hhlodesign

Not sure about the service Home Depot or the local appliance/cabinet place can provide for $100-$500, but an architect will cost about 10 times as much. I designed this kitchen for just under $5K. Sunset Article The final architectural package contained renderings, plans, elevations, sections, and details. If you know exactly what you want, have the cabinet people work with you. But I'd suggest hiring an architect if you are looking at moving walls, or materials and configurations that are out of the ordinary.

What! No Langer's? ← Doesn't Langer's serve New York style - lean pastrami on rye slices? ← Ahh Yes! You are correct.

What! No Langer's?

Lorna's first time. I've been numerous times. I think one of the best meals I've had was at Danube! I still remember the foie gras creme brule with sweet corn! And the snitzel! Lorna's not a fan of pizza, so I figure we have one extra meal for something else. Opportunity cost, you know. I've only been to Lombardi's and Two Boots. Suggestions? Oh yeah, any thoughts on Lever House? Been wanting to try it and because of the architectural significance, we get two birds with one stone.

Ling's travel companion chiming in. How much can we expect to spend at Masa per head? (Excluding alcohol) I heard $600, but that can't be right! Can it? Are there cheaper options on the menu? Looks like we will have 3 dinners, 3 lunches, and 3 breakfasts. Plus countless desserts and bakeries in between meals. Plus maybe a midnight snack or two. If I had my way (taking all of your suggestions into account): Dinner: Danube or Upstairs or Bouley (personal connection, we have to hit one of these) Babbo or Casa Mono EMP or Masa (per recommendations) Lunch: Jean Georges Momofuku Katz Breakfast: I'll leave this to Lorna as I don't really eat much in the morning. I have a feeling we'll be hitting a bakery or 8. Late night: Dessert Tasting at WD-50 Drinks at Morimoto (I love Tadao Ando and want to see the TyNant wall) Milk and Honey (If I remember where it is) Pegu Club ETA: Bone Marrow at 3 am at Blue Ribbon (thanks Daniel!) I've had some great Shou Long Bau in Vancouver (Top Shanghai, Shanghai Wind, and Shanghai River) and Taipei (Ding Tai Fung). Would a meal at Joe's Shanghai be a waste? Any must hit places I left out?

I was looking for a thread devoted to Chinese food in Southern California, and amazingly enough, couldn't find one. (I'm sure if I didn't look hard enough, the dictators at eG will merge this into one ) So here it is. I just got back from a quick trip to see the family. We had a wonderful meal at Ma's Islamic Chinese Restaurant in Anaheim. The Sesame Bread is phenomenal! Think of a cross between Indian naan, scallion pancakes, and Chinese sesame biscuits (shou bing). You can get these in either the thick or thin form. I prefer thin as the pan fried crispy exterior to soft bready interior ratio is perfect (the thin version is pictured in the linked review). The thick version is about 1.5" thick and has about 5 more layers of interior soft parts. Other items we really enjoyed were the 5-spice flavored chicken, the hand cut noodles with 3 meats, the lamb with scallions, and the spicy ox tripe. One other place my (very picky) family was raving about was a Szechuan place in San Gabriel. They called it by a Chinese name so my best interpretation is Chong Ching Szechuan Restaurant. (Some help here RJ?) I didn't get to go, but you have to understand, my godparent's are from Szechuan and are also very into good Chinese food. They'll drive 2 hours for a great Chinese meal. In fact, when they visit me in Seattle, they drive up to Vancouver for Chinese rather than subject themsleves to the shit we have here. So when they say a place is great, I believe them! Just thought I'd pass the recomendation along and see if anyone else has been? RJ? My mom was also of the opinion that Ding Tai Fung in Arcadia doesn't hold a candle to the one in Taipei. Her theory is that the air is too dry in So Cal, as oppsed to the INSANE humidity levevls in Taipei! So when the steamed buns are exposed to air in Arcadia, they dry out too quickly. My godmother is not a fan of either because she feels the skins are too thin and she doesn't get the "bite" of dough she's looking for in a good Shou Long Bau. Thoughts?

Why ask for advice if you are not going to take it? Every poster since you put up your itinerary tried to steer you clear of Wild Ginger, yet you still felt compelled to go. Just seems curious to me.

