santo_grace

Thanks for all the recommendations on this thread (and other threads on the Willamette Valley). We just got back from a week long trip. Flew into Portland, drove to Bandon for some golf, spent a couple of nights in Portland, and then made it to Willamette for two days. We stopped at about 14 wineries in the two days. Some of the ones we enjoyed are already mentioned here, but thought I would list them again. Ponzi - first winery of the day. Walked in at 11am, and he was more than happy to get us set up. Elk Cove - great view. Kramer - we thought why not stop in, since it 's down the road from Elk Cove. Wish we hadn't stopped here. I think this is why we decided to stick to our lists we had already made up. Adelsheim - we were very impressed with the wines here. We were looking for Bergstrom and ended up here instead. Turns out Bergstrom is by appointment only (started in June 2007). We are very happy with the wines bought here and will either be seeking them out here in Chicago or joining their wine club. Torri Mor - wanted to see the Japanese garden but it was under renovations. Lange - one of our disappointments. We were looking forward to it, but in the end, we didn't purchase anything here. Erath - made a nice purchase here. Very nice people. Archery Summit - our favorite! The wine was wonderful. So good we signed up for the wine club right there. We liked the tasting room - very simple and straightforward - a place where you think it is all about the wine. The tasting fee is one of the highest for the area ($15) but worth every penny. (I should also say that my husband and I share a tasting since I can't consume the wine we would get by myself.) Witness Tree, Cristom, and Bethel Heights - hit all of these on the next day. All good. Great views also. The only drawback to these 3 wineries is that we were followed by a group of 4 with one very loud, obnoxious woman in the group. She didn't like anything (the wine, the decor, etc.). While she is certainly entitled to that opinion, it's the way she presented it. Luckily, I realized we were going to lose her after Bethel Heights. We then headed back north to Domaine Serene and Domaine Drouhin. We had heard great things about both of these, and they seem to be two of the more popular stops. In addition, to overhearing others had been/were going here, these were also highly recommended by other wineries. We enjoyed D. Serene, but did not enjoy the wines at D. Drouhin. Granted they were only pouring 3 wines (2 whites and a red), so we didn't sample much, but we just weren't feeling it. After that one more stop - Scott Paul. Really enjoyed talking to the person pouring our wines here, and ended up with a couple of bottles. Where we ate - I used this site heavily to rely on where to stop to eat (no surprise since that is what egullet is all about). We enjoyed 3 wonderful meals. Our first was Wednesday night at Bistro Maison. I had the french onion soup and mussels (a huge portion, couldn't eat them all). My husband had the escargot, a nice salad, and the steak tartar. The tartar was very nicely seasoned. The setting was a nice garden setting, where I was given a wrap in case it got too cold, which is always a great touch. Thursday's lunch was at Tina's. We were happy to get seated when we got there. The place wasn't crowded but there was a large party that was taking up a lot of the servers time (and she was the only one). We were politely told it would be 10 minutes before they could seat us. Since we weren't in a hurry that worked fine for us. I had a nice pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw on it and my husband had a burger. Thursday night for dinner was at the Painted Lady. Also, very good. (As a side note: my husband did say I was batting 1,000 regarding restaurant choices). We sat outside on their porch, with 2 other parties. We opted for the ala carte menu. The tasting menu looked wonderful, but once you present me with other choices, I would rather create my own menu. We had a nice salmon amuse and we both had the corn bisque with dungeness crab (just the right amount of sweetness). My husband then had the diver scallop. Done just perfectly - warm enough without being overcooked. For the next course, he had the duck breast and I had a pork tenderloin. The pork came as 2 cubes of pork, which is probably my only criticism of the meal. It was a bit over cooked and might have been better prepared as the loin cut up into slices. It was followed by a nice cheese course and then desserts. My husband's chevre panna cotta was wonderful. We split a couple of half bottles, which was just the right amount for us. If you haven't been here yet, we would highly recommend it. It's a nice setting with good food and service. We would go back if in the area again. Thanks again everyone for all the recommendations!

OK, stupid question, but are they supposed to be hollow? I suppose with the name Striped Caverns they are. Are they best recommended for stuffing? Any other good uses? I've never heard of or seen these, so I'm curious.

I was really hoping it would be in Chicago next year. I'm in to help plan. I vote for Green City Market on Saturday morning for shopping. I would be happy to go to Vie on any night since I haven't been there yet.

