By Dirk Ebener - January 13, 2026 Apfelstrudel with walnuts and raisins, served with a hot vanilla pudding sauce I grew up in Germay surrounded by the comforting aromas of simmering stews, sausages on the grill, and the soft hum of family gatherings that turned mealtime into a cherished ritual. Each return visit to Germany has felt like rediscovering a part of myself — a blend of nostalgia, flavor, and belonging. I’ve wandered through cobblestone markets where laughter mixes

By Dirk Ebener - December 9, 2025 London Heathrow LHR Terminal 2 There was a particular quiet that filled the air just before a long-awaited trip. The initial flight DL 30 was delayed five times, and finally cancelled right before midnight. Months of research, notes, and late-night plans now reduced to one feeling—anticipation. My long-imagined journey, Eating London for £60 a Day , was finally about to begin with a 24 hour delay. This trip had been on my mind for months—par

By Dirk Ebener - September 21, 2025 The Oktoberfest Beer Tents are always packed with visitors from around the world I still remember my...

Personal Introduction: A Love Letter to Italy's Sauces It started with a forkful of spaghetti on a quiet piazza in Lido de Jesolo, the sauce still steaming and clinging lovingly to each strand of pasta. I remember it vividly — the rich, slow-simmered tang of tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. That was my first authentic marinara in Italy, and it changed the way I understood food. Over the years, I've returned to Italy time and again, lured not just by the romance of its hills and

Source: Photo by Christian Seebeck on Unsplash Malta’s story stretches back before its limestone cliffs, beyond its clear seas, and is...

A Brief History of Pasta and Regional Identity Pasta has long been Italy's gift to the culinary world, but it's the sauces — intensely regional and seasonal — that tell the most compelling stories. While pasta itself dates back at least to Etruscan and Roman times, it wasn't until the introduction of the tomato from the Americas in the 16th century that many of the most famous sauces we now recognize began to take shape.