Like a beacon in the sky, Jungle Jim’s is a Foodie’s Paradise!

I’m sure you are like this too. Whenever you travel back home or to a city that you love, you always have a “hitlist” of local spots you have to visit before you leave.   For me, Jungle Jim’s International Market is always on the “list”.  Think about the craziest thing you would ever want to buy….duck feet? a whole pig’s head? the favorite chocolate you ate every day during your study abroad in Europe? Hot sauce called “sphincter shrinker”?  Yep, they have it at Jungle Jim’s.

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Jungle Jim’s is the perfect blend of:

1. Function (they have everything)
2. Quirk (their decorations are eclectic to say the least – check out their website for photos),
3. Adventure (there is a surprise at every corner and you WILL lose track of time exploring the expansive selection)

Our “Mangia Memior”  (what we’ll remember)

To set the scene appropriately, my father and I are both insane.  We go into a trance the moment we walk through the doors.  My mom loves food andloves the adventure, but she is along for the ride.  And poor Anthony…ahh poor Anthony.  He loves to eat, loves to cook and is definitely an adventure seeker, but unfortunately, just had jaw surgery.  This means that he can’t eat for 6 weeks.  My worst nightmare.  But Anthony is a saint and doesn’t even complain.

My dad and I wove through aisle after aisle, while mom and Ant trailed us with the cart.After an initial scattered quest, we aligned on what our “weird” menu item would be -  “cinghiale” (aka wild boar). Cincinnati was kind of chilly and a wild boar ragu would be a nice hearty meal.

To our dismay, the meat department was fresh out of cinghiale.  Said he just sold the last one and was surprised about it.  I guess all the Italians in greater Cincy had a hankerin’ for some wild boar ragu.

No wild boar, no problem.  Guanciale (pork cheek).  We could make a nice Amatriciana instead- a traditional Italian pasta sauce based on guanciale, pecorino cheese and tomato, originating from the town of Amatrice. We also purchased some baby octopus, cerignola and castelvetrano olives and rosemary bread.

For our Amatriciana recipe, click here Recipe for Amatriciana

Top 5 “MUST SEES” at Jungle Jims

1. Visit the Bathroom.  The facade is a Port-a-Potty. Hilarious. Check out this video for a real view.
2. Scope out the Seafood section.  Tons of life fish, whole fish, shellfish. Awesome.
3. Check out the Hot Sauce area.  The names alone, will cure depression.  You will laugh out loud.
4. Look Up. Look Left. Look Right.  Amazing decorations EVERYWHERE.  An Amish carriage.  A bear dressed as a singing Elvis.  A talking Campbell’s soup can.  Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest.  Where do they get this stuff?
5. Check out the produce. Bring your iPhone.  You will see fruits/veggies you’ve never heard of.  Look them up and see how to eat them.

You don’t need a passport to party at a damn good Oktoberfest!

Dust off your lederhosen, empty your stomach and get your alcohol tolerance up.  It’s that time of year…Oktoberfest time!  Sausage, Beer and awesome outfits, here we come!

Oktoberfest Zinzinnati is a tradition that has been going on for ages, and for as long as I remember, we’ve always gone.  The festival in and of itself is pretty amazing.  It’s the largest Oktoberfest outside of Munich, Germany and combines old traditions with some hilarious new favorites.  Check out some of the footage from this year’s Weiner Dog Race, Barrell Rolling, Stein Carrying Contest, Chicken Dance and even Brat Eating Contest with the World Famous, Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, crushing 35 brats in 10 minutes. Yum.  Also, this year, quite a few booths had signs about Travel Channel’s Man vs. Food visiting their restaurants, so we’ll have to be on the lookout for the Cincinnati episodes.

Our “Mangia Memoir” (what we’ll remember)

Our Pitocco family tradition is to meet the whole crew at Schmidt’s booth on Sunday at 11:00am (yes, my family is insane) and kick off the day with a giant “Bahama Mama” (in photo above). It’s a smoked mett with quite a spicy kick to it.  Really cleans out the sinuses and gets ya going for a long day of eating!  Mr. and Mrs. Weber (my husband’s parents) joined us this year and Mr. Weber sported a fantastic Oktoberfest hat with countless number of pins he’s collected over the years.

This is the one day of the year where we Pitocco kids actually acknowledge and embrace our German heritage.  Our mom, Kathy (nee Doerger…nice little German name) frolicks from block to block singing along with the German bands — old favorites like “Roll Out the Barrell” and the song they used to sing to me as a child “She’s Too Fat for Me” (Yes, I was a slightly overweight toddler.  My pediatrician even put me on a pediatric diet. Lardass).

