揭秘外国国宴：周恩来曾享金日成特设"全狗午宴"

西方国家的国宴通常为晚宴，一般在晚上8-9时开始，持续到午夜结束。虽然礼仪非常隆重，但饭菜却远比人们想象的简单：往往是少许冷盘，一或二道肉类热菜，一道甜食，外加面包和饮料。餐食不丰富，饭量大者很可能吃不饱，但餐具十分讲究，餐桌布置富丽堂皇，每道菜结束必然换上一套新餐具。真像有人说的那样，西餐就是吃餐具。
吃文化
西式国宴工夫多半在饭菜之外，强调的是“吃文化”。比如瑞士的国宴，一般是三菜一汤，一份甜食，但精明的主人善于用五彩缤纷的鲜花和美妙的音乐营造温馨的气氛，让人有宾至如归之感。菜式的设计更是别出心裁，甜点上装饰有瑞士国旗图案，状若熊掌的蘑菇牛排看起来赏心悦目。瑞士的首都伯尔尼被誉为“熊城”，吃了这道菜，从肚子到脑子都再忘不了瑞士和伯尔尼。
法国菜
欧美国家的国宴，以西餐为主。法国菜在西方国家最负盛名，它选料新颖，如蜗牛、鹅肝等非常独特；它加工精细，烹调讲究，有不少名菜传世，如马赛鱼羹、鹅肝冻、巴黎龙虾、红酒山鸡等。而“巴黎牛排油炸土豆丝”，被誉为这个美食大国的国菜，每次都会被端上国宴台面。这道牛排半生半熟，肉呈红色，鲜美可口，土豆丝焦熟适度，嚼起来满口是香、风味独特。法国国宴上另一名菜是烤蜗牛，制作很特别：将蜗牛肉同葱、蒜、洋葱一起捣碎，拌以黄油，调味之后，把肉塞回壳内，放在特制的瓷盘里，送进烤箱里烤，食用时油还冒着泡，十分鲜美。
狗肉宴
亚非拉很多国家非常注重以民族特色的菜肴招待宾客。1970年4月周恩来总理访问平壤时，金日成主席就为他特设了“全狗午宴”。这全狗宴，从冷盘开始到每道热菜均从狗身上做文章：狗血肠、红烧狗肉、清炖狗肉、狗肉汤。烹饪方法不同，香而不腻，美味可口。另外，看似不起眼的泡菜，在朝鲜的国宴上也扮演着不可或缺的角色。朝鲜泡菜风味独特，酸、辣、香、脆齐备，既下得普通百姓的厨房、也上得辉煌的国宴。
烤骆驼
阿拉伯国家国宴最受欢迎的一道菜是烤全羊。烤熟的整羊放在桌上，旁边有切好的生洋葱和其他调味品，任凭客人持刀从整只羊的任何部分切割，拌上调味品享用。
非洲一些国家的国宴受阿拉伯人影响，也常常以烤制品招待客人，如马里外交部招待外国使节的大餐常常是一道烤骆驼。这道菜的特别之处是，骆驼被掏空内脏，一只烤全羊被置于骆驼腹中，一只烤鸡又含于羊腹中，鸡腹中又藏着一只烤鹌鹑，鹌鹑腹中有一个鸡蛋。当客人开始品尝这烤骆驼时，就好像在猜一道妙趣横生的连环谜题，主人的热情与幽默尽在不言之中。
生吃牛肉
埃塞俄比亚的国宴往往是吃生牛肉。生牛肉很鲜嫩，鲜血淋淋的牛肉最受欢迎。吃法有两种：一是将剥去皮的整头牛劈成两半，挂在钩上，客人一手持刀一手拿盘，自己动手去牛身上切割，边切边蘸着佐料吃，不加主食；另一种是把牛肉绞成肉糜，拌上辣椒粉等调料装盘吃，或用一种谷物做成的“英吉拉”薄饼裹着吃。海尔·塞拉西皇帝在位时，宴请我国大使俞沛文以及后来埃塞俄比亚外长宴请杨守正大使，都吃过这种生牛肉。
蝗虫宴
墨西哥人以玉米为主食，他们的国宴都少不了玉米。“托尔蒂亚”是将玉米面放在平底锅上烤出的薄饼，类似中国的炸春卷； “达科”是包着鸡丝、沙拉、洋葱、辣椒，用油炸过的玉米卷。最高档的“达科”用蝗虫做馅。“蓬索”是用玉米粒和鱼、肉熬成的鲜汤。另外，在这个神奇的国家，食用“米邦塔”仙人掌有久远的历史，用它做成的大菜也是墨西哥国宴上的一道主菜。
秘鲁以烤肉串作为国菜，尤以烤牛心、羊心、鸡心为主。烤前将肉串放入酒、醋、盐、蒜、辣椒等原料中腌制数小时，烤时掌握好火候，烤出的肉串芳香四溢。
国宴说起来很严肃，其实不外是一种饮食文化与民风民情的展示。

Budget-minded travelers go online for bargains

 

By Renay San Miguel | Apr 05, 2010

Innovative online travel companies are finding a market for their services despite - or perhaps because of - the weak economy. "Travelers are definitely looking to be more frugal and to cut expenses wherever they can," said Tom Romary, CEO and cofounder of Yapta.com. "You might say that some of the newer online travel companies were born out of the recession."

