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Ellie

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Everything posted by Ellie

  1. That would be great, johnnyd, but I've always secretly hoped they open a Green Grocer on the other side of the bridge, say in the Mill Creek area. A girl can dream... but the PPM would be good too
  2. RIP - El Mirador El Mirador has closed up in the Public Market after 5 profitless years.
  3. I think this is still on topic... Harbor Fish has the holiday "tank of eels" and I'd really like to try my hand at making some sort of traditional Xmas Eve eel dish (except it would be this week). I'm just wondering if anyone has any insight into the difficulty of cleaning said eel ($9.99/lb or $15.99/lb cleaned) as well as any recipe suggestions. I'm thinking a soup or stew would be easiest but I really want to highlight the flavor of the eel. Does anyone else around town sell eel -- retail or restaurant? This snow we're getting is gorgeous! I'm thinking of roasting a chicken for supper this evening. Normally that would be Sunday night fare, but I can do one stop shopping at the Public Market (I really like the chickens that Maurice sells) before heading home to shovel! Let it snow!!!!!!!
  4. A couple of suggestions/comments: Rosemont Market and Bakery on Brighton Ave is a great place for selection and value. (This is the buyer from the previous incarnation of Green Grocer). The Clown is terrific, very knowledgeable staff and thoughtful selection (The store is just beautiful regardless, Antiques on main floor with art gallery in back. The wine shop is in the "cellar", very charming. Very heavy on Italian wines, though) I hear the selection is improving at Hannafords (don't laugh!) and their prices are the lowest. They do carry some very nice labels and while I haven't looked in a while, I hear its getting even better. I'm just sayin', when talking *cases* at a time, this may be a wise option. Speaking of Sopo Wines, there's a wine tasting of "Thanksgiving wines" on Friday 11/18 from 5-7pm at Culinary Collections in South Portland (just between us, right?!) Culinary Collections would be another option although I have no knowledge of their prices but the selection looked pretty good. BTW, Aubergine Wines is now 555 (the restaurant) and Portland Wine and Cheese is a gift shop I think. Oooh, gotta run.
  5. If mediocre food doesn't get to you, mediocre service or consistency will. I've been here for two years and while there appears to be many restaurants, there are many that I don't go to because they just aren't good. Good service is quite illusive and I've learned to be a more assertive customer in order to get what I want. I almost never write a place off the first or even second time because there would be no place left to go. (exception being Ribolitta because I wrote them a letter of complaint and they didn't bother to respond!) That said, in order to have a decent amount of variety, I work hard to find things to like about a place. For example, the Porthole stopped being good some time ago IMO, but the deck in the summer is a must so I go there for drinks, split the crab salad and sometimes Friday night happy hour at the Comedy Connection. At some time, I got sketched out by the cleanliness at Rosie's (don't know why) but like the place for a beer and darts (they play good music) so I'll get fried chicken tenders only. I much prefer Yosaku to Benkay, but Benkay serves escolar which I love, so I go periodically for that. I guess you were more focused on food but my point is, find your good core places and then supplement with sort of strategic strike snacks to get variety. I don't know if you tried these -- Tu Casa, Asmara or Nile (warning, very new)? Also there is good fried chicken and fried pork belly at La Bodega Latina (haven't been in quite a while, and haven't tried too many things there) I think Rachel's is a very good dinner spot, good food good value. Uffa is really terrific! Oh and don't forget to try Fully Belly Deli if you like deli. I could go on.... Sorry for the ramble!
  6. Until about a year and a half ago, I always hated blue cheese. Thought it tasted like vomit but I blame the uncoated penicillan I took as a child. But I wanted to like it and would taste it occasionally, to no avail. Then one day, I tried a a warm blue cheese cake, and it all turned around. I feel rather proud of my perseverence over all of those years, working to break down that aversion. I still proceed cautiously, of course. Now I have to work on that darned Shiso.
  7. Someone probably mentioned these but I missed it -- New England Boiled Dinner and Baked Beans
  8. johnnyd-- Is there a reason that you can't freeze them shell on, aside from the convenience? I suppose you could even freeze the shells for a later use. This is the final week and I have some catching up to do!
