They say food is the universal language, but let’s be real—how you say “delicious” might not matter as much as how you chew it. From chopsticks to bread-breaking, food styles around the globe are as diverse as the people who enjoy them. So grab a fork (or don’t, depending on where you’re eating), and let’s take a bite out of the world’s culinary delights.

Asia: Bold Flavors and Chopstick Acrobatics

Food Globe

Check your travel plans here, before you decide!

Asia doesn’t do bland. From the heat of Thai chili to the umami of Japanese miso, this continent knows how to wake up your taste buds. Communal dining is the norm—because nothing says love like fighting over the last dumpling. Mastering chopsticks is a rite of passage, but don’t worry; no one’s judging your forked attempt at eating sushi. (Okay, maybe a little.) If you are in Italy, go to Verona and visit the Japanese Restaurant “Mood”, a great concept and great food!

The Mediterranean: Olive Oil and Eternal Summers

In the Mediterranean, food isn’t just sustenance—it’s a lifestyle. Think fresh produce, grilled meats, and a suspicious amount of olive oil. (Seriously, they put it on everything.) Italians taught us that carbs are love; Greeks showed us how to stuff everything into a vine leaf, and Spaniards introduced tapas—a way to make dinner last six hours.

Africa: Spice, Soul, and Sharing

African Food

African cuisine brings the heat—both in flavor and in its love for communal eating. Whether it’s a Moroccan tagine, Ethiopian injera (flatbread that doubles as cutlery), or Nigerian jollof rice (a dish so iconic it started international debates), this continent proves food is best enjoyed with company. Pro tip: come hungry and bring your hands—they’re often the preferred utensil.

Latin America: Spice, Street Food, and Siestas

Latin America knows how to party, and the food is the VIP guest. From tacos in Mexico to empanadas in Argentina, this is a region where street food reigns supreme. Every dish has a personality—bold, vibrant, and unapologetically spicy. Don’t forget to wash it all down with a good old piña colada or some tequila. Salud!

Europe: Where Elegance Meets Hearty Meals

Europe is the overachiever of food. The French make art with their butter-laden pastries, Italians romanticize pasta, and Germans? They bring you sausage and beer—practicality at its finest. Then there’s the Swiss, who melted cheese and called it dinner (fondue, we love you). Each country has its culinary quirks, and every single one is worth savoring.

North America: Fusion Frenzy and Comfort Food Galore

World Cuisine

North America isn’t so much a cuisine as it is a giant melting pot—literally. Burgers, Tex-Mex, poutine, and bagels are just the tip of the iceberg. Here, portion sizes defy logic, and “fusion food” is practically a genre. Maple syrup is life in Canada, while the U.S. perfected the art of putting bacon on everything.

Street Food: The World’s Snack Bar

There’s no better way to taste a city than through its street food. Whether it’s samosas in India, hot dogs in New York, or takoyaki in Japan, these portable delights prove great things come in small packages (wrapped in grease-stained paper). Bonus: they’re usually cheap, so you can try one of everything.

Fine Dining: When Food Becomes Art

At the other end of the spectrum, we have fine dining, where the plates are small, but the prices are big. Expect foam, edible flowers, and a waiter explaining your dish like it’s the climax of a Shakespearean play. Sure, you might leave hungry, but hey, you’ll get a great Instagram photo.

Comfort Food: Universal Warm Hugs

Every culture has its version of comfort food. The Italians have lasagna, the Japanese have ramen, and the Americans have mac and cheese. It’s the culinary equivalent of a cozy blanket on a cold day—proof that no matter where you are, food is the ultimate source of comfort.

Final Bite

The world is a buffet, and we’re just lucky to be living in it. Whether you’re slurping pho in Vietnam, indulging in gelato in Italy, munching on tacos in Mexico, or cheese fondue in Switzerland, food is a celebration of life. So go out, explore, and don’t be afraid to get a little messy. (Just maybe practice your chopstick skills before heading to Asia.)😆

Your Blogging Friend Ulrich Koepf

trying to hold on to my thoughts, knowing all too well that if I stall, I’ll lose my hold on the situation. What do I need to do again? Oh, yeah, “Nelson, I need a gin martini, straight up with a twist.”

