Category Archives: Restaurants

Chef Chris Mills’ James Beard House Preview Dinner @ Joey Restaurant (Seattle)

Posted on by
3

I received an email a few weeks ago with an invitation to check out a preview dinner for Chef Chris Mills who for the second time was going to be cooking at the James Beard House in New York.  Cooking at the James Beard House is a goal of mine and to have the opportunity to do it twice would be like winning the lottery….twice.  I had to check this out but honestly, I had never heard of Chris Mills and beyond that the dinner was going to be held at Joey Restaurant in Seattle.    I’ve been there a few times and each time I have been there I had just gone there to grab drinks with the guys and eat a burger and watch sports on the huge television.  In the summertime it’s the place to be with a patio that overlooks Lake Union and gives you easy access to a friend’s boat……that was my experience with Joey Restaurant in Seattle. I’ve been to their restaurant in Bellevue many times during my business suit wearing days and I’ve even visited their new location in Southcenter…..I’ve been to Joey’s many times but after eating this dinner last night I had no idea they could put out this type of food.  Joey’s….yeah burgers, sports on t.v., good scenery on the inside and on the outside….plain and simple, that was it before Chris Mills and his crew came in with guns blaring.

Joey restaurants brought in all of their general managers from their 20 restaurants, located mostly in Canada, and proceeded to provide white glove service and top notch food fare.  What? This is Joey’s right?  The one with the burgers and t.v…….and perfectly paired wines…..and amazing food….and dishes…and food combinations that will lead you in the right direction….and inspire…. “Eric, your thoughts are changing on Joey’s”.  You’re damn right they are…..I’m confused now….

Hors D’Oeuvres:

Peaches & Cream Chicken ‘Corndog’
Japanese Hummus
Chicken Tacos
Pacific Tuna Chopsticks

Wine:  ”Ferel” Sauvignon Blanc, Washington

Ok, that sounds like typical food fare at Joey’s.  Tacos, hummus, corndog, blah blah blah…… “Please make your way to your seats”

This is the point where my idea of Joey’s went right out the window. No burgers, no b.s., serious food, cooked by an amazing chef.

Citrus-Cured Haida Gwaii Salmon with Dungeness Crab Flan & Cornbread paired with L’ecole 41 Chenin Blanc, Washington.

They called this the bacon and eggs course…very nice and playful and delicious. The salmon was nice and fresh and it was cut perfectly and just fell apart in my mouth and left me wanting more.  The dungeness crab flan was very nice and again, I wanted more.  The egg under the frisee was great and had a nice tangy vinaigrette to perfectly balance itself on the dish.

Alaskan Black Cod, BBQ Pork Belly & Squash Dumpling in a Matsutake Mushroom Broth paired with Sandhill “Small Lots” Viognier, B.C.

Oh wow….but wait, there’s more……the mushroom broth.

“Chef Mills picked these mushrooms himself in British Columbia”.    Are you serious? Really?   “Yes, there are a few other items on the menu he foraged”.  AWESOME!

This goes down as one of the best dishes I’ve ever eaten. Each bite had a different flavor component to it….then they served up some broccolini and more mushrooms with it just to make it more of an epic dish.

I was extremely happy at this point and I was happily anticipating the next course….could they top it? Yes, but here is something to refresh the palette before the next course.  An apple salad that set it up perfectly.

I knew there was duck coming and I was really excited. I love duck and when it’s cooked correctly it’s one of the best things in the world.  This duck was cooked correctly…..and it was one of the best things in the world.

Licorice Lacquered Duck Breast, Summer Cherry Conserve, with a Hazelnut-Crusted Korean Duck Roll paired with La Crema “Sonoma” Pinot Noir, California.

“We went golfing and while we were playing on the greens Chef was picking cherries”.

The duck cooked medium rare with warmed pitted cherries and the duck roll to add to the mix that was fantastic.  I was putting pieces of the duck in the middle on top of the duck roll for a little duckxtravaganza and it was f’ing delicious.  How about a cherry on top? OH MY!

45 Day-Aged Beef Rib Eye with Yukon Gold Potato, Braised Oxtail & Black Trumpet Mushroom Lasagna & Bellmann Farm Carrots paired with Magnificient Wine Co. “The Originals” Syrah, Washington.

Aged in-house for 45 days. A premium beef rib eye with an explosion of flavor from the oxtail lasagna.  The oxtail lasagna could have been it’s own dish and I would have been extremely happy but to add the 45 day-aged steak it felt like someone just gave me a Ferrari and gave me a Rolls-Royce at the same time…..yeah, pretty amazing.

I absolutely hate when sauces go all over a plate and aren’t controlled. I love flooding techniques and when I saw the puree with the two onions on each side controlling the jus. I wanted to stand up and start applauding the chef….I would have but the other people at the table would have thought I was even more of a weirdo.   Bravo Chef!!!

Vietnamese Banana Cake with Tropical Fruit Salad & Toasted Coconut Ice Cream paired with Inniskillin Okanagan Riesling Ice Wine, British Columbia.

