Daddy-A

Gadzooks! Is the whole class full of eGulleters? Can't get away from you freaks for a second! Yeah, me too. Explains why my chicken stock (broth from now on!) was always so cloudy. Turns out my wife was right ... again. A.

My son spent 3 weeks this summer at Air Cadet camp. The MRE's, according to him, were better than the crap being served at the mess. I had to laugh when I saw this: After washing 3 weeks worth of clothes, there were 1/2 a dozen of these in the bottom of the washing machine! A.

We tried to do something similar ... if you notice we really only went a little crazy at the beginning of the trip. Most times it was 2 wineries a day. I find that even if you're spitting tasting a lot of wine can be fatiguing, and wines start to taste the same. That was the strange thing. Even though it was just after Labour Day, all the winery restaurants seemed to cut back their hours. So no, the restaurant at Cedar Creek wasn't open. In fairness, there was a wedding on the estate that day, so it may have been booked. Did you get a chance to try the Cedar Creek "M"? It's their Madera (sp?) style wine. One of my favorite discoveries this trip. I agree 100% ... the service was fantastic. Very friendly and knowledgeable, without being snooty. I have never had a sommelier suggest a wine I'd like better than what I'd ordered, and allow me to taste both before I decided! I'm not saying that never happens, just that it's never happened to me. A.

DOH! Okay, now everyone knows who's going to FAIL this course. A.

As mentioned in other threads, a number of local eGulleters are attending the "Serious Foodie" class at the Northwest Culinary Academy in Vancouver. First night was September 19 ... Chef Tony lead the group of 22 through some basic knife skills, and had us chopping cellery ad infinitum to practice. Personally, I think we were prepping mirepoix for the day-class's stock It seems we'll be learning skills, and then cooking recipes to out those skills to work. Last night's skill ... stock making, simmering & braising. We cooked up a pretty decent "Gypsy Soup" (I would have called it something more Latin myself) and then ad-libbed a braised salmon. This thread will be a blog of sorts for the 8 week course. I know Mooshmouse has some pictures to post, and others can chime in to offer their comments. Even if you're not taking the class, ask questions and we'll do our best to answer. Hopefully this will serve as an insight for others considering taking the course. Let's get cooking. A.

Gotta be David Hawsworth for me ... and I'm not basing that on the food at West (which is awesome in its own right), but on the incredible meal we had at Outstanding in the Field. Simple preparation, clean flavours ... and he served my salad for me (just a little star-struck eh?). A.

I think you enjoyed the cake more than I did. Then again, you had cider & I beer. Something kinda off-putting about beer & chocolate for me, even really good Belgian beer. Make sure you introduce yourself next time! A.

Dude, if Memphis Mike was there again this year, you missed out BIG TIME. His pulled pork is almost as good as mine! Seriously thought, he did brisken and pork last year. Both were fantastic. A.

At least you got to eat there! The three days we were in Kelowna we had the only foul weather of our vacation and the Terrace was closed each day. The view from the Terrace is pretty nice though We were in Naramata as well and ate at Hillside. Pretty good, but we've been told that Lake Breeze was better. Unfortunately Lake Breeze's kitchen was closed the days we were there. Best meal of our week was at The Sonoma Room - Burrowing Owl. Details of our week in wine country can be read HERE. A.

Welcome Wes (was going to call you Elmer ). Looking forward to your feedback on Nu. I think you're safe on the items you've listed A.

Okay, I just had to look "milt" up in the dictionary ... NEVER do that at breakfast time! My appetite is buggered for the rest of the day! A.

Easily the most assinine statement of the year The author obviously hasn't spent any time in Canada. We really want to be Norwegian. A.

One of the best FN shows I ever saw was the Good Eats episode on caseroles. Alton not only went over recipes, he also (as he always does) explained the science behind the almighty casserole. Check the FN listings to see when it's on and watch it if you can. HERE is the FN link to the epsiode complete with links to the recipes. A.

What some call insecurity others call customer service. Leonard doesn't "jump on coat tails" so much as he replies to customers whose dining experiences weren't up to par. I only wish all managers were as concerned. Don't get me wrong. A bad experience is a bad experience and one is more than welcome to post about it here. My only question with foodiluvm's post (and others like it) is customers who have poor dining experiences, don't let the restaurant know about it, but then air their grievences on line. Just my 2 cents' worth A.

