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I love silk: chiffon, crepe, organza, china, georgette – you name it, I love it. Silk is an odd fabric, almost too delicate for normal handling, sensitive to rain, snow and heat, food elements, dry cleaning, other fabrics, nails, jewelry, and even its own embroidery. And yet, there’s no other fabric that’s quite as elegant or luxurious for a skirt, blouse, dress, scarf or shawl.

It’s natural that I’d love a sari. However, it was only last New Year’s that I would learn how to wrap or tie it on my own. I had just returned from an overdue visit to India, where I had selected several saris. Like language and cooking, it took lessons, from my mother. There are many ways to drape a sari depending on the region. I won’t attempt to list all of them – I leave that to French cultural anthropologist Chantal Boulanger.

I myself am familiar with only two styles, which I have nicknamed “namba” (Tamil for “ours”), the predominant style in the South as well across the subcontinent, and the other mainly worn in the north, “Gujarati” since the first time I had seen it draped that way was amongst my counterparts of Gujarati origin.

There’s only a minor difference between the two: in the South, the “pallu” or the end is draped across the body then over the left shoulder, creating a streamlined fall at the back. And in the North, it is draped over the right shoulder, fanned out across the body, with a pretty, hanging J-shape at the back. The latter style is better suited for saris with extreme embroidery or beadwork. I have worn those the other way, but my left shoulder generally suffers for it. In both styles, the pleats for the skirt part are tucked into the petticoat at the waist.

I don’t find tying a sari very easy or intuitive at all. The first time I attempted it independently, it took multiple tries. I was sweating by the time I’d got into reasonable shape. I still had problems safety pinning the pallu to the blouse.

Furthermore, not all saris are created equally. For georgette silk, the pleats are easier to manage, the pallu is more watery (this is where I’ve had the most success). Saris with a lot of beadwork and embroidery on chiffon can be tricky because of the need to manage a light fabric while the ends keep getting weighed down. Chiffon with less beadwork can be equally as tricky to handle. Heavy silks are well…heavy.

The great part is when the silk gets caught in its own beads and you’re struggling to disentangle it all. Although, it’s even better when figuring out exactly what to do with the slack, since sari tying involves much estimation: of height, pallu length, number of pleats for the “falls” as my mom calls them – probably not the technical term for the pleated skirt part which fans out like flower petals from waist to ankle. What part should one adjust? If there’s not too much slack, usually you can hide it— which is what I do!

The success to tying a sari is all about controlling the pleats with your thumb and index or middle finger. It’s actually tortuous pain. In the Southern style, the pallu is the easier part, particularly as there is a great deal of versatility in how you can drape it – it can be partially pleated, fully pleated and pinned, or left loose for a more informal, sexier look.

But perhaps, versatility is the watchword overall – a sari is an extremely versatile garment. And you never really know what and how works for you and the fabric until you yourself try it out. So, do what I did to supplement my lessons: watch YouTube videos.

You may ask: why even bother? How often do I wear a sari – 5 or 6 times a year at best? It’s October and my 2009 tally will likely conclude at 4. Am I holding onto culture unnecessarily? No. Culture comes and culture goes, but I wear a sari for one predominant reason: because it makes me feel beautiful.

Nous voici fin Novembre, et déjà le fond de l’air se fait plus frais, les décorations de fêtes apparaissent dans les rues, et les denrées hivernales abondent sur les étals.

Ce petit week-end hivernal a commencé vendredi soir avec un bon repas chez Ti-Couz, crêperie bretonne de SF. Au menu, Soupe à l’oignon, crêpe et cidre. Miam ! L’occasion pour notre ami JC, habituellement localise en Inde, de nous rendre une petite visite et de… découvrir les specialités locales
Puis petit tour à l’Elbo Room, bar sympa de SF sur Valencia St, pour finir tranquillement la soirée.

Le samedi était prévu de longue date le repas de pre-thanksgiving, avec mes amis Gilles et Delphine, ainsi que des connaissances dans et hors Yahoo!. L’occasion pour moi de déguster un vrai repas traditionnel, avec dinde de 18 livres (!) cuite 4h30 au four, sauce aux canneberges (cranberries), purée de pommes de terre au jus (mashed potatoes and gravy), gratin de haricots verts (green beans casserole), maïs, corn bread, j’en passe et des meilleurs. Et tout ça, fait maison ! Avec toutes ces denrées et malgré une petite marche digestive nocturne sur les hauteurs de Bernal Heights, je n’ai pas réussi à aller au-delà du gâteau au chocolat pour tester la pecan pie (tarte aux noix de pécan) et la pumpkin pie, gâteaux traditionnels !

Foie Gras et Jurançon

Julien & Lohan

Today was a down and up kind of day. I went to Harajuku, specifically to Yoyogi Park, looking for cosplayers and oddly dressed people, as recommended by various sources. I had a slight Google Maps mixup and was confused into thinking the Meiji Shrine grounds were the same park, turns out they’re separate but adjacent entities. Regardless, I found only a very few people dressed up, on one of the shopping streets. In Yoyogi, though, I slipped on some mud and landed on my right side. Ouch. The skin broke on basically the tip of my wrist, no blood, and my vest and jeans got muddy, otherwise fine, I walked it off. I will be doing laundry tomorrow night instead of Tuesday, though. From further research tonight, it looks like I should have gone to Akihabara for cosplayers. Oh well.

