Spain & Portugal Trip: Belcanto

I don't know if it was the best part of the trip, but one of the main highlights was the two different world-class tasting menu meals we had, first at Belcanto in Lisbon and then Azurmendi, outside of Bilbao. These meals were well timed, coming on the first day we were in our full group of five, and the last day of that group as well. I want to talk about each because they were both fantastic, and also my first taste of proper European fine dining (quick shout out to iPupi in Sicily, which is excellent also).

There is a World's Top 50 Restaurants list that is fairly well established and while there are of course politics around holds some weight. Both of these two restaurants are on that list, with Belcanto at #42 (highest in Portugal), and Azurmendi at #14 - somehow just the third highest ranked restaurant in the Basque region. We were waitlisted at one of the higher ones - Asador Extebarri - and the other - Mugaritz - was not all that well reviewed. Aside from that Top-50 list is of course Michelin Stars, an even more politically mixed list - but for that Belcanto has two (the first 2-star restaurant in Portugal) and Azurmendi has three. Anyway, let's get to talking about the meals.

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Belcanto is just fancy. It's proper, it's white table clothes (was the softest white cloth I've ever touched). it's named for an opera as it is a block away from the main opera house in Lisbon. There is a regal-ness to Belcanto which stays consistent with quite a few of their dishes, including maybe the most known named 'The Garden of the Goose that laid the Golden Egg.' But more on that dish in a minute.

The night started with a specialty whiskey-sour esque cocktail made with a Portuguese liquor. We were told to drink it in one sip, which we all happily obliged.

The first few courses were all served at once, a series of small bites each tastier than the last. The themes, if any, were seafood (which of course, it's Portugal!) and decadence. Up first

1.) Brioche with cod liver, which was so soft, so interesting, and so well presented with the little flowers on top. It was so soft it crumbled in my hand - not a bad thing in this case.

2.) The 'golden sphere' of foie gras and port, which is an incredible combination of things - this one looked better than it tasted mainly because it looked ridiculous, like a giant golden marble. This was a truly stunning little bite.

3.) Braised sardines with roasted foam of eggplant and peppers which was incredible. Portugal is known for its sardines and these were just perfectly, lightly cooked.

4.) The squid taco with chicken skin - this might have been the one slightly off dish of the small bites, mainly because it was a bit too crumbly. Still really tasty however

5.) Oyster of tuna belly and 'borage', which was just insanely good. How can you make an oyster better in a fine dining restaurant? Add tuna tartere and a little 'pearl'.

6.) Carrot three ways, with a chestnut sauce and dill - a lot more interesting than my famed (in my house, at least) carrot three ways a year back. This dish was made for me by the weirdly good taste of the chestnut sauce.

7.) The bread and butter course, whcih might have been the highlight due to the butters (the black one) which was infused with smoked rosemary which tasted insanely good. The chorizo infused butter (the red one) was one of the sole disappointments, mostly because we expected more.

8.) This was an interesting dish, with chilled Portuguese shore prawns in a pine nut cream. I'm not sure if this was the intention, but once again the sauce was the best part, as the weird pine nut cream was just so oddly interesting.

9.) This was the 'garden of the goose.....' dish, which is just 'oh my god.' It's basically a lightly cooked egg, with mushroom crumble. I have no idea how he does this, I have no idea why it works. But man was this a show-stopper.

10.) Seabass with avocado scales which looked amazing, though as someone who isn't an avocado person this was probably my least favorite dish of the night.

11.) Roasted squad with hazelnut sauce and a mushroom and truffle nata - which is just ludicrous. The squab was perfect, but that mushroom and truffle pastel de nata was just about the best thing I've had in the meal - so uniquely Portugeuse and so great.

12.) I'm usually not one for the deserts at tasting menus - even at Gaggan, probably my favorite meal, the deserts were a bit "take it or leave it". At Belcanto they were great, starting with a weird 'chocolate' dish which had a squid ink base. The best part was how black it made all of our teeth.

13.) The final dish was a sweet egg cream inside of a fake edible egg-shell, again another just ingenious, simple, tasty desert. 

Overall, Belcanto was a great meal, if not for the one to come would've easily been the highlight of the meal. There are two tasting menu options there, the 'classic' menu which is what we got, and the 'experimental' one. Truly I do wish I had a chance to eat both, but I'm happy I went with, and got to fully experience, Chef Jose Avillez's classics.

Next up - Azurmendi, which has a shot at being my favorite meal to date

A to Z of my Spain/Portugal Trip, Pt. 2

N is for Natas

I don’t know why I never really tried Pasteis de Natas before, or more worryingly if I did try them and didn’t like them. For that reason I kind of expected not to like them this time around as well, but that first bite into a Pastel de Nata in Lisbon’s TimeOut Market and I was hooked. I didn’t get to try them at the place maybe most famous for Natas in Lisbon – Pasteis de Belem, but that is one thing of quite a few on my list for next time. We had them at TimeOut Market which were great, but really after sampling random ones in coffee store/bakeries and even grabbing a couple in Lisbon airport on our way out, I can confidently say that it is very hard to find a bad Nata in Lisbon and the good ones are otherworldly, especially with the light sprinkle of cinnamon on top. Food too often defines a city for me but it’s rarely one specific food. There were other great things I ate in Lisbon, but the Nata will define it.

 

O is for Open Squares

Other than maybe second to closed pedestrian alleys, nothing speaks to being more European to me than the open squares that are in every big city – and as I learned in this trip even smaller cities. The Plaza Mayor or Puerta del Sol in Madrid is known, and I had been there before, but the main square of Granada was charming. The one in Seville was sprawling (both the actual one and the ‘cool’ one which was littered with bars and restaurants on every side). There were many inside of San Sebastian’s old town and a couple within Bilbao’s. There’s also the great different types, either the large one with a statue in the middle, tons of people milling about and restaurants serving tapas/pintxos on every side, or smaller ones that also have statues in the middle, lesser numbers of people milling about, and maybe a few interesting spots on the alleys. All in all, Europe has some amazing squares, Spain is absolutely a leader in this capacity, and more than maybe anything else about it, this is what the US should adapt.