Banana Cake was amazing and the marshmallow all the way to the right was incredible.  I am definitely on a search for that ice wine as well. Yes.

Finally, a mignardises of raspberry muffins….proper way to end an amazing dinner.

On the way out I was handed a box with an apple and a chocolate inside.  Chef Mills is ready for a James Beard Dinner/Anything.  This was an absolute throw down in Seattle.  It rocked everything I thought of Joey restaurants and I honestly feel bad for thinking this place was nothing more than a beer and sports place.  Chef Mills is the real deal and Joey restaurants is lucky for having such an amazing chef at the helm. If a dinner like this occurred more often in their Lake Union I think it would be a great rivalry between themselves and another restaurant that overlooks Lake Union.

If you’re in New York on November 20th then get yourself over to the James Beard House and consider yourself lucky to be there (click)…that’s how I felt after this dinner.

Eric

Le Pichet (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
Reply

My “Happiest Hours” are on fire! A week or so ago I showed you Lecosho (click) which is within reach of my 3 hour walk around Seattle while I wait for my next class to start.

Last week I chose Le Pichet as a place to have my Happiest Hours and it was a great choice.  I love French food and while I don’t think I would have said that before I started culinary school I can honestly say that it’s been a grand discovery.  The food is simple, it’s good, and the people at Le Pichet know what they’re doing when it comes to French food.

The restaurant is small but there is a very nice at-home feeling to it.  I was planning a seafood extravaganza so it was a nice relaxing place for me to scribble crazy ideas all over a piece of yellow legal pad paper while I constructed three courses from their lunch menu (Le Déjeuner).

First up was the Almonds Sautéed in Olive Oil with Coarse Sea Salt.  I loved this dish…..I loved the salt and I left enough so I could take some to class with me. I enjoyed the liberal amount of sel de mer…..my favorite.

Next course was the Cold Salad of Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese, Oil Cured Olives, Parsley, Crispy Chickpeas and Almond Vinaigrette.  When I look at menus there are always things that stand out but when all of those things are in one dish I get excited.  Roasted Beets……yes…….goat cheese……..YES…….Olives!!!!………CHICKPEAS THAT ARE CRISPY!!!!!…….ALMOND VINAIGRETTE (Font size infinity).   That’s what goes on in my head, pretty awesome.

Then it comes to the table and then I start to do imaginary back flips (tried once, wasn’t sure how to land……it was more of just falling on my back…..I’ll just leave it to those Cirque Du Soleil people.  In the future I’ll hire a person from Cirque Du Soleil to go with me to restaurants and when I get a great dish I’ll scream “backlflip now!!” then clap my hands….. opulence, I will have it.”

What? Ok, back on track!

Look at that…….Yeah, it was really good and it was a great way to set up the last dish.

Just stop talking. No more writing.  Order this, thank me later.

Country style pork pâté with honey and walnuts.

Eric

Damiana’s Truck Special-Fundraiser November 7th!

Posted on by
Reply

I love food trucks. I have spent countless hours visiting/stalking my next meal from these culinary crusaders on wheels.  Marination Mobile, Minimus Maximus, Skillet, Dante’s, Parfait, Where ya at, and more…(click).. …I love them all.

There is a new truck coming to town and a good friend of mine, (CHEF BRIAN!!!) asked me to help him and his girlfriend, Damiana, cook for a fundraiser they are having for their new food truck.    The goal of the fundraiser is to raise a little money to help that blue truck get on the move around town.

Hold on, before I go any further.  Does this do anything for you?


DUCK!!!

How about this?

Mmmmm, galette.

That’s a preview of what’s going to be available at the fundraising dinner.  ”Eric, when is it and can I come?!?!?!”  Yes, you can. Here is the press release.

Damiana’s Truck Special is excited to announce a one night pop-up restaurant experience. Chef Brian O’Connor and Damiana Merryweather will prepare a four course seasonal meal served in an intimate setting with family style seating and service. Chef O’Connor is the highly lauded local chef and previously of San Francisco’s Cliff House.

Menu:

Roasted Heirloom Beet Salad- watercress, feta yogurt emulsion, honey crisp apple

Curried Cinderella Pumpkin Soup- roasted root vegetables, pineapple quince, pepitas

Coriander Braised Maple Leaf Duck Leg- green lentils, smoked cauliflower, bacon, confit garlic

Caramelized Comice Pear and Rosemary Galette- creme fraiche ice cream

Price: $40/person. Wine and gratuity not included. Recommended wines and pairings available by the glass and bottle.

Location: Swirl Wine Bar, Magnolia. 3217 W McGraw Street.

Date/Time: Sunday, November 7 @ 6:00PM

Secure Reservations Required
Tickets available through Brown Paper Tickets.

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/134029

-Damiana’s Truck Special: A forthcoming mobile food adventure committed to serving our neighbors delicious, delightful, and unpretentious food.

-Pop-up Restaurant: Using an existing restaurant, bar or commercial space on its closed night for a wholly unrelated dining experience.

