Review: Senor Moose Cafe

Well, sorry about the cell phone pic folks. My Dad is in town, and we were wandering around the wilds of Ballard when he declared his hunger. Immediately my mental food tracking GPS went in to gear, and said "Senor Moose!! I haven't been to Senor Moose in far too long!"

The Moose is one of the most amazing restaurants in the Seattle area. When you walk in, you feel like you are in a humble backroads diner, with cozy but rustic furniture. You would think that this is going to be a pleasant ham-and-eggs joint, but then you notice all of the Mexican decorations, and you hope against hope, maybe there will be huevos rancheros too.

Oh, dear hungry sir or madam, you have not dared to dream big enough. Open your eyes, and you will find yourself rewarded with Calabacitas Guisadas (zucchini, corn, and onion stew from Michoacan, $8.75), Papas Con Rajas (poblano chilis and potatoes in cream, from Mexico City, $7.95), the Huevos Con Nopalitos pictured above (eggs with fresh cactus paddles, black beans and cotija cheese, and corn tortillas, $7.95), or the magnificient Huevos Ahogados (poached eggs "drowning" in a tomato broth, $7.95).

And that just begins to scratch the surface of the menu. Out of a tiny kitchen, owner Kathleen Andersen and chef Abraham Mata offer dozens of regional specialties from all over Mexico. Kathleen lived and traveled throughout Mexico for decades, and collected recipes from every abuela and tia she was lucky enough to spend time with.

Vegetarians as well as carnivores will find plenty of options, though the menu might be a bit tough for vegans.

If you have any of the cookbooks of Diana Kennedy or Rick Bayless (or have eaten at his restaurants), you will be amazed to find the same level of authenticity and flavor in an inexpensive joint in Ballard.

The menu also includes some American-style breakfast items, and more familiar tacos and enchiladas for those who aren't in the mood to stretch their culinary horizons first thing in the morning. Dad was really happy with his Havarti, Mushroom and Spinach scramble ($7.95).

Breakfast is offered from 8:00 - 3:00 everyday, and dinner starts at 5:00, running until 9:00 on weekdays and 10:00 on Friday and Saturday.

Review: Tamarind Tree Vietnamese Restaurant, Seattle, WA

Vegetarian Coconut Rice Cake at Tamarind Tree

Hidden in the back of a business complex in the Little Saigon neighborhood, tucked into an impossibly overstuffed parking lot, Tamarind Tree serves up the most sophisticated and tasty Vietnamese food in Seattle, and is very vegetarian friendly.

From the moment you walk in the door, you know you've stepped up a level from most of the (often wonderful) neighborhood restaurants. The decor is sleek and modern down to the slick cast concrete bathroom sinks. The outdoor patio features a waterfall, and indoors there is a fire pit surrounded by three tables.

The menu offers many dishes you won't find at any other restaurant I'm aware of, and makes an effort to preserve regional flavors instead of turning everything into either a rice plate, a vermicelli bowl (bun), hot pot, or soup (usually pho).

The steamed coconut rice cake (banh man cu cai chay) you see above is a perfect example. The rice cake itself is soothingly warm and tender, delicately scented with coconut and topped with faux shrimp. Ignore that they are supposed to be shrimp, the resemblance ends at the visual. But they are wonderfully tasty little charcoal grilled morsels, with a pleasant chewy bite. The dish is served with vegetarian dipping sauce (like nuoc mam, but without the fish sauce), and a little shredded carrot salad. At most restaurants the salad would be an afterthought, but here is has been doused with coconut water or vinegar, providing an exciting, different coconut taste paired with the rice cake.

Vegetarians are well treated at Tamarind Tree. There are probably a dozen dishes clearly marked as vegetarian, and they are conscientious about making sure there really is no little bit of meat or fish in them. And many of the staff speak excellent English, so you can clarify any questions you might have. One small nitpick: several of the vegetarian dishes include a grilled lemongrass tofu. It is good, but it is the same in all of the dishes so if you pick more than one of them, it can feel redundant.

Today I also had the excellent Tamarind Tree Rolls, pictured below, which are the soft rice paper rolls wrapped around green leaf lettuce, mint, fried tofu, peanuts, and little crispy packets of fried wonton skin for a crunch factor, served with the same vegetarian dipping sauce.

