The French Laundry

So I’m a cliché, I admit it. I start a blog and barely update it. I blame my pure laziness, not my lack of interest. Trust me, I still love food and the city. I’ve been eating my way around town. Maybe I was too full to write? Eh, whatever the reason, you don’t care and, well, I don’t really care that you don’t care…so I say we stop with excuses and move on to the food…

Every now and again when my friends are contemplating something to do, I throw out the “Wanna go check out that French Laundry restaurant?” And every time the response is a whiny “Buttttt it’s too far” (which ever friend is reading this, I’m not talking about you…it was the other one..haha). So what do I do about that---drag my boy toy (BT)!

So, we made the hour long trek to The French Laundry in Fenton. Side note before I get to the restaurant: being that I’ve never been to Fenton, I was really surprised by all the beautiful historic homes. I’m a sucker for a good ol’ home. They just don’t make houses like they used to. Resume blog: Okay, so I’ve been hearing some good stuff about this restaurant, and as soon as I walked in I knew it wasn’t just a bunch of b.s. It was the kind of place that I would own, if I were to ever win the lottery. It has that local diner feel to it, but not in a cheesy way. The furniture was a smorgasbord of fun….tables and chairs not matching and in every nook of the place. I kind of felt bad for the people who were sitting right behind the hostess stand because I was staring at their food…contemplated asking them if I could join in on their dinner because I was starving and we had to wait 45 minutes. The display of food goodies to purchase occupied my time. They sold microbrew beers, preserves, Zingerman’s baked goods, etc. There was also a chalkboard of headlines in the dining room that I thought were fun.

One thing in particular I have an appreciate for is the fact that they use local ingredients….even the salt and pepper shakers were from Milford Spice Company…double points for that! I especially love that all the beers on tap are from Michigan microbreweries. They even have a firkin of beer. Not only do I love saying “firkin”, but I love when restaurants offer it.

On to the menu….they had me at “Short rib sloppy joes sliders with bleu cheese slaw.”

After falling in love with the first item on the menu, I knew it would be trouble deciding on my entrée. We’ve already established that I love food with a passion….so you combined that with the fact that all I had for that day was a small breakfast and that I spent the past 45 minutes drooling at the couple behind the hostess station while they ate …you end up with one hungry dame who is looking for a three course meal. We decided to go with my first love, the sliders for an appetizer. Short ribs were very tender, and the brioche bun was perfect for it. Only complaint was that it could have been a little hotter….in temperature and in spice level. It was served with Tim’s Chips….not gonna lie, they were good…but a little disappointed they weren’t Bettermade.

Next, our Turkey Chili and Caesar Salad was served. I enjoyed my Turkey Chili and I snagged a forkful of Caesar Salad that I was impressed with. I can’t stand when there’s too much dressing on a Caesar Salad…this one was well balanced.

If I only could eat 5 things for the rest of my life, I would pick goat cheese, scallops, nutella, fresh pita bread from Yazmeen bakery, and gelato…obviously not together. Because the Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Goat Cheese Risotto had two out of the five items, it was like an entrée that was specifically made for me. I was almost strayed way by the Eggplant Parmesan, Grilled Atlantic Salmon with Ancho Chile and Ginger Glaze or the Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash (loved that they had a decent vegan entrée on the menu). My BT selected the Cassoulet. My entrée was too die for, but then again I do love goat cheese and scallops. Everything from the risotto, mushrooms, and scallops were cooked to perfection. I kind of wish I was a bit more adventurous with my selection. As for the Cassoulet, it was good, but not my cup of tea. It’s one of those entrees that you can’t blame the restaurant for, it simply wasn’t right for you. It’s what I like to call the “It’s not you, it’s me” entrée (see El Brazon post for reference). With both entrees, it was apparent that fresh ingredients were used, there was depth to the taste, and care was put into making the entrees.

For dessert, we had the strawberry apple pie. They make their pies from scratch. The picture will tell you that we did enjoy it.

One last thing that I appreciated about The French Laundry was the service. I can see how some people would get annoyed with this, but I like when the server takes their time serving the meal. Our server took into consideration the timing of serving each course to not be overwhelmed.

Overall, The French Laundry was worth the drive and the wait. It was a bit overpriced, but then again you can tell they use fresh, quality ingredients. I would like to go back to try breakfast and lunch selections. Let the whining begin!

