Ever wondered what the world's best restaurants are?

Well, here they are, according to some of the world's finest cuisine eaters. S. Pellegrino's annual "World's 50 Best Restaurants" list was just released, unfortunately, I haven't been to a single one, but hey I'm only 26! Have you?

1) Noma (Copenhagen, Denmark) 2) El Bulli (Roses, Spain) 3) The Fat Duck (Bray, England) 4) El Celler de Can Roca (Girona, Spain) 5) Mugaritz (Errenteria, Spain) 6) Osteria Francescana (Modena, Italy) 7) Alinea (Chicago, Illinois) 8) Daniel (New York) 9) Arzak (San Sebastián, Spain) 10) Per Se (New York) 11) Le Chateaubriand (Paris, France) 12) La Colombe (Cape Town, South Africa) 13) Pierre Gagnaire (Paris, France) 14) L'Hotel de Ville - Philippe Rochat (Crissier, Switzerland) 15) Le Bernardin (New York) 16) L'Astrance (Paris, France) 17) Hof Van Cleve (Kruishoutem, Belgium) 18) D.O.M. (São Paolo, Brazil) 19) Oud Sluis (Sluis, Netherlands) 20) Le Calandre (Rubano, Italy) 21) Steirereck (Vienna, Austria) 22) Vendôme (Bergisch Gladbach, Germany) 23) Chef Dominique (Helsinki, Finland) 24) Les Créations de Narisawa (Tokyo, Japan) 25) Mathias Dahlgren (Stockholm, Sweden) 26) Momofuku Ssäm Bar (New York) 27) Quay Restaurant (Sydney, Australia) 28) Iggy's (Singapore) 29) L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon (Paris, France) 30) Schloss Schauenstein (Fürstenau, Switzerland) 31) Le Quartier Français (Franschhoek, South Africa) 32) The French Laundry (Yountville, California) 33) Martin Berasategui (Lasarte-oria, Spain) 34) Aqua (Bath, England) 35) Combal Zero (Rivoli, Italy) 36) Dal Pescatore (Mantova, Italy) 37) De Librije (Zwolle, Netherlands) 38) Tetsuya's (Sydney, Australia) 39) Jaan Par Andre (Singapore) 40) Il Canto (Siena, Italy) 41) Alain Ducasse Au Plaza Athénée (Paris, France) 42) Oaxen Krog (Oaxen, Sweden) 43) St. John (London, England) 44) La Maison Troisgros (Roanne, France) 45) wd~50 (New York) 46) Biko (Mexico City, Mexico) 47) Die Schwarzwaldstube (Baiersbronn, Germany) 48) Nihonryori RyuGin (Tokyo, Japan) 49) Hibiscus (London, England) 50) Eleven Madison Park (New York).

I missed them by 3 weeks...

This weekend President Barack Obama and Michelle are vacationing in Asheville, North Carolina. They’re staying at this beautiful hotel called the Grove Park Inn, I know this because I WAS JUST THERE.

I visited Asheville for the fist time a couple of weeks ago and was impressed by its charm. The streets are packed with unique restaurants and musicians entertaining diners on the streets. But one of the best parts is the town's magnificent backdrop, it's surrounded by mountains.

Grove Park Inn is a luxurious hotel nestled in some of those mountains. While there I enjoyed a glass of white wine on the hotel’s back deck. The 1st lady and prez are probably going to do the exact same thing, in those exact same seats, I just wish I could have shared that beverage with them!

I wish there was a draft for reporters...

I watched the NFL Draft last night with my roommate and her boyfriend. I don’t think I’ve ever sat through the entire draft before, after doing so, I can honestly say I enjoyed every minute of it; but probably not for the same reason millions of sports fans did.

My brother has been a basketball player all of his life. He was recruited in 8th grade by a high-school team and then recruited his senior year by a college team. I spent a large portion of my childhood on the sidelines of those games. Unfortunately, my brother never made it to the pros but I do understand the type of hard work and dedication it takes to get there. Last night I watched these football players jammed into uncomfortable 3 piece suits, nervously sitting by telephones, waiting for coaches to confirm their unbelievable offers, that would completely change their lives forever.

I started to think...how great would it be if graduating reporters from around the country were treated the same way and drafted too. What if we were packed into a stadium like room and forced to sit and wait for a call from a news director. The smallest TV markets like Bozeman, Montana would get the first picks and so on. Instead of stats consisting of your weight and height, we would be judged on how fast we could cut a piece of video or how many words we could read without mispronouncing one.

The big difference between a reporter draft and a NFL one would be the money we were offered; however, I'm OK with that. If you were scooped up by a smaller station you’d be given more responsibility and would most likely be on air by the end of your first week there. If a top 10 station drafted you like Los Angeles or New York, you’d have to start at the bottom, most likely as a production assistant, or teleprompter operator, and work your way up.

Instead of the NFL commissioner announcing the draft picks, someone like Anderson Cooper or Katie Couric would be in charge. I can just picture it….

Brian Williams, “For this year’s 8th round pick, WIFR in Rockford, Illinois, has selected Natalie Kaplan from the University of Michigan.” AND THE CROWD GOES WILD!!

Lesson Learned: Summer starts early in Eastern Carolina

I grew up in downtown Chicago. I've still got a closet packed with puffy jackets, thick scarves, and warm gloves. However, there's no need for that in Greenville, North Carolina.

First, lets talk about the winter, or lack there of. Basically, a half of an inch of snow shuts down the city; no school, no one on the roads, even Starbucks is closed.

Second, let's talk about the summer, which there is plenty of. For the past two weekends I've enjoyed my Saturdays on a lounge chair in the backyard. I'm talking about the first two weekends of APRIL.

The forecast for the rest of the week = sunny and 70's.

Because of these splendid conditions, I’ve become a bit of a snob when it comes to weather. When I head back to the Midwest, I’m constantly complaining about the bitter cold, do we really need to shiver through 3 months of that?

While I’ll always call Chicago my home, I’ll admit, you can’t beat these temperatures.  

Lesson Learned: Drink a lot of water before you get your blood taken

It was 3pm and my liquid diet for the day had consisted of a chai tea and diet coke. While I usually drink a ton of water my agua intake had been limited.

The nurse was instantly frustrated by my lack of veins. She stuck a baby needle into my left arm and started poking around, nothing happened, so she had to take it out. She said she was going to have to try and hit a surface vein on my right arm which are usually the most painful. Just like my left, she stuck a baby needle in and started poking around.

After a few cringes and deep sighs from me we still weren’t getting anywhere. She took the needle out and asked if I had drank any water that day? My pitiful answer was no. She told me that makes a huge difference.

I’ve got another appointment next week and my plan is to drink about 8 glasses before I head in…wish me luck please.

It's Pollen Mania

You can run…but you can't hide.

The yellow stuff is on the attack and wreaking havoc in Eastern Carolina.

Wherever I go, whatever I do, the pollen is there. My black car is covered and my black outfit today is covered as well because I rubbed up against that car.

Thankfully, I don’t have allergies, my apologies to all the sneezers out there.

I know pollen is all part of the tree mating season. Male trees shed their pollen in hopes of inseminating female trees, but jeez, keep it under control.