So, I was carrying on about the world's best honey mustard in this thread, and I got to thinking about what a great resource we all are, or could be, about great places to eat. I'm sure most of us travel, at least occasionally, for business or pleasure, and might benefit from some local knowledge.
My advice for the NY, NJ, PA "tri state" area are Riviera Maya for super tasty mexican, Andre's Restaurant for you foie gras types, or, if you like to embrace your inner dirtbag (and I by this I mean backpacker, kayaker, mountain biker, rock climber types, not evil doers) on occasion, Sneaky Pete's.
I'll add too that the links provide reviews, so you don't have to rely just on me; although you will have to to some extent since Sneaky Pete's doesn't fair too well with reviewers it seems. Never experienced anything along those lines. So that may be a bit of a crap shoot.
I can only tell from europe so far, I've been only in miami in US,and cuba and dominican republic in the caribean.
For me, maybe being selfish I prefer Spanish food by far from most other countries within europe.
I know some people here will throw me with some stones haha, but I think in UK there is no culinary culture but a few stews and cheeses, being better the furthest you go to the north.
France is not bad, but they fry all with butter, it hides many flavours and makes them a bit sweetie, I rather prefer frying with olive oil, like it is done in Spain and Italy at least.
I like some dishes from Germany, not many but it is not so bad, I did not like much the local food in the netherlands, czeck republic is not bad as far as I have seen.
Another place I liked for its food is Turkey, they got really nice restaurants for a very reasonable price, with modern and traditional dishes, if you are to be ever there, do not forget to visit one restaaurant in Istambul called 360.
Malta, being a small island, has a nice mixture of italian and own dishes.
That is all I can tell more or less, as the restaurants I know for foreign countries here, are not that close to the real food on their own countries as they tend to adapt the tastes of each country.
If you want a curry where I am, you need to visit the Jewel in the Crown. Best around. As ever, the reviews vary. For Vietnamese, Saigon is good. There is a new Nepalese restaurant that my colleagues tell me is excellent. One thing I missed in Pittsburgh was any Indian or Sri Lankan restaurants.
For rich people there's a French seafood place, The Silver Darling. Be warned, it is extremely expensive.
You all might scoff at this, but the thing I miss the most in moving from Atlanta to Chicago in 1994:
Waffle House
There, I said it. Best Hash Brown potatoes on the planet, and they make mean Cheese Grits and Cheese Eggs. Any trip below the Mason-Dixon line involves a trip to the first Waffler we see.
Best Barbeque I've ever had (NC style) is a little place called Leffler's, 1/2 way between Mt Gilead and Albemarle. Simple pulled pork sandwich with or without cole slaw on top.
Best greasy drive-in: The original Varsity in Atlanta, across the highway from Georgia Tech. Dog with chili & mustard, chili-steak burger, hamburger with pimento cheese, hand made onion rings or fries washed down with a F.O. - Frosted Orange, which tastes like a creamsicle. You have to build up a tolerance to the grease. Newcomers will have bowel issues for days.
One of the best places to get Southern style vegetables: Mary Mac's Tea Room, Ponce de Leon Ave. in Atlanta.
I love food, but I'm just not that picky or high falutin'.
First off, tgx78, I'm a bit of a character myself, so please don't take this the wrong way. But who takes pictures of meals they're eating? That's beautiful... truly freaking beautiful. My wife is surely not going to like me bringing a camera to dinner.
And second, in response to BetweenRides. The Varsity and the ubiquitous Waffle House are great, though you are right about the next 24 minutes or 24 hours depending on your stomach. On our family vacations via the car, the Cones like to hop from Cracker Barrel to Waffle House to Cracker Barrel to... we like breakfast all day long!
I will say that that you should add the Mellow Mushroom pizza place to your Atlanta list along with the Dark Horse Tavern.
lol no offense taken! however when you travel don't you take your camera with you? I know lot of people do. Most of time I just take a picture to record what/ when & where I ate.
I am not a restaurant critic, nor am I paid to write restaurant reviews, but it is one of my hobby (just like collecting flashlights) to find a good place to eat and blogging about them.
Any steak house will do for me. Not a lot of good restaurants here in small town Hilo but Cronies Bar and Grill make the best steaks and burgers in town imo. My fave is the 20 oz. T-Bone steak called the "Big Kahuna".
I went to college for two years in NE Georgia (Jan 1999 - Dec 2000) and went to The Varsity once while visiting Atlanta. I wasn't really impressed after hearing all the hype. Maybe I hit them on a bad night.
Are you familiar with a place down there (NE Georgia, but perhaps not down as far as Atlanta) called Zaxby's? (Think I spelled that right.) I LOVED that place as a college student! That's the restaurant I miss the most since moving back north.
I will tell you my two favorite places to eat in NJ and hopefully you can try them out. The first is called Pappy's in Totowa. The have the best Texas wieners and Texas burgers you will ever feast upon. They use a deli mustard, chopped onions, and homemade chili sauce. When you order them, ask for them "all the way".
The second place has the best Sicilian (square) pizza I have ever had. It's called Bruno's Pizza and it's in Clifton. The pizza has the sauce on top and the cheese underneath. It's amazing...
