Throwback Thursday #7: Since It Was Vacation

"Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy!" ~Unknown

As promised, here is a blog full of pictures of the food I ate in Europe. I did my best to capture the amazing cuisine! It wasn't easy--there was lots of eye rolling from my travleing partners/cousins, Swiss Mister and Whitney, every time I would whip out my camera at the table. Anyway, enjoy your look at the food that took me two months to run off when I got back to the good ol' USA.

Wouldn't be a vacation without a little ice cream....so that was the first thing we ate when we arrived in Switzerland! We'll start with the before shot.....

And then the after! :) This would be Coupe Danemark. Probably the best thing I've ever eaten in my life. The tiny restaurant in Cully served it. It was three scoops of homeade ice cream. Then add on fresh whipped cream (I mean real here people, not that junk you buy in the store). Then top with almond slivers. Finally, you pour the little boat of Nestle's chocolate sauce over the top. Mmmm.....worth the 8 hour flight from NYC to Geneva and the hour train ride to Cully just for this!

After the ice cream, let's start with our fanciest meal. There was another little restaurant in Cully that was very ritzy...everyone was all dressed up, the food was super expensive, and apparently Ronald Reagan ate there once. Now, you all have probably heard my story about going to fancy restaurants.....they intimidate me. I never know what the food is or what to order. Now, imagine that....in French. So, I stuck with my usual approach and ordered the closest thing to grilled chicken. :)Whitney also stuck with an oldie but a goodie, filet de perche. This is because I swear this was one of the only things Sean knows how to say in French, so he orders it everywhere!As our fearless leader, Cousin Sean was more daring. He opted for filet de beuff de tartar. This basically meant a filet mignon (and if that were all I would have ordered it) with beef tartar (aka raw round beef) on top. I'll stick with my chicken, thanks.And, of course, we had to taste some of the local wine from the vineyards we hiked around in. Much safer to sample the grapes here than in the actual vineyards. As we were hiking Cousin Swiss Mister wanted to steal a grape. I told him no...farmers are the same everywhere and he'd totally get shot at! Here, it was safe. :)And, of course, dinner's not dinner without a littlel spot of dessert. Again, a before and after. So..from fancy to non-fancy....here was a hotdog we ate the first night after our boat cruise. We were STARVING....so this might have been the meal I was most grateful to eat! Anyway, it was wierd...they poke a hole in the bread and the hotdog goes in there after they squirt in mustard. It was interesting.
Like I said, it's not a vacation without some ice cream. This was one of the best ice cream bars I've ever had. I didn't feel guilty, since it was vacation....

And as I mentioned last week, at the cheese factory, we had to have fondue for lunch. It was gruyere fondue (what else would they feed you in Gruyere Switzerland??) made with white wine. Excellent. And no doubt very fattening.

So by this point I feel like I've eaten everything in Switzerland, so we move on to Rome! Let me tell you....I was in for it! First off....appetizers. In Roma, you order bruschetta! There are all different kinds...some with cheese, some with tomatoes, some with meats....but all very fresh on delicious bread. This one was hands down the best bruschetta ever--it had cheese and fresh tomatoes. I don't even like tomatoes, but I'm telling you this was to die for. It was in some little hole in the wall restaurant we stumbled on while we were lost, so I'll never be able to find it again no doubt!

And.....since it was vaction......We did our best to sample the best that Italy had to offer...homeade pastas, lasagna and pizza!

This was with some sort of meat....not pepperoni....it was even better.

And the winner for the best food in Italy....this homeade lasagna from a family owned place right outside St. Peter's Square.

And because it was vacation.....

Finally, for Michaelangelo's.......this place is owned by an Italian guy who went to college in the US where he played some sport...baseball maybe? I don't remember for sure, but I do know he has a very, very attractive Italian son. :) Anyway, some friends recommended we go, and we had a blast! We had SO much food, then he brought out "Sexy Wine" which tasted like really good grape juice. Then he brought out fresh watermelon. Oh, it was wonderful!! If you ever go to Rome---go here! It's right behind the Pantheon. You will see the little American flag.And, a photo with the owner himself, Michaelangelo.You might wonder if I picked up any Italian language while I was there? I did......"Gelateria." Since it was vacation. :)
Stay tuned next week for our trip to the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland!