tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51729714984192711422011-11-27T17:02:28.002-08:00love food? join us on our gastronomical adventures near and far.camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.comBlogger1491100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-31105442384743915462011-11-14T17:29:00.000-08:002011-11-14T17:29:53.407-08:00

our 1st night for the tour in queenstown. we had a blast up top of the mtn. we had playtime, shopping time, were audience to kiwi haka, a maori show, and then dinner at sunset.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-73219919651847967432011-11-13T20:30:00.000-08:002011-11-14T17:33:57.981-08:00

lunch on the ride was at the very 1st bungy in the world. yes, it was imagined and brought to life by 2 kiwi guys who had nothing better to do. anyway, we all chowed down and then those who wanted to jump had the opportunity

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-10389245336091328832011-11-13T19:55:00.000-08:002011-11-13T20:31:48.615-08:00

1/2 way through the day's bike ride we stopped at this charming little town. the highlight of this road is the cadrona hotel. they are known for their scones.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-67128833010337396102011-11-13T19:10:00.000-08:002011-11-14T17:33:34.304-08:00

Breakfasts in New Zealand for the duration of the tour were a bit lackluster. we've all had one, those hotel 'bulk' standard buffets. unless something stands out at future locations, consider this everybreakfast :-)

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-19305941545310610932011-10-04T14:39:00.000-07:002011-10-04T14:39:58.042-07:00

our 1st meal with everyone on the tour was in wanaka (wah-nuh-kuh - no real emphasis on any of the syllables). it was a decent buffet in that i liked the choices presented and much of what i had tasted pretty good. but it's a buffet, and well, we had a lot of them this trip and they did eventually get to be a bit tiresome. i took lots of pics of them, and hopefully will be able to remember most

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-53411532132588728602011-08-11T12:57:00.000-07:002011-08-11T12:57:32.607-07:00

good news all you foodies out there, Foodies Unite has finally figured out what's happening with everything! That's such good news. We are working on the re-design now and will update you soon on status, possible new address location but maybe not, that still remains to be seen. either way,  things are now moving along and with luck soon you'll be reading all about our food adventures in new

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-8314782468656930532011-03-27T19:42:00.000-07:002011-03-27T19:42:22.558-07:00

i haven't forgotten you, but we're experiencing some growing pains with our blogger site, so we're looking for another home. i'll be able to post all the different meals from NZ once we have that up and running. in the meantime: i'm going to jump ahead a few weeks here because this post has no photos. i know i know, this is a blog heavily weighted in photos but today i had a lot of other things

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-66035615159686490252011-03-20T13:19:00.000-07:002011-03-20T13:19:15.091-07:00

there doesn't seem to be a dress code in NZ. if there is queenstown didn't get the memo. but that worked in our favor. we spent the afternoon on the zipline and when we were done a little after 6pm we were famished. we had hoped to get a table at wai, a nice restaurant we found. we decided to walk past and reserve a table on the way back to the hotel where we would shower, change and then return

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-88001990807561490872011-03-18T15:10:00.000-07:002011-03-18T15:10:56.561-07:00

i'm going to combine our last 3 meals at kaimata in this post. when booking we chose the '3 night nature package' which included a picnic lunch on 1 of the days. sadly it was overcast or windy enough that we changed that up a bit. instead of a picnic chef dani prepared a 'bacon and egg pie'. we had the morning on our own and when we returned it was in the fridge waiting for us to heat it up.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-28756142012351708562011-03-17T23:21:00.000-07:002011-03-17T23:21:44.243-07:00

our 2nd breakfast was prepared by a different chef - chef Dani de Vinck, took over the food duties.  we're starting to gather, waiting for the fire to warm the place up and coffee to be ready when kyle comes in and asks if anyone wants brill for breakfast. "sure". matt and i weren't about to ask 'what the heck is brill?'. it's a flatfish, like flounder. kyle had caught some earlier.  that's a

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-45932960115807923852011-03-17T18:50:00.000-07:002011-03-17T18:50:40.226-07:00

we were really lucky to get dinner this night. we had a late 'tour time' at the albatross colony and didn't know if we'd make it back in time. as it turned out we showed up as the others were finishing their salad course, so chef fixed us salads while he did their mains. clams our host dug up earlier that day. and that's just 1 of the plates. there were 6 of them! that's a lot of clam.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-74616754541040625392011-03-17T18:12:00.000-07:002011-03-17T18:12:12.625-07:00

lunch was a quick bite at the portobello hotel. it was actually quite yummy. crispy chicken wrap filled with tomato, lettuce and red onion. mix in a mayo-type aioli sauce that was also pretty good.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-74519855780414882632011-03-17T17:49:00.000-07:002011-03-17T18:03:14.102-07:00

breakfast at kaimata is no less a show than dinner. in part due to the wonderful views from the dining room. top that off with a warming lodge thanks to a roaring fire in the fireplace. a nicely set table with croissants, juice, coffee, cereals, vegemite, toasts, eggs, and bacon matt had 'the works' -bacon, egg, toast, tomato, mushroom i just had toast and eggs with ham. 

