Leela's Kitchen, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

My spouse and son were looking for an Indian restaurant in Cedar Rapids when they were there on a separate task, not food related, but they were going to be leaving about 9:30 or 10AM at the latest, and most restaurants were not open. This place does a traditional Southern Indian breakfast. We had traveled there two winters ago, and every morning we hada traditional South Indian breakfast—often called "tiffin"—it features warm, savory dishes made from fermented rice and lentil batters or semolina. Core items include fluffy steamed idli, crispy dosa, savory upma, and fried vada, served with coconut chutney, which is a bit on the bland side, and vegetable sambar, which can pack a punch. All of these were part of the meal, which they offered in a carry out package, and also featured a delicious lentil dal as well. Breakfast is not my favorite Indian meal of the day, but if you have a hankering for it, this is the place.

Caracol De Mar, Mexico City, Mexico

This is a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant. We stayed in the Condesa neighborhood on our recent trip to Mexico City, and this was an easy walk from out apartment. Chef Gabriela Camara’s hospitality and vision shine the brightest at the newest iteration of the restaurant (it apparently had moved), which welcomes guests with bar seating and cocktails on the first floor and a stunning salon filled with natural light on the top floor. The downside of the space is that it has a lot of hard surfaces and is really quite loud. The culinary ethos remains, with sustainability and seasonal seafood at the core and all-time menu favorites in tow. Order the green mole risotto and the fish tacos—they were both delicious, and the side sauces are a high point.

This is recommended, especially if you want to lean into seafood, and the sound level didn’t sound like a negative. Of the two seafood restaurants we ate at, this one was more upscale and had more memorable accompaniments to the dishes.

Green Rhino Bakery, Mexico City, Mexico

This bakery is world class. It comes from star baker Richard Hart, renowned for his bakery Hart Bageri, with multiple locations in Copenhagen, and is his first bakery in North America. It opened in July of this year in a new building in Roma Norte. The space is huge. A wall of glass at the front, a pastry counter, and up a ramp, a small seating area that looks over the bakery floor, expansive and busy, which includes a lamination room, a walk-in freezer, and ovens the size of a studio apartment. Workers mill about, shaping loaves and filling trays. And the line can wrap around the block. There is a rotating cast of pastries, cookies, danishes, rolls, buns, and laminated numbers, which are very, very rich (likely half of their weight is butter) and shatteringly crisp. Look for those with fresh fruit to offset the fat and the savory ‘nudja and requeson rectangle. The bread is exceptional: deeply browned loaves, speckled with pepitas, seeds, and bran, with a sour, open-crumbed interior, begging for a thick smear of salted butter. For this style of sourdough, high-hydration with a robust, chewy crust, it is simply the best in Mexico City (and priced fairly, to boot). For beverages there is coffee, tea, frappes made with coconut water, matcha, and hot chocolate. There are also merch, jams, spreads, and fancy teas, from his romantic partner, the “raretealady" Henrietta Lovell, plus his James Beard-award-winning cookbook for sale.

Expendio de Maíz, Mexico City, Mexico

This was my favorite food experience overall. A one Michelin star place with tables on the street--and only four of them, all communal tables--we ate with some young dermatologists who trained together in the not too distant past and were in town for soccer. There is a no sign, no menu, and cash-only, sidewalk operation in Roma Norte offers a surprising experience that prioritizes food over fuss. In place of typical creature comforts, find a bustling kitchen that cooks and cooks until diners tap out. It is anyone’s guess as to what’s coming but know that heirloom corn nixtamalized and ground in house serves as the foundation for many of the dishes. Tortillas, sopes, and huaraches alike are molded and griddled to order and then dressed in a dazzling variety of seasonal ingredients and sauces. Tableside salsas pack lightning bolts of heat and enliven every course. It was phenomenal. I just wish I was hungrier.

