Here it is, Halloween morning. I am enjoying a well made cup of coffee and fielding excited questions from the girls. In fact, a witch just walked into my office. Should I be scared?
I know somewhere there is a little princess putting on her holiday face.
Kids and the young at heart have been looking forward to this day for months!
Today we take our little treaters to the local theme park, Carowinds, for a day of trick or treating and roller coasters. Then down to my parents for some door knocking and when all the demons have returned to their beds, mommy and I are going to a big peoples party. Too much fun for one day.
I love Halloween. No two have been the same. The festivity level as a community effort exceeds even Christmas for parties, decorations, activities, etc.
And although it definitely increases the glycemic index to near diabetic coma levels, it is in my opinion, the most exciting holiday of the year.
Here is a good cocktail recipe for adults (remove rum and bourbon for kids):
Demon Possession Caramel Apple Cider:
1 gallon Apple Cider
1/3 gallon blended Dark rum and bourbon and Butterscotch schnapps
cinnamon
nutmeg
1/4 cup Honey
Candy eyeballs, Candy Corns, Candy Bats, etc. 2 cups
Blend Cider spices and honey in a sauce pan, heat till very warm
remove from heat..
Add liquor
Float candy in mixture
Serve hot (can be served cold, just skip heating stage)
Enjoy responsibly!
Happy Haunting! Cheers....
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
All things brought to you by sponsors
Here is my very limited commercial break. If you happen to see an interesting link on my page, please click it. It helps pay for this blog.
Thanks,
Eric
Thanks,
Eric
Monday, October 26, 2009
Misspelling and a retraction...
Hello Friends,
On a whim yesterday I sent a tweet to Rick Bayless of Frontera Restaurant. You can follow him at http://Twitter.com/Rick_Bayless In it I included a link to my recipe for Papatzul from an earlier entry. Rick is probably the number one Mexican Cuisine chef in America today and was the winner of Top Chef Masters Series. I am honored and surprised that he replied to me. Actually I am not that surprised. He seemed like a genuine and warm individual on TCM. I am also not surprised that he corrected me on my recipe. He is after all a master at his craft. His reply indicated that the recipe I posted was for something called Sikil Pak. And Papadzul(notice the spelling change) is actually enchiladas with Hard Boiled egg and a pumpkin seed sauce. This also sounds delicious and I will be cooking it soon. Look for the review.
So I hit the google this morning and this is what I discovered.
First, Papatzul is a restaurant in NYC. http://www.papatzul.com/
Second, please follow this link: http://lisaiscooking.blogspot.com/2009/08/sikil-pak.html
This blog entry was a good explanation of the process and result of the recipe I previously thought of as Papatzul. I stand corrected. My only concern is how I will explain to "Pepe" my Mayan/Mexican Friend in Belize that his famous recipe is actually not Papatzul, but Sikil Pak. I have to ponder that one.
I found a recipe for Papadzul on Epicurean.com(very similar to my original), but it included things like canned chilies so I will be altering the recipe myself to use fresh or dried chilies(probably Habanero, seeded and chopped). I would like to offer Chef Rick a chance to add his input here in the form of a recipe for either Papadzul or Sikil Pak. We would appreciate your advice Chef.
Ultimately I am not sure if Papatzul is with a "T" or"D", probably both. But I appreciated the reply from Chef Rick Bayless and as ever I am searching for the answers to lifes' persistent questions and I have just learned something new.... :)
Cheers,
Eric
On a whim yesterday I sent a tweet to Rick Bayless of Frontera Restaurant. You can follow him at http://Twitter.com/Rick_Bayless In it I included a link to my recipe for Papatzul from an earlier entry. Rick is probably the number one Mexican Cuisine chef in America today and was the winner of Top Chef Masters Series. I am honored and surprised that he replied to me. Actually I am not that surprised. He seemed like a genuine and warm individual on TCM. I am also not surprised that he corrected me on my recipe. He is after all a master at his craft. His reply indicated that the recipe I posted was for something called Sikil Pak. And Papadzul(notice the spelling change) is actually enchiladas with Hard Boiled egg and a pumpkin seed sauce. This also sounds delicious and I will be cooking it soon. Look for the review.
So I hit the google this morning and this is what I discovered.
First, Papatzul is a restaurant in NYC. http://www.papatzul.com/
Second, please follow this link: http://lisaiscooking.blogspot.com/2009/08/sikil-pak.html
This blog entry was a good explanation of the process and result of the recipe I previously thought of as Papatzul. I stand corrected. My only concern is how I will explain to "Pepe" my Mayan/Mexican Friend in Belize that his famous recipe is actually not Papatzul, but Sikil Pak. I have to ponder that one.
I found a recipe for Papadzul on Epicurean.com(very similar to my original), but it included things like canned chilies so I will be altering the recipe myself to use fresh or dried chilies(probably Habanero, seeded and chopped). I would like to offer Chef Rick a chance to add his input here in the form of a recipe for either Papadzul or Sikil Pak. We would appreciate your advice Chef.