Sounds like it to me. Do they advertise on Metromix? That unfortunately might explain it. Please post about your lunch at Crust. I'm hearing such mixed things.

Well, now that I'm back from my weekend visit to Fulton, I can answer my own question. The place that my mother was talking about it is called Niles Gourmet Country Market. The address says it is Moravia, but I don't think we near the town. It's 4588 Grange Hall Rd (phone: 315-784-5015), which was southwest of Skaneateles. If you stand on their covered deck, you can see a sliver of Skaneateles Lake. My mother heard of the place in Bob Niedt's column Store Front in the Post Standard. We went this past Saturday, first to Skaneateles (got a donut and a macaroon at the bakery in town), then onto the NGCM. We called for directions, which we good, along with help from hand-written signs posted along the way. It's a store/market along with a tiny restaurant. Most of the tables are outside (4) and a few inside also. We wandered around the store looking at the products, a lot can be found here - pastas, beers, cheeses, buffalo meat (from Semprionus, NY), pork, chicken, oils, sauces, and on and on. There are a lot of products that I'm sure people on this site will recognize. The focus of the food they are serving is organic, but the products are not all organic or local. At first , this struck me as odd, having an organic (in some cases vegan) approach to the restaurant food, but selling foods that weren't organic and not focusing on local vendors either. As I think about it though, it is probably a means to survive. This place really is not near anything else, so you need to have the diversity. The market is owned by Eric and Sandie Decker, and Sandie does all the cooking. And she certainly cooks a lot. We were more than welcome to wander into her kitchen. When we first walked in we read the menu off a couple of hand-written whiteboards, so it was a lot easier to decide what we wanted once we saw the finished products on her table. It is mostly stews, quiches and raviolis. Big raviolis. All kinds (squash, lobster, asparagus, etc.). The price is per ravioli and average $6-7 each. They are served in either a brown butter sauce or pesto sauce. My mother had the lobster ravioli in brown butter sauce and I had the fiddleheard fern (I opted for a little of both sauces). Both were delicious. I do wish I had ordered another one though. My mother was fine with her one, but it left me wanting more. Desserts were good also - homemade cookies and a cherry strudel. It wasn't a traditional struedel, but call it what you want, it was tasty. To drink my mother had a nice chai iced tea, and I had a glass of Riesling from King Ferry. I really liked the wine. I also had some coffee, though I can't remember where the beans come from (sorry Phaelon56), which was served in a french press. We also took home a potato torta and a piece of salmon/leek quiche for dinner. These heated up nicely in the toaster oven. Both Sandie and Eric are very nice, and willing to answer questions when they have time. They don't have any help yet, so we tried not to distract them too much from their duties. From what Eric said the Post Standard will be returning for a follow up article focusing on the organic side of their business. Eric was very straight forward with us, letting us know they would love it if the store took off vs. the restaurant. That's where the money is. They do know the restaurant is a good draw, which at this point the first article created a lot of business for them, which they weren't necessarily prepared for as far as all the cooking and baking that is required. If you are in the area check it out.

That's what I thought...about it being the first time you had a night off probably in awhile. We asked for you and were told you were off for the night. So when I saw someone run into to save the day, I figured it was you. We left soon afterwards (so I missed the wardrobe change) and were very impressed with the line out the door...better to keep people waiting outside than waiting inside for their drinks. We should be in next Friday. Hope to meet you then.

We were there for the second time last week. This time we sat at the bar so we could talk with our bartender about the different drinks. The staff is very willing to answer questions and seems excited to be working there and learning about the cocktail culture. We sampled the food this time, which was all very good. My two favorites were the Cuban sammies, and the peanut butter/bacon/banana sandwich. PB and bacon is a huge favorite of mine, and the banana and honey are a nice addition. We had the chorizo croquettes as well, which were good, but I'll definite pick the PB and bacon over them. Also, Toby was that you, that had to rush in to help out because of a bartender mishap? Friends of ours went on Friday and noticed his bandaged finger. Hope that is healing quickly for him.

Yes, please post the recipe if you have time. It looks delicious. Enjoying the blog!

