Mary Chocolatier

Address: 73 rue Royale, Brussels 1000, Belgium

Phone: +32 02 217 45 00

Why we went here: We were still craving for Belgian chocolates and wanted to try specialty chocolatiers that were only available in Belgium.

In a Nutshell: Delicious chocolates but pricey and I still prefer Dumon.

Mary Chocolatier offered good chocolates - very smooth and creamy. It was a bit pricey but compared to Neuhaus, I much preferred the chocolates here so I was willing to pay the difference. However, I enjoyed the chocolates from Dumon Chocolatier in Brugge much much better so I would recommend buying from Dumon if you are making a trip to Brugge. If you're only visiting in Brussels, you can't go wrong with Mary. 

Window of Mary chocolatier

Assortment of chocolates

Dumon Chocolatier

Address: Eirmarket 6, Bruges 8000, Belgium

Phone: +32 50 34 62 82

Why we went here: Belgian chocolates were in our To-Eat list for Belgium. Dumon was the first specialty chocolatier we saw in Bruges.

In a Nutshell: Best Belgian chocolates (and chocolates, in general) that I've ever had!

Smooth, creamy, melt in your mouth, not too sweet and flavorful! Yum! Dumon chocolates are the best I've ever sampled. Period. Well worth the money.

I tried Mary Chocolatier and Neuhaus in Brussels and both were subpar compared to Dumon. I regret not buying more since we went here during our last day in Brugge and during closing time too! They didn't have a store in Brussels so I wasn't able to buy more to bring home :(

Window of Dumon Chocolatier

Assortment of chocolates

Restaurant Schoennemann

Address: Hauser Plads 16, Copenhagen 1127, Denmark

Phone: +45 33 12 07 85

Why we dined here: We wanted to try the best smørrebrød in Copenhagen. Restaurant Schoennemann kept on popping up in our Google searches.

In a Nutshell: Delicious smørrebrød, but too pricey for what you get!

The smørrebrød (open-faced sandwich) was in my Eat list when I visited Copenhagen and after some Googling, I stumbled upon Restaurant Schoennemann as the place to go for the best smørrebrød. So I called in a week in advance to make reservations. The restaurant itself has a cozy, old home ambiance but with fancy plates and silverware.

I cannot attest to whether Schoennemann does offer the best smørrebrød, since this was my one and only smørrebrød experience. However, they do offer a wide selection so there should at least be one type that will suit each person in your party. We enjoyed the smørrebrøds we ordered, at least while they lasted. The portion is small (by North American standards at least). It is not enough to qualify for a meal. The prices are steep, considering the amount of food you get. Also, despite how good the smørrebrød may be, it is still just a sandwich.

Greenland shrimps in pyramide

Simon's Favorite - smoked salmon with creamed spinach and poached egg

Linie Aquavit Herring

Manfred's & Vin

Address: Jaegersborggade 40, Copenhagen, Denmark

Phone: (+45) 3696 6593

Why we dined here: The chef and owner of Manfred's & Vin, Christian Puglisi, did internships at El Bulli (former World's Best #1 restaurant) and Noma (current World's Best #1 restaurant).

In a Nutshell: Well-executed food at reasonable price!

We came here with high expectations, well-aware that the chef/owner of Manfreds used to work at Noma. The menu is very limited, especially for non-veggie eaters. So all 3 people in our party ended up ordering the only meat dish that night which was pork belly. The pork belly was roasted perfectly - golden brown skin and well-marinated, juicy meat. The desert and cheese we ordered were good but plain. The price is actually quite reasonable for the amount and quality of food you get and considering the high cost of living in Denmark.

To sum up, Manfreds offers standard honest-to-goodness food at an affordable price. Nothing ground-breaking but still thoroughly enjoyable.