Ultimately I am not sure if Papatzul is with a "T" or"D", probably both. But I appreciated the reply from Chef Rick Bayless and as ever I am searching for the answers to lifes' persistent questions and I have just learned something new.... :)
Cheers,
Eric
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Tweeting - Crack for Foodies
I heard a report on NPR this morning on the various segments of social networking and the demographic shifts between MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. Bear in mind that the main interviewee was a 16 yr old boy, Niko, from California (white kid) who claimed that MySpace was for "trashy people" ( the report went on to clarify that this meant Mexicans) and Facebook was for white kids, while twitter was for "old people". Granted a paraphrase makes you probably want to slap Niko for his overt racial profiling of the SN world, but it does bring up a point worth investigating. Why do certain SN sites seem to be the Flavor of the moment and others seem to have fallen from grace, in the case of MySpace? I remember when I was literally addicted to MySpace, which seemed to evaporate overnight in favor of Facebook, followed shortly thereafter with a migration to Twitter. If you use equations to reconstruct life, this in turn means that I was a Mexican who became white and grew old, all in the course of about 2 yrs. What a journey...
As it relates to food, there is a clear winner in the SN world. Without question, this winner is Twitter, the domain of the old, according to our aforementioned anti-protagonist. With a simple format and powerful effective tools for disseminating food rhetoric, twitter becomes the obvious choice for the creative yet limited attention spans of so many of us foodies. Perhaps, like a good sear on scallops, this is the key to it's overwhelmingly positive reception. You don't need to know how to do much more than construct a confusing sentence laden with @ and d and # signs and a generous sense of liberty for the English language in order to deliver your messages to a whole audience of fellow foodophiles.
More importantly, it is the kind of application that the notoriously cheap restaurant industry would go for in spades over more traditional albeit expensive forms of advertising. Now, friends, do not get offended by my adjectives, for I will back these statements up with a parable:
Ex. 1 A local ad agency approached your restaurant to develop and publish a series of print ads to highlight your single minded focus on quality, local ingredients with carefully prepared classical recipes and a flair for customer service as well as good ambience. Sounds good right? Sure thing, until said agency presents the estimate for services that totals 10K dollars and will take 2 months to institute.
Ex. 2 You stumble, coffee mug in hand, towards your tired old laptop. You login and for the next half hour catch up on the news, look at a video clip of Anthony Bourdain eating chili and ginger glazed pork BBQ in Indonesia, make a quick bank transaction(online) and then login to Twitter, much like a junky returning to the smack. You spend three minutes enjoying the sensation of the caffeine as it begins to course thru your system, meanwhile composing your thoughts. Finally and with a mildly heightened sense of expectation, you add 140 characters to the borg, desperately hoping that someone will Re-Tweet it. This in turn is guaranteed to be partially perused by your 1,557 attention deficited followers, or at least some percentage of them. And may possibly result in a few more covers at todays lunch where you will serve the same level of quality food and service that the other ad would cost you 10 thousand to brag about. All for free!
So this begs the next question:
What are you doing now? answer?: "@friends RT this please! Great new specials from @restaurant to be served only to my followers. #eating_great 25% discount to 1st 10 followers"
Have I proved my point? With the exception of big chains, this is a more cost effective methodology with faster results. And that is good.
The only problem I have noted is that the tendency is for Foodies to mill around in self inflating bunches, like little semi-anonymous cliques, congratulating themselves on clever recipes and one liners. This doesn't seem like effective outreach to me. The exceptions of course are the Anthony Bourdains of the twitterverse who bring in show viewers. These followers might not all be considered traditional "foodies" and therefore increases his chances of growing his market share on twitter. I would caution tweeters like me to try to reach your end user. For all the adoring friends in your twitterworld, if there is no return on your investment of time, then you are simply wasting it, when you could be in the kitchen cooking...
Cheers,
Eric
PS: BTW I am going to post the link to this article on, you guessed it, Twitter so all my foody friends can read it. Enjoy!
As it relates to food, there is a clear winner in the SN world. Without question, this winner is Twitter, the domain of the old, according to our aforementioned anti-protagonist. With a simple format and powerful effective tools for disseminating food rhetoric, twitter becomes the obvious choice for the creative yet limited attention spans of so many of us foodies. Perhaps, like a good sear on scallops, this is the key to it's overwhelmingly positive reception. You don't need to know how to do much more than construct a confusing sentence laden with @ and d and # signs and a generous sense of liberty for the English language in order to deliver your messages to a whole audience of fellow foodophiles.
More importantly, it is the kind of application that the notoriously cheap restaurant industry would go for in spades over more traditional albeit expensive forms of advertising. Now, friends, do not get offended by my adjectives, for I will back these statements up with a parable:
Ex. 1 A local ad agency approached your restaurant to develop and publish a series of print ads to highlight your single minded focus on quality, local ingredients with carefully prepared classical recipes and a flair for customer service as well as good ambience. Sounds good right? Sure thing, until said agency presents the estimate for services that totals 10K dollars and will take 2 months to institute.
