Sleepy_Dragon

Rock sugar is used in certain sweet and savory stews like pig's foot, and also in sweet soup tonics, like with white cloud fungus, or legumes and red jujubes. I am sure there are other uses, these are just the ones I grew up with. Pat

Yeah, there are a few things there that are just... like that for some reason. The bahn mi is ok, but it doesn't have the pate spread in it. Rather it's a whimpier pate and mayo mixture, and no chilies. I still get it with one of their soups when I want a more substantial lunch, but other bahn mi are better. I suspect theirs could be just as good as the rest if they didn't leave out those stronger tasting ingredients. Maybe it was a concession to tourists. Pat

I like their seafood noodles too. They are not really like beef pho, the noodles are the thin rice vermicelli kind, and the broth is clear with tomato in it. Seafood = chunks of fish, prawns and squid. Tart, briny and comforting. I also like the more subtle chicken and baby bok choy noodle soup. It's got a garnish of toasted crunchy garlic bits on top, and always leaves me feeling well-nourished and happy afterwards for hours. Pat

They are not on the Eastside or Renton, but if you're in the southern part of Seattle, Silver Fork is great. They are on the corner of the Safeway parking lot right before the Darigold plant on Rainer Ave. S. Their grits are amazing. I can't get my own grits to be as creamy as theirs, surely it can't just be because I'm a Yanqui! Anyway, get the chickenfried steak and a bowl of grits, and marvel at the HALF STICK of butter that floats on top of them! The place does get smoky, but it's a diner after all. Some amazing baptist church lady hair too if you go on a Sunday. Pat

Well, I just want to say that so far since first posting in this thread, I have held off from buying more cookbooks! Actually... oh damn. I guess it's not entirely true if we count food-related books too. Crap, never mind. I am up to 80 now, thanks to The Apprentice: My Life In the Kitchen, by Jacques Pepin. Oh well. No regrets though! Pat

That's such a great idea! I'm happy and jealous for your niece! Pat

Chinese rice congee for me too, with extra julienned ginger in it. Also hot and sour soup, both Chinese and Thai. Hot and spicy things seem to soothe my throat when it is sore, plus I can actually taste them. Any kind of hot noodle soup like pho, nabe udon or won ton meen. There is also a homey Japanese place nearby I like to go to because of their nabe, especially the kimchi nabe. Also, hot water with honey and lemon in it for drinking throughout the time I'm sick. I guess the theme overall is hot, somewhat substantial and nourishing soup, often spicy but not always. And yes, no dairy for me either. There's something about all that hot liquid being ideal for colds; it provides throat relief, and it's quickly assimilated and digested, and it carries its own heat, so one's body need not expend energy to generate the heat used to fight off the bugs, while at the same time encouraging blood circulation to more quickly expel the bugs through sweat and urine. I experience it as a wave of temporary relief after each bowl. People who live in perpetually hot climates probably have a different approach though. And the comments about rice and yogurt are interesting to me too! I can't imagine eating any kind of dairy at all with a cold. I also crave oranges, if the cold in question does not include having a sore throat. Otherwise no fruit, or anything raw. Pat

I only avoid the red ones because they sting my eyes the most by far. But if I want bhelpuri (the snack, as opposed to our poster here!), then I'll put up with the tears. Pat

Finally got my own paper cone today. Boy, that was fun. I managed to finish off a third of a medium, and feel stuffed to bursting. Was so hard to stop though because I'd also gotten a five sauce sampler, hehe. My sauces: curry ketchup (no actual ketchup in it, it's a creamy sauce with a few spices in it, a little hard to discern the curry flavor), "frites sauce", red pepper chipotle sauce, tzaziki, and honey mustard. I liked the frites sauce and red pepper chipotle sauce the best. That's maybe a third of the sauces actually available. Plus there's also fried mozzarella and corn dogs on the menu as well. Next time I go, I need to bring classmates or something, probably three or four of us could finish a medium. Maybe! Pat

Sadly, I have no idea what goes on as far as how the website gets updated or anything like that. I'm on the mailing list too and haven't gotten a menu either yet. These ones I post are me grabbing them from one of the holders in the halls and running to the library to type them up after class. Sorry there's not a more convenient updating, I've asked in person as well. Anyway, at the very least, I'll keep posting menus here, though the earliest I can do it is after their first day of opening on Tuesday afternoons. Thanks for supporting us. Pat, lowly student