  9. I was able to get some monkfish liver today and would really like to try making Monkfish Liver Pate. I'm willing to do something like you get in sushi restaurants but something more seasoned sounds interesting. I've searched to no avail, does anyone have any recommendations? Perhaps I could just use a standard Pate recipe as a guide -- where is that Pate for Dummies recipe when I need it? Thanks
  10. Grabbed a pound last night, shell on, heads off. Sauteed them on high heat with olive oil and a bit of butter. Then tossed them with homemade chili paste(left over from chili last week), siracha chili sauce, dash vinegar, lime juice and cilantro. Just wonderful. The sweetness of the shrimp works well with the smoky heat. Messy but delicious!
  11. I second the Marie Sharps. We took it everywhere we ate while travelling through Central America -- it helped a lot! It's pretty easy to find here and is still a favorite. I agree that fresh fish is probably the best way to go in Belize. That and Belikins, of course! Glad to hear Placencia is back up and running. We weren't able to visit in 2001 because the town had just been wiped out by a hurricane. Belize is fascinating.
  12. No one said anything about a lawsuit. There's nothing wrong with wondering about the legality or ramification of a policy. No one is out to ruin your dinner.
  13. Thanks for the suggestions! I can't wait to return. My family doesn't get it, but they're glad I want to visit again soon. I've heard, or rather read, references of this "Eat Street". I didn't have time during my visit to check it out, but I'm not really sure what the deal is there, could someone tell me a little about it? I have been to Lucia's once many years ago. It holds a special place in my heart because it was one of the first nice restaurant, really good food experiences I ever had. And I went with my boyfriend as part of his office's holiday party. There were about 10 of us and the wine flowed, and it was so wonderful. The wine, the bread (it had a parmesan crust, I still remember it!), the food -- even the coffee was beautiful and rich in delicate white coffee cups (with a saucer, I thought! hehe) Wow, that must have been at least 8 years ago and I'm still with the guy. Thank you for reminding me of that, that will be a must visit next trip.
  14. I have been thinking about this. I would first say that I had a really good meal there a couple of months ago. We were really surprised with how good the meal was given the reasonable price and I had intended to return... As far as this no child policy -- having no children, I've never really thought about it before. I could see if there was an expensive prix fix menu or really high end dining, accomodating a child foodwise could be difficult. (I worked at a Caribbean restaurant once where we commonly made scrambled eggs and bread for kids because that's all we had that they'd eat). Or a special holiday menu, perhaps. But Uffa!, I thought was a neighborhood, "bistro" type of place (maybe that was the old owner). Perhaps they think of themselves as more fine dining than the customers do :) [Even 555 seats children, and they consider themselves the finest dining in town] I just don't like this policy, it seems unnecessarily exclusionary for the place that it is.
  15. johnnyd -- Hey the fish auction info is a lot of fun, thanks! I called the shrimp auction line and found it hadn't been updated for today. So I called the general info line to ask when it would be and he told me three ships are coming in tonight (by name even, that's pretty cool!) So I called my lobster place and asked them about their stock. They have no whole shrimp, but will tomorrow (after tonight's auction). I wish I could always be so connected to my food sources. New Year's theme this year is Maine seafood -- Happy New Year!!!
