“Finally” was the first word that came to my mind when I got an email from Norma announcing a “celebration in honor of Chef John Howie’s new cookbook:  Passion & Palate:  Recipes for a Generous Table.” Chef John Howie is the owner of Seastar restaurant and raw bar (as well as Sports and Steak) which has been, and still is, one of our favorite restaurants since we move to WA about 10 years ago. I’ve been waiting for this cookbook ever since.

So, yeah, finally. He wrote a cookbook.

The launch party was a lot of fun with some of my favorite dishes:

Raw, fresh oysters with shallots, grapefruit and pomegranate seeds

(The recipe is in the book.)

Scallop ceviche with mango-kiwi relish (It’s in the book!)

Sushi… I love their pickled ginger (That red pile in the front)—it’s the best!

(And what do you know? They are all included in the book!)

Chubby oysters in a creamy leek sauce and silky deviled eggs with Ahi tartare (It’s in the book!)

I believe this was a Mahi Mahi ceviche with pineapple relish. Yum yum.
(And if I’m right then… It’s in the book! Page 55)

Shots of porcini soup with truffles cream (You guessed it, it’s in the book.)

All this beautiful food spearheaded by Chef Howie

Superb wines were poured by the charming sommelier, Erik Liedholm (Fantastic suit, BTW) from champagne to sauvignon blanc to an esoteric wine/grape I never heard about before and can’t remember it’s name, to pinot noir, and moscato—Wow—I tried them all.

No, it’s not in the book (Or maybe it is?) It’s close to home, from Willamette Valley, OR

A tower of desserts: Lemon poppy seeds cookies, White chocolate Irish cream truffles (It was so soft, like a baby’s butt!), Chocolate hot chili truffles (I Love, love chili & chocolate together), and Ginger snap cookies.

Fun party,

and then we went home

They say that 350 people tested the recipes.

What should I make first?

Mussels Provencal or crab cakes?

Do you remember what you did during Memorial Day weekend?

Sometimes when people ask me on Monday, “How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun?” I totally blackout. Zilch. Nothing. My mind goes blank and cannot produce a syllable.

Memorial Day weekend sure seems like it had happened a looong time ago but it’s only been a few days. Nevertheless, I’m still thinking about our visit to the Seattle Art Museum (SAM).

We had our first sort-of staycation. Why sort of? Because we stayed close to home, and had an easy, short vacation – we’re just too tired/lazy to do anything beyond that – but we spent one night in a hotel. So, I’m not sure it counts as a staycation but it sure felt like it.

On the first day we went to the museum. We haven’t been there in the past few months and I knew there is a Kurt Cobain exhibit going on. Were you a Nirvana fan? Gosh, that was in the early 90’s…. like… 20 years ago! It’s feels as though it’s been 2-3 years; smells like teen spirit to me, hahaha. Ahem.

So, back to the museum… Locals, have you been there yet?

At the entrance, car crash

Green bottle person. Recycle, people, recycle!

But some art… I just don’t get. Like this white painting,

Or this one…

Just look at her pointing at that painting. She looks like a pro, doesn’t she?

I thought “Maybe like in The Little Prince book where the boy draws a picture of a boa snake that had swallowed an elephant but all the adults can see is a hat… Kids have more imagination and creativity and open mindedness, unlike us, the grownups…”  So I consulted with my little one, “What do you see in this painting?”

“It’s balloons!”, she explained. “How can you not get it?” I could hear her think.

So I thought I’d better ask her what does she think about this other white painting,

“It’s paper.”

“Ohhh, right, how come I haven’t thought about that…”

I don’t know… I just don’t get it. Do you? Please, if you do, teach me. I beg you.

This, on the other hand, gives me the chills every time I see it.

I think of wars and soldiers… dead soldiers… Thousands of people, fighting, wounded, killed.

This statue/sculpture – people, help me out – is scary and makes me shiver too; a big black rat standing over a person lying in bed…. Brrrr…

***

What is this about?

And then it was time to eat.

