Yesterday I tried their take on s’mores. It was very good, but the chocolate to marshmallow to graham cracker ratio fell in favor of a rich chocolate & walnut layer. It was almost too much. I do prefer a bit more marshmallow. Tasty none-the-less. It’s true nothing beats the traditional s’mores, but I like trying new creative variations on the original.

What’s your preference?

When the temperature drops I crave warm, hearty dishes. Soup is at the top list. I’m eager to make a Ribollita soup – white cannellini beans mixed with tomato, veggies, toasty bread and Parmesan all on one bowl.

How about you? What are you craving?

Got a note in email about this, I’m sure the 200+ photos are gorgeous…

We are excited to announce the first book from Next Restaurant is available today, exclusively on the iBookstore. Paris: 1906 is a complete, uncompromising guide to reproducing the 4-star opening menu of chefs Grant Achatz and David Beran.
This digital book includes: Recipes: exact recipes for every dish served, as documented by our chefs Photos: over 200 full-color photographs Video: a video of table-side duck press service Essays: short essays by the chefs describing the key dishes and concepts This full-color, stunning, illustrated book is designed specifically for viewing on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch and we’ve priced it at only $4.99 to make it accessible to everyone. Download Paris: 1906: iTunes.com/NextRestaurant We think there will be a few pressed ducks on Thanksgiving tables this year! Bon Apetit, Grant, Dave, and Nick

Cal Anderson Park – May 2011

Capitol Hill neighborhood Seattle, WA

Pine Street (between Belmont & Boylston)

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What a lot of people are just getting turned on to is the fact that you not only can buy a selection of fresh oysters, clams and the ever perplexing goeduck, but it’s also a great spot for lunch & or maybe even a light dinner.

I stopped in not too long ago to chat with Tom Stocks, assistant manager, and got a dozen hand selected and shucked oysters and fantastic glass of wine.  They also have one or two daily made chowders.

The space is simple and pristine.  I’m sure it’s one of the tidiest seafood shops in town.

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They have a great selection and it’s easily accessible.

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And this is the geoduck – native to the northwest cost of the US and Canada.  

If you haven’t seen much of me these past few weeks it’s because I’ve been busy working on launching an exciting social dining journey in Seattle.  Last month I started working for Dishcrawl.

Dishcrawl is a national start-up founded on the premise that communities can be brought together through good food and good company, four restaurants in one night.  We’re rapidly expanding into new markets and Dishcrawlers can currently join monthly progressive food adventures in San Francisco, New York, Montreal, Ottawa, San Jose, Toronto, the Tri-Valley Area, and the Peninsula. Dishcrawl is currently headquartered in the Silicon Valley.

Next on the list is Seattle!  The plans have been made, restaurants are confirmed and people have bought their tickets.  Our launch is less than a week away and is taking place in my hood – Capitol Hill.  This morning I got to do a big reveal on KING5 New Day Northwest.  A tiny bit of the secret is out: one of our stops is Grim’s Restaurant & Lounge!

The best part of the morning was the chance to cast the spotlight on some great local talent.  Grim’s Executive Chef, Khampaeng Panyathong did a fantastic cooking segment and featured the item Dishcrawlers will be enjoying next week.  Laura Olson, Grim’s Founder/Owner, along with her awesome assistant Lindsey were backstage to cheer Khampaeng on.

I’m very excited about what Dishcrawl will do for supporting local businesses.  I hope to see you soon at one of the upcoming Dishcrawls! 

Be sure to follow @dishcrawlSEA

http://swfs.bimvid.com/bimvid_player-3_2_7.swf?x-bim-callletters=KING

~ The Grill Cheese Grill 1027 NE Alberta

~ The Grilled Cheese Grill 113 SE 28th Ave

At 7 pm on the dot, people starting arriving and were welcomed by Katie, Dishcrawl Portland’s coordinator.  Already I could tell we had a gregarious group.

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Once everyone got checked in, Matt came out and introduced himself.  

Matt grew up helping his mom in the kitchen and became a little grilled cheese whiz.  Later in life, Matt didn’t attend a culinary school, but rather honed his skills working in restaurants.  He always wanted to open a restaurant and he finally decided to do open a place that would feature one of his favorite foods, the grilled cheese.  

He really looks like he’s having fun with it.

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The group was getting hungry and you could smell the delicious cheesy goodness that was about to come out – even a small visitor was eagerly awaiting the grilled cheese.

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I snuck into their food cart to find Matt’s crew hard at work.  They were readying up the grilled cheese.

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We had the opportunity to taste a few of the grill cheese options on their menu such as the Jalapeno Popper – roasted jalapeños, colby jack, cream cheese and corn tortilla chips on sourdough.  

The Grilled Cheese Grill was a great start to the Dishcrawl and everyone was having fun meeting each other and checking out the bus.

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It was time for our next stop.  Katie gathered up the group and we were off to the Yogio food cart.  Yogio is not normally opened late on Tuesdays, but did not want to miss the chance to be included in the Dishcrawl so co-owner Ali came in to host our group.  

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Yogio, owned by Timber Adamson and Ali Clarsy, features Korean snack food – all gluten free.  I was very excited about checking them out especially after hearing they have ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS on the menu.  This evening we would get to try their most popular item on their menu – the Rocks.  Ali gave us the scoop on what we were about to enjoy.  

The Rocks are seasoned rice stuffed with bibimbap vegetables.  They crisp it up and place it atop of a homemade gochujang paste spread across a bit of seaweed and served up with their Crack sauce – no clue what’s in this sauce, but it was so good.  Everyone lined up right away to get their Rock.

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I really liked the Rock.  Let me just say, it was a great combination of flavors with a good spicy depth as provided by the gochujang paste.

Wow!  It’s only stop two, but with all of the great food so far, I’m slowly getting full!  Katie once again got everyone on the move to stop number three.

Next on the agenda was The Tin Shed Garden Cafe.  They have a simple philosophy of using fresh and wholesome ingredients and that definitely comes through in their food.  It is no wonder this place is always busy and has very good reviews.  Owner Jannette Kaden greeted the group upon arrival.  We had the pleasure of sitting in their covered patio area.

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Jannette and two of her staff already had the food table set up with plates, silverware and napkins before we arrived.  While they took drink orders and brought them out, Katie went around to each table to everyone know about the three different dishes from their menu we would be trying.