So I took the summer "off" concentrating on expanding my palate and pleasure and not worrying so much about the desk/computer. I unplugged.....
Woodinville, Wash. with out of state guests. The boys were happy with Red Hook. The kids ran their little legs about Brian Carter while we sipped on the deck. It's always a pleasure watching people discover Washington's wines. We forget how wonderful our wines can be. Then for serious fun eating over to Barking Frog and lucky (!) it's Dine With Your Dog Dinner. Doggies have a Three Dog Bakery fix prixe, humans have their own menu. Everybody went home happy.
Vancouver & Richmond, B.C. jumped into the Asin scene. Cooked my own meal at a number of tables in Richmond. One style used a broth, like an Asian fondue, as the cooking medium. The two Asian night markets are crazy good. Tempting treats with street-food appeal, toys, music CDs and those 2 for $10 sunglasses. Fun to watch all the families.
Anacortes, Wash 25-foot runabout crab traps...nuf said. Nothing better than cooking crabs on the beach and breaking into them with your bare hands.
Napa, Calif. what's there not to love? Well.....the new Oxbow Market was not as earthy as I had hoped for. Great butcher and the best little spice shop south of Pike Place's World Market. Expecting to spend the day...we mozied over to COPIA across the parking lot. Thankfully this food museum does not take itself too seriously. Hands-on, and a few nose-on, activities keep even non-foodies amused. The wine-centric kiosk querry stations have great "college" bowl potential. Gratifying to see TWO Washington Wines being tasted the day of my visit.
Be sure to catch my dispatch from Slow Food Nation on www.nwstir.com. Go to the Home page, scroll down to the Slow Food link, click and bing - you're there!
