LEdlund

Thanks! That's exactly what I was thinking about. And I love the addition of tomato (thanks therese for that idea too!) I'm making a roasted tomatillo sauce for grilled flank steak for one of the dinners. Haven't nailed the second dinner yet. Weigh in is today. I'm sure it will be a good one since it is, what I am considering, my "first week back" (even though I have weighed in each week for the last two and a half years!). The real test will be next week. I'm excited though.

You guys are such an inspiration to me. For the first time in months and months I journaled all week long (and stayed within my points - I think I mentioned before, I can't be trusted to do core!) I also earned activity points which I have never done before (and I have been a WW member since Feb 2002!). I am feeling soooo motivated! We grilled all weekend (fish and pork tenderloin) and made fruit chutneys to go with it. The chutneys were so good: nectarines, tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice, lemon zest, cayenne and some toasted pine nuts. I counted each serving as 2 points (one for the fruit and one for the pine nuts). That left me enough points for wine with dinner. It was great. I'm actually looking forward to WI this week! I have some friends coming to stay this upcoming weekend and have most of the meals planned out but am hoping you all can help. My plan for one of the breakfasts is to make a modified eggs benedict using artichoke bottoms instead of muffins. Does anyone have a suggestion for modifying the hollandaise sauce (or an alternate sauce)?

Ah....my book only lists one four ounce serving at 2 points. This makes sense. It's probably really 1.67 points or something like that and they just round up. Where did you get the two and three serving points values? I think upthread it mentioned that it was online? Do I need to sign up for the online service to get that information? Can you tell I want to get the most bang for my points?

I just got back from my meeting introducing the Core plan. I'm going to have to stick with Flex since the whole reason that I am WW in the first place is portion control (or lack thereof). Left to my own devices, I would eat an entire tub of cottage cheese for breakfast! Maybe, down the road, when I am more on top of things I'll give Core a try. Also, I hate to possibly be the bearer of bad news but.......I think a bottle of wine is 12 points not 10 (actually 12.5 if I'm being picky - but I've always counted it as 12). A four ounce glass of wine is 2 points and a 750 ml bottle equals 25.36 ounces. So the number of 4 ounce servings in a bottle (25.36 divided by 4) is 6.34. 6.34 servings at 2 points is 12.68 points. Have I calculated it wrong? I hope so........

Really Nice! - Thanks for the nudge to get this posted. I meant to do it yesterday but you know how the first day back is...... We had a great time in Paso (we quickly started calling is simply Paso, although we heard both pronunciations of Robles - Rowblez slightly more often). The Best Western Black Oak Inn was just what we were looking for - and included free high speed internet access! The wineries we visited: Justin, Le Cuvier, Tablas Creek, Bonny Doon, Dover Canyon, Eberle, Tobin James and Adalaida. I really liked all with the exception of Bonny Doon. It was way too commercial for me. And everyone should make a point of visiting our own Dover Canyon - Mary told me that I was the only eGulleter that had visited her! They have a beautiful place and great wines too. Our meals were pretty good. Standouts were breakfast at Cowgirl Cafe and lunch at Papi's. Dinners were just so-so (we went to Paso Robles Steakhouse, Villa Creek, Bueno Tavola and Bistro Laurent). We tried to go to McPhee's Grill in Templeton but when we got there at 8:30 they told us they were closed. That was a problem for us everywhere - we were the last diners in the restaurant each night. Our time in SF was action-packed. We had dinner at Bizou (just ok, wouldn't make a point of going back), Quince (this was fantastic - the best place I've been in a long time) and Cortez (I love small plate restaurants, there were five of us and we had a blast trying all sorts of things - great cocktails too!). We had lunch at Saigon Sandwich and Brothers Korean Charcoal BBQ. Both were fantastic. I am still craving my pate sandwich. Got a chance to catch the Geisha exhibit at the Asian Art Museum and the new exhibits at MOMA. Also enjoyed the Hearts in SF. It's like finding easter eggs around town! Thanks to everyone for their advice

It's on 6th and University. I consider this my liquor store - since it's across the street from my office They do have a good selection but I still find myself needing to go to the one on 4th for some things.

IIRC, MsRamsey can help me here, The Sitting Room on Queen Anne also makes a decent French 75.

I did some poking around Wallingford today. It appears the new thai restaurant that was supposed to open last Wednesday isn't open yet. I was hoping to try it out. Wonderbar is open and looks like it's going to be fun. They have nice rattan chairs and some low deep bench seats all around. In the back on the left is a coffee bar that will be open during the day. On the right is a cocktail bar that will open in the evenings (they might serve coffee during that time too). I didn't think to ask about the food (which we know they will have since they are serving hard alcohol). I asked what type of cocktails they would be serving and they said "all kinds". The owner told me that he checked out See Sound Lounge while he was building his so maybe it will be modeled after theirs? The cocktail bar will open next Friday. Simpatico in the Wallingford center is gone. A new restaurant, Lux, is going in it's place. The guys doing construction said it will be "asian american". Like Wallingford need another asian fusion restaurant.........