Ex. 2 You stumble, coffee mug in hand, towards your tired old laptop. You login and for the next half hour catch up on the news, look at a video clip of Anthony Bourdain eating chili and ginger glazed pork BBQ in Indonesia, make a quick bank transaction(online) and then login to Twitter, much like a junky returning to the smack. You spend three minutes enjoying the sensation of the caffeine as it begins to course thru your system, meanwhile composing your thoughts. Finally and with a mildly heightened sense of expectation, you add 140 characters to the borg, desperately hoping that someone will Re-Tweet it. This in turn is guaranteed to be partially perused by your 1,557 attention deficited followers, or at least some percentage of them. And may possibly result in a few more covers at todays lunch where you will serve the same level of quality food and service that the other ad would cost you 10 thousand to brag about. All for free!
So this begs the next question:
What are you doing now? answer?: "@friends RT this please! Great new specials from @restaurant to be served only to my followers. #eating_great 25% discount to 1st 10 followers"
Have I proved my point? With the exception of big chains, this is a more cost effective methodology with faster results. And that is good.
The only problem I have noted is that the tendency is for Foodies to mill around in self inflating bunches, like little semi-anonymous cliques, congratulating themselves on clever recipes and one liners. This doesn't seem like effective outreach to me. The exceptions of course are the Anthony Bourdains of the twitterverse who bring in show viewers. These followers might not all be considered traditional "foodies" and therefore increases his chances of growing his market share on twitter. I would caution tweeters like me to try to reach your end user. For all the adoring friends in your twitterworld, if there is no return on your investment of time, then you are simply wasting it, when you could be in the kitchen cooking...
Cheers,
Eric
PS: BTW I am going to post the link to this article on, you guessed it, Twitter so all my foody friends can read it. Enjoy!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Miso Glazed Black Cod/Sablefish with Pickled Asian Cucumbers
Ingredients:
4-5oz portions Sablefish fillet
1 cup miso paste
1/4 cup Mirin
2 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
1 tbsp Grated Galanga Root or Ginger
Chives chopped
Red and yellow Bell peppers
For Pickles:
2 small cucumbers approx 1" in diameter and 5 inches long
1/2 cup Mirin
1/8 cup Rice Wine Vinegar
2 dashes Dark Soy Sauce
Black Pepper grinder
Pickles:
Slice cucumbers thin, mix Mirin, Rice Wine Vinegar, Soy Sauce and 2-3 twists of black Pepper. Place cucumbers in mixture totally submerged for at least 1 hr.
Fish:
In a saucepan combine Mirin, Miso paste, ginger and rice wine vinegar. Bring to a boil. Allow to boil for 30 seconds while stirring with a whisk. turn of heat and place mixture on a back burner to cool for 30 minutes.
Place Sauce in a ziploc bag with the Sablefish portions. Allow minimum 2-3 hrs to marinate. (24 hour maximum)
Broil fish for 2-3 minutes till surface browns. Then bake on 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Garnish with diced bell peppers and chives.
Serve with your favorite starch or salad.
Serves 4. Prep time about 20 minutes plus marinating. Cook Time about 15 minutes.
Enjoy this Japanese influenced meal with Sake or White wine. It will melt in your mouth and leave your palate happy. Do not serve overly large portions of fish because they will be very rich.
Voila....
4-5oz portions Sablefish fillet
1 cup miso paste
1/4 cup Mirin
2 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
1 tbsp Grated Galanga Root or Ginger
Chives chopped
Red and yellow Bell peppers
For Pickles:
2 small cucumbers approx 1" in diameter and 5 inches long
1/2 cup Mirin
1/8 cup Rice Wine Vinegar
2 dashes Dark Soy Sauce
Black Pepper grinder
Pickles:
Slice cucumbers thin, mix Mirin, Rice Wine Vinegar, Soy Sauce and 2-3 twists of black Pepper. Place cucumbers in mixture totally submerged for at least 1 hr.
Fish:
In a saucepan combine Mirin, Miso paste, ginger and rice wine vinegar. Bring to a boil. Allow to boil for 30 seconds while stirring with a whisk. turn of heat and place mixture on a back burner to cool for 30 minutes.
Place Sauce in a ziploc bag with the Sablefish portions. Allow minimum 2-3 hrs to marinate. (24 hour maximum)
Broil fish for 2-3 minutes till surface browns. Then bake on 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Garnish with diced bell peppers and chives.
Serve with your favorite starch or salad.
Serves 4. Prep time about 20 minutes plus marinating. Cook Time about 15 minutes.
Enjoy this Japanese influenced meal with Sake or White wine. It will melt in your mouth and leave your palate happy. Do not serve overly large portions of fish because they will be very rich.
Voila....
3rd Annual Dubai Seafood Expo
Good Morning..
It is a far cry colder here than the 97 Farenheit that was the average in Dubai this past week. The Dubai Seafood Expo's 3rd annual event was a success for many and although it ranks as small in stature, we all know that it's not the size right?....