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-44738129446429471572011-03-17T00:12:00.000-07:002011-03-17T16:37:40.632-07:00

i'm conflicted as i start to write this next post. i had such a good time and the food was so good - i want to tell everyone about this place so they will thrive and it'll still be there for us to stay when we go back to NZ. and on the other hand i want to keep it a secret - because if everyone knows about it we might not be able to book into it! but i guess that's a good rock and hard spot to be

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-53768977640404553832011-03-16T23:34:00.000-07:002011-03-16T23:34:48.280-07:00

we grabbed a quick lunch at the museum cafe before we went through their collection. we knew we'd have a big dinner that night at our retreat, and we hadn't had much breakfast so we needed some food. we split the salt and pepper calamari with chilli, lime and coriander dipping sauce. it was well done but nothing special.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-39625401916378903542011-03-16T22:23:00.000-07:002011-03-16T22:23:47.984-07:00

breakfast buffets are the thing in hotels in countries not america. they can be outstanding, as the resort on the isle of elba, or horrible. most fall into the mediocre middle and well this was no exception. if there are croissants or good rolls/bread, plenty of water and hopefully a good orange juice i don't complain. if they have 'egg dude' i bow down before them. LOL i didn't take pics of

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-27949538880999572142011-03-16T20:49:00.000-07:002011-03-16T20:49:59.107-07:00

our 1st night we wanted to turn in early, especially after a nice 3hour tramp up the queenstown hill and another shower. we didn't really want to walk back into town, even though it was only 3 blocks away. 3 downhill blocks away. so we opted to dine in the hotel dining room. now this is not my travel blog, and i'm sure this post will actually be referenced by, if not duplicated there, but i

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-9455048464141298312011-03-16T19:06:00.000-07:002011-03-16T19:15:59.414-07:00

once we were checked into our hotel and had a much needed shower we went to find lunch. we stopped at the old man rock pub. matt had the steak sandwich on grilled ciabatta bread with caramelized onions, tomato, lettuce, bbq sauce, grilled cheese and mayo served with fries. funny - potato chips are crisps but fries are not chips, they're fries.. i had the beer battered fish and chips. (not

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-50095380396240749682011-03-16T18:37:00.000-07:002011-03-16T18:37:19.825-07:00

we set off for a record (for us anyway) airport/airline journey to new zealand. 3 flights to get to our destination and 3 to get us home - but you'll have to wait for that post. we arrived at SEA about 12:30pm on tues. 2 airlines and 3 flights later we disembarked in queenstown NZ about 1:30pm on thursday which was 4:30pm on wednesday for those in seattle. alaska air: seattle to san

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-61995398220599396202011-02-08T18:37:00.000-08:002011-02-09T01:05:23.174-08:00

once again we celebrated my 4 years' cancer-free at cafe juanita. this dinner was a little different than the past 3. over the past couple of years we've managed to obtain mark ryan's long haul red wine for each year's vintage dating 2000-2008. at this point we decided we had to have a party with the vertical tasting. so a party we will have! we started with prosecco and parmagiano reggiano we

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-53097504932856164272011-02-08T17:30:00.000-08:002011-02-08T17:30:19.591-08:00

our friends chris and kristy came up for the weekend and oh what a weekend it was! on friday night we took them to the herbfarm. the theme: dinner for red heads. every wine is a red wine. 2005 argyle-herbfarm "indigo" sparkling pinot noir, knudson vineyard this was bottled by argyle specifcally for the herbfarm Duck Now. or maybe that should be duck, now! :-) shaved duck

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-57837761638733722232011-02-08T13:28:00.000-08:002011-02-08T13:28:41.581-08:00

we finally managed to book and hold the auction dinner party from 2008! yay! we only have 2 more to book LOL. i wasn't writing this blog when we 1st won this lot, so let me try and fill you in. we have a local newspaper called 'the stranger' and every december for i don't know how long they've run this auction that benefits a different charity each year. you can find items from local

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-85804372592208164802011-01-30T19:15:00.000-08:002011-01-30T19:15:31.427-08:00

we had planned on eating lunch at the best fish & chips place in town, olympia seafood market and grill. on thurlow just off robson. we walked the 2 blocks over only to find a pizza place! SO BUMMED! so we walked down to gastown and ate at the lamplighter public house instead. it was pretty good - pub fare you know. matt had the burger i ordered the fish & chips which were a passable 2nd. 

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-72509208451779543432011-01-30T19:06:00.000-08:002011-01-30T19:06:04.647-08:00

when we decided to make a weekend out of the hockey game in vancouver we decided to get reservations at lumiere.  the chef was a winner on iron chef, top chef, james beard winner... something like that. i tried to find the tv show link and couldn't, but the owner's a chef and the executive chef's a chef so maybe i was looking up the wrong person. anyway, this is a foodie place so off we went.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-82002102344593330012011-01-29T14:09:00.000-08:002011-01-29T14:09:23.900-08:00

We've been to rovers, and we've been there for brunch, but Thierry has since opened Luc, same basic food idea but more accessible to the masses and walk-ins. since jan 2nd isboth my dad's birthday and his and mom's anniversary, matt and i took his mom to Luc for a nice brunch to celebrate. ma had the wild mushroom-comte cheese omelette, parsley, potato rissolee and baguette matt had the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-53822915117745934192011-01-27T23:55:00.000-08:002011-01-28T00:20:35.630-08:00

another new year's eve at the herb farm. this time we had 2 opera stars entertain us. and chef chris is now executive chef. matt had been back in october and noticed this change but it was the 1st meal he was totally in charge of for me. dinner was fantastic. in fact it was the 1st time we've dined here where i didn't have a food coma the next day, i didn't feel i needed something to steady my

