The Best Things I Ate: The European Tour

     It's time for the last installment of "The best things I ate."  Check out parts 1 and 2 if you haven't yet. This time, instead of dishes from Germany, I've collected all of my favorite meals from various countries I visited over spring break. Since this post required extensive research, it will be rather long, but I have to share these things because they are such an important part of why I love travel, and they are what inspire me to create new recipes of my own. Whether I'm at home or halfway around the world, I try to branch out and try new things, as well as authentic classics, and here, you'll see a good mix of both, organized by city.

Prague:

This was the first dinner I had in the first city of break, and it was a great way to kick it all off! It was roast pork with horseradish mashed potatoes and a gorgeous gravy. It was classic Czech food with a little added elegance. Another reason to love Prague is that even fancy restaurants are ridiculously cheap because of the exchange rate!

This little treat is something I grew up eating at home. Kolacky are little Bohemian cookies filled with jelly or cream cheese that come in all shapes and sizes. I saw these at a bakery stand at a local festival and just had to have a real one!

Budapest:

For even cheaper fancy food, this is the place for you! This was my birthday dinner, chicken with beetroot risotto. I'm not really a fan of beets, but I am a huge fan of risotto, so I decided to take a risk and order it. And not only does it look beautiful, it tasted perfect too!

Vienna:

A long time ago, I did an entire post about my favorite foods in Vienna, but one thing I regretted missing out on the first time was some real Wiener Schnitzel. So this time, I found a restaurant that was really popular with the locals and finally had some. Some of my friends got the giant version that was bigger than the plate, but I opted for this one to get the sides. That way, it didn't look entirely like a heart attack on a plate. At least there was some lettuce.

Venice:

Unlike Prague and Budapest, food in Venice can get pretty expensive. But one thing that's always a deal is pizza. Honestly, my favorite pizza in the world is still Chicago style deep-dish, but for authenticity's sake, this one was pretty good too. But it was a struggle to eat with a knife and fork.

Rome:

It was here that I first learned how to eat like an Italian. Apparently, the giant bowl of pasta is only the first course, and you're supposed to have room for a meat course after that. I usually just picked one or the other, but this pesto was my favorite pasta course, mostly because I believe you can never have too much basil.

Cinque Terre: 

As a general rule, whenever I'm lucky enough to go to a restaurant where I can see the ocean from my table, I order fish. And that's almost the only time I order fish. This was the first time that I ever got one with the head still attached, but after respectfully laying a piece of lettuce over the face, I thoroughly enjoyed this meal.
     So far, I haven't mentioned any restaurants by name, but I feel compelled to for this next one. Based on rave reviews from Rick Steves and Tripadvisor, I had to try Il Pirata in the tiny town of Vernazza. I'm sure all their food is great, but I specifically wanted to go for breakfast.

First, there's this little cup of wonderful. The owner gave us a little free sample, describing the mix of fresh strawberry slush and whipped cream as "the Italian yoghurt." That little taste was not enough. And just the fact that this is considered just like yoghurt here is just another reason why I love this country.

Finally, yes, I did order a cannoli for breakfast. I had to do it, and it was the best one I've ever had. And now I know better than to order a pre-filled one. These are filled only after you order them so that they stay delightfully fresh and crunchy.

     So that's how I ate my way across Europe. Next week, I'll write my last Reutlingen post as I prepare to go home for the summer. And by the way, this is the 150th post on Spoonful of Zucker. This blog has become exactly what I envisioned, a perfect mix of fabulous food and fabulous places. Thank you all for coming along for the ride this year. I can't wait to see where it will take us in the next one!