What I especially like about SAM is the restaurant that is attached to it, Taste. Unlike many other museums and cultural venues that offer the typical junk food – how disappointing is that?! – Taste has wonderful, fresh, organic, and sophisticated menu. You can read about the magnificent food in my previous post: How much does junk food really cost?

I started feeling a bit “art-sy” myself,

Oh, well, I need some more practice.

Can you tell, who was the hungriest?

After lunch we went back to the museum – don’t worry, you’ll get dessert later…

– to make some of our own art. We found 3 areas inside SAM where kids can play, read, and make art!

Then we headed to the Kurt Cobain exhibit.

No photos allowed. You’ll just have to go and see it.

I took this photo before I knew about it.

It wasn’t a big exhibition but it was very intense. And it took me back in time and made me wish I lived in Seattle back then, during the Grunge era.

Now I do, but those bands that still live and perform are middle-aged and I don’t go to their concerts. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think it’s just not the same thing… I see it differently now.

***

Another area for kids to play, read, and make art

and get a view of the grey city

and its many grey cars.

Oh, so many shades of grey. But, hey, I spotted a blue one!

***

One day, I might do this to my dining room wall.

A wall painted with a zillion of tiny black dots. I’m serious. I believe this can be good therapy.

But can I do this?

OK, we haven’t eaten anything for the past…. hour or so… and we’re back at Taste for dessertS with a capital S!

7 types of cookies (I couldn’t repeat their names a second after the waiter finished saying them) and a glass of organic milk. What a lovely dessert. Genius in its simplicity. I’ve got nothing to say beyond that.

That was my dessert: polenta pudding, rhubarb compote, and parsley ice cream. Mmmmmmmmm.

That was one fantastic lemon ice cream. I’m not a big fan of lemony desserts but this ice cream was delicate and light on the palate (not acidic and attacking like most lemon desserts are made), and very smooth and creamy.

She liked it too; can you tell?

Junior, or the other hand, thinks he’s a celebrity or something… and wouldn’t let me take his photo.

And off we go to the hotel after hours at SAM and Taste.

The end

On the road from Redmond to Woodinville there’s a cute neighborhood mall, Bella Bottega, where you will find Coho Café. We first dined at Coho before we had kids. We sat at a table by the warm fireplace on a Saturday and had lunch. This is a nice place to go to for either lunch or dinner, or to meet friends before/after a movie for drinks and appetizers (there’s a movie theater at the mall).

The place is usually packed with people and is a very lively and energetic spot (but not too loud that you can’t hear yourself think). Coho’s menu offers Pacific-Northwest food, classic American, and Asian inspired dishes. There’s a weekly menu – which I encourage you to order from – featuring seasonal dishes and local wines (mainly from Washington and Oregon).

I consider Coho to be a family-friendly restaurant. In general, any restaurant that is noisy enough to conceal a child’s squeal and doesn’t have a too sophisticated menu is considered a family-friendly restaurant by me (especially if you have young children).

Last night we went there with friends – all with young children – for an early dinner (always a good idea with little kids). While we waited for our food to arrive, the kids were busy coloring their kids menu with crayons provided by the restaurant. Coho’s kids menu is offered to kids 12 and under, and has a nice selection of dishes like Grilled Salmon or Grilled Chicken Breast with Mashers & Veggies ($6.50 you), or Fish n’ Chips with Fruit and Chicken Strips with Fries & Fruit ($5.99).

I tried Basil-Pancetta Prawns with Mediterranean Couscous salad ($16.99), (see photo above) which was very nice, paired with Washington Hills “Summit Reserve” chardonnay ($6.75/glass), lovely wine. My husband and one of our friends both ordered Horseradish and Panko Crusted Halibut Fillet served with Potato Hash, Crispy Onion Rings and Smoked Tomato Tartar Sauce ($18.99). It was delicious and satisfying. I actually liked it better than my prawns. Another friend ordered Soy-sesame glazed salmon, Ginger-Jasmine rice, Stir Fried Edamame, Braised Shiitake & Crispy Soba ($14.99). The kids chose Fish and Chips ($5.99) and I took a bite. It was wonderful.

