I hope no one will get vertigo as we bounce around the world and I catch up on the stories from past travels that have been floating around in my brain for some time but have not yet made it onto a keyboard…
First, we are going back to Bucharest. Even though it’s been months since I was actually there, it was such a fun and memorable trip, it feels sad to be typing the final posts.
It’s not that I wouldn’t love to go to noma 😉 Perhaps someday… I only saw El Bulli in the film. I am sure a meal at an institution of that stature would be worth all of the trouble of securing a reservation but I have managed to stumble upon places with a level of culinary artistry such that you will remember the meal for a very long time.
Home
http://www.elbulli.info/
As usual, I arrived ill-prepared but the hotel did have a copy of the in your pocket guide so I knew I would figure something out 🙂
http://www.inyourpocket.com/
Had some time to kill before it would be time for dinner so just started randomly walking the streets near the hotel. They were filled with fin de siècle architecture, graffiti and the occasional KFC or Pizza Hut – a fascinating and unusual mix.
who needs disney to act like a princess 🙂
I definitely wasn`t dining at either of those options but no other restaurant screamed `pick me` so I kept wandering. I was starting to get tired and hungry so decided to venture into the Grand Continental Hotel where I found Concerto. There are several versions of Romania one can explore. That night I was channeling a Habsburg princess. It`s not my usual style but fun for a couple of hours.
http://continentalhotels.ro/Grand-Hotel-Continental-Bucuresti/en/restaurant-hotel/concerto-2/
The service was very formal and the dining room was opulent. There were only a handful of diners so it felt like I had servants at my beck and call. The meal was delicious and I had my first discovery of Romanian wine (it`s very good and great value).
If you like a side of history with your beverage, check out the English Bar at Athénée Palace Hotel. It was a den of spies, political conspirators, adventurers and their assorted entourages in the years leading up to World War II. It was then nationalized by the Communist government and filled with bugs and informants. I just had a glass of wine while I read my guidebook and planned my next move but it would be the perfect setting to have a “martini, shaken, not stirred“…
http://www.atheneepalace-hotel.ro/en/History-News
I was on my way to Eden on the recommendation of my server in Amsterdam who loved Bucharest and was jealous of my impending journey. Unfortunately, I was in the wrong season for the nightclub but it was still a very pleasant place to have lemonade after all my fervent trekking to see the real Bucharest.
http://www.bucharest-tips.com/places/450-nightlife-clubs-electro-clubs-gay-friendly-clubs-terraces-gardens-eden-club
I eventually got to the Old Town, which is even more spectacular with note-worthy architecture. Since it is also a tourist zone, it`s easier to find intriguing restaurants – and also lots of spots obviously dedicated to tourists 😉 I spotted a place called Nouvelle Vague. It looks like it belongs in Gastown so I decided I would ask for a table. My instincts are solid. Had an excellent main course called “sparkling fish“ and equally excellent Romanian sauvignon blanc. The service was a wonderful treat and I found out they had only been open for three months so it was nice to support some young entrepreneurs.
http://www.nouvellevague.ro/
By the next night, I had carefully read the in your pocket guide and had zeroed in on The Artist as my dining location of choice. But then I got more typical Eastern European service… apparently, all the tables were booked even though the restaurant was empty and I wasn`t planning to linger BUT I was able to make a reservation for the next night.
But that meant I still had to find somewhere to have dinner that night. So I continued on my wandering and consulted the guidebook and decided to select la Bonne Bouche. Yet again, an outstanding dinner. Was really craving beet salad by then (just getting salad in Europe can be a dilemma) and there it was! Accompanied by delicious moules frites and a flight of Sauvignon Blanc to expand my knowledge of Romanian wine.
https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g294458-d1893925-Reviews-La_Bonne_Bouche-Bucharest.html
And then it was finally time for my dinner reservation at The Artist!!! It`s run by a Dutch chef who I gather fell in love with a Romanian woman. Now, Dutch and chef is not a word combination that normally makes one salivate but, given my obsession with the Dutch and the amount of hours I have spent in recent years in Amsterdam, I knew that was changing and it was now possible to find a good Dutch chef.
http://theartist.ro/menu/
But The Artist is not just a good Dutch chef. It is the kind of meal you will remember for the rest of your life. It`s not Eleven Madison Park but it`s not something you would expect to find in Bucharest either. The food is exceptional and creative but there is also a little theatre to make sure the meal takes you to the next level.
The meal began with a literally smoking amuse bouche. Each course was accompanied by different bread, chosen to compliment and expand the flavours of that element. There is also a `spoon` selection for each course so you can have a large spoonful of each option. So I got to try ALL the appetizers. Each was a great pop of complex flavour.
food as poetry…
I stuck with sea bass for my main course and chose the cucumber sorbet for dessert as I had observed it came with a side of theatre. First, you are presented with a mortar and pestle and a nest of herbs. The chef then appears with a ball of sorbet. You are encouraged to mix the herbs with the sorbet to create your own dessert.
