Cuba
Binisita ko kamakailan ang Cuba sa unang pagkakataon at mga mahal ito! Ito ay talagang isang lugar Gusto kong bisitahin muli. Ang pagkakaroon ng sinabi na paghahanap ng masarap na karne ng libreng hapunan ay isang hamon sa beses.
Ngunit ang aking unang maliit na mga episode ng exasperation nagsimula bago itinakda ko kahit paa sa magandang na isla curtesy ng Cuban pambansang airline Cubana. Tulad ng aking mga flight mula sa Gatwick wasnt hanggang 12.40 Nagkaroon na ako ng brunch sa kailanman Bland ngunit ang pinakamahusay na ng isang masamang South Terminal bungkos na Cafe Rouge. Trod ko ang magkano trod ngunit kailanman hopeful bagahe-free semi-euphoric kakaibang lokasyon expectant ruta sa pagtingin sa vs sa mga menu outlet ng pagkain sa buong malaking maliwanag na malawak na paghawak / shopping hangar. Alam ko na na kaya kong magkaroon ng magandang glass o dalawa sa pula sa aking brunch, ito ay Gatwick hindi Karnataka pagkatapos ng lahat. Ngunit pagkatapos ng isang credit card bashing instant pagbili ng isang entry sa antas ng DSLR (ito ay mahalaga bilang ako hadnt pa magawang mahanap ang aking Coolpix sa isang huling minutong trawl ng kalat ng aking flat) …Napunta ako sa soggy lupon ng pastry sa halo-halong mushroom sa halos maganda 'Feuillete de Champignons' £ 5.95. Comfort pagkain, halos maganda ngunit upang maging mas umaaliw ito kinakailangan ng isang bahagi ng French Fries £ 2.95 at isang salad £ 3.50. Boring boring boring! Ngunit higit sa boring ipagpalagay ko, nakahihiya halos bilang na ito ay nagkaroon na babayaran para matapos ang lahat ng. Napansin ko ang isang penchant sa Pranses (at pseudo Pranses) restaurant para sa paggamit ng unsalted mantikilya. Sa aking hindi pa Francophile palette unsalted butter na panlasa tulad unsalted grasa. Gayundin nakahihiya para sa isang Pranses o pseudo Pranses o binigyan mismo ng Pranses pangalan chain ang 'Baguette' para saan ang unsalted grasa ng accompaniment at kung saan sila singilin ang £ 2.25 ay isang maliit na murang basket ng paninigas ng maaliwalas na inconsequential karton.
Upang magdagdag ng mang-insulto sa pinsala sa lahat ng mga kawani ay fawning higit sa dalawang uber seryosong pagsasalita at kahabag-habag naghahanap ugma uri na tila sinusubukan ng bawat ulam sa menu, sa mas malapit inspeksyon natuklasan ko na aktwal na sinusubukan bawat ulam sa menu kagat sa pamamagitan ng kagat at pagkatapos ay pagkatapos ng seryosong talakayan sila ay sumusulat bagay pababa. Ang mga taong ito transpired nagtrabaho para sa mga kumpanya at mga pagsubok panlasa o sana kung mayroon man ay nagkaroon ng panlasa. Gamit ang dalawang na sucked hanggang sa serbisyo ay mabagal. Salad ay anemiko, ang fries ay flaccid, ang alak ay pinong. Kahit ako havent Nakakuha sa diabolical pagbibigay kahulugan ng vegetarianism Nakatagpo ako sa eroplano pa. Ang isang mahusay na trabaho ko didnt magkaroon ng sanwits sa tren.