I had lunch, a sandwich at a coffee shop, then picked up a Harajuku crepe. They’re large, thin, light crepes stuffed with all kinds of dessert-y toppings like fruit, chocolate, caramel, ice cream, even cheesecake! Mine just had chocolate sauce, strawberries, vanilla ice cream, and whipped cream. So good!

Off to the Final Fantasy Tactics concert. I got there at 2:00 and there was already a sizeable crowd. Around 2:30 we started going in and the concert itself started at 3:10, a little late. It was very well done, it felt quite professional. I have been inspired to replay the game and actually finish it this time. Donations were taken on the way out, unfortunately the only bill below Y10,000 I had was a single Y1,000. I wanted to give more than that but not as much as Y10,000. I should have kept a better eye on my small bills. Oh well.

Tomorrow I think I will go to Akihabara! I’m under budget, so maybe I can catch up by buying geeky things. Or, I could bring unspent money back. That works too.

Making someone a birthday cake is so 1998. This millennium, it’s all about celebrating with a homemade meal, in this case, a b-day brunch. Just look at how happy Elena, the birthday girl, looks over-stuffing her deliciously thin French crepe. And the best part is, you can deliver this gift right to someone’s home. Armed with whip cream, chocolate sauce, various berries and dulce de leche, I headed over on a Saturday morning and took my first crack at making crepes.

Sure I was using her as a guinea pig, but thanks to Elena’s hubby, lil’ one Elia, and their copy of The Joy of Cooking, this crepe-making newbie had lots of encouragement and guidance.

The batter recipe was very easy: flour, milk, water, eggs, melted butter, sugar and a pinch of salt. We obviously skipped the step where you’re supposed to let it sit for 30 minutes to two days. As a kid, my mom would make crepes on Christmas Day, so I had a general idea of what’s involved. The most complicated step was the pan-swirling motion to spread the batter and even it out. The cookbook mentioned it takes a couple tries to get this down. For me, it took about seven, but cot damn, I got it!

The recipe made 10 crepes, and anticipation was building as we lined up the fillings.

Elena is a big-picture thinker and she clearly has grander visions than I, humourously hinting that peanut butter and Nutella would also make delicious fillings. I did bring along some blackforest ham and havarti cheese to make a few savoury crepes.

But the overwhelming favourites were the sweet crepes. You definitely can’t go wrong with fresh fruit, dark chocolate and whipped cream. And if you’re still not convinced that homemade crepes are worthy of celebrating someone’s born-day, check out Exhibit A: The thank-you email from Elena: “Thanks again for the best birthday breakfast ever! (Ok maybe the one where I ate only chocolate birthday cake for breakfast was my best, but this was a super duper close second).”

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This is what they called Crepe + Jacquard.

Each is RM260 or USD85.

Jacquard is softer than Crepe. Mostly are hand drawn by the batik artists. They are beautiful & has different style. Each has its own unique pattern, you will never get the same hand drawn batik. In Malaysia, the price includes shipping but for international shipping, there will be extra charges for shipping.

Inilah kain yang dipanggil Crepe + Jacquard.

Dijual pada harga RM260 atau USD85.

Kain Jacquard lebih lembut dari kain Crepe. Kebanyakkannya dilukis tangan oleh pelukis batik. Cantik dan mempunyai stail berbeza. Setiapnya mempunyai corak unik, dan tiada yang akan sama kerana lukisan berbeza. Untuk di dalam Malaysia, harga termasuk kos penghantaran tetapi untuk luar negara, perlu ditambah harga penghantaran.

p.s: The colours might be varied (due to camera & light) but you may ask if you need close up pictures or we could meet up somewhere.

Nota: Warna-warna kain mungkin agak berbeza sedikit (disebabkan kamera & cahaya) tetapi anda bolehlah bertanya untuk mendapatkan gambar yang lebih dekat atau kita boleh berjumpa.

Thank you!!!!

Chaque région de France a des ingrédients favoris (généralement produits localement), des spécialités (= des plats typiques) et des vins ou alcools :

Normandie, Bretagne : la crème, le beurre salé, les pommes, les poissons, les fruits de mer, les galettes salées et les crêpes sucrées, le fromage (le camembert, le pont-l’évêque), le cidre (boisson légèrement alcoolisée à base de pommes) et le calvados ( alcool de pomme).

Crêperie Bretagne

Bourgogne : le bœuf, les escargots, le fromage de chèvre (le crottin de Chavignol, que l’on prépare chaud, au four), et, bien sûr, le vin rouge et le vin blanc.

Boeuf Bourguignon

Alsace : la choucroute (plat chaud de chou blanc et de charcuteries), la soupe à l’oignon, le fromage (munster), les gâteaux et les tartes aux fruits, le vin blanc.

Choucroute

Périgord : le confit de canard, le foie gras, la charcuterie, les champignons (truffes, cèpes), le vin rouge et l’armagnac.

Confit de canard

Midi de la France : la soupe au pistou (au basilic), la ratatouille (courgettes, aubergines, tomates, oignon mélangés), la bouillabaisse (plat de poissons), la soupe de poissons, le cassoulet (plat de saucisses, confit de canard et haricots blancs), les condiments : l’ail et les herbes de Provence (thym, romarin, laurier, etc.), l’huile d’olive, le vin des Côtes-du-rhône et le pastis (apéritif à base d’anis).

