tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29237987563173121352024-03-12T22:14:42.691-07:00Food Commaa blog about food and stuffhanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-72293276538454084792012-08-21T18:42:00.000-07:002012-08-22T13:38:29.879-07:00On the Separation of Kitchen and StateIn the mid-1990s, I was the assistant to the president and publisher of an influential, award-winning magazine and website based in San Francisco. It was a demanding, high-stress job; I often had to come in on the weekends and even sprained my ankle in the line of duty (i.e., while sprinting across the street with lunch for my boss). On the plus side, the company was full of smart, inspired, and inspiring people in a fun environment that encouraged community and creativity. (Some might describe it as “cultish,” but that’s another story.)
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There were lots of perks, too. Though in-house happy hours, massages, and game rooms were soon to become de rigueur at workplaces all over the Bay Area, such amenities felt special then. I particularly appreciated having our own professional chef on staff. Not only did “Phil” and his sous chef, “Ivan,” make delicious organic meals for us every day, but my interest in cooking had been growing steadily over the years, and having such close access to these experts to talk with about food was pretty neat.
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At one point, my boss (I’ll call her “Joan”) was out of the office for an extended period, a couple weeks or so. While I was holding down the fort in her absence, I managed to find a few pockets of time when I didn’t have any pressing matters to attend to. This was in the early days of Web 1.0—not just pre-YouTube or even pre-Friendster but pre-Google—so I had to seek out other ways to occupy myself.
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I gladly found diversion in the kitchen: For a few minutes here and there, I volunteered to prep vegetables and picked up some rudimentary tips along the way. For instance, I learned the correct way to position my left hand while chopping with my right to keep from accidentally julienning my fingers. Also, finally giving in to my incessant requests, Phil relinquished the recipe for his chilled black bean soup. Accented with fresh lime and a shot of Tabasco, the cold puree makes for a perfect summer lunch. It takes up to 2 days to prepare (including chilling overnight) but requires only a handful of ingredients, is totally vegan*, and contains absolutely no fat*. It quickly became one of my favorites.
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I forget how it came up: Either I happened to mention to “Steve,” my counterpart in the editor’s office, that I’d been spending some of my down time with Phil and Ivan, or he might have been walking by and seen me there. What I do remember is that he pulled me aside and said in a very serious, almost menacing, tone, “JOAN'S ASSISTANT DOES NOT <i>WORK IN THE KITCHEN</i>.” I’d always liked Steve, and in all fairness to him, maybe in his own weird, elitist way he was just looking out for my professional interests, or trying to protect those of my boss (who was sort of his boss, too, after all). But seriously, what the shit? In any case, I gave up my casual culinary apprenticeship when Joan returned to the office, and somehow we both lived through the experience without scandal. PHEW.
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It's been unbearably hot around here the past couple of weeks, so naturally this chilled black bean soup has been one of my go-to meals. I’m not at liberty to share Phil’s (far superior) recipe, but I’ve adapted it into a simplified, scaled-down version with canned beans that takes less time to make. That said, use only organic products if available because—as Phil advised—in such a simple soup, the best ingredients shine through.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2nWrZVOZgyw7vk3CPHVx54IT9pqMPml0iRKmDPj2xlI0Ro__mgCC6W4eibxGRAXOWb3SlI2YQ6_PA62_MH6oHn-sfvUdgLnyCR1a1QtUgAZ6QeFXAQy75BiuKTOObPOJoz6_raKv3cS-F/s1600/chilledblackbeansoup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="267" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2nWrZVOZgyw7vk3CPHVx54IT9pqMPml0iRKmDPj2xlI0Ro__mgCC6W4eibxGRAXOWb3SlI2YQ6_PA62_MH6oHn-sfvUdgLnyCR1a1QtUgAZ6QeFXAQy75BiuKTOObPOJoz6_raKv3cS-F/s400/chilledblackbeansoup.jpg" /></a>
<br><br><b>Chilled Black Bean Soup</b><br>
<br>1 small carrot, peeled and chopped<br>
1 celery stalk, chopped<br>
Half a medium onion, chopped<br>
1-2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped<br>
¼ cup water<br>
2 15-oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed<br>
1 quart vegetable broth<br>
1 bay leaf<br>
1 tsp salt<br>
Tabasco sauce<br>
Juice of 1-2 limes<br>
A few sprigs fresh cilantro, finely chopped<br>
*Sour cream (optional)<br>
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In a sturdy pot over medium heat, sweat the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic in the water until onion is translucent. Add beans, broth, bay leaf, salt, and a few dashes of Tabasco, and gently cook for about an hour. Remove from heat, discard bay leaf, and let cool. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours (or overnight if time allows). When soup is cold, puree it in batches in a blender. Add lime juice to taste and, if needed, more salt and Tabasco to taste. Return soup to refrigerator until ready to serve. Just before serving, ladle into bowls and garnish with cilantro and an optional dollop of sour cream.
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hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-33512676724977009482012-01-12T10:23:00.000-08:002012-01-12T16:38:42.489-08:00Some Thoughts on "Lady Chinky Eyes"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtGTd2ndKSK9glT-6S-PBCl6cg18_M5KMvAUAHOOPKdburF-j20rTY6DZ5yxock_wKVwXEvQK3H7i2yNdkSXTjOAKT17TAhNhFJv1af-SY4_H-KeMoqeop585LXRcoJfqQ8GU36AZgiD_-/s1600/ladychinkyeyes.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 333px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtGTd2ndKSK9glT-6S-PBCl6cg18_M5KMvAUAHOOPKdburF-j20rTY6DZ5yxock_wKVwXEvQK3H7i2yNdkSXTjOAKT17TAhNhFJv1af-SY4_H-KeMoqeop585LXRcoJfqQ8GU36AZgiD_-/s400/ladychinkyeyes.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696823694841659074" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">“Lady chinky eyes”</span> blew up last weekend, and it might be old news at this point, but I wanted to take some time to reflect on it. In case you don’t know what I’m talking about, an employee of a Papa Johns pizza joint in Manhattan was fired after she’d used the offensive phrase on a receipt to describe a customer and a picture of it “went viral” on Twitter. It happened just a month after another fast-food restaurant, Chick-fil-A, fired a cashier for naming two Asian college students <a href="http://blog.angryasianman.com/2011/12/chik-fil-cashier-names-customers-ching.html">“Ching” and “Chong”</a> on their receipts.<br /><br />Honestly, I’m not sure I’d have given the matter more than an indignant retweet, but a friend whose intelligence I respect expressed sympathy for the boss’s point of view, which was that the employee could learn more from a conversation about racial sensitivity than from being fired. So I read and reread the boss's response to the incident in Saturday’s article on <a href="http://gothamist.com/2012/01/07/papa_johns_rings_up_asian_customer.php">Gothamist</a>.<br /><br />First of all, I buy that the boss is a thoughtful mentor type. In fact, I did a little research and learned that Ronald Johnson, the Papa Johns operating partner quoted in the piece, is a widely admired finance whiz who reportedly grew up poor in New York City and whose success story has been featured by <span style="font-style:italic;">Crain’s New York Business</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Entrepreneur</span>, among others. To his credit, he expressed disappointment and outrage at the incident right off the bat. So let me take up his other remarks:<br /><br /><blockquote>He said the female cashier was a “16-year-old urban youth who listens to this nonsense all day on TV and radio”—he said the incident reflected a larger disconnect in modern youth culture. . . . “When I googled the phrase, all these songs came up.”</blockquote><br />I can’t help but wonder why he had to Google it. Was he unfamiliar with the expression? Anyway, to appreciate what he meant, I also Googled The Phrase. Of course, most of what comes up now are blog posts and news articles about the incident. But I did manage to find a whopping four examples of songs containing The Phrase in my admittedly cursory search. The first was an insipid ditty by a husband-and-wife Vietnamese pop duo, and I think it’s safe to say that particular tune hasn’t permeated the consciousness of urban youth in New York. The other three were by hip-hop artists, only one of whom I’d ever even heard of: Nicki Minaj. Her song “Cuchi Shop,” from almost four years ago, depicts a brothel madam who asks what kind of prostitute a client is looking for: “What you need, thick thighs and some chinky eyes?” Now there’s a true reflection of modern youth culture. Any teenager who’s ever perused a whorehouse menu could tell you that, or something.<br /><br /><blockquote>“These kids bring their baggage into the store with them. I dont know if I should fire her." Johnson said it's normal practice for cashiers to identify customers with phrases like "lady with blue shirt" or "man with Yankees cap."</blockquote><br />Obviously he understands that The Phrase isn’t comparable to the color of a shirt or a baseball team’s hat; what he meant is that this misguided teen is most likely unaware of its derogatory nature and was using it simply as a descriptive device. So where would he draw the line? There are equally or, some might argue, even more racially offensive terms one could substitute for The Phrase, which I won’t bother to articulate. But let’s take inflammatory language out of it altogether: What about identifying a customer as “fat guy” or “big tits”? (Chow has a summary of similar instances of offensive language used on receipts, racial and otherwise, <a href="http://www.chow.com/food-news/102496/please-no-more-racist-receipt-ids/">here</a>). Obviously, there need to be policies in place, regardless of whether the description is an intentional insult or merely an unfortunate choice of words.<br /><br /><blockquote>"I bet I'll talk to her and she wont know why this is offensive. She needs to know, and she will know. If I fire her, two years from now, she won't even remember why she got fired. If I sit her down and talk to her, I can help her. You still need a certain decorum and level of professionalism [at minimum wage jobs], and that may help her more in the long run."</blockquote><br />This is the real heart of the argument and, I suspect, the basis for why my friend found the boss a sympathetic figure: He’s like Edward James Olmos in <span style="font-style:italic;">Stand and Deliver</span>, and the cashier is Lou Diamond Phillips. She just needs someone who believes in her! And that <i>is</i> a nice thought. So, okay then—with a little patience and a little guidance, she could win Employee of the Month someday. "A negative times a negative equals a positive." (That's a line from the movie.) After all, despite the public outcry, the “victim” in this case wasn’t substantively wronged. She wasn’t refused service. She wasn’t charged an arbitrary fee. She wasn’t made to eat her mediocre pizza in a separate, but equal, section of the restaurant. Assuming this was a truly isolated event and doesn’t reflect a pattern of hostility, it would be alarmist at best to claim that she suffered <span style="font-style:italic;">real, live, racial discrimination</span>.<br /><br />But regardless of the boss’s good intent, to allow this incident to slide, even if only to give the young employee a chance for sensitivity to be trained into her, <i>would</i> be tantamount to racism—an institutional condoning of the use of a racial slur by a company representative. Firing the cashier and offering a corporate apology was the appropriate response and the minimum outcome that could be tolerated by a conscientious consumer. And by the way, he’s dead wrong about the alternative; I’m pretty sure she <i>is</i> going to remember why she got fired. And so will all her coworkers and everyone else who’s heard about it.<br /><br />Here’s the thing: An action as crude as typing a disparaging remark on a fast-food receipt is a relatively minor transgression. It’s appalling, but at least such behavior can be identified, disciplined, rooted out. Personally, what I’m far more disturbed by, what’s much more insidious, are the subtler forms of maltreatment that occur every day in “real” restaurants, including ones that are respected for their supposedly superior quality and service. Being made to wait an hour after a scheduled reservation while parties who arrived later are seated; getting stuck by the bathroom, next to a swinging door, or way in the back in a dark spot where you can’t even see your meal; being left to sit without food or drink while others are seated, served, and settled up—these are some of the indignities I’ve endured, however seemingly slight. I won’t name names, but I’m talking about some well-regarded places. <span style="font-style:italic;">Zagat-rated places</span>.<br /><br />First World problems? Sure. But another reason I’ve been hesitant to vocalize my suspicions is, well, I can’t possibly be being treated differently, can I. This is the 21st century, in a cosmopolitan city where people of Asian descent make up more than 11% of the population. Double digits! I accept that not every experience can be optimal. We can’t all be seated at the best table; hosts and servers alike get overwhelmed; some patrons might have a special relationship with the establishment that affords them special attention.<br /><br />And <span style="font-style:italic;">even if</span> I receive service that’s doesn’t seem quite as good as it could or should be, race isn’t necessarily the issue. Maybe I’m not dressed well enough, or maybe I’m simply not assertive enough. Or there’s always the chance that these things happen inadvertently, randomly, purely incidentally. That’s what I keep telling myself anyway. And keep telling myself. Because the truth is it happens a lot.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-38578700393532921702011-09-07T13:06:00.000-07:002011-09-07T13:29:15.649-07:00The Camp Kitchen<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8qdQibzDVANdTeidU-b0BWuEkUzYDzMi1WQUR5GbIymAYfDE95qE8gnRPRjg__iGpxO9AnhsnKL0-qKHyskISm-9Vi4xVrrOJGGJ_7GGEhKXfLagtUXnR-am5yVI67b6d51fR5rYhJXw/s1600/snoopycampcook.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 288px; height: 176px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8qdQibzDVANdTeidU-b0BWuEkUzYDzMi1WQUR5GbIymAYfDE95qE8gnRPRjg__iGpxO9AnhsnKL0-qKHyskISm-9Vi4xVrrOJGGJ_7GGEhKXfLagtUXnR-am5yVI67b6d51fR5rYhJXw/s400/snoopycampcook.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649712050252785554" /></a><br />One of my absolute favorite pastimes as a kid was what I called "Lost in the Woods." The sparse patch of trees behind our suburban Maryland house was, in my imagination, the deep wilderness, where my friends and I built shoddy shelters out of branches and subsisted on the nectar of wild honeysuckles that grew back there or, more often, on the leftover Halloween candy we’d conveniently stuffed into our pockets beforehand.<br /><br />Though I didn’t turn into a backpacking nut—far from it—I’ve loved the camping trips I’ve taken since then, the most recent being a solo cross-country excursion almost exactly a decade ago. Even so, my campsite cooking experience barely extends past boiling water for coffee in the morning. And assuming Mr. Comma would never be up for roughing it, I donated all my camp gear when we moved to our new house last year.<br /><br />Of course, now that I’ve been proven wrong and we’re about to go on a (car) camping adventure, we’re starting from square one. This time, I’m determined to put our new camp stove to real use, so I’ve assembled a makeshift mobile kitchen comprising what I think are the bare essentials:<br /><br />Pot, skillet, and lid that fits both<br />Knife set and cutting board<br />Wooden spoon, spatula, tongs<br />Mixing bowl<br />Kettle<br />French press<br />Tableware, utensils<br />Can opener<br />Corkscrew<br />Dish towel<br /><br />This all fits into a record crate–sized bin, with room to spare. Am I missing anything? <br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-46790937802238937722011-08-29T13:09:00.001-07:002011-08-29T13:47:12.327-07:00The Bundaberg Mystery<div style="margin: 0 0 10px 0; padding: 0; font-size: 0.8em; line-height: 1.6em;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/calamity_hane/4455410065/" title="black bean and vegetable soup, bundaberg ginger beer"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4455410065_e9cda50449.jpg" alt="black bean and vegetable soup, bundaberg ginger beer by calamity_hane" /></a><br/><span style="margin: 0;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/calamity_hane/4455410065/">black bean and vegetable soup, bundaberg ginger beer</a>, a photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/calamity_hane/">calamity_hane</a> on Flickr.</span></div><p>At 432 views and counting, this snapshot of a cup of soup and a bottle of <B>Bundaberg ginger beer</B> taken at Little Flower Candy Company in Pasadena is my current most-viewed food photo on Flickr—followed closely by my other pictures that feature this refreshing, nonalcoholic beverage from Australia. But I'm unable to identify where all the traffic's coming from. According to Flickr, the referrer(s) to this photo is "unknown." I've even made a direct appeal to viewers to clue me in, but no dice. Is there a secret cult of Bundaberg enthusiasts out there who spend their free time looking at bottle porn and won't admit it?</p>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-36479765314055177572010-12-13T16:04:00.001-08:002010-12-14T15:45:57.628-08:00What's the Buzz? HenriettaHaus Coffee Roasters<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElG4fumrqAoEYvwdxcItoz04vNvLhBSjMnR_1RTo1lCVXdhhEshs8EnoqsAPmXcDOOBtLdvOEtWXBgi7cgawTZxTovYTGBCQMlm7fUAHCK43d0-4iLo3YIEwW-WKH598RghGUiImQ0L6y/s1600/farmersmarketweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgElG4fumrqAoEYvwdxcItoz04vNvLhBSjMnR_1RTo1lCVXdhhEshs8EnoqsAPmXcDOOBtLdvOEtWXBgi7cgawTZxTovYTGBCQMlm7fUAHCK43d0-4iLo3YIEwW-WKH598RghGUiImQ0L6y/s400/farmersmarketweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550322635884315538" /></a><br /><i>HenriettaHaus display at the Oakland County Farmers Market, Michigan</i><br /><br />Some people’s idea of a fresh cup of coffee is being first in line at Starbucks. How about roasting the coffee beans yourself in your own home? That’s what Amy Duncan started doing several years ago using an ordinary stovetop popcorn popper.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYAj1JesBdGMauVkqZ00_n6h8W1tqWtVWdyr8br9QEuJ67SHPo_Z53NLWQhHKD5l2t-bRu0PVf93_924PSQSSx7KarVghpwDlUOBBl4cHPPuXj9Yy-5Vp0ZtWl_WQp0k8dis8UEqcOUvU_/s1600/ambexroasterweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYAj1JesBdGMauVkqZ00_n6h8W1tqWtVWdyr8br9QEuJ67SHPo_Z53NLWQhHKD5l2t-bRu0PVf93_924PSQSSx7KarVghpwDlUOBBl4cHPPuXj9Yy-5Vp0ZtWl_WQp0k8dis8UEqcOUvU_/s400/ambexroasterweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550322626790395250" /></a><br /><i>One mean coffee bean roasting machine</i><br /><br />Today, this 2-kg Ambex commercial roaster is a more sophisticated means to produce the beans for <a href="http://www.facebook.com/HenriettaHausCoffee">HenriettaHaus Coffee Roasters</a>, Amy's brand-new Wyandotte, Michigan-based business. But quality is still the top priority, and each small batch gets all the care and personal attention as those first roasts on her kitchen stove. Food Comma got to see the process up close in a private demonstration of the Henriettahaus Coffee Roasters works during a recent visit to Mr. Comma's home state.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_ujTcJ7Vnca7UhvAmKBLvm2aQO-MTwFdd5_k9RNPF-4hpSuvfsxbT9TwmVNttxqTJke1yI8P6qVjZjq_8EPdraeInePOjBRh8T6v-e9oFE9utfuBpyR4wOFxxyU-c2T_x8-ze9VN39TA/s1600/henriettahauscollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_ujTcJ7Vnca7UhvAmKBLvm2aQO-MTwFdd5_k9RNPF-4hpSuvfsxbT9TwmVNttxqTJke1yI8P6qVjZjq_8EPdraeInePOjBRh8T6v-e9oFE9utfuBpyR4wOFxxyU-c2T_x8-ze9VN39TA/s400/henriettahauscollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550322642149838930" /></a><br /><i>(Click to enlarge)</i><br /><br /><b>1.</b> The Ambex is fired up. <b>2.</b> A small batch of raw, organic coffee beans is carefully measured out. <b>3.</b> Once the roaster reaches the proper temperature, the beans are fed in. <b>4.</b> Periodically through the roasting process, Amy checks for color and aroma. <b>5.</b> When ready, the batch is cooled and given a final inspection for any beans that have not achieved a perfect roast. <b>6.</b> The freshly roasted coffee beans are ready to be weighed and packaged.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNZcdtK55mD72CdDzvVonIGc3ZSe8QE8ojVIjTkpANUjgxfBDI2TYYYGYPEbPDm-v1DhsLTgul-npVZkNOhjvI75QrIVAgqmvTdTHWIhLaiqYGDAnwhM-E-yqEWZ91vgKGLXQR2Q-Gq4o/s1600/stampweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNZcdtK55mD72CdDzvVonIGc3ZSe8QE8ojVIjTkpANUjgxfBDI2TYYYGYPEbPDm-v1DhsLTgul-npVZkNOhjvI75QrIVAgqmvTdTHWIhLaiqYGDAnwhM-E-yqEWZ91vgKGLXQR2Q-Gq4o/s400/stampweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550322646554707090" /></a><br /><i>Each bag is hand stamped and labeled with the coffee's country of origin and date of roast</i><br /><br />HenriettaHaus is just beginning to hit the market in the Detroit area, where it can be purchased at the <a href="http://www.burtontheatre.com/">Burton Theater</a> in Cass Corridor, at the <a href="http://www.oakgov.com/cmarket/">Oakland County Farmers Market</a> in Waterford Township, and via direct, personal delivery around Detroit, Ann Arbor, and environs. But even outside Michigan, this handcrafted, small-batch coffee can be shipped right to your door, whole beans or ground. Makes an excellent stocking stuffer! <b>Send an email to orders@henriettahauscoffee.com for all the details.</b><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEins2oG0253WdWoEiGUyDHzJGZkPYOmcwEyG79Fx3HGYYy_0dkuUfxY6p8P3OmuwqZu-cVbmq6jzPhA6HnEQfTyW5CTdLUQUoHtz7459ZeT0WAGT2-bHplQqPGniED4kgzlyOYIpZnId1zn/s1600/finishedproductweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEins2oG0253WdWoEiGUyDHzJGZkPYOmcwEyG79Fx3HGYYy_0dkuUfxY6p8P3OmuwqZu-cVbmq6jzPhA6HnEQfTyW5CTdLUQUoHtz7459ZeT0WAGT2-bHplQqPGniED4kgzlyOYIpZnId1zn/s400/finishedproductweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5550322633584565634" /></a><br /><br />Read Food Comma's <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2009/03/coffee-talk.html">previous interview with Amy</a> about her inspiration for HenriettaHaus and how she got started.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-13726374986157074452010-12-09T16:14:00.000-08:002010-12-10T10:15:13.214-08:00Bauer Pottery Holiday SaleFave local blog/daily read <B>The Eastsider</B> has a <a href="http://www.theeastsiderla.com/2010/12/bauer-pottery-a-colorful-piece-of-the-eastsides-historic-potteries/">nice post about northeast LA's historic potteries</a>, focusing on <b>Bauer Pottery Company,</b> established in the 1880s in Kentucky and relocated to Los Angeles in the early 1900s. Bauer's iconic Ring-Ware line, introduced in 1932, flourished during the arts and crafts movement with its vivid colors and often-imitated design.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWo2Q43nY_6HKH8SaGPZm23a-ye_iBTnVCBLp63rN-RB-tCDTMjF845w76HVQKdMEi__HgP3Rvxs6S_LSTX4_bfBhmFVC3xF9DxOMDmpZ8OsxD_bbsyW29FsfI5nA9EFToADcuTGK80K6D/s1600/bauerpotteryweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 265px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWo2Q43nY_6HKH8SaGPZm23a-ye_iBTnVCBLp63rN-RB-tCDTMjF845w76HVQKdMEi__HgP3Rvxs6S_LSTX4_bfBhmFVC3xF9DxOMDmpZ8OsxD_bbsyW29FsfI5nA9EFToADcuTGK80K6D/s400/bauerpotteryweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5548842231845967746" /></a><br /><i>Bauer and Russel Wright ceramics</i><br /><br />Though Bauer's original operation shut down in the 1960s, the trademark was revived in 1998 with the aim of reproducing the pottery's classic wares. Today, the <a href="http://www.bauerpottery.com">Bauer Pottery Company</a>'s showroom resides off of San Fernando Road at the edge of Forest Lawn Memorial Park, coincidentally where founder J.A. Bauer is buried, just a few miles from the historic studio.<br /><br />And it just so happens that <a href="http://bauerpottery.com/BauerPotteryHolidaySale.php">Bauer is having a holiday sale</a> on seconds and clearance items. Food Comma visited last weekend and scored some great deals on gifts and even a little present or two for myself.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzM4HtAdkrNlsF3uOxyPUohyphenhyphengApb9x5Q_URv2Lg0Unvrqkw8MAtRtYH3oWibsW5e1jzTacBaIY1vHqOpigLqD4ILNIjFIdSxcsuobHtJVSsJtTe9fUM7UEE1L9N8-C1sPCQG5WrdWlV4DZ/s1600/butterdishweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzM4HtAdkrNlsF3uOxyPUohyphenhyphengApb9x5Q_URv2Lg0Unvrqkw8MAtRtYH3oWibsW5e1jzTacBaIY1vHqOpigLqD4ILNIjFIdSxcsuobHtJVSsJtTe9fUM7UEE1L9N8-C1sPCQG5WrdWlV4DZ/s400/butterdishweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5548842231011434850" /></a><br /><i>Bauer butter dish</i><br /><br />A couple years ago I'd been close to getting the vintage version of this butter dish for $80, but just couldn't justify the expense (which Mr. Comma was going to spring for as a birthday present). Good thing I held out: we scored this one at the sale—same great looks, same color—for about $30. What will Mr. Comma buy me with the money he saved?<br /><br />Incidentally, Bauer also produces the American Modern line of ceramics from <b>Russel Wright,</b> subject of my <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2010/11/love-at-first-wright.html">last post</a>.