From Paris to Berlin...

And a little bit of Edinburgh and London... Here are a few food highlights from the past 2-3 weeks. I haven't taken nearly as many photos as I would have liked and many have had to be taken through windows as so many places don't allow photos to be taken indoors. Most annoying!

London

A visit to the Borough Markets on a Saturday morning...

...was a little too early in the day for a Pimm's but a lovely stall to admire.

Delicious Middle Easter food for lunch...

...and a stop in at Neal's Yard Dairy before heading off.

Edinburgh

Vegetarians skip this section!

This poor little piggy was being carved into roast pork sandwiches.... we didn't try one but it made for an interesting and eyecatching window display and I couldn't resist taking a photo!

Another highlight was trying haggis - both this real thing and a vegetarian version - with neeps (swede) and tatties (potato). Much more oaty (as opposed to meaty) than I expected, quite a peppery, savoury flavour and really quite nice!

Paris

Fruit from the local market...

...it was hard work acquiring this enormous fig with my limited knowledge of French and I was mocked by the stall holder for trying!

Warm-from-the-oven pastries for breakfast...

...decided one to share was enough after the first day!

Beautiful macarons from Pierre Hermes...

Too many lovely little cakes to choose from...

...almost too pretty to eat!

Berlin

Berlin has totally surprised me - such a fantastic city! A real mix of food - lots of Turkish, Asia and the local specialty that I am yet to try... currywurst - a bratwurst sausage with mustard and a sprinkling of curry powder - it is everywhere!

Highlight so far - ramen noodles at Cocolo. A tiny place with a choice of six different ramen noodles plus a few sides like edamame and gyoza. We sat crammed around the bar looking into the kitchen/workspace watching the action. It's a popular wee joint - we were lucky to get seated within 20 minutes but lots of people were happy to wait outside for a space to come up. A really basic set-up with the open kitchen consisting of a couple of huge pots of burners, a couple of plug in elements, a few rice cookers and a sink to wash the dishes in but it works so well! I want a Cocolo ramen noodle bar in Wellington! I forgot my camera so no photos sadly but if you're ever in Berlin seek this place out!

Now for some real German food... meatballs and fried potatoes!

...And bratwurst in a bun with half a litre of heferweizen!

Beer is almost cheaper than bottled water in this city so it's not surprising that they drink it by the litre! You can buy beer everywhere - bakeries, cafes, corner shops... everywhere!

Yet to try that German favourite of pork knuckle with sauerkraut... I just can't bring myself to order it! But we're off to Munich tomorrow so there's still time...