OnlyTheBest

When this whole discussion of Tims chips started i decided to call them to find out what all their flavors were....ever hopeful of course that maybe they had smokey bacon (they dont)... Anyway...i dont remember what the full flavor line is but try giving them a call to find out what they have added and subtracted. They did mention that they have new flavors on special that they like to try out all the time....so who knows whats comming. I think that Safeway and Fred Meyers have good selections of them...and DO try the maui onion in the lavender bag they are awesome!

If its great cheese you are after....why not do your own. Stop in at Neals Yard in Borough Market and get some of their fabulous treasures. They have all all the best....then you can choose what you like. Choose your wine and you are all set.

It is not a quiet place. Well...thats not good news. I had a feeling it was not quiet there. Thats ok...we'll have to try your suggestion then. Thanks

I have been hearing about Brooklyn and i have been wanting to go there. Can anyone tell me if it is a quiet place. My best friend from university is comming during Christmas and is being slowly plagued with genetic deafness. She has to wear hearing aids now and if an environment is too noisy it hurts her inner ears alot. I am trying to find quiet seafood resturants. There would be no problem dining early if that might make things quieter. Please let me know what you think of Brooklyn...I would appreciate it. Thanks

This is not about a tour...but a very amazing book titled French Cheese and written by Patrick Rance. If you are traveling to France you might see if you can find a copy in your library...or in a collectible book store before you go. The book is out of print but a fantastic read on all cheeses French. He really did his research. The late Mr. Rance also did a book on English cheeses entitled The Great British Cheese Book....it too is out of print. There are some copies of each on the Amazon.com/uk web site. Not cheap...but worth it. Enjoy your trip...... you can never have enough cheese !

Moby...how does ole Patsy loook these days? I absolutely adore her....and of course... thats where you WOULD see Patsy...outside Harvey Nick's !!

Very sexy Matthew !!! GREAT food porn read...doesnt get any better than that !! Now i'm drooling. Mmmmmmmm.

Thanks for the info laurel...i just called them and they dont have any teapots...only a metal one. Thats ok...it was a good lead...i appreciate it.

Thanks for your suggestion but i have found that Japanese stores ususally dont like to carry Chinese things. Most of the ones i have been in carry stuff only from Japan with very little Chinese goods at all.....not that i am looking for only a Chinese pot. There just seems to be alot of it around. If i dont find what i am looking for i will check it out. Thanks again

WOW!! Excellent suggestion tighe! I totally forgot about the great wall mall...been meaning to go there too....just didnt occur to me to check it out AND!!! a great meal at Imperial Garden as well ! SUPER! Guess i know what i am doing this week....THANKS! ← To go along with the Great Wall Mall there's also the newer Ranch 99 in Edmonds that also has a bunch of the same types of stores clustered around it, Ranch 99 itself also has a small selection of chinaware. Rocky ← Hey cool ! Thanks Rocky...I'll add it to my trip.

WOW!! Excellent suggestion tighe! I totally forgot about the great wall mall...been meaning to go there too....just didnt occur to me to check it out AND!!! a great meal at Imperial Garden as well ! SUPER! Guess i know what i am doing this week....THANKS!

Yep...been around that area but i have not had the chance to do a complete search. It looks as good a place as any so i will have to check it out more. thanks

Yes...that is the kind of thing i am talking about sorry i wasnt being clear...i meant that these are the kinds of china or dinnerware you see in Chinese resturants....or international gift shops. Usually you will see alot of this kind of thing stacked in isles in Chinese grocery stores...usually the big ones have a large selection. But...like i said...i have been unable to locate a market that carries a good variety. I am certain that this exists in Seattle...i just have to ask around to see if i can find it. It's usually an importer of Asian goods. I know of one Chinese resturant supply place in the ID...but it was closed the day i was there. They may possibly have a good selection .... but i'll have to check further. Usually places like that just have resturant equipment...but who knows.

I am going to post this question here rather than the beverage forum becuase i need the answer specific to Seattle. I need to find a Chinese supply place that has a wide variety of teapots. I have been all over the ID looking but i think i might be missing it. I usually get the Chinese pots because i am terrible with china and tend to be waaay too clumsy to have anything more than a good dependable Chinese pot that usually runs around 6 dollars or so. I know there must be somewhere that has Chinese china because most large cities do....but i havent found it yet. It is usually a store that has all kinds of other imported Asian items as well and tons and tons of plates and cups of all patterns. I was once in a store years ago that had the most wonderful selection of teapots imaginable...almost 2 dozen different kinds every style and shape you could think of. I would SO appreciate it if someone knows the answer to this. I have been to Unjamaya(sp)...they dont have anything like that as they have mostly things Japanese. I've got a feeling it is right under my nose but i have not found it. If you dont know where...tell me where you think i could start to ask to find out. Any suggestions would be most appreciated. I drink LOADS of tea everyday and have managed to nearly destroy my poor little pot with my all thumbs routines in the kitchen. I really do need a new one. Please let me know if you can help...thanks so much.

Akiko...what is the difference in taste between 100% buckwheat noodles and the buckwheat noodles that have wheat in them. I have not had either but am anxious to try them. Thanks

When ever I am in Fortnams food hall stocking up my blood orange marmalade supply i always see stacks of tins of gentlemans relish. I once bought some a long time ago but i dont remember what i did with it. Obviously people eat it...just wondering what the board thought of it. I expect it is something eaten on toast maybe for tea. Do you like it? Is it good?

