London: Restaurant Story

Cynthia and I met Heather in London for four days of eating and Michelin Restaurants.  We stayed next to an incredible Scandinavian bakery and hit Borough Market on the first afternoon.

Restaurant Story, a one star trying to get the second, won our hearts with the contagious energy and excitement of the staff and the creativity of the food.

Snacks

 
 

Platinum caviar and golden beetroot

Fairground onions

Bread and dripping

Aubergine ravioli

Monkfish, asparagus and lovage

Black truffle and celeriac

Herdwick lamb, artichoke and ramson

Paddington Bear

Lemon sherbert

Almond and dill

Treats

Spring Break: Last Day

On the last day in Lake Bled, we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before heading out to hike Vintgar Gorge - the most beautiful mile and half I have ever walked.  The trail followed along the ravine with a wooden path attached the rock which allowed hikers to traverse over the water.  The rainy cold weather kept most tourists away allowing us to enjoy the space without having to squeeze by people.  Unfortunately, it aslo forced me to leave my camera in the car.  Emily took beautiful shots with her water proof camera, but we have been unable to locate the camera cord leaving all the pictures trapped on the device.

After our hike, we headed to the Park Cafe to try the famous Lake Bled cream cake. Just incredible.

Spring Break: Day Trip to Ljubljana

We spent one day in Ljubljana, the capital and largest city in Slovenia, located 40 minutes east of Lake Bled.  Rather than more museums and castles, we elected to do a food tour.  We arrived early to search for the city's symbol - the Ljubljana Dragon and to admire the architecture.  While the country is very new - 1991, this city has existed since at least the Middle Ages.

We found a honey store and learned how beekeeping is one of the oldest activities in this country.  They started a campaign to promote Slovenia's protected native Carniolan honey bee, and honey and honey products.  Slovenia pushed the UN to declare 20 May World Honey Bee Day.

Our guide showed us the history of Slovenia as we stopped to try the main dishes.

 Kranjska klobasa (Carniolan sausage), matevž (mashed potatoes with beans)

   Bujta repa (stew made of sour turnip, millet and pork)

 Idrijski žlikrofi (dough stuffed with potatoes, onions and herbs) with mushroom sauce

Prekmurska gibanica (famous layered cake from Prekmurje made of dough, walnuts, apples, cottage cheese and poppy seeds)

Spring Break: Lake Bled, Slovenia

Slovenia, a small Eastern European country that was part of the Federal Yugoslavia until 1987, had been on my list of places to visit.  We wanted a vacation versus just a sightseeing trip, so we booked a resort with a pool complex right on Lake Bled.

We headed out for the four hour drive on Easter Sunday where we were greeted with beautiful weather.  We quickly set out for the 3.5 mile hike around the Lake, enjoying gelato and skipping rocks along the way.  Slovenia is known for its dairy and the gelato was incredible.

Due to its close borders with Austria, Hungry, and Italy, the food has aspects of all these cuisines.  We opted for an Italian restaurant for dinner.