The Grapefruit Experiment - Lemon & Black Pepper

This will be my last posting with chicken – I will continue the experiment, but I think I will move on to salmon next.  I’m open to other ideas too if anyone wants to make some suggestions.

Today was chicken thighs marinated in grapefruit and lemon juices (about equal parts) and a healthy dose of black pepper.   I baked it again at 500 for 15 minutes, then 375 for 30 minutes.  When I reduced the marinade to make a sauce, it emanated a sweet smell of citrus and pepper.  I figured this would taste pretty good. 

When I took it out of the oven, the aroma was enticing, and the skin dark brown.  I plated it up and took my first bite…it was sweet, peppery, and tart.  The sauce was a nice accompaniment, adding a little extra.  This is a combo I will definitely try again.

Next week I will try to start with salmon and see what results I get using grapefruit as a marinade.

The Grapefruit Experiment - Lavender

I am back to my experimenting with grapefruit.  This time the marinade was grapefruit juice with culinary grade lavender.  It smelled good when I took the chicken thighs out of the marinade, but I was still skeptical, given that not all my experiments have yielded great results.  Again, I started baking the chicken at 500 degrees for 15 minutes, then lowered this time to 375 for 30 minutes.  The skin turned out crispier this time.

I reduced the marinade while it the chicken was baking, straining out the lavender buds for the last 10 minutes of reduction.  The result was a very fragrant sauce.  When I took the chicken out of the oven, it too had a wonderful aroma.

The true test was the eating.  I plated it up with corn, pouring a little sauce over it.  When I took my first bite, I was surprised…it worked!  The combination turned out to be an excellent pairing.  The lavender infused very nicely with the grapefruit, without overpowering it.  It was very subtle.  I will definitely try this pairing again, perhaps with some other citrus in a marinade again. 

I can definitely recommend using the lavender with grapefruit, especially if you want a delicate, subtle flavor.

San Francisco - The Final Day

I got home late last night, so I didn’t have the energy to write up my day and post.  I was just too exhausted.  So now here’s my rundown of my last day in San Francisco.

I got home around 7ish, but would have preferred to pull the covers back over my head and sleep the rest of the morning – but it was just getting too noisy outside, so I got myself together.  I thought I might find a local place to try, or even a coffee house, but oddly, nothing that looked appealing was open!  I found that rather odd.  Apparently they don’t open until 8 or later for the morning rush.  Strange.  My only open option was Starbucks, which I am not a fan of at all, but I was desperate for coffee and maybe a roll or croissant.  I settled on a Latte Mocha and a Chocolate Croissant.  It was okay, but it’s Starbucks, so it’s just run of the mill.

My friend Alan, whom I had dinner with the night before, had recommended going to the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park.  I kept thinking to myself that it’s Monday…maybe they won’t be open.  And I was right.  But it did me some good to get out and move around.  I took the Muni “N” line close to the park and walked.  It was actually a decent day weather-wise, with the sun peeking through the clouds periodically.

I wandered through the Japanese Tea Garden (it was free to the public the hour I arrived) and enjoyed the serene setting.  I have always enjoyed Japanese and Chinese gardens, as they are specifically designed to be contemplative and relaxing, and visually appealing.  The one in the park is one of the nicer ones I’ve been too – only Butchard Gardens on Vancouver Island would be comparable, at least in what I’ve been exposed to. 

There are lots of trails and paths around the park, so I headed west toward the beach area and found a lake the surrounds a hill with a trail leading to the top.  I decided I could use the exercise, so I followed the trail around the base, leading to the path that wound around the top.  The lake pretty much encompasses this hill, and you can get some real pretty views.  Unfortunately, my camera’s battery started to run out of juice, so I was left to take more with my phone.

After spending a few hours in the park, I headed back towards downtown on Muni.  I wanted to stop off at the Castro to do a little shopping, but the N line doesn’t go there – you have to go back towards downtown and switch lines and backtrack.  Not the end of the world, but not entirely convenient.  I did finally make it there around noontime and did some shopping and picked up some fun t-shirts at In*Jean*Ious- they have some real hysterical ones…and one that was out of stock that I may have my Ex pick up for me later.

