Torvehallerne is one of the best food hall markets I’ve been to. I always come here when I visit Copenhagen. They even sell their smorrebrod/open faced sandwiches at the airport.
Sold at the airport as well.Roast pork sandwiches are some of my favorites.
There is a mix of local produce stalls, local Danish food stalls and restaurants, and international food options. The market consists of two covered halls with about 25 vendors in each, a mix of food stalls and eateries. There is also seating around the edges of the halls. Danes love to sit outside and eat.
One of the stalls at the market.In season in June, these strawberries are hand picked.
The market is in a square with a facing skate park square, and located on the metro line. Just north of the walking streets and oh so perfect.
Fresh fish.Fried fish filet. Yum.
The stalls will vacuum pack your food for you so can take fresh meatballs or cheese with you.
Menu at the open faced sandwich stall.
A plus is that almost all Danes speak English. The prices are steep but what cost for edible art?
No water. No soaking. Just straight filing. Like sandpapering.
As it is the new year, I was thinking about trends. The “Russian” style manicure or pedicure technique is emerging as a trend. It is also called an “efile” or “dry” manicure. Read about it here. Basically, it is a technique of using almost no water and using an electric file to do the removal and sanding of the hands and feet. There is no water bath for your feet or hands. To read more about American, French, or Russian manicures, read here.
The electric file.
When I went to New York City, I looked up a place to have this style of mani-pedi. There were at least ten places that showed up on Google maps when I typed in ‘Russian mani’ — impressive as in the Washington, DC, area, there are none.
There seems to be controversy about it. My friend who lived in central Asia for many years and encountered this technique there says that she prefers this technique because there is less shoving and pulling on the cuticles. Plus the nails come out buffed and shiny even without shellack. The Russian technique is more expensive than the conventional technique. (After a few weeks, I’m of two minds. I like the efiling but I also like getting my feet soaked.)
With acetone and a buffer, my nails came out shiny like they had been lacquered.
The conventional method with water (and often done by Asians, specifically Vietnamese) in the US is a result of Tippi Hedren (Melanie Griffith’s mother). She should get more credit. From the BBC article:
“Aside from flying in her personal manicurist, Hedren recruited a local beauty school to help teach the women. When they graduated, Hedren helped get them jobs all over Southern California.“
To read a history of the manicure, read here. As this article points out, this method is called “Russian” not because it was invented in Russia but because the method is popular in many Russian speaking countries including Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and the other stans. Due to world events, manicure technique is once again a way for refugees to find work and make a life for themselves in America. Who knew it would be so deep?
I had heard about this local diner in Hendersonville, North Carolina, the Dixie Diner. I wanted to go for breakfast. They are open every day except Christmas day. I heard it from the waitress so it must be true, despite what Google maps tells me. I heard that it was the kind of place where people go regularly. A true diner.
The counter.
The Dixie Diner is in the South and the word, ‘dixie’ is associated with the American South. To read some theories about this, click on this link. Driving to North Carolina, I saw at least three gigantic confederate flags. In many cities, the confederate names and monuments have been changed or removed.
The Dixie Diner.
When we entered the diner, there was no confederate flag, but there were American flags. There were other signs of the South but the decor was not too pimped out for tourists. There was one table of regular customers sitting there and they quickly got up and left when we entered. I think they could see that we would be rowdy out-of-towners.
Typical diner chairs.
The diner had a change in ownership in 2022 as the previous owner/long time waitress was murdered. We did not know about the dramatic history of this diner when we went there.
Typical chairs but clearly new.
We were greeted warmly by a waitress holding a pot of hot but weak coffee (American coffee is notoriously weak). The bowl in the middle of the table was brimming with small containers of jam, jelly, butter, and coffee creamer. We asked for milk. The other waitress skulked around pulling her face up whenever I smiled at her. Maybe she is shy.
Biscuit, sausage, home fries, gravy with sausage, bacon, corned beef hash, and eggs.
As we were in the South, we tried all the Southern specialties such as grits, corned beef hash, and biscuits. When I asked about the corned beef hash, I was told that the cook was very proud of his hash and that he had been up since 4 am making that. I asked about the home fried potatoes and asked if they were deep fried (which is what most city diners do these days) and was reassured that the cook was also proud of his potatoes and only fries them on the flat top. Phew.
