2012-02-26 Shopping @ Uwajimaya, 99 Ranch, Trader Joe's & Cost Cutter

Anther shopping trip down south for the Buddha family.  This trip, we did a lot more grocery shopping than usual...thankfully, we had the vision to leave Buddha Dog at home just to make extra room for all the goods...wahahahahaha!

UWAJIMAYA ASIAN FOOD & GIFT MARKET

206-624-6248

Originally, we came here for one thing, my Taiwanese beer!!!  But unfortunately, I couldn't find it anywhere in the store.  I walked up and down and around and around...the beer was no where to be seen...Buddha Girl was not happy...

We walked out of the supermarket with only sashimi and hibiscus tea...yup, "so not us"...hahahaha!

Pork blood?  Pork brains?  I was very tempted to buy a container of each, but no one else (at home) but me would eat it...sigh, I guess I'll have to wait until my next Taiwan trip to have the pork brain soup.  Hahaha! 

99 RANCH MARKET 大華超級市場

425-670-1899

Next we visited T&T Supermarket's former owner (along with a local 604 company), 99 Ranch Supermarket 大華超級市場.

On top of the everyday miscellaneous groceries, we picked up a few bottles of Taiwanese beer (YES!!!) and a couple packs of egg dumplings (for hot pots).

TRADER JOE'S

360-734-5166

Next, Buddha Boy took me to Trader Joe's in Bellingham...and I went crazy in there!  So much to see!  So much to buy!  My husband slapped himself in the head and thought, "Uh-oh...wrong move!"  Hahahaha!

While it's not a fully organic shop, this supermarket offers a good selection of various organic products at low and affordable prices.  A must visit for me every time I'm down south!!!
(Buddha Boy: "What have I done?")

COST CUTTER

360-332-5909

Just before hitting the border, we dropped by Cost Cutter in Blaine to pick up some chicken for Buddha Dog (yes, the spoiled brat).

While browsing through the frozen sections, we spotted and picked up a pack of these sausages.  Well, you should know us by now...anything "bacon"...mmm...hahahahahaha!

Yup. we did a lot of grocery shopping (plus shopping at Seattle Premium Outlets) in one day.  Crazy?  Nah...we enjoyed it!  Remember, doesn't matter what you buy down south, be honest with Canada Customs about your purchase, even if you have NEXUS.

2012-02-26 Snacks @ Henry's Taiwan Plus 老谷台菜

522 South King Street, Seattle, WA

206-682-0389

As we're driving away from Uwajimaya, I spotted this Taiwanese restaurant.  Buddha Boy quickly pulled over and asked if I wanted to try it.  Hey, why not, it cannot be worse the Facing East Taiwanese Restaurant 東來食府...I think.

It was approximately 3ish in the afternoon and even with it's "OPEN" sign on, I politely asked if the restaurant was still open, thinking that they might have an afternoon break.  Well, the idiotic owner (while sitting at a table chatting with his friend) responded, in Chinese, "如果沒開那我坐在這裡幹嗎?" ("Of course, if not, why would I be sitting here?")  Yes...cocky and snobby huh?

The first item that caught my attention was ba-wan, or Meatball 肉圓.  The menu stated it's "served with a savory sweet and spicy sauce"...in reality, the sauce was bland, watery and lacked spiciness.  Imagine a mix of plum sauce and ketchup then diluted with water, lots of water.  The softer-than-usual dough lacked texture...sad.  The filling had ample amounts of bamboo shoots, shitake mushrooms and pork.  The filling was satisfying, but everything else was disappointing. 

Next was the Pork Pottage 肉羹, or rou-geng.  The meat tasted...funky...as it was starting to change.  While the bowl had ample ingredients of shitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, carrots, napa cabbage, green onions and cilantro, but the soup itself was bland...disappointing.

Their Three-Cup Chicken 三杯雞 was the drier version of this dish.  The chicken was a bit dry but the overall dish tasted okay, as long as you don't see it as a three-cup chicken.  The accompanied bowl of microwaved rice was crusty and dry.

What were we thinking?  Taiwanese food in Seattle?  Why did I even bother getting my hopes up?  Both Facing East Taiwanese Restaurant 東來食府 and Henry's Taiwan Plus 老谷台菜 are below par in our books.  Never mind about comparing them to what you get in Taiwan, these two restaurants could not even compare to 604's BBT restaurants...sad, very sad.

2012-02-26 Quick Visit @ Caffe Lieto / Biscuit Bitch

1909 - 1st Avenue, Seattle, WA

206-941-4444

Being that it's Sunday, we found free street parking about two blocks away from Pike Place Market.  While walking by Caffe Lieto, I noticed a sign on the window...Biscuit Bitch.  Being a sucker for this marketing, I persuaded Buddha Girl to accompany me in.  Yes, I already had a large NY style sandwich and a large bowl of New English clam chowder, but I just I had to try their biscuit.

Oh, what a mistake it was coming here.  I now understand why this place is so popular with the late night crowd, they're simply drunk and don't know any better.  I had the Cheese Pork n' Bitch, which had a lot of bacon and cheese but very limited gravy.  The biscuit was disappointing.

