LEdlund

You can get these now? Thanks for the suggestions..... Jon, We don't really have a budget, but we drink too much wine to truly appreciate anything with black truffles Pan, I love the poppy seed bagel idea, if nothing else for its ease (I have to go there directly from work). And I had also thought about making Black and Whites. When I called my local pasta purveyor to make sure they had squid ink pasta, they suggested a salad using chinese black rice. Their recipe sounded a little boring, does anyone have ideas to jazz this up (sticking to the theme of course)?

My book club just read Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane and the food theme for our discussion is Film Noir, Black and White Food. I'm looking for some creative suggestions. My first thought was a jicama slaw with black sesame seeds. Any others?

Hey! I was going to ask that!

Welcome back Really Nice! We were just saying how much we missed you!

I am so excited for March 25th!

My horrible dinner at The Melting Pot was a year or so ago. Some friends were given a gift certificate and decided to take us. What are you going to do..... Needless to say it was the same awful experience posted above. We couldn't believe it was so expensive for how horrible it was. And it got worse after a couple of bottles of wine and we started gabbing more than we were paying attention to the forks we had in the oil. Talk about overcooked shrimp! The one upside: I serve fondue a lot at home but I had never used a batter for anything before, as they did at M. P. I made one for our Christmas Eve dinner and everyone loved it!

That's fantastic Neil. Let us know when you are all settled. I smell a road trip from Seattle coming. Congratulations!

Perfect. I have a kimono too (although not vintage). Now I know what I am going to wear!

My girlfriend always has an oscar party. We all dress up and cat call during the show. It's a blast. This year, in honor of Lost in Translation, our theme is japanese. I am taking green beans tossed with sesame dressing from the recipe archives. Oh and sake of course!

I love City Kitchens too. And they have a good selection of Le Crueset. The Mrs. Cooks in University Village is another good store. There is a Le Crueset store in the outlet mall at Woodburn, Oregon (about 30 minutes south of Portland). It might be worth a trip there. The Seattle Restaurant Supply Store at 14910 Aurora Avenue North might be a good place to look for stock pots.

Will do!

I made reservations for seven people at 6:00 PM on March 25th. The seven people include: Ledlund and Paul Girl Chow MsRamsey Blue Heron Seawakim and Dave Fred and Ed I can add to the reservation if anyone else decides to join us. edited to add Fred and Ed.

OH YESSSS! When are we going? Dave and I would LOVE to join!!! How about Thursday, March 25th? Does that work for anyone?

OK folks, so when are we going?

I called La Carta de Oaxaca to tell them there would be only 6 people instead of the 10 I had made reservations for. They only make reservations for 8 or more people so there is no longer a reservation being held. Since you all are going so early, I wouldn't worry about getting in. Again, have fun. I wish I could be there!

Hi everyone, Unfortunately I have come down with a really nasty cold and am not going to be able to make it tonight. I know you all are going to have a great time. Reservations have been made for 10 people under the name of eGullet for 5:30. The restaurant serves smallish dishes meant to be shared so I don't think people need to show up at the same time. I know DRColby and his wife and possibly Blue Heron will be there between 5:00 and 5:30 with others showing up between 5:30 and 6:00. As MsRamsey says, remember to bring cash to make the bill paying easier. Have Fun. Lauren

5pm or 5:30pm Wed. would be ok for me. I work downtown and I get off at 5:00. At the earliest I could get there at 5:30 (depending on traffic) but people can always show up earlier and I can join in when I get there.

Glad you can come, I've added you and Blue Heron to the list above. I suggested 6 PM but am open to another time if it is more convenient for everyone.

So it sounds like dinner Wednesday night works. How about 6:00 PM? So far I think the attendees are: Fay Jai Sea Gal MsRamsey DRColby and his wife Ledlund Blue Heron Laurel and Joe Anyone else? I don't know if the take reservations per se, but I will want to call and give them a heads up we're coming. Edited to add Blue Heron, Laurel and Joe.

La Carte de Oaxaca is in Ballard on Old Ballard Ave. 5431 Ballard Avenue NW is the address. My favorite things were the mole and the posole. Actually, the posole was worth the trip alone. The tacos were good too. I'd love to go back if anyone is interested.

MsRamsey and I and our spouses were there for dinner on Friday night and I really enjoyed my meal. Yes, the service could have been better (we never did get the bread that we saw on other tables) but the quality of the food was very good. I was thinking I would go back and try breakfast, but now I will steer clear.

I'm still mourning the loss of The Butcher Shoppe in Ballard. I'm going to start going to A & J Meats again. In the market, I haven't been impressed with Don and Joe's but I do like Crystal's. QFC is where I shop on a regular basis and I have given up completely on buying meat there. It's awful. On the other hand, I have found Whole Foods to be great.

I doubt these are the same chips, but in the Pacific Northwest we have Tim's Cascade chips that come in a red and white striped bag. No state of Texas on it though. I like their jalapeno but I love their sea salt and vinegar. As I looked for a link for them, I see that they are now owned by Birds Eye. Hmmm, I wonder if anything will change. Tims Cascade Chips

A second conversation my friend had indicates it's owned by the people who own Peso's not Paseo's.

How many calories is that? who cares. its the carbs that count right? Actually it's 4600 calories. I don't think it matters if it's carbs or not, you'll still gain weight eating 4600 calories a day, unless you are burning off a lot in exercise. But you're joking anyway, right?