Coop

Is it true that the Cougar cheeses are only available from the University in Pullman? Does anyone offer it on a Seattle cheese plate? Also does anyone know of a wine store that specialises in Italian (Tuscan ) wines?

I hope not because Coop jr. gave the bun a 3 for seediness. He believed that it was an abstract way of rating a seedless bun. He was okay (3 out of 5) with the fact that the bun had no seeds. I don't think either should be asked not to return. These Cougars are they Washington State Alumni?

This place sound's interesting. What used to be in that location? It doesn't ring a bell address wise for a frequent visitor like myself. Is it towards Belltown or Pioneer square from the Market?

Yes I think we should give Feenie's burger some consideration. It will probably work out to close to what we paid for our burgers at Moderne. Let's keep it in mind. West's Wagyu Beef burger seems to be a little over priced though at $16.95.

So I took this bottle over to dinner at a friend's. It was poured along side a Frog's Leap Zin. Both these wines seemed to be penalized by the glasses they were served in. I will be returning to Park and Tilford's Liberty to procure another bottle for scientific purposes and report back with my findings.

The Italians have certainly learned from the Bordelais. How many vintages of the century can you truly have? For Bordeaux it seems to be 61, then 78, 82, 85, 88, 89, 2000 maybe. As long as they follow each other they can all be. What does this do for the sale of earlier great vintages like 97?

The dining in Crackistan post sure proves that the internet is a conduit for many opinions. I did find the deep fried chicken head interesting. I wonder if that's a menu item, 2 heads in the 15 piece bucket. I was hoping that the next Burger Club meeting would be somewhere we could have a comfortable discussion on the burgers and other pressing issues. I'm not sure if Save-On meats would qualify. I hope that people don't think I'm elitist for this.

Cream of Celery Root with a slick of white truffle oil on the top.

Who better to unite Canada with one definitive list of new places then that bastion of journalism en Route magazine. That's the one next to the Barf Bag in the little pocket on the airplane right. I have no doubt that Bymark is a great new place with Mark Mc. at the helm. I really enjoyed watching him on Opening Soon. Here in Vancouver the people have spoken about the best new place. Try getting into Cru and try getting into Bis Moreno. Do a search on this site for Bis Moreno and Cru.

"T" just got a bottle of the 2001 at the Liberty in North Van, $28.95 a bottle. Looking forward to drinking it this weekend. Any suggestions for food?

I should mention I was very impressed by how accomadating the staff were at Moderne. They sat us quickly, were very helpful, and comfortably friendly. They seemed to enjoy the fact we were so interested in what they do. I will go back and try their Lamb Burger, with some non Burger Club toppings. I think one order of fries would suit a table of 4.

Wow these pictures and descriptions make me feel like I was there. Wait a minute I think I was. Ling and Dub thanks for posting everything so quickly. Coop jr and I had a great time. I agree with the overall assesment of the burgers. Oddly enough 3 out of 4 at our table came up with the same 67% score for the burgers. I did notice that there was a lingering salty flavour in the back of my mouth for the rest of the night. I think they were good burgers but nothing exceptional. The pricing seemed a little out of line, however they were busy so thier customers must feel it's fair. One of the non posters came up with a good idea for our next night, find some where more unknown. I look forward to our next outing.

Unless I'm in Seattle on business, every morning there I'm hungover and looking for some where to eat. I've always liked the 3 (2) Bells tavern. I don't really know why, the food is good but not great. They have tasty beer though. I also have had great luck at Cafe Campagne though. They seem to have very sympathetic staff. I think that's important when you are hung.

Caroline Mc ann -Bizjack was invloved in one episode of Opening Soon ( FTV Canada production). She and Ned Bell were hired as co chefs by some Ontario wine maker (sounds like I'm making this up) in a new restaurant. On the follow up show that started this season it seems he fired them both because of thier constant fighting about who was more important. She now pimps Canadian Gouda in commercials on the telly. Perhaps she see's herself as a bit of a celeb now.

I remember reading years ago that Robert MacNamara told the owner of Chateau Margaux that he blended his wine with 50% strawberry juice and recomended others do the same.

For touring I think you might like Merryvale. For tasting I have had great experiences at Cuvaison, Whitehall Lane, Clos du Val, Beaulieu, Cosentino and Alexander Valley Vineyards. I hated Beringer's tour guide and tour very scripted, " One day in a land far away Jacob and his brother.....blah blah blah..........". Forget about Sterling and thier stupid tram ride. Back in the day the best deal was at Inglenook where you could taste older vintages for a nominal fee and suck in the best history in the valley. BTW the places that charge a small price for glasses etc. are the best because they discourage the people who are there just to get free wine. Don't worry about being a neophyte, if you know anything about wine you will seem an expert compared to the tour busses full of the un-washed masses.