 

P is for Pintxos

Pintxos, the Basque form of Tapas, was our mainstay food in the region outside of going to Azurmendi. We didn’t get true ‘Pintxos’ until Lunch on our second day in San Sebastian, with three of us needing some time to kill while the other two were getting haircuts. We found a couple Pintxos spots, pointed to pieces of bread covered with various toppings, asked “Que es?” many times and ordered what we thought would be god. We were more often than not right. My favorites were the ones combining multiple elements, like some interesting greens (e.g. friend onions) over a slice of jamon, with a strip of anchovy on top or something to that effect. We had traditional pintxos again for dinner that night when we needed to find a place last minute to escapte torrential rain in the heart of old town. We had it a few other times throughout there and Bilbao as well – never getting old of each places spin on traditional pintxos. I really could eat these for lunch and dinner for a week straight – with the stout, short glass of cerveza – or at least could if not for the heavy bread count!

 

Q is for Quality Time

Honestly, the best part of the trip was the time spent with friends, both with ones I see often though in the confines of New Jersey, to those that moved away over time and we got to see in more meaningful ways than we have since nearly the old pre-pandmenic world. We’ve done these group trips since 2014 when we took a cruise (that was the same five of us, plus four others), and then done further ones in Denver (6 of us), Peru (3), The Balkans (7), Italy (6), San Diego (6) and now this. This trip was probably the most complex, definitely the most finely planned, and ended up without a hitch but with a bunch of great memories just chilling in AirBNBs, or meandering down streets and so much else. Sure, it’s a different type of vacation than I normally do – even this planned one was far less planned then the ones I take solo. But in the end, we got to see great places but mostly got to restock the reserves of insides jokes, laughs and great times.

 

R is for Roaming Streets

This wasn’t necessarily a trip about museums and grand churches, though we did a few of those. What it was most was a trip to roam around street to street, alley to alley and just ‘live’ these cities. The best ones for this were Lisbon, where we did it by tuk-tuk but largely the same, or Sevilla where we got in a bit late so could only do one site (the great Alcazar) and walked from one end of the main part of the town to the other. We did the same the last day in Madrid, my favorite city which held strong to that designation by just wandering around and seeing the grandeur of Passeo del Prado and the smaller streets off of it. Even Barcelona we did a lot of wandering, especially after its forced 12:30am curfew, where we were joined by hundreds of other youngsters still wandering around. My favorite though was probably in Granada, each day after their curfew of 1am we took beers to go from the local craft beer bar, one to drink on the 20-min walk back through the town, past small alleys, its main square and main street befixed with ‘rubiks-cube’ esqued streetlamps. You can get lost so easily in this city and there truly may not be a better way to experience them.

 

S is for Sintra

Sintra was the only ‘day-trip’ that we did in the more literal sense, taking most of our middle day in Lisbon. I was told both by one friend in the group who had been there when he went to Lisbon in 2017, and my parents, that Sintra is a great little town. It was definitely that. What I didn’t realize is how picturesque it really is. I had long seen photos of its multi-colored palace/fortress at its apex without realizing it’s from Sintra so that was definitely a nice suprirse. What was more of a surprise is their town built into the cliff, with its own little open square, and National Palace worth visiting with incredible views in every direction, along with great rooms – my favorite being one with different blue-tile murals in every direction and ceiling. We had limited time in Lisbon – limited time everywhere to be honest given the pacing of the trip – but giving up one of our days there for Sintra was absolutely worth it.

 

T is for Tourism

I’ve written a few times about how much losing being able to travel, and also a few pieces about my first forays back, trips to Arizona and Colorado earlier this year. Well, thisis a new first as well – the first time going out of the country. I used to go out of the country weekly right before the pandemic started, granted to Canada, but still that feeling of being somewhere else was a constant part of life. From a truly vacation aspect, my last trip away from the US was to Cape Town for President’s Day Weekend in 2020. It felt so good the first time I got a new passport stamp since that Cape Town trip, the first time having to deal with customs, deal with drawing different money than my own, trying to converse in Spanish or speak English with a portugeuse accent. All of it was not new, but novel having not done it for 19 months. This was just a great trip from that aspect. More ‘foreign’ destinations that I used to hold reserve for these 2-week trips (e.g. Israel, Egypt, Africa, Vietnam, etc.) are unable to be visted at this point so we focused on friendly Europe, and it was just a blast to be back for a lengthy visit. b

 

U is for Unexpected Visitors

I said earlier this trip was a group of three for Barcelona, Granada and Sevilla, and then five for the remainder. This is factually true, but unexpectedly and amazing not true in heart. One of this group’s other members moved at the start of the pandemic to Barcelona. We always joked how we would never see him again (he was in California prior to Spain, we already started seeing him just 1-2x/year). Well, that wasn’t why we went to Barcelona but we ended up getting to spend a bunch of time with him, meeting him for dinner both nights, and going to his and his girlfriend’s place on the third day – choosing that bit of extra time with our ‘long lost’ (in a way) close friend than see another museum or palace or something. Like you would expect little of the time was spent drilling into his ‘new’ life Spain, but rather to reminisce about our shared years together, joke around and act as if he was a sixth member of the trip. It was just a great joy that added to an already great trip itinerary.

