Tag: rose wine
Monaco and Nice
Today was our day to visit Monaco. After yesterday I wasn’t too sure what to expect.. I thought Cannes was okay, nothing special.. like I mentioned, it looked it a bunch of rich people walking around with fancy clothes and bags- definitely not my scene. So this morning I was not too excited as Monaco is known for the very very rich and famous. We caught an early train from Nice and were there within half an hour. The first images of the country were absolutely stunning! The ocean and the mountains against the beautiful buildings was breathtaking.. I also like how the modern buildings kind of just blended in with the old palace, etc. It looked like a very well kept little country- I guess if you have loads of money and there are about 37,000 people- it is quite easy to keep the country in good shape. Also, it seems there is a cop for every 6 people! I can see why people with money come here- it truly looks and feels like the play ground for the rich and famous.
We walked up the palace and witnessed the changing of the guards, which was not as elaborate as in London but still nice…We then made our way to the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, which was great fun. We went up to the top floor to check out the cafe that had great views of the water… but the food seemed average and we didn’t want to get stuck with subpar food.. so even though we were hungry, we decided to leave and walk into the old part of Monaco and find a place. Most places were a mix of French and Italian. Obviously Monaco is known for its fancy Michelin starred restaurants but that is not what we had in mind.. 🙂
We chose a corner restaurant with outdoor seating… I ordered the three course meal and started with a warm goat cheese salad- it was delicious! There was a toasted slice of baguette topped with melted goat cheese placed over a mixture of fresh lettuce, tomato and mushrooms with a yummy dressing.
Goat Cheese Salad
Filet of Salmon
Nougat Ice Cream
Did I mention what I was sipping? Well, it was a glass of delicious Rose!! Next came my entree, which was a filet of salmon topped with a white sauce served with mixed vegetables and rice. The salmon was tender and delicious.. the veggies were crunchy and fresh tasting. I was very happy, sipping my delicious wine and people watching. I was looking forward to my dessert which I had already decided on- creme caramel- one of my all time favorites! I grew up with it and love the combination of custard and caramel. Well, it turned out, they were out of it so I ordered the nougat ice cream served with a drizzle of caramel and loads of whipped cream- my favorite… It was soon time to head back to Nice and walk around and go back to the ice cream place!!!
We came back, went to the pool and headed for dinner. Today I had the good sense to make reservations at Chez Acchiardo, a small restaurant in the old part of Nice. We headed there and immediately got a great sense as we walked into the cozy restaurant. We ordered a delicious bottle of Merlot and started the dinner with some yummy foie gras with some yummy condiments.
Foie Gras
It was just the right thing to start the evening off. Next, I ordered a steak with parsley garlic and anchovies and my husband ordered a seabreem fish with a red, puttanesca kind of sauce. Both the dishes were sublime. My steak was out of this world- I guess maybe because I love the combination of parsley, garlic and anchovies… I thought, why haven’t I made this at home before??? Will have to do so very soon….
SeaBreem
Steak with Parsley Garlic & Anchovies
Overall it was a fantastic evening- very good food and great atmosphere. The service was wonderful and we came out very happy and walked over to the ice cream place from last evening- I was looking forward to it all day!! I had the caramel again but this time I paired it with passion fruit and of course topped with my favorite- whipped cream…. tomorrow we are off to Marseilles….
Nice- Finally Here…
I have wanting to plan a trip to Southern France for a while now.. somehow it took a while, I guess I had other places to visit :-).. but I am here now and am absolutely thrilled. Paris is always a thrill to visit but it is nice to see other parts of France. First of all the landing was absolutely gorgeous!! We could see the yellow lined buildings by the ocean waiting to be explored. We got to our hotel pretty quickly, unpacked and went exploring into the old part of town. We walked towards cours saleya, a pedestrian street/square filled with restaurants and vendors. My daughter unfortunately caught a cold a day after we reached Paris and was ready to sit down and relax- so we stopped at a cafe/bar and indulged in some wine and beer. This area is known for its Rose, so I had to try a glass.. and of course it was delicious! We sat there for a while and did a bit of people watching!
My daughter wanted to call it an evening so we went back to our hotel and rested for a bit and decided to visit the hotel bar for some munchies… well, it was our lucky day as they had just received a batch of delicious oysters!! Yay… I absolutely love oysters and was looking forward to having some while in this area. These were perfect tasting- not too huge and very sweet. They tasted super fresh. We ordered some and some delicious Rose wine.. I think I might just stick to Rose for the rest of the trip.. maybe some sparkling as well…
We also ordered some delicious scallops that came with some diced tomatoes, pine nuts and olives… They also tasted sweet and very fresh. 
We are here in Nice for the next three days and plan to explore lots of little towns and of course lots of yummy cuisine along the way and I can’t forget all the wine, ice cream, chocolate… and the list goes on…
Lugano, Switzerland- Day One
When we decided to come to Switzerland, I wasn’t too excited.. why, you ask? Well, nothing against the beautiful country but I just didn’t think it would offer very delicious food except yummy chocolate and yummy cheese! Well, I guess there is nothing wrong with the two things but it wasn’t what I had in mind. I decided to change my mindset and told myself not every trip has to be filled with delicious food… it is supposed to be a gorgeous country and that is what I should be paying attention to. As I was convincing myself, I realized we had an option of going to Lugano which is very close to the Italian border- yay!! I knew the food would be delicious down there.. and here we are- first day in Lugano and so far so good. Well, it has been a tiring day after landing in Zurich at 8 AM, stopping for a delicious cappuccino and pretzel, catching three trains and arriving in Lugano at 1 PM! The journey to Lugano was absolutely breathtaking with the most amazing vistas.. too bad we were half asleep. All I could think was, what a gorgeous country!
Arugula and Parmigiano Salad
We arrived at our hotel and dropped the luggage off as our room was not ready as yet. A very short walk later, we found ourselves enjoying the gorgeous Lake Lugano. We walked around and found cafe/restaurant over looking the water. We ordered a delicious, local rose from the Ticino region- it was yummy… we washed it down with a delicious arugula and Parmigiano salad and a mushroom and spicy salami pizza. The food was yummy and so was the gelato that my daughter had three times!!
Spicy Salami and Mushroom Pizza