With a few less exhibitors this year than last, the show made up for it's lack of exhibitors by having high quality attendees.
Business was being done in earnest and I would say that those with quality products came away happy with the investment of time and money.
My one comment is that the show should really be 2 days instead of three. I think this would encourage better daily attendance and would consolidate the time and expense to a more realistic level. But that is true for many of these events and the event planners don't seem to get this.
All in all a worthwhile event and if you plan to sell fish in the Middle East, worth attending.
Cheers,
Eric
It is a far cry colder here than the 97 Farenheit that was the average in Dubai this past week. The Dubai Seafood Expo's 3rd annual event was a success for many and although it ranks as small in stature, we all know that it's not the size right?....
With a few less exhibitors this year than last, the show made up for it's lack of exhibitors by having high quality attendees.
Business was being done in earnest and I would say that those with quality products came away happy with the investment of time and money.
My one comment is that the show should really be 2 days instead of three. I think this would encourage better daily attendance and would consolidate the time and expense to a more realistic level. But that is true for many of these events and the event planners don't seem to get this.
All in all a worthwhile event and if you plan to sell fish in the Middle East, worth attending.
Cheers,
Eric
Friday, October 16, 2009
Eric of Arabia part 2
Those of you on the short list(family mostly) got a report on Dubai when I attended last years show. This is the 1 year anniversary of that trip marked by a return to the region.
In preparing for my latest trip to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, I had to take in to consideration the resonance from the last trip, one year ago. In essence, I was left feeling like I had spent a week in a frustrating repetition of history, i.e. all great things are built by men of simple means at the behest of men with vision and excessive means. I didn't have the greatest impression. To be honest, I did not wish to return this soon. But in the interests of my fledgling company and for the sake of the networking alone, I found myself accepting a contract to be a demo chef at the 3rd annual Dubai Seafood Expo.
After a week of preparations and a 16 hour flight(layover in Dulles) I touched down in the historic heart of Arabia, near the tip of the Arabian peninsula. (link to map of area for the geographically challenged or just plain interested). http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/menewzz.gif
Although this region is historically important, you cannot feel much of the history living in Dubai's super modern architecture, much of it world class. The exception is found in Dubai's historic downtown, or Bur Dubai (note the spelling which will become relevant later). Here is a city map of dubai that will show many of the buildings and neighborhoods I discuss here.
http://www.dubai.ie/Dubai_Info/upload/File/01-Map_of_Dubai.jpg you might consider opening it in a new window and referring back to it throughout the narrative.
In the 1960's Dubai discovered the hidden wealth that has enriched many of the nations of the Middle East, Oil. Thanks in part to a visionary Sheik, with unlimited funds and a creative flair par excellence, as well as a higher level of tolerance for western heathenistic practices, Dubai as we know it today begun to clear the drawing boards and rapidly grow towards world relevance as one of the greatest architectural cities ever built. And to top it off, like Vegas, it has sprung from the sands of the desert that still stands guard from invading armies. This has not however, kept the mobs of Ex patriots from taking their piece of the action. And as this was a part of the vision to begin with, Europeans and North Americans will find that they are welcomed and valued much of the time on their visit.
This year, the developments seem more complete and more a real city rather than a shell of what was only a vision just ten years before. Dubai is shaping up quickly with many significant developments either finished or slated for grand opening in 2010.
As I arrived at the regions busiest airport(soon to be the worlds busiest) I braced myself for the sense of isolation and nonwesternness that fouled my last trip and caused me to complain of the lack of infrastructure and the poor levels of customer service. What I had not taken into consideration was that it takes time to teach a child to eat with utensils and run and swim. As with a young child, Dubai had yet to reach a level of services that would keep spoiled westerners happy. This has not entirely corrected itself as I will explain shortly, but in great part is improving.
Last time I stayed in the downtown area, Bur Dubai(as seen on our map). This residential area is home to the historic district and is a great place to visit at least once. The Dubai Museum is worthwhile and tells the history of Dubai better than I will attempt. Also textile and Silver Souks(markets) are located here as well as Pakistani shops and Indian Family businesses by the tens of thousands. At some points it resembles a bustling (and I mean very bustling) area of New York, with lights almost as bright as Times Square. All in all an exciting spot to visit, but one to be avoided for travellers looking for accomodations. It is too local for Westerners to find great comfort.
This time I stayed in the Jumeirah Beach Area also known as "The Walk" for the neighborhood development with sidewalks around Dubai's nearly completed Marina project. It basically involves 40 or so High Rise buildings with a few true skyscrapers(100 stories plus) and a significant development of shops, bars, restaurants and a world class beachfront with the warmest clearest water I have ever been in. It is a far sight more comfortable and "5 Starrish" than Bur Dubai and helped ease my worries abit. The next step in comfort came with our room. As I was staying together with colleagues, we opted to rent an ocean front apartment for the week. The choice was the Oasis Beach Apartments and basically ended up being a 4 bedroom, 3000 foot apartment with top furnishings and an incredible view of the Palm Jumeirah. (again see map) All in all, very comfortable!
Night one was spent going to the area around the Burj Dubai(this is the place where I said to notice the spelling) BURJ DUBAI not BUR DUBAI. The Burj Dubai is the worlds tallest skyscraper at approximatley 2680 feet or 800+ meters! It in no way resembles Bur Dubai and is a spectacular development which includes the new super 5 star hotel, The Address, The Burj Dubai, The Palace Hotel, A large souk and the worlds largest mall, The Dubai Mall. Every night they do one of the most spectacular light, water and music shows I have ever had the chance to witness. It is exceptional on a very high level. I challenge anyone who sees it to not be impressed. We had cocktails at the lounge at the top of The Address. 63 stories above the ground, we were still at knee level to the Burj Dubai. For dinner we ate at the Palace Hotel in a tent near their pool area and enjoyed a light meal of traditional Arab dishes like kefteh and hommous. We had a few drinks and headed home for the night, truly awed.
After the Dubai Seafood Expo show each day we would head for the sea and enjoy a beautiful sunset while lounging in the warm waters of the Persian Gulf. Then we would find somewhere to eat and have drinks at Buddha Bar or at the very cool beachside bar/club/pool/lounge/restaurant Barasti. This spot gets top marks in my book for its range of available entertainment choices including stages and DJs and volleyball courts. The drinks were cold and the Shisha http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookah was yummy. I always thought this was a tobacco pipe, but it is not. It was fun to have drinks and pass the Hookah.
Mornings came early, meals were light, the scenery was spectacular and the city of Dubai began to rise in my rankings from my least favorite destination to one of profound beauty and a destination to be well planned and enjoyed thoroughly. I lost weight thanks to the light fare and the hot days. I enjoyed both hard work, and hard play, including one great evening celebrating our colleagues birthday.
In all, I can't wait to go back to this amazing place. I want to dive further into the culture that goes from Bedouin tribal to ultra modern city in just 2 generations. What did it? Why is Dubai one place where you can experience western asia without much fear of reprisals for your nationality? Why do places like Beirut, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Quatar and a few others defy the standard western logic of the region. Can we see shadows of the past greatness of the Ottoman Empire emerging in places like these? Have the people of these places intentionally defied the portrayal of this conflicted region by our western media? I think not and I think so at the same time. You still see the clothing and the camels, the segregation of gender and the remnants of the old culture in places like Bur Dubai. You still feel the winds rush in off the desert heavy with the history around us. It is a haunting sensation, that can be both narcotic or repulsive depending on your perception. It can pull at your heart like the eyes behind the veil or it can push you back with the force of a bomb blast.
It is both peaceful and volatile. But it will not leave you unaffected. You will be better for having been there. It is like a sudden storm that drenches anyone caught out in it. You can still feel it's influence long after you have returned to your home. And that makes it special no matter how you feel later.
Peace...Eric
In preparing for my latest trip to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, I had to take in to consideration the resonance from the last trip, one year ago. In essence, I was left feeling like I had spent a week in a frustrating repetition of history, i.e. all great things are built by men of simple means at the behest of men with vision and excessive means. I didn't have the greatest impression. To be honest, I did not wish to return this soon. But in the interests of my fledgling company and for the sake of the networking alone, I found myself accepting a contract to be a demo chef at the 3rd annual Dubai Seafood Expo.
After a week of preparations and a 16 hour flight(layover in Dulles) I touched down in the historic heart of Arabia, near the tip of the Arabian peninsula. (link to map of area for the geographically challenged or just plain interested). http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/menewzz.gif
Although this region is historically important, you cannot feel much of the history living in Dubai's super modern architecture, much of it world class. The exception is found in Dubai's historic downtown, or Bur Dubai (note the spelling which will become relevant later). Here is a city map of dubai that will show many of the buildings and neighborhoods I discuss here.
http://www.dubai.ie/Dubai_Info/upload/File/01-Map_of_Dubai.jpg you might consider opening it in a new window and referring back to it throughout the narrative.
In the 1960's Dubai discovered the hidden wealth that has enriched many of the nations of the Middle East, Oil. Thanks in part to a visionary Sheik, with unlimited funds and a creative flair par excellence, as well as a higher level of tolerance for western heathenistic practices, Dubai as we know it today begun to clear the drawing boards and rapidly grow towards world relevance as one of the greatest architectural cities ever built. And to top it off, like Vegas, it has sprung from the sands of the desert that still stands guard from invading armies. This has not however, kept the mobs of Ex patriots from taking their piece of the action. And as this was a part of the vision to begin with, Europeans and North Americans will find that they are welcomed and valued much of the time on their visit.
This year, the developments seem more complete and more a real city rather than a shell of what was only a vision just ten years before. Dubai is shaping up quickly with many significant developments either finished or slated for grand opening in 2010.
