The best of food, fashion and all that jazz

Food and fashion feed our passion this week with top awards, new openings and an all-out fashion fiesta with diamond Birkins and Hermes bow ties. Our travel section also favours a treat for jazz lovers with the largest Jazz festival in Montreal to the Fillmore Jazz festival in San Francisco; strum to your own beat.

Gourmet

News: World's 50 Best Restaurants awards

Food fanatics may have favourites that do not weigh in on awards and juries, but Spain's El Celler de Can Roca, which was named the world's top eatery by the World's 50 Best Restaurants awards in London early this week, has had our vote for a while now.

Remember you read it first in India Today Spice in June last year.

Run by brothers Joan, Jordi, and Josep Roca (pic below), the awards praised the Rocas' expertise in "both the traditional and the avant-garde", according to their website.

New opening: Indian Accent

Where else would you find meetha achar chilly and spare ribs, kathhal (jackfruit) phulka taco or mishti doi cannoli, but the Indian Accent at The Manor in Delhi.

This inventive Indian food restaurant is soon to please palates beyond the Atlantic in the Big Apple as Old World Hospitality recently announced the opening of Indian Accent in New York at Le Parker Meridien.

Fashion

Limited Edition: Jimmy Choo

Whether you're into poodles or pelt, fashion or fox terriers, you will want to get your paws on these limited edition bags from Jimmy Choo. A collaboration between Jimmy Choo and Brazilian artist Rafael Mantesso, this limited-edition capsule collection for pre-fall 2015 features a seven-piece, one-off collection with a tote bag, a cosmetic bag, pouches, a dog collar and a phone case in bold pink copper and blue hues, made from canvas and leather.

Mantesso owns an English bull terrier called Jimmy Choo and the bags are emblazoned with illustrations of the bull terrier perched on a sofa, dreaming of shoes and pretending to be a DJ. Prices range from 50 pounds for a phone case, to 695 pounds for a canvas bag and can be purchased in store and online.

OTT

Auction: Hermès

Passion overwrites many things, and this exceptionally shiny Fuchsia Porosus Crocodile Diamond Birkin 35 from Hermès is no exception.

Rewriting the world record for the most expensive handbag ever sold at auction, Christie's second Handbags & Accessories auction in Hong Kong, presented a selection of more than 300 of the world's most coveted handbags. This 18k white gold and diamond hardware was sold for a cool HK$1.72million. The Hermès Shiny Black Porosus Crocodile Diamond Sellier Kelly 32 with 18k white gold and diamond hardware also became the most expensive Kelly ever sold at auction.

Accessories: Hermès

If accessories spell out your style statement, be sure to check out the Hermès silk bow ties.

The festive and colourful collection will be available at Hermès stores in Mumbai and New Delhi from July 2015.

Travel

Montréal

Canada may not be your first choice when you dream entertainment but Montréal may just be able to change your mind. The city turns into a big party place every year as it hosts the world's largest jazz festival. Join one of the 1000 parties that start in the morning and end only when you call it a night. Over 3,000 performers from 30 countries visit this festival with two million attendees.

Listen to a new interpretation of jazz and rub shoulders with jazz-fans, aficionados and the artists themselves.

Hum to the rhythm of the soul, dream in French, snack on poutine (a traditional Quebec delicacy, savour a five-course tasting menu, shop at the chic boutiques of Montréal or simply pout at the awesomeness of it all. Head to Maison du Festival de Jazz for an intimate concert or simply lose yourself in the open air ambience. Or cheer along with a 100,000 like-minded fans in the pedestrian-only Quartier des spectacles to linger over remakes of Miles Davis classics.

If you want to take a break from the music, explore old Montréal on bike, carriage or foot or experience hip Montréal clubbing. There's a little something for everyone.

Where: Montréal, CanadaWhen: June 26 - July 5, 2015

San Francisco

1. Fourth of July Celebrations at Pier 39

Many things to many people, the city by the Bay is a chameleon of a space; perfect for those who lust after love, life and the lilting strains in between.

Whether it's the brightly coloured, hand-painted murals that echo the strains of the bohemian counterculture splashed on the sides of buildings or the masterful smorgasbord that is Fisherman's wharf; food is sensual art here and wine simply the air you breathe. Celebrate summer lovin or the coming out of your inner flower child as gustily as the salted ocean air. But if you're looking for a bang, the Fourth of July celebration at the PIER 39 should be a good starting point. At approximately 9:30 PM, The city of San Francisco will treat spectators to an elaborate fireworks display over the San Francisco Bay. And the best vantage point to enjoy the festivities is at PIER 39.

2. Fillmore Jazz Festival

JULY 4-5, 2015

If you're interests are more mellifluous, The Fillmore Jazz festival in Frisco this year embraces the spirit, insight, beauty, and power of women expressed through music. "Celebrating Women in Jazz and beyond".

Celebrate a prosperous tradition of jazz, culture and cuisine against the picturesque backdrop of Fillmore Street.

San Francisco Marathon, Half Marathon, 5K Run/Walk July 26, 2015

If running is your bliss, consider the USAT&F Certified course that includes a "best of San Francisco" tour with a loop over the Golden Gate Bridge. Choose from running the marathon, half marathon, progressive marathon, 5K run/walk races or really take on the challenge with the "Worth the Hurt" 52.4 double marathons. Read more here.

Munich

History stands in attendance here, but apart from the rich strains of cathedra bells, gothic courtyards and the royal gardens, art is the real treasure house. The three art houses of Alte Pinakothek', 'Neue Pinakothek' and the 'Pinakothek der Moderne' promise aesthetic nirvana for art lovers boasting the most prestigious art collections in the world.

The Neue Pinakothek stocks the Bavarian state painting collections from the middle ages to the mid-18th century. It presents works of the 19th and early 20th century, showcasing painters like Cranach, Altdorfer, Dürer, Botticelli, da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, Rembrandt, and Rubens. The highlight is the Rubenssaal, with its six-meter high paintings. The Alte Pinakothek, at the time of it completion was the largest museum in the world but was heavily damaged during the bomb raids of World War II.

The Neue Pinakothek provides an overview of the epoch of European art, from Classicism, Romanticism, Art Nouveau to impressionism. The most famous artists exhibited are Goya, Turner, Caspar David Friedrich, Spitzweg, Delacroix, Renoir, Monet, Van Gogh, Klimt and Rodin.