chez cherie's Profile
New Farmers' Market in Pasadena Playhouse District opened last Wednesday
la canada is saturday, no?
Your disappointing purchases from Costco
i agree--i love me a rib-eye, but prefer the choice. the prime is just toooo rich. i taste the fat more than the meat.
San Francisco Hound Coming to Portland...Please Critique My List For Your Wonderful Food City!!!
having just returned from a trip to pdx, i urge you not to skip ken's. i'm not a big sweets/baked goods person, and i went there 3 times in 4 days! it's a lovely vibe, and the food is really great. had an oregon croissant--startlingly crisp pastry and pearl sugar, filled with hazelnut creme, studded with boysenberries (i could be wrong on the berry--better go back and check!). a simple grilled cheese was anything but simple--amazing walnut bread with aged gouda. i didn't have the pizza as i was heading out before the monday night special a the bakery. every single bite we put in our mouths from ken's was memorable. don't deny yourself the pleasure!
Discontinued at Trader Joe's - January thru June 2012
Alert! The fab Sweet and Hot mustard is on its way out. Apparently "ham season" is over... Note to Joe-- ham season is not a thing, and there is no off season for mustard! I grabbed the
Last 6 jars in a 25 mile radius, so I think I'm good until the unofficial start of the "ham season" in November.
The Habit
We have one on Glendale,Ca. I think it's a really solid burger. Their more upscale(ish) place is Hook Burger Bistro-- one in Burbank and a new one in Pasadena. Their burgers are CRAZY good, and only about a buck or soothe-- $5-7 for a burger I'd price at about $9-10.
YYC Hound comming for a visit, where should I try?
Back from PDX with a full belly! Had a great meal at Aviary (in the Alberta area). Oxtail croquettes and a smoked artichoke for starters. I had hoisin-glazed shortribs for my main--super tender and deep flavor! darling daughter enjoyed her steak with marrow and onion rings. too full for dessert. we visited ken's artisan bakery twice, it was so great! 1st time had an "oregon croissant" with huckleberries, hazelnut creme and pearl sugar--so crunchy and flavorful! then lunch--great white bean soup, lovely garden salad with cornichons, and a super grilled cheese with aged gouda on walnut bread. oh--and we had to try the croque monsiuer! and a hazelnut caramel tart! and a fab fresh grapefruit macaron. yeah, we liked ken's a LOT!
my fav meal was probably ned ludd. i went alone, very early reservation (5 pm), as DD was performing in a poetry slam that evening. sat facing the woodfired oven so i could watch the action--everything is cooked in that oven, with pear, apple or cherrywood smoke perfuming all the food. i had flatbread--which is the opposite of flat, as it's puffed full of woodsmoked air...so good! pork terrine was terrific, especially with the pickle plate--really brightened up the rich pork. (jalapenos, red onion, mushrooms, apple, celery and my fav--fennel.) so pretty and bright. my final dish was just great--roasted cauliflower with nearly blackened tips, atop creamy, rich cauliflower puree. over the top of this was a green olive tapenade, which again, provided a bright, briny contrast to the rich and smoky puree. staff was terrific--they guys tending the oven saw my interest, and invited me back behind the pass for a closer look on the way out. (bought them a beer for their trouble!)
i alos really enjoyed a visit to cheese bar. enjoyed a lovely syrah rose (on a gloriously sunny day in pdx) and a cheese plate which included a spanish raw sheep cheese, a goat gouda and schlossberger (raw cow). the cheeses were accompanied by a apricot mostarda that was pretty and tasty. nice and knowledgable folks here.
had bfast one day at country cat. biscuit was ethereal, and i'm not real biscuit-y. pear butter was super. the bacon is housemade, and such a salty-smoky-chewy-porky treat! the homefries were amazing--crunchy and salty exterior that crackled under my tetth, with a flaky, steamy, mealy (in the best possible way!) interior. i hardly tasted my eggs--the sides were so great!
can't wait to come back--in fact, i'm seriously considering setting a food-based novel in the hawthorne distirct (or maybe in the alphabet area---so i can visit ken's more!)
thanks, jillo and other pdx chowers for some good suggestions!
YYC Hound comming for a visit, where should I try?
jillo, i will be visiting my daughter at UP this weekend, and plan to use your great post as a guide. thanks for taking the time to write it!
racion--tapas in pasadena
ok, so just want to note that i have no involvement with this place, before i say that we went again last night, and it was just as delish! salt cod fritters with a lemon aioli--fab! deconstructed paella-ish dish with whole prawns, and great rice (complete with soccarat) and lobster jus--yum! pork dish was belly with...yeah, i cant remember with what, but it was terrific, too! repeated a few dishes from the first visit. service great--even sitting at the bar. this is my new favorite spots in pasadena. or anywhere!
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012
and the fab sweet hot mustard! iwas told that was seasonal for "ham season" too. lol.
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012
ick, indeed. they will happily give you a credit---usually dont have to bring the moldy product back to show them. receipt will usually suffice. (sometimes, just y0ur word, if you are a regular customer.) glad that was useful info to you--i don't know why the expiration dates are so lengthy on that very perishible item. i think they use a standard produce shelf life? but those squash cubes go south quick!
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012
janethepain, butternut squash, once it's been cut, does spoil quickly, unless preservatives are used. my advice is to grab from the back of the rack, if you need to keep it for a few days before using. the stuff at the back is fresher, as they stock from the back. if i need some for today, of course, i'll take a pack from the front of the display, but if i need it for a few days from the purchase date, it's back-of-the-rack for me. pre-cut bnut spoils reallllly quickly.
