thistle

It is outside, eastern exposure. I got it as a seedling from the Elizabethan Gardens in Manteo, NC years ago. I think it has flowered, but never fruited, & has a wayward akebia vine growing through it.

Kids & I visited the Vienna location on Sunday, at the same time as a large family Easter gathering (just a bit strange, loads of small children), had the Arabe & SanDiego tacos.  I thought the tacos at Springfield were a bit better (the chicken on my Arabe was kind of cold) & I’m giving up on fish tacos, you don’t get enough fish to even taste it (Foo Fighter at Springfield, while even smaller, was tastier).  I love the salsas & will continue to try other menu options.

An unfortunate title:

"The Forgotten Fruit that Looks like an Anus" by Anne Ewbank on atlasobscura.com

Medlars are supposed to be best when they are almost rotten; I have a loquat tree, but it has never fruited.

I agree with you, mostly because I don’t understand the appeal of Italian food.  Maybe i’ve just never had really good Italian food, it’s all been sort of “meh” (now, I’m not talking about raw ingredients, I’ve had great prosciutto, olives, bread, but most pasta dishes leave me cold).

Most German beer is amazing (on par w/ Belgian beer) & German food is pretty good, too.  It's just a hard sell compared to more predictably spiced & tasty food (some of the best meals I had in Germany & Austria were versions of Asian food). I have a copy of "The Biergarten Cookbook-Traditional Bavarian Recipes" which has some good recipes, including my favorite-flammekuchen.

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2018/03/mike-isabella-top-chef-sexual-harassment/555977/

The 'tournant' episode referenced in this article was one of my favorites of that season of TC, it took place on an Air Force base, and Jen supervised the cooks like a boss. 

Speaking as a guest (although it is more work for the hostess) I appreciate having options. Just make sure you fix stuff that you like to eat, in case there are leftovers. & enjoy your lunch & your guests, felicitations to the bride & groom!

Weighing in on the IP, I still make broth weekly, lately I roast a small chicken, then use the carcass & bones for broth (sometimes adding stuff for pho),  I also use it for simpler things-hardboiled eggs, parboiled potatoes (w/ salt & vinegar) for s&v homefries, beans, veg.

Fossil for the win! I have more bags than stuff I need to lug around.

That sounds delicious. I want to go where you are cooking.

Nope, not this time, 3 tiny pieces, almost not recognizable as fish-but the papaya slaw was spicy, not sure if that makes up for it?

I am thinking about going to Bartaco Mosaic tomorrow w/ the kids for comparison. I did really like Taco Bamba, but might order different stuff next time.

I should take photos, but don’t usually remember it.

I have a history w/ Fossil-have a 20+ yr old Fossil wallet, & have half a dozen Fossil bags (some of which I scored from thrift shops), I still have my first (adorable) Capezio leather backpack bag, & probably 15 assorted bags from https://english.aranziaronzo.com/index_h.html  I get a New Years gift bag (fukubukoro) from them every year.

Fermented oat cookies were appreciated by E’s crew (I think they took them out of desperation/sympathy), tasted just like regular oat cookies, maybe they didn’t really ferment because they were plain old Quaker Oats.  I am also making Russian fermented plums & the stone I put on top to weigh them down has slipped off-arghh, not rearranging the damned plums!

& when I say the size of my little finger, I mean total, 3 minuscule pieces of fish.

Another idea (I am totally suggesting things I would like to eat) is a frittata/kuku sabzi- egg pie (no crust, so works for gluten free) w/ lots of greens & herbs (& I like cheese, but some people might not). & although I am not a Pinterest person, I think this is adorable & will figure out a way to serve it this year (I am also a total cheese freak, & I like hard boiled eggs).

I visited the Springfield location with my daughter & her friend yesterday & it was great. I got the Foo Fighter (which I loved because the papaya slaw was super spicy, but the meager pieces of fish, the size of my little finger, were disappointing) & the Arabe (no complaints, lots of nicely marinated chicken on a pita , like a chicken schwarma). One kid got the taco Bamba (amazing) & the other the Vic-Fil-A (also amazing) & filled it out w/ 4 more carne asada tacos. We loaded up on the salsas, the girls got fruit punch Jarritos, & Taco Bamba gets a vote of approval.

True, but if you’re not making homemade, add some heat. & I always have jarred mayo, Hellman’s olive oil (nice plastic jar you can turn upside down to get out the last stuff). I’d like to see who only makes homemade mayo these days.

Sorry, but you’re definitely verging on ‘grumpy old man’- sriracha or sambal oelak or spicy salsa is the best thing that can happen to mayonnaise- she says as she dips her cold roast chicken in Taco Bamba salsa.

Looking at leather bags on Zappos (since it’s more fun to shop for someone else), I like Frye, Scully, & Fossil.

I have several small leather bags from https://hideanddrink.com/, but their leather backpack is small.  I’ve been happy with bags from  Fjallraven, Tom Binh, Sherpani, Camelbak, Dakine & many others. I’m a bag junkie.

It improves if you mix in lots of Thai basil & lime & some nuoc cham left from the spring rolls (& it helps if it’s a good base stock to begin with).

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Pho 88 (Nolacaine)

Yes, I sampled some of my daughter’s pho ga (which I will always pick over beef) & it was very good, especially if you mix in some of the sate sauce.  We usually have pho at East wind in Fairfax, but we decided to try something different. My son had eaten here before & wanted us to try it.

As someone who has an IP & an Anova, for a brisket I vote-smoke it! On a Weber Smoky Mt.  I did one Super Bowl weekend for my son, who used it to make chili for an office chili cook off (he did not win, unfortunately).

I went to Pho Sate w/ my kids a couple of weeks ago, chicken spring rolls-great, they got pho (beef & chicken) & I tried a spicy seafood soup (maybe 506? It was delicious, but intense).