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Most interesting restaurants in ATL

Atlanta is a food city. Over the last decade, chefs have come to Atlanta to open innovative restaurants that blend local, regional, and international influences. There are extraordinary Atlanta barbecue restaurants, tasty lemon icebox pies, and dainty finger sandwiches at afternoon tea. There’s incredible coffee and even better cocktails. One thing is certain: It’s almost too easy to fill up in this city. While it’s difficult to narrow down, these are four of the most interesting dishes in Atlanta to eat right now.

Roasted octopus niçoise from Tiny Lou’s

Atlanta’s Hotel Clermont is definitely the coolest place to stay in the city, so it only makes sense that a restaurant as charming as Tiny Lou’s calls the historical hotel home. Here, plush velvet banquettes, brass accents, and warm, pinkish-hued lighting set the mood for a cozy but lively scene. The French-American food from executive chef Jeb Aldrich is a story in color and texture, and the plating is pretty without being fussy. While you should definitely sample the poached farm egg and Blue Ridge trout almondine, the move here is Tiny Lou’s roasted octopus niçoise. The perfectly-cooked tentacles are tender and lightly crisp, and they come accompanied by charred green beans, buttery mashed potatoes, crispy pork, white anchovies, and a quail egg. It’s a perfect mix of textures and flavors that brings you back in bite after bite.

Maine lobster frites from Bully Boy

Photo: Bully Boy/Facebook

The Atlanta BeltLine is one of the coolest projects underway in the city right now. Still under construction, this former railway is being developed into a multi-use trail for walkers and bikers that will connect different neighborhoods. Restaurants and other businesses are beginning to pop up at different points along completed parts of the BeltLine, and one of them serves one of the top dishes in Atlanta. Bully Boy focuses on Eastern Seaboard fare with ingredients sourced from the region’s farms, rivers, and coastal waters. While there’s something for everyone on Bully Boy’s diverse menu, the Maine lobster frites is a decadent dish that can’t be missed. The meat from a 1.75 pound lobster is perfectly cooked, mixed with a rich truffle cream, and then placed back into the shell. The plate is piled high with crisp shoestring fries and topped with scallion greens.

Huevos rancheros from 8ARM

Atlanta is chock-full of restaurants serving amazing Southern food, saucy barbecue, and plenty of international cuisine from the residents who call the city home. But it’s also a place where vegetarians can enjoy a great meal, and no place does it better than 8ARM. Helmed by chef Marciela Vega, 8ARM’s dishes are inspired by Vega’s Mexican background and the diverse roots of her team, which adds Polish, Bangladeshi, and Vietnamese influences to the menu. While there’s plenty for vegans and vegetarians to enjoy, carnivores won’t have trouble finding something they like (but will likely forget about the meat altogether). Stop in for brunch and order the huevos rancheros, which is one of the best iterations of the dish not just in Atlanta, but anywhere. Sunny-side up eggs are served alongside Sea Island red peas, salsa roja, poblanos, and beet ricotta that will give you the kick you need to start your day.

Black truffle and mushroom agnolotti from Atlas

Photo: Atlas Buckhead/Facebook

Atlas is one of the best restaurants in Atlanta. Period. Tucked inside the luxurious St. Regis, Atlas offers the type of service that’s typically reserved for three-Michelin-starred restaurants, except the delicious food will leave you full instead of emptying your wallet after a just few small dishes. While you really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu (and make sure to save room for the gorgeous desserts), the black truffle and mushroom agnolotti is nothing short of divine. Five perfectly formed rectangles of mushroom-filled pasta dough float in a pool of foie gras-infused jus that’s dotted with Parmesan cream. The whole thing is topped with shaved black truffles to give it a rich, umami-packed flavor that doesn’t feel heavy or taste overworked. If you’re really feeling fancy, ask the sommelier to wheel the Madeira wine cart to your table and sample a vintage from the early 19th century.


More like this: This lemon icebox pie is the most famous pie in Atlanta

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The best cheeseteaks in Philadelphia

No matter how diverse, progressive, or experimental Philadelphia’s food scene has become, there’s no denying that the cheesesteak is still the city’s culinary backbone. The bread and butter of Philly, if you will.

Maybe that’s because of the sandwich’s long history. Pat’s was the first steak shop to open its doors almost 90 years ago. To this day, it’s one of the city’s most famous spots to grab a cheesesteak and stays open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to keep up with demand. Though most locals won’t eat at the now-touristy Pat’s or its rival, Geno’s, across the street, the fact that Pat’s has remained a neighborhood staple after all these years deserves respect.

Before you have a Philly cheesesteak in the city, there are some things you need to know: the bread — made in house or at one of the local, preferably old-school Philly bakeries — should be fluffy with a slight flakiness to the crust. The steak must be thinly sliced or chopped and seared on a grill before being slathered in cheese. It doesn’t matter if it’s the traditional whiz, sliced provolone, or American so long as it’s properly melted and oozing into the layers of meat. The onions, peppers, or mushrooms (should you choose to add them) should be almost translucent by the time they hit the bread. Above all, if there aren’t grease stains on the wrapper, then don’t trust it.

With all that in mind, here are all the essential cheesesteak spots in Philadelphia you need to try next time you’re in the city.

