Whirlwind tour

Since I last posted I've been on kind of a crazy journey!
It would take hours to provide the kind of detail I'd like to, so I think I'll create a bulleted list of the highlights of the last month in terms of food/wine

1. Birthday! My wife threw a fantastic little dinner party for me and a few friends on March 9. On the menu were five spice duck, a vertical pinot noir tasting, and pear tart from the Dahlia Lounge followed by some sloppy Guitar Hero. Great stuff indeed
2. Birthday! My wife followed up the amazing dinner party on Friday with a really fun dinner with friends at http://www.baroloseattle.com The space is great, I love the lighting, and the menu looks great. The food was just ok and the service kinda sucked. Luckily I was with great friends and it just didn't matter! If you're considering Barolo...point your car northwest and hit http://www.volterrarestaurant.com/ instead.
3. Vancouver. This is a very special city for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Emily and I were engaged there. We went up for a night on our way to Whistler and had a great time. Met with some old mobile game cronies and then hit http://www.cincin.net for a nice little dinner at the bar. No, its not the newest, trendiest, or most interesting choice in Vancouver...but it is always good and the service rocks. We started with the Gnocchi con cinghiale (red wine braised wild boar) then followed it up with a large helping of Gnocchi con cinghiale! The wine menu is great, both by the glass and by the bottle. We tried a couple different things but settled on a barbera that was just right with the boar. Next time you roll Robson, stop at the Cin Cin bar for some boar and barbera, you won't be disappointed
4. Whistler. We went up for a nice little vacation with a heavy maintenance component. Had to get our act together and make some improvements to the condo and so we did just that. Didn't get everything done we wanted, but we are well on track. While in Whistler we actually ate in more than out, but we had one noteworthy meal with our friends Rob And Missy at Elements. This PACKED little tapas joint isn't much from the outside, but on the inside its absolutely buzzing with energy and the food was phenomenal. Its an eclectic mix of small plates with Asian influence and Canadian sensibilities (ie: great and varied meat)
5. Orlando. Yes, that's right, Orlando. Went for the big mobile show CTIA and while the show itself was pretty stale, the fact that I can go to a party thrown by MTV, featuring Grandmaster Flash and hang out with everyone I've ever worked with is pretty freakin fantastic. Great to see Levin, Alex G, Drew, Kate, Jeff C, Golden, Flanders, Aunkur, Peachey, a bunch of old Jamdat folks, and so many others was a blast. I did have one good meal while in Orlando, and it did not occur in a theme park. Drew and Kate invited me to http://www.sambaroom.net/ which serves solid Latin-fusion cuisine and the atmosphere is really fun. I had the skirt steak and some great Argentinian wine, Bodega Norton Privada which was a cab, malbec, merlot blend....niiiiice
6. Scotland, Part I: long story short, I went to my sister's wedding in Northeastern Scotland. The wedding was followed by a great dinner/reception where they featured Angus beef which is from the Angus region of Scotland. Great meal followed by very bad dancing.
7. Scotland Part II: Stayed two nights in Edinburgh and enjoyed some local fare. I can't say i'm going to miss meat pies or haggis, but I tried them and they're ok. The liver with bacon I think I'll probably skip next time.
8. London: $40 for a greasy breakfast complete with cold toast, beans, and something puck-like they call pudding? Blech. Here's my advice for eating in London: if the meal is on someone else's dime, find the Timeout magazine, select a restaurant that is expensive and highly rated, and be prepared to be underwhelmed. If you are paying out of your own pocket think about having something less than traditional such as pizza...http://www.strada.co.uk/ serves solid if less than inspiring Italian fare, some decent pizza, and good wines by the glass without breaking the bank.

So now I'm back, jetlagged, and glad to be within the range of Pagliacci. Hope life is treating you right.

Twenty Five 4 Twenty Five

Does anyone else love the annual 25 for 25? If you aren't aware, one of the best deals in dining is happening right now in Seattle (and surrounding areas.)
http://www.nwsource.com/contests/restaurants/25for25_0307/

So basically its a chance to try out a restaurant you've been wanting to try, or enjoy a great deal on a meal at an old favorite. The menu is prix fixe and typically includes a variety of starters to choose from, 3-5 entrees , and a number of dessert items.
Although I have been to some restaurants that come up with a new and "cheaper" menu for this event, most seem to offer some of their favorites and don't cut corners.