Booth upon booth we gorged ourselves, stopping to chat with folks we haven’t seen in ages,  while watching fellow festival goers devour brats, sauerkraut balls and steins of beer. We even stopped to get our photo taken with little wooden German folk cutouts.

Embracing our German Heritage

One not-so-pleasant, but definitely memorable moment, occurred on our trot back to our car, where we all stood dumbfounded at what we saw -  A  homeless woman (who sadly also had some obvious mental issues as well) lifted up her shirt to expose her belly in order to gain the attention of a homeless man in a wheelchair, then thrusted her pelvis forward and pointed to her lady parts. Yikes!  It’s kind of embarrassing even writing it and believe me, it was even worse in person.

Besides that treachery, Oktoberfest Zinzinnati 2011 was a great.  I’m happy we were in town for it and happy we can spend time with our families, keeping fun traditions alive.  I’m already looking forward to next year!

Items Ordered:

• Bahama Mama mettwurst
• Goetta Sandwich on Rye (Goetta is a German-American breakfast meat comprised of sausage, steel-cut oats and spices.  It is specific to the German-American population of the Greater Cincinnati area)
• Sauerkraut Balls
• Goetta Nachos
• Goetta Mac & Cheese
• Brat with sauerkraut on pretzel bread
• Fried pickles
• Izzy’s Potatoe pancake [MUST EAT]
• Izzy’s Corned Beef & Swiss on Rye Bun [MUST EAT]

The Verdict:

• 5 stars overall
• FOOD: I’m  not complaining, because everything was pretty darn delicious.  I do find myself gravitating to the more traditional Oktoberfest items like brats, metts, sauerkraut, potato pancakes and ruebens/corned beef.  The new twists on old favorites like Goetta nachos and Goetta Mac & Cheese are great to try, but my heart belongs to the traditional fare.
• SERVICE: all of the vendors are in the Oktoberfest spirit, cordial and super helpful if you don’t know what something is.
• AMBIANCE: this is reason enough to go even if you don’t like German food. Great tradition, fun music and awesome people watching.  Friday and Saturday are more of the party days, with huge crowds and tons of debauchery.  Sunday is a little more tamed (at least in the AM), so great for families or folks looking to really sample the food without getting trampled by drunken bafoons.

If you like Pho, it’s a place to go.  Not the best in the world, but a go-to for Miami.

Restaurant: Miss Saigon, Coral Gables

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Items Ordered:

• Bo La Lot – Beef wraps
• Pho Dac Biet (includes the thin beef, meatballs and  all the “nasty bits” like tripe, tendon and other delectables)

The Verdict:

• 3-4 stars
• FOOD: Flavorful, well-prepared
• SERVICE: average
• AMBIANCE:  Above average. Smaller-sized (15ish tables), but clean, with stereotypical Vietnamese decor.

Our “Mangia Memoir” (what we’ll remember)

• I took the trek to the Gables with Kelvin, my Vietnamese friend, who happens to crave Pho on a weekly basis.  He has been on the “hunt” for the best place to get Pho in Miami, which has been a bit of a challenge to say the least.  I have (not so hesitantly, I might add) agreed to be his wingman (er, woman) on this quest.  Honestly, there are not a ton of options, especially when you come from a more diverse city, like Chicago, as he does. It seems that every place Americanizes the deliciousness and you have to specifically ask the waiter/waitress to beg the chef to prepare it in the authentic Vietnamese style. Miss Saigon was no exception here.  I get it…restaurants have to cater to their audience, but I wish there was a way to get the masses to really enjoy food the way it was MEANT to be enjoyed, not a dumbed down version because of silly Americans.
• The waiter was our entertainment for the evening.  Kelvin ordered the appetizer and the waiter said, “do you know how that comes out? You do, oh ok, because you have to wrap them yourself, you know?”  As if my little Vietnamese amigo didn’t know that — Psha.  My favorite was when we ordered 2 bowls of Pho and he said “You know how big those are, right? You want 2?  You do?! Ok.” And when Kelvin asked for it “Vietnamese style”, the guy said “Yea, we can do it.  With all the fatty stuff, right?”  If I wasn’t a culinary adventure seeker, without an immediate care for my waistline, I probably would have passed on the “fatty stuff” because he really failed in making it sound even remotely appetizing.