the warm embrace of india // bellevue, wa.

eggpplant curry v.2: perfect for a cold winter's night.

orange-mango salad on the side for the sweet aspect.

dirty thai stir-fry // houghton, wa.

continuing with asian cuisine, today we have a quick & easy thai dish.

- slice to your liking: red bell pepper, red onion, crimini mushrooms.

- mince garlic and ginger, combine with peanut butter, soy sauce,

crushed red pepper, black pepper. shake in a closed container.

- sautee on high heat in skillet, stirring occasionally. towards the

end throw in soy peanut mixture and toss till combined.

- for a healthy and earthy touch, serve atop a brown rice blend.

- garnish with fresh basil and bean sprouts.

- meditate on the beauty of buddha as you enjoy good health.

indo-indian eggplant // redmond, wa.

i really really love indian and southeast asian cuisine. feeling a

bit inspired the other day, i embarked upon a journey of culinary

discovery. please light up some incense and behold:

indo-indian eggplant (with brown rice and naan triangles)

- par-bake 1 eggplant, cubed, salted, sweated, and drained.

- dice 3 cloves garlic and 1/2 a yellow onion, sautee with olive and

canola oil. toast black pepper, paprika, and curry powder in the pan

with the aromatics.

- dice 3 large organic tomatoes while you wait for the heavenly smell

to fill the kitchen.

- cook the rice a bit ahead of time, it can wait covered to the side.

- toss the par-baked eggplant into the pan and let it achieve a golden

brown. in fact, let the edges blacken a bit.

- toss in tomatoes and let it all cook and caramelize slightly. lower heat.

- stir in one can of coconut milk and combine to a saucy consistency.

- stir in chopped basil and cilantro, salt & pepper to taste.

- plate on top of brown rice and garnish with Naan bread triangles.

- garnish further with fresh basil and cilantro for a fresh bite.

- enjoy in the late evening, as the sun sets on a warm day.

peugeot salt & pepper grinders // france

I was reassembling my kitchen when I realized I had no black pepper.

This of course is a necessity for any culinary enthusiast, and I'm trying to

eat out less and cook more at home. I splurged a bit and sprang for a set

of Peugeot grinders. I'm very happen with them. They give a pretty fine

grind. I'm usually a fan of a coarse grind but the way they feel is smooth

and solid to say the least. I'll probably have them for life so I'm happy I

made the nominal investment. Thank you Sur La Table for the courteous

& cute salesgirl. She offered me coffee before I left. I declined, letting her

know I was a tea drinker. She said "there's always room for growth," I

laughed and realized at once I should have taken her up on the offer...

young's luxury double chocolate stout "float" // london, uk

do you like stout? do you like ice cream? and if you do, you'll love a stout float!

in my opinion, young's luxury double chocolate stout is the standard of excellence for a stout float. pour yourself a pint from the 15 ounce nitrogenated can. notice i said "can". compared to carbonated beers, beers that utilize nitrogen have a much smoother mouthfeel with a thicker and creamier head.

a stout float is complemented greatly by a equally excellent ice cream, in my preference tillamook. to accentuate the taste to it's fullness, quality is of the essence. enjoy the first half of the creamy, sweet and malty stout leaving yourself the other half for an unbelievable experience.

overfill your glass with as much smooth, buttery, foamy ice cream as your heart desires, but be patient with the delicate process as foaming may occur. once reaching the glasses capacity grab yourself a spoon and dip in! welcome to paradise....

rating *****

heirloom tomato salsa // houghton tapas bar

this easy topping goes well with just about anything. today it's
counterparts were black beans, spinach naan, and avocado.

simple recipe:
- chopped heirloom tomatoes

- fresh chopped cilantro
- fresh lime juice
- minced garlic
-black pepper
- sea salt

bloody mary's revenge // houghton, wa

my love affair with the bloody mary began when i was just a youngin. whenever i took airplane trips, i'd order a can of mr. and mrs. t's bloody mary mix. it was like drinking salsa, my favorite condiment. little did i know that the mix was nearly 40% sodium. yesterday i was in a nostalgic mood and decided to whip one up from scratch, without the use of the can: organic tomato juice, habanero sauce, black pepper, horseradish, vodka, and lime. shake vigorously and pour over ice. garnish with a lime wedge and a crisp stick of celery. loads less sodium with home-made flavor.