Pujol, Mexico City, Mexico

We had the taco omakase at Pujol, Chef/owner Enrique Olvera’s seminal dining room that has long stood as one of the country’s most famous addresses. This breezy, contemporary space is a constant hive of activity, thanks to the 95 elegant servers who circulate throughout the equallyelegant space. In the introduction we were asked about insects 🐜. Our neighbors said no, then, well if you can’t see them, maybe? No, he was quite clear, you can see them. We started and ended in the garden—which is brilliant from a table management focus but also it is such a pleasant spot.

A foodie friend asked:How did you enjoy? The restaurant creates a ton of buzz! I replied that we were glad we went but it a one and done for us. The food is impeccably prepared, some exceptional flavor bombs and like nothing we have had before. It is always a win when you have an experience like no other. It is next level, but next time? More taco stands, less fine dining

Taquería El Jarocho, Mexico City, Mexico

This is a Michelin Bib Gourmand taqueria--where it is important to note that while they open at 9:30, they do not start serving off their more extensive menu until later in the morning. But you can always have tacos!

El Jarocho has eighty years of history backing it up, and has been run by three generations of the same family. It was originally a tortilleria, and they're known for their guisado-style tacos, offering a wide variety of proteins and vegetables stewed in a number of different ways. And don't skip their campechano taco with chopped steak and topped with crispy chicharron--that was Joel's favorite--mine was the mile verde tacos. Fresh tortillas are made in-house.

Contramar, Mexico City, Mexico

It was our first night in Mexico City, and even though there wasn't much of a time change from home, we had to get up early to get there, so an early dinner was in order. Thank goodness we had a reservation because the place was completely packed at 4:40 in the afternoon--perhaps aided by a World Cup game, which could be seen (and heard) from every corner of the large restaurant with closely packed seating. This is not a quiet place at the best of times, but if you like a lively festive environment and do not need to hear yourself think, this is a great place to eat seafood. My favorite dish was the shrimp tostada and the signature dish of the restaurant is the whole fish, grilled and then served half with salsa verde and half with salsa rojo. The whole meal was excellent and I would recommend it. The chef Gabriela Cámara has served as a culinary advisor to a former Mexican president, so not like we discovered this place!

Qui Plume La Lune, Paris, France

Our last meal in France! We made it a good one, walking the mile or so from our hotel right outside Le Gard Notre train station, so we got a chance to experience the city a bit, even though I was still a bit under the weather from my shoulder replacement surgery, and not up to the usual marching about we do. Paris is a beautiful walking city and so well worth doing at least a bit of that. This is a wonderful place, with great atmosphere as well as food. Here is what they say on the Michelin website: Qui plume la Lune boasts two very different interiors: one with bare stone walls and natural materials and the other a riot of colour and dried flower compositions. The chef executes a creative score that showcases the season’s finest ingredients: fillet of croaker, risotto of tapioca pearls; tender beef fillet with mash and roast celery; poached pear and muscovado sorbet. The dishes are artfully plated and indulgently served, the cooking is spot on and the flavours and seasonings exquisitely balanced: just the ticket for a good meal in a warm, elegant setting. We were seated in the more formal half of the restaurant, pictured above, and very much enjoyed the meal.

La Grand Cerf, Villers-Allerand, France

We wended our way back towards Paris after a week in Alsace, and this part of the Champagne region is much more charming than staying in Reims proper. I had wanted to stay there, to see the famous church that Monet painted, but did not need to go back, and this restaurant was spectacular, well worth finding if you are in the neighborhood. Here is what they have to say on the Michelin web site: At the foot of the Montagne de Reims and on the road to Épernay, this imposing inn unabashedly brandishes its opulent style. Come evening, the elegant dining space done out in pale wood takes on a romantic air – the perfect setting for fine classic French cuisine delivered by chefs Dominique Giraudeau (who shone for many years in the kitchens of Gérard Boyer at Les Crayères) and his associate, Pascal Champion. On the menu, top-notch produce, from John Dory to free-range milk-fed veal, as well as game, lobster and truffles. We opted for the mid-sized menu--not the plat du jour, but one step up from that, and it was really lovely. The table ware was particularly nice, not fussy but quite pretty.