Sunday my wife and I were heading downtown for a concert and stumbled across the ad for this year's 25 for 25 and decided we'd try and catch the blue hair special at Etta's.
We called and were lucky to snag a table at 5:15 AND confirmed that some of our favorite Tom Douglas items were on the menu.

Tom's "rubbed with love" salmon, cornbread pudding, and a wonderful endive and beet salad were my choices, followed by a brownie. My wife also opted for the salmon, but chose the short rib appetizer and the coconut cream pie.
The salmon was fantastic, and no they do not reduce the quantity or quality of food when you opt for the cheapo menu...great stuff. The cornbread pudding was decadent as usual, and both the salad and short ribs were wonderful.
The only minor disappointment was the brownie, but the massive slice of coconut cream pie made up for that (thanks for sharing hon.)

I have noticed sometimes this kind of promo can bring out the worst in both diners and servers; diners who abuse the opportunity to sample some great stuff at these restaurants sometimes fail to see the value provided, and servers fail to see the value in a customer who may not represent a huge bill tonight may fall in love with the restaurant and come back often if treated well.

Etta's delivered a top notch dining experience (again) and while we didn't spend a ton of money, we received exceptional service and made sure to tip our server well.
Next weekend I'm hoping to make a trip to the Barking Frog as they are taking part in the promo too. Last year the 'Frog included some special wines to celebrate the 25 for 25 which were both interesting AND discounted significantly. NICE!

If you are considering visiting one of the 25 participants, check out the site for the list of restaurants and book as early as possible. Most of them run the promotion Sunday-Thursday through March 31st, and serve a prix fixe lunch for $15 or dinner for $25.

My short list includes:

• Barking Frog
• Tulio
• Oceanaire
• Zoe
• Campagne

Which ones will you try?

Fish tacos

I'm in a rut. well, scratch that...I have several defined patterns that I follow at every opportunity and do my best to make sure they play out in the same way every time.
Is that a rut? maybe rut (s) ? or perhaps neuroses...

Regardless, for some reason I very much enjoy having "go to" options in my life. These include the way I drive the work, the shows I watch on TV, the jeans I wear, and most importantly the food I eat.

Typically I like to write about outstanding meals/items I find in my travels, but more often than not I am eating things that are pretty pedestrian. For some strange reason Rovers doesn't offer a fast breakfast sandwich, and Elemental isn't providing me with fast lunch fare I can eat at my desk.

So I have developed a system whereby I assign value to "everyday" breakfast/lunch options. I suppose its like my own internal Zagat rating system for less than inspirational food.
Here are the areas I tend to consider:

Time: What is the total time it takes to get in, get out, get back?

Ingredients: Is this thing going to kill me if I eat 200 of them this year? If the answer is no, then does it taste pretty good?

Cost: I should pack my lunch and eat breakfast at home, but i don't. Therefore I like to impose a daily cap of $10 to my breakfast and lunch fare. Not to say i don't break that cap from time to time, but its a good guideline

Reliability: I like places that are open when they say they will be, stock the items I like, and the same people help me every time.

These four key attributes are equally important, but the time element seems to trump the rest. Proximity to my place of employment is critical, so even though I know many places that serve better grub all over the city, I frequent the following:

My breakfast rut: Beba's. It is in the Darth Vader building (just like me) and the couple who run it are extremely nice, reliable, and know me. Every day I order the same thing...a toasted bagel with light cream cheese and tomato slices. Incredibly dull, but effective, inexpensive, and reliable. Beba's always has tomatoes, cream cheese, and fresh bagels. The only variation is the bagel flavor. I like to order either multi grain or jalapeno. I guess its good that they don't always stock the same flavor or I would have the exact same thing every day.

