A Most Excellent Thai Dinner

A friend of mine is moving back to Thailand at the end of this year. Last night she invited us over for a most excellent dinner of traditional food that is usually not seen in a restaurant.

We discovered spicy eggplant:

Seafood soup with a lemongrass broth:

Braised tofu, chicken, and mushrooms:

Hard boiled eggs, deep fried, topped with fried shallots in a tamerind sauce:

To drink - 2008 Maude Pinot Gris from New Zealand:

Very unusual dishes for us, but very tasty. We particularly enjoyed the eggs. What an incredible amalgam of flavors. We were very honored to get a glimpse of real Thai cooking.

I Practice Plaqueusephilia

My friend John who manages The Wine Cellar alerted me to this fact. And I have the picture to prove it.

Acacia Mid-Town Part 2

We went to Acacia to participate in Richmond Restaurant Week and make a small contribution to the Central Virginia Foodbank. Last year we had a miserable experience at another establishment during restaurant week. Acacia restored our faith in restaurant week this year.

After we had exquisite drinks at the bar, we were seated in a modern grayed space with wisps of green for accent. We ordered wine - 2006 Domaine Berthet-Rayne Chateauneuf du Pape. Mmmm.


And then on to the difficult part - choosing what to eat. Acacia offered a great variety for the special menu. For an appetizer, my husband had Pan Seared Scallops/Cauliflower Puree/Brioche/Gremolata. He raved about the scallops! and wished it had been an entree selection. I ordered Curried Parsnip Pear Soup/Fresh Shrimp/Creme Fraiche. I raved about my soup! Continuing my exploration and budding romance with root veggies other than potatoes, I took a chance on the soup and was not disappointed. A great balance of flavors.

For the entree I went straight for the Duck Stuffed with Roasted Pears, Wrapped in Bacon, Carraway Gnocchi, Red Wine Braised Cabbage, Lingonberry Sauce. The duck carried a smokey flavor throughout and was oh-so-yummy. A delicious updated take on German-influenced cuisine. I could not have asked for anything better. And hubby stuck with seafood and selected Baked Crabcake, Cheddar Cheese Grits, Creamed Leeks, Greens, Herb Garlic Sauce. He also was well pleased with the flavors and tastes. And both entrees did not skimp on the food. While it was not an over-abundance, we were quite satisfied.

And then came dessert. A Parsnip Spice Cake/Fromage Blance Ice Cream/Pear Sauce for hubby. He was always a sucker for ice cream. This one was like a whipped cream ice cream and paired very well with the spice cake. I had the Vanilla Mascarpone Panna Cotta/Rich Chocolate Torte. I ordered it because of the chocolate (dense, intense dark chocolate), but the dessert was memorable because of the panna cotta. While not a usual panna cotta fan, this one rocked. It featured a grapefruity, puckery sauce that was out of this world.

We had a great dinner. We contributed to a worthy cause. Acacia gained two additional fans.

Bin 22 Hosts Bartholomew Broadbent Dinner Nov 10

Bin 22 is hosting Bartholomew Broadbent from Broadbent Selections Tuesday November 10th at 7pm.


The menu sounds divine:

*Broadbent Vinho Verde Sunflower -- rockfish ceviche


*Ferreira Esteva Douro Red-- Belmont Butchery charcuterie sampler


*Bodega Weinert Malbec-- bourbon & peppercorn hangar steak with root vegetables


*Ferreira Dona Antonia Port-- chocolate & blue cheese plate


$40 per person by reservation 358-4501

Just to sit and chat with Mr. Broadbent would be cool and I really enjoy his Vinho Verde - very dry and sparkly. Of course, the charcuterie sampler should also be quite yummy.

Bin 22 3200 W Cary St Richmond Va 23221

Election Day in Virginia - GO VOTE!

It is Election Day here in Virginia. If you are eligible to vote, please vote for the candidate of your choice.

And if you are so inclined, bring something yummy to share with the election officers...

Acacia Mid-Town Part 1

On Halloween we spent a lovely evening at Acacia Mid-town. This post will concentrate on the bar and cocktails. The day before Halloween we had stopped by Once Upon a Vine (Northside) and sampled some offerings from Barboursville Vineyards - Octagon was very good. The ever charming Jason Tesauro performed the honors. As we chatted we mentioned dinner plans at Acacia. He immediately said we HAD to have a drink at the bar. Arthur (and later we discovered his unnamed bar mate) was a fine mixologist and made his own infusions and syrups. He also utilized a myriad of unusual liqueurs.

Well, get a load at part of the cocktail menu above. Green Chartreuese, Fernet (that hubby and I had just discovered), Absinthe, and Ramzotti Amaro. On Halloween we toasted each other with Pear Blossom and Last Word.

Unusual and tasty. And the other cool thing - both bartenders took great pains to make each cocktail right. No slinging crap around; this was a slow, meticulous application of fine spirits. It was a pleasure just to watch them at their craft.

Cheers!

The Calm Before the Halloween Storm at Can Can

Can Can. Pre-Dinner lull. Halloween.

Fall at South of the James Market

The South of the James Market gave us a drizzly welcome today, but a myriad of vendors continue to proffer their wares. Over the last few weeks we have enjoyed:

The return of red and oak leaf lettuce from Victory Farms (these guys have the best lettuce)

Cute little hedgehog gourds from a Chesterfiled County producer

Speckled turkey eggs from Empress Farm

Cinnamon-laced whipped butter from Alfredo's (think delectable Christmas presents!)

