Food Truck Friday - The Grilled Cheese Experience

I'm once again bridging time with my Food Truck Friday post. I first visited The Grilled Cheese Experience back in September, but finally made it back this month.







Back then, I went for the Super Deluxe ($10) - a very crispy, very buttery grilled cheese sandwich with smoked chipotle cheddar cheese, bacon, greens, sun-dried tomatoes and avocado. I found it a little on the greasy side, which I realize now may be due to the Parmesan Sourdough bread. The flavors were outstanding, though.







This time, I opted for the Bluesy Girl ($10) (despite feeling a little emasculated when ordering it). This one features smoked Jack cheese paired with smoked chicken, Gorgonzola, caramelized onions and greens, served on a bacon-crusted bread. I didn't experience the same greasiness as my previous visit, and was happy that the blue cheese didn't overwhelm all the other great ingredients inside the sandwich... nor did it turn my tongue numb, which some blue cheese does to me. (Anyone else have that issue?) As you can see from the picture, they included a free 'shot' of their tomato basil soup on the side - which proved challenging to transport back to the office without spilling while also wrangling my 55lb dog.







The next time I visit The Grilled Cheese Experience I've got to remember one of the additional add-ons they offer. I tasted a bite of a sandwich once that had it (thanks to my pal Clover Honey), and it's super decadent. What add-on could I be talking about? Mac & Cheese. Yes. Mac & Cheese ON a grilled cheese sandwich. Ridiculous? Genius? You make the call. I may opt for their $6 basic grilled cheese plus the mac & cheese ($2) to enjoy the purity of it. We'll see.

Food Truck Friday - 314PIE

For today's installment of Food Truck Friday, I tried out a food truck with a logo that caught my nerdy attention while eating at Athena's last week: 314PIE.



Featuring a selection of savory and sweet pies inspired by New Zealand and Australia, 314PIE drew me in by revealing that the numbers 314 - the first three digits of the mathematical concept Pi - spell PIE when viewed in mirror image. 314PIE puts this to good use in their logo. And when you're parking next to buildings full of analysts and software developers, I'm pretty sure that's a selling point.







I tried one of the specials - a Lamb & Potato Pie ($8). Baked & served warm in a 5 inch diameter aluminum pie pan, it had a wonderfully flaky crust that somehow avoided being grainy, despite clearly including whole wheat flour - no easy feat. Inside was an incredibly flavorful mix of lamb, potatoes, carrots and peas. It wasn't overly gooey as some pot pies can be, but was moist and so delicious.









Despite (theoretically) being on a no-sweets anti-binge right now, I decided it was important to try a couple things, so also ordered a Caramel Apple Pie ($4). This was served cool in the same sized pan, but as a single crust pie. It had much more apple flavor than caramel, but I liked the balance that kept it from being cloyingly sweet. My plan to eat a slice and then share the rest quickly disappeared, as did the pie.







Beyond the excellent pies that I've already recommended to coworkers, one of the greatest perks about 314PIE is that there's no waiting. Walk up, order your pies, and by the time you're done paying the pies are in your hands and you're lunch break can be spent eating and relaxing, not waiting in the street for your food. This may well be the genius of their business model, making throughput incredibly high versus other trucks that must prepare food a la minute. That, and their amazing pies. Did I mention the great pies?

Food Truck Friday - Athena's

This week's Food Truck adventure took me to Athena's - a Greek food truck that seems to have won the SLU lottery. You see, South Lake Union is going through some growing pains right now. Up until a few weeks ago, there were tons of parking lots, and many of them rented portions of their parking to food trucks. It was a veritable food truck heaven. But all those property owners are now attempting to cash in on the growth in the area, turning their lots into underground parking with buildings on top. I've been forced out of two parking lots now, and we lost two of the best food truck 'pods'. That means a big reduction in food truck options. Hopefully, I'll still be able to find new places to try out so I can keep this series going!



But enough about my first-world problem of not enough food truck options...





My first trip to the truck was way back in October, and I took an old friend's advice and went for the Souvlaki. I'd never had it, but it's apparently her go to item. I went for the Chicken Souvlaki Gyro. The meat was a little over-done (chewy), but the sauce helped that a lot.







I followed that visit up (8 months later) by giving the 'Greek Philly' a try. It's described as "Thin shaved beef, green peppers, grilled onions, Provalone melted to perfection, Wrapped in a warm pita.". The pita and beef were definitely there, and a little bit of cheese, but almost no peppers.




If they end up being one of the few trucks around, I may find myself there again to try some other menu items (the lamb has my attention), but I wasn't blown away by either of my selections so far.






