BonVivant

that's great! finally i can eat my last 99% bar many thanks, Klary!!!!!!! Bijenkorf is on the way to my pub, i go pass it every time i've checked a couple of Jamin shops in my little town down here in the south but they don't stock it. de Bijenkorf is most convinent. going to stock up on the 99% to eat with my 23 bottles of Westvleteren #12. fabulous! groetjesssss

could someone tell me where to find Lindt Excellence chocos? i go to AMS every fortnight and have never seen it some expats at a site i frequent say they've seen it but can't remember where exactly. it's all over the place in neighbouring countries...

there's a recipe in my Portuguese cookery book but i can't get to it at the moment. i remember it does sound easy enough to make from scratch at home. will taste the real thing for myself when i go to Portugal to eat and drink next christmas-new year. i wouldn't be surprised if every housewife or restaurant makes their own version. saudadessssssssss

stroopwafels being made before your eyes at the market anywhere in NL. foie gras from France.

i've only had Young's. lucky you, Stephen! i'm a woman so of course i love choco beers! Barcelona is closer to me so that's a possibility. black forest cake tasting beer...hmm....

would love to try this one. the scallops sound great too. if i ever move back to YVR i think Okanagan would be the place to spend the rest of my days...so i could drink local wines and peach ciders every other day [and the other every other day i'd drink French, Aussie, NZ, Portuguese, SAfrica, Chile and the rest.

yeah, no BC wine? absolutely scandalous! don't think i've ever tried that salmon jerky. where to get it in the lower mainland do you know? i'll put it on my 'list' for the next box.

i didn't get any altitude sickness in Cuzco. i did feel something on the second day of the hike but nothing major. everyone drinks coca tea there. it's even in your food cooked by the porters. locals chew the ash along with the leaves when going up the mountains. i did too however i didn't like the ash taste in my mouth, besides the initial numbness. i suggest you read up on coca leaves in your guide book. don't worry about the leaves. it's not like the drug! remember to go easy on the alcohol and walk slowly. best not to move around too much on the first couple of days. as for food, i will say the same thing as always, avoid restaurants where you see fellow tourists, or menu with [some] English on it. try as many baby alpaca steaks as you can for nowhere else will you ever get to eat them again. and you will be never want to go back to beef after this one thing though, the steak/meat is always huge...nearly the size of the plate! and get used to eating rice and chips on the same plate too.

i forgot the name of the restaurant...i think it's near my hotel in the 13e, there are some Spanish places nearby as well. a tiny place with great atmosphere, nice food, only locals, communal tables.

i just had 3 Bon Veux on tap last friday in AMS. nice! and smells good too

i have some stuff put away such as four 6 packs of Wesvleteren 12, 2 Innis & Gunn, 2 Samichlaus...that sort of thing. not drinking any of these this year as i'm leaving, in a little over 24 hours, for Czech Rep to drink until Jan 4th. however, my wine and beer racks are full to the rim so if the house gets broken into they'd hit the alcohol jackpot [knicking 2 bottles of bubbly alone would certainly make me cry upon my return ] i'm afraid no tasting notes from me but most of what i've had since beginning of autumn has been great. i keep going back to old favourites...local bocks [Alfa, Budels], dutch autumn/winter beers [Jopen bok, anything by my favourite little brewery to be recked with "'t Ij"]. even Grolsch's witbier. lots of German boks and various outstanding Bamberger beers. too many Belgian and UK brews to list, only photos. and many were drank in my favourite pub in AMS. oh dear oh dear...too many beers too little time.

in the dutch language there's a saying 'the eye wants something too'. i pay attention to just about everything when eating Japanese the shape and details of the china, the pattern on the chopsticks etc. and of course the food is the main attraction. everything always looks appetising and beautifully presented. also i like how they cut the vegs [flower shaped carrot or daikon slices, crosses on the shiitake and so on]. presentation is an art and the cuisine is exquisite! [okay just don't ask French or Japanese cuisine has my heart and soul ]

JK, it's pronounced Vest-fleh-te-run you had an illegal bottle! cheers ps: among us beer lovers we simply call it 'Westie'

Khmer coffee is mostly imported from VN. however onced brewed it doesn't taste as good as VN coffee in VN. less strong and inferior in taste. coffee in Laos is better than in Cambodia, at least that's what i noticed. there's also chicory in the coffee, btw. [i'm so glad i lugged back 4kg of the best VN coffee beans money could buy]

used to drink it in the summer but oneday i couldn't stand it anymore. the best wheat beers are from neighbouring Germany, or i'll at least settle for Wieckse Witte from, 1hr south of me, Maastricht. or Gulpener Wit, and Valkenburgs Wit, also from neighbouring province.

i've had a few terrible ones out of hundreds upon hundreds of beers ever tasted. now the question is, will i find traditional Tibetian brew repulsive when i go there in march.... [Heinie is for alkies]

yep, Banh Khot is realy good. i like it even more than Banh Xeo! ate Banh Khot, as always on the sidewalk in Chau Doc. it was dark and the photos didn't turn out, but i managed to make Banh Xeo photos in Battambang, Cambodia. the roadside restaurant is actually owns/runs by a Vietnamese family and not Khmer. Banh Khot is a southern VN snack, and apparently the Khmer claim they invented it. the Vietnamese say otherwise. it doesn't matter, i just want to eat Nathan P, yes Banh Khot is cooked in a specific Banh Khot cast iron pan over an open fire. you could always try the yorkshire pudding tin in the oven. if it doesn't work out then you'll have to make a trip to that restaurant for the real thing

i lurrrrrve the Aussie version. picked up a couple of issues while passing through KL. the UK version is good too but i like the other more. too bad i can't get the Aussie version here in NL. the photography is incredible!

celeriac is another one of my favourite old roots [it's very common now though]. it often replaces potatoes whenever i make a mash. parsnips are probably my favourite of all. i don't even eat carrots anymore and i love carrots....parsnips are much better! [photo links removed]

that would be zult. very common where i am down here in the south. a mate of mine whose father was a butcher. i recently ask him to ask his father how zult is made but he doesn't remember much...he's 85 years old now. mind you, not everyone wants to eat zult i will very soon. ------------------------ 'jij bent een zultkoop'

i eat fresh pineapples all the time with some salt and sometimes pounded fresh chili. those mouth irritating enzymes cleanse the palate

maybe ZM is talking about pan-Asian hotpot? [just had it last weekend ] shabu shabu or hotpot i love them both and eat it year round, and even more often in the cold months. i've never used processed seafood but stuff like fishbalss, shrimpballs etc are popular in S.E.Asian countries. prawn shaped surimi thingie is not good! [going to Sichuan in march for their fiery hotpots ]

there's much less chicken scrapped meat than that! read a report a while ago i can't remember all the ingredients listed but i do remember udder and chin are also in this horrendous snack. i will refrain from telling you more details if you like frikadel [or anything with scrapped meats] ------------------------- the only tasty stroopwafels is those you get from the market where they make the stuff before your eyes.

i also went to VN only for the food, 4 weeks of it but it was much too short keep in mind that january is very cold in the north. i came home with a cold from Sapa. "Bun Cha" is a Hanoi specialty among endless other dishes. one tip: never eat anywhere you see fellow tourists. [some VN food pix here]

coincidentally i'm doing an NL series to be posted at a couple of places. here's a preview of the sweets.