Beng Chin Garden - Penang, Malaysia

A Surprisingly Near-Perfect Coffee Shop
After touring the nearby Kek Lok Si temple we were ready to chow. We picked this coffee shop at the bottom of the hill almost at random. In these parts a "coffee shop" is a collection of street vendors selling various foodstuffs as well as coffee. We weren't expecting too much but were pleasantly surprised, especially with the Char Kway Teow, literally "wok-fried rice-cake strips." It's so-called for the flat rice noodles that are fried at a high heat with lard, soy sauce, chili, shrimp paste, tamarind juice, prawns, cockles, bean sprouts and chives. It was smoky and slightly spicy and absolutely delicious. Best meal of the day, hands down.

Juice and Antique Spot - Penang, Malaysia

What an Unexpected Combo
I don't know how it happened but I'm the anointed navigator in Penang. This means I have to consult the map and take an absolute direct route to whatever the ladies desire. If they sense the slightest double-back or circling the boos are quick to come - after all: they're Singaporean. On our way to Khoo Kongsi Temple I decided to take an unnecessary left turn for fun. The ladies were hesitant but eventually followed. While waiting for them a young man called to me from the sidewalk "would you like some fresh juice, sir?" It was so weird because he was standing outside an antique shop and it took me a few seconds to locate a small sign that read "Juice Bar."

Eastern & Oriental Hotel - Penang, Malaysia

How Do You Say "Sucked" in Malay?
These scones look great, right? They weren't and neither was anything else at the E&O high tea. It sounded like a good idea but with 20/20 hindsight it was foolish. Who travels to Penang, surrounded by some of the best street food and goes to some froofy high tea and an old, colonial hotel? (I'm raising my hand now....) Idiot!

Leong Chee Kee - Penang, Malaysia

Getting Lost for Baked Goods
I'll wander around for a long time and have Puffin ask people for directions if there is something sweet at the end of the trip. Leong Chee Kee is lauded for its coconut biscuits and we searched hard for this hard-to-find bakery. The coconut biscuit was a let-down, definitely not the best thing they make. Good thing we found something there which was way better.....

Toh Soon Cafe - Penang, Malaysia

Kickoff Breakfast in Penang, Malaysia
I'm here for a three day weekend with Puffin and some of her girlfriends and the goal, funny enough, is to eat as many different things as possible. Keeping it simple for the first meal: charcoal-cooked toast and coffee. Toh Soon is a sliver of an alley that is known for its toast and after trying it out I can see why. It was wonderful.

Royal Bar - Paris

Laying Back in Cut
You realize that Paris is a ghost town in August, right? I hope you didn't just arrive here on vacation! I'm escaping sleepy-ville in a few days myself before everything shuts down. It's time for vacation! I've started the downshift from work-think to non-think and found a venue that was up to the task: Royal Bar. I enjoyed the soothing jazz soundtrack, soft lighting, coffee and desserts. Most of all, I got a kick out of the characters.

Le Train Bleu - Paris

Why God Created the "Per Diem"
As I've explained before, I'm spoiled - my company covers my costs in Paris. I try not to overdo it but every once in a while I splurge a bit. I mean, it's my duty to help support the French economy, isn't it? Le Train Bleu is a fancy, Frenchy, high-priced restaurant perched in the rafters of Gare de Lyon. It's the type of place that long-ago travelers would sup in style before boarding a train to "summer" in Tuscany. They gracefully made room for the kid and his band of freeloaders, errr, I mean colleagues. Now all I gotta figure out is how to scheme and scam the accounting department to accept a dinner of a couple hundred euros....

Guilo Guilo - Paris

Giving Food Blogging a Bad Name
My girlfriend lived in Tokyo for spell, where she learned enough Japanese to get herself in trouble. One step into tiny Guilo Guilo and she was all "sumimasen" and "oishi-des", bowing and smiling. Showoff! There's no menu, just an eight-course degustation and each course is described by the chef or one of his helpers as it's laid in front of you. Thanks to Dodo, our explanation came in Japanese. So the evening went something like this, me: "what he say it is?" her: "I dunno, fish or something." I tried eavesdropping nearby but I couldn't decipher the thickly Japanese-accented French either. So I don't know what half of it was but I can tell you this, most of it was good.

Bonchon - Manhattan

Tasty, Overpriced, Confused Korean Yardbird
I'm not impressed with any of the 'chons - not this one, not Kyochon. Kyochon sucks taste-wise and price-wise - at least Bonchon tastes pretty good. We took a walk over to the newish 38th Street edition and learned that the chicken wait was 20-30 minutes. This was at 1:30pm when the place was relatively empty. Manhattan lunch and a 20-30 minute wait? Not a recipe for long-term success. We got our order slightly earlier but alas, it was somebody else's, which we had to return. I agree with how Pingles put it: "this place needs help."

Brooklyn Farmacy - Brooklyn

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Boqueria - Manhattan

Tapas and Sandwiches in the Flatiron
Whenever I come back to NY I'm amazed by the choice of new restaurants to try. I don't even pretend to keep up, I browse and pick them using a variety of rules, the most of important of which is the "it's close to work" rule. This is how we found ourselves at Boqueria, a Spanish tapas spot that also serves sandwiches. I spent a summer in Madrid between college and grad school and was hoping to find some eats that were more than a pale imitation. We didn't get off to a good start with the quail eggs and chorizo on toast. I don't know how they managed to make this tasteless - but luckily things picked up from here.