We ended up going to the “Midi” part of Brussels unexpectedly, and wanted Italian food.
Got a chicken penne pasta. Overall, it’s great and I would come back here.
Cup Pasta
Tried this place for lunch since it was right beside our Airbnb in Brussels.
Overall, it was ok. I would come back if there was nothing else really around.
I got the small pasta with the sauce that says “cream, cheese and bacon” with penne, and added chicken.
Casa Mingo
We went to this place from a recommendation from someone at work that grew up in Madrid.
Although the drink selection was limited (no Cava), the food was great. For drink, I stuck to white wine (although they have a cider that they are known for. It was pretty good, but could only have two sips).
For food, the tortilla potatas was great (it was not just a simple tortilla), and the chicken was basically so juicy (it fell off). We also got jaman and some sort of cheese (almost tasted like guda mozerella). This was a great recommendation, and would definitely go back.
Restaurante Casa Benigna
On our second night in Madrid we wanted to eat at a great paella place, and we did!
This place is rated 4.5 on Google, and usually requires a reservation. Fortunately, they did let us in (although the door was locked when we got there).
The place was a bit fancy, but still let us in with shirts and shorts. For drinks, got a white wine that was a tad bit sweet (supposedly pairs great with the paella we ordered).
To start, they gave us some vegetable sticks / fruit sticks, as well as bread with butter that felt and tasted like cheese (soooo good). Also served a cold tomato soup called Gazpacho. Also great!
To start, got the tomato salad. Great way to start a meal by eating healthy.
For the main paella, got the seafood paella and a chicken and pork paella. Both were great, but I liked the seafood one better (others in the group found the other paella better).
For desert, got the apple pie (which almost seemed like an inverted apple pie). Also great! They also gave us complimentary melted chocolate and cookies.
Would come back here again in a heart beat.
Hotel Borovnik
We stopped by here after venturing around the Tisno bridge.
Got the chicken appetizer dish, and a mimosa (they didn’t know what it was, so they put wayyyy too much orange juice). The chicken appetizer was really good, and the white sauce on it was pretty interesting. Also got a latte to go, and it was decent. I would come back to this place again.
Marta
Checked out this Italian in hopes of eating some pasta. However, there was no pasta. Still a good place to eat.
We got the scallops for appetizers. Great choice. For my main, got the chicken. It was cooked perfectly (not dry at all). Also got the potatoes on the side.
For wine, I got something called the montecheubbsgd… (it was a black cherry type flavor). Thought it was interestingly light (but Ben said it’s because it doesn’t taste acidic.
Galpao Gaucho
This Brazilian steakhouse was a great suggestion by one of my directs (as an alternative to Fogo de Chau).
The salad bar was decent (and really loved the soup they offered).
The meat selection was great (from bacon wrapped meat to cheese wrapped chicken).
The Original Black Barbecue
We ended up going to this really popular BBQ chain for our Texas experience.
For the picture below, we ended up getting a pound of lean beef, a pound of pork spare ribs, half a pound of fatty beef, and a half chicken (with a pint of Mac and cheese and a pint of green beans).
Honestly, everything was ok (it would have been better if it was less salty). The house sauce helped make the food not taste salty. For the lean beef, I think we can do with less of that next time (half a pound less).
Mandarin Gourmet
We went to this restaurant, and ordered wayyy to much food. However, food was great.
We started off with the Pu-Pu platter (Ben partly got it because of the name). It’s actually a great deal if you have more than 2 people (and from what I remember, all the samplers were good). What you get: spring rolls, spare ribs, beef teriyaki, spare ribs, crab cake.
For the mains, we got the chow fun with beef, and some sort of chicken dish. I remember the chicken dish being slightly salty.
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Tequila Factory
This place had a great view, and great good.
I had a Pina Colorado to start, which hit the spot (didn’t get any tequila drinks though. Maybe next time).
For appetizers, we got several to share. Also very good.
My main course was a quesadilla with chicken. Also very good.
