Now we make carbonara at home regularly, but it’s a version I evolved over the years to feed my kids, and you can think of it as bacon-and-eggs-and-parmesan-and-onions-and-peas-in-pasta. Delicious, yes, but not the carbonara I now know to exist in the real world, in Italy.

So last week, as a special treat, my honey and me finally went to Danny Meyer’s Roman-style Trattoria called Maialino, with high expectations. I’m sorry to say I was deeply disappointed. No photo, but I can tell you the dish looked great. Felt pretty good to the tooth, too. But the flavor just wasn’t there; it was like someone had followed instructions exactly but put no heart and soul into making flavor and love. I was a little embarrassed to be sitting in such a carefully-constructed restaurant with Danny Meyer touches and service, and at the bottom was just not so great food. Not cheap food, either.

Well, I knew it was time to just figure out how to scratch the itch as best we could at home. Even if it takes a few years, I’m willing to work on it. And here’s the first pass, thanks to Milo for the lovely photo:

We did it with just a few steps:

• 2 pounds of De Cecco spaghetti in a lot of boiling salted water
• 8 ounces of pancetta, cubed and fried up in a touch of olive oil and 5 cloves of garlic, crushed
• When the garlic turns brown, pull it out
• When the pancetta’s done (crisped), keep it warm on a low flame
• In a big bowl, beat 6 egg yolks and 2 eggs, plus a pile of black pepper and sea salt
• Put it all together when the pasta is still very al dente (more than you think)
• Add even more black pepper, salt, and the finest parmigiano reggiano you can find (handfuls of it)
• I drizzled a little more olive oil and some pasta water on top

It was pretty dang good and those hungry kids thought so too. Definitely room for improvement, and have to figure out how they coat the pasta with yellow egg and we seem to end up cooking it, but we’ll get there.

It didn’t exactly shout at me, but it was singing with a strong voice. Just don’t try to operate heavy machinery afterward.

Barcelona, mmmmm.

When you get brought a breakfast like this, you know what love is. All those years I thought it was about something else but it turns out that food is the key.

Now it’s more like the back of a knee.

Port Authority area along 8th avenue sure has changed a lot. Much less sleaze and surly threat.

And sitting in Dean & Deluca is a much better option than waiting at the Greyhound platform. Nice coffee and a slice of Sullivan Street zucchini and parmesan pizza.

It is about 200 degrees in new york city today. All I want to know is why we don’t just eat watermelon all the time?

Sofra is the bakery owned by the Oleana folks, and it is a knockout food experience. Over the Watertown line from Cambridge and worth the trip. Gorgeous varieties of baked goods coming sweet and savory in a Turkish way. Like Berkeley with an eastern sensibility. A few tables, lots of spices and treats for sale, order at the counter.

It helps, a nice bowl of fresh udon.

Hard to say what is best here, the food or the people, but it feels like love and it is some of the best falafel in the city. But get the Sabich sandwich because it’s even better.

My old friend Derrick sent some pics of a gorgeous Colorado ride, tasty western breakfasts, and sprawling skies. At least I was able to make a good breakfast: this is two corn tortillas pretty much obscured by a mashup of leftover black beans with cumin, shredded chicken with corn and spices, a fried egg, wilted spinach and a ton of cilantro. Instead of salsa, I scooped some of Hillary’s delicious gazpacho on top.

Makes me want breakfast again thinking about it.

Some days, you need to just cook up a big dinner. This one tonight included a bunch of treats from Eataly’s markets:

• Shishito peppers, fried quickly in olive oil with sea salt and lemon juice
• Calamari sauteed with garlic, red pepper flakes, olive oil, white wine, pine nuts, parsley, lemon zest and capers
• Toothy delicious Kamut pasta
• A chunk of tile fish broiled with herbs
• Some chicken thighs (boneless) broiled with spices for the boys
• Roasted eggplant and parsley
• Big salad
• Good bread

Family, meal, full.