kiliki

Wikipedia has the butter packaging backward. In the West, sticks come in a flat package alongside each other. BUT, Land O Lakes is the exception-they don't package it differently. That is the only butter you'll find in stores here that come in long, narrow sticks, boxed 2 by 2. Oh, and the organic butters do that too-like Organic Valley. I just measured my western butter sticks. They are about 3 1/4 x 1 1/2.

I'm very interested to see what you came up with in terms of compromise between historic and functional/modern. When we remodeled the kitchen in our 1908 cottage (a gut job, like yours), we at first thought we'd do something that at least invoked the period when the house was built, until we realized that a kitchen 100 years ago in a little cottage like ours would have sucked on SO many levels-there were really no redeeming features of kitchens then (even the fir floors we found underneath would have been covered with linoleum, which was all the rage then). So then the challenge became what kind of functional, nice kitchen could we have that fit in with the rest of the house, which has most of its original features. We're really happy with how things turned out and I can't wait to see yours. From the sketches it looks like it will be really nice! When we took out the ceilings, we found the REAL ceiling above-it turns out the whole house has 10' ceilings and someone dropped them.

Since it's only open for lunch, always has a long line, and isn't that close to the Convention Center, it didn't seem a logical recommendation. But if the OP can swing a long lunch, go for it. Seattle isn't SoCal and in general you have to go to South Seattle, to neighborhoods where there is a large Mexican population, to get good Mex food. But, I really like the place I recommended on the Pike Place Hillclimb (El Puerco Lloron). It actually reminds me of places in Mexico (rickety card tables, homemade tortillas).

Ditto. Great book for both the recipes and the basic seafood info.

Definitely head to Green Leaf (Vietnamese) for one dinner. It's a long-ish (about 20 min) walk or cheap cab, or free bus ride (take the 7, 36 or 49 from 3rd Ave, heading south. Get off on Jackson around 8th-the last free ride zone stop) from downtown. You could eat very well for $17! Check out this thread on Samurai Ramen for your Japanese noodle quest. If you don't get enough decent Mexican at home, El Puerco Lloron is inexpensive and good. Consider happy hours as a way to get a great inexpensive meal. Maximilien Bistro in the Pike Place Market has a killer view, great ambiance and very good happy hour deals on good Seattle food like mussels. Brasa is another good choice within walking distance of your hotel. I think there is also a happy hour thread on this board if you want more ideas. There are tons in inexpensive good things to eat in the Pike Place Market for lunch. I'd most recommend the grilled salmon sandwich at the Market Grill.

I finally went to Sweet and Savory. This place would be a neat addition to my neighborhood but it definitely isn't destination worthy. The case is teeny and there was hardly anything in it when I went at noon on a weekday. That's maybe not the best time to visit a bakery, but the case is so small I can't see how they ever have much of a selection. I had the pain au chocolat, which was about the only sweet thing left, but it was just okay. Not even close to Besau's. I also had a BLT which was fine but nothing special.

Like I said in another post, I would probably look into honed granite and slate if I were to do it again. But depending on what I learned about those surfaces, I still might choose soapstone. Our main concern was that we have a 100 year old cottage, and shiny granite or more modern options (like silestone, corian) just didn't seem to fit in, and we didn't like those anyway. And we aren't super fussy people, so function and general look (even though banged up, I still like the way it looks) does outweigh the cosmetic issues, in our book.

There were maple butcher block counters in a house I shared with a friend once. They stained-or, I should say, they would have stained except we would scrub and scrub and scrub to get things like cranberry juice out. My friend even forbid me to leave water glasses on the counter, becuase they sometimes left water marks. It seemed a very impractical counter surface.