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-55500270802045651172011-01-25T20:06:00.000-08:002011-01-25T20:06:15.735-08:00

after talking about all the dinners we were having we realized we hadn't taken ma to any place she hadn't been before, and we just can't have that. so off to crush we went. when we were at crush the last (and first) time we had the grand tasting menu, and this was on it. it's a parsnip infused flan with chives and smoked salmon caviar. it was a corn flan we had that 1st time, but that's ok.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-12813334688882250442011-01-25T19:25:00.000-08:002011-01-25T19:25:22.269-08:00

ma and i had a spa day planned so we decided to check out john howie steak for lunch. it's a totally different menu. yes, you can still get a steak if you want one, but there's lot of other options.  we chose the soup/salad and sandwich option.  tomato soup, BLT, and chips caesar salad, BLT and chips JHS makes their own potato chips along with their own breads. it was quite yummy,

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-510450426056742272011-01-25T19:03:00.000-08:002011-01-25T19:03:11.295-08:00

we had dinner at JHS partly to have a good steak, but partly to see our friend lisa who's head sommelier. i have to say she really spoiled us this night. she brought us a glass of prosecco to get us started with our appys. top sirloin with black HI salt, chives and blue cheese. this was actually pretty good the bread bowl.  JHS is one of the few places around that make their own bread daily

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-7362276745411987252011-01-25T18:25:00.000-08:002011-01-25T18:26:25.975-08:00

i just thought i'd throw this in. matt cooked dinner, i did the side and dessert  standing rib roast 3 cheese potato au gratin  goat cheese pudding with grapefruit and mint

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-20700443057087255992011-01-25T00:16:00.000-08:002011-01-25T00:16:31.922-08:00

last summer when matt's mom was in town chef ethan hadn't opened his new restaurant yet. how could we pass up taking her to 1 of our favorite places? it was a late dinner as we were hoping to meet up with another friend after she got off work, but that didn't happen. we still had a nice dinner though. 1 thing i really like at S&FM is the option on the menu to "hand the menu back to your server

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-24622040667877684222011-01-24T23:19:00.000-08:002011-01-24T23:19:39.394-08:00

when matt's mom came up for christmas we took her and another friend of ours to cafe juanita for dinner. jack rose with soft cooked quail egg and smoked sea salt. we asked chef to make another egg so the other 1/2 of the table could try it and they were spot on.  prosecco with parmigiano reggiano our wine  alaskan red king crab with green apple sorbetto and crab butter powder  

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-71051663483074800142011-01-24T22:46:00.000-08:002011-01-24T22:46:35.849-08:00

home from our trip we made our pilgrimage to cafe juanita with our house-sitter. corpse reviver #2 with goose liver mousse crostini  the bread plate cipollini ripieni of caramelized onion, spinach, currants with parmigiano reggiano fonduta. this was good, but i prefer the version with meat instead of spinach new on the menu and definitely worth having butternut squash polenta sfomato with

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-27152594884656052512011-01-24T22:14:00.000-08:002011-01-24T22:14:11.221-08:00

in this post i'll combine all the food for the trip home which was a snack on the flight from lisbon to paris, dinner at the airport hotel bar, and then the food on the flight home from paris to seattle. lisbon-paris snack. fruit cup, roll, candy, cheese, peppers, corn, and something that wasn't too good. i don't remember what it was and i ate less of it. dinner at the CDG sheraton.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-53760836304967314832011-01-22T17:34:00.000-08:002011-01-22T17:34:42.239-08:00

Eleven is the only michelin star restaurant in lisbon and we managed to get a table. i have to say i was a little nervous about getting in. 1/2 the time the website was down. the rest of the time their online reservation system was down. more than 1/2 of my emails bounced back to me. luckily for us there's the AmEx concierge. this is exactly what they're here for! i called them and asked them to

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-61955270413704738342011-01-21T20:53:00.000-08:002011-01-21T20:53:42.477-08:00

Way back when i was in school i also was a member of the youth orchestra. i made many friends during my time in that orchestra and thanks to a particular social website i've refound a number of them. many of them i've learned have stayed in the music business. 1 of these friends is a bass player. (that's him being totally him with me  in the picture. He's currently the principal base player of

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-19341727486369464132011-01-21T19:59:00.000-08:002011-01-21T19:59:55.569-08:00

Quick insert before lunch. Our hotel room wasn't quite ready so we went across the square for a breakfast snack of coffee and pastry. This was a yummy little morsel. Lunch. We were on our way to the Gulbenkian Museum and saw this doorway. There's a note with their menu posted that says they have a mention in the Michelin book. It's not a starred but it is a bib gourmand. In fact here's

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-18915087625170624132010-12-29T21:09:00.000-08:002010-12-29T21:11:44.932-08:00

during our walking tour of the kasbah in tangers we stopped into a B&B. or at least it will be when they finish the remodel. we were offered cokes, bottled water and a local treat called pastilla. it's a tasty pastry filled with a spiced chicken. it wasn't spicy hot, but spicy savory. lots of people tried it (but more i think passed) and no one got sick. in belem on our bike tour of the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-29247844801709594282010-12-29T20:49:00.000-08:002010-12-29T21:11:26.423-08:00

 we biked from cartagena to garrucha, stopping about 2k north of garrucha to have lunch. as with most of these tours 1 bike stops, and as subsequent teams approach you hear this "HEY THERE!" and see a wave. so the next team stops. then the "HEY THERE!" gets louder by 2 for the next team. and so on and so on. until these tiny little places are dusted. it happened in france - and it happened here.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-46657517687136018612010-12-29T20:15:00.000-08:002010-12-29T20:24:13.914-08:00

once again we used a boat as our floating hotel for a tandem bike tour. i snapped more food pics this trip, and lots of menu pics. any meals eaten off the boat at this point will be posted after this. please click on the thumbnail images to view full-size. 13 Nov: dinner the charger used for dinner

