This a continuation of my cycling journey through Italy, powered by a hundred meals, fifty espressos and twenty gelatos. Ortobello With my trusty bicycle I headed down from the hills of Tuscany to the coastal town of Orbetello, still in Tuscany, thinking that I'd be able to follow the coastline to Rome without any more... Continue Reading →
As pointed out by many a worthy, Italy is fiercely regional and the food changes quite a bit even if drive a short distance. Fed all my life on a mish-mash of Italian dishes from all regions, it took some time before I started noticing the differences. The differences are not quite as stark as... Continue Reading →
Great ingredients are enormously important in Italy. As my friend Silvestori pointed out, Italians start with great stuff and don’t fuss about with it like French chefs do. Italian cooking methods are simple; the wow comes from what is used rather than from sophisticated techniques and delicate procedures. Though a veteran of at least a... Continue Reading →
Along with cycling, I spent a lot of time and focus making sure I was fed well, the result of which was an increase rather than a decrease in weight after 1400km of cycling and 9500m of climbing. This was no accident - making sure I tasted everything that came my way was an important... Continue Reading →
I did not land in Sydney with any great expectations of the food. No imperial traditions, no street food, no ancient cooking traditions; Australia's culinary greatness rested (in my mind) on a flashy television show where cameras were more important than tastebuds. As it turns out, I was spectacularly wrong. Yes, cooking in Sydney is... Continue Reading →
Grilling raw meat for a few minutes – most of the world would barely consider cooking; America has, however, managed to persuade everyone that it is, in fact, very haute as cuisine goes. The great American steak is something I am very fond of. When I first moved to New York, Atkins was all the... Continue Reading →
A few Sundays ago, a rather ancient plane served me decent satay and plunked me into a country where three civilizations have been trying to teach the others to cook for generations. And they usually get it right; Malaysia is a great place for foodies, and I had hardly had my fill on the plane.... Continue Reading →
Its always a good idea to cultivate marriageable Mallu friends, or at least friends willing to be married to Mallus. The last time this yielded dividends was at Anjali’s wedding – Chennai, but a wonderful, payasam-loaded affair – and it took half a decade to find another candidate. And so I landed in Thrissur, home... Continue Reading →
One hardly ever comes across anything worth talking about that has not already been talked about. Mumbai's bloggers are quite an active lot, usually out-writing me with ease. It was with some satisfaction, therefore, that I discovered hidden gold in the heart of Girgaum. Of course, being entirely undiscovered was too much to ask. A... Continue Reading →
Carcassone, I was told, attracted a million visitors a year so I decided to add myself to the millions and see what all the fuss was about. The day started bright and crisp and the GPS dutifully sent me hurtling towards my destination. Halfway through, I stopped at a nice bright boulangerie and discovered that... Continue Reading →
The Well Fed Bong 