savor.

We here at Gennie's livejournal feel it is about time for another review revue.

Today I will start with the variety of restaurants I have been to as of late.

Let's start with Mashiko. A fun Japanese restaurant in West Seattle. I would like to thank Nurit for introducing me to this place. They have a rather amusing attitude, where they obviously want a high turnover rate with the tables and they want you to try a few new things now and then. Which is a slightly different approach to a Sushi place. Atleast in my experience, the sushi places I have attended were keen on a calm quiet atmosphere. The experiences were big on calming music, waterfalls and a pseudo-sense of serenity.
This place has the predictable Asian prints on the wall and some running water (a large aquarium) but it has a more frenetic feel.
their menu is vast and you feel a bit like you are at the Cheesecake factory and you are wading your way through a novella of choices.
When I was at Mishiko with Nurit, it was with a rather large party so we tried a number of things. I ordered Paella roll which consisted of calamari, shrimp tempura, basil, olive oil and tomatoes. The phrase that comes to mind in describing it is a mediterranean sushi roll. Along with that I ordered Gyoza. Simple dumplings. I sampled many other items. I had a piece of sushi offered to me by wankle that was essentially large caviar. Not as salty or delicately flavored as the Russian stuff, but different. I liked how the roe popped in my mouth. It made me think of eating red currants from my Mother's front yard. The only downside to this place is the server who reminded us quite often the time we had to leave. Even though reservations were made, the restaurant made it clear that we were given an alot time of an hour and a half. If this approach is to go along with their general attitude, I believe it fails them. If you offer people a more leisurely meal, often they will spend more. Plus it is easier for servers to spend more time on one party. (they are more likely to receive a handsome tip for their time)
I would like to go there again. Especially with that group of people.
I think the fifteen of us, ought to do that every once in awhile. Just go out to dinner and have a big old time, eating until we need to be rolled home.

Next on the dining experiences, our friend Elizabeth (the handbag junkie) invited Andrew and I to brunch one gorgeous Sunday afternoon. (before the Sun died and we found ourselves living in the dark ages once again) We went to the coho cafe and sat out in the heat. (We should have rethought that one, because afterwards we felt like someone had roasted us) We began the early afternoon with muffins, scones, and mimosas. (mimosa is a fun word to say slightly drunk. margarita is another one) We then launched into a heavy meal that was fun to eat. Especially with the given company. I had the eggs benedict. Most people know of my deep love of this particular dish and the coho succeeded fairly well, though I wasn't all that impressed with their hollandaise sauce. If you want damn fine eggs benedict, I always say, go to Charlie's. (you can have your eggs while looking at drag queens) But otherwise it went well. It came with this fried potato dish, which consisted of sweet potatoes, red potatoes, purple potatoes red bell pepper and onions. It was definitely colorful, but the chef added way too much pepper for my own comfort level. One couldn't really taste anything else besides the pepper. I think the amount of seasoning in that case ought to be left to the diner's discretion. One can always add more if they want an extra bit of spiciness. Elizabeth had the steak tacos, which she found to be okay, but nothing terribly exciting. Andrew seemed to enjoy his farmer's scramble, which seemed like an Atkins diet dream come true. It had bacon, ham, sausage and probably some other form of breakfast meat. He ate it up with enthusiasm, and didn't die, so he declared it good.
The Coho isn't the most inspiring place on earth, but the service is reliable and friendly, the food is fairly satisfying and it is a fun place to spend a Sunday afternoon before sauntering over to check out the Oscar Meyer Weinermobile. (I have always wanted to see one, and now that I have...I can go on with the rest of my life) That was the afternoon that ended up with me purchasing two pairs of shoes and my happy handbag. I would like to thank Elizabeth for the enabling. heh

Finally...the last restaurant.
I have been to the Brooklyn a number of times with Mr. Jenner. He is my favorite dining companion when it comes to oysters and flirty behavior on a Saturday night. I find that I always get the same thing. The Alaskan King salmon in the tomato cream sauce. Somehow it didn't ring true for me this time. The vegetables weren't that well-prepared and I was more interested in what Mr. Jenner had ordered. He chose the Muscovy Duck. It had this sexy demi-glace which was sweet and salty and reminded me slightly of something one would find in Japanese cuisine. It also had this fig relish and the duck was perfect. Not too fatty or dry. It was perfectly presented and satisfied all expectations. I suppose the next time we eat there I will break down, order that and wake up several days later in a slight daze. While the main course wasn't fireworks and bells ringing, the oysters pleased me beyond all doubt.
Oyster season is here again and I love cold winter nights, raw oysters and a good glass of wine. All while chatting with Mr. Jenner.
We are like two kids at Christmas when the server brought about the large silver platter of Dabob oysters (sweet erotic delights that are found near where I grew up) to us. We ignored the horseradish and cocktail sauce and merely grabbed the wedges of lemon, and let the oysters slide down our throat, all while we giggled and made a mess of things. What a fun night. We sat at the counter, watching the chefs create large flames and then we ended the evening with the warm chocolate cake. There is something so satisfying about that particular cake. After such a cheerful experience we went grocery shopping and felt blissful.

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Go forth my little friends and eat.