And some chipotles in adobo sauce. Yum. Now I know what I am doing with my left over corn. Congratulations on the loss this week.

tsquare, how did you know that we ate at Union on Tuesday? Walked by while you were away and Mathew was busy talking to the staff. Seattle is such a small town, sometimes I just have to laugh.

Hmmmm, I'm sensing it might be a gender thing?

This sounds great. I like that there are actually some in my neighborhood. I want to try 35th Street Bistro, but my co-worker had a really awful experience with the service there a couple of weeks ago., so that kind of scared me away. I have a friend who really likes Saltoro. Their menu sounds really good (monkfish ) We really should get an eGullet event planned.

Which means I'll have some in my basket tonight! I love, love, love Pence peaches. I've never tried Rama's so I didn't order any from the Market Basket Bulk Sale. I know what I'm having for dessert tonight......................

I swear this thread has motivated me. I had another loss at weigh in today - that makes it losses (or staying the same) at the last four weigh ins. Journaling begins tomorrow! Betts - I agree with you about the meetings. I can't imaging myself not going. We rarely talk food (unless it's to discuss the point value of pad thai or something like that) but mainly focus on the mental aspect of weight loss. That is why the leader is so important. If I couldn't relate, I wouldn't go. Cusina - Your meal sounds fantastic! I'd never thought about using egg whites for a grilled sandwich. Perfect! What type of bread do you use to keep the sandwich at 3 points? mrsadm - I definitely do not miss my steak on WW. I have steak two or three times a month, if not once a week. One of my favorite meals is grilled steak, sauteed greens and a glass of wine. Tess - our WW leader has indicated to us that the new program is an either or type of thing. In other words, you can stick to the old plan if you want. That may be just in Washington though. I'm kind of nervous about it too. Also, in case anybody is interested, I really like this WW blog.

Me too...... I much prefer smaller portions. Mr Ledlund and I had dinner at Union Square Grill before a play at ACT a couple of weeks ago. I don't know what I was thinking. I ordered a salad before the entree and both were HUGE. It was ridiculous. Dessert was out of the question. Since we were walking across the street to the play I could do nothing but waste the food. It felt so wrong.

It sounds like Crow or one of the others on the same block might fit the bill.

Jensen, your meal looks fabulous! Where do you get your fish and shrimp balls? Some Pac NW eGulleters have been trying hot pot at local restaurants and that has me thinking about fixing it at home. How fun. I thought I'd pass along my new favorite breakfast (now that blueberry season is in full swing here in Seattle). I cook Zoom cereal and add blueberries and maple syrup (or Equal if I'm saving points for something later in the day). The blueberries sort of "pop" in the hot cereal and it is so filling and tasty. I count it as 4 or 5 points depending on how much syrup I use.

That's not too far from reality. I think the program works well, but the culture is so targeted at a small segment of 35-50 year old moms that the meetings are at best a waste of time and at worst a complete turnoff for many, but especially men. Funny, around here it's mostly retirees. I would love to meet some 35-50 yr old moms at the meeting I go to. A big factor is the meeting facilitator. If you get a bad one (and there are quite a few) it makes the meeting not worth the time. I agree, the facilitator is key as far as I'm concerned. I also think a lot depends on where and when the meetings are held. I work downtown Seattle and attend meetings that are held in a medical/dental building. Most of the meeting attendees are office workers on break or their lunch hour. When I've attended meetings on the weekends at one of the neighborhood meeting sites, the attendees seem to be moms.

I'm going to stick with Rowblez. It feels better rolling off my tongue. As for hotel reservations, we are taken care of. The friend we are visiting is a travel agent and got us a great rate at the Marriott downtown ($69/night!). Thanks for the link - I'll use that in other travels for sure. I'm now starting to question my choice of Zuni Cafe on Sunday night. Someone pointed out that Quince and Zuni Cafe serve essentially the same type of cuisine. I've been to Zuni before (granted it was years ago) so that seemed to be more expendable. Now I'm thinking of Cortez. Thoughts?

Something served must have pesto.

I'm another WW member (and also participated in the discussion Bilrus mentions). I lost 70 pounds in the first 12 months but lately have gained a few back. I need to stop that trend and would love a WW thread on eGullet. Thanks Jensen for bringing this up again.

Carolyn, I couldn't get that link to work..... See, this is why I'm asking - my pronunciation has been corrected no matter which way I pronounce it!

Crepe de Paris is a guilty pleasure of mine. I work across the street and we host lunches there every few months - they have a private room that seats 10 and they don't charge for it . They make very good crepes and their salads are great. Hmm, I wonder when our next meeting is?

OK, now I need your help on pronouncing Paso Robles. I have the Paso part down but is it Rowblez or Rowbulls? I've heard it both ways and am not sure which is correct?

At this point, they have been open two months. Definitely long enough to work out the kinks. Obviously their management isn't reading the reviews or eGullet!