The 8525 or the HTC Hermes TyTN.
It supports Microsoft DirectPush so it works like a always-on Outlook Web Client. Very useful. Love the keyboard.
The only thing I don't like about it is the small amount of memory that comes with it and the problems with syncing to desktop Outlook clients in cached Exchange mode. Using Google Maps on it though is a dream come true.
Japanese Breakfast at the Crowne Plaza in Seattle. Wish I could start off my day like this all the time. The miso soup was horribly bland but I drank it all anyways.
Classroom Jeopardy! is so cool...wish I had this as a kid.
This see-saw is kinda weird. Seeing grown men use it is even weirder.
What the heck to pasmina shawls have to do with education?
Jungle gym innovation reached new lows with spinning things that serve no purpose. I can just imagine a school bully spinning them around quickly to hit other people.
The exhibitor kept trying to get me to try this jungle gym out.
It's cool design but I'm not sure if it's really functional.
'Arry Potta
Look for this set at a Victoria's Secret near you.
Kingfish Grill was a very surprising restaurant. From the online menu, I wasn't too impressed but the food was actually very well done.
Steelhead Diner
95 Pine St
Seattle, WA 98101
Phone: (206) 625-0129
It's got an excellent location very close to Pike Place Market.
Natural Vodka Glow
Great table setting...
The flowers were a nice touch.
We had one of these back home to scare away the birds eating our plums/peaches.
Spread for our bread...
Love those baskets!
"Chou Croute" is merely French for sauerkraut.
I got a "Green Butted Skunk"...Sailor Jerry Rum, Midori, and the fresh juices of pineapples, lemons, and limes. Julie is the one holding it inside the plant to give it a more tropical environment.
ALDER SMOKED SALMON RILLETTE
With Shaved Fennel Salad and Sorrel Emulsion
Drool Factor: 4/5
ARMANDINO'S AIR CURED BEEF BRESAOLA
With Local Apples, Roasted Hazelnuts and California Olive Oil
Drool Factor: 1/5
FLASH FRIED BEECHERS CHEESE CURDS
With Hot Sweet Mustard Vinaigrette
Drool Factor: 2/5
A SLICE OF CAVIAR PIE
With Traditional Garniture
Drool Factor: 5/5
I love caviar...
JUMBO LUMP DUNGENESS CRABCAKE
With Crispy Beets and Sauce Louis
Drool Factor: 5/5
So it's called a Sauce Louis!!! Finally I get a name for one of my favorite sauces. Makes sense because it's used in a Shrimp/Crab Louis. Huzzah!
CRISPY CHICKEN SPRING ROLLS
With Green Papaya Salad & Whirred Ginger Vinaigrette
Drool Factor: 3/5
Better if it was shrimp but they were tasty too...the wrap was very authentic. Veggies were fresh though which usually is not the case.
BARRON POINT MANILLA CLAMS
With Apple Smoked Bacon, Yukon Gold Potato
and Creamy Walla Walla Onion Broth
Drool Factor: 5/5
SOOOOO good...the onion broth held the clam liquor perfectly.
STEELHEAD DINER HOUSE SALAD
Baby Iceberg Head Lettuce with Crispy Bacon, Avocadoes, Crumbled
Bleu Cheese and Lorenzo Dressing
Drool Factor: 3/5
I gotta admit...a salad like that ain't bad.
Asparagus?
Drool Factor: 3/5
I think there were bits of bacon in it.
WALLA WALLA CHICKEN
With Caramelized Mushrooms, Crispy Bacon and Red Wine Demi
Drool Factor: 3/5
SPICE RUBBED ALASKAN KING SALMON
With Wilted Chard and Sherry Reduction
Drool Factor: 4/5
KASU MARINATED BLACK COD
With Baby Bok Choy and Kabocha Squash
Drool Factor: 6/5
This is what I got...and boy was this tasty. The marinade was just right...sometimes you get this and it's too salty. Not here. Apparently this dish is somewhat popular in Seattle, read here. The fish really melts in your mouth even more than sea bass would.
That day's special...likes like some white fish...snapper maybe?
SMOTHERED COLLARD GREENS...as you can see there was a Southern bias to dish choices.
Drool Factor: 3/5
POUTINE
Chips & Gravy with Melted Cheese Curds
Drool Factor: 3/5
As much as I like fries...I gotta draw the line with this heart-attack special...Poutine is extremely popular in Canada where it originated.