Can't stand the feel of cornstarch...
Heeheee-- i know what ya mean! To me, it feels like the stuff my awful old dentist used to temporarily fill a tooth. Squeak, squeak!
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]
i love it--adjust seasoning to taste with salt, pepper and cured pork products!
Costco Business Centers for Restaurant Supplies -- West Coast
very similar--i actually read the original post this morning, and decided to head down to commerce to check it out. (figured it wouldn't be crowded on a saturday, since itt caters to business folk, and it's in commerce..and it wasn't crowded at 10:30 ish. i would poke both eyes out before hitting my regular costco on a weekend.)
the walk-in has less produce offerings than rd, but the herbs in large amounts are similar. the meat offerings are fewer than at rd. there was a section for coffee bars and yogurt shops, with torani and other flavored syrups in large bottles, sprinkles, chopped nuts, and the like. they had sheet pans, open stock utensils for tabletop as well as libbey glassware, and some other rd-like stuff.
i walked out without much--a couple instant-read thermometers that were a good price, a couple (knock off) silpats and sheet pans i needed, and a waiter's corkscrew (mainly because i've never bought anything for $2 at costco!)
it was interesting, but since im also a member at rd, i won't likely be back.
edited to add: rd definitely enforces the membership thing--you not only have to flash your card (like at costco), you have to scan it in on a monitor, and there is someone watching. (you need the resale info to get the card in the first place.)
TJ mustard... 2 gram protein in a TSP?
.2 grams seems about right--i think there's a decimal point missing. could happen easily...i hope you follow through at the store to get it corrected.
Changes at Lazy Ox
thanks so much for this! going for iberico paella and cannot wait for a great soccarat! your recommendation sold me, j.l.
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]
cooked up these grits tonight. i made them with sharp cheddar, and served sauteed greens on top. they were terrific. as paulj noted, they are stone ground, so you get that good texture. next time i will add a can of the chopped hatch chiles!
Where can I buy European butter?
the more info, the merrier, das ubergeek! (butter is my best--also my worst--friend. along with duck fat, mais oui!)
Where can I buy European butter?
Wow-- that made my night! Thanks so much-- now Im extra glad you are eating good butter! (just to keep things on track...;-))
Where can I buy European butter?
oh, cool, good eatz! hello.
sadly, tj no longer carries plugra, but some smart and finals do--i get mine from the one on foothill in tujunga, and it freezes well, so i buy about 8 at a time. i want to look for that butter in a tin you've mentioned--which market do you find it?
Where can I buy European butter?
Huiray, European butter is usually cultured. A lactobacillus culture (which is naturally occurring in milk products, but is added in controlled conditions and amounts) is added when the cream is churned, which produces a richer flavor.
Old Town Pasadena?
just had a fabulous tapas evening at a new spot on green street--racion. here's my view:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/840678
racion--tapas in pasadena
all i can say is "hell, yes!"
racion just opened, in the former tre venezie space. i took my staff there for a calendaring meeting and we ordered half the menu. having recently led a culinary tour of andalucia, i was in heaven with each bite of jamon, albondigas and croquetta! this is some seriously good food--the least successful dish we had was still something i would happily eat again!
our favorite dish (although it is very hard to choose!) was probably the "cochinillo"--the daily pork preparation. now, who doesn't love a restaurant with a daily pork preparation?? in this instance, it was pork riblets, in a glorious sticky gingery, juniper-y, sweet-savory glaze. yes, we licked our fingers.
the conserva is a lovely presentation, on a slate square, with jamon, duck prosciutto, an amazing liver and tangerine terrine with a few olives and boquerones. that terrine was fab.
the romesco on the roasted vegetables is delicious, but the stand-out sauce to us was served with the smoked cauliflower steak. it was a version of white gazpacho, with garlic, almonds and sherry vinegar, and i had to be restrained from tipping the dregs from the bowl into my mouth. luscious!
the rib-eye was seasoned simply--i believe it was just salt, pepper, and fabulous beef, with a couple padron peppers tossed on top for color (and yum). that was some seriously good beef right there.
the chef, teresa, visited our table a couple of times to answer questions we had about preparation. she's very warm and willing to share, and an amazing talent. i can't wait to go back--is tonight too soon?
we shared the cheese plate (tetilla, idiazabal and a very assertive cabrales, with pistachio stuffed dates) , and every dessert on the menu. the consensus at our table was that the chocolate mousse, with coffee ice cream and pedro jimenez sorbetto was the winner. simple, but gorgeous presentation, and wow-factor flavors.
btw, we enjoyed a couple bottles of a really nice cava rose--"tresor", i think it was called. we're a festive bunch, so we like to start with bubbles, but this was so tasty, dry and delicious, that we stuck with it for the whole evening, and it stood up, even to the ribeye. i want more of that!
service was great, the room is comfortable and nicely decorated (great art with a real spanish feel). the place sure feels like it has been operating for a while---no "opening glitches" on display.
both my thumbs are way up for this terrific addition to the pasadena tapas scene.
What to do with beets & beet greens????
Roast the beets. Saute the greens. Invite me over.
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 1st quarter 2012 [old]
all you heirloom orange devotees--have you tried the cara caras? after all the joy i saw here about the heirlooms, i picked up a bag. yes, those are some good oranges, but for my money, the cara caras blow them out of the water. you might want to try them if you haven't yet.