And Bev's for dessert afterwards? Depending on when/how long you're here for, don't forget the Oswego farmer's market on Thursday evenings starting at 5, and Fulton's on Saturday morning. The strawberries will probably be over, but you may be here for the cherries. And we get sour cherries here! And also, plenty of u-pick berries in the area, probably getting close to blueberry season by then. (The strawberries have been supreme this year.) MelissaH ← Ha! I could be easily convinced to go to Bev's. As kids if we didn't go to Bev's then we begged for Friendly's on the way home. I will miss the Thursday market in Oswego, but may end up at the Saturday one in Fulton. I know my mother goes to one or the other during the week depending on her schedule. We may try to go to the regional market in Syracuse on Saturday. My mother doesn't usually go on Saturday's since it is much more crowded than during the week, and she has MS which makes parking far away hard for her.

Hi, I'm going home to visit family in Fulton in a couple of weeks. (Yes, I grew up there, and I'm not a mutant, which I believe someone on egullet called us Fultonians once. I'm not too offended though, since on one of my recent visits, after a trip to a local store in town, I asked my mother "does anyone in this town have teeth?" Poor Fulton, it's been tough times since Miller's Brewing and Nestles left.) Anyhow, back to food...My mother mentioned going to a restaurant that is opening up soon or maybe just opened. She said it is south of Skaneatelas (maybe about 10 miles) and she heard it has a local, organic focus. Does this sound familiar to anyone? I'm also hoping to get to Hawley Green Bistro in Syracuse. I think that is opening up soon or recently opened. I will post back about any dining experiences. Also, no trip home to Fulton during the summer can be without a visit to the Loop (aka Rudy's) in Oswego. Good times.

One option might be to take the Ashland bus down to Pilsen for good Mexican places. They are at 18th and Ashland, so it's a straight shot down Ashland. There are plenty of cheap eats down there, along with a slightly more expensive place (but still within your $35 range). It's called Mundial Cocina Mestiza. They are BYOB, which will help also. I'm not sure where you are staying, but you should easily be able to get around with public transportation from there. http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t...ighlight=pilsen

A group of 4 of us visited on Saturday night and had a wonderful experience. We enjoyed the hidden door (is there a sign, I swear we didn't see a sign?), which added to the feel of the place. We also noticed the architectural elements described above, and appreciated the mood that was being set. The staff couldn't have been nicer or more enthusiastic about the drinks. Also, they were very good at setting expectations by letting us know how long our drinks would take to make. We each tried 2 drinks and definitely ended up with our favorites. My husband declared the Blue Ridge Manhattan one of the best he has had. I enjoyed his Iron Cross so much that I almost ordered it as my second drink but instead went with one of the gin selections with the Creme de Muir. Our group also had some of the sparkling cocktails, which were very refreshing. We also got to experience the flaming orange twist on the Daisy Rye, which was a whole lot of fun. We did notice the summer emphasis, and commented that we are looking forward to seeing what can be done for the fall. In the meantime, we are excited to go back for the summer selections, and hope to sample the food. Thanks for posting here to announce the opening. Our friends were visiting from out of town, so it was nice to take them to a place that is different from past visits, where they could feel like they were there in the beginning, and come back to see how it progresses.

This sounds great! Do you have separate areas for groups? Or can some sort of accommodation be made for larger parties, such as a reservation? Just wondering. I have a birthday coming up and this sounds like it would be perfect.

My Grandparents lived on a ranch in Prineville, Oregon in the central part of the state. It is on the Eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains. My Grandma used to tell a story of the American Indian woman who would sell huckleberries out of a hand-woven basket. She was a member of the Warm Springs tribe and picked the berries on Mount Hood near Portland. She sold the huckleberries door to door to the local farm families. My Grandfather made huckleberry pancakes on Sunday mornings. Huckleberries grow well in the high mountain areas of the Northwest. They thrive in cool environments with lots of Summer sun. The nursery folk have never really found a great method for growing huckleberries commercially, so they are still hand-picked. They start to show up in our farmer's markets in July, but I wait to buy mine until August or the first of September. Like fine wine grapes, you have to pick huckleberries at precisely the moment the sugars are concentrated, but before the little berries start to dry up. Unfortunately for the pickers, the grizzly bears instinctively sense the moment the huckleberry is at it's peak ripeness, so they have to take their bear spray into the forest with them. I buy my huckleberries from a Vietnamese family. They pick morels in the Spring and then huckleberries in the Summer and sell them at the Farmer's market. Last Summer the huckleberries were $35 a gallon, which is a typical price. They are usually sold fresh in gallon bags. Spendy yes, but what do we pay for prime beef or foie gras? ← Given what you said above, it sounds like I'll be able to buy some huckleberries at the Portland Farmers Market in August when we are there on vacation. Am I right? I was already looking forward to our trip, so this will be an added bonus. Fun blog already!

