phamos

I would like to state for the record that I was NOT the only one driving the streets of Madison today with my windows rolled down and my stereo cranked up. Far from it! In fact, people were busting out their summeriest cars -- I spotted a Volkswagen convertible, one of those Cameros with, like, batwing panels missing from the top/sides, and, best of all, a bigwheel Jeep Wrangler with no cover and a rack of HUGE spotlights atop the windshield. It was like a scene out of an 80s high school movie, people piling into some suburban last-day-of-summer keg party, and the preppy girl in the VW (played by either Lea Thompson or Kristy Swanson) is secretly in love with the guy from the wrong side of the tracks (Camero, wearing acid-washed jean jacket and possibly in possession of some kind of wispy facial hair), so he and her fratty boombatty boyfriend (Wrangler) are going to RUMBLE. This fight may or may not be set to the strains of "Separate Ways" by Journey.

ANYWHOO, it's very lovely out. However, I have noticed that on days when it's nice out, it takes about twice as long for the pizza delivery guy to get here. I am having trouble coming up with a reasonable hypothesis as to why this is.

Yummy yummy pizza, delivered in biodiesel cars fueled with the leftover oil from their deep-fryers, right down the street from my new apartment -- that's what Madison means to me. Also, slushies in every convenience store. That's all I really want out of a city. New York utterly failed me in that regard.

When I was a very little girl, there was a bakery down the street from my house where my mother and I would go and buy cookies. (It was in an old house right next to Panos, if that means anything to anyone reading this.) I am suddenly craving their pumpkin cookies. It's been more than 20 years since the place closed, and I can still taste them. Want. Can't have. Bogus

For some reason, I am craving those Marshmallow Rice Krispies that they made back in the '80s. Do they still make those? Because I WANT SOME.

A new review of Kris's restaurant, Blue Velvet:

Not only a fantastic movie, but a phenomenal restaurant? Could it be?

Nestled in a developing part of downtown, this chic restaurant is below The Flat, a new loft community. The restaurant just opened 2 weeks ago and now replaces my previous "favorite downtown restaurant/lounge" spot. Being relatively close to the area, we walked over from 8th and Flower. I was a little unsure as we turned down Garland being in a "not to familiar" area, but was pleasantly greeted by the concierge inside the building who directed us back outside to the restaurant entrance. The hostess sat us straight away and let us pick our preferred seats. She also asked if it was our first time at the space and offered us a tour from the restaurant manager. I was instantly impressed with the hip decor and beautiful view of the pool.

Our waitress was at our table quicker than I could decide on a beverage.... and continued in this vain all night. She was warm and gave wonderful recommendations on cocktails and wine. I tried the house wine which is a blend of Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah. It was fantastic. The list of "by the bottle" selections was impressive and eclectic. Perfect for the connoisseur. We ordered two appetizers, Hamachi and the Corn Agnolotti. To our surprise they delivered a new starter that we didn't even order. It seemed peculiar, perhaps a mini piece of fish and came in a small dish with dark beads and cream. I realized it was a scallop in an almond cream sauce with Israeli couscous. I'm not partial to scallops but I could eat this dish all day long! (Must have been some secret ingredient).

Before our other starters came we were pleasantly greeted by Sam Valle, the man that runs the joint. He was anxious to know how we heard of the place and sat to chat for a while. He instantly detailed what we had already ordered so that we were aware of the process that they cook their food. They have a specific way of cooking some of their meats where it is "shrink wrapped" in a plastic pack with marinades and spice. This process completely cooks the meat throughout at a low temperature and keeps the proteins moist. No dry meat here! Sam then offered us some complimentary champagne and a post dinner tour of the space. I could not believe his hospitality!

I ordered the Striped Bass, which I was a bit concerned about being a "fishy" sort of dish. The waitress assured me that I would enjoy it. Low and behold it was the best cooked fish i have EVER had. It lay on a plate of grapes and various mushrooms. Superb!