Grits are made from treated maize.
The diner is quite large and apparently they also have a buffet. We ordered a la carte. We had a complicated order so it was good that there were no other customers. The food came out and it was typical diner food. Nothing grand and not piping hot but fine.
Corned beef hash made from corned beef.
By the time we were on coffee refills, other customers came in. As we took photos, one of the customers told us that we should meet the guy who’s photo was on the wall.
Famous local guy.
When we left, we were no longer hungry. It was an interesting experience eating at a local diner even if the prices were big city prices, with an omelet costing $9.95 and a short stack of pancakes costing $6.95. The breakfast platters were between $7-15 while a side of bacon cost $3.95.
The vibe at Very Fresh Noodles is Hollywood Chinese.
We went on a quest. To find good Chinese food. We went out to Queens. We did not need to. We found it in Chelsea. We found really good freshly pulled noodles in Chelsea at Chelsea Market.
Chelsea Market is a whole city block at 7th 9th Avenue. It is a food hall, restaurant venue, market, shopping center, and television studio. All owned by Google. I just wish they would put more toilets around the place.
The line to order is about 15 minutes at this point.
The Very Fresh Noodle restaurant makes excellent food. EXCELLENT. Their Dan Dan noodles were spicy, numbing, complex, and classy. Their noodles with lamb in cumin sauce was also really good. We made the mistake of not thoroughly mixing the noodle dishes. The sauces are so complex and mostly at the bottom that one needs to mix it well to get the full aroma and array of the sauce.
The line to eat here is long but moves quickly. They have a few bar stools but otherwise, take the food outside or elsewhere. The thumping disco music, the red lights, and the neon signs all added to the clubby Oriental nightclub. The dishes are made in front of you and they call your number before the noodles go into the water. That way, you are ready when the noodles are ready.
Dan Dan Mien/noodles, cumin spiced lamb, and smashed cleaver cucumber salad. Make sure to toss well.
I would recommend Chelsea Market on a cold winter day. It is a magical world.
Just as I wrote about official paid holidays in America, I will now go over some other unofficial “big days” in America.
Chinese New Year, changes depending on the moon but between January 20-February 20. This year, the year of the dragon, it is February 10, 2024. The Chinese calendar is a 12-year cycle. Chinese New Year is also celebrated by the Koreans, Vietnamese, and other Asians. In the United States, it involves lion dances, fireworks, parades, boat races, giving of red envelopes, and lanterns. It is a religious festival celebrating the beginning of spring. It is a 15-day festival in China. In the United States, the first Chinese immigrants arrived in San Francisco in the 19th century. In 2022, California made the Chinese lunar new year an official state holiday. The largest chinatowns in the US are in New York City but the first Chinese New Year celebrated in the United States was in San Francisco in 1851. For tourists to the USA, it is fun to enjoy Chinese American culture during this time.
Super Bowl, February 11, 2024 (second Sunday in February). This is season LVIII in Roman/Latin numerals (58 in Arabic numbers). Held on the second Sunday in February from now on (in the past it was on a Sunday in January-February). The Super Bowl is the final game of the American National Football League (NFL). It has been called the Super Bowl since 1969. It is the most watched television event in the United States. The cost of the commercials is a eye popping million or more per minute/30 seconds. The food consumption on Super Bowl Sunday, or Super Sunday, is second only to Thanksgiving. Barbecue wings, chips, dips, snack foods, and food decorated to look like a football are popular foods for the event. It is a day to join a viewing party.
Mardi Gras (almost only in New Orleans) is the carnival celebration leading up to Lent in the Christian calendar. This year it falls on February 13, 2024. Carnival starts after Three Kings (which is the 12th day after Christmas) and culminates in festivities including “fat food” on Shrove Tuesday or in French “mardi gras” (fat Tuesday). This is the day before Ash Wednesday when Lent begins and Catholics start 40 days of fasting. This event is biggest in the United States in New Orleans, Louisiana, where it has been celebrated since 1833. The celebrations involve floats, costumes, and baring of chests in exchange for beads. And of course, lots of drinking.