Soy-Sesame Glazed Salmon with Ginger Rice and Edamame

A word of advise: ask the waiter to tell the kitchen to be easy with the salt on the kids fries. I have found them to be waaaay too salty on previous occasions. It’s really unnecessary and not so healthy. Also, I always check out the kids meal to make sure it’s fresh and tasty. The Fish & Chips were wonderful. I wish I could order that.

Bottom line, dinner was wonderful. It’s a place we go to again and again.

Horseradish Crusted Halibut Fillet, Potato Hash, Crispy Onion Rings and Smoked Tomato Tartar Sauce

Inside the Cafe

Busy kids…

Coho Cafe, Redmond

Address: 8976 161st Ave. NE
Phone: (425) 885-2646

www.cohocafe.com

A few years ago while visiting Los Angeles I was invited to dinner. The host prepared salmon and I asked her: “what type of salmon is it?” She looked at me somewhat puzzled: ”what do you mean what type of salmon?”. “Is it a Sockeye? A Coho? A Chinook?” I tried again. “It’s salmon. I don’t know what kind of salmon. I bought it at the store”, she replied starting to lose her patience. I always ask hosts a bunch of questions about the food and irritate them…

I come from a place where salmon is only… salmon. But after 8 years of living and traveling in the Pacific Northwest, I learned a thing or two about this magnificent fish, about fresh seafood, and the Pacific Northwest cuisine which I knew nothing about before. I fell in love with it. Crab cakes, scallops, fresh berries… salmon… local wines… oh, and freshly brewed coffee… This is heaven.

However this is not a tutorial about salmon. What I really want is to tell you about the fantastic meal that The Husband (TH) and I had last night at Ray’s Boathouse in Seattle thanks to Foodbuzz editors who were interested in a post about this restaurant. Thank you Foodbuzz!

Well then… big inhale… finally, a night out. We so deserve a quiet dinner in a charming restaurant with dim lights, watching the water of Shilshole Bay, drinking local wine, waiting for our order of fresh seafood, without the kids. We so do deserve it. I love my kids! Tremendously! I want to squish them and squeeze them and constantly kiss them… and, of course, a family dinner at home is #1 on my list of priorities.

That being said, while most of our dinners at home feature great food, sometimes the kids don’t want to eat it, and one of them is usually crying, or whining, or… have to go poopy… I’m sure some of you can relate to that experience. (See my previous Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: 5 Stars Dinner at Home… But Will the Kids Eat It?). So last night was for our Couplehood.

About Ray’s Boathouse

Ray’s Boathouse restaurant is a Seattle icon since 1973. It is well-known for its Northwest seafood and waterfront view of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. We have dined there several times before when we moved to Washington and when celebrating special occasions. It’s always been excellent – the ambiance, the food, the wine, the service. It is a tourists’ must-do attraction as well, but of the good kind (not the tourist trap sort). It’s a place everyone needs to know about and visit at least once.

It’s been a while since our last time there, so we thought we should go back and see what’s on the menu. One of the things I like about Ray’s is that they are serving and supporting as much as possible seasonal, sustainable, organic, free-range, and local food.

A few words about the Pacific Northwest Cuisine, to those of you who are curious.

Pacific Northwest Cuisine refers mainly to the states of Washington and Oregon and its style of cooking is inspired by the cold and rainy weather and waters and of this corner of the continent. The Northwest offers an abundance of fresh seafood, including salmon, Dungeness crab, trout, scallops, mussels, clams, and oysters, and is famous for produce like apples (Washington produce about half the nation’s supply), berries, pears, grapes, and let’s not forget coffee (Seattle started the coffee obsession that has spread to the rest of the country).

A typical menu will include fresh local ingredients such as fresh seafood, herbs, wild mushrooms (thank you, rain), fruits – especially berries, as well as wine. The preparation methods emphasis simplicity with Asian and Native American culinary influences. For example, some restaurants plank roast salmon (using a board of cedar or alder wood) in the tradition of several Native American tribes of the region.