ONE WORLD Menu for Tuesday - Friday, April 27 - 29, and May 4 - 6, 2004 Antipasti & Tapas Zuppe di Giorno -- $2.00 soup of the day Insalata Mista e Gorgonzola -- $2.00 tossed romain with Gorgonzola and walnuts Antipasti e Tapas -- $2.50 your choice, a selection brought to your table Primi Piatti, includes a side salad Risotto di Asparagi -- $5.75 asparagus and fontina risotto Fettuccine alle Zucchine e Zafferano -- $6.25 fresh pasta with a creamy saffron, zucchini and prosciutto sauce Secondi Piatti, includes your choice of antipasto, tapa, soup, or salad Ensalada de San Isidro -- $6.50 romaine salad with seared albacore tuna and tarragon vinaigrette Paella Marinera -- $6.75 Spanish rice and shellfish with seasonal vegetable Carneiro Recheado a Portuguesa -- $6.95 grilled, stuffed lamb loin chops with minted carrots Dolci Piatti Dessert -- $2.00 please inquire for today's features All items available for carry out.

New Menus for Tuesday - Friday, April 27 - 29, and May 4 - 6, 2004. SQUARE ONE Starters: $2.25 Sweet Corn, Coconut, & Lemongrass Soup Creme Fraiche & Ancho Sauteed Shrimp Roasted Baby Beet, Fresh Dill, And Frisee Salad Meyer Lemon Dressing Green Gazpacho Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Roasted Red Bell Pepper Watercress Salad With Yellow Pepper Vinaigrette Yukon Gold Potatoes, Haricots Verts Entrees: served with a cup of soup or salad Penn Cove Mussels In Curried Broth -- $6.25 Roasted Fennel, Coconut Jasmine Rice Roasemary Grilled Leg of Lamb -- $6.50 Toasted Coriander Mashed Potatoes, Port Wine Sauce Herb Roasted Duck Breast -- $5.95 Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Balsamic Orange Demi Glaze Grilled Wild Alaskan Salmon & Sauteed Pea Vines -- $5.95 Cherry Tomato Chutney, Cripsy Potato Cakes Pan-Fried Oysters With Spicy Jicama Slaw -- $6.50 Lime Dressed Watercress, Chimichurri Sauce Desserts -- $1.95 Beverages -- $0.75 Coffee/Tea/Decaf, Coke/Sprite/Diet Coke/Diet Sprite One World menu coming up... Pat

But good fresh wasabi shouldn't taste like nothing, right? This was my experience with the two fingers of it I got at Uwajimaya. Mashiko's wasabi is also fresh real grated wasabi, with a wonderful complexity and none of the usual green powder kick, and that was what I was expecting. I used one of those ceramic ginger graters with the small grid of bumps on it to grind up the wasabi (in lieu of an actual piece of shark skin ). What tool did you use? Ultimately though, I suspect I just got some duds. Really disappointing at a million zillion billion dollars a pound. Pat

There is an Ethiopian "place" that opened up a couple months ago, called Tagla. Reason why I put place in quotes is because it's a convenience store with a bunch of Ethiopian spices and staples among the candy and chips in front, but with a spare room attached on the left where the wife of the couple running it will serve breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays. Looks like an old storage room hastily converted with a fresh coat of paint, four tables and a TV hanging up in a corner. "Breakfast" is substantial, especially if you tell her to just bring whatever she thinks is good. They have no menu, just a paper sign stuck on the door to that room mentioning breakfast on Saturday and Sunday. So far I've had the spiced eggs, a lamb stew of some kind, salad, a split pea stew, and my favorite item, which she called "shiro", which is a bean puree of some kind redolent with butter, spices, and especially cardamom. All of this goes on injera of course. Plus Ethiopian coffee with her own spice infusion in it. She just says it's her style of coffee and she likes it that way. I do too, and I hate coffee. But this was so smooth and complex. They have plans to expand into the space next door and become a full-fledged restaurant in "2-3 months". Tagla is at 4423 Rainier Ave S., on the Rainier Ave S. and S. Genessee intersection, next to a tattoo parlor. They don't have any set hours for when they serve food, but my gut instinct tells me late morning and early afternoon on Saturday and Sunday are the times to go. At least, that's when I've gone so far. Pat

I love their pastries. It's a good stop for a latte and croissant for a break when shopping! Eclair or tart slice of some kind for me. I love getting enveloped in that warm butter-saturated atmosphere as soon as as I set a foot in. Pat

