Ling

Such evocative writing and stunning pictures, U.E.! Thanks so much for taking the time to gift us with such a thorough report.

I haven't read the article, but that line is hilarious. Let's hope very few brides-to-be actually attempt to do their own wedding cake. It would be very sad if the centerpiece at such an important event does not look as good as she expected it to look.

I had breakfast at Cafe Besalu--the croissant was definitely better than the ones at Le Panier and Essential. The crumb of the croissant is airy and open, while the layers at Le Panier are more dense. The ginger biscuit was also very good--rich, moist, with a nice crunch from the sprinkling of coarse sugar. My favourite, however, was the strawberry danish. The dough they use for the danishes is richer than the croissant, and that bit of fruit in the middle is not mushy or overbaked. And the coffee was very good as well. Great spot for a cozy breakfast!

Last night, I had pepperoni and mushroom pizza from Domino's. The night before, we had a really late dinner at Marjorie in Seattle after our Cinco de Mayo party. We ate some terrific pan-roasted chicken with silky potato puree, broccoli, and lots of delicious gravy. Also split a morel mushroom pizza (crust was a bit soggy), and the bacon cheese macaroni (too creamy for me, and the cheeses aren't very sharp...but it was good comfort food, nonetheless.) Drank some Syncline Syrah even though it was a bit heavy with our food choices. Lunch was at Salumi--meatball sandwich, Marco Polo sandwich (braised chicken, prosciutto, green peppers and onions), and the pasta special of the day (spicy salumi with tomato sauce). Gina also brought out a selection of meats (lomo, lamb prosciutto, and a spicy salumi I'm forgetting...), some meat on bread with minty fig and goat cheese, and a braised chicken and mushroom dish. Everything was delicious as always! Breakfast was at Cafe Besalu--strawberry danish, croissant, ginger biscuit, and coffee. The danish was exceptionally buttery, but everything was really good! (I also had the opportunity to help host my first real, multi-course dinner party. pictures here!)

Yesterday, I split a great croissant, strawberry danish, and ginger biscuit with my bf at Cafe Besalu in Seattle. They also had wonderful coffee. Today--a French apple tart and coffee from Macrina. The apple filling was quite sweet, but the tart crust was good.

I made Valrhona chocolate tarts with cashew caramel, candied cashews, and cocoa nib/cashew brittle as part of our dinner party last night.

I had an incredible bison sausage dish (served with braised greens which were a little salty) a few weeks ago. I think it was one of their daily specials and I urge you all to try it if it appears again! It was delicious--chewy, not too fatty, gamey. Mmmm.... Also tried the veal breast sandwich, which was also good, but there was too much bread. (I'm having a big lunch there on Friday! Will take pictures... )

I've recently heard about Theo fair-trade/organic chocolates. Just wondering what the locals' opinion are on these. ETA: I've had Fran's salted caramels (both the dark and the milk.) They were good as a candy confection, but nothing I would seek out again. I did like the burnt caramel ice-cream, though.

I had croissants from Le Panier and Essential recently...also drove by Sweets and Savoury but they were closed and we hit Cafe Besalu 5 minutes after they closed too! The croissants from Le Panier are less visually appealing than the ones at Essential, but in a side-by-side tasting, I preferred the one from Le Panier. It definitely tasted more buttery. It was a good croissant, but I'm pretty sure I can find a better one in Seattle (probably at S and S or Cafe Besalu). I also had a pastry at Essential--it was a beautiful, glossy lemon mousse dome with blueberries around the base. Although it looked pretty, it was rather light on taste--very sweet, with a rather insipid lemon flavour. Still love the sourdough at Essential though.

Congrats, Jeff and Kurtis! And it looks like I have to re-visit Nu!

The twice-baked almond ones at Sen5es are great. The pain au chocolat are not so great (bready and dry texture, mediocre chocolate).

ex-cheerleader? check. re-applies lipstick and powders her nose several times a day? check. can bake a pie from scratch? biscuits? whoopie pies? check, check, and check. ...but I haven't made real pan-fried chicken yet. But I plan to very soon, right after I render my own lard for the fryin'.

So true! I hope for your sake she doesn't opt for the garden salad with raspberry vinaigrette, Fresser.

Of course I do. What do you take me for--a non-foie-gras-eatin'-vegan from Seattle?!! If you were paying attention, you would have heard me say it's from New Zealand, where many Sauv. Blancs are produced. Well, I'm not going to argue with that!

Thanks for a wonderful blog, Klary! I loved how you had an entire week's worth of birthday celebrations. Your family and friends are so lucky to have such a charming and gracious woman in their lives! (And thanks again for those stroopwafel pictures!! Mmmm! I know what I'll be eating when I make it to Amsterdam!)

OMG Patrick! That is one of the best photos I've seen on this site! Just perfect. I bet it tastes as delicious as it looks!

I can't say enough about the quail dish. It's one of the best things I've eaten this year.

Friday lunch Dim sum at Jade. Overall, we thought some of the dishes were above-average. The baked pineapple pork buns were the best--lots of filling, and the topping wasn't as sweet as the ones on the traditional pineapple top buns. more comments here ...dinner was at Rare. 12 courses. Pictures and comments here. Saturday lunch I took most of the day off so my bf could try Phnom Penh for lunch. We had the Butter Beef and Garlic Fried Squid (2 of my favourites) and he chose some Cambodian pho dish to round out the meal. The pho had shrimp, liver, and pork. Would skip this dish next time. Dinner was at Golden Szechuan. Pictures here. The food was very good, especially the ma po do fu.