 

V is for Views

If I was trying to be as accurate as possible, this should probably be ‘Miradors’ or ‘Miradouros’ but in each case of the word it comes back to the amazing views. The one advantage of so many cities we visited being built on or immediately below hills is that they lend itself to amazing views. The best were probably on some of the main hills of Lisbon, with the water and tiled roofs in every direction. Bilbao had some great ones from actually very near our AirBNB. There were great views on San Sebastian from the top of Mount Urguell (probably even better ones from the other Mount that we didn’t do). And of course of Barcelona from Parc Guell. These cities are so beautiful from up high, with the terracotta tiled roofs, the greenery, the water, all of it was great. On our last night in Lisbon, our AirBNB in Bairro Alto is a block in from a viewpoint that gives you a slight glimpse of the sea, it was such a gorgeous view even in night we spent much of our last night there just passing a couple Super Bock beers between us – we were not alone as this seemed to be a possible common late night spot for many groups of young locals. In the end the views are important but always best captured as memories, never looking as good in person as they do in person in the moment.

 

W is for Wine (& Port)

We were never really a wine drinking group, and I wouldn’t say we are becoming one, but with age does bring about a bit more interest in the stuff. We often shared a bottle instead of a round of cervezas at dinner, or got the house wine during tapas. I’m definitely no winophile at this point, but maybe I can see a future of it. What I definitely can see a future in is port. The one request from my parents in terms of a gift from the trip was a bottle of tawny port from Portugal. We weren’t going to Porto (will happen at some point after this!) but I did go down to the Taylor showroom to taste a couple glasses and man was port incredible. This wasn’t even a fancy variety for them – their standard 10year aged Tawny port. So perfectly sweet and easy to drink. I’m definitely not a wine guy, but I may be a port guy, and if this is the stepping stone that does it so be it.

 

X is for X’s in Basque

I always never have a good idea for an X, especially if there’s not an easy answer. I’ll go with the fact that the letter ‘x’ along with a few others, is so present in the strange language that is Basque. From what I gather, there’s no real known starting point for where the language came about – there’s no set connection to any other European language. When we looked at menus with Basque & Spanish written it was hilarious how different they were. All in all, I’m not even sure if I ever heard anyone speak Basque, as it sure seemed like the default language of conversation, both when being spoken to and overhearing others, was standard Castillian Spanish. That said, Basque is first on signs and roads and menus and everything else, the absurdity of the number of ‘X’s and ‘K’s and so many others will never not be funny and humorous to me.

 

Y is for Y Class

In Airline parlance 'Y Class' means 'Business Class', and I was fortunate enough to take it on the initial flight of the trip from Newark to Barcelona. I was not lucky, I used my hard earned upgrade points that are set to expire in December after United is seemingly not going to follow Delta's lead and let status get extended another 12 months. Anyway, due to a late equipment switch I got to ride in United's Polaris stylized cabin, which was great. If anything, it was cozy enough I was almost unnerved - I guess more seasoned business class traveler would have no such issues sleeping flat on a sky bus moving 500mph. The food is still lacking, mostly due to pandemic limitations (or at least that's the excuse the US airlines are using), but the seat, the Saks bedding, all of it was a great way to start the trip.

 

Z is for Zero Regrets

This is a common ‘Z’ for me – similar issue here as with the ‘X’. In this case, I mean it as well because it was such a new trip – the first time traveling during a pandemic. The first itme facing those protocols and curfews. It definitely impacted this trip but in the end didn’t impact the fun. Cities forced curfews at times between 12:30 – 2am (either way well before their pre-pandemic operating levels), but we were able to keep the fun going in our AirBNBs. We all had to take at least two if not three covid tests during the course of the trip, and all results came back negative. This was not a normal trip – it was the longest we had done together (at least for the three of us that spend the full two weeks). It was the one with the most flights and changes to city and place. It was done with a good deal of planning, but also a lot left unknown, and in the end it all worked. It always does. Sure, there’s a few things left on the cutting room floor in terms of sights not seen or restuarants not eaten at, but in the end the trip accomplished its goals: two weeks of bliss away from laptops, emails, at times even English, and just fun in a world in its current form seemed built to limit it.

  

A to Z of my Spain/Portugal Trip, Pt. 1

Earlier this morning I finally returned from a two week trip to Spain and Portugal. It mirrored in some ways a trip I took 20 years ago with family. Due to that trip, and a couple other short jaunts to Spain over the years, most of this trip was a repeat in a sense. The itinerary was 2-3 days in Barcelona, 1-2 days in Granada and Sevilla each, 3 days in Lisbon, 1-2 days in San Sebastian and Bilbao and a day in Madrid. It was a great trip, the first time leaving the country since the pandemic started. It was also with first two and then four other friends. It was busy and fun enough I didn't open a laptop once - but I still feel some need to talk about it in this forum as I do for most trips, so I'm pulling out the old A to Z routine that I've done before. Here's part one - the As to Ms.

A is for Alhambra

The Alhambra was the main piece of traditional ‘Tourism’ on the trip and an interesting one for me. I was lucky enough to see a lot of Western Europe between the ages of 8-10 back, including the Alhambra in 2001. Outside of a few small hazy memories, I had forgotten most of it. On a second first trip, I was as astounded as I probably should’ve been in 2001. Back then I definitely didn’t appreciate it for how beautiful it is, how intricate the carvings on the columns and walls are, how sprawling and well manicured the gardens were. The Alhambra is a place you can just get lost in – had we had done the audioguide we probably would’ve stayed 5-6 hours instead of the three hours we did. So many great photos of the views, the grounds, the artwork, the small fountains littering nearly every room – all of it so well maintained. Revisiting, reliving and experiencing the Alhambra was a central focus of the first week of the trip for me, and it lived up to it across the board.

 

B is for Basque Country

I had been previously to each city we visited on this trip aside from my time in the Basque country. Some of these visits were long enough ago that for me it was seeing it for the first time (e.g. Granada & Sevilla – only saw before in 2001), but the Basque region was purely uncharted territory. And how I loved how different it was. I took a window seat on the flight from Lisbon to Bilbao, and was astounded by the lush greenery and rolling hills on our descent. Same with the high cliffs on the coast, the hilly nature of the cities, and of course how they were still able to tuck that little but of European glory with the squares and small alleys and the like. Basque country was unique in many ways, from the great food to the language, but even in the ways it is similar to more well known parts of Spain, the unfamiliar remained exciting.

 

C is for Cervezas

By and large, we’re a beer-imbibing group, though there are some other beverages to come. That said, we got really good at ordering ‘cinco cervezas’ (or ‘tres’ for the first part of the trip), which were almost always brought in these short, squat cups, ice cold and beautiful. Even as a beer snob that I am, I could get down and enjoy whatever specific version of Spain’s many generalized beers, from Mahou to Estrella Galicia to San Miguel to even some newer ones in the Basque region like Rioja. Honestly, the part that will last with me is the cups. It’s hard to describe the simple beauty of those cylindrical cups that were omnispresent throughout the trip. I really shouldn’t stolen one of them – or at the very least see if I could have bought them somewhere.

 

D is for Driving

I’ve always been the group’s driver, mostly because I love driving but also I used to have a van which allowed me to transport most if not all of our group. I’ve remained the main driver and finally got to flex my musvles a bit in Europe. That said, what I quickly (re)learned is how different an animal driving in Europe is. Luckily, Spain is a drive-on-the-right country (still haven’t driven myself in a drive-on-the-left), and automatic cars are far more prevalent now, but still it was wild being passed when cruising at the equivalent of 80mph. The standard of speed there is just a different animal – it forces you a bit to get better, but I’ll never be able to handle the slight turns on what are nominally highways at the speeds European’s do. I’ll go away just being pleased I mostly survived this ordeal.

 

E is for Eating

Aside from sightseeing and things like that, there are two mainstays in the way plan and experience trips: eating and drinking/nightlife. Various curfews and protocols from Covid still largely impact the second of those (ranging from Barcelona’s strict 12:30 curfew, the rest of Spain’s less strict 1am, and Lisbon’s fairly normal 2am). Well because of that eating took an even larger importance. Theere were the two fancy meals (to be discussed with a separate letter), and the quick ones (also separate letter), but this is a call out to the brilliance of Europe’s eating options but also the style. The leisurely pace – too leisurely in some cases – that they serve and never ask if you’re done and need the check. From the food markets, both the overtly structured (Lisbon TimeOut Market) or more open style like the main market off of Las Ramblas in Barcelona. Their late night food, with doner kebab, is better too. The quality is always strong, from random places selling Natas and Jamon Bocadillos. Both Portugal and Spain are food lovers dreams in every way.

 

F is for Fish

Both countries are seafood meccas but it really got into seafood hyperdrive when I reached Portugal and had a duo or sardine and bacalao nigiri at the TimeOut market. Bacalao (what we would call cod) is everpresent in both countries and prepared in ways us American’s would find unimagineable. Same thing with mullet and other fish that were readily included in the two tasting menu spots we went to. But even on the street, or as toppers for Pintxos, these two places truly are seafood heavens. If anything, I ate too little seafood (hard to concentrate on that when the pig and lamb is also so good) but every fish dish I got was just perfect, as were most octopus dishes I tried. The best part is with the prevalence of seafood and fish it isn’t even all that expensive relative to the meat dishes. At the very least, it gave me a lot of ideas for future Friday cooks.

 

G is for Gaudi

Gaudi was the defining feature (other than one to come) of our trip in Barcelona, starting from the first thing we did the first day, walking by Casa Battli and Milo, two of his iconic strange houses on Barcelona’s main promenade. It was him in charge of the first real tourist site that we did, going through Parc Guell. And of course, he gave us the Sagrada Familia, which was more impressive than I remembered it being. I also am fairly certain when we last came to Barcelona (2007) that the interior was still closed – by what we read inside that changed in 2010. This time I got to inside, and man was it beautiful on the inside as well, haunting and edgy in a most Gaudi-esque way. Even the outside definitely seemed more finished now with less scaffolding and cranes than I’ve ever seen it. I take it there is a timeline until the 2030s but a definite ‘end’ date in sight. While I’m sure it will end up beautiful, I am slightly worried that we may be overlooking the ‘in construction’ charm it currently has.

 

H is for Heat and Sun

One of the best parts of these last two weeks was the immaculate weather, albeit a bit hot at times. There were more days with zero clouds in the sky than there were with rain. The only two times it actively rained hard had little, to no impact on us - being late in the night/overnight in San Sebastian then Bilbao. Other than that it was just beautiful sun, with cool breeze at times that made it livable. Both Spain and Portugal are underrated in their great weather, lack of rain, etc., and this was no different. You can chalk it up to weather, but more it was just Spain and Portugal doing what they do.

 

I is for Inclines

I don’t like hills – walking down them is fine but I abhor walking up them. I do it for hikes because there is some great payoff and the uphill nature of an incline on hike is part of the whole thing. In cities however? They should be no intersection in that Venn Diagram. Of course, Lisbon is one of the hillest cities in Europe, something we got very used to on the way down many times. On the way up however, we avoided it like the plague. What I didn’t really expect was for similar instances in both San Sebastian (somewhat manageable) and moreso Bilbao – which was ridiculous. Bilbao was basically built into a hill – I truly have no idea why anyone in the age when you could build a city more or less anywhere with a water source did so many people decide to build cities on hills and cliffs. Like just don’t!

 

J is for Jamon Iberico

As I mentioned earlier, I had been to most places on this trip before, but some of them long enough ago that I didn’t have a real memory. Some scholars say that memory is very sensory (no idea if any scholars say this….) and one that rushed back is smell. I had a bunch of little sandwiches with that same too-hard bread with slices of thin jamon in them. I know I gobbled those up back in 2001 (and probably in subsequent trips) and did so again on this trip, it being a standard late-breakfast for me all throughout the second half of the trip. It’s so simple – I usually get the version without Cheese – but so effective, so tasty, so

special and so uniquely Spanish in the best sense. It took me a while to remember the brilliance of this little bocadillo, but never again will I forget.

