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aaustin

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Everything posted by aaustin

  1. Should we skip chinatown altogether and go to Richmond?
  2. Nothing is more exciting than hearing the first heartbeat, but to be frank, nothing is more depressing than dining at stellar restaurants and drinking tonic with lime! So, I am in desperate need of some help. I'm a Seattle native who now lives in Wyoming, so I'm definitely seeking fish, but of the cooked variety. If, however, you've got a great sushi place that also does great cooked fish, even better--my husband will be thrilled since I'd been talking about sushi in vancouver before we found out about the baby. We're also looking for a really good mid-week dim sum place. I love Chinatowns, and can't wait to discover yours. If there are several places we should stop, for specific dishes, please do tell. We might also like any less expensive Thai, Korean, or other Asian spots you can recommend...we're starved for everything but Thai. Indian would be good too, if you've got a great Indian spot. Thanks in advance! Ali
  3. We'll be heading to SLC/Park City for a weekend trip in the next few weeks, and I'm interested in visiting a fun, maybe off-the-beaten-path SLC restaurant (maybe a smaller, more intimate but doesn't have to be fancy, just great food place) and then need some ideas for where to eat in Park City. Please help! thanks
  4. aaustin

    Todos Santos

    I posted on the Cabo thread regarding Todos Santos, so check that one out while you're searching. Have fun!
  5. We went to Chathams, and I'll tell you about that in a bit. First, though, a report on Chico. We were told to go to Chico for our short 2-day honeymoon. Being that we live in Jackson, I figured getting out of a ski resort would be a nice change of pace. We drove up, which was a beautiful drive, and arrived at Chico in the evening. We had reservations that night but luckily had a couple of hours to wind down and enjoy our excellent 2-person tub in our cabin. We'd heard that people come to Chico for the food, so that sounded good. Well....I wouldn't drive from Livingston for the food, nor the service. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't better than Chatham's. We arrived for our reservation but the table wasn't ready, so we headed to the bar. We sat down at the bar and in front of us are 8 dirty glasses, which the bartender took her time getting off the bar. Huh. Then we ordered a couple of drinks--wine for me, scotch for him. Oddly, a server from the dining room orders a drink and the bartender gets a drink for the server BEFORE getting my husband's drink but after getting mine. That was just dumb. We decided to look at the menu and wine menu before dinner, and upon asking about one bottle of wine vs another of a different vintage, our bartender said half-mindedly, "yeah, that's a good one....." Helpful! We eventually sat down at our table and were greeted by, as the new husband said, our "midwestern weatherman" server. I swear to you he started off talking like a human and then went into his newscaster voice 2 sentences in. We ordered mushrooms with snails, which ended up being unsalted and dull. I'm not one for ordering snails, but my new husband has memories of that being a special occasion food and when we saw them on the menu I knew we'd be eating them. Plus, the whole place (chico, I mean) reminded me of the resort that they all stayed in in the movie Dirty Dancing, so the snails kind of were in keeping with the "this was the swankest vacation spot ever...in the 60's" vibe I was getting. So you can see we're kind of getting into the kitsch and enjoying the flaming desserts firing up around the room. We decide to order the Delmonico. After trying to keep away from pate in order to look decent while wearing a white dress in public, I was ready for a pate-coated filet wrapped in pastry. It was carved tableside, which we both loved. This was getting fun. The filet wasn't great...they underseasoned everything, and that's a sin with steak....but we both loved it just because. I then proceeded to order the flaming dessert. I felt like I was eating in a place my grandmother would've really thought was fancy. Being that the new hubby and I both spent years in NYC, this held a different kind of appeal to me. I kept thinking that some day soon, a NYC restaurateur would be opening a retro restaurant serving all of these kinds of dishes you don't see anymore, and that the NY trendies would love it. So the next night we were excited to try Chathams. We'd spent the day walking around Livingston, and had a very nice lunch at 2nd St Bistro. He had a very wonderful bowl of French onion soup, I had the greek lamb salad (badly dried out lamb, but otherwise great). I loved the atmosphere and the homemade bread. We'd go back for sure. So we walk into Chatham's on Valentine's Day without a reservation---by the way, I loved that they