Best of 2012 - Food

Since Los Tacos de Huicho in Bakersfield is still the best place we know of, we're going to make them ineligible for the "Best of" honors here at The World on Wheels and let them become the first member of our Hall of Fame.  Yes. They are that good. Make it a point to stop there whenever you're in Bakersfield.

Moving on, we had plenty of other food highlights this year.  Best overall restaurant we went to would have to be the wonderful restaurant my friend Peter Francis Battaglia recommended to me, Cafe Benelux in the great city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Anchoring the Third Ward, across the street from the Milwaukee Public Market, this meshing of European low-country inspired dishes, served with a literal bible of great beers, made us want to come back again and again.  Just not enough time in this world to fully explore their menus and deli but we'll certainly try. Favorite dish...the Pannenkoeken.

I love a good burger and the best burger I've ever had is right here at home. It's not cheap at $16, with $1 extra for bacon or cheese, but it is supremely delicious and comes with multi-million dollar views.

The Nelson's Burger, named after the restaurant that serves it, is a big 1/3 pound patty topped with arugula, red onions, black bean mayo, and sweet pickle chips. It's all served with fries.  I also like to add bacon and bleu cheese, which brings the price up to $18 but it's such a good burger and I'm eating it outdoors, next to a warm firepit, on top of a cliff looking out over the Pacific Ocean. Doesn't get any better than this.

Almost as good but at just a little over half the price are the burgers at Eureka! with around a half dozen locations around California. Our local location is in Claremont and the burgers are nothing short of fantastic. My favorite is the one pictured above, the Cowboy Burger served with onion straws, bacon, and an in-house made beer barbecue sauce - priced at $10.95. They also have an extensive selection of locally sourced microbrews on tap.

The best pizza continues to be Joey's Red Devil in La Verne, California. It's so good, we put it on the cover of our book, Golden State Eating: Nine Tales of California Food Destinations. Come on by and let the Monaco family show you how good it can be...don't forget to ask for the secret Roland's Sauce too.

Let's finish up with dessert...also in Claremont is Crepes de Paris, next door to the previously mentioned Eureka!, which makes the best crepes I've had. My favorite is the Dulce de Leche beauty, pictured above, soaked with warm caramel with some Chantilly cream on the side.

Darryl
Copyright 2012 - Darryl Musick
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