Food and the city

I have traveled a fair bit, studied and lived in cities across the world. This can get chaotic. Even unsettling at times. The one common thread that binds these myriad experiences continues to be food. For me, it's the starting point to discover a new city. As a restaurant critic, I am quick to map out a city, check out the popular spots, pay homage to the jewels and munch at the off-the-beaten track eateries. The way a city eats gives me a handle on its pulse. And once I know its pulse, I'm at home. But when I'm not working and just dining for pleasure, I tend to revisit the same restaurants, eat the same dishes. Maybe this provides some grounding, a comfort factor. I don't know what it is. Right from when I was studying at Stony Brook, I had this restaurant that I frequented. It was a Mexican grille near my campus called Green Cactus. I would almost always have the nachos with extra guacamole. A decade has passed but I can still recollect the smoky taste of the roasted tomato salsa like I had it for lunch today. In every city after that, I have these restaurants and dishes that I keep going back to.
Food and the city are intertwined. They define each other. They tell stories of the people, of love and longing, of adventure and of finally, coming home.