<br /><br /><b>Bauer Pottery Holiday Sale, Dec. 11-12<br />3051 Rosslyn Street<br />Los Angeles, CA 90065<br />9am to 5pm<br />(818) 500-0666</b><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-53326829214675341422010-11-08T17:15:00.000-08:002010-11-09T14:32:28.211-08:00Love at First Wright<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdEt7iOYP3EldwICtrx0sD33ACurUX3Mh20dDW4YeD3O5PZZVosSqKdto3jcwfdErPHgsyzN1BjGZe4uOloLDx4TxAJB9iBt7SoexzAjaHkoVcGXZSdd9PJ7A2mpcm2XHKU-tG_O_YwOMd/s1600/russelwrightsauceboat.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdEt7iOYP3EldwICtrx0sD33ACurUX3Mh20dDW4YeD3O5PZZVosSqKdto3jcwfdErPHgsyzN1BjGZe4uOloLDx4TxAJB9iBt7SoexzAjaHkoVcGXZSdd9PJ7A2mpcm2XHKU-tG_O_YwOMd/s400/russelwrightsauceboat.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537355145110329346" /></a><br /><br />Probably my favorite thing in the kitchen right now: this <b>Russel Wright</b> sauce boat, found at the PCC flea market over the weekend. Its fusion of design, function, and craftsmanship makes it a perfect object. (Sorry about the title of the post, but terrible puns like that are why I get paid the big bucks.)<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-58907454794458976912010-11-05T15:03:00.000-07:002010-11-05T15:27:55.083-07:00Warren Zevon's Favorite BurritoCheck out this excerpt from <i>Wonderland,</i> a 1977 Dutch documentary about the LA singer-songwriter scene featuring Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, and Linda Ronstadt (then-girlfriend of governor-elect Jerry Brown, also governor at the time). In the clip, Zevon pays a visit to Echo Park’s own <b>Burrito King,</b> back when the neighborhood was considered, according to his own lyrics, “the outskirts of town.” Here, he also calls Burrito King’s cuisine “some of the finest Mexican American food in Southern California.” Perhaps that was true 3+ decades ago, but the last burrito I ate from there gave me a horrible stomachache. Maybe I just didn't order right; Zevon recommends the <b>machaca burrito.</b><br /><br /><object width="440" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d6yVA5PHLn8?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d6yVA5PHLn8?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="440" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />Remarkably, the corner of Sunset and Alvarado nowadays appears pretty similar to the way it did then, creepy American Apparel billboard notwithstanding. Burrito King continues to shares the strip mall with a liquor store and a cleaners, though names and precise locations may be different, and Pizza Buono still anchors the southwestern corner. Even Sunset Auto Spa seems to be just a more modern iteration of the business that stood there before. But it’s a bit sad to see, in the clip, the big old houses around the corner from the carwash, knowing that they’d be demolished and replaced by a bunch of ugly lofts.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-29331928188739917862010-11-01T17:37:00.000-07:002010-11-02T10:06:16.741-07:00Mystery Mushroom?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhJCGxfUhlLaK4C5_aeVJFvy4Ynzwoa2oln5uLsIb0XM85Tqtcr58lm-dTdbIWVfslhR-pBtCFm32Ar4KmDo23Jhn8IDW3VWmcxpSwzWHhdR9bw9XaHh1ARj2PtTqnp-F_0A-cGEyRiJW/s1600/what+is+it2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhJCGxfUhlLaK4C5_aeVJFvy4Ynzwoa2oln5uLsIb0XM85Tqtcr58lm-dTdbIWVfslhR-pBtCFm32Ar4KmDo23Jhn8IDW3VWmcxpSwzWHhdR9bw9XaHh1ARj2PtTqnp-F_0A-cGEyRiJW/s400/what+is+it2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534754787837986786" /></a><br /><br />I guess this would fall under the "comma" part of Food Comma, being that I'm not entirely sure this thing is organic matter, let alone edible. I discovered this alien life (?) form as I was pulling weeds in the front yard. At first glance, I pegged it as a big mushroom, about 2 inches in diameter; on closer inspection, I noticed part of the purplish top layer appeared to be peeled off, revealing a gelatinous-looking core. A fallen bird egg? It seemed way too big, and anyway there are no nests nearby that I know of. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVhmzuOGztQtxuPNN0iL3hu0D-sxbtKNr-WvHM1deOirc3AJWYDlipHov-xzL0KqnHaOV0E54ZvLxASPcgCJRnBbfZ3wzntVn0pSGWonyzxetdCQ-Sc2HG1Sjw6Oia7qVapN8oVDdGT-RN/s1600/what+is+it.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVhmzuOGztQtxuPNN0iL3hu0D-sxbtKNr-WvHM1deOirc3AJWYDlipHov-xzL0KqnHaOV0E54ZvLxASPcgCJRnBbfZ3wzntVn0pSGWonyzxetdCQ-Sc2HG1Sjw6Oia7qVapN8oVDdGT-RN/s400/what+is+it.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534753488922316866" /></a><br /><br />Digging the thing out with a stick, I felt a slight resistance that, say, some decaying rubber ball discarded in the dirt might lack. But then its tapered and somewhat pleated bottom end suggested a sort of balloon, and the way the thing feels both firm and squishy reminds me of, like, a silicone implant. Yeah: creepy. I showed it to Mr. Comma, who immediately remarked on its resemblance to a puffball, a mushroom-like fungus. I left it outside overnight and apparently none of the various Eagle Rock wildlife (squirrels, possums, raccoons, skunks, birds, cats, lost dogs) so much as took a sniff at it, as far as I could tell. I know the next step is to cut it open, but I'm a little scared . . .<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-52353534388873152182010-10-31T20:15:00.000-07:002010-10-31T20:17:54.898-07:00Happy Hallowe'enSorry, everyone. They beat you to this killer culinary costume.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvMZAMSlrAwhDYIdTVkM5f7-tfJbZCGWKBXmQ6ExguGXD8XE1XKekFKzbFnJcvfwUe2w0_gCMl1t-X5xlfDc3YdzHxG6rJu3tRFSVRUCTeVRrdWPSZ7mKxKTAZf4Q7AgadnPFYwcyNDI_/s1600/foodtruckcostume"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 299px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvMZAMSlrAwhDYIdTVkM5f7-tfJbZCGWKBXmQ6ExguGXD8XE1XKekFKzbFnJcvfwUe2w0_gCMl1t-X5xlfDc3YdzHxG6rJu3tRFSVRUCTeVRrdWPSZ7mKxKTAZf4Q7AgadnPFYwcyNDI_/s400/foodtruckcostume" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534414700430373058" /></a><br /><i>Easy Cheese food truck, Halloween 2010</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-25717383680858006902010-10-27T14:18:00.000-07:002010-10-27T17:05:04.852-07:00Chicken Breasts Stuffed with PestoOf the more than 2,200 <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/calamity_hane/sets/72157623068607121/">meals I’ve photographed</a>, this simple dinner I made a couple months ago—<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/calamity_hane/4969572064/in/set-72157623068607121/">chicken breast stuffed with homemade pesto, with linguine and French green beans</a>—is for some reason my most-viewed food picture of the past three years. I don’t have a recipe per se, but the basic preparation for two servings is as follows.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjvDto3CeQa6BlfcLDDIy4nMPXjt4PoS07nyPs9VX2P0O7hpAvYMEbYSmlS3OLmm4-RmXlSTiguOxdFM47SboOc-8pK-eRodhj3eMJN5FivXXuPIwtIY-EiB-rSx_y6rPja99beCC8FKa/s1600/chickenbreaststuffedpesto.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjvDto3CeQa6BlfcLDDIy4nMPXjt4PoS07nyPs9VX2P0O7hpAvYMEbYSmlS3OLmm4-RmXlSTiguOxdFM47SboOc-8pK-eRodhj3eMJN5FivXXuPIwtIY-EiB-rSx_y6rPja99beCC8FKa/s400/chickenbreaststuffedpesto.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532838455843787394" /></a><br /><br />Preheat oven to 350.<br /><br />Sprinkle <b>salt and pepper</b> on both sides of two <b>boneless, skinless chicken breasts.</b> Using a carving or other long slender knife, pierce the center of one end and make a lengthwise incision into each breast, forming a pocket, taking care not to cut all the way through. Stuff a big spoonful or two of <b>pesto</b> into each pocket (recipe follows, or use store-bought pesto). <br /><br />In a heavy, ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat, swirl a tablespoon of <b>extra virgin olive oil,</b> then brown the chicken skin side (if there were skin) down for a few minutes. Turn the breasts over and place skillet in the oven. Bake until cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.<br /><br />Meanwhile, boil the <b>linguine</b> the usual way, drain, and toss with a tablespoon of <b>softened butter</b> per serving. Sauté the <b>green beans</b> in a bit of olive oil and <b>minced garlic.</b> When the chicken is done, let it rest for a couple minutes, then slice each breast crosswise into four pieces. Serve over pasta and green beans, with a little extra pesto spooned on top and sprinkled with <b>grated Parmegiano Reggiano.</b><br /><br /><b>To make pesto,</b> whiz together in a food processor or blender the washed leaves from a big bunch of <b>fresh basil</b> (a few cups), ¼ cup grated <b>Parmegiano Reggiano,</b> a handful of <b>toasted pine nuts,</b> and a couple cloves of chopped <b>garlic.</b> While the machine is running, slowly pour in a good glug of <b>extra virgin olive oil</b> and blend until the mixture is smooth. Season to taste with <b>salt and pepper.</b><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-83735813018395594952010-10-21T14:00:00.001-07:002010-10-21T17:06:39.770-07:00Eating the Eastern SierrasMr. Comma and I have been road tripping up the 395 to <b>Mammoth Lakes</b> annually for the past 6 years to celebrate my birthday in early October. It’s the perfect time of year to visit if you like crisp autumn weather, trees with shimmering yellow and orange leaves, and none of the crowds of summer or winter.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjP9fVrC2qyta-bxUvjZng0gQpzywisvWAvVzIPOjvpZgZ7S4CqqIzHSOPzbfRmhBj1nsTYxGDJPmhJdCh9A0iNvQOaCMdqkQjR9XG3ZB3n7-nvXhAtVSYOQcMLKVm8OekaCo6n8V1yk7W/s1600/thestovefrontweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjP9fVrC2qyta-bxUvjZng0gQpzywisvWAvVzIPOjvpZgZ7S4CqqIzHSOPzbfRmhBj1nsTYxGDJPmhJdCh9A0iNvQOaCMdqkQjR9XG3ZB3n7-nvXhAtVSYOQcMLKVm8OekaCo6n8V1yk7W/s400/thestovefrontweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607717190131714" /></a><br /><i>The Stove, in Mammoth's "old town" area</i><br /><br />Even without the seasonal hordes, there’s almost always a bit of a wait for breakfast or lunch at <b>the Stove,</b> a Mammoth Lakes institution. Fortunately, tables at this cozy eatery tend to turn over fairly quickly, what with all the great outdoors waiting to be had. I think the Stove is the one place where we’ve eaten at some point every single year we’ve come to town. Hearty and homey, it’s pure mountain comfort food.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyh_oSjhVYIok8soHlvqE7fFcI4lR3Z95vW9NNwnCOJgLdR2TChNogtk5DnSUjokruUnoxrJTEU_q0aorgLWT8E_AkDmF90Np60x7NaaokMWZzRZzcsWRmEt7WapfhIPcf9NJo43EekG6D/s1600/thestovecollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 364px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyh_oSjhVYIok8soHlvqE7fFcI4lR3Z95vW9NNwnCOJgLdR2TChNogtk5DnSUjokruUnoxrJTEU_q0aorgLWT8E_AkDmF90Np60x7NaaokMWZzRZzcsWRmEt7WapfhIPcf9NJo43EekG6D/s400/thestovecollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607558750549778" /></a><br /><i>Many meals at the Stove (click to enlarge)</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4bsmtsYn3Mb339iwPfxRRV8zolkra8sy6_0xQt4EF5K0ssVz_5pj-CZWK4PueZLNP-bCJces_uIgwlxvRco6EIoLrqg6eiGOEphnmu3odxD3b_xw26IEo4ulHNxl2LvlrYKX4F7nLoNy/s1600/convictlakeweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx4bsmtsYn3Mb339iwPfxRRV8zolkra8sy6_0xQt4EF5K0ssVz_5pj-CZWK4PueZLNP-bCJces_uIgwlxvRco6EIoLrqg6eiGOEphnmu3odxD3b_xw26IEo4ulHNxl2LvlrYKX4F7nLoNy/s400/convictlakeweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607547396878098" /></a><br /><i>Convict Lake</i><br /><br />Just a few miles south of Mammoth is stunning, crystal-clear Convict Lake, cut deep into the Sherwin Range at the foot of Mount Morrison. The <b>Restaurant at Convict Lake</b> has a reputation as one of the best (and most expensive) fine dining establishments in the area—we’d indulged in a decadent birthday dinner of beef Wellington and seared duck here a couple of years ago—but little did we know that the adjacent lounge serves casual pub grub that’s delicious and cheap. After a glorious afternoon boating on the lake, Mr. Comma and I tucked into a bowl of bartender/chef Tim’s chili for a mere $5. Homemade with pinto beans, chunks of tri-tip steak, tomato, and a blend of spices, and garnished with grated cheddar and crunchy slivers of fried onion, this simple and satisfying meal was one of our favorites of the trip. (Tim knows how to pour a drink, too.)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS2a4AUiX68k0EeoXUvxIN3nAOGPzJQKr9Ro5fyfcnRtOQ4PoR3JlQaK2nAJH-tpI0kyXOJvx5jAjlpKfVef3Jj4yhIFgS44YsyTMeJUZ_Tpp-WPHQC5shWhOxuHMKWBJJ40ZzfeEjSXCr/s1600/convictlakechiliweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS2a4AUiX68k0EeoXUvxIN3nAOGPzJQKr9Ro5fyfcnRtOQ4PoR3JlQaK2nAJH-tpI0kyXOJvx5jAjlpKfVef3Jj4yhIFgS44YsyTMeJUZ_Tpp-WPHQC5shWhOxuHMKWBJJ40ZzfeEjSXCr/s400/convictlakechiliweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607543123206226" /></a><br /><i>Tim's tri-tip chili at the Restaurant at Convict Lake's lounge</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIuBv2w5VzMyCV2loA5batGK48xbaUL_pN8fsaBo5lonBjYlScllgoVygoU7-Ruej-FZwfTaKbArP0grbDBra0P50rcfUufNPzz9pJQTN7UYnDA8swgViytIrVl0zBIfBaVWqyf3NKgYfR/s1600/convictlakebourbonweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIuBv2w5VzMyCV2loA5batGK48xbaUL_pN8fsaBo5lonBjYlScllgoVygoU7-Ruej-FZwfTaKbArP0grbDBra0P50rcfUufNPzz9pJQTN7UYnDA8swgViytIrVl0zBIfBaVWqyf3NKgYfR/s400/convictlakebourbonweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607541731419122" /></a><br /><i>A good pour</i><br /><br />No mountain food round-up would be complete without mention of the <b>Whoa Nellie Deli.