Ratatouille

Testez vos connaissances : Vrai ou Faux ?

1) La « nouvelle cuisine »n’est pas lourde.

2) Les produits « bio »sont chimiques.

3) La cuisine traditionnelle se fait surtout à la vapeur.

4) Les végétariens ne mangent pas d’œufs.

5) Toutes les régions de France produisent du vin.

6) On peut servir certains fromages chauds.

7) Dans le Midi de la France, on cuisine surtout au beurre.

Les solutions sont dans les commentaires !

(Source : Vocabulaire progressif du français, Cle International)

Natalia's Cafe - Camas, WA

Besides honoring our veterans on a rainy Veteran’s Day, I couldn’t think of anything better to do than to stick close to home for hearty home-cooking. That didn’t mean I was willing to settle for a bowl of Weetabix and toasted rye…no.  Instead, we took a short drive to Washougal’s neighboring town, Camas, and visited Natalia’s Café. I love the black and white diner look of the place and the overall hometown feel that comes with good service. 

This is another one of my favorite places where I can always count on a good meal for breakfast or lunch. I intended to go for my usual – the Traditional Breakfast (minced ham and eggs, a generous portion of crispy hashbrowns and toast). Instead, I ventured forth and tried a new item on the menu – Russian Meat Stuffed Crepes. 

Russian Meat Stuffed Crepes

This dish was a pleasant surprise and I felt quite virtuous as this was a lower fat option than my usual. These homemade crepes are stuffed with grilled ground beef and caramelized onions. They are served with a generous dollop of sour cream and a bowl of fresh fruit. I enjoyed them very much – even without the sour cream which, alas, I cannot eat. 

I recommend checking out her bakery counter. Everything is made from scratch every morning with different delights on different days. Apple Strudel, Caramel Fingers, Apple Pie, Apricot Cake, Napoleon, and Spinach and Bacon Quiche were the tempting treats of the day. 

Other Offerings 

• Breakfast served all day 
• Lunch:  Try the Russian Goulash – delicious! 
• Homemade Jams on the table 
• Open for dinner on Camas’ First Friday Main Street event 

Contact Information 

Hours: 

Tues – Sun: 7:30 AM – 2:30 PM 

Also open the first Friday of every month for dinner. 

Nearby Attractions 

• Camas Meadows Golf Club 
• Two Rivers Heritage Museum 
• The Pendleton Woolen Mill 
• Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Relax, smell-0-vision is not available to bloggers or the beloved – readers of blogs.  But, if it were - my green feet would not be a cause for alarm or misery –  my green feet will make you proud.

My green feet are a result of purchasing environmentally friendly shoes – and I LOVE them. After surviving foot surgery, it was time to tuck away the heels and find some shoes that offered support. Ok, this is not Sex and the City material, but my life is real and sometimes I just need to get from A – B without wearing heels and smiling through the pain. I know I am not alone.

During my shoe shopping frenzy I visited five shoe stores. Two of the stores were warehouse types and I was quickly overwhelmed by the latest style trends in shoes and boots –  and four inch heels.  The other stores offered more casual styles and I clearly was looking  for comfortable, casual and fashionable shoes.  Having said that, I still refuse to wear anything that looks orthopedic, has velcro or reminds me of my great Aunt Izzie who wore white socks with sandals.

So, my heart skipped a beat when I found a pair of black suede, sweet looking sneakers.  Not running shoes - not walking - not cross training – just sneakers. Like the kind I wore as a kid before the media said they were bad for our feet. We had one or two  pair and we wore them until there were more holes than canvas.

And- here is the best part – my new black suede sneaks are 100% sustainable. I am madly in love with these shoes.  They are made from a combination of bamboo, recycled car tires, organic  cotton, hemp, crepe, water based glue and recycled inner tubes. And – they are amazingly comfortable while looking great!

The price point is low and the quality is excellent. I just have to share the name,  Simple Shoes for a Happy Planet. Aw, why can’t life be like this? The shoebox, made of 100% post-consumer recycled materials and soy based inks,  tells the story of Simple Shoes and explains the process – which is remarkable.

This last week I have been like a little kid who gets that new pair of shoes for school and can’t wait to wear them and then – won’t take them off. Well – that’s me. Today, I wore them to a business meeting with black dress pants and even got a compliment. I am loving this and my feet are proud and happy.

Here is a little snippet from the side of the shoebox “Finding materials and processes that make our products sustainable is a method we call Green Toe. It isn’t a magic formula or a cure. It is a compass that, we hope,  points to a bright green future.” Pretty nifty, huh?

So, next time you need or just want shoes – take a look at what Simple Shoes has to offer.  I am not and will not be disappointed and I don’t think you will. Any guilt I had about buying a new pair of shoes (pair #49 for my collection) was soon set aside by my desire to save the Earth, which is a righteous cause.

Visit the company’s website and ‘get in touch with your inner hippie’.  I am not being endorsed by this company and I did pay full price for the shoes. But,  I also want to let the world know there is an option and a feel good factor that comes with these shoes. My step is lighter and the earth is healthier.   Win-Win and Enjoy!

www.simpleshoes.com      Made in the USA

“Welcome aboard Ryan Air. The world’s favorite airline.”

After getting two hours of sleep studying for midterms, spending the entire day writing essays in Italian that probably ended up being in Spanish, and running to the train station to catch the bus to Ryan Air, I was finally sitting on the airplane ready to spend my fall break in Parigi.

