Food – Widdershinning Weiss

The last thing I ate whilst widdershinning was a slice of Dani’s pizza in Kew Gardens Queens just after landing in New York

Saying goodbye to LA with tacos of course

LA brunch; I got the breakfast burrito and we got some hot chicken for the table

Getting to In-N-Out wasn’t a priority while in LA, but I also assumed it would happen sooner or later

Lunch #1 in Los Angeles is of course tacos.

Kauai’s best cuisine seemed to be burgers. I hadn’t eaten many around the world so I indulged here, including this massive one for my last Hawaiian meal.

Kauai hostel potluck (I made the guac)

What’s more American than a burger, fries, and dragonfruit kombucha cocktail?

No such thing as too many fish tacos, on Kauai

KC style sweet chili wings during the Superbowl

While driving around Oahu stopped at a place known for their handmade pasta. Pictured here is the fresh and herbacious Malanggay Florentine. But why does every Hawaiian dish have to be served in styrofoam?

Kicking off Hawaii with poke on the beach in Honolulu

Kamo Zaru Soba from the affordable yet phenomenal michelin starred Naniwa Okina in Osaka. The soba was dipped in the duck broth, after which I was given the soba’s starchy water to reheat/dilute the dipping broth before draining it. Michelin star is deserved.

Back in Osaka, one more conveyor belt sushi for good measure

Set lunch of traditional foods from the city of Nara. I was full after this but somehow could’ve eaten two more.

Yakiniku is Korean style grill your own meats. The beginning of round 1 of 3 is pictured here.

I was told Kyoto is known for matcha (among other things), so here’s a chewy snack of mochi/matcha stuffed with red bean paste

Omelette rice from an assuming well reviewed places in Kyoto

I was told Kyoto is known for matcha (among other things), so here’s a matcha donut with matching matcha green tea

Waygu kobe beef in Kyoto. Makes my mouth water and cup runneth over (seriously though, they poured my sake so it overflowed).

Beef sukiyaki for lunch in Osaka

There weren’t any events in Osaka celebrating the Chinese New Year so I took myself out to a Chinese dinner. First course was pork bun and shumai.

Osaka sushi set, because there’s no such thing as too much sushi

Grilled crab on the streets of Osaka

Okonomiyaki translates to “grilled as you like it,” and is generally a kimchi pancake with stuff on top, this one from Osaka is loaded with yakisoba (fried noodles) and egg

Red bean filled pancake

Ise udon is known for being fatter fluffier noodles in more of a sauce than a broth

The biggest oysters I’ve ever seen were so very tasty and grilled to order in Ise

Nagoya is best known for unagi (eel). This hitsumabushi came with instructions on how to eat it three ways, plain, with seasonings, and with broth. All phenomenal.

Shrimp tempura soba with a side of ground tuna over rice in Nagoya

Chef’s choice yakatori sampler. I’m not entirely sure what some
Lf these were but I think more than one was chicken organs.

Chicken Katsu in Tokyo

My third meal of conveyor belt sushi in Tokyo (this photo from the beginning, my stack of plates grew before all was said and done)

Woweee these gyoza were huge. I took a nap after this meal.

Tuna two ways and sake make for a balanced dinner in a Tokyo basement izakaya

With udon and ramen off the list, my brothy noodle trifecta was completed with this soba dish with a Mt. Fuji view

Takoyaki (octopus dumplings) from a food truck near Mt. Fuji

After placing my ramen order via vending machine I was motioned over to this booth where my dish eventually appeared

Shrimp and crab omelette over rice with a side of egg drop soup in a diner in Tokyo’s hipster Koenji neighborhood

I really appreciate conveyor belt sushi

The fish in this grilled cod set lunch was delicate and mild and good

Sesame leek udon

This one should need no introduction

So many Japanese foods to eat! Having just arrived in a chilly Tokyo, first meal up is ramen.

The food I encountered in the Philippines wasn’t often traditional. When it was, it wasn’t my favorite cuisine of Southeast Asia. But one of their staples was found every in Asia: chicken and rice.