The total for a very satisfying lunch was only $9.25. Generally speaking, dinners will run maybe 20% more than at competing Vietnamese eateries, but that is easily justifiable for the more sophisticated cuisine. At dinnertime and especially on weekends, Tamarind Tree does a roaring business, so arrive early, make a reservation, or be prepared to hang out for awhile!

Four. Thousand. Dollars. A. Pound.

Fresh White Truffles

Sarina spotted the news that DeLaurenti's market, a superb Italian specialty store in Seattle's Pike Place Market had received a shipment of white truffles. Oh, just one little thing. They cost $4000 dollars for a pound.

Now this isn't actually as gruesome as it seems. That works out to something like $8 / gram, and even 5-6 grams (the size of one of the truffles in the picture above) will flavor the heck out of enough pasta or eggs for 2-4 people. So for the the cost of only a middling restaurant meal, you could instead have something superb and rare at home. Maybe not so bad? Certainly one of the greatest vegetarian indulgences imaginable.

So we trekked down to DeLaurenti's, which Sarina calls "the happiest place on Earth". The folks at the counter were happy to help, allowing us to pick out our own truffles and watch them weigh them on a special little postal scale. While we were there we felt compelled to come back with housemade porcini butter (astounding), housemade fresh mozzarella, Calabro ricotta, Porcini Harvest Bread from Macrina, grilled artichokes, and a pound of fresh tagliatelle which they roll and cut to order. And some chanterelles from another store. Picture below. This is a family blog so let me just say: Oh heck yeah.

This is my first experience cooking with white truffles. I've had black ones a couple of times. There is a distinct difference in flavor. To me, the black truffles are more cleanly aromatic while the whites have a pungent characteristic a little bit like garlic. I actually think I might prefer the black truffles (and they are only like 1/5 the price), but the jury is still out.

Most of the reading I did suggested infusing black truffles into sauces, risottos and so on, while white truffles were to be reserved for grating or slicing on top of a finished dish. So that is what I tried first, the classic preparation of simply grating them on top of scrambled eggs with lots of butter. For whatever reason, this didn't do it for me. It was good, of course, but the aroma didn't send me reeling back with pleasure.

So tonight we used up most of the rest of them in a simple parmesan cream sauce for pasta. The recipe is below. The main trick is to infuse the truffle in the cream for 15-30 minutes so the flavor can fully develop. Good parmesan cheese seems to me to be one of the ultimate matches for truffles, enhancing the heady earthy flavors. The results this time were as astonishing as I'd hoped. Outrageous really.

Tagliatelle in White Truffle Cream Sauce
Serves 2 as dinner or 4 as a first course

• 1 lb. fresh tagliatelle
• at least 5 grams of fresh white truffle
• 1 1/2 c. heavy cream
• 3 oz. parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated
• sea salt
• fresh ground black pepper

1. Set a large pot of salted water on to boil.
2. In a small skillet, heat the cream to a simmer and let it reduce for about 5 minutes, until slightly thickened, and then remove from the heat.
3. Stir in most of the parmesan cheese.
4. Grate the truffle into the sauce with your finest grater (i.e. a microplane). Don't waste a hair of it.
5. Cover the sauce and let rest off the heat for at least 15 minutes.
6. When you are ready to eat, drop in the pasta and set the sauce back over lowest possible simmer to reheat gently.
7. When the pasta is al dente, drain, portion into individual heated bowls, toss with the sauce, top with a bit more parmesan, a few grains of sea salt and a grind of pepper.
8. Experience rapture.

White Truffles, Roasted Artichokes, Porcini Butter, Fresh Mozarella, Fresh Tagliatelle, and Chanterelles

 

Fresh Porcini in Italy and Seattle!

Porcini at Cafe Flora in Seattle

Depending on where you are in the world, it is fresh Porcini (aka Cepes) mushroom season. The picture above is of 21 pounds of these beauties that were delivered to Cafe Flora the other day. I couldn't stop looking at them. They were so freshly picked that the gills were practically glowing olive green. The cell phone picture doesn't really capture it, but those puppies were around 10" tall!

Below you see the same mushrooms at the market in Florence, Italy from the end of September. It was just the early part of the season there and every good restaurant was featuring them in specials. I had them on pasta, pizza, risotto, and broiled in a tin foil packet with butter and white beans at Cibreo, a spectacular Florentine establishment. The flavor surprised me, it is mild compared to the intense musky flavor of the dried ones I use to make broth the rest of the year.

Have you seen these in your area? What do you like to do with them? What is the best way to really feature their unique qualities?