…

One hour later, we were like a thousand kilometers in the air when all of a sudden the plane smashed onto the ground and then BOUNCED on the concrete without having decreased any speed. We were racing down the airway like some prize horse on the racetrack. It was terrifying.

But only 5 euro.

…

We arrived at our hostel at midnight and were starving. After commenting on how perfect our hostel location was and how cute our bunk beds were, we decided to walk around the neighborhood in search of an open restaurant. We were walking for ten minutes finding absolutely nothing when we saw flashing neon lights in the distance. It was mesmerizing and alluring. So we walked towards it until finding ourselves standing in front of a gigantic building covered with large windows. Each window had a girl or two inside of them dressed in black lingerie moving suggestively over a table, or bending over, or putting on a stocking. In large capital letters it said, SEXODROME at the top.

We were in the red-light district.

Turns out we were a pleasant ten-minute walk from Moulin Rouge as well.

Day 1: “Napoleon is a douche bag.”

Our first day in Parigi was breathtaking. Every time I turned my head it was another perfect picture. The city was so pretty that it was almost too pretty, as if the entire city was manicured and made out of plastic. Turns out that that was exactly what it was. When Napoleon Bonaparte came to town, he decided to rip everything out, destroy 20,000 homes and erase the city’s history in order to rebuild starting from the sewage system up. Paris was a planned city. All the wide boulevards with the gas lamps and the piazzas lined with green and yellow trees and the gorgeous limestone monuments were all done by Haussmann, Napoleon’s right hand man.

Though Napoleon conquered Venice thereby taking away their Republic, he was still referred to as The Liberator by the Venetian Jews. Then in a shocking political maneuver he handed the city over to the Austrians in the Treaty of Campo Formio, committing the Venetians to foreign rule and betrayed them all. I related this story to Jordan as we walked through the Piazza Signori in front of the beautiful Hotel de’Ville to which Jordan responded, “What a douche bag.”

The rest of the day was spent in La Saint Chapelle, a gorgeous church  made out of stained glass depicting the Bible stories starting from Genesis and the Notre Dame where we failed to find the Hunchback. We avoided the random spurts of rain by ducking into the Louvre and the Musee d`Orsay – both of which were the most enjoyable museum experiences I have ever had. According to my very pessimistic, opinionated, passionate Italian boss, the Louvre was “destroyed” when they decided to place the “stupid pyramid” in the center of the piazza, which is actually only 30 years old. I liked it. It reminded me of The Da Vinci Code. We saw the Mona Lisa, the portrait of Van Gogh by Van Gogh, my absolute favorite painter, and Dum Dum! You know, the gigantic stone statues of gum chewing heads from Easter Island who are also featured in the great family film, Night At The Museum? My fav.

Then at night I met with Hannah Cho, a high school friend who I literally haven’t seen in over three years. We went to Les Éditeurs, a library turned cafe stuffed with red lounge chairs. With wine and olives we talked for three hours straight about high school and college, boys and our respective stances on marriage, and where our post-college lives will take us.

How much time has gone. We are already 22.

Day 2: Hannah Day

So the day before I was leaving for Paris and also the day before my dreadful midterms, I Facebook messaged my dear friend Hannah Lee. She had spent the last Fall semester in Paris and so I asked her for some recommendations. I figured she would send me a few things to check out that I could research with the hostel’s internet. Two seconds before leaving for Paris I printed out her reply which ended up being three pages long filled with the numbered bests of Paris, and their respective addresses, directions and commentary. Screw Rick Steve. Hannah Lee’s Guide to Paris was an amazing gem. The hidden stores in alleys and delectable delights of the city that would have taken months to discover were all neatly listed in numbered format. Simply fabulous.

So Hannah Cho and I set off to fulfill the Hannah Lee Best of Paris List.

“8. EAT A BAGUETTE. Pop into any boulangerie (there are tons on every corner) and just order a baguette, some pretty-looking pastries, and enjoy!! Trust me when I say that you will never find as good a baguette here as you will in France.”

I met Hannah bright and early for our picnic breakfast in the Luxembourg Garden. I bought a baguette for € .90 euro. It was half my height. We coupled it with some soft garlic cheese and rose wine and had a fabulous morning eating and talking amidst the fall trees. The Garden was beautiful.

“1. FREE PSTAR. this is a must!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i went here at least four times a week–there is ALWAYS going to be different stuff in the store because they’re constantly restocking. … it’s located in my favorite neighborhood–le marais. Le Marais is the Jewish/gay neighborhood filled with lots of art galleries, boutiques, and vintage stores and LOTS AND LOTS of hip people. i think you’ll love this area, too.”

We spent the afternoon shopping in Marsais. I think we spent over an hour inside of that tiny little store. It was literally the size of my bathroom, with a makeshift ledge that overflowed with feathery boas, purses and a hundred dead furs still with their paws and heads. It also had a tiny spiral staircase that led to an underground room lined with fur coats and dresses and blazers. The place was everything that Hannah promised and more. It was shopping heaven.

We then caught lunch at Les Philosphes, a hip Parisian cafe where I had steak tartar with a raw egg. Amazing? Yes.

“4. Laduree. This is the ultimate French patisserie that EVERYONE goes to. It is especially famous for their macaroons, which are delicious!!!”