Ako ay hindi isa sa mga taong iyon na iwagayway ang layo ng airline pagkain kapag dinala nito sa akin lalo na bilang Ako ay isa sa mga taong iyon na nag lahat stares sa upang makita kung ano ang mayroon sila dahil ang vegetarian meal invariably Hinahain ang unang. Kaya mas mababa sa apat na oras pagkatapos ng aking mahal Cafe Rouge stodge ko aalisin ang foil takip ng maliit na sapat na halos masarap na bahagi ng pasta sa kamatis sauce, isa pang anemiko salad at ang sapilitan tasa ng pinalamig melon. Wasnt ko gutom kaya didnt inggit ang aking mga kapitbahay chocolatey cake. Napansin ko na ang isang tiyak na pattern sa paghahatid ng lacto ovo vegetarian meal. Maaaring may keso sa pangunahing bahagi ng pagkain ngunit nito hindi karaniwang ibinigay na may crackers pagkatapos habang ito ay may mga vegetarian meal non. Anumang bagay matamis at malagkit ay napalitan ng nagyeyelo melon sa mga cube at ang tapik ng mantikilya ay napalitan ng puting margarin (ito ay gumawa ng pakiramdam ng kurso para sa isang Vegan pagkain ngunit nagkaroon keso sa pasta). Drank ko ang mga alak na hinatid sa hapunan at pati na ako ay maging malaman lamang na maihatid sa hapunan at hindi para sa pagbebenta. Sa isang yugto doon ay tila na maging isang tao sa likod ng eroplano pagbebenta ng plastic tasa ng rum (o marahil ito ay isang hypoglycemic hallucination) ngunit siya ay nawala sa pamamagitan ng ko nagpasya na panahon ito ay oras na para sa isa pang inumin. Ang flight ay labintatlo oras bilang nagkaroon ng stop para sa umaalis ang mga pasahero at refueling sa Holguin.
Wala nang mga pampalamig ay nagsilbi para sa kung ano tila tulad ng walong oras at pagkatapos ay sa pamamagitan muli ako ay talagang gutom. Ang susunod na handog ay maunahan ng mga maligayang pagdating umunlad ng aktibidad ng crew, ito estado ng pag-asa ay na-cut maikling para sa akin kapag ang isang tagapangasiwa sa isang lugar deadpan expression ng banana sa isang plastic tray sa harap ng akin. Tinanong ko siya kung ano ang nasa sandwich na ngayon na ipinasa out. Sila ay tumingin tulad ng keso. Sila ay keso. 'Ito ang mga hindi para sa mga vegetarian, ito ay para sa mga vegetarian 'siya scolded sa akin na may hawak up ang aking banana. 'Ngunit Gusto ko ng sanwits ng kung ano sila keso'. Ako ay nakaupo malapit sa galley at nagsimula ang isang stewardess na basahin ang mga label na sangkap sa sanwits. 'May keso. Kumain ka keso? Pa Rin hindi ka maaaring magkaroon, order ka ng vegetarian 'Ngayon ako ay napapailalim sa kahina-hinalang mga hitsura, ang mga pekeng vegetarian. 'Nagkaroon keso sa pasta ka dinala ako' Sinabi ko ang mga ito, aking mga ugat ngayon jangling sa famished pangangati. Sa paglaon pagkatapos ay ibinigay sa lahat ng bilihan ng isa ay inilagay sa harap ng akin, luckily nagkaroon ng isa kaliwa para sa mahirap vegetarian.
Malapit na!
Magagandang Valle de Vinales at kamangha-manghang mga Havana, mga aklat, mga pelikula, mga recipe at higit pa!
I agree it can be a nightmare trying to find veggie food when travelling. I’ve had similar experiences to your cheese sandwich/banana fiasco and it is infuriating. As regards eating when you get there, as well as googling local restaurants etc I’ve also contacted veggie groups in the past. They have useful local knowledge of what’s available and are usually happy to help 🙂
anyone departing from gatwick south must have been to cafe rouge if in hunger, since the alternatives ere very poor indeed..
and everyone must have experienced some bad service there, since the staff knows customers are there more for necessity than desire of an authentic french bistro.
same disappointment with the baguettes, that, at the time, i excused, given the very late hours..
no excuses for a friend of mine being given the wrong order, even after a busy day, any inesperienced waiter should be able to get the right orders, if he has a notepad, and is serving a table of 3.. and all this in a nearly empty place (maybe 2 other tables)
even then, anyway, we were accomodating, and my friend accepted the wrong order, it was late for the flight, after all, but would have been nice to receive some sort of discount, or at least free fake baguettes..
i was reasonably happy with my naked snails (yes, they don’t even pretend to reuse empty shells, they give you just the bare slug..) and the soggy baguette was a decent dip in all that parsley and garlic sauce..
but next time i will make sure to dress smart, and pretend to fill a secret shopper form, not to escape the bill, but to see if the service improves..
about your flight, i suppose it’s not entirely their fault, it was you to expect a bit too much..