 

K is for King Ferdinand & Queen Isabella

Yeah, to be honest I just didn't know what to write for the 'K'. I'll give it to the donors of Christopher Columbus for popping up throuhgout the trip. From the Columbus statue in Barcelona at one end of Las Ramblas, becoming something of a landmark for us. It took us a while to realize that Columbus in the statue was pointing in the general direction of India, which is a hilarious bit of comedy there. Then came in Granada the main square with a large, beautiful statue of Queen Isabella being presented maps by presumably Columbus (of course, presumably in these maps it is listed 'India' as well...). Finally there are some memorials to these famous monarchs in Madrid as well. This is, in many ways, their peninsula.  

 

L is for Las Ramblas

Barcelona has many large streets, most not as noted as Las Ramblas but many all in all “nicer”. That being in their being a bit wider, a bit more interesting buildings on each side. Something like Pageis de Gracia with all the fancy shops and whatnot. But Las Ramblas is special to me in how it inverts the concept of a road so well – a large pedestrian esplanade in the middle lined with trees, with little lanes for cars on each side. It truly is the main ‘walking’ thoroughfare in Barcelona, one with jagged sections of pedestrian road going off it in every direction. Our AirBNB was off one of these roads, one that cars were not really allowed to traverse, so we get well accustomed to cabs dropping us off on Las Ramblas. In the end, despite it being touristy and slightly hawkerish (the tapas restaurants on this street are in my mind the equivalent of the Olive Garden in Times Square), the beauty in its open-ness, its life and its centrality is more than enough to deserve its importance within the culture of Barcelona

 

M is for Michelin Star Meals

In retrospect, I'm going to turn this into a whole separate post. We had two Michelin-Star meals during the trip, both restaurants also ranked on the World's Top 50 Restaurants list (the one made by San Pellegrino, filled with its own issues but somewhat seen as legitimate). The first was Belcanto in Lisbon (two michelin stars, #42 on the list) and then was Azurmendi near Bilbao (three stars, #14). Both were amazing. Both deserve more spotlight on a subsequent post.

Nostalgia Diaries, Pt. 26: The 2003 Devils Playoff Run

How much did I follow the exploits of the 2003 Devils: here are a couple of my lasting memories

= Listening to the game on the radio in the car ahead of a piano lesson (it was my sister's piano lesson) trying to hear if the Devils would clinch in Game 6 against Ottawa - learning the name Jason Spezza for the first time

= I was in 6th grade at the time. For our computer class we had to design a website using some website-design software, I did my website about the Devils playoff run, and my teacher thought my write-ups of the Devils run was so good it had to have been plaigarized

Anyway, 2003 was an interesting time. I do believe this is the earliest I've gone in this exercise, back to my truly formative years as a sports fan. I don't know when the curve of fandom started shooting significantly upwards, but 2003 was a true turning point. There were a couple of factors driving that, first being the Raiders ultimately unsuccessful run to the Super Bowl. The Devils were my team, but 2002-03 was the first year I really followed them. I knew they were great. A Stanley Cup I guess was therefore somewhat an expectation. Ti turn3ed into a reality - but man did I not realize how spoiled I was.

Today I watch these young fans get upset at the Dodgers or Red Sox or some other great team that has had peerless success. I now realize I was something like those fans, but with the Devils. I have no real memory of their shock win in 1995, other than the fact I now call it a win of mine. I have limited, but real, memory of their 2000 Stanley Cup win, distinctly remember me being in my parents bedroom, at the foot of the bed, deep into 2nd overtime when that brilliant pass from Elias to Arnott happened.

But I remember all of 2003, from their quietly great regular season with 108 points. I remember of course their offseason trades for Jeff Freisen and Jamie Langenbrunner, two guys whose names and games I had to learn. I knew everyone on that team. Every kid has "that tean" the one where they know all the players, know them all deeply. The 2003 Devils were that for me. The Devils were my team, my state's team, the one thing New Jersey could be proud of.

That run through the playoffs was magical in a way. They flexed their muscles big time in the first two rounds, beating Boston and Tampa 4-1 each time (that Tampa team would end up winning the Stanley Cup the next year). Both series I couldn't really watch because at the time the first couple playoff rounds were broadcast on local TV only (these were the halcyon pre-NBC days). Instead I followed on radio. On real radio, like a chump.

There is some nostalgic bliss remembering these radio days. One day I'm sure I'll do a Nostalgia Diaries on the magic that was WFAN. The Devils in the playoffs were part of that magic, to some degree you could just sense what was going on. I remember listening late into the night in their clincher against Tampa Bay, a 3OT win with the winning goal scored by Grant Marshall - one of the "new" guys.

That Devils team was like most Devils teams from 2001-02 on, a defensive mastery couipled with some timely offense by players whose offensive skill largely outpaced their production in the Devils system. This wasn't always the case - in 99-00 they led the Eastern Conference in goals, and in 00-01 they led the NHL in goals, but by 02-03 they were middling offensively, by far the best defensively, and it added up to a great 110 point season. In the conference finals, they would have to face a team that won more points, scored way more goals, and seemed to represent everything they weren't: the Ottawa Senators.

I don't know why 18 years later those Senators still resonate with me, but its amazing how open, how skilled, how fast that team played in a pre-lockout world. The names of Hossa, Alfredsson, Havlat, Bonk, White, Redden, Chara - they rang out. Of course, in this series, the names of Elias, Gomez, Langenbrunner, Friesen and of course Stevens, Niedermayer and Rafalski rang out equally well.

That series went seven, with the first six games alternating between dramatic (two OT wins for Ottawa, a 1-0 win for the Devils), and blowouts (5-2, 4-1 for New Jersey, 3-1 for Ottawa). Game 7 was played in front of a ridiculously raucous crowd in the Corel Center - the adage of Ottawa having shit fans not holding true that time.