La Relais de la Poste, La Wantzenau, France

We ate on the patio at this one star Michelin restaurant for my birthday-- the nice thing about it, besides that it was a beautiful day and the patio is spacious, is that we were the only North Americans in the place and all the tables were occupied. They say that the chef and his team offer precise cuisine, elegant presentation, a discerning selection of locally sourced ingredients, and creative, flavorful dishes.

We couldn't agree more. I love the spring foods--aspagagus, spring peas, rhubarb, strawberries are all some of my favorites, and in this land locked region, the fish is from the river or the lake. I never quite got it before, but the terroir is finally something that I can taste--took years, decades really--before I really felt I knew the difference. We in the US have come to that party late, which left us with no sense of it, but as tariffs in the US rise, gas prices rise, and the availability of food that travels becomes less affordable, maybe the silver lining is that we develop the ability to grow and appreciate our own. This is a restaurant well worth going to celebrate, and they will talk about where they source their food, some of it from across the street.

Restaurant A L'Etoile, Boersch, France

This is a Michelin noted restaurant, and here is what they have to say about it: Tucked away in a small Alsace village on the Mont Sainte Odile road, this traditional hostelry, opened in 1920, is today run by the fourth generation. A warm welcome and honest, homely recipes, starring market-fresh produce and a slate menu.

The menu changes daily and is written on a slate board--so it is short and fresh. I am not a fan of offal, but if you are, about 1/3 of the menu consists of that, and but all of it is more French leaning than the traditional Alsatian food we had in some places we ate on this trip. I had a whole trout, very simply prepared by poaching it whole and then serving with browned butter with slivered almonds. My spouse had veal tonnato that was possibly the best version of that dish we have ever had. Overall it was very reasonably priced and deliciously prepared food--the menu is limited but varied, and I would recommend it.

Au Table du Gourmet, Riquewihr, Alsace, France

This was one of the most intensely herbal meals I have ever had and I loved it. They have a massive garden and they are not afraid to use it. The chef, Jean-Luc Brendel, describes himself as a chef, a gardiner, and a poet. All of this is evident in the food on offer at this gorgeous restaurant. From their own website: A chef's total commitment to sustainable and responsible gastronomy, in homage to nature and to his land of Alsace. Because the expression "cultivating one’s own garden" could have taken root here, Jean-Luc Brendel does a lot of the gardening, composts, selects, raises chickens and produces honey. He is the author of a spontaneous, fresh and free cuisine, a cuisine of the essential, of cultivated or wild products, of emotions and travels, and he signs his plates in green. Emotional upheaval and eco-responsibility.

The town itself if worth exploring and there are places to try the regional wines just around the corner from the restaurant. Riquewihr is a picturesque medieval village in the Alsace region of northeastern France, famous for its well-preserved 16th-century architecture, colorful half-timbered houses. So very cute, if also remarkably crowded with tourists, at least the older part of the town is pedestrian only. Really lovely, despite not having been discovered by us

Chez Yvonne, Strasbourg, France

This was the meal that my spouse wanted to have the first day but we couldn't quite swing, because for one, we were not quite in Alsace--we had a bit of a reboot on our travel plans because of my shoulder replacement surgery eight weeks before leaving me sore, winged, and uneasy of being joustled. The menu is written on a chalk board, it was heavy on tradition, and we really got a taste of regional food. In the restaurant's own words: Chez Yvonne is an iconic Winstub in the history of Strasbourg, where you can enjoy generous and traditional Alsatian cuisine in a friendly setting just steps from Strasbourg Cathedral. The establishment, founded by Eugène Jacquemet, first opened its doors in 1873 under the name "S'Burjerstuewel." In 1956, the restaurant adopted the name "Chez Yvonne," in honor of its new owner, Yvonne Haller. A prominent figure in the Alsatian capital, she gradually built the restaurant's reputation. The establishment is also renowned for the quality of its traditional dishes, appreciated by all gourmets. It has even been awarded a Bib Gourmand by the Michelin Guide. Even today, this historic restaurant of the Franco-German agreement seduces with its Alsatian dishes and its authentic atmosphere, a living reflection of the Alsatian gastronomic heritage.

