One of the highlights of a trip to any Disney Park is meeting the characters.  It was certainly a big draw for my kid while we were at Disneyland Paris in France last week (and maybe me, too – after all, who can resist the charms of that Mickey Mouse?  He’s a bit of the bee’s knees, as they say).

You can hope for chance encounters with Minnie, Donald and crew in the park itself.  And many of the Disney hotels also have characters that hang out in the lobby.  But one of the surest ways to make sure your kid can meet Woody the Cowboy (and get a hug and autograph, too) is to schedule a breakfast, lunch or dinner at Cafe Mickey.

Cafe Mickey lies in the Disney Village – chock-a-block full of restaurants and cafes.  It’s a bit dineresque – with dancing waitstaff, Disney cartoons playing on a big screen and, usually, a big buffet that can easily stuff a hungry family.  Often, meals at Cafe Mickey are a part of a half-pension or all-inclusive package at Disneyland Paris – but if you prefer, you can go separately.

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Atlanta New Yorker Deli

Like so many other signature restaurants, such as Ray’s Pizza, it seems like everybody, everywhere is trying to be a New York Deli. Now since I’m not a native to New York City, I don’t feel that I can appropriately comment on true New York City delis, compared to the ones placed throughout the U.S. And although I don’t know how the New Yorker Deli in Atlanta compares to other true NYC delis, but it certainly has my vote as one of my favorite delis.

When looking for a great sandwich shop, I’m basically looking for one thing: the opposite of Subway. Not to knock Jared, but I want a real sandwich when I go to a deli. I once went into a Subway that had a sign about how many items employees were allowed to put on each sandwich. Needless to say, just 4 pickles didn’t quite whet my appetite. So when I go to a deli, I want just a big and fresh sandwich that puts chain sandwich shops to shame. The New Yorker Deli restaurant in Atlanta does just this, by offering large sandwiches with plenty of tender meat stacked between their freshly baked bread. They offer a lot of the classics, such as the reuben, but many other sandwiches that you just won’t find elsewhere, like the Shrimp Po’boy, Surf-n-Turf, Cuban and Cordon Bleu.

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The burger debate is one that dates back years and one that is rarely, if ever settled. It’s a needle in the haystack debate in which you’ll have a better chance of finding which is the real Ray’s pizza in New York City. With miles and miles of farmland, the southern United States is where the debate over the best burgers is often the most heated. Greenville, South Carolina, though a small to medium-sized city, is no stranger to the debate with burger joints and grills on every corner. Fuddruckers and Five Guys are just two of the burger joints that are typically tossed into the mix. However, it looks like a new sheriff is in town and the staple Greenville burger restaurants are getting a run for there money with a new place called Mojo’s.

Quadruple Bypass Challenge at Mojo's

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Delicious Calçots

These days, we don’t need to worry that it is not strawberry season if we feel like eating a strawberry shortcake. Our mangos fly in from the tropics along with our bananas and coconuts, and summertime fruit is available most of the year. Just because a person can eat ‘out-of’season’ doesn’t necessarily mean one should…

In Spain, where people still go each morning to the fruit market, the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker, seasonal eating is still a way of life. In fact, eating seasonally is an event many times, and throughout the country festivals are held for the mushroom, the snail (I know, I know…), the squash, the tomato and the onion.

Such is the case right now in Catalonia, Spain, where the green onion has taken center stage. Called Calçots, these long green onions are being served around the countryside and in some city restaurants too, in great numbers. We are now actually at the tail-end of Calçot season, so get them before they are gone. Read More »