The French Laundry deserves 4 forks out of 5!

El Barzon

So, I lied…I said I was back and then I never came back…but I assure you I’ve returned to forking around Detroit. This city has a special place in my heart…and the only way I can show my love is through my appetite…spoken like a true Italian!

In my months away from the blog, I kept on hearing wonderful things about El Barzon, so I decided to check out what all the hype was about. The thing that strikes me at first is location. If you weren’t familiar with the rave reviews of the restaurant or if your one of those wusses who is afraid to step foot in the Detroit (you know who you are….you suburbanites who think that every person walking in Detroit is going to rob you..trust me no one wants your Red Wings Jersey and Crocs), you wouldn’t consider going to the restaurant. I kind of like that about the place, it’s like this secret little gem. The décor reminds me that unlike many fine dining establishments, it's not important to make sure your chairs match…it’s entirely about the food.

Ahh..now the food! I checked out the menu before I went and I was so worried about not ordering the right thing. To go Mexican or to go Italian…that was the question. There is sooooo much on the menu, and it’s very difficult to narrow down what you want to try. They start you off with some chips and salsa….who doesn’t love chips and salsa? Both salsas are too die for!

When the waiter asked if we wanted any guacamole, the first thing that came to my mind is “Should that even be a question?” Probably some of the best guac I’ve had!

Then came the question of what to order. I decided to go with the Mexican for the entree, but not without a taste of some Italian to start off with. I ordered the Bis Pasta to start, which was a duo of pastas (strozzapreti norcina and cavatelli alla boscaiola). One had a creamy mushroom sauce, while the other had a traditional meat sauce. Both were very impressive. I was a fan of the mushroom sauce.

As for the entrée, I decided to go Mexican with the Enchelidas de Mole Pablano. Unfortunately I wasn't a big fan of it. I don’t blame the food, it was a situation like picking the wrong partner to dance the cha-cha. It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t for me. I felt like I needed to have the “It’s not you, it’s me” convo with my plate. Although the sauce had a lot of depth, it was a bit too sweet for me. The meal ended with some coconut sorbet. One of the things I love about Italian fruit gelato is that it sometimes almost taste like your eating a perfect version of the fruit. The coconut sorbet was a lot like that, it tasted like I was eating a perfect coconut.

Overall, I have to say that I can see myself going back to El Barzon because even though my entrée and I weren’t meant for each other, I truly believe that there are many things on that menu that I can fall in love with. For that reason, I give El Barzon 4 forks out of 5.

I'm back!

I’ve been M.I.A. for the past few months.  Despite not having written any posts, this blog has been on my mind.  I can’t help but think about why I decided to start this blog whenever I get in my car and drive around town.  More and more buildings are becoming vacant.  There’s this restaurant that’s in my neighborhood that closed its doors a few months ago. This restaurant has been the location for many anniversaries, bridal showers, communions, and birthdays within my family. While this restaurant was closing, there was a chain restaurant down the street that just went up.  This makes me upset on a few different levels. For environmental reasons, I find it unnecessary to build a completely new space, when there’s plenty of vacant spaces around that could have been renovated.  Most important, I find that chain restaurants are killing the art of dining. First of all, chain restaurants require your food to be processed. There needs to be consistency, so a chicken tender in Dearborn must taste the same as it does in Sacramento, California.  I guess you can argue that that some “mom and pop diner” could purchase the same chicken tender as the local Coney Island from the same food distributor.  This is true, but when dealing with independently owned restaurants you leave more room for creativity with ingredients.  They are also more likely to purchase ingredients that are locally produced. And let’s face it, food is art. What other medium can be appreciated through different senses? The creativity that goes into combining ingredients, the way it’s presented, the way it can create such a sensation before you take the first bite…creating dishes is an art form.  Now, let’s talk about economics. Did you know that when you spend your money at an independently owned business more of your money stays within that local economy versus spending the same amount of money at chain?  There are so many reasons to stop and think about where you want to spend your money the next time you go out for dinner. I vow not to eat at any chain restaurants, will you do the same?

 Now, let me go into another aspect of this blog that I want discuss. I love the city of Detroit.  There’s been a lot of debate over regionalism.  People need to realize that in order for our region to succeed, the city of Detroit must also. We need to lift the city up.  I’m tired of people thinking that the city isn’t worth saving. My very small way of doing that is by celebrating what the city has to offer through it’s restaurants.