</b> Perhaps most famous for being located inside a Mobil gas mart, near the eastern edge of Yosemite National Park, the modest kitchen dishes out gourmet fish tacos, lobster taquitos, wild buffalo meatloaf, and more, all with a view of Mono Lake. The prices are a bit higher than at your average walk-up counter (entrees run from $11.95 to $19.50), but the unique setting makes the Whoa Nellie Deli worth checking out.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85fo0Ca1_jSkRXcEyHlcFGRIsERtOUy5ygBe3UX-MutBT5Hkkqc88xIFfOLTzc3QFOJBBWxF_xzFyKKn_UdPkkmf5kVUBE9-_4t_k_6EW4TkpQaiisrM0M4lTOAqNPCMMq6Kuw8Vpa-rt/s1600/whoanelliecollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85fo0Ca1_jSkRXcEyHlcFGRIsERtOUy5ygBe3UX-MutBT5Hkkqc88xIFfOLTzc3QFOJBBWxF_xzFyKKn_UdPkkmf5kVUBE9-_4t_k_6EW4TkpQaiisrM0M4lTOAqNPCMMq6Kuw8Vpa-rt/s400/whoanelliecollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607722618338050" /></a><br /><i>The Whoa Nellie Deli at the Tioga Gas Mart (click to enlarge)</i><br /><br />Finally, one of our essential stops on the way out is <b>Pie in the Sky Café</b> at the Rock Creek Lakes Resort, about 9 miles up an aspen-lined road snaking through the Inyo National Forest. Hikers, bikers, campers, fishers, and nature photographers all converge at a tiny, 6-stool counter tucked in the corner of the rustic resort’s general store to feast on a selection of half a dozen or so piping hot pies baked from scratch every morning. Come too early and some of the pies aren’t ready yet; come too late and they’re all gone. On our most recent visit, we savored a slice each of lemon cream and Mom’s apple, and a fellow customer let us sample a bite of her cheddar pear pie—an unlikely combination but one of the cafe’s most popular. We were lucky to catch Pie in the Sky open on its last day of business before closing for the season.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkc6PyWNtO-N0Tdtaof0Ke2DliujSXeu5Ka3Mrp9TJz3RIs5s0iilf6ppxp8DUHNQ1eTvQKGBeo-XXBIPvEHsYFz-Hdki7wpJ9NYVQzAXSW_7-XVjDRLnmd9QVNwMxdVIkbta4m20DAbak/s1600/pieintheskycollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkc6PyWNtO-N0Tdtaof0Ke2DliujSXeu5Ka3Mrp9TJz3RIs5s0iilf6ppxp8DUHNQ1eTvQKGBeo-XXBIPvEHsYFz-Hdki7wpJ9NYVQzAXSW_7-XVjDRLnmd9QVNwMxdVIkbta4m20DAbak/s400/pieintheskycollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5530607552595098018" /></a><br /><i>Pie in the Sky Café (click to enlarge)</i><br /><br />I'm already looking forward to next year.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-26025233031957011632010-09-23T18:02:00.000-07:002010-09-27T09:21:18.537-07:00Market Research: Seafood City<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYivMQkP9cre2rbrXwTjXL9L1hcPTUzR0TAh-2pd9ca72f6kCIIQ03DBeojjW0qIpDP_vcZpQLMwnl0mH4w7DF_0HjRDIz9GFcW-iyyg1xGXbsyohnC18lX1L6kEma1ClrOAeGRQ1gj6Ia/s1600/entranceweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYivMQkP9cre2rbrXwTjXL9L1hcPTUzR0TAh-2pd9ca72f6kCIIQ03DBeojjW0qIpDP_vcZpQLMwnl0mH4w7DF_0HjRDIz9GFcW-iyyg1xGXbsyohnC18lX1L6kEma1ClrOAeGRQ1gj6Ia/s400/entranceweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520279804023487314" /></a><br /><br />Since its original store opened in San Diego 20 years ago, <br /><a href="http://www.seafoodcity.com/">Seafood City</a> has expanded to 20 locations throughout California as well as in Las Vegas and Seattle. It’s essentially an ethnic supermarket chain, touting the “at home" experience—that is, if you call the Philippines your homeland. And since <a href="http://projects.latimes.com/mapping-la/neighborhoods/neighborhood/eagle-rock/">Filipinos make up the highest proportion of all immigrants living in Eagle Rock</a>, the neighborhood is a prime spot.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4iDqrJ7TsUNjuviBFVgMQXchXiPmAqw56ceCVr1_5UOOdXKE0wsHqCca5-s94bPrSxNAYd8A3ZAFPVMsNXiiOsx2zMLSgh3CKRqFYzzsSagpmF8MKlRqvmh-vRIPMts3JEOziHM0u6zuN/s1600/kabalikatsavingsweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4iDqrJ7TsUNjuviBFVgMQXchXiPmAqw56ceCVr1_5UOOdXKE0wsHqCca5-s94bPrSxNAYd8A3ZAFPVMsNXiiOsx2zMLSgh3CKRqFYzzsSagpmF8MKlRqvmh-vRIPMts3JEOziHM0u6zuN/s400/kabalikatsavingsweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520281067643641474" /></a><br /><i>Kabalikat, roughly, is Tagalog for "partner"</i><br /><br />Seafood City opened 4 years ago in the Westfield Shoppingtown Eagle Rock Plaza, aka the Ghetto Target Mall. Its placement inside the mall is itself noteworthy. Is it an Asian thing? The Koreatown Galleria also houses a supermarket, on the bottom floor, but if I’m recalling correctly, the Galleria Market doesn't open directly onto the main part of the shopping center. Come to think of it, the Target sells groceries too, making it a grocery store inside a big-box store inside a mall. Anyway, Seafood City’s location is very convenient if you also need to join the army, pick up a coaxial cable at Radio Shack, or purchase a burial plot from Forest Lawn—all possible within Eagle Rock Plaza.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn8EqSyPZlOboVwdz0eYzoUusItpLTHdUVyV65Odru0Uv26UZG6W3Ny9MWn-RJluSN4JV_UDP3BhzjqQFdR3r-xwjEMwERHbaL1PK8DTWKnRYzSWr9C38hkoPGU20O_XuQJfnspkV-q3Kz/s1600/seafoodcitycollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn8EqSyPZlOboVwdz0eYzoUusItpLTHdUVyV65Odru0Uv26UZG6W3Ny9MWn-RJluSN4JV_UDP3BhzjqQFdR3r-xwjEMwERHbaL1PK8DTWKnRYzSWr9C38hkoPGU20O_XuQJfnspkV-q3Kz/s400/seafoodcitycollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520279830315817282" /></a><br /><i>Clockwise from top left: whole parrotfish and red snapper; dried fish; beef blood, commonly used in blood sausages and savory stews; Manila-style hotdogs.</i><br /><br />Needless to say, the market’s main attraction is its seafood. Dozens of varieties of fresh seafood are displayed atop open, ice-filled trays—whole salmon, trout, anchovies, catfish, parrotfish, mullet, you name it, plus shrimp, clams, crabs, squid, and so on. You select and bag the fish yourself, which you can have cleaned and even fried while you wait, or you can choose from a selection of already cut fillets or steaks from the case. There’s also a wide range of frozen fish, dried fish, and fish snacks. But if fish isn't your thing, the store offers all the usual proteins, and some unusual ones, like pig snouts.<br /><br />There's much more to Seafood City than seafood and random pig parts. The produce section is stocked with all kinds of fruits and vegetables both common and exotic, especially those used in Filipino and other Asian cooking. Pet peeve: They sell garlic only by the five-pack. Why?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iUhFxY4rk6NaoonR22RVtGdXv_CPzF43acN0zVBpxHnuWpmCtGXlGeh0VfEStGKMddf4JN5cAtyp9PblEajddTGi2S8rHxCuv3tcoo13JjULlOrQxGam07vRMsRq8XngaX7DveG7LbtV/s1600/producecollageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 321px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iUhFxY4rk6NaoonR22RVtGdXv_CPzF43acN0zVBpxHnuWpmCtGXlGeh0VfEStGKMddf4JN5cAtyp9PblEajddTGi2S8rHxCuv3tcoo13JjULlOrQxGam07vRMsRq8XngaX7DveG7LbtV/s400/producecollageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520279825791025538" /></a><br /><i>Left side: chayote, duck eggs. Right side: banana blossoms, long beans, Chinese eggplant.</i><br /><br />The popularity of Spam among Asians is fairly well known, but I was not aware of the sheer breadth of Spam alternatives out there.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaIMQyLy_tZOOR4Pz3byn_5Dcl0idex1s6sYH7XKaFqiCOkVhdzhgFgW9bs0CKUWprMyTQhwEjCgvR9aCeYwnRSQqjxZrD5m86LntXrZSTGReZ_zHgXO_MaKTnC0jD05RWAULR9yn-aEuc/s1600/spamalternativesweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 296px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaIMQyLy_tZOOR4Pz3byn_5Dcl0idex1s6sYH7XKaFqiCOkVhdzhgFgW9bs0CKUWprMyTQhwEjCgvR9aCeYwnRSQqjxZrD5m86LntXrZSTGReZ_zHgXO_MaKTnC0jD05RWAULR9yn-aEuc/s400/spamalternativesweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520281079582068434" /></a><br /><br />It seems the preferred container for crackers is the plastic tub. Note FITA's resemblance to RITZ. Also, the Magic Flakes logo and packaging give it an unappetizing, laundry detergent-like quality.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP__D0bAK9aLbF-L99XHGDTIBuIFUjgQ9Dnjowwb7LG3szH5Z5WSWahZvxMhhpsIjQMyDeNLyVgoCK1lT7qlrialZuRhOsFa7ZB5UKg9wy1aUuUI_TYyQbfAd-omX8XUEqKgBFNhBLsdPN/s1600/crackersweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP__D0bAK9aLbF-L99XHGDTIBuIFUjgQ9Dnjowwb7LG3szH5Z5WSWahZvxMhhpsIjQMyDeNLyVgoCK1lT7qlrialZuRhOsFa7ZB5UKg9wy1aUuUI_TYyQbfAd-omX8XUEqKgBFNhBLsdPN/s400/crackersweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520309336795436434" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What I got:</span> a couple of catfish steaks, oxtail, coconut milk, fresh cilantro, an avocado, two lemons and a lime, a yellow onion, green beans, Chinese broccoli, scallions, bananas, guava juice, frozen shumai, and a six-pack of beer. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Total, including the beer: $35.79.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6ee0pe28RzgawEnx15XjbkX-qrs7bH0MP0cNLSYgD4D-uFMi9sWI3xsEDLwpRF_VYEmJ-BzeQPoJDu39XeKQWf6MvNo1Pqm8Y_v5-u1Vie1Godl1Bpvbg2dYx7Cj0cQ0p1qyxXN__cZ9/s1600/whatigotweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ6ee0pe28RzgawEnx15XjbkX-qrs7bH0MP0cNLSYgD4D-uFMi9sWI3xsEDLwpRF_VYEmJ-BzeQPoJDu39XeKQWf6MvNo1Pqm8Y_v5-u1Vie1Godl1Bpvbg2dYx7Cj0cQ0p1qyxXN__cZ9/s400/whatigotweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520281102673340162" /></a><br /><i>Not pictured: three bananas</i><br /><br />Incidentally, Red Horse is made by San Miguel, which I had always assumed was a Mexican brewery. In fact, it's Filipino!<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-47695751212691650602010-09-01T18:44:00.000-07:002010-09-02T11:40:23.946-07:00Market Research: Super A Foods<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1puAXW8qP6jTdXc1NuugVX8n2sYDODlE5M1FQm7Hn70Zf7ENyq_-8g1JvkTtONFcIl3p4d_Kkju96gEqjxYWych097_wuHx75WWuIiqOAAGf3xhvlMwGr4HarTEJfFSKCD6RN6LAnPyPS/s1600/superAfrontweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1puAXW8qP6jTdXc1NuugVX8n2sYDODlE5M1FQm7Hn70Zf7ENyq_-8g1JvkTtONFcIl3p4d_Kkju96gEqjxYWych097_wuHx75WWuIiqOAAGf3xhvlMwGr4HarTEJfFSKCD6RN6LAnPyPS/s400/superAfrontweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127247434352066" /></a><br /><br />Food Comma headquarters recently relocated to <b>Eagle Rock,</b> and as such, I’m on the hunt for a new local grocery store. Granted, the Vons is a mere three blocks away, but for various reasons, I’ve decided to try to check out as many of the markets in the neighborhood as possible. Consider this the first installment of a regular feature called <b>Market Research.</b><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir5vzB4CisNhLGK1-efEd6j9mmGD4UP5cbr_M7byaG8AMCnrtrXNNJnPvJ5_atqFXD-v9KdFGaiOxVeh5pQh0gXdYpsHUUdD5wKGnh3b7UUBJlIzUkbIwOV9dEVuGZ8tqNyXGQVQHnMB9Z/s1600/collageweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir5vzB4CisNhLGK1-efEd6j9mmGD4UP5cbr_M7byaG8AMCnrtrXNNJnPvJ5_atqFXD-v9KdFGaiOxVeh5pQh0gXdYpsHUUdD5wKGnh3b7UUBJlIzUkbIwOV9dEVuGZ8tqNyXGQVQHnMB9Z/s400/collageweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127217434128450" /></a><br /><i>Clockwise from top left: time to shop, the Asian aisle, groovy font, econo-size menudo</i><br /><br /><b>Super A Foods,</b> which bills itself as a family-owned-and-operated full-service grocery store, is a regional chain with <a href="http://www.superafoods.com/">13 locations</a> in the greater LA metro area. The Eagle Rock outlet is a total throwback to the supermarkets of my youth, with its 1970s color palette (think brown, orange, avocado green), groovy fonts, and seagull and sailboat décor.<br /><br />I like seeing how different stores cater to the local demographic. There doesn’t seem to be a huge demand for organic produce among Super A's patrons; on the other hand, you can find a good selection of Mexican cheese and crema.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2QywXbk6diT-Esf9ZDFfZ5ZNY2u1V1Tm0BJcYIHrFopX628d4fZsFe0c7U502aTgL6vbKBeERczdS-HO1pmZ_7jCvgjxD3x4zyBij55GcNzviJSIzYwjtfcYLJluY0B5s_KXzKE4SaLwE/s1600/tomatoesandcheeseweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 271px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2QywXbk6diT-Esf9ZDFfZ5ZNY2u1V1Tm0BJcYIHrFopX628d4fZsFe0c7U502aTgL6vbKBeERczdS-HO1pmZ_7jCvgjxD3x4zyBij55GcNzviJSIzYwjtfcYLJluY0B5s_KXzKE4SaLwE/s400/tomatoesandcheeseweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127259827413618" /></a><br /><br />I never saw cactus fruit at the Los Feliz Albertson’s.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIXPY8KVZshMW4w2mfjMBo3BIkI_Sun_LLoS8GKFk8A8rdrqTgEPOytvvvzSwOcgXmz_cjawujCOEm7gypjH_GHoLUovPeo0PbKrK1WS8OXfpmPvtRpE9dPjSr4vvNi0YItoJXh6S5LC9/s1600/pearsweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCIXPY8KVZshMW4w2mfjMBo3BIkI_Sun_LLoS8GKFk8A8rdrqTgEPOytvvvzSwOcgXmz_cjawujCOEm7gypjH_GHoLUovPeo0PbKrK1WS8OXfpmPvtRpE9dPjSr4vvNi0YItoJXh6S5LC9/s400/pearsweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127238086796034" /></a><br /><i>Cactus fruit, Bosc pears, mangoes</i><br /><br />Super A also offers bulk lard, if that’s what you're into.