Netherlands: Street Food Bite and Booze of the World Cup

While the Netherlands get ready to square off against Brazil at 3pm tomorrow for third place, we're going to take another trip along the street food guide to the FIFA World Cup 2014! There's an abundance of street foods in the Netherlands and most of them are fried balls of something or french fries with a peanut sauce, mayonnaise, and diced onions. Don't worry...we're headed straight for the Stroopwafels and a delightful cocktail named The Sherry-Netherland.

Photo Credit: awesomeamsterdam.com

Stroopwafels (syrup waffles) are super thin treats perfect for a grab-and-go bite. The Dutch have been munching on these since the 18th century. If you've ever wondered what a Dutch double doozy cookie would be like, this is it. Two very thin waffles are held together by a decent layer of syrup. It is literally a syrup and waffle sandwich...awesome. 

Photo Credit: liquor.com

The Sherry-Netherland is concocted with the Dutch spirit Bols Genever, which is where the idea for gin came from. The Genever has definite aspects of gin, but it's more smooth and less in your face. Other ingredients include sherry, raisins, orange bitters, and curaçao (orange in flavor). The curaçao, blue in color, combined with the other ingredients make for a mysteriously black-colored cocktail. Try it out and let me know what you think!

First Post

Top o' the morning friendly readers.  Well, actually it is late at night.  This being the first post, I thought I should give a little explanation about what I'm doing here.  The purpose of this blog is to chronicle the many adventures that I have with food and drink.  It will hopefully serve at least two purposes.  First, it will be an excellent way for me to keep up with, and remember, all the meals and beverages that I consume over time.  This will be good for recommending places to eat, thinking about what to cook, and recalling good times spent with good friends around a table or bar.  Secondly, it is meant to be a source for the readers to use to get ideas of their own.  Looking for a review on a restaurant?  Maybe I've been there... and I'll at least tell you what I thought about what I ate.  Most of the culinary and indulgent experiences will come from home, which is Baton Rouge, La.  However, I am a man of travel.  I have been to over 40 of the 50 states, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, and The Netherlands, with hopefully many, many more locations all around the world to come.  I hope you enjoy the blog.  Come hungry, start off with a drink to whet your palate, and when you wake up the next day and try to wipe something off your face, don't be surprised if it is the floor!