paul @ NCE

nice, france

website

aeroport nice cote d'azur is a small airport full of people who are sad their vacations are ending and that they must leave paradise. although maybe i was projecting. anyway, one last chance for a pain au chocolat at the gate. we stopped by paul for an espresso and pastry. (espresso for derek, pastry for me - that pretty much sums up our trip). the pain au chocolat was a lovely treat for the flight home.

brasserie la rotonde

nice, france

website

for our last night in europe, we intended to dine at the michelin-starred le chantecler at the hotel negresco. but miscommunication with our concierge (we asked for an outdoor table) resulted in our reservation being at the more casual outdoor restaurant instead. which is good, because the host at le chantecler looked horrified when we walked in asking about our reservation. (were we underdressed? did we look out of place? who knows, but the snobbiness was annoying). when we finally found la rotonde, we were seated at a small table in the back corner of the patio. a larger table closer to the street was "reserved" but remained unoccupied for the duration of our meal. sigh. but after the initial rude service, we eventually had a waiter bring us english menus and a more friendly demeanor. of course i had to start with the salade niçoise (translation: a nice-style salad). crunchy veggies, fresh tuna - it was quite good. but the highlight was the cote du boef with butter herb sauce. i ordered it rare and it actually arrived rare. a perfect steak.

debin ur begad

nice, france

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our favorite place to eat, shop, and explore in nice was vieille ville (old town). walking from the modern promenade du paillon into vieille ville was like walking from modern london into diagon alley - it felt like a different world. it was a maze of streets, narrow alleyways, and tiny storefronts. we happened upon a fun open-air market with vegetables, flowers, and various crafts. the restaurants surrounding the market were enticing, but being the stereotypical tourist that i am, i wanted to get a crepe. found ourselves at a breton creperie, but the highlight of the meal ended up being the socca. socca was advertised all over nice, but we had no idea what it was. i'm still not entirely sure other than it was an eggy, fluffy, delicious pancake-thing. yum.

phnom penh

nice, france

link to tripadvisor

this might be my favorite spot in nice (or i was just really happy to be eating asian food again). random fast food cambodian spot near the promenade du paillon. lots to choose from - all kinds of cambodian specialties are displayed in a glass case - different types of noodles, meats, rolls. we eventually decided on egg rolls wrapped in lettuce and vermicelli noodles mixed with egg and mushrooms. took them to-go and enjoyed them while sitting in the park, watching people walk through the misty fountains along the promenade. sunny day + crispy egg rolls = heaven.

kitchena

nice, france

link to yelp

after spending the day shopping in nice, our feet (and wallets) were tired. there were rows and rows of small tables on the sidewalk outside kitchena, just calling our name. we didn't see any staff, so we sat down on some empty chairs (well - "collapsed onto the chairs with our bags" might be more accurate). a waitress walked by and winked at us, which i assumed meant we were okay. eventually she took our orders - i went with a café créme, which was served with a crunchy speculoos biscuit. a great spot to sip some coffee, rest our feet, and people watch.

les brasseries georges

nice, france

website

to continue my trend of making strange requests of the hotel concierge, this time i asked for a "brasserie-type restaurant." poor woman. thankfully she happily suggested les brasseries georges, which was completely perfect. the restaurant was beautiful - the main room was huge, extremely well-lit, with high ceilings. the kitchen is enclosed in glass at the end of the room - like a DJ booth. service was cheerful and friendly. a bottle of sancerre rosé was a nice treat after the long drive from the italian coast. we started with buttery garlicky escargot - tender and delicious little morsels. same description applies to my moules frites - perfectly cooked mussels served in a white wine broth.

gelateria @ bar centrale

riomaggiore, italy

link to tripadvisor

after a confusing stop at the train station (the machine wouldn't take non-european credit cards and the ticket attendant didn't seem to mind that everyone in line was going to miss the next train), we eventually made it to riomaggiore, one of the colorful cinque terre towns. derek's parents enjoyed a café overlooking the ocean while derek and i hiked up to the top of the village along the main street lined with shops and restaurants. we took a detour on the way back and it was great fun exploring the steep and narrow stairways and passages where the residents live. it's amazing how they built everything into the side of the cliff. after all that walking, derek and i needed some refreshments. two foamy affogatos topped with whipped cream definitely did the trick.

lato g

santa margherita ligure, italy

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warm night on the italian riviera - perfect for some gelato. i got one scoop of hazelnut and one scoop of milk chocolate, both precariously perched on a small sugar cone. walking around, enjoying our dessert, derek and i found an old staircase with a beautiful baroque church at the very top - chiesa di san giacomo. it looked very solemn, historical, and sacred. so what did we do? finished our gelato and then raced each other up the stairs. had to work off the gelato somehow.

reve cafe & restaurant

santa margherita ligure, italy

link to tripadvisor

santa margherita ligure was our home base for visiting the famed cinque terre in the italian riviera. definitely a resort town - lots of yachts and people who look like they own yachts. wandering around town, we liked the look of reve - a small but busy restaurant mostly hidden from the street. the harried proprietor cheerfully greeted us, asked us to wait, and then eventually let us sit outside in the courtyard. and we were just in time because many groups after us were turned away. the friendly proprietor kept apologizing for delays, but we were perfectly content enjoying the warm ocean breeze with a bottle of rosé. dinner was excellent - my pacchieri with anchovies was perfectly al dente. the santa margherita shrimp, cooked in lemon and olive oil, were incredibly fresh and juicy. mmm, shrimp juice.

al solito posto

pisa, italy

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pizza in pisa! i have no idea where pizza originated from, but for some reason, there were tons of pizza places immediately around the leaning tower of pisa complex (the piazza dei miracoli). we didn't stop in any of those, but on the way back to the car derek's dad found al solito posto and we paused for a snack. the BEST pizza EVER. fresh creamy cheese, amazing pink sauce, perfect crust. it hit all the right notes - sweet, creamy, tart, chewy, with fragrant basil. once you've finished taking hundreds of pictures of a slightly crooked tower, eat here!

la falterona

florence, italy

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sure, most people go to florence to see the amazing artwork, il duomo, maybe the famous statue of david. where did we go? the food market! mercato central is a must-see in florence - a bustling market full of both old and new. the lower floor has all kinds of traditional italian food stands - sandwiches, fruits, vegetables, spices, dried fruits, dried meats, cheeses, flowers, and more. upstairs had a more modern (almost hipster?) feel - clean white countertops for espresso, wooden countertops for the artisan pizza stand, small batch gelato - a modern hangout above the historical market.

we found a restaurant nearby that clearly benefited from its proximity to the market. the freshest mozzarella di bufala i've ever tasted, served with salty melt-in-your-mouth prosciutto. i ordered pici maialino - which i remember from eating at maialino in nyc means piglet. so i had piglet spaghetti. and it was delicious. i highly recommend both this spot and mercato central if you can tear yourself away from the art and architecture.

golden view

florence, italy

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our GPS was useless in florence. it kept directing us down streets that seemed to be restricted. i couldn't read the italian on the signs, but there was a certain "do not enter" look to them. eventually we found parking about a half mile away from the restaurant. the "golden view" here was a great view of the famous ponte vecchio bridge. that was about all i liked about this restaurant, though. there was an unpleasant smell wafting up from the arno river which put a damper on the whole meal. but it was fun watching the rowboats go by.