This is a huge event and if you live in Seattle then you should definitely make it out on November 7th.  You’re in for a fantastic dinner and you’ll be helping a few people achieve their dreams by helping them raise funds for the truck.

BUY TICKETS NOW!!!!

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/134029

Eric

Cookbook: NOMA

Posted on by
6

 

I’ve been waiting for this book to come out for quite some time.  I first heard of Chef Rene Redzepi in the book COCO (click).  He’s one of the 10 master chefs that picked other chefs around the world to be in the book (I currently work for one of the chefs that was chosen…Kevin Davis!).

Chef Redzepi has worked for Ferran Adria and Thomas Keller and at the age of 25 took the reigns of Noma in 2003 and in a short period of time he has taken the restaurant to being rated #1 in the world (click).

His specialty is truly living off the land. The restaurant is located in Copenhagen K, Denmark.  In the mornings before the restaurant opens he normally forages through the land and picks up ingredients to feature at the restaurant that evening.  This book shows  a lot of that and while there are some ingredients that I can’t find here to replicate the recipes I am left to be inspired by them and to search for my own local ingredients from the land.

The layout of the book is different from other cookbooks as well.   There are chapters that highlight the name of each dish then go onto show a picture of the dish mixed in with other pictures of the area, restaurant, and finally of Chef Redzepi.  The recipes aren’t located next to the pictures, they’re in the back of the book.  I think that’s a great idea.  It left me guessing as to what I was looking at….it immediately inspired me in my own plating and presentations….fireworks going off in my head…..you could try this…..do this…..oh look at that….wow…..wow….wow!!!!

I’ve looked through the book since I have picked it up and I have stared at the pictures for hours. This is amazing and I can see why a number 1 rating came to Chef Redzepi.  He has taken his community, food, restaurant, life, and put it on a plate for all to share…..amazing.

Normally, that would be the end of one of my cookbook write-ups but this one turned out to be a little more exciting.  Chef Redzepi came to Seattle and I met him!

Kim Ricketts Book Events held an event at MistralKitchen here in Seattle where the book would be debuted.  MistralKitchen was going to do some cocktails and appetizers then Chef Redzepi would make his rounds and talk to people and sign books.   I looked at the price of the event and I had to think about it for a few days…………after thinking about it I said, “You missed when Thomas Keller and David Chang were in town because you were working….how often does Chef Redzepi come to Seattle?!!?!?!?!? Oh, and you’ll get to meet him and ask him for a job!….Oh, and you’ll get a copy of the book!!!!”.    Done.  The voices in my head are good salesmen.

I went to the event and MistralKitchen did a number of dishes inspired by Chef Redzepi.  Here are a few pictures.

Yeah, awesome.

While I was there I ran into another cooking legend but I’m saving that for another post coming soon…….

Ok, back to Chef Redzepi and the book.  He was so nice walking around the crowd of eager people waiting to shake his hand and get an autograph but I was there for different reasons……Ok, I was there to get a handshake and an autograph too but every person there wanted to talk about eating at his restaurant….I want to cook at his restaurant…..I don’t even care if I just empty the trash there, I just want to see what goes on at the restaurant…..I’m sure it’s incredible.  I think the book only scratches the surface but it gives its readers an idea of the genius that is being doled out on a dish on a daily basis at Noma.

My moment finally arrived.  I said, “hello chef!”. He immediately asked if I was a cook. I said, “yes, I work right up the street at Blueacre, I go to culinary school, and I’m a huge fan of your work, I can’t believe I’m actually meeting you, the book is stunning. Congratulations on being the #1 restaurant in the world”.   He said, “thank you and asked me how much longer I had in school.” I said about a year and then I asked him how I could get into the kitchen at NOMA for a stage.  As I was asking this he was writing down an email address and said, “when you’re ready e-mail us, tell them you were at this event, and we’ll get you in”.

What?

Really?

I was beside myself. “Hey self freaking out…calm down….you’re embarrassing us.”

I said, “That’s awesome chef, thanks for your time, and congratulations again” then I left…..what else do you do after something like that?!?!?!

I got home and told Mindy what was going on while she was talking to her mom on the phone. Mindy handed me the phone and said tell my mom, she would love to hear it.

Graduate……..keep working…….go to NOMA……we’ll see what happens.

Eric

Lecosho (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
Reply

Lecosho is a new restaurant in Seattle that just opened up a few weeks ago.  It’s the new venture from Matt formerly of Matt’s in the Market.  I was excited to visit the new venture because #1, I’ve heard nothing but great things about Matt’s in the Market (have tried to go twice but my schedule doesn’t match up with times they’re open…)  #2, Lecosho means pig in Chinook and anyone that names their restaurant after my favorite animal to eat deserves a visit!

I had three hours to kill in between classes so I made the walk over to the Harbor Steps where Lecosho is located.  I’m not sure if you remember my “Happiest Hours” section on this blog but it’s back and after this visit to Lecosho it’s off to a great start!

“Eric, get to the food!!!”

