kiliki

I can't get past the ingredients list on those Gourmet Garden products-it's hard for me to think of it as a good quality product given the additives. For example, the basil has: I've never had good luck substituting for fresh herbs in general. I don't like frozen herb cubes or dried. I think of dishes that really rely on fresh herbs as things I make seasonally-it wouldn't occur to me to make pesto in the winter. And if the herb plays a relatively minor role in a dish I'd rather sub another fresh herb that is readily available-parsley for basil, for instance. Luckily I live in a climate where I can grow most herbs March-November, and where some will even live through the winter nicely.

The pasta vendor at the U District Market-La Pasta-is opening a deli/cafe at 9118 35th Ave NE this week (Wedgewood). They'll have salumi, panini, soups, espresso, to go meals, and the fabulous fresh pastas (I love the ravioli, always filled with seasonal stuff) they sell at the Market. I remember reading somewhere that they were touting the "fresh Atlantic salmon" that would be a feature here. !!!

Much as Kathy Casey rubs me the wrong way, I have to admit I am enjoying the new Dish D'Lish (ugh, even the name rubs me the wrong way) on Ballard Ave. It's right by my gym and it really is nice to have a place to get quality ready-made items afterwords.

I made the lemon cream tart for our big family easter dinner and everyone was just knocked out. What a fantastic recipe.

Such as? It really does sound like a good lunch stop.

Of these recommendations, which of these are a great only-in-Boston type places? I can get great modern French or Italian in many cities, but you can't get, say, great lobster everywhere. From reading other threads I'm leaning toward Neptune Oyster and the Daily Catch though posters here make a good case for B and G (we're only here 2 days). Summershack sounded good to me, and just the kind of thing I was looking for until I read a thread on *another* board where poster after poster slammed it as mass produced, chain-like food.

Can anyone suggest some don't miss items in the public market-particularly things that we can either consume easily there or things that we can take with us as we head up to Acadia (any good cheesemakers or bakers)?

It looks like a new Cafe Fiore is about to open in Ballard on Leary just north of Olympic Athletic Club. I know a bunch of Ballard-ites that are excited about this-the place (they have a location on 85th above Golden Gardens) has really developed a following. It looks like a nice space and it's good to see an old brick building rehabed (it's been vacant for at least 10 years) rather than razed. A pizza place is going in the other half of the building.

That was great, thanks. It's always fun to see my hometown through a visitor's eyes.

I'll second the Green Leaf idea. Though since I-5 cuts right throught the center of the city and passes along downtown, you have tons of options. If there's a certain cuisine you wanted, we could probably think of something not too far from the interstate.

Any other Sichuan recommendations for the visitor that was looking forward to trying this GS? Are any of the other branches (Pan mentions St. Marks) or the recent recommendations in the last few posts worth the time on a 3 day visit? If there's nothing else top-notch, please let me know-in that case I'll probably skip it.

Not only did we get fantastic food at Cache's Chinese feast last night, they also loaded us up with food to go! I am now enjoying my leftover pork slivers/mushroom/bamboo shoots and dry fried green beans...

I finally made it here yesterday and was pretty impressed. I enjoyed the chocolate-passionfruit dome, the chocolate croissant, and the praline-chocolate slice (I forget the name). The lemon meringue tart tasted good but I like Dahlia's better-I think Italian meringue is better. But the macarons...eh. The raspberry and passionfruit were okay, but too sweet and chewy. They were actually probably better than most macarons I've had in Seattle, but not as good as anything I've had in Paris (is that fair? Maybe not. My macaron bar is set very high. Also they spelled them wrong-it should only have one o). The mocha flavor was no good-hard and brittle (not fresh?) and it tasted of instant espresso powder. But all in all a very nice place and I'm sorry it's so far from my house. It was slammed, by the way, so it sure looks like it's doing well.

Thanks for posting the pictures of Pix. It KILLS me that Seattle doesn't have a real patisserie.

I think Cook's Illustrated did the same thing. I went through a brief phase where I diligently brushed the dirt off mushrooms and it made absolutely no difference in the final product compared to the thousands of times that I rinsed them (and I eat mushrooms a lot). I've never understood this to be a food rule so much as a suggestion to beginning bakers for certain things, like pastry. I don't think anyone would argue that there are plenty of baked goods that withstand tinkering/casual measuring quite well, and there are some that even require it depending on climatic conditions (humidity and bread baking, for example).

You can tell how many people on this thread don't have to take public transit to work! All of my potluck dishes have to be transportable in tupperware, immune to harm if jostled, and no crock-pot necessary.

I just made larb for a work potluck and it was a HUGE hit-I had multiple requests for the recipe (here in Seattle, who doesn't like Thai? And most people will eat chicken). I just served it on a bed of lettuce but you could serve it in individual lettuce leaves, if you have time/prep space at work.

You will find so many great cheap eats in the Pike Place Market and the International District. Both of these are well served by bus-the Market is right downtown and the ID is on the southern edge. See if you can get a ride to a park and ride in Woodinville-taking a bus into the city shouldn't be too bad if you do it that way (especially if you go during the morning when there should be express buses running). In the Market, my favorite cheap places are Mee Sum Pastry (bbq pork humbow), Piroshky Piroshky, El Puerco Lloron (Mexican, on the hillclimb below the Market), Bottega Gelateria, Daily Dozen Doughnuts, Market Grill (grilled salmon sandwiches), and Mr. D's Greek Deli. In the ID, don't miss Green Leaf (there's a whole thread on it below). So good for so little money. There are other ideas in this ID thread. It is almost impossible NOT to eat cheaply in the ID, unless you order crab (which is still a good deal there). And of course there is the famed Salumi, in Pioneer Square (southern part of downtown). If you want baked goods, breakfast or sandwiches, check out Grand Central Bakery, also in Pioneer Square. If it's nice you can take your food from either of these places and eat it in Waterfall Garden Park or Occidental Square. Happy hours are another fabulous way to eat cheap. I like Maximilien Bistro in the Market for it's fabulous view, great ambiance and half price happy hour menu. If you are looking for a coffee break I love Caffe Umbria on Occidental Square. Zeitgeist on Jackson is good, too.

jrt, did that stuff happen recently (that is terrible you were seated then not allowed to order!)? I've only been going for 6 months or so.

Make sure to read the restaurant reviews in tomorrow's P-I (available online today). They review a new veggie place in Georgetown.

Read this New York style pizza thread to learn about various pizzas around town. In between the complaints you will find some recommendations for many different kinds of pizzas (not just NY style). Also check out the "Serious Pie" thread to read about Tom Douglas' fairly new pizza place in Belltown.

I finally made the long trek to Pachanga Tortilleria & Deli today, only to find it closed with big "For Lease" signs in the window.

No cupcakes-they only had the single pain au choc left. But it wouldn't have mattered-I was excited going there because I'd heard about her French training, and I'd seen the BV photos of little tarts and less common items, and I was hoping for an actual French style bakery, not cookies, cupcakes or coffee cake.

Since you mentioned Vietnamese check out the Green Leaf thread about halfway down the page. It's a fantastic place. For Chinese I'd suggest Seven Stars Pepper (Szechuan), and I'd suggest you get the Szechuan (dungeness) crab. There are varying opinions on this place which you'll find just a little ways down in the Chinese thread, but I'm guessing, being from Madison, that you will like it. (I'm not being snotty, I swear, it's just that I have so many midwestern relatives and I know what Chinese food is like there).

You are so close to the International District, so check out some of the ID threads, like this one. You will have lots of vegetarian options there (though it won't be hard to find veggie options on most restaurant menus): Great finds in the ID