Upon stuffing myself beyond capacity, Sam came back to our table to ask how pleased we were with our entre. He already knew by the look on our face... We proceeded to take a grande tour of the space. The bar and dining area are separated which keeps the noise level down. Mind you the music selection is perfect for the lounge enthusiasts; Funkstrung, Massive Attack, Goldfrapp. The lu is unisex and plans for an avant garde moss sculpture are in effect to add to the hand washing experience along with mirrors throughout. The back of the space has an exclusive chefs table for those that want the official experience. Even beyond that area is a private party lounge complete with bar and Audio Visual components. This area is catered to corporations or firms with presentations to show that still want the chic atmosphere. It can completely close off from the rest of the restaurant and has its own bathroom. How creative!

Lastly, Sam took us on a quick visit to the kitchen where we were warmly greeted by chef Kris Morningstar. He was delighted to hear that our meal was magnificent and very grateful that we came to dine. I have NEVER had such a full service dining experience!

To complete our evening, I ordered the White Chocolate Bombe. This was a mousse with candied pistachios and lime custard. I don't need to tell you how good this was... Although, I could only eat half I was so full! We asked for our check and I could not believe what our bill detailed. To my surprise the whole meal was ONLY $101!

I dine quite regularly at various restaurants around LA and almost always our bill comes close to $150. This became the standard for us. I could not believe I had such a phenomenal meal for $100! For those that are aware of the mechanics of gourmet dining... You will revel in this atmosphere... For those that have a desire to learn... know first that the portions are smaller than what most "Americans" are used to and the presentation/flavor is the true artistic element here.

What a culinary masterpiece!

Bon Appetit!

I went to Mondo today after work on my way to eat a lonely dinner at Banjara by myself. I briefly browsed through their used DVDs and came across my personal holy grail of used DVD box sets: The Complete Goofy, still in its collectible tin! For $19.99!

I spent $45 on a copy of this damn thing that WASN'T even still in the tin. I just put it up on eBay for a starting price of $35 and a buy-it-now of $65, and I don't doubt I'll get some good bids.

You'd think for all the touting of Kim's clerks as these DVD buffs, the DVD buyers would know what things are out of print and what aren't. (Apparently they need a TV-and-Animation-DVD geek like me around after all...) And the poor sap who sold it to the store for less than $10! Damn shame.

Also, the uptown store doesn't have a rental copy of it, so they should have actually sent it there. But that's just me being picky. All I know is, I found a cheap copy of an out-of-print DVD box set at a store that should know better. And that makes me happy.

90 degrees out? SLUSHIE TIME!

tsarin asks about ignignot. ignignot is a mooninite. the mooninites are characters on aqua teen hunger force. the other mooninite's name is ur. ignignot is more fun to say.

bugboy3001 wants to know about beef on weck, and i am reminded that i have two roast beef-related interests, which may seem kind of weird. beef on weck is a western new york specialty. it's roast beef on kimmelweck roll. kimmelweck is a kind of german bread with salt all over it. the roll is dipped in gravy, so the meat and the bread sorta smoosh together. apparently, you have to be raised eating it to really dig it. segev doesn't like it. then again, he never had it at schwabel's, which is to beef on weck what the anchor bar is to buffalo wings. that sentence made no sense to people not from buffalo, i think. the anchor bar is the bar where buffalo wings were invented. so i guess the comparison isn't so apt, given that beef on weck wasn't invented at schwabel's. that's just sorta the infamous place to get yourself some genuine beef on weck. the door to the kitchen is open, so you see roast after steaming roast being cooked. yeah, i guess this is all really weird if you're not from buffalo.

i'm eating an apple and watching the star wars holiday special. so far it's made up almost entirely of incomprehensible wookie grunting. mark hamill is wearing a distracting amount of makeup.

i'm always amused by how the glazed chicken lean cuisine meal has a big thing on it that says "the #1 seller" like it's a hit record or something.

i re-read the 5th harry potter book today. still good.

it has been pointed out to me that i don't write in my journal as much anymore. i agree. gonna try.