Au Revoir: A Fish Taco Send Off
a recap of our trip to Paris plus a vegan fish taco tutorial
Hi and welcome back from Paris (me to me). Today we have a recap of our weekend, drinking that me-espresso all throughout Paris, and a vegan fish taco tutorial. What makes it a tutorial? It’s essentially a lazily written recipe where everything’s made up and the points don’t matter. Welcome to Whose Line is it Anyway!!
Ignore that last part, you’re not on a game show.
Post Paris, we sent off our oldest sister as she moved as far away from us as possible, to Denver, CO. I understand, I’d move away from me too. We wanted to make her a special dinner (wait, am I the nicest sister ever?) so we went for a vegan fish taco theme. What does the theme entail beyond fish tacos? You tell me.
I can tell you that the tacos consisted of white flour tortillas, beer battered tofu fish sticks, cabbage slaw, mango salsa, and spicy lime mayo. It was delish and I hope someone makes me a taco if I ever move, but it’s summertime on Long Island…so what’s another year?? MY TACO CAN WAIT.
Ok, Paris weekap (weekend recap).
The City of Love and Grilled Cheezy’s
Paris is my new favorite city. The buildings are beautiful, it’s clean, and there was a croissant within arm’s reach at all times. Cafes are everywhere and the espresso shots hit different. As self-proclaimed coffee addicts, it was perfect for our addiction. Somehow, I never felt over-caffeinated. Was it the jet lag or the fact that I drink Southdown cold brew everyday to build up my tolerance? Julie became an addict of a new drug, nicotine, so that’s a fun habit she can partake in now.
The best meal we had was at Tekés, which is a vegetarian Israeli restaurant. The staff, incredibly nice. The food, insanely good. The ambiance, stunning. The bartender, hot. They used raw potatoes as part of the decor, which is a design element we can appreciate.
Something else we can appreciate is a late night vegan burger and we have the ability to find this in whatever city we’re in. In Paris, it was Furahaa, which is the first inclusive plant-based fast food chain. All of the employees are deaf and they could not have been friendlier. Plus, the burgers, fries, and nuggets are top tier.
At a different restaurant we would not recommend, Rose ordered something called a “Grilled Cheezy” after announcing to the group how disgusting it looked. It might be the sickest thing in all of France - a hamburger bun with one slice of cheese, a limp leaf of iceberg lettuce and so much mayo that it could be your 13th reason. She was referred to as “cheezy” for the rest of the trip, so she never makes that mistake again.
With a Grilled Cheezy low, comes a Cruel Summer high. And there is no higher high than seeing the Era’s Tour and being in the same room as Taylor Swift. TTPD set was so good that it has me down bad crying at the gym now that it’s over. When Taylor levitated down my street, I creamed my pants.
Key Takeaways for a Flawless Trip
Make sure the group has the same travel style. Our group had a solid rule that 10 minutes of walking = 2 hours of sitting. Sure, we’ll see the Eiffel Tower, but then we’re sitting and drinking Sauvignon Blanc for 4 hours. That’s group travel math.
Share food. Some people are not sharers and that is okay, but it’s actually not. When you share food, you can try all the things and discuss how good, or in the case of the Grilled Cheezy, bad they are.
Avoid Norse Air at all costs and bring an eye mask. Norse will keep the fluorescent lights on throughout the entire red eye flight because they hate you. Also, Rose is a psycho on flights and just sits there with nothing to do but stare at you, so beware if she is in your travel group.
Embrace the culture. Smoke the cigarettes, eat the croissants and baguettes, and soak the bathroom floor with water because the shower is so small.
Learn basic words for the country you are going to. As an American who speaks one language (pretty poorly I might add), I always feel like a huge idiot when I’m in Europe. Everyone there speaks multiple languages and I arrogantly assume they know English (they usually do, so actually whose fault is that?) It’s nice to be able to say a few words in their language, even if you f it up and say buongiorno instead of bonjour, you gave it your best! JK that was humiliating and now I can’t return to Paris.
Have someone who is good at directions. Leeann was our navigation queen. Catch her riding that French Metro no problem or herding the group to our next crispy white wine after walking for 10 minutes. As for Julie and Rose, well there’s no hope for them - solo travel is not in their future.
Notable Quotes From the Group
“Gluten and religion hit different here.”
“As soon as I leave the country, my body craves a tortilla chip.”
Amy: “What song would you want played at your funeral?” Rose: “Man Eater.”
Julie: “What are you wearing today?” Rose: “I have an ugly shirt or an even uglier shirt.”
“The pigeons be really thick here.”
So Long, London (Paris), see you soon. It’s taco time.
Make Me Vegan Fish Tacos
This meal is fresh, summery, and seems fancy because of all the different components. Between you and me, it’s not hard at all (ugh, that’s what she said). It’s mostly chopping, mixing, and then leaving things in the fridge. The hardest part is not eating it all before dinner time. The ingredients overlap so you don’t actually need that much to make a FIRE meal.
In case someone wants to make me a taco so that I leave the state, here is how you could go about it…
Make a simple slaw: Combine the following ingredients and leave it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. Channel your inner cabbage slut, for she will know the appropriate measurements.
Green cabbage, thinly sliced (mandolin if you have)
Red onion, thinly sliced (mandolin if you have)
Lime juice
Olive oil
Salt
Make a mango salsa: Chop everything and add it to a medium bowl. Mix to combine and leave it in the fridge.
Mango
Tomato (on the vine)
Jalapeño (seeds removed)
Cilantro
Lime
Salt
Avocado (optional: could also serve on the side)
Make spicy lime mayo: Mix equal parts vegan mayo and sriracha. Add a squeeze of lime (or more for a thinner sauce).
Bake the vegan fish sticks: You could make the fish sticks from tofu, which we would not have done had we found the Gardein F’sh Filets in the store. So just buy those and bake them when you’re ready to serve.
Warm your tortillas: Throw them in the oven at a low temp or microwave covered with a damp paper towel until warmed through.
Serve: Serve everything together - tortillas, fish sticks, simple slaw, mango salsa, avocado, and spicy lime mayo. Ascend to heaven on the first bite.
Lolling (in french ofc!)