Top 5 Memorable Food Porn: Europe

Memorable food porn in during last 3 months.

I've made a few trips back and forth US and Europe, but I'll list my top 5 from Europe.

Paris

Ledoyen

A 3 Michelin Star restaurant by the famed chef, Yannick Alleno. I've had his food back when he was at Le Meurice where I was blown away; naturally I had high expectations.

Maybe that's one of the reasons why I felt so underwhelmed, if not highly disappointed, at the disconnect between ambitious creativity and actual result of the dishes by the chef.

1. Appetizer, avocado on top of 18 month old tree with celery layers

2. Duck foie gras with orange smoked eel and seaweed

3. Scallops with sea urchin

4. De-shelled roasted lobster on top of bed of black pepper

5. Wagyu beef with eggplant confiture

6. Apple pie

7. Cacao souffle
They presented this dish at the beginning of the meal to stare at for 2 hours while we ate. Then when the time came for dessert, they burnt the top of these souffle passion fruit 'cups' for us to eat out of.

8. Extra truffle dish

The worst and most expensive dessert I've tasted in a while. I believe this goes for $150-200 per dish. They've decided to marinate an entire black truffle in sweet rum and plop it on top of a perfectly fine tasting dessert. The intensity of the alcohol plus the overwhelming aroma of the truffle was a horrifying combination. There is a reason for truffle dishes existing in shaved versions, since even a sliver is enough to flavor the entire dish. The sheer presence of truffle itself already filled up the room with its intense odor - but to have the entire piece in your palate was enough to make a sober client, such as myself, spit it out. It was an experience to be had, but never repeated.

Vienna

Trzesniewski 

Polish sandwich shop that I make a point to visit every Vienna trip. They are simple open faced $2 mini sandwiches with ~30 different flavors. Their signature flavors are egg mixtures, but sometimes they spice them up with tomatoes, pickles, and other toppings. Avoid lunch hours, they are super popular with lines out the door.

Plachutta
A traditional chain Viennese restaurant that's also extremely popular. They specialize in 'tafelspitz' aka traditional boiled meat and they claim to have the best Viennese schnitzel.

Bonus: Sacher Torte
The most famous dessert in Austria and surrounding countries, it's a chocolate cake with apricot jelly that's enveloped in a thick dark chocolate coating. Many variations of this signature desserts exist, but the original can be found at the Sacher Hotel's tea salon.

Prague

Spices
A high end restaurant located in Mandarin Oriental Hotel, it's the best Asian cuisine in Prague. It's usually quite empty most nights, which makes it perfect for a great last minute meal. Also plus: for a high end restaurant, the prices are also quite reasonable, at ~$15 per dish.

Thai beef papaya salad

Samosas and foie gras spring rolls

Best pad thai in Europe, served with fresh prawns

Butter chicken curry

Extremely spicy mackerel curry

Desserts

Banana chocolate cake

Pistachio tiramisu

Art & Food Had

A quirky restaurant with art installations and live music. It's got a cozy atmosphere with several cases of bookshelves and old drapes. They have constantly changing seasonal dishes as well as paintings.

Cabbage soup with sausages

Beef broth with ravioli

Pork belly roll with mashed turnip

Venison with chestnuts and celeriac puree

Cheese tasting

Traditional Czech dessert with flour and milk mixture. Granola and berries on top.

La Finestra
The best Italian restaurant in Prague. There are many great Italian places to eat, but this restaurant caters to a more refined palate. Also explains the lack of tables available every weekend - make sure to book in advance.

Broth with beef ravioli and poached egg topped with truffle shavings.

Burrata with fresh tomatoes

Meat selection

"We no speak americano"
Dessert with flambee bananas, blueberries, peanut sauce, bacon ice cream.

Chocolate fondue cake