My lunch rut(s):

Option 1: Taco Del Mar. I like this rut because it gets me out of the office for 15 minutes or so. I walk the four blocks to TDM, check out the scenery/crackheads, and clear my mind. I think having a destination is what I like most, not the actual fare.
The overall meal fits within my system however;

time: 15 minutes including the walk. these fellas are efficient.

ingredients: not Whole Foods, but not Burger King either. I like the two tacos, black/whole beans, a little rice, and some soda. Its not health food but I've seen worse.

cost: the meal is $5.99. $4.99 on Tuesdays, and Mondays are double stamp day which gets you 20% towards your goal of a free meal...so if I eat there every Monday (double stamp), every Tuesday ($4.99 meal) and one other day during the week, after two weeks and an extra Monday I end up paying for five full price meals, two reduced price meals, and get one meal "free" based on my 10 stamps. So at the end of the day my out of pocket is $4.99 + tax per meal. Not bad.

reliability: I have two TDMs within four blocks. The one on first and blanchard rocks, the one on 4th and olive doesn't.

Option 2: Ralph's Deli. This is my other "go-to" lunch choice. It is overpriced, funky, and doesn't always have what I need, but they play Van Halen at about 90 db which kinda makes it worthwhile.

time: Five minutes in and out. It is literally across the street.

cost: this kinda throws me off. The sandwich is six bucks, then if you want anything else you pay a premium. example: diet pepsi...2 bucks.

ingredients: i get the same thing every time and i tell them precisely what i want on it so its pretty healthy; whole wheat bread, roasted turkey (they roast on site daily), lettuce, tomatoes, Dijon mustard, light mayo, and occasionally some guacamole. The pickle spear is a nice touch.

reliability: i'd say Ralph's is 82% reliable. pretty good, but not great. some variability in sandwich artists and occasionally they forget to roast the turkey which throws me off.

So that's my routine. Pretty lame, but its mine and I can count on it.
Got a better one?

Cafe Juanita

On Saturday I had a chance to visit Cafe Juanita, and I've gotta say it was one of the best meals I've had in a long time.

We settled in for about four hours at CJ to celebrate my Mom's 65th birthday!
I'm glad we didn't make any other plans that evening because it was worth taking time, exploring the menu, and besides they aren't in a rush to get you out the door (more on that)

The wine list at Cafe Juanita is pretty spectacular, and while I didn't have an opportunity to sample any vino this time around its clear they spend a great deal of time stocking the cellar with wonderful wines from all over Italy as well as great selections from the NW and California. In addition to wine, CJ has a nice selection of "aperitivi" which include small bits of interesting food paired with cocktails. Em and my Mom tried the Prosecco and aged Parmegiano which they both seemed to enjoy. Dad had the scotch and it comes with...scotch.

Once our beverages were in place (took some time) we moved on to appetizers. We shared the seared foie gras and the grilled octopus. Both dishes were excellent.
The foie gras was served simply with a vin santo drizzle. The portion was actually pretty substantial and it was perfectly done.
Our octopus was very nice and came nestled on a base of chick pea and fennel seed sauce that I could have eaten a bowl of.

Between our appetizers and salad we tried the barbaresco risotto which i found quite nice but "powerful." The flavor was intense and best enjoyed in small portions.

The salads were very well prepared. I tried the pear salad with pine nuts, parmigiano, and white truffle oil. This one is a MUST HAVE.

By the time the main course showed up I was already feeling a bit full, but the rabbit was too good to pass up. To call this dish tender would be a big understatement, it was literally falling off the bone and the flavor was outstanding. Served with a small crepe, pancetta, and porcini mushroom it was the highlight of my meal.

We finished up with dessert which was just ok for me...a small and not terribly interesting chocolate souffle and some even less memorable item I can't recall.

The servers were very good, pacing things quite well in general. the only thing that seemed off in that regard was beverage service. My wife wanted to try specific wines with courses and the wine got "lost" a couple of times which meant she practically finished her appetizer before her first wine arrived and the same thing happened when she ordered her entree.

All in all I was very impressed with the quality of food, the imagination of the chef, and the presentation of the meal. If you love food like I love food, do yourself a favor and make a point to visit Cafe Juanita. If you've hired a sitter to watch the kids, make sure they don't have to go home early, 'cause you probably won't make it home before 11.

cheers

Whole Paycheck

I love Whole Foods.
Yeah, its really freakin expensive, and I find it annoying that they don't have Diet Pepsi, Tide detergent, or absorbant paper towels...but they do have KILLER fresh foods.