OK!!!

Their happy hour was in full swing so I checked out the menu and made four choices.

This is the Aquavit Cured Pork Belly Rillettes with Pickled Radish and Mustard Sauce.   If I didn’t have three other things coming to me at the time I would have ordered another round of this dish.  It was delicious and is a great way to start off the Happiest Hour!

This is the House-Salted Brandade on Crostini with Caper Berries.   Awesome….. Nothing more to say than that :)

This is the House-Made Sausage with Lentils and Soft Boiled Egg.  This is fall food and is definitely warming to the soul.  The sausage had that perfect snap back in the casing when I bit into it and the lentils were nice and creamy then topped off with a soft boiled egg…..YES!!!

For the last item I tried the Beef Short Ribs with Stella Espresso Rub and Pickled Beets.  Hello food coma! The great thing about these dishes is that they were the perfect size to try 3-4 dishes….I need to bring more people next time so we can try the entire happy hour menu at once.   The great thing is that they’re open late (1AM) so they’ll be seeing more of me when I get off of work!

Can’t wait for my next visit.

Lecosho (click)

Big John’s PFI

Posted on by
Reply

I was talking with chef Gabriel Claycamp about veal bones and he brought up Big John’s PFI. It’s a store in Seattle that sells a ton of bulk items and focuses on Mediterranean cuisine.   When he told me about it I had to go…..when I went there I was surprised to find the an amazing assortment of exciting and fair priced food products.

Their bulk items are less expensive than most/all bulk item sellers in Seattle.  I was so excited about this then the ultimate excitement came when I found they were selling squid in ink.  This isn’t a normal product to be found at the grocery store but it makes one hell of a dish with a little bit of white rice.

Chorizo….yes…..everything else…..amazing.

Check it out if you live in Seattle.  Thanks chef Claycamp!

Big John’s PFI (Click)

Eric

Tutta Bella (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
1

Mindy and I love pizza.  It’s the only thing we order out for when we’re both running around like maniacs working.  A basic pepperoni pizza with jalapenos or Canadian bacon and pineapple does the trick too…..sometimes just being simple and letting someone else make food is awesome.

However, when we go out and eat pizza it better be something amazing! Tutta Bella’s in Seattle made that happen for us. We stumbled upon their location after our visit to Seattle Tilth’s Harvest Festival and had a nice lunch before I ran off to work.

We started off with a “small” salad that wasn’t small at all as you can see. We should probably split this!

After we both devoured the salad we moved onto the main course.   The pizza had figs, pancetta, reduced balsamic, and goat cheese……pretty f’ing amazing.  It was one of their specials that day and I really hope it makes its way onto the menu permanently.

Food coma intact I ordered a double espresso to wake back up and go to work.

Tutta Bella (click)

Eric

Poppy (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
1

Chef Jerry Traunfeld is a culinary genius. I have read “The Herbfarm Cookbook” a few times and it has been my inspiration for pushing the envelope with herbs and spices in my own culinary work.  The best thing about my work with herbs is that Mindy wanted to help me out with all this so she planted an herb garden for me so I could try to discover the world of herbs with a little guidance of The Herbfarm Cookbook.   Bring it all together and we finally had a chance to eat at Chef Traunfeld’s restaurant last night in celebration of our nine year anniversary.

Before I go further with the food extravaganza we had at Poppy I would just like to say that I love my wife more than anything else and I thank her for letting me run wild in the world of food. She has been extremely supportive of my decision to drop everything, change my life, and focus on my addiction to food.  She is truly amazing and after 9 years of marriage it still feels like we just got married yesterday and to a bunch of you it probably looks that way too…..married at 19! :)

Coolest wife ever!

“Eric, that was sweet but we clicked on this link because you said something about Poppy and we’ve been meaning to go there for a while so get on with it”.

Poppy has a really cool concept. It’s called thali’s. Thali’s allow you to eat a bunch of amazing bites on one presented dish with other smaller dishes within the big dish…..kind of like those Russian dolls but less creepy.

I think it’s a very similar concept to Korean BBQ (click).  You get a bunch of little plates of awesome food presented to you and then you can let your culinary a.d.d. take over.  ”Oh this looks good, what about that….yes, ohhhhhhh look at that, OMG, how about this, YES!!!”.  The difference from Poppy and Korean BBQ is that instead of cooking the food for yourself you let a true culinary master take over which allows you to sit back, relax, and just eat.

First up was a few appetizers.  We opted for the Poached Oysters with Sorrel Sauce

and Bacon along with the Grilled Artichoke with White Anchovy and Herbed Aioli.

Both of the appetizers were made with simple ingredients but the execution on both of them was flawless.  The little white anchovies were pretty damn amazing.