We walked down Champs Elysee, a street comparable to LA’s Rodeo Drive, and bought nothing. =) But right when I was getting tired of walking and not shopping we found Laduree.

Laduree is the epitome of French extravagance. Though a pasticerria, the walls and tables and floors are all marble with golden statues and gilded columns. There was a restaurant upstairs and downstairs and had a bar stretching through the expanse of the room filled with tiny beautiful concoctions of colors and fruits and cremes. We ordered 4 mini macaroons each and a pot of hot chocolate.

The macaroon is a realized fantasy. Two delicate pieces of airy cookies sandwich a flavored filling: pistachio, praline, caramel, dark chocolate, raspberry – you name it. All different, all subtly flavorful and perfectly crisp. With one bite the macaroon melts in your mouth in a mix of crunchy and creamy with flavors bursting. I sound so melodramatic. Wait till I get to the orange blossom.

When I bit into the orange blossom I almost cried. It was that good. I couldn’t eat any more of it and just kept repeating over and over to Hannah how good it was. The cookie was orange with a lime green filling. It tasted strongly of oranges but then simultaneously infused with a burst of lime. I’m not even sure how to describe it. You just have to eat it for yourself. It was oh my god amazing. I can’t believe I’ve lived my life for 22 years without it.

We ended up spending two hours in there until the sun set. Then we walked to the Arc de Triomph (got in for free cause the lady thought we were EU citizens) and hiked it all the way to the top. (P.S. I hate winding staircases, you can never see how much more you have left.) The view was incredible. Afterwards we ran to catch the Eiffel Tower for its hourly lights show. So, so, so pretty.

“5. Le Pot de Terre. If you are ever hungry and want the ultimate French meal, you should go here. This is a cozy restaurant that I found while I was in Paris, and I instantly fell in love with it…”

Menu:

Soupe á l’orignon gratinée
(Onion Soup that isn’t called French Onion Soup because we were IN France!)

escargots de Bourgógne au bennre d’aul
(Escargot, better known as snails, boiled in olive oil and garlic and spices in individual slots on a pot. It was so good but the snail gave a slight bitter aftertaste.)

magret de canard au miel
(Duck with a honey glaze. It was amazing. So soft!)

And for dessert, creme brulee. Obvi.

A three course meal for only €16 euro. I was so stuffed I could barely walk to our next stop: The Frog and Princess Bar.

So the other night we were walking to the Les Editèurs Cafe when Hannah started telling me how the street we were crossing was called The Princess, and there was a bar on the street that was called The Frog and Princess Bar. That’s so cute, I said, and then I thought, wait a minute – I know that bar.

“Does that bar have coasters that are actually postcards?”
“Yea! How did you know?”

When Hannah Lee was in Paris she had sent me a postcard. I remembered thinking how odd it was that the postcard was actually a coaster she had picked up from a bar.

So that night we went to the Frog and Princess bar and I grabbed a handful of those postcards.

Day 3: Goodbye Parigi

The next morning we walked up the hill to Sacre Coure, a church that sits on the highest point of Paris and also where they filmed Amelie.

I met up with Hannah for lunch and after visited the original Shakespeare Co. It was the cutest vintage bookstore in the world. It was basically a tiny tiny house that was converted into a store. Books were flowing everywhere with armchairs and sofas tucked into corners for readers. There was a piano on the second floor that you could play if you promised to be good and a wishing well under the floor.

The last thing that I did in Paris was #10 on Hannah’s list.

“10. EAT A CREPE.”

So I ate a crepe. You could order a crepe with any flavor ranging from Nutella, to hazelnut to plain sugar or jam. We got the creme de marron, which is cream of chestnut. It was so good. The French crepe is the equivalent to Italy’s gelato. You haven’t had a gelato until you’ve had one in Italy, and you haven’t had a crepe until you’ve had one in France.

Paris was amazing. People who would return from a trip to Paris would always exclaim how much they loved it, how beautiful it was, how they vow to spend the rest of their lives there; and I always thought, “geez, what a drama queen.”

But it’s true.

I can’t wait to go back.

One of the few buildings that Haussmann didn't touch. Beautiful.

The "stupid" pyramid at the Louvre. I love it.

O.M.G. So there was a STARBUCKS in the Louvre. A STARBUCKS. SIOFEDKCGIORFKND!! I got a Venti Soy Vanilla Latte just because I could. It was bliss.

HAhaha It's Dum Dum!!

A real Van Gogh. I can't believe it.

"Marie! The baguettes! Hurry up!"

That's a lot of baguettes.

Having fun inside PSTAR.

Can you believe this is real? At Laduree.

Macaroons and hot chocolate. The pale beige one with the green filling is the orange blossom!

Hello Eiffel!

Bye Parigi.

Work has been wearing me out lately, so DC decided to take me out for a weeknight splurge at Le Bistrot du Sommelier. It has a very traditional country-style French menu with surprisingly large portions. We ended up sharing a soup and a for-two main course.

The garbure soup was pretty excellent. The base was chopped vegetables in a light chicken and duck stock. On its own, it’d be a really boring vegetable soup. What made it pretty darn sublime were both the ravioli and the chicken dumpling. The mini ravioli were perfect little parcels stuffed with savoury cheese. Against the bland foil of the soup, the slightly chewy morsels gave out bursts of salty pleasure with each bite. And then the chicken dumpling. It had a lot more chicken than flour in it and was incredibly soft and delicate. I wasn’t sure of the slightly grainy texture of overdone chicken breast, but the flavour was deeply chickeny. One of the best bits of the soup was the crispy croutons. I don’t know how the grilled chunks of country bread retained the crunch even though waterlogged, but they did and… bliss.