(sorry for the delay on this post - I lost my phone the day I was supposed to write it, then got very busy)

Food Truck Friday - Jemil's Big Easy

After overhearing rave reviews from a couple coworkers (Dan & Porter), this week I made Jemil's Big Easy my food truck of the week, and circumstances allowed me to go three times and try four menu items. And I'm glad I did.







I started off with the Blackened Chicken Po' Boy sandwich for $7.99 - one of several po' boys they sell. On any given day, they have three standard ones (chicken, shrimp and catfish), plus one or more specials (I've seen oyster and crawfish). The portion is good and the flavor was great. The chicken was seasoned and cooked well, and the accompaniments (lettuce, tomato, pickle, special sauce) made for a moist, flavorful bite. Coincidentally, Dan (who recommended the place) showed up just after me, and when our orders were up, we realized we ordered the same thing. It turns out it's Porter's favorite sandwich, so I guess I chose correctly.







Next up, I returned with the intent of trying one of their rice dishes. With three to choose from I was torn. I ended up doing a little research to better understand the difference between Gumbo, Jambalaya, and Etouffee. As blogger YumSugar explains, Gumbo is a soup served with a side of rice, Jambalaya is a similar to Paella - rice cooked together with stock, veggies and meat, while Etouffee is meat/seafood served smothered in roux (gravy), often over rice. Armed with that, I opted for the Jambalaya (medium size for $6.99). It was indeed very similar to paella, though darker in color. Mixed into the rice were chunks of chicken and sausage, and the dish had a satisfying heat to it - not overwhelmingly spicy, but noticeable.







For my final visit for this post, I decided to go all out and ordered the $9.99 Muffaletta sandwich (nicknamed the 'Big Ass Sandwich' at Jemil's), plus the dessert of the day - a Bread Pudding served with Whiskey Sauce ($3.99). The sandwich was indeed huge - nearly the size of a dinner plate. It contains cured meats and an olive 'salad' that reminds me of tapenade. They have the sandwiches pre-built, but then cook each one to order on the flat-top. The result is a warm, somewhat greasy sandwich with TONS of flavor. And it's way more than any sane person would eat in one sitting. This is easily a 2 person sandwich, at least. I ended up getting through about half of it, then stashing the rest for tomorrow.

Of course, I ate dessert first, knowing the sandwich would fill me up. The bread pudding wasn't warm, but was still delicious. It's incredibly dense and moist, swimming in a sweet whiskey sauce. It's also a non-ridiculous portion... or maybe it just seemed small compared to the sandwich.







After months of not being inspired to try Jemil's, I'm really glad Dan & Porter were talking it up. Everything I tried was full of flavor, and the service was quick and incredibly friendly. I'll definitely be back to try more of the menu.

Food Truck Friday - Box Nature Sushi

For this week's Food Truck adventure, Hilo and I wandered around a bit before finding Box Nature Sushi parked across from the Firestone in South Lake Union. In addition to their mobility, they also differentiate themselves from other Seattle sushi restaurants by offering multi-grain rice in their sushi, as well as using only sustainably caught fish.



I went for the signature sushi roll - the BN's Spicy - with multi-grain rice, for $4.50. It combined salmon and tuna, plus cucumber and greens, and claimed it had a spicy sauce. The rice added a little nuttiness to the dish, and perhaps more importantly made me feel like I'm making a good choice. The fish was super fresh tasting, and the greens were a nice addition. Unfortunately, the promise of spiciness wasn't delivered... even after I added a bunch of wasabi. I do like things on the spicier end of the spectrum, but didn't get any heat whatsoever from the roll. The wasabi was also oddly bland. (I didn't give their special blend of lower salt soy sauce a try.)



Thinking I couldn't possibly be satisfied with just $4.50 of food, I also ordered the 'Greens' salad ($6). The menu says it's a mix of kale, local greens, asparagus, cilantro, mango, tomato and edamame, but I don't recall (nor can I find in my pictures) any asparagus or edamame, nor was their much dressing. After the first few bites, I was left with a pile of dry greens. The mango gave it a bright, sweetness, but otherwise it fell short.



I would go back for the sushi, especially at that price point, but won't repeat the mistake of paying $6 for a dry salad lacking two key ingredients.

Food Truck Friday - Xplosive

This is the first of what I hope to be a series of weekly posts featuring Seattle-area food trucks. I'm kicking things off with the food truck I waited a long time for: one that features bánh mi.