You know I have no aversion to fat. I'll have to get this next time!

The chef invited me and my date for a 12-course dinner with wine pairings on Friday night. We got there at 7pm and enjoyed ourselves for the next 4.5 hours! The food was amazing--we agreed that some of the dishes that we liked so much on our last visit 2 weeks ago tasted even better on Friday night. We started off with some drinks in the back lounge. The bartender made this on the fly and dubbed it the "Earth" martini (Courvoisier and gin) for our scallop and white cap mushroom amuse. We noticed that the scallop was only cooked on one side--a technique Henry's chef friends also use in their restaurants to ensure that the scallops are never too cooked. cauliflower soup, steelhead trout roe, lobster, white truffle oil This soup has already been highly praised by many EGers, and it lives up to the hype and then some! It was one of our favourites of the evening. I love how the salty, briny roe burst in your mouth. quail stuffed with sweetbreads, boar bacon ratatouille Burrowing Owl 04 pinot noir This was one of my favourites of our last dinner--perhaps we enjoyed it even more this time because the sweetness of the vegetables really came through and brightened up this rich dish. I love getting dishes like this at Rare because the skill and time it takes to make this is far beyond my capabilities--not to mention the ingredient cost when you're only making it for one or two people. morel mushrooms, shaved spring truffles, pea shoots and pea shoot oil, truffle oil Cakebread Chardonnay Love the presentation. The mushrooms were much richer than the dish we had 2 weeks ago, and infinitely more enjoyable (not that the morels 2 weeks ago were shabby in the least! ) The shaved truffles and the truffle oil pushed the morels into the stratosphere of mushroomy perfection. The acidity in the wine paired nicely. At this point, we moved to the dining room area and the pictures suffer a little because we didn't use the flash. (Dining room was packed, btw.) tuna sashimi, brocolli, almond Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin brut I liked the inherent nuttiness of the broccoli with the almonds. The sommelier remembered that we like this particular champagne on our last visit and brought out another bottle for us! smoked sablefish, red pepper foam Mission Hill S.L.C. (Sauv. Blanc/Semillon) This was another standout dish for me. Loved the smoky, buttery flesh! halibut, eggplant, pea puree Kim Crawford Sauv. Blanc This was one of my favourite wine pairings of the night. I know very little about wine, but the Kim Crawford was one of my first Sauv. Blancs and I've always loved the amount of grapefruit on the nose. I thought it brightened the heavier flavours in this fish course. striped bass, chorizo, ramps, clams Chateauneuf du Pape 01 I had my first fish and chorizo dish a few weeks ago in Seattle, and I love the combination! And my first ramps of the season... veal confit, apricot, savoy cabbage puree Waterbrook Cab. Sauv. 03 The veal breast was leaner this time around. Still delicious. We had a chocolate bavarois at this point, but forgot to take a picture. It was served with a Chateau Briatte Roudes 02 Sauternes. caramelized pineapple, lime sorbet A nice, meaty piece of pineapple and a fabulously smooth and refreshing sorbet. Just what we needed to prepare us for the upcoming cheese course... ...which we forgot to take a picture of. It was beautiful, though, and had Manchego, Humboldt Fog (love that cheese!), Morbier, and candied hazelnuts. We had candied hazelnuts with our cheese course at French Laundry a few weeks ago, and I MUCH preferred this cheese plate to the one at FL. Served with Grahams 10 year port. Here's a shot of some of the cheeses on the plate. The last course was described as a chocolate mousse with Irish whiskey foam. (It was a very thick hot chocolate that deserves to be called a mousse. ) Even though we had so much food, I was not overstuffed because the meal was well-paced. Service was attentive as usual, and everyone in the room seemed to be having a great time. Thank-you everyone for such a memorable evening!

Here are some pics from Golden Szechuan. ma po do fu (spicy tofu) la rou (spicy Chinese bacon) Szechuan fried green beans pan-fried pancakes rolls with beef hot and sour soup I must've started digging into the chilli-oil dumplings before he could get a picture. Those were good!

I've eaten at 1.5 (if I count my dinner at Chez Panisse cafe as the 0.5) French Laundry was good, but I don't think my experience there would make me rank it as #4 in the world. I guess the problem with eating so many courses is that you will invariably find some that are just "good" or "very good" when you look at the meal as a whole. I don't regret my dinner at FL (far from it, in fact) but I thought there would be more dishes that would blow my mind. The meal can't be evaluated just on the food alone, though, and I must say I've never experienced such perfect, polished, and unobtrusive service, and that made the meal unforgettable. I am kind of surprised to see some of the restaurants listed. I haven't eaten at many of them, obviously, but it seems like the list reads a bit like a compliation of the most popular restaurants in the world, as opposed to the best.

Bravo, Fresser! What will you cook for your next date with Melissa? (And this may be premature, but I hope she does more for you than your bananas and sour cream. )

When I had dinner at FL, the server told me that all their bread comes from Bouchon Bakery next door.

I've read lots of good things about Lark and Crush. I had a great dinner at Veil a few weeks ago, and read a rave review about their food in this month's Seattle Magazine. Veil's foie gras torchon is second only to the one I had at French Laundry. I've not had dinner at Mistral yet, but have had quite a few of their desserts, and they are amazing. It's not cheap, but I would suggest Mistral as well! (ETA: If you are looking for a breakfast place, I know that Cafe Campagne does this egg dish with fries and foie gras and red wine sauce! My bf ate breakfast there once and Jacques Pepin was also there...so he bought a Jacques Pepin cookbook from next door and waited until Jacques was finished breakfast and got an autograph! )