As I arrived at the regions busiest airport(soon to be the worlds busiest) I braced myself for the sense of isolation and nonwesternness that fouled my last trip and caused me to complain of the lack of infrastructure and the poor levels of customer service. What I had not taken into consideration was that it takes time to teach a child to eat with utensils and run and swim. As with a young child, Dubai had yet to reach a level of services that would keep spoiled westerners happy. This has not entirely corrected itself as I will explain shortly, but in great part is improving.
Last time I stayed in the downtown area, Bur Dubai(as seen on our map). This residential area is home to the historic district and is a great place to visit at least once. The Dubai Museum is worthwhile and tells the history of Dubai better than I will attempt. Also textile and Silver Souks(markets) are located here as well as Pakistani shops and Indian Family businesses by the tens of thousands. At some points it resembles a bustling (and I mean very bustling) area of New York, with lights almost as bright as Times Square. All in all an exciting spot to visit, but one to be avoided for travellers looking for accomodations. It is too local for Westerners to find great comfort.
This time I stayed in the Jumeirah Beach Area also known as "The Walk" for the neighborhood development with sidewalks around Dubai's nearly completed Marina project. It basically involves 40 or so High Rise buildings with a few true skyscrapers(100 stories plus) and a significant development of shops, bars, restaurants and a world class beachfront with the warmest clearest water I have ever been in. It is a far sight more comfortable and "5 Starrish" than Bur Dubai and helped ease my worries abit. The next step in comfort came with our room. As I was staying together with colleagues, we opted to rent an ocean front apartment for the week. The choice was the Oasis Beach Apartments and basically ended up being a 4 bedroom, 3000 foot apartment with top furnishings and an incredible view of the Palm Jumeirah. (again see map) All in all, very comfortable!
Night one was spent going to the area around the Burj Dubai(this is the place where I said to notice the spelling) BURJ DUBAI not BUR DUBAI. The Burj Dubai is the worlds tallest skyscraper at approximatley 2680 feet or 800+ meters! It in no way resembles Bur Dubai and is a spectacular development which includes the new super 5 star hotel, The Address, The Burj Dubai, The Palace Hotel, A large souk and the worlds largest mall, The Dubai Mall. Every night they do one of the most spectacular light, water and music shows I have ever had the chance to witness. It is exceptional on a very high level. I challenge anyone who sees it to not be impressed. We had cocktails at the lounge at the top of The Address. 63 stories above the ground, we were still at knee level to the Burj Dubai. For dinner we ate at the Palace Hotel in a tent near their pool area and enjoyed a light meal of traditional Arab dishes like kefteh and hommous. We had a few drinks and headed home for the night, truly awed.
After the Dubai Seafood Expo show each day we would head for the sea and enjoy a beautiful sunset while lounging in the warm waters of the Persian Gulf. Then we would find somewhere to eat and have drinks at Buddha Bar or at the very cool beachside bar/club/pool/lounge/restaurant Barasti. This spot gets top marks in my book for its range of available entertainment choices including stages and DJs and volleyball courts. The drinks were cold and the Shisha http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookah was yummy. I always thought this was a tobacco pipe, but it is not. It was fun to have drinks and pass the Hookah.
Mornings came early, meals were light, the scenery was spectacular and the city of Dubai began to rise in my rankings from my least favorite destination to one of profound beauty and a destination to be well planned and enjoyed thoroughly. I lost weight thanks to the light fare and the hot days. I enjoyed both hard work, and hard play, including one great evening celebrating our colleagues birthday.
In all, I can't wait to go back to this amazing place. I want to dive further into the culture that goes from Bedouin tribal to ultra modern city in just 2 generations. What did it? Why is Dubai one place where you can experience western asia without much fear of reprisals for your nationality? Why do places like Beirut, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Quatar and a few others defy the standard western logic of the region. Can we see shadows of the past greatness of the Ottoman Empire emerging in places like these? Have the people of these places intentionally defied the portrayal of this conflicted region by our western media? I think not and I think so at the same time. You still see the clothing and the camels, the segregation of gender and the remnants of the old culture in places like Bur Dubai. You still feel the winds rush in off the desert heavy with the history around us. It is a haunting sensation, that can be both narcotic or repulsive depending on your perception. It can pull at your heart like the eyes behind the veil or it can push you back with the force of a bomb blast.
It is both peaceful and volatile. But it will not leave you unaffected. You will be better for having been there. It is like a sudden storm that drenches anyone caught out in it. You can still feel it's influence long after you have returned to your home. And that makes it special no matter how you feel later.
Peace...Eric
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Leaving for the Desert...or is it Dessert?
Off to Dubai in less than 1 day. I am attending the 3rd annual Dubai Seafood Expo. Although the Emirates have suffered in the last year with the economic downturn, people still have to eat. With most seafood being considered Halal by Muslims, and Dubai being one of the fastest and wealthiest development areas in the world, it is a good market for the industry.
I will blog from the floor of the event if possible and will send several updates on twitter.
www.twitter.com/cfoodjunky.
Stay tuned.
Eric
I will blog from the floor of the event if possible and will send several updates on twitter.
www.twitter.com/cfoodjunky.