1. Jim’s South Street

Photo: Jim’s Steaks South Street/Facebook

Its prime location on South Street and the fact that its doors have been open since 1939 earned Jim’s South Street a place on the tourist cheesesteak map. It checks all the boxes for the traditional Philly cheesesteak: long, flaky hoagie roll; sizzling hot steak; and fluorescent yellow Cheez Whiz. There’s something to be said for convenience, as well. Jim’s is one of the few decent cheesesteak spots in the city center. If you’re visiting the city and you’re not the kind of person to rent a car just to try every cheesesteak within city limits, then Jim’s is your spot.

Where: 400 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19147

2. John’s Roast Pork

Don’t be fooled by its name. John’s Roast Pork also makes a damn good cheesesteak. The shop has been family owned and operated for three generations, and it started out in a literal shack on the side of the highway. There’s something downright Philly about John’s, with menu items like a South Philly Surf & Turf, which is a hot dog and fish cake sandwich. Since it won a James Beard Award in 2006, John’s has been enjoying some well-deserved national recognition. The onions and cheese here get folded into the steak before it hits the bread, turning it into one heaping mound of flavor rather than the layers used in other spots. John’s has gotten a lot of press and a lot of hype, but unlike other trendy spots, it stays true to its roots, and the locals know it. The line here stretches around the block regardless of the day of the week or the weather.

Where: 14 Snyder Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19148

3. Dalessandro’s

Photo: Dalessandro’s Steaks/Facebook

Dalessandro’s is not downtown, or around town, or by anything other than itself, really. Sitting on the corner of a suburban neighborhood on the outskirts of Philly, Delassandro’s has garnered quite a reputation in recent years. Bring cash and expect to wait outside in the long, winding line before you order. Stick to the classic steak setup here: finely chopped meat below a heap of chunky onions and a generous helping of Cheez Whiz.

Where: 600 Wendover St, Philadelphia, PA 19128

4. Angelo’s Pizzeria

This is that type of new spot that’s filled with Instagram influencers. After enjoying wild success at its original outpost across the river in New Jersey, the fine folks at Angelo’s graced our dear city with their presence. To say that we’re grateful for this small, standing-room-only pizza shop is an understatement. We’re ecstatic, thrilled, simply delighted to have them. While the pizza is arguably some of the best in the city, this is not a list about pizza. Luckily for us, they seem to do no wrong at Angelo’s and crank out cheesesteaks that rival the old-timers. Unlike many of its competitors, the bread here is homemade and cooked in the oven before it’s topped with meat from the grill. No doubt this is a bit of a level up from the other greasy spoons, but don’t let the top quality ingredients deceive you. This cheesesteak is as delicious and unpretentious as they come.

Where: 736 S 9th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147

5. Philip’s Steaks

Photo: SQ Philip’s Steaks/Facebook

Philip’s keeps the steaks a little thicker here than at other spots on this list, but no one is mad about it. As long as the steak is still as tender and perfectly seasoned as this one is, you can serve it however you damn well please. Philip’s is a South Philly institution, sitting in the same spot on the corner of Passyunk for decades. But you won’t find the crowds or lines here. Your only companions will be a delicious slab of meat, a solid selection of hot peppers, and a steady but unobtrusive stream of customers.


More like this: Why we need to stop calling Philly’s food scene ‘up and coming’

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Best places to go in the Baltics

Rent a car in Tallinn, Estonia, and in just seven hours, you could cross all three Baltic capitals off your travel list. The Baltics were made for road-tripping with their uncongested highways and uncluttered views, but avoid the temptation to drive straight south to Vilnius, Lithuania, by way of Riga, Latvia, simply to say you set foot in all three cities in one day. Instead, pick a single destination, maybe two, that’s best suited to your travel personality and make it your Baltic base, really delving into its castles, cuisine, scenery, or whatever else drew you there.

1. For food tourists: Kaunas, Lithuania

Photo: Ana Flasker/Shutterstock

Baltic cuisine mixes meat-and-potatoes mains with seasonal ingredients like root vegetables, wild mushrooms, berries, and greens, plus fresh farmers cheese that can be melted into eggs at breakfast or slathered with honey after dinner. In Lithuania’s second city, sample the region’s best at upscale restaurants like Uoksas, try street eats like cepelinai (stuffed potato dumplings) in view of the city’s 14th-century fortress complex, and see what’s cooking in contemporary kitchens like Ieti’s. For a fun, albeit tourist-leaning, introduction to Lithuanian cuisine, try chain restaurant Etno Dvaras in Kaunas’s old town, then swing by Spurgine on Laisvės Alėja for doughnuts that have been satisfying locals with a sweet tooth for decades.

If you can, hold off on visiting until 2022 when Kaunas will be an official European Capital of Culture. Not only will you have access to foodie landmarks like the massive Central Market but also special events commemorating Lithuania’s arts and heritage throughout the year.

2. For music and nightlife: Tartu, Estonia

Photo: Maya Afzaal/Shutterstock

You can always count on a student city for a good party, and Tartu, home of Estonia’s national university, makes good on that promise. Many of the city’s bars have an underground feel and fun, eclectic decor. Some are literally underground. On weekends, rowdy students wind up at crazy-crowded clubs like Illusion and Maasikas while others sip beers in Pirogov Park, the one place in town you can drink outside in public. Hip students head to counter cultural arts-and-nightlife center Genialistide Klubi for drinks, caffeinated or alcoholic, and dancing. Hip professors probably knock one back at no-frills Zavood after class.