Porcini at the market in Florence, Italy

Foraging In Belltown and Downtown Seattle (With Mini-Reviews of Lola, Local Vine, Sazerac, and Wild Ginger)

Catholic Seaman's Club, Seattle, WA

Saturday night. A rare date night, even rarer now that I'm working some restaurant hours. Normally we would plan a dinner someplace nice, but we know we have our first trip to the Herb Farm coming up soon, and it seemed unnecessary to be too specific. Instead we decided to catch a bus to Belltown and just see what caught our eye.

Stop #1 - Lola - Tom Douglas' Greek venture in Hotel Andra is one of our favorites, often for brunch. This time I tried one of their several ouzos and we had an appetizer that was uncannily similar to the phyllo wrapped feta and citrus salad I made the other day. Their version had a creamier, non-spicy filling and an arugula and grape salad, and was served with a thyme and honey oil, so the flavors were different but it was plated so similarly it was a bit freaky. We also had their incredibly smooth and garlicky tzatziki which is served with just-baked pita. Like all of Douglas' ventures, Lola is reliable and stylishly excellent.

Stop #2 - So we are walking down 2nd Ave. and out of the blue, there is my friend from Adobe, Kevin, walking his Bijan Frise. No, that isn't a type of lettuce, it is a dog, smarty pants. Turns out he lives in Belltown, and he recommended Local Vine, which is a very stylish and modern wine bar owned partially by Jason Wilson of Crush fame and one of Food and Wine's Best New Chefs of 2006. Definitely very hip. You can order a glass anywhere from around $8 up to something like $2000 for the 2003 Screaming Eagle. Sure. I'll probably settle for some Whimpering Crow but whatever. One fine thing is that you can taste before you commit to a glass. I had a nice Bordeaux and Sarina had a glass of bubbly. We shared the truffled popcorn and speculated about the rather odd customer a few tables away in his all-white cult clothes. I was probably raised by wolves, but I didn't know about the cool trick with the champagne flutes that are etched so that all the bubbles emanate in a tight funnel in the center of the glass. Whoa dude.

Interlude - After watching the baker at Macrina ice a cake, we were peering in the window at the Catholic Seaman's Club (pictured above), a haven for sailors on shore leave and a landmark in Belltown that is a throwback to an era in Seattle's maritime past. We chatted for a few minutes with a gentleman who turns out to be none other than Father Haycock. He told us sadly of how leaves are often only a few hours now, and many of the sailors don't have visas that allow them to safely wander the streets anyhow. Yet another consequence of 9-11.

Stop #3 - When I first started visiting Seattle regularly as a telecommuter for Adobe, like 8 years ago, I'd stay at Hotel Monaco. For some reason Sazerac seemed really cool to me then. Anyhow Sarina mentioned it for some reason, and it brought back memories of their hush puppies so I insisted we cab down there. Man, the 80's called and they want their giant thumbtack wall sculpture back. No more hushpuppies. I had a classic Sazerac cocktail, which turns out to be sweeter than my preferred beverage style. The appetizer pizza was good, but I think this place is kind of due for a makeover.

Stop #4 - At this point we just wanted a quick dessert before grabbing a cab back to the homestead. Wild Ginger was in sight and I was too addled to think harder, though 611 Supreme sounded appealing too. We had a really good chocolate torte and a very moist polenta cake, which I washed down with a pear brandy from Oregon's magnificent Clear Creek Distillery. It has that intensity of an eau de vie with crystal clear pear flavors. Dang.

Wha a fun and romantic date night! We might not have hit the single most interesting four spots in walking distance, but it was a treat to do dinner and drinks as all individual plates at a pace that suited our mood, with a nice stroll in between and no plan needed upfront. And this is a very vegetarian friendly way to dine, since even the most meat-heavy restaurants tend to have a few veggie appetizers.

Details:

Lola
2000 4th Ave
Seattle, WA
(206) 441-1430

Local Vine
2520 2nd Avenue at Vine Street
Seattle, WA 98121
(206) 441-6000

Sazerac
1101 Fourth Avenue
Seattle, WA  98101
(206) 624-7755

Wild Ginger
1401 3rd Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 623-4450

Seattlest + Last Week For South 47 Farm

Produce at South 47 Farm in Redmond, WA

Many thanks to Dan over at Seattlest for the kind article about the blog and my internship! They are definitely the site to watch if you want a broad perspective and absolutely up to the minute news of what is going on in our fair city.

