Espresso Style Recommends: U Parlamentu Restaurant, Prague

In the historical and administrative centre of Prague, on the Valentinska street, right on the corner you can find U Parlamemtu restaurant. A quick glance through the window will give you a hint that the restaurant is a genuine  Prague eatery, not too fancy and not too shabby. Why? Because at the tables placed not too close together sit Prague locals. You can tell by the faces, the clothing etc. There are bearded men drinking beer, women, and one or two whole families.

Ok, once inside, you sit comfortably on squeeky wooden chairs at wooden tables next to wood plated walls. Atmosphere is genuinely friendly, people go about their business eating and drinking the good stuff.

A young waitress with a smile on her face welcomes you and she knows the house specials without checking the menu. Just two brands of beer on the menu, one light pilsener and one dark. Both Prague genuine delicious beers.

You get a pint and unwind a bit. As a tourist that has just walked a few hours you are hungry and want to taste some Prague local traditional local specialities. Get the rabbit and duck roast with the omnipresent bread and potato dumplings. 

Good choice: the roast meat is tender and doesn't feel old, dumplings are incredibly light and fluffy. The spinach  on the rabbit dish is real spinnach (fresh, not frozen). Sauerkraut is sauerkraut!

Espresso Style verdict: a bouchon like restaurant in the muddle of Prague, honest, genuine, not a rip of like many other joints around there, packed with locals where you can enjoy good beer and perfectly done Czech traditional specials. 5 stars out of 5 for food, 5 for service, 5 for atmosphere! 

  

Design Bathroom in Tropical House

Check out this magnificent tropical retreat. The design is great in my opinion, because it blends stylish furniture, paintings and other pieces with the classic feel of the old house creating the optimal balance of studied simplicity. I hope that whole sentence made sense! Anyway, great house. And what about that bathroom!

It's all in the current issue of the Lonny Magazine. 

Sri Lanka Tea Country

In the last year or so I have developed a fondness for tea. Green Tea, that is! That will most certainly result in a series of posts regarding tea in all aspects.
For the moment, check out the great pictures of Sri Lankan High Country, where all the major tea producers of the world hold plantations, as seen by the Abstract Gourmet.

Espresso Style Recommends: Maeklong Market, Thailand

The Maeklong Market in Thailand is amazing! The vendors lay their vegetables wright on the railroad tracks. An the tracks are used. Several times every day the train comes! And then the magic happens: people just move back the stands or the covers. The vedge that's just put on the ground stays in place if the pile is low enough for the train to pass wright over it! Cool.
It's kinda surreal, in a wonderful way. Check out the Anthony Bourdain No reservations Thailand show
Photo from here. I haven't been there, yet!

EspressoStyle Recommends: Casa Cositorarilor, Sighisoara

In june this year we went for a one day trip to the medieval town of Sighisoara, Romania. Among the many things to see and visit, I'd like to recommend the most beautiful terrace I ever sat at, in Romania. No joke, that's how it seemed to me at the time. Of course there is no such thing as the absolute best, because, as we say in Romanian "you cannot compare apples and pears", but lately, there are very few places that are unafectet by that dreadful virus of bad taste. And, in this context, for me, simply the lack of bad taste in a place is a strong point in favor. And Casa Cositorarilor was just that.
 Add to that the old and weathered aspect of the little garden terrace, the proximity of the medieval buildings, the cobble street, the out of the box immaculate uniforms of the girls serving at tables, the old stone walls, the amazing blossoming plants and last but not least, the excellent quality of the food and drink... that sums up to just about the best I've seen lately, if not ever.

So, we had an excellent espresso Kimbo (the only place in Romania where I've been served this Napoli origin brand of coffee), Borsec mineral water (premium brand) and two kinds of cake.

I had a rhubarb cake topped with a light white egg foam and she had an even more tasty wild strawberries slice of fresh cheeseake. We strongly recommend Casa Cositorarilor terrace cafe and sweet shop in Sighisoara, for the summer 2011.

