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We're bringing Italian chili. See you all soon!

We hope to put on a smoked salmon clinic at this year's picnic. Just a short talk on how to prep then smoke wild Alaskan salmon. We will bring salmon for BBQ and for smoking.

Do you by chance have an idea of approximately when the clinic will take place? We'd love to catch it, but unfortunately can only stay for the first couple of hours. (We may try to make the Arlington pot-luck class this weekend if it seems like we might miss the picnic one) Thank you for doing this!

If I missed you, you haven't responded, or you've decided/changed what you're bringing, please reply on the thread or send me a PM.

I'm in +1 as well .. still unsure what we're bringing.

Does anyone have any suggestions for where I can go for help?

I'd head down to Columbia Firehouse in Old Town and talk to Steve Warner (Steve W. here), who manages the bar there. He is absolutely amazing with cocktails, loves experimenting with them, and loves talking about them. He taught a few great cocktail making classes there this past spring, too.

I brought the Dan Dan Noodles. Recipe is from the February 2007 issue of Cuisine at Home:

Dan Dan Noodles

Cuisine at Home, issue 61 (February 2007), page 33

½ lb long-life noodles or dry spaghetti (I use Japanese somen noodles)

¼ c dry sherry

¼ c chicken broth

3 T chunky peanut butter

2 T soy sauce

1 T brown sugar

2 t chili garlic sauce

1 t toasted sesame oil

¼ c red bell pepper, minced

3 T fresh ginger, minced

2 T garlic, minced

12 oz ground turkey breast

chopped fresh cilantro

thinly sliced scallions

Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling water until al dente. Drain; keep warm.

Whisk sherry, broth, peanut butter, soy sauce, sugar, chili garlic sauce, and sesame oil together in a bowl; set aside.

Stir-fry bell pepper, ginger, and garlic in peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, 30 seconds. Add turkey in large chunks and reduce heat to medium. Cook until it begins to brown, 3 minutes. Turn meat over and brown the other side.

Stir in prepared peanut sauce and break up the turkey. Simmer until turkey is cooked through and sauce t hickens, 4-5 minutes.

Serve meat sauce over the cooked noodles. Garnish with cilantro and scallions.

I'm in, +1, and Dan Dan Noodles unless we are otherwise inspired before next weekend ...

Don't forget those deleted dates - they may still count towards members voting, but no longer count towards the total number of votes.

Oh, this is a good point!

I don't need to change my votes, but I am curious -- where is the delete/change option? I only see a message that tells me that I've already voted.

Yes; sometimes if people go back in and re-vote it doesn't count the votes (I don't know why). And I deleted the dates that had < 4 votes.

I didn't re-vote though .. I voted for all dates that worked for me in one voting session. I actually don't even see an option to re-vote.

But it makes me feel better to know that dates were deleted -- I was sure there used to be more! And I was also sure that one date didn't work for me, and all of the currently listed dates do work for me, so even if I'm the only one who voted for multiple dates there should be 3 more votes than members voting.

45 people voted, and only 46 votes have been recorded. Can people really only attend ONE of the dates? You should be voting for ALL the dates you can attend.

Hm.. that's really strange. I'm pretty sure that I voted for all but one of the available options, so even based on that alone the math doesn't work out. The other strange thing is, looking up at the poll now I'm wondering .. were there more dates on the list before?

Steve and I saw the bar/rooftop going in a different direction than my business partners wanted, so we left Eventide two weeks ago. We will both resurface in restaurants that are more dedicated to giving good, caring service and genuinely care about the people that walk through the door each day. Steve and I are good friends and have been for over 10 years. We both share the same theories about diners/guests/customers/people-in-general and will hopefully go into business together one day. I remain a full partner in Eventide and wish its employees nothing but the best!

-D

P.S. Either Steve or I will be most assuredly be taking Amy with us. She's effing awesome at her job and a helluva person.

Oh no!! Just got back from a vacation and was looking forward to drinks at the bar from Steve & Amy. Very disappointed, but please let know where you all end up.

Thai Khao Soi (aka Chiang Mai curry noodles,aka Thai currry noodles, aka chicken coconut curry noodle soup) - adapted from “quick & easy thai: 70 everday recipes” by Nancie McDermottt

2 T vegetable oil

1 T finely chopped garlic

2 T panaeng curry paste

3/4 pound boneless chicken

2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

1 3/4 cup chicken broth

2 t sweet curry powder

2 T soy sauce

1 t sugar

2 T freshly squeezed lime juice

1/2 pound dried Chinese-style egg noodles

1/3 cup coarsely chopped shallots

1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro

1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions

Bake the chicken, then slice into bite-sized pieces.

