029: Da Marco

Artichoke alla Giudea

Once upon a time—the fall of 2008, to be exact—I lived in a castle in Italy. It was only three months, but those three months took my love for food, which had been there since I can remember, and made it blossom. It was my trip that made me think I wanted to write about food, so I suppose you could blame Italy for this blog.

014: Katz’s Deli

Fried Pickles

My visit to Katz’s was entirely unplanned, as these terrible iPhone photos show. I was staying at my cousin’s place for the night and his girlfriend got a craving for fried pickles. As soon as those words were out of her mouth, so did I. So we ended up driving to the first place both of us had ever tried them.

013: Dirk’s Coffee

Iced Mocha

I felt like a caffeine/sugar rush after Ziggy’s. The healthy impulse only lasts so long.

012: Ziggy’s Healthy Grill

Tilapia with Onion Rings and Fruit

Ziggy’s is my go-to place for light and healthy food, and I was really craving it after moussaka, tacos, and chocolate. The Montrose location has long been my favorite. I’m a big fan of the old house repurposed as restaurant idea.

009: The Chocolate Bar

Chocolate Take Out

You know the smell that fills your kitchen when you’re melting chocolate in a double boiler? Or when you take a chocolate cake out of the oven? Imagine an entire store that smells like that.

008: Niko Niko’s

Greek Salad

I have never felt more homesick as when I was sitting in my dorm room in North Carolina last October watching Niko Niko’s on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. My father started coming here when it was still a gas station in the late 1970′s, and at some point he brought my mother, who was hooked on their gyros long after their divorce.

003: Auntie Chang’s Dumpling House

Hot and Sour Soup

Auntie Chang’s is a couple of blocks from where I went to middle school, so it’s been on my radar for quite some time. For some reason, however, I haven’t ordered their eponymous dumplings until today.