This was pre-lockout, with clutching and grabbing and all the like. There are many reasons to prefer post-lockout hockey to the mess it was before, but that Game 7 showed just how good that version of the sport could be when played well. The Devils led 2-1 going into the 3rd period when maybe one of the best single periods of hockey was played.

Sure, that's an overstatement, but for me it wasn't. For me, it was pure bliss, with my team prevailing. It was open, it was messy. The Devils normally staunch defense made a series of pressured mistakes that Brodeur cleaned up - two memorable ones with Brodeur stoning Hossa (at the time a truly dynamic talent) on a breakaway, capped with the call of "It's only Game 7, why shouldn't we have goaltending like this!" from Gary Thorne. Then late in the period, the Devils gave the puck away stupidly five feet in front of the net, it once again found the stick of Hossa, where Brodeur made a sprawling save, with the line this time being "And a save by Brodeur!!!"

Marty was ruthless in that game, as was Ray Emery for nearly all of the third period, repeatedly stoning Scott Gomez - after the third stop Thorne's line was "And Gomez pleading to the skate, the stick, the post, the ice and the puck...." Gary Thorne was on one in that game, as he should for a hyper tense Game 7 between the conference's two best teams. It ultimately ended with Wade Redden making an awful defensive play, Grant Marshall threading a pass between his legs, and Jeff Friesen putting one past Lalime.

After the game, Pat Burns gave one of the most honest press conferences, telling Bryan Engblom when asked if he was nervous, "Yeah, why wouldn't we be, that's a tremendous hockey club. We were surprised to be up 3-1." That Devils series of Ottawa might have been the single most memorable playoff series of my life.

The next series also went seven against the Cinderella Mighty Ducks, riding JS Giguere's brilliance to that point. Yet in reality it wasn't anywhere as interesting. The Devils four wins were all by three goals (3x 3-0, and a 6-3 wild one). Brodeur set a new record for shutouts in the postseason with 7, and tied a Final record with three shutouts. Somehow this wasn't good enough for him to win the Conn Smythe, losing to Gigeure, the only modern person to win on a losing team.

I didn't really care (not true, I truly cared and felt wronged on behalf of Marty at the time), but seeing my team win was the real prize. I celebrated the third cup but for the first time. I was cognizant enough as a sports fan, and this was proof that being one was worth it.

Looking back, the 2003 Devils was my first evidence that one of "my" teams could infact win. I was a fairly sizable Devils fan back in 2001 when they blew a 3-2 Final lead to Colorado. I was of course a Raiders fan when they got blown out in the Super Bowl six months earlier. This was before I really had a tennis player to follow. I was a young, budding sports nut waiting for some payoff, and this Devils team was it, and it was glorious because it was my team, with players I loved.

In the end, my memories of this run returns to the win over Ottawa, the true Final in my mind. After the game, after the handshakes, Scott Stevens went over to the table that held the Prince of Wales Trophy. Gary Thorne at that moment said calmly "[Ducks' captain] Paul Kariya would not touch the trophy, it is likely Stevens...:" He then stopped mid sentence as Stevens went over and touched it. At that point he switched tacks to "He's not going to pick it up, I guarantee it" a microsecond before Stevens did pick it up. Right then Bill Clement jumped in "Scott Steven's isn't afraid of the superstition, he's touched it enough times, and the Stanley Cup." I honestly think my life as a sports fan in the truest sense of the word peaked at that very moment. My team was on top, proud to be so and ready for more. As a sports fan, that was nirvana, that was heaven, and all it took was a team named the Devils to get me there.

My 18 Favorite US & Canadian Cities

**Updating this after a few years, as I can add a few onto the list and also re-evaluate a few decisions.**

Not eligible becuase I live too close / can't speak to as a tourist attraction: New York City (obviously would be really high), The entire rest of the Northeast Corridor (Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, Washington), Jacksonville, Houston

Not eligible because my time there was limited to work: Raleigh, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale



18.) Atlanta (2017)

I went to Atlanta once, on a bachelor party of a family friend. It was a great time, and sure it may be hard to separate the city from the bachelor party-ness of it all (a good one is about as good a long weekend as possible), but the city itself seemed like a better, not as hot, Dallas. Really nice restaurants featuring southern cooking. We ventured out to a couple nice suburbs for meals as well. Of course, there are a few aspects of the city that make it a particularly apt Bachelor Party spot - some that are basically cultural mileposts. Won't say more. The only thing keeping it from being higher is the lack of historical importance and natural beauty; most of the cities on the list have one or the other.


17.) Orlando (1998, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2016)

Removing Disney and Universal, Orlando wouldn't be anywhere close to this. I have visited Orlando a couple times without really touching either park system and found it decent, with good shopping and decent restuarants/bars. But we can't just ignore that those two monster park systems, in Disney's case, a literal city. Those parks to have some magic to them, changing enough each half decade to not get fully old (haven't really visited any since 2009). Disney is quite a bit magical, and despite the cost, the crowds, it is one of the world's best destinations.


16.) 

15.) Vancouver (2018, 2020)

Vancouver is beautiful, that much is obvious. With the mountains to the north a constant presence above a great modern North American city. If anything, I'll hae to give more reasons for not ranking Vancouver higher than this. The city is quite big, with potential traffic issues. There are a few nice neighborhoods, but they are hard to reach from the outsides of the city. The nice nature is a little too far. Anyway, if you have time, and a car, the city is great. The food, especially the various asian-inspired bistros, are great. The nature is wonderful, particularly if you have time to drive up the Coast.


14.) Austin (2002, 2016)

May seem low, but that more speaks to the strengths of the cities above it, which include truly unique factors, great restaurant & beer cultures, and/or historical relevance. Austin has some of these things, if not all, but not at the high degree of some of the others. The best aspects probably are the barbecue and live music, but there's other cities that do each, if not both in one case, at a reasonably good level as well, without the added heat and sprawl. Either way, Austin is a fantastic city, but is starting to get slightly too popular and slightly overcrowded to add to the fact that American does indeed have a lot of great cities.


