The therapist was in after this morning’s Street Scramble, but he would not sit the hell down.
I participated with friends in a scavenger hunt throughout Fremont, known as the Street Scramble for the Fremont Oktoberfest. We did alright — I think we placed 5th. Pretty good for over 20 teams.
Late afternoon, my cookbook club gathered to cover Coolio’s cookbook. Yeah, that guy who did Gangsta’s Paradise. Apparently, he’s a great cook who now caters in L.A., which led to this book. I’ll admit there were some things I enjoyed just fine (like Broghetti, or the Mermaid Steaks), but I didn’t go into sodium shock.
Several of my fellow participants would prefer if we never speak of this again.
I re-entered Seattle life today, so it seemed appropriate to find Asian food first. Mr. T & I walked down Roosevelt Ave to finally check out the new (ish) Savatdee Thai where the old Blue Onion Bistro used to be.
He ordered curry, I ordered the Goi Goong from the Laotian menu. The curry was one of the best I’ve had at Seattle’s many Thai restaurants but that Goi Goong was spicy, layered, delicious, & gratifying. I could order this dish everyday and never tire of it.
And since it felt so healthy & fresh, there was no prawn left behind.
After breakfast at the Hotel Oberland dining room, we started packing up to hit the road. I was nearly ready when Maya ran past my room relaying, “Alpages! They’re coming down the mountain!” Alpages (as they’re called in French, also known as Alpaufzug in Austria & Almabtrieb in Switzerland) are an annual Fall event, where herders bring cows down from higher elevations. In small villages, these are completely impromptu affairs. Now, I’d tried to set my visit to coincide with a famous Fall Alpages in Annecy near Geneva, but all Summer those Frenchies were not giving up the dates for their official weekend. I’d let go of the idea, booked cheaper flight dates, and by chance, one landed on our doorstep. Lucky! You sure can bank on the Swiss to bring good times, eh?
We eventually stopped gawking at cows & packed up to drove to Interlaken. En route, I read a guidebook listing of an El Azteca in Interlaken. I figured at worst, inauthentic Mexican would make the next meal of potatoes and exceptional cheese seem all the better. With hopeful hearts, our trio of Mexican food-lovers hit the Jungfraustrasse. I enjoyed my mole’s heat, though Janet & Maya tell me Basel still has the best Mexican food in all the (Swiss) land. I left happy. We walked through a street market, running into a surprise performance by a Swiss Army orchestra on our way to the paraglide landing field.
Our next stop was Bern, the capitol of Switzerland. We were ambivalent about visiting, but I thought I should check out the town where Mr. T’s grandmother’s family originated.
Bern turned out to be my favorite Swiss city–so charming, full of cute underground shops with entrances through cellar doors and old buildings and smartly dressed residents. We spent the rest of our day there, with dinner at Cafe Falken before driving home to Geneva. Full set of images, here:
The GastroGnome & I met up in Redmond today to have an Eastside lunch with Frank. After reading Nancy Leson’s coverage of the nomadic chef, I wanted to track it down. We ordered:
1. Dan Dan Noodles
2. Chong Qing Chicken
3. Twice Cooked Pork
4. Wild Chili Lamb with soft tofu in hot gravy
It lived up to the spicy name & I enjoyed every dish. The Chong Qing Chicken reminded me of popcorn shrimp (mostly in a good way). I loved the heat of the lamb but the pork and those Dan Dan Noodles set me for the day. We had plenty of leftovers.
I was in Ballard to heed Lara Ferroni’s advice to clean your sensor a few times a year, when I realized it was the perfect time to partake of Happy Hour somewhere nearby. I fired up Urbanspoon, and was on my way to Ocho for tapas in a matter of minutes. I tried Revueltos con Trufa (scrambled eggs on toast), Pan con Tomate (tomato sauce & spanish cheese, also on toast), and Banderilla de Boquerones (fried artichoke, piquillo pepper, and anchovies with aioli). I wrapped that up with the pink drink, a spicy & sharp Dragon’s Tongue. It was a blissful break from errands.
For years, I’ve tried Bakery Nouveau’s goodies at gatherings or as treats from friends. As luck would have it, I was in West Seattle around the perfect time today to pick up twice-baked croissants and some of their new pizza at their store. They serve possibly the most beautiful French pastries and sandwiches in Seattle.
Our final wedding of the season. Our table had issues with setting our crossword puzzles on fire. Literally or figuratively? I’ll let you be the judge.
At lunchtime, I visited the Bellevue Art Museum with some friends. Afterward, I had very important business to attend to on Alki.
Followed by a marvelous dinner at La Rustica, I wrapped up the day at the College Inn Pub in the U-District, with Misty in her final 48 hours as a single lady.
Yesterday & today could not have been more perfect, here in Seattle.
Mid-afternoon, I hit up the King County Airport to update a Nexus/Global Entry pass of mine. On my way back, I noticed the new euro-style speed zones in South Seattle.
Mr. T’s mom, sister, and I caught a viewing of The American. I believe E! described it best when they called it a George Clooney Coffee Table Book. It was a very art-house Anton Corbijn film — goths of the 90s would recognize him from his Depeche Mode days. Every single shot was flawless.
I preceded that with lunch with Carey & Joanne at Sitka & Spruce. Another restaurant work of art.
I wrapped up the evening at Mistral Kitchen for September’s LUPEC meeting. Sorry, no pictures this time!
Another hilarious evening with Ian Bell’s Brown Derby’s staged reading of Saturday Night Fever. Nick Garrison was in good form as the main love interest, but Scott Shoemaker aka The Kid/Prince from July’s Purple Rain stole the show tonight as The Soundtrack, showing up for every BeeGees tune to sing the background. One of those things where you had to be there. Make sure you don’t miss their 8-mile rendition in November.