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEWOaxd2SeuyY6rBAyi680ii5HiwUxLbjpnVPb4RO_uylu-PsyhDZBODX2OOEKkHEejrxIZPbxwdJ-ZM9eNURGRjZdWwt13Gx3HtuzeLYJFuJQK2opugFekrbgXX3TXrmUFAXOpYsOYduR/s1600/lardweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEWOaxd2SeuyY6rBAyi680ii5HiwUxLbjpnVPb4RO_uylu-PsyhDZBODX2OOEKkHEejrxIZPbxwdJ-ZM9eNURGRjZdWwt13Gx3HtuzeLYJFuJQK2opugFekrbgXX3TXrmUFAXOpYsOYduR/s400/lardweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127218118285362" /></a><br /><br />I picked up just a few items for the rest of the week’s meals: a ribeye steak, some ground turkey, bacon, a bag of Mexican sandwich rolls, a grapefruit, a lime, a few roma tomatoes, romaine lettuce, watercress, and a frozen pizza and ramen noodles for the inevitable lazy nights when I don’t feel like cooking. The damage came to <b>$31.84.</b><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6nUOIeT_c7Lg2kvIL4_Zo0iUpzWknNmzIQD3J-wrcy6kXNWYMBaIXQOPZZYdTNft0MC8coL_zO-kuxsYq94I4thKz4P0rb5rgsigm1tEalwCwic8oZGya0uNfO-dBtjLzc6KrhO3n-nnf/s1600/whatigotweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6nUOIeT_c7Lg2kvIL4_Zo0iUpzWknNmzIQD3J-wrcy6kXNWYMBaIXQOPZZYdTNft0MC8coL_zO-kuxsYq94I4thKz4P0rb5rgsigm1tEalwCwic8oZGya0uNfO-dBtjLzc6KrhO3n-nnf/s400/whatigotweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512127777062410706" /></a><br /><br />Of course, that excludes the bottle of <b>Maker’s Mark for $18.99,</b> which I spotted just as I was leaving. And for a deal like that, I’ll definitely go back to Super A.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-73772152180061634202010-08-25T13:30:00.000-07:002010-08-25T19:07:44.125-07:00Feasting at the FairCarnival rides. Pig races. Weird Al Yankovic. These were all highlights of Food Comma's trip to the <b>OC Super Fair</b> this summer, but we all know the real star of the show is the food. Where else but at the fair can you indulge in all the crap you'd never normally eat—while it's also deep fried and/or on a stick?<br /><br />We made sure to arrive hungry, but despite my growling stomach, the <b>Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich</b> did not look appetizing. As you might gather from its name, the sandwich features a fried, processed chicken patty plunked into a sliced, glazed, jelly-filled Krispy Kreme donut.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1yfW6n3mrvGRkF8bAGvNQr-GD-uLrnkbV-whnoJiXIEBubi3xuu5jDhYmUocaYTS4ONwSCs3vMDfqMWFMnzsd90EUEVQreHgSCFoScIB4jdVfEmy_Ov_1FKMtx0Hr8u0mGF2iecfwAWjZ/s1600/krispy+kreme+chicken+sandwich+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1yfW6n3mrvGRkF8bAGvNQr-GD-uLrnkbV-whnoJiXIEBubi3xuu5jDhYmUocaYTS4ONwSCs3vMDfqMWFMnzsd90EUEVQreHgSCFoScIB4jdVfEmy_Ov_1FKMtx0Hr8u0mGF2iecfwAWjZ/s400/krispy+kreme+chicken+sandwich+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509448480355860418" /></a><br /><i>Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich</i><br /><br />On the other hand, the <b>beef sundae</b> held a lot of promise: a cupful of mashed potatoes underneath a pile of smoked pulled beef slathered with barbecue sauce and topped with a grape tomato. The problem was that the potatoes tasted distinctly of the instant variety, chalky and bland. But I'm looking forward to experimenting with the sundae idea at home.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjVLXUmxjxU30IQDEpicxzoTlAFZ8LKPRUbDvVFtfr01F2kNWXHI5_oqVKNST0o-elW16T_Yw0lai5_S2hWleS7KHFyBgaEFswXEyYwSnMiCQRc2FOT8fpBLtp1pJhoxMuHFsSiXMdsiKr/s1600/beef+sundae+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjVLXUmxjxU30IQDEpicxzoTlAFZ8LKPRUbDvVFtfr01F2kNWXHI5_oqVKNST0o-elW16T_Yw0lai5_S2hWleS7KHFyBgaEFswXEyYwSnMiCQRc2FOT8fpBLtp1pJhoxMuHFsSiXMdsiKr/s400/beef+sundae+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509448482226855762" /></a><br /><i>Beef sundae</i><br /><br />Next up, the <b>deep-fried White Castle.</b> Since there's already a bun, the additional fried batter around the burger really just makes the whole thing way too doughy. Disappointing.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0I2reRPgbU6udnb6mJeqJ-8T4nxs7SoyTtIOH8va2DodEcEQ_bN4H17pwgbVFsGnyRn1Qvtt-zGZcA4adIOxxYhIp3wE2b4lJgIdjJuZr9PQlRoK_EftE9l5_i1ybu0zn4mSRT3E0jES0/s1600/deep+fried+white+castle+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0I2reRPgbU6udnb6mJeqJ-8T4nxs7SoyTtIOH8va2DodEcEQ_bN4H17pwgbVFsGnyRn1Qvtt-zGZcA4adIOxxYhIp3wE2b4lJgIdjJuZr9PQlRoK_EftE9l5_i1ybu0zn4mSRT3E0jES0/s400/deep+fried+white+castle+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509448501639420706" /></a><br /><i>Deep-fried White Castle</i><br /><br />It wasn't edible, but the hand-sewn <b>fabric cheeseburger,</b> winner of the Blue Award, whatever that is, in the crafts competition's junior fiber arts category, was cute. It even had fabric potato chips and watermelon on the side.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ecZkuhpPrEHNfCtcdKT_Go0uAtGGpZVni-1BEP4ZWACneQdy9uQU3vjoXWs2QNtyGo9UHQtDM9sQ6aK8cztPeLsqiffrPVFqUbT3PhoVXDnLVByAbwV0Sqspm6FXkeRraN5usrvao6SL/s1600/fabric+burger+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ecZkuhpPrEHNfCtcdKT_Go0uAtGGpZVni-1BEP4ZWACneQdy9uQU3vjoXWs2QNtyGo9UHQtDM9sQ6aK8cztPeLsqiffrPVFqUbT3PhoVXDnLVByAbwV0Sqspm6FXkeRraN5usrvao6SL/s400/fabric+burger+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509448506117074754" /></a><br /><i>Award-winning cheeseburger</i><br /><br />We ended our junk food journey with a <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2009/07/fair-fare.html">repeat treat from last year</a>, the <b>Huell Howser</b> from Pink's. Are there two hot dogs in it because Huell repeats everything his interviewees say?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVs4UZQwOaneNXOEhGCeXP4tcK-oXqK1rRj7WvPGvcDDaWjuBPQiiLnZj7YodMB6gIMFnQ8Dcg99QxN3F3pj5-RDyOiIga-8zvFW1aVWC9cd3gPvpg9u_TTDA3xkgJSPGApqk27EYhhog/s1600/huell+howser+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVs4UZQwOaneNXOEhGCeXP4tcK-oXqK1rRj7WvPGvcDDaWjuBPQiiLnZj7YodMB6gIMFnQ8Dcg99QxN3F3pj5-RDyOiIga-8zvFW1aVWC9cd3gPvpg9u_TTDA3xkgJSPGApqk27EYhhog/s400/huell+howser+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509448508040581794" /></a><br /><i>The Huell Howser</i><br /><br />Alas, the OC Super Fair has already packed up for the year, but the <a href="http://www.lacountyfair.com/2010/eatshop/food.asp">2010 LA County Fair</a> is just around the corner, with, I'm certain, many of the same gut-busting delectables. As the fair's website says, "undue the top button on your pants and dive in."<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-40932532672260308772010-08-08T14:00:00.000-07:002010-08-09T22:03:35.029-07:00Let's Meat: The 2nd Annual Korean BBQ Cook-OffSignage on the street was minimal, but visitors needed only follow the great cloud of smoke rising over Wilshire, and the mouth-watering scent of charred beef and pork, to find the 2nd annual <a href="http://kbbqcookoff.com/">Korean BBQ Cook-Off</a> this weekend in Los Angeles.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgCzvvqN2qT6OBbgHCa5skY_OD3mxh92E7XPy2-ngOyBu-IqVnjwRy-o7opbc-KJ3THds2CsBeI_KOJGQ_wOiTyqZJ-lKyu-Lr1hL2lutmogmxa5iz0NBnR0PH3F1dPO3JhXKrHQ3sxkh/s1600/spreadweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgCzvvqN2qT6OBbgHCa5skY_OD3mxh92E7XPy2-ngOyBu-IqVnjwRy-o7opbc-KJ3THds2CsBeI_KOJGQ_wOiTyqZJ-lKyu-Lr1hL2lutmogmxa5iz0NBnR0PH3F1dPO3JhXKrHQ3sxkh/s400/spreadweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503158826755796434" /></a><br /><i>Clockwise from top left: galbi sausage with kimchi on a brioche bun (Seoul Sausage Company), traditional bulgogi (Soowon Galbi); cheeseburger (Kalbi Burger); spicy pork ribs (Ham Ji Park); LA galbi (BDC Tofu House)</i><br /><br />Any repeat attendee could tell that the contest’s organizers learned a lot from last year. With a bigger venue, printed vendor maps, voucher system for meals and drinks, and plenty of port-a-pots, this time around the cook-off evidently resolved the overcrowding, inspection delays, and food shortage issues of <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2009/08/korean-bbq-sex.html">the inaugural event</a>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflv8RdhxSgAmbDZqKC-HFeb38CYG8VQZrjy3yyH0r6baffeDC5tsBwviISUggcJlvq6zdKHMpFqxTWAQj00F2fVgfnxlAEnByjQNAS0uKV44j4cjaAKR2SPIWmfF5bnB3TQ9GqhYR4pg2/s1600/lineweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflv8RdhxSgAmbDZqKC-HFeb38CYG8VQZrjy3yyH0r6baffeDC5tsBwviISUggcJlvq6zdKHMpFqxTWAQj00F2fVgfnxlAEnByjQNAS0uKV44j4cjaAKR2SPIWmfF5bnB3TQ9GqhYR4pg2/s400/lineweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503158822460934130" /></a><br /><i>Waiting in line for Ham Ji Park</i><br /><br />Food Comma also learned something from last year. Upon arrival, my companions and I purchased several vouchers and then fanned out, each getting in a different line so we could reconvene with a variety of dishes to share. The longest lines by far were for <b>Kalbi Burger</b> and <b>Ham Ji Park,</b> whose customers waited for up to 45 minutes. Lines for some other restaurants, like <b>Soowon Galbi</b> and <b>O Dae San,</b> were only a few people deep.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCoYNv_N2f2msM5rREc4O5kyIpv3oi_UATYFBZZIO5opzrfc9SH7bUIvewMAoEZWea3JAtqdYKXteqlk4S9z0CMWdO3PfoHbG3u0tfdmAH_DxPkHTphlGv3QXMRoAKt8lmb2905yP8FTHr/s1600/judgestableweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCoYNv_N2f2msM5rREc4O5kyIpv3oi_UATYFBZZIO5opzrfc9SH7bUIvewMAoEZWea3JAtqdYKXteqlk4S9z0CMWdO3PfoHbG3u0tfdmAH_DxPkHTphlGv3QXMRoAKt8lmb2905yP8FTHr/s400/judgestableweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503158816300479090" /></a><br /><i>Judges Jonathan Gold, Ludo Lefebvre, and Sandra Oh</i><br /><br />Again, we skipped the Choco-Pie eating contest, and missed the soju mix-off, but were sure to catch the awards ceremony featuring Pulitzer Prize winner <b>Jonathan Gold,</b> rock star chef of the moment <b>Ludo Lefebvre,</b> actress <b>Sandra Oh,</b> and councilmember <b>Herb Wesson.</b> <a href="http://www.parksbbq.com/">Park's BBQ</a>, a franchise of a Korea-based restaurant, took top honors and was also deemed the fave of Chef Ludo, who said he found inspiration at the cook-off for next week's <a href="http://www.ludolefebvre.com/ludobites">LudoBites</a> menu.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4T6dh7Q6HxifspKE60iqVuUyg4McZ5PvYOeBJrvLPiGX3AIWEpcFqoLkSI9oKsPTlcS-GayULB2jnLJ01YhXsuLtavC5UxaDMzxP_ltFM3LsICc3WbXv0_5eXkN_Zg9QND2RdDuGv-szw/s1600/winnerweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4T6dh7Q6HxifspKE60iqVuUyg4McZ5PvYOeBJrvLPiGX3AIWEpcFqoLkSI9oKsPTlcS-GayULB2jnLJ01YhXsuLtavC5UxaDMzxP_ltFM3LsICc3WbXv0_5eXkN_Zg9QND2RdDuGv-szw/s400/winnerweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503159046960468482" /></a><br /><i>The winner</i><br /><br />More pics from the Korean BBQ Cook-Off:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizoCmK5fmxkHcQGeGvD0B9qhyQLPHyFxcnfSvAoldQTHIh1HT_MMCEbAb6Bk9ycaP-xKLaZEY815XSCrSTNOl8OoEgJGUq3NAWcjZf2mjghJWJJ4Ofg-Vch2w_-li7_CFAyaeQpRewaKrm/s1600/thegoldenweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizoCmK5fmxkHcQGeGvD0B9qhyQLPHyFxcnfSvAoldQTHIh1HT_MMCEbAb6Bk9ycaP-xKLaZEY815XSCrSTNOl8OoEgJGUq3NAWcjZf2mjghJWJJ4Ofg-Vch2w_-li7_CFAyaeQpRewaKrm/s400/thegoldenweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503159044037264690" /></a><br /><i>Jonathan Gold greeted fans after the cook-off</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyphenhyphenwZ6cWKLK9ptDqSK3-GhWq6VOf5HwupbOzXI1wL9aqEeUjVa59SaUVCpEWifG24-RcoijVzavkSweFMyu0VlukocftLRmG7BkqTWSk8X3wuj7HjSHcWY5Q8HG4UEF4LFdCDP2QnRXb4y/s1600/hitemanweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyphenhyphenwZ6cWKLK9ptDqSK3-GhWq6VOf5HwupbOzXI1wL9aqEeUjVa59SaUVCpEWifG24-RcoijVzavkSweFMyu0VlukocftLRmG7BkqTWSk8X3wuj7HjSHcWY5Q8HG4UEF4LFdCDP2QnRXb4y/s400/hitemanweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503158812335912146" /></a><br /><i>Photo op with Hite Man</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrGMt4iJN1vN2X3SZaxkCBb1Scdh-WsFir35EAlnO2ihlRFppWpGiv_MmlZ_sAXgkeJv7ap5zsJJMaAdCbWGHJE7WZrDhyphenhypheneNqxFrUs_GoucAhQVGnie3ds3IBZdRNqrU2QDqjiZT6IOgXj/s1600/chefludoweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrGMt4iJN1vN2X3SZaxkCBb1Scdh-WsFir35EAlnO2ihlRFppWpGiv_MmlZ_sAXgkeJv7ap5zsJJMaAdCbWGHJE7WZrDhyphenhypheneNqxFrUs_GoucAhQVGnie3ds3IBZdRNqrU2QDqjiZT6IOgXj/s400/chefludoweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503158804544335506" /></a><br /><i>Chef Ludo declared his passion for kimchi</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-41314068381546376482010-03-24T18:07:00.000-07:002010-03-25T09:08:40.950-07:00Brews You Can Use<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsgwjJ82YlX6FGlmNXl6y1bDY5I36oqZ0_clKW_wpQxRdbjn0FSavA0vbLFlv4W1rgRYULuDiFTYWO5IZbW8cTiIxdCzfLS_yj_R5imyukOYJqTiX8a4UbR-qjk3_HzyUL-lnFBpa8af2c/s1600/bruerytastingroomweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsgwjJ82YlX6FGlmNXl6y1bDY5I36oqZ0_clKW_wpQxRdbjn0FSavA0vbLFlv4W1rgRYULuDiFTYWO5IZbW8cTiIxdCzfLS_yj_R5imyukOYJqTiX8a4UbR-qjk3_HzyUL-lnFBpa8af2c/s400/bruerytastingroomweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452374497581146850" /></a><br /><i>Bros at the Bruery</i><br /><br />It may be hidden in the back corner of an Orange County industrial park, but the <a href="http://www.thebruery.com/index2.html">Bruery</a> is at the forefront of a craft beer movement in Southern California. The 3-year-old family-run microbrewery specializes in <b>Belgian-style beers,</b> which I admit I know next to nothing about. I can say, however, that the <a href="http://www.thebruery.com/tastingroom/index.html">tasting room</a> at the Bruery is an excellent destination for a weekend afternoon or evening. A recent visit witnessed a couple dozen merry makers indulging in $5 glasses (12 oz.) or $18 flights of 5 samples of the establishment's foamy specialties, some aged in bourbon or wine barrels to impart a complex character. Word is that the company is expanding, with approved plans for a <a href="http://www.foodgps.com/the-bruery-plans-craft-beer-cafe/">"craft brew cafe"</a> in Old Town Placentia. I leave the brew review to Food Comma’s resident ale expert, NLS.