dougery

Am I being held hostage in Burien? Seriously, thanks for the tips. I think I will visit a couple of new restaurants this week!

Wow, I had no idea these restaurants were around. I forgot all about trader Joe's, I was just there for some pita chips and I didn't even think about that when I started rambling on about grocery stores, my bad. Wayne's eh? Where is this? I would love to go check that out. Wally's and Filibertos aren't down by the pier near Anthony's Home Port by chance? I've visited a couple of restaurants in Des Moines and I really like the area. It's a fun little community. I did go to the EB Foote winery in Burien by the way. We rented out the space for a party. Their wine is fairly good! I would have never of guessed that there was a winery in the heart of downtown Burien! Thanks for the great info folks. I'll keep everyone up to date on my experiences at these locations and let me know if anything else comes to mind. I hope I didn't offend anyone with my Burien bashing but I'm still learning about Burien. Transplanting homes isn't easy!

When this thread reminded me of my mother's pickled rinds, I went right out and bought a watermellon. My wife thought I was crazy buying a watermellon more for the rind than the insides. : )

Thanks for the links Kris! Japanese use of english in advertising is so funny! I love the names "Gorgeous 4" and the "Curry Idaho" pizza on the pizza hut web site! To be honest with you, when I started saying the names of some of the pizza's out loud, the ingredients actually started to make sense to me. They actually sound... shall I say... gourmet? Spicy calamari pizza... Korean purukogi... carbonara... They actually sound pretty good. I take back some of my earlier comments on Japanese pizza, but I still stand by my statement of ... Pizza on the Shinkansen is horrible!

uuuhhhhhggg!! Even the grocery stores out here are bleak and homogenous. I never thought I would be saying this but Kent,Puyallup and Sumner are all a cultural oasis compared to Burien! My wife was talking about the Sunbreak cafe the other day, perhaps that will be our next outing. Thanks for tip.

I just watch a Seattle Mariners game while cutting onions... If I'm going to cry it might as well have a purpose.

The last three places I ate out at.... hmmm... I've been eating in a lot lately so this is going to test what memory I have left... starting with the most recent: Rays Boat House: Black cod Sake Kasu w/edamame, shiitakes, radish sprouts, citrus sauce and shiso oil and a side of white rice. Bizzarro's in Wallingford: Gnocchi w/gorgonzola cream sauce and chopped walnuts. Gornut salad. (I was smelling pretty ripe at the end of this meal) Denny's: Country fried steak w/scrambled eggs, hash brown potatoes, exra side of hash browns and biscuit. I'm sure there is something in between Bizzarro's and Denny's but I can't remember.

Very timely topic for me, I never thought I would encounter a jar I couldn't open, but at a BBQ the other day I ran into my match, a jar Sour Kraut! I tried whacking the lid with utensils, using the rubber disc, lightly banging it on a table, moist towels, nothing worked! then a young woman smiled, walked over to me, took the jar and whacked the lid lightly on the concrete and I heard the "pop" as the vacum released. She then handed the jar back and shook her head... I don't know about whacking glass jars on concrete, but it taught me a valuable lesson in humility

I need some assistance here. I am a recent transplant from Wallingford and am in desperate need of some "hidden gem" restaurants in Burien. Having lived in Wallingford, I was kind of spoiled when it came to good restaurants but now living in Burien, I am suffering serious withdrawls. Does anyone have any good tips for restaurants in Burien? I already know the West Seattle restaurant scene fairly well but I'm looking for something a little closer to downtown Burien. I've already found the nice Thai restaurant up on 1st avenue (accross from the Greek restaurant). I love their garlic fish, but other than that I feel like I'm in restaurant purgatory. Other places visited: Huckleberry's (good home cooking), Vinces (good pizza), Anthony's Home Port (I am not fond of this restaurant!). I'm looking for a little bit of cultural diversity, can anyone help.

lol (sincerely)!! This is the funniest thread I've ever seen! My wife just walked in wondering why I was howling with laughter and when she started to read this, she thought it was a porn bulletin board! I need to print this thread out! By the way Al, your butt is "Sa-weeeeet". This thread has inspired me to give it a try. Thanks for the laugh and inspiration (and for getting me in trouble) folks!

Pantry must haves: Kikoman shoyu, dashi, kombu, bonito, mirin,Kadoya sesame oil, Mitsukan rice vinegar, panko, dried shitake, sesame seeds, wasabi (powdered), sake (for cooking of course ), wakame, S&B curry powder, nori for sushi and eating. Pantry like to haves but not necessarily staples: Furrikake (for guests/kids), Ochazuke, togarashi, S&B instant curry blocks. As for specific brands, I've listed the brands that I know I go back to over and over again. Everything else I usually get whatever looks good.

