kiliki

Yeah, I did see a few different things that sounded interesting, but I'd say the menu is 98% the same as 7SP, so I probably will have to already be in the area to go again. I'd love to hear about dishes other people love there (I know a few were mentioned in previous posts) that might not be offered elsewhere.

We finally made it to Szechuan Chef tonight! The atmosphere and decor was definitely nicer than 7 Stars Pepper (everything was new and clean), and you didn't have to walk past garbage dumpsters to get to the front door, which is a plus. On this Sunday night it was packed and there was constantly a line, but turnover was fairly fast. We really wanted to compare it to 7SP, so we ordered dishes that we've had dozens of times (at least) at 7SP. Szechuan crab: Exactly the same as at 7SP (they used more green onions, but the taste was the same). Delicious. House special pancake: Greasier, but still delicious and flaky-we usually order this because it is the non-greasy counterpart to the green onion pancake, but that's not the case here. Ant on a Tree: Less oily, I think-the uneaten portion wasn't as congealed by the end of the meal. "Wild Chile" shredded potato: Called hot pepper shredded potato at 7SP, but it's the same dish, made with jalapeno. I guess wild chile sounds better. Well cooked but way too salty (and I love salt). There were things on the menu that sounded interesting that 7SP doesn't have, and if we find ourselves hungry in Bellevue sometime, I'd love to go again and try them. But based on my meal tonight, I can't see why I'd make the drive from Seattle, especially since we get such great service (and something always free) at 7SP.

Interesting about the dairy products. I wonder if the locally produced stuff, like Smith Brothers or Faith dairy (for cream-I get it at PCC) would be better? (Or, maybe that is what you were buying). Maybe the folks at the dairy store behind Jack's Fish Spot in the Market can give advice.

We had a nice dinner at Crush last night. The crabcake appetizer was very good, the scallops were lovely and the mr. liked his lamb a lot. The risotto that came with my scallops was barely lukewarm, though, and the server never came back to ask how it was until I was almost done, so I never piped up. The chocolate stout cake with hazelnut mousse was good, but not fantastic-one of the drizzled garnishes was harsh and vinegar-y. Overall it was good and I'm glad we went but I'm not dying to rush back.

Beautiful! The picture of the pasta with truffles made me swoon and I love the gelato shot.

That's sort of what I figured...thanks.

I still haven't been and have been meaning to at least have dessert for ages. We already have dinner plans tonight-do they have a bar area where 4 people might fit for drinks and dessert on a friday night?

Really? I've been very disappointed in both their tamales (I've only been sold ones that come frozen from some factory somewhere-let me know if you got a store-made one!) and their tortillas. I do love their salsas and their hard taco shells (these are brittle and kind of greasy-not for everyone but I love them), though.

I think this might have fit that criteria-the shell was not soggy at all. I thought it was a little overbaked, though, and it was way too cinnamon-y. Most other cannolis I've had were filled with mediocre grocery store ricotta and were a bit soft from sitting in a case. But the real Sicilian thing, with sheep's milk ricotta and a fried shell (geez, I'd even be happy with a good quality ricotta), sounds fantastic.

The best one I've been to was a backyard bbq with just family and the wedding party, but I've also been to restaurant rehearsal dinners (with the same size party) that were nice. I only recently learned that now couples are doing big blowouts for the rehearsal dinner with all the out of town guests, wedding party, family...in your words, a mini-reception. I liked the small size of the ones I've been to, which gave me a chance to get to know the new in-laws in a relaxed setting, and I certainly never expected anything fancy since I knew I would be attending a nice reception the next day.

I second Le Pichet. If you want fast and cheap Mexican, I believe El Puerco Lloron on the hillclimb is open until 8. I think Typhoon would also work well for a solo diner who wanted something fairly quick and inexpensive.

Oh! I'd just about given up finding good tamales here. Thanks for posting that.

Somehow I've never noticed this thread, which is a shame because I love this book. It was my first baking book and I learned so much from these recipes. I'm really inspired to try the cardinal slice now. It's a bit late for this, now that summer has passed and great fresh fruit is largely gone, but the butter cake recipe that is the foundation for the Rhubard Baby Cakes became one of my summer staples. I made the recipe as one cake, and I used whatever fresh fruit I bought at the farmer's market that week (peaches, blueberries, etc). I dusted a little confectioner's sugar on top once it cooled, and it was always fabulous. The directions say that a cast iron skillet works great for this recipe, and I did do that with a rhubarb cake, but I tasted a bit of metal in the final product so I stuck to pyrex from then on.

Ditto. The mushroom pizza would have been even better with a bit of truffle oil, though. I only tasted a teeny bit of truffle in the truffle cheese; just enough to make me want a little more. The sausage/cherry bomb was good. There was quite a crowd there last night, but table turnover was quick and we had wine while we waited, so it was fine. The cannoli filling was good but the shell was just okay.

The mushroom pizza sounds really, really good. Wow. Might have to make the trek for lunch. Did anyone try a cannoli? I've never liked cannoli that I've gotten from Italian-American bakeries, but I've always thought the real thing looked (say, in a Saveur article on Sicily) really good.

