Catching up

I hate to do this, but I must. I feel pretty terrible about it- each day of our trip to Portland, Oregon and Washington state deserves its own blog entry, but I've gotten way too far behind, and if I'm ever going to get caught up, I have to cram this stuff in. Sorry, Portland!

On our second day, we drove to Mount St. Helens in Washington, and it was a really educational and amazing trip. I had heard of the eruption before, but never really thought too deeply about it or its impact on the region and its aftermath's wealth of research material for scientists.

In the Johnston Ridge observatory, there's a visitor's center with an awesome short film about the eruption and a lot of information about Mt. St. Helens. The tree above was snapped like a twig seconds after the side of the volcano collapsed.

Behind me is a river that was filled with ash from the cloud in a matter of minutes. On the scenic drive to the volcano, giant trees are scattered everywhere like toothpicks, and the new growth is starting to get a foothold after three decades.

And there she is, ominous, impressive, her cratered face a grim reminder of the sheer power of the earth's natural creative forces.

We also visited Astoria, Oregon, which was a charming place with a neat maritime museum. Go there for the salmon... the reddest, juiciest salmon you'll ever have! There's also a place in town that smokes salmon, scallops, sturgeon... you name it. I forgot to upload a picture for you, (this blog program is a bit tricky when it comes to uploads- if I forget to do it at the beginning I'm S.O.L.) but just know that it's a great place to visit.

Portland is teeming with excellent food, whether it be from one of the hundreds of varied street carts or from her finer dining establishments. One of the meals we had that really stood out (though every meal we had was pretty damn spectacular) was at Red Star Tavern, a roast house with a giant spit and wood oven.

Candy beet carpaccio with watercress, aoli, and toasted pistachios. Excellent earthy flavor, colorful presentation.

A superb Kobe beef brisket, with demi glace, caramelized onions, and sauteed Swiss chard with chorizo. It was sublimely crusted on the outside, and buttery tender in the center. I could have kept eating this forever. Actually, I feel pretty sad that I'm not eating it right now!

Amazingly delicious grits with ham hock, "Red Star" gravy, melted cheese and wild mushrooms. This could have been an entree unto itself, with no qualms from any of us!

Part of Portland's charm is its ability to embrace the counter culture and make it acceptable and even encouraged. One of its most popular joints is Voodoo donuts, which has a line half a block long from its door every morning.

They have charming little (okay, huge) fresh donuts, such as the namesake Voodoo Doll pictured above- he's got raspberry filling and a little pretzel "pin" through his heart, very tasty, but what I really wanted was...

A maple BACON donut!!!! So, so very wrong, and at the same time, sinfully right. It tasted... exactly like you think a maple BACON donut would... like awesome. It tasted like pure awesome.

My Dad wanted to return to Mama Mia's Trattoria, a restaurant he loved last time he visited Portland, and with good reason. They make great pastas and pizzas from scratch, without pretension, and just have damn good food. The lasagna above was excellent, layers of herbs, home made mozzarella, home made sausage, home made pasta... I guess you get the gist. There's no way the food could not be great there, it's oozing with love!

On our way to the Columbia River Gorge, we stopped for lunch at a hippie estate (trust me, it's a good thing) called McMinnamin's. They make their own wine... and beer, and spirits, and they have a restaurant, pool hall, bar, hotel... they do everything, and they do it damn well. The beer was good, but...

The home made (there's a theme going here, Oregon...) beef and blue cheese sausages with fresh-ground mustard and warm potato salad my Dad had for lunch were very memorable. This is another recipe I'm going to try to recreate at home...

The Columbia River Gorge is absolutely breathtaking, pictures really do it no justice. It's huge, too; an intimidating piece of nature.

And on the scenic highway that runs beside the gorge, there's waterfalls. Lots of them, and they're all spectacular.

Oregon stole my heart. Every day I spent there, I fell a little bit more in love with it, but the waterfalls really sealed the deal. I mean, how can you get better than great food and awe-inspiring waterfalls?

I mean, I guess you could show me a 400lb, 10 foot long, 70 year old sturgeon named Herman, just to make me gasp. Prehistoric show-off!

Back to the food. Metro Vino was a bit loud for my parents, (they're getting old, poor dears!) but they had good food. Above is a glazed pork chop with hazelnuts, cauliflower, and sauteed polenta. Very tender, very nice.

Oh, Portland, you and your beautiful clean streets, outdoor sculptures, and resourceful public transit. I guess your amazing art museum doesn't hurt either. And the rose garden, Japanese garden, zoo...

And trompe l'oil murals. You're breaking my heart, Portland.

Hrm, I know! We'll test you by stopping in to a random restaurant on a side street, see if you can still impress me when you're not prepared, no reading of reviews, no Internet searches of menus... Higgins! We'll try that...

Oh, house-cured charcuterie? Lardo? Taratelli? A pork-centric menu? Attentive, knowledgeable service, tattooed waitstaff...
And an incredible beer list? Well... fine. You win, Portland.

Among many, many things I learned in Portland, was a new perspective on food. every meal we had, whether it was from a cart or white-tablecloth establishment, was good. The ingredients were very fresh, local, and the preparation exuded pride.

The food was honest. It didn't pretend towards finery, it didn't try too hard. Good product, and an obvious commitment towards preparation on the part of the cooks and chefs. There's a lot going for Portland, and I feel really great to have gotten the opportunity to indulge myself so well in such an amazing city.

The whole vacation with my parents was a great way to come back to the States. Everything we did was fun, delicious, and educational. It felt really nice to explore a new place with them, and I feel nothing but overwhelming gratitude that they decided I could tag along. I really got a lot out of it.

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for everything! You'll never know how much I really do appreciate it.

I spent a couple of days in San Francisco, which will be the subject of my next entry, though I'm not sure if I will be able to write it over the weekend or if it will have to wait until Monday. Tomorrow morning I'm driving to L.A. to visit my brother and his wife, and possibly a couple of friends of mine, so I'll try to come up with something about that as well.

Ciao!

My pilgrimage to the promised land of micro-brews and food.

In the beginning, all was dark, and there was no light, and no stars in the sky.

And the Flying Spaghetti Monster saw this, and he spake; "let there be light!"

And FSM put the stars in the sky, and the sun, and the moon, and he saw that it was good. And the first day came, and passed.

On the second day, FSM's noodley stomach began to tremor; and he commanded "Let there be dumplings! Put them on carts and have ladies force them upon me!"

And FSM ate Dim Sum, and he saw that it was good.

(Dim Sum cart in Portland, Oregon's Chinatown)

On the third day, FSM felt a bit pudgy, and decided that this was not good. "Let there be bicycle lanes, sidewalks, and trees, oh and move that pesky traffic". Thus he spake, and it became so. And he looked upon his creation, he decided to call it Portland, for no real reason whatsoever.

(Outdoor sculpture)

On the fourth day, FSM looked upon that which he had created, and he felt bored. "Pirates!" he boomed in his saucy voice. "I want Pirates! And hippies! Drifters too! They should ride bicycles in swimsuits and tattoo and pierce themselves, while jumping in my fountains!"

And then FSM created Portlandians, and he looked upon what he had created, and saw that it was good. And unto them he issued one commandment; "Keep Portland weird" and they obeyed, and it was good.

(Cyclists playing in a fountain en masse)

And on the fifth day, FSM again grew bored. "I desire to LOL at something!" Spake FSM, and he created a fountain with adorable bronze otters. And he LOL'd, and saw that it was good.

(Awww!)

On the sixth day, FSM looked over his creation, and he liked that which he saw. "I shall create a sign, something super obvious and snarky, so the pirates will know they have reached the holy land"

And he looked upon that which he had created, and saw that it was good. And he also scattered gourmet restaurants and street carts with sumptuous morsels across the land, and supped at them, and it was all good.

On the seventh day, FSM decided to kick back with a spliff and a micro-brew, and commanded; "Yo, peeps, just be... chill man. Don't try to go all crazy and be doin' stuff on Sundays, just feast and be merry" and the pirates, they obliged.

At least that's how I imagine it happened.

We arrived in Portland this past Sunday, and it's been a full week. Most of my Portland bogs will have to be written post-vacay-humously, since I leave tomorrow for San Francisco. But that means I'll have something to do (blog-wise) when I get back to Las Vegas, so never fear, loyal reader(s)!

Sunday night dinner: The Original Dinerant, in our hotel, the Pearl District Mariott.

Lamb meatballs with crostini. Hearty and satisfying.

Chicken and ham fritters with red pepper coulis. Crunchy and savory.

Pierogi stuffed with beef short rib, with cheese sauce and red wine reduction. Sorry, I just drooled a little, you can just dab that off.

Succulent and richly flavored lamb ragu, on pan-fried polenta with shaved parmigiano-reggiano cheese. (Hey, I've met that cheese before!)

Buttermilk fried chicken with an heirloom carrot and red cabbage slaw, Texas toast. (Of course it was good, why even ask? Oh wait, you didn't, pardon me!)

Sauteed halibut with sweet-pea puree, and Parisian gnocci with sweet corn and ham. So... tasty... ugh!

