Category Archives: Worldly Eats

Yes, please!

Al Moro defines the “When in Rome” mantra.  A non-descript restaurant on the Vicolo delle Bollette, this seems like another touristy joint that will serve you average food,  with average attitude, in an average Roman setting (I mean you’re still in the heart of Rome, so average is all relative) . However, the key to Al Moro is eating inside the restaurant, not on the street where they intentionally seat all the tourists – a move they make to preserve the authenticity of the place.  Once you enter the restaurant, you realize that you are alone.   The inside of Al Moro is  Italians only.   No tourists.  No English (at all).   Hardly any women. We happened to sit down next to a Roman businessman who was super-friendly and , when he saw us take out our bright green pocket dictionary,   took it upon himself to order  for us.   After he explained our options ( which only included  items that a true Roman would eat) ,  we decided to start with a few appetizers  and  share the Spaghetti Al Moro (a Carbonara) as a second course  and the Roman Style Lamb as a third.  Our friendly Roman savior at the next table  adamantly advised that  “Nobody at Al Moro shares” and  doubled our order.  The lamb was amazing…it was standard Roman style  meaning that you were served different pieces of lamb than the person dining with you and neither of you knew what parts of the lamb you were eating. The skin was rich and crispy and the meat  succulent.  However, the  Spaghetti Al Moro was not only the greatest Carbonara that I have ever eaten  nor just the greatest pasta, but simply one of the greatest dishes that I have ever eaten.  It was so creamy  and  so delicious that it literally made you want to cry.  As a matter of fact, that I am in NYC and AL Moro is in Rome is getting me a little misty eyed now.  Make sure to go inside (can I stress enough that you have to eat INSIDE ? ) Al Moro next time you’re partying in Rome and you will probably want to send me a gift.  Please Fed-Ex the Spaghetti Al Moro.

There are a bunch of good spots in the Caribbean to get some sun, booze and food.  I have hit up my share of them and for my money St. Bart’s takes the cake.   Now everyone has their favorite places to lodge on the island (Although, we all know the Isle de France is the spot).  When it comes to chowing down, several places on the island rock out, but Maya’s is the best.  Great food, great drinks and a spot right on the water (No joke, I came dangerously close to driving directly into a body of water as I approached Maya’s).  Maya’s is by no means a secret, EVERYONE who travels to St. Bart’s knows about it, but not everything that is popular is bad (except for music where almost everything popular is bad), and Maya’s is the real deal.  An additional fun aspect of Maya’s is navigating your car (which will most likely be manual) back up the steep, windy road after drinking for several hours.

Well, Israeli’s and Palestinian’s are dying over Jerusalem, Iraq is a fucking disaster, Iran wants to kill everyone (and is actively working on it), and American’s are pretty much hated in every other Middle Eastern country…how can we finally break the barrier to unite us all as one people, regardless of color, race, creed or religion…OMG, it’s so clear…why didn’t anyone think of it before…Magnolia Cupcakes!

Yes, Paris is the City for Eaters (some people say it’s the City for Lovers, but eating is where it’s at in Paris…you may be too full to make love).  Yes, I have had some of the greatest meals of my life there…and down the line I’m sure we will get to that, but L’As du Falafel in the Marais District has the world’s greatest Shawarma.  Bar none.  It is perfect in all the ways that you want Shawarma to be perfect, with lamb that was fatty, but not too fatty, a perfect amount of tahini and hot sauce, crisp cucumbers and just ripe tomatoes and a fresh, warm pita.  There will be time to hit up Chez Janou too, but don’t miss this place.