Oh, joy! This is Mammounia (or something like that, I've almost certainly misspelled it), the Morrocan place that, IIRC, used to be where Apocalypse Tattoo is now. I had a wonderful meal at the old location in around '87, and I never made it back before it closed. The food there seems pretty good. So far I've had the lamb meatballs in a tomato sauce with poached eggs, and the rabbit stew. They serve a few things different from Marrakesh, but otherwise it's still several sizeable courses for 17.99 including soup, salad (leaf lettuce, not the marinated eggplant puree), b'stilla and dessert with tea, plus options to order fewer courses for less money. It's a lot of food, and a bit of a mystery to me how either place can turn a profit. Pat

I wish there was some way to tell the quality of the wasabi though, especially at those prices. I'd gotten some at Uwajimaya in the ID before, and it was really bland. Nothing at all like what is served at Mashiko. I did taste slight notes of garlic in Hajime's wasabi, but I don't think the addition of garlic would have helped what I got from Uwajimaya. If anyone knows more about this, please elaborate. Pat

So the sweeteners in the Gujarati food, does it cause issues with tooth decay in kids and adults if most things are sweet, or are there other things done to the food which mitigate or prevent cavities? Pat

But I would be grinding the meat first, by taking the chicken off the bone, and using the bones for stock instead while grinding up the muscle! Some of the posts in the staff meal thread hinted that if the legs were fabricated differently, it would be a whole new interesting dish to staff sick of whole legs. Nonetheless, I'll report back when I have a chance to try it at home first. Pat

Yeah, that area is a bit strange, been at the Town Hall before and always made it a point to eat elsewhere and take a bus up there afterwards. Anyway, Palomino Restaurant Rotisseria at 1420 5th Ave #350 is pretty good, and they are open on Mondays. Pat

Never been to Berkley, but I can vouch for the breads at the bread and pastry stand run by Seattle Culinary Academy at Seattle Central Community College. (yes, I am a student there but not in the bake shop) Fresh new things every day from the students in the baking program, all of it even made with organic flour, and under the tutelage of French and European trained bakers/chef-instructors. Go there from about 10:30am - 3:00pm Tuesday - Friday, but towards earlier in that time frame is better because stuff sells fast. Welcome to Seattle. I want to go to a local gathering too at some point, but my schedule makes it difficult. Hopefully sometime soon. (edited to add hours) Pat

Ok. Just going to sit here drooling and gibbering after looking at that pic. Pat

I haven't been to Neelam's new location yet, though I did try their masala dosa at the old location awhile back, and didn't like it. But, that was only the once so maybe it's better now. I used to get groceries at her now-defunct store, but her restaurant at the old location was hit or miss for me. Sometimes good, other times not so good, and one time, bad enough that I didn't ever go back, not just in terms of the food itself but her knowing what she was serving me was bad. But, I'm willing to give it another whirl as it's been a few years. Have you compared the masala dosa there to any others in Puget Sound? Also agree about Raga in Bellevue, though I haven't been to their post-fire location yet. I liked them a lot in their old location, which I recently noticed is still empty. Guess the building owners haven't fixed it yet. Pat

Well, I have no recipe to contribute, but did want to say thank-you for the recipe, mongo. Because in reading the staff meal thread in the cooking forum, it occurs to me that this would be an excellent way to make use of chicken legs as well as other things. So, I'm squirreling it away for that reason, as well as to make it for myself. Pat

Second this. I haven't been to the Mayuri in Bellevue, but I used to go all the time to their Queen Anne location, and told as many people as I could about it, but despite it all, they still closed down due to a lack of customers. It still pisses me off to this day, even though it's been a few years now. Because I remember sitting there eating this fantastic food and how they were my first exposure to southern Indian food and their heavenly Masala Dosa, and seeing people ignore the place but stream to the trendier more expensive places around it and wait in huge-assed lines to get in. After Mayuri closed, for the longest time I just developed the worst attitude about residents on Queen Anne, literally. As in, just thinking "All y'all suck!". And walking around the neighborhood distraught and heartbroken while wondering what to do that terrible night I first discovered they had closed and passing people by thinking "You suck." "You suck too." "You there gibbering on your cellphone at Trendy Place, you definitely suck and so do all your friends." Nowadays I don't think that at Queen Anne residents anymore (much! ) but damn I miss Mayuri's old location. Hopefully the Bellevue Mayuri still has old Prem at the helm of it. Pat