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-31655627648632889832010-12-29T13:24:00.000-08:002010-12-29T13:24:00.919-08:00

we were up early to get all the luggage down to the stevedors to transport to the ship, and we were off on a bike tour of barcelona! at the end of the tour we met up for lunch at a place on the beach - but i couldn't get a pic of the name :-( everyone got the same thing, no choices unless you wanted to go off on your own (and pay on your own)  salad  the wine  the entertainment. people don't

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-14665284435098358662010-12-29T12:53:00.000-08:002010-12-29T12:53:10.053-08:00

there are quite a few michelin 1 star restaurants in the barcelona area. the world's top 100 restaurants list has about 6 places in spain - all but 2 are in the northern basque area. these 2 that aren't are about 1 to 1.5 hrs from barcelona and are both 3 star restaurants. i tried to get us into the one in girona - would be great the day we had planned on driving up to figueres but they were

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-35026351929962499492010-12-03T11:25:00.000-08:002010-12-03T11:25:10.267-08:00

this is still a food blog. we just had lunch here on our bike ride "mostly downhill" from montserrat. it was a pretty nice spread, too! they really did a nice job. it was all laid out buffet style, and there was a lot of food. i just walked down the row and snapped away. no descriptions on this post, just lots of food.  lots of sweets  fish, fish, octopus  fish  penne, pulled pork, chicken

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-1505522429213529022010-12-02T19:43:00.000-08:002010-12-02T19:43:59.138-08:00

[i'm going to publish this post but i have an email out to our tapas guide and am hoping i'll hear back from her regarding a few clarifications and other that i'll mention so there may be an updated version of this page at a future date. i'll see if i can notate that in the title when it happens so you'll know to check back on this post.] the 1st real group event was a pre-pre-tour. most of the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-29564131127749726392010-12-02T17:15:00.000-08:002010-12-02T18:17:46.580-08:00

a friend suggested we try this place out. turns out it has a michelin star. woot and add 1. sadly we were unable to get in for dinner at Comerc, 24 but at least i had the mind to request an actual reservation for lunch instead of trying to drop in like we did at l'academia. good thing, too. while we were the 1st there (actually we were on time but they opened a few minutes late) it wasn't long

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-32737982237405359222010-11-11T13:03:00.000-08:002010-12-02T17:16:11.031-08:00

today we decided to try and drop in for lunch at a place a friend recommended to us. it's not in the michellin guide at all, but if lunch was any indication it definitely fits as a bib gourmand. luckily i had read some of the reviews online (they only have a trip advisor type page) and most mentioned it was a hard-to-find place. we ended up circling the block before we found it. it's just off a

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-74754670867328211892010-11-11T09:57:00.000-08:002010-12-02T17:16:34.629-08:00

our actual 1st day in barcelona, we ended up skipping lunch, but because dinner service is so late here - you're *very* lucky if you find service before 8:30pm, we grabbed a quick tapas in the hotel lounge to tide us over for a couple hours. we ordered the lamb kefta skewer, warm arabic bread, harissa sauce it was pretty good. the sauce had a kick in it and the mint leaves added a coolness to it

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-45188304844237205102010-11-11T08:54:00.000-08:002010-11-11T08:54:15.282-08:00

anyone who says airline food sucks has never eaten air france's 1st class meals. we've blown all the credit card points to get the seats and boy are they worth it! check out the post for air france from july 2010 and you'll see this isn't just a 1-off. this is *so* good! it's schweppes tonic with a mix of several citrus fruits. if you know anywhere in the states that sell this please let me know

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-11094259957859028732010-11-04T14:57:00.000-07:002010-11-04T15:07:12.003-07:00

our friend hosted a halloween dinner party at a harvest vine. it's been on our list to try and now we have. i can't wait to go back on a normal night! LOL it's a basque kitchen and it was good. it was held in the dungeon, or lower level of the restaurant and we had the room to ourselves that wednesday night. some of the pics aren't that great - in part because i think i forgot to change the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-7729497107571497262010-11-04T13:10:00.000-07:002010-11-04T13:10:13.778-07:00

remember cochon555, or as i called it, the "pigfest" last may (or june?) this is the lamb version. the differences: no pre-party, more tables to put plates and glasses down to enable easier eating, a lot more chefs, each chef did 1 dish, a band (more on that later), and swag.  chef tyler salish lodge espresso crusted loin of lamb  chef galusha bastille cafe and bar smoked lamb loin with

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-64667162159563148042010-11-04T11:27:00.000-07:002010-11-04T11:27:55.603-07:00