For dinner I opted for the 10 item thali which consisted of:

  • Slow Roasted Copper River Coho with Sorrel Sauce and Lobster Mushroom
  • Grilled Wagyu Coulotte Steak with Red Pepper Walnut Sauce
  • Corn Soup with Lemon Basil
  • Radish, Grilled Spring Onion and Purslane Salad
  • Tomato, Leek, and Taggia Olive Salad
  • Roasted Beets and Huckleberries with Lemon Thyme
  • Spiced Armenian Cucumber
  • Zucchini Basil Gratin
  • Melon Anise-Hysson Pickle
  • Nigella-Poppy Naan

Mindy had the 7 item thali which consisted of the same main items with the exception of the salmon and 2 other things…..MATH IS AWESOME!

Each item was incredible and once again the execution was flawless.  There wasn’t one thing on the thali that didn’t need to be there or wasn’t perfectly paired with something else.   Something a little spicy, then a palate cleanser, then something a little strange but familiar, then a fall apart salmon and a piece of steak that required no steak knife…..just a butter knife.   Yes, perfection 10 times!

At this point we were both happy with our decisions for our 7 and 10 thali’s but the eating wasn’t over! I heard that Poppy could put out some amazing desserts as well so we ordered  a thali of desserts!

“Eric, say it again”.

Again, flawless execution.  I think if you’re going to celebrate something or just want a great place to dine in Seattle then this is a great place to do it at. Poppy!

Eric

Cedarbrook Lodge: Tomatofare 2010

Posted on by
2

I was invited to attend a celebration of heirloom tomatoes at the Cedarbrook Lodge over the weekend.  They said heirloom tomatoes and I was there but they added a lot more to the lineup to solidify yet another amazing experience at the Cedarbrook Lodge (click).

A list of amazing restaurants:

  • Chef William Belickis, Mistral Kitchen
  • Chef Mark Bodinet, Cedarbrook Lodge
  • Chef Christine Keff, Flying Fish
  • Chef Bobby Moore, Barking Frog (Willows Lodge)
  • Chef Jason Wilson, Crush
  • Chef Michael A. Young, Olives Café Wine Bar
  • Chef Paul Bosch, The Resort at The Mountain
  • Chef Gabriel Claycamp, Alchemy Meats
  • Chef Dalis Chea, Herban Feast & Fresh Bistro
  • Chefs John & Chris Hussey, Private Chefs (Soap Lake, Wash.)
  • Bernie & Delia Flores, Salsa Champ

A list of amazing wineries and brewers:

  • Left Coast Cellars
  • White Heron Cellars
  • Chatter Creek Winery
  • Wineglass Cellars
  • Tertulia Cellars
  • The Pike Brewing Company
  • Maritime Pacific Brewery

And live music by:

  • Black Lab Trio
  • First Circle

Uh, that’s a big time event….I have to go!  So I packed my camera and my stomach and raced around for an hour before I had to go to work.  I would have loved to stay longer but that whole work thing….paycheck thing….yeah :)

I knew there were a lot of different varieties of heirloom tomatoes but seeing them up close and personal is a little staggering. They set up a tasting and viewing table so each attendee could try the tomatoes….see for yourself!

I showed the video to Mindy and I saw the amazement in her eyes. I think this will raise the bar for her farm next year……MORE TOMATOES! :)

The restaurants and chefs that were there were featuring lovely tomato dishes using these fabulous tomatoes.  I had the pleasure of trying these myself and let me just say they were all fantastic.  I grew up not liking tomatoes because they were the run of the mill red beefsteak tomatoes that had no flavor or excitement. Over the last few years I have been searching for a way for tomatoes to redeem themselves. Tomatoes, you are redeemed and you have the chefs at Tomatofare to thank for this.

Mistral Kitchen:

The shot glass has tomato water in it with little crunchy pieces of bread. Absolute genius.  Totally stealing that!!

Cedarbrook Lodge:

I kept waiting for the chef assistant to walk away from the table so I could have just grabbed the entire pie. It was really good. Great job Chef Bodinet (pictured below)!

Fresh Bistro (CHEF DALIS CHEA (not pictured)!!!!!! One of the nicest guys I’ve ever met.  Fresh Bistro is one of my regular hang-out spots. Love that place! Best brunch dish I’ve ever had…Loco Moco.)

Olives Cafe and Wine Bar:

I’ve never heard of this place but after this showing it’s a definite must visit restaurant.  They’re located in Edmonds (thanks for the correction Carolyn). I ate three of these…… :)

The Barking Frog:

It was hard to eat this because it looked so pretty.  I just wanted to stare at it for a while but not in a creepy way…… It was verrrrrryyyy good.

The Resort at the Mountain:

This dish helps my a.d.d. I can do two things with one dish! Cool! Eat and drink! It was simple and tasty.

Alchemy Meats:

I’ve said it on this blog a few times. I’m a huge fan of Chef Claycamp.  He brought us The Swinery, Culinary Communion, and gypsy dinners.  It was very cool to see him at this event serving up a panzanella salad. Good luck with your new venture chef!

Crush:

Jason Wilson is on fire right now.  The James Beard award winner for best chef in the Northwest. He showed up ready to rock with his tomato dish.   Loved the pesto foam!

