All posts filed under: Travel

Feel Good Travel – Portland 

This is the first in a new series of posts under the category “Feel Good Travel”. I hope they will acts as mini travel guides for healthy food and fitness lovers. Enjoy!    Though I spend most of my time cooking up a storm I also do some acting and recently had the opportunity to visit Portland to work on a movie. The city has a vibrant culinary scene and I was only there for a couple of days, so I did my research ahead of time and decided to check out several of Portland’s wonderful plant-focused offerings. Here are my recommendations for places to eat as well as a few great spots to help you work up an appetite.  Vita Cafe– This is the place to go for the best in vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free comfort food. They serve everything from scrambles to burgers but my favorite menu item was the Mexican Corn Cakes ($7). It’s basically as if a fresh homemade corn tortilla and a fluffy pancake had a baby, which is to say, it’s amazing! …

New Orleans French 75

I made my first trip to New Orleans last weekend and had the pleasure of going to the renowned Arnaud’s Restaurant and French 75 Bar. Arnaud’s is one of New Orleans oldest and most beloved restaurants. It was built in 1918 by a French wine salesman Arnaud Cazenave, but some of the building dates back to the 1700s. It’s a sprawling, one-of-a-kind establishment with a grand dining room where waiters in tuxes serve up Creole delicacies (Souffle Potatoes! Alligator Sausage!), a Jazz Bistro with strolling musicians, a mini Mardi Gras Museum, private dining rooms overlooking Bourbon St., and reportedly a couple of resident ghosts. The highlight of our visit, however, was Arnaud’s French 75 Bar and Chris Hannah- quite possibly America’s coolest bartender. When we walked into the bar a woman who had perhaps had one too many milk punch was asking him “Hey aren’t you famous or something? I read about you somewhere…maybe TripAdvisor.” He just smiled and gave a non-committal nod. Upon researching for this post I found he could have said “Don’t …