On our France trip last summer we got to know fellow local-area tandem team Thyce and Amy a little better. we'd been on a couple other rides together but i don't think we ever ended up at the same table for a meal before the france trip. they're totally organic and he's vegan on top of that. kind of limits the places you can go for high-end food. we learned they hadn't been to tilth and as the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-58685590707441111582010-11-04T10:59:00.000-07:002010-11-04T10:59:26.369-07:00

while matt was chowing down on mushrooms at the herbfarm, my friend shelby joined me for her 1st tasting at cafe juanita. seeing as she pretty much cleared her plate of everything i'd say she enjoyed herself. and it was nice chef was there and we got to say hello.  alaskan red king brab with green apple sorbetto and crab butter poweder  a new appy, and it was yummers! lamb testa: lamb's head

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-63183921048218402452010-11-04T10:42:00.000-07:002010-11-04T10:42:15.763-07:00

once again, and as will probably be always, we went to Cafe Juanita for my birthday. we started with pink champagne - for me and for october. since we dine at CJ often and many of the dishes we order we've had before i thought i'd have a little fun this time. the bread plate Rabbit Rillette with Pickled Grapes and Huckleberry Mostarda seared foie gras with

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-68844537982112150362010-10-19T17:07:00.000-07:002010-10-19T17:07:33.872-07:00

i lost my voice. i was in what turned out to be a major allergy-sinus attack, and lucky me my throat was so sore i could barely talk. and as luck would have it rover's was celebrating their 23rd anniversary and well, you don't get to reschedule something like this so we went. luckily for us matt has a great pallate, more refined than mine is, and he can talk. he has agreed to guest blog part of

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-85290700591997323502010-10-12T20:10:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:17:27.395-08:00

for our last lunch in salisbury matt and i ran down to the main drag and had a burger at Uncle Bucks. it's a pretty decent burger, but it's a burger. i think the main draw for anyone visiting would be the selection of side dishes. but i'm getting ahead of myself. let's see what the burgers look like.  we actually both had the bacon cheeseburger. matt had the chips. the menu calls them

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-54444590411988019272010-09-24T19:04:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:17:06.776-08:00

maybe i should've thought to call the wren house for a table earlier than noon this saturday, but they said they could seat us if we were there by 1:30. there were a couple tables upstairs in the back but yes, we could have lunch there. so wow, they must be busy but it is lunchtime on saturday and a holiday weekend, and they are not open on sun or monday. the wren house was built in 1839. the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-70064356740515180322010-09-23T16:42:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:17:48.054-08:00

who says there isn't fine dining in NC? well, if you are one who does, listen (or read) up. this was a fantastic meal! matt and i knew we were going to be in NC for my cousin's daughter's wedding, and we looked into getting a table at McNinch House - it's reservations only, so don't plan on dropping in. while i've known Doodle all her life, i don't know what they do and don't already have, and

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-24505718039173741062010-09-20T11:20:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:18:10.292-08:00

we got into salisbury NC early this am. we stopped at the starbucks in the airport to get a coffee and snack for the drive up to salisbury. for lunch i took matt to College BBQ a few blocks from my aunt's place. sorry, there's no website of this place. matt and i both swear i took a photo of the front of the place but lo and behold it didn't transfer over if it was on the chip! ok, we'll deal

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-65904061150071516692010-09-03T18:51:00.000-07:002010-09-03T18:51:27.139-07:00

sadly we were in TX when the grand opening of Ethan Stowell's new place Staple and Fancy Mercantile opened. but we went the 1st saturday after we returned. if you were expecting another Union, guess again. SandF is more along the lines of wolf in decor and eating options. in the fact that the decor is a little minimal but all the more to draw the diner's attention to the food.  if you are looking

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-3544492952555235742010-08-30T00:01:00.000-07:002010-08-30T00:01:38.150-07:00

we took our house sitter and another friend to dinner when we got back from texas last week. it was a good dinner. i don't think there was anything new on the menu we hadn't had before so i won't bore you with a lot of talk. prosecco and parmigiano reggiano the bread plate seared foie gras with nectarine, candied ginger and cocoa nibs veal and

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-88651551624883360472010-08-29T22:33:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:18:31.709-08:00

i think you either love JoeT's or you hate it. when it opened in the 30s it seated only 16. today (according to their website) they can seat 1000. hhmmm with that many chairs i wonder why i have to wait in line for an hour plus sometimes... they claim to be the inventor of the fajita, a famous tex-mex dish. withoug proof otherwise i'll believe it. you get 2.5 choices for your meal. cheese

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-85921957363802025782010-08-29T18:40:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:18:54.978-08:00

this night was my 25th high school reunion. uh did i want to admit that? but i was excited because it was being held at tim love's restaurant in fort worth; the lonesome dove bistro. why was i excited? because this is supposed to be an upscale place in ftw, and because matt and i watched chef love on iron chef america a couple years back where he battled and beat iron chef morimoto; secret

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-2580557870691017032010-08-28T21:03:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:19:16.561-08:00

Kristy booked us into Abacus for our dinner. we were stunned and extremely disappointed to learn that the tasting menu is only available tues-thurs. and then the chef's table was already booked. i want to say it was also a 6+ table and we were a party of 4. kristy tried her best to have them serve us the chef's tasting menu but they wouldn't budge. kent rathbun owns 3 places in the dallas area -

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-84296716538636246332010-08-28T19:44:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:19:35.997-08:00

as far as i'm concerned there's only 1 riscky's. it's the one in the historic stockyards. They have everything there - ribs, sandwhiches, pork or beef. we go there for the ribs. it's also a fun place to catch up with friends you haven't seen in several years. if you've never been, they don't even try to give you napkins. there's a roll of paper towels on every table. you get good and messy. at