had a sign on the door about not serving farmed salmon. I'm not sure why they did, but they "had me at hello" with that. I knew this place cared about their ingredients. So, we both like sitting at the bar, so we figured we'd just do that. And who is working the host desk but Mr. Chatham himself. A very warm welcome and pretty soon he's moved some drinkers so the two newlyweds can sit down. We ordered a nice eggplant--goat cheese appetizer, then moved onto a steamed artichoke with adictive curry mayo and a very world-class caesar salad with spanish anchovies for us to add onto our forks for each bite. Nice. Then onto the special for me--veal chops atop cheesy risotto and surrounded by sherry-mushroom sauce. The risotto was gummy, which was a bummer, but everything else was good. He ordered penne puttanesca, which had great flavor but the pasta was a bit overcooked and lacked any bite. We skipped dessert. I should mention that Russell came over to visit with us and the rest of his tables throughout our meals. We liked him. And not to be a star f-er, but in the middle of our dinner, Michael Keaton came in with a few friends for a drink. We got to have dinner next to Batman. Who woulda thunk?
  6. My Seattle thoughts are: wide varieties of oysters, which fleurish in the waters ivar's---just always makes me smile, since I grew up eating their fish-n-chips Teriyaki, the pizza of Seattle Asian influence, found everywhere from Flying Fish to Dahlia Lounge Vivace coffee, simply the world's best steamed milk in their lattes, must be sipped while shivering at one of the sidewalk tables with umbrellas crab, which we put our pots out to catch ourselves geoducks, enormous clams that look like the private parts of a male horse the smell of mussels on the piers bread from macrina eaten while still hot salmon, hardly ever ordered in a restaurant but bought at mutual fish and perfectly grilled at home corn in very late summer blackberries covering entire hillsides in july strawberries that taste like strawberries in june mushrooms that just soak up all the rain and overcastness the world's best yellow cherries--literally clams steamed in beer with bacon and butter 100s of small local wineries, from Vashon to Walla Walla I could go on....I miss seattle.
  7. Chatham does not do anything poorly. I saw a fine exhibition of his work in Key West a few years ago, and the quality of his book publishing is also very high. (His paintings are used for the covers of books of fiction and nonfiction by Jim Harrison and Rick Bass.) I would bet the restaurant is the same. If you go, please report back. ← I just spoke to a friend who lives up there and she also suggests Chathams. She also suggests the chop house. Any experience?
  8. We'll be in the Livingston area for a quickie 2-day post-wedding break (nope, the honeymoon comes later, so I'm not using that word.) I'd like to make reservations for a nice dinner...doesn't have to be too fancy, but nice wine, good food. I did a search and found a place called 2nd Street...what's that like? any and all help would be great. Thanks
  9. NYC dwellers will know this one: I used to grab a package of those big fig newton-ish things at the counter of the deli every now and again. You could tell the owner of the store probably wrapped them his or herself....6 months ago. One day my roommate found out and was disgusted ; ) so yes, I was the reason those things existed and even thrived. until I moved out of the city. I just hope they haven't all aged too much by the time I make it out for a visit in spring. I eat peanut butter and honey by putting some honey on a spoon and then carefully dipping it into crunchy peanut butter. I'm not really embarrassed about that though.... Sometimes it's the ironic choices that make the food most embarrassing. For instance, I absolutely will not eat farmed salmon (I call it cancer fish), but I love crab with a "k", especially when eaten in a salad with bacon ranch dressing.
  10. Hi there Just checking in to see if anyone's been here more recently than august....never been and am very curious to try! thanks
  11. I'll be home for the holidays and am convinced that my fiancee and I should stop here. Am I right? What should we absolutely not miss food-wise? We are both SOOO excited for oysters, crab....oh! But don't worry, we're planning to get our fill of these other nights, I'm just fantasizing....
  12. I'm lucky to have a couple of excellent le creuset pans, a Demeyer saucier (5qut) and a KitchenAid 2qut sauce pan from my days working at Sur la Table years ago. I also have lots of very nicely seasoned cast iron that my fiance cares for fastidiously. I really like my KA sauce pan and am wondering if anyone knows a good retailer for the KitchenAid line. I am embarrassed to say I don't know if Sur la Table still sells this line? When I lived in NYC I stopped by the Broadway Panhandler and they didn't sell more than a couple pans...
  13. aaustin

    think you got game?

