tighe

My one experience with Ethiopian food, in a now defunct place on John, just east of Broadway, wasn't good and I've never given it a second chance. I didn't particularly like the spongy, doughy, flavorless injera nor the one-dimensional stewed meats and vegetables. However, mamster's recent review of Blue Nile (not the online diamond retailer), has almost convinced me to give Ethiopian food another shot. First, a few questions... - Is all injera spongy, doughy and flavorless, or did I get a bad rendition? - Blue Nile sounds like a good option, but does anyone have strong feelings about another place? - Anyone interested in meeting for lunch sometime next week to help me take the plunge?

Union is the name of the restaurant and its at 1st & Union. Here's a link to their web page, but it doesn't really have any content yet. If you didn't see it, there's a thread of reviews and comments about the place.

Although its been some time since I've been there, Rover's is fantastic. I would also second Coop's suggestion of Union. The food I had there was on par with the best I've had in Seattle.

As mq said, got to be Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City. It is very touristy, but defies conventional logic by serving good food in a fun atmo. The website has a schedule for their flamenco shows.

I know that they're big in the Tampa/St Pete area. When I went down there earlier this year, it was a common recommendation from locals. Given my assesment of the general state of dining in Tampa, this may not be a good thing however.

I've wondered about the viability of the location too. There's no way that the immediate neighborhood is going to support the place, but I would guess that Sundstrom's reputation will have enough draw to get people from the more affluent areas nearby. Twelvth ave is undergoing something of a face-lift as well, which has made the area less gritty. Maybe at night it will be OK, but parking around there during the day is a nightmare.

It's the new restaurant that Johnathan Sundstrom, ex-chef of Earth & Ocean, is opening. It's in the space on 12th Ave in the Central District/First Hill area that was Kokeb for many years.

I think gluttony involves a certain self-centeredness that cares nothing for the needs or desires of others. On the other hand, the kind of love that gourmands have for food usually leads them to want to share their joy with others.

I walked by last week and snooped around a little. The exterior painting appears to be done, but, from what I could see, the interior is still a blank slate. There was a note on the door saying they were accepting applications for staff and explaining that the focus of the restaurant would be on foraged, sustainably grown and artisinal ingredients. No mention of an opening date, but it said interviews would start (started) around the end of November.

The first of what I believe (hope) will be a series of good press reviews of Union courtesy of The Stranger.

Avatars have been disabled for some time now, there's a whole thread about it somewhere. Word on the street is that they're coming back as part of this whole software upgrade, but it hasn't happened yet....

I like this place as well and go there fairly regularly since I work in the area. My experience has always been simple, fresh and good tasting food for a reasonable price.

because 8 out of 10 times when the customer says "no", they then ask for "well, just a little sugar maybe" after the coffee arrives. Quite possibly true, all the more reason to not even bother asking and just bring the cream and sugar as a matter of course....

One of my recurrent peeves is when I order coffee at the end of dinner and the server asks if I want cream and/or sugar to which I always respond, "No." Probably 8 out of 10 times, the cream and sugar appear on the table anyways. What bothers me about it is, the server is essentially telling me that they a) aren't really listening or b) don't care. It would be so much better if they just didn't ask and brought cream and sugar automatically.

If you're looking for a good listing of what's going on this weekend, be sure to check out the The Stranger, especially good for something "something a little off the mainstream ." Jazz Alley is the main venue for jazz that I know of, though I'm not familiar with what other clubs are out there. I hope you enjoy Union and I'm anxious hear your thoughts on it.

Growing up, my dad was co-owner of a lamb slaughter house/packing plant and used to bring lamb ribs home regularly because they had trouble selling them. He would marinate them in a mix of soy sauce, pineapple juice, crushed garlic and vermouth, then grill them. One of my best food memories of my childhood. I've seen them only a couple times in the store and keep meaning to ask a butcher if they can get them for me.

Whenever great value wines are discussed, I have to talk about my local favorite, Snoqualmie Syrah. I know its probably not available nationwide, but I've seen it retail for as little as $7/bottle and I think it rivals the value of similarly priced Cotes-du-Rhones.

Scrat and I went to 727 and had an odd sort of experience. The food was stellar, the braised Kobe beef shortrib I had had the most exquisitely tender texture and great flavor. The service on the other hand was truly abysmal. They were busy and looked like deer caught in headlights. I won't get into the gory details, but it was one of the smallest tips I've left in a very long time.

I don't necessarily disagree with your point in broad terms, but unless you've been to Mashiko and are commenting first-hand, I would strongly object to it being included in the "over-rated Americanized crap" category. The chef there has not simply modified what he does to fit American tastes, rather he has rejected the constraints of classic sushi making and created interesting and challenging dishes that are his own, but definitely not "Americanized" in any kind of homogenous way. I've had a handful of meals there where he has presented both very traditional, expertly composed items as well as dishes that don't fit neatly into any culinary category and I enjoyed them all.

I'd recommend Elliott's Oyster House on the waterfront. They have a great oyster bar and are likely to have any local seafood that is in season and fresh.

Must......get......on.......plane.......

C'mon Laurie, there was nothing wrong with your lunch at Bandol, you just wanted a chance to rip off the "super-dud" line... Sorry to hear it didn't go well. I'd encourage you to give it another chance at some point....

I've never been to Il Fornaio, but what you describe sounds good. If you like squash ravioli, you should defnitely make an effort to get to Osteria La Spiga. They have it regularly, also with the fried sage leaves. I don't generally care for squash, and I like theirs.

I went and found the colunm where Nancy Leson first discussed Union in August and there are a couple interesting tid bits. One is that the chef, Ethan Stowell, is the son of the Kent Stowell and Francia Russell, the artistic directors for Pacific Northwest Ballet

Sounds tasty. Are you going to get the same from Bandol and conduct a rigourous comparison?....maybe we should start Cassoulet Club!....