Culinary Fool

Don’t Forget –

13-May-2006

The Cheese Festival today and tomorrow in Pike Place Market. The weather is perfect for grazing!

For some reason I haven’t been eating that much fish lately. This is very unlike me! But this weekend I suddenly had to have salmon – beautiful, fresh, wild salmon. I made my way to Pike Place to get the first of the spring fillets.

Once I had the fish at home I knew exactly how I wanted to prepare it. I’m going to give you an extremely loosey-goosey recipe. Extremely! So be prepared to used your eyes, tongue and personal preference to pull this one together!

Wild Salmon with Blueberry Marinade

1 pound of wild salmon

Marinade

1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

1/4 cup finely chopped onion or shallot

Generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp roughly chopped fresh basil

Salt and pepper

Place salmon on baking sheet.

Add all marinade ingredients to small saucepan and heat over medium until blueberries have popped. Allow to simmer for a few minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Pour mixture into blender and puree.

Spread a thin layer of the marinade over the salmon – you don’t want to mask the flavor of the salmon just enhance it.

Bake at 500 F for about 10 – 15 minutes depending on how thick the fillet and how well done you prefer your fish. I prefer that the salmon seem a little uncooked in the very center.

Slice the salmon into serving pieces and dollop with a bit of the remaining marinade.

2006 James Beard Winners

09-May-2006

Seattle squeaks through with only one winner this year!

Best Chef: Northwest/Hawaii Scott Carsberg, Lampreia

Other local nominees in the Best Chef category included:

Joseba Jiménez de Jiménez
The Harvest Vine
Seattle

Holly Smith
Café Juanita
Kirkland, WA

John Sundstrom
Lark
Seattle

In the Outstanding Pastry Chef category:

Leslie Mackie
Macrina Bakery & Café
Seattle

And in the Outstanding Restaurant category:

Tom Douglas
Dahlia Lounge
Seattle

For a full list of winners check out The Food Section or the James Beard site.

See Sound Lounge

09-May-2006

R and I made one other stop last Friday and that was at See Sound Lounge. They have one of the latest ending Happy Hours in town so we wanted to squeeze it in. We arrived with about twenty minutes to spare. There was a big group sitting near the open front windows and a couple of twosomes sprinkled around the upper room. The DJ was already spinning with the music at a volume designed to pull people in off the street.

We settled in at the bar and decided to try their happy hour wine, an Australian Shiraz. when the bartender delivered the wine we ordered one of their happy hour appetizers, baked goat cheese. After taking our order to the kitchen the bartender told us it would be about 15 minutes until we were served. I love that proactive information!

See Sound attempts to invoke all the senses with visual displays like the clouds constantly moving across the projected view over the bar. Other images rotated behind the DJ. As mentioned the music was a presence in the lounge. Comfy yet trendy looking furniture welcomed newcomers as they entered. Spots of color catch your eye: pink gerbera daisies along the bar, the soft blue glow along the bar, yellow and pink lights along the walls. In the lower bar red is the color the fills the space.

As we sipped our wine people began drifting in, anxious to get a place prior to the arrival of the real crowds. They positioned themselves in the best see and be seen spots.

Our appetizer arrived warm from the oven. The tangy goat cheese was perfectly warmed and spreadable. In addition to the crostini the plate was graced with a small grouping of fruit. Upon further examination it turned out to be dried pears that had been reconstituted. They were amazingly yummy, especially when arranged with the cheese on a slice of crostini. Because the pears had been dried the sugars were concentrated, making this flavor combination a bit tangy, sweet and salty – a perfect balance in each bite!

As we nibbled and sipped the bar began to fill up and we decided it was time to move on. I’d love to come back for another Happy Hour, though. If this appetizer was any indication they are doing some simple yet interesting things with food here and I’d like to taste my way through a few more of the choices.

See Sound Lounge

115 Blanchard

Belltown, Seattle

206.374.3738

Happy Hour until 8:00 pm

Last Week on The Spirit World

08-May-2006

As usual there was lots going on at The Spirit World last week!

On Sunday we take a look at a mixology book, Sangria: Fun and Festive Recipes.

Monday, in honor of the Kentucky Derby, we take a look at Mint Juleps.

Tuesday is all about changing how we think about beer.

Wednesday, we’re off to Kentucky to learn about Kentucky Bourbon.

With a nod to Cinco de Mayo, Thursday brings hot and spicy cocktails and food.

Friday is a twofer – first we cover the Horchata, another Mexican drink, and then encourage you to participate in The Big Brew.

We close out the week with information on Tales of the Cocktail, a food and cocktail event to be held in New Orleans in July.

Queen City Grill

07-May-2006

It’s been quite some time since I’ve talked much about Queen City Grill. Since I spend so much time there I’ve kind of left it off my list of places – both because I’m too close to it and also to spare you an ongoing litany about the place!

One of the things I’ve always loved about the place is the people who work there, who I consider friends. And for years the staff was pretty consistent. Oh sure, someone would leave now and then but for years the core group could be counted on. That all changed around the first of the year. Due to various things – new ventures outside the restaurant world, new opportunities in the restaurant world, and general restlessness, I guess – there was just about 100% turnover at the bar.