Yes, they use an especially pungent lettuce at Market Grill!

I've lived in this area for 6 years, and you've seen much more of it than I have! The picture from Hurricane Ridge has me planning a trip already! It was great meeting you and Dennis. Looking forward to the rest for your report.

From the owner's mouth, "No, we are not closing!" Where did you hear this?

I will admit that my fondness for Carl's Jr. and Tommy's, as a Southern Californian native, is probably similar to the Dick's effect here in Seattle. I know for a fact this is the case with Fatburger because when I drove out to Issaquah when they opened one here a few years ago, my reaction was one of dismay! "This is what I was craving for so many years?!" Kind of like going back to Disneyland after a decade long absence, the memory is always better than reliving the real thing again.

It is ignorant to assume that because one took piano lessons, that one can play Mozart better than one who taught him/herself how to play on his/her own.

Alas, Lorna had to drive home this morning. But I sent her off with somehting good. that's an Italian Plum Roll.

We had a nice relaxing day today. After coffee and Scrabble, we took a walk down to the Pike Place Market to pick up some picnic supplies. We stopped at one of our favorite places. La Buona Tavola, they carry all things truffle: They even let you try everything! we stopped at Pure Foods to pick up some pepper smoked salmon. We picked up some figs from frank's produce. Frank ws kind enough to give up some of his private stash that he grew himself at home. They were the perfect level of ripeness. we brought everything home and assembled a plate to bring to the roofdeck and enjoy a nice summer day in Seattle. Figs, a domestic blue cheese, rabbit foie gras pate, pepper smoked salmon, and le Panier baguette. In the foreground you can catch a hint of our favorite butter, Cremerie Classique. we find it much more flavorful than Plugra. It has some truffle salt sprinkled on it in the photo. We also had an extra plate of figs with a le Panier almond croissant. The good (and bad) thing about the croissant was the fact that we got it fresh out of the oven. So it was hot and fresh, but it steamed in the bag on the way home, so it was less flakey than it should have been. still very good. we drank some prosecco and Pelligrino For dessert I got to choose for once, Carnation Ice Cream sandwich!!! And I'm not ashamed to admit it. We tho0ught we'd end the blog on a classy note. However, Lorna and I differ on the preferred temperature of service. She likes her sandwich soft, while I like my sandwich frozen and rock hard. It was a nice light dinner and a perfect way to end a wonderful week of culinary adventures.

I should note that... 1. It was Doug (Marine) who wrote me an email BEGGING for some Salumi. So that was not my idea. 2. It was Armandino, Marylin, Gina, and Brian who so generously gave Doug the free box of Salumi with their thanks. So that was not my idea. 3. It was Doug who so generously flew the flag over his base and sent it back to give to Salumi. So that was also not my idea. The only thing I am guilty of is surrounding myself with warm, wonderful people who enrich my life for knowing them. I DO take credit for that.

It was a very fun evening. My favorite dishes were the black bean crab, the long beans, and the hunan bacon dish. It was alot of work, but very enjoyable the whole time. Especially eating it! Now we have to clean.

I love this picture. It clearly illustrates how Italians talk with their hands.

5310 Ballard Ave.

Never trust a person who doesn't like bacon!

Yes, I feel incredibly lucky to have met such a marvelous woman. Thanks to eG, no less.

A typical day for me: Breakfast is usually some kind of juice mixed with pelligrino. Lunch is a sandwich from some local sandwich shop that I love. Dinner is either a casually cooked dish at home (I make use of my indoor grill often!), home-cooked meal at a neighbor's house, or takeout.

We stopped into Mistral tonight to meet up with William. He wanted us to check out a new wine bar in Ballard opened by some friends of his. We stepped into the back door and were greeted with two glasses of wine. then stacy made a few desserts for us to try. Chocolate croquant with jalapeno marshmallow on chocolate brownie in mexican chocolate soup. never had jalapeno with a dessert before. Very nice with the chocolate. Passion fruit, pinapple sorbet and mango, lime sorbet. Separated by a thin slice of Mango. Stacy gave us the desserts on the condition that we photograph her with her melon: they also gave us some p fingerling potato puree and lamb sous vide We finished up with some Vin Santo Charles hard at work then it was off to DiVino, a new wine bar from a Sicilian family who own two other Italian Restaurants in town. They have an interesting cocktial menu and very affordable food prices I ordered a grape caiparinia, and Lorna had a rose Here are some fo the dishes we had. Cheese plate Caneloni with veal, spinach, and bechamel Salumi plate Bruschetta plate Handmade gnocchi with fennel, parm, and pancetta Cheese stuffed canellini with arugula We're full!