I headed back to the hotel to think about lunch.  I dropped off my stuff and then walked around the neighborhood.  I hadn’t been down to the financial district, so I figured there might be some good places to eat around there.  It was getting to be late lunchtime, so I knew places wouldn’t be as crowded.  I finally settled on a Thai restaurant a few blocks from the hotel:  Bangkok Best.  They offered some lunch specials that sounded inviting, and there as a decent crowd so I knew the food must be at least somewhat appealing. 

I ordered a bowl of the Tom Kha soup (chicken, mushrooms, carrots, green onion, ginger, lime and coconut milk with spices).  It was better than the soup at my local Thai restaurant.  For my entrée, I had the Massaman – a curry with carrots, potatoes, coconut milk, peanuts and beef.  It was a very hearty meal, and the portions for lunch were generous.  And you know it’s authentic when the entire staff is Thai!  I had a good meal.

After lunch I went back to the hotel and headed up to the rooftop lounge, Grandview, to have a drink and enjoy the afternoon view.  I also decided to go ahead and order dessert.  They had a Fleur de Sel Caramel Crème Brulee.  It was hard to pass up, so I ordered it, along with a glass of their Sangria.  It was nice to sit, relax and enjoy the view for a while before I had to head to the airport.  I also snapped some nice pictures of the north part of the bay looking out towards Alcatraz and the Bridge.

Sadly, I had to catch BART back to the airport to catch my flight.  I thought I needed to be there for a 6:10pm flight, but I had it wrong, my flight wasn’t until 6:55.  So I just hung out and relaxed and watch the planes take off and land.  Once I boarded my flight, it was just a short trip back down to L.A.  Quite literally, I had to gulp down my cocktail and my food on the flight because as soon as I got it, they announced the decent into L.A.  I forget that the LAX-SFO route is less than an hour (but it often is priced higher than LAX-JFK!  Go figure!).  If you haven’t flown Virgin America, I can recommend them.  They, along with Alaska, are my preferred carriers now – they actually offer value, and customer service! 

So today it’s back to the grind.  I got to the office today and realized…I really rather would have stayed in San Francisco!  *sigh*

San Francisco - Day 2 (No Rain!)

Today started out very, very lazy.  I woke up around 8, lounged around for a while, and was going to get dressed and go out and get some breakfast, but laziness overtook and I just ordered lox and bagels from room service.  It wasn’t ridiculously priced, and it was definitely convenient.  If you’ve never ordered room service….do it once (well, at a relatively nice hotel at least).  It’s not exactly cheap, but it is nice to eat some decent food brought to you and you can eat in your underwear in bed. 

I had tentatively made plans in the afternoon to meet up with my ex, Steve, and have lunch.  I also traded lunch for a massage since he’s a certified massage therapist.  My friend Ed had gone to him several years ago and said he did good work, so I decided to avail myself of the opportunity.  We settled on my coming over to his place around noon.  He lives in the Castro, so I hopped on the Muni underground (it’s work picking up a $20 transit card if you are spending more than a day or two in the city, or plan to travel around). 

I showed up at the appointed time and Steve did give me on the better massages I’ve had.  Ed was right, he does have good skills and concentrated on my back which is always in knots.  I kind of felt like I was cheating on my regular therapist!  After turning into jelly, we headed out to lunch.  There was a new BBQ place in the Castro, so we wound up there to try it out.  Dancing Pig (www.thedancingpigsf.com), like many of the storefront on the street, was long and narrow.  We got there close to 2pm, so the lunch rush had died down.

