Now for anyone that knows me, knows that I’ll inevitably have a cruise booked. This wasn’t something old me would have wanted to be known for, but having been on two, and another two booked next year – i’m a cruise champion! But maybe this blog will give you an insight into why I’m a fan…
Last September I embarked on my second cruise. The cruise set sail from Barcelona, where we’d spent a couple of nights over-indulging in tapas and sangria already. Afternoon one was spent roaming before happening upon El Xampanyet; a tapas institution since 1929. Of course we ordered the usual suspects but for me the chocolate truffles finished with EVOO and sea salt stole the show.
A few other culinary shout outs include gluten free cookies from Chök Born, the perfect post walking tour treat.
Le Bistro Sensi – recommended to me by an old school friend whose parents have a place in Barcelona, it can often be quite overwhelming the choice so it felt nice to go out on night one with an end goal in mind. Dishes included, Spanish “meloso” rice, surf and turf (pork and squid), shrimp aioli, marinated Yellowfin red tuna tataki, coconut almond sauce, toasted sesame, basil emulsion and Squid and Cuttlefish Croquettes in their Ink with Lime Alioli.
Cocktail bar: Hemingways just a few strides from Sips – voted no 3 in Best Bars in the world. A secret told to us by the people in front of us in the queue as she lives here.
The Monument Hotel x Paradiso – for a boujee cocktail and a rooftop view. It was totally unplanned but they had partnered with Paradiso who won best cocktail bar in the World’s 50 Best just a few years previously.
Breakfast – charcuterie cones and empanadas with a fresh fruit juice before boarding the boat at Mercat de la Boqueria.
Ville-Franche
We ventured off the ship onto the tender boat with a coffee and a mini pastry in tow ready to head up to Monaco for a saunter around before heading back to Ville Franche for lunch with family who also happened to be holidaying in the South of France. When we arrived back from Monaco, they’d already picked a spot for lunch, and I have to say it didn’t disappoint. Enter, Espuma complete with seafood counter and lobster tanks and a view of Villefranche-sur-Mer, their website describes them as a restaurant where you are literally transported back in time: to the Belle Époque. Bury me in a bottle (or several) of Provence rose, and an extra large serving of Moules Frites. We then bounced around several more beach front restaurants making the most of the sun and rose before saying goodbye to relatives.
Slightly merry we embarked on our journey back to the ship where the evening took us for Sushi and asian small plates (all via the Whitney Houston tribute act of course!)
Ajaccio, Corsica
Slightly jaded from the day/night before, we ventured onto Corsica’s Ajaccio. We strolled through the delightful food and wares market that greeted us, eating saucisson from friendly vendors before Ben decided Chocolate would be the thing that might help his hangover. We discovered de Neuville – Chocolat français – a quaint chocolate box shop literally. The lovely attendant and us tried to decipher each other’s French and English, with chocolates being prodded at us with ‘essaye ça’. And then we decided to head back to the ship to make the most of their legendary caesar salad bar.
Cagliari, Sardinia
We dragged Ben’s parents along for the uphill walk to San Benedetto market – serving cured meats next to mountains of olives, tripe, arancini and hand-crafted fresh filled pasta of all shapes, sizes and fillings.
At this point Ben and I carried on exploring the city’s historic sites before camping outside Sa Domu Sarda waiting for it to open as Google told us it was. We aren’t sure if it was the restaurant staff or Google’s fault but it was certainly worth the wait. We opted for just mains (unheard of for us!), so we had to make our decision count. We chose: Culurgiones Ogliastrini with walnuts and pine nuts – Semolina pasta, flour and eggs, filled with pecorino, potatoes and mint, with Sardinia DOP evo oil, walnuts, pine nuts and Sardinia Flower DOP, a real delight and malloreddus (a type of Sardinian pasta) with a veal ragu.
Messina, Sicily – severely hungover.
Happened upon a salumeria – gutted to not have tried authentic sicilian arancini but we were informed they’d already sold through for the day. We shared a ‘small’ salumeria and cheese board with a side of focaccia bread, and it was safe to say it beat us. The owner kept on goading us to finish but we were beaten. Topped with homegrown olives and other anti-pasti, it was lovely to watch the world go by, and the crowds gather at the Piazza Del Duomo for the spectacular clocktower performance. All washed down by a larger than life red wine spritz, which did not solve the hair of the dog.