Day 6 Saturday morning and it was still raining in the sunny Okanagan, and yet the weather felt strangely appropriate that morning. “J” was still fighting the cold, I was feeling guilty for being able to taste things … and we both missed home a little bit. Understandable I suppose considering we’d been away from home for almost 2 weeks now. But we took one for the eGullet team and carried on. Breakfast was more of the Yogopogo yoghurt, sliced bananas and pears, topped with a handful of Raisin Bran. Just in case you thought we started eating healthy … this is a Calabeau Chocolate Bun I picked up from Okanagan Grocery with the other bread (we’re still enjoying the Musli Loaf at home). I couldn’t bring myself to buy an entire Chocolate Loaf, and the bun was almost too much. The bun was easily 20% pure chocolate, with big chunks baked into the top. Those who have read my blog will also know that coffee wasn’t far behind. Coffee in Kelowna is a challenging item to locate … or rather good coffee. Our cottage-owning friend had suggested we bring our own beans, advice which we foolishly ignored. Kelowna has evolved over the past 30 years (my greatest recollection) from a quaint little orchard town, to a city based in tourism, to a strip-mall hell with all the associated crappy chain restaurants and *$’s coffee. Eventually, we found good beans at The Marmalade Cat in Pandosy Village [2903 Pandosy Street in the Mission]. We decided to take a break from wine tasting that morning, and instead visit the Kelowna Farmers' & Crafters' Market. I went with cautious optimism. Kelowna, as I mentioned, came to life as an orchard town. My childhood memories of Kelowna were filled with fresh peaches, apricots, cherries, tomatoes, etc etc. This was one of those areas where the roads into town were lined with fruit & vegetable stands. Surely the farmers’ market would feature more of the same, despite the addition of the unfortunately requisite crafters to the mix. My caution was warranted. This market was a big disappointment. I’d say better than half the vendors were crafts … and only a few of the farmers had anything really interesting to offer. Mac’s & Galas at 30 cents a pound – a pretty good deal. One thing we noticed was the tendency for most produce to be pre-bagged. Notice you can only buy 5lb or 10lb bags of the apples. Big-ass sunflower … and pre-packaged apples. I was hoping for more in the way of “street foods”, but alas, Kelowna city hall is just as uptight about this as Vancouver city hall. This is a red bean cake … 50 cents of “meh.” Samosa Lady! We picked up some samosas and pekoras for dinner. More on those later. Cupcake Lady! These were being sold individually, but her real business is the the “wedding cupcake” scene. Really beautiful work, and with flavours like “Blow Me a Bubble”, “Root Beer Float” and “Squeeze My Lemons” how can you go wrong? This kid was a damn good banjo-picker, but like the rest of the market, really didn’t seem to give a damn. I almost forgot … he wasn’t the only musical entertainment there. Believe it or not, this market actually had karaoke! After hearing that, I NEEDED to go taste some wine. Before the wineries, we stopped by Carmelis Goat Cheese. I would put this place on my “must visit” list for any food-lover in Kelowna. The carry over a dozen different varieties of goat cheese, chevre, un-ripened and hard, and also offer tours of the facilty. I mean come on! Goats are so cute … although they were all absent the morning we were there, thus the lack of pictures. Winery Visits: *Cedar Creek *Summerhill Pyramid Winery I’m not a car buff, but we saw this beauty in the parking lot at Cedar Creek. Time for a late lunch. We’d been given numerous suggestions for dining in Kelowna; Bouchon, Fresgo, Waterfront. Unfortunately, none of these places were open for lunch. That’s something to remember if you ever visit … this isn’t a big city. It’s getting there, and many of the amenities are there, but much of the business-thinking is still pretty small town. We decided to go to Vintropolis, a wine & tapas bar that has alos opened up in Vancouver. We ended up at The Rotten Grape … which up until a month ago was Vintropolis. Confused? So were we, especially considering the Vintropolis sign was was still over the front door. Mango Curry Tiger Prawns. Nice flavours, but it came lukewarm. IMO, this would have been a better dish if the prawns were fresh off the grill, and the mango sauce was chilled. Maybe it started out that way … I don’t know as the service was a little slow. Trio of Tepenades (WTF is it with trios these days??). Avocado puree, roasted tomato and goat cheese salsa, and olive tapenade (isn’t that only ONE tapenade then??). “J” liked the avocado … I’m not sure I liked the Mediterranean take on what was essentially guacamole. The salsa was a real stand-out … the smoky flavours of the tomatoes really complimented the goat cheese. Oddly, the tapenade was only okay. Bruschetta – made with Covert Farms tomatoes. Very tasty with a nice amount of garlic and balsamic … enough to compliment without overpowering. The Rotten Grape was a nice stop but really needs to work on staffing and keeping the bar clean! The owners are friendly enough and seem to really want to continue the tradition of Vintropolis. At least they were open. After lunch we made our second wine stop of the day at Summerhill Pyramid Winery. I’ll let know read the details on their web site, but the owners are really into the whole “pyramid power” thing, so much so that they have constructed a large pyramid in which they store their wine. Just a little bit too new-age for me … but live and let live. Stunning fountain outside the tasting room. The other thing I noticed in any advertising I saw for Summerhill was the phrase “most visited winery in BC.” They ain’t kidding. The parking lot is a steady stream of cars and tour buses. Inside, tour groups were crowding the wine tasting counter slamming back tastes of their Cypes and dessert wines. We were not impressed, and knowing we could pick up any of the Summerhill product at our local VQA, we left for the cottage. Dinner that evening was “small plates” in front of the fireplace. Translation: we cleaned up all our leftovers. We also had the pekoras and samosas from that morning. Sadly, they were yet another disappointment from the farmers’ market. Sunday, however, had better things in store for us. A. Dedicated to Mom