Cubana Airlines must be staffed by cubans, and probably for them, used to so much deprivation, where a slab of meat is a brown luxury item covered in flies at the local market, the idea of a wealthy and healty foreigner refusing such a treat as a meal coming from some animal parts, must look as an insult to their struggles and to their imposed fruit and veg rich diet..
it is probably impossible for them to grasp the differences between vegans, edenics, and macrobiotics alike..
but we cannot blame them for being offered a banana or a boiled egg at the wrong time, after all they just follow directives..
I am a proud carnivore, so i would go for the egg AND the banana, whit cheese on top, but i would also suggest any vegetarian on holiday to keep a couple of cereal bars handy, when abroad, just in case, to avoid starvation..
Pantalan
I couldnt agree more! Anyone who departs from Gatwick South (regularly) and even a lot of people who havent been to Gatwick South must have gone to the phony Bistro. But we do they put up with it? Personally I would rather have soggy mushrooms on soggy pastry than naked slugs in sauce but why hasnt someone staged a protest along the lines of ‘we wont eat in your grotty overpriced restaurants until they arent grotty and overpriced anymore’? Down with the fake baguettes! On faire la greve!
I found Cubans often to be nonplussed by vegetarianism. On the flight the upholstery of the seats was different and my light wasnt working. The sleepy couple next to me pulled the blind down and I asked them to raise it a little so I could read. There was no interactive entertainment but the seats were bigger with more leg room. The banana incident was a prelude to experiencing it all without eating flesh. I’m no Edenic but they can keep their brown luxury items covered in flies.
And next, proud carnivore, Im going to post a delicious recipe that will have you shouting ‘meat is murder’ before you can say Escargot Bourguignon.
if the recipe that was supposed to make me scream ‘meat is murder’ (once agreed on giving murder a bad connotation) was your penne con melanzane rendition, that failed to hit the mark, not because of the ingredients, I in fact love aubergines, rich in nicotine and with a very peculiar spicy texture, but because all the effort and time spent in cooking could be saved and spent pursuing different objectives..
just yesterday, what a coincidence, i bought in sainsbury’s a jar of roasted greek aubergines imam, that, once chopped in smaller chunks, spread onto slices of mozzarella, and put in a microwave for about 40 segundo, gives you a very close approximation of your recipe..
just to be sure i was’n fooling myself with the final result, ive just had it as an afternoon snack, without the pasta, of course..
delicious.. ..and within a very reasonable price range (£2.26 a jar)
of course if i had to cook for more than 2 people, your method would be considered, but to indulge myself in a fast treat, i consider my procedure easier..
going back to the murderous recipe, i was expecting something on the lines of the ortolan, blinded songbirds fattened up to 4 times their size in a dark cage, then drowned in a snifter of armagnac, plucked, then roasted for about 6 minuto…
such a delicacy that they must be eaten whole, biting off the head, with the diner’s own head covered by a napkin, not to be disturbed during such a feat…
unluckily the practice has been banned in the past 3 years in france, and it would be very expensive to get hold of one in the near future..
good for me, as you know, i am off to vietnam in less than a month, and there, next to dogs, rats and snakes, i will be able to taste drunken prawns, drowned in rice wine..
maybe not the peak of gastronomy, as ortolans are reputed to be, but still some new flavours to add to my library..
after all even Darwin himself wanted to taste every single animal he was coming in contact with..
Darwin was rumoured to have become vegetarian in later life, if so he evolved. He said ‘There is no fundamental difference between man and the higher animals in their mental faculties.… The lower animals, like man, manifestly feel pleasure and pain, happiness, and misery’. But as you perhaps condone murder you are not being discriminatory.
That dish doesnt really take long to cook at all (I usually make lots of tomato sauce and freeze it so its even easier for subsequent suppers). You could cook it one evening and even if you were all alone I’m sure you wouldnt lose any of your other objectives. It just appears time consuming when every action is listed. Anyway its worth it! I’m pleased, however, that you enjoyed your jar of aubergines they may have saved the life of a small bird.
You could always add some more plant flavours to your library. Have fun in Vietnam and remember dogs are man’s best friend.