We decided to order two entrees with sides and share.  We wound up ordering half a slab of the pork ribs and half a chicken, with our sides as corn bread, baked beans, mac & cheese, and fries.  They serve them up on tin baking sheets with the sides in little tin pans.  It’s very rustic.  The ribs and chicken were very delicious and the BBQ sauce and rub added good flavor – but our one complaint (which was later backed up by comparison with another friend who’s dined there) was that it was served rather lukewarm.  I generally prefer my BBQ served HOT, but this was not the case.  The flavor could almost make up for the lack of temperature, but not quite.  I’d recommend that they serve it up steaming!

The sides varied:  the beans were flavorful, but also a little on the lukewarm side; the mac & cheese were near bland but were saved by the added bacon; the corn bread was warm and good; and the fries were the star of the sides – crisp, HOT and well salted.

I’m not entirely thrilled with Dancing Pig.  They do need to make some changes, i.e., heat up the food and not serve it tepid!  The flavors are there and are good, so it’s disappointing they aren’t serving it appropriately.

I met up with my friend Ed for a few hours at a beer bust at the Pilsner Inn on Church and Market.  I almost missed it since the signing isn’t terribly clear.  But it was nice to meet up with Ed and meet some of his friends.  Really nice guys.  It was a nice break in the afternoon, and the weather had also cleared up today so I had a few rays on sunshine.

I had to hotfoot it back to the hotel as I was meeting another old friend from my San Diego days, Alan, for drinks and dinner.  I texted him when I got off Muni as he lived close to my hotel.  We agreed to head up to the rooftop restaurant and lounge at the Hyatt since it does have excellent views looking north out over the bay.  It really was stunning.

We got caught up and I asked him to recommend where to go for dinner, and he gave me a few options. We settled on Café de la Presse (www.cafedelapress.com), which was a few blocks over from the hotel.  It’s a quaint little French café that has lots of foreign magazines and newspapers available – they all line the back wall.  The server dropped of an amuse bouche which we both thought was a tiny square of croquet monsieur.  It was a nice little snack.  I ordered the onion soup to start – hard to pass up at a French café.  It was definitely very onion-y and salty (which it is supposed to be).  It also was a nice comfort food after a chilly weekend. 

For my entrée, I had to have the Confit de Canard Maison (that would be a confit style duck breast).  The duck was very moist and tender – falling apart as I attacked it with my fork.  They crisped up the skin very nicely.  I do love duck, so it was nice to have this treat.  It was sat atop a bed of fried potatoes and mushrooms.  I should have read the menu more carefully as I don’t like mushrooms, but they were big enough to pick out and eat around.  The duck also paired well with the wine I had ordered – a French red blend.

Overall, the meal was excellent, as was the company of my friend Alan.  Oh, and he had ordered a burger – he saw one at the lounge when we had drinks and had his mind set on that.  Apparently he enjoyed it!

Tomorrow I am not entirely sure what I will do, but I have until the later afternoon to tool around. 

A Rainy Day in San Francisco

This morning I got up at the ass-crack of dawn to get ready and get my butt to LAX to catch my flight to San Francisco.  I’ve needed to get back to the city and visit friends, etc. for quite a while.  I had two free hotel nights with Hyatt I needed to use up, and found a very reasonable airfare on Virgin America, so it was a no-brainer to take a long weekend.

My flight was supposed to depart at 9:10am, but after I got to the airport, I find out the flight is delayed nearly an hour.  I checked with the customer service desk on the delay, and also ask about upgrades.  I decided it was worth the extra few bucks to get some more leg room and priority on and off the plane.  Free food and drinks was good too.

They did wind up boarding us a little early, but still past the time I should have been in the air.  We left LAX at about a quarter til 10am.  The flight was relatively uneventful – though very short.  I managed to get one cocktail in, along with a few snacks. 

Virgin flies out of Terminal 2 at SFO, which they have done up very nicely.  It really puts LAX to shame.  They have lots of good food and retail throughout the terminal, and it is well laid out with wide open areas and connecting hallways.  I caught BART into town from the International Terminal.  It’s a quick ride into the city center, and the cheapest option at around $8 (unless you can get a friend to come pick you up).  I trekked up the hill from the BART station at Powell to my hotel, the Grand Hyatt at Union Square.  It was around 1pm, and I figured I wouldn’t be able to check in, but since I have thankfully have Platinum status, they got me in and I was in my room in 10 minutes!  Nice room too.  Check it out, along with a view from my window on the 28^th floor.  I am looking east/southeast I believe.

