London Eats > Barrafina

Chicken thigh with romesco sauce

This is a long overdue post, but I'll keep it short since the photos do more justice than words. I went to London last month and went to the lovely Barrafina for dinner in Soho. Teresa and I sat outside and went to town on the tapas menu. Every dish was more delicious than the last, and it was made even better with never-ending glasses of wine, sitting outside and people watching. If you ever find yourself in London, Barrafina is a must!

Razor clams

Pan con tomate

Octopus with capers

Classic tortilla

Brill

Chocolate tart 

A Vancouver Weekend Getaway

 

 

During a Seattle visit with Katie, we rented a car for a quick road trip to the beautiful city of Vancouver. Above are some of my favorite photos from the trip, and below are some of my picks:

Sleep - Sutton Place after scoring a great unpublished rate on Expedia for about $140/night. It's in a great location.

Eat

• Japadog - There was one right outside the Sutton Place hotel. How convenient!
• Guu - There are several of these Japanese izakayas around, but we went to the one on Water Street and it was lively, had fun drinks and the food was pretty good.
• Granville Island for lunch - A la Mode had chicken pot pies and pies galore, but the market's options are endless: pizzas, cheese, ripe berries, pastries, tea, pierogi, Indian food... Come hungry and try from all the different stands and shops and then sit outside to people watch!
• Dim sum!! This deserves a post all it's own. More to come on this deliciousness later.

Shop - I know most people would suggest Robson Street, and there were definitely a lot of shops there, but we liked Water Street a bit better because of the contemporary furniture stores and boutiques. If I were to recommend one place that you must check out, it would be Obakki, by far our favorite store. It's filled with ridiculously beautiful, modern clothes that were out of our price range but memorable and droolworthy nonetheless.

The weather was absolutely perfect when we were there, which just added to our love fest with the city. Have you ever been? Where else do I need to go when I visit next?

Travel Tested > Isla Mujeres, Mexico

 

Playa Norte Beach!

Crystal clear waters on Playa Norte Beach

Morning on Playa Norte Beach

Hotel Secreto infinity pool overlooking private beach

I wrote earlier about my love for Isla Mujeres and Hotel Secreto and have successfully convinced a friend to make it her next girl's getaway trip. Huzzah! She inspired me to document my travel tips and restaurant and activity recommendations. The best part is that all are budget friendly! 

General Travel Tips

• Isla Mujeres is a cash island. Bring plenty and  get pesos from your bank a few weeks in advance to avoid steep international ATM fees.
• For other purchases (like the hotel deposit), I applied for a Venture Capital One credit card – no international fees tacked on, and those can really add up! I travel out of the country enough and figured now was as good a time as any. I'm also a crazy, crazy freak for great rewards programs and this is all travel. Love at first flight. Bah-dum-ching! ... Sorry.
• Transportation to the island – If you, like me, are flying into the Cancun airport, you’ll have to get to the ferry dock that zips you to Isla Mujeres. I’ve been to Isla Mujeres a few times and by far the easiest (and cheapest) way to get there was with Best Day shuttles. There’s a group of Best Day staffers standing outside right when you exit the airport. Give them the info you had from booking your reservation online, and you’re off on your merry way. $17 roundtrip and payable online.
• Walk, skip or golf cart to the nearby supermercado to buy a huge jug of water (literally a DOLLAR) to use during your stay. Our hotel had a few free bottles of water a day but I am a friggin’ camel and just used the huge water jug to refill, and it saves you money. Brillz.
• Bring bug spray. It's always warm there and it's.. an island. It's a good idea to spray before dinner to wane off any attacks.

Pork shoulder tacos at Taqueria Medina - best tacos on the island!

Blue corn hotcakes and papas at Mango Cafe

Breakfast quesadillas at Mango Cafe

Restaurants - Where to Eat in Isla Mujeres

Isla Mujeres is a small island so that makes your eating choices much easier – you can easily sample the best restaurants during your stay. I had a list going in, but here are my top picks to get your chomp on:

• Taqueria Medina – Best tacos on the island for about $1, simple, cheap and right on Hidalgo Ave – what’s not to love? Dinner only and open late! Pork shoulder taco had a great grilled char to it and you get the full spread of fresh toppings: lime, pico de gallo, om, nom, nom…
• Olivia – Great Mediterranean food for a nicer island dinner in their gorgeous, dimly lit outdoor patio. Reservation only (again, Hotel Secreto’s front desk took care of us), and open Tues – Sat . Keep in mind that they do seatings at 6:30 and 8:30 for dinner.
• Mango Café – Lori, the owner is a UW-Madison alum and her lovable restaurant is a must-stop for breakfast/brunch when you rent that golf cart or moped to explore the island. Bright café that you can’t miss, right across from the Guadalupe Church.
• Qubano – The best place for a filling lunch. On Abasolo right off of Hidalgo. Cuban sandwiches, hungarian potatoes, fresh watermelon water, tostones. Everything was amazing, and we couldn’t finish our sandwiches (so consider splitting so you can get the sides!). The watermelon water and tostones are a MUST – I had never had tostones before but the crispy, fried plantains had an amazing onion type of relish to dip it in and it was a flavor party in. my. belly.
• Barlito – Adorable husband and wife team in an eclectic breakfast/sandwich shop right on Hidalgo. They have drool worthy, fresh breakfast sandwiches and homemade bagels that made our day. Tip: get one breakfast sandwich and their homemade cinnamon rolls to split both. Totally worth it.
• Sunset Grill – The above restaurants had more exciting food, but had to include this in the list because of the setting. Yes, it is more expensive, but you are eating right on the beach and they take credit cards (helpful when you are out of pesos and refuse to take more money out of the ATM!). Worth a visit if not to eat in the sand. ☺

ziplining station at southern end of Isla Mujeres

Do you see him?! Mr. Iguana (that is an iguana, right?) and his friends were everywhere!