You finish with sublimely rich chocolate truffles. The entire experience was accompanied by champagne and an excellent Romanian white wine. I can`t remember the exact cost but I think it was around $50 USD.
Bucharest is a total bargain. What I hadn`t expected was the delicious modern food and Romanian wine. You can eat even cheaper if you are into sausage, sauerkraut and offal but, if you are more a beet salad kind of person, you will be equally well-served. Just arrive hungry! 🙂
life on planetm 
our girl in havana ;)
just step out of the hotel
I am going to try and stay home for more than a couple of weeks and see if I can’t catch up on all my travels… so we will likely be bouncing around the globe as I try to tempt you to explore the world…
Thanks to the internet, globalization and the Americans’ incredible moxie at selling a glamourized version of the American lifestyle to the rest of the world, it’s tough to find places that feel truly unique, let alone part of an entirely different era. Cuba is one of those incredibly rare and special places.
Contrary to what a lot of people think, there is a little internet in Cuba and you will see smart phones and computers but you will also see chalkboards and people lounging on the sidewalk outside fancy hotels (was guessing they might be using the hotel wi-fi).
If you don’t want to leave your overly engaged modern lifestyle at home, you can stay at the Hotel Parque Central. Apparently it has the best internet in Cuba and the lobby was constantly full of people on smartphones, tablets and computers and it looked very 2016 despite the colonial architecture. It’s a great hotel in an excellent setting for being a tourist in Havana and I would highly recommend it.
http://www.hotelparquecentral-cuba.com/
I would also recommend leaving your electronic devices at the hotel, making sure your shoes are comfortable and embracing the past. It’s not every day you get to go back to 1960 without a time machine.
I tried to explain “trending” to some young guys that I met at my favourite restaurant in Havana. There is no question Cuba is the hottest travel ticket right now and that’s how it got bumped up the list to 2016. You don’t need to panic quite yet though. It will not turn into Las Vegas 2.0 by next year.
There is no question change is underfoot and that something has to give. What will be interesting is how it all unfolds. I knew a little about Cuban history before I arrived but learned a lot more during my week in Havana. It is a fascinating place. I hadn’t appreciated before I arrived how old Havana was and that it was a strategically important and impressive city during colonial times. It’s certainly a place deeply scarred by the evils of imperialism. It’s also marked by the promise of an incredible revolution.
What they have built in Cuba is totally unique. Not everything works and it’s not an ideal system but there is definitely merit to some of the choices they have made, which is why change will come but I hope it will come with a Cuban flavour.
I did a lot during my six days in Havana so there is much more to tell. The one thing I wished I had done differently was research! There are entrepreneurial green shoots in Havana but capitalism is very much in its infancy. It’s fascinating. There is very little advertising or marketing. It’s hard to tell who is running an establishment and almost all the independent restaurants are on an upper level and not very obvious to the uninitiated.
I did buy a Moon guide by Christopher P. Baker, which was very helpful. I wish I had done more advance planning. I was a little too arrogant. I have travelled so much and always seem to find cool stuff to do on the fly that I have stopped being well prepared for arrival.
http://moon.com/books/moon-havana/
Certainly, it’s good to be ready to be spontaneous. Some of the best moments in Havana happened that way. But I found the restaurant because Christopher recommended it.
I’ve read a lot of Graham Greene so I am sure I read Our Man in Havana at some point in my youth but I am going to read it again now that I have
a literary setting
experienced the city. Whether you are a literary fan or not, the Hotel Sevilla is worth a visit. It was built in 1908 and based on the Alhambra in Spain. It was the first luxury hotel in Havana. What makes it unique is the Moorish architecture. There is a band playing in the lobby bar most of the time so sip a Mojito and soak in the atmosphere.
http://www.hotelsevillacuba.com/the-hotel-history
patio hotel inglaterra
Another worthwhile history lesson is the Hotel Inglaterra. It is the oldest hotel in Havana. I tried both dinner and a drink on the outdoor patio. I would recommend having dinner in a Paladare but drinks are cheap ($3 USD for a mojito) and the band was excellent.
http://www.hotelinglaterra-cuba.com/
Cuba isn’t going to change overnight… but it IS going to change. The climate is great. The people are warm and friendly. The country is full of incredible history and architecture. And there are gorgeous beaches if the rest is of no interest. You don’t need to book your ticket tomorrow. But you SHOULD go. Don’t wait too long. A place without a McDonalds or a Starbucks? That is something worth seeing 😉
Category:
social commentary, travel stories
Tagged with: