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When in Rome...

... Eat a lot of pasta, see the sights, and load up on pictures! Starting off our visit to Italy with beautiful and historical Rome.

So much to see in a city that dates back how many centuries, didn't even really think about food - at first. Then after seeing all pictures and places to eat, outside of pizza and pasta (which totally lives up to the hype, as long as you don't end up in a tourist trap which can easily happen). There's also quite a bit of seafood and of course gelato, coffee, desserts, etc. So here we go!

Arriving early afternoon we had time for one stop, the Pantheon! You can see it though the alleyways as you're walking towards it. The size is overwhelming! Then you see all the tourists, wonder how long it's going to take to get in, send the husband into the line while you take pictures and then be pleasantly surprised the queue moves super fast! I thought the inside would have been bigger, maybe because there actually weren't that many people inside compared to those waiting outside or that I was expecting more after being blown away by exterior. Regardless, very happy we made the stop.

A couple blocks away is the very famous gelato shop Giolitti. Absolutely flooded with people, can barely make out the flavours with all the bodies in the way. It was delicious and refreshing, however, I can't say it was the best we had during our trip. A must-visit because it's an icon but you'll find tastier and cheaper... My fave places that we tried out to come ;-)

I booked as many skip-the-line tickets as possible since standing in a queue is a waste of time. The best thing was booking the early access to the Vatican, skip the line and get in before the crowd does. Arriving just after 7am for check-in we were inside the Vatican Museum (above) before 7:30 and had a tour guide explain the history of the tapestries, maps, etc. We get to the entrance of the Sistine Chapel just before 8am when the doors open. I've heard from many friends that it's normally shoulder to shoulder, can't imagine trying to lean back to see the masterpiece on the ceiling in that kind of crowd. Happy to grab a seat on the back bench and take as much in as possible. The company we used was City Wonders and would recommend them.

By the time we made it to the veranda to see St. Peter's Square there was a line that snaked about 1/4 the way around square, it was only about 10am! It was a hot and sunny day so standing in that wouldn't have been pleasant. 

Jet lag isn’t so bad, you can use the time to go to the super early things like 7am tours. It’s funny, sleeping isn’t that important on vacation but is top priority back home.

Around the corner from the Vatican is a pizza place called Alice Pizza, recommended by our guide. Order by the slice, everything looked amazing and we were famished so we certainly bit off more than we can chew. Actually worked out, having done the touristy thing - look for the pie with the least slices left and order that - we essentially had a taste of each pie! The more popular local flavours did not work for us non-Italians (fish apparently is a popular flavour!) but we still were stuffed from the different types of cured meats, mushrooms, veggies toppings

Later that evening we wandered to Trastevere since there's lots of shops that open late along with restaurants and bars. We had a nice drink at a trendy place called 404 Name Not Found. Friendly staff and cheap beer and wine. The highlight though had to be the dinner we had at Da Enzo, the pasta was fabulous!

The wait was about an hour and I was totally regretting not grabbing a snack at 404 but it was worth the wait. The traditional lasagna (above) and carbonara was 5/5! Carbonara (below) seems to be the specialty and go to in Rome so it's a must try. At Da Enzo they use a pork cheek bacon that has a nice hint of smokiness and just the right amount of crisp. Who doesn't love lasagna, let's be honest. The meat sauce was perfectly seasoned with a right thickness. Watery meat sauce is a tragedy (which you'd often come across with lasagna at home), makes the pasta too soft and ruins the whole dish. The tiramisu was also delicious, not overly sweet, smooth cream and coffee with ladyfingers soaking it all in.

We joined another skip the line tour for the Colosseum and Roman Forum (Walks of Italy). The guide, Guido, was full of information but also monotone like a jaded junior high teacher. So you want to listen and learn but struggle to keep focused. Well worth it to have him lead the way since there's so much to see and loads of other tour groups but would have been more enjoyable if he had just a wee bit of enthusiasm.

When I researched how we'd explore the Colosseum I had seen so many picture of the exterior, with the one side that had crumbled because of the many earthquakes, but not many pics of the inside. Without the guide's explanation we couldn't have guessed half the things and what they were for. Like in the image above, this was where many of the animals, from all over the world, were brought into view - using man powered elevators! Well slave powered pulley systems, each animal, could be hippos, giraffes, leopards, skunks, etc, would be brought up at different times to increase the suspense for the audiences, rising from different parts of the stage. The larger animals, like elephants and lions, would come through a side entrance. All animals were kept in the dark and starved for several days to ensure they would come out enraged and attack the first thing it saw. Who would have known?

The Spanish Steps was just around the corner from our hotel. Typically packed with visitors. It was a pleasant surprise when we were leaving to go to the train station one early morning to see they it was almost completely empty. The contrast from the night before is actually kinda magical, to feel like you have the place all to yourself after seeing literally thousands of people just 10 hours before bending and reaching to try and get a selfie that doesn't have 25 people photobombing you. It was peaceful, nice way to leave Rome and head to our next destination - Florence. 

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Two in Oahu

Hawaii has always been on my travel list but never on the top. It’s far and expensive, and - far. Seriously, a couple more hours and you’d be in Tokyo. Every time I’ve looked  before we’d end up booking something else (like Tokyo) but we finally went! A friend goes every year and gave us lots of tips. Hoping to pass along some of them and a few other things we found and enjoyed =)

We stayed at the Hyatt Centric in Waikiki which was great! Good location, they provide beach gear like towels, chairs, and umbrellas! Only a two block walk to Waikiki Beach and surrounded by food and shops. Parking is valet only and on the pricier side so we rented a car for three days out of our one week stay for when we planned to go to Kailua, PCC and other places in the Northshore which was perfect. Lots of car rental places within a 3 block radius so easy to get to. Uber of course is another option, we had taken it from the airport and could have used it if needed to leave Waikiki.

Going in June wouldn’t have been my first choice since we knew it’d be hot but we had a few things going on and this was the only time that worked before it got to be unbearable.There was lots of things to keep cool, never short of things to do and eat.

Water Sports - tons of options to choose from, we chose to do outrigger canoeing with We Go! Island Canoe and had blast! It’s a three hour round trip, we went to Mokulua Nui, a protected bird sanctuary island off of Lanikai beach, and popped into a secret lagoon, jumped from a small cliff, canoe surfed (above) and got it all on a personalized GoPro video (included)! That’s one of the main reason we chose to go with them, to do a variety of things to kick off the day (for close to the same price you could go parasailing for 8 mins, canoeing for two to three hours, paragliding for 20mins) at a reasonable price (~$150pp USD). We had some free time when you get to the island, it wasn’t busy when we arrived and while we were wandering in the water we saw a few turtles, awesome way to start off the trip! 

A dip in Waimea Falls is both refreshing and exhilarating after the short walk (about 30 mins) through the botanical garden (the trees are massive!). There’s a small entrance fee and the lake isn’t always open for swimming (call ahead or check IG #waimeafalls), we lucked out and it was a highlight of the trip! They provide life jackets as the middle of the lake drops to about 13ft, no extra cost, bring your swimming gear. One thing though, the mosquitoes that no one warned me about - bring repellent.

Hanauma Bay - fishes galore! Everyone I talked to before we went on the trip suggested coming here and probably because everyone knows it’s a must-do you have to get here early. Go when it opens or shortly after (6am and closed on Tuesday) because when we left at 11 it was loaded with people. I want to be looking for fishes and not for flippers.

Laie Point - a breathtaking lookout point just north of the Polynesian Cultural Centre. We had about 20 mins to kill before PCC opened so we stopped by and ended up spending about 45 mins since the scenery is so amazing. If that’s not enough for you to go maybe it’s worth mentioning it was in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the huge cliff they had jumped off of. Not much parking but it wasn’t that busy when we went or when we left. 

Fumi’s Shrimp - just north Laie Point and PCC, super fresh and absolutely delicious! I’d go here over the shrimp trucks any day, much better quality and not over seasoned. They also serve Dole Whip, the pineappley ice cream-like treat, yum! We skipped the Dole Plantation so this was perfect!

Matsumoto’s Shave Ice - speaking of shrimp trucks, this is really close to the Northshore shrimp trucks that everyone typically visits on their first trip to Oahu. Lots of flavours and toppings, good value, but lined up out the door, beyond the zigzaggy line belts. Worth a visit. 

AGU Ramen - the best ramen we had on the trip! A tonkotsu broth with black garlic that you can get with diff levels of spicy, delish! The gyoza was great too. Would go back!

Nana’s Green Tea - inside Yokocho Alley (japanese food hall) hochi soft serve was what we had when we were in Waikiki. Loved the more subtle tea flavour, the matcha get a bit overpowering halfway through. Speaking of Yokocho Alley, we tried Tsujita, the famous dipping noodle shop from Tokyo (which Howie loves), and also Kaneko Hannosuke, specializes in tempura as the main course; both tasty but not my fave places. 

MoDo Mochi donuts - inside the Japanese store Mitsuwa which is inside International Market in Waikiki, so these are the best donuts I’ve ever had (and I do not like donuts!). We went back at least three times, my fave flavour was lilikoi (passionfruit) and the hojicha (roasted matcha) flavours. Brought some home and they traveled surprisingly well. 

HCC Farmers Market - open Saturday (it runs on a week day too but less stalls) and is basically a food market, a delicious one to boot! The fresh grilled Kona abalone was definitely the highlight (went back for seconds) but there are lots of different places to try. All the good stuff sells out early so be there at or before 9am (opens 7:30am), around 10:30/11 sold out signs started to go up. Parking would have been a nightmare so we took the bus, no transfer needed from our stop in Waikiki, convenient and cheap ($5 for all day pass pp).

Poke - can’t forget the poke! Everyday we alternated between ramen and poke pretty much. Tried a few different places, Island Vintage Coffee was easy to get to from our hotel (delicious but expensive because it’s right in Waikiki), Ahi Assassin (below) was much cheaper and super fresh (they catch their own fish so it's “boat to table”). It’s a very small shop so be prepared to stand and eat on a balcony of what looks like a sketchy motel (hence the smiles lol) worth it! It’s on the way to Al Moana mall so you can grab lunch then to go shopping!

Beaches - of course you have to go while in Hawaii! There are loads of different beaches and really they are all beautiful, won’t spend time talking about them since you can easily find dedicated pages to Oahu beaches. 

All in all we had a wonderful time. Really loved the variety of things you can do and eat in Oahu! It is on the pricier side of US cities to visit but well worth a visit. Hope you found something helpful for your trip there!

Maholo x

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Christmas in New York Pt 3

The morning of the last full day we had to stop at The Plaza, I mean it's a must right? We're there during Christmas, every year we watch Home Alone 2 Lost in New York in the comfort of our homes, why not freeze our butts off and see it in person?!

We popped into the Shops at the Plaza and wandered around, warmed up, ate some donuts at the Doughnuttery (*shakes head* save the calories for some more Magnolia), then wandered out into Central Park.

This is very different than the last couple times we've been here. Trees are bare and it's quite chilly. I don't think we walked more than a third way into the park and we didn't see anything Christmasy.

Cold and done with walking for a while we decided to grab lunch. You guessed it - ramen.

We've been to Ippudo in Japan a couple years ago then again last year when we were in London. Unfortunately they aren't all the same, the one in London didn't maintain their high quality. I did hear good things about the one in NYC and it was as yummy as they are supposed to be. Good ol' tonkatsu is my all time favourite broth. There's actually a good shop on Whyte Ave at home for it.

We slowly made our way to Brooklyn again for the Dyker Height lights. Got there a bit earlier than dusk and stopped in a bakery called Tasty Bakery, turns out they have fabulous cannolis.

The lights are basically in a three square block area, a more done up version of Candy Cane Lane in Edmonton. I think if you were in the area it'd be worth seeing but not worth the CNN article noting it as one of the top ten Christmas decorations to see in the world. Beautiful and magical but certainly not to the magnitude of Sak's or Rockefeller, in my opinion. So relieved we didn't book the $75pp "tour" which essentially is a shuttle bus that takes you from Manhattan to Dyker Heights. We took the subway there and ubered from the station to near Dyker and the same reversed to go back to Manhattan, didn't cost more than $40 for all six of us.

This Santa is almost the height of those giant pillars. It is amazing that people hire decorators and personally pay to have these put up every season. Christmas spirit =)

For dinner we went for the renowned pastrami sandwich at Katz Deli. Freshly sliced at multiple stations, walls covered with pictures of celebrity visits, this deli serves a mountain high of meat between two slices of rye, mouthwatering deliciousness. It is probably the most expensive sandwich I've had with a price tag of over $21 each.

I was hoping to get to a speakeasy but my cold denied me but there's always next time. Probably won't be in the middle of winter.

Our flight wasn't till 2pm the next day so we had time to check out the Nintendo store by Rockefeller. Two stories, upstairs there's a display area with all consoles made and popular games which was pretty cool to see. I've watched my brothers play all of the consoles except the two created before we were born.

This dude brings back memories.

We wandered over to Uncle Paul's Pizza and had some more pepperoni. On our walk it started to snow for the first on our trip. A white Christmas <3

There you have it, our Christmas in the big apple. Loved it. Great experience and memories I'll never forget. Even though it was super cold walking around outside, way more than I'd walk here in a month combined, so worth it. You should go ^_^

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Christmas in New York Pt. 2

Okay, so Magnolia Banana Pudding...

We also had this perfect snickerdoodle square... So good!

We wandered around Greenwich Village for a bit, took a pic at the Friends apartment building then trained uptown to Bryant Park and the Winter Market.

The market had lots of treats, we had churros and hot chocolate, so many local vendors, bought truffle salt from Truffliest (this stuff is potent! Our hotel room smelled like it for the rest of the trip and now our pantry).

<3 they just finished Zamboni-ing the rink. It looks quiet but there was a huge z-shaped line of people waiting to get on the ice.

Half of the group was starting to lose feeling in their toes so we decided ramen was the way to go. We got to Totto, a chicken broth shop that is in the Ramen Museum in Japan since 1994, to line up for another hour *sigh and shiver*. Was it worth it? The first three bites were... Then the rest... There was too much going on and the different tastes all merged into one and not in a complimenting way.

The next morning we went to the American Museum of Natural History. Such a nice change to be indoors, although it was actually quite chilly in there and we had to keep our coats on. Night at the Museum is based there, we saw a few displays that were probably duplicated for the movie.

There are a lot of food places in the Upper West Side, first stop was Levain Bakery. Known for their cookies we picked up a chocolate chip with walnut cookie (hello!), a blueberry muffin (so. good.) and a cinnamon sugar brioche bun (meh).

Next was Gray's Papaya for hotdogs, Anthony Bourdain loves the place and it had great reviews. So it's a hotdog... You can put sauerkraut, chilli, onions, and the rest of the hotdog trimmings on it... But it's still a hotdog. The papaya juice was delicious though.

We did see a black Escalade pull up, chauffeur and all, then a very well dressed lady with her entourage rolled into Gray's.

K then it was Chelsea Market time! Can't believe all the other times we've been to NYC we didn't stop here considering how much is here. Why isn't this more highly rated? The place was packed, lots of local shopping, there was a sample sale (felt like I was stealing since designer clothes was marked down more than 70%!), food and more food (the good kind)! A coworker told me I had to try the taco shop and a couple blogs said this Korean ramen was also a must... We couldn't choose so we went to both.

Los Tacos No. 1 - life-changing tacos! We had the pork and the chicken and seriously, I'd eat that everyday if I could. The gauc on the chicken taco was super creamy, meat marinated to perfection, and everything in the taco went together like it was made for each other! Both kinds were absolutely mind blowing.

There's no where to sit but there didn't stop the dozen people hovering around the kitchen.

Mokbar is directly across so we got in line to grab the classic Korean ramen (good but not the best we had on the trip, that's next), kimchi (rated best on the city, was really good), ho' cake (crispy bun filled with pork belly, my fave at this shop).

Then we went to see the Broadway show Waitress co-starring Jason Mraz. Well written, hilarious, and the songs were perfect (scored by Sara Bareilles). We used TodayTix since I booked it just a month before so it is considered last minute, great price and wonderful customer service. I'd used them again, maybe to watch this show a second time!

It was freezing but we waited for Jason Mraz and Betsy Wolfe to sign our play bills after the show. My slim little brother mowed down a lady to get to the front lol he was so wrapped up in everything he didn't realize this happened till he showed me the video of him talking to Jason Mraz and right before it a nice lady was absolutely bewildered and appalled when he pushed his way past her.

I guess there was a lot of eating these couple of days and I've reached the 10 pic limit again... One more post should do it...

[savourylife-blog]

Christmas in New York City

Okay, I legitimately don't know how people have time to blog because it's been ages since I've posted. However, the recent trip to NYC was just five days so here goes throwing something short-ish together.

This was pretty much how I felt about going to NYC for Christmas and then actually experiencing it. Even though I caught a cold couple days in and it was the coldest temperatures there since 1962, I love Christmas and this was definitely on the bucket list.

We arrived on Christmas day and unlike home where the streets are dead (since everyone is usually home with the family and nothing is open), NYC was humming with what I would think are mostly tourists, cameras and wide eyes devouring all of the lights and decorations. Absolutely incredible. You see pictures, hear about it but nothing even close to actually experiencing it.

Our first stop was Rockefeller to see the tree. The streets were swarming with people, the Sak's across the street had it's window display and light show going - absolutely magical, I was mesmerized - seriously wow.

We saw someone propose and I danced with Santa so that was unexpected and fun (=

It seems like on Xmas day only three types of places are open for food, fancy restaurants where you prebook and pay an arm and a leg, Chinese, or pizza (I'm not counting fast food since we really try to avoid that on vacay). So we opted for the most NYC choice, pizza! And we ended up at the perfect place, Uncle Paul's Pizza, packed, so warm, great service and, of course, the pizza was 5 stars! We actually went back the day we flew out for a quick bite. The crust was crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, the sauce was definitely more than just tomato sauce... Omg... K I gotta stop... Moving on...

The next day was a shopping day at Woodbury Common and the damage to my wallet was quite severe but we also won't talk about that. We made an exception to our fast food rule as we had to try out Shake Shack, a friend was there earlier in the year and had rave reviews. Food at shopping places typically are meh so this was the best option and definitely good pick! 100% regretted not getting the double... The calories in the board right next to the food item definitely steered me away, f&#@...next time.

After dropping off our goods and freshening up we wandered over to 53rd to get our dose of the Halal Guys. A must right? We've had it every time we've been to NYC. We were running a bit tight on time as we had the Rockettes show to catch so we shared one which clearly isn't enough. So what's the solution? Go back after the show for another! The secret sauce... *drool*... And the hot sauce with the perfect kick especially in the chilly weather.

The Christmas Spectacular featuring the Radio City Rockettes, amazing! So entertaining and mind blowing how synchronized they are! Everyone loved it, definitely lived up to the hype. The building itself is quite historic I believe and the decorations inside were retro and pretty.

The next morning we ventured into Brooklyn, not that far in, just across the Brooklyn Bridge as a client had recommended we try out River Cafe. The views are breathtaking as its right on the East River looking at New York City <3 oh and the food? Yup, would go back as the breakfast was absolutely delicious, service was top notch. It was pricey though since it is one Michelin star but totally worth it!

After breakfast we walked back to Manhattan via Brooklyn Bridge. I love that walk. Always packed but it's beautiful and somehow peaceful even though you're in the middle of so many people.

Then we went on kind of an eating spree... Desserts specifically. Stopping off first at the Big Gay Ice Cream shop for a Salty Pimp (vanilla soft serve dipped in salty dark chocolate with salty swirls of dulce de leche). It was listed on a few articles as food you must try when in NYC. We obliged and didn't regret it even though we stepped in from the freezing cold and would be going right back into it after we were done our cones.

Then to Magnolia for their famous banana pudding. We opted for the chocolate banana but my bro and cousin got the classic and were so hooked they went back to get more the day we flew home to bring it back! Spoiler alert, only one of them checked it into their luggage and the other had to abandon it at security as its considered semi liquid =O! Oh apparently there's a 10 pic limit... Image to come on Christmas in NYC 2.0... tmrw...maybe, if I remember ;-)

Ciao!

[savourylife-blog]

The Perfect Saturday Afternoon

We took a cooking class about a month ago and learned how to make fresh pasta. It brought back memories of when I used to make dumplings with my auntie using a pasta maker way back when I was in elementary. Sadly she isn’t with us any more… I checked with my other aunt to see if she still has the pasta maker and she did! Feels like a tribute of some sort using it again even though Auntie N isn’t with us any more =) 

We modified the recipe that we got from #GetCookingYeg and ended up making …

Tagliatelle with Lobster 

Ingredients - for Pasta

2 cups of all purpose flour

1/2 cup of semonlina flour

9 large egg yolks + 1 whole egg

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1. Make a well of flour, mixing both types of flour together

2. In a small bowl lightly whisk together the eggs, olive oil and salt

3. Pour the mixture into the flour well

4. Begin incorporating the flour slowly into the egg with a fork. Continue doing so until it starts to look like a ball then continue adding flour with your hands and kneading until the dough is no longer sticky. It’s okay if you don’t use all of flour, i had over one cup unused.

5. The dough is ready for kneading! Knead for at least 20 minutes to develop the gluten. This gets a bit tiring, this is where I got the hubby involved!

6. After kneading for enough time (if you poke your finger into the dough and it’s not sticky, if it is add a little bit more flour and knead more) then separate the dough into two balls and wrap tightly with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 30 mins. This ensure when you roll out the dough it doesnt keep strinking back.

7. Roll the dough so it’s thin enough to fit through the pasta machine on the lowest setting. Roll in one direction (away from you) and flip the dough over to try and keep it even

8. Then feed it through the pasta machine, twice on each setting. After you get about three settings in you can fold the pasta (like a tri-fold wallet) so it’s a better shape and you will get more even length pasta

9. After you have went through all the settings dust flour on the dough and let sit for at least 10-15 mins to dry out. Otherwise when you cut the dough the noodles will stick together. You can tell it’s dry enough when the edges of the pasta start to curl up a bit.

10. Run the sheet through the pasta machine on the setting you want

Then viola! Your pasta!!! So you can cook this now or freeze it in a ziplock bag for later. We cooked it right away but first started making the sauce

Ingredients - Lobster Tomato Cream Sauce

1.5 lbs lobster

2 shallots chopped

4-5 cloves garlic smashed

1-2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp fresh tarragon

1 red chili seeded and finely chopped

1 large can of san marzano tomato chopped

500ml whipping cream

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

I didnt take as many pics making the sauce ‘cause things got a little messy lol

1. Kill the lobster by severing the neck and body with a large sharp knife, lengthwise cutting towards the eyes. 

2. Remove the claws and tail then smash the rest of the body with the back of your knife. 

3. Put a skewer through the tail to ensure even cooking and easier to cut later, blanch tail and claws in boiling water. Dunk in ice water to stop cooking then take out meat, chop into bit size pieces and set aside.

4. In a large saucepan melt the butter then toss shallots and garlic to release their aroma and then add the remaining lobster shells and cook until bright orange. *begin boiling a large pot of heavily salted water for the pasta

5. Pour in the tomatoes (with the juices) and reduce on medium heat 

6. Pour in whipping cream and reduce *hopefully the water is boiling, cook pasta for a few minutes then strain and set aside

7. Put in red chili and dijon and tarragon and mix well. Let simmer for a few minutes before pouring the whole sauce through a strainer into a large bowl. If you have a hand held mixer you can remove the lobster shells then use the mixer to blend the shallots, garlic etc, this will thicken the sauce. I don’t have one so i just took out the shells, added the lobster meat

8. To make sure the pasta is thoroughly coated with the sauce toss it in the sauce before plating

Now serve your delicious food!!!!

This was by far the best pasta dish I have ever made. I hope it turns out just as well for you =D Enjoy and savour your amazing creation!