Bánh Mi are a Vietnamese sandwich served on a baguette, usually with a mayo, a mix of carrots, daikon (a radish), cucumber, jalapeno and cilantro, plus a protein like tofu, pork, or chicken.

4 years ago, I went on a bánh mi binge for my Frugal Fridays series, but was already fully in love with these sandwiches. When my work had offices in the International District, these were the go-to lunch item for a LOT of people, given they're a) ready to go b) cheap and c) delicious. One of the chief complaints I heard when we moved to South Lake Union was that lunch options were too expensive (aka there were no bánh mi for $2.50).

I was elated when Xplosive Mobile Food Truck showed up on the Seattle food scene, with regular visits to Boren & Harrison. They have their own unique take on the bánh mi - combining Filipino flavors with the Vietnamese format. They also feature Filipino/Vietnamese fusion tacos and bún (vermicelli bowls).



On my first visit to Xplosive, I opted for the full-sized Chicken Adobo Bánh Mi, which I was shocked to discover was as long as my forearm, yet was only 6 bucks. The adobo flavor was there, but it still tasted solidly like a bánh mi, so was wonderfully satisfying after so long without one. It was more than enough for lunch, which made me wonder about another menu item: the "grenades".



The grenades are bánh mi sliders, which go for just $3 a piece, including tax... very close to the old I.D. standard bánh mi pricing. Given how substantial the full size is, my hope was the grenade would be the perfect lunch portion. Today, I went for the Lemongrass Tofu Grenade, which measured in at five inches - not quite on the same scale as similarly priced bánh mi at places like Saigon Bistro. The flavors were good, and there was a nice balance between the heat of the jalapeno and the other flavors. I may end up a little hungry later, but maybe that just means I should've ordered one of their dessert items. My only substantial complaint would be the wait. My first visit seemed extraordinarily long, given the line of people waiting already and my own wait. Today, I got there right when they opened (before they remembered to turn down the music so they could hear my order), but there was still a bit of a wait. I'm so accustomed to bánh mi being a grab and go item (rather than any component being cooked to order), that even 5 minutes seems like a long time to wait. Maybe I just need to adjust my expectations.

Cal's American Kitchen Grand Opening

It being date night, Dan came over to South Lake Union to hang out until I got off work.  Our original plan was take Hilo to Norm's in Fremont - a well known dog-friendly bar.  While walking around the neighborhood, however, Dan stumbled on the Grand Opening of Cal's American Kitchen - and texted me to meet him there.

I'm officially off sugar and booze for the month (again), so didn't get to indulge in any of the fun sounding cocktails on their menu (which I'll be back for next month).  Instead, I got an iced tea.  It came in a frosty metal cup - just like the ones I used to use to make milk shakes at Baskin-Robbins.  (Yes, I was a soda jerk for a year in college.)  I don't know if it was form or function, but it seemed to keep the drink colder.



 The full restaurant wasn't yet open, but the Happy Hour menu was available and had some yummy sounding items.  Dan & I went for a sampling of four of their (very reasonably priced) happy hour offerings.



First to the table were my favorite of everything we tried:  Cheese Puffs.  I had no idea what to expect, but was completely delighted when a plate of savory profiteroles showed up on a plate next to a beer cheese fondue sauce.  The profiteroles (cream puffs minus the cream) were perfect for dipping after being torn in half, creating a little spoon.  I had a hard time not eating the whole plate myself.



Next to arrive was the simply named 'Cauliflower' - which was just that, baked with cheese (according to our attentive, friendly server, the same beer cheese sauce).  The cauliflower was cooked really nicely - not raw but not mushy.  Just right.  And enough of a nod toward a vegetable so we wouldn't feel guilty.




Their take on steak tartare, "American Tartare" showed up next, paired with crisp potato chips.  The beef seemed shaved, not chopped, as (I'm told) tartare should be, and was mixed with capers and other deliciousness.



Last but definitely not least were the "Tots in the Style of Tater".  Perfectly crispy and golden brown, with a bbq spice mix on them, and a smokey dipping sauce on the side.  The sauce was yummy, but I couldn't help but dip my tots in the beer cheese sauce.



Although our menu choices were a bit heavy (potatoes always make me feel so full!), we enjoyed them thoroughly and can't wait to try the full menu in the restaurant.  The atmosphere was nice (similar to Brave Horse, a little more country club than club house, but still a contemporary palette of browns, blacks and metals), the staff were great, the food was excellent, and the prices ($3-5 per happy hour item) were extremely competitive.  The place was packed by the time we left, which was no surprise.  Now Dan's going to have another choice of a place to wait for me while I finish up work (he gets off work much earlier than I do, since he gets up at 4:30am these days).