I trust that in addition to using your first post in this forum to express your displeasure, you also spoke with the manager (Leonard) while you were at the restaurant. No worries. Even if you didn't, Leonard will be in touch. A.

Thanks! Yeah, we missed the altar too ... and were were lost, afraid, and disoriented. Daniel, what do you think? Shall we pitch the idea? I have two more days to post, and will return to do so soon. I'm out of town for a couple days dealing with family stuff so am otherwise occupied. A.

Since you two have the inside on this event ... we want pictures dammit! You Island folk need to start pulling your weight. A.

This comes from Wine BC's 2005 Annual Report: So assuming that some of the wine from Canada is non-VQA BC wine, 20% sounds about right. Full report is HERE. A.

It's so funny you mention The Village! The first night we were out walking, we wrote down the phone number with thoughts we'd check it out for our next visit. Their little courtyard is really cliche cute, complete with Adirondac (sp?) chairs. Thanks for the rec! I really like all their cheeses, but the Tiger Blue is my fave. It's somewhat legendary around here I'm so jealous that you'll be there during the Fall Wine festival. Will you be doing any of the dinners? They all looked amazing! Be sure to report back. A.

I'm not sure his remark is any different than Alexandra Gill's last August in the G&M re: Watermark in Vancouver ... If you want to take exception with Tom's post, question what his hidden agenda is, as it seems he has one. Back OT, Club C et P sounds amazing. Haven't been to Quebec since I was in university, so I can only suggest The Peel A.

It's not just you Marlene. I've been perplexed by the whole "issue" Americans have with Thanksgiving ever since Chandler Bing made grilled cheese sandwiches on Friends. My guess is it has something to do with it being a non-denominational holiday, unlike Christmas, Hannuka, Kwanza, etc ... It's all inclusive, and that includes all your psycho-baggage too. Thanksgiving for our family is almost always at our family cabin. I hate the food, I hate the crowded cabin, and I'm not too keen on a few of the guests at dinner (family & non-family). When I re-married, I stopped going to the cabin and my wife & I hosted a few "orphans" Thanksgiving dinners. Food ranged from the traditional (roast turkey) to ethnic (Indian) to cheep & cheerful (burgers & fries). So to answer the question ... within my immediate family, change is accepted reluctantly, mostly to indulge my forceful personality . Within our group of friends it's "anything goes" which seems to support the "blended families" theory. A.