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-49156730732913744622010-08-25T23:09:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:19:56.739-08:00

we wanted to take my parents out to eat while we were down there and well, that's always a little harder than most people think. my mom's really picky. i used to be that way. it helps to be able to spread your wings when you live in a place where there's so much *fresh* food! that and matt's always willing to eat what i might not like or he doesn't mind if i want to order something else. hence my

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-52379255693805615042010-08-25T19:25:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:20:15.529-08:00

matt and i made it to ft. worth and it was blasted hot. but we were there to visit friends and family and that's just what we did this sunday night. my friend from high school andrea met us at this place on south hulen for dinner. it was ok. i got the impression it was a bennigan's trying to lure the upscale yuppie crowd. the decor was a little more western as opposed to flair-chic, and the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-32090014680695279532010-08-24T23:19:00.000-07:002010-08-24T23:19:51.498-07:00

poppy opened a couple years ago, give or take a couple months. we visited with a couple friends in it's 2nd month i think it was. the point i'm trying to make is it was before i started to keep track of what i ate and where. i wish i had been. there's 1 memory i'll never forget, and i want to share it with you now. Chef Traunfeld had been the executive chef at the Herbfarm for a long time and he

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-46044983505332761002010-08-24T22:15:00.000-07:002010-08-24T22:15:43.203-07:00

if you've been following my eating adventures you know we are regulars at cafe juanita. everything was, as usual, quite tasty. house smoked sablefish with pappa al pomodoro and toasted horseradish vinaigrette this mixes 2 of my favs - the sablefish and the tomato soup. i would've never thought to put these 2 together but i guess that's why i'm not a chef seared foie gras with bing

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-52003131437525034892010-08-24T21:34:00.000-07:002010-08-24T21:34:41.586-07:00

we took a road trip down to mt. ranier and decided to stop and visit the Pie Goddess on the way. and while we were there we had some pie! ma had the blackberry aunt sherry had the rhubarb custard matt had the toll house i had the cherry almond crunch all were quite happy with their choices.

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-7760639730068459672010-08-24T21:09:00.000-07:002010-08-24T21:09:33.400-07:00

We returned to the Herbfarm, and it was for a menu we had never tried. Yipee! on top of that it was our 1st visit after they hired a new pastry chef, sommelier, and executive chef. wow. i had bee wanting to try the 'of a feather' menu since i learned about it. i figured we'd get duck, pheasant, quail, and was hoping for pigeon, poissin, and grouse. the punch that greeted us on that

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-13068645509516620252010-08-17T17:36:00.000-07:002010-08-17T22:13:45.491-07:00

I decided to do 1 post for all the meals related to our tour. on board the amadeus diamond i didn't take too many pics of the food, but there are a few scattered about. i apologize for the haphazard layout, i'm working on getting a nice photo viewer to put on the blog for posts with many images but for right now i'm working with the best i can when i have so many pics per post. july 6: our 1st '

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-58959438681618662842010-07-27T12:32:00.001-07:002010-07-27T12:32:16.369-07:00

we started out with breakfast at a small pub-type place in the red light district. at 10am it's pretty calm, but there are still some sights to be seen! i missed getting the name of the place, but it was right across the street from the hotel luxor @ Warmoesstraat 11, amsterdam. it advertised breakfast, lunch and dinner. i had the ham&cheese omelet. matt had a 'pancake'. i don't

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-67682460737707756802010-07-25T18:50:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:21:01.310-08:00

there's only 1 2-star michelin restaurant in amsterdam, and i booked us into it for the 16th. ciel bleu is described as a chic restaurant at the top of the okura hotel with a superb contemporary decor, and fascinating urban panorama. experience stylish service, delicious creative cuisine with exotic touches, a fine wine list and sunset views from the lounge. the website says it's a 10 minute

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-85092506739465988342010-07-24T09:24:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:21:19.675-08:00

wow. what a little gem. i had taken along all our michelin guide hoping we'd get into a few of the bib gourmand places and we did make it to one on this night. chez mathilde was also getting no answer via telephone so at 6 with hungry bellies we set out towards chez mathilde to see if it was open or closed for holiday or what, and we decided we'd find somewhere to eat nearby if they weren't

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-61718154815239409692010-07-23T17:58:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:21:46.870-08:00

we ate lunch in a little place near the national archives. in comparison to the 3 courses for 14 last night this one had a 2 course menu for 15.80. not quite as good a deal. but we're 1 block south of the seine, 2 blks from the national archives and not far from the st. germain neighborhood. as it was i thought we were pretty clever. matt got the starter+dish and i got the dish+dessert. we

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-6406647198528053362010-07-23T15:42:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:22:04.966-08:00

we had a great day in paris today. at 3:30 we met up with our friends linda, moss, and their 2 boys at the catacombs. it was a fun walk through them together (see the travel blog for the post about the day itself @ camelland-travel.blogspot.com. moss (i think) found this area of town where there were supposed to be a lot of little cafes, so after a refreshment at a pub outside the catacombs we