“Do you know what kind of gin?”

“Nah, they didn’t specify.” I know if the boss heard me say that, she would get crazy concerned and upset. But, I also know that Nelson, the bartender, has it under control. I ring up a regular martini on the touch screen computer, knowing that it will cover the cost and profit of whatever concoction he makes. Send. Log out. What now? Oh, yeah. I stick my head in the food window, and the heat assaults my eyes. “Heinz, the guy on table 24 wants his Tilapia cut in half, and then blackened on one half and broiled on the other.”

He gives me a look of irritation instead of complaining & says,” Okay. Does he want anything else? Does he want me to eat it for him too? “no” “Okay.” “Thanks.”

Then Hugo, the busboy,

touches my arm and says, “Table eight wants their check.” “Alright. Thanks.” “Also, is table ten having anything else?” “I don’t know, but table one needs more water.” “I’m on it.” he speeds off before I even have a chance to say thanks.

What now? Oh, yeah, Table 31 needs to place a food order, and table four hasn’t even been set yet. “Leah!” calls Naz,( the boss,) ” Yes ma’am?”

“Are you ok?”

No. I want to scream and make a b-line for the front door, but my reply is automatic a defense against panic. “Yeah, I’m fine.” “Okay.” She replies to walk off, but I ask, “Actually, will you take table four’s drink order?” “Sure,”  She says, “Thanks.” I start to walk out to table 31 but hear, “Hey Leah! Where’s this martini going?” I check my notes. “The guy on table 24…position two.” Nelson speeds off. “My table needs a refill on their coffee,” says the new girl, “ Alright, just grab the pot and pour.” I wipe the sweat off my brow. What am I doing? Oh, yeah. Table 31 needs to place their food order. I walk out of the kitchen and suddenly remember table eight. I back up, go to computer one, and print out their check.

“Leah, your foods up,”

says Shan, the other boss, “Oh, crap.” I start to walk over and I hear Nelson say, “I got it.” Thank god! “Thanks, Nelson!” As I walk out of the kitchen to go to tables eight and 3, Naz walks in and orders the drinks for table four from Nelson. I look back and see he has my plates in his hands, looking at the ticket to figure out who’s having what. “Okay, I’ll do it in just a second. “ I make a mental note of the drink order, dropoff the check with a smile and a thanks to table eight, and got table 31 to take their food order. Thankfully, they are easygoing and order their food just the way it comes. As I walk to computer one, table 27 stops me, “Miss, Miss!”

“Yes Sir?”

“Can we get some extra dressing?”

“Sure.”

Crap.

I completely forgot about this table. Should I change them for the dressing? Yes. Uli would definitely mention it if I didn’t. Okay, to the computer one I go. Crap! The new girl’s on it with Shan. Thank god Shan’s training her instead of me.

As I speed off to computer two, I grab Hug, the busboy, and say, “This is too much for me to handle. I need you to go around and make sure that everyone has what they need.”

His stare turns into recognition, and he’s off again as I barely remember to say, “Thanks!”

I punch in the order for the dressing, and then the food order for table 31. Now what? I go to the kitchen, run the dressing, and got to table four. They haven’t even looked at their menus yet. “Could you give us another five minutes?” says one man.

“Sure.”
I stop by all my other tables and ask, “Is everything alright?” or “Can I get you anything else right now?”

Once again,

I thank God that everyone has pulled through and filled in all the gaps. Everything’s fine, and table eight doesn’t need any change. I go to get one of my smokes, grab Hugo’s attention, and show it to him. He nods and goes out with the other new girl to show her how to re-set a table for new guests and to keep an eye on my tables.

I slip out the back door, light my smoke, and sit down to ease the throbbing in my feet. Three minutes later, I’m back in the kitchen washing my hands. What now?

“Naz, I call-

“Yes?”

“What drinks are table four having?”

“Two white wines, one Cosmopolitan, and a Dewars on the rocks.”

I punch in the drinks, drain my water glass, and go back out onto the floor with a smile.

THE RESTAURANT BUSINESS SURELY IS A VERY UNIQUE TYPE OF BUSINESS!

story by Leah C. Walden-Hurtgen

was invited to dinner with friends and took along a few pictures to show the hostess. “These are very good!” she commented.

