| Travelling Restaurants |
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I have been travelling a little bit this summer. Not the Istanbul kind of travel but the 1 or 2 hours on a plane kind of travel and sometimes I am only in my destination for mere hours. Sometimes it’s for work, sometimes personal but I see no reason why both can’t be a pleasure. And to make it a pleasure, I make sure as many meals as possible are special. “Special” doesn’t have to mean expensive but it does have to mean unique or memorable in some way. Sometimes that means the meal has a story, sometimes it is enjoyed with a special person but, for me, it has to stand out in some way to make an impact on the memory of the day. There are a few rules that I use to help this happen: 1. Chain restaurants don’t make the cut. Oh, I eat in them all the time, but if I have a choice and a time limit, I am going to chose an independent every time. 2. A personal recommendation is better than a review. Twitter has become my friend in this way; surely someone has dined here before and will say yea or nay to save my (locally raised, double smoked) bacon. 3. A review helps as does a website but neither give me the opportunity to consider the source. Does the writer look for the same things as me? Here is one encounter that went well: I was in Kitchener with colleagues looking for breakfast so I asked a local “where would you eat breakfast if this was your first time in town?” She kindly pointed to an established diner on a side street just out of our view called Angie’s. I would never have found it if I hadn’t asked and had to walk right past a well established breakfast chain that would have been a default option to find it. But I asked and it made all the difference. Angie’s served local farmer’s sausage, homemade jam and homemade bread. And by homemade, I mean imperfect, made from scratch, no kidding in the kitchen bread. It is the kind of place that you see in the movies or in your mind when you think “homespun”. Nothing fancy, everything real. The food was honest, delicious and local. Not local like the trend local but local like, Chuck brings it in on Tuesdays local and his son before that dating back to 1962 local. A hit! This idea of making a meal mean something isn’t new but as the world grows smaller through social media and schedules grow tighter it has become even more important. Asking a person (whether on the block or the Blackberry) to share their tips links us. Sharing that meal with a person creates an experience that connects us. Telling you about it keeps the circle spinning and joins us. Which means that, even when I am travelling, I am never far from home. |
