Really Nice!

Damn! I need to get out more often.

Although this hasn't been posted in the "Farewell & Welcome, Restaurants out of biz and starting anew" thread, Il Bacio in Redmond across from Redmond Town Center changed hands about three months ago. The quality of food and service has noticbly dropped and neither the customers nor the previous owners are happy.

If this is true, then why are so many successful movies going past three hours? Stopped in Union last night for dinner. They seem to be picking it up a bit. Presentation is getting better and more impressive. Their wine list is expanding to include some heavy hitters such as '99 Cos d' Estournel for $100 (I think) and a few other notables that this early morning hour won't let me remember. All told there were about eight bordeaux. There were also a couple Californian's in the $200 range. Anyway, as a first plate my girlfriend had a mixed green salad with blue cheese, I had cold cumcumber soup with salmon and caviar. She then had an Ahi tuna dish and I had a rabbit loin. I was really in the mood for foie gras but it wasn't on the menu.

I'm particularly fond of Masi as I spent my 40th birthday at their vineyards (actually at the Serego Alighieri estate) outside Verona, Italy. I really enjoyed their Toar with pizza, and I have a friend who loves their Osar. These are two wines you normally can't find in the states, but thank goodness for wine-searcher.com! It was my first time in that QFC and I really enjoyed meeting Bradley. Very gentlemanly and you're right, he know's his stuff. I bought eight bottles: 4 Niebaum-Coppola Cabernet Franc, 2 Masi Campofiorin, and 2 1927 Alvear Grande Soleras. He gave me a 15 percent discount on the NC and 10 percent on the others. I noticed they had a couple bottles of 1999 Penfolds Grange for $225 each. This is the cheapest I've seen it (haven't been to Costco lately). I might return to QFC this weekend and see what kind of discount he can offer on those.

Nice article in the Times. It's about how some restaurants are moving their style towards a tasting menu. Good comments about Union, Lark, and Campagne.

Absolutely wonderful!

La Carta de Oaxaca might be able to help. Here's a review of the restaurant. They're in Ballard. And then there's Sergios Mexican Restaurant in Fremont. You might want to contact these places to see if they'll sell you fresh tortillas. For queso fresco, try Beechers, also on Pike Place and under Sur La Table. They *might* be making it. If not, try Di Laurenti's in the Market. For chiles go to the place next to Franks Produce. I walked by there last week and it looked like they had about 10 different varieties.

After moving downtown, I stumbled upon it one day while crusing around in my Vespa. I found that I can carry seven 750ml bottles in the seat! I don't know what your price point is, but they do have many bottles under $30. They also have a good selection of 375ml bottles. I like these because they're great for a dinner for two and they also tend to mature earlier than larger formats. They also have a wide selection of Washington State wines including many that I have not heard of before. Oh, another place is Spanish Table. A great selection of Spanish and Portuguese wines at relatively good value. Pete's in Bellevue, I'm told, maintains the lowest markup of wines in the area. Speaking of particularly good wine values: This past weekend I did a little wine shopping. I was at the U-district QFC and picked up Masi Campofiorin (a ripassa-style valpolicela) for $14.99. Now if you want to work a little for your wine, sign up at one of the local wineries to volunteer to assist in bottling. Last week I helped at DeLille and got a bottle of 2002 Chaluer Estate Red for free. This bottle is a $60+ value once it's in the stores. I'm not sure if they're taking on more volunteers, but I think Matthews is. You work hard, and by the end of the day you get a peek as to how you'll feel 40 years from now, but it's worth it.

Costco can be a great hidden treasure. If you're ever near the Issaquah store stop by there. They tend to have an upscale selection because their "world?" headquarters is located there, and darn if those suits don't like fine wines. I've purchased Penfolds Grange, Lafite Rothschild, and a few other notables from that location at prices much lower than I've found on the Internet. Other places I like for purchasing wines, either for value or finding rare stuff, include: Larry's on Queen Anne. QFC at the U-district. Champion Wine on Denny and First. If you're into Bordeaux, this is the place to buy.

Just curious, where are you coming from? Coming to Seattle to buy fresh tortillas and (Mexican?) cheeses seems to be an unusual quest. Mexican cusisine is usually a staple of any city, regardless of size or region, and these items should readily be available. However, if you're in the pike place area, there's a Mexican store on Pike Place next to Frank's Produce. Frank's is across the street from those fish abusers, I mean, the Fish throwing place.

Along with the flavor I think it's the texture. There's something about biting into one of those that let's you know it's a Vienna dog.

There's only one hot dog, Vienna. Sadly, it's not available at the retail level here, but you can get it at Matt's Famous Chili Dogs in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and soon to be seen at Colman Dock, Pier 52 in downtown Seattle.

Non mushroom eaters??? Yes, I live in a mushroom-free household. She can't stand them. As a matter of fact I have to do without beets, raisins, olives, and mushrooms. Funny how those things end up on my salad at work so I can get my RDA.

Seeing how Fish is slacking, if memory serves me correctly, here's the recipe he told us: 500 grams potato 150 grams flour 1 egg Boil the potatoes with the skins on. Don't cook them completely because they'll continue cooking as gnocchi. The dough should be moist and don't over work it. I'd like to know how he cooked it because mine always comes out gummy. This stuff had a good texture to it.