“You must have a good camera.”At the end of the evening, the photographer thanked the hostess on the way out and said, “That was really a delicious meal! You must have very good pots.”😁

He started as a traveling salesman at 13, selling soap for his father’s company. He had a series of sales jobs, one of which gave chewing gum as a premium. Customers liked the gum better than the product he was trying to sell, so he soon marketed his gum. Juicy Fruit in 1893, and later that year Wrigley’s Spearmint. An advertising genius, his company became the largest chewing gum manufacturer in the world. Mars, the chocolate bar company, owns Wrigley 100% after Warren Buffet sold his interest in Mars, for Mars to have full control over Wrigley

In Deutsch

im Januar 1932 starb William Wrigley Jr.

Mit 13 Jahren begann er als reisender Verkäufer und verkaufte Seife für die Firma seines Vaters. Er hatte eine Reihe von Verkaufsjobs, von denen einer Kaugummi als Prämie gab. Die Kunden mochten den Kaugummi besser als das Produkt, das er verkaufen wollte, und so vermarktete er bald seinen eigenen Kaugummi. Jucy Fruit im Jahr 1893 und später im selben Jahr Wrigley’s Spearmint. Als Werbegenie wurde sein Unternehmen zum größten Kaugummihersteller der Welt. Mars, die Schokoriegelfirma, besitzt jetzt Wrigley zu 100%, nachdem Warren Buffet sein Interesse an Mars verkauft hat, damit Mars die volle Kontrolle über Wrigley hat.

Fermentation converts the simple sugars in the grains and barley into alcohol. People have been brewing beer for around 6,000 years. It is thought the Sumerians discovered the fermentation process, perhaps when a piece of bread or grain became wet and began to ferment.

The oldest written recipe in the world,

recorded 4,000 years ago in Mesopotamia, is for beer. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates recommended beer as a Greek tranquilizer. Today, the average American or Swiss adult drinks 21.7 to 23 gallons of beer each year. In Switzerland, between registered, unregistered, and private, there are 8000 breweries for a population of 8 million.

Pennsylvania has had more breweries than any other state, including the oldest active brewery in the United States, Yuengling Brewery, in Pottsville. Worldwide, Belgium has the most brands of beer – 400+ – and the Czechs drink the most, an average of more than 42 gallons per adult each yearand then there is a BANANA BEER in Central Africa!

of bananas that grow on bushes that can reach 30 feet in height in one year. (THERE ARE NO BANANA TREES!) In the US alone, 96 percent of all households purchase bananas at least once a month, with an average American eating 28 pounds of bananas each year!

We don’t know the actual per capita consumption, but they make and sell BANANA BEER in Eastern Africa

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In Deutsch

Es gibt 500 Sorten

von Bananen, die auf Büschen wachsen, die in einem Jahr eine Höhe von 30 Fuß erreichen können. (ES GIBT KEINE BANANENBÄUME!) Allein in den USA kaufen 96 Prozent aller Haushalte mindestens einmal im Monat Bananen, wobei ein durchschnittlicher Amerikaner jedes Jahr 28 Pfund Bananen isst!

Wir kennen den tatsächlichen Pro-Kopf-Verbrauch nicht, aber sie produzieren und verkaufen wirklich auch BANANENBIER in Ostafrika

Researchers at the Scripps Clinic of San Diego found that people who at half of a grapefruit or drank a glass of grapefruit juice before every meal lost an average of 3.5 pounds over a three-month period, even though they did not diet or increase their exercise rout

Researchers attribute the loss to enzymes in grapefruit that help reduce insulin levels and encourage weight loss.

But watch out:

grapefruit can interact harmfully with certain medications!

The world, I am sure, will never agree upon the exact origins of the word “bistro!” The most often quoted explanation is that bistro! bistro! is what the Russian solder shouted as they made for the cafes after seizing Paris in 1815. However, since the word really did not enter the French language until 1884, other explanations are more plausible. Some suggest the word comes from “bistrouille” or “bistouille”, which in the north of France refers to a mixture of coffee and eau-de-vie, or to a poor quality eau-de-vie, both drinks one might find in a “Bistro”. Going one step further, we have the verb “bistrouiller”, which refers to the preparation of an ersatz wine made with water, alcohol, and other products, which of course might be passed off as wine in a low-quality “bistro”.