Dessert too?!?! Fine. Carrot cake with cream cheese icing and carrot powder. (My favorite)

Chocolate cake with coconut cream (mmm!).

Lemon tart with a semifreddo, creme anglais, cranberry leather, and lemon "glass", also deliciously brilliant.

~Sniff!~ Oh, Portland, you had me at "beer"!

Ride the Empire Builder

Not many people in the U.S. consider trains a viable transportation option, but they exist, and they're pretty awesome.

Not having to go through a TSA screening is almost enough in itself, but trains have several other distinct advantages...

-They look pretty neat.

-They make sweet "clunkity-choo-choo" noises.

- Walking from one car into the next provides opportunity to pretend you're an action hero.

-They have retro sleeping cars with neat-o fold down beds.

-You get to talk on your cell phone. "I'm on a train..."

-They have grandiose names like "Empire Builder" and "California Zephyr"

-They have bars. With liquor, beer, and wine. Lots of it.

They also take you to exotic small town America, where your local bar/casino/dance hall is also your live bait supplier.

Oh, and the Empire Builder takes you through Glacier National Park, and the view is awesome.

Did I mention the full-service restaurant car on the line? With a view of a National Park while you dine...

on steak and drink wine? (I didn't intend to make that rhyme, but even so, it'll be fine.)

Then Oregon's Mt. Hood appears in the distance, and you skate along the Columbia river, to arrive in a rustic old Oregon train station.

Assuredly, the best way to travel.

P.S. Did I mention the booze and steak?

Ciao!

Chicago

On Thursday my parents and Isis and I left for Chicago, where we would catch our train on Friday afternoon to head west towards Portland. But prior to getting on the train, there were important things that had to be done.

For example, I had to portray the gritty realism of city life by climbing to the top of the Wyllis (formerly Sears) Tower and jump, then take a picture of me plunging rapidly onto the skyscrapers below, you know, for my art.

Of course, by "climb" I mean take the elevator, "jump" is slang for "sit on the floor" and "plunging" means holding my camera phone overhead while leaning backward on the sky-view deck to take a cheesy photo of me above some skyscrapers.

But in all seriousness, the view is incredible. It may not be the tallest building in the world anymore, (I have my doubts about Dubai's longevity) but looking down at puny mortals from my fortress in the sky and laughing at the helicopters as they fly by below is pretty sweet.

On that note, Chi-town also has food, which tends to pique my interest, if you can't tell from my previous entries. My father found a restaurant called Marche near our hotel, and it ended up being a pretty hip new-French bistro with edgy decor and great munchies.

The picture doesn't do it justice, but it's got an open kitchen, and hand painting all over the place. Everything is simply dripping with cool. The bathrooms were pretty cool, as weird as that may sound.

Classic steak tartar, sure to fire up the carnivorous instincts in the meekest of us. Very classic preparation of raw beef tenderloin, capers, shallots, chives, and dijon mustard, (usually has either hard-boiled or raw egg, too) with crostini, and a cute, transparent ribbon of shaved celery for show.

Escargot, (er, snails) very tasty in their new and improved shell made of butter and breadcrumbs. The chef was even so nice as to give them a comfy ceramic bed in which to nap. Isis ate most of these guys, the rest of us (Mother opted out) were lucky to grab a couple.

We had more entrees, but in the interest of time (I am a sleepy girl) I will just show two. Above is a bed of fresh spring peas and oyster mushrooms, with buerre blanc and tender sauteed scallops. Nice and filling, but not too heavy. Loved the great sear on those scallops!

And grilled whitefish with cream sauce, chickpeas, onion, basil, and cherry tomatoes. Also yum.

Dessert was spectacular. Above is their banana bread pudding, served with creme anglais, a scoop of caramel ice cream with a crunchy cookie surprise underneath, and bruleed banana slices. Mmmm...

And the chocolate trio, (from top) white chocolate blondie with home-made ice cream, molten chocolate cake, and a chocolate passion fruit mousse that was nothing short of killer. They wouldn't part with the recipe, though, so I will have to do some experimenting...

Aside from some traffic (okay, some horrible traffic) and oppressive humidity, Chicago can be a cool place. Alas, there was a train to catch, which shall be the subject of my next entry, but for now:

Sleep. Buona notte!

Cowtown, U.S.A.

Ah, the hometown, C-Bus. Land of cows and flatness.

Seriously, I never noticed how flat it is here until I came back to visit from Italy, jeez! You guys need to get a mountain, or something.

However, Columbus does possess some great attributes aside from cattle and a proliferation of wild rabbits and possum.