I'd say the biggest change for me is the inclusion of sweets and desserts in my diet. Lorna is always baking some wonderful item. It's hard for me to pass on that stuff. I used to think I didn't like sweets and such. I'd still say I don't prefer sweets anbd desserts to savory items, but when they are well made, they taste pretty good to me. Another major change for me is the re-intriduction of GOOD Chinese food back into my diet. Regular trips up to Vancouver mean I get to try numerous Chinese restaurants. Even though Cantonese is the predominant style of cuisine up there, I've been searching out Szechuan, Hunan, Taiwanese, and Shangainese restaruants. I've discovered quite a few good ones. Of course, I have the best guide to Richmond one could ask for .

Porcella Urban Market We had lunch today with Charles and Melissa Walpole at Porcella Urban Market in Bellevue. Porcella is about 3 months old and I have yet to stop in until today. Mostly becasue I would have to go across the bridge to Bellevue. Bellevue is a bedroom community of Seattle just across Lake Washington. I describe it as a city designed around a mall. Chain restaurants and strip malls dominate the landscape. Bellevue does not contribute much to the culinary landscape of the Seattle area (with the wonderful exception of Holly Smith's Northern Italian oasis Cafe Juanita.) I'd say Bellevue is to Seattle what Orange County is to LA. That being said, we were extremely excited to go to Porcella as we'd heard only great things about the food Kelly and Noah had been preparing. Not only is it a sit down eating establishment, they have a wonderful gourmet foods market attached. Truffle, fennel , and saffron salt! These should be in every kitchen! I liked the fact that they had samples out fo the bags so you could see and touch the product. "Better Than Butter!" Most baked goods are made on site with the exception of some breads and pastries. Kelly, one of the owners, recognized us from eG and offered us a drink before lunch. I remarked about a wine that a friend of mine is making, and Kelly asked if we'd like to taste it. Very generous "tastes" Alas, the rotisserie was empty today. The deli case contained all sorts of wondrous offerings. But we opted to have the kitchen make us something. I love the open kitchen design. Everything is completely visible from all over the store. We had mentioned that we saw a blog post about making head cheese at Porcella so Noah brought some out for us to try. I loved the flavor, espescially with the stone ground mustard, but the texture took some getting used to. For lunch Melissa had the warm lamb with fennel pepper relish and herbed aioli Charles had the Spanish braised pork with piquillo peppers, manchego, and arugula Lorna ordered pork rillettes and assorted house cured meats On the plate are chorizo, duck prosciuto, finocciono, lardo, copa, sopressata, and saucisse sec. I had teh prosciutto di parma with warm frisee, lardonetes, truffled aioli , and a fried egg (sufficiently runny!) They also gave us two sides of truffles gaufrette chips. I can honestly say that I will be crossing the bridge to Bellevue more often now. The food was all very tasty, and you could tell these guys really cared about the products they were producing. The charcuterie was very nicely done. Very good fat content, which made for great flavor! I love the look of this slicer. We even picked up a little dessert for the drive back across the bridge.

For the soup I just melted some butter into 6 ears of corn (after i cut the corn off the cobb of course) then added chicken stock to just cover all the corn. Let it simmer for about 40 mins. Then hit it with the immersion blender. Then strained it. I think this would have been great as is, but I had some heavy cream laying around and I couldn't resist. I'm thinkng if i made the dish again. The only change I would make would be to omit the cream in the soup. Not because I didn't like the texture and the taste of the cream. But only becasue I think the soup is more "pure" with just corn, stock, and butter. Personally, I loved the ginger Altoids with the peach. I know Ferran Adria used peach flavored Smints for his dish. I couldn't find those.