This is what I was told at two different stoneyards. They were quite emphatic that the oil does not "seal" the stone, and that it is non-porous, so the oil doesn't soak in, either. I see what you are saying about oil creating a barrier, but we don't ever oil our counters anymore (except the dings), and nothing soaks in. That makes sense about the oxidation-do you know what it is about the oil that causes permanant color change, then? We have a soapstone bar which we used to oil quite a bit on top, but never do anymore, and the part underneath, the part that was never oiled, is still a very pale gray. And with the counters, with each successive oiling, they got darker and darker. That's why we used to oil them all the time, until they got to the shade we wanted, and now we don't bother much. I have had a very different experience than Ray about the scratches and dings-his may instantly disappear with oiling, but mine sure don't. The surface scratches become less noticeable, but the dings are chalky-white, and you have to oil them over and over to get them to darken. I don't have any now, but I could take some and post them (when I am not feeling so lazy). You can definitely tell on ours-around the sink, where I've banged many a pot and pan-looks especially rough. I just took another chunk out tonight by dropping a Le Crueset lid on the edge of the counter. If we were really good about oiling the dings immediately, it might not be so noticeable. But especially compared to our soapstone bar, which gets only light use, the counters look, uhhh, well-loved.

You and me both. I had the same old tv for 18 years, no issues. We get a fancy new lcd, it broke at the year mark and is in the shop. And I can't remember if we set the dvr to record it. Grrr. Thanks for the on demand tip, that's a feature I've never explored.

You'll have to keep me posted regarding the huckleberries. I have two big, happy evergreen huckleberries, but they've never fruited, and it was only after I planted them that I realized-hey, this doesn't look like the kind of huckleberries I pick when hiking. Alas it was not. So I don't even know what a huckleberry from an evergreen plant tastes like, or how to make it fruit (I get flowers, but that's all). So then I did find the "right" kind of huckleberries at Swanson's, but in an uncharacteristic show of neglect I let one plant die in the summer heat, then when the other died back for the winter I forgot where I planted it, and I think I accidentally dug it up the following spring before it came back. But it didn't fruit, either. The foks at Swanson's warned me they don't do so well at sea level.

Okay, my memory is a little fuzzy on this, but I remember an episode of America's Test Kitchen last year where they made bread in new, stand up mixers. Every one of them died during the kneading process except, MAYBE (this is where the memory fails) I think the Kitchen Aid pro. They took different lengths of time to die-some crapped out pretty quickly, while others lasted longer (maybe longer than many people would use them for), but I was really surprised to see how common engine burnout is. If anyone's interested in this maybe you can google for more info, since I can't remember the details.

This thread should be helpful-it was to me when I was doing my kitchen. I had the exact same concerns and tastes as you and went with soapstone. The one thing I would caution you about, and you'll read about this in that thread, is that it does chip and scratch easily. Much easier than I was led to believe. We still love it, though. If I was to do it again I would look more into honed (non-shiny) granite or slate-slate has that same look but when it chips, the chips are the same dark color as the surface. When soapstone chips it is chalky white, so it's very noticable. FYI, mineral oil doesn't "seal" soapstone. Soapstone is non-porous. People oil the stone to speed up the oxidizing process-turning it from that dull grey to black. It makes it look really nice and new. Even if you don't oil it will still turn color, it will just take longer. Also oiling makes the scratches less noticable, since it oxidizes the newly exposed surface. Soapstone doesn't really stain-I say doesn't "really" because there is one spot where my husband sets his used coffee filter every day, and over time that spot shows a little brown. But we've never actually made an attempt to get the brown out, since it's not very noticable. If you're concerned that you will spill tumeric during cooking, and that it will stain before you clean up, don't be. The stoneyard can give you a sample of the stone so you can try that-we took ours (un-oiled) and spilled wine and all sorts of stuff on it. It didn't stain. Re: veining and mottling: We saw lots of different patterns and variations in the stone warehouse, and we picked the exact ones we wanted (we liked veins). If they don't have a look you like, ask when they will get more in, or keep looking at other vendors. It is of course a crapshoot-you might describe the look you like to the stone vendor, and ask how commonly they get that look in. I never saw any soapstone that had no veins or mottling (these are obvious even before it's been oil treated). If you love that look, consider slate-it sounds like it has exactly the look you want.

I've never actually noticed the portion sizes, but if a pound or a bit more is supposed to feed that many, I would assume she is portioning for the primi course.

Caution: Serafina has live music Fri, Sat and Sun, so those nights are definitely not quiet.

Do you mean that SPROUTED garlic is a pet peeve? I can't remember the last time I had garlic that sprouted-maybe it is where you are buying it? I usually buy mine at PCC, and I noticed one of the booth's at the Ballard Farmer's Market still had it last week.

I am trying to be cautiously optimistic about this, though when I saw they now have a salmon caeser "wrap" on the menu I got scared. My husband eats there 2-3 times a week and reports that after an initial breaking in phase, the sandwiches are still good.

I felt like I went into some kind of sugar shock the one time I ate a cupcake at CR (I don't even LIKE cupcakes, but got suckered in by the cuteness factory).

I just noticed that La Spiga sells their piadina at Cafe Umbria in Pioneer Square. Their whole sandwich/pizza case looked really good, actually. Shalmanese, I know I've seen both 5 spice powder (in bulk) and coconut cream at the Ballard Market. I haven't looked for either of these things recently, so definitely call and check to make sure they still carry them if you are making a special trip. I think PCC also has 5 spice (again, I know I've bought it there in the past but now I'm in the habit of making my own, so I haven't checked in a while).

We tried La Spiga in its new location on NYE-overall it was a good experience. It's a much bigger space, lots of new staff, and a much larger menu (now there are antipasti, primi, secondi, contorni, etc...). Most of the dishes were great but the eggplant was way too salty (someone forgot to rinse it, I guess), and the truffle pasta that I've ordered a thousand times and is always great came out almost cold. Maybe this was due to the newness of the staff? On the other hand, I had some wonderful butternut squash, and the other pastas and the polenta dish were delicious (and hot). We had some very nice house cocktails. Service was very attentive and friendly but not quite knowledgable about the menu yet (not unsurprisingly, since they've only been open a few weeks). There are so many new, delicious sounding things on the menu I am looking forward to going back.

Henry/Ling: You guys are my heroes, fitting so much into that amount of time. I always plan food itineraries that require eating 4 or 5 meals a day but things like visiting old friends or sightseeeing always get in the way. We're going to NYC again in May and now I know the key is to stay up eating until 4:30 am.

Some of my pasta staples are from this book: the butter, onion and tomato sauce, the pea, bacon and ricotta sauce (use good ricotta, not the stuff from the grocery store-get it from an Italian deli, or the Whole Foods "spreadable" ricotta they have in their cheese dept. is fantastic here), and her carbonara (my favorite of any I've ever made). In fact, when I just want a fast weeknight dinner using ingredients I may already have at home, I turn to her pasta chapter before any other source. And her cream and butter sauce is great-of course this is easy to make with no recipe, but her proportions are just right.

Here is their NYE menu-it's $95/pp+tax and tip. AHI TUNA CRUDO WITH CHIVE, CUCUMBER, BASQUE RED PEPPER CELERY ROOT SOUP WITH POACHED DUCK EGG, PUMPKINSEED OIL SEARED SEA SCALLOPS WITH CAULIFLOWER PURÉE, MICROGREEN SALAD BAKED OCEAN TROUT WITH ENDIVE BRAISED WITH LEMON AND VANILLA HERBED LAMB CHOP WITH FINGERLING POTATOES, CIPPOLINI ONIONS, THYME JUS GOAT YOGURT SORBET WITH BLOOD ORANGE WALNUT TART WITH BOURBON ICE CREAM

MMM, thanks.

So here's my standard question that I always ask when someone talks about a new bakery... Do they serve mostly pastry/good desserts like the one you pictured, or is it mostly the usual American baked goods (cookies, muffins, etc) with some pastry/dessert items?