What do you do when you eat something delicious and you really want to say great things about it, but the service at the restaurant is SO AWFUL that you can’t help but have a negative reaction?
Curry so yummy! Getting what you ask for with this spot on, medium spicy red curry and fried egg noodles.
I’ll tell you what you do: share the highlights of the food first, and then explain what happened and let people draw their own conclusions.
…at Mediterranean Kitchen.
Ba-cock! This spicy chicken dish with saffron rice and whipped hummus is a home run smothered in heavenly yogurt sauce. Yes please!
Remember how in college you were turned on to something really, really bad for you, like deep-fried Oreos or midnight drunk fries (that’d be fries dipped in a vanilla shake at a drive through after closing time)? You would gorge yourself on this tasty treat until your face started to resemble it, much the same way dogs and their owners do after year ten? And then some other hot new craze (Four Loko anyone?) would come along and replace the old addiction. We should bring that back, and start with garlic. If you’re on board, as you should be, then stop off for a healthy hit at Mediterranean Kitchen in Bellevue (103 Bellevue Way N.E.). Continue reading
…for heavenly flatbread
While the plating leaves something to be desired, you'll quickly be distracted by perfection of doughy bliss that is a pogacha.
Carbs, carbs, carbs. The answer to any and all problems. Stuff your face with something bready, starchy, or doughy and feel instantly better! Of course you may regret the binge later, but let’s focus on what’s really important here: what kind of carb are you putting in your face, and where is it coming from? If you live in Bellevue, it better be a fresh, out of the oven, pillowy flatbread, or pogacha, from the original Pogacha in Bellevue (119 106th Ave. N.E.). Continue reading
…but that’s about it at La Cocina del Puerco.
We all know that old saying about “x and y go together like peas and carrots,” but there are things that don’t go together with peas and carrots, right? Either I’m crazy (totally possible, I know), or the folks at La Cocina del Puerco in Bellevue (10246 Main St) are taking the Mexico City style to a dangerously obnoxious level. Steer clear of Grandma’s frozen veggie mix in 70% of the dishes, and pick up some of the best darn taquitos this side of the Columbia.
Caliente Carniats+cold surroundings=tasty meal you eat as fast as possible
Down in old town Bellevue, right on Main Street between the posh boutiques and upscale dinner locales sits this seasoned, cafeteria style Mexican joint.
If you didn’t catch this last week, I started a new, fun little post type called Local Plate. I’ve been doing some part-time freelancing for a local paper here in Seattle, The Seattle Weekly. They have a strong food division called Voracious, and since last October, I’ve been writing and gaining steam, and now write two columns a week regularly (and contribute to a handful of others). The columns are The Eatside and Lists. Here’s another post from The Eatside.
The only way to realistically describe the lustfest that is Gyro World in Factoria (4057 Factoria Blvd S.E.) is to take you back. Waaaaaay back.
I’ve got some fun shenanigans up my sleeve for the rest of the summer now that we’re in full swing (can you say MAJOR GIVEAWAYS ALL SUMMER LONG?!??!?!?!?!) but I have a bit of organizing to do before I launch the first giveaway.
So, for now, I wanted to share two fun things I made over the past week that made my days just a little brighter. Afterall, with all the crazy weather (unpredictable at best) here in Seattle these past few weeks, I need something to pull me through!
First up is this tasty, mid-afternoon treat that pulled me through the remainder of the work day:
This is an iced latte that I made in my office with nothing more than a packet of Iced Starbucks VIA, a frother and a bit of milk (and cold water of course). Seriously, I love coffee all day long, and on a hot afternoon, an iced latte is right up my alley. But we don’t have an espresso machine here, or a cart anywhere nearby. So I just made it myself. I have a cheap frother I keep at the office. This took me less than 3 minutes total. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and it gave me a little pick-me-up that lasted till dinner time! YUM.
That was last Thursday or so…..
Then this weekend, I was running around like a wild turkey for various wedding errands for some friends of mine, and I had just enough time between errands and the ceremony to go home, flip on the Food Network for 30 minutes and relax. Of course I got hungry when I was watching whatever was being made (can’t recall what was on, Nigella I think), so I jumped into action and made a 2 minute guac and devoured it with the basic tortilla strip chip:
You can see I left it pretty chunky. I like it this way, and it’s much faster, less intense prep. Yes, there’s the chips in the background. Here’s a better picture:
Here’s how I made it:
Siiri’s 2 Minute Guac
2 avocados (pretty ripe, almost lost ‘em!)
1 Roma tomato (also really ripe, I’ve been struggling to eat all my produce myself in time)
1 lemon (squeeze the juice right into the bowl before mixing things up)
Pinch of salt
Pinch of smoked paprika
Two pinches of garlic powder (this is quicker than actually chopping the garlic, and this way you don’t get the bitter edge of fresh garlic)
Pinch of either black pepper or cayenne pepper
I used a spoon to scoop out the avocado and mash everything together. A fork may have been easier, but right now I’m all about dish consolidation. So this was easier for me. I used a knife to chop up the tomato and slice the lemon.
This literally took two minutes to make.
It was actually much better the next day, (okay, so it was last night at like midnight, don’t judge, I walked 5 miles yesterday and got hungry. I know I’m not supposed to eat late at night!) after the flavors had time to meld.
