Packaged Apple Slices Confound, Tittilate

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Oct 252012
 
Packaged Apple Slices Confound, Tittilate

The day after the second presidential debate I started a post discussing Mitt Romney’s now-infamous binders full of women when, halfway through the first paragraph, I discovered in the snacks basket at my work a package of apple slices (see photo; there are 6 in there). I’ve been in the U.S. for almost ten years now but every now and then a product comes along that manages to elicit the same amount of surprise and befuddlement as when I first visited in 1996. This is how new blog categories are born! […] Continue reading >

From Food Cart to Restaurant for Three Weeks: Tábor Authentic Czech Eatery

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Jun 232012
 
From Food Cart to Restaurant for Three Weeks: Tábor Authentic Czech Eatery

Two days remain to experience Czech cuisine at a brick-and-mortar restaurant here in Portland, Oregon. For three weeks until June 24, Karel and Monika from the Tábor Authentic Czech Eatery food cart will have served their home specialties at Enzo’s Caffe Italiano on NE Alberta Street while Enzo vacations in Italy. Not only is this “unique and trailblazing collaboration” an excellent instance of utilizing spare business capacity, the narrative on the reverse of the menu claims it’s the first instance in town of a collaboration between food carts and restaurants.* […] Continue reading >

Where to Taste Central Europe in Portland, Oregon

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Jun 032012
 

In the diaries and letters they left behind, immigrants made it clear that next to their families and their family homes, they longed most for their native foods. — Susan Matt writing about 1870-1920 immigration in “Homesickness: An American History” Of the connections an immigrant has to his original home, food is the strongest of those that he can enjoy in his new country (music comes a close second). There’s a reason heritage festivals take place amid food booths. Ethnic food sites like Lubos Brieda’s Slovak Cooking bring the old country […] Continue reading >

The Soup That Is Christmas

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Dec 202011
 
The Soup That Is Christmas

The American Christmas table is different from the Slovak one: no fish, no potato salad, no bobalky, but, most importantly, no kapustnica. Early on in my life as a transplant, I realized I could live without all the traditional Christmas dishes except for the sauerkraut soup. The holiday connotes a lot of things—the tree, presents (socks!), snow (if you’re lucky), family, old movies—but what really makes Christmas for me is, indeed, kapustnica. As the first course, it brings the family together at the dinner table. It’s the ultimate comfort […] Continue reading >

We Hold Our Food Truths to Be Self-Evident

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Nov 182011
 
We Hold Our Food Truths to Be Self-Evident

This is a reprint, with permission, of “Food Truths: Taquerias and Cherry Pie”, an essay my wife Lindsay Sauvé wrote and published on her blog Blue Palate on September 24. Everyone has their food truths, and immigrants and transplants in the U.S. are no exception. In fact, being away from home may accentuate your food truth, make it even truer, so to speak. What’s your food truth? *** There is no lentil soup like my mother’s lentil soup, no sour cherry pie like my grandmother’s, certainly no sauerkraut like my father-in-law’s. […] Continue reading >

Cooking Slovak in America: An Interview With Lubos Brieda

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Nov 112011
 
Cooking Slovak in America: An Interview With Lubos Brieda

Following up on my review of SlovakCooking.com, I asked Ľuboš Brieda who runs that site a few questions about his experience as a Slovak transplant. *** American Robotnik: You started SlovakCooking.com after beginning to miss the tasty Slovak home cooking in the U.S. and wanting to learn a few recipes. There’s a huge gap between learning to cook Slovak dishes and sharing the recipes on a website. What compelled you to take your craving for Slovak food  public? Ľuboš Brieda: You make it sound as if one day I […] Continue reading >

Slovak Cooking Delivers Delicious Morsels of Home

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Oct 262011
 
Slovak Cooking Delivers Delicious Morsels of Home

If you were to ask Ľuboš Brieda, “What’s cookin’?”, he’d most likely tell you the name of a Slovak dish you’ve never heard of. Which is precisely what his website Slovak Cooking remedies: This site is dedicated to the natural and wholesome lifestyle of our (Slovak) grandparents. It’s the lifestyle when food did not come shrink-wrapped, when flour was part of every pantry, and potatoes of every cellar. Join in, and try some Slovak dishes today. There is a bit of Slovakia in all of us! The website is simple: […] Continue reading >

Fall Is Heritage Festival Season

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Oct 062011
 
Fall Is Heritage Festival Season

Fall seems to be the season for heritage festivals. Over the past three weekends here in Portland, Oregon, Serbian, Polish, and Greek festivals took place. I had a chance to attend the Polish and Greek one. Today’s first of two posts looks at the festival experiences (Part Two next week will tackle heritage festivals in general). 5th Annual Serbian Fest I learned about Serbian Fest 2011 the week after it took place from Vickie Kavanagh’s preview article on OregonLive.com. Excerpt: Traditional music, entertainment, activities and food will be featured at […] Continue reading >