The first Japanese pizza I had was on the Shinkansen back in 1976. Onion pizza... it was the worst pizza I have ever had. I saved a newspaper insert last time I visited Japan because the photo's of the pizzas were so strange. Squid and corn pizza? There were at least 20 photo's of the weirdest combinations. I'm sorry, I feel I have an open mind when it comes to food but I'm a purist when it comes to pizza. I refuse to eat Japanese styles of pizza, they're just not what nature intended ... NY style cheese pizza for me please, maybe with pepperoni.

Would you be my neighbor? And the food doesn't have to be Kosher! On the serious side, here is a good link explaining Kosher foods. http://www.ou.org/kosher/primer.html It is most considerate and kind of you to research your neighbors beliefs!

Hot pot! Chinese or Japanese. There is no better way to warm you up on a cold fall/winter day.

Rakkyou is great! I love the sweet version in vinegar. Having rakkyou garnished with a bowl of hot rice and curry is the perfect way to enjoy a cold rainy evening. Has anyone ever had pickled turnips pickled with chilli pepper and kombu? The turnips are sliced into very thin slices then pickled in a vinegar/sugar mixture. Yum! My mother used to pickle watermellon rinds with salt. I haven't done this yet but I remember the flavor was quite clean and refreshing. Does anyone have experience with this?

Perhaps omuraisu is a covert way for the Canadians to infiltrate japan. They already put ketchup on everything (potato chips for example) and they convinced President Reagan that ketchup was a vegetable... CONSPIRACY I say!! In all seriousness, I grew up with omuraisu and still enjoy it to this day but I have always thought the concept of ketchup on rice as being rather strange. Ketchup belongs on french fries damned it! BTW, some of my best friends are Canadian, no offense intended!

With a sledgehammer! I hate my coil stove top...

Dried and seasoned ika. Dried and seasoned fugu. I like to snack on almost any dried seafood with a hot cup of ocha. There is one type of rice cracker I really like. They are just plain puffed rice crackers with salt and dried beans, no other real seasonings. "Milky" is my favorite candy. My cousin told me joke about milky but i don't think this forum would be the proper place to share...

I've got a little list: 1) Ikura gohan with fresh nori strips 2) Natto with chopped scallions and soy on hot rice with nori strips (no raw egg pls) 3) Grated wild mountain potato with soy and chopped maguro on hot rice with nori 4) Ochazuke 5) Plain white rice with oshinko/kim-chee with Korean nori 6) Matsutake gohan, is this one off topic because it is cooked with the rice? if not , this is my number one choice. 7) Katsudon By the way, my cousin once told me a saying that when he grew up his mom said "eat every grain of rice or you will go blind" I've heard this from a couple of other relatives as well. Is this a common Japanese saying or is my family just cruel?

When fresh and closed, the texture is meaty with a nice snap when you bite into it, it is quite unique. The aroma and flavor is what makes this mushroom so different from others. The flavor is very difficult to describe but the aroma is kind of musky, a tad citrus like, and almost spicy. Since the flavors, aroma, and texture are so unique, most dishes including matsutake use this mushroom as the focal point. Most other ingredients are usually subtle in flavors, textures and aroma as to not over shadow the essence of the matsutake. I don't feel there are really any similarities between shitake and matsutake.

Coffee in the morning, chips and fresh salsa in the evening.

I was eating at a local sushi bar (I will not name) and the snapper nigiri had a very long hard worm that was about 2mm in diameter. Although disgusting, I have to admit I was morbidly fascinated by it. I no longer eat raw snapper... I have seen a lot of really disgusting things, one that sticks out is a whole chicken frier. I was preparing to debone the chicken, reached into the carcas to pull out the neck, livers, etc... and pulled out a handfull of some disgusting wormy things. Worms + food = pure disgust

Thanks for the great tips Chow! The only restaurant in the area that I know of is the Powerhouse? I'ts pretty entertaining when the trains go by! I missed the spam cook-off? I would have enjoyed seeing that (I actually like spam Hawaiian style). I hear Bill Cosby will be there, I'll see if I can at least get tickets to that...

Living in the Pacific NW I guess I'm a little spoiled when it comes to matsutake. I feel badly now... I wish I could share matsutake with all of my fellow egullet friends. If I could I truly would. I have some good friends that work in the produce business and some might ship overseas. As the season approaches, I'll see what the harvest looks like and how prices are. The way it's been raining and the temperatures being about average/cool, it might be a good year! Hopefully prices will be good!