Here's the menu: Gnocchi Interactive Salumi Cured Meats served with various fruits An array of Antipasti .....Braised Rabbit Crostini .....Corona Beans with Genovese Tuna Fish <- this was very good! .....Crostini with Fig Confit and Coach Farm Goat Cheese Gnocchi with fresh Porcini Mushrooms Sauteed Shell Fish .....Clams, Baby Octopus, Shrimp and Scallops Grilled and served cold - Sea Bass with new olive oil and parsley Palate freshener Stuffed Veal Breast - with Lavender and Boneless Quail .....both served with Cippollini Onions and Fresh Asparagus Gina Unscotti Caffe Vita Most of us brought a bottle of wine each. One person brought an imperial-sized bottle of an Italian wine. (This is equal to 8 750-ml bottles.) All told I think we consummed the equivalent of 13 bottles. I brought a 1927 Grande Soleras 375ml bottle. It's a dessert wine. The entire contents of the bottle did not come from the 1927 vintage. It started with that year, but as the contents of the barrels offered their angel's share, it was replaced with younger vintages. I'm guessing that less than 25 percent of the bottle actually contains wine from 1927. Armandino thought this was really nice!. Edited for grammer, Kelsey Grammer.

To get back to talking about food, here's three lines from Rover's Web site: Secret Recipes from the Chef in the Hat!!! Thierry’s cookbook is scheduled for release in 2005. Click here for a sample of what’s inside.

With my luck mine would be switched at birth and I'd come home with someone else's prosciutto.

I leave an additional $60 to $100 every time I dine there. I find it hard to believe they're paid $27 an hour given that the staff (waitstaff included) spends more time there when the restaurant is closed than when it's open.

Jshufelt, excellent review! Thank you. If you don't mind my asking, what is the price of the nine-course tasting menu? I've been able to get to The French Laundry once a year since 2000, and each year the menu is $10 higher than the year before (which I do not mind). Based on that I'm projecting that it's now $145. But, with the expense of renovations, closing it down for four and a half months, and losing income due to the unexpected closing of Per Se for a month, I'm wondering if it's more. Thanks again for the review.

Just got word from my local wine retailer here in Seattle that the '99 Penfolds Grange is in. $216 per bottle.

If you really want to conduct a test, pour the same wine into a different style of glass. For instance, take a big, 5-year old cabernet and pour it into a cabernet, chardonnay, champagne, and port glass. Wait about 30 minutes for it to develop. Then start swirling and sniffing. You will get different aromas from each glass even though it's the same wine. Now taste, again you'll get different sensations out of each one. Last weekend I brought a '95 Neibaum-Coppola Rubicon to a friend's house. We had a couple of different glasses and the difference in the wine was incredible. I have a friend who is a CWE (certified wine educator) and he prefers the smaller port-like glasses in his classes for the sole purpose of analyzing wines.

My whole experience with my Amazon purchace was jinxed from the start. I bought mine the first time around; buy six cabernet, get six burgundy for free with free shipping. This was in August '02. December '02 I finally get the glasses. Someone conveniently broke one glass in each box during shipment. I got 12, make that 10 burgundy glasses; 0 cabernet. Amazon charged me for shipping, which they always do when I order through their super-saver-we-don't-charge-for-shipping-on-purchases-over-$25-program. It was such an enjoyable experience I tear up every time I use them. To be honest, I'm not familiar with the quality of any other Spiegelau except what I have. However, they do sound more fragile than a glass should. I only cringe when I take out my Riedel Grand Cru Bordeaux 400/00 Sommelier line of glassware. These are about 10.5 inches high and hold around 39 ounces. Nothing beats taking a couple ounces of a Lafite and swirling it around in a glass like that. Who needs a decanter? Earlier this year I was hosting a dinner party and had the table all set when the other couple canceled. As I was putting away two 400/00s, I noticed a spot on one. I brought out the flour towel and was gently polishing it when a tiny, tiny, bump on the rim of the glass got caught in the towel. The glass shattered into thousands of pieces. It later occured to me that the one glass was more expensive than the wine it was going to hold. Oh well, what's a couple of more hours of work to pay for your passion?

If you're concerned about Riedels breaking in the dishwasher, consider their O model. Look ma, no stems!

I'll admit I'm a Riedel snob. Most of my glassware comes from them. I don't mind when other people/restaurants use a different brand, but what really bothers me (sorry for inserting a nit) is water spots on wine glasses. Take five dollars and buy a flour towel. This type of towel is good because it doesn't leave lint behind. When you clean your glasses, always rub them up and down, not side to side, which causes them to break at the stem. Anyway, because you are registering for your wedding, I imagine you are going to be drinking a bit of champagne over the next year. So I would recommend champagne, cabernet, and chardonnay.

Yup, definitely Franks. Although the one around the corner on Pike Place and Pike begins setup earlier -- around 6:30 A.M. If I needed to pick up something I would go there until last week when I saw the woman setting up with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth. Anyone notice if their brocolli was a little 'ashy'?