Day 5 Hallelujah for the dry air in Oliver! “J” woke up feeling “somewhat” better. At least well enough for her to allow me to snap this picture: That’s the coffee counter at: Yes, the Cock and Bull. That’s exactly what I’d name a coffee place. If you’re in Oliver, it’s right next to Cantaloupe Annie’s … in fact you can walk from one to the other without going outside. We were getting a little tired of hotel room coffee and needed an espresso fix … something quite easy to find in Oliver. Along the main drag (Highway 97) we counted no fewer than 5 coffee houses. Good latte’s, and pretty good baked goods. Someone picked up a breakfast bagel while we were there … looked really good. Unfortunately he wasn’t up to letting me take a picture of his breakfast. Freak! Winery Stops: *Tinhorn Creek It’s a 90 minute drive up to Kelowna and we were pretty tired by now. Rather than over-extend ourselves, we decided to take it easy and visit just one winery. Tinhorn Creek is one of our favourite BC wineries … their Cab Franc is a personal favourite. “J”’s favourite grape … named for her family (if you can't read it, it's Pinot Meunier)! Just above Tinhorn Creek you’ll find the Golden Mile Trail, so named for the mile long narrowing of the valley that creates a unique micro-climate very suitable for grape growing. The trail links the neighbouring vineyards of Gehringer Bros. and Hester Creek Wineries, and the old town site of Fairview. A sign at the entrance to the trail. This is, after all, a desert. The view towards Black Sage Road where we were cycling yesterday. This is the view looking towards Osoyoos, Osoyoos Lake, and the Canada-US border. On our way towards Kelowna, we stopped at Pancho’s Market at Covert Farms http://www.covertfarms.ca/ To say that this was THE place to pick up tomatoes would have been a huge understatement! There were at least 4 trucks, filled to the rim with tomatoes and other veggies. Unfortunately, the Subaru was filled with wine by this time, so we had no room. Lunch: This is a SMALL cone from Tickleberry’s in Okanagan Falls. Sure, Tickleberry’s is filled with all the worst tourist crap you can imagine … but take a look at the list of flavours! Habanero & Jalapeno fudge???? I wasn’t brave enough, sorry. Hi! I'm Daddy-A and I’m a frequent licker!! We arrived in Kelowna just before dinner time. We were staying at a friend’s cottage so rather than dine out, we did the foodie thing and went grocery shopping. My mother grew up in Kelowna, so I’ve spent more than my fair share of summers in the Okanagan. However, the Kelowna of my youth and the Kelowna of today are two completely different places. Shopping choices used to be limited to a couple grocery stores and whatever was in season at the fruit stands. Today, there’s everything from artisan bakers, specialty wine shops and even really decent seafood. Asiago & Black Pepper Bread served with olive oil and cracked black pepper (we forgot the balsamic.) The bread came from Okanagan Grocery Artisan Breads Poplar Grove Tiger Blue .. again Rib-eye steak with blue cheese and Okanagan pears. Dressing was a little garlic aioli. Grilled spring salmon … … that was shredded and added to bow-tie pasta with some garlic, shallots, extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice. Dinner was enjoyed with the Year One “Noble Blend” from Joie … a gift from a friend … and The Fabulous Thunderbirds on the stereo. Unfortunately the weather had turned on us and an early autumn rain had taken hold of the Okanagan valley. Fortunately, the cottage had a fireplace and a really big bathtub! A.

High praise coming from you! Thanks! Not "in action", but we tasted the results ... some awesome smoke-cured wild boar. I'm with you ... I want one, and I want it now. I just need to move to acreage!A.