Espresso Kimbo

I had this cup in the city of Sighisoara, Romania, in the medieval center, at THE BEST LOOKING terrace I ever sat at, in my life: Pensiunea Casa Cositorarului (The Tin Smith's House). Review coming soon on EspressoStyle. Also the first time i've had Kimbo coffee in Romania.

EspressoStyle Recommends: La Turn, Sibiu

La Turn is a restaurant terrace situated in Sibiu, Romania, in the historical center of the city. We are talking about the European Capital of Culture of 2007. It has excellent placement towards both main piazzas of the medieval city of Sibiu. We sat on the terrace in the Little Piazza. The food is good, not the absolute best, but definitely above average. It's Italian based cuisine, which in itself is a plus, especially if cooked well, but for the restaurant market in Romania that is over saturated with Italian oriented menus, it turns into a minus. Well, that being said, it's a good joint. Let's go to the food.

We started with a chicken salad for her and some salmon crostini for me. They were bot good, especially the crostini (although it could have been jut my raging hunger at the time). Anyway, they were baked just enough to melt and brown the cheese a bit. Lovely. Bread was not great, but not bad either.

Next came a dish of penne pasta al forno (baked in the oven) with chicken meat and mushrooms, a pink sauce and mozzarella on top. That was good, not too fat and totally eatable. The reason I save up on the praises is because the ingredients used were average, at best. The lean chicken breast strips, the sliced (maybe even canned) champignon mushrooms, cheap mozzarella. The pink sauce saved the dish by being light enough and smooth. Other than that, great.

The girl who served us was quick and communicative, with good knowledge of the menu. Smiles and everything.

For desert: a fried batter thing called "papanashi" (romanian classic) with cream and fruit jam for her and just espresso for me. Sadly, both of these were below average.  The papanashi was too fat and over fried and the espresso a bit bitter. Considering though that by this time we were full bellied and more indulgent, I got past very well and made it a nice lunch out. 

Scenery in the Little Piazza of Sibiu is just satisfying enough, anyway.

I give it 3 stars out of 5 for food quality, and also 3 for atmosphere. That means it was very nice. 4 stars means I was very impressed and 5 is reserved for the very best in the business.

That also means I warmly recommend La Turn, in Sibiu, Romania.

Anthony Bourdain Quote 01

The produce is as fresh as the garbage is old! about Coronation Road Market in Kingston, Jamaica.

Anthony Bourdain Google Interview

Although I don't want to post youtube links that much any more (it's too easy and too many people do it in a stupid way), this is just too great to miss!"I have the greatest job in the world!", he says. Really!?
Just enjoy!

Esspresso Style Recommends: Bread & Roses, Paris

The Bread & Roses cafe and bakery in Paris is simply excellent! I recommend it with all my heart. On the 62 Rue Madame, 75006 Paris, France, that is right next to the Luxembourg Gardens, you can find on a little corner hidden away this little cafe, resto, bakery and tea place. When I was there with my wife we had  two cups of specialty tea (don't remember the blends), and they gave us the tea pots that allowed up to three consecutive refills and kept the brew hot for half an hour. We also had a nice little rhubarb muffin. The muffin was done just wright, more sweet then bitter, but you could still feel the rhubarb distinct flavor in it.

The space isn't that big, but what does big mean in Paris? 

The service was good, for Paris standards.

Anyway, it's a very good place, true Paris style, good food and drink and chic ambiance. After a long walk through the Luxembourg, it's just the place you would want to encounter.

Espresso Style recommends: "Le Central"

"Le Central", on the boulevard Sebastopol, in Paris, was the location for two lovely and very tasty meals during our stay there. I'll show you only the salads, that were excelent, fresh ingredients, not too raw and not too elaborate. A duck breast salad (that I forgot the name of) and the "Roma" salad, with italian smoked ham or panchetta.
PS: On later edit, the duck breast salad is named "perigordine"!

