My first food photo! Believe me, people, I am not a food photographer or food stylist. If you want to see gorgeous photos of alimentation, visit blogs like cannelle et vanille or La Tartine Gourmande for this:
cannelle et vanille
or this:
La Tartine Gourmande
But if the restaurant serves me something that looks this pretty and I happen to have a camera with me, who am I to pass up a photo op?
Actually, my friend F. ordered the halibut dish in the first photo. It came with wax beans, green beans, cherry tomatoes, corn and a garlic sauce (she passed on that). I got this salmon salad with spinach, walnuts and blueberries and it looked pretty good too:
Trust me when I say it tasted even better. The salmon was perfectly cooked and the citrus dressing was perfection.
Where did we get such great food? At one of my favorite French restaurants, Mon Ami Gabi. They’re part of a chain and can be found in cities like Chicago, Las Vegas, and Bethesda, MD, in the Wash DC area. You don’t feel like you’re at a chain, though. The exterior has tables and chairs just like a Paris bistro and the interior is thoroughly French. Hey, we ran into a real Frenchwoman there and she loves it because she feels like she’s back in Paris. The mirrors, the banquettes–they’re all there.
I’m not really a “foodie,” although I love good food. I wouldn’t plan a trip around restaurants, but I also wouldn’t eat at McDonald’s in Paris. The only time I broke that rule was when I lived in Southern Bavaria. I loved all the schnitzel and brot and wurst und salat, but it was such a treat going to the Munich McDonald’s. I guess it was because I was actually living in Europe and not just visiting. I needed that little bit of home or something.
Anyhoo, if you’re in one of the aforementioned cities, give Mon Ami Gabi a try. Oh, I forgot to mention that they bring you authentic (and warm!) baguettes and sweet butter after you sit down. No extra charge.
I have to apologize to my Twitter followers for repeating these photos from yesterday. I was experimenting with posting pics on Twitter and wasn’t sure if I’d be writing about the food. But you love learning along with me, right? Thanks for your patience….
Pearls & Prose 
Food is tough, as my photographer friend Aaron tells me.
I did enjoy the McKebab in Jerusalem last year, though, and in 1997, after nearly a month in Eastern Europe, a trip to McD’s in Budapest was more than welcome!
I’ve deliberately stayed away from food photography after an editor friend told me all the tricks they use when shooting the food section in a newspaper. I’m just not into staging at all.
Isn’t it funny how you don’t really care about something until it’s gone? When we were traveling in the Mideast, we almost swooned when we found POPCORN at a little store in Lebanon. We made it with olive oil–ugh–but it was wonderful.