Naples, Italy
Pizzeria 400 Gradi– Now this was my first time exploring Naples so the only thing i needed to tick off was Pizza. I was in the home of Pizza after all. We disembarked the cruise, leaving behind the swarms of people heading off on their excursions to Amalfi and Pompeii in search of a culinary excursion… Authentic Napoleon pizza. Now my partner made it his mission to not fall into any pizzeria or fill up on the fritto misto cones, but again, we arrived pre-midday at a restaurant that looked sketchy but promised to be the best. It did not disappoint! With our language barrier, we eventually managed to order. Our order: La porcini (crema di funghi porcini, prosciutto cotto, fior di latte, basilico e olio) and La peste (pomodoro, fior di latte, pesto, salsiccia, basilico e olio).
Honestly, I’m now firmly in the camp that the Napoleons do it best!
A few days in Rome:
Stop 1: Picture this, we’d been chucked off the ship at 6:30am, been on a shuttle bus, a train and a cab, dropped our bags off at the hotel. So of course, I then couldn’t concentrate on any other plan than ‘i need food’. Ben directed me to a sandwich shop not far from where we were staying in the Jewish Quarter. Cue my obsession with Porchetta, served in a gorgeous fresh baguette with a ball of mozzarella and pesto… beautiful.
Stop 2: Fridgadarium – I visited Rome back in 2016, long before I’d earned my stripes as a ‘foodie’, but I remember having the ‘best ice cream ever’. So of course I had to take Ben to Fridgadarrium where I opted for their namesake, which comes with a biscuit embellished with star sprinkles and dipped in dark chocolate, y’know because it wasn’t indulgent enough.
Stop 3: Trastevere – Stanley Tucci’s recommendation – Bar San Calisto. Expect an eclectic mix of locals playing board games and students, with a few tourists thrown in. But for us, it was perfect – even better that the Aperol spritz’s were only €2 a pop! The atmosphere and the price only made us love it even more, as the rain began to fall (again!!), the outdoor area constricted as we all hunkered down under the awnings, it then began to swell out post rain!
Stop 4:
At this point, we were on the booze train but I needed carbs, and what better place for that than Rome! We wandered the beautiful rain soaked streets and ended up in La Canonica (Ben’s choice as he decided that 20k Google reviews must mean something!). We couldn’t decide between several pasta dishes so ended up getting ‘one for the table’. Served in silver mini steel pans we had the Roman trio of ‘Cacio e Pepe’, Carbonara and the ‘Ametricana’ all washed down with Aperol’s served in jam jars! I’m sure it wasn’t just the booze talking but it was genuinely some of the best pasta i’ve eaten.
Day 2 –
We began the day with an espresso and an uber flaky almond croissant to fuel our ‘The Families Who Made Rome’ walking tour and being rained on yet again, it was time for lunch. We chose quite a touristy spot a few feet from the Pantheon was Hostaria de’ Pastini but weren’t disappointed. Again, we opted for only mains, (i’m not sure who were kidding at this point in the holiday either…), but the mushroom and truffle pappardelle stole our nostrils but it was the Raviolo with italian cheese, spinach and doused in a creamy tomato saucy that won the lunch. All washed down with Primitvo and a Limoncello shot to finish!
Two Sizes – Obviously because we’d been ‘good’ and not had 3 courses at lunch, we were in need of a sweet treat, today’s choice: Tiramisu and Cannoli. Armed with Google Maps we headed to ‘Two Sizes’, a viral sensation and to be honest, for the right reasons. The shop gave you several options of Tiramisu in, guess what, two sizes! All served in a cute little pot with a handle. Whilst I loved the traditional one, it was the pistachio one that I’d highly recommend!
Day 3:
Aroma – This post has already gotten far too long, and to be honest, it could be a post all on its own, but i’ll say this… There’s a lot of influencers, incredible olive oil, prawn risotto and genuinely one of the best views for a meal you could find in Rome. Yes it would have been an ideal moment for a ring… but alas i came away with no diamond sparkling on my finger!
Full up from lunch still despite our 10,000 steps, Ben decided we best have one last meal in Rome! We pottered through Trastevere’s beautiful cobbled streets when I realised I hadn’t been to Dar Poeta – The King of Rome Toby Lawson’s recommendation! All the Italian favourites flowed, pizza, bruschetta, arancini.. The perfect end to the most incredible 2 weeks!
If you’re wondering what I actually ate onboard the cruise ship, well, I’m afraid, you’ll have to stay tuned for that one…