We went for the Baekenofe pork casserole for two made of different cuts of pork: cheek, trotter, belly and bacon. There were two large pieces of each in the claypot interspersed with carrot and turnip chunks as well as new potatoes. This dish is one of the few that made me like new potatoes (which I obviously normally detest). The whole dish was awash in white wine, with some cuts, especially the trotter, redolent with alcohol. It was lovingly braised so that the pork was tender. The best cut was the cheek, which just about didn’t require much chewing to enjoy. I just let it sit in my mouth for a moment to savour the taste and let it disintegrate slowly into a fragrant heap. (Pardon the red cast of the photo, we sat under the sign board lit in red so there’s no helping the hue of the photo. Sorry.)

This place has great food. It’s too bad that it’s not exactly the cheapest place around and the service can be quite take-it-or-leave-it French. Even though we were the first to arrive on a weeknight they flatly refused to let us sit inside, claiming that it was all reserved inside. Mysteriously, we noticed only one table inside over the time we had our dinner. The outside doesn’t have the best atmosphere because of all the construction work going on opposite.

[An aside: If you'd like great atmosphere, just step two units down to the Creperie Des Armes. The Brittany atmosphere is amazing, made me feel like I was in a corner cafe in Europe. What was better was the warm welcome of the French couple running the place. Here, the couple smiled so much and tried so hard to please that I couldn't help fall in love with the place. I practised my dormant French here, to the lady owner's delight. It's a pity that another place I like has far superior crepes. Also didn't help that the crepes came out one by one, so not good for impatient or hungry hordes. ]

Le Bistrot du Sommelier
46 Prinsep Street #01-01 Prinsep Place
Tel: 6333 1982

Outro dia eu estava passando tempo na Livraria Cultura (programa que eu adoro fazer, aliás) e me deparei com um livro de auto-ajuda, perdido na seção de gastronomia. O livro se chamava “Pare de reclamar e concentre-se nas coisas boas”. Ao ver esse título tão direto, achei que era um recado do “Universo” (parece que agora o Universo tá na moda, né?) pra mim e resolvi pegar pra folhear. Acabei comprando. A proposta do livro é muito simples e interessante. Basicamente, ele diz que reclamar de tudo (do trânsito, do clima, dos políticos, da vida como um todo) não é saudável, pois nos impede de curtir as coisas boas da vida. Após essa constatação, o autor nos propõe um desafio: que tal passar 21 consecutivos dias sem reclamar ou falar mal de alguém? Segundo ele, se conseguirmos passar os 21 dias sem reclamações, nós perderemos em grande parte esse hábito e passaremos a reclamar somente do que realmente é digno de uma reclamação. Seu método é simples: coloque uma pulseira no braço. Toda vez que você reclamar, troque ela de braço. Seu desafio é passar 21 dias sem trocá-la de braço.

Queridos leitores, comecei o desafio há um mês e, hoje, completo 3 dias sem trocar a pulseira de braço! Acho que dessa vez conseguirei meus 21 dias (wish me luck!)…

Pois bem, dito isto, começo minha resenha sobre o Cornhills Coffee, uma simpática casa de american/british breakfast, localizada na comercial da 202 sul. Sua proposta é servir cafés elaborados e chás ingleses de alto nível, como não se encontra na cidade. Há, também, várias opções de cafés da manhã americanos, com ovos mexidos, bacon crocante, pancakes com maple syrup, suco de laranja, frutas grelhadas…

Foto do prato, retirada de um site. O verdadeiro é diferente...

A proposta é muito boa! Mas lembremos que propostas sozinhas não dão resultados.

Sábado convidei amigos para conhecer o café e… Bem, como estou proibido de reclamar, vou apenas relatar os fatos. Tirem vocês suas conclusões. Aí vai:

- ao chegarmos, percebemos que havia um aniversário acontecendo, a casa estava cheia;

- um garçom nos informou que não tinha mesas disponíveis, apesar de haver duas mesas reservadas (eram 21h30);

- outro garçom nos deixou sentar à mesa e depois discutiu com o primeiro garçom;

- nossa mesa ficava no escuro, ao relento… A mesa da reserva-que-nunca-chegou tinha uma vela acesa… A nossa não;

- pedimos os pratos maravilhosos do cardápio, uns combos que tinham cafés/chás, sucos, e o breakfast (com ovos, bacon crocante, pancakes com maple syrup e frutas grelhadas), no momento do pedido pedimos que os cafés/chás viessem primeiro;

- o garçom voltou após uns 15 minutos e confirmou se queríamos que os cafés/chás viessem primeiro, e nós concordamos;

- os sucos chegaram primeiro;

- depois chegaram os cafés/chás;

- ficamos degustando nossos sucos com cafés/chás, sem comida alguma (alguns tentaram ver se era bom ficar revesando o café e o suco, tomando um gole de cada vez, o que não é recomendado);

- chegaram os pratos e dois vieram incompletos (sem os ovos);

- os bacons não eram crocantes, pois eram só gordura crua (no escuro, teve quem os confundisse com as bananas grelhadas):

- uma amiga que fez seu pedido depois, o recebeu perfeitamente, mas sem os talheres, que só chegaram uns 10 minutos depois, após muita insistência com os garçons;

- outra amiga que chegou depois pediu o cardápio, que nunca chegou;

- eu e essa amiga nos levantamos e fomos até o balcão; escolhemos um brownie e pedimos que levassem à mesa… ele nunca chegou.