13.) Edmonton

12.) San Francisco (1999, 2008, 2014, 2017)

San Francisco actually somewhat proves my point about Calgary maybe needing another go. Had I not spent a long weekend there in November, it would likely be higher, but there is a couple glaring issues I found this time around, mainly the almost unimaginable homeless problem driven mostly by opiods and drugs. There are streets deep inside SF's main area that are basically unwalkable. It disfigures what is a great city outside of that, with incredible food, a world-class art and drinks culture, good museums, great sightlines and parks, and so much more. The only other negative to me might be the price, which is somewhat unescapable. Either way, San Francisco has a few black marks on it that hurt it from being a truly brilliant city..


11.) Houston (many times)

It's hard to really judge Houston as a tourist destination because it hasn't been one too often for me, going there mostly for work our to visit my cousin and his family - both of those two drawing me more to The Woodlands, a posh Houston suburb that beacuse of Houston traffic is far away. That said, I've spend a decent time downtown and while Houston is as sprawling as we think, there's many cool neighborhoods, many great night spots, and it might be one of the best food cities in North America. Truly they have great food of many cuisines, having some of the best Mexican food of any American city, and extending that to Vietnamese, Nepalese and so many others. There's not too much to "see" but tehre's a lot to eat and do, which makes up for it.


10.) Portland (2017)

I went to Portland three weeks before I went to San Francisco in 2017, and found it quite a bit better. They are similar in some ways, but Portland is cheaper, with the same asian influences. Also in Portland's favor is a truly astounding craft beer culture, and great food all around, from Pok Pok's wings, to incredible biscuit sandwhiches. You also get some beautiful, remote, scenery in teh 1-2 hour perimiter of the city, from the Mt. Hood region to the East and the Tillamook Forest to the West. It's a truly beautiful city with a great sense of what it is; one of the few cities in America that define everything that a unique American city should have.


9.) Chicago (1998, 2001, 2005, 2015)



I need to go to Chicago again, because while I did go for three days in 2015, that wasn't a long enough trip to formulate a changed opinion. My memories of Chicago are more from childhood, where I remember it being somewhat a perfect American city. They have arguably the best collection of museums of any American city. They have a beach. They have incredible sports to witness, including a cathedral that is Wrigley Field. I'm sure they have food and great bars and all the rest as well. The largest four cities in the country for as long as I can remember have been NYC, LA, Chicago and Houston (just city, not metro area), and Chicago seems the least like a true sprawling Metropolis.

8.) San Diego (1999, 2017)



We all get the jokes about San Diego, the perfect weather, the laissaz faire attitude that made a whole community do a shrug emoji when they lost their football team. The perfect nature of the city. All of it. It is all true, because we are all just jealous that a city with a perfect year-round climate was made and we don't all live there. I went in March, it was 70 each day and sunny. The city has history, with old churches and military history like the aircraft carrier musuem. It has great food - including multiple great restaurants lining the Gaslamp district. There is a great beer culture highlighted by two of the most successful craft breweries in the US in Ballast Point and Stone. And of course there are some great hiking trails and parks and sports. The city is a perfect place to live, but it isn't too bad to visit either.


7.) Phoenix (2020)

The only negative I have to say of Phoenix is that there are limited things to do. There are nice hikes and walks in nature, but its blisteringly hot. The Grand Canyon is a bit too far for me to include it and be fair to other places that I would leave out a site 3 hours away. That said, parts of Phoenix are phenomenal. Secretly, I think its one of the best food cities in America, with just superb Mexican food without the frills of SoCal (or even Texas). There is just great Mexican food everywhere. There's a surprisingly strong beer culture, including some great bottle shop/beer bars. There are some sites, including one of the better 'single focus' museums I've been to in the Heard Museum on Native American history. It's a fast growing city but still eminently drivable. There's a real lot to like, just go between October and April.


6.) Salt Lake City (2018)

Of course, Salt Lake City encompasses the cottonwood canyons, and the Great Salt Lake in this ranking. I don't know if there is a US metro area that mixes urbanity and nature quite like Salt Lake (other than maybe the city at #2). The food in Salt Lake was great, with a burgeoning foodie scene. The alcohol options are more varied than you would think. The city is amazingly walkable and easy to transit around. Finally, those views, those hikes, that natural beauty. Salt Lake City's bevy of close by hiking options, all within an hours ride from downtown, are astounding. All double as great ski slopes in the winter as well, for those that like that aspect of the world. My first trip to Salt Lake City took me by surprise, and truly I can't wait to go back.


5.) Toronto (2008, 2016, 2017)



I almost put The Six in the groups of cities that I can't rank as I did a project in a suburb for four months, close enough to go into the city many times, but I liked it too much to keep it out. Toronto is great, easily the best (NY excluded) mega-tropolis I've been to in the US. The positives in Toronto are endless, from the CN Tower, to the Island, to the bevy of incredible food options, and neighborhoods from Downtown, to the Distellery District, to Yorkville, to so many others. The food is great. The beer is great. The bars are great. The city is large but never has the traffic or urban sprawl problems that other huge USA cities have to deal with. Toronto also has a great comedy and music since (Drake aside), and has as much culture of its US counterparts. It's a lot larger than people realize, and still has all the cultural charms of the secondary cities, A rare combination.

4.) Denver (2015, 2019, 2020, 2021)



This is somewhat re-written after my trip in 2021, but Denver as a whole is still an incredible city but has grown a bit too big since my first trip in 2015. The food scene is still great, the natural beauty arond it in every direction is still great. The city remains really drivable and workable, and has some great night spots (the best club I've been to in the US - though granted with covid-impacted crowd control restrictions which helped). There's really no down side to Denver. The only reason it's dropped in my mind since my first visit (after which I had it at #2) is because another city leaped over it (a city that share's a lot of similarity to Denver) and because the craft beer which was such a large part of my initial ranking is something that many other cities have caught up to.

