Gastrolust

I’m a lucky peach.
What more can I say? Anyone who has a chance to try one (or two, or ten) of David Chang’s pork buns would say the same thing. We had hoped to go to Momofuku (it means lucky peach in Japanese) Ssam Bar, but as they were closed for a week, we settled [...]

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Emboldened by our satisfactory sushi outing at Nishino, but wanting something a little more Japanese (the menu had that “pan-Asian” thing going, and there wasn’t a Japanese customer or server in sight) and a little less pretentious (two words: Madison Park), we made our way to Kisaku in Tangletown (near Green Lake).
Kisaku means “easygoing.” While [...]

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I’ve long lamented the lack of good dim sum in Seattle, but with a dim sum–loving friend moving soon to China, we decided to have one last Chinese meal for the foreseeable future. Of course, he’ll soon be having great Chinese food daily, and perhaps I’ll have to sneak a visit over there for the [...]

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You’ve got free passes for the blockbuster-to-be that’s previewing at Pacific Place. The movie starts at 7:00, but there’s sure to be an overflow crowd, which means the line will start snaking its way around the top floor of the mall well before 6:30. You need to stay close. Yet your stomach [...]

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Last year, a friend (my comrade in organ meat-eating) discovered a community of Bukharian Jews in Rego Park. Fascinating history, but for now, far more interesting was his description of the food. Two words: lamb fat. Rego Park’s just a short distance from Flushing, so on day two we set off in search of skewered [...]

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Oh, yeeeah!
So says Kool-Aid Man when he bursts through a brick wall, saving the day. As do I when marveling at the colorful berries and cherries abundant in our area markets. Growing up in New York, home wasn’t a haven for such fruit, so Kool-Aid was sometimes the closest I got to tasting berries and [...]

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Horrified. Embarrassed. Upset.
That’s how I felt when I opened my copy of the current (September 2008) issue of Sound magazine and turned to the monthly “Dish-Off” article I author.
Dish-Off pits three restaurants in competition, a la Iron Chef, based on a common theme (typically, a theme ingredient). I love writing this piece, and appreciate Sound’s [...]

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I’m disappointed with Thai food in Seattle. It’s not bad, but it’s uninspiring. So why would I want to go to Tukwila to sample more? That’s what I thought when invited to the new Racha Thai & Asian Kitchen at Southcenter Mall.
Southcenter’s interesting. There are “suburban” shoppers (Caucasians, etc.) who are happy with food court [...]

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After heading to Manhattan and walking/shopping off our Chinese lunch at Flushing’s Golden Mall, tired from the red-eye and eager to see Obama’s acceptance speech, we decided to head back to our hotel in Flushing fairly early. But not without first stopping off in Woodside for dinner at Sripraphai.
During our trips to New York, we’ve [...]

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You didn’t think the Sichuan stall was the only place we enjoyed at Flushing’s Golden Mall, did you? Next stop was Xi’an Famous Snacks, where we enjoyed a lamb burger (zi ran chao yang rou jia mo). Yum. Lamb and cumin have become one of my favorite flavor combinations, and with chile peppers and pickled [...]

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