Hearty dinner
BUTTERMILK FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH
With Tangy Cole Slaw Dressing
Drool Factor: 2/5
Supposedly it wasn't that great. I thought it didn't look that good from the menu...guess I was right.
GRILLED DRY AGED WASHINGTON BEEF N.Y. STRIP
With Grain Mustard Sauce & Crispy Onion Salad
Drool Factor: 4/5
Crispy Onion = Fried Onion
CRISPY HOMINY CAKES
With Red-Eye Gravy
Drool Factor: 3/5
Read up on Red-Eye Gravy...I never imagined that coffee could be an ingredient of a gravy.
I can almost see Emily's drool over the monitor...
APPLE PAN DOWDY
With Cinnamon Ice Cream
BLACK VELVET CAKE
Quadruple Layer Chocolate Cake
DILETTANTE CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE
With Bourbon Cream
CARAMEL CREME BRULEE
"Ok kids, what number comes before 9?" Teaching math, the Solitaire Method.
The convention center is just uptown from Pike Place Market. So close yet so far away.
No, it's not just a tent, it's a portable stellarium! A special projector is setup in the middle which is used to project stars onto the inside surface of the tent. This is the smaller model, they have ones that are several times bigger.
This is one of Rem Koolhaas's creations, Seattle Public Library. I'm not a huge fan of the exterior but I hear that the interior has a lot of cool things including a yellow escalator. I'll have to check it out next time I'm in town.
The convention center was actually built on top of the I-5 freeway. It must have been quite a project. The I-5, the highway that goes from the Mexican border to the Canadian border (1381.29 miles long) is the road under all the other ones. The squat building in the middle of the top part of the picture is the convention center.
Prettiest freeway overpass I've ever seen.
I didn't eat at Purple but I did stop to socialize with co-workers. This is their wine tower. From what I could tell, it was a very hip crowd.
Purple Cafe & Wine Bar
1225 4th Ave
Seattle, 98101
(206) 829-2281
Margaret who's now in Washington came out and met up with me for good eats. She's probably an even bigger foodie than I am so it was sad to hear that she hasn't been able to bake any of her wonderful madellines in a long time.
Restaurant Zoe
2137 2nd Ave
Seattle, WA
(206) 256-2060
Roulade of veal sweetbreads & chicken mousse - Sunnyside duck egg, white asparagus, frisee, roasted lemon vinaigrette.
This appetizer just screams foodie. Sweetbreads and duck egg??? Sweetbreads are great tasting but kinda weird once you know what it is. It's not something I'd get often but it's an experience akin to your first veal...here's the 411.
Fresh ricotta gnudi - tomato marmalade, tarragon, artichoke cream sauce. Yelpers raved about this gnudi (Italian for nude) so this was a must try.
Needless to say, the yelpers had a point and it was "D-LISH!!!". They just melt in your mouth just right. It's like ravioli filling without the pasta. AWESOME. Who needs the ravioli anyways? Everyone's looking for the filling.
They have seasonal soups so I can't be sure which this was...looks like a Creme Au Vegetable of the Day. Those pine nuts were good though.
Yelpers/Citysearchers also raved about the Prime Beef Coulet...I noticed that it's not on their menus anymore so maybe its a season thing. For the life of me, I still can't figure out what "coulet" means. Best I can figure out is that the coulet is the cheese-type thing that the beef was sitting on. There's a famous Coulet family in France which makes Roquefort cheese in one of those caves. This was recommended to be eaten medium rare. Mouth watering I tell you.
Herb crusted pork - mustard greens, polenta, currants, chioggia beets.
Lavender panna cotta - rhubarb compote, strawberry sorbet, fillo. Tasty and not overwhelmingly sweet...and oh yeah the Sage Margarita's (Sauza Hornitos, Countreau, Fresh Sage, and Lime) were a treat (also recommended)! Unfortunately, I was an idiot and didn't get a picture of Margaret but then again, if I did it'd probably be Margaret hiding behind the tablecloth so...:-P
This was the clam chowder at Etta's...the second of the Tom Douglas restaurants that I went to. Best I can figure, this was an E.
Etta's Seafood
2020 Western Ave
Seattle, WA 98121
(206) 443-6000
Meg got a fried oyster "salad".
Tom’s fresh dungeness crab cakes, green cocktail sauce, french fries. The crab cakes were ok. Nothing to write home about. Blog maybe.
Pics from the Berkeley GOLD (Graduates From the Last Decade) event. Emily and I helped out at the event by signing people in and making fun of people's names. Well not really, we wouldn't do anything like that.