Beer

Roasted pork belly

Cheese and dessert

Dos Palilos

Address: Elisabets 9, 08002 Barcelona, Spain

Phone: 933040513

Why we dined here: Albert Raurich, the chef and owner of Dos Palillos, was a chef de cuisine at El Bulli (which garnered the #1 World's Best restaurant award consistently before it closed down).

In a Nutshell: Great (but not spectacular) Asian fusion food

We went for the lunch menu so we got 4 small courses for a more reasonable price than their a la carte menu. The tuna sushi was the best of the meal and it was one of the best sushi I've ever had. That's a high compliment since I eat a lot of Japanese food and it's one of my favorite cuisines. The rest of the meal - wonton, yakitori and others were not very memorable. They taste similar to what you'd get in an authentic Asian restaurant. The portions were small since the dishes are tapas, so it is a bit pricey for the amount of food you get. Overall, the experience was still great so I'm happy I tried it; but it's not special enough for me to return to when I go visit Barcelona again.

open-concept kitchen

crispy fried meat-filled wonton

tuna sushi

free range chicken yakitori

fluffy almond sponge cake with yuzu marmalade

Falmouth Raw Bar

Address: 56 Scranton Ave, Falmouth, MA 02540-3541

Phone: 508-548-7729

Why we dined here: The receptionist at Briarwood resort (who is a Massachusetts native) recommended this spot as having the best monster lobster roll in the area.

In a Nutshell: Best monstah lobster roll and clam chowder we tasted in the New England area!

I had my best lobster roll and clam chowder experience at Falmouth Raw Bar! We tried the lobster roll and clam chowder at other restaurants in Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard, but nothing else comes close. The lobster roll here was massive and had overflowing fresh lobster meat. The bun of the roll was not great, but you'll be so stuffed with the lobster that you won't be able to finish the bun anyway. The clam chowder was very creamy and had a strong essence of clam and seafood. After having the clam chowder and lobster roll here, it was hard for us to enjoy the ones from other restaurants since we kept on comparing them with the ones we had here.

The stuffed scallop and stuffed quahog were just meh, so I deducted a point for that. Stick to their specialties - the monster lobster roll and New England clam chowder!

Falmouth Raw Bar menu

Stuffed quahog

Stuffed scallop

Monster lobstah roll!!!

New England clam chowder

Ethiopiques Restaurant

Address: 227 Chruch Street, Toronto, Ontario M5B 1Y7, Canada

Phone: 416-363-0884

Website: http://www.ethiopiques.ca/

Why we dined here: WagJag had a voucher promotion for Ethiopiques and we were curious to try out Ethiopian food.

In a Nutshell: A unique dining experience, especially the coffee ceremony!

Ethiopiques was a very welcome surprise for us. We would never have stumbled upon this place on our own. The reason for our visit was really just to use up the WagJag voucher we bought ($20 for $50 worth of food). We ordered a Meat Platter, Gored Gored (Tender beef fillet) and Goden Tibs (Lamb short ribs). The meal was more than enough for 3 starving yuppies. We still had a bag of take-out after we stuffed ourselves to the brim. It was our first time eating Ethiopian cuisine. We liked the exotic flavor from the variety of spices. Some dishes had a spicy kick to them so have your water handy. The food is served with injera (similar to rolls of airy crepe/pancake). You use the injera to eat the foods with your hands, without the use of the spoon or fork. So that was also fun!

We also requested the coffee ceremony after reading the reviews in Yelp and Googling about the ceremony. Apparently, coffee originated from Ethiopia. They bring out the roasting pan when they're roasting the beans and shake the pan in front of you so you can whiff the intense aroma of freshly roasted coffee beans. The host will bring the jebena (clay coffee pot) to your table. Then, she will slowly pour the coffee to the small porcelain cups. Sugar is provided for you to sweeten the coffee to your taste, but not milk. The coffee is meant to be drank black. A basket of popcorn is also included for you to munch with your coffee. It was definitely a memorable experience and great way to cap off the night :)

Meat Platter + Goden Tibs + Gored Gored

Coffee Ceremony