Valentine’s Day, February 14 every year. Saint Valentine is a Catholic saint who was martyred in 273 CE (AD). During the middle ages, the notion of “courtly love” arose and the British may have continued this tradition through the centuries. There is a book from 1797 assisting young men with writing their “Valentine.” The British were the first to celebrate romantic Valentine’s cards in the 18th century. The reduction in postal rates and the ease of printing due to the industrial revolution may have contributed to this. In the United States, first mass-produced Valentines were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland of Massachusetts. According to the American Greeting Card association, 190 million Valentine’s cards are sent each year, half of them to romantic partners. For the tourist in America, this day means that it may be hard to find a dinner reservation that day.
Saint Patrick’s, March 17 every year. March 17 is the death day in 461 CE (AD) of Saint Patrick. Saint Patrick is the national saint of Ireland. The large Irish diaspora in the United States made this day a celebration. In the United States, it is associated with wearing green and shamrocks (three leaf clover), festivals, singing, dancing, parades, and celebrating being Irish. This was a bigger celebration in America than in Ireland until the end of the 20th century. Now, Saint Paddy’s day is associated with drinking heavily, wearing green, and gathering in bars or pubs. Saint Patrick’s day is now celebration of being Irish, and it has been since 1600, long before there was a United States. The first official celebration was in 1771. Today, many buildings are lit green for the day and famously the Chicago river is dyed green for the day. The White House fountain has been dyed green every year since 2009. As a tourist, it can be fun to join in the fun. Wear green so you do not get pinched.
Cinco de Mayo, May 5 every year. This is a bigger celebration in the United States than in Mexico. May 5, 1862 is the date of the Battle of Pueblo in Mexico’s war with France. In the United States Cinco de Mayo began as a celebration of Mexican-American heritage. It began in 1862 in Columbia, California. The day became popular as a marketing idea in the 1980s and the Cinco de Mayo beer sales equal the beer sales on Super Bowl Sunday. As a tourist in America, this is just another reason to enjoy chips and salsa. America loves their own version of Mexican, Tex-Mex, and this day is just another day when lots of burritos and tacos are consumed.
Mother’s Day in the United States is the second Sunday in May. It was started by Anna Jarvis in 1907 after her mother died in 1905. She tried to have it made into an official holiday which it is in some places, such as her native West Virginia. Anna Jarvis did not want the holiday to become commercialized and she had started it as a day to hold special prayers for mothers. The official Mother’s Day Shrine is in West Virginia. In England, Mothering Sunday is in March. In England, the idea is that you celebrate the church who mothered you. But that is lost in the commercialization of current times. In other countries, International Women’s Day is celebrated rather than mother’s day. Today, mother’s day means that one cannot get a brunch reservation on that weekend. Also, many children will make and serve their mother’s breakfast in bed.
Father’s Day, third Sunday of June. Founded in 1910 by Sonora Smart Dodd when she learned that Mother’s Day had been established. Sonora Smart helped her father raise her younger siblings after her mother died giving birth to her sixth child. For tourists, this means that it can be hard to find a lunch reservation on that weekend or that children may be making breakfast for their fathers. It is less of a celebration than Mother’s Day.
Turnips and pumpkin squash.
Halloween, October 31 every year. Traditionally it was a religious holiday marking the beginning of the celebration of the dead and spirits. November 1 is “all saints” and has been for 1,200 years. Wearing masks and costumes grew out of disguising oneself against vengeful spirits. The famous pumpkin was originally a turnip/swede/rutabaga. The Halloween tradition was brought to the American South by Anglicans colonists. The Puritans of New England opposed it. With the mass migration of Scottish and Irish peoples in the 19th century, Halloween became an American tradition. The tradition of trick or treating came from the British isles where children would take a scooped out turnip and ask for candy or food. The adults would sing away the evil spirits. Once this traditional got to America, the pumpkin which grows larger than a turnip became the new symbol. The Halloween tradition has now been exported back out to the rest of the world. Americans spend $12 billion on Halloween or which $3 billion is on house decorations alone.