So, that’s why I’m back. I’m here to support some of the great works of art that people are creating through their food in the city. 

Oslo

I understand that when going out to a restaurant the food is the star, but it's not the only component that makes for a good experience. My first job involved customer service, and I think good customer service is a lost art. Sometimes I feel like giving good customer service comes natural to people, while others need to be trained at it. I also feel that people's expectations and appreciation for it, especially in the restaurant business isn't as high as it used to be. Because it isn't as enforced, we are used to just mediocre service. As long as our water glass gets filled and food comes out in the correct order, we are generally happy. Why am I talking about this? Well, I experienced some terrible service over the weekend. My friends and I decided a few years ago that as we get older the more bills we get, and the less important gifts become on your birthday. We put a stop to the gifts and decided to just go out for each of our birthdays at a new restaurant. It was my close friend's birthday this week, and she picked Oslo for her celebratory (becomes less celebratory as you get older though!) birthday dinner. I hate to judge a restaurant on service alone, but it was so bad it ruined the whole experience for me. I don't even know where to begin...

For those of you who aren't familiar with Oslo. It's located on Woodward and had closed for a bit, but reopened in 2007. They often host DJs who spin techno and trance music in the basement. The food consist of sushi and Thai specialties. These are two of my favorites, so going into it I was pretty excited. We arrived when the restaurant was just about to fill up. The menu is reasonably priced. I've been trying to order a variety of items to try for the sake of the blog (or that's the excuse I like to tell myself for being a pig and order way too much food). I ordered an appetizer of Karee Puff, which is potatoes, peas, ground chicken, and yellow curry in a pastry. It was pretty good. I haven't had Indian in awhile, so that kind of satisfied that craving for a bit. I also ordered a sushi roll--the Summer Refresh. It did not have any rice and consisted of spicy tuna, avocado, tomango, crab, and wrapped with a cucumber. It was very light and refreshing--hence the name. I was expecting it as an appetizer, but it came after my meal. My birthday friend also ordered a sushi roll, also expecting it as an appetizer. She ordered the Spider, which rocked! For my entree, I ordered the Spicy Noodles. I was craving some Pad Thai..but I wanted to switch it up a bit. My taste buds are always happy with spicy foods, but my stomach...not so much! Besides my stomach, here were the other issues,

Things not to do if you are a server:

1. Do not forget to serve glasses of water! This is serving 101---Don't forget the water and don't forget to refill the drinks. We were waiting for the server to come back for at least 15 minutes, to the point where I was going to go up to the bar to ask for some water, until another waitress noticed.

2. Do not forget to serve someone their meal. We all were half way through our entrees, while one of my friends wasn't even served her salad yet. The waitress was made aware of this, but later totally forgot to serve her the sushi she ordered.

3. Appetizers come before the entrees, not after.

4. The excuse of "the reason why I don't have your sushi yet is because we don't know where the other sushi chef went" or "this is only my second day and I don't even know the menu" are not valid excuses.

5. Charging the credit card on someone else's balance isn't really good practice.

6. Be aware of your guest's satisfaction and try to compensate when you can. You shouldn't be told to take something off the bill because you forgot to order it causing the person to get their meal after the rest of the table was done with their meal.

I don't mean to be a complete bitch about it, but you go into restaurants expecting at least mediocre service and hope for better. It was my friend's birthday and I always want the best for my friends, so it's upsetting when it's less than that. If I were to judge the food by itself, it was pretty good. Good enough to ignore the bad service and go back...not quite. It will require some healing before I go back, but if I were, I'd stick with the sushi. I understand it could of been a fluke (although one of the people I dined with said she had been there a few weeks ago and the same thing happened to her). Also, I want this blog to be about the good things the city has to offer...but I don't think anything in Detroit should settle for less. I'm going to try not to hinder my fork rating just on service, but it does affect it....it's 2 out 5.