Lechon is Spanish for roasting suckling pig and is an essential part of the cuisine on the island of Cebu

Chop suey in El Nido

Pancit bihon is a traditional Filipino noodle dish

Filipino lunch spread on a quiet beach on Cadlao Island during a boat trip out of Nacpan Beach

Fat noodles, baked rice/pork/mushroom, and sweet and sour chicken for the last lunch of Bangkok

Part of this dinner was fried garlic shrimp and som tum (mango salad)

First meal in Bangkok was family style and featured a teddy bear of rice

Tropical fruit breakfast spread

Cashew noodles

Family style lunch in a floating restaurant in the middle of Khao Sok (the fish is a giant gourami)

Drunken noodles with the stunning backdrop of Khao Sok (and the best koozie) ever

Khao Lak Laksa; seafood yellow curry

“Traditional noodles with chicken” said the menu

Mango and sticky rice is a popular dish for good reason

The love the fat noodles of a good pad see ew

Green curry in Ko Phi Phi

I don’t think I would ever get tired of congees for breakfast

Mini pad thai was the perfect size for sampling Pai’s street food for dinner

I tried to avoid western (and fatty) food, but a deep fried banana nutella sandwich for dessert was inevitable

Thai noodles, which we made ourselves (though not from scratch) for lunch while hanging out with elephants

Khao Soi is a coconutty sweet and savory crunchy and soft noodled curry dish found only in northern Thailand

Cambodian dinner

Lunch during the Siem Reap temple tour included fried rice in a pineapple and coconut juice (as they call it) in a… coconut

Cambodian stir fry

No clue what this street food was called, cooked up in downtown Ho Chi Minh City

Banh Tam: tapioca noodles with fish sauce, coconut milk, and a litany of local South Vietnamese toppings

Banh Mi from the streets of Ho Chi Minh City

Breakfast at the Cai Rong floating market on the Mekong Delta

Chicken feet, octopus, and okra

Bunh Dao Ngo – a roll your own kind of dinner in Can Tho

I made this pho!

Congee (rice porridge) and white rose dumplings

Banh Mi for breakfast?

Hu tieu street noodles in Hoi An

Give me all the fresh spring rolls

Com Ga in Da Nang, which loosely translates to rice and chicken in Da Nang

Banh Trang Trung was kind of like thin crust pizza street food. Egg, chili, ground pork, and scallions on a fried crepe, with a sweet dipping sauce. Phenomenal.

French cuisine still very present in Vietnam, especially in the desserts, like this Creme Brulee in Hue

They said bun bo was a traditional Vietnamese breakfast, so that’s how I started my day in Hue. If this looks similar to pho, that’s because it is.

I was about to leave Hanoi without having had pho – couldn’t let that happen

Somewhat traditional Vietnamese spread for the group lunch on a cruise of Halong Bay

So many spring rolls, with the prettiest tomato I ever did see

I got the “Obama Combo” of bun cha. This restaurant really celebrates him after he dined there with Bourdain on a trip to Vietnam in 2016.

Singapore farewell brunch of… (I don’t remember what anything was called)

Doing hotpot right in Singapore

Bak chor mee from Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle, the second Michelin star hawker stall

Steamed mini buns (soup dumplings) from a hawker stall. So so so good.

Singapore’s breakfast staple is Kaya Toast dipped in a soft boiled egg (kaya is Malaysian coconut egg jam)

‘Singaporean tapas’ consisting of “carrot cake” (bottom left, basically radish and scrambled eggs), seafood kway teow (top left), and Hong Kong style meats (right)

Durian was an interesting combination of somewhat familiar fruity flavors and a mothballish funk

Singaporean soya chicken and rice – the signature dish from Liao Fan Hawker Chan, the first hawker stall to earn a Michelin star. Also with a pork rib.

Split pea dal in Kochi

I ate street food somewhat sparingly in India but this choola coocha in Jaipur came well recommended

I didn’t eat many traditional Indian breakfasts, but this one was a bread-omelette crossover with a coconut cashew and spicy mint dipping sauce

Donuts for dinner? Sabar vada, a traditional south Indian dish, included dense non-sweetened maybe potato flour donuts, with almost an Indian minestrone

In Jaipur a snack was this sweet and savory ball from a bakery (savory is broken open here)

My second Agra dinner was a veggie kofta

A thali for lunch in Agra

Agra dinner was a veggie something or other with rice and oh-so-buttery garlic naan

Veggie appetizer sampler at a high end Delhi restaurant

Nepali veggie chili

Dal Bhat Takari (a.k.a. Thali Set, which refers to the crockery) was dinner two nights in a row in Nagarkot

Masala Papad is kind of like Nepalese nachos (lunch appetizer in Shankharapur)

The best of 3 veggie momos I had in Nepal, these were in Nagarkot (and also the prettiest)

This dahi puri chat from the streets of Kathmandu was so good I ordered another. Sweet, salty, spicy, saucy, and crunchy made for an explosion of flavor and texture in every bite.