I've only been once for lunch - 2 years ago. As I recall, it was decent, but nothing seriously memorable. See here for pictures. ← A group of 4 of us went for dinner in September, and I would say the reaction was definitely mixed. My husband and I have no desire to go back since we feel there are many more restaurants that we would prefer to spend the same amount of money on. The other two people in our group have gone back at least once, and often bring it up when we are making plans or recommend it to others. I would chalk this one up to individual tastes. While I enjoyed his signature tuna dish, I don't really think of it as something I have to get again, and I can't remember anything I ate. It wasn't a bad or negative experience, but as UE said it wasn't memorable.

Yes, you can wear jeans.

I would think you could add 1 person very easily, since the table would be a 2-top. They don't have a bar to seat you at, which is what some smaller places might do if you are a single. Just ask them when you make the reservation if you can add another person. I would guess if you gave them a days notice it would be fine.

I've eaten here many times. My parents grew up in Akron, so when I would visit my grandmother we would go here. For many years she lived across the street in a building that was mostly seniors. We would still drive there though (literally turn out of the parking lot, cross the street and turn into Swenson's) because she liked to sit in the car and eat her burger. Just wasn't the same if we picked it up and brought it back to her apartment. (This is the location on Rt. 18...I think that is the right street name, seems like it has many names depending on what town you are in.) Edited to Add: Forgot to mention...very tasty burgers!

Not too shabby at all. I was just going to post how much I liked fried bologna as a child and would think about ordering it if I saw it on a menu (especially if on the road traveling rural Ohio). This one would be hard to resist. Seems to me that bologna and meatloaf fit in perfectly with the the spirit of the initial post about using Stern's book and Holly's Eats as guides. Whether you like bologna/meatloaf or not, the mention of these restaurants that serve them certainly isn't out of context of this thread.

As I mentioned in the opening post, santo_grace reported on the schwa topic that the restaurant is now open on Mondays: ← My bad, I thought things had changed again. With Schwa, you never really know. ← I later found out that the Monday-Friday schedule was only for a few months and should be over by now. They may or may not be open on Mondays now. I'm not sure and judging by the people that can't get through to make a reservation, I'm not sure how to find out. We do hope to get back there soon...no matter what day it is.

Thanks Snowangel. I'll do that next time. I should probably pull the book out and make a note in it.

Hi All, I made the chicken and pork abodabo a couple of nights ago. It was good, but probably my least favorite that I've done from the book. I did go through all the pages on this thread to see if others have made it before. The few people that had recommended cooking it a little longer. I did that and the pork was a little drier than I would have liked. I'm a little confused because the recipe calls for boneless country ribs, but yet Molly's side bar about the ribs says she prefers them with bones. So I stood in the grocery store holding both, staring back and forth at them...for probably too long. I think the butcher looked at me funny. Finally went with the boneless and at the end I think I would have preferred bone-in.

this sounds great, and I saw sunchokes at our farmers market last week. can you tell me a bit more about the taste?? Sure can. I think it is a sweet taste, but not as sweet as if you were to make a pureed carrot or squash soup, but the sweetness is enough to come through the richness of the 2 cups! of cream. The soup had some lemongrass in it also, so that flavor came through but wasn't overpowering. Slightly nutty too - but also not very strong. We were trying to think of some way to pretty it up in order to serve to others at a dinner party. As far as the look - it's color is beige. So we were thinking of creating a herb puree/oil of some sort such as a sage, parsley or basil to drizzle a few drops on. It would be fun to try the different combos. We also thought about serving with a touch of crisp serrano ham or proscuitto draped on the side which I think we are blatantly stealing from Schwa. The version we had at Schwa was more buttery, which makes us feel like you can do a lot of different things to the soup as long as you don't overpower it with the variations. I hope you pick some up and try something with them. I would love to hear what others come up with.

Last night my husband made the Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) soup from this month's issue of Gourmet. It was excellent. We had sunchoke soup at Schwa a few weeks ago and loved it. So we were very excited to see the recipe and give it a shot. We are looking forward to serving this our friends in the future. Also had some almond encrusted mahi mahi. Girl Scout cookies for dessert (tagalongs).

If you've never been, I would definitely check it out. I haven't been in awhile so I can't recommend anything specific. There are some other threads that you can look at also (you might have to search on Topolobampo).