The pictures above and below are from South 47 Farm over in Redmond. If you are looking for a little less commercial vibe to go pick pumpkins, and an all organic farm, this is the place to go. They close Oct. 31st this year so hurry out and do the corn maze (for bigger kids, it takes awhile), pick some pumpkins, and buy the last of the seasons' vegetables.

We took Mini-Me out there for their wonderful Farm Tots program which always includes a quick educational talk, arts and crafts, petting the pygmy goats, picking some produce (this week it was a sugar pumpkin), and a hayride, all for $7 lousy bucks. You can't beat that with a stick, but there are only two days left, the last one of the year is this Friday, 10/26.

Hayride at South 47 Farm

Review: Flying Apron Bakery - New Vegan, Gluten Free Bakery in Seattle, WA (Fremont)

Sorry for the poor picture quality today, all I had was my cell phone when I wandered in to the new Flying Apron Bakery in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood with a few minutes to kill before a doctor's appointment. My eyes lit up to see a happy looking bakery in the spot where a tasty but doomed crepe restaurant had hung around for a few years. Turns out Flying Apron has been around for years, but has recently closed two old locations and consolidated all operations over to Fremont.

I was midway into a maple-pecan muffin before I read the sign that told me that everything here is vegan, gluten free, and wheat free. I was pondering a familiar but just off the tip-of-my-tongue (no pun intended) flavor, which turned out to be chickpea flour. It is a common ingredient in Indian sweets, with a somewhat peanuty character that I really enjoy. It made good sense in this quite tasty and very moist muffin.

I'm a vegetarian of course, but not normally a huge fan of vegan sweets. I have to say though, I've had some impressive ones lately including the German Chocolate cake at Cafe Flora (not to mention the savory waffle). Flying Apron is doing this in style, producing treats you'd be happy to eat even if you normally love butter and wheat. Those of you with stringent food requirements will also appreciate that they clearly label each and every item with the ingredients.

I can't call this a full review since I only had one muffin, but if you are vegan or need to avoid wheat, I think this place would be well worth a trip. Please add a comment if you go and let us all know what you liked or didn't like.

Details:
Flying Apron Bakery
3510 Fremont Ave North
Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 442-1115
http://www.flyingapron.net

Review: Vegan Garden Vietnamese Restaurant, Seattle, WA

It is a strange sensation for me to be presented with a restaurant menu where I have 110 legitimate choices of what to eat. As a vegetarian I'm so used to having a choice of one or two appetizers and a single entree, it is bewildering to be faced with all of these options. At Vegan Garden, a bright, clean, and relatively new restaurant in Seattle's Little Saigon at 12th and Jackson, the options are both numerous and delicious. Not only that, there are items on the menu with no English translation that I can order with impunity! They are rapidly becoming one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants, so I hope to simply eat my way through the entire catalog.

Vietnamese appetizer rolls come in both fresh and deep fried versions, and they can both be spectacular. On a recent visit with Mini-Me we when for the fried Cha Gio Chay, which came out piping hot, super crispy, and filled with little bites of tofu, mushrooms and cabbage. I haven't had any as good as these since my love affair with the first dilapidated and then departed White Lotus in San Jose, CA. Then we shared Bun, the classic Vietnamese bowl filled with a bed of lettuce, a big bunch of soft, cool and thin rice vermicelli noodles with fresh and pickled vegetables. At Vegan Garden you have a choice of multiple toppings, inlcuding Egg Roll and Shredded Tofu, Lemongrass Tofu, Egg Roll with Grilled Pork and Shredded Tofu, Lemongrass Chicken, and Lemongrass Beef.

Naturally none of the Pork, Chicken or Beef is actually animal product. They are made from tofu, wheat gluten and lotus root. We chose the Lemongrass Chicken today, which had a pleasing texture, not too chewy, and a peppery lemongrass glaze. If you enjoy the mock-meats, Vegan Garden does a solid job of them, and if they aren't your cup of tea there are plenty of straightforward tofu and vegetable options.

One of the glories of Vietnamese food is Nuoc Cham, a  sauce that includes lime juice, garlic, shallot, sugar, shredded carrots, and ... fish sauce. Vegan Garden makes a lovely version that omits the fish sauce and includes some pineapple vinegar. We used it both for the rolls and to pour over the rice noodles of our Bun.