Non-drinkers can still enjoy Tartu’s nightlife, which is music-heavy with venues for fans of jazz, rock, hip-hop, electronic, and most other genres. Music lovers will also appreciate the city’s events calendar, which makes room for everything from rhythm and folk festivals to philharmonic chamber choir concerts every year.

3. For culture seekers: Riga, Latvia

Photo: Nikolay Antonov/Shutterstock

Culture means different things to different travelers: customs, arts, languages, cuisines, sports, etc. Riga, the largest and most cosmopolitan Baltic capital, has it all.

If nothing else, it’s a treat to look at with its UNESCO-listed medieval old town and beautiful wooden and art nouveau architecture. Something of a living museum, Riga’s also a museum city that displays collections on Latvian artists like Vilhelms Purvītis and Janis Rozentās, as well as antique vehicles, chocolate, history, and even hats. Theaters around the city stage plays, operas, and ballets alongside avant-garde performances and puppet theater. When not attending specific events, creative types gather at all-purpose art spaces like the Kanepes cultural center, Splendid Palace cinema, and Kalnciema Quarter, which hosts everything from open-air concerts and exhibitions to a weekly farmers and artisan market.

Add in a rapidly growing foodie culture, an ice hockey team the city loves to support, and a new generation of bar and business owners bringing new life to Riga, and Latvia’s capital is exactly the sort of place culture hounds should base themselves while in the Baltics.

4. For beach vacays: Jurmala, Latvia

Photo: Sergei25/Shutterstock

Much like New Yorkers summering in the Hamptons, Rigans drive an hour west to Jurmala when beach weather hits. Latvia’s top seaside resort may not have the place-dropping currency of the Hamptons, but its white-sand beach and many spas have long attracted monied Latvians. Wellness-focused accommodations like the Baltic Beach Hotel & Spa are still easy to come by.

Jurmala is technically a collection of fishing villages, but most of the action centers on Dzintari and Majori, which share a half-mile wooden promenade that opens to panoramas of the Baltic Sea. During summer, travelers can catch events and festivals here like beach volleyball tournaments and shows at the Dzintari Concert Hall. Summer’s also the nicest time of year to explore nearby Kemeri National Park, which swaps out Jurmala’s promenade for a bog boardwalk that weaves past pools, pines, wildlife like sandpipers, and much more.

5. For nature lovers: Klaipėda and Curonian Spit National Park, Lithuania

Photo: Anna Lurye/Shutterstock

Anyone really committed to spending their Baltic tour outdoors should consider tackling the 745-mile Baltic Coastal Hiking Route, a section of the longer European E9 route that maps a path from Nida on the Latvia-Lithuania border to the port of Tallinn in Estonia. For everyone else, there’s Curonian Spit National Park, which is shared by Lithuania and Russia, whose side is named Kurshskaya Kosa National Park. In 2000, UNESCO protected the sand-dune-laden, pine-forest-peppered land for both its natural value and historical significance due to the prehistoric settlements discovered there.

Outdoorsy types can tucker themselves out on beaches, bays, hiking trails, dunes, and more during the day. At night, they’ll retreat back to Nida where there are several guesthouses and basic backpacker accommodations. More accommodations and amenities are available in Lithuania’s third-largest city and the gateway to the spit on the Baltic Coast, Klaipėda.

6. For the holidays: Tallinn, Estonia

Photo: dimbar76/Shutterstock

Tallinn’s old town is adorable, and it knows it. Estonia’s main tourist draw, it’s a cute if curated arrangement of pastel-painted shops and restaurants surrounding a main square, many of whose workers flaunt medieval dress up and down the cobbled streets. Lookouts across the city showcase its characteristic red roofscape with steeples and spires rising above. It’s worth seeing any time of year, but whatever gimmickiness Tallinn’s old town gives off in summer transforms with the first snowfall, when sights like the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and former palace turned Kadriorg Art Museum become utterly enchanting.

The city wears its holiday cheer expertly, with an award-winning Christmas market held every year in the Town Hall Square. There, you can taste warming Baltic foods, peruse stalls for souvenirs, and even say hello to Santa Claus under twinkling lights. For optimal holiday magic, arrive a few days before Christmas as December 25 itself can be quiet in town.

7. For backpackers or budget luxury: Vilnius, Lithuania

Photo: trabantos/Shutterstock

Vilnius is not a bank-breaker like Zurich or Oslo. It’s affordable for most travelers, and many can even afford to splurge in Lithuania’s capital. Luxury-seekers will be happiest in the old town, where five-star hotels like Hotel PACAI and the Grand Hotel Kempinski sit on the main square, rubbing elbows with designer shops and the best restaurants in town. It’s not over-the-top glamorous, but when events like Dinner in the Sky come through to hoist diners into the air and serve them aerial views of Town Hall Square with gourmet food, it certainly feels special. Žvėrynas, a residential neighborhood with a surprising number of chic eateries, is a good choice for a well-appointed yet affordable Airbnb.