I had texted my friend Ed about meeting up, and he took Muni on downtown to meet up with me and go to lunch and the SF Museum of Modern Art (he’s a member).  We walked over to the Metreon on his recommendation on the food court.  We settled on Coriander Gourmet Thai, and shared Sweet Basil with Crispy Basil, and a beef curry dish.  The girl working there let us split it up in two boxes and split the side so Ed could get his Pad Thai and I could get some brown rice.  The Sweet Chicken was actually very good for fast food Thai.  It was spiced well, though could have had a little more heat.  The Curry was definitely spiced up, and had a coconut milk base.  It was just enough to sate my appetite.

Ed and I walked over to the museum, and thankfully were able to bypass the lines waiting to buy tickets.  Membership does have its privileges.  There were a lot of great exhibits.  I was sorry I hadn’t gone before!  Right in the entryway, above your head, is an installation of LED lights hung at different lengths.  We met a woman who said that if you watch it, you can see birds flying in the lights.  When we got to the top floor (we worked our way down), we checked it from there and yeah, you could see movement through the lights like a giant TV screen.  It wasn’t until we got to about the 2^nd floor on our way down that it was completely clear what we were looking at:  it was a street scene of San Francisco with cars and people moving about.  It was very neat to watch – all done with these hanging LED light bulbs.

We had spent several hours there and it was closing, so we checked out the museum store and then headed out.  Ed took me by a chocolate store that he said I’d really like, Schoggi.  This was the only store in the U.S. (they’re a Swiss chocolatier).  I picked some out, but I haven’t tried them yet – maybe tomorrow!  We also stopped at a Walgreen’s so I could pick up some things I didn’t bring (I only took a carry-on), and then Ed headed home.  His back was killing him, and mine was starting to bother me as well from all the walking.  I headed back to the hotel to unwind and freshen-up before I headed out to get some dinner.

I checked on Urbanspoon and Yelp for local recommendations, and a few turned up that piqued my interest.  The first one I went to check out was Daffodil on Bush St.  The menu looked interesting online, but when I walked over to it, the entire place was empty!  They were open, but no one was dining.  Unless a place has personally been recommended in an unfamiliar place, I find that empty restaurants can be a bad thing, so I walked out.

I went back down the hill towards Union Square, and ran across another one I had looked at online:  Kutelo’s (www.kutelos.com).  It’s an Italian place (that’s three times at an Italian restaurant this week now).  The menu was appealing and the room was full, so I figured it was worth a shot.  I was seated near the bar, so I had a decent view of the room.  The place was hopping. 

My server gave me a rundown of the specials, and one entrée, the salmon, sounded good, but then so did some of the pastas.  I asked her what she recommends between the salmon and the two pastas I was thinking about, and she told me “Go with the Pappardelle.”  The sauce they make for it is a Duck “Bolognese” , where they used ground duck meat in a tomato sauce.  It was the right choice.  It was rich, without being over the top.  It was hearty, tasty and tickled my taste buds. 

She tempted me with dessert, so I looked at the menu, and the Hazelnut Crème Brulee grabbed my attention.  Being on vacation, I threw caution to the wind and ordered it.  It came with an orange biscotti.  The crème brulee was good, but the hazelnut was kind of in the background and understated.  That I found a little disappointing, but it was still a good dessert.  The biscotti, however….I could eat a whole plate of those.  It was absolutely amazing!  I asked, and they make them there fresh.  I kind of wish they had them to-go as it would taste great with coffee in the morning.

Worn out, I headed back to my hotel for a HOT shower and some relaxing.  More to report tomorrow!

Il Moro

On Wednesday, I lunched with a friend and former boss, Colleen, at an Italian restaurant she recommended on the Westside of L.A.  The place, Il Moro (www.ilmoro.com), was one I hadn’t been to yet, so I was excited to try a new place.  The entrance is on Perdue, not on Olympic as you’d think given the address, and really the only option for parking in the afternoon is valet.  Thankfully, they don’t charge an excessive amount for valet parking (I paid $7 with tip).  As you walk in, you go through the bar area, which is well appointed and modern in feel.  The restaurant is in the back, with outdoor patio space (when the weather is nice – which in LA is most of the year).  We sat inside because it was a chilly day.

The menu offered excellent choices.  There were also some good specials for the day.  I chose a soup that was a special for the day.  I can’t remember exactly what it was called, but essentially it was a chicken broth base with veal meatballs and LOTS of parmesan cheese.  I also detected a hint of lemon.  The cheese made it appear to be like an egg-drop soup, but it was definitely cheese.  The soup was very delicious and fitting given the weather. 

For my main course, I ordered the risotto, which came mixed with a lamb ragu.  I hadn’t had risotto in a while, and generally prefer my homemade version, but I couldn’t pass this up as it was with lamb!  I wouldn’t make this at home unless I can learn to make that ragu.  The risotto was perfectly cooked al dente, and the lamb ragu added a very unique flavor and texture profile.  I’d order this again as it was hearty, filling and satisfied my craving for a lamb dish.

Il Moro is a place I’ll definitely go back to, maybe for happy hour sometime.  The prices are generally moderate, but expect to pay about $50+ each if you order two courses and wine.

Nicolosi's

For St. Patty’s Day I took the train down to San Diego for the weekend to see my mom.  I hadn’t seen her or my friend Fuzzy since Christmas, and I had a free weekend, so a trip was in order.   While we did have lunch at an Irish pub (of sorts) yesterday for the holiday, that’s not what I am blogging about today.  (For the records:  we did lunch at Hooley’s [www.hooleys.com] at the Rancho San Diego location.  They had a limited holiday menu, and I had the Shepherd’s Pie, which was delicious.)

Today,  I want to talk about the Italian restaurant my mother took me to for lunch today:  NIcolosi’s (www.nicolosis.com).  It’s been around for 60 years this year, and my mom and dad used to go there before my brother and I were born, and then my brother and sister-in-law used to dine there before they were married.  I, however, had never been in all my years in San Diego.  They used to invite me all the time, but I guess when I was younger, it just never appealed to me.

But since I am up for dining adventures, and it would give me something to blog about, to Nicolosi’s we went.  They’ve moved a few times over the years and are now located on the edge of the city of San Diego, near the borders of El Cajon and Santee.  The interior reminds you of a family style Italian restaurant (which is what type of place it is), is very clean and neat, and even warm and inviting.  We were sat quickly and the server, Pam, took our drink order rather quickly. 

They had a special lunch menu, but you could order from the regular menu as well.  For an appetizer, we ordered the Bruschetta.  I find that you can tell much about an Italian restaurant by how their Bruschetta tastes.  They were very generous with the tomato, and onion, but held back on the garlic, which I find unfortunate.  It was otherwise very tasty, but I would prefer it if they dialed up the garlic (but I am a garlic fiend anyway).

My mother and I both took advantage of the lunch special menu as it included a salad or soup, and a drink.  Mom ordered the Baked Mac & Cheese, and I the Baked Ravioli (with meat filling).  We also opted for soup:  I the Italian Wedding Soup, and mom the Minestrone.  I didn’t try Mom’s soup, but she enjoyed it, and my Wedding Soup was very, very well done.  The stock they used was quite rich.  Other Wedding soups I have had before have been more watered down, so this was a treat.

I should also note that Pam was very attentive and on top of things.  She kept refilling my Arnold Palmer unasked.  I like that- so few servers are that attentive and work to make sure you’re enjoying your meal completely.  My hat off to Pam for the excellent service.

