tighe

Another south end winner from gc! My wife and I had dinner at Imperial Garden on Friday night (though not dim sum) and were very impressed. I don't have a lot of history with Peking Duck, but compared to what I've had, this was far and away the best. In addition to the duck skin, they served a stir-fry dish made with the remaining meat that was excellent. Shrimp spring rolls and fried squid rounded out the meal...

I had these as part of the 3 courses for $25 menu they were doing (along with a lot of other restaurants) last February. You're right, they're sublime. I'm really itching to do the happy hour menu....

I'm so ignorant about Indian food that I probably shouldn't even be posting, but.... I do know that my favorite Indian restaurant here in Seattle is the only place that I've ever seen curried lamb, whick I think is fantastic. I also love the tandoori meats, which seem to have a unique character compared to the roasted meats of other culinary traditions.

It's nothing fancy, but I've always gotten really good fish & chips at Spinnaker's Brew Pub. It's on the other side of the harbor from downtown, so you have some really nice views from the restaurant. Good beer too!....

My wife and I had dinner at Dahlia last weekend and were told by our server that the FoodTV show featuring Tom Douglas and Thierry Rauterau was in production. It will be interesting to see if they can work any substantive cooking into the show, or if it will end up being mostly about the two of them dressing up in drag. BTW, we had a really nice experience at Dahlia. Grazed on a number of their appetizers; the highlight was a seared scallops and cauliflower in cream sauce and paprika oil dish that was trememdous. Probably the most complex cream sauce I've ever had. Service was excellent too.

Although I'm sure I must have at some point, I can't recall any porters from the other side of the pond that I have tried. When I drink internationally, I usually go with stouts for whatever reason. I have tried the porters from pretty much all of the other regional breweries (Pyramid, Kemper, Hale's, Bridgewater, etc.). The problem with most of them is that they have remarkably little flavor for a dark beer. We're getting super local here, but have you tried the porter from the Elysian Brew Pub? I think theirs is probably #2 on my list behind Deschutes. Maybe we should have a great northwest porter tasting party.....

I tried the Anchor Porter recently too and agree that it is excellent. However I still have to go with the Dechutes Black Butte Porter as my all-time favorite. It has a smoky quality to it that I just haven't found in any other porter.

Quite true, but it has primarily been those who live adjacent to the place who somehow think they are divinely (or monetarily) entitled to absolute peace and quiet despite their decision to buy a house next to a pub. The VAST majority of Mercer Islanders I know would fight to the death, or at least to the end of cocktail hour, to keep the Roanoke. For some, I think it gives them the opportunity to feel like they're 'slumming' it without actually having to leave the island. Note: I can say these kinds of snotty things about Mercer Islanders because I spent some of my formative years living there. Yes, I'm still in treatment....

Yes, there was a very nice dipping sauce that went with. I'm not too good at figuring these things out, but I would have to say it tasted like teriyaki sauce with maybe some plum sauce added? This is just a guess though. Definately check out the Roanoke if you get a chance. It's been cleaned up quite a bit compared to years past, but is still sort of funky, with respectable food and a good beer selection. It's hard to believe there's such a place in the midst of tony Mercer Island.

When my mother suggested having lunch at her local Japanese place on Mercer Island this past week, I was skeptical. Other than burgers and beer at the Roanoke Pub, my food experiences on the Island had been less that stellar. Haruko's (2440 76th Ave SE, on the north end of the island) will keep me coming back however. The restaurant itself was exactly what I like about many mid-range Japanese places, simple, spotlessly clean with very a friendly, welcoming staff. I was ready to order sushi, but my mother said I should try the fried oysters. I usually avoid cooked oysters of any kind, having had way too many chewy/rubbery experiences, but my mom knows from good oysters. I decided on the luch special of sukiyaki (sp?) and fried oysters (for $6.25!!!). Luch started with the obligatory bowl of miso, which was on par with other good miso I've had. Lunch was served on a tray, with a nice sized bowl of sukiyaki, four oysters with a cabbage salad, japanese pickles and white rice. The sukiyaki was very good, with excellent broth and a generous amount of beef and clear rice noodles. The highlight was definately the oysters, breaded with panko crumbs and deep-fried, I would have to say they were the best cooked oysters I've ever had. They must cook them very quickly at a very high temp, becaus the outside is very crispy while the oyster itself is barely cooked. I'm definately trying the sushi when I go back. So next time you're stuck in traffic on I-90, I reccomend getting off on Mercer Island for a quick bite, it will be a much better use of your time....