Activities - "I want to do stuff!"

I'll be honest. When I'm on a beach vacation, I really don't need a lot to entertain me. I just want to read. But if you get antsy, there's plenty to do on Isla.

• Rent a golf cart for a day ($60 USD/negotiable) and check out the Tortungranja (tortoise farm) and Punta Sur (small Ichtel ruin) on the souther tip of the island. I just asked Hotel Secreto’s front desk to book it for me the day before and they will bring the golf cart waiting for you outside the hotel. Just watch out for all the iguanas and lizards!
• Two words: Swimways. Float. Yes, I’m a loser but I was at the island to be in the water and soak in the sun, and this allows you to lay and be IN the water. Best $30 I ever spent. And it collapses neatly into your suitcase.
• Snorkeling – We also booked this through our hotel for $40 a person (you can probably get it lower if you have more than 2 people). Took a taxi to a local little dive spot, got hooked up in snorkeling gear, headed out to the boat and snorkeled with a guide along the reef. Spotted: barracudas! Tortoises! Angelfish! Note to the seasick – I grew up as a swimmer and am very comfortable in the water but the waves were so rocky I was getting motion sick even swimming. If you’re like me, maybe skip this and stick to swimming along the beach
• Playa Norte beach – the most beautiful beach on the island. White sands, bluest blue water and shallow pretty far out into the ocean. Lots of areas are pay to stay in the sand (with/without chairs and umbrella) but you can find little “no man land” spots on the beach to get away without paying. Would recommend heading here first thing in the morning to explore with less crowds!
• There's also scuba diving, swimming with dolphins or whale sharks and ziplining at Garrafon Reef Park or Dolphin Discovery. Fair warning - I haven't been to Dolphin Discovery because of the steep fees and annoying photo sales pitches involved that I read about, but let me know if you end up checking it out.

Vancouver Taste Testing > The Japadog

Do you know what that is? Besides the most expensive hot dog you've ever seen? It's the almighty Japadog!! During Katie and my long weekend to Seattle and Vancouver a few months ago, we step outside of our hotel and what do we see? The allusive Japadog cart on the same street! Having read plenty about this mystical magic in a bun meal on my geeky and wonderful food blogs, I was very excited. 

Despite the fact that we were walking on our way to Granville Island to get lunch, Katie and I couldn't pass it up and split the above Japadog. We ate it (messily, not cute, not cute at all) on the side of the street and it. was. awesome. So not too saucy (my fear), with seawood, fried onions, a great grilled pork weinie, Japanese mayo, teriyaki sauce. "Most valuable pork in Japan!" - How can you pass that shit up?! Sounds like a lot, but it was so, so right.

We're both hot dog lovers, and this was just delicious. Apparently, there were 3 or so different Japadog stands across the lovely city of Vancouver. Given Vancouver's really high Asian population, I'm not shocked that this is so popular. I wonder if it would be as big of a hit in the midwest. Anyone ever try this? Is this only a Vancouver thing?

Hotel Secreto > Isla Mujeres, Mexico

I will be here in less than one week. Ridiculous, right? Since I take travel very seriously, I tend to want to go to new places, or any city where I haven't been yet, when I do get the time and money set aside for my next trip (and it's never as soon as it should be). I just know I will never lose that travel bug craving to see new places or cities, and with every passing flight I want to take advantage of as many new places as I can get my hands on. I also tend to favor metropolitan, international big cities over beaches. 

Annnnd yet I'm going to Isla Mujeres, Mexico - a place I've already been - to Hotel Secreto - a hotel I've also already stayed at - for a beach vacation. Part of me wants to feel guilty about not going somewhere new, because beach vacations are a dime a dozen (in my mind). But this place is just that good. With only nine or so rooms in the whole place, this hotel is everything you could want in a simple, minimalistically designed beachfront place. Free breakfast every day - fresh juices, coffee, croissants, fruit, an infinity pool while still being beach-side, terrycloth day beds in the rooms' attached balconies or porch spaces. It's not really frou frou (minimal staff, no room service or five star restaurant in the lobby), but for not being a personal home rental, is so private that we often had this ridiculous beach side place to ourselves. The whole experience feels so luxurious and you're not paying your life savings to experience it.

The island itself is a ferry ride away from Cancun, far enough to not be trashtastic, and small - only 5 or so miles long. It's impossible to return not relaxed, even for somebody as high strung as me! 

Conde Nast named Hotel Secreto one of the world's 50 best hotels, and it's on numerous lists of best budget boutiques (my room next week cost $135/night - a ridiculous steal). I was so thrilled with this place that I knew I'd be back the second I needed mindless, effortless R&R. And that was like 3 weeks ago. Hopefully, it's as great as I remember it.

Now, all I need is a list of book recommendations and a base tan because I won't be doing much more than that. Can't. Wait!

Update on Sunday, August 21, 2011 by Robin

I just got back from the lovely Hotel Secreto and it's just as beautiful as I remembered. They've added a gym a floor below the infinity pool and was told the spa would be open in a few months. Plus, free wi-fi (if you need it).