Splurging the world over

In my first blog entry ever, I have written that food is always a good excuse to travel. One year hence, that personal credo remains strong, as can be gleaned from various gastronomic delights I have willingly surrendered myself to.


In Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, in the restaurant with a Disney-inspired signboard just across the Akinabalu Youth Hostel, my friends and I got peppered beef, lemon chicken, chicken in buttermilk and tom yum soup. No cholesterol or brazenly hot peppers could deter starving stomachs.


This is the Restaurante "Las Palomas" in Zaragoza, Spain. Seldom would you find buffet restos in Spain so it was a pleasant surprise that in the Plaza del Pilar near the Seo del Salvador, there's a good place to eat a buffet lunch at 12 euros and -- in the afternoon -- all the tapas you could gobble (as in the Gran Buffet de Tapas!) A cheap place to eat in the heart of a tourist spot.


The name of this restaurant escapes me but it is in the area of the Piazza di San Lorenzo in Florence, Italy. Facing the church you have to take the street to the left (you don't have to enter the mercato centrale). This is pasta al pomodoro and zucchini ripieni (pasta in tomato sauce and stuffed zucchinis). I showered it with lotsa parmesan cheese, olive oil and pepperoncini; it tastes divine!


This was my family's Peking duck feast in Beijing, China. As a certified gourmet, my Dad swore not to leave China without sampling duck prepared the authentic Chinese way. While many international webpages list down Peking duck (English-speaking) restaurants that would charge you an arm and a leg for a whole bird, try roaming around to look for non-English speaker. They, like this restaurant below our hotel, have good ducks at only a third of the price.