I beleive this thread is the Hamburger Club thread, it has some tradition within this board having started in New York. It seems like a good place to start for the Vancouver board. If it is truly to be a Hamburger Club we should set some parameters for thier comparison. My sons and I have had the Wagyu Beef burger at West, it is very good, is this the type of thing we are interested in? what about fish, and fowl, and lamb, and ostrich and tofu? You can have a wine tasting of a sample of all the wines in the world, what conclusions could you draw? They are all wet. The truly successful tastings have some sort of parameters and limitations, so should we. Where they fall should be decided quickly and fairly. I vote for beef with traditional garnishs to include, mayo, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, tomato and traditional cheese.

I never thought I would hear Rick James mentioned in a wine thread, he is that crackhead with the afro-mullet who MC hammer sampled in You can't Touch This! As for Bartle and Jaymes they were two down home business men who got lucky one day and made a billion dollars selling soda pop and wine. At least that's what Ernie and Julio would like us to think.

Although I have never had a burger I liked at Burger Heaven, I think they are worth consideration, as I have heard others say they love the place. As for Wally's thier best days were in the 60's, I went there a few years ago and it was as bad as can be. Besides thier fame came from thier bacon burger which I believe is off limits. I agree with Elyse this should be a burger tasting otherwise the focus will be lost. If we allow Lamb then we must allow Tuna, follow me here people, it's a slippery slope, the thin edge of the wedge ( wow 2 cliches back to back). I do advocate swallowing after we chew though, there is no need to spit, we are not wine tasters. Let's not let this loose momentum though, let's pick a place to start (Moderne would be my suggestion) and a date as well as some criteria and make it happen.

We will take Bis into consideration. Thank you. How did this turn into an Earth and Ocean discussion? Are you people psychic? We are staying at the W. and have considered eating there. What about Sundstrom's new place? I saw him on Chefs Afield on Saturday and I am curious about him and Earth and Ocean. Anything new to report on either?

I have some interest in participating. My son (14 years old) also see's himself as a burger afficianado so he may be interested as well. Will we actually meat ( ha ha) somewhere and taste the offending sandwich or will we go it alone? I hope that lettuce and tomato are viable options. Coops burger influences: In and Out still number one. Vera's West Van, 70's Fresgo Inn and golf course bar burgers.

Food and Wine and Intermezzo.

I find Vera's to be hit and miss. The West Van location seems to be more consistent, but has a limmited menu and no seating. I also think it closes for the winter. The last time I ate there in September it was the best burger I had since I was in California (In and Out) in March. The Cornwall location has the habit of burning thier patties YUK. Forget about Burger Heaven, I think thier burgers are dull and dry. West has a great burger made from Wagyu beef on thier lunch menu. I really liked it but it's not really a true burger experience. Best Burgers I've had lately have been at golf courses. Best, Peace Portal, Meadow Gardens, and Swan-e-Set. Forget about Northview though, great courses, shitty food and restaurant. As for Fatzo's v. Memphis Blues, I would say Fatzo's is probably the worst place I've eaten in Vancouver since the new millenium. I had a pulled pork sandwich, the meat had obviously been boiled then slathered in sauce. As for Memphis Blues thier dissapointing but not as bad as Fatzo's. I think bar b que should be rich with smoky flavour and Memphis Blues doesn' quite make it in that department, also Sandwich and beer $14.95. This is not a great steakhouse city like Seattle (Daniel's Broiler highly recomended by me). The best steaks I've had here were at Marine Drive in West Van, and at Cafe de Paris.

We here in Canada have only recently been privelaged enough to get that $40 a day show. Is she giving out a little Rachel to get these deals? The San Francisco one was just totally unrealistic. 4 courses of dim sum for around $10.00. Dinner at a french bistro for less then $12.00. I don't think my sorry ass would get in on those deals. I geuss it's cause she is so damn cute.

I believe that this wine is not a great example of CDP nor is it a great example of the wines of Guigal. If you want a great CDP look for La Nerthe La Cailloux, or Beaucastel. If you want a great wine from Guigal look for the wines from the Cote Rotie. If you want some good reasonably priced stuff stick to thier Cotes du Rhone. As for Wine Spectator I think they were more true to thier readers when thier wines of the year were the highest scoring (for the most part) wines they tasted. When they started to look at other factors, thats when they screwed up. How can you justify this as the wine of the year? Would you pass up Petrus, or Grange Hermitage to load up on this stuff? That being said if you bought the stuff for $41 cdn you did okay. I also don't think you believed you were truly getting the best wine released that year.