Outside the old town, Vilnius is a young, edgy city with plenty of appeal for backpackers and social solo travelers. Bohemian types flock to Užupis, a self-proclaimed independent republic with its very own president, constitution, anthem, and currency. Prices have gone up in the micro-nation since word got out, but it’s still one of the artsiest, most relaxed areas in the city and a great place to meet like-minded types. Elsewhere in Vilnius, cash-strapped travelers can count on finding hostels for $10 per night and filling meals for around $5.

8. For romantic retreats: Saaremaa, Estonia

Photo: Dmitrijs Mihejevs/Shutterstock

The Baltics may not scream island life, but don’t underestimate Saaremaa, Estonia’s third-largest island. Though it looks more like New England than the Caribbean with its forests, lighthouses, and chilly Baltic Sea waters, Saaremaa can be just as romantic as a tropical paradise. Hotels like the Grand Rose Spa Hotel and George Ots Spa Hotel focus on wellness, often offering treatments specifically for couples. Most of the best accommodations are around Kuressaare, the island’s largest town, where you’ll also find the best restaurants for celebratory meals. When they aren’t getting oiled up and rubbed down on massage tables, couples can lounge on Mändjala Beach or visit Vilsandi National Park. Walks along the coastline are perfect for lovebirds, as are strolls through Kuressaare’s old town and castle complex.

9. For peace, quiet, and countryside castles: Cēsis or Sigulda, Latvia

Photo: Ksenija Toyechkina/Shutterstock

A 13th-century castle built by the Livonian Order sits at the center of Cēsis in northeastern Latvia, reason enough to stick around if you go weak at the knees for architecture. Visitors can tour the dungeon ruins by candlelight before moving on to St. John’s Church, one of the oldest and largest medieval structures in the country. About 30 minutes away, Sigulda similarly centers on a castle erected by the Livonian Order, complete with an equally impressive castle complex. Both towns offer easy access to Gauja National Park, where you can get even farther away from city life with hiking, biking, boating, and even adrenaline sports.

10. For family vacation: Pärnu, Estonia

Photo: Borisb17/Shutterstock

Estonia’s largest resort town, Pärnu revolves around a long, sandy beach that fills up with families and sun-seekers every summer. The water’s shallow and warm enough to wade in when the weather’s nice, but you can also windsurf, SUP, and kayak. You can also bike or rollerblade along the promenade, stopping at small parks and plenty of ice cream stands.

But Pärnu itself is as much a reason to visit as its beach, with a day’s worth of cultural sights, another day’s worth of artisan shops, no shortage of low-key yet yummy restaurants, water parks for the kids, and spas for the adults. It’s a nice blend of energetic and laid-back, a place where families will stay entertained but also get quality time. Better still, families can plan side outings to Soomaa National Park around 40 minutes inland for outdoor excursions ranging from canoeing during summer to snowshoeing during winter.


More like this: The ultimate Baltic road trip to take this summer

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What is Filippino buko pie

It’s difficult to avoid eating coconut in Southeast Asia. It appears in curries and soups, it’s used to flavor sticky rice, and, when it comes to dessert, coconut is the star of the show. It pops up in Indonesian fruit cocktails, in Thailand’s coconut ice cream and custard, and in Vietnamese sweet corn pudding. And then there’s buko pie, which is a combination of young coconut meat and sweetened condensed milk that’s baked in a traditional pie crust. It’s one of the most iconic coconut-based desserts in all of Southeast Asia, and it comes from the Philippines — specifically, the Laguna province on Luzon, the country’s largest island.

Jappy Afzelius, chef at the Filipino restaurant Tsismis in New York City, is originally from Dumaguete, on the island of Negros. He has fond memories of eating buko pie with his family on special occasions. For his family, buko pie is a type of pasalubong — a Tagalog phrase meaning “bring home something for me,” which refers to the tradition of bringing souvenirs, often food, back home after a trip.

“After long drives to the beaches, two hours away from Manila, we would buy buko pie on our way home,” Afzelius says.

It wouldn’t have been right to return to the family home empty-handed. He always picked up a few buko pies from a roadside vendor in Laguna on the journey home, but never from a grocery store in his neighborhood.

Laguna is the undisputed home of buko pie, but the popularity of this dessert means there are a number of bakeries that claim to be the original inventors. That title, however, belongs to one woman, and one woman only: Nanette Pahud. Though buko pie is now considered a traditional Filipino dessert, it only entered the culinary lexicon of the Philippines in 1965, when Nanette and her sisters opened Orient Bakery.

In the 1950s, Nanette worked as a cook for an American professor teaching at the University of the Philippines in Los Banos, Laguna. She sharpened her baking skills while working for the family and learned how to make apple pie while taking cooking classes at the same time.

Pahud longed to open a bakery, so when she stopped working for the professor, she began experimenting with her own recipes. The recipe for apple pie stuck with her, but without abundant apples to supply the ingredients for her pies, Nanette turned to the much more widely available coconut. It wasn’t just any coconut, though. Nanette decided to use the not-yet-ripe buko (young coconut) in her pies.

As the name suggests, young coconut still has green skin (rather than the hairy brown shell you’re used to seeing on ripe coconuts), which is typically shucked off to reveal a white husk that’s carved to a sharp point at the top. The young coconut is still filled with coconut water, while the flesh is sweet and soft like a jelly.

Photo: Wor Sang Jun/Shutterstock

Once she settled on a recipe, Pahud — who has since moved back to the United States and left the bakery under the care of her sister, Sol — was ready to debut her pie shop. One history of the company recounts that the family hoped to name the business “The Original Buko Pie,” but the Department of Trade and Industry considered “original” an adjective and therefore not appropriate for the name of a company. Eventually, the Pahud sisters settled on Orient Bakery — a combination of the phrase “original enterprise.”

Pahud’s buko pies were an instant hit in Laguna. The shop is so popular that some blame traffic on the national highway on customers who double-park their cars on the side of the road while waiting in line for a pie.

The key to success, according to an article examining the bakery’s business model, is fresh ingredients. Young coconuts are harvested every day to make the custard-like pie filling. Once the daily supply of coconuts runs out, so do the pies. No preservatives are used in the filling, and Orient won’t even use a young coconut that’s a day past its pick date in its buko pies.

“Most Filipinos have this mentality that it’s best when it’s coming from Laguna or Tagaytay,” Afzelius says. “If you’re having clam chowder, it’s best in New England, even if you can get in San Francisco.”

Photo: TSISMIS

Buko pie has traveled far beyond its original home. Afzelius serves a variation of it at Tsismis that’s prepared in a skillet with coconut and corn custard, which he calls maja blanca. People who once claimed to not even like coconut are “shocked” by how much they love the coconut pie at Tsismis. Afzelius has served his play on buko pie to his family, but his grandmother still sometimes requests that he make the traditional version on special occasions, like birthday celebrations. It’s a gesture that no matter how long you’ve been away or where you’ve gone, family is never far from your mind.

“It symbolizes that you went away for a holiday, but you also thought about your family,” says Afzelius. “That’s what buko pie means to me.”


More like this: The 15 best coconut desserts served around the world

The post How a coconut pie became one of the most iconic desserts in the Philippines appeared first on Matador Network.

Brazil tribe wins against resort

On Monday, Brazilian indigenous group Tupinambá de Olivença won a battle to prevent a luxury resort from being built on its land. Portuguese hotel group Vila Gale had been planning to build a 500-room resort on the Bahia coast — land the tribe used for gathering food. The Tupinambá land is popular among tourists for its beaches lined with coconut trees, making it a prime location for a resort, but pressure on Vila Gale caused it to withdraw its construction plans.

Despite Vila Gale’s attempt to deny the presence of indigenous people on the land meant for construction, a leaked document published in October shows just the opposite. In this letter, Embratur, a Brazilian tourism agency, asked the government not to classify the land as a reserve for indigenous people so that the resort could bring investments of $200 million and create 2,000 jobs.

In the aftermath of the letter being published, pressure from the Portuguese press, Portuguese political party Bloco da Esquerda, and anthropologist and Tupinambá expert Susana Viegas, Vila Gale canceled its plans.

The tribe is still awaiting the final sign-off from the Ministry of Justice and president Bolsonaro that would designate its land as a reserve . The president, however, has previously expressed his reluctance to designate more territory for indigenous groups.


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Tiny homes village for veterans

Former members of the armed forces often find it difficult to adapt to life outside the military, and unfortunately, homelessness has become all too common among veterans. This project in Calgary, Canada, aims to fight this issue by giving veterans affordable housing. Led by the Homes for Heroes Foundation, the initiative provides a village of 15 tiny homes to homeless Canadian veterans, as well as a range of services, including on-site counseling services.

The tiny homes and other resources are available for $600 a month, including home expenses such as heat, phone, and the like. Each home is 275 square feet, and includes a full kitchen, breakfast bar, workstation, full bathroom, and a living area with a sofa and Murphy bed.

Photo: Homes For Heroes Foundation

Photo: Homes For Heroes Foundation

The goal of the project isn’t just to provide housing, but to allow veterans to get the help they need, get a job, move out, and then return to the community to mentor new incoming veterans. There is no time limit on how long veterans can live in the tiny homes — they can stay until they get back on their feet.

Tenants began moving in on November 1, and right now all homes are filled. To live here, veterans must fill out an application and complete a needs analysis. Spaces are offered to those who the Homes for Heroes Foundation believes will benefit most from the program. If residents can’t immediately afford the $600, they won’t be required to pay until they have access to the funds.


More like this: What it’s like spending a night in an actual tiny house

The post Calgary built a tiny home village for homeless veterans appeared first on Matador Network.

Most dangerous travel destinations

No one wants to be told where they can and cannot go. Travel is about getting excited for a new experience, throwing caution to the wind, and jetting off to the other side of the world. Throwing too much caution to the wind, however, can be inadvisable.

International SOS, the world’s leading medical and travel security services company, has released a Travel Risk Map that predicts the most dangerous places to travel in 2020. The map takes into account political violence, social unrest, violent and petty crime, the risks of natural disasters, the effectiveness of the security and emergency services, as well as other factors such as the strength of the transport infrastructure. There are five categories of risk: insignificant, low, medium, high, and extreme.

As reported by Forbes, Matthew Bradley, regional security director at International SOS, pointed to the significance of geopolitical events in shaping a country’s risk assessment. “We’ve seen that most notably in Hong Kong,” he said, referring to the prolonged violent riots, “in other lower-risk countries like Chile and in some higher-risk countries like Bolivia, Ecuador and Lebanon.” While the US a low-risk country, Bradley said its risk level could change with the upcoming election.

