Memories and Footprints

There's a rumor that my third book,?Memories and Footprints,?will be released in Q1 2024. I confess that the rumors are true.

I initially return to Paris, France, and present a collection of amusing short stories, culinary adventures, and some mouthwatering classic recipes paired with a wine selection guaranteed to make you smile. Of course, I always add butter, cream, and a dash of Cognac when I cook; it's good for the heart. If you have a French cooking itch, the recipes I have selected will leave you whistling the?Marseillaise?as you uncork a bottle of?C?tes du Rh?ne?and create your magic. I will mention a couple of the recipes. For example, the Veal Ragout in Cream Sauce, aka?Blanquette de Veau. It is a familiar Sunday dish to be had in many French homes. I can recall this dish gracing our dinner table in Paris more than a few times. Perhaps the Chicken with Tarragon Vinegar, aka?Poulet au Vinaigre—is an?easy dish to put together even with one hand tied behind your back and a glass of wine in the other. You will likely find this one on the menu in many Bistros because it’s fast, easy to make, and a crowd-pleaser. In your haste to start cooking, please don’t turn away too quickly from a few genuinely classic Belgian recipes. I can attest to these; they are delicious. For example, the?Carbonade Flamande?or Flemish beef stew is made with strong dark Trappist beer. Perfect for a chilly evening and the lousy Belgian winters. Another of my all-time favorites is Endives wrapped in Prosciutto ham, smothered in cream sauce, and baked?au Gratin. My brothers and sisters and I grew up with this dish as a standard and many others.

Moving from the topic of making delicious food to short stories about delicious food, I recall a remarkable dining experience in one of Paris’ most renowned and oldest restaurants in Paris,?Le Grand Véfour. I have also included?a story entitled “We Will Always Have Paris.” You will recognize a few names if you have read one of my stories in my second book, set in Saigon. With this two-part story, I am knee-deep in sentimentality and unapologetically so; after all, it’s Paris. In another story, I have you join me at a Russian restaurant in the 8th?arrondissement.?The restaurant is tucked away in Paris’ Little Russia section. I hope you like excellent vodka. I will introduce you to a dear Russian friend, an outstanding corporate lawyer. I once recruited him for one of the top U.S. law firms with offices in Moscow at the time. But, of course, there is more to that story. There always is.

In Belgium, welcome to a linguistically divided country. Antwerp is a fascinating seaport city that I know well. It is filled with centuries of history. Don’t be taken in too quickly. The underbelly of Antwerp is not exactly a pretty site, and it's the largest cocaine exporter, via the port, operated by Eastern European gangs, among others. Just about anything else is available for a price, including, sadly enough, human trafficking between Antwerp, Amsterdam, and the African continent, using the old Dutch slave routes and then across the Atlantic to the U.S. to the East Coast and across the country. But on the flip side, Antwerp has a thriving diamond district that can help you launder all your millions. Indeed, it is a full-service operation.

Antwerp is a colorful city with a lively downtown port area with seedy little establishments hugging quaint cobbled side streets?and catering to a high-end clientele of?rough merchant seamen, stevedores, well-worn painted women,?local drunks, and the occasional?stray tourist who quickly figured out?this wasn't Kansas and?retreated to the safety of his hotel.?In this part of the world, you mostly hear?Flemish or Dutch?being spoken; a finely tuned ear for language and accents can discern between the two, but it's not unusual to hear?Polish, Norwegian, Danish, Russian, or, for that matter, even Mandarin Chinese. ?It is a complex, colorful mix, and it's a clientele of people who drink heavily?and smoke continuously. The smart ones mind their own business because they value their lives. Of course, there is a thriving red-light district for the added charm. I can’t imagine what a seventeen-year-old high-school student would find interesting back in the day—just saying.?

Our last stop is Brussels, where I was once a student. Years later, I would return on business matters of a different sort. While Belgian cuisine is terrific, though not light, I suggest a couple of places that are favorites of mine. The Trappist beer is worth a long and thoughtful taste several times over. In my student days, we often gathered on Friday after school at the Kelder, a beer hall below the Roi d'Espagne restaurant in a 17th-century building steps away from the Grand Place, the city's main square. The beer hall was our hangout, and I often took the last train home, leaving a few minutes before midnight from Brussels Gare Central to Antwerp's Central Station—one more Friday night.

Lastly, a word about chocolates: for chocoholics, an absolute must-stop is at almost any candy/confectionary store in Brussels, of which there are plenty around the picturesque?Grand Place.?Every store gives out samples, so you can imagine the self-inflicted damage that can be achieved. Treat yourself to a box of Godiva chocolates. You will ask yourself, “Is this Heaven?” The answer is, "No, but you are pretty darn close."

From Belgian chocolates to outstanding French cuisine, it’s all there to enjoy thoroughly!