*Deborah*

Cate, the Tourism Van site was slow to the point of impossibility or nearly so from 10:30 yesterday morning, and a bit better yesterday evening. Of course, my patience level with slow-loading sites is not high. It appears that they were not expecting the deluge of hits they received. I would say that having the menus available for more than 24 hours before reservations can be taken (as they were last year--a week or so in advance?) would probably make it a little easier on their site. Meanwhile, we can always book on faith at old favourites

Jason, it looks like something my husband would love. I can just hear him now "we can use it on the patio and it will stay cold for hours!" As if it will last that long! Now Moosh, those glasses aren't all that bad. In my previous post, I mentioned a toaster that I got as a wedding gift. Well, it looked like this! In all the years we've known each other, has she ever known me to like pink? ← I'm sorry, Karen, I can't say I'd want it on my counter, but it's kinda KEWT!

Moosh, I opened this thread thinking, "OH NO SHE HATED THOSE DISHES!" and was incredibly relieved to see someone else had worse gift taste than I (And no, I don't really think you'd have done this thread to an eGulleter) I'm with Fresser! Jell-O. May I specify, though, multi-coloured Jell-O Shooters

Can you tell I'm sick? I keep forgetting things! I also got an Exopat silicone mat thing, and two silicone pastry brushes (is that what they are? or sauce brushes) I think that's all...

Chef Santa was pretty good to me this year, I got a 2.5 qt KitchenAid 5 ply stainless saucier (yay!!), and a Wusthof Grand Prix Japanese Chef's knife, and of course the Advanced Serious Foodie class. I also got a beautiful Ravenscroft wine decanter I hope to be cooking for some of you long into the New Year! ETA: A bottle of Larose from Moosh, I haven't heard about it but evidently it's Some Wine, and needs to wait even longer than the 2003 Nota Bene (). And I also got the Molto Italiano cookbook to add to my Mario collection. It looks like an excellent book at first glance

Hard act to follow, Zuke, but I reckon it sounds like you're up to the challenge I am v interested to see all of this spaetzle! And the Prairies. Are those gophers? I seem to remember seeing something of their ilk whilst on the Transcanada, somewhere between Manitoba and Alberta...

I have had some v good food there, including the excellent short ribs and mac and cheese but I have to say that I don't share your opinion of the Caesar, thoughtbox: grilled lettuce is not my bag, and I left a fair amount of my (not that large to begin with) salad behind. For those who don't mind their Romaine slightly toasted, I'm sure you'll enjoy it, the dressing is quite nice.

Thank you Jamie Even better than I'd hoped.