The first couple days back I cooked a bit of Italian fare for the family...

Pasta verdura, farfalle pasta with fresh vegetables, pine nuts, pecorino cheese, and fried squash blossoms.

Pan-seared rabbit with sauteed Swiss chard and fava beans. (No, I didn't catch the bunny myself)

But no trip to the Motherland would be complete without a sampling of its finer eateries, and many such delicious places congregate in the increasingly gentrified Short North, with its fancy illuminated arches and funky murals.

Jeni's ice cream, the tasty stuff that haunts you when you're gone. Ben and Jerry's is nice, but Jeni's transcends the limits of flavor, hearkening a new era of liquor-and-fruit infused creamery goodness onto the world. Sigh.

A few doors from Jeni's, one of my old stand-by hangouts is Betty's, a pinup-themed kitschy tavern with RC cola on tap and funky re-interpretations of American comfort food. Above was their version of fried chicken, coated in cayenne honey, with smoked Gouda mashed potatoes and herb-buttered sweet corn.

Elevator brewery has pretty cool food as well, I had a nice salad there with blue cheese and spicy pecans, and this Ahi Tuna tartar, served layered between fried wonton skins, with wasabi mayo, shredded carrot, cucumbers, and micro greens. Spicy, but satisfying.

But there's great stuff beyond the Short North as well. A new place called Chi Thai had opened up on Hamilton road in New Albany, so I decided to check it out. Above is their Thai red curry with duck, an awesome combination of silky sauce, crisp vegetables, and melt-in-your mouth duck. This really brought back memories of long-past days spent in Germany, when my friend would take me to her favorite Asian restaurant in Uffenheim to get a break from fried pork.

Downtown has a new crop of eateries, including Barrio, where my mother and I had excellent tapas. This was a combo of three empanadas, from left: crab meat and goat cheese with corn relish and fresh guacamole, roasted red pepper and mushroom with aoli, and sausage with fresh tomatoes and a roasty, spicy sauce. Excellent food there, try their flan!

Gallery Hop is a fun event to check out, also in the Short North. The scallops with grilled asparagus, cream sauce, and toasted orzo above were found at Level, a chic two-story bar that is tragically hip. Gallery Hop is the first Saturday of every month, and it's always a good time. Mostly, it's a bar hop with a smattering of art, but most of the galleries have complimentary wine and chips set out, so you won't have to go without a drink for too long while you attempt to appear cultured.

Easton veers from typical mall fare with a few of its nicer restaurants, including Hama. My father and I had quite a spread: Bibimbap (Korean rice dish with egg, rice, veggies, and sometimes meat) served in the hot clay pot, kimchee (yum, fermented spicy cabbage!) a selection of sushi, and a really tasty "Scotty's Roll #3". We also had white miso soup with clams, salad, and an oyster shooter with raw quail egg and citrus. Happy time sushi!!

On 5th avenue, towards the airport, is this un-assuming little Colombian food truck, El Octavo Sabor, where they cook amazing, fresh tacos, empanadas, and burritos to order. It's also blindingly cheap!

Above is... a torta-type (I know it's actually something different, but I can't remember the name right now) dish, with the base made of a griddled thick dough, topped with chopped beef, sour cream, and a damn spicy sofrito-like concoction of peppers and herbs. Very delicious, but watch the spice, I dumped the whole tiny plastic cup of "salsa" on it and had to refill my water glass about 6 times. Worth the sweat!

No visit to Ohio would be complete without the all-time classic, Schmidt's, home of the Bahama Mama and famous cream puffs. Dad got the sausage buffet (those words... sound so great together...) and I had Schnitzel mit green beans and potato pancakes. Oh, and we split a cream puff, gotta have the cream puff! (and beer, please don't forget the beer!)

Some of the American students on the trip complained that they would miss all the great food in Italy and lamented that "there weren't restaurants like this" in their home cities, which I scoffed at and told them they weren't looking hard enough. Our food may be different, our landscape littered with the Mc Atrocity that is modern processed and fast foods, but we also have some damn fine eateries in abundance if you just take the time to look a little harder.

To anyone reading this, try for just 6 months to only eat at local places with less than 6 or so locations. Give the mom-and-pop stop a try. Saddle up to a taco truck and be adventurous. The worst that could happen is you find something you don't like, but you may also run into an absolute gem, and eating this way promotes small business and fosters a sense of community. Shop at a farmers' market, or pull over on the interstate next time you see a hand-written "sweet corn, lettuce, strawberries" sign, and get some great fresh produce from a local farmer.

I promise it will be worth it!

Until we meet again, ciao Cowtown! Tomorrow: Chi-Town!