Enormous pumpkins in Lima. The numbers indicate weight in kilos.Pumpkin decorating is a fun pastime in the fall in the United States.
Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving. Now it seems to have spread to other commercial days, like Cyber Monday. America is about shopping, shopping, and more shopping.
Supposedly George Washington sent produce from Mount Vernon to be sold at the Alexandria Farmers Market (I presume the “Old” came in later). The Old Town Alexandria Farmers Market has been on the same spot since 1753. Yes, you read that right. There is very little in the USA that has that sort of age (insert pun here).
Fall brings fall veg.In the downtown square of Old Town Alexandria.
A friend told me about this market and I had “been” many times when talking with her while she was walking there. But I finally went.
Apples of all types.Veg forward food.
At first I was a bit so so about it because it seemed more like just a bunch of tents set up. But then I became alright with that. Not every market can be alleyways in a souk. This market was sunny and cool on this crisp fall day.
The pie line was too long.Pumpkin is a thing in America in the fall.
Lots of people selling all kinds of things from fresh milk, apples, pies, pastries, artwork, coffee, chocolate, dumplings, cider, vegetables, hummus, and veg-forward food (vegetarian).
The sausage breakfast sandwich making factory.Good but not going to stand in line good.
I had read about the breakfast sausage sandwich from Hog Heaven. I stood in line for 30 minutes for my breakfast sandwich. It was good but not something I would stand in line for again. I guess I wish that all breakfast sandwiches were so good that a sandwich like that was the norm.
Samples are a great way to make sure you like it.
On the other hand, Coulter Farms is my new crush. Their fresh milk is so creamy and delicious that I drank a gallon (3.75 liters) in two days. They also sell cheese, yogurt, kefir, chocolate milk, chilli, meat, and granola. But, it’s about the milk. I ask them if they made cream and clotted cream and was told, “Only when there is leftover milk.” Well, I can see why there isn’t. I would drink it all.
The yellow of the butter warms my cockles.
I reached out to Coulter Farms to see if we could visit their farm in Pennsylvania. Eeeek! I got a friendly email from Ma Coulter saying that they will be opening a B&B soon. So excited!
See the crowds?
Anyway, the Old Town Alexandria Farmers market is open every Saturday, rain, shine, hot, warm, freezing, from 7-12 noon. Yes, even in the winter. Get there early.
Every year for the last 40 (at least), the Finnish society here in the DC area, Kipinäkerho, now called Finn Spark, has put on a holiday market. It is always held in Bethesda, Maryland, at a church in the woods (Finland has a lot of woods).
Finnish prune star pastry.
There is food to buy and food to eat there. I went to buy the Karelian pies and cardamom milk bread, pulla, (like challah) and the gingerbread… almost everything was sold out by noon. Those Finns get up early!
Rye flour “dumplings” which are served with egg butter (eggs mashed with butter).A gingerbread house that sits on a cup or glass.
I also bought rye bread. Finnish rye bread is made from a mother yeast extracted from the air. This is not strong yeast so the bread is mild and flat. And dense. I recall chewing quite hard as a kid to eat this bread. Now as an adult, I love it even more because of the memories it brings me.
Memories are often the thing that makes a food delicious. Nostalgia is a strong ingredient.
Knitwear and Finnish American.More stuff for sale.
There were also other things for sale, but I was less interested in those. They were giving away free cookbooks so I took one of those. Maybe I will try a recipe. But more likely, I will wait till next year to get more gingerbread. Or I can go into Mikko’s cafe in Dupont.
Traditional woven birch bark shoes.
All five of the Nordic countries have holiday markets in the fall. I will have to catch them all next year.
Holding your own book, that you wrote, in your hands is a real treat. It is not tricky to publish it. The hardest part is writing the book. A book does not have to be 600 pages. To self-publish a book, it is better to keep it under 200 pages. Cheaper too. Once you have written your book, then you can find a place to publish it.
The self published books look just like any other book — as you can see, next to some of the marketing swag.
Even if you have no cover artwork, you can still publish your own book. Below are some of the sites you could use. I have used Lulu, Blurb, and most recently, Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing when I found that Blurb no longer publishes e-books. I wrote about self publishing twicebefore. I may experiment with other companies.