When my entrée arrived, it was steaming hot, so I let it sit for a little bit to cool.  Mom dug into her Mac & Cheese immediate, and found the cheese to be molten lava hot!  I always try to give it a few minutes as I know the cheese holds its heat.  Once I dug in, the first thing I noticed was the tomato sauce.  Usually, I find them to be sweetened too much and that was kind of what I was expecting.  But surprisingly, the sauce was what it’s meant to be:  tomato.  They relied on the natural sweetness of the tomato and didn’t appear to have added any sugar.  That to me is genuine.  The ravioli itself was also delicious.  Their raviolis are handmade and they don’t hold back on the filling.  For a half order, with five ravioli, I was stuff with just four.  Mom tried the last one. 

I also got a taste of the Mac & Cheese.  I love mac & cheese, but rarely find one I like.  They tend to be too salty, too bland, not enough cheese, overkill, etc.  This mac & cheese was very balanced.  It had a nice blend of cheeses (which I couldn’t quite put my finger on what all they used, but my best guess is parmesan, fontina, maybe white cheddar, pecorino romano…and I don’t know what else).  Since it was baked, it had a nice crusty top.  They also used some good heavy cream to blend it all together.  The only thing I would add as maybe an add-on is some crispy pancetta. 

To finish out the meal, we ordered some Cannelloni for dessert.  The shell was extra crispy, verging on hard (but not badly).  The filling was dense, but fluffy at the same time.  I wouldn’t call it light, but it wasn’t heavy.  It had the right amount of sweetness, a little tang, and some spice from the cinnamon.  If I hadn’t been so full, I would have ordered my own!

I am happy to recommend Nicolosi’s to anyone in the San Diego area or visiting.  I’m sure most locals are well aware of it, and if you haven’t tried it, you should!

Grapefruit Experiment - Garlic & Onions

I’ve already done the more exotic spices, so I have moved on to the more basic.  Last night I cooked up the batch of chicken I had marinating in grapefruit juice, garlic and onions.  I followed my standard baking practice (500 for 15 minutes, 350 for 30 minutes), and diced up some potatoes to roast in the pan with the chicken.

The chicken turned out good!  It was well flavored and moist.  The skin could have crisped up a bit more, but it was still tasty.  I reduced the marinade to make another sauce, and towards the end strained out the garlic and onions and finished reducing.  The sauce was very good, but the grapefruit tended to overpower both the garlic and the onion.  They got lost in the sweet/tangy grapefruit.  I hadn’t added sugar, but it was still sweeter than I would like.  I may experiment a little more with that and maybe throw in some vinegar to tone down the sweet.

I’ll definitely try this combo again, as it really did pair up well with the chicken.

Grapefruit Experiment - Cinnamon

Today’s experiment was a marinade made with grapefruit juice and cinnamon.  I did my standard baking gig.  It smelled wonderful while it was baking, and the aromas that filled my apartment when I reduced the marinade to make a sauce.  I also cooked up come carrots in grapefruit juice rather than water (keeping in theme, you know).

I have to report – this was NOT a successful experiment.  While it smelled absolutely delicious, the flavor was not so thrilling.  The cinnamon just overtook the grapefruit and did not pair well with the chicken.  It wasn’t awful, but it was definitely  a miss after two hits.  That’s why it’s an experiment – so I can see what works and what doesn’t.  I might be able to dial down the cinnamon in the marinade, but I think it might still be too much.  I am thinking of maybe trying it with orange juice instead to see if it works, but I don’t hold out much hope.

The carrots, however, were very tasty, having cooked in the grapefruit juice.  I’ll make that again!  But the cinnamon isn’t the best spice to mix with grapefruit…nor chicken apparently.

Grapefruit Experiment - Ginger

Tonight I made round two in my grapefruit marinade experiment.  I’ve had two chicken thighs marinating in about a cup and a half of grapefruit juice and ginger spice.  I repeated the baking from the Friday night experiment:  baked the thighs in a baking dish at 500 degrees for 15 minutes, then lowered it to 350 for another 30 minutes.  The excess marinate I put in a pot on low to simmer and reduce while it was baking.