Golden Staymen apples from Walnut Creek Farm

Sausage-stuffed tortellini from Cavanna Pasta

Japanese white turnips from Victory Farms or Fertile Crescent Farm - let me expound on the turnips a bit. I have never liked turnips. My mom (who eats and likes way more veggies than I do) positively hates turnips. My hubby convinced me to try these. Miracles do happen. I like this variety. They are not bitter. I have used them in stews and have also made mashed potatoes and turnips. Next up, I will try roasting them. And, at last, I like a vegetable that my mother does not like (although, I think if a snuck some in her food she would be pleasantly surprised...)

An Exquisite Wine

2005 La Reine Des Bois Domaine de la Mordoree from Lirac.


Available at J. Emerson.

Local Beef Sources

The Vino Market is carrying Deb-Lyn Natural Beef from Dinwiddie. We picked up a thin cut rib eye for $13 a pound. Great price. Great taste. Locally grown.

The Belmont Butchery is carrying Beechwood Farm beef from Goochland. We had a bistro steak this past week pan seared in olive oil and butter. Also $13 a pound. Yummy.

Wild Ginger

If you find yourself on the Southside of Richmond in need of dinner, head over to Wild Ginger. We found ourselves south of the river one Friday and headed over The Vino Market for their wine tasting (Dave, Hunter, and gang are always welcoming). We also browsed in the newly opened Bella Arte Gallery. Both establishments highly recommended Wild Ginger as THE place to dine.


So, we tried it. And if you find yourself dining at Wild Ginger, ask for Chris. This multi-pierced, yet clean-cut and sharp-pressed waiter will treat you right.


Wild Ginger featured Pan Asian cuisine and an extensive and decent-priced wine list. The atmosphere evoked a contemporary hipness. Were we really South of the James and bordering Powhatan?

As usual we slowly perused the menu and the wine list. Maki Rolls, small plates featuring Grilled Lamb Lollipops and Sashimi Napoleon cried out for us to try. Entrees of Sambal Shrimp and Pork Chops in a Malay Coffee Sauce seduced our tastebuds. Chris gave us a run down of the specials for the evening as well as the featured Italian wine. He ascertained that we were definitely going to order some wine. He then went on to tell us about his favorite wine on the list - Patricia Green Pinot Noir. We listened politely and asked for more time. He left us to make our decisions. And after about five minutes he returned with two sample glasses - one of the featured Italian red and one of the Patricia Green Pinot. Wow! This had never happened before where a waiter handed us wine to sample to assist in making our decision. And while we liked the Italian and would have considered ordering it any other time, the Patty G simply blew us away. I had always heard about this Oregon Pinot, but had never had it. With Chris' simple, yet generous gesture, I became a fan of both him and the wine and we ordered a bottle. And at $50 retail, it was extremely well-priced. As we saw Chris serve other tables he continued to use this selling technique to great advantage both for him and for his diners.

So, the tone was set. We luxuriated in our surprisingly hearty, yet silky smooth red and proceeded to order dinner. My spouse ordered the special Halloween Maki Roll featuring tuna and an eerie glow cube. Both fun and delicious. He also had an order of Wild Ginger Fried Rice with cashews, red peppers, raisins, pineapple, and edamame ($11). The rice was very interesting. My first thought was that the pineapple and raisins would dominate the dish and make it too sweet. This was not the case. All of the ingredients were subtle and added up to a wonderful taste experience.

I finally decided upon the Two88 Roll with shrimp tempura, avocado, spicy lump crab, and eel sauce ($14). I also ordered Yellowtail Sushi Nigiri ($5.25). I think this roll was the favorite for both of us. Great flavors with an added crunchy texture. The avocado was sliced thin (I have no idea how) and wrapped around the shrimp with the crab mixture on top. And, of course, the presentation also evoked oohs and aahs. Beauty to be savored by both the eye and the tongue.

A great evening. A new favorite dining spot. Remember, ask for Chris.

Happy Halloween Richmond!

River City Supper Club #8 - Barrel Thief on Patterson

River City Supper Club #8 convened at The Barrel Thief on Patterson on a Saturday evening. We arrived at 7 PM to a patron-free establishment. This was good in some ways – we had our pick of table location, we could peruse the wine selection at our leisure. In some ways it was not so good – staff was still not focused and neglected to tell us that us that there is no corkage fee on Saturdays.

Out of the featured red wines that we sampled, only one was truly kick-ass: 2007 Domaine des Hauts Chassis Crozes Hermitage. Hearty and priced right.

Our other selections were Patapon – an interesting non-conformist French red from Coteaux de Loir

And Travaglini Gattinara – nice Italian in the skewed bottle.

We ordered three small slates: Smoked Trout, Duck and Pheasant Pate, and Artichoke-Leek spread. We ate pate, the spread, and smoked salmon (another inattention to detail from the staff on a very unbusy night). My hubby and I are just getting into the enjoyment of pate and this one was good. And even though the salmon was a mistake, it tasted heavenly.

We then ordered cups of soup and most looked forward to the Tuscan white bean and bacon, only to be told after our order was taken that only three cups remained of the soup du jour. Butternut Squash Bisque became the substitute. The bean soup offered a lot of bacon flavor, but was distressingly short of beans. The bisque was decent, but laced with cinnamon and a bit too sweet.

Paninis rounded out the evening and were very satisfying.

As always, the company made the evening stellar, but The Barrel Thief was a bit off kilter.

Red Beans and Rice

Unfortunately, I was under the weather for the Richmond Folk Festival. I did manage to catch Phil Wiggins and Corey Harris on Sunday. While I was soaking up the sun rays, I also consumed the meaty red beans and rice from Send-a-Chef. Great blues and fantastic food.

Send-a-Chef was impressive.

Unfortunately, just that activity tuckered me out and I had to go home.