AdobePinon

In Tahoe they have an 'Irish Mexican' restaurant. Never did try it. Still remember it. Tequila-fried potato with Guinness and salsa?

TouristTrap

You have to go down to South Tampa to enjoy anything quite like we're used to. Howard Avenue has trendy restaurants all over, near Bayshore. Across the bay, down Gulf boulevard in Clearwater all the way to Fort de Soto, are little places. Tarpon Springs has a couple of nice places too (love Pappas).

For ribs, the very best restaurant in town is found down in South Tampa on Gandy Blvd : Kojak's.

And of course, the one of the most expensive restaurants in town is Berns Great to take the kids to for dessert as a special treat. http://www.bernssteakhouse.com/bs_frame.htm

Hyde Park has some where you can dine alfresco but unfortunately, not with a view (unless you consider Gap Kids/Pottery Barn Kids and Brooks Brothers a view!) There are some really nice coffee shops down there too.

Columbia down in Ybor City has flamenco dancing nightly. Been there since 1905 (VERY OLD by US standards ).

Then you have many places down in Rocky Point just at the start of the Campbell Causeway. Bahama Breeze, Castaways, Landry's (is that still there, haven't been that way for a while, go to Siesta for my 'beaching'?)

You have to really search, but you WILL find. You'll have to move out of the boondocks though, if you want to find them..

BritGuyTN

my sentiments exactly

BritGuyTN

slightly off topic but....

when i was in your area, we had a nickname for tarpon springs - something involving tampax and the chain pull bit....

i'm sure you can work it out...

very relaxing on the gulf coast tho....

Yorkieabroad

He he he - used to go to Denneys a lot in Singapore - normally at 3am fissed as a part....first time I went sober was a real eye-opener....swore never again, well not till the next friday night at 3 am anyway....

Yorkieabroad

With you on Fuddruckers - I have my 2 in preschool two days a week now - Wednesdays are for jobs, and Fridays are "Dad time" - which invariably includes Fuddruckers...

Yorkieabroad

To be fair though, you can level that criticism at most 'ethnic' foods in most countries....English/Indian is nothing like Indian/Indian, American/Chinese or English/Chinese are nothing like Chinese/Chinese etc etc.....

Eskimo

not a fair comparison - most of my Indian friends in England claim "English" Indian to be better than Indian /Indian due to the quality of the ingrediants.. puttting cheese glop in or on everything does not improve the originals

Yorkieabroad

Ah, you don't know what you're missing!!!! I used to travel to China a lot when we lived in the far east on business, and vacation, and then I spent a month at Beijing University last summer. Ate local the whole time (apart from one night at Hard Rock Cafe of all places - I was totally "noodled out" and needed a chunk of something to bite into!) - wonderful! So much more real flavor than the over sauced artificial cr@p that gets served in either American or English Chinese restaurants.....Yeah, some 'odd' things appear now and then, but that happens in any cuisine.

My mother in law is Taiwanese, and the home cooked authentic chinese that she puts on the table is fantastic. If there are westerners at dinner, she normally adds a sweet and sour something, but you can pick right past that!!
Just a shame her daughter didn't inherit her culinary skills!

Yorkieabroad

well compare like with like then...If you go to a poor country, a lot of the folk have to survive on poor ingredients.....if you're lucky enough to be in a well off home or a good restaurant in that country, access to better ingredients makes a big difference...then you get a fair comparison....stand by my original comment - go to a decent English/Indian restaurant and its nothing like a decent indian/indian restaurant...

Eskimo

my opinion is based on friends I have never been to India (just Bradford is that close ?)- but burgers are better in the US so maybe you're correct

NC Penguin

My friend was travelling in rural China, not the big cities where there are tourists and foreigners. She was eating what the average Chinese eats. The average Chinese does not live in a big city (though I'm sure many millions would love to).



NC Penguin

NC Penguin

My best friend is British Indian and I've had Indian home cooking many times (not just her Mum's but her sister's, her cousin's, her aunty in NY of all places and other members of her family). Indian home cooking is bears little resemblence to any Indian restaurant food, both in the UK or the US.




NC Penguin

Yorkieabroad

Bradford - Little India!! Thats where I had my first curry (or at least my first non Vesta curry - remember those - Yuk!) Was at the Uni 82-85 - were you there?

Yorkieabroad

Thats very true - they have huge temporary / economic migration to the cities from the rural areas, which is providing cheap labor, along with some pretty big headaches...but even in the big cities there is still a lot of poverty by western standards

Even in the rural areas you can get decent grub if you know what to look for (or more accurately, if the person you're travelling knows what to look for!) - you sometimes just have to get rid of the 'norms' you've been brought up with. Some of the grottiest little noodle shops serve up great noodle soups (best not to ask what the broht is made from), but there is a much heavier starch and veg content and much lower protein than we (or at least I) would be used to.

But one of the most memorable meals was on a trip to Mongolia - We had a great meal in a tent on the grasslands - a whole lamb had been spit barbecued and presented on a huge platter, complete with head, and with all sorts of somewhat questionable titbits round it. The people we were with looked poor as anything, and I spent the whole meal feeling guilty that they'd probably slaughtered the family's only lamb for our benefit. Or at least I did till the stuff that we were toasting with every 5 minutes (tasted like turps) kicked in, and then I really hadn't a care in the world! Turned out they had a flock of almost 100 sheep and they were (by local standards) very well off!

Never ceases to amaze me that just about wherever you go, the people with the least to "give" are often the most generous and hospitable with what they have.