Finally, I’ll leave you with a picture of the one of the coolest chefs I’ve ever met.  Chef Breiman is the culinary director for the Cedarbrook Lodge and has put a lot of time and passion into turning the Cedarbrook Lodge into a top destination resort in the Northwest.  Everytime I talk to him I am excited to hear what he has to say and it was very nice of him to take a little time to show me around the event as well as introduce me to his wife, Mrs. Tomatofare :)

Thanks again to everyone at the Cedarbrook Lodge as wel as all the other chefs, restaurants, wineries, and bands in attendance!

Eric

El Gaucho Bellevue’s Pour on the Plaza

Posted on by
2

(Tuna tartare on a taro root crisp)

Received an invitation to visit El Gaucho’s Pour on The Plaza event but I had a little issue arise…..the party was from 2-5PM and I had to work at 4PM and it was at the El Gaucho in Bellevue.   “Eric, that sounds like a nice issue/problem to have”.   I know!!!!

Mindy and I made our way to Bellevue and discovered this little piece of green in between all the towers of Bellevue where El Gaucho Bellevue is located (I’ve only been to the Tacoma and Seattle locations).  The El Gaucho in Bellevue is huge and beautiful but I’ll never be able to work there unfortunately……chefs/cooks wear neckerchiefs……we’re required to wear them at school….I hate them….oh, and floppy chef hats too…..awful….but that’s ok, I wasn’t there to cook, I was there to eat and drink!!! :) And eat and drink I did…but not too much because I had to work!

The weather was amazing but maybe a little too amazing for most people as you can see in this video.  Washingtonians are afraid/allergic to the sun and they will seek shade at any cost.

“Eric, you’re a Washingtonian….what gives??”   You do remember I’m Puerto Rican right?  We’re bred for hot weather, drinking, and eating awesome food…..perfect person to invite for this event!

Along with various amounts of bites being handed out by the El Gaucho crew Palomino and Wild Ginger were there as well to hold down the food part of this extravaganza.  It was all good food but I seriously want a wok and burner like this so I can hand out awesome fried things too….I was a little jealous.

When it’s 90+ degrees outside a good wine to drink is a white one that is served cold…..that’s my expert wine advice (keep cooking!!). We tried a few whites.

Fantastic….

Fantastic….

At this point I needed to try at least one red so we headed over to the Dunham Cellars tabled and after talking to the reps. for a few minutes they showed us the secret bottle of wine they had under the table.

Secret bottles of wine….do your research and you’ll find it. Best wine I’ve had in a long time and I don’t drink wine a lot so that really doesn’t give it a good endorsement but it was awesome!

The best part of this was that Denise from Wasabi Prime (click) was there…..always fun to talk to! Do we talk about food? Nope, that’s why it’s fun!

Thanks again for the people at El Gaucho for inviting me. I wish I could have stayed longer but that whole work thing came into play…you know.

El Gaucho (click)

Armondo’s (Renton, WA)

Posted on by
2

(Sponsored Post)

The folks over at Armondo’s invited me over to their restaurant to check out their revamped menu and to debut their new chef.  Armondo’s has been open in Renton for over 25 years and has served the locals well over that time.  So much so that they were a small 10 seat pizzeria that transformed itself into its current location that has had every seat full since opening.  With constant change in the restaurant industry one thing has held true at Armondo’s……great Italian food for a great price.

(Son, this is where pizza comes from)

The new changes are subtle so locals and regulars please don’t think Armondo’s is turning their back on you….they’re going to make things better! The focus is to tie in the local and seasonal ingredients that Washington has in order to give a local style of Italian food.

Here are a few things you’ll be seeing on the menu at Armondo’s.

To start you off,

seasonal bruschetta

The bread course is from that wonderful brick oven which is a definite must have to any kitchen.  A little parmesan here, a few herbs, then send it through the heat!!! Awesome every time.

Mindy’s favorite of the evening came up next.  This four cheese pizza (Quattro Formaggi Pizza) with goat cheese is a must-have for goat cheese lovers.  Look at the shine on the crust!

Next up was my favorite of the evening.  The Minestrone.  It was just perfect.  The day we went it was about 90 degrees and I couldn’t stop myself from eating the hot soup!

Next up a white shrimp risotto.  Definitely fit for summertime.

Served with a side of market vegetables of course!

And finally a fresh fruit panna cotta.

I’m so happy they had to-go boxes because I wasn’t able to finish it all! Armondo’s is a great Italian restaurant in the heart of downtown Renton and with a wine list with great prices (all under $40) as well as great food I’m sure they’ll be around for another 25 years.

Armondo’s (click)

Eric

Pike Street Fish Fry (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
1

Walking around a bit after our Genki Sushi extravaganza we stumbled upon Pike Street Fish Fry. I’ve heard a lot of good things about this place it was a must visit for me.  Also, I work the fry station sometimes at work so I wanted to see what other restaurants do with their fish and chips dish…not to compare, just to learn.

We walked in and one of the cooks was breaking down some halibut so I ordered the just delivered and broke down fish which is something you should do when the opportunity arises.

