Scallops at the Ballard Seafood Fest

Alaska Weathervane Scallops and Rice Pilaf with a Creamy Marsala Sauce @ Alaska Weathervane Scallops Food Stall in the Seafood Fest, Ballard, WA

Hot or Cold Lobster Roll?

Hot Buttered Maine Lobster Roll @ Neptune Oyster in Boston, MA

Like many other Bostonians, I would agree that Neptune Oyster is a must-visit, however, I think I’m more of a cold lobster roll girl. The ChubbyWerewolf does an awesome breakdown and test on the Cold vs. Hot lobster roll debate (find the post here). So visit Neptune and decide for yourself!

Second Chances: Fish Market in Allston

Decided to give Fish Market a second try. I really had high hopes.

Well, it resulted in a 40 minute wait for our food, and “meh” cuts of fish in my chirashi. I was pretty disappointed. I was really hoping that maybe the first time we went, the restaurant was simply having an off-day. Guess I was wrong.

This is just an addendum to my Boston sushi rant… Pretty disheartened at the moment.

Unexpected in Madrid: YokaLoka

One afternoon, Jonathan and I were strolling and browsing through Mercado Antón Martin when we stumbled across YokaLoka. We are obsessed with sushi, but we were in Madrid. And in Madrid, you eat like the Spanish, not the Japanese. After a few minutes of convincing (Jonathan: We’ll just have a few pieces, it’s kind of like tapas, right?), I caved in. After all, it was the first sushi restaurant we had seen so far, and how good can sushi be in Madrid?

Boy, was I wrong. The sake was amazing - it was extremely high quality, and the best part, you could easily taste that it was fresh! I guess that’s the great thing about being located in a fish market in the Iberian peninsula, fresh seafood all the time. Since we ordered the sake (I’m all about the salmon), we had to order the anago too (Jonathan’s all about the eel).

I’m not a huge anago connoisseur, but according to Jonathan, it was great. If you can get his picky approval on eel, then you’ve really done something right.

Unfortunately, there were slight downsides to everything else but the fish - the rice was not properly cooled, the pieces wobbly shaped, and the nori ripped like a 5 year-old. But the Japanese YokaLoka ladies were so kind - they tried to speak English with us, served us complimentary drinks, and even green tea chocolates! It’s hard to come by such hospitality at dining establishments, especially in Madrid.

If you’re a tourist in Madrid, you probably shouldn’t eat a full meal here. After all, you’re in Spain! But if you’re a local, and you just can’t resist some good sushi, YokaLoka is a stop you need to make.

They point to the fish to clarify that “toro” is not bull, “jajajajaja”.

Jonathan excited for sushi!

Cochinita pibil tacos in Chichen Itza, Mexico

Cochinita pibil tacos and carne asada @ Los Arcos at the Hotel Chichen Itza in Chichen Itza, Mexico

Cochinita pibil is slow-roasted pork from the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. It was amazing - succulent and flavorful. By far the best thing I ate on my trip in Cancun.