And so, the long-awaited parental return from their around-the-world tour! After seven weeks of restaurant and hotel and airline food, they probably would have really preferred it if I had cooked them something wonderful at home, but my condo-in-the-sky is on the selling block, and being kept in a (most unusual) state of hypercleanliness which is not conducive to me cooking fabulous things. So we made the sacrifice and went out. Sunday night, kurtisk's night off, alas, we visited Chef Jeff and crew at Aurora Bistro. Have I ever had a bad word to say about Aurora? I don't think so, and there's none forthcoming now either. We started out with sparkling mineral water and a bottle of Sandhill Small Lots Burrowing Owl Sangiovese, I believe an '03. We liked this wine, especially for the price ($44 IIRC? perhaps a bit more). Chef so kindly sent out an amuse of the oysters on the half shell with mignonette. My dad being allergic, Chef sent him some bacon and eggs: a little fried quail's egg and some of the astonishingly good DUCK BACON! My dad is now a convert. That was so sweet I don't eat oysters raw either (I didn't want to say anything, and I seriously tried, but I just couldn't do it) so I don't remember what was in them. My mother was the happy beneficiary, though, and enjoyed them mightily. For starters, she had the bleu cheese tart with I believe caramelized onions (the online menu is a little different from Sunday's), and was so gorged on oysters she managed only three-quarters of it My dad had the Hazelmere Farm Beet Salad with Okanagan Goat's Cheese and orange chive blossom vinaigrette, and he was doing a small chair dance. I had the soup of the day: organic chicken bouillon over shredded duck bacon () and kari squash, flavoured with star anise. The bowl was piping hot, with a little mountain of squash and bacon, and a star anise floating about, and into the bowl you poured the steaming hot bouillon from a teapot. Interesting presentation, and delicious soup, I liked how the anise flavour came into the picture as it soaked in. For mains, both parents had the Pork Tenderloin - maple and mustard seed glaze, Okanagan goats cheese and apple crumble (all goat cheese, all the time, for my dad), and while she had a little trouble finishing hers due to all that bleu cheese, he cleaned his plate. I think I did too: I had the Potato Wrapped Smoked Sablefish with local mussel, autumn vegetable chowder. Oh my, this was some dish! the mussels were sweet and delicious, the sauce rich but not too rich, and the fish just wonderful, I really like sablefish. And I really like fish wrapped in a potato jacket, I think that's just really cool. The usual Aurora meal: attention to detail, each flavour great on its own and in conjunction with the others. Since my mother sucked back the lion's share of the wine, I had a small glass of the Sumac Ridge Vintage Pipe with dessert. And what a dessert! WOW! we all three had to try it: Dark Chocolate and Rum Pâté served with Pastry Cream and a Cinnamon-Spiced Pear. Sounds fairly normal...until it comes to you and it's vertical: pear ring topped with a hote, panko-breaded deep-fried disc of pastry cream (GENIUS, just GENIUS), topped with some semi-solid superfabulous ganache which began to soften... *swoons* Well, it's a good thing we each had our own dessert, it could have gotten ugly. *** The next night, of course, we went to Parkside. We were, happily, joined by the Mouses. I arrived with the Mouses and found my dad and mum happily talking to Chef Andrey Durbach, who had recommended a bottle of wine: a 2000 Domaine de la Grange des Pères, from Hérault, which is outside of the appellation districts (in Languedoc) and thus just a "Vin de Pays." Let me move to your pays, mon vin. Cabernet-based, so smooth I nearly missed it at first, and really really nice with the food. But first, Parkside Negronis for Mummy and me, and a Frozen Pineapple Cosmopolitan for Moosh. Mr. Mouse had an Alhambra, Spanish beer, and my Dad got his sip on with the wine, which he enjoyed immensely. Michel (f/k/a the Johnny Depp Waiter) nearly dropped his book in shock when I ordered the scallop special instead of the foie gras. He said, "I hear you saying scallop, but my pen is writing foie!" and so since nobody else ordered it either, Chef graced us all with an amuse-sized portion, complete with toasted brioche. Oh this parfait de foie gras, so smooth, that little touch of fleur de sel, even my dad, a sworn liver foe, and Mr Mouse, who also claims not to like liver, ate it all up. New converts! For starters, both Mouses had the Tagliatelle of smoked sockeye salmon, cucumber, pink peppercorne, chive crème fraîche. Moosh gave me a bite (that's how good friends we are) and this stuff was, oh so good. Rich, creamy, perfect texture of pasta, luscious. My mother had the Salad of poached prawns, endive, apples, spiced pecans, celery, light curry dressing, but she was too far away for me to snag a bite. She said it was very good, though. My dad had the Jerusalem artichoke soup with morel mushrooms, Parmesan and caramelized onion tarte fine, and remarked on the silky smoothness of the soup, and I had the special scallops, seared and served with new potatoes and green bean salad, and I know I'm missing details. I haven't seen the pictures yet, and I have no aide-mémoire. I know I loved it, crisp green beans, creamy potatoes, and small, sweet scallops. Mains, again I veered. No duck! I don't know why, I love the duck, I just was feeling pretty fishy I guess. Moosh and I both had the Deep sea cod in a prawn crust, crispy brandade potato cake, shellfish bisque and garlic butter jus (fish in crust theme!). The fish was beautiful, cooked just right (of course) and the bisque was extremely rich. Very flavourful dish! I loved the potato cake, especially. On a side note, I think I am not a big fan of bisque in general, I probably shouldn't order it...it always sounds so soft and nice, but it usually has a very bold flavour, and I'm always startled by it. Mr. Mouse had the Medallions of venison, purée of cèpes, port wine sauce, potato and fresh herb gnocchi, which was my second choice, and he thought it was great. My mum had the Roast Rack of Lamb, as usual, and loved it, as usual. She loves the way Chef does lamb. My dad had a special, oh, pan fried sole in a white wine and lemon sauce I think it was, and again, loved it. Somewhere in here came the need for a second bottle of wine, and I had spied a Turley Tofanelli Zin in my earlier researches, and persuaded the parental unit to give it a try based on the incredible bottle of Dogtown Zin we had had some months ago, and my copious charm, of course. Michel described this wine as the lightest of the Turley Zinfandels, but we found it just really bold following the Grange des Pères. So next time, dude, Just Say No and get us another bottle the same. For dessert, the men both ate the sorbet trio: black currant, mango, and mascarpone. There wasn't a bit left at the end. My mum had the sticky toffee pudding, I think? as did I, and then Moosh had the dark chocolate cannoli with sour cherries and crème Chantilly. My pudding was good, although I have to say that I personally prefer the one I've had at Brix...I'm a bit of a sticky toffee pudding whore, I eat it anywhere I can find it, and I think Brix edges out Parkside in that department. (Neil's GBP is another animal entirely and I do not bring it into this comparison.) To drink with our desserts, we ladies had a glass of Pommeau (an apple-based liqueur) from somewhere in Normandy IIRC, and it was just lovely and smooth. Moosh took pictures of many of these dishes, which will follow soon I hope. What a couple of nights! great dinners! My dad has stated that although Parkside is still his Declared Favourite, Aurora is now officially On The List. Thank you so much, Chefs, and wonderful and attentive staffs. We'll be back.

Caramel apple, apple cheddar, cherry, apricot, off the top of my head. Occasional pumpkin pie!

Burger club had a not so great impression of them, I fear, winegeek...here is what's left of that discussion...some posts seem to have been pruned?

I don't know! I was in a bit of a hurry, and I didn't want to tempt myself any further.

It was a hard choice, I love matcha desserts and it looked really good! but the other one seduced me. I will just have to go back!