Whatever its origins, everyone agrees that whether it’s a café, a small simple unpretentious restaurant, or simply a place to enjoy a glass of wine and a simple yet hearty sandwich, or burger, a bistro is a place for good times with friends.

Most simply a bistro is a small neighborhood restaurant serving home-style substantial fare for lunch and dinner

The chinaware is almost always thick and plain white,

the tables are covered with sheets of white, crinkle-edged paper, the floor peppered with sawdust. The menu – often an illegible mimeographed sheet encased in clear plastic- is brief and changes infrequently, save perhaps for the ritual plat-du-jour. if this is Tuesday they must be serving crab cakes.

In bistros,

people do not whisper, they shout, and diners are not on a first-name basis with the harried waitress wrapped in a frilly white apron. In bistros, you might not even get to choose what you eat and drink. The “patron”, or owner, may usurp that right. And in bistros, you will often find yourself chatting across tables with perfect strangers, friends, actors, famous personalities sharing their platter of  French fries or paté while you wait for yours to come sizzling from the kitchen at the end of the room.

In days past,

in Paris in particular, the bistro served as an extension of the family room. Apartment kitchens were small (in fact almost nonexistent), and many Parisians took all their meals at their local café-style bistro. In some cases, they even stored their own napkins there.

Bistro cuisine

is French home cooking at its best, which we have adapted to American and Swiss palates by infusing, adding, or changing ingredients according to the availabilities of the local markets. What we love the most about cooking and eating bistro food is its sense of generosity, of wholeness, of copiousness, simply good food, reasonable prices (maybe not anymore!) good portions, and no foofoo or gimmicks!!

Bon Apetit!

your blogging friend Ulrich Koepf

Tanja Grandits ’delightful contribution to International Women’s Day:“ A power bar, feminine, pink and powerful! ”.

Tanja Grandits, 19-point chef at «Stucki» Basel, also makes her own power bar. For your customers in the small “Lädeli”. And for her daughter Emma. “Honey, butter, or oat flakes are always included,” says the boss, “and nuts, dried fruits, and spices are added depending on your mood. Ideal for hiking, at school, or at work. “

THE LATCH FOR WORLD WOMEN’S DAY.

Ringier has successfully launched an initiative: “EqualVoice”. The Goal: More visibility for women in media coverage. Tanja Grandits sits on the Advisory Board and says, “I’m more of a doer than a speaker. So I’m drawing attention to the topic with a new power bar. ” Ingredients: cranberry, amaranth, and hibiscus!

«TABLE SET YOURSELF». From March 8th, there will be a «Frauenpower» bar in her shop, in the webshop, and at www.paketidee.ch. One Swiss franc per bar goes to the “Tischlein deck dich” organization. Baking bars yourself is also a possibility. Tanja reveals her recipe to us below:

ingredients:

70 g almonds

40 g sunflower seeds

150 g honey

120 g butter

125 g oat flakes, coarse

125 g oat flakes, fine

60 g cranberries

40 g amaranth, puffed

1 tbsp hibiscus, ground (9 g)

1/2 teaspoon salt (2 g)

Stucki / Tanja Grandits, Bruderholzallee 42, 4059 Basel – +41 61 361 82 22

Restaurant Stucky, Basel, Switzerland

Preparation

1. Roast the almonds in the oven at 160 degrees for 9 minutes and the sunflower seeds for 7 minutes. Roughly chop the roasted almonds. Reduce the oven temperature to 130 degrees.

2. Briefly heat the honey and butter in a saucepan. Mix all dry ingredients. Stir in the liquid honey-butter mixture and knead everything together well. Spread the mixture 1.5 cm high on a rectangular baking sheet lined with baking paper and press firmly until it is really compact. Bake in the oven at 130 degrees with convection for 35-40 minutes. Press the whole thing again firmly, let it cool down, and cut into bars. They are kept tightly closed for a few weeks.

as quoted by Gault-Millau of Switzerland, March 7th, 2021