  16. Had a quick visit to the Twin Cities for the holidays after an extended absence. I had such a good time (despite the cold snap) and enjoyed some good food. First off -- the mexican food! You all are sooooo lucky to have so many great options. Time was limited so I couldn't do too much exploring but was able to hit El Mercado Central on Lake. What fun! We had a taco de lengua and de barbacoa (?) from Taco La Hacienda, a pork loin torta from the place next to that, and a few other things. Everything was simple but good. Next stop was El Burrito Mercado which I used to love when I lived there. Over two visits we tried almost every guisado as tacos or gorditas (LOVE the gorditas). Each was fantastic, particularly the pork adobado. A couple of those were spicy hot which was great. The market was bustling with Christmas shoppers and I was really hoping someone would invite me to their house for dinner! The selection in the market is so comprehensive, I would love to have regular access to it. The "deli" has great take away food including big chunks of carnitas -- I couldn't believe it! Just wonderful. Green Mill -- Jamaica Wings I think only the uptown location serves these, but we used to adore these things back in college. We'd bring someone new and dare them to eat a big spoonful of the hot, greens from the sauce. These wings were as good as ever, spicy and even more flavorful then I remember. If anyone knows how they are made I'd like to know. There is a potlikker flavor to the sauce and I can't figure out what the greens were. Ethiopian -- Fasika Our biggest disappointment was getting out for Ethiopian only once. Decided on Fasika because of the reviews. It was wonderful!! Flavorful, spicy, oh so satisfying. BOY DO I MISS THIS FOOD!!! We had the Ultimate Combo and almost finished it off between the two of us. I've been to one place, one time in Boston and it absolutely paled to the quality of the food in the Twin Cities. We've decided to try to figure out how to make some dishes as home -- what else can we do?? Nelson's Cheese Factory I have such a thing for the hot Hero sandwhich. I don't know what it is but these things are so tasty and really addictive. We used to get sandwiches there (oh, and a pickle!) and take them to Como Park for a little picnic. St. Joe's Meat Market -- St. Joseph, MN My absolute favorite Beef Jerky, bar none. This is perfectly seasoned, meaty stuff and without a doubt the best holiday gift I received. I'm going to have to start having this stuff shipped to me on a regular basis. My visit was just terrific and I can't wait to go back. The people really are nice and there's a lot more chow to be had. So many tasty ethnic options that simply are not available where I am. Next time -- German food, Kramarcek's, Ethiopian, a big Mike's sub, Emily's Lebanese deli, Ethiopian, Big E Soul (never been, but if they reopen), the Everything Omelet at the Uptown Cafe, oh and more Mexican and Ethiopian food and ........
  17. You bring up a good point about the parking. It is a challenge there and I feel the same way about the Public Market, despite the free parking (seems a pain when you just want to run in). I REALLY wish they could figure something out such as limiting the commercial parking to ?? - 3:30pm and make it all 15 minute parking after that. That's a good, what, 10 spaces you'd add. It would help anyway. I do still hope the Market could benefit from this because I'm still in love with the concept, if not always the implementation. CSASphinx, I felt the same way, although they were so specific with the reason -- hey maybe 10 Dana St is in the family :) For myself, I can say that the produce was often the primary draw and the non-produce items followed. ( I like the Clown for wine, Standard for bread, Hortons for cheese, etc) Those herbs, though, I will really miss the herbs.....
  18. Ugh, they have these flyers explaining that due to new development at 10 Dana St (the building immediately behind them) they no longer wil have access to the back door. Long story short, they will be eliminating their fruit and produce come January. They will expand the other areas such as wine, deli, bread, etc. Such a shame! Would really like to hear more detail on this. Really concerns me the way things are "developing" intown. Trying to look on the bright side, I was chatting with the produce guy in the Public Market. They are aware of the situation at GG and are looking to position themselves to pick up the slack. He said they'd be bringing up produce from Boston like GG does to offer better quality, price, etc. This could be a good opportunity for the PPM.
  19. Pat's, of course! That's a great idea. Thanks!
  20. Just read that Pierrot Bistro on Cambridge St. serves finnan haddie (Sauce "review" Boston Globe). Don't know if it's creamed, though.
  21. I haven't had a roasted turkey in years. Thought I didn't like it, but it turns out I don't like my Mom's turkey (awful stuff). I'd like to roast one myself this year, but I want the best fresh turkey I can find. I have so far determined that Wild Oats and Whole Grocer each sell fresh, natural turkeys ($2.00/lb and $2.48/lb) that can be ordered in advance. Any other suggestions for fresh and good quality birds? How about fresh, kosher? Thanks in advance! Ellie
  22. Here in Portland, ME you can get finnan haddie everywhere, cut/sliced to order. I know that its smoke haddock (right?) but how do you use it? I just can't seem to picture what creamed finnan haddie would be like. Are there other ways to prepare it as well? How does it compare to other hot-smoked fish?
  23. I've always first simmered the ham hocks to make a broth. But years ago I stopped bothering with taking the meat off because I found that it really had very little flavor left after the simmer. Has anyone else found that to be the case? Now I chop up a ham steak for good ham flavor. You still get the smokiness from the ham hock, too.
  24. My current daily breakfast is coffee and egg drop soup. I'm in a phase. One of my favorite breakfasts that I used to take to the office was miso soup and an Iggy's roll with taleggio. I love soup for breakfast! Oooh, spinach soup with hard boiled egg is also fantastic. My first post, I'm so excited.
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