*Deborah*

Sommelier - not pronounced like Somalia.

Oh, that kind of thing is v hard to heal if you have to keep it covered up with makeup. She should have gone with some Ozonol and a bandaid instead.

I've watched from the beginning and I don't understand Melissa's sudden brain freeze and personality change. Was she trying to illustrate that Rock hadn't given her the proper instructions to make the potatoes? She said the second time, "I did exactly the same thing," and why would you do it exactly the same if it failed so spectacularly the first time? and what was that with the bloody DUCK, putting it in the oven again when even Waffle House (whom I like the best of the females) knew that it shouldn't go back in. Of course Waffle House should have taken it back out. But it's like Melissa suddenly forgot to take her medication, or was told to act like that much of an idiot so GR could move her over to the other team... (Personally I'd like to know how she thinks it's appropriate to cook with all that hair all over the place, I cringe every time I see her in the kitchen with her overprocessed mop waving in the breeze.)

White wine poached chicken breasts served with a tarragon cream sauce. I like the mushroom risotto idea, although it might feel too heavy if your weather is hot. Regular rice cooked in stock with added sliced butter-sautéed mushrooms (wild or regular) and maybe peas could be a good accompaniment. (Old-fashioned! but pretty on the plate) Spinach or mesclun salad with mustard vinaigrette to start. I'm a traditionalist, and would be pretty disappointed with a birthday dinner at home that didn't include a cake! but perhaps your mother is not. A fruit tart would be nice, or a chocolate silk tart in a short crust, with berries if there are any where you are. If a cake is in order, then chocolate inside, white buttercream icing, and raspberries or strawberries.

First off ... you drive a Vespa, so I don't want to hear boo-hooing about the price of gas from you. Explain to me how the current (i.e. this will not be permanent) situation on Cambie Street with respect to parking and slow traffic is any different from what Yaletown or the West End faces year round. Is it Canada Line's fault that some people have their head in the sand and don't know the area is a traffic nightmare before they venture naiively in? Would you do the same in Yaletown on a Friday night? I did once. Spent an hour trying to find parking. Won't happen again because I'll plan. Take a cab. Take the bus. Hell, it's sunny ... ride your bike our rollerblade. 'Scuse me while I go whipe some tears ... A. ← Well I don't usually run my weekend errands on the Vespa, that's usually in my car. And I'm not moaning about parking or traffic volume, I'm speaking as someone who ended up travelling some 30 blocks out of my way in two directions in Saturday traffic because you simply can't get there from here any more! What's more, they change it up on you, just to keep it interesting. On the other hand, I made it from the airport to downtown down Cambie in 21 minutes, recently, so that straight shot is still viable. Just too bad if you don't want to drive right through. As for Yaletown, I know where to park

I totally take your point, Wes. I've ended up taking unintended extended scenic tours of Shaughnessy myself. And um, yeah, boo-hoo is right, at the cost of gas these days, when the side streets are all closed and you end up driving an extra half-hour to try to find a viable approach to where you're headed. It doesn't really encourage you to run the gauntlet again.

why would the city do that? and.. what place does the city have on restaurant signage? are they gonna start asking restaurants to design their logos in a certain way, too? make them fit in with the condos? ← I *think* Gerald's remark was in jest, but FYI, the City of Vancouver (like most cities) has guidelines and regulations about signage of all sorts, so that residential neighbourhoods don't end up looking like Times Square, for example. Whistler is an example of this, too, where the exteriors of buildings in the village conform to a certain "rustic" look, to maintain the ambience the RMOW wants to promote.

That struck me as counterintuitive also... Speaking of Turkish, there's a newish place on Robson near Hamilton called Turka that serves nice donairs (chicken or beef) with a very tasty minty yogourt sauce. Cash only.

Hey, let's just have one best for each continent and be done with it.

Yay Tony!!! :biggrin: (edited for emoticons)

^cruel, weird, personal attack... I see that as a description weird behaviour, not as an attack! what's cruel about it? ^weird thing to say, why do we care about the umbrella stand and shelf? I don't, particularly, I kinda shrugged my shoulders. But whatever. Really? You should see BCinBC's Penthouse Forum review of Senhor Rooster!!!!

Cruel to the point of being weird? *goes back to read* Nope, I don't see anything I'd call cruel. It even has positive points. Not to mention three more people have come to lavish the restaurant with praise, apparently as a direct result of the negative comments.

Gourmet Warehouse, Cookshop @ City Square, Stock Market ← And maybe the Ming Wo on Pender? ← You could also try "Hot Chocolate" on Robson. I don't remember the exact name, actually, but it's near Hapa Izakaya. ← Chocolate Moose/Mousse?

Yay Maddie! Happy travels, KT.

Is she in Second Grade, perchance? "Orange (sweet and sour)" ?????

Donald's on Commercial near 7th had v cute fingerlings yesterday, $2.69/lb.

OMG I haven't had a chance to post about my dinner but I had the warm chocolate cake with pistachio quenelle at Parkside last week, and it was insanely good. The cake was buttery and delicious, as good as any I've had (and that includes Thomas Haas' version at Diva), but the pistachio quenelle was creamy and covered in super-fresh Persian pistachios, I learned, the best pistachios I've ever had. I may be spoiled for good now. Out of this world. *** Quattroporte, I can't remember the last time I had one of those cakes that was as good as it looked, except for my own home-made. Lots of excellent fancy ones, but not the simple ones. Let us know if you find one!

I second the Ganache recommendation.

Hey I think El Mexicali might be where I went last time I was there! Thanks a lot, Eric. I can't wait! and it's only...more than two months away

Another convert! Glad you enjoyed it, Emmanuelle.

I have two cats. They are "supposed" to confine themselves to the floor and the couch. Nonetheless, I'm not so naive as to think that they are never on my kitchen counters or dining room table. Ew! I kiss 'em, too! I'm just a dirty girl I suppose.

Cheers, Carlsbad I'm a bit of a carnivore but I may check it out. I'm always on the hunt for a nice avocado.

I saw that link in the thread rjwong linked above, thanks, Jamie! Somehow I"m not sure if Lord Fletcher's will fit into my tequila and rock-n-roll weekend! although I have been known to have a huge craving for iceberg and Thousand Island and if you're going to make your own Thousand Island, I highly recommend using Kewpie Japanese Mayo

Thanks for the link! I know there are a lot of chain restaurants and such in the neighbourhood, and of course there's a lot of pricey stuff since it's a resort, but I hope I can suss out a little mom and pop kind of place to find something a little autentico. Many thanks for the TJ address! I'm sure I'll find what I'm looking for there.

Greetings I'll be spending a few days in Palm Desert/Indio in April (Coachella fest), and I expect my cash flow to be pretty constrained. I hope to continue my usual California trend and eat Mexican at least 90% of the time but I'm not familiar with Palm Desert...early indications are typical resort. I found a decent joint in Indio last time I was there, but I'd like to know of any Palm Desert places anyone can recommend, since that's where my hotel is this time. Also, is there a supermarket or one of those hyper drugstores where I can stock up on water and, uh, reposado? Thanks in advance !