Stay tuned.
Eric
Monday, October 5, 2009
When Restaurant Managers Attack
So the other night my wife and I had a great opportunity to reconnect with one of my favorite cousins and a couple of cousins I don't really know from the Left Coast. My cousin Luke invited us to dinner with my Dads 1st Cousin Smitty and his daughter Jennifer. They were in town for business and asked us to choose a place to eat.
Now when I first moved to Charlotte, there were not too many choices for foodies. With the introduction of Johnson and Wales Charlotte campus, the chef factory began to pump out new blood and along with that came alot of new choices for culinarians.
This left me with the challenge of deciding. The choices are the usual, ethnic, steak, seafood, fusion, high end, dives and everything in between. I eventually consulted with my good friend Bryan who is my culinary counterpart. We cook together regularly while our respective female companions happily enjoy not being responsible for the food choices in our lives(although they can both cook very well). Lucky Ladies.
Bryan brought me around to a decision after some discussion and I booked a 7:45 table for 5 at Blue Restaurant and Bar in Uptown Charlotte.
This classy upscale casual joint relies on a solid selection of award winning apps and entrees with wine pairings focused around a Mediterranean flair to classic dishes. They do a very respectable job consistently providing quality dining experiences and I would recommend them happily.
This meal had the distinct advantage of a vibrant server, Dianne, a young cheerful Asian woman who was prompt and friendly in service and who's only faux pas was underestimating our penchant for alcoholic refreshment. She would have been hard pressed to keep up with us though so I give her a pass.
The food started and finished very nicely with an award winning app of Jumbo Diver Scallops Wrapped in prosciutto and served over a fava bean puree with a lemon marmalade then for dinner Beef Tenderloin ala Blue pan seared filet topped with creamy gorgonzola dolce, served with sweet onion marmalade and a pancetta and green pea risotto. I found the risotto to be bland and slightly overcooked as was my fillet. Overall I would give a 6 out of 10 to my entree and a 9 out of 10 to the appetizer. The scallops were fantastic. My wife had a duo of Boar that was fabulous and worth going back for.
But this is not a restaurant review here. It is a story about overkill. The whole point of this entry was actually the floor manager and his untimely visit to our table. I will preface the telling of it with a quick rhetorical question. Do you know that point in a good meal where you have settled in and are tucking into your food and also involved in a good conversation with your table mates? This is the moment at which the floor manager decided to stop by to check on us and do his managerial duty. As it turned out, he mistimed his approach and landed in our midst with a bit too much suave.
Having managed restaurants for years, I understand just how completely important this can be and how it is one of the few checklists that a manager must accomplish during active service. I also understand how completely hung up on 100% table visits a restaurant upper management team can be. In other words, despite the fact that this is your sole individual duty during active service, discretion should be a large part of your approach as it can turn a good PR move into a frustrating exercise in social manners for your diners. To everything, turn turn turn, there is a season...and so on.
This manager had all the charisma of a dripping pot full of patchouli oil and as he meandered verbally in an ode to tortoise around each of our meals, asking the ever popular "is your_____cooked properly?", it was all I could do to not throw the aformentioned overdone tenderloin at him. And aim for his excessivley pink tie while I was at it.
I felt the need to write this down, which shows two things. One, how good intentions can go far astray quickly if you force your agenda on strangers. Two, I am becoming far more grumpy in my old age...
Bon Vivant...Eric
Now when I first moved to Charlotte, there were not too many choices for foodies. With the introduction of Johnson and Wales Charlotte campus, the chef factory began to pump out new blood and along with that came alot of new choices for culinarians.
This left me with the challenge of deciding. The choices are the usual, ethnic, steak, seafood, fusion, high end, dives and everything in between. I eventually consulted with my good friend Bryan who is my culinary counterpart. We cook together regularly while our respective female companions happily enjoy not being responsible for the food choices in our lives(although they can both cook very well). Lucky Ladies.
Bryan brought me around to a decision after some discussion and I booked a 7:45 table for 5 at Blue Restaurant and Bar in Uptown Charlotte.
This classy upscale casual joint relies on a solid selection of award winning apps and entrees with wine pairings focused around a Mediterranean flair to classic dishes. They do a very respectable job consistently providing quality dining experiences and I would recommend them happily.
This meal had the distinct advantage of a vibrant server, Dianne, a young cheerful Asian woman who was prompt and friendly in service and who's only faux pas was underestimating our penchant for alcoholic refreshment. She would have been hard pressed to keep up with us though so I give her a pass.
The food started and finished very nicely with an award winning app of Jumbo Diver Scallops Wrapped in prosciutto and served over a fava bean puree with a lemon marmalade then for dinner Beef Tenderloin ala Blue pan seared filet topped with creamy gorgonzola dolce, served with sweet onion marmalade and a pancetta and green pea risotto. I found the risotto to be bland and slightly overcooked as was my fillet. Overall I would give a 6 out of 10 to my entree and a 9 out of 10 to the appetizer. The scallops were fantastic. My wife had a duo of Boar that was fabulous and worth going back for.
