2011-09-29 Quick Visit @ Pike Place Market

Since MomM's in town, it's another trip down south to pick up all the vitamins from Costco...so much cheaper and so much more selections!!!  Oh, not to mention all the Crabtree & Evelyn stuff...MomM's friends and relatives go crazy with those creams and lotions and potions...okay...not potions...hehehehehehe!  Anyhow, Buddha Boy also helped me with part of this post...specifically for the section "The Crumpet Shop" and "Mee Sum Pastry 美心餅家"...3Q3Q hun!!!

PIKE PLACE CHOWDER

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MukMuk-D tagged along and we headed to the outlets first.  The four of us finished all our shopping in less than one and a half hours!!!  The mall was so dead!!!  Since it was still early, we all decided to drive to Pike Place for some chowder...mmm...clam chowder!!!

At first, MomM only wanted to share a large bowl of New England Clam Chowder (top left) with me...but after she tried it...she hogged it!!!  Lucky me, just for fun...I made Buddha Boy bought me one in a Sourdough Bread Bowl (top right).  Buddha Boy had a Seafood Bisque (bottom left) and shared a Curried Chicken Roll (bottom right) with MukMuk-D (who also had a large bowl of clam chowder).  The sandwich was nothing spectacular.  The grilled chicken was a bit dry and the bread was too dense.  Not something we'd order again.

CHICKEN VALLEY FARM STORE

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Yup, the crazy Buddha Girl visited her favorite chicken store at the market again!!!  I couldn't help it!  I love eating Deep-Fried Chicken Hearts!!!

I also picked up a couple of those Spicy Hot Chicken Sticks to share while we munched down the chowders...yum!!!

THE CRUMPET SHOP

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We've read a lot of good things about The Crumpet Shop, we decided to stop by for a quick dessert.  It was only steps away from Pike Place Chowder.

A crumpet looked pretty much like an English muffin, just not done crispy.  To start, we ordered the most basic, Crumpet with Butter, with honey. 

The crumpet was quite soft, light and very simple tasting.  It was good, but I probably would have liked it more if the bottom was crispy.

Just for fun, we also tried a Crumpet with Walnuts, Honey, Ricotta Cheese.  This was good, but I still would have preferred some contrasting crispness.

MEE SUM PASTRY 美心餅家

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Previously, someone suggested that we should really try the Hom Bow.  I really wasn't expecting much, after all, Vancouver is quite well-known for Chinese food in North America, the standards are set pretty high.

At first glance, the buns was quite large, however, something looked off.  The bun had no glisten of the sweet egg wash and it did not have that tad stickiness on top.  Biting into the bun, I was shocked with how light and airy the dough was, however, it lacked that small hint of sweetness.

Now, the BBQ pork filling, well, after two bites, I ended up tossing the whole bun.  While ample in stuffing, it was so salty that I was willing to give up the meat.  In comparison with the buns in Vancouver, this was comparable with the bottom tier.  Most dim sum places offer acceptable BBQ buns.  One of my go-to bakery is Michele Cake Shop 君悅餅廊.

Guess what?  I saw Michael Jordan!!!  Yes...Michael Jordan...in a lingerie store...at the Seattle Premium Outlets!!! 

Yup, Buddha Girl the idiot.  :p  Hahahaha!  Ok...why would Michael Jordan be the "face" of ladies socks & underwear?!?!?  Hey, according to the banner...you get the fourth pack free with a purchase of any three packs!!!  LOL!!!

And to our beloved KimHo of I'm Only Here for the Food...

2011-07-16 Quick Eats @ Pike Place Market

What?  Pike Place Market again?  Yup, we were down south again...for what?  Food, of course.  Well, technically, at first, our sole purpose was not really for "food"...but since we're heading down to pick up Buddha Boy's new toys...hey, why not make it a real food trip...again...hahahahaha!

Please remind us not to visit Pike Place Market on any weekends...this place was packed...worse than Granville Island!!!  Not to mention all the Richmond-like drivers...hahahahahaha!

PIKE PLACE CHOWDER

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While Buddha Boy was lining up, I was lucky to find a two-seater stone table under the awning.  Thankfully, I made an eye contact with the couple sitting prior to us and they held the table until I was able to claim it...I had to fight through a small crowd to get to the table...hahahaha!

