As Barry Says, “Eat! Eat!”

Little does the great Barry the V (he of “Eat, Eat!” fame) know, some food oddities and facts escape even the king of barristers. Here are some for you:

Would you brie-lieve it! After surveying nearly 1,200 retailers representing 250,000 retail outlets all across the world, the UK’s Centre for Retail Research discovered that the most stolen food is none other than a block of cheese.

Here is an only Barry the V fact:

Everyone makes asparagus pee, but not everyone can smell it. If you don’t think your urine smells strongly after eating asparagus, that doesn’t mean you’re metabolizing the vegetable differently from other people. In fact, we all make urine with that distinctive “asparapee” smell after eating. It’s just that some people’s genetic make-up means they can’t smell it.

So, where is the world’s best pizza? Not in Italy, but in New York City. The pies at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana, which just celebrated its 10^th anniversary, are so good, they’re worth a trip from anywhere in the world. And you’d have to stay for a couple of days so you can really taste them all.

Owner Tony Gemignani has won many prestigious awards, including Best Pizza Margherita at the World Pizza Cup in Naples, Italy, and Best Pizza Romana at the World Championship of Pizza Makers in 2011. He was the first and only Triple Crown winner for baking at the International Pizza Championships in Leece, Italy, and was the first American and non-Neapolitan to win the coveted title of World Champion Pizza Maker at the World Pizza Cup in Naples in 2007. He was also a pioneer in bringing several different styles of pizzas and other Italian dishes to the Bay Area.

Would you believe I had the best escargot EVER, at a pizza parlor in Cadillac (Bordeaux), France last May?

Only in Japan: Chefs at The Oak Door Steakhouse in Tokyo’s Grand Hyatt hotel created the 100,000 Yen (around $900) burger in honor of Crown Prince Naruhito’s 2019 coronation. A massive 3kg (106oz) Wagyu beef hamburger with a gold-dusted bun, it feeds six to eight people with a bottle of wine thrown in for free.

I conclude with a story about the world’s best tofu. We went to the “factory” of the champion tofu artisan in Kyoto, Japan. By the time we paid for the cab, two blocks of tofu, and some tofu snacks, we spent well over $100 USD. This little trip became known as the world’s most expensive tofu!