Growing up in L.A., I was accustomed to good Mexican food. When I moved to DC, I was inspired by some initial posting on Chowhound, which is an excellent food and dining resource.

I’ve used it for every trip I’ve been on since 2000 and it’s rarely steered me wrong.

Try a search for say, lunch in Barcelona and one of the first posts brings up discussion about Cal Pep, Cinc Sentis, and Gaig – some of the best food imaginable in that fine city.

Though that is enough for some, my obsessive/compulsive desire to have the best and most authentic dining experiences goes beyond what most would consider rational.

I generally go back and forth between the major travel and foodie sites, news sites like the NY Times and even social networking sites like Del.icio.us. I’ll then proceed to build a medium to lengthy list of possibilities, which, over time, I whittle down, based on cross-referencing. I’ve built a small library of amazing spots in several major travel destinations.>

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