Wasabi

What a day it's been!! I'm back at school. Although I love my job, I need to pursue a career that will provide me with some growth, mentally, as well as, in the pocket. So, I find myself back at Wayne State taking some courses in Anatomy & Physiology, Nutrition, and Developmental Psychology. After my first class, I headed to Marwell's Book Store and dropped a whopping $580 on books!!! Now that's what I need to change careers to...something in the book business! After giving my left arm for my books, and feeling defeated before even starting the course in Anatomy & Physiology, I decided to head to the new restaurant called Wasabi for some good ol' Asian fare to cheer me up. Wasabi is nicely situated near the D.I.A. in the Park Shelton building. From the outside I didn't know what to expect and I don't know if it's just because they don't have an official sign yet, but once I was inside I was pleasantly surprised at the decor. As with many Asian restaurants, the style was simple and clean. My friend and I were attempting to be adventurous with our selections. We began our meal with the chef selection of sushi. This was three pieces of nigiri sushi---for those of you who stay away from sushi this is the one that has a ball of rice with a piece of raw fish on top. I have to admit that I have to be in the right mood to want it. We both wanted to try all of them so we attempted to bite into each piece so we could share....I do not recommend this because we looked like a bunch of idiots with rice all over the place! I have to say that they had to be one of the best places where I've had nigiri. We also ordered a appetizer of pork and vegetable dumplings. They were excellent. I'm not a huge fan of pork, but these were delicious! Because it was freezing cold outside, I decided to go with the Sansai Udon. My friend was a bit more adventurous and ordered the Vegetarian Tofu Bibimbab. This is basically a bowl of random stuff (iceburg lettuce, mushrooms, rice, vegetables, and fried tofu) and came with a squeezable hot sauce. She looked at the bowl and wondered, "What am I supposed to do with this?" The guy who seemed to be in charge, must of saw the confused face and came over to explain the dish to us. The hot sauce (which reminded me of a Asian version of ketchup) was squeezed all over the dish and then all the ingredients were mixed together. This is not for the type of person who doesn't like there foods touching! I enjoyed my noodles, but was a bit disappointed that my dish didn't provide as much excitement. Next time I'm definitely going try one of the Bibimbab, especially one that comes in a stone bowl to keep the food hot. Wasabi provided me a nice breather to calm down, and a great meal. For those reasons, I will give Wasabi four forks out of five.

Angelina Italian Bistro

Now that the holidays are behind us, I had a chance to sit down and have a dinner with some of my closest friends. We decided to check out Angelina Italian Bistro, which just opened downtown a few months ago on Broadway. It's located near the Detroit Opera House in the old Madison Theatre. The design of the restaurant is classy, but comfortable. The thing that caught my eye when I first walked into the restaurant was the glass blown chandelier made by a student from the Center of Creative Studies. The bar almost took up half the restaurant and is very welcoming if you just wanted to drop in for a drink. They included a good selection of wine and beer from Michigan. From the the chandelier to the food, you can tell that they made an effort to include the essence of Detroit in their restaurant.

Before I begin on the food, let me just say that because I grew up with great Italian food, I can be a bit picky when it comes to authentic Italian dishes. That being said...here are my thoughts on the food. We started off our meal with the Calamari appetizer. It came with a very interesting sweet dip. I didn't know what to expect with a carmelo sauce...a sweet dip with calamari sounded kind of odd. But I have to admit it worked really well with it. I wish I had the appetite to try the housemade mortadella and the pickled fennel (I lovvve fennel)...maybe next time. They served warm bread with hummous, olive oil, and honey butter. The hummous was garlicy...just the way I like it. For my entree I tried the Shrimp Risotto. This dish was okay. The vegetables needed to be cooked a little longer..the carrots where still crunchy. Although the basil oil that was around the dish made it look pretty, I don't think it was necessary for the dish. It's already rich, and the addition of the oil put it over the edge. The mooch that I am (I do it for the blog...or at least that's what I tell myself to make me feel better) tried a bit of my friend's gnocchi and appreciated the fact that the texture and taste of the actual gnocchi was very similar to what I was used at home. The sauce was a bit too rich for me. I also had a bite of the Kalmatta Pizza and thought that it was good. Service was excellent...everyone from the host to the server was very attentive and friendly. Overall, I thought that it was good...especially after a few glasses of Rose' wine! I'll give Angelina Bistro 3 forks out of 5.

Battle of the Nogs!