Well...8 servings for normal people. Perhaps 4 for you and me on a binge. We'd have to get the 10 inch one if we wanted to share it with Lorna. (yeah, that pic came out cool, eh?)

Speaking of Ganache Patisserie, I went there yesterday to get something for a little Christmas get-together with some girlfriends, and THIS is what I took away with me: "Caramel-Café-Chocolat 2005: dark chocolate caramel mousse, cranberry gelée, cappuccino-chocolate chip parfait, spiced poached pears, chocolate sponge." It was the bûche de Noël to end all bûches de Noël. It was simply divine. The 6 in. size was big enough for about 8 servings, and it was $22.95, and there was a 10 in. one, as well (forget the price). Highly recommended!

that doesn't make sense to me.. are you sure you don't mean the gratuity is automatically added in, like most restaurants in Vancouver do? ← The autograt is 20% (not, e.g., 15% or 18%). It is added for parties of 6 or more (not, e.g., 8 or more). Vodka and Red Bull is $5.25 on Thursday evenings. ...what did you think I meant?

Speaking of Kolachy, I had THREE bacon dogs this week!

I've been absent from this thread too long! haven't been cooking much for the past several weeks. Here is a Thai green curry I made almost two weeks ago, now...I didn't do it according to Hoyle: I "velveted" the chicken pieces and browned them rather than letting them cook in the sauce. It was not authentic but it was damn tasty and tender. I used a humble Bell pepper for texture and colour, again not authentic. Oh well. It was delicious! And last night after serious Christmas shopping, I settled down (at around 11:30 ) with some Terra Breads Cranberry and Pistachio bread, some Cranberry & Peppercorn Boursin, and some Pâté au Cognac, and the cutest pear in the history of agriculture. (I promise I got the bread away before *Ziggy Palffy* licked it ) Now I have to go back and look at all the wonderful things you guys have been making!

Cutting boards, a serving tray, scale, and hats, scarves, gloves and handbags. The cupboard behind has flower vases, martini and sangria pitchers, and a big thermos for drip coffee (seldom used as I normally have espresso). ETA: and, often, a rather large black and white Manx cat.

They just sent my office 6 pages of photocopied menus (nightly specials, lunch, brunch, dinner, lounge) and a fax order sheet for lunch takeout... They certainly are trying hard: "Every time you visit LK Dining Lounge you will receive a coupon for money off the next time we see you!" Autograt of 20% for parties of 6 or more may be of interest for those who want to take a big group for the $5.25 Vodka and Red Bull Thursdays.

*claps hands with glee* This is gonna be good.

AFAIK there is an ass-kicking penthouse with a roof garden at the top of the Shangri-La.

This past week has been just a daze, but I know I haven't been eating much at home (currently required to stay hyperclean for showings) so I must have been eating out? Yesterday was Panago chez Mouse; Hawaiian and BBQ Chicken. Hit the spot. Friday was...oh I didn't eat dinner Friday. Thursday, following a few drinks at the Hammy, was pasta and more pizza at Marcello's on the Drive, my inaugural visit. Doubtless not my last, as I will soon be moving not too far away...I enjoyed the pasta v much: tender and very evidently homemade, you can't fake that texture, really nice, in two red/rose sauces, I found it v enjoyable. We also had a pizza to share, which...I'm not such a thin crust girl really, I know a lot of people consider it the epitome of pizza goodness, but I like a regular kind of crust a bit better. So, for me, it's a bit meh. I'll likely stick with that lovely taglietelle, another time. Comfort food. Wednesday, again the HSG! an R&B lager and some of those award-winning yam fries with snacky-cat. We happen to live in the same building, although not for long, and had probably our last neighbourly drinks. Sunday for my first showings, I had breakfast at the HSG around 5:30 or so...I had been cleaning all weekend, basically. I was going to go to Diner and try it out, but the Hammy is two blocks closer to my house, so it won due to my extreme tiredness. Barrett found me a table in the corner where the Grey Cup people wouldn't disturb me unduly, and I had a half-litre of Mission Hill Reserve Shiraz (? I think) and then Steve recommended me some very tasty Beef Wellington that was on the fresh sheet. The pâté was just lovely, with truffles, and I managed to eat almost the whole plate, which is usually v hard with their portions. Housecleaning will do that to you, I guess. I don't regret my forthcoming move (yeah, but wait till the renos start! then I will) but I will regret not having the Hammy two short blocks away. Proximity to good food is one of my favourite things about Yaletown.

Oh, thank you Gail, well done!

Let the schools do what they will, food-wise and economy-wise, and all the kids will be offered will be Doritos and Pepsi and crackers with processed cheese product. If there is a way to help kids away from junk food, it is in all our interest to do it. Even discounting the value of a healthier and happier populace: cheaper school lunch costs now will result in higher medical costs later, which we will all bear. And if some of these kids are eating crummy food because they're poor and their families can't/don't know how to make ends meet, I don't think it's shifting responsibility: I think it's part of our Canadian social contract to lend a hand to those who need it, the same contract that says that little old ladies shouldn't have to live on cat food or choose medicine over food or vice-versa. IMHO