    I should also mention that I'm in the midst of making an all-day meatball sauce. I start by grinding fatty pork (they call it stew meat at my grocery store) into elk sausage and elk burger. I throw it all through the meat grinder attachment on my kitchenaid. I then add toasted bread that I've soaked in milk, worcestershire sauce, a-1 steak sauce, grain mustard, some horseradish, lots of salt and pepper, cumin, dried crushed in my hand rosemary (I rub it between my palms so the pieces are smaller), dried oregano and a bunch of flat-leaf parsley chopped, a sweet onion finely chopped, plus 4 eggs (I think my total meat was around 6lbs, so this is alot). I brown the meatballs in a pan until very brown (not long, just at a moderate to high heat) and then I place them into the sauce in my big le creuset. My sauce: sweet onions, carrots, fennel, red and yellow pepper sauteed in olive oil until nice and sweaty, then I add a cup or so of red wine, let it reduce for about 5 minutes, then I add tomato paste that I've sauteed with olive oil and chopped garlic (lots) in another pan (this is a trick I learned from "the man who ate everything"---takes the tinny taste out of the paste). I add 2 cans of whole tomatoes that I hand squish into the pan, and some dried thyme and oregano. I do NOT salt or pepper the sauce, since the meatballs are well seasoned. I wait til the sauce is finished to season. I cook the sauce with the meatballs for 3 hours on very low heat, letting it just simmer. I take it off the heat and add fresh flat-leaf and basil as it's cooling, so as not to cook it too much. This is a perfect almost all-day project. I just took the dog for a walk and when we came back in, the house was just filled with the nicest tomato sauce aroma. and now I have lunch for the whole week, even if I freeze about a quarter of it.
  14. aaustin

    think you got game?

    Excellent! I'll try to fine a copy of this. I actually collect funny (or what I consider funny) cookbooks, including the campbell's soup cookbook with recipes like, "cheddar soup: open 1 can campbell's cheese soup, add one can milk, stir...." there's also a picture in this cookbook of a tv dinner and on the tray with the mixed peas and carrots, salsbury steak and such, is a little toy bomb. pretty frickin' funny.
  15. aaustin

    think you got game?

    Thanks for the idea! My fiance's family is very big into goulash so this would be a good one to try over the holidays.
  16. So, after 2+ years of having barely enough room in my NYC freezer for a couple of ice trays and a loaf of half-eaten bread, I've moved to the country and I'm lucky to have both an elk and an antelope in the freezer right now....ah, the joys of having access to wild game right outside our door. We've become amazingly adept at perfectly roasting our loins and either pan-searing and finishing in the oven, or grilling our steaks. But as any hunter (or hunter's sig other) knows, that leaves a huge amount of burger. When I say a huge amount, I mean probably upwards of 50lbs.... I've learned that adding a fattier meat to wild game burger helps, ie when I make meatballs I grind up some fatty pork to mix into the elk burger and sausage (adding full-fat Italian pork sausage works too), because wild game (vs farm-raised, which is what you get in restaurants) is very lean. What I'm needing is some inspiration, since one can only eat so much elk meatloaf. I'd also love to see ideas for other dishes, especially really successful game roasts. We've done a couple of classic wine braises in the le creuset, but any great Indian recipes would be very much appreciated (great eating here in Jackson Hole, but Indian is one thing we do not have and I crave it! being that I lived in Seattle and NYC prior). Thanks for any ideas!
  17. I think I remember seeing this place, but couldn't swear to it!
  18. Just back from an excellent trip. We ate like kings. First night--Nick-San, where we let our sushi man make us whatever he felt like, which included an outstanding lobster roll with mango, torched local bluefin in cilantro sauce, and much much more. oustanding. We had tortas (mine with chorizo, his with flank steak) the next morning with papaya con limon...a nice way to get started. for all the coffee freaks and starbucks addicts, cabo coffee does a great little blended coffee shake. I like the hazelnut. That night we ate dinner at Mariscos Mazatlan, on a rec from our sushi guy. From the just-barely-cooked shrimp ceviche to the outstanding garlic shrimp, and with beers just $15 us, a great choice. We took a road trip up to todos santos, which is a must-do in my opinion. Packed the cooler with ice, pacifico and lime and hit the road. There's a wine bar there that is set in the most lovely garden. I think it's attached to the Todos Santos Inn, which is where we'd stay if given the chance and if it hadn't been packed. After a rather disappointing start at a place recommended by the guy bringing us our wine, we ended up having a desperation dinner at the Hotel California, but luckily the herrachera steak (flank steak) rocked! Then we went to Santanas and danced to a live reggae band with a bunch of surfers under the stars. The next day we hopped from surfer beach to surfer beach along the pacific coast and stopped at Beer & Art, our favorite kismet stop of the entire week. The owners are two hippie ex-pats who make a rockin "dirty ceasar" with real raw clams they open right before your eyes!!!! insanely good. great ceviche tostadas...we wished we could've stayed there for the remaining 3 days, just letting them bring us their outstanding drinks and fresh, awesome food. Alas, we thought we might go to Charlie Trotter's C....and then we didn't feel a) up to getting dressed up, or b) interested in being in what would probably be a rather formal service setting....we just were too chilled out I guess. Instead I think we went to a taco place I read about up-thread (the one with the salsa bar), which is 5 blocks from the stop light in the center of town. Our waitress spoke nary 1 word of english and though I had been able to navigate in similar places, this one didn't work out. We had ok tacos but left hungry and a little frustrated. By the way, we did go to Cabo Wabo just for the hell of it and I'm so glad we did, because it was hilarious people-watching. They had a band playing all of my dad's favorite zztop rock tunes so the dancing was fun. Went to Mi Casa for our final dinner and had good mole and just-ok fish. Probably should've gone back to Mariscos Mazatlan or Nick-san.....
  19. aaustin

