Maze

London, UK – It’s not often in my part-time role as a free-lance traveling gourmand that I stumble into such a wonderful opportunity to 1) Celebrate a friend’s special day with a great meal in a foreign capital, 2) Meet the Michelin Star-rated chef of the selected restaurant in his own kitchen and 3) Have someone else graciously pick up the tab.  But the stars aligned last Friday in London and I was pleased to accept the invitation of my good friends Miles and Karen to join them at Maze in Grosvenor Square to celebrate her birthday.  As a gentleman I cannot reveal any actual age information but I will say that she is still young and looks fabulous.  And Miles is a proper host and an awesome birthday dinner planner.

Feast

Houston, TX – It has been a good long while since I last posted to this foodie blog.  The reason?  I ate an incredible meal at Le Gavroche in London, wrote glowingly about it and have not had a spectacular meal nor the motivation to write about a restaurant since.  That is until last Tuesday.  Earlier this month I was hanging out in Doha at an oil industry conference multi-slacking on my BlackBerry with Twitter when @FeastHouston offered a Roast Suckling Pig with all the trimmings for 6-8 people.  I just happen to know 6-8 people who are fanatically interested in fine cuisine in general, and roast pork in particular, so we immediately booked a table.  We were treated to a fantastic meal (thanks James!) with excellent service (thanks Meagan!) and, all-in-all, a lovely evening to celebrate the end of 2009 with good friends.

Le Gavroche

London, UK – The meal was terrific, the wine outstanding, the service impeccable and Colonel Mustard was the unscheduled entertainment.  It was a very good night at Le Gavroche, Chef Michel Roux, Jr.’s 2-star Michelin-rated French restaurant just a block or so from the U.S. Embassy in Mayfair.  When I walked in the door I was greeted by a lovely hostess and a small dog and I thought, “Oh, how very French.” But I was soon to realize that the dog had issues.  Or more correctly, that the dog’s owner, Colonel Mustard, had issues.  Before I had finished my first glass of pre-dinner champagne in the intimate bar there had been a problem with his credit card, then his cheque wouldn’t clear, then he loudly ordered a lamb chop for the dog and, to make matters worse, the dog started to bark at arriving diners.  When they seated us, he was our nearest and noisiest neighbor.

The Guinea Grill

London, UK – This is the place to eat in London if you want a classic British meal.  Don’t pay any attention to Ramsay’s stable of fancy restaurants or the other Michelin-rated celebrity chefs in this city, just book a table at The Guinea Grill and you will be smitten.  The ambiance starts from the time Ricky greets you warmly at the door and takes your coats.  Then Brian, the most gracious restaurant manager in the UK, seats you in the clubby dining room.  Next up will be Farid, The Guinea’s sommelier for over 15 years, who will make you the best martini in town and give you good wine advice.  You will then feel welcomed, comfortable and satisfied…and you haven’t even seen a menu yet.

“1907”

Perth, WA Australia – The address on the website seemed a little bit sketchy at just “Alleyway, 26 Queen Street”.  And when the uncommunicative cabbie pulled up in front of a blank wall on a narrow side street (which we thought was the alleyway but was in fact Queen Street), it wasn’t immediately apparent that there was a restaurant anywhere close.  But then he pulled up a few meters more and we found the right alleyway and the 1907.  Inside the door you are immediately greeted by a life-sized plastic horse (not really sure what the significance of the horse was) and a small, but friendly, staff.  Nate seated us, served us and counseled us on wine…he was delightful.  1907 was our best meal in Perth even after dining at Cream (very good) and Globe (just good).

Ash Street Cellar

Sydney NSW, Australia – Violets and chocolate?  That was the tasting verdict of my bride when she sipped a lovely Spanish red wine at the Ash Street Cellar just a block off the intersection of George Street and Martin Place in the CBD.  Don’t you just love it when you stumble into something really good and only accidentally?  Especially if it involves gourmet food and fine wine?  We were trekking back to the hotel from The Rocks late one afternoon and noticed a wee sign that mentioned tapas and wine so took the plunge later that evening.  A good decision!

Жар-Птица (Firebird)

Москва, Россия (Moscow, Russia) – You are told three things when planning a business trip to Moscow; 1) the Russian Federation requires a visa which requires a written invitation which requires a visit by your passport to the nearest Russian Consulate before you leave, 2) the food is unbelievably expensive and 3) the wine is prohibitively expensive.  Apparently true on all accounts.  But if you do just a little bit of foodie due diligence, you can find fabulous Russian meals for reasonable prices in this surprisingly inviting capital city.  And we did just that at Жар-Птица (pronounced Zhar-Ptitsa in Russian or Firebird in English) which was just two blocks from our hotel, the Sheraton Palace on Tverskaya Ulitsa, or a few minutes walk from the Belorusskaya Metro Station.

Bukhara

New Delhi, India – Recent travels took me to my favorite, and the most fascinating, country on earth…India.  Here for an industry conference and hungry as usual, I was staying at the ITC Maurya Sheraton in the New Delhi Diplomatic Enclave and was thrilled to find that they had not one but two great restaurants.  The most highly rated of the two was Bukhara which serves northwest frontier cuisine.  Bukhara was honored to be named amongst the “Top 50 Restaurants in the World and the Finest Restaurant in Asia” by Restaurants magazine in 2006 but more about that later.  I selected the ‘Second Best Restaurant’ for my Thursday evening meal and was treated to Dum-Pukht.

Kittichai

 New York City, NY – Self-proclaimed mountain town bumpkin meets sleek and flashy Manhattan menus: love affair ensues.  It says a lot that when I go to New York City, I am more excited about what I am going to digest in my stomach than any other sights I encounter.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the sights and sounds of Manhattan, but I LOVE the food.  My best friend took me out to a Broadway show, followed by your typical New York dinner reservation at 10 pm.  We went to Kittichai, a Thai-fusion trendy eatery in the lobby of the Thompson Hotel in SoHo.  The dim lights, Asian décor, and large reflection pool with floating lilies all contribute to the dining experience, and frankly make you feel a little bit cooler just because you are there.

Tulip

Milwaukee, WI – Bike-accessible Turkish food in Milwaukee, a city better known for great beer and old world sausages?  No problem at Tulip in the 3^rd Ward.  We are on our annual late summer trip to visit our good friends and fellow foodies Bob and Annette Ellis and to work our way through the food establishments of this pleasant lakeside city.  One of the best of our weekend traditions is to grab bikes and to pedal along the shore of Lake Michigan for a few miles each day and then have a wonderful lunch.  Today we put the cart before the horse and biked over to Tulip before we took our daily ride.