As December is nearing an end, so is my crazy work schedule. Whatever free time I've had was used to get ready for the holidays. One of the best things about the holidays is Christmas Eve dinner. It's tradition in Italian culture to have seven fish dishes. I prefer non-land animals, so this makes for my favorite dinner. Here is a run down of all seven dishes we had this year: Seafood Salad (consisting of shrimp, calamari, scallops, and crab), Grilled Shrimp (thanks to my brother, Chef Dominic), Cocktail Shrimp, Penne with Smoked Salmon Sauce (my personal favorite of the dinner), Spaghetti with a Clam Sauce, Orange Roughy, Baccala in a Tomato Sauce (baccala is a salted cod that is popular in Italian Christmas tradition), Baccala Potato Salad (this was a new recipe that my mom learned). So, we had 8 dishes...I think it's because Italians are also supersitious and 8 were made "just in case".

Another Christmas treat I had this year was eggnog. I'm not usually a fan of eggnog, but I do enjoy about 2 oz of it from Calder's or Guernsey Dairy. Calder and Gurensey are probably two best dairy companies in the area. Calder Dairy Farms is located in Carleton, while the processes plant and ice cream parlor are in Lincoln Park. All of their cows are fed homegrown forage that is free of hormones. But, the greatest thing about them is that they continue to use glass bottles and have home delivery of their dairy products. While on the other hand, Guernesy Dairy is located in Northville and has been family-runned since the 1940s. Attached to their processing plant in Northville, you can find a restaurant and ice cream parlor. In the first of a series of Calder vs. Guernsey battles (I'm looking forward to the ice cream battle), we have eggnog! The eggnog was judged on the following things:

1. Taste

2. Being able to make me feel the pounds add on as I'm drinking it (Let's face it...you will not find eggnog on any weightloss plan)

3. Taste with rum (I had to do this test a few times because I needed to make sure that I was making juuuust the right choice)

4. Presentation (this a bit bias because I think the glass bottles that Calder's uses should count for something)

And here are the results...

On taste, I think it's a bit of a tie with a slight advantage to Calder's. I think that Calder's has more egg yolk making it a bit yellower and a bit richer. Guernsey has more spice in it, which I enjoy but overall I think Calder's has the advantage.

As for adding junk to my trunk, I think they both have helped with that this Christmas (not the mention the HUGE Christmas Eve dinner). I declare this one a tie!

The third category is also a tie...anything with rum is good!

The fourth and finally category was loaded....I love the glass bottles!

Calder's is the winner, but only by a bit. Both eggnogs are delicious, and make for a great treat for the holidays. They both get 5 forks out of 5.

What's your favorite Faygo flavor?

When coming up with ideas for this blog I knew that I didn't want it to be just about the restaurants, but also other food related topics including products made in this area. If you were to ask anyone to name one food product that was made in Detroit, I'm willing to bet most people would say Faygo.

Faygo was started in 1907 by two Russian immigrant brothers, Ben and Perry Feigenson who were trained as bakers. The first few flavor sodas they produced were strawberry (which is now called Redpop), grape, and fruit punch. They sold their sodas on a horse drawn carriage for three cents (does this mean we will pay $33 for a bottle of it in a hundred years..yikes!). After the company began to grow, they introduced a few more flavors which included Sassafras Soda, which was later changed to Root Beer...Sassafras Floats sounds so much funner! In 1921, they changed the name to Faygo and soon after introduced one of their most classic flavors, Rock & Rye. Ever wonder why they call it that? Well, I'm going to tell you...it was named after a popular jazz-age drink, rye whiskey which was served over a "rock" of sugar. Faygo later hired Doner to to create advertisements on television and thank god they did! They came up with ads that featured the Faygo Kid. The company also sponsored the popular children's program of comic Soupy Sales, who pitched the company's soda with the line, "George Washington may be the father of our country, but Faygo's the pop." I love that! And who can forget this commercial:

You can thank me later for that song being stuck in your head for days!

In the 1990s, Faygo received some publicity from the Detroit rap group, Insane Clown Posse. They included Faygo in some of their lyrics and would often spray audiences with shaken bottles of Faygo. They celebrated their 100 year anniversary in 2007 with billboards throughout the city that embedded a bottle of Faygo in the word "Detroit" and the numbers, "313." Simple, yet brilliant! Recently they switched the ingredients in the glass bottles to cane sugar, making it even better! Hands down, Faygo deserves five forks out of five.