In the meantime, I prepared a small green salad as a side, sectioning a grapefruit to throw in, and tossed it all in some olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  I also made an additional side of a watermelon salad – a very refreshing side to accompany just about any meal.  It’s very easy to make.  I buy one of those small watermelons at the grocery store, cut the rind off, then cut the melon into cubes and pack them in storage containers to keep in the fridge.  To put the salad together, you just take a handful or two of the cubes, pile them on a plate and season with crushed pepper and just a hint of some sea salt, then drizzle with some good ages balsamic.  If you want a little extra kick, you can grate some parmesan over it too. 

After the chicken was done, I pulled it out of the oven, plated it, then sat down to enjoy.  I was a little leery of the ginger.  As it was baking, there was a very strong aroma that wasn’t ginger or grapefruit, so I was afraid it might have been very off in flavor.  I can report that thankfully, it was another success.  The chicken was again moist and flavorful.  The ginger complimented the grapefruit very well, though admittedly the sauce I had made from the marinade was a tad sweet for my taste, but it had enough tang to make up for the sweetness.

My next experiment (probably tomorrow night) will be grapefruit and cinnamon.  Fingers crossed! 

A Burger in Short Order

I met my friend (and former boss’ wife) Amy at the Farmer’s Market on Fairfax this afternoon for lunch.  We both wanted to try out Short Order (www.shortorderla.com) – the restaurant created by Amy Pressman, Nancy Silverton and Bill Chait.  Unfortunately, Amy passed away last year before the restaurant was opened, but Nancy and Bill moved forward with Amy’s vision. 

Short Order is burger-centric.  While they do offer other sandwiches and a couple of salads, and some “boats” that do the burger without the bun – may no mistake, this place is a burger joint, a high class one, but a burger joint.

It’s located on the southwest side of the Market, next to Du-Par’s.  There is outdoor seating downstairs, and an indoor bar upstairs.  Reservations are not required, nor allowed – it’s first come, first served.  We got there early so a crowd wasn’t a problem.  They also do have a take-out window around the back if you want to get a burger to go, especially if the restaurant is crowded.

I ordered Nancy’s Backyard Burger, which is a beef burger, with applewood smoked bacon and comté cheese – I left off the rabbit food (I don’t like salad on my burger….it’s one of my many quirks).  I accompanied it with a pale ale.  Amy ordered Amy’s Turkey Burger which had cheddar, celery, leeks and a mustardy mayo.  We also ordered the Short Order Fries with a sour cream dipping sauce to share. 

My burger was very juicy (the spot on my shirt will attest) and moist, pink in the center, and melded so well with the cheese and bacon.  The patty was on the thicker side, well seasoned and cooked perfectly.  The flavor was very beefy.  It was a true burger.  I tasted Amy’s Turkey Burger and found it well flavored and moist (turkey can be very dry).  It’s a great alternative if you don’t like beef. 

And the fries…amazing fries.  These are not your typical shoestring French fry, no.  They did it different.  I had read about them in a review and how they came up with these, so I was anxious to try.  What they do is cut the potato like home fries (quartered wedges), bake them, let them cool a little bit then smash them down slightly, then deep fry them golden brown.  It was a very nice texture.  And they were very crispy, yet moist inside.  The sour cream dip was a nice addition.  Big thumbs up on the fries.

I forgot to take a picture unfortunately, but trust me, the food is as pleasing to the eyes as it is to the palate.  If you’re in the Fairfax area, or shopping at The Grove, make your way over the Short Order to try it out!

Grapefruit Experiement - Thai Spice

So my friend Thom recently bought a house, and it has citrus trees (orange, lemon and grapefruit).  I’ve been going over while he prepares to move in and help out where I can and to pick the fruit on the overflowing trees so they can fruit again.  I wound up with bags and bags of grapefruit.  While I do love it, I can’t eat/drink THAT much.  I did give some to friends at work, and I juiced the rest and wound up with a couple of quarts of sweet grapefruit juice.  What to do, what to do?

