rockdoggydog

The menu at Night Kitchen actually looks promising. I'm hoping that as someone who is often downtown late at night that it will be good. Rocky

Malay Satay hut is good Skip Boom Noodle and Elliot's, if you want oysters go to Shuckers at happy hour or get them while at Anchovies and Olives. Paseo is good, go to the Shilshole location. Tsukushinbo is good. Olivar is also a good brunch option. Rocky

Elemental is fine if you're okay having no control at all, Phred is well, he's unique but his wife makes killer food. Macrina is good, worth getting up early for, that's debatable. I'd probably spend more time in the Market. Second Matt's. Sitka and Spruce and Joule are both great, though if you have a car and want consider Corson Building if Sitka and Spruce are on your radar. Food at Zig Zag is not their strong suit, if you also want food go to Spur for late night food and drinks and then head over to Bathtub Gin Co. But Zig Zag is fantastic for drinks. I'd probably go there first then hit Spur and then Bathtub Gin, and if you are really ambitious, head over to Rob Roy or head up to Vessel. Rover's brunch is fantastic, sleep is for later. Delancey would definitely be a much better choice for pizza. Poppy would be a great choice for happy hour, then go across the street to Olivar for a few small plates. Quinn's has slid recently as there has been complete turnover in the kitchen, they're still doing good stuff, but not as good as it used to be. I would recommend Anchovies and Olives, same chef/owner as How to Cook a Wolf and much easier to get into. Drinks at Tavern Law, especially upstairs, Barrio is also worth checking out for a drink. If you are running ahead of schedule, check out Liberty, farther north on 15th, for more drinks. Rocky

The only stores that might have the El Dorado 21 are the 4th Ave store and the 7th and Bell store. U Village has 15. I forgot to mention teh 7h Ave store yesterday as they just became open to the public. Rocky

Where are you coming from? There is a huge difference actually in which liquor store you go to. What items are you looking for and when are you going? I need to go look for booze this week anyways so I may be able to meet you and show you a few different stores. There are three in close proximity in Seattle that are a cut above the rest, U-Village, 12th Ave on Capitol Hill, and the 4th ave store, but they just moved and may or may not have everything up yet. Rocky

I really liked ten01, but you can also pop in to the bar for some bar food and the cocktails are stellar. I would add Screen Door to the breakfast list for Portland and I woudl suggest Beast for diner. In Seattle Beth's and Coastal are missable. Beth's a fun and goo dgreasy spoon but there's nothing special about it. Coastal Kitchen is meh, it's not bad and it's popular, but it's not exciting at all. Kingfish Cafe, Monsoon, Rover's and Steelhead Diner would probably be my recs for breakfast/brunch. What are your dinner lineups for Seattle? Where will you be staying? Rocky

Check out The Foie Gras Wars by Mark Caro. Well written and objective. He gives equal time t both sides and actually visits both the farms and the protesters. Rocky

The handles actually stay cool. Jerry Thomas night at Vessel Blue Blazer Video 1 Blue Blazer Video 2 The flared lip on the edge of the mug really helps with pouring too. Rocky

This system is being prototyped and tested at Vessel in Seattle. Rocky

Sorry, I just suggested Giffard's Cassis because I like it and it's what I use. I've never tried the Mathilde liqueur, but I imagine it would work well--creme de cassis and blackcurrant liqueur are one and the same as far as I know. Also, most cremes de cassis that declare their origin, such as Dijon, will likely be pretty good. ← I'm usually a fan of the Briottet stuff. Rocky

How about the Le Bourget? You can pre-batch it very easily, just shake it at the last moment and serve. 2 oz gin 1/2 oz St Germain 1/2 oz lemon juice Shake and strain. Rocky

Instead of Zoe, I would go to their newer restaurant, Quinn's. I still love Union, but Anchovies and Olives is fresh and new. I would probably take Etta's off the list and swap in either Art of the Table or Boat St Cafe or Olivar. The Georgian is fine, not exciting by any means, but solid. If I were to go some place in the Fairmont Olympic it would actually be Shuckers during happy hour for oysters. Unlike many other oyster haooy hours all of their oysters are available at happy hour prices instead of a select few. While you're here, do try some Shigoku oysters though, they are absolutely fabulous. Spur is also a great choice especially to pop in for a bite and a drink before heading off to another place. Rocky

chicken fried chicken livers

Besides Teardrop and Clyde Common, other places worth checking out in close proximity are 50 Plates and Ten01. BTW, Mr Shenaut's first name is David, not Daniel. While you're in Portland make sure to pick up some Ransom Old Tom Gin, it's totally fantastic. Rocky

No one mentioned Salumi? If you want Vietnamese, I would suggest Green Leaf over Tamarind Tree. New World Seafood next door to Seven Stars Pepper offers better dim sum. Honestly though, if you're heading to Vancouver get your Chinese food there, not here in Seattle. We suck in comparison. Seafood at lunch is well, look, dinner is the best time for seafood here I think. But Matt's in the Market or Market Grill are probably your best options. Curious about the Pike Place option? Check this out. Rocky

From a press release I received this morning:

Murray works Tuesday through Friday at Zig Zag, though everyone there is a great bartender and you won't disappointed in the least. You should also consider as many of the following as possible: Vessel - next door to 5th Ave Theater Liberty Bar - on Capitol Hill Union - Friday, Saturday, or Sunday when Keith Waldbauer is behind the bar Can Can - go late if you're going to go Friday or Saturday, Sunday is a good day Sun Liquor - also on Capitol Hill Spur Gastropub - Belltown Hazelwood - Ballard Sambar - attached to Le Gourmand on the border between Phinney Ridge and Ballard Tini Bigs - Monday-Wednesday Jamie Boudreau is there tending bar These are all definitely more than worth checking out, and besides Zig Zag some are also on par with Death and Co, PDT, and Pegu. The others are not far behind. Rocky

Had a really wonderful meal at 50 Plates on Tuesday night. The menu concept is wonderful and comforting. The only things that were disappointing were the salads. The clam chowder hash is brilliant, a deconstructed chowder turned into a hash. I will definitley be going back soon as I didn't have my camera. Rocky

I'm pretty sure Gordo's is closed and the new location of Paseo took over that space. ← I must weep now, then go have a medianoche. Rocky

For happy hour oysters I would actually suggest Shucker's in the Fairmont Olympic. Rocky

You may want to have a look here. It may be of some help. As far as dumplings go I would add Fu Man in Shoreline, Tacos Asadero on Rainier, Carniceria El Paisano in White Center for tamales and chicharron de carne, Banh Mi at Saigon Deli, Rueben from I Love NY Deli, spring rolls to go from Green Leaf, fried chicken sandwich from Grubz Grill, pretty much anything from Gordo's on Shilshole; grab it and head down to the beach, roast pork sandwich from Boat St Kitchen, Spam Musubi from Hawaiian BBQ, chicharron if they have it from Inay's. I'm assuming that the place with dumplings that you're thinking of on the Ave is Mandarin Chef, across the street is Jack's Tapas, get a scallion pancake - and get just one, it will feed several people, and the lamb and scallion stir fry. Oh and taste and compare the BBQ ork and roast pork between King's BBQ and Kau Kau in the ID. Would you be willing to go to late night lengths? Rocky

Tourist crap! Rocky

I think the flip side of the argument can be stated that if you walk into a bar and start scanning what's up on the shelves you take a certain comfort in spotting certain bottles. If the bar is either taking the time to go find certain liquors or paying for certain bottles then you feel a little bit better. I'm not talking about Hendrick's or Junipero - though at least that means I can get a decent G&T, but maybe some Vya down in the well, or a bottle of VEP or Sazerac. It's not a guarantee that a place is taking the whole thing seriously, but it's hope. Rocky

For cocktails you should add Vessel to the list. Rocky

Tried out Whym the other night at about three in the morning after a bachelor party and really needing something in my belly. A beacon in the dark The space is vastly different from when it was Minnie's, most notably it's clean and not sticky! I guess it helps to close for two hours a day to clean. It also seems little smaller than it was. There were about four other tables occupied when we got there. The Menu Farmer's Breakfast CFS - that's actually a slice of round steak under there, not a patty, good creamy gravy. Beignets - uhm they're a bit chewy for beignets, but still fried dough and sugar so it's till good, just not a beignet. Sorry, I'm being really picky about this after eating a week of beignets in NOLA. Overall the food is good and well prepared, the prices are fair, and the service is amazing considering the time of night and where it is. Whym - stupid name not withstanding, is a welcome replacement for Minnie's and will definitely go into my rotation of late night places, hell I'd go there during the day. Rocky