Recently WF opened a new store in downtown Seattle on Westlake which is slightly different than the other stores I've been to. When you walk in there is a heavy focus on prepared foods, the wine section is closer to the entrance than other locations, and the canned/dry foods sections seem smaller.
Every weeknight between 5-7 they offer samples of food throughout the store which is very cool, but can easily spoil your appetite.

Last night I went to the new WF on Westlake, found free parking immediately, got in and out within 10 minutes! The fish selection at this particular store is beautiful, and on most days they have my wife's favorite (Chilean Seabass) as well as a new favorite, Turbot from Greenland.
I like to pan sear the Turbot with a little olive oil, lemon, white wine, shallots, and capers, then put the whole pan (covered) in the oven for a bit and serve medium rare. Try it with a nice Sauv Blanc.

If you don't have a Valentines dinner planned, consider dropping by WF for:

• Heart shaped crabcakes
• St Andre triple cream cheese
• Maybe a nice Oregon Pinot such as Medici
• fresh berries and ice cream

Cheers

Great event

Following up on my post from last week, we did in fact throw a great party on Friday night.
Northwest Exclusive hosted about 50 guests at the Barrel House in Yakima, where we offered a tasting menu of Beechers' cheeses, fruit, five cuts of aged beef, and several wonderful wines topped off with Ivory Coast Truffles from Theo Chocolate.

The feedback we got was overwhelmingly positive, and I'm pretty sure no one went away hungry!

The Chef for the evening, Paul was going full steam trying to stay ahead of the hungry tasters, and was very successful in preparing each sample perfectly. Thanks Paul!

Both Kestrel and Wineglass Cellars joined us and were kind enough to bring some very special pre-release wines for the group to sample. I was very impressed with both of these wineries, their new wines, and the great people. Wineglass Cellars brought their new 2004 Sangiovese which I found to be delightful; soft, smooth, and fruit forward but not sweet.
Kestrel brought both 2003 and 2004 Malbec as well as their Old Vines Merlot which was HUGE, powerful, and to my palate very "un-merlot." I love it.

These events are a fantastic excuse for us to share our passion for Northwest food and wine with our network of friends, colleagues, and known foodie/wine freaks. I can't wait to host another event one day soon. Watch for an upcoming Seattle date!

What I'm eating: Pagliacci Pizza Salumi Primo
What I'm drinking: O'douls Amber
Who I'm hanging out with: Em, Fletch, Baia, Matt, and Amy

Cheers

Prepping for Northwest Exclusive opening (east)

Here we are, t-minus two days before our second tasting event at Northwest Exclusive.
I really enjoy these events because I get to actually share a little bit of my favorite flavors, foods, wines, and brands from the great Northwest.

As you may or may not know, we held our "opening" in mid-November at Stevens Winery in Woodinville. The intent was to rally some foodies, wine freaks, and friends in order to explain what the heck we are up to with this little venture and provide them with some great food and wine to sample.

Tim and Page Stevens (owners of Stevens Winery) were kind enough to provide the space, pour the wine, and make it pretty damn easy to throw a fun event. I'm hoping our second event is as successful!

So we're invading central Washington, Yakima to be specific. On Friday we'll host about 50 guests and I'm pretty sure they're in for a treat. We'll serve four kinds of beef including Prime filet mignon, ribeye, and ny strip, as well as American Kobe ny strip steaks. We plan on pairing the steaks with a minimum of two great wines...probably selections from Wineglass Cellars and CR Sandidge.

This time around we're expanding the tasting menu a bit to include a pre-release sample of a very special wine (not telling,) and the most amazing truffles I've ever tried (Theo Chocolate truffles.)

My hope is we're able to show the folks in Yakima a good time and solicit some candid feedback about our products, packaging, positioning, and overall value proposition.
At a minimum I'm guessing they won't go away hungry.

If you find yourself in Yakima Friday evening, send me a text...I'll guide you over to our event.

Cheers