Finding Foragables in Peculiar Places

My interest in foragable foods has been increasing lately, and each time I learn of a new plant that is edible, I begin seeing it everywhere. It started two years back when I learned about Pineapple Weed from reading the blog Fat of the Land. Then a trip to the farmers market revealed that Japanese Knotweed is edible, and particularly good when it first sprouts - looking and tasting a bit like a hybrid of asparagus and rhubarb. Each time, I start seeing the plant at every turn, and often in the oddest places. Cracks in the sidewalk seem to be a particularly good environment for many Seattle edibles - including both the aforementioned plants, plus dandelion and plantain.

With three extra mouths to feed, learning which of the plants growing in and around our yard can be consumed means free food for the chickens (and us), so I decided this year I'd make a more concerted effort. I bought a copy of the paperback Fat of the Land: Adventures of a 21st Century Forager (by the same author, Langdon Cook, as the blog), and a 1970's classic, Northwest Foraging, by Doug Benoliel.

Neither includes photos, but by cross referencing the species mentioned with good ol' Google, I'm beginning to build on my knowledge of foragables in the area and their culinary uses, and am again seeing them at every turn.

Case in point: the Morel Mushrooms I discovered growing in the garden beds at my brand new office building. I walked by them a couple times wondering if they could possibly be what I thought they were, but disbelieving that such a coveted edible, which pulls in $50 per pound at Whole Foods down the street, could possible be growing in a garden bed. After consulting with my friends Jason and Martha, dozens of web sites and even more photos, I confirmed they were in fact morels - lots of them - free for the picking. So I grabbed a few on the way home today.

Even though I was confident in my identification (there really aren't any mushrooms that are similar to a morel, and the closest are obviously different in key ways, such as not being hollow like a morel), I took advice I heard and read many places to cook it well (in butter), and eat only a small piece (a tablespoon or less) at first. Some people have bad reactions to even edible mushrooms, so a test is best.

The bite was meaty, buttery (no surprise there) and very satisfying. We'll eat some of the others, and save a couple to try to propagate a batch in our own yard. I hear they like apple trees, so maybe the overgrown behemoth that offers only an apple or two each year can finally help produce something tasty.

Lunch w/ Leah @ Row House Cafe

Lunch today was courtesy of my friend Leah - one of the first people I met when I joined this little internet book company back in February 1999. Leah has a unique role these days, representing our entire software development community to ensure they have the resources they need to succeed. That includes creating a mentorship program, establishing both a distributed library (where people post the books they have at their desk and other folks can check them out) as well as a central library, and organizing speakers and conferences. Thanks to using The Row House Cafe as the caterer for one of those events, she landed a $25 gift certificate - and today we made good use of it.



The Row House menu is a collection of soups, salads, pasta dishes and grilled sandwiches. One might assume they're panninis, but they're more akin to classic grilled cheese - buttered bread cooked to golden perfection on a flat top, with melty gooey cheese (and other delights) inside.



I checked out the specials menu, and was immediately won over by the Prosciutto and Pimento Cheese Spread sandwich. I figured a little more reminiscing over pimento spread was in order.



I also ordered a cup of the soup. I ordered the gruyere & mushroom soup (one of the specials), but somehow ended up with the beef and cabbage soup. Not quite what I was hoping for, but not bad - and I wasn't in the mood to make a fuss. The folks working were so friendly, and given that we arrived right before the line-out-the-door lunch rush, a little soup mix-up wasn't worth bothering anyone about. And when you're enjoying one of the first sunny days in Seattle, hanging out with a friend at a cute little restaurant, why spoil it with complaints about soup?

Beba's Fix in SLU

After another run along Lake Union today in the beautiful (and all too transient) Seattl esunshine, I made my way over to Yale Avenue - home of REI. But it wasn't about carabiners and camping gear for me today... I was seeking out Beba's Deli.



The move of my office to SLU has opened up a lot of food options, but there are going to be a couple places back at Columbia Tower that I'll miss. One of those was Beba's & Amigos - a little restaurant at the Municipal Tower with cheap, fresh Mexican fare and deli sandwiches. I was so happy to discover another outpost of Beba's in the SLU area - this one serving an even wider range of cuisines, from Mexican to Italian to Indian... and even some fusion offerings, like the Texas Tijuana Taco Penne pasta.

I didn't get quite that adventurous, opting for the carne asada quesadilla - a favorite at the downtown Beba's. It was just what I expected and just what I wanted, and I'm very glad my Beba's fix is only a few blocks away.