An Ode to Vacation Food
We spend about an hour and a half a day eating. On vacations, this figure generally doubles, as we take a more leisurely approach to meals. And if you’re like me, you spend at least as much time plotting what to eat next.
Vacation food is just better. Often that’s because it’s new and novel. Sometimes it’s because the food we choose when we travel is richer or more decadent—a departure (mostly) from what we eat at home. While I do know some exceptionally disciplined souls who budget their calories even when they’re traveling, for me, it’s an all-bets-off time to sample a new cuisine, or a new take on a familiar dish I might never have the chance to eat again.
Sure, that might not be entirely true, and don’t bother trying to talk sense in to me. I’m on vacation, with all the afternoon cocktails, nightly desserts, and why-not-we’re-here ice cream that goes with it.
I’ve also found vacation food to be more memorable. While I have zero scientific proof to back it up, I believe the reason is this: when we’re not sitting in front of the TV, mindlessly chewing our dinner, or scrolling through e-mail while scarfing lunch at our desks (guilty as charged), the experience of a meal becomes that much more enjoyable. We remember details big and small, specific textures, flavors, and aromas—which is why we often tell those “best meal I ever ate” stories when we come back from an especially good food trip.
My husband and I are ardent foodies. We’re the type of people who spend an entire Saturday morning cooking, from old favorites to complicated brand-new recipes, so we’ll have lots of palate-intriguing leftovers for during the week, when we’re busy and tired. When we have family or friends over, we roll out a parade of appetizers, entrees, and desserts. Say the word shopping, and we immediately think “farmers’ market,” not “clothes” or “gadgets.”
In my daily life, I eat about 90 percent vegan. This is both a health and an ethical choice, and has become more pressing as age has turned me into one of those irritating lactose-intolerant friends who gazes at you wistfully while you’re licking the last bits of tiramisu off your fork. Vegan foods are harder to come by while traveling, so I do make some concessions, from dairy and eggs to the occasional piece of fish. This makes me, technically, a pescatarian while on the road, and I’m at peace with it.
This fresh berry and yogurt parfait came the closest to replicating the foods I typically eat at home. 
Scallops in a brown butter sauce with fresh cracked pepper: an auspicious start to a vacation dinner. 
This scallop and shrimp scampi was technically my husband’s dish, but I still sampled it. 
In my daily life, I rarely eat breakfasts like this spinach and mushroom quiche. 
My lactose-intolerant self paid dearly for this caramel cheesecake. But it was worth it.
The photos here are from a recent trip to the Finger Lakes and 1000 Islands. You’ll see a mix of dishes, including a lot of fish, which is, of course, prevalent in waterfront areas. While the Finger Lakes and 1000 Islands weren’t the foodiest of regions, I did have several meals I really enjoyed. I sampled some unexpected flavors. I said yes to dessert, almost every day. I savored big, honking breakfasts, the likes of which I never eat at home—and that were so filling, I sometimes wasn’t even hungry for lunch. And I delighted in every taste.
This is how it should be when we travel.
I’m not here to judge your food choices or tell you what kind of vacation food to eat, except to say: enjoy it, deeply and fully. Splurge on that expensive entrée. Have that piece of cake. Wash it all down with a glass of ice wine or port.
And start rehearsing those “best meal I ever ate” stories for when you get home.