blackened tomato & cucumber soup served chilled // houghton, wa

what's better than enjoying a cool dish with crusty garlic bread and spanish wine on a summer's night // broil 4 halved tomatoes with a dusting of cayenne pepper until nearly black. allow to cool. seed and skin 1 large cucumber and chop roughly. finely chop garlic, about two full tablespoons. dice 2 green bell peppers, 1 large ripe yellow-orange heirloom tomato, 1 shallot. add vegetables along with a 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 cup veggie stock, a couple dashes of chili powder, fresh basil, and salt & pepper liberally. puree in blender until smooth. pour into pre chilled bowls. top with sliced avocado and finely chopped cilantro. accompany with thick cut bruschetta and thinly sliced nectarine. red wine and voila. like taking a stroll through an andalucian countryside village. an all original with the iberian peninsula in mind. i made two batches so i'll have plenty for the week...

cafe flora // madison ave.

i've driven by this place for years now. what i had never realized all this time was that its one of the most highly acclaimed vegetarian restaurants in all of seattle. after my less than stellar experience at the roanoke i was desperately seeking a breath of fresh air. forward thinking vegetarian food was sure to cleanse the palate. we called ahead for a reservation, being friday night. they only take reservations for parties of 8 or greater, and said we could most likely get a seat for 2 in 10 minutes or so. upon arrival, i quickly deduced that this wouldn't be the case. there was a line out the door and the wait was roughly an hour. i thought to myself, "this must be a good sign." the one person on front of the house seemed drowned in requests, but despite the high volume of customers, she handled it pretty well and was always super courteous. the menu seemed a bit sparse in terms of entrees. i suppose a focused menu is good in this case, taking simplicity over corporate style smorgasbord. cafe flora follows the local is best mantra, with freshness being paramount. we started with yam fries with cayenne aioli dipping sauce for the appetizer. they were extremely tasty but i will say they were cut a bit thin and flopped lazily about your now greasy fingers. maybe if they cut the yams a bit thicker they would stand up to the oil content. the sauce was great and they even asked if we'd like the cream free vegan version. we gladly accepted. for dinner, rachel ordered a portabello version of the french dip sandwich, which came with au-jus. i ordered wild mushroom linguini with a corn-tequila sauce. starting with the sandwich, i'll say there is no way in hell its worth its $11 dollar asking price. well prepared, yes. tasty, yes. but it was such a simple baguette and mushroom sandwich that it clearly took about 2 minutes to assemble, and i've made my fair share of sandwiches. the linguini went for $16, and it wasn't shockingly good. it was served in a lovely bowl, accented with a dusting of chili powder. the noodles were a bit north of al dente, the corn wasn't much better than canned corn and i definitely didn't taste the tequila. it did however make for a nice after work snack from the left overs bag. cafe flora struck me as an establishment that once had a small but dedicated following and has become a victim of its over inflated reputation as a premiere spot. the ambiance is nice, with live flowers and trees decorating the dining room. its a nice place to find yourself on a friday night. i'd like to check them out for lunch sometime in the future, but the prospect of paying 10 dollars for a demi baguette and a single portabello sours that idea more than a little. overall, you are paying for the idea and atmosphere, and not the food. but hey, a restaurant has to survive somehow.

rating: ***1/2

roanoke inn // mercer island

situated in the quiet suburban setting of mercer island, the roanoke inn was once a hotly visited location in the era of the lake washington foot ferry. its been owned by the same family for decades. this afternoon, i was in need of a change in scenery. recalling the roanoke as the spot my dad treated me to my first legal beer, i thought "what the hell." hell indeed. despite its slogan "where friends meet friends," the service was horrible and they were unable to provide even the most basic of hospitality. the waiter twice ignored my friend, didn't ask him what he wanted to eat or drink. don't expect to be acknowledged at the roanoke, that is unless you are a rich suburb-dwelling white republican. the only saving grace is that they serve southern tier ipa, quite a fine brew. being a vegetarian, i don't expect much in the way of accommodation, but the roanoke reaches a new low. if you ask for the sour cream to be held on your order, don't expect them to. they act as if they are going out of the way to even consider holding the dairy. on the front of the menu they extol the virtues of their warm and inviting atmosphere and rich community history, but this couldn't be further from the truth. i'd like to have something positive to say other than they serve one good beer, but unfortunately this place has royally blown it...

rating: *

eat me seattle // the ultimate source of flavor

welcome to eat me seattle! a blog dedicated to keeping seattle and the surrounding region informed when it comes to where to eat, where to drink, and what's worth spending your hard earned dollar on. opinions are only opinions, but we hope ours will guide you in the right direction while in search of that which feeds your soul.

see us for restaurant/bar reviews, products & recipes to consider.