Thursday, July 18, 2013

{ on a quest }

Dear Friends & Family,

The one thing John & I really miss about the US is the food! Our tastebuds just can't appreciate the food in Berlin as much as it did in California. They just do everything...different. Even Vietnamese food here is different than the home cooking or the restaurants I've tried. Most cater to the German's taste buds (they're not a fan of spicy), and nothing tastes as authentic as I am used to. The Asian restaurants here are usually a fusion. You'll see a Vietnamese restaurant that serves sushi. Or a Thai restaurant that serves sushi. They also really love sweet chili sauce. They put it on e v e r y t h i n g. Vietnamese sandwich? It's there. Dim Sum? Forget soy sauce and hot mustard. You get sweet chili sauce. I'm also pretty sure that the same place that serves it with their dim sum also puts it in their hot and sour soup. It's not just Asian restaurants that can't seem to get it right. We ordered a chili cheese hot dog near our place, and it was refried beans mixed with cayenne pepper. Bleh.

..."but that doesn't mean it's all bad," says John.

Yes, of course there are some good. We've mentioned the Dim Sum place that serves really good Shumai and some delicious melt in your mouth pork belly. We are a fan of the BBQ sandwiches they serve at Markthalle IX, and the Indian restaurant in our neighborhood serves the most amazing melt in your mouth chicken; whether it's chicken curry or chicken tandoori, you can't believe how good their chicken is. And on cold, or rainy days, we love going to Cocolo for some authentic Japanese Ramen. I used to love going to Good Morning, Vietnam for their Banh Cuon, but the last few times I've been there, it hasn't been available. Boo. And of course, I can't leave out the doner kebab and the currywurst that you can find on every corner. If you visit us in Berlin, we will take you to Curry 36.
{ photo by Randy B. after landing in Berlin }


One thing they don't have in Berlin is a good breakfast diner. John and I had a few favorites. You could always rely on diners to be open early, have unlimited refills of black coffee, and have a variety of breakfast dishes to choose from. The breakfast in Berlin isn't bad, but most places don't open until 9 or 10 in the morning, there's no unlimited refills of coffee, and their idea of American pancake is yellow cake with syrup. The egg dishes are good, and I've been a fan of their plain yogurt with fruit and honey.

Of course when we tire of the restaurants, we cook at home, which is most of the time. I'll try to post more recipes in the future. I've been on a zucchini kick and have made fritters and zucchini bites that are perfect as a snack or a side dish. And I've discovered how easy it is to cook chicken with a little olive oil and some seasoning.

Until the next post, enjoy these pictures of food!

{ my new favorite thing to make: recipe here }



{ bacon, mint, and pepper }

{ shumai }

bánh bèo at District Mot is good, but not quite right }

Bánh xèo at Coco Banh Mi is missing something }

xoxo,
The Prindles
{ froyo on a hot day }

2 comments:

  1. YUM!!! Look at you cooking like a domestic.

    Miss you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you, Rachel! I miss you too! Thank you for the comment!

    ReplyDelete