Hmm, I'm trying to think what would make a good foil to smoke and the only thing I can think of would be a dip made with a base of lactic acid: sour cream, yogurt... Salmon is typically smoked with alderwood so maybe a sour cream/yogurt-based dip laced with some nonsmoked salmon. Then again, what does one usually have with smoked foods? Beer. Maybe a good pilsner or a Belgium ale to go with them? BTW, the cheapest price I've seen for Tim's chips is at Cash and Carry. They have a box of 24 individual-sized servings for about $11.00 (if memory serves me correctly). Anyone else have an economical source for this habit? After i read about the cheeseburger chips i got really keen on the idea about findng out about them. So...I called Tims this morning and talked to them. The receptionist told me she had not heard of them...which was what i expected...so i dropped the subject for now. She did tell me that every 4 months they come out with what they call limited editions..to see how they sell...and if they do...they are added to the line full time. Apparently the wasabi is so sucessful that they will become part of the line. I mentioned that i loved the smokey bacon flavor that you can get on chips in England and she said she would pass that along to the flavor guys. At the current time she said they have no meat flavored chips and that the steak and onion was not that popular so its been discontinued. Too bad...i would have liked to have tasted them. Anyway....thats the lowdown on the cheeseburger chips. Too bad... I am sure they would be fabulous. I guess they dont want anyone to know they make them...perhaps even the receptionsit does not even know of them. As far as which dip for the alder smoke chips....i think you are right...most likely a sour cream based dip. I bought some sour cream and some onion mix for it...and i have some smoked salmon i will try as well. I am going to be experimenting to see what works best. Also...one more thing....when i was in safeway this afternoon asking if they had the smaller bags of Tims...the stock clerk told me no....BUT!!! If there were any flavors that i wanted to taste before i bought them she would be happy to open some bags. WOW! How great is that!!! So... I took her up on it and she opened the dill and the wasabi for me.... both were very good. BUT... it was the maui onion that i was blown away by! They are ...to me...some of the best chips i ever had. Just FABULOUS! I got a bag of those and bought another bag of the alder smoke to test out some dips. I will keep you posted on what i come up with. I do think the smoked salmon might be a winner....good suggestion Really Nice...i would have never thought of it. sounds yummy.

The alder smoked chips were the one big disappointment I've had with Tim's. I'd tried some of the other flavors and liked them, and read a "tasters' panel" on barbecue chips in the San Francisco Chronicle that raved about Tim's alder smoked, so of course I tried them when I saw them. I couldn't even finish the small bag I bought. They tasted as if someone had poured a bottle of Liquid Smoke over the chips -- acrid, bitter and nasty. I thought I might have gotten a bad bag (oversaturated with the flavoring or something) but I haven't been brave enough to try again. I still really like Tim's Jalapeno and Salt and Vinegar, but when I want barbecue/smoked chips, I get Kettle brand Mesquite chips. ← You know...that was my thoughts exactly...there is way too much seasoning on the chips so i thought that if i ate them with a dip that would tone down the flavor of them somewhat. I wish they were less saturated because i love the general taste of wood smoke. What would be really good is if they would make a smoky bacon flavor...like they do in England. Those are great chips. Now...if we could only get our hands on the cheeseburger chips....but i guess they dont sell them retail. Now THAT would be SOOO good!

I have one question about the alder smoke chips...they are so intense what kind of dip would you serve with them i have been looking for something really good to go with them and can't seem to find just the right one...any suggestions??

That sounds like the way I have always had my tea....stands up to all that richness of eggs and meat. And yeah...gotta have that cigarette. mmmmmm

Adam... what exactly is builders tea? I've not heard of that.

Laurel! Thanks for the information...looks like Seattle is going to have a real cheese shop again. I just saw the website and indeed it looks like the real thing... THANK GOD!!! Great artisan cheeses are truely things of beauty. Can't wait to go see what they have.

Wow ! Thanks for that suggestion...they look like a great place....and out on Whidbey Island no less. Looks like they they know what they are doing too. Nice to know you can live somewhere out of the way like that and still find good cheese.

Any decent cheese shop will give samples for you to taste and Isa Mara is no exception. If you like whole foods because its near you then great....but their selection of cheeses is really just ho hum. Last time i was there ...not only did they NOT have any of the cheeses from Neals Yard...they werent sure what they even were. Di Laurenti had a far more interesting selection....and their cheese buyer really knows her stuff. Certainly a good resource for anyone living in the city. Heck..I am still trying to find the time to go up to Salumi. Its only about 50 minutes or so up the road....but the traffic always gives me pause...which is one reason i am glad Girl Chow suggested Isa Mara...it has turned out to be a GEM!

Funny you should bring up cheese. I have been meaning to post something about that little cheese shop (AND cafe)in Gig Harbor. I know it is a long way from Seattle....but after i stopped in i realized what a wonderful find it is. Debbie (the owner) has a fabulous selection of somewhat hard to find cheeses....French, Italian and English. She is even expecting a delivery shortly that will include that very rare Dorset cheese...Blue Vinney....AND the very buttery farmstead Lancashire from Mrs. Kirkham. Her prices too are fantastic too... I feel very fortunate to have her down the road from me. I would say if you are into cheese and feel like an afternoon drive down here to Gig Harbor...you'll find some great stuff in her shop. Far better selection than Whole Paycheck and Met. Market. She also said she will be open Halloween with coffee to give away to the parents as well as treats for the kids. Anyway..the name of the place is Isa Mera and it is on the main drag thru Gig Harbor....on the right side (comming from the Narrows Bridge) and somewhat down from the street...on the water.(there are signs) Her phone number there is 253-857-7511 if you have any questions about anything she might carry. I think she also does catering as well. Next time i am up in Seattle i would also like to check out that new place....if anyone goes...please post a report.