Mexico City

Lunch On the Go in Mexico City

The vendor at this hole in the wall in Mexico City is selling tacos de canasta, cheap and filling tacos that are steamed inside a basket (hence the name, ‘canasta’ means ‘basket’), to customers. They make a quick and delicious lunch.

Mexico City

Refreshing Aguas Frescas in Xochimilco

An aguas frescas vendor in the Xochimilco market stands at the ready behind his offerings: there were over a dozen different flavors on the day we visited. He served us an incredible lemonade with chia seeds, a very traditional (and delicious) pairing.

Queens

Eating 'Round the World in Queens

This Ecuadorian bakery is just one of the many stops on the multinational melange that is our Queens walk, where the flavors of the world can be sampled in one borough. 

Mexico City

Keeping Xochimilco’s historic and world-renowned agricultural system afloat

On our Xochimilco culinary excursion in Meixco City, we learn about the chinampas, and how chinamperos are dedicated to keeping Xochimilco’s historic and world-renowned agricultural system afloat.

Mexico City

A Table Full of Mexican Sweet Breads

A customer loads up a tray of traditional Mexican “Pan Dulce” at Pasteleria Ideal, a classic bakery in the heart of Mexico City’s Centro Historico.

Queens

Getting “Taco Literate” In Queens

To crudely paraphrase Freud, sometimes a taco is not just a taco. That would certainly seem to be the view held by Steven Alvarez, an Assistant Professor of English at St. Johns University in Queens, New York. First at the University of Kentucky, where he previously taught, and now at St. John’s, Alvarez has been leading a course called “Taco Literacy,” which uses the humble Mexican dish as a way of exploring and unpacking such heavyweight issues as immigration, bilingualism, assimilation and acculturation. It’s a lot to pile on top of a tortilla, but as Alvarez sees it, food speaks – often times in two or more languages – and it can be “read.” Listening closely to what food has to say, Alvarez explains, inevitably leads to hearing the stories of the people making the food.

Mexico City

A Colorful First Impression in Mexico City

Beans have long played an important part of the daily diet in Mexico City. The variety of beans found in any Mexico City market ranges from the basics (negro, tan bayo, purplish flor de mayo and flor de junio) to more unusual varieties, brought in from all over the country. We spotted these big purple beauties – Ayocote Morado beans – on our Xochimilco walk.

Queens

Dead Heads in Corona, Queens

On our culinary walk in Queens, we spotted some skulls made of sugar and marzipan that will be used as offerings for Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos), which officially starts on October 31.

Barcelona

Barcelona's Best Catch

Our Blessed by the Mediterranean walk--which explores Barcelona's seaside neighborhoods--passes through markets like these that offer the best, freshest seafood in the city 

Queens

Handmade Tortillas in the United Kitchens of Queens

Throughout our tour of the Corona and Elmhurst neighborhoods of Queens, we explore a zone that we like to call the United Kitchens, given the heavy presence of immigrants from all over the world and their flagship flavors. Tasting homemade tortillas from a Mexican bakery is just the beginning on a global journey including Tibet, Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina. Passport not necessary. 

Queens

Queens: A Street Food Paradise

On our culinary walk in the borough, you'll quickly realize that Queens is not just a paradise for different ethnic cuisine but also for street food! Approach with an empty stomach.

Istanbul

Workingman's Eats: Istanbul's Top 6 Esnaf Lokantaları

The esnaf lokantası is Turkey's gift to the working man and woman. While in many parts of the world, lunch during the work week means eating an uninspiring sandwich or salad inside a lonely cubicle at the office, workers in Turkey have the esnaf lokantası ("tradesman's restaurant" in Turkish). Outfitted with a steam table that usually holds dozens of ready-made and utterly homey dishes, it is much more than simply a canteen. In reality, it is the place that keeps a hungry nation going. We've rounded up six of our favorite esnaf lokantaları in Istanbul.

Everyone Is Welcome Here

The ill anti-immigrant and -refugee wind blowing out of the White House in Washington, DC, does not represent the America we know, nor does it speak to our experience exploring the world’s culinary backstreets. The cities and countries where we work – the United States included – have always been havens for those looking for a better, safer place. All have come with their food, making their new home a truly better place for us all and becoming an indispensible part of its fabric in the process. When the government goes low, we go in search of more stories of immigrants and refugees who have left a culinary mark on their adopted land and whose tales have always been essential elements in what we do here at CB. In their honor, this week we are running some of our favorites of these kinds of stories from the CB archive (like that of Mr. Tomasian, pictured above, an Armenian kebab maker in Athens).

Edible Visuals: Creating CB's City Icons

Editor's Note: We’ve worked together with Brooklyn-based graphic designer Jeff Yas to create distinctive icons for all the cities we work in. We recently spoke with Jeff about the creative process behind creating these edible visuals:

Tbilisi

Fowl Play in Tbilisi's Central Bazaar

The chickens aren't dead, they're just cooling off, upside down in this bazaar in Tbilisi.

Istanbul

In Istanbul, Making the Case for a Slow Fish Movement

Situated on a geographically blessed spot where the waters of the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara meet, Istanbul has long been associated with fishing and, especially, the eating of fish. In culinary terms, after all, is there anything more iconic in Istanbul than eating a freshly grilled fish sandwich sold from one of the bobbing boats down by the Golden Horn?

Barcelona

Meet Barcelona's "Foodie Detective"

Through the Daily Beast, we’ve just been introduced to the literary character Pepe Carvalho, Barcelona’s “gastronome private eye.