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-35829538300140682952010-07-22T20:14:00.000-07:002010-12-02T17:22:27.867-08:00

add another 2 michelin stars to our belt. oh wait, i need to go buy a new belt, i've let this one out as far as it'll go but my waistline is still expanding! we had a friend eat at the las vegas location and he reported it was the best meal he'd ever eaten. so when we learned we were going to paris matt jumped at the chance to dine at the flagship restaurant. there was no real thinking about

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-24942237145813833302010-07-22T09:13:00.000-07:002010-07-22T09:13:06.315-07:00

yes, that's right, Air France. as we embarked on our 2 week cycling trip from strasbourg to amsterdam i have been contemplating the best way to blog the food. there are a few meals which deserve their own postings, but to do that 2 meals a day for 16 days, well, it'd get a little tedious for me and possibly monotonous for you. so hopefully i've figured out a nice compromise. on our flight to

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-79492607693759752552010-07-01T00:26:00.000-07:002010-07-01T00:31:35.024-07:00

we've had chef ethan stowell and angela over to the house a few times, but they're always working when they get here. so we thought it'd be nice to have them over for dinner and we'd cook. or rather matt'd cook and i'd make dessert. so we had them, jeff and a date, as well as ben and deedee over. we managed to get 80%+ of everything done on saturday, thank goodness!  matt spent a bit slicing and

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-44329434402413973442010-06-23T19:44:00.000-07:002010-06-23T19:44:10.112-07:00

matt decided he wanted to treat janet and michael to a nice dinner at cafe juanita after our whirlwind day in seattle. we introduced them to some foods janet had never tried, and most of which michael had never had before. it was a fun night. we started with house smoked sablefish with frisee, verjus pickled fennel and toasted horseradish viniagrette carne cruda of blackmore wagyu with

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-19925947486794210462010-06-23T19:13:00.000-07:002010-06-23T19:13:10.117-07:00

every time we have friends or family visit from out of town we spend a day down at pike's market. and we never leave until we've been to and ordered some of the world's best mac and cheese. none of your orangey stuff here, let me tell you. eecher's handmade cheeses is where it's at! it's a small place with usually long lines, but don't let that deter you. it's worth the wait. we always get the

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-28107637037698425782010-06-22T23:24:00.000-07:002010-06-22T23:24:26.212-07:00

we've had a number of new readers join us so i want to take a minute to say hello, welcome to my humble blog. i'm your average run-of-the-mill american gal who was a very picky eater as a child. in the last 5 or 6 years, with the help of my guy, i've learned to open up my mind and expand my horizons. this blog is me telling you what i thought of new tastes and dishes. if i'm willing to try them

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-81255560287860871772010-06-15T19:18:00.000-07:002010-06-15T20:48:57.574-07:00

I'm proud to introduce a guest blogger this post. my guy, matt is a big fan of beer. not just any beer, but those microbrews, small boutique breweries. he managed to find some new beers on the market, and he promises to tell you all about them! Hello readers, I'm privileged to be a guest blogger on my favorite dining blog in the world. It is my favorite, of course, because I'm usually along

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-24081217487672947102010-06-03T17:02:00.000-07:002010-06-03T17:03:39.933-07:00

we knew there was a new restaurant in the works, but last monday it was publicly announced. Ethan Stowell Restaurants will be opening Staple and Fancy Mercantile in Ballard in July. and Union? well it was a fantastic place, and i really enjoyed the food. but if you asked me which was my favorite of his places it was not the 1st i'd name.   we were joined by a couple friends, so we shared 4

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-56337898021527218252010-06-02T22:54:00.000-07:002010-06-02T22:54:51.179-07:00

Every year the seattle opera Bravo! club has a big fundraiser auction. one of the Bravo! club former members offered up dinner for 6 (4 + his 2). Our friend J bid on and won the dinner.  so we get this email with an address, date, time, and 'I'll see you there'. if anyone reading this is FB friends with me you might have noticed my status "dinner for 4 at a stranger's house because it was won at

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-18019457346194686812010-06-02T15:42:00.000-07:002010-06-02T15:42:06.408-07:00

for PIGFEST!!!!! warning! there might be food descriptions and photos which could, if you have a tender tummy, put you off your dinner. what a night. or rather, an afternoon... it all started at 3.30 on sunday with a VIP "meet and greet" with the chefs and wine makers. (turns out anyone who wanted to pay the extra $$ for the tickets is a VIP.) maybe i should start with a little explanation of

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-82921852806145629742010-05-25T20:01:00.000-07:002010-05-25T20:01:01.903-07:00

i swear matt checks CJ's online 'sample' menu religiously. i never need to look at it because whenever there's a change he knows about it and makes sure i know, too. it's all good. there was an item on this menu i don't think i had ever had before. maybe in my travels as a child (like 30 years ago) i had this but didn't know it and my parent's would've called it by the american, common name. but

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-80699734565628250042010-05-19T21:06:00.000-07:002010-05-19T21:06:38.382-07:00

one of the local newspapers, the stranger, runs an auction for charity every christmas. each year there's a dozen or more items. these can run from the risque (box of stuff for an erotic night) to decadent (cruise or vacation time). it's this auction where matt has won Chef Ethan's dinners 4 years now, and won Chef Renee's a couple years ago. This year Chef Cree, the pastry chef at Poppy, jerry