Heh, before you start getting too happy about West Seattle, that's also where Charlie Chong lives!

Hopefully you said this loudly as you were walking out of the Club! I'm sure most of the membership are Sidran supporters, assuming they actually live in the City....

I know this isn't exactly the question at hand, but has anyone ever had a burger when eating out that is definitively better than what they can do at home? Not that I'm averse to ordering burgers when I go out, but I can't say any of them are better than what I can do at home with fresh meat and high quality toppings. The best burgers I've had are the Black & Blue Burger at Pyramid and the Cheese Burger at Spencer's Steak House.

Great account mamster. Since I know from past posts that you are a fan of La Spiga, how would you compare/contrast the quality and style of the food. Obviously Genoa is shooting higher, but if you've ever been to one of the special dinners at Spiga, perhaps that would be a better comparison. Thanks.

MsR, Can we get a run-down on how your dinner was? I'm very curious to get your take on the Club. Thanks....

Wow, that is really too bad. I only ate there once, but thought it was great. Have to add another entry to my list of favorites who have gone out of business on the other thread....

Yes, any place that get ordained as the best neighborhood restaurant in Seattle by Bon Appetit has to forfeit the "underrated" moniker.

One thing my wife just reminded me of is that if MrRamsey is going, he needs to wear a coat and tie. Otherwise he will be given one out of the closet of misfit clothes. No one wants to go there...

It's been a while since I've eaten there, but I can't imagine that it has changed tremendously. The food is about what I think you would expect from a private club. It's all nicely executed and presented, but don't expect anything terribly creative. Things are done in a very traditional and choreographed way. The corporation that runs the club prescribes every detail of the service, so I could probably tell you up front what to expect, down to how your bottle of wine will be opened and presented, but that would spoil the surprise. The only reason I know this stuff is that my wife worked for a sister club in Bellevue for a number of years. My guess is that you will enjoy the evening, but will be very interested to hear what your reaction is to the food and the environment. Enjoy!

Best under $20: Saintsbury Best over $20: Merry Edwards Klopp Ranch Both from California, bet the guys in the Willamette Valley aren't too happy.

I suspect the wine cognescenti here may scoff, but I guess I don't care.... In the latest issue of Food & Wine, Washington State wines had a really strong showing and I'm pretty psyched about it. Under $20 Best Chardonnay: Columbia Crest Best Riesling: Hogue Cellars Best Merlot: Waterbrook Best Cab: Chateau St Michelle Over $20 (apparently there were no wines at exactly $20) Best Cab: Quilceda Creek Most Promising New Winery: Cayuse Vineyards Ok, so our domination was a little, ahem, bottom heavy. The Walla Walla area was also featured as one of the '10 emerging wine regions'. Having spent some time there, it is worth a visit. They've even opened a couple nice restaurants in town.

I think SF may be another city that has good neighborhood dining, but I still insist that Seattle is way ahead of the curve by this measure compared to most cities in the US. With Le Gourmand, Ray's and Hiram's (thank God they got rid of that abomination that was there before) along with some fun/tasty mid to lower end (price-wise) places, I can't say that I think Ballard is really lacking. What they really need in Ballard is a high-end Scandanavian place like Aquavit in NYC. Besides, its not really that long of a drive from Ballard to Green Lake...

Yeah, that hotel was kind of cursed. I went to a banquet there early this year and someone at our table intimated that the hotel had opened less than half of its floors because business was so slow. (I go to a fair number of these types of things because of my wife's biz, and this dinner was spectacular by banquet food standards. Don't even get me started about the lobster salad.) I checked the 727 web site and Ms. Custer is still listed as the exec chef. I understand the challenges of being a hotel chef, but this was supposed to be a big homecoming for her. Are we sure that she has departed?

The chef left already?!?! Darn, I really wanted to try it after all the hoopla about her. Does anyone know what the reason was? While we're on the topic of hotel restaurants, maybe we should discuss why they seem to drive chefs away! Didn't the guy who started E&O leave within a few months also?

You left our my favorite: dirty socks. A key component of any truly 'funky' wine. For me personnally I really believe the French concept of 'gout de terroir' defines what I like best in wines. Wines that have a distinctive character of the soil, climate and region that they're grown in. Although there are certainly many 'New World' wines that I enjoy, precioius few really have this characteristic I would say.