I asked Lori, Ray’s PR, about the Asian influence on the cuisine, and she explained it this way:

“the proximity to Japan (geographically we are part of the Pacific Rim) and the large influx/influence of Asian immigrants in this region have played a major role in shaping Northwest cuisine… Certainly our owners made a conscious decision to honor this influence while sourcing the bounty of products available from Northwest farms and waters”.

So what was on our plates?

The Dinner at Ray’s Boathouse

We arrived around 7 pm. It was already very dark so although we had a table with a view to the water, we were able to mainly see the reflection of the restaurant in the window. I advise that you go earlier to be able to enjoy the water view. How about sunset?

We started with a cocktail, Doug Fir Drop. Made of Douglas Fir eau de vie, vodka, lemon, and lime. The Husband (TH) says it’s not a girls’ drink. A bit dry, sweet, lemony sour and pine-y as if you stuck your nose into a big tree.

Next, for appetizers TH ordered Heirloom Tomato Consommé with tarragon, saffron, and Dungeness crab. It was lovely. Light, perfectly clear, and teasing for more. I had Slow Roasted Skagit River Ranch Organic Pork Belly which was served with sweet and perfectly cooked Alaskan scallop ‘larded’ with vanilla bean, very fresh watercress (as if it was picked only seconds ago), and an orange vinaigrette that lifted this dish from heavier to a lighter appetizer.

I totally forgot to take photos of the appetizers. I never take photos of food in restaurants. And this is my first time writing a review about a restaurant. I’ll tell ya, it’s work! It’s one thing to eat out and discuss the food with your family/friends, and a completely different experience when you are going to write/report about it and post it so other people can read it.

Next, the entrees.

TH had Seared White Golf Prawns served with red potatoes, prosciutto, mustard greens, and walnut-miso sauce piled in a tall stack. Although a seafood entree, it would satisfy every steak addict who usually refuse to give up their hunk of meat. A very hearty dish.

TH chose a Chardonnay from Chinook winery at Yakima Valley, WA to drink with it.

I ordered Dungeness Crab Cakes with green papaya-carrot salad, jasmine rice,
green curry remoulade. The crab cakes were perfect, crispy on the outside and a bit spicy. The green curry remoulade was spicy and creamy and complementing the cakes. As for the side dishes, I did not like them as much. While the carrots had a nice spicy flavor, the raw papaya strips were somewhat bitter and gummy, with a hint of anis flavor – which you might like or not – but the rice was plain and boring.

I could not make up my mind about wine – white or red – after the cocktail and asked our knowledgeable and friendly waiter for advice. He recommended a Pinot Gris from Milbrandt Vineyards at Columbia Valley, WA.

Moving on to desserts, TH had Sour Cherry Almond Cake with toasted almond ice cream, sour cherry coulis. This was a light cake with a fluffy vanilla frosting, and perfectly toasted almonds.

I ordered a Strawberry-Rhubarb Tart with ricotta and cream cheese filling, served with vanilla ice cream and raspberry coulis. I thought it was an OK dessert, but was mainly disappointed by the soggy tart dough. The ice cream was excellent! Real vanilla flavor.

Overall, it was a wonderful dinner. I would definitely go back again, only next time we will go earlier while there’s still light to enjoy the beautiful views (during summer it can be as late as 9 pm), and bring the kids. Where else can one find Grilled Salmon, Dungeness Crab Cake, or Steamed Clams on the kids’ menu?

A Recipe from Ray’s cookbook

It was hard to pick only one recipe from this cookbook. Everything looks so good. But I chose the one that symbolizes more than anything the big ordeal people here make about salmon. It features Copper River Salmonwhich is considered to be The King of Kings. I have cooked this pricy fish once at home and was… speechless. It was so surprisingly soft and buttery and melt-in-your-mouth fish. I’ve never had anything like it before, never ever.

This is something you must try at least once in your life. I said bye-bye to $24 and bought a pound of fillet, cooked it simply, and was heaven on earth. (It can cost even more, up to $40/lb. and some say even $70, unless you want to buy a whole fish for less $$). To read more about this fish, click here.

Grilled Copper River King Salmon with Pinot Noir sauce

Slightly modified and copied with permission from Ray’s Boathouse cookbook
Makes 4 servings

4 6-ounce Copper River king salmon fillets
Olive oil
Pinot Noir sauce
12 blackberries

Prepare mesquite or charcoal coals. Baste flash side of fillets with olive oil and place flesh side down on grill (it’s not in the recipe but I know I could not resist to sprinkle a little bit of salt – N.). When marked, turn fish 90 degrees to achieve a crisscross look. Baste skin side with olive oil and turn over. Cook just until the translucency is leaving the center of the thickest part of the fillet. Total grilling time is approximately 10 minutes, depending on thickness of fish.

Place on plates and drizzle with Pinot Noir sauce and garnish with blackberries. Serve immediately.

For Pinot Noir sauce:
Yield 1 cup

1 cup pinot Noir
6 blackberries
1 shallot, chopped
1 sprig fresh thyme
½ cup fish stock or chicken broth
¼ cup heavy cream
½ pound unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1-inch pieces
Kosher salt

In a heavy 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, combine wine, blackberries, shallots, thyme, and stock and reduce, stirring, until sauce is thin and glossy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Be careful not to scorch. Add cream and reduce by half, about 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Slowly whisk in butter one piece at a time until thoroughly incorporated. Do not boil or sauce will separate. After all the butter has been added, immediately strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove solids. Season with salt to taste. Serve immediately.

Previously on Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: 5 Stars Dinner at Home… But Will the Kids Eat It?

Eating out while on a trip or vacation, with or without kids, can become a stressful event. Going out for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and maybe snacks too, every day throughout your vacation, can be tiring. Choosing a restaurant, driving, parking, waiting to be seated, reading the menu, consulting, deciding, ordering, waiting, paying, waiting… add kids to that… Oh, it makes me tired just to think about it.

Vacation is fun. Eating out is fun. But when it is done a 3-5 times a day, every day, for a week or so, it can turn into a not-so-much-fun experience. Here are a few tips and things to consider that we have learned on our last trip to Whistler, BC, last summer (a great place for a family vacation in the summer and winter, by the way).

Lessons learned and tips to share:

1. Book a hotel that serves breakfast. This will save you time and money and will make your morning more relaxed as you don’t have to go anywhere or drive to another location. You can go back to your room after you had your coffee and your belly is full to finish getting ready for the rest of the day.

2. Choose a room with a kitchenette or at least a mini refrigerator. This is great when you want to have a light and peaceful meal in the room, or a snack, as well as store leftovers from a restaurant meal. We usually buy some food at a local grocery store (like cheeses, deli meat, fruits and vegetables, bread, yogurt, and milk) and eat in the room at least once a day. We find it is much easier to do this when we are with the kids than to drag them to restaurants all day long. It cost less too.

3. The “kids menu”. We have fallen in the “kids menu” trap before and no need to say that we hated it. The selection of food from the “kids menu” can be frustrating. However, if you do order from the kids menu, check for quality. Taste a bite to make sure the food is fresh. If your child if fussy or picky and don’t want to eat their food, maybe it’s because it is not cooked right or taste good. Also, read my post: Kids’ menu – Is it good for them? Is it good for you?

4. Buy food to go. Young kids have a hard time sitting for long periods of time all nice and quiet. In the summer, you can buy sandwiches or a lunch basket and have a picnic by the lake. In the winter you can find a sheltered area or go back to your room and have an indoor “picnic” there.

5. Split and share. In most restaurants the serving size per person is huge and can feed 2 people, and sometimes even 4 people. To save money and extra pounds, you can order 2 entrées or a few appetizers for the whole family and share. I once overheard a waitress asking another customer if they have been to the restaurant before and know that the portions are large. She asked if they would like smaller portions. I asked her for smaller portions of what we ordered and it was perfect. Lesson learned –always ask.

