Quite often, when stuffy restaurant reviewer types come to Venice, they will pick someplace like the restaurant at Hotel Danieli, Cipriani's, or Da Fiore as the “best” restaurant in Venice. While the last two are certainly wonderful restaurants, and deserve their worldwide acclaim, I was in search of something more Venetian.

Years ago, I started asking the locals about good, truly Venetian restaurants. Ignoring many of the recommendations of restaurants owned my members of their family (everyone here has a cousin who owns the “best” restaurant in Venice), one name kept appearing: “Dalla Marisa”.

In this episode I attempt to make a gourmet breakfast out of fast food French Toast Bricks. Inspired by celebrated Italian chef Fabrizio Schenardi of Piemonte's French Toast, this meal is created out of simple ingredients everyone carries with them to a fast food restaurant. Well, I do, anyway!

So enjoy by clicking on the video above. Then leave me a comment here on my blog - What fast food chain should I visit next? Thanks! - Barry

For a real french toast recipe invented by a real chef, Click Here

To return to my main blog page, Click Here

In this episode I attempt to make a gourmet dessert out of a fast food piece of pie. While it is nothing like Dolce Debbie's Ricotta Pear Torta, it is certainly better than the "out of the box" pie. (I had to eat three pieces to get this video right!) This was the episode where we introduced music to the video.

So enjoy the video, then leave me a comment - What fast food chain should I visit next? Thanks! - Barry

While my favorite way of eating is undoubtedly on a terrace somewhere above Positano, Italy with chef Dolce Debbie providing the meals, on occasion I have to eat at a fast food "restaurant" here in the USA. This is the first in a set of videos where I have fun trying to make gourmet meals out of fast food. I hope you enjoy it.

To help you make real gourmet meals, I will be picking one name from those who have left me comments on this blog entry to win a year's subscription to Cook's Illustrated magazine. A random name will be picked on January 10, 2010.

January, 2011: For the one year anniversary of our first episode, it has been re-mastered and theme music added.

So enjoy the video, then leave me a comment. Thanks! - Barry