Coop

Anyone who has eaten a Burger King Onion Ring and some Laura Chenel goat cheese in the same lifetime would know wether my post was sarcastic.

Perhaps Chef Bayliss see this as an opportunity to work from the inside. Maybe he will be working developing new BK menu items that uses true artisinal type products. The Whopper featuring Laura Chenel goat cheese, The flame grilled Wagyu beef burger, all served on a La Brea bakery bun. Soon truckers will be looking for 30 year old balsamic vinegar to dip thier Twinkies in. It's a brave new frontier, perhaps Chef Rick is the one to open this door. Sell out I don't think so.

No I actually am going this Friday. I am definetly looking forward to it. Your review sounds great. I can't wait.

What about woodcock head? I hear the brains are quite a delicacy. There is a recipe in the Roux bros. cookbook and a picture of it presented with it's head and neck split for easy access to the" tasty " bits. Here in North America we forget that the animals we eat were in some ways the same as us at one time (heads, feet, gonads etc). I think this is very unhealthy. The sooner we realize this the better. We need to show more respect to those below us on the food chain. Yes they have heads and in some cases we need to see those heads on our tables.

I called last night and asked the person on the phone to fax me a menu. He said Andrey changes it daily so doing so would be pointless. So I went with the only option open to me, booked for Friday night. I look forward to another great Andrey meal. Could this place fly any more below the general public's radar? It's almost like you have to be a food nut to know about the place. I believe you could walk by it everyday and not even notice it.

PHO! Can't get away from the stuff. It's a strange addiction. I risk driving on some of the most accident riddled streets of Vancouver, through the SARS and Mad Cow scare to get my weekly bowl of PHO. I remember shrugging off the vision of people wearing surgical masks as they walked down the street in front of my favorite PHO joint. Even if I had believed that there was a real risk I couldn't have resisted going for my hot bowl of PHO.

Any coffee served within eye sight of Interstate 5 south of Seattle. Noteworthy nominees, Holiday Inn Express breakfast bars (especially in Medford Oregon), MacDonald's, Denny's and the espresso served at any gas station. Another genre still hanging on in Vancouver is flavoured coffees. Um Irish Mint...........................

Alsatian Pizza? Can't he assume most people would know this dish as Tarte Flambe?

Oyama Sausage Co. is indeed the same people that abandoned thier roadside location just this side of Predator Ridge (forgive me I relate all directions to Golf Courses, Restaurants and Strip Bars). It is now located in Granville Island Market in the space that used to be a chicken specialty store and before that a French butcher. It is by the second most westerly door on the southside. I love A. Bosa as well but find the smell of all the salted cod a little appetite restricting.

I've got to say something about this place! It's been in the market for a year or two now across from the really good fish place near the middle door on the south side. They make everything there like Pates, sausages, confit, and an outstanding Rillette (pork and duck). They also have a good selection of cheeses. The owner and his wife (I believe) are very French and so is the food. Don't miss this place it is worth the battle to get there. It's fall and we need some more recomendations for great ingredients. Any suggestions? I frequent this place, Cioffi's and the Gourmet Warehouse.

Can anyone help me locate a good Turduken as well. Do they deep fry?

Hey help me out here who is this Todd English? The first place I heard of him was on Iron Chef American with William Shatner. While your at it who is Kerry Simon? Somehow I've completly missed out on these guys.

The finest meal I've eaten in Seattle was at the Harvest Vine. I'm not sure wether this made a difference but the owner and his wife were not there, they were at a wedding. The dinner was prepared by the sous chef about two feet from us on the other side of the bar. You must make a few sacrafices though to eat here. Come early, like Saturday at 4:30 for our foursome, don't expect flawless service, and order many dishes. You will be pleased. I also second the opinion of Cafe Campagne, great bistro food and nicer room then Le Pichet up the street. I also had a good meal at the bar at the Dahlia lounge but it could not be confused with a dining experience. So far I have yet to find a quintessentially Seattle fine dining experience. All the great places seem to be French or Spanish or Steakhouses or Oyster Bars. The closest thing was Fullers when Monique Barbeau was the chef.

Excuse Me?

I wish I could have included Feenie but he's from Vancouver. I'm sorry please excuse my sarcastic post but this guy Stadlander and Food Network Canada really gets me going. I just can't believe people would pay $200.00 to sit around in the mud and eat this guy's food. And could he be anymore arrogant, it's always "I created this and I created that", and "I served sushi down by the river", give me a break. Did I mention Michael Smith, this guy calls mirepoix "aromatizing agents". Food Network Canada force feeds us these awful shows and picks up the crap from the parent company like Unwrapped, and that Top 5 show with Bobby Rivers. Oh yeah, do we really need to see Cooking School Diarys over and over and over again.

Sure Stadlander is great, you got to love his show, I think it is even more influential then the early Julia Child shows on french cooking, sort of a Larousse's Gastronomic of the TV world. All must agree that Toronto has now overtaken Paris, Dijon, London and New York as the culinary centre of the world. Who needs Bocouse, Keller, The Roux's, Boloud, Troisgros and the rest of those fois gras eaters when we have Stadlander, Christine Cushing, Ken Kostic and Daphna Rabinowitz.

Can anyone give me any more info. on Durbach's new place the Parkside? Web site etc.

It's always been my belief that the highest posotion one could attain in Vancouver was hostess at Earl's, I see there is a new contender, bartender at Bluewater. Also in the running waitress at Elixer. These are very important people and we deserve the shitty service they provide us because of our lowly positions on the food chain. What can you do?

For my wife and I in January Chef Hawksworth prepared 9 courses. We washed it down with 2 Cocktails( Kir for Mrs Coop and Pernod for me) and a bottle of $60 wine and finished with coffees. The total came to about $325.00 before tip. I think this was very reasonable for the kind of meal and service we were given. Would I do this weekly, monthly, or yearly. This kind of meal is a once a year experience. I have had follow up visits but have stayed under $200.00. This is also a great deal. The standard appetizer, entree, and dessert sort of thing with a bottle of wine.

I think that estimate is a bit on the low side. I think the chef's dinner was $95 per person in January. Worth it though!

Malachi: I thought it was a fine review. My wife and I had a similar experience in January. It actually ruined other restaurants for me. They just didn't come within a 100 yards of West. We have since been twice for lunch which is a more casual experience, but well worth it. I don't really have a great list of places to compare West to, but it certainly is the best place I have dined.

For me the Harvest Vine is the only can't miss restaurant in Seattle. Those salt cod and potato filled peppers almost tempt me to drive to Seattle as soon as I can. I think you have to really make an effort though to enjoy this place (that effort is repaid). Get there early (4pm) on a saturday, let the owner or his sous chef guide you through the menu. Get used to the cramped room and never go with a group of more then 4. The night we went in November the owner and his wife were at wedding and the service was spotty but everything else was great.

"T" you are quick.

"T" I agree I have never had better Shabu Shabu then the one your mom used to make me! That was too easy.

I propose that if it's to be only 3 of us we postpone till there is more of a turnout.