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Eight cups of soup?  Crazy?!?!?!?  Nah...since they had a selection of eight chowders, it made sense to try them all with two orders of "4-CUP Chowder Sampler"...after all, it was a long drive...hehehe!

 

The Manhattan Clam Chowder (top row, left) was too tomatoey and had very limited chunks of clams...I still like Sylvia's version at FP.  The Southwestern Chicken & Corn Chowder (top row, center) was not really for me...I'm not a fan of "southwestern" taste or related spices.  The Vegan Chowder (top row, right) was tasty, but it's not really for us...(1) we're not fans of vegetables in cream soups and (2) we don't like vegetables...LOL!  The Crab & Shrimp Clear (middle row, left) was very light and flavorful but I couldn't see much shrimps in the cup.  The Seared Scallop Chowder (middle row, center) was our least favorite...we didn't quite like the "lime juice" taste.  Their signature Traditional New England Clam Chowder (middle row, right) was still our favorite...rich, creamy and chunky.  The Smoked Salmon Chowder (bottom row, left) was creamy and rich, with a light hint of capers.  The Seafood Bisque (bottom row, right) was rich and buttery...the fragrant basil cream broth also made this chowder another signature favorite at this soup joint.

CHICKEN VALLEY FARM STORE

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Of course...I couldn't go to PPM without visiting my chicken store to pick up some chicken hearts and chicken gizzards...hehehehe!

 

I also picked up a Spicy Hot Chicken Stick...and yes...it was spicy and hot...and sweet too.  It's like they added a massive load of chili peppers to some kind of sweet chili sauce...it had a really good kick.  The chicken was a bit dry, but it was still tender.

We also brought Buddha Dog along with us for the trip.  He gave us an attitude the whole drive down south...mainly because it was too early and we dragged him out of his bed...hahahaha!

Buddha Dog sure attracted a lot of attention.  Many people walked by and commented on how well-behaved he was...LOL...only if they knew...hehehehe!  :p

2011-06-29 Munchies @ Pike Place Market (1/2)

Since Buddha Girl has never been, the main focus of this trip was Pike Place Market.  Originally, we only had a few places in mind to try, but after experiencing small portions at breakfast, we ended up snacking here quite a bit.

CHICKEN VALLEY FARM STORE

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Knowing Buddha Girl loves chicken hearts and gizzards, I immediately had her get an order of each.  I recall Churches Chicken used to have gizzards, and pretty good ones too.

The Chicken Hearts were plump and chewy.  The Chicken Gizzards were nicely deep-fried to a chewable crunch.  Despite the extreme saltiness and grease, Buddha Girl enjoyed these snacks.

PIKE PLACE CHOWDER

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Colleen did her homework and wanted to try this particular place, mainly for its clam chowder in a bread bowl.

This little soup and sandwich shop wasn't too hard to find, but it was packed with people, both inside and out.

Colleen went for the classic New England Clam Chowder, served in a sourdough bowl.  This rich and creamy soup had plump and meaty clams.  Bacon was a good addition to the soup, along with a nice mix of herbs.

Buddha Girl and I shared a "4 Cup Chowder Sampler".  The Seafood Bisque (top left) had fish, scallops and shrimps.  The bisque was not too rich, but it was extremely flavorful.  The Crab & Shrimp in Clear Soup (bottom left) was tasty and "ching" (清).  The New England Clam Chowder (top right) was our favorite.  It was smooth and had lots of bacon bits.  The Smoked Salmon Chowder (bottom right) had a nice hint of capers.  All worth returning for more.

Marv and I shared a Dungeness Crab Roll.  The crab meat itself was good but the bun was a bit too big and doughy.  The meat to bun ratio wasn't balanced.

I picked up a Lemonade for Buddha Girl while Marv picked up a Strawberry Lemonade for Colleen.  Both were refreshing.

MEE SUM PASTRY 美心餅家

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I took the opportunity and tried everything and anything interesting.  Before the trip, I read that this place has good "hom baos", but after seeing some pictures online, I opted to try something else.

I didn't want to waste my precious stomach room on a filler, so I picked up only two Crab Rangoons, one to share between each couple.

Filled with fake crab meat and cream cheese, this $2/piece garbage was immediately dumped after one bite.

While walking around the market sourcing for food, we walked by a little candy store.  Buddha Girl was immediately attracted to this true "gummy" bear.

So, did the food stop here?  Of course not.  Due to the limitation of tagging labels, we had to separate this long post into two parts.  Part two coming up next...