Good turnout means lots of sweaty hands!
Ted asks,"Can I get your number and address? It's for a research project I'm working on."
Emily tires to explain my Special Theory of General Shopping Relativity which postulates that Grand Opening sales and Going Out of Business sales actually have no bearing in "now" time.
I've tried moving away from the usual "Spaghetti and Meatballs" at Macaroni Grill with varying degrees of success. This soup was good. Kind of a special though since it's not actually in the menu but you have to actually ask for it. Definitely hearty and I remember wishing there was more especially with a fellow "soup-monster" like Emily in tow. My mom, Emily, and I are all into soups.
My "Special Burned Flavor" pork chops. Comes with a side of carbon in case you can't get enough of it. How thoughtful! At least, they cut the broccoli into pieces.
The lobster ravioli was very good. The only thing to complain about is that there are too few pieces. They should offer it with like 30 raviolis. Yes, that sounds reasonable.
Chris appraises Lori's artwork
I moved to a new place in Mountain View! Used movers this time which was great! I really should have used them in the past but I was a cheapskate. Took 3 guys about 4 hrs to move all my stuff which is pretty freakin incredible. I still ended up having to take 2 more trips back to the Fremont apartment but this whole process was so much easier than before. The movers couldn't believe that I owned all that stuff though.
My first entree that I got after moving in. It's a Pakistani Kabob place near the apartment. The beef sausage thing was pretty good...interesting spices...but the rice/chicken were pretty bland. Also, it was really expensive for what we got. I couldn't believe that a chicken/beef kabob would cost $15. Oh AND it took forever. They were training the kabob turning chef that night. Not kidding. There was nobody else having dinner the night that I went for takeout which makes sense...I don't care about those Yelp reviews. Usually if that's the case and they still expect me to wait awhile for kabobs, it would be polite to offer me a glass of water. Nada. Good thing I got to go...I'm glad I wouldn't have to agonize over the tip amount since I can't believe service there can be that great.
Persian Afghan Kabob
604 S. Mary Ave.
Sunnyvale, CA
(408) 733-5262
Chris and Lori came over to visit and we went to the Japanese noodle place Maruichi on Castro St. for dinner. I did at right at pool and was able to regain some honor lost last time I played Risk by winning . My mission card was to gain 20 territories which I did although there were quite a few times where it looked like I might have been defeated. For some reason, I can't find images of Maruichi although I almost distinctly remember taking pictures using the Rebel there..weird.
The final board...I'm red. Very different board than the last time when I got pigeonholed onto Japan with just 1 guy. Denying people monopolies are really key to winning the game.
There's this body of water (not exactly a pond and not exactly a lake) in my apartment complex with a lot of ducks and a few geese. The ducks had a bunch of young ones which are the cutest thing to see.
This one got bit and shaken around by that duck. Guess this one was misbehaving. Unfortunately, I didn't get the focus exactly right to get the baby duck's expression.
Awe!!!
So...
...fricken...
...cute!
"Are we there yet?"
Duck Calisthenics
Aleena says,"Laugh later Mama Lana, clean up my poop now!"
This is what she looked like most of the time we were there. Definitely not ready for primetime.
"I may be cute but everytime you point that big black scary thing at me, I'm going to freak!"
So I might have slightly overdone it with the theme. However, I couldn't help myself. It started off with just getting a new shower curtain...isn't this how it usually happens? I even went back to Target to pick up the monkey trashcan (not pictured...it's a big monkey head). Even the shower hooks are little monkeys. What was amusing was how when I went back for the trashcan, I saw two women going bananas over a monkey doormat. I walked by with a big monkey head and they were like,"OMG!!! They have a monkey head!!!" right before they rushed into the aisle I had just left. No dice ladies! I had the last one. :-)
I stayed at the Doubletree Hotel near Boston's Chinatown so I figured it'd be a great opportunity to check it out. It's not very large but there are a TON of late night places that open until the wee hours of the morning. The Chinatown is actually a mix of Vietnamese, HK, Korean, Taiwanese, Chinese, Japanese places. So it was really pan-Asian.
I went to Ginza since it had been awhile since I'd had any sushi. That and the bright sign...like a moth to the flame...
Ginza Japanese Restaurant
16 Hudson St
Boston, MA
(617) 338-2261
The basketball game was on so a bowl of Edamame was in order. The shishamo was ok...slightly burnt. Some people like it that way though.