Union Street

I've been crazy busy the past few weeks, but last night I finally had a chance to get together with "my girls." We went to one of my long time favorite restaurants in Detroit, Union Street. One of the things I love about it is that you can just feel the history of the space when you walk in. It has this art deco look that I just love! I do think they should get rid of the grandma plastic tablecovers...I just think they are capable of something more eye appealing.

The menu offers a variety of foods. Whether your in the mood for wings (Rasta Wings!! They will make you feel like your lips are going to fall off!) , breakfast, or filet mignon. I don't know if I should admit this, but I've tried a majority of the things they offer (not all in one sitting). One of my guilty pleasures when I go there is the Large Sampler appetizer, which consist of onion rings, beer battered zucchini and mushrooms. Ohhh so bad for you...yet sooo good for your soul. I was a good girl on Tuesday and started off my meal with one of my healthier favorites, Black Bean Soup. The jalapeno sour cream is such a nice touch to the soup. I also had the Baked Pistachio Salmon Salad. It was presented beautifully...I love when chefs take the time to present the food nicely because we do eat with our eyes first. Pistachio's aren't my favorite nuts, but tasted great with the salad. One of my friend's obsessed with the Jambalaya. I have tried it and think that it's one of the best in the city. I keep on going back to Union Street and it's simply because the food is great. They need to work on their service standards a bit (I've had some pretty awful experiences there in the past), but Tuesday night was good. I'll give Union Street four and a half forks out of five.

Motor City Brewing Works

There's a couple things I love...a good beer and a great pizza! I've been meaning to check out Motor City Brewing Works for awhile now, and finally last weekend I had the chance. I was surprised by how quaint it was inside. The girls and I decided to try out the artichoke dip, which has for some reason turned into the appetizer of choice when going to a pub. It was a excellent! I ordered the Danimal pizza. It was topped with artichokes, caramelized onions (I love onions...I have to have onions with every meal...if there was a way to incorporate them in my oatmeal for breakfast I would! Eww..that was a gross thought), Gorgonzola cheese, and tomatoes. The crust was at just the right thickness and the cheese wasn't overwhelming...the two things that I feel are the hardest things to get just right in a pizza. The beer is always good...Ghettoblaster being one of my favorite local brews. I think it's a great place to grab a beer with friends and was pleasantly surprised by the cozy atmosphere. The only complaint I have is that they did not offer a side salad. They deserve four out of five forks.

Small Plates

I try not to eat out more than once a week. It's simply because I don't think it's healthy for my body and wallet. This week I did not stick to that. On Friday night I went to the tree lighting ceremony at Campus Martius. It was nice to see there being an effort to get people into the city. After the ceremony, we ventured to Small Plates. I'm a huge fan of tapas or small plate restaurants. One of the best meals I've had was at a tapas restaurant in Barcelona. Sometimes I simply want to try more than one selection on a menu and I think that's a great way to do so. Also, the idea of having to share plates with the table creates a close, interactive eating experience. I've been to Small Plates one other time and was not impressed with it. I left leaving not satisfied with my meal. Last night, was no different. We started off with the lettuce wraps. One of the only chain restaurants that you can find me going to is PF Chang's, and their lettuce wraps kick their ass. It tasted like they used frozen vegetable in the dish, and that's a big no-no in my book, especially when it comes to peppers and onions. We each ordered a half salad. I ordered the Caesar salad, which was completely lacking the anchovy ingredient. I tend to enjoy the traditional Caesar dressing that can be on the fishy side, but the salad at Small Plates was completely lacking any taste. To finish out our meal we shared the Garlic Shrimp Pizza. I'm a sucker for a brick oven pizza, but this one was nothing special. It definitely was garlicy and the shrimp was well done. I think they over did it with the cheese. I felt the same way as I did the first time I ate at Small Plates, it's simply not worth what you pay for. I love the concept, but they just need to work on their prices. If they are going to charge those prices, they need to work on the complexity of their dishes. They are worth two forks.

