Lydia R

After a visit to Davon Crest 2, several of us headed to Suicide Bridge for, of course, more food. Felt good that I could find it again even after a year and a half. Too bad the food wasn't as good as I remembered.The crab-balls and crab-cake were good - lots of meat and not greasy. The crab bisque was more like a gloppy chowder - even with the addition of a shot of sherry. We didn't have a quorum for a dozen hard shells so a couple of us went for softies, but were served Paper Shells - even this time of year it's just not the same. A good way to wait out the bulk of homeward-bound beach traffic, but not for the fare other than hard shells and stewed tomatoes.

It was a great afternoon followed by dinner at Suicide Bridge Restaurant. Sorry we missed some of the earlier farm arrivees. The greenhouses that are in production are incredible. After touring them the pix upthread make more sense. Here's a couple pix from the field [thumbnail photo insert instructions here]. Next time you're tempted to reach for "plug" baby carrots in the grocery think of these REAL baby carrots: Roma Tomatoes later served with balsamic vinegar, sea salt and olive oil steeped overnight with freshly picked basil: Davon Crest Sun Golds - resisted picking some right then:

I wanted to post this enewsletter from Colorado Kitchen because they have some closures coming up: They'll be closed this Saturday 9/22 and then Friday 9/28 through Sunday 9/30 because of Camp. At a recent dinner, the shrimp and house made pasta included a handful of corn kernels and peas and was very light and fresh. Thankfully, it left room for some Texas Chocolate sheet cake. Earlier in the meal, good manners prevented me from reaching over for a neighboring Gorgonzola/bread/tomato salad - it looked so good.

No, just an obit:

The camp was also announced through Colorado Kitchen's eNewsletter with a great brochure/fact sheet. camp_brochure.pdf

Jessica Gould's "Calling Their Puff" column in the current Washington City Paper details the smoking ban workarounds attempted by JP's, Tabaq Bistro and Chief Ike's Mambo Room... I wonder when DC-DOH will complete the warning phase, take a deep breath and get on with their task.

Interesting development here according to this Wall Street Journal newsflash:

You're welcome. This is when I miss JamesG/Pandahugga most. If anyone can help evolve this menu from its current state of initial shabbiness, please PM me. Of particular interest are the “names” of the order-ahead dishes [the third page of the PDF file upthread - the menu items are outlined in a scroll border]. I was given a description of the dishes with information regarding their preparation, but don't know how to correctly identify them on the phone.

I dropped by to ask about the separate menu and was given a verbal tour. I've prepared the attached file from scribbled notes. Revisions, no doubt, to follow... Pacifica_Cafe_Menu_Aug2007.pdf

In June, a Saturday in SF at the Terminal Ferry Building included: a nice cup of Peet's Coffee and shopping through the Farmer's Market. It's on the side and in the Plaza behind the building facing the Bay. There are 4+ prepared food vendors and I had a great Mexican meal (tamales & beans) on a shared picnic table looking out on the water. Inside are several carryout options. Luckily I had a kitchen, so I purchased farm fresh produce, visited Cowgirl Creamery and took my bounty up Nob Hill via cablecar. On a weekday I walked into Slanted Door at 11:15 and had lunch solo at the not-yet-crowded bar. My +1 and I went back the same evening and couldn't get near the place because it was so full - the walls throbbed. Dim Sum is always a good idea - Yank Sing for lunch today (Friday) might be considered finer dining. If DH has an interest in the back alleys of Chinatown, I greatly enjoyed this tour and the splinter group that went restaurant hopping afterwards. The community service group charges double the $18 fee for "last minute" reservations, but the tourguides are their scholarship students and the funds go to maintaining the alleys. Another nice option for a walk & Little Italy dining would be to send your DH on a coffee purchasing errand for you at Graffeo (yes, Tom S's fav) in North Beach. I got both the dark & light roast (your only choices), but preferred the dark. It's just a walkup counter (no prepared coffee) manned by the roasters -- so the experience was definitely not chain-like and the guidance was spot on. I'd never had occasion to stroll Columbus and there were several eateries open to the sidewalk that looked appetizing. If your DH likes Sam Spade/Dashiell Hammet, he might enjoy this.

I like the quote in the Post article from the president of Lee Development Group about the 2,000-capacity (not seat) venue: A crowd trying to eat (not dine) pre-show and dash to the same 2,000-capacity venue would probably crush RTC.Yesterday's Washington Business Journal daily news had additional details not in the Post article. So, the nightclub is audience stand-up not comedy stand-up?

Colorado Kitchen's annual August hiatus will begin after dinner service Sunday July 29th. They will reopen, after two special August meals detailed below, on Wednesday September 5th.

Phillips just lost their president, Mark Sneed, to a heart attack at the age of 50. Remembrance in the WSJ. He had been with Phillips since 1986 and president since 1996.

The NYTimes recently published a piece entitled: "The World's Best Candy Bars? English, of Course"

There's a local (3rd & F St., NW) alternative today. The theme this year is the Emilia-Romagna region. Looks small with only a few vendors, but no serious travel involved.

Sounds like you had some after-hours business last night. Sorry, hopefully the rooftop burglers didn't make off with your recipes...

The fairgrounds are in Pennsylvania near the HQ of All-Clad in Canonsburg (map). It's southwest of Pittsburgh. All-Clad can be reached at 1-800-255-2523 if you need more info.

The next All-Clad Seconds Sale at the Washington County Fairgrounds is Friday & Saturday, June 8 & 9, 2007. Their hours are are Friday 9am - 7pm and Saturday 9am - 4pm. Arriving early is best. Their tagline is: "First Come. Seconds Served."The postcard I received from All-Clad notes only CRATE as a participating retailer in this sale, perhaps worth checking out - www.cratecook.com

It's been a year since Half Moon closed - hopefully this'll be a good lunch Q place.

Parkway got mixed reports in the Reuben thread and, yes, they were on FoodNetwork's The Best Of. However, this place is my consolation prize if I have to go into work on a weekend morning. Catching one of their Reubens before hitting the office keeps institutional food away from me all day. Thankfully, it's been a while.

As long as they're not 86 Chef Power it's all good. "Very hot stove" indeed.

I was really wrong when I assumed this about the owner.John Landis wrote a great profile of the owner in the May Silver Spring Voice entitled "Only in America - Ghanian immigrant brings his own Italian flavor to Silver Spring" After about 14 years at Bethesda's Pines of Rome first in the kitchen and later as a server, John Eshun completed his CPA training and looked to open his own place. Interesting backstory for this place.

Bee George has an article in the current TPSS Co-op newsletter (pg. 4). Bee George on keeping bees:

Sad, but not a surprise if you remember the URL for their place in Arlington: waheeyo.com Looking forward to checking them out. Has bonus points already because of its AM location (not way out here).

Looks like CK is hosting its first Wine Dinner on Wednesday 30 May... From this morning's eNewsletter: