martes, 29 de marzo de 2011

"A penny saved is a penny earned", Benjamin Franklin


Spotted at "Da Rosario", Hoofddorp. A very good Italian restaurant! Photo by: SomosUno.

Quoting this interesting Wikipedia's article about Dutch customs and etiquette:

"Accumulating money is fine, but spending money is considered something of a vice and associated by some people with being a show-off."
Here is the proof. This (see picture) was found in an Italian restaurant in Hoofddorp where they kindly left this note on the table written in three languages:
  • Dutch: "Bedankt voor uw telefonisch reservering"
  • English: "Thank you for your reservation by phone"
  • Italian: "Grazie per la vostra prenotazione telefonica"
And yes, you are seeing right, there are 10 cents scotch-taped to the note. They were refunding us for the phone expenses! Where else? Only in The Netherlands!

This post is dedicated to Nadjejda and Matthew :-)

Versión en español

domingo, 6 de marzo de 2011

The deconstructed sandwich 'mixto': Uitsmijter


'Mixto con huevo" vs. 'Uitsmijter"

The simple yet delicious 'sandwich mixto' is how we Spaniards call a grilled ham&cheese sandwich. When you are hungry enough to need more than a 'tapa' but don't want to have a proper long lunch, the best thing is a 'mixto', and if you like it even more complete, then ask for a sandwich 'mixto con huevo', with an egg. The funny thing is that the top bread has a hole to see the egg yolk and this is serious stuff. That hole needs to be there! Otherwise it's not a proper 'mixto con huevo' :-)

Now here is the Dutch version: 'uitsmijter', pronounced outs-my-ter, more or less. And I dare to say this is the Dutch deconstruction of the Spanish 'mixto con huevo'. The slices of bread are not grilled and the ham goes on top of them and then the egg. The cheese is optional and goes on top of everything so it is not covered with more bread.

And here is the surprise... do you want to know about the origin of this dish? It comes from the German Strammer Max:

"The term Strammer Max (literally "stiff Max" or "tight Max") originated in the 1920s in Saxon slang, where it initially referred to an erection, the male name "Max" being often used as a slang word for penis (similar to the English "Dick" or "Willy"). The term was adopted into Berlin street slang and applied to a dish that was supposed to be especially strengthening to the sexual prowess of the person eating it." Source: Wikipedia
Surprise! So, what do you prefer: 'mixto con huevo', 'uitsmijter' or 'strammer Max'? :-D

Versión en español