What’s your family or favorite guac recipe?
It’s Thursday. It’s July 1st. It’s Seattle. It’s raining.
So, what to do? Pretty much only one answer: Go to Sushi Yama for lunch.
If you live in the Seattle/Bellevue area of Washington, I highly recommend hitting this place up for lunch one day. But they get really busy, so go early, or like me, late (I arrived at 1:40pm and there were maybe 5 people. PERFECT!)
I wasn’t sure how they’d feel about me snapping pictures, so I pretended I was texting and snapped these pics with my ever-crappy cell phone camera:
Here's some various goodies coming down the sushi train towards me. Yes, I said sushi train. (I LOVE THIS PLACE!)
This is a blue plate which is $2.50, WAY to rich for my blood. But I do wonder what the haystack tastes like...it's a roll with crab, avocado, something else - cucumber maybe - and tobiko all over, topped with a haystack of fried who knows what (and who cares, it's fried people)
Festive fruit cup complete with self-contained shade mechanism.
There goes the haystack again! Taunting me and my cheapness...
This is the best dessert ever created by all of Japan. Sorry if you don't agree, but you won't be sorry when you taste a warm sesame ball that's been deep fried with red bean paste inside. YUM. The plate is pink, which means $1.00 and it comes with 3 balls. I ate two before I remembered to take a picture.
Going.......
GONE! Ah, how I love you, sesame balls.
And here's the damage: 4 pink=$4.00, 2 green=$3.00. Total with tip: $8.67
I hope you have a place near you that makes you feel as good as Sushi Yama makes me feel! In case you are curious, Sushi Yama means Sushi Mountain, or Mountain of Sushi (at least that’s what they say). They should call it Sushi YUMMA!
Steve and Bill Goldberg
My wonderful co-wokers took me out for lunch last Friday because June 12th was my 4th anniversay of working at Extra Mile Marketing! I am so blessed to work with a team of smart, funny, hard working and compassionate people. I know how rare it is to work in a small office that you truly love. Every day I wake up and am excited to see what the day brings. And Friday was no exception!
My co-worker, Melina, had been telling me about Goldbergs’, this awesome Jewish Deli/Diner in Bellevue that she always goes to for the famous lunch combo of Matzo Ball Soup and a half a corn beef sandwich. So, they all surprised me by taking me there for my anniversary lunch.
Of course I took pictures (on my crap cell phone camera) to share with you all!
So here we go, in order!
When you sit down at your table, there's a tray of pickles waiting for you!
These were good pickles, kids. Just snappy enough with the right amount of salt and tang. MMMMMMMMMMM. Never met a kosher dill I didn’t like!
Dr. Browns Black Cherry Soda
If you’ve ever had Dr. Browns, are from the East Coast or Jewish, chances are you know the awesomeness that I learned today. This line of natural sodas was surprisingly good! I had the Black Cherry on recommendation of Lori, and was not disappointed! Next time: Cream Soda! (I haven’t had a cream soda in SO LONG, but it sounds delightful!)
Melina's coveted Matzo Ball Soup
Melina’s lunch special came with a cup of Matzo Ball soup. It was JUST the right amount and she let me try a spoonful, which was so light and fluffy! The ball was just eggy enough and the broth was super flavorful! This pictures does it no justice.
Smoked Salmon and Bagel extravaganza plate!
Lori and Kris both got the plate above. Kris doesn’t like things that are too salty so she took Lori’s recommendation of this plate with fresh produce to build your own bagel sammy. She said she’d get it again, and Lori said for sure the food was the best she’d had there.
Mike's Full Corned Beef Sandwich with Slaw
Mike opted for a classic: corned beef and slaw. He said it was pretty good, and I could tell he liked it because he ate the whole thing!
My baseline tester: Bacon Cheddar Burger Medium rare
I wanted a burger for days before this so it was my chance to fulfill the desire. And also, it gave me the chance to test their baseline. Granted, burgers at a Jewish deli, not really classic, but whatever. When have you guys ever known me to go with the grain, right?
It was GREAT, even though there wasn’t any mayo on it, which I usually request. I thought I’d it a try with just ketchup and mustard. Even though it was a little more done than medium rare, it was still juicy, and the cheese was perfectly melted. The bacon was REALLY good, I could tell they had cooked it recently and it was still a little greasyyyyyyyyyyy. Even the slaw was good, and I don’t like slaw. And the steakfries were perfect, they matched the burger, substanial, perfectly salted and crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside.
Job well done, Goldberg’s. I’ll be coming back soon and often to try out the million things on your menu, what with your all day breakfast (“the only way it should be served.” I couldn’t agree more!)
The staff was attentive and super nice, and the bartender was sure to great us on our way in and out. The place was pretty big and fairly busy for a weekday lunch.
All in all, I was happily surprised!
That pretty much sums it up. It was delicious, and this is what it looked like before I slurped it up on Monday for lunch:
Never underestimate the power of a strategically placed Oyster Cracker, friends. Not only do they bring back great childhood memories (speaking of which, now I’m seriously craving a grilled cheese sandwich on 12 grain bread), they add a little “umph!” to your soup.
Enjoy!
Siiri Sampson is a Seattle, WA Food Fiend, Home Cook and Culinary Enthusiast.