La Grand Georgette, Reims, France

This was our first stop after landing in Paris. Originally we had planned to take the train to Alsace and rent a car from there, taking advantage of both the high speed nature of train travel in France as well as having an opportunity to nap a bit after a relatively sleepless night. Unexpectedly, between buying the airplane tickets and the actual trip I had a shoulder replacement surgery. It was perhaps both equal parts optimism and naïveté to follow through with with long ago planned travel to France when I was 7 weeks post-op, but after 5 weeks of doing not much but nurse my bum shoulder followed by 3 weeks of struggling to be back at work, I was ready for a bit of a vacation. Concessions were made and instead of taking a train to Alsace we opted instead to drive to Champagne (less chance of jostling on public transport) and we chose Reims! All I knew of the town is the 30 or so paintings Monet did of the cathedral here—I had postcards of 2 of them in my office forever after seeing them in a Monet exhibit long ago. What I did not know was that he was commissioned to paint them after it was bombed in WWI. The cathedral dates back to the 5th century and the current restored is a great example of Gothic architecture —with over 2,000 statues.

So it is all about the church--we stayed a block away and we ate in a restaurant in view of it. The meal was a bit fussier than what we usually aim for on the first day, and it was slow going between courses--a blessing and a curse when you are trying to stay awake, but this was a very good meal, well prepared, and with a glass of champagne each, of course. We were definitely not up for a bottle and what they had by the glass was less unique than their bottle selections, but overall I would recommend this.

Izakaya Hamagumi, Kanazawa, Japan

We arrived at the restaurant about 10 minutes before it opened and there were two parites waiting ahead of us--this is a popular place, and reservations would be recommended. We sat at the bar and had a good view into the kitchen--this was a common theme on this trip, and for me it definitely added to the fun. I had the best saki of the trip here, and enjoyed watching them prepare carafes for other tables as well. To begin we had pickles a raw shrimp dish, an octopus amuse bouche, and small whole shrimp tempura that I failed to photograph but loved best of all. A close second was the collar of yellow tail--I love this dish, because it is fish on the bone that is easily managed and also not to much food.

This restaurant was in the samurai district in Kanazawa, which was noticably old architecturally and also distinct from the districts we had been in up to then. It's historical value lies in its unusual state of preservation. It has escaped large-scale fires, including the firebombing that damaged other large cities such as Tokyo and Osaka during World War II. Accordingly, it retains many features from the Edo period: narrow streets, a drainage and water supply system that remains in use, and restored samurai houses. Many of these residences maintain their original earthen walls (tsuchi-kabe), which are still covered in the winter with straw mats to protect them from frost and subsequent cracking

Yakitori Tsukada, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan

We tried a lot of different types of places our first couple of days in Tokyo—a tendon place, a ramen place, a yakiniku place—all costing about $10 per person. We did a fancer meal our last night at Yakitori Tsukada, a yakitori place specializing in chicken, and really enjoyed it! The other thing to point out is that there is a lot of fish and beef in Japan, and it is nice to have another option altogether when you are eating out each and every day.

I love skewers, but the meal started with something I plan to try to make at home--potato leek miso soup. We managed to score quite a few different types of miso when we were in Osaka, and I think it would be possible. The fortune cookie style chicken cut out stuffed with chicken liver is not on that list, but we did pick up some persimmons at home because we had so many good ones, including here. Every part of fowl was offered, including some grilled quail eggs, duck breast, and even a chicken meatball to dip in a raw egg! My favorite was that, and my spouse liked the chicken shoulder best, but really, everything was delicious and I would recommend it.