Photo: International SOS

The most dangerous countries to travel to in 2020 are considered to be in Africa and the Middle East, including:

Libya
Syria
Iraq
Yemen
Afghanistan

It’s not all glum news, though. The map also points out the safest countries in the world, including:

Finland
Iceland
Switzerland
Seychelles
Cayman Islands

To know more about the safety status of your destination, use International SOS’ interactive map.

Overwhelmingly, the world is a safe place to travel. Just because you’re an American walking down Barcelona’s La Rambla, it is not a foregone conclusion that you’re going to get robbed. Getting scammed at a Moroccan souk is unlikely if you keep your wits about you. Danger will always exist in unfamiliar places, but if you exercise caution and common sense, you can travel pretty much anywhere in the world with peace of mind.


More like this: Why saying “just be aware of your surroundings” is bad advice for safe travel

The post The most dangerous places to travel in 2020, according to a security-expert report appeared first on Matador Network.

Qantas $100 flights to Australia

Australia is on many Americans’ bucket lists, but the high cost of a flight can be enough to dissuade you from the ultimate vacation Down Under. With a new limited promotion, however, Qantas Airways is trying to take flight fares out of the equation in your decision to travel to Australia. In celebration of the Australian airline’s 100th anniversary, Qantas is offering one-way fares from the US to Australia for a startlingly cheap $100.

Beginning on November 18, the deal lasts only four days and is limited to just 100 tickets per day. A new route will go on sale each day at 2:00 PM PST, 5:00 PM EST, with departure airports rotating between Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, and Chicago. As tickets open up for booking each afternoon, the available destinations in Australia will be revealed as well. Today, the deal was applied for 50 flights from LA to Melbourne and 50 flights from LA to Sydney. Tomorrow, November 19, the deal will cover 50 flights from San Francisco to Melbourne and 50 more to Brisbane.

Even though one-way fares are just $100, you’ll be required to book a round-trip ticket. That said, for fares that usually top $1,000, $200 is still an absolute steal. The promotional fares must be booked directly on Qantas’s deal page, so make sure you’re quick on the trigger.


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The most bitter spirits in the world

Humans have five fundamental taste receptors: sweet, salty, sour, umami, and bitter. A perfectly balanced meal includes all of them, which is easy enough for the first four of those tastes. Understanding and appreciating bitter, however, is something we have to force ourselves to do.

“The minute that bitterness touches your tongue, there’s a nanosecond for your brain to say, ‘I think I like this’ before your body says, ‘no, fuck that, get it out of here,’” Sother Teague tells me as we sit facing a wall of some of the most bitter spirits available in New York City.

Teague is the go-to expert on amaro and all things bitter liquor. As beverage director at Amor y Amargo, which has the notable tagline “a bitters tasting room,” he focused on all things amari years before every bar in the US had a negroni on the menu. Cocktail bars are more attuned to bitter spirits today, but the original Amor y Amargo location in East Village and recently opened location in Williamsburg are still standouts for their selections of rare and regional.

When Teague talks bitter spirits, he insists the conversation starts with the early history of humanity.

“We wouldn’t have been able to map the world if it weren’t for these things,” Teague says. “We discovered that we could chew on some bark and leaves, and they would make us feel better in some ways. They were medicine. We were living in a hut or cave, and we’re medicating ourselves in some way, and that gives us the opportunity to travel a little.”

From there, Teague says, people made bitter teas by mixing the leaves and bark with water. It was a little more stable and could travel farther than the organic material on its own. Then we started infusing fermented alcohol with the leaves and bark and found it lasts even longer. Finally, there were distilled spirits, which keep shelf-stable nearly indefinitely, so people could still get the calories and nutrients from the plants in the winter.

Throughout these various formats, the primary medicinal value of bitter ingredients was to aid digestion. Without getting too graphic, bitters get the gastric juices flowing. It’s where we get the term digestif, which is still used to describe bitter spirits today (though not all digestifs are bitter spirits).

“That was happening all over the world at the same time, collective subconscious,” Teague says. “We were all just getting smarter; we were surviving, living. Then many of those things fell away, and the ones that remained, I don’t necessarily say these are medicine, they’re not, but they have some medicinal properties. What we can say [is that] they are delicious.”

But delicious to one isn’t delicious to all. Bitter is an acquired taste because this flavor can be a signal that the thing you’re eating or drinking is poison, Daniel Warrilow, the Italian portfolio ambassador for Campari Group, tells me while explaining the ingredients in Averna, a citrusy and lightly bitter amaro from Sicily.

And while bitter spirits were being made around the world, there’s one country that looms large in the world of bitters: Italy.

How Italy become the epicenter of bitter

Photo: Fernet Branca/Facebook

The bottle lineup at Amor y Amargo scans like a trip around the globe. There, bottles not well known in the United States from the Netherlands and Latvia sit right alongside popular liqueurs like Germany’s Jägermeister. No country is represented as well as Italy, however.

“The birthplace of modern coffee is Venice,” Warrilow says. “People were saying it was the devil’s bitter beverage, and [Italians were] like, ‘Let’s taste it first.’”

In Italy, bitter flavors have long been part of the culture. Just look at the Italian proverbs related to bitterness: Cose amare, tienile care, which loosely translates to, “bitter things, hold them dear,” and il dolce si conosce per l’amaro, or “we know sweetness because of bitter things.”