Starting with the biscuit, it was soggy and dense with no texture.  Was the biscuit microwaved?  The gravy was uneventful and lacked depth.  The gravy actually made the biscuit worse than it already was.  Cheese was not melted.  And finally, the bacon.  You all know how much I love bacon, but the bacon here was extremely salty.  Overall, this was a train wreck.

The only thing that was enjoyable was their Lemonade, very refreshing, but that was about it.  The cafe is small and dark.  Seats are limited and tight.  My hope for a nice biscuit surprise was ruined.  I will not return.

2012-02-26 Quick Visit @ I Love New York Deli

#4 - 93 Pike Street, Seattle, WA

206-381-3354

Yup, we drove down to Pike Place Market...again.  Buddha Girl had a craving for the famous chowder, so I obliged (and no, she's not pregnant).  While Buddha Girl was in line for Pike Place Chowder, I went over to the main building and picked up the Broadway, a corned beef, pastrami and chopped liver sandwich.

This sandwich was a decent size for $11.95, but unfortunately, I didn't really enjoy the sandwich that much.  The meat wasn't dry, but it wasn't moist nor juicy.  The bread wasn't anything too memorable.  Simply speaking, been here, done that, no need to return.

2011-12-10 Snacks @ Serious Biscuit

401 Westlake Avenue N, Seattle, WA

206-436-0050

After a meal at Voula's Offshore Cafe (see post 2011-12-10 Lunch @ Voula's Offshore Cafe), we made our way to Serious Biscuit.  Wasn't I full already?  I probably was, but I really wanted to try Serious Biscuit.  After all, we tried Pine State Biscuits only weeks before (see post 2011-11-25 Breakfast @ Pine State Biscuits), so we needed a comparison.

I had "the Zach", which was similar to the "Reggie Deluxe" from Pine State Biscuits, with the exception of cheese.  Starting with the biscuit, because these were pre-baked then re-baked to order, there's a nice crisp crust on top.  The biscuit was not as heavy as the one at Pine State Biscuits.  The black pepper gravy was good in its own right in comparison with Pine State Biscuits.  The bacon, nothing spectacular, just good.  The egg had already burst and leaked onto the plate, I wasn't too impressed, but at least it was runny.  Finally, the chicken, although still moist, it was borderline dry.  On top of that, the breading on the chicken was so overcooked that it tasted bitter.  Anyhow, despite the bitter chicken, I still enjoyed this more than Pine State Biscuits.

Buddha Girl ordered a biscuit with Fennel Sausage, Egg, Pepper Relish and Fontina Cheese.  Everything to this tasted good, with one exception, the fennel sausage, which had a texture of a meat patty versus a plump, juicy sausage.  While Buddha Girl enjoyed the chicken and the apple butter at Pine State Biscuits, she did not quite enjoy the biscuit.  At Serious Biscuit, it's quite the opposite.  Buddha Girl, enjoyed the biscuit but everything else was nothing spectacular.

So did I finish "the Zach" after a large plate of Pinata Benedict?  Absolutely.  Was I full?  Yup, about time too.  Buddha Girl only managed half of the biscuit and saved the rest for later...weak.

We enjoyed our visit here and do plan to visit again.  I just hope that the chicken won''t be overcooked on our next visit.

2011-12-10 Lunch @ Voula's Offshore Cafe

658 NE Northlake Way, Seattle, WA

206-634-0183

Another trip stateside.  Buddha Girl wanted some last minute Christmas shopping and I wanted a trip to Voula's Offshore Cafe...yup, it's all because of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. 

We arrived at approximately 12:30pm and we were seated by 1pm.  Not only were we rushed (the restaurant closes at 2pm), we ourselves were in a rush (there's another place we wanted to visit that closes at 3pm).

The menu was simple, but there was this one item I really wanted to try, a recommendation by a yelper I know, Gina I.  She suggested that I had to try the Pinata Benedict.  This came with English muffin topped with slices of smoked pork, poached eggs and chipotle hollandaise sauce.  This was served with perfectly cooked hashbrowns on the side.  The Benedict had ample amounts of smoked pork, good meaty texture and was not too smokey.  The eggs were a bit overcooked (yolk wasn't runny enough).   The hollandaise was just okay, with only a hint of chipotle flavour.  I know, I'm not supposed to be eating so much carbs, but I just couldn't help but finish all the hashbrowns, Buddha Girl was not too happy about it.

Gina I. said that the Pinata Benedict along would be enough for both Buddha Girl and I...she doesn't know us very well.  I ordered a side of Greek Sausages, a nice change from regular breakfast sausages.  Because these were beef sausages, Buddha Girl couldn't have any.  And yes, I finished both the Pinata Benedict and the side of Greek Sausages all by myself.

Buddha Girl had the Hobo Breakfast, a scrambled hash of country sausage, mushrooms, onions, green peppers, eggs, hashbrowns and topped with cheese.  This dish was simple and good, but it's nothing outstanding other than its portion size.  Buddha Girl only managed to finish half of the plate.

We enjoyed our experience here and would visit again, but looking at the menu, we would get bored if we visit here too often.  We were able to get out in time to visit our next food destination.