But this is not a restaurant review here. It is a story about overkill. The whole point of this entry was actually the floor manager and his untimely visit to our table. I will preface the telling of it with a quick rhetorical question. Do you know that point in a good meal where you have settled in and are tucking into your food and also involved in a good conversation with your table mates? This is the moment at which the floor manager decided to stop by to check on us and do his managerial duty. As it turned out, he mistimed his approach and landed in our midst with a bit too much suave.
Having managed restaurants for years, I understand just how completely important this can be and how it is one of the few checklists that a manager must accomplish during active service. I also understand how completely hung up on 100% table visits a restaurant upper management team can be. In other words, despite the fact that this is your sole individual duty during active service, discretion should be a large part of your approach as it can turn a good PR move into a frustrating exercise in social manners for your diners. To everything, turn turn turn, there is a season...and so on.
This manager had all the charisma of a dripping pot full of patchouli oil and as he meandered verbally in an ode to tortoise around each of our meals, asking the ever popular "is your_____cooked properly?", it was all I could do to not throw the aformentioned overdone tenderloin at him. And aim for his excessivley pink tie while I was at it.
I felt the need to write this down, which shows two things. One, how good intentions can go far astray quickly if you force your agenda on strangers. Two, I am becoming far more grumpy in my old age...
Bon Vivant...Eric
Savory Fall Soup- Curried Beef and Sweet Potato Soup
Ingredients:
1.5lbs flank or skirt steak chopped to bite size and seasoned with a curry blend
1 large Sweet potato
1/2 large onion
thumb sized piece of ginger peeled and sliced
1 cup of scallions chopped
1 cup of sweet red pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 container beef stock or broth
3 tbsps Blue agave liquid sweetner
2 tbsps molasses
Sautee onions and peppers with salt pepper and olive oil, 2 tbsp molasses and 3 tbsps agave liquid and 1 tbsp garlic chopped
Add beef broth, ginger and celery and bring to a boil, reduce to a slow boil and cook for 1/2 hr.
blend in blender to a puree
Add mushrooms and beef to pot with puree and slow boil for about 20 minutes
Serve over white or basmati rice.
Serves 6-8
1.5lbs flank or skirt steak chopped to bite size and seasoned with a curry blend
1 large Sweet potato
1/2 large onion
thumb sized piece of ginger peeled and sliced
1 cup of scallions chopped
1 cup of sweet red pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 container beef stock or broth
3 tbsps Blue agave liquid sweetner
2 tbsps molasses
Sautee onions and peppers with salt pepper and olive oil, 2 tbsp molasses and 3 tbsps agave liquid and 1 tbsp garlic chopped
Add beef broth, ginger and celery and bring to a boil, reduce to a slow boil and cook for 1/2 hr.
blend in blender to a puree
Add mushrooms and beef to pot with puree and slow boil for about 20 minutes
Serve over white or basmati rice.
Serves 6-8
Friday, October 2, 2009
To eat tonight....
London Broil marinated in soy and papaya and grilled to perfection. Side of Black beans and Rice and a fresh green salad for nutrients.
Also will be cooking up a couple pieces of marinated Soy/Mirin and fresh ground ginger Chilean Seabass pan seared.
Sounds tasty no?
Also will be cooking up a couple pieces of marinated Soy/Mirin and fresh ground ginger Chilean Seabass pan seared.
Sounds tasty no?
New Website Revealed!
New website revealed! What a headline. Sounds like porn doesn't it?
Well whatever sinister insinuations are drawn in the minds of readers, it is news that I am happy about.
I am officially launching the concept I have kept in store for a rainy day. It is not raining today, but you get the point. And the good news is that it has met with excitement and many well wishers.
In fact, I landed my first contract job the other day. I am going to be doing a cooking demo at the Dubai Seafood Expo in Dubai U.A.E. between Oct 11-14th. Hopefully this is a good omen for future business prospects. I hope so!
So the web address is http://www.seaventmarketing.com. We are doing marketing and trade show support for seafood producers, such as cooking, web ads, web promotion, social networking, etc etc etc.
I have my mise en place together and am getting excited to get going!
Check out the site and if you know any small seafood or food companies needing marketing support, please let them now about me.....
Eric
Well whatever sinister insinuations are drawn in the minds of readers, it is news that I am happy about.
I am officially launching the concept I have kept in store for a rainy day. It is not raining today, but you get the point. And the good news is that it has met with excitement and many well wishers.
In fact, I landed my first contract job the other day. I am going to be doing a cooking demo at the Dubai Seafood Expo in Dubai U.A.E. between Oct 11-14th. Hopefully this is a good omen for future business prospects. I hope so!
So the web address is http://www.seaventmarketing.com. We are doing marketing and trade show support for seafood producers, such as cooking, web ads, web promotion, social networking, etc etc etc.
I have my mise en place together and am getting excited to get going!
Check out the site and if you know any small seafood or food companies needing marketing support, please let them now about me.....
Eric
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