Archive for Food/Restaurants – Page 8

Feed the Spirit Too

Wiley 1

“Pairings” are turning up on menus everywhere. They’ve become common currency in the culinary world. Small plate pairings. Three course pairings – appetizer, entrée and dessert. Prix fixe meals. Tasting menus. Wines paired to match prix fixe and tasting menus.

Matching food and wine is definitely the easy way. The restaurant selects a few food courses and matches them with complimentary wines. It’s good marketing for them and eliminates that sometimes awkward moment when you’re looking for a $30 bottle of wine on a list with Tiffany-like prices. Easy does it, and beware that while wine pairings may provide a good match they might also be a way for the restaurant to inflate the check. read more

Renewal…

Camillias

Camellias are blooming in our courtyard. After the wettest year in Seattle’s history the sun is finally shining and temps are near 70F. These things do wonders for my Sunlight Affective Disorder. It’s transition time and though the SAD is starting to remit I still cringe and anticipate a cold wind off the lake when the front door opens. But, as things begin to warm up there are more people on the street, new restaurants opening, gallery shows changing, new films being released, plays in preview, and music venues crowded. Renewal and regeneration are in the air. read more

Hang Around Long Enough and You Get It

Free Stuff

Over the weekend I was riding a chairlift at Whistler with a cute blonde dressed entirely in pink. Even her skis – pink polka dots on a white background – were fashion forward. The potential for a relationship was sealed when we both got knocked down thanks to an inattentive lift operator as we were loading. After we got going again I asked her name.

“Chloe, but my friends call me Clo-Clo.”

“What’s yours?

“I’m Jack.”

“How long have you been skiing?”

“This is my 67th year. How about you?” read more

Eat Like Hemingway

Ernest Loves Agnes

One of the hot trends in dining today is the “themed” restaurant, and this year’s theme of choice in Seattle is the Hemingway-inspired boite. By my count there are three new places using Papa’s adventures and lifestyle to inform their spaces and menus.

As with other trends it is difficult to know what kicked this one off. I’m not aware that it’s a resurgence of interest in Ernest’s writing or a re-evaluation of his importance in the literary world although I do believe he is underappreciated. My guess is that it’s the romance of the Hemingway legend. read more

The Glass Is Still Half Full… but

The weather turned south about ten days ago. After a hot, dry, sunny summer it suddenly changed to cool, wet and overcast. Conventional wisdom tells us Labor Day marks the end of summer even though the equinox doesn’t come around until later in the month. It signals the seasonal change. I realize that because of the minimal snow pack from last winter and the long dry summer we need the rain, but, selfishly, I hate to see the end of summer. The sun is late rising now and low in the south in the early evening. The fall rains will be arriving soon. read more