chefrodrigo

Miguel, A chef/teacher at the school I attended would test other chefs by asking them to make him an omellete. He believed he could tell the chefs worth by how the omellete turned out. Therefore I have never taken eggs lightly. I am curious of your favorite way to fry an egg. It sounds like you take it seriously. Rodney

Jeffrey, Let's say you end up on death row. You never know. Could you plan out your final meal for us? Thanks Rodney

I guess I'm pretty late to this thread but I would suggest Jaucque Pepin's "la methode" or "la technique". These are the basics of how to cook. I haven't seen Bittmans book but I do like his NYT pieces. Rodney

Open everyday except Sunday for lunch and dinner. I grabbed a to go menu so I can tell you the prices. Appetizers 2.75 - 4.50 noodles, curries, and rice dishes - 4.75 - 15.95 (yak being the most expensive) most mains were in the $8-9 range And its Tibet Kitchen not Tibetan. Like I said I had just left a wine tasting I haven't been to the one on Sandy yet. Rodney

We happened on this place after a wine tasting across the street at Liner and Elsen. It's located under the Walgreens at NW 21st and Burnside (enter on 21st). We tried two curries. The first with yak meat and the second with lamb and potatoes. The yak was similar to beef but had a slight gaminess. Both curries were perfectly seasoned. You have a choice of bread or rice so we had one of each. The bread was an interesting layered roll. I think it was steamed. While we were waiting on our dinners we had some hot tea. Homemade chai and a salted butter tea. The chai was good but the salted butter tea was the winner for me. The couple that run the place couldn't be nicer. He was from Tibet and she was born in India after her parents left Tibet. Give it a try Rodney

This building is on the northside of Powells and east of the building that PF changs is in. Its tan and looks like an airplane hanger (sp?) inside. Its not a new building but probably one of the originals in that neighborhood. rodney

What about that giant open building just behind Powells? I think its just used as a parking garage now. It's about the size of a football field inside. rodney

The last I heard they still hadn't decided on a space and it sounded like it was still 2-3 years away. Rodney

Alberts Hillsdale will have a holiday market Dec 7th and then one per month in Jan, Feb, and March.

Jim, I've roasted a greener pastures chicken once a week for the entire market season. That is the best chicken I've had. There really is no substitute for the farmers market. I usually end up going to Whole Foods because its walking distance for me. I'll see you there. I'm at Sahagun (the handmade chocolate booth) Rodney

I'm headed to Phoenix on a last minute trip. Just curious if there are any hidden gems that I should look for. Low brow to High brow it doesn't matter to me. I'll eat anything. Thanks Rodney

I think potato gratin is the way to go. ( ala melkor) And if you live in an area where wild mushrooms are available they are great sauteed and mixed in with the gratin.

Rick, If you are going to be in Oaxaca City you have to go to a village close by called "Teotitlan del Valle". There is a restaurant there called Tlamallani (sp?) that is run by several sisters and they make Zapotec food. It is supposed to be an amazing place. I was in the village several years ago but didn't make it to the restaurant. I've been kicking myself ever since. I've got to get back there soon. Rodney

I've been in Portland 3 years and haven't found good TexMex yet. I've been to Esparza's and I'm not too impressed. I had heard they smoke there own meat there so I tried the cheese/onion enchiladas with a slice of smoked brisket. The enchiladas were ok, though the sauce was a little weak, but the brisket tasted boiled and I didn't notice any smoke. Good guacamole and lousy margaritas. Portland does have some good taquerias but I've given up on TexMex. As for the second question. I wouldn't call it a place for cheap food and big portions. I think any type of food requires a competent cook. Even a sandwich requires some effort. I don't think of Mexican American food as some undiscovered gem that deserves great respect though. just my 2cents Rodney

Trillium I've bought masa for tamales out of the freezer at Becerras before. Rodney

I'm sure your friend already knows this but one of the Muellers just opened a place in Austin. It was the son of the current owner of Mueller's and I don't think dad was happy about him using the name. I've heard he's making some good stuff but you have to get there early, if not at lunch, because he just stays open until he runs out of meat. One of my friends was visiting there last week and they were closed by 6pm. Rodney

We had the very same experience from a female bartender at Paleys. We walked in and sat at the bar. There was another couple sitting at the bar and 2 girls talking at the end of the bar. We sat there for about 5 solid minutes without a bartender in sight when one of the girls talking stepped behind the bar looked at us and said "I'll be right with you" and then started talking to her friend again. I've never been so openly snubbed in my life. rodney

I need some help. I have been trying off and on to get a starter going for about 1year. I have no trouble getting the initial bubbles in a couple of days but when I start feeding it always just quits growing. I am as careful as possible with temperature and cleanliness but it has literally happened to me about 10 times. thanks rodney

I think Casanis is only open for lunch on weekdays and closed on Sunday.

Buckman Bistro always gets my vote on the small plates restaurants. I've never left there unhappy. Casanis is a new French restaurant @NW Glisan and 17th. The menu is setup as 3 courses in the range of $20 for all 3. I've been there about 5 times and always a good experience. rodney

Thanks to everyone for the replies. We just arrived back home from 2 days of eating. The suggestions made here were exactly what we found. We arrived in Vancouver about 7pm Sunday evening. Blue Water was close to our hotel so that was our first stop. We usually like to eat at the bar of whatever restaurant we are at so we had a seat at the bar of blue water. There were only 2 other couples at the bar when we sat down but the bartenders still managed to ignore us enough that we picked up our things and moved to the sushi bar. Things improved with the 2 lively sushi chefs and a good waitperson. We started with 2 each of every oyster they had. I think it came to about 20 oysters and they were all very good. Then a few rolls and toro sashimi and again very good. In short good food/ questionable service The next day we did a little shopping late morning at Granville Island and then back to eating. We tried to go to Rodney's Oyster bar but it was closed because of some film crew setup outside. We went to Joe Fortes and had 16 oysters and a couple of beers. Good oysters and friendly bartender. Then we moved on to The Fish House for another 14 oysters and a steamed dungeness crab. I was expecting less for some reason when we arrived but this turned out to be the best service we had on our trip. Chris, the bartender, was very helpful and friendly. After the food and another beer we told him we were going to hit one more spot for seafood. He recommended Tojos for something different and off we went. At Tojos we had the chefs choice sashimi plate, eel sushi, toro sushi, and mixed tempura. All excellent. Vancouver is a beautiful city. I'm hoping we have a little more time to explore the next time. Thanks Everyone Rodney

Have a couple of days off with nothing to do so I thought I'd check out BC. Looking for great fresh seafood. Hole in the wall/ non touristy is a plus. Thanks Rodney