6. Do you let your kids choose from the menu for themselves? On one hand, everyone gets to choose what they like at the restaurant, right?! On the other hand, if your child can’t read, you can skip those items you don’t want them to eat (for example, I tend to skip the PBJ sandwich, grilled cheese sandwich, Mac and cheese, pizza, etc). I admit, I lied in the past to my son and told him that the restaurant we were dining at doesn’t serve Mac and cheese. I read to him the items I wanted him to eat. He is a good reader now, so this strategy in no longer applicable. This is where our authority as parents and new strategies come to play in setting boundaries.

7. The Mac and cheese episode. Do you have a kid that will be happy if s/he can eat Mac and cheese all day long? Theoretically, we have one of those (“Theoretically” because we don’t want to test it to find out). Now we limit M&C to once a week while on a trip, and chicken strips with fries every now and then. If you prefer to avoid these battles altogether, at least order something along the cheesy pasta like vegetables, chicken, or fish to balance the cheese-carbs ratio.

8. Kids don’t have to know about ALL the ingredients in the dish, right?! My son likes pesto but the restaurant served spinach pesto. I knew he wouldn’t eat it if he knew about the spinach so I “forgot” to mention it to him. Oops. He enjoyed his pasta with spinach pesto, goat cheese and nuts, and asked for it again the next day. What would you do – tell or not?

9. If you want to go to a fancy restaurant with your kids, check with them ahead if it would be OK for the kids to sit at the table and do a coloring book. We usually bring an activity book and colors with us because not every restaurant has them.

10. Don’t forget to eat your veggies. You will find out that the most popular vegetable side dish is made with potatoes: fries, mashed, baked, and all other forms. Of course we love them in all shapes and sizes, but after a couple of lunches and dinners, it’s time for some veggies, no?!

11. Juice comes only with dessert, not before the entrée. We usually don’t drink juice at home but while on vacation we loosen up on this. However, we prefer that our son drinks juice only if he eats most of his meal and usually not beofre it’s time for dessert.

And, don’t forget… have fun! Lots of fun!

I must say, I am not a big supporter of the kids’ menu concept, so this is not a criterion for choosing a family friendly restaurant. I will make a separate post about that topic later on.

What I have in mind when I am looking for a family friendly restaurant is a place where:
* Children can make noises without having other customers staring at them with scary grumpy looks
* Both kids and their parents can enjoy and share good food
* Both kids and their parents can have a good time
* Children do need to sit at the table and participate in a conversation and/or color with crayons until the food is ready (of course you should have different expectation from different age groups; 2-3 year old will have less patience, but 4 year old should be able to sit through dinner, at least until it’s dessert time. And when dessert finally arrives, they usually cooperate gladly and sit on their bottoms and eat their dessert quietly and with much concentration).

Here a few of our favorite restaurants:

Vios cafe, Seattle
This is our number one favorite.
I love to eat there. I loved to work there. My son keeps asking to go back and have lunch or dinner there.
AND they have a play area for the kids.

Pomegranate, Redmond
A noisy local restaurant serving good food. It won’t make a big difference if your kids are a bit noisy too.

Firenze, Bellevue
We only went there for lunch. Don’t know how dinner time works with kids.
It is very casual at lunch time. Of course they have pasta which kids love. But it’s good pasta, not your ordinary fake Mac and Cheese they serve at the junk food places. But don’t order pasta with butter and cheese. Instead encourage your children to try something new and/or ask the waiter to add a kids’ portion of protein to the dish (fish/chicken/meat, etc).

Barking Frog, Woodinville
They have a great outdoor dining. On a sunny day, sitting at the patio feels like you are in Tuscany. Kids will like it too and it’s more casual.

Coho Café, Redmond, Issaquah
We prefer the one in Redmond better than the other in Issaquah. They also have a very nice patio which is always a better option than sitting inside when you dine with children.

I will continue to update this list.
Please share in the comments section your thoughts, ideas, your favorite family friendly restaurants, etc.

Nurit