Estonian food is so different than Italian food. But in a way, very familiar. I went a well known restaurant, Rataskaevu, in old town Tallin and ate in a picturesque tavern.
Rye bread at Rataskaevu.Rye and poppy seed bread from Moon.
Of course, I tried the elk. But I did not like it as much as the salmon soup and the rye bread.
Salmon soup at Rataskaevu.Salmon soup at Moon.
Near me was an international group of friends who had travel over from Stockholm, Sweden, for lunch, emphasizing how small the distances can be up here in the Nordic-Baltic region where the transportation and WIFI are fast.
Rataskaevu.
In Tallin, all the restaurant staff spoke excellent English. It make visiting quite easy.
Blinis at Moon.
Tallin is a favorite city for many people and I asked one where he thought I should eat. He recommended Moon, and it was delicious.
Pickled appetizers at Moon.
When I admitted to the waitress that I did not like the pickled appetizer platter, she admitted that generally one needed to be drinking vodka with it.
Chicken Kiev at Moon.
The “Chicken Kiev” was the best I have had. It was light, moist, juicy, buttery, crunchy, and delicate.
I had heard about Bonci pizza for a long time. Was it worth the wait? And the weight? When I finally went, it was strategically on a cold Sunday morning. There was no line. Modern music blared. The guys were friendly. The pizza was heavy from the toppings but the bread itself is light and crunchy. A lot of the toppings are served cold. The combinations are modern and unique. Scrambled egg with spicy salami, ground chickpeas/garbanzos with artichokes, and many other combinations. I’m not sure I would go again or find it worth the hype.
With many of the Romans downsizing, there is perhaps a treasure for you to find in one of Rome’s flea markets. When I got here two years ago, I may, just may, have bought some gold red velvet furniture… but not at a flea market.
Here are the major flea markets:
Porto Portese, Piazza di Porta Portese (or Via Portuense & Ippolito Nievo): This is the most famous of the flea markets in Rome. This massive long snaking street market is at the south end of Trastevere. Sunday, 7-1. I thought it was a waste of time, but maybe because I am no longer in the market for someone else’s junk. I have plenty of my own.
Ponte Milvio, Ponte Milvio: Every second Sunday, 9-7.
Mercato di Via Sannio, Via Sannio: Mornings Monday-Saturday.
Borghetto Faminio, Via Flaminia 32. Only on Sundays, 10-7.
Mercato delle Stampe, Largo della Fontanella di Borghese: This is the place for rare books and stamps. It is located right downtown so an easy place to look for treasures. Every day, 7-1.
This shop separated out the furniture from the rest.
What can be harder to find is used furniture. There are antique stores in Rome but many are expensive. To find the cheaper ones, you will need to go to the outskirts of Rome in the more residential neighborhoods. The photos are from one of these residential shops.
One that is not too far out is Deal Done Ventino at Viale Aventino 62.
This was under an apartment building.
Even then, you may think to yourself, “this is hideous but I kind of want it…” Remember that you can haggle. Even in antique stores.
Some stores will have a delivery service so ask about that. The cost may be almost as much as the item itself. 50 euro for large furniture, for example.
Just because it is used, does not mean that it is cheap.
Lastly, sometimes you can find a furniture restorer who is also selling furniture. There are two that I can think of. One is a tiny place near the Deal Done shop, and the other is Antichito Barrique Restauro, at Via Collina 28 (on the corner of Via Collina and Via Cadorna on Piazza Sallustio, but I can’t find it on Google maps!) This is a furniture restoration shop that also sells furniture.
The English word confetti comes from the Italian word for an almond confectionary. This candy is from the town of Sulmona in Abruzzo, with a tradition stretching back more than three hundred years.
Paper confetti is called “coriandoli” in Italian. And just to be even more confusing the Italian for cilantro is “coriandolo” so a single confetti. In the renaissance, the confetti used for celebrations was coriander seeds in small pieces of paper used as a breath freshener. The almonds coated in sugar were also part of the celebration. At some point these all got mixed up.
The town of Sulmona is a pretty mountain town. But the main reason to visit is to buy almond confectionary (the confetti) and saffron.