I'd love to do one of those walking trips-yours sounds fantastic. The macaron had a fairly plain shell, white truffle oil filling, and a little roast hazelnut filling. It's odd to say I didn't LOVE something with white truffle but this didn't really do it for me. I guess I'm more traditional when it comes to macarons. Herme makes a foie gras and chocolate one, and a fig, foie gras and "creme d'egalitine" (? I'm looking at the glossy ad they gave me but I don't know what that is) one during December, btw. While I think I could rank the macarons I tried, I'm not sure I could with the patisseries. I ordered different things at most places, so it's hard to judge. I honestly didn't have a bad item anywhere, though I was somewhat disappointed with the eclairs I got (I think they suffer sitting in a case, and I can make them at home). Jean Millet might have been my favorite. I didn't get to try the things that LOOKED most spectacular (like the large cakes at Fauchon and Lenotre) simply because I couldn't seeing buying such a large, expensive item I knew we couldn't even make a dent in. I was tempted, though. And as for items like croissants, the apartment owners told us the best place in the neighborhood was right across the street at Putnam Bertrand Boulonger. They were phenomenal and convenient, and I never even tried any others.

We also just came back from an apartment stay in Paris (our honeymoon) and this was our neighborhood cafe for when we wanted to eat casually. The owner of the apartment had told us it's a favorite of all the locals in the neighborhood. The fact that it's on a pedestrian market street made the people watching just fantastic. We had one lovely dinner when it was just pouring cats and dogs but we were snug as bugs under the awning and heatlamp. Tres romantique. I feel the same way. On our first trip two years ago we ate mainly in cafes and brasseries. This trip we ate at some nicer restaurants but no Michelan starred places. I think I've mostly gotten over the intimidation factor and we will do so on our next trip. I don't mean to hijack the thread but I have to post about my bakery experiences. We traipsed all over the city, hitting the patisseries, chocolate shops, macaron places, etc, that I'd heard recommended here...My eyes were always bigger than my stomach (I mean, you can't judge a place on one thing, right? You need three or four items) and as the week went on, our fridge and cabinets filled with half eaten tarts, macarons with a single bite taken from them, etc. I knew I was in trouble after leaving Herme (day 5) with a dozen macarons (including white truffle!), a chocolate dessert and a sort of macaron raspberry-rose cake, all of which I brought back to the apartment and just looked at before mustering up the energy to actually try. Sweets overload. On our last day I threw out a large, very sorry assortment of partially eaten sweets.

Unfortunately for us Ballard Farmer's Market crostini fans she fell in love with an Italian guy and is moving to Italy. Try PCC for big sized flavored yogurt if you can't find it at Whole Foods.

I don't consider myself a Paris expert-I've spent only two week long vacations there-but both times I've stayed in the 7th near Rue Cler and I was in heaven with the choices for dining out (my favorites are the 3 Christian Constant places within a block of each other on Rue St. Dominique), take out/charcuterie (La Maison du Jambon esp.), chocolate shops (Michel Chaudun and Gregory Renaud, who makes very good macarons as well), patisseries (Jean Miller esp.), specialty shops (Lenotre)... I also like the fact that Rue Cler is a pedestrian only street-it's great fun just to sit at a cafe and people watch there.

Oh, don't get me wrong, it fit the occasion, and I'm not sorry at all we went. And I should have mentioned that our two guests-the small plate hater and the picky eater-LOVED it. And really it was a thank you for them for flying here and watching us sign our names at city hall. The mr. liked it a lot too come to think of it, it just isn't his new favorite place.

At a cocktail bar recently I had mini Dungeness crab cupcakes with whipped creme fraiche topping. I'm now hooked on the idea of savory mini cupcakes for appetizers, potlucks and whatnot. I've searched online but only found a couple recipes. Does anyone have any recipes? I do know of course I could make mini-corn muffins with all the usual savory things you could put in cornbread (ie roasted green chilis and cheese).

Don't make stock or soup or stew? Are you kidding me? I've never had food poisoning. I make a lot of stock. This kind of paranoia is beyond me. Paranoia would make sense if you lived 100+ years ago in any American city, when the risk of dying from tainted foods (ie spoiled milk) was quite high. Compared to most any other time in history, our food supply is incredibly safe. I'm much more concerned about the decline in the quality of food production due to overzealous health dept. rules-making sushi chefs wear gloves, new EU regulations killing artisinal products in Europe, etc.

What an interesting blog! Eden, is food historian your main career? If so, could you say a little more about it? For example, are you employed academically, do you publish articles, etc.

We had a good time at Canlis, and I'm glad we went, but I'm in no hurry to go back. The service and view were fabulous, of course. We had the tasting menu with wine pairings, and while it was certainly good, nothing was particularly delicious. There was a crab salad, Australian lobster in veal sauce (that didn't really work for me), beef tenderloin, and a puff pastry-plum dessert (eh). We spent the next couple weeks on our honeymoon in Paris and Provence, and I had so many meals there that were so much more delicious (in places much less expensive) that the food at Canlis seemed less impressive as the trip went on.

I definitely look forward to trying them sometime.