Best bites
White truffles ready for shaving. Photo Credit: Andrew Marshall
White truffles are best shaved paper-thin over simple dishes such as poached eggs or pasta. Photo Credit: Andrew Marshall Truffle hunter and truffle hounds. Photo Credit: Andrew Marshall
A taste of Europe
by Andrew Marshall Photos: Andrew and Paul Marshall and as indicated in photo captions
Europe is the perfect place for unique gastronomic delights and experiences. ITALY – SNUFFLING FOR TRUFFLES One of Italy’s great seasonal food events is the autumn white truffle season. This is when the landscape around the historic towns of Alba and Asti in Piedmont comes alive with truffle hunters and their keen-nosed hounds searching for the prized Tuber Magnatum Pico. This is one of the world’s most expensive food items costing as high as €4,500 per kilo. The range of truffle-related activities include the Fiera del Tartufo Bianco d’Alba (Alba Truffle Fair), truffle hunting excursions, and restaurant visits to experience the unique taste of the white truffle shaved raw over scrambled eggs or a simple pasta dish.
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WOW Power to the people
No Northern Ireland whiskey experience is complete without a visit to a local pub or two, and well worth a visit is the Bushmills Inn.
For an unforgettable dining experience reserve a table at the Unsicht-Bar literally meaning ‘blind restaurant.’ Photo Credit: Paul Marshall
GERMANY – DINE WITH A DIFFERENCE For a unique dining experience in Berlin, reserve a table at the unsicht-Bar (unsicht-bar.de). Blind waiters lead you through the pitch-black dining room to your table and explain the placing of utensils using a clock analogy, (for example the spoons are located at 12 o’clock) so that you can eat in the dark. The theory behind the concept is that by voluntarily abandoning your vision, you will be able to experience what wonderful work your other senses are capable of. ENGLAND – SUGAR & SPICE The picturesque village of Pateley Bridge in the Yorkshire Dales is home to the Oldest Sweet Shop in England (oldestsweetshop. co.uk) and, in fact, the world, according to the Guinness World Records book. Inside, the shelves are packed with row upon row of glass jars bursting with over 200 kinds of brightly colored confectionary, and on the wooden countertop are the traditional Avery scales used to measure the sweets into paper bags. “It started out as a general store in 1827 selling items such as milk, bread, eggs and sweets and has been trading continuously ever since,” says the confectioner, Keith Tordoff.
Andy Swinscoe cuts some cheese inside The Courtyard Dairy in Settle. Photo Credit: Kate Moseley
NORTHERN IRELAND – TAKE A WHISKEY TOUR Amid the green fields on Northern Ireland’s County Antrim coast near the world famous Giant’s Causeway, where the winds blow, and the water is clean and pure, is a small town that is home to Old Bushmills (bushmills.com), the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in the world, established in 1608. Take a tour to learn more about the