Bem, gente, esses são os fatos. Tirem suas conclusões. As pancakes são gostosinhas até, mas não se arrisquem a sentar e pedir, pois não vale a pena. Se for o caso, peça pra viagem e saia o mais rápido da casa.

Por fim, quero protestar contra os empresários do ramo gastronômico de Brasília, que investem horrores na estrutura física de seus restaurantes e nada em treinamento de seus funcionários. É um absurdo! (ai, acho que terei de trocar a pulseirinha de braço…)

I love brunch. Sure, I could always break the rules and have pancakes for dinner or pizza for breakfast, but brunch gives me those options without making me feel like I’m breaking rules (of course, breaking rules is fun but I digress).  So today when one of my girlfriends, Lala, wanted to meet for brunch, I put down the Captain Crunch and suggested we try out Joli Kobe, a bakery cafe located in The Prado in Sandy Springs.

We were NOT disappointed.

I ordered the Chicken Mushroom Crepe  and was greeted with a towering garden salad atop my expertly prepared crepe. Lala got the Bistro Brunch Plate (I cannot explain how pretty this display was) that included crab eggs benedict, quiche of the day (today’s quiche was crab), soup (more crab, this time in bisque form), and a tomato slice topped with fresh mozzerella. Needless to say, she didn’t finish the plate and took the quiche home for dinner.

Joli Kobe isn’t insanely expensive but our bill (including my cappuccino and Lala’s diet coke) came to around $35 which is a hell of a lot more expensive than that bowl of cereal I was originally going to have. Next time I think we could split the Brunch plate, split our bill, and split our calories.

Joli Kobe is open for brunch on Sundays and lunch Monday-Saturday. Check out their full brunch menu.

I give you “Rava Dosas with Potato Chickpea Masala.”  Now, I’ll be the first (and Becca, a close second) to tell you that I generally don’t willingly cook or even order vegetarian dishes.  Unless it’s pizza.  Pizza counts, right?  But last night I was informed that not only would I a) be responsible for dinner that night, b) by myself, and c) for four.  D) was that we should invite one of our good friends that keeps kosher.  This presents plenty of fun issues to work around.  While I’d usually take the easy road and just substitute tofu, I decided to go for it last night.

Out comes epicurious and “Lord Krishna’s Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking.”  I had picked it up used off amazon a couple years ago and hadn’t cooked from it once.  From that, I came up with the dish shown above and a curried creamed spinach.  The latter was good enough that the remains disappeared before the camera could be found.

This was amazingly tasty (I should say “is,” given that I am eating leftovers while typing this), but I would definitely recommend working in pairs or planning about two hours to do this, especially if you’re making anything else.  Stirring the masala, adding cream to the spinach, and making the rava dosas (the crepe-like pancake it’s sitting in) while setting the table for four does not make for a relaxing evening.  Fun fact about eating this:  One person went burrito style, one folded with fork-and-knife, and two ethiopian, tearing bits of the crepe off individually with the masala.

I think that cookbook is going be making more appearances.  Stay tuned.

nothing to do with the post, just thought you would enjoy seeing a man making a crepe

Testing out a new look for OctoSquid. I’m kinda liking the cleaner look of the blog, but the photos need to be reduced in size and need some work.

Anyone got any feedback for me? Like? Hate? Don’t care at all? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Also, if you’ll notice there is a new URL. You can now find OctoSquid at http://theoctosquid.com.

by the way, “Urbanspoon rocks”.

I know, I know, the title is a bit deceiving, and World Nutella Day has not yet arrived. Not until February everyone! Nutella is a relatively new concept to me, introduced to me only two years ago on my first trip to Italy. It is an amazingly versatile spread that can be put just about anywhere – eaten on nice warm crepe, making it oozy; inside a cornetto (croissant); or how I’ve Americanized it, smothered on an English muffin or waffle. But those are not the only ways you can eat Nutella. To describe all the many ways to eat Nutella, it would take an entire book.

Since I am currently not in Italy, it is a bit difficult to have a true Italian breakfast. Or is it? Thankfully I have been able to purchase my little jug of heaven, and have even come up with a way to always have the most perfect cappuccino. This summer while I was at the mercato (picture an open-air market), I bought one of these contraptions:

Pentola

I would not have bought it there if it was at all possible to buy here in the States. At the supermercato (supermarket) the smallest pots cost more than 9 euros in the Urbino area. You can’t tell by the angle and by this photo, but this one is a rather large one that cost me just 10 euros at the mercato which is a steal. So what is it used for? Well, after experimenting many times with our espresso machine (in the States) and having unsatisfying schiuma (foam) results, it came time to buy one of these. The milk is heated up on the stove. Once heated, remove the pot from the stove, and place the top on it (not pictured here). The top is attached to a medal rod with a piece of mesh. Once placed on top, simply pump the rod up and down, creating that fluffy light foam the cappuccino is most famous for. Voila!

Perfect foam everytime!