I went Moroccan for dinner in Dubai, with mixed grilled meats and a shrimp dumpling app

Dubai Lunch was grape leaves and meaty, toasted pine nutty, humous from a Lebanese joint. Everything was good, including the mint lemonade.

I ate each cuisine only once in Dubai. My Turkish breakfast included menemen (basically superior scrambled eggs), honied butter, and of course, Turkish coffee.

Chicken kebab from Dubai’s renowned Iranian restaurant, Al Usted Kebab (not pictured: chicken soup)

My Polish tour guide described the zapiekanki, an open faced hot sandwich on baguette, as Poland’s poor attempt at pizza, while also being the best drunk food. Mine had spinach, chicken, mushrooms, and cheese.

The best pierogis yet! This one from Krakow was ‘Slavic style,’ with potato and sauerkraut.

I decided to have one last nice meal in Europe. This playful foie gras was the best thing from the Krakow tasting menu.

The Polish like their sweets, like this nutella donut

Foreground: pickled herring, left is an apple yogurt combo (amazing) and right is a tomato jam. Rear: ribs. In Wroclaw.

“Meat and buckwheat” pierogis and a cup of borscht

Baked pierogis (FYI boiled are better) and a potato pancake.

Beef goulash from the Golden Tiger in Prague. Thick, rich, well-spiced, hot brothy meaty goodness.

I didn’t only eat goulash in Prague. Here I thought I ordered duck, and got what I think was pork neck.

One of my 3 or so goulashes in Prague, with bread “dumplings” (I think this means the intent of the bread is for dunking)

This trdelnik (chimney cake) from Prague is a popular regional treat, basically a cinnamon bun cone, this one with vanilla ice cream, nutella, and strawberries

Austrian schnitzel big enough to feed a family of 4

Slovenian lamb stew ate better than it looked

Lasagna Bolognese. Oh. My.

My last za, lunch in Lucca

My best pasta dish of the trip (to date) was this potato puree stuffed tortelli with prawns and n’duja in Rome

Gelato from Giolitti in Rome. Coffee and dark chocolate with store-made whipped cream.

Lunch in Tivoli. Pasta was so good; thank the good lord for Lactaid.

Tongue Tagliatelle at Veritas Restaurant in Naples, a snippet from the best meal of the trip

A little penne on the side of Mt. Vesuvius

The beauty of the margarita pizza is in its simplicity. And it’s view, in Capri.

Beef carpaccio in Sorrento

My aperol spritz in Sorrento came with complimentary almonds, hazelnuts, popcorn, and a teensy sandwich

Roman fast food

Pinci alla Carbonara. This two+ hour meal in Bolsena tested my patience, but it was worth it

I wasn’t quite sure what I was in for when I ordered the “fried fish” at this beachside restaurant in Chiavari Italy

Gnocchi in a whiskey cream sauce in Milan

I still had some Swiss Francs I wanted to spend down before crossing into Italy, all of which was allocated to chocolate

Pizza from southern Switzerland (the Italian part)

Salmon in turmeric beurre blanc with leeks, my one French meal in Strasbourg

Belgian Liege waffle was truly phenomenal. Pretty sure it was actually from Narnia.

Boulets a la Liegoise (meatballs Liege style) in Belgium

Seawolf (bass) in Maastricht, Netherlands

Cologne Currywurst

Kasespaetzle (essentially German mac and cheese) and black pudding (blood sausage) in Cologne.

Not my first pretzel in Germany but the first one I photographed. Happens to be coated in nutella and almonds. Featuring some lesser Cologne church in the way background.

The halve hahn is a Cologne staple. Not profound, but a nice bread accoutrement as a starter.

When you pull off the highway for a gas station and there’s a German chocolate factory across the street… in Bad Honnef

Stammtischschnitzel in Koblenz. The best part was making poutine with the mushroom gravy.

Potato pancakes, lox, and cream cheese, at the German castle of Burg Eltz

If I was in Germany and didn’t eat apple pie, was I actually in Germany? (Stuttgart, specifically)

Half chicken, klosen, and potato salad at Oktoberfest in Munich

Pork knuckle and klossen in Frankfurt

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