    Using Up the Apples

    I bought a bag of galas and don't feel like doing any of the traditional things with 'em...apple sauce (unless it's intriguingly different), apple pie, apple pan dowdy are all out. Bring on the ideas!
  20. what was the ingredient? I don't have cable anymore but was curious about this battle...being from seattle, and having been friends with a chef who worked for her at Brasa.
  21. Pardon my ignorance, because perhaps there is a rule about all food being served at the Beard House having to be prepared on premises, but if this is not the case, I truly cannot see any excuse for a NY chef to put on a dinner as poor as this one sounds... I worked for a chef preparing a dinner for the Beard House. She was carting all of her wares from Seattle, and had prepped for what she deamed the "honor" of cooking at the Beard House for at least a month, asking all of us in the kitchen to help her improve her dishes. This is how cooking at the Beard House is seen by most, I think, who get to cook there. And for a chef who has a kitchen in the city at his disposal, where he could surely have par-cooked at least most of this meal...well, it speaks volumes, I think.
  22. WOW! Every one of your ideas sounds outstanding. If only....I hadn't already marinated the salmon in Thai green curry paste mixed with soy, fresh ginger and garlic (both of which I put through the garlic press...a little secret of mine), some coriander, lime juice, rice wine vinegar, sugar, etc...... I think I'm going to broil it (too cold here for grilling already--a balmy 39) But I love the crunchy topping idea and the rosemary tomato idea...I can smell that right now! thanks
  23. I am actually quite experienced with great salmon, being from Seattle originally. The problem I'm having is that we froze some alaskan king salmon and it's a bit on the fishy side now. I've never really had to deal with that before and don't know how to cook it to minimize this taste. Slow poach? If so, in what? Ideas please!!!
  24. We're definitely considering C, but I can't get the menu to download. Could you tell me about how much $$ we'd be spending in dollars? thanks!
  25. To revive the topic.... We're heading down in a week or so and just wanted any updates. I've made a list from the restaurants recommended so far and they are: El Toreador or El Toro for the stuffed peppers Salsa bar at Felix's (anything specific to eat there? still worth trying?) Alexanders in the San Lucas Marina for fish tacos El Michoacano for carnitas (LOVE carnitas!!!) Mocambo for seafood and shrimp Soloman's Landing for fish tacos El Pescado for seafood Any further help is great! thanks oh, and I am very willing to rent a car for a day and see smaller towns and villages if they're food-worthy. Please suggest away!
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