The cool thing is that they had Sangria and Olympia beer.  Hey, I grew up in Olympia (I remember going on the Olympia Brewery tour on class trips as a little kid….awesome experience) and I love Sangria!!! Oh, and that lovely lady in the background.

The halibut and fries with harissa ketchup with an eager fry trying to get into the delicious harissa ketchup.

The fish was great and their batter was nice and crispy, the fries were nice, and the sauce was amazing.  One thing that surprised me was the deep fried lemon that also resembles Pac-Man when you bite into it.

This deep-fried lemon is another classic example of:  If you deep-fry anything it will be awesome.

Pike Street Fish Fry (click)

Their chalkboard has a lot of other great things for me to check out next time!

Genki Sushi (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
Reply

I’ve always wanted to go to a conveyor belt sushi place….not sure if that’s the technical term for them…who cares.

Mindy and I were doing our weekend walk around town and we stumbled upon Genki Sushi. I said, “hey, that’s that new sushi place with the conveyor belts that just opened”.  Mindy said, “we should go”.  That’s all it takes!

She’s been to one of these C.B.S.P’s before so she gave me a quick run down.  Basically, it’s a culinary A.D.D. dream.  You just sit there and watch a ton of food pass you by. Like something? Grab it!

What Eric does:  watches a couple sitting next to him then waits to see what they are interested in then the elusive Eric pounces on their sushi and watches them make faces like this.

Each plate that passes by has a different color that corresponds to the price you will pay for that dish.  Eat a bunch,

save your plates, then the waitress will total them up and you’re on your way.  Quick, easy, and inexpensive. I think we were out the door for around $10!

We’ll definitely be back again. This little spicy crab roll was awesome!

Genki Sushi (click)

First time I’ve had cooks/chefs actually want me to take a picture of them. Very cool!

Eric

Copperleaf Restaurant (Seattle, WA)

Posted on by
3

I get really excited when I see chefs that worked at big name restaurants come to Washington and take claim of a restaurant in my favorite state in the world (local product here!).  Mark Bodinet is one of those chefs.  Coming from The French Laundry he has worked at one of my dream restaurants.  He is also a graduate of the Art Institute of Phoenix’s Culinary Arts Program….again, another dream (1 year left at the Art Institute of Seattle!!!).  So when I see those two things I get excited….alumni from my school and The French Laundry….hmmm, maybe someone I know can do the same thing one day……..

I received an invite from the folks over at Richmond PR to attend a dinner at the Copperleaf Restaurant located at the Cedarbrook Lodge.   I was confused a little bit because I never heard of either place.  Well, there’s a reason for that.  Until a few years ago Cedarbrook Lodge was a private lodge owned by Washington Mutual for use by its employees only and their guests.

When you look around at the place you can truly see corporate greed at its finest.  There are plenty of nice hotels around the Seattle area, why did WAMU decide to build its own $50,000,000 lodge???  Why did they decide to buy Longbeach Mortgage?  Why did they get so heavily involved in sub-prime loans???  Well, those questions can easily be answered with this……they were idiots and they were recently purchased by Chase for pennies on the dollar.

I’m not really sure how the Coastal Hotel Group got involved with Cedarbrook Lodge but I’m guessing the transaction went down like this.  WAMU or Chase people…”Hey, does anyone want to buy this private lodge….it’s really nice….has a satellite controlled sprinkler system (seriously)……..50+ rooms……water features (it’s a must for me)…….and it’s a hell of a lot cheaper than $50,000,000.????”  Coastal Hotel Group, “Yeah, we’ll take it……and throw in some of those Wahoo ad. campaign stickers WAMU had….”.   “Really, you want stickers from the WAMU Wahoo campaign?”   “No, I was kidding, those were awful, thanks for the hotel LOL!”.  (None of this actually happened….Sorry, I’ll get back to serious post time).

It’s always amusing when I get invited to events like this.  I arrive then I see the other people that are there and I immediately think…….”Why did they invite me?”.  The owners of Richmond PR were there, the owners of Coastal Hotel Group,  Lorna Yee (click),  Jay Friedman (click), and an awesome chef from The French Laundry! These are big time people!!!! One of these things is not like the other…..this guy.

Before dinner started culinary director Roy Breiman (click) who has a pretty impressive resume took us on a tour of the grounds but first he gave us a few glasses of my new party starter drink.

Go to the store right now and buy 15 bottles of this stuff.  It’s the perfect summertime drink and if you can’t find it at a store then visit the amazing folks over at the Copperleaf Restaurant and order your own bottle (cheesy commercial smile time).

The focus of the lodge and restaurant is to focus on local, sustainable, and fair trade ways of doing business.  I know, you’ve heard that a thousand times because every restaurant is using those terms like they never existed before but the Copperleaf is different……. How?  To the picture vault we go (I bought a picture vault from WAMU…..great deal)!

This is their garden where chef sources finishing touches to his menu.  We had baby turnips from the garden that were used later in the evening for dinner.