Italy’s position during the age of exploration bolstered its appreciation for bitter flavors. Visiting merchants brought plants and herbs from around the world to Italy’s doorstep, and producers in each region of the country developed their own signature (and often secret) blends. Take Fernet-Branca, for example, which was created in Milan in 1845 with 27 herbs and spices from four continents: aloe from South Africa, rhubarb from China, gentian from France, chamomile from Italy and Argentina, and galingale from India or Sri Lanka.

“What made Italy so special during that time was that it was the crossroads of the spice trade, so Fernet-Branca could have not been made anywhere else,” says Edoardo Branca, a descendant of Fernet-Branca creator Bernardino Branca and managing director of Branca USA. “It was the pioneer of its time and took advantage of what Italy had to offer.”

Today, Italian spirits are exported around the world and inspire wary drinkers to give bitter a chance. There are negronis made with Campari and spritzes made with the lightly bitter Aperol. There’s Branca y cola in Argentina, which is the ever-popular mix of Fernet-Branca and Coca-cola and an unofficial national drink.

Looking in the Italian section of a liquor store is a surefire way to find a bitter spirit, though it’s not the only one.

The most bitter of bitter spirits

Photo: Gammel Dansk/Facebook

Italy is the most prolific, but it’s not necessarily the producer of the most bitter-tasting spirit. The variations around the world (not to mention the variations among regional Italian bitters) are wide. Legally, anything that is a bittersweet liqueur (meaning it has a bittering agent, sweetening agent, and alcohol) can be included in the bitters category. As Teague puts it, “The only thing that any one amaro has in common with any other amaro is that they’re both liquid.”

“There are definitely a few that turn the dial up to 11, but they have their place in the pantheon, and I don’t think any of them are bad,” Teague says. “They may not be to your liking or my liking, but they’ve survived because they have an appeal.”

So while it would be near impossible to rank the most bitter of the bitter, these are six suggestions by Teague if you want to grasp the range of bitter spirits, ranked in order of perceived bitterness:

1. Braulio Amaro Alpino: This dark brown Italian spirit has a viscous sweetness in addition to bitterness. The toffee-like taste balances out the piney bitter.

2. Amaro Alta Verde: Unlike many amari, Alta Verde is a light green color. It gets its bitterness primarily from a type of wormwood called assenzio. Pine and citrus notes round the Italian liqueur out with a less obvious sweetness than in the Braulio.

3. Gammel Dansk Bitter Dram: A Danish bitter with a name that translates to “Old Danish.” The mix of 29 herbs is a favorite in Denmark, where it was created in 1964. It’s dry and citrusy, without any lingering sweetness.

4. Amaro dell’Erborista: An Italian amaro made with gentian and honey from the company’s on-site apiary. It’s unfiltered and a little cloudy, and the botanicals are toasted over an open flame. While bitter, it’s well-rounded thanks to the honey and has all the components of a woodsy Hot Toddy.

5. Riga Black Balsam: A Latvian bitter that’s a dark prune color with a plum aroma. At 45 percent alcohol by volume, it’s stronger than most bitter liqueurs. The 24-ingredient recipe dates back to 1752 and includes valerian, wormwood, ginger, pepper, and gentian.

6. Cappelletti Elisir Novasalus Vino Amaro: By far the most bitter drink I’ve ever tried. Many of the most bitter spirits use a liquor base, but this Italian brand stands out among wine-based Italian amaro. There’s loads of pine flavor, boosted by the addition of Sicilian pine sap. It’s lip-curlingly bitter, and it stays with you long after you finish your sip.


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Calm, romantic European destinations

Everyone has their own ideas about what’s romantic and what’s not. But if there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that hordes of selfie-stick-holding tourists does not spell l’amour. When you head off on vacation together, choosing somewhere quiet means you can focus on each other instead of getting distracted (and exhausted) by jostling crowds. It also means that you can enjoy the best beach and sunset spots without loud music, rowdy bachelorette parties, and shrieking kids ruining your peace. So if you want relaxation and seclusion to play a starring role in your next trip away, here are the most romantic European destinations to visit if you both love solitude.

1. County Donegal, Ireland

Photo: Jan Miko/Shutterstock

If deserted moors, fir forests, and swaths of empty coastline sound like your cup of tea, then turn your attention to County Donegal. The best time to visit is November through March when the local holiday-makers have packed up and left, and the pubs are empty save a local or two (and the ubiquitous pub dog, of course). You’ll find plenty of affordable accommodations, but for maximum peace and quiet, choose a traditional stone cottage with mountain views — bonus points if you get one with a cozy, wood-burning stove. Add Glenveagh Castle to your to-do list and channel your inner Gandalf with a wander around the abandoned church at the foot of Mount Errigal. If you find yourself in need of a little human company after all that time on the moors, Nancy’s Bar in Ardara does the best Irish Coffee for miles around.