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-50069735621126279892010-05-05T13:05:00.000-07:002010-05-05T13:05:03.762-07:00

the night started with aperitivi. Hendricks Gin & Q Tonic with Marcona Almonds St. Germain Cocktail with Foie Gras Huckleberry Brik Prosecco wtih Organic Parmigiano Reggiano our 1st bottle of wine, D'arby Swagger House smoked sablefish with Frisee, Citrus and Toasted Horseradish Vinaigrette.& you ought to know me well enough to recognize this one; Foie Gras with Rhubarb, Candied Ginger and

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-37258611225048989902010-05-04T22:31:00.000-07:002010-05-04T22:31:38.432-07:00

sorry it's out of chronological order. i thought i'd go ahead and blog this. i've been asked "what is it about chick-fil-a that's so special?" many times. how many fast food places do you know that have fresh flowers on the table? chick-fil-a's the only one i know of. lemonade, just like fresh-squeezed. it's some of the best i've ever had, and growing up in TX i've had quite a lot

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-21285462955162285902010-05-04T14:47:00.000-07:002010-05-04T14:47:51.591-07:00

why not... we ordered room service for breakfast on saturday so we could be as lazy as possible for as long as possible. she brought in the tray and presented it to us. coffee for 2, juice, water, his plate and my plate. mine: crispy bacon - they got it right seasoned potatos - good flavor, but not the best consistency grilled tomato with cheese scrambled eggs - i like mine dry but i

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-49627849727796744002010-05-04T14:03:00.000-07:002010-05-04T17:23:01.198-07:00

Kai, meaning 'seed' in the Pima language, features a menu rich in creativity, history and Native American culture.  Executive Chef Michael O'Dowd incorporates the essence of the Pima and Maricopa tribes and locally farmed ingredients from the Gila River Indian Community to create unforgettable masterpieces. James Beard Award-winning Chef Janos Wilder is consulting chef for Kai and is renowned for

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-27685770748643453852010-04-26T18:19:00.000-07:002010-04-26T18:19:34.543-07:00

on wed we met up with our friend jeff at Union. one of chef ethan stowell's restaurants. we hadn't been in a couple years and it was jeff's 1st time. (quick shoutout to jeff, who while we were gone threw what turned out to be 1 heckuva party based on the pics i saw, and it was chef ethan and crew who catered it!) anyway, it was seattle restaurant week. basically a whole bunch of eateries join

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-66452534185035314012010-04-26T17:57:00.000-07:002010-04-26T17:57:02.637-07:00

and we're back at saturday, with spaghetti for lunch. again the pork chops were tough. i didn't even try it but i watched matt struggle with his. i had the fried fish with tartar sauce. i took pics of the food line today. i don't remember what's in the 1st dish - maybe it was salad instead of being set up on the 'special salad cart' spaghetti in the 2nd sauce in the 3rd

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-19836701170178705812010-04-26T17:55:00.000-07:002010-04-26T17:55:02.499-07:00

i thought i'd do a write up on the food at CoCo View, but instead of everyday, i'd do 2 posts, 1 for each week. of course, i thought of this on the 2nd day. lucky for me saturday's menu is pretty much the same every week. breakfast was the same everyday. french toast, pancakes, waffles and omelets made to order, some sort of grain/oat cereal, mango or melon slices, yogurt, scrambled eggs, toast/

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-43275802689178376672010-04-09T09:06:00.000-07:002010-04-09T09:06:42.046-07:00

We've been eating all our meals at CoCoView due to the hassle and expense of going out. However on this night they offered transportation to Gio's Restauarant for anyone who wanted to eat out. we met up with another family of 3 on 'our' dock at 6:30 for the little shuttle boat to the landing where a cab was waiting to take us into French Harbour, the closest town. it was about a 20 minute (?)

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-39203356549764197352010-03-30T20:06:00.000-07:002010-03-30T20:06:31.742-07:00

i found myself at ventana, in belltown after a gig last friday. i was so hungry i chose to order off the menu and decided why not. TBH i don't see this place really lasting the duration. it reminds me of the place that is there because that's the current fad, and the neighborhood needs some place to let people meet, eat, and drink...  but maybe i'll be wrong. we'll see. pecorino and potato

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-15885812722255439102010-03-22T22:32:00.000-07:002010-03-22T22:32:09.181-07:00

last night was a lovely meal at Lark with a couple friends. we followed the directions from the James St exit on i5 and drove through an area of town neither of us had been in. i have to admit i was a little surprised at the environment. there are a few buildings that could very well be derelict within a block of the restaurant, and Lark is housed in a building that from the outside looks a bit

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-20508070723125946382010-03-22T18:34:00.000-07:002010-03-22T22:44:32.163-07:00

we had 7:15pm reservations and we got there just after 7. again getting there we drove through an area of town neither matt nor i had been in. crush really isn't that far away from rovers. in fact we enjoyed a drive through the arboretum on the way home. like tilth, crush is based in an older home. once inside there were 4 (6?) tables to the left, 4 - or 2 depending on config) to the right, along

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5172971498419271142.post-49900501309247571392010-03-17T22:13:00.000-07:002010-03-17T22:13:01.571-07:00

we had almost 3 hours between sound check and our concert call last sunday. (Sammamish Symphony performed a couple pieces then we joined up with 4 choirs numbering 306 voices to perform Mozart's Requiem at Benaroya Hall, home of the Seattle Symphony.) people scattered everywhere, some had brought a sack lunch with them, but we walked the block down to 1st and Fonte. matt had breakfast: Bacon

camellandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11704873143581669525noreply@blogger.com0