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFVKMkF-mBqNqnf5zYE3KG0MFuhxY6RABX6VJVj_mVM7oJk0ce0XvJAsbvjbwEO-lZdadJ8IHp-vWbZorK2K-NcdNGCwOHwRPi2KSRbV-TwY9M4mcjlQ2Wr48rz86jPHEFPjnrxiLFycBT/s1600/growlerandglassweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFVKMkF-mBqNqnf5zYE3KG0MFuhxY6RABX6VJVj_mVM7oJk0ce0XvJAsbvjbwEO-lZdadJ8IHp-vWbZorK2K-NcdNGCwOHwRPi2KSRbV-TwY9M4mcjlQ2Wr48rz86jPHEFPjnrxiLFycBT/s400/growlerandglassweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452374503660612146" /></a><br /><i>Growler of Humulus XPA</i><br /><br />While this is billed as an “Xtra Pale Ale,” it doesn't have the extreme bitterness of other pale ales I've had. This is mellower and, as it turns out, has a much lower alcohol content. That said, when I say that the <b>Humulus XPA</b> is mellower, I certainly wouldn't say it's mellow. Anyone who loves pale ales is into a slightly extreme taste, but I really do think the bitterness can be pushed too far. This, however, is right at that sweet spot. Another special thing about it is that it encourages a bit of beer tourism. Yep, only at its birthplace, the Bruery in <b>Placentia, California,</b> can one taste this winner. For those who like souvenirs, you can spend $20 for a “growler” of the XPA that you can take home. Any of you unaware of what that is, like I was, just imagine <b>a vessel like one a toothless hillbilly would drink moonshine out of</b> and you're just about there. In addition, you can take your empty jug back and get it filled up for only $10. When you get it home and are ready to drink, you also might want a hand pouring the growler if you're not a body builder. By the way, the Bruery does have a handful of other brews—the proprietor of this blog and I tried one other, <b>Orchard White,</b> which had notes of uh . . . ground pork? Not such a good thing. Maybe we could have used a palate cleanser after the XPA, as the Orchard White seems to be a highly regarded beer. But we enjoyed the casual and friendly atmosphere. <i>–NLS</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN4_1wrXwu8g22J5hMLR5a5AYYQK9PHM9wrh3jeYb81sxR9LIbjwhXjaq8JsifPLppzU7J7vfe5T6aXZ52xnxjP0Zbsj16OC-LYPVQCFaS-i-OzJKnnDqsa-KkwDA0MPGhl740_-vzEt5G/s1600/nathanbrueryweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 339px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN4_1wrXwu8g22J5hMLR5a5AYYQK9PHM9wrh3jeYb81sxR9LIbjwhXjaq8JsifPLppzU7J7vfe5T6aXZ52xnxjP0Zbsj16OC-LYPVQCFaS-i-OzJKnnDqsa-KkwDA0MPGhl740_-vzEt5G/s400/nathanbrueryweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452374508369813986" /></a><br /><i>99 barrels of beer on the wall...</i><br /><br /><b>The Bruery tasting room</b><br />715 Dunn Way<br />Placentia, CA 92870<br />Friday 4–10<br />Saturday 4–10<br />Sunday 12–6<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-43943570840430130532010-01-06T09:54:00.001-08:002010-01-07T08:25:02.159-08:00Dining on the RailsThis Christmas, Mr. Comma and I traveled from LA to Michigan, where he grew up, to spend the holidays with his family. For adventure’s sake, we decided to take the train, and because the trip is roughly 48 hours each way, we splurged on a sleeping cabin. The cost was exorbitant, but we figured it was worth it for the added comfort and private space; plus, it included meals, which I was predictably very curious about.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1cL0vCP-euV9MKHm2ydzPkqFVkrlD0qR3pvURCjPZXiupM3rGAEZefBIxGpZf__y53zk5RdwCpgbpUSk0pOAgyDURmDhJnccEkKI8l9Ow24AG2eiiCK1rnUETsuxogx18Sb7aMb2_KEN/s1600-h/diningcar.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1cL0vCP-euV9MKHm2ydzPkqFVkrlD0qR3pvURCjPZXiupM3rGAEZefBIxGpZf__y53zk5RdwCpgbpUSk0pOAgyDURmDhJnccEkKI8l9Ow24AG2eiiCK1rnUETsuxogx18Sb7aMb2_KEN/s400/diningcar.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423687077374968226" /></a><br /><i>Dining car between meals</i><br /><br />The dining car is not the classy, linen-tablecloth-and-fine-china luxury it evidently used to be. The decor was more like a Denny’s spruced up to look “modern”: curvy table edges and stainless steel accents and such. However, the menu graphics are well designed, evoking the streamlined elegance of rail travel’s golden age.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPC4j4Xzd2RtIVQsEGsOh4VTARXUuBIaxUxTNxmZgR0ldBzMV67D4WKlKjvT5qEsOIkRgeCJpKyCZMNVZQ-Vuw1rAa8_7KGYg_Sd5hGw_rx4cghcLm-OqzmBojwB66Ug_vgtK-3g5DMlgA/s1600-h/menu.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPC4j4Xzd2RtIVQsEGsOh4VTARXUuBIaxUxTNxmZgR0ldBzMV67D4WKlKjvT5qEsOIkRgeCJpKyCZMNVZQ-Vuw1rAa8_7KGYg_Sd5hGw_rx4cghcLm-OqzmBojwB66Ug_vgtK-3g5DMlgA/s400/menu.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423687086447038050" /></a><br /><i>Menu</i><br /><br />The first thing you should know about dining on the rails is that it’s “community seating,” meaning unless you’re already a group of 4, you’ll be sharing a table with strangers. I’m not a big fan of this practice, but I admit it did give us a chance to meet some interesting people. <br /><br />For instance, our first dinner companion turned out to be a Michigan native; I’ll call him Barry. A somewhat serious middle-aged guy with a graying mullet and the deep, grizzled voice of a lifelong smoker, he and Mr. Comma bonded over their home state the way all Michiganders seem to. The lakes, the U.P., the “seasons,” et cetera. We were looking forward to seeing some snow, but it was sort of poetic the way Barry described how winter in the Midwest made him feel depressed after the fallen leaves had left the trees so bare and stark. The next morning, we ran into him outside during a stop in Albuquerque, where we chitchatted about this and that, like how he was finally able to get a cigarette break, and how badly Mr. Comma and I had slept our first night on the train, possibly because we’d tried to both squeeze into the lower bunk. Barry, on the other hand, told us he’d slept on the upper bunk and that he slept better than he does at home, even though the mattress was so thin, and he’s slept on some pretty thin mattresses, because he’s spent time in prison. I kind of wanted to ask what for, but I was also afraid to ask in case it was rape.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQjj9UuiaE6jACz1k6woAZcZ5F0mLzFzucT6E8e3sR88cpXvyLOwSdrf7DxGTmgHnZjD5ayjsPT-dV6JkJWdTdw6Tn5RyX6vRPAE_ittC_JcwZ-p1pkb_BXiNUap463mBxkEET8PEYbokU/s1600-h/railfood.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQjj9UuiaE6jACz1k6woAZcZ5F0mLzFzucT6E8e3sR88cpXvyLOwSdrf7DxGTmgHnZjD5ayjsPT-dV6JkJWdTdw6Tn5RyX6vRPAE_ittC_JcwZ-p1pkb_BXiNUap463mBxkEET8PEYbokU/s400/railfood.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423687094568419714" /></a><br /><i>Clockwise from top left: New York strip steak; herb roasted half chicken; cheeseburger on a dinner roll; salad with Granny Smith apples, walnuts, and blue cheese</i><br /><br />Then of course there's the food itself. Some was pretty good, some was not, but in general, at least it was a few notches above airplane fare. Here are just a few tips for a more rewarding railfood experience:<br /><br /><b>1. Get the steak.</b> Our porter revealed to us that it’s the only thing that’s cooked to order. According to him, everything else is premade and simply reheated on board. I didn’t actually verify that, but judging from the dry, cardboard-like chicken I had the first night, I believed it.<br /><br /><b>2. Reserve an early seating.</b> The dining car steward comes around to make reservations, that is, he or she is supposed to. On our outbound journey, Janine took our dinner reservation the first night but, for the remainder of the trip, sounded quite drunk every time she made an announcement over the PA. She would slur, “ThisisJanineinthediningcarthere’llbenoreservationsinsteadit’llbefirstcomefirstserve.” But if you do have the option, try to eat earlier rather than later because things tend to run out. One dinner, we weren’t able to get red wine, only white. At lunch another time, not only was Mr. Comma’s bacon cheeseburger served without the bacon, but it also came sans bun.<br /><br /><b>3. Wake up early.</b> I chose poorly at the one breakfast service we managed to get up in time for (the quesadilla special, which was ice cold in the center), but Mr. Comma’s French toast was fine and it definitely beat the crappy microwave fare from the cafe car.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOI0CNgmKFeNlkOrcBjMlmZVb8un3fPtR9eGQJJcRpom6pQNMmM4KcyC8EON_vqVhHxOuYfi84oELFnb2k-CfLj0007XfWoJ3q1EUN3tgvpyfpXkYr39NanuutyC3UM6SxjpOLeZdVJHl/s1600-h/breakfast.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 133px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOI0CNgmKFeNlkOrcBjMlmZVb8un3fPtR9eGQJJcRpom6pQNMmM4KcyC8EON_vqVhHxOuYfi84oELFnb2k-CfLj0007XfWoJ3q1EUN3tgvpyfpXkYr39NanuutyC3UM6SxjpOLeZdVJHl/s400/breakfast.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423687098608884002" /></a><br /><i>Quesadilla and bacon, French toast and pork sausage</i><br /><br /><b>4. Bring your own booze.</b> At $13 for a half bottle, the wine served in the dining car (not included with the inclusive meal, of course) may not be marked up as much as at a restaurant, but it still feels like a rip-off. If you do bring a bottle aboard, you can consume it only in your own room, but you can also order your meal to be delivered there, which as an added benefit gives you a break from having that same old conversation in the dining car (“Is this your first time on the train?” etc.).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyY0qd7ac5stECyEfQRpJUtgSUMIs1JBRkPFUukbHFiF_S3aJoxa4QQzzqSquIkA1awvD10BUgvPXtj_rplr75IHQD3bKG4InfwDGv76jhbTIqU591FjOJPONXjIZZZkRzLPV6OxGT_hxM/s1600-h/holidayturkeyweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyY0qd7ac5stECyEfQRpJUtgSUMIs1JBRkPFUukbHFiF_S3aJoxa4QQzzqSquIkA1awvD10BUgvPXtj_rplr75IHQD3bKG4InfwDGv76jhbTIqU591FjOJPONXjIZZZkRzLPV6OxGT_hxM/s400/holidayturkeyweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423687082013725746" /></a><br /><i>The holiday turkey special with stuffing and gravy: processed and oversalted but tasty in a TV dinner kind of way</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-69036615072101790312009-12-06T19:11:00.000-08:002009-12-11T23:35:57.028-08:00Soup Season<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuoO3A6YHGZfq934JdMoI376hRkePTV61mn8lHBSqi8lO6Px4Y3w-ZHYWHb4z44jCmQzLk2rLFhAQ7BMrtCD02NBeErT9nnxta2SgozROnLqOcvdg7BiyhzMK-Ly6Rr-aXM_4qW7I-2Y9/s1600-h/thanksgivingonabunweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuoO3A6YHGZfq934JdMoI376hRkePTV61mn8lHBSqi8lO6Px4Y3w-ZHYWHb4z44jCmQzLk2rLFhAQ7BMrtCD02NBeErT9nnxta2SgozROnLqOcvdg7BiyhzMK-Ly6Rr-aXM_4qW7I-2Y9/s400/thanksgivingonabunweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327717172023682"/></a><br /><i>Thanksgiving on a Bun, fresh fruit</i><br /><br />Now that Thanksgiving is long over, you don’t have to feel like you’re cheating if you order the <b>Thanksgiving on a Bun ($8.75)</b> from the <a href="http://www.thevillagebakeryandcafe.com">Village Bakery and Cafe</a> in Atwater Village. Of course, now that Thanksgiving is over, the Thanksgiving on a Bun is probably the last thing you’d want. But the casual eatery—recently opened in the former LA Bread space by one of the founders of <b>Auntie Em’s</b>—has plenty else to offer.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvobkTy2epHIdutscCl-DHFqh-8meHkm285Kz9tyrAdg3RFhXPYivdHeZH96zfzjLHTl2GIPkJfbAPxuchbja4mdNKtczP9blGlYLgQ4sDwUWy4L05E8sIYgWaTGq1eWTsCArYjWZWM-0s/s1600-h/breadandbutterweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvobkTy2epHIdutscCl-DHFqh-8meHkm285Kz9tyrAdg3RFhXPYivdHeZH96zfzjLHTl2GIPkJfbAPxuchbja4mdNKtczP9blGlYLgQ4sDwUWy4L05E8sIYgWaTGq1eWTsCArYjWZWM-0s/s400/breadandbutterweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327560010954210"/></a><br /><i>Basket of bread with raspberry butter</i><br /><br />Aside from its full breakfast and lunch menu, the restaurant has a bakery case crammed with housemade cakes, cookies, scones, muffins, and other treats. Having more of a savory than a sweet tooth, Mr. Comma and I opted for the <b>lemon-rosemary-almond-olive oil cake ($5)</b> on a recent visit. Not only is the name itself a mouthful, but you really can taste every one of those flavors in each bite. Is that a good thing? We weren’t entirely convinced but look forward to sampling other selections.