Category Archives: RESTAURANTS

YELLOWSTONE, ROOSEVELT LODGE, ROOSEVELT BEANS

The park is packed. Yellowstone National Park hosts about four million visitors a year with numbers swelling in July and August. Most people book lodging about a year in advance and make their dinner reservations well before arriving. Although not impossible, last minute reservations are rare, however most park restaurants have a first come, first […]

LIZ’S WHERE Y’AT DINER & GREAT GRITS

Who serves the best grits in the United States? This is a rhetorical question because I know the answer. It’s Liz Munson at Liz’s Where Y’at Diner in Mandeville, Louisiana.                 On the other hand, everything served at Liz’s is special—not just the grits. I love the biscuits […]

ANSE CHASTANET, SAINT LUCIA, THE BENTLEY

Like gorgeous sisters, Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain share similar traits. Both resorts are located on the same mountainous hill overlooking the Caribbean Sea in the Soufriere area of south Saint Lucia. Both resorts are owned and operated by the talented Troubetzkoy family. And both resorts offer guests wonderful accommodations with a variety of luxurious amenities,

JADE MOUNTAIN SAINT LUCIA & DEATH BY CHOCOLATE

What can I say about Jade Mountain in Saint Lucia that hasn’t already been said. Readers of travel magazines know the resort has been called the best in the Caribbean as well as one of the three top in the world. Devotees of luxury know Jade Mountain is over the top in terms of service and […]

BARBECUE AT Q39 AND APPLE COLESLAW RECIPE

It takes a lot of nerve to open a new barbecue restaurant in Kansas City. Boasting over 100 extremely popular and enthusiastically patronized BBQ joints, shacks, stands and restaurants, KC seems saturated to the max. Then along comes championship barbecuer Rob Magee who opens Q39 and quickly sends most competition to the pits. The hip […]

THE TRAILS, GRIFFITH PARK, L.A.

The Trails is an insider’s favorite place to stop for breakfast, lunch, coffee and/or tea before or after hiking in Griffith Park (Los Angeles),

INVERAWE and SMOKED SALMON PATE

Anyone hooked on smoked salmon has probably heard of Inverawe and Robert & Rosie Campbell-Preston. Robert & Rosie opened Inverawe Smokehouse in Argyll, on the West Coast of Scotland, in 1980. Robert was the fish smoker, an art he learned growing up on the banks of the Awe. Rosie tackled the marketing, a talent she […]

PARADORES, SPAIN & TORTILLA ESPANOLA

Travelers adore Spanish Paradores for a multitude of reasons. First is location. The Spanish-government owned and operated inns are sprinkled throughout Spain in spots most useful to tourists. Some are near major tourist attractions in large cities. Others grace small villages. And a few sit in far-flung, remote areas with little other choice of accommodations. […]

ATRIO/MICHELIN STARS AND RELAIS & CHATEAUX

  Atrio is one of the main reasons to visit Cáceres. Actually, Atrio is one of the main reasons to visit Spain. The two-Michelin-starred restaurant and Relais & Châteaux hotel is worth not only a detour (in Michelin speak), but also a bucket-list trip—at least for lovers of food, wine and architecture. Atrio sits in […]

CÁCERES, CULINARY CAPITAL OF SPAIN, 2015 & MIGAS

The food of Cáceres rocks! The restaurants are rad! The take-home edible souvenirs are wicked and wow! No wonder a jury composed of top representatives from Spain’s hotel, restaurant and publishing industries, declared the city “The Culinary Capital of Spain, 2015.” The city, in the province of the same name, sits in the sparsely populated […]