The folks at Vegan Garden are absolutely serious about being vegan, right down to soymilk in the iced coffee and eggless fortune cookies. The fortune cookies also provide insight into the spiritual beliefs underpinning their cuisine. The first one we opened said:

"When we are pushed into a situation, we realize our wisdom"
        - Supreme Master Ching Hai

and referred us to godsdirectcontact.com for more information. (But don't worry, other than the fortune cookies you won't be subject to any other religious instruction while you dine).

Our large lunch of rolls and bun came to $12 plus tip, and you could get out even cheaper if you skipped the appetizer. They were also very kind to Mini-Me, providing her with small chopsticks, asking her lots of questions, and looking bemused at her shouts of "no take my plate! I still eating!", which scores plenty of points with us dads.

NOTE: see the comments for this post - when I try new dishes at VG I'll add a note.

Details:
Vegan Garden
1228 S. Jackson St.
Seattle, WA 98144
(206) 726-8669
Daily except Tuesday, 10 AM - 9:30 PM
Carryout available
Parking lot immediately east of restaurant

Review: Veil Restaurant, Seattle, WA

I really shouldn't be writing a post tonight, I should be researching restaurants in Rome and Tuscany, or calling my old friend that I haven't talked to in 6 months. Dinner at Veil was so inspiring I feel the need to get it all down in bytes before I can forget any details.

Although Veil had been on my mental short-list for awhile, the additional motivation for this pilgrimage came when Dana from tastingmenu.com recently signed on as their pastry chef.  But you'll have to wait a few paragraphs for dessert.

We came in early, and the modern room seemed a bit stark in the bright daylight. As the sun mellowed, so did the space. Lindsay's service was equally warm. She took note right away of our special requests (vegetarian, nut allergy) and was ready to figure out how to customize the menu and alert the kitchen. And her attention to details like bringing more bread so that we could mop up the last bits of sauce made us feel right at home. If you are a vegetarian, by no means should you let the online menu discourage you. Veil will work with you to create a first-rate meal.

Veil likes to treat first-time guests to a glass of champagne to set the mood. I'm not a big bubbles drinker, but this was a nice glass, dry and crisp and appetizing. The amuse bouche was a peach soup with herb oil garnish, served in shot glasses. It was full of the perfume of the perfect end of summer peaches we are getting right now,  seasonal and delicious.

For appetizers we had the green salad with whipped Laura Chenel goat cheese (my personal favorite) and pickled grapes, and an heirloom tomato salad with basil oil. If I were to mention one minor flaw in a great dining experience, perhaps a few leaves in the green salad could have been picked over more carefully. The pickling of the grapes was subtle but interesting, and complemented the chevre. The tomatoes were spot-on ripe and needed no elaboration beyond the oil and a few grains of salt to be great.

For entrees we ordered larger portions of two dishes that were designed as second courses. We asked for the mascarpone enriched carnaroli risotto to be supplemented with artichokes, which turned out to be a great call. The artichokes were trimmed down just to the base of the hearts, cut into triangular wedges and sauteed. Risotto can be properly served either wet ("all'onda") or a bit firmer depending on the region of Italy, but in any case should be al dente. Veil's was delightfully creamy, full of the flavor of good wine and mascarpone, and relatively firm with a good bite,  topped with first-rate Parmigiano-Reggiano. I would say it is the best and most refined risotto I've had in Seattle.

Our second entree was house-made agnolotti filled with a silky-smooth turnip puree. Agnolotti means "priest-hat", and I don't think Veil's are quite in the traditional shape. Or possibly the chef attends a different church than I'm familiar with. These were more like ravioli with an additional fold that made them into little purses. In any case, the shape wasn't really relevant to the fact that they were wipe-out-your-bowl delicious. It takes a confident hand to fill pasta with turnips, which not everyone loves. This worked great, the marriage of the toothsome pasta with the creamy and slightly bitter filling dressed with top-notch olive oil and chives is still rattling around in my brain.

And then we come to dessert. Narrowing down to only two choices was a solemn duty. We settled on the Chocolate Fondant Cake (which I believe predates Dana's tenure) and the Kaffir Lime & Lemongrass Creme Brulee (which is her creation). I'm most familiar with fondant as the heinous handball-like coating found on wedding cakes. None of that here of course. This was a delicious affair of two layers of chocolate topped with an intense caramel.