This has been both a sad and happy turn of events. I miss the people who have come to be synonymous with this little home away from home. On the other hand, several of them are in new locations (or soon will be) where I now instantly have friends to visit. And I’m getting to meet a whole new group of people who (hopefully) will become a friends, too.

Along with the new staff, have come some changes in the drinks menu. One of the new guys, Todd, likes to do his own infusions and the menu is taking advantage of that. Friday night after our early stops at Twist and See Sound lounge, R and I stopped by the QC. While catching up with old acquaintances (on both sides of the bar) and meeting new we sampled a couple of the new offerings.

I had the Pomegranate Cosmo and R had a Cucumber Mojito. The Mojito was especially good with the fresh taste of cucumber and mint – although it uses vodka not rum as the base. The cosmo was also good, but not all that pomegranate-y, although a "normal" cosmo doesn’t really taste of cranberry either.

I like these changes for a couple of reasons. First, they were made after the new folks had a chance to really learn about QC and they are in line with what we expect there. Next, a little change is good for all of us. And finally, the drinks are good solid adult drinks – lots of people will enjoy them but they aren’t those beginner frou-frou dirnks so many places tend to go with. Overall, a good thing.

Queen City Grill

2201 1st Ave

Belltown, Seattle

206.443.0975

Opening Day: U-District Farmers’ Market

06-May-2006

First Look: Twist

06-May-2006

Twist has been open for two months now, so I thought it was time to give it a try. I’m not sure where all of the principals hail from, but at least one has roots at The Frontier Room.

R and I arrived at the tail end of Happy Hour. Their specialty, infused vodka cocktails, are all $5 and there are several $2 appetizers.

We sat in the front bar, which was relatively quiet. The back bar, which we took a look at on the way out, was filled with a boisterous private party. On most nights that would be the bar to select, though. Located on the west side of the building and loaded with large windows along the entire wall, the views of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains are amazing. Even if, as in last night, you might actually need your sunglasses while enjoying your cocktails!

R started with a Cutini and I had a Pineapple concoction – the exact name escapes me. I ordered my drink at the bar and asked the bartender to add a bit extra lime, since although I love pineapple it tends to make drinks a bit too sweet for me.

R’s Cutini was great – very refreshing. Our only complaint was that the cucumber had seen better days – actually I believe it was fresh but had been cut with a serrated knife when prepared for the garnish, which left it torn and hanging limply on the side of the glass. My pineapple cocktail was good – the extra lime mellowed out the sweetness but it still was on the verge of being too much. I don’t think I’d ever order two of these in a row.

The food did not fair quite as well, although it seemed to have potential. We ordered crab cakes and Thai Chicken Wings. The crab cakes were fine but nothing special. Although it is possible that I’m a bit jaded due to my great experience on Tuesday. I know for sure, however, that the chicken wings were disappointing. About the best thing I can say about them is that they were spicy. But also goopy with nothing "Thai" about them except the heat in the sauce. I suggested to R that perhaps they were actually Thai chickens – okay probably not! :-)

Anyway, to their credit, our server seemed genuinely interested in our feedback saying that since they were so new they really wanted to find out what customers thought and use that feedback for improvements. Time will tell if that’s true or not.

I have heard that this place is quite the scene later in the evening and that may or may not be your style. But, for a place to sip a cocktail while enjoying the view I don’t think there are too many places that can hold a candle to this location so you may want to check it out just from that perspective.

Twist

2313 1st Ave

Belltown, Seattle

206.448.9478

Happy Hour: Tuesday – Friday, 4:00 – 7:00

Porcella Urban Market

05-May-2006

I love living in Seattle and rarely, if ever, wish that I lived on the East side. Not that I have anything against the area, just that I love the wide range of neighborhoods, restaurants, activities, etc, etc, found in and around downtown Seattle and generally feel the East side to be a little lacking in diversity and options.

Last night I attended the pre-opening party of Porcella Urban Market in Old Town Bellevue. This place is going to make me wish that I lived much, much closer.

Porcella is the new venture by Kelly Gaddis. Most recently you may know him from Bada Lounge (currently morphing into Umi Sake Lounge) but prior to that he’s done time at El Gaucho, Campagne, The Ruins, and Flying Fish to name just a few places. Bada Lounge gained acclaim and was covered in Food and Wine, the Wall Street Journal and InStyle magazine.

This newest idea is a combination casual eatery, take-out counter and market. The press releases talk about a fairly wide-ranging list of menu options but last night the offerings were limited to a few beautiful bites. Guests sampled several interesting salamis; rustic pork pate; smoked fish with accompaniments; potato crisps flavored with parsley, garlic and truffle oil; tiny tuna tartlets with a wasabi sauce; fresh quail eggs in potato shells; duck rillettes; and a sampling of dessert tarts that disappeared before I could get to them.

Eveything I sampled would be something I’d like to try again. Everythng. If I lived in the area I might stop by just to check out the market items but it seems to me that its primary use would be for filling out your menu if you were picking up take-out items – I’m not sure that I’d acually go shopping there. That could change, however, once they get the stock completely filled out. There were some interesteing items on the shelves that I’ve not seen other places.

I didn’t catch the actual opening date but it looks as though that could happen in the very near future, if not already open. I’ll try to remember to update this post when it happens. In the meantime, keep the place in mind and swing by next time you are in the area.

Porcella Urban Market

10245 Main Street, Suite 101

Bellevue

425-286-0080