The wine wasn't at all bad either, and moderately priced. Also, if you ask, they can bring you a bottle of tap water, free of charge, but if you ask for water, it's the expensive Perrier or Evian.

All being said, a very good establishment that I recomend "Le Central".

McChicken Paris Style

Even the all american McChicken sandwich has a special style in Paris. It's "classique and indemodable"!:-)

Espressostyle recommends: Paris - Place des Vosges

When in Paris be sure to go to Place des Vosges. It's a lovely little park or piazza situated within walking distance of the Seine.

It has a perfect square shape and it is lined with sumptuous buildings that are the same on all four sides. In one of the buildings Victor Hugo once lived. At the bottom floor you can find nice restaurants with terraces and even a grocery store with supermarket prices for food and drinks.

On the other corner is a luxury restaurant that I never got into. Looks good, though.

The coolest feature of the Place des Vosges is that people just walk and lay on the grass with nothing holding them back. It's a delight to just lay on the grass and enjoy a moment.

On the adjacent streets you can find lovely little corner boulangeries (french bakeries) where you can buy a nice baguette, pain au chocolat, tarte au citron or jambon sandwich (that you can be shure that it's made fresh in the back).

  For the ones that are interested, there is a good knife and razor shop on one of the corners.

 

Traffic lights in Paris

Another interesting thing about Paris is that every little street crossing was guarded by a traffic light. And I mean every one! Verify this, if you dont believe me.

Go Unirea Urziceni (Thailand)

This guy is extraordinary. He is a romanian executive (creative director or PR guy, i'm not shure) from a romanian advertising company and later media trust that put into practice what everyone of us want...but, sadly, don't have the courage to do: he left everything and went to Thailand! To live on a beach...FOR A WHOLE YEAR!

On top of all that, he took all the way in his laguage a flag of the team that beat the crap out of Glasgow Rangers. Is that cool stuff, or what?

India vs. Pakistan la granita Wagah! (youtube)

India vs. Pakistan! Ce bravada! Cea mai ridicola granita din lume, cum bine spune un internaut utilizator de youtube. Dar, in acelasi timp, ce spectacol uimitor. Un fel de cocoseala cu arma pe umar (ba chiar au baietii si creste pe cap!). Tare!

OK; I've been to Bulgaria, dreaded Bulgaria, for the few days surrownding mayday. That's the 1st of May, for all you meager english speaking romanians.
Aaammmm....a married friend of an unmarried friend said that she's found some special priced tickets for the weekend before 1 may. We staied in Golden Sands Black Sea resort, which is muuuuch more classi than Mamaia, ....(the most coolest romanian seaside resort) that i know only too well, for i live in the city of Constantza, wich is practically joined toghether with Mamaia.
at the price of 55 euro per 3 days in a 4 star hotel we kinda expected to eat instant soop for breakfast. Any way, surprise (or not)! it was 4 stars western standard (that's western European standard, for all you non eastern europeans reading this). That ment lots of good quallity food, of wich every romanian stayng at the Mimosa hotel took 2-5 platefuul per meal!!
The reality of the bulgarian resorts is that i never got to speak a word of the locals language, because they were all so well trained in the art of tending to us guests, that we only used words like hello, how much, thanks, bye! It's a shame. I only know how to halller : ZAGORSKA! (this is a local brand of beer that goes especially well with every specially good food that they served there:-))
That brigs us to the GODZILA restaurant in the center of Varna, where they serve no less than 54 kinds of deliciously assorted sallads (and Zagorska, of course!) A (huuuuuge) sallad, a (huuuuge) Zagorska and a deliciuos slice of cake costs about 5 leva (2-2,5 euro!!). Now, thas what i call hospitallity.
A nice touch of local coluor was added by the stickers on the doors of bars and shops that worned against enterring with dogs and (get this:) guns!! Add to that the incident whitnised directly by me and my friends on a bulgarian (pictouresc) sea side road: a car in front of us literrally lost a wheel at a 100 km/h. The guy was actually lucky to remain allive.
Here are some pictures for your enjoyment: