Wine and Food Travel

 In my usual Monday morning readings of online magazines, blogs and everything in between, I came across a wine boutique that is local, but  in location only. Larchmont Village Wine and Cheese is anything but local in its selections of wine, cheeses and even its sandwich menu.  Global taste with local ingredients seems a better way to describe this family owned and operated wine boutique that has...

Photo credit - "David Legget" (Flickr)   In search of the perfect chocolate, who isn’t?  Chocolate can be a variety of things to a variety of people.  It can range from an old fashioned Hershey’s milk chocolate bar to a dark chocolate truffle. The art of making chocolate varies in style but its method has remained relatively unchanged, unlike many other things in this world.  Those...

We wander down a curved road, past fairy chimneys and surrounded by the rugged yet smooth mountains, to the Gallery Cappadocia. Turkish rugs are on display outside, a few men chat off under a tree, having a tea and a cigarette. We say merhaba, and inquire if they are open. We are escorted through giant, carved, wooden doors and into a room that changes everything. Before us sit eight women on low,...

I had arrived in Helsinki a few days before. Immediately taken by its architecture, design, public art, and parks, I was smitten. Having just spent time in Denmark and Sweden, my eye was attuned to the particular design aesthetic of the region. To come to Finland, though, is to see the work of the men that inspired much of the furniture, textiles, glassware, and architecture I adore so much. Here,...

If there were more hours in the day and I were gifted with an inexhaustible work ethic I would dedicate that time and energy to Oslo Roasters. Seriously. During a visit to their roasting works and their two cafes in Brooklyn I was wooed by beautiful crema rich espresso, bicycles, a leather clad Italian–I meant exactly what I said–and an attitude strictly against pandering to a trendy coffee...