Heat the vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and then add the garlic.

Toss well and add the panaeng curry paste, mashing and stirring it to soften in the oil, about 1 minute.

Add the chicken, coconut milk, chicken broth, curry powder, soy sauce, and sugar, and stir well.

Simmer ~10 minutes.

Stir in lime juice & remove from heat.

Cook the noodles until tender but still firm.

Deep fry some of the noodles in 375 degree F oil.

Add unfried noodles to the soup pot, or serve in individual bowls and ladle soup on top.

Sprinkle each serving with shallots, cilantro, green onions, and fried noodles.

Serve hot.

Woah -- I didn't get to the pâté en croûte until it was almost gone, so had absolutely no idea how beautiful it was! 1000yregg, thank you for the photos!

It was great to see you all, and to eat your food, again yesterday I'm glad the khao soi (Thai coconut curry chicken) was liked. I'll post the recipe soon -- it's ridiculously easy.

Everything I ate was great, and I particularly enjoyed the ceviche, fried chicken, tofu pate, butterscotch brownies, and lemon poundcake. Recipes would be greatly appreciated for these and all others!

Oh, and there was great beer too -- thank you to the person/people who brought it.

I'll also add that I really missed the arrancini. We were pretty far south of the city for something else in the morning, or we definitely would have helped with its delivery.

Leleboo, thank you for organizing another great picnic!

I'll be bringing Thai khao soi

I'm in and likely +1 as well. Yay!

It's not as pretty as most of the others that have been mentioned, but I am on my 6th year of Cuisine at Home subscriptions because the recipes are so consistently GOOD. They are not extravagant, but they are interesting dishes with innovative flavor mixing, and whenever I pick out a new dish I am 95% sure I will like the result.

I think my earlier reply must have gotten lost somewhere -- please count me in, +1, as well! We're not sure what we're bringing yet, but looking forward to it!

I'm in, +1 .. loved last fall's picnic, and can't wait for this one

Yep, I got one at Cap City in Shirlington. Sweetwater Tavern (Merrifield for sure, presumably others as well) also sells them. I believe I've seen them at Shenandoah Brewing Company in Alexandria, too.

This article in today's New York Times got me wondering where I could get a growler in the DC metro area. Maybe we could use this thread to keep a running list. Anone know?

Wild Rice and Barley Salad (adapted from Cooking Light, Jan/Feb 2008)

1 3/4 c chicken broth

1/4 c uncooked brown rice

1/4 c uncooked wild rice

1/2 c uncooked pearl barley

3/4 c chickpeas

1/3 c golden raisins

1/4 c sliced green onions

2 T red wine vinegar

1 1/2 t olive oil

1 t Dijon mustard

1/4 t salt

1/4 t pepper

2 T chopped fresh basil

2 T chopped fresh mint

2 T sliced almonds, toasted

Combine broth, all rice, and barley in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until liquid is absorbed (~40min).

Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 min.

Add chickpeas, raisins, and green onions.

Whisk vinegar, olive oil, mustard, salt, pepper in a small bowl. Pour over barley mixture. Cover & chill for 2 hr.

Stir in herbs & almonds. Serve.

Yield: 5-6 c.

(edited to add barley to the instructions.. oops)

Please add me +1 to the list We are bringing a wild rice and barley salad.

My boyfriend and I are coming for our first DR picnic Still haven't decided what we're bringing, but will send an update when we decide.

Anybody want to suggest a nearby bar/lounge where we (party of three) could retire after dinner to just chat and catch up? I guess on a Friday it's a tall order to look for a place where we might be able to hear each other, hmm.

First step would probably be to pop your head in to Guajillo and check. Next, Piola might be an option .. it has a reasonably sized bar area and might not be too crowded. And there's the bar at Red Hot & Blue, too.

Uh oh, that's not good. Thanks for the recon, though. If anyone has any info on a re-opening plan, I'd love to know. Thanks!

When we stopped by the El Grande market in Merrifield yesterday, we found it fenced off and boarded up. Does anyone know what's going on?

I'm a big fan of Kanpai, which is in Rosslyn. I've been going there for years -- the sushi is good, and the people are extremely nice. http://www.kanpai-sushi.com/