“The more things change, the more they stay the same.” – French proverb Early this year I was sad to have a couple of conversations with friend and colleague Kevin Rodriguez as he was going through the throes of closing up shop at Empire Thai, until that point my favorite southeast Asian spot here in… Read More The Leaf that Toppled an Empire
“SAUCE, n. The one infallible sign of civilization and enlightenment. A people with no sauces has one thousand vices; a people with one sauce has only nine hundred and ninety-nine. For every sauce invented and accepted a vice is renounced and forgiven.” – Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary I promised in one of my posts… Read More The Sauce
One of the common refrains from visitors is to marvel at how cheap things in Buenos Aires “are”. Though, that’s been changing, and more and more I hear from people who are surprised it’s not really so cheap anymore. Taxi fares just went up by 26% this week to a base of ar$7.80 with .78… Read More Transit in BA – Cheap No More
“Behold Laos – a vivid world awash with monks in saffron robes, violet sunsets, & golden Buddhas.” A year ago, even six months ago, had it been Independence Day in Laos I’d have had out cookbooks and been delving into internet research to come up with traditional Lao recipes that I could prepare. And the… Read More The Kingdom of a Million Elephants
“All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion and desire.” – Aristotle I had the fortune, or so it seemed at the time, to be invited to an “exclusive” presentation and tasting of the new releases of Clos de los Siete and its associated wines –… Read More The Group of Seven
“Don’t be dismayed by good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.” – Richard Bach, author Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. ‘Twas a private dinner for a young couple, he from the U.S., she from Argentina, just married… Read More Post Wedding, Farewell Dinner
I realized recently that at the end of each month there are always a bunch of photos sitting in a folder that I haven’t gotten around to writing about because they’re just things that caught my eye or, if they’re restaurant/food related they just don’t quite merit a review. So, perhaps this will be a… Read More November Roundup
“I have strong doubts that the first Thanksgiving even remotely resembled the “history” I was told in second grade. But considering that (when it comes to holidays) mainstream America’s traditions tend to be over-eating, shopping, or getting drunk, I suppose it’s a miracle that the concept of giving thanks even surfaces at all.” – Ellen… Read More Post Thanksgiving Dinners