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXFRz0zcmB95Or2iF1Qq8MLHpbslVzcbwU15O-mgvimJTgcTbvC-u_oPeA0wX5LvrSYvJBcbELFGHErXwap1c4BJxUPlkGLWobcGqUvWjFbOMxWxr1EySfDJRoXrmdlNwiWzk4LFq00G1/s1600-h/dessertweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 263px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvXFRz0zcmB95Or2iF1Qq8MLHpbslVzcbwU15O-mgvimJTgcTbvC-u_oPeA0wX5LvrSYvJBcbELFGHErXwap1c4BJxUPlkGLWobcGqUvWjFbOMxWxr1EySfDJRoXrmdlNwiWzk4LFq00G1/s400/dessertweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327563273816098" /></a><br /><i>Baked goods (left), lemon-rosemary-almond-olive oil cake (right)</i><br /><br />Compared with the <b>roast beef sandwich,</b> which was stacked high with tender meat, cheese, grilled onions, and greens on thin-sliced sourdough, the <b>chicken salad sandwich ($8.25),</b> made with organic apples and toasted pecans, seemed a bit skimpy. The soup of the day, however, <b>roasted red pepper and tomato bisque ($5),</b> was so good that I ordered an extra bowl to take home (though I’m inclined to nitpick that traditionally a bisque is made with shellfish).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK3qb9_MIb4_HhNNqz3PAQ3xArpRPSpXi5XVcofxRWKTQy-eJsQTroQCo8rKPreEQi4R_ZbbMBM-bQFuo57akny8Mc6PLxG1RMePfBQIUJhkO8LaVJivGuJOVP_nh41Y9XievItMt3Z8sh/s1600-h/roastbeefsandwichweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK3qb9_MIb4_HhNNqz3PAQ3xArpRPSpXi5XVcofxRWKTQy-eJsQTroQCo8rKPreEQi4R_ZbbMBM-bQFuo57akny8Mc6PLxG1RMePfBQIUJhkO8LaVJivGuJOVP_nh41Y9XievItMt3Z8sh/s400/roastbeefsandwichweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327568502024258" /></a><br /><i>Roast beef sandwich, side salad</i><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbhcvm7YIcVm4qdpp7ETi564vBtDjhjY2Yu9MJZqPA7MgZOzsH1nEsc9sz719mG0JFtpZ59nll_uugMdiA2Xxz3sJEZG8tMNQvM01G7DD4C07fFxVsmNBUysIZYhHQ_lk3_woaUmM6sau/s1600-h/roastedredpepperbisqueweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbhcvm7YIcVm4qdpp7ETi564vBtDjhjY2Yu9MJZqPA7MgZOzsH1nEsc9sz719mG0JFtpZ59nll_uugMdiA2Xxz3sJEZG8tMNQvM01G7DD4C07fFxVsmNBUysIZYhHQ_lk3_woaUmM6sau/s400/roastedredpepperbisqueweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327576905230242" /></a><br /><i>Chicken salad sandwich, roasted red pepper and tomato bisque</i><br /><br />It also inspired me to tweak a recipe I thought I’d already perfected over the past 15 years, a tomato soup with dill. I’d always made mine with red bell peppers but never thought to roast them first. Turned out so great I’m happy to share my recipe here. A twist on a classic mirepoix (equal parts chopped carrots, celery, and onion), the roasted peppers and fresh zucchini in the base lend a smoky complexity to this comforting and delicious soup. This recipe makes a good 8 or so bowls, so invite friends over, or keep the leftovers to yourself.<br /><br /><b>Roasted Red Bell Pepper and Tomato Soup with Dill</b><br /><br />2 red bell peppers<br />1 Tbs butter<br />1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil<br />3-4 garlic cloves, minced<br />1 medium onion, chopped<br />2 zucchinis, chopped<br />1 28-oz can crushed Italian plum tomatoes<br />1 and 1/2 quarts vegetable broth<br />salt and pepper to taste<br />1/4 cup sour cream<br />Several sprigs fresh dill, finely chopped<br /><br />Roast the peppers over a medium-high flame (or in a preheated 425-degree oven), turning occasionally, until they are nicely charred (but not incinerated) on all sides (this could take 5-10 minutes per side). Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap or enclose in a paper bag 10-15 minutes, until cool enough to handle. Peel skin from peppers and cut open to remove seeds. Coarsely chop into 1/2-inch pieces.<br /><br />Heat butter and olive oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Sautée garlic for a few seconds; then add onion, zucchini, and red bell pepper. Stirring often, cook the vegetables for a couple minutes. Add crushed tomatoes and broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and let simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes.<br /><br />Remove from heat and let cool about 45 minutes. In a blender, puree the mixture in batches to a smooth consistency. (At this point, the soup can be refrigerated for later use.)<br /><br />Prior to serving, gently reheat. Add sour cream and, using a whisk, stir in until it’s fully incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (The canned tomatoes and broth will already have supplied plenty of salt so you shouldn't need to add much, if any.) Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a big pinch of dill.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkMiVvwJ-8XRWSHvXFvaNakuxE6PAJIpAWlvkuOjWWTx9n5t6WTBpEaxPbCFs1rpotzBLGT_zpJO4m2sZfOfVM_n-JA7BbT41giTmoj_q0hZH9Z6WZagfRsoRop_5NOOW1GhoaQ200KBgn/s1600-h/roastedredpeppersoupweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkMiVvwJ-8XRWSHvXFvaNakuxE6PAJIpAWlvkuOjWWTx9n5t6WTBpEaxPbCFs1rpotzBLGT_zpJO4m2sZfOfVM_n-JA7BbT41giTmoj_q0hZH9Z6WZagfRsoRop_5NOOW1GhoaQ200KBgn/s400/roastedredpeppersoupweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412327579851404882" /></a><br /><i>1. Prep. 2. Cooking. 3. Post-puree. 4. Finished product.</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-101577150756623632009-09-30T17:20:00.001-07:002010-01-08T10:37:34.230-08:00Booze, Clues, and FoodCould the eighth time be the charm? <b>Agave Tequila House y Cantina</b> is the eighth restaurant in as many years to open, or reinvent itself, at 1745 N. Vermont Avenue that I can think of. In the heart of Los Feliz, the restaurant/bar's locale should be ideal, yet I swear it’s cursed.... <br /><br />Honestly I might’ve been hesitant to check this place out, but was drawn here by <a href="http://www.boozecluesla.com">Booze Clues</a>, a monthly trivia night I’ve been competing in since its debut a couple of years ago. The pub quiz has had multiple homes, and Agave is the latest. Considering that its stock of <b>more than 200 tequilas</b> is the selling point of the place, I would’ve liked to try a tequila flight. But since I didn’t want to divide my attention between tequila tastings and trivia questions, I decided to save it for another evening. Instead, Mr. Comma and I both had the <b>house margarita</b> ($6), which was drinkable enough if nothing to gush about. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4voKvIt5U2E6lmT8U4rZzW6JQ8ecK8W9jbIEimIMyeDp94WErCZq6MeoYB1xsm6S5XzDYHaG8cO6g7bf1tk04TFPaXFWXt-p-U5lfTzCC6NYicrk_WtdIonrsB9dY20S-OjOF4uNiwR_x/s1600-h/agavetequilahouse.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4voKvIt5U2E6lmT8U4rZzW6JQ8ecK8W9jbIEimIMyeDp94WErCZq6MeoYB1xsm6S5XzDYHaG8cO6g7bf1tk04TFPaXFWXt-p-U5lfTzCC6NYicrk_WtdIonrsB9dY20S-OjOF4uNiwR_x/s400/agavetequilahouse.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387420123359408562" /></a><br /><br />From the food menu (clockwise from top left), the <b>chicken wings with chipotle barbecue sauce</b> ($9) sounded great, tasted okay; couldn’t really detect the chipotle. <b>Jalapenos rellenos</b> ($5) were spicy and flavorful. They weren’t battered and fried like typical chiles rellenos, but it worked as bar food. These two appetizers were actually filling enough to satisfy both Nathan and me as far as our hunger went, so that was a pretty good deal. Other members of our trivia team ordered the <b>Mexican flatbread</b>, essentially nachos in pizza form, and <b>beef skewers with rice and beans</b>. I think they ran between $9 and $11.<br /><br />Our team tied for 3rd place this month. Our pattern is usually this: a middling showing at halftime (the first two rounds are current events/general knowledge and a changing “specialty” round), followed by a pretty strong surge in the visual and audio rounds, our strengths. In fact, a few quizzes back, my founding teammate Jen (who blogs at <a href="http://epicureanquest.blogspot.com/">Epicurean Quest</a>) and I were thrilled to find a visual round composed of celebrity chefs. Most of them were easy, but even we got stuck on a couple. Would you have beaten us?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiksJNhiRYqVOGozczyZG7QhBQxQiWv3mM9sf1Z-clFEdaQ-324nbi1frHGZemrUTeskDhvTTbdTpD2CdmGQKguBda8XvUc5j73QDSzqDAeGyFIMq8lWVXWG8-ieCeAnjNCVElv_yIdXPJg/s1600-h/tv-chefs.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 302px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiksJNhiRYqVOGozczyZG7QhBQxQiWv3mM9sf1Z-clFEdaQ-324nbi1frHGZemrUTeskDhvTTbdTpD2CdmGQKguBda8XvUc5j73QDSzqDAeGyFIMq8lWVXWG8-ieCeAnjNCVElv_yIdXPJg/s400/tv-chefs.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387420124369675874" /></a><br /><i>Name that celebrity chef (click to enlarge)</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-26676936550206618342009-09-29T17:45:00.000-07:002010-01-08T10:38:24.239-08:00Hecho en Eagle RockNormally it takes at least like a year before I try out a new restaurant. It isn’t because I’m waiting for hype to die down or kinks to be worked out; I’m just slow. So it was unusual for me to be compelled to check out <b>CaCao Mexicatessen</b> so soon after it opened (which was a couple months ago), but following a glowing review from <a href="http://octopusg.blogspot.com">Octopus Grigori</a>, chronicler of all things Eagle Rock, Mr. Comma and I went. Twice! As the name suggests, the family-run establishment, in a cozy storefront on Colorado Blvd., is a Mexican eatery and deli. In addition to homemade salsas and guacamole, Mexican cheeses, and agua fresca, the shop stocks imported chocolate and specialty items like agave nectar and offers a wide selection of coffee and espresso drinks.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj15xjfmFzpK8fd-0-HfI59zWI5BBMUskfWBueg1w7xuX7pePTvSqwRn1M0bmQvg60ui7wVEUIhijXe2EmnqD4EcbQHHK5LJVGAcP0oeREJovVpFdabPe1M2oD0QQ8d4-ZPPsxPgC8FlfSg/s1600-h/cacaocollage.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 304px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj15xjfmFzpK8fd-0-HfI59zWI5BBMUskfWBueg1w7xuX7pePTvSqwRn1M0bmQvg60ui7wVEUIhijXe2EmnqD4EcbQHHK5LJVGAcP0oeREJovVpFdabPe1M2oD0QQ8d4-ZPPsxPgC8FlfSg/s400/cacaocollage.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387055465764724338" /></a><br /><i>CaCao Mexicatessen, Eagle Rock (click to enlarge)</i><br /><br />On our two trips I sampled some tacos, all served on CaCao’s handmade corn tortillas: (top right) <b>cochinita pibil</b> (pork roasted with achiote and citrus, $2.75), <b>calabacitas</b> (zucchini, corn, and cotija cheese, $2.55), and (bottom right) <b>chicken</b> ($2.65). I found the first a bit dry, but I’ve been spoiled by the divine cochinita pibil at Yuca’s in Los Feliz. The chicken tasted pretty good, even though it wasn’t grilled, contrary to the menu description, and was a little gristly. Of the three—and it surprises me to report this—I liked my vegetarian taco the best. It was full of bright flavor and was perfectly complemented by the fresh salsa verde. Mr. Comma thoroughly enjoyed his colossal <b>carne asada burrito</b> (bottom left, $7.95), which was so big he couldn’t finish, even with my help.<br /><br />I also tried an iced <b>latte de miel de agave</b> ($3.45 single/$3.70 double), sort of a poor man's <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2009/03/coffee-talk.html">Iced Angeleno</a> with half the espresso and double the agave nectar. Delicious. Friendly service and a casual but homey atmosphere are also big pluses. We’ll be repeat customers.<br /><br /><b>CaCao Mexicatessen</b><br />1576 Colorado Blvd.<br />Los Angeles, CA 90041<br />Note: Closed Mondays<br /><a href="http://www.cacaodeli.com">www.cacaodeli.com</a><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-59063661445320648342009-09-25T16:18:00.001-07:002009-09-25T16:22:40.125-07:00Eggs Over FreezyThis is what happens when your eggs get pushed back to the coldest part of the refrigerator:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXnnP50GVh7NOqBttGT5e1EfsqOpXiK6JANYNxUzciR351xB387TYwWqEAB2hUvXPJWAXPihxdCconqsdFdwLAMaEksORrdLsc7bBFXoxYLDsBqyTPjJNW699SfcbfCS096G0sUm-IZeyU/s1600-h/frozen-egg.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXnnP50GVh7NOqBttGT5e1EfsqOpXiK6JANYNxUzciR351xB387TYwWqEAB2hUvXPJWAXPihxdCconqsdFdwLAMaEksORrdLsc7bBFXoxYLDsBqyTPjJNW699SfcbfCS096G0sUm-IZeyU/s400/frozen-egg.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385548684260117522" /></a><br /><br />It's like an egg slushie.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-34804364350070183352009-09-02T11:15:00.000-07:002009-09-02T15:21:41.576-07:00A Fiery HarvestWith the whole city covered in a thick blanket of smoke, the so-called Station Fire has pretty much consumed my thoughts along with all the vegetation in the San Gabriels. But I've been worried about another Southern California wildfire, too, in Oak Glen. The hamlet nestled in the San Bernardino Mountains 60 miles east of Los Angeles is famous for its apple orchards, and right around now is when harvest season begins.