As you can tell from our blog, we are big on sweets so we decided to keep the momentum going with a Chicago-area Romanian find. Ovy Bakery (3455A W Dempster, Skokie, IL) is so unassuming, if you blink you’ll miss it for two reasons: 1. it is located in a completely nondescript strip mall and 2. there is a big sign reading “La Patisserie” outside from the bakery’s former incarnation. I only noticed Ovy because I was intrigued by the “Transylvanian” sign in the window – not a common sight. Ovy Bakery is small, and when we visited it was pretty crowded! There were 2 sections of pastries in the glass case: traditional Romanian and more modern French-inspired creations. Chef Ovidiu Pop, the eponymous “Ovy,” who is of Romanian extraction, honed his pastry skills by working at Blackbird and the Peninsula Hotel in Chicago, which explains the mashup of Romanian and other European styles.
We were bringing dessert to a friend’s house for dinner so we decided to sample five different pastries from both categories (clockwise from top right):
- Amandine – This is one for the rum lovers – a chocolate covered chocolate cake that had been soaked in rum. beware – it is very strong.
- Dobos Torte – This is a classic Eastern European cake that is composed of thin layers of chocolate buttercream and yellow sponge cake. Ovy’s was a perfect rendition that equally blended both varieties, which complemented each other perfectly, with neither flavor dominating. A creative new twist was the crunchy, caramelized top
- Honey Cake (seen at the bottom of the page) – This was similar to the Dobos torte in appearance, and featured delicate layers of honey cake, pastry cream and apricot jam. It had a faint graham cracker flavor, which was both delicious.
- Creme – This dessert looked simple, but had a very unique taste – it was puff pastry filled with a vanilla cream that tasted more like a gelatinous zabaglione than pastry cream. Though the texture was a bit unusual, it was still very good!
- From the modern side we sampled a Passion Fruit Mousse on a cookie base, which was exquisitely presented, and tasted even better.
I was pleasantly surprised by the variety and quality of Ovy Bakery. They even offer catering for savory Romanian dishes, and other tidbits like breads (the most popular seemed to be the sweet bread Cozonac) and doughnuts. If you are in the mood for something a little different to bring to a dinner party, these pan-European treats from Ovy will definitely impress your guests
There is nothing we love more than a good market, and London has them in spades. 
Fogo’s seemed to be set up in a similar mold to Nando’s. Like Nando’s you can order the type of chicken pieces you want (breast, thigh, etc.), and then select the sauce, ranging from a mild lemon to super spicy. Fogo’s boasts that all of their chicken is marinated for 24 hours. We thought the chicken was slightly more reasonably priced than Nando’s, and you can get a quarter chicken for less than $5. Other options include chicken wings and chicken strips, and a surprisingly large vegetarian section with many wraps and sandwiches filled with paneer (an Indian curd cheese). There were also some unusual sides, like yucca fries and corn on the cob. Customarily L ordered a quarter chicken with medium heat, and M ordered spicy (is there any other way?)
We were cruising around Miami, in the mood for some Caribbean flavors and seafood. Bahamian restaurants, specializing in the nation’s fish-heavy cuisine, dot the city. We heard good things about Bahamian Pot (1413 NW 54th St. Miami, FL), so we decided to pop in for a quick lunch. When we entered, a few tables were full, and people were chatting over glasses of iced tea and huge plates of fried fish and chicken.
We scanned the tables and pretty much knew what we wanted to order, and what were the specialties of the house (FISH!). The menu was simple: a few breakfast items like fried chicken and waffles and a variety of fried seafood, including shrimp, whole snapper and tilapia. If you are feeling like meat, the oxtail draws praise. Bahamian Pot’s prices were reasonable, with everything falling in the range of $10-15. The portions of the dinner plates were generous and came with 2 sides, which included mac and cheese, plantains, string beans, crinkle-cut fries, okra or beans and rice.
You see Mexican food carts selling fruit throughout Chicago, usually serving clear plastic cups with fruit chunks and a topping of chili pepper or 
What Calumet Fisheries does is smoked fish, though they have fried options as well. A big seller is smoked shrimp, which is our favorite. You order your fish by the pound (smallest order is the half pound), or get a dinner plate with fries and slaw, and pay in cash. Some of the other smoked seafood options available include: Salmon, Sturgeon, Rainbow Trout and Eel. We never feel like we have room for sides, but there are a range of options including macaroni salad, potato salad, mushrooms and fried pickles.
There are Austrian cafes dotting Lisbon, including one of our Lisbon favorites, 
When we are in Miami, we feel spoiled for choice at all the Latin American options we have. We were especially happy to try some restaurants that make food from countries that aren’t really available in Chicago. One among these is Honduras. When we were searching for Honduran options in Miami, Paseo Catracho bubbled up as a favorite (the “Catracho” in the name is a nickname for people from Honduras). One of our good friends who lives in Miami who is of Honduran heritage said it was her favorite place to get Honduran food in the city. When we walked in, we were impressed by the bustling atmosphere, and the cute touches like straw hats hanging from the ceiling as lamps.
Eating The World 