I decided to experiment with it and use it as a marinade and try different blends with spices.  The next few weeks, I will marinate chicken thighs in different concoctions and cook them up to report my successes…and failures.

Tonight I made my first batch.  Well, actually, I COOKED my first batch – I have had several marinating since Wednesday.  I will freeze the others to keep them until I am ready to cook them.  So tonight’s recipe is Grapefruit Marinated Chicken Thighs with Thai Spices. 

I used about 1-1/2 cups of juice, and added a Thai spice blend (I got it at Cost Plus and use it on a lot of different stuff to season), and just a little sugar to help cut the tartness.  I put this in a quart-sized freezer bag and added two chicken thighs, closed it up, then shook it up good to make sure it was all blended.  I threw it in the fridge in a pie plate (in case of leakage) and would take it out several times over the two days I had it marinate to shake it up again.

To cook it tonight, I preheated the oven to 500 degrees to get it real hot.  In a glass baking dish that I greased up with some olive oil, I placed the chicken thighs, as well as come quartered new potatoes that I tossed in oil and some more Thai spice, then poured a little of the marinade to help keep it moist while baking.

I put the pan in the oven for 15 minutes at 500, then lowered the temperature to 350 for another 40 minutes, until the potatoes were soft and the chicken well cooked.  If you’re wondering why I started out at a high heat – I wanted to get the skin nice and crispy.  If you start it out HOT, you help to sear the skin, then lower it to finish the cooking.  It turns out very moist when I do it that way.

In the meantime, I poured the remaining marinade into a pot and turned the burner on the stove up high to get it boiling, then lower and simmer for about 30 minutes to reduce the liquid and concentrate the flavors, which you can then use it as a sauce.

I have to say, my first experiment turned out….WONDERFUL.  The chicken was tender and beautifully flavored.  The grapefruit and thai spices were well infused, and the sauce complimented the chicken and the roasted potatoes beautifully.  First trial down, success! 

I will post with each new experiment and batch.  Tomorrow I will probably cook up the chicken that’s marinating in grapefruit and ginger. 

Pitfire

Yesterday while I was out and about, helping my friend Thom hunt for a new dresser, we stopped for lunch in NoHo.  The place we intended to eat at, Phil’s Diner, was closed.  Instead we wound up at Pitfire Pizza (www.pitfirepizza.com).  Thom hadn’t been there in years, and his last experience there was lacking.  I assured him that I had been in the recent past and the food had improved dramatically (they had gone downhill several years ago – but I suspect they have new owners or management and it really got better). 

They offer a variety of Panini, salads, pastas, and of course, pizzas.  They also offer up seasonal specialties, one of which caught my eye:  braised short rib and farfalle pasta.  It sounded just too good to pass up.  The short ribs are braised in red wine….yum.   I also ordered a watermelon lemonade (they did away with their soft drink machine, which I find disappointing).  I could have had a beer as they do offer a nice selection of craft beers, but I would have wanted to nap after lunch then.

When the server brought my pasta, the farfalle was piled very nicely in the dish, with the short rib meat mixed in.  At first, it looked like there wasn’t a lot of meat in the dish, but once I dug in, I discovered how they had layered it throughout the pasta and had been generous with the serving.  It just melted in my mouth.  The meat was tender and had great flavor from the red wine.  The pasta was almost al dente, but broke up easily enough so I didn’t have to really work to cut the noodles.  This was a dish I could eat over and over again, and was priced reasonably at $14.95.

The watermelon lemonade, however, I did have some issues with.  While I did enjoy the flavor, the mouth feel on it was a little off-putting.  It coated my mouth and left an overly sweet aftertaste.  I don’t know if it was from the watermelon, the sugar, or some combo thereof, but it wasn’t how I like a lemonade to be.  Note to self – don’t order that again.

Overall, I can recommend Pitfire Pizza with no real reservations.  On Saturdays you can also hit the local farmer’s market just around the corner, too.