What does this have to do with Nutella? A cappuccino and Nutella go perfectly together. So I whip up a cappuccino, toast my English muffin or waffle, smother it with Nutella, and you have a perfect fix of an Italian breakfast!

Buon appetito!

Dan says…

The Creperi has been on our radar screen for quite a while.  The Five were eating subs when we saw two familiar faces looking at the vacant space in the building that houses Intajuice and Penn Station.  I was overjoyed because I love Greek food and this couple make the best Greek Salads and chicken and rice soup I have ever tasted.  Sadly I never got to enjoy soup and salad, because due to an archaic lease the Creperi is not allowed to duplicate what is served at Penn Station. 

I need to say why this is stupid and ignorant.  Do you know why all the good restaurants open around a Wal-Mart?  You open a business where there is foot traffic to support it and Wal-Mart brings traffic.  So if you bring more traffic to that block of Kanawha City then everyone will do well.  That stupid lease hobbles the Creperi and lets Penn Station do a half way job.  The landlord would benefit from having successful businesses in the building. Rant off.

I have visited the Creperi two times recently.  Once for lunch with the crew and once for dessert with the veggie wife and offspring.  During my lunch visit I ordered the smoked salmon and gouda on a buckwheat crepe. 

This creation starts by spreading a thin batter across a well seasoned, large circular griddle.  As your crepe cooks the ingredients to fill the crepe are gathered.  Smoked salmon, creamy gouda, mixed greens, roma tomatoes and homemade greek dressing are layered onto the crepe after in has been flipped.  It is folded once, twice and then a third time to form sort of a crepe envelope.  I enjoyed this made to order creation. 

Also on this visit we ordered up a dessert crepe.  This crepe had a traditional shell filled with brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and sliced almonds.  We 86′d the raisins due the “quirky” (these quotes are not for emphasis.  This is a quote) requirements of another Forker.  I enjoyed this crepe too.  How can you go wrong with brown sugar and butter?

On my second visit we had dessert for dinner.  Tracey and the girls had Belgium chocolate and fruit filled crepes.  Fresh raspberries and bananas topped with powdered sugar was a hit.  I went with a breakfast crepe. The basic crepe batter is topped with cream cheese, fresh blueberries and grape or blueberry jelly.  Now I wanted it to taste like my mom’s born jewish and converted Roman Catholic best friend’s cheese blinz.  No where close.  There was too much cream cheese for my taste.  The blueberries were nice and plump, but when I figured out that it was filled with jelly I could finish it. I think I imagined it would be made from blueberry pie filling.  Is canned blueberry pie filling a quality ingredient? Ah..no.  Does it taste good? Oh yeah!

I like the food, the service and the atmosphere, but I wish it had an expanded menu. 

 The owner told me that he and his wife were close to closing a deal to open a lunch counter downtown that they would run in addition to the Creperi.  The “Cafe Sophia” would serve soups, salad, gyros and other Greek offerings. 

If you are looking for something different for lunch or a cool dessert, try the Three Fork Cafe Creperi.

Susan says… I was concerned that just a crepe for lunch wouldn’t fill me up.  Boy was I wrong.  These things are as big as the plate. I ordered the shrimp crepe for $6.50 which came wth feta cheese, Greek dressing, mixed greens, and onion.  It was interesting to watch the batter being poured onto the crepe plate and swirled around.  The crepes are thin and delicate.

At first, I was loving my dish.  There were a lot of shrimp, plenty of crumbled, sharp feta cheese, tomatoes, onion and a pile of greens.  (And we all know I don’t like it when folks skimp on the lettuce.)  BUT….as I ate my way through the crepe concoction, the lettuce became wilty from the heat of the crepe and the dressing soaked into the bottom half of the crepe making it somewhat soggy.  By the end of it all, I was cutting off pieces of non-soggy crepe to eat along with the shrimp and feta, and leaving the wilted greens alone.

In the future, I will ask for this crepe with the greens and dressing on the side.  That way I can enjoy all the flavors and textures in combination, but keep my crepe non-soggy and my lettuce crisp.  I’ll just add this to my list of food quirks and move on with my life.

Not able to resist the yummy dessert options, the table (minus Phil) decided to order the Crepe Buena, made with brown sugar, cinnamon, butter and toasted almonds, for $5.50.  As Daniel already mentioned, we passed on the raisins.  It was just as good as I thought it would be.  I would like to try one of the chocolate options with Nutella.

Here’s the perfect visit to Cafe Crepari:  bring a friend with similar taste in food, order one savory crepe to share for the entree and a dessert crepe to share afterward.  That way you don’t miss out on any of the good stuff they have to offer.

Unfortunately, there were some things that detracted from the dining experience.  Our food was served on flimsy paper plates.  The kind your mom would buy in a pack of 100 for $.99 and use at picnics with the rattan paper plate holders.  Only here, you don’t get a rattan holder.   Plastic utensils are a pet peeve of mine.  My first fork suffered a broken tine midway through the meal.  Fountain drinks are not an option, but the availability of Perrier made up for that.  French sparkling mineral water to go along with my crepe…

Don’t forget that you can visit the Creperi for breakfast – they are open 7 am – 8 pm on weekdays and 8 am – 8 pm on weekends.

I like the personal service by the Master Crepe Maker himself.  I like the menu options and wish they could offer even more (damn that lease) and the prices are reasonable.  Good tasting, unique food.  TWO FORKS.

Creperi Cafe