fierydrunk

Please list any and all of these. Someone on Chowhound hipped us to Mazzaro's which looks really great and certainly better than a Fresh Market. I worked for Fresh Market in college and found them to be quite the shell of a fine market. I am surprised they are still in business actually. I am glad to hear that Publix is so good. It was good when I last lived in Florida. Have they added more natural/organic foods and do they have decent meats/seafood?

We are relocating to St. Pete early next year from Portland, OR and are very anxious about the change in eating that will definitely be occuring. Where is the best food shopping in St. Pete for produce, fresh meats, cheese, oils/salts, organic/natural stuff... Also, COFFEE???? Any restaurant heads up are esp. wanted as well! Thanks!

No shame in this game. Bacon-wrapped Cheese Dogs (as they were called in my home) are luxurious. Try pancetta!!!! A huge vat of Rotel dip (for those not in the know, 2 cans of Rotel chiles and diced tomatoes with melted Velveeta) is great comfort for the winter.

We got a nice big deep fryer as a late wedding gift--anyone want to give us some suggestions of a good fish recipe (or whatever really) to christen it tomorrow??? We've never used one before. We live in Portland, OR and can get good seafood for the most part.

We go today--thanks for the GREAT list. We have a lot of that stuff but need to re-up the oils and vinegars. Any other ideas still appreciated!

Sometime back, there was a nice list in Saveur or CI for neccessary pantry staples for quick meals. My husband and I are going to shop for these today. Anyone wanna refresh our babd memories on some good neccessities for quick meals staples other than pasta, canned beans and tomato sauce?

Juanita's in Oregon are the best store-bought, locally-made tortilla chips. I only see them at Winco in Portland and some tiendas.

Is it just a restaurant or a hotel also? It sounds fantastic! We will have bikes and plan to ride all over the area and NOT go to Zihua unless we can't help it. How many minutes from Troncones is Majauha (on a bike)? Thanks!

Donde esta? Avoid or Go?

going to Troncones in Mexico for my honeymoon in June. it's a small fishing about 30 miles north of Zijuatenejo. anyone been through there before. it's quite tiny but i wondered if there were certain restaurants to avoid or ones to seek out. i know it's a long shot but i thought i'd try. thanks.

I had a shaken cocktail in New Orleans a few years back at a fun dive called The Abbey. It was delicious! I have looked at the recipes online and the drink I had definitely had triple sec but NO milk. The color of the drink led me to believe there was grenadine in it. Has anyone ever heard of a Southern variation on the Dillinger? Or have you had The Abbey's version?

OK here are some wines I just picked out of the air due to price...comments? OREGON: J. Christopher 2003 Chardonnay cuvee lunatique 2003 Chardonnay Chehalem Mtn La Bete 2002 Pinot Blanc 2002 Pinot Gris 2002 Pinot Noir Stoller Vineyard Stafford Hill 2003 Chardonnay 2002 Pinot Noir Le Pavillon Westrey 2001 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 1998 Chardonnay Reserve CALIFORNIA Dashe Cellars 2003 Petit Syrah Lodi Peterson Winery 2000 Zinfandel Dry Creek Qupe Winery 2001 Bien Nacido Blanc 2002 Syrah Central Coast Roshambo anything they have NEW MEXICO Gruet Brut Sparkling Wine Blanc de Noirs sparkling wine

The distributor is Casa Bruno in Portland, OR. I have looked online but to no avail. The owner is the head of the Slow Food "gang" here in PDX...so maybe he's cares not for such high speed things as the internet. Just kidding! The info you have been giving really IS helping. Believe me, I have learned more about wine in the last day on this board than I have my entire life. So much more to learn though!

We are meeting with Stumptown's manager to finalize it all on Sunday. I will look through the list for cheaper sparklers...any words that will hip me to what "sparkles"? Sorry, I am a complete vino idiot. Due to having to buy lots of beer, we will have a sort of limited budget. I am thinking 5 cases may be MAX what we can get of everything. That will be a lot too as we are ordering two kegs of good beer and some bottles on the side. We just have no idea how many people will opt for wine when most of the guests drink liquor or the Oregon microbrews when drinking on a normal night.

Thing is...the distributor isn't responding to me. We have to use them as they are the one that Stumptown cafe exclusively uses...and since I am not from Stumptown, they don't care to respond! Argh! Should I just go with 3 red, 1 white and 1 champagne? Or 2 red 2 white and 1 champ? How many glasses could we get out of a case again? Sorry

Thanks for the advice--the culture of the party will be late 20's-mid 30's, big drinkers (usually liquor and red wines). There will be lots of dancing and general "partying", not your typical snore-inducing reception. I am a huge syrah and pinot noir fan. I am not familar with white wines at all. There will be some older folks there whom I would imagine would definitely order whites. Also some girlfriends of mine who swear that white is less fattening or something! We are expecting 100-150 guests...most of whom will definitely want to drink up! Because we are only serving beer and wine and because we are in the damp and chill of Portland, OR spring, I have a hard time imagining needing more whites to reds. Also, I can only afford a case of Champagne due to the cost of the only brand they sell at the distributor we have to use. Is that any better?

I am left alone on the West Coast trying to organize my wedding party by myself and need to make a wine order for my party. I have a HUGE list of French, Italian, Californian and Oregonian wines from which to choose. (1) For a party of 100-150 max, how many cases of red, white and champagne? The only other alcohol being served is good beer. I am a red wine (pinot noir esp) drinker. There will only be hors d'oeuvres for food options. (2) Any suggestions for mid price wines that could possibly be on the list? If someone is willing to consult about this, we could communicate over the message option. I appreciate ANY AND ALL suggestions on this. My family won't be here in time to help and I have many clueless-on-wine friends. HELP.

we're constintly throwing away fresh thyme, basil, sage, etc. most of our grocer's don't sell them bulk in produce so we're forced to buy the packaged herbs. can we freeze them? or do they lose their special powers in the freezer? thanks

Repost from Portlandfood.org: Well, Hollis and I wed next month and are having our big party at the Downtown Stumptown, just like I wanted! BUT--we have decided to get a good wedding cake now that we are having friends cook hors d'oeuvres rather than have Simpatica cater. Can anyone reccomend someone who could make an amazing cake? Not the norm either! In fact, I wanna see any color but white icing!

Thanks! So would these brands be good for evoo and pure?

We are experiencing some lean times and would like to continue to cook with and use olive oil that we can stomach that is easy on the wallet? Any good brands that can be recommended? Wild Oats label SUCKED.

PERFECTO!!!! Thanks Fifi!

I am testing it now. I don't have a convection oven so I put them in 2 small emile henry ramekins at 300...I'll check on the crust in a bit.

Hate fresh mint and Italian and regular parsley. DESPISE FENNEL SEED! Blech. Most everything else I seem to be OK with.

We made a fantastic Chicken Pot Pie (from the Cooks Illustrated Cover and Bake book) and have 3/4 of a 9"x13" casserole dish left. What is the best way to reheat such a beast for individual or larger servings???