Highlights From Our Ibiza Trip & What I Cooked Last Week
4 things you can’t miss if you ever make it to Ibiza, pan con tomate avocado toast, grandpa’s Korean marinated pickled radishes, Thai red curry dumpling soup
Hi everyone,
Hope you had a great week! It feels so nice to be back in New York for the fall. Doug and I have settled into a routine: morning walks with Kimchi in Greenpoint, coffee and matcha lattes from our neighborhood spot, and the occasional croissant from Bakeri (our favorite!). Go right when they open for a perfectly crispy, buttery pastry that’s still warm from the oven.
Today I’m sharing highlights from the week we spent in Ibiza at the end of August. We went with three of our closest friends (we met a decade ago working in tech!) and had the best time together. Below you’ll find our favorite spots from the trip, including two beach clubs we loved, the best place for a night out dancing, and an unforgettable dinner.
First, here’s a recipe for marinated pickled radishes, passed down from my Korean grandpa and one we’ve been making for years. They’re quick to prepare (just fifteen minutes, plus the pickling time) and so delicious I can never stop eating them.
Also, my debut cookbook comes out March 3 and is available for preorder. Your early support means the world 🥰
What I Cooked Last Week! ↓
Grandpa’s Korean Marinated Pickled Radishes
A simple and healthy delicacy we’ve been making in my family for years and years. The radishes explode with flavor from the inside out.
You can download the PDF recipe above and watch the video here :)
Pan Con Tomate Avocado Toast
Inspired by a dish I had in Spain, this is a twist on the classic pan con tomate. The toasted bread is topped with freshly grated tomato and slices of creamy avocado.
Thai Red Curry Dumpling Soup
This soup is creamy, tangy, and mind-blowingly delicious. Using frozen dumplings makes it quick and easy.
Highlights From Our Ibiza Trip: Four Spots You Can’t Miss
Doug and I wanted to plan a trip with three of our closest friends (Adam, Wiktor, and Laz) who we’ve known for ten years. It’s the kind of friendship that feels like family. Since the trip fell around Laz’s birthday, we asked him where he’d like to go, and he suggested Spain. Doug, our trip-planner extraordinaire, started researching destinations. He narrowed it down to Ibiza and Mallorca, two Mediterranean islands off the coast of Spain. Wiktor and Doug had been to Ibiza before, but Laz, Adam, and I hadn’t.
I’ll be honest, I’ve always thought of Ibiza as just a party island and I was a bit skeptical at first. I worried it would be too crowded and not the best place for quality time with close friends. But Doug convinced me there was more to it than meets the eye, and since he’s never steered me wrong, I trusted him.
We considered splitting our time (two nights in Ibiza before going to Mallorca) but most villas required a one-week rental. We wanted to stay together under one roof, so we chose to spend the entire week in Ibiza.
What surprised me most was how gorgeous the island is: lush foliage, stunning views of the sea, crystal-clear water, and idyllic sandy beaches. Plus the food scene was amazing, with world-class restaurants you’d find in ritzy European beach destinations like Saint-Tropez or Mykonos.
If you go, I’d recommend renting a car, since the island is fairly spread out. We used ours during the day and hopped in Ubers at night if we were going out.
Here are the four spots I highly recommend if you ever find yourself in Ibiza (along with some tips!):
Our Two Favorite Beach Clubs: Jondal and Cotton Beach Club
Since we were out late, our mornings started around 11 a.m., and a few of the days we booked lunch reservations at beach clubs. You can book online, but if you don’t see any available slots, message the club on WhatsApp for a reservation (we found that worked really well). We didn’t book anything in advance, only making reservations once we were in Ibiza.
Lunch was slow and leisurely and often lasted two to three hours. (They let you stay as long as you like, which felt very European to me!) We asked our waiter to keep an eye out for available beach beds, and by the time we finished lunch, we could usually snag a few. Then we’d trade off between dips in the water and lounging on the beds.
Jondal reminded me of Le Club 55, one of my favorite spots in Saint-Tropez, with sand beneath our feet and shade sails overhead. The food was incredible: tuna belly carpaccio (seasoned to perfection with olive oil and sea salt), succulent clams in white wine garlic broth with pancetta (the best we’ve ever had), Alaskan king crab, creamy caviar pasta, and fried scorpion fish tacos (you pry the flesh off the bones to build your own tacos). Dessert was iced lattes and an incredible chocolate tart. It was the most memorable lunch of the trip. Afterward, we jumped off the pier into the sea.
Cotton Beach Club had a different vibe, perched on a cliff with fancier white tablecloths and stunning views of the sea. We ordered sushi, jamón ibérico (we couldn’t get enough), and shared burgers and fries. The beach below was pristine, with the clearest water we’ve ever seen. The waves were perfect for body surfing, and I even caught my first wave all the way to shore. We also swam out to a big rock to jump from. I grew up swimming (and playing competitive water polo!), so I made it there first. It felt like a mini adventure.
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