Day 4 It’s amazing how a few glasses of Gammay, a Neo Citron chaser and a good night’s sleep can clear your head . My head was clear(er), the weather was beautiful, and we were ready for a day of wine tasting … and cycling. Breakfast was served on the bed as we watched the morning news. For those who don’t know, the yogurt is a play on words. “Ogopogo” is the name of the lake monster that inhabits Okanagan Lake (we’ll see the lake when we visit Kelowna) … thus making “Yogopogo” extremely hilarious . The fruit (excepting the bananas) came from a fruit stand on the way down from Penticton. The plums were fantastic and made perfect little yogurt spoons when split in half to remove the pits. This was the first day both “J” and I felt up to doing any cycling. Lucky for us, Oliver is a great town for cycling with a number of great destinations … all of them wineries. The city is situated in a valley with a very flat bottom, and there is a cycling path running the length of the valley, right beside the irrigation canal Jamie mentioned up-thread. Winery Stops: *Silver Sage Winery *Black Hills Estate Winery *Burrowing Owl Estate Winery Our plan that day was to cycle to a number of wineries, have them put our selections aside, and then drive by and pick the wine up later. The wineries are all quite close together, and this method allowed us to do more drinking and less spitting. Silver Sage is family run vineyard that in addition to the standard varietals like Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Merlot, does a couple really interesting wines. One is their Sage Grand Reserve – it’s a Gewurztraminer fermented with wild sage plants that produces a semi-dry, crisp-spiced well balanced wine with a unique sage aroma. The other is called Flame – a dessert wine infused with hot pepper. Not for everyone, but we really like both! The Sage in particular will go very well with this years’ Thanksgiving turkey! Silver Sage Winery vineyards & estate. Notice how lush the valley floor is compared to the hills. Black Hills Estate Winery is one of the real gems of the BC Wine Industry. Started by 4 rookies in 1996, Black Hills consistently sells out of their Nota Bene (red), Alibi (white) & Sequentia (dessert). This year was no different: The only greeting we received at their tasting room was from the lab, who would bark every few seconds as if to say “Nothing to see here. Now leave so I can go back to sleep!” Fortunately for us, we already have several bottles of the Note Bene & the Alibi in our cellar. Haven’t tried the red yet, but the Alibi is delicious! Next stop down Black Sage Road was Burrowing Owl. BO was my first taste of really good BC wine, so I was really excited to visit. A word of warning ... the hill up to Burrowing Owl is quite long and steep! Cycling is doable but difficult, especially if you have some wine in you. While "J" is all relaxed and fit, you can't see my wheezing mass behind the camera The winery has a self-guided tour that takes you from the cellars … … to the tower for this incredible view! After a hot morning of cycling, it was time for lunch. The Sonoma Room at Burrowing Owl was one of 3 winery dining rooms that came highly recommended. We were seated on the patio where our server Mikala took excellent care of us, making a number of well-received recommendations for our lunch. Recommendation #1 was a refreshing melon soup with lemon oil, crème fraiche and a hint of paprika. Melon soup … who knew? Recommendation #2 can be seen behind the bowl of soup. I had originally ordered a glass of their ’98 Chardonnay. When Mikala returned, she was carrying two glasses; one was the ’98 Chard, the other was the ’03 which she thought I might prefer (and was also less expensive.) She was 100% on the mark … and much to my delight I remembered I had 3 bottles of the ’03 laying down in our cellar! Mediterranean antipasto platter; prosciutto, roasted eggplant wrapped around goat feta, olives, stacked tomato boconcini salad, salami selection, asiago cheese and a couple prawns with the most delicious saffron aioli. Beautiful presentation and a well thought out array of flavours. “J” had the ’02 Cab Franc. Dessert was a sherbet trio: raspberry, blackberry & passion fruit, served with mango & raspberry coulis. Hey, we were cycling! Simply riding back to the motel would work off lunch! Overall this was the best meal of the trip. I was initially concerned by comments others had made about how cavernous the restaurant was, but eating outside made this a moot point. I was a little disappointed about having to listen to the construction work, but that’s not going to be an issue once work is completed for the Easter opening of the new B&B. It will be worth a visit for the pool alone! The Haynes Ranch … one of the original homesteads in the valley. Just in you get the idea that a dip in the canal is a good idea, these signs are all over the place. Watch out for the “drowning machine”! Dinner that evening was at Jacques Wine Country Restaurant. We had met the chef’s wife the morning before and were pleased to see her collecting vegetables & herbs from the garden out front of the restaurant … typically a good sign. Unfortunately there are no pictures to show as I didn’t take the camera that evening. I refuse to use a flash in a restaurant. The food was pretty good … nothing spectacular. We started with a wild mushroom tart and a roasted pear & blue cheese salad, then shared a main course of lamb loin and roast veggies (server’s suggestion.) Only comment I have to make is I’m not sure why the chef decided to top the lamb with a “white cheddar & onion relish.” Maybe I missed something, but cheese & lamb? I scraped the cheese off mine and ate it with some bread. We were both pretty tired by now, especially after a 25km bike ride! “J” was feeling the effects of the bug I’d been fighting as well, so we turned in early. A.