visit we have to make it point to have dinner there.

The best food I have had was also when I lived in Chicago. My friend was renting a room out to the sous chef at Alinea. He was working there for a few months to learn/work directly with the head chef. He made us something that I cannot even begin to describe one day we were hanging out. I seriously have no clue what went into it, but it was amazing! I always wondered how it was $200/seat at Alinea, but after that meal I know why. Its too bad Juan went back to Cali to open his own place, I was enjoying his expertise.

Having access to Grant Achatz’s sous chef must have been awesome. I’d love to eat there too but like Trotters, I can’t justify that amount of money for 1 meal. Unless of course its the client’s idea and they pay.

You really should try Rick Bayliss’ food (Topolobambo/Frontera Grill/XoCo). He is as good as Trotter or Achatz but a torta from XoCo is only $10. The real gem though is Patrick (I forget his last name) at Don Juans. An out of the way place with a horrible decor but just as good as anything Bayliss can do. Occassionaly he has a deep-fried oyster on a bed of spinach with what I would call a Mexican/French fusion bearnaise sauce (cilantro instead of tarragon?). $3 each but so worth the money.

Loving this topic…

The first time I ever had hours fresh seared Ahi tuna was at Roy’s Waikoloa on the Big Island of Hawaii. I’ve had it many times since, but Roy’s was still the best.

“Las Framboise” @ L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon in Las Vegas. It was a citrus dessert that topped off a meal that changed the way I look at and appreciate food.

The presentation was fantastic.

Sound fantastic!! Tell us more.

I don’t think I could pick just one meal, there’s too many amazing foods out there… here are some interesting ones off the top of my head:

A new one to me moving here to the UK is a good Sunday Roast - Especially at a pub that takes real care in the meal… it’s usually a big slab of roast pork, Beef, or lamb surrounded by Yorkshire pudding, potatoes, parsnips, gravy, and assorted veg. A good one is amazing!

some others would be a good steak (bife de chorizo) in Buenos Aires with peri-peri and caprese salad on the side, maybe a good Mendoza wine along with it. Why else go to Argentina?

Another amazing steak experience out of N Spain is a Chuletón, best found at Siderias. It’s a thick flavorful steak dinner at a hard cider house where you can help yourself to the drinks from giant 12ft diameter barrels. It’s a great meal, and it’s interactive!

Justin - I’m out of NC too, and the BBQ pork down there is pretty special… especially the vinegar style (not the tomato sauce type out of some confused counties). I keep planning to have a proper pig pickin out here one of these days :wink: Maybe my parents can send me some of that sauce…

tons of others, but I could go on and on…

I heading to Cali win country next week. I hope to have a lot to put into this thread.

Spick yak pizza in Lhasa, Tibet. Yak - it’s the other red meat.

Bone marrow from Longman & Eagle in Chicago! I never thought eating out of a femur could be so delicious. Wash that down with an Old Fashioned and you are set. (I lifted these beautiful pics from the internets)


bone marrow.jpg

Took a trip out to San Fran and wine country last month. Here are a couple of the fantastic meals that I had. First is a Crab Cake Benedict from the Eagle Cafe on the wharf and the second is a fantastic Burger from a small cafe in Glenn Ellen called the Fig Cafe. This was the first restaurant started by the chef that now owns the famous Girl and the Fig.
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I completely forgot about this post… I apologize for the crappy Blackberry photo


Well, it was yuzu sorbet encased in a white chocolate sphere. When the warm cranberry sauce was poured over the sphere in an “X” shape it blossomed like a flower… Stunning.


Breakfast:

Bouchon - Las Vegas

OEUF AU GRATIN

egg, hanger steak, and baby shitake mushrooms with caramelized onions and potatoes

The perfect combination of crispy cheese and runny egg

Another one from San Fran. Cafe Des Amis. I had the Mussels with fries, but the best thing we ate was this platter to Pate. Freak’n Fantastic!!

Thanks for the suggestion Yo!!
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Looks yummy… . my triglyceride count went up another 25 points just looking at this stuff. :wink:

I was staying with some Beduins in Israel / West bank area and we had fantastic meals, chicken, lamb, lots of veggies, but it was amazing.

I want to try Alinea in Chicago I hear it’s alright… :wink:

Foie gras is always good, Dry Aged stakes, Qual and Dove are tasty too… I’ll think of a few places I like to hit.

When I was young in Sweden we would get Whale (blue maybe), if you like stakes it will knock your socks off.



Hope PETA doesn’t read this post… :unamused:

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I am a foodie as well who loves to cook, travel around and explore. Some of my favorite gems have been dives off the beaten path. One such place is Supermarket Acapulco Tropical, Inc. That has a hidden restaurant in the back. The food is authentic and absolutely amazing! You can’t go wrong with tacos al pastor…

Wagyu! I so love the taste and tenderness of the beef! A must try!!

I second the Wagyu, had it in Morioka Japan. The second best steak I had was in restaurant Wildkogel, Bramberg, made from fresh game. It’s a 50-50 tie really. I also recommend Fesenjoon/Fesenjan, a Persian dish, it tastes a bit like a chicken satay but much more refined having the cold/warm taste balance with fruits and herbs of the Persian kitchen.

I also had a 1000-year old egg once, it doesn’t taste like much and they can market it already like that if it has been under the ground 11-12 years or so.

Im glad to revisit this since its been ~8 years since my previous post.

Best dish I’ve ever had was a goat curry from Chico Feo in Folly Beach SC. Even with all the travels and wonderful meals I’ve had over the years - this was the most memorable and flavorful dish I have experienced. I ate it consistently 4 days in a row and still dream about it.