Oak Grover neighborhood restaurant, Sprig Atlanta gets my vote for delicious food with a sense of purpose. During all my travels, I look out for restaurant that have a unique concept or differentiate themselves in some way or the other. With a strong emphasis on nutrition and sustainability, many of them are using locally sourced and farm to table […]

A sold out event for breast cancer awareness and the love of all Atlanta foodies, the Atlanta Chef Expo hit the high note in it’s very first year. Located at the Foundry at Puritan Mill, the exhibit hall was bustling with restaurant chefs, caterers and bakers. The sweet and smoky smells attracted visitors from all […]

Eric Villain and Steve McCandless, chief owners of Bistrot le Clocher Penché in Quebec City say “We are constantly working to provide a table that reflects the human qualities inspired by our craftsmen suppliers: rigor, simplicity, generosity and love of the profession. This desire to pass through exquisite food and unpretentious values ​​we hold dear defines the […]

Overlooking the St Lawrence River and Dufferin Terrace, in the heart of Quebec City, Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac is a landmark of elegance and history. The hotel was built in 1893 to promote luxury tourism and named after Louis de Buade, count of Frontenac. Having dinner at one of the Chateau’s restaurant, La Cafe de la […]

Join me at the the first ever Atlanta Chef Expo 2012 on Sunday, February 19 at The Foundry at Puritan Mill. It is going to be one big food village where local chefs will demonstrate and serve their favorite recipes to the public. Just as a well designer village is broken into avenues, the expo has […]

What do you do when you have guests coming over, the big game is starting and you are left with only a few minutes to prepare something? Here is my two-minute recipe for a really delicious and healthy finger food. It’s perfect for gathering, big or small. Salmon-Avocado bites (makes 15 pieces) 1 box Athens […]

My dear friend Gina wrote on her blog today to just get out there and do it because “none of us is guaranteed a next time.” That made me think about my own philosophy of life. I hardly ever talk about religion publicly, but here’s my story. My great-grand mother was a Hindu, she converted to Christianity […]

On a crisp Sunday morning, Atlantans wait in line at the Atlantic Station so they can go inside the former Pier 1 showroom and taste creations by local food artisans. It’s $5 fee to get in and then you pay $2-5 per sample. Atlanta Underground Market (AUM) is based upon the same concept of San Francisco’s […]

Rev. Jessy Togbadoya is from a village in Liberia called Balama. He was the first individual from his village to receive an education. He now lives in Atlanta and runs a non profit organization called Balama Development Alliance (BDA). His mission through BDA is to enable transformational development by investing in the dreams of the […]

This past weekend I taught a cooking class on how to make hearty soups and salads that can be eaten as full meals. They are nutritious, filling and make wholesome entrees. Out of all the dishes we prepared, the class unanimously voted for the Brazilian shrimp soup as the most delicious and their favorite. I […]

Since there was no way I was going to even try to climb up Mount Everest, or even Base Camp, I decided to take the easy way out. Several airlines offer mountain flights that take you over Everest and other mountains in the Himalayas. In one and a half hours, you get up close to […]

Did you know that the name hamburger originally derives from Hamburg, Germany‘s second largest city, from where many people emigrated to the United States? In High German, Burg means fortified settlement or fortified refuge; and is a widespread component of place names. Originally what started out in the 15th century as a piece of meat between two slices of bread, has now taken […]

I first tasted pirogi (perogie) when I was on a volunteer vacation in Russia couple of years ago. The lady who cooked for us at the volunteer home in Yaroslavl made this authentic Russian bread stuffed with mushrooms. Being a fan of both breads and mushrooms, this was one of my favorite dishes in Russian […]

Recently I came across the book “Unquenchable – A Tipsy Quest for the World’s Best Bargain Wines” by Natalie MacLean. I feel like what I want to do with voluntourism, MacLean has done it with wine. I am not a fan of reading wine guides for entertainment purposes, but this book turned out to be […]

Yesterday, my friend Michael treated me to an amazing lunch at Morimoto, located at the Chelsea Market in New York City.  It is owned by Masaharu Morimoto, best known as the third Iron Chef on the Japanese TV cooking show Iron Chef, and an Iron Chef on its spinoff, Iron Chef America. Morimoto is known for upscale Japanese fusion […]

Last week a delegation from Russia came to Atlanta to discuss social issues and healthcare through the Open World Leadership Program. The six delegates were hosted with families who have opened up their homes by being members of the Georgia Council of International Visitors (GCIV). Mariya Yuryevna Solodunova, a young lady from St Petersburg was […]

India and Nepal are two neighboring countries that have a lot of similarities and a few differences. Often times you would hear the phrase “same same but different” in reference to contrasting the two. My own personal experience aligns quite well with this. Like India, women in Nepal wear salwaar kameez and saris, adorned with […]

My perception of Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal was quite different than the reality. I had envisioned a metropolitan city, neatly maintaining the balance between the old and new, cobblestone pathways leading to the Hindu temples and Buddhist stupas where peace and fresh air fills into your lungs, streets of restaurants and bars where hippies, […]

My friend and food blogger Lakshmi Jagad came up with this brilliant idea of sharing her five memorable meals ever eaten: It could be anything that makes the meal memorable – the food, the place, the place you were in your life when you ate, the company, the weather, the ambience – heck, the guy […]

This holiday season consider giving the gift of learning. Books For Africa is a non profit with a mission to end the book famine in Africa. They want to create a culture of literacy and provide the tools of empowerment to the next generation of parents, teachers, and leaders in Africa.  Since 1988, Books For Africa has […]