Central Mediterranean
We’ve had several friends ask us to write a food blog during our travels, but we already had the sail blog and we wondered who would really want to see pictures of the food we eat. We’ve never considered ourselves to be “foodies.” We like to cook food and we love to eat at restaurants, but we seldom seek out specific food when we travel. Wines maybe, but usually not food. This year, all that has changed. We ask people for recommendations on where to eat, we read gourmet websites on the areas we are going to be in, we book restaurants in advance to be certain that we can get in. We take pictures, and make notes, on the dishes we like so we can try to duplicate them when we get home. We keep a list of the restaurants we enjoy to share them with friends. It appears that we have become “foodies.” We’re not sure what caused the transformation. Perhaps it is because the food in Europe isn’t cheap and we want to make sure our money is well spent. It might be that the food here can be hit or miss, some great, some not great, so it’s best to be informed. Maybe it’s because getting off the boat for a meal can be such a big event that we want each time to be the best possible experience. Or it could be that we are eating in unusual or exotic locations, making food much more than simply fuel. Whatever did bring about the change, making the effort to seek out good restaurants has added a lot of value and pleasure to our cruising. So in an attempt to break up the monotony of our boat, island and water photos, we decided to spice things up with some food pics.
Rabbit in garlic wine sauce – Valleta, Malta
Raspberry flan – Verona, Italy
Lake trout with bulgur risotto – Lake Bled, Slovenia
We had been told that the food in Croatia wasn’t good; in fact, the word “terrible” had been used. We also heard that every menu, in every Croatian restaurant, was the same, the same food, prepared in the same way. We had only had a few meals in Croatia when we met Fi and Eddie, our unexpected Croatian Cruising Guides. We told them what we had heard and they proceeded to show us the culinary side of Croatia. With their guidance, we found wonderful food in Croatia, some of the best we’ve had in the Med.
Scallops in lemon and olive oil – Rovinj, Croatia
Fish Carpaccio with lemon, rocket, aged balsamic vinegar and ricotta – Rovinj, Croatia
4th of July hamburgers with Herman Story wine aboard Berkeley East – Permuda, Croatia
White mussels (claims or vongole) – Skradin, Croatia
Mussels with leek sauce – Sibenik, Croatia
Rolled sea bass with pistachio – Sibenik, Croatia
“Big” meat stick – St. Klemete, Croatia