Poetry Tuesday: Barcelona, Eaten

Barcelona, eaten by the Pope
Familia spires served well to pick his teeth
Pillars there? Why, white asparagus.

No bikini* on the beach is safe, they say
Rovellons for buttons? Gobbled down
Patatas Bravas? Papa, Brava! Way to eat the streets!

Barcelona, eaten up by me
Every paving stone, a pastry
Each ounce of sea to wash a dish.

Paella, small plates, salads -- all are gone
The landscape's stripped, we ate it
The city's tapas? Tapped.

Not Gaudi! The Pope! And me!









































* bikini = Spanish grilled cheese with ham sandwich



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Let's build a better airline food.

I've flown on 8 flights in the past month (Delta/NWA/JetBlue) and the only decent food I ate on any one of those planes was that which I brought myself (Midwest, how I miss your fresh-baked cookies).

My favorite item? This chocolate chip and ricotta tart from A-Roma Bakery. I ate one bite at home, then decided that it was too early in the morning to eat much of anything and that I'd finish it on the plane.

It got a little smished in my carry-on, but was just right on board.

Photo Essay: At the Vietnamese French Bakery

So many croissants! This isn't quite half the case of flavors available.



Raspberry Croissant!



Coconut Croissant!



Young coconut water. My 3 1/2 year old nephew is fond of this beverage. Not bad at all.



Wobbly coconut chunks at the bottom of the coconut water -- to be fished out and eaten using the fork that comes with the bottle.

This place looks like nothing special from the outside (it's in a converted fast food restaurant building on University), but the pastries were fresh, flaky and flavorful. I recommend it. I only wish I'd thought to check if they could make me a Vietnamese coffee.

Lost in Translation

Nick facilitated (via his recent trip to Mexico) a multilingual snack tasting. From left to right:




Tostachos: "Asi me gusta." "15% + Gratis." "No te quedes en las formas, llega hasta el fondo...El Sabor" -- Cheddar cheesy tortilla chips with just a touch of cardboard and a tiny spark of spice.




Sabritas KKWates Enchilados con Limón: "Son esos pequeños momentos en tu vida los que hacen La Gran Diferencia!" -- Very sour, sharp lime flavored peanuts dusted with chili powder, reminding me of my favorite treat I found on my own trip to Puerto Vallarta, which was a microwaveable package of chili-lime popcorn. These nuts would probably be too much for some people, as the lime's industrial strength (and quite likely artificial) but I dig 'em.




Vuala Minis: "Croissants con Relleno Cremoso Sabor Chocolate" -- It was a little creepy to open what looks like a bag of chips and find mini croissants. They felt moist, rather than flaky, and smelled like chocolate mini-donuts from a gas station (the inferior kind with the yellow insides). The texture was definitely off, as the "croissant" was more dense and moist than light and dry, but the chocolate cream inside tasted fine.




Papas Pa-Fut Sabor Cañonazo -- "La Selección Nacional ya suma más de 85 años de historia." -- These looked like regular, unflavored potato chips, but tasted far spicier and madder. Both sour and bitter, there was still a strong potato flavor coming through, as well as abundant saltiness.

All in all, an intriguing voyage of flavors. The nuts were my favorite, but something about the balls-to-the-wall nastiness of the Papas Pa-Fut appealed to me (even though they ultimately were a little much).

Thanks, Nick!