Everest on Grand, St. Paul, Minnesota

This is a special place, where the food of the Himalayan region is featured. The owners came to Minnesota for educational reasons. Padam Sharma came to Minnesota in 1977 with his wife, Kamala, and their two children—son, Sam, and daughter, Pankaj—to pursue a master’s degree in Soil Science. They returned to Minnesota so that Padam could earn his Ph.D., after which he took a research position at North Dakota State University. They eventually returned to Minnesota, where Padam worked first as a researcher at the university, then as a consultant in a computer business. The restaurant grew out of a desire to bridge the gap between Americans and Nepalese through food. The family nature of the business has been its greatest strength, especially because Kamala, Pankaj, and Pankaj’s husband, Ujjwal, are all peak-level cooks of Nepalese cuisine. When you walk in, you can tell you are about to eat well--we started with Yak momos, because while I had yak years ago, it had been a while. We ordered our food medium, a 3 on a scale of 1-5 and there was definite heat to it, not to much, but more than enough to know they were not going lightly on us. I would recommend this as having a menu that is broader than many other restaurants of similar cuisine. I brought the leftovers home, and after sharing with my family we decided to get a Nepali cookbook and try our hand at it.

Sadler Restaurant, Milan, Italy

This is an elegant place with excellent food--not only did the chef grace our table, he sat and ate with the two women who were about his age who were sitting next to us--we all opted for the tasting menu. For us, it was our last elevated meal in Italy and we wanted it to last. This is a one-Michelin star dining establishment housed in the Casa Baglioni hotel, a beautiful Art Nouveau building dating from 1913, this restaurant has a contemporary feel with an elegant dining room featuring colourful armchairs. The cuisine is precise and distinctive, with a harmonious balance of traditional and innovative flavours thanks to the top-quality ingredients used. This was an easy walk from our hotel, and from here we walked to the Duomo and to an upscale store to buy cheese to bring home.

Ristorante Borgo Sant'Anna, Monforte d'Alba, Piedmont, Italy

The restaurant is housed on a vineyard, so the dining room has spectacular 180 degree views of the UNESCO World Heritage wine growing region that are breath taking all on their own. The chef here, Pasquale Laera, is originally from Puglia but has long made Piedmont his home, embracing the traditions and codes of its regional cuisine while enriching them with his own vision. His offering includes tasting menus (one dedicated to game in season) and an à la carte selection that reflects a colorful, generous style, where the choice of ingredients clearly sets flavor above appearance. Special care is given to vegetables, which Pasquale, true to his southern roots, knows how to elevate to their best, carefully sourcing them not only from his own garden but also from trusted suppliers.

The game menu was on offer, but we opted for one that was more vegetable and seafood forward, and while the meal over all was perfect, we loved each dish and there were a number of highlights, this one stood out. This was the BEST zucchini I have ever had. The broth is olive oil and lemon, the fresh zucchini floating it it picked up this sauce, which was flavorful and coated them. On the bottom of the pile in the middle was grilled zucchini, topped with a packet of ground zucchini and ricotta, and atop that some vert small poached zucchini and a fried zucchini flower. The small side dish had a pickled. tiny pan patty. Amazing!!!

Osteria La Torre, Cherasco, Piedmont, Italy

This was a feast of Piedmont dishes that included rabbit as well as the wonderful pasta with so much egg yolks called Tajarin al Ragu. These were both excellent, but the two things that we had never had that prompted us to buy a cookbook (in Englsih) from the region were these: Firstly, Il Piccolo Carpione, which is served cold. Either fish or chicken, fairly thin, is seasoned and dredged through flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs and fried. The vegetables are put into a poaching liquid that is half vinegar/half white wine, gently poached, and then cooled, and the two are served cold with a bit of the poaching liquid. It was very simple and quite delicious.

The other remarkable dish was CIPOLLA RIPIENA DI CIPOLLE E AMARETTI, CREMA DI CAROTE, which is Onions that have been boiled slightly, and then all but the outermost layer are removed, and then choppe up--to be stuffed back into the shell and mixed with ground almonds or amaretto biscuits, seasoned with clove, then baked and served here with a carrot sauce. THe whole meal was amazing, and more importantly so different from food I had had that I could have gone back the next day, had the very same meal all over again and been quite pleased.