The star of the show was undoubtedly the creme brulee. We both tend to be skeptical of messing with this classic, but this turned our heads. The flavor of the kaffir lime leaves was intense yet elusive. Sarina and I were literally dissecting the dish trying to figure out if it was infused in the custard or the sugar top, or possibly in some sort of thin layer between? In any event it was haunting and great.

Modern food can so easily lean on the shock value of extreme flavor combinations, or focus far too much on stunning presentation and forget flavor. And there is also an unfortunately high correlation between modern style and snobby, scenish atmosphere. Veil suffers from none of these faults. Every bite of food we ate had clear, clean, intense flavors that made sense together and looked great on the plate, and the service couldn't have been nicer or more considerate.

Our ticket is a bit misleading tonight because we didn't order any drinks. The total including the complementary champagne and amuse, two salads, two customized entrees, two desserts and two coffees was $112 plus tip. So probably a realistic grand total would be around $80 per person, which for me puts Veil in the "event" category more than the "run out and grab a bite" realm. I have high expectations when we get to that level, and Veil exceeded them, providing us with a meal that I'm sure we'll be talking about for quite awhile.

Details:
Veil Restaurant
555 Aloha St.
Seattle, WA  98109
(Lower Queen Anne, at Taylor St., near Crow)
(206) 216-0600 or opentable.com for reservations
http://www.veilrestaurant.com/

Chocolate Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Filling And Chocolate Gelato

We have officially entered the Snacky Pants birthday celebration period, which extends approximately 30 days on either side of the actual anniversary of her entrance to this world. We've kicked in to high gear a bit earlier than usual owing to our rapidly approaching trip which will separate her from many of her usual admirers during this important holiday. Brother and CatWoman feted her with gifts, and I was directed to produce both chocolate cupcakes with a cream cheese filling and a chocolate ice cream. Normally I would have wanted to go to vanilla or some sort of caramel ice cream, but one does not argue with the birthday girl.

Simply Desserts, in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood is famous for their chocolate cream cheese cupcakes, and in fact I'd just eaten some at a going away party that my office crue held before my leave of absence started. So the flavor was fresh in my mind when I started searching, and I settled on this recipe at recipezaar.com. The only change I made was to use chopped Guittard bittersweet chocolate instead of the chips. I was slightly skeptical of the vinegar, and could taste it faintly when they were warm, but no-one seemed to mind, though I'm not sure why the recipe wouldn't just call for baking powder instead of or in addition to baking soda. These cupcakes were super moist and tasted even better after a day in the refrigerator.

For the ice cream, I once again turned to Fanny over at Foodbeam.com and followed her recipe for Willy Wonka's Everlasting Chocolate Gelato. Wise call. This time I used Scharffen-Berger unsweetened bar chocolate and Lake Champlain cocoa powder, and pressed brother into service  separating eggs and whisking and manning ice water baths while I began removing the general sheen of chocolate from the whole kitchen. The result was astonishingly rich. If you have a chocolate itch that this doesn't scratch, you may need to be hospitalized for your own safety.  As my friend Stu says, "dzaing main"! The only problem we had was that it really needs some freezer time to harden up, and since we started cooking late in the evening, we ended up eating it in semi-souplike form, even after a brief attempt to quick freeze on a baking sheet. Anyhow this only made it quicker to deliver the chocolate punch straight to our arteries. The picture above was taken the next day, at the "proper" texture. Yes, I re-lit the candle for verisimilitude. Clearly I need one of those ice cream freezers like they have on Iron Chef that can go from custard to ready to serve in 20 minutes.

Snacky Pants and all of the other revelers reported full satisfaction and an inability to sleep due to chocolate overload. Mission accomplished.

Review: Il Terrazzo Carmine, Seattle, WA

Things that will not happen to you at Il Terrazzo Carmine:

1. Your waiter will not try to upsell you to a more expensive wine or entree
2. Your waiter will not be either inappropriately familiar, nor will he or she be distant or hard to find when you need them
3. Your food will not involve foam, xanthan gum or anything requiring "air quotes" on the menu
4. You will not feel as if they can't wait to get you out the door so they can turn one more table this evening

I could go on, but I think you get my point. Il Terrazzo, hidden in an office building in Seattle's Pioneer Square, is a textbook of classic high-end Italian dining.  While the beautiful people are out chasing some hot table where someone just won a James Beard award, the folks that are really in the know are dining beautifully without the hype.

