A Worldwide Dictionary of Excellence
Simple smoked quail egg with caviar at Burnt Ends in Singapore - a bite of excellence
I have a problem with the word best. It shows up in every travel piece ever written, and it means almost nothing. Best depends on your preferences, your budget, who's at the table, and what kind of day you're having. So this is not a list of bests. This is a Dictionary of Excellence: twenty-six recommendations, A to Z, that I make unabashedly and without hesitation. Some are expensive. Plenty are not. Excellence has never cared about the check. Read all the way to Z. There's a quiz at the end. (There is no quiz.)
A is for Australia's Greatest Restaurant, which is, of course, Saint Peter in Sydney. Chef Josh Niland took an intellectual concept that could have fallen all over itself, cooking every last part of the fish, and turned it into the only restaurant in the country that makes my worldwide top twenty. The fish charcuterie alone justifies the flight. So does the Murray cod fat caramel.
B is for BBQ, and my favorite is in, some of you are going to really dislike this, Singapore. Chef Dave Pynt is another Aussie, and Burnt Ends, his almost impossible to book spot in Dempsey Hill, is as good as the day it opened, if not better. Yes, the steaks and the grilled king crab are legendary. But tell them you want the off-menu small plates. Let them feed you and thank me later.
C is for Cairns, the finest wildlife viewing we know. Crocodiles, cassowaries, tree kangaroos, wallabies, platypus, flying foxes, with the reef just offshore. You want to be in a cabin in the wilderness for this one, and finding the right one is exactly the kind of thing we do. Reach out.
D is for Disfrutar, in Barcelona, where molecular gastronomy did not go to die. It was named the best restaurant in the world on the list of the same name, and it remains in my top five. This is not dinner. It's an event. You have to book a year out. It's worth it.
E is for Eating in Nashville, the most underrated food city in the United States. Locust is my favorite American meal of the past few years, and the city also hosts The Catbird Seat and a trove of accessible gems. Get off the tourist track and get eating.
F is for Fort Ruger Market on O'ahu, home of my favorite spam musubi. The spam is hard-fried in shoyu and the perfect rice is mixed through with furikake. Go before noon and don't buy more than two. If you do, you're being rude, brah.
G is for Garbanzo, as in Falafel's Drive-In in San Jose, California. The falafel. The pink turnip pickles. The gyros. Don't get me started on the banana shakes. Please just find yourself there.
H is for Hole in the Wall, which is exactly what Quimet & Quimet in Barcelona is. My favorite tapas in Spain, and you'll eat them standing. Get there when they open.
I is for Islands, as in the Florida Keys, where the most delicious smoked fish dip in the land is waiting at the appropriately named Fish House in Key Largo. They buy whole fish straight off the local boats and do the smoking on the premises, and you can taste both facts in the dip. They've been at it since the Conch Republic was born.
J is for Jet Lag. Always and only sushi for the first night in Tokyo. It's not scientifically proven to stave off the dread JL, but it should be. Reach out and I'll help you find your counter.
K is for Kadeau, in Copenhagen, or in summer, on Bornholm, where the best smoked salmon in the world sits in the middle of a vegetable and fermentation heavy menu that is nothing short of astounding. You'll reconsider what you thought smoked salmon was.
Vegetable tart with dried tomato, candied pinecone and cured ham at Kadeau in Copenhagen
L is for Lunch, plate lunch, and yes, Rainbow Drive-In on Kapahulu Avenue on O’ahu, my old stomping grounds. If you want to understand what plate lunch is, this is where you go. It was born in Hawai'i's plantation era, when workers from Japan, China, Portugal, Korea, and the Philippines shared food in the sugarcane fields, and it's that history served on a paper plate. Get a mix plate and eat it at the beach.
M is for Mai Tai, and it's a Tai (I couldn't resist) between Huggo's on the Big Island, if only for the atmosphere, and the old classic at the Royal Hawaiian in Waikiki, where the Cherry-Vanilla comes on and off the menu. Order it if it's there.
N is for Nutmeg & Clove, in Singapore, my current favorite creative bar in the world. Lots of bars say their drinks tell a story. Sure they do. A story about being overpriced and murky. Shelley's cocktails each carry their own narrative, and you're going to want to hear a few of them.
O is for Only, as in Friends Only, the small R&D counter from the team behind Akiko's in San Francisco. Two separate rooms in two separate neighborhoods, and both come highly recommended. Excellent fish, wonderful rice, and just enough creativity without being silly. This is the sushi worth eating in California. Go to both.
P is for Poke, and I don't mean the disgusting slop marketed as poke on the Mainland. Suisan in Hilo, on the Big Island, is my favorite in the world, and you're going to want to get yourself there.
Q is for Queer Men's Massage, a category Thailand takes seriously. Wabi-Sabi in Bangkok is wonderful. Completely professional and highly skilled therapists, great facilities, and a darn good bargain.
R is for Resort, and you're going to want to head to Six Senses Yao Noi, off the coast of Phuket. Just named the number one resort in Thailand by Travel + Leisure, and for once, we agree. An incredible value, an incredible team, and a place you won't want to leave.
S is for Sorry, I just can't tell you my favorite sushi-ya in Tokyo. If I told everyone, I wouldn't be able to get in. It's not on any lists. You'll have to get in touch and ask nicely.
T is for Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, the most underrated wine region we know. The Malvasia converts even the committed "I'm really a red wine drinker." No you aren't. You just haven't had the right white.
U is for Underrated Europe, a tie between Slovenia and Lithuania. Two countries still relatively undiscovered, for now. Food, wine, sightseeing, old Europe. Go before everyone else reads this and catches on.
V is for Victoria, Australia, and the Great Ocean Road, the most beautiful drive I know. It takes a lot for me to call scenery breathtaking. This fits the bill and then some.
W is for Weird, which is how naem sounds the first time you hear it, and why you have to eat it in Northern Thailand. A pickled pork sausage that takes the backseat to its flashier cousin, sai ua, and shouldn't. Our very favorite is at Krua Phech Doi Ngam in Chiang Mai, where everything is excellent and the value is amazing.
Michelin recommended Krua Phech Doi Ngam in Chiang Mai, Thailand
X is for Xmas in Tokyo, the unexpected time to go. Festive, amazing, and not bitterly cold. A different and excellent choice.
Y is for Yuan, as in Chuan Mu Yuan, the dumpling shop on Chengde Road in Taipei's Datong District. The beef rolls, the dumplings, the pancakes. The everything. Line up at 10:30 for the first seating, be amazed by the food, then be in disbelief when the bill arrives.
Z is for Zero-Regret, which is how we believe travel should feel. At Jet Lag & Curry we specialize in smart luxury, not overspending. The right hotel, the right table, the splurge that's worth it, and the five-dollar lunch that outshines it. There's only one regret we take seriously: not having gone.
If you'd like help planning travel to Asia, or anywhere else in the world, reach out to us at Jet Lag & Curry. We'll happily build you a dictionary of your own.