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTU-0JaiVczOB0LySo6Xb3cxr6-NtBHvcYq4mTVRY2yiV13qNAlxpSJxDAPRtaAtLv3XLxY-yLaw6sGgPuXpR3dcQSSdjoL6NzX6uyS28MWnUK0HGYyMxJmsRiGyEG91bl59pkHvgkKCPO/s1600-h/appleorchardweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 329px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTU-0JaiVczOB0LySo6Xb3cxr6-NtBHvcYq4mTVRY2yiV13qNAlxpSJxDAPRtaAtLv3XLxY-yLaw6sGgPuXpR3dcQSSdjoL6NzX6uyS28MWnUK0HGYyMxJmsRiGyEG91bl59pkHvgkKCPO/s400/appleorchardweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376936059896021650" /></a><br /><i>Apple orchard in Oak Glen</i><br /><br />Every fall, tourists and local families alike flock to the farms dotting Oak Glen Road to pick their own apples, pumpkins, and berries. Gorgeous mountain scenery, crystal blue skies, and the promise of homemade apple tarte tatin made the day trip to Oak Glen one of our favorites of last year. I had just been thinking about planning another outing when news of the blaze broke.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-shLThlhuRifmfAwA1cofPT_ZvKv6wdiVYADqdKGGkf1yUTzITo_yvv53iSFiN6JqbOzImmcJobCST5PuJ6M_UYUHkvDoiOonjMERnADPmyhdFg01WqABwlEHz7fYGzlTJYAmzQyB9S0c/s1600-h/applestandweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-shLThlhuRifmfAwA1cofPT_ZvKv6wdiVYADqdKGGkf1yUTzITo_yvv53iSFiN6JqbOzImmcJobCST5PuJ6M_UYUHkvDoiOonjMERnADPmyhdFg01WqABwlEHz7fYGzlTJYAmzQyB9S0c/s400/applestandweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376936061339675122" /></a><br /><i>Riley's at Los Rios Rancho</i><br /><br />Luckily, it sounds like <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/09/firefighters-gain-upper-hand-in-oak-glen-and-pendelton-fires.html">firefighters have made good progress on the Oak Glen Fire</a>, and no people, animals, structures, or farms have been harmed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzhcpe6JUx6MdiuvnVGg5X0WFx_ahNXotUc6ZNPNN6SCgfKPtDuQ1o1ZiiPVEgUz8Kg3zNBr2pgCqgTzUq_MUV7rhBwXVdTtu2XMVvQfcdqgU92L_E3KBvqcSV-rjKSA6eT5dmtVU1REVF/s1600-h/nathanwithpumpkinweb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzhcpe6JUx6MdiuvnVGg5X0WFx_ahNXotUc6ZNPNN6SCgfKPtDuQ1o1ZiiPVEgUz8Kg3zNBr2pgCqgTzUq_MUV7rhBwXVdTtu2XMVvQfcdqgU92L_E3KBvqcSV-rjKSA6eT5dmtVU1REVF/s400/nathanwithpumpkinweb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376936073069374530" /></a><br /><i>A fine specimen</i><br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-35103926331686354432009-08-13T10:53:00.000-07:002013-08-20T17:04:16.595-07:00Life on the Farm(Ville)I tried to grow strawberries initially; my first plants withered away before I even realized the berries were ripe. But with some effort, I’ve since successfully cultivated soybeans, squash, eggplant, artichokes, and even a variety of fruit trees. Did I attack the <b>square foot gardening</b> craze with a vengeance? Nope. The entirety of my gardening experience has been within the pretend land of <a href="http://www.zynga.com/games/index.php?game=farmville">FarmVille</a>.<br /><br />In this "simulation game," you plow land, plant seeds, wait for stuff to grow, then harvest and sell your produce to earn money to buy more seeds, livestock, and—if you can afford it—a barn. You don’t learn anything about what it takes to actually grow food or run a farm, except that your crops will die if you don’t tend to them regularly, like a Tamagotchi. I wonder what happens to your chickens if you don’t collect their eggs soon enough? Sounds like an interesting experiment! (Also, it’s really strange collecting eggs or milking a cow with a scythe, which seems to be the only method available.)<br /><br />Since I never played—much less got addicted to—any of those alter-egotistical games like the <b>Sims</b> or <b>Second Life</b>, FarmVille has been my introduction to inhabiting a virtual persona (well, aside from my Wii Mii). But unlike those other games (or so I assume), <b>FarmVille is rather solitary.</b> You’re encouraged to become neighbors with other players, and you can visit their farms, but at the moment, you never actually encounter anyone else. Your interaction with your farmer friends is limited to posting a sign on their land for them to read later, or leaving messages on your own farm. I suppose instead of socializing, you could look at it as a kind of personality test, comparing one farmer’s approach to his or her homestead with another’s.<br /><br />I’ve been on the farm for maybe 2 or 3 weeks. Here’s my modest little plot:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Pm01ApeArZe4twDf14Qnw2UXFvJmoq7Nf_OY-ctpR-oI8ho5f7zSnLg1advnZjB8jzELFinEQfyvwbw4DNnL_gsgxwrkkQgkMrtRqqFe9KkLPJIACZC4K1SicZx7yf_kM89Dz_1up5x8/s1600-h/hanesfarm.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Pm01ApeArZe4twDf14Qnw2UXFvJmoq7Nf_OY-ctpR-oI8ho5f7zSnLg1advnZjB8jzELFinEQfyvwbw4DNnL_gsgxwrkkQgkMrtRqqFe9KkLPJIACZC4K1SicZx7yf_kM89Dz_1up5x8/s400/hanesfarm.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369512034001163570" /></a><br /><br />As you can see, I’m sort of an easygoing farmer. Once I gained enough cash and “experience points” for the privilege, one of my priorities was to acquire a rest tent, shaded by banana and passionfruit trees, with a couple of hay bales for my visitors to sit on and relax while watching my wheat grow. My animals have plenty of room to wander freely. The duck and the bunny have become inseparable, and since there’s no one to talk to on my farm, I’ve adopted a goat as my pet.<br /><br />This is my friend Adam’s farm:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5twj5Dl10iUWid-T-AZnNjnbUTHpI14BRjpTnyQ6_QLTIRiiBv2hKvSUNf4ejLrgY9oWFFAFxmg9dmE2sat9OpzFJitVobBDMIMocIH87KLEDDX0yONHlo-H8DdIeIJ2uIBi54yNZ2FHS/s1600-h/adamsfarm.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5twj5Dl10iUWid-T-AZnNjnbUTHpI14BRjpTnyQ6_QLTIRiiBv2hKvSUNf4ejLrgY9oWFFAFxmg9dmE2sat9OpzFJitVobBDMIMocIH87KLEDDX0yONHlo-H8DdIeIJ2uIBi54yNZ2FHS/s400/adamsfarm.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369512029167257938" /></a><br /><br />He’s only been cultivating his land for a couple of weeks longer than I have, but look how serious his operation is. Not only is it huge, but it’s also super orderly, well diversified, and efficiently laid out for maximum output. He’s an agrinerd.<br /><br />FarmVille’s developer has been accused of ripping off not only the concept but also the graphic design from an earlier established game called <b>Farm Town</b>, and a Google Images search certainly confirms the two look more or less identical. I’ve never checked out Farm Town, but I gather its advantage is that players have the opportunity to mingle with one another at the local saloon.<br /><br />It would be nice for my avatar to be able to shoot the shit with my farming buddies over a drink someday. But at the moment, I’m finding the whole experience rather Zen. I don’t claim to get the point of playing. It isn’t clear what the endgame is or whether there is one. Just like life.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2923798756317312135.post-35211536580375928202009-08-10T09:15:00.000-07:002009-08-11T19:01:10.162-07:00Korean BBQ = Sex?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd3yQNRTHW8qjsEpM4j0KM6tGpmcgqGREW3i6EZR60TJs-TJaEoexvYA70vyY9RlU5yVXGvElOsI6cfQduIJEENUuiJZDo8ZiZy25sKqrW4LsXgpSz-Sz8My9cnRGIbX3yCVoQgQRZm74e/s1600-h/webcontenders.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd3yQNRTHW8qjsEpM4j0KM6tGpmcgqGREW3i6EZR60TJs-TJaEoexvYA70vyY9RlU5yVXGvElOsI6cfQduIJEENUuiJZDo8ZiZy25sKqrW4LsXgpSz-Sz8My9cnRGIbX3yCVoQgQRZm74e/s400/webcontenders.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368373161973895618" /></a><br /><i>Three of the contenders in the first annual Korean BBQ Cook-Off</i><br /><br />The size of Los Angeles’s Korean population is second only to Korea itself, so it’s kind of astonishing that there’s never been a Korean barbecue food festival here before this weekend. But considering the popularity of this particular cuisine, it isn’t surprising at all that the event drew nearly twice the expected crowd of 5,000 to the heart of K-Town. <br /><br />In fact, held in the parking lot of some slick condo complex and featuring fewer than 10 restaurants, the <a href="http://www.yelp.com/events/los-angeles-korean-bbq-festival-and-cook-off">Korean BBQ Cook-Off</a> was far too small to accommodate the demand. My companions and I arrived just after 4 p.m. to find that a few of the food stalls had already run out of meat, even though the event was scheduled to last another few hours. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3_4I93lscA6lVASFhjTfKOnziyyrii258YMNuyYV2gmaoLuTZtwUzx0irmzkdOdHyQNF6ruEZ88WJBvlY2nrObNN6xmXdYp_lqEL4yt51FEK3URKla-6YRxfD4BgVnuq-1A0lkyrUbDDf/s1600-h/weblonglines.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3_4I93lscA6lVASFhjTfKOnziyyrii258YMNuyYV2gmaoLuTZtwUzx0irmzkdOdHyQNF6ruEZ88WJBvlY2nrObNN6xmXdYp_lqEL4yt51FEK3URKla-6YRxfD4BgVnuq-1A0lkyrUbDDf/s400/weblonglines.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368373171485497986" /></a><br /><i>Long lines</i><br /><br />I would’ve loved to taste-test a variety of barbecue; ideally, each person in our group would have gotten in a different line and ordered one meal to share so that we could all sample at least or three or four different recipes. But the long waits (30 minutes to an hour) combined with the will-they-or-won’t-they-run-out dilemma prompted us to just get in the shortest line we could find and fill up there while we had the chance. At least we weren’t disappointed by what we got. <b>Ham Ji Park’s spicy pork spareribs</b> were succulent, smoky, and tender with just a hint of heat. I wasn’t familiar with the restaurant before, but I’ll definitely be eating there in the future.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwa_SuNg2wCmSl__KMOHzRC-nekbq8fS3a2T_C3ozunzkC-8JsomssK_8vr0vMhNbWkGZ-x9J09EKn2UDvX8BhR-DzEky09iY6LtwVtcbmb-H4TQUp5gnep7f1GdlBxxkOW3nH3Ee6r8x/s1600-h/webspicyporkspareribs.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwa_SuNg2wCmSl__KMOHzRC-nekbq8fS3a2T_C3ozunzkC-8JsomssK_8vr0vMhNbWkGZ-x9J09EKn2UDvX8BhR-DzEky09iY6LtwVtcbmb-H4TQUp5gnep7f1GdlBxxkOW3nH3Ee6r8x/s400/webspicyporkspareribs.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368373172392292514" /></a><br /><i>Ham Ji Park's spicy pork ribs</i><br /><br />Our later arrival also meant we missed both the <b>Choco-Pie</b> eating contest, which is fine since I find competitive eating absolutely repulsive, and the demonstration of Korean barbecue marinating, which I can totally do with my eyes closed anyway. I did want to be sure to catch the actual cook-off, judged by a panel of culinary celebrities including <b>Evan Kleiman</b>, host of KCRW’s <i>Good Food</i>, and <i>LA Times</i> columnist <b>Russ Parsons</b>. But clearly the rock star of the bunch was Pulitzer Prize–winning food critic <a href="http://foodcomma.blogspot.com/2009/03/pure-gold.html">Jonathan Gold</a>, who remarked, <b>“Like sex, even bad Korean barbecue is pretty damn good.”</b><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCKwNvrZeSbcX1xCqFb9uuOB1OyZSAYRHsmDswIEBQkDk6S4B0M4ae6w4AGa0vnFkdr9TImGDZpKtW8NVG6woXcd1WVn4tuuQDX3R5cLpy-6-j-fpl9DVC-6SaqG7M8cPiBAyjeInb9ajf/s1600-h/webjudgestable.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCKwNvrZeSbcX1xCqFb9uuOB1OyZSAYRHsmDswIEBQkDk6S4B0M4ae6w4AGa0vnFkdr9TImGDZpKtW8NVG6woXcd1WVn4tuuQDX3R5cLpy-6-j-fpl9DVC-6SaqG7M8cPiBAyjeInb9ajf/s400/webjudgestable.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368376932847348818" /></a><br /><i>Judges' table (Jonathan Gold's face obscured)</i> <br /><br />Gold has written extensively about LA’s various Asian cuisines, including a compendium of <a href="http://www.laweekly.com/2004-02-05/eat-drink/koreatown-s-top-40/">Koreatown’s top 40 restaurants</a>, which is why it was so embarrassing when one of the emcees asked him a totally lame question that began something like, “So I was reading on your bio that you’ve tried a lot of ethnic food.” CRINGE. “This probably isn’t your first time eating Korean barbecue,” she continued, “but how is it different from other ethnic food you’ve eaten?” Gold was perfectly gracious about it, of course, steering away from obvious comparisons and instead pointing out that even though he’s visited something like <i>160 Korean restaurants</i>, it’s only a fraction of what’s out there, and there’s so much more to Korean cuisine than just barbecue.<br /><br />The grand prize winner was <b>Moo Dae Po</b>, which I’m pretty sure doesn’t translate to anything but Moo Depot, wherein “moo” represents beef. The win is enough of an endorsement for me to want to try the place, but considering Koreatown’s barbecue abundance, I hope in the future there are more than six entrants.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcqbeBhPG_l3qegJHg4XHqh3rAPrYF8O80BmsTNhYGfwQ6-8EiKsi7wuJn4AhcKLoKT6XznNIA5s4zQErrju96Bn7Y3FvAXeixL7h0PBbXc_wfulXjbXU0_LL-89cW9Cr41aOW0oYO-YS/s1600-h/webadaminterview.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcqbeBhPG_l3qegJHg4XHqh3rAPrYF8O80BmsTNhYGfwQ6-8EiKsi7wuJn4AhcKLoKT6XznNIA5s4zQErrju96Bn7Y3FvAXeixL7h0PBbXc_wfulXjbXU0_LL-89cW9Cr41aOW0oYO-YS/s400/webadaminterview.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368373157118970306" /></a><br /><i>Adam is interviewed for Korean television</i><br /><br />We had a great time at the cook-off but I gotta say it wasn’t especially well organized or executed. In fact we learned that the health inspector didn’t even give the OK to start serving food until an hour and half after the gates opened. But hey, it was the first-ever such event, so hopefully the kinks will be worked out for next year.<br /><br>hanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10074438837794283299noreply@blogger.com6