A small sashimi boat...definitely hit the spot though. The small rolls were surprisingly good...I think that they use quail egg whites in there.
The DoubleTree put me further from the convention center than usual. Nice hotel though. It's got a distinctive Asian theme which fit the Chinatown surroundings. I wonder if DoubleTree designed it that way or did it just buy a hotel with an Asian theme.
See what I mean? In any case, I like the pillow that says "Sweet Dreams" on it...I wonder if there's a correlating pillow with "Horrible Nightmares" stitched on it.
The dresser handles
Legal Seafood has a branch within Prudential Center which makes it super accessible for us convention people. This is the Portuguese Fisherman's Stew. I'm in the wrong profession if this is the kind of typical food that Portuguese Fisherman get to eat. The sausage wasn't too salty and the soup was to die for. Excellent lunch pick.
Legal Seafood - The Prudential Center
800 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02199
Phone: (617) 266 6800
Someone on the crew had a sense of humor.
Yeah, we went to Legal Seafood twice in one day. This time was for dinner though. I pretty much had clam chowder at every restaurant we went to. Kinda like par for the course.
Legal Seafood - Copley Place
100 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02116
Phone: (617) 266-7775
Fax: (617) 266-6304
Bucket o' Steamers...steamers are basically soft-shell clams that live in the tidal mudflats. It's difficult to get ALL of the silt/sand out but once you do...hmmm...very tasty. Basically mussel-sized clams.
Baked Boston Scrod...I had to have some scrod on this trip...you can only get it in New England and primarily in Massachusetts. Scrod isn't a species though...it's just a small cod. it's a flaky whitefish but there's an interesting flavor that's different from other fish. In any case, I had it.
Mornings were made better if only because I could get Lobster Bisque/Nantucket Chowder for breakfast. Hmm mmm....
Last time, I totally missed out on clam chowder at Tucker Fisheries. I recommended it to everyone and then went and got something else. I wasn't about to make the same mistake again. It's VERY good...sweet/creamy and good sized chunks of clams. I can see why their clam chowder won so many awards...another Hall of Fame member is the Chart House which will have to be a new place to try out the next time I'm in Boston.
Turner Fisheries of Boston
10 Huntington Ave
Boston, MA 02116
(617) 424-7425
Our group likes calamari...it's like a default appetizer. Turner's adds a little sauce (Garlic Aioli) and a little salt...just enough to give it a really nice flavor.
Baby Arugula Salad - Candied Pecans, Dried Cranberries & Crumled Goat Cheese, Tossed in a Fig Vinaigrette
Fried Oysters - Served over Beet Relish and Cilantro Hollandaise...I'm not that into Hollandaise but this sucker was tasty!!!
Seafood Pasta - Cavatappi Pasta Tossed with Shrimp, Scallops & Oven Dried Tomatoes in a Fennel Dill Cream Sauce
Prime Dry Aged Beef Strip Loin - Broiled and Topped with Herb Butter, Country Fries and Watercress
Cedar Plank Salmon - Tequila and Citrus Marinated Salmon topped with Jicama Tomato Relish
Pan Seared Haddock - Sautèed Arugula, Lobster Vanilla Sauce, Jumbo Lump Crabmeat & Yam Hash
Traditional Boston Baked Scrod - Lemon Chive Butter Sauce
I got my favorite entree at Turner's again...the Bamboo Steamer Basket...Lobster, Scallops, Shrimp, Tuna, Swordfish, Salmon, Mussels...and the sauces!!! *drool* It's horribly expensive but so worth it.
Probably my most favorite French place next to Left Bank is this place...Petit Robert Bistro. There are 2 locations (I've been to both now) and they've just got the most wonderful entrees and ambience. You don't have to pay for the ambience either since the prices are very reasonable (a real authentic bistro). This time, we went to the one on Columbus.
Petit Robert Bistro
480 Columbus Avenue
Boston MA 02118
617 867 0600
Meg almost always gets this so I gave it a shot...not bad. I ended up getting this a couple more times.
Moules Marinières...can you ever go wrong with mussels???
Creamy Lobster Bisque...I was definitely getting my daily serving of dairy products on this trip...
Duck Confit and Grilled Pork Sausage with Braised Cabbage...I tried some of Meg's confit...very tasty!
Braised Lamb Shank and Mergez Sausage...mouth-watering good. Off-the-bone lamb...excellent herbs in the sauce...the spicy Mergez sausage...I really cleaned off the plate.