This was Mindy’s favorite part, she took mental notes on a few things that will be coming soon to MindyRiveraFarms (click)…..especially these Mesclun varieties.

Obviously their garden won’t be able to supply their needs for continuous meal service so they really focus on using local food sources and working with their purveyors in order to find food for the restaurant within 150km of the restaurant. I think that’s great and it’s the way all restaurants should function. The great thing about Seattle is that we do have a great variety of farms available to use that produce some amazing products….if this was Ohio then corn would be front and center on the menu and not much else (don’t even start arguing the joys of Ohio with me….there are none).  Here is a list of some of the sources The Copperleaf uses at the restaurant (click)……..WORLD SPICE!!(click)!!!!!!

What blew my mind on the tour was the use of mushrooms for culinary and filtration systems.  They are growing their own mushrooms for the chef to use as well as another set that will filter the water from the property back into the protected wetlands located on their property! How cool is that?!!??!?!?

Mr. Breiman showed us the area where some of the brandywine mushrooms will be popping up around October-November. Mark your calendars…..October-November, dinner at the Copperleaf!

“Eric, enough….we’re hungry….show us some food”.

Sorry, was just trying to AMUSE you.  :)

Amuse Bouche of Nash Farm Chicken Confit with Truffle Potato Puree and Parsley Coulis.

Parsley oil is one of my favorite things but when it’s paired this little bite of heaven I wanted more……darn amuse bouche course for being so small……but don’t complain, there is plenty of food to come!

Yakima Valley Asparagus, Washington Cherries, Spring Onions, Summer Truffles paired with 2008 Substance Pinot Gris.

Today’s attention to detail award goes to the cleaning of the asparagus stems…thank you chef! :)  The vinaigrette was brilliant and those shaved summer truffles were to die for.

Kodiak Island Halibut (flown in that morning) with Heirloom Tomatoes, Sweet Corn, and House Cured Bacon paired with 2008 Abeja, Chardonnay.

The halibut was cooked perfectly.  The tiny bits of bacon worked into the corn, genius.  The concasse of the tiny tomatoes, true work of an artist in the kitchen. Details people….details….

Red Raspberry Granite

A little palate cleanser before the dinner party gets turned up to 11.  I heard a few people say this might have been a little too sweet but I think a few fireworks on the senses are appropriate before the big show arrives.  Huh?  I don’t know what that means either…….plain and simple….raspberry granite…always awesome….especially on a 90 degree day in Seattle.

Snake River Farm Pork Belly with Baby Turnips, Dijon, Wild Arugula and paired with a 2007 DeLille Cellars “Doyenne” Syrah.

I was almost ready to pull the fire alarm so everyone would leave the table…..I wanted to eat every single one of these pieces of pork belly.  So good and with the Delille Cellars wine is was a perfect pairing.  All this magic almost distracted me from the cuteness of the baby turnips but I’m a softy for cute vegetables…..awwwww! AMAZING!

Grilled Painted Hills Strip Loin with Baby Carrots, Morel Mushrooms, and English Peas paired with a 2005 Porteus Zinfandel.

No words….just look at the picture….look at it again…..run to the Copperleaf Restaurant…order this…….e-mail me……I will e-mail you back saying, “I told you so”…….high five. Brilliant dish.

Fromage Blanc Ice Cream with Garden Strawberries and Spearmint Biscotti served with Covey Run Semillion Ice Wine.

Fromage Blanc is one of my favorite cheeses.  Make an ice cream with it and now you are putting me into the stratosphere.  Everything up to this almost disappears, well for Mindy at least. Her eyes were closed as she enjoyed this dessert and you could see the smiles and hear the giggles……..why didn’t we get a room at the lodge???? :)

Theo’s Hot Chocolate Mignardises.

The final course. I knew something amazing was coming so I flipped my camera from uhhhh camera mode to movie mode.  Hearing the maître d’ explain this dish gives you a small idea of the entire experience we had at dinner at The Copperleaf.

The Copperleaf Restaurant at the Cedarbrook Lodge.   I know where it is now, I know what they’re about, and this is now on my list of go-to dining experiences in the Northwest.    Thank you.

Copperleaf Restaurant (click)

Eric

It’s almost lunch time, it’s nice outside, you work in Seattle……GO TO SIP!

Posted on by
4

“Oh wow, this is nice.”

It’s pretty awesome!  Order a glass of rose and let’s just relax in the Seattle sun for the next few days….Ikea has sales more often than we get sun in Seattle.

“What’s good on here?”

Well, I’ve been here a few times and the menu doesn’t disappoint so let’s just pick random things. Vietnamese Caramel Beef sounds great!

“I can’t believe this place is in downtown Seattle”.

I know, but enough with the talking there is more wine to drink and more food to eat.

Local Mushroom Flan

Excuse me waitress…..could we have dessert please…..just surprise us.

I’m not going to tell you what this dessert is.  I want you to print the picture out, take it into Sip, and tell them to make you one of these. It’s worth the price of admission by itself…..it’s that good.

Sip (click)

Eric