Taste of the South

Sari Organik | Bali

We had our most memorable dining experience at Sari Organik in Ubud, a working farm that serves organic farm-to-table food. Our driver dropped us off at the beginning of a dirt path and we embarked on a leisurely half-hour walk through the rice fields to get to the farm's elevated restaurant. As we overlooked the lush landscape we ate a vegetable curry served with nasi goreng (fried rice), topped with cripsy shallots. On the way back we admired the farmers working in the fields and bought a few handmade goods from the local artisans.

Rhode Trip

While in Newport, RI a couple of years ago we tried out The Mooring restaurant. We reveled in their seafood laden menu and their house specialty: the 'bag-o-donuts,' a bag of deep fried shrimp and lobster fritters. Yum.

Ibu Oka | Bali

Ibu Oka is highly rated, but the kind of place where its best not to look at anything too closely if you want to keep your appetite. For $4 we tried the babi guling (suckling pig) recommended by Anthony Bourdain. Suckling, yes... crispy, YES... it was delicious and worthy of a visit if you ever find yourself on that side of the world.

Balinique | Bali

Open Air

London has its fair share of open air markets. We sampled our way through Borough Market and Camden Lock, tasting homemade Toulouse sausage, ginger-grapefruit iced tea, piping hot churros filled with dulce de leche, and chunks of salted caramel fudge.

Summerlovin'

Our first morning in London we ventured out to Camden Town to have brunch at The Summerhouse along the Union Canal. Between the white-washed walls, blue pinstriped upholstery and warm breeze coming off the canal, the essence of summer vacations lives on here year-round.

Fish 'n Chips

We had our obligatory English meal of fish 'n chips at Golden Union Fish Bar, just around the corner from Liberty on Poland Street. Freshly battered and cooked to order, the fish was crispy and golden just as their name promises.

DISHOOM!

Six years old, asleep in flannel pajamas, it was always the rapid successions of the sound “DISHOOM” which woke me up. I’d open my eyes to find my mom watching a Bollywood film. Dishoom is the sound of a punch making contact during a fight sequence in any Indian movie during from the 1980s. When Sara and I walked by the sign for DISHOOM in London, it immediately spoke to me in that primal part of my gut and brought a huge smile to my face. We decided we would have to go there for breakfast the next day.

The restaurant is the pinnacle of creative execution in both ambiance and food – with strong connectivity to the lost times of comfort food across Mumbai – Dishoom calls itself “A Bombay Café” in the same vain of that tradition. The menu is full of Bombay classics, with a beautiful modern touch. Case in point – our breakfast: Bacon Naan (oh yes, naan with m’f’n bacon in it, along with a light yogurt and cilantro), Bombay Omelette (a fluffy omelette with tomatoes, onions and masala), paired with masala chai and coffee in classic Indian café glasses. The food was perfectly prepared, the naan was very fresh, the bacon was crispy, the portions were reasonable as were the prices.

The décor is a whole other conversation. Pure class. Mahogany wooden trim panels, accented by large mirrors. Beautifully arranged collages of Indian families (mostly the owner's family), and vintage advertisements. A seamless, graphic print on the floor. Small touches, too: an old Indian apothecary cabinet in the bathroom stalls, a lower-level dining room which feels like a underground club in 50's Bombay.

The visit touched our hearts, and made our creativity soar. Our time there concluded when I spoke with the owner, Shamil, and spent a little time trying to convince him to open up Dishoom in New York. We’ll see what happens next….. but in the meantime, he asked us to visit his other location in London's Southbank…. (see below)

Chowpatty Beach on the Thames

While still digesting the amazing wonders of Dishoom 1 (above), our next stop was Big Ben, well maybe. Secretly, we really just wanted to check out Dishoom 2. So we went to Big Ben, took the requisite pictures and hastily walked across Westminister Bridge. Strolling along the waterside, our eyes were on the lookout for Dishoom…

In the distance, in pink letters we saw “Chowpatty Beach”, the Dishoom pop-up restaurant on the waterfront of the River Thames. Since Sara visited Chowpatty Beach in Mumbai, both of us grew very excited.

At the front entrance there was a cutout board so we took a moment to pose as vintage 1960's Bollywood models... Further along there was a wooden ramp, painted to look weathered with pastel paints, and blue plastic streamers. Very Bollywood beach party. The party and creativity continued inside... There was a wall of rolled up vintage Indian newspapers, brightly colored bottles across the bar, hand woven canvas wallpaper, spray-painted chairs and old relics of “found items” lining the walls. The bathrooms were wall papered with plastic Indian mats and authentic vintage signs.

For food, we wanted to order the spiked coconuts (coconuts full of water and spiked with rum), but they were all out. So we opted for Limca and Thumbs Up, the classic Indian sodas. Since we had just eaten breakfast, we ordered a small appetizer – bread crumb calamari, which was perfectly seasoned and delivered to our table in a kraft paper cup with wooden forks. The space truly evokes the colors, and the feeling of Chowpatty Beach, but with a modern and fun twist. Truly a restaurant experience not to be missed in London.

Catch of the Day

After two days of pure relaxation in Turks & Caicos we were up for a little adventure. We signed up for a guided tour and set out for snorkeling and conch-diving with the sea breeze on our faces and Bob Marley strumming from the speakers. A flock of seagulls followed our boat, knowing we would lead them to the fish.

After spending most of the day in the water, we made our last stop at Iguana Island. We kicked back with a couple of local beers and watched how to extract conch from its shell. Pretty unappetizing, but with some tomatoes, peppers and Caribbean hot sauce the conch was surprisingly delicious.

da Conch Shack

In Turks & Caicos we had our first experience eating conch at the popular da Conch Shack. Feeling fearless we dove right in and ordered it two ways-- Conch fritters and Conch in a creole sauce. The fish itself is rather chewy and tasteless, but absorbs all the flavors of its surrounding ingredients. We found it also pairs perfectly with another island favorite-- rum punch.

Pit Stop

Out in Napa we had lunch at Mustards Grill along St. Helena Highway, just down the road from Cakebread Cellars where went for a wine tasting. It was the perfect fix after sipping wine on empty stomachs. We had the "Ever-Popular Seafood Tostada", Grilled Mushroom Burger, and ginger beer...we were driving after all.