Snacky Pants and I ate there Saturday night with my brother and his lovely girlfriend to celebrate her birthday. We started with a round of cocktails and an antipasto platter (which was customized to be vegetarian with no hesitation) and a wild mushroom ragout over polenta. The antipasto included slices of tomato, beets, fresh mozarella, grilled eggplant, and herby white beans, which we wiped up with the terrifically crusty house bread.  The waiter also caught on right away that we wanted vegetarian appetizers and alerted us that the polenta was normally served with a demiglace but that they would leave it off.

For a second course, the womenfolk shared a Caesar (with anchovies in the dressing, not for me), while brother and I had grilled romaine with walnuts and a gorgonzola dressing. While good, the romaine was a bit too bitter though it balanced nicely with the sharp and creamy cheese.

My entree was the Gnocchi Sorrentino, which was a good bit tastier than yesterday's playdough version. Just beautifully made pillows of potatoey pasta goodness with a flavorful tomato sauce full of parmesan. I was surprised at the large portion, I actually could have ordered the small plate and been satisfied. Brother ordered a steak which came with astounding shoestring fries, maybe 1/16" thick and crispy and salty and perfect. SP had wild salmon with a superb fried ball of mashed potatoes with a cheese center, like arancini riso but potato instead of rice. (Does anyone know what these are called? I've never had one before, but I'm thinking of trading several thousand dollars worth of Nigerian oil futures for another one). And girlfriend had risotto which I couldn't taste but I heard good things. With the entrees we polished off a bottle of 2005 Lange Reserve Pinot Noir. For desserts we stuck to the classics, a flourless chocolate cake and a well made creme brulee in a shallow baking dish for maximum caramelized surface area.

There is something so utterly comforting about Il Terrazzo Carmine. It isn't one of those rooms where you are sequestered in a quiet booth to have your feet gently massaged while your eggplant is harvested. It is a fairly loud, fairly large space. But after your first visit you simply know that you can put yourself in their hands. You don't have to be on the defensive looking for them to put you at a crappy table or bring one person's entree ten minutes after everyone else is served. Everything is going to be done with class, the food will be cooked with confidence and care, and you will have as leisurely a meal as suits your mood. I'm particularly firm on that last point. If I'm spending serious ducats for dinner, I don't want to be rushed in and out. This is my entertainment and event for the evening, and I want to savor it with my family and friends. Il Terrazzo understands that like very few restaurants in America.

The total for 4 drinks, one $55 dollar bottle of wine, 2 appetizers, 2 salads, 4 entrees, 2 desserts, 4 coffees and including tax and tip came to $336, or just about $84 per person. Expensive, but to my way of thinking absolutely worth every penny.

Details:
Il Terrazzo Carmine
411 First Ave. S. (near Pioneer Square)
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 467-7797
http://ilterrazzocarmine.com

Free validated valet parking in the garage in back

Persian Sweets, Allergy Cards, and Virtual Carnivals

There are three unrelated things I want to talk about today. My challenge as an utterly unprofessional writer: segue between them so that you as innocent reader feel as if they are intimately connected.

Have you ever had Persian (aka Iranian) bakery treats? The Seattle area is home to the delightful Minoo Bakery at 12518 Lake City Way NE. I neglected to bring my camera, but there is a nice picture of some of the sweets at Nerd's Eye View. Owners Rashid Ramzani and Ezzat Ghaderi clearly put a lot of love into their pastries. Everything in the case looks neat and precise, and the baking area in back is very clean and well organized, both of which I've found are strong indications of delicious baked goods to come. I had a couple of shortbread-like cookies made from chickpea flour, and a wonderful rolled phyllo and nut item similar to baklava.

Like many desserts from the Middle East and India, the Persian pastries are on the very sweet side, which makes them perfect for enjoying with coffee or tea. And also like many foods from that part of the world, they contain a lot of nuts. Which I dearly love, but Snacky Pants is severely allergic to. Now I don't mean it gives her a tummyache allergic. I mean hit her with the Epipen and off we go to the ER allergic. So we were delighted to learn about Select Wisely. They make laminated, wallet sized cards that describe your specific allergy or other dietary needs in many languages. Need to tell the Finns that you are a vegetarian? Headed to Croatia and lactose intolerant? They've got you covered. And if they don't have one in stock for your particular issue, they'll have it custom made.

And you know, when I'm traveling, I like to get in on local events and celebrations. When I'm hiking the blogosphere, I'm always on the lookout for a good carnival. Hey look! Is that our name in lights?