2. Košice and the Tatras Mountains, Slovakia

Photo: Uhryn Larysa/Shutterstock

Tourists are a rare sight in East Slovakia’s largest city — something that’s all the more surprising when you consider the cheap eats, even cheaper beer, and beautiful old quarter, a colorful mashup of baroque buildings, cozy coffee shops, and Gothic monuments. Most of the city’s sights are concentrated along the town’s central street and shouldn’t take you more than a few hours to explore. After you’ve had your fill of dumplings, beer, and sightseeing, hop in a hired car and drive out to the nearby Tatras mountains for a couple of days. The best time to visit is in late spring when the snow has melted and the hills are full of wildflowers. For maximum solitude, visit during the week to avoid weekend day-trippers from the nearby towns and cities.

3. Faroe Islands, Denmark

Photo: Sophie Dover/Shutterstock

The Faroe Islands have become something of a holy grail for off-the-beaten-path enthusiasts, and it’s easy to see why: Sat in the North Sea halfway between Iceland and Norway, this collection of wild and windy islands has otherworldly scenery that’s equal parts majestic and bleak. There are wave-battered cliffs, treeless moorlands, and black basalt dunes to explore, and the painted wooden houses are like something out of a fairytale. So why is it still so quiet? Well, first, the islands are expensive to fly to. And secondly, the weather default is windy, wet, and cold (summers generally hover around 54°F), which puts some people off. But if you’re ok with wrapping up warm then you’ll be rewarded with human-free fjordland walks and plenty of peace and quiet. Plus, the cooler climate offers plenty of opportunities to snuggle up together by an open fire.

4. Cauterets, French Pyrenees

Photo: Alexander Uhrin/Shutterstock

Spring or autumn is the best time to visit because the snow has melted, and the families and skiers have packed up and left. Solitude-lovers heading here during the shoulder seasons will be rewarded with quiet mountain trails and a spot at the best lakes, without screaming kids and whining drones polluting the airspace. Many of the villages and towns are ski resorts, which means shops and bars either shut up early or stay closed entirely during shoulder season — so be prepared for a ghost town vibe after sundown. That said, you should be able to find more than a couple of places serving fondue, raclette, and wine — plus the smaller crowds means you should be able to get a cozy table for two without booking.

5. Favignana, Sicily

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Solitude-lovers have a love-hate relationship with beaches: The prettier they are, the more crowded they are, which usually means some kind of compromise needs to be made. Not so with Favignana, a teeny island 12 miles off the coast of Sicily. Not only is it quiet people-wise, but it’s almost car-free. Rent a bike and spend the day stopping off at any cove that takes your fancy for a secluded swim (the electric-blue water of Cala Rossa is a must-see). All but one of the beaches are pebbly, so bring sea shoes for clambering over the rocks and watch out for prickly sea urchins, which sometimes cling to the sea bed. These islands are all but deserted in the warm late spring and early autumn, but, as with most coast destinations, avoid visiting from late June to August when the local schools close, and families flock towards the ocean.

6. Solcava, Slovenia

Photo: streetflash/Shutterstock

This quiet corner of the Alps has everything you’d want from the more famous regions — think cowbells, mountain meadows, and cute wooden chalets — minus the high prices and, most importantly, the crowds. Fly into Ljubljana and spend a couple of days sampling sausage and strudel before heading off in a hire car into the mountains. Book a secluded holiday home or go full Heidi with a stay in a traditional wooden mountain hut. Hiking and climbing are the activities de rigueur, but if you’re not into exertion, you can drive (or walk) around the Matkov Kot valley until you find a grassy pasture for a romantic picnic.

7. Masurian Lakes, Poland

Photo: Andrzej Puchta/Shutterstock

Lakes are notoriously touristy, but in one northern corner of Poland, you can canoe through 3,000 secluded waterways without bumping boughs. Hire a kayak and take the signposted Krutynia river trail and camp overnight. Or, if you’re visiting in winter, choose a farm stay in one of the villages or go all-out hermit with a high-gabled waterside cabin. Top tip: The lakeside resorts of Gizycko, Mikolajki, Wegorzewo can fill up with Polish holidaymakers in the summer, so either visit in the off seasons (spring, autumn, and winter) or stay in a neighboring village.

8. Azores, Portugal

Photo: EyesTravelling/Shutterstock

This remote archipelago of nine volcanic islands sits in the Atlantic Ocean, about 840 miles off the coast of Portugal and roughly the same distance again from Morocco. Activities include whale-watching, kayaking, and diving with dolphins, plus there are hot springs to soak in, volcano hikes to be had, miles of empty wildflower-fringed roads to drive along. There are nine islands in total to explore, but for maximum solitude, check out the almost-abandoned Graciosa, which hosts daily summer Holy Ghost processions; Crovo, which is home to only 400 people; and Flores, an empty wilderness of waterfalls and flowers.

9. Burano, Italy

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If you’re not a people person, then notoriously busy Venice is probably last on your list. But wait — there is a way to get your fill of pasta and canals minus the tourists. Burano is a small island a 30-minute boat ride away, and from November to mid-February, it’s almost deserted (with the exception of the weeks either side of Christmas and New Years). Head out by ferry in the early morning, spend your afternoon walking through the island’s rainbow-hued streets then fill up on seafood before heading back. Alternatively, book a room on the island itself and you’ll get to see the town at its most quiet once the daytrippers have all gone home. The winter’s also a great time to explore Venice in general, which, during the colder months, really empties out. Plus, there’s something extra romantic about getting lost in the misty backstreets before piling into a steamy trattoria for something hot and carby.


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