Many college students have been spending the week on the beaches of Padre Island and other balmy locales, soaking up equal parts sun and alcohol. Meanwhile, the families of America are starting to think about where they'd like to dig their toes in the sand for summer vacations - if they're not already picturing themselves joining the long, sweaty lines at the nation's major theme parks.

What do these two disparate demographic groups have in common this year? A greater reliance than ever before on technology, particularly the online travel companies that have managed to stay busy as the country tries to blow away recessionary storm clouds.

That goes for the web sites for the top airlines or hotel chains in the country, the major online travel aggregators like Expedia and Orbitz, and specialized web sites like Yapta and TripIt, that target hourly changes in airfares or help travelers organize their business or pleasure visits. Add to that mix the relatively new factors of social media networks and smartphone applications, and you've got extremely empowered consumers - along with a lot of jousting for their business.

Changing Game
"What's still happening is a lot of fierce competition right now, and you have got to have the right twists and turns," BestFares.com founder and CEO Tom Parsons said. "You've got a lot more travel gurus out there sitting at home saying, 'I know how to play this game' - but the game changes every hour."

Those changes can mean hundreds of dollars saved on airfares and hotel rates and various packages involving both kinds of costs. Just as travelers are trying to avoid the stress that comes with spending too much money for their rest-and-relaxation trips, online travel companies are also trying to contain costs by enhancing the services they already provide, rather than merging with other companies - or buying them outright.

"I would guess that more travel companies, online and offline, will continue to forge partnerships in an effort to expand their offerings and gain visitors and travelers, but without incurring major costs," said Tom Romary, CEO and cofounder of Yapta.com. The same spirit that led to previous travel connections - such as Expedia buying TripAdvisor, or Travelocity's purchase of Sabre - has been put on hold by the recession.

Latest Online Travel Trends
Necessity - and a recession - being the parents of invention, some new web-based companies have sprung up in response to the greater demand for cost-saving services accessed from a computer or smartphone, noted Romary.

Packlate, which targets last-minute deals in the vacation rental/vacation home market, and GetARoom, which provides the latest information on so-called nonpublished hotel room rates, are two examples.

Yapta, which scans changes in airfare and hotel room prices and alerts customers accordingly, was doing business before the recession, but has still managed to market itself as a resource to cost-conscious travelers.

"While the recession did result in fewer travel dollars being spent, it also thrust services like ours into the spotlight," Romary said. "Travelers are definitely looking to be more frugal and to cut expenses wherever they can. You might say that some of the newer online travel companies were born out of the recession. These sites help fill a need for travelers on a tight budget. Again, it's a sign of the times."

However, the newer companies and their new technology tools may be giving customers a false sense of security, argued BestFares.com president Parsons.

"In the business today, John Q. Public still has to be careful about what system they use," he said. "This year, the consumer is not just relying on the search engines to do their work. The airfares can change three times a day. What you see on Tuesday in the morning can change a couple of times by 5 pm. You have to use a little more common sense other than solely relying on any one of us (online travel companies). You've got to play the game a little bit harder."

Advent of Smartphones and Social Media
These days, if an airline or any other travel-related company doesn't have some form of social media strategy, it's a cause for raised eyebrows, said Dan Levy, editor of Sparksheet.

Twitter and Facebook accounts can help manage public relations crises and alert customers to deals, Levy said, but the ship still hasn't come in yet regarding any real impact on company bottom lines.

"There are a few examples, like JetBlue, which made a bit of a splash when they were the first ones to start giving away cheap seats via Twitter," Levy said. "If you're able to unload extra inventory, then I think that's a clear case of social media being a good business decision."

Southwest Airlines is trying to find a way to measure engagement on its Twitter and Facebook accounts by tracking click-throughs that lead to its ticket-booking services on Southwest.com.

"I got the impression they're not huge numbers, but they are at least tracking," observed Levy. "They are seeing whether people are coming through social media or from organic, direct traffic."

There's more potential in the smartphone application world, in his view, and he hopes that established travel-related companies - be they the web sites of the major airlines, the aggregators like Expedia or specialized web-based companies - will seek out the entrepreneurs who are trying to merge GPS-related services with the needs of the travel industry.

It's still a work in progress, though.

"I think maybe it's a case of the airlines trying to do it all in-house," said Levy, "when there are enthusiastic airplane geeks out there who are developing some really cool stuff that's miles ahead of what the airlines are developing."