3.) Calgary (2005)

This is re-written as the first time I did this list I was only going off my trip in 2005. I went back in 2019, to experience the city itself and the surrounding area again. At the time I was worried if I overrated Calgary (I had it like 10th), having gone back, I seriously underrated it. Calgary is incredible drivable, despite being a metro of 2mm people. It has excellent food including great use of Calgary beef. The night spots were all excellent, from great and relatively low priced cocktail bars to one of the better clubs I've been to in North America (sadly, Habitat Living Social seems to have closed...). The weather is incredible (summer only, obviously), and Banff is every bit as magical as it's made out to be with Carribean-blue water mixed with incredible scenery. It truly is North America's underrated little jewel that I just wish was easier to get to.

2.) Nashville (2016, 2017)



Live music has many homes within the US, but I would argue none touches Nashville, from mainstream spots like the Grand Ole Opry or Bluebird Cafe, to the many great spots that litter Broadway on both sides, to even the others that espouse Rock and Blues. Nashville owns all cities I've been to when looking at music. Of course, that isn't where Nashville's positives ends. There are great restaurants, from BBQ to hot chicken, to a truly special burger place in Pharmacy Burger. The cities' increasingly built up outskirts push the number of restaurants and bars even further higher, The city, nestled nicely in the Appalachian plateau's even rarely gets too hot. What a great slice of Americana.



1.) Montreal (many, many, many times)



Yes, I've been to Montreal a lot, mostly during its annual Jazz Festival it hosts in the Place des Artes area - a tremendously run festival visited by millions. But even outside the festival, Montreal is an amazing city. It has sites, from Mont Royal to the various churches and buildings, to the Old Town,. It has incredible food, from French Canadian staples to world known Smoked Meat. It has a great bar culture, with some great breweries. It has live music even when you remove the Jazz Festival. It has great parks and open streets and little crowding, and crepes, and everything else. Having such a seemingly foreign city, where French reigns supreme, so close to home is fantastic, and i'm blessed to be able to visit it somewhat-annually.

Closing Thoughts on Colorado

My last day of the vacation started seeing a few final sights amidst the slowly becoming less hazy Colorado Springs and ended with a redeye that is too short to be legally called so (in my mind, a listed 3:45 that invariably will take far less time). As mentioned, this trip mirrors my Arizona one earlier in the year, down to the fact that it ends with a redeye that gives me a true full day. This is a new life-hack (or I guess, trip-hack) of mine that I've used to good impact: it helps you very much overcome the 'last day of the vacation' blues because you can actually do things rather than spend a nominal day off in airports and planes.

Anyway, there were a few things we left on the list to do in Colorado Springs. First was the Pioneer Museum, which is in the old courthouse (fit with a reconstructed courtroom) and featured a handful of exhibits telling the history of Colorado Springs and this area in great detail. It was just hte right amount of information without being overburdening - the two main exhibits showcasing the 150 years of Colorado Springs (it was founded in 1871) and then a random waltz around Colorado Springs history in what they called 'A to Z' which had 26 mini exhibits about something of Colorado Springs history.

The museum is free (donations requested) and is just really nice for a random town. My favorite exhibit probably was one around how in the late 1800s and early 1900s Colorado Springs made a large push to attract people with TB as the clean air and good weather could 'cure' people. Apparently this was a real cottage industry, as Colorado Springs was able to attract thousands of 'Cure Chasers' and also doctors who were looking to find a firm cure.

The final stop in 'The Springs' was Old Colorado City, a kitschy stretch of 6x2 blocks about 15 minutes outside the city proper. There are a few tourist traps, but there's also a bunch of great niche shops selling random wares, art, hanidcrafts, etc., along with some interesting looking old-school restaurants and saloons. The place was a nice little sendoff for Colorado Springs, which again despite it having a population of 700k still seems so quiant as a mountain outpost.

We drove back to Denver and went first to a brewery for a lunch. I didn't write too much about the breweries when I wrote first about Denver but that's a bit unfair. They're all still good. The one we went to today was first Counter Culture which had fine beer but is more known as a restaurant. Their burger was great. The other we went to today was Great Divide which remains excellent. They've opened a second location which is a little corner cutout of their main factory in RiNo which had a great vibe. A few other quick shoutouts for Mockery Brewing (a block away from the RiNo Great Divide location), Old Friends and Raices Brewing. That last one in particular brews 'Mexican' style beers and had a beautiful location at the South edge of Denver. I was probably too harsh earlier in saying that Denver has lost some of its lustre as a beer city - it remains excellent in that respect, it's just a lot of other markets have caught up.

The last bit of actual tourism on the trip was going to the Denver Botanic Gardens, which are this little slice of magic in the heart of the city. It's a place that you can just get lost in, with incredible well manicured gardens and pools and areas all over. There's nominally a structure and order to it - with areas that say showcase African flowers adn Asian flowers and lilies and what-not but the real way to experience the place is just get lost in it. I was there for about 90 minutes, I'm sure my Mom would be there for twice as long.

The last meal was at Cattivella, which is an upmarket Italian spot more on the East side of town (helpful as it was in the direction of the airport). It's not the most inspired pick, but the food turned out fabulous (another trip-hack: plan a nice meal for your last meal!). It was an old school Italian menu at a pretty fancy spot, as I got lamb ragu (really great) as a starter and a braise wild boar shoulder for a main. It was a hearty, not super healthy, but definitely tasty last meal for the trip.

After that it was off to the airport, adn the end to another great trip. I like this trip schedule of going Thursday Night to Tuesday Night - helps also to then have a short week when I return. There's a certain luxury also in having options to go out on nights that aren't super crowded like Thursday (switching that out for Monday). It's a great trip hack, my last of the trip for us all!