Sala Thai

Thursdays are my nights that I spend with "the girls". We generally go out for some sort of ethnic food and watch Grey's Anatomy. The food always tends to be much more satisfying than the show! This past week I was craving Thai realllly reallllly bad. So, we headed out to Sala Thai. It's located in Eastern Market in a historic firehouse. Usually when I'm cravin' Thai it means I'm cravin' pad thai. I think pad thai is the sweet and sour chicken of Thai food. It's the safe selection, except I love pad thai! I like it spicy. Sala Thai's heat factor is pretty high. I once went with the "hot" selection and felt like my lips were going to fall off...I can't imagine what the "On Fire" would feel like! Anyways, I attempted to switch it up a bit and went with the kuoy tiew haeng (or the N3 for those of you who aren't fluent in Thai). It's essential pad thai without the egg and much sloppier due to the fact it's in this liquidy brown sauce. Anyways, I have tried some of the non-noodle dishes at Sala Thai, which I have enjoyed. Overall, Sala Thai is one of the best Thai restaurants in the area and for that reason I give it 3 forks.

Iridescence

Tuesday night before heading to the Madonna concert I headed to Iridescence at the Motor City Casino for dinner. To be completely honest with you, it was on my list of places to check out, but it was at the bottom (I had heard it was pricey...and I'm a girl on a budget). Opportunity arose for me to able to try this restaurant out. Now, I don't know if it was the fact that I didn't have to pay for anything, but I thought the food held up to it's hype. First of all, if there's any reason why anyone should give it a try is for the view...it was one of the best views I have seen of the city (close second would be at the top of the parking garage at WSU--you can't exactly have a fine dining experience at the top of a parking garage though). We began with some appetizers. The top of my list were the crab cakes and the sashimi. I have never tried sashimi that sweet. All of the entrees were presented beautifully and lived up to their standard. One of the meals came with a lobster risotto, which was so rich and delectable. The service was one of the best I've experience in the area. I can't say that I will go back soon, but I definitely recommend it as a spot for a special occasion. On the fork meter, it gets four out of five forks.

Woodbridge Pub

When I was applying to colleges I knew that it was pointless for me to apply to any university that was not in the area. Coming from a very strict family, it was simply out of the question for a young girl to go away to college..god forbid! So, I received my degrees from Wayne State University. At first I have to admit I hated it. Exchanging stories with friends who went away to school involved them telling me all about all these new friends they met at a frat party they went to the previous weekend and me telling them about the latest encounter I had with a homeless person. But, WSU grew on me. It's where I first fell in love with the city. So, I was happy to hear that a new pub was opening up near campus, Woodbridge Pub. I ventured there for the first time this past week, and decided it should be the first place I should review for this blog. We went on a Thursday night and there weren't any tables open when we arrived. I was glad to see this, and more than willing to sit at the beautiful bar. It was one of those nights that I wanted to eat like a boy...I wanted meat and beer! For some reason I was craving a burger (I think it's because I was making up for those few years I was a vegetarian!). I was happy to see that they had Ghettoblaster on tap. We tried the spinach artichoke appetizer to start off and it was decent. My friend described it as an attempt to do a healthy version of the very rich dip that we so often love...and I have to agree...I didn't feel so guilty eating it or for the fact that I ordered a cheeseburger. With any sandwich order, you are given the option of a side salad. Rumor has it that they did not have room for a fryer, so offer healthier options instead. I decided to try their very peculiar California salad, which consisted of broccoli, white raisins, peanuts, and bacon. Oddly, I really enjoyed it. My burger was a little dry, but it satisfied my carnivore craving. One of my friends had the SUB sandwich which consisted of portabella mushrooms, peppers, and caramelized onions. I took a bite out of it and was jealous I didn't order it myself. My other friend ordered a pizza. I was a bit of a mooch that night and snagged a bite of her pizza too. The alfredo sauce on it just didn't seem like it belonged on a pizza. Overall, I think the food needs some work, but I definitely can see myself going there for a drinks again. On the fork meter, I give it three forks out of five.

A much better name...

I've been toying with names for my blog and I actually set one up with a different name. I didn't like it much...so then I came up with "Forking Around Detroit" and I have to admit I love it! I didn't want my two entries on my other blog to be lost, especially since my first blog was explaining why I was doing this, so I reposted those blogs. So, I introduce all of you to....(drum roll please)....Forking Around Detroit!!

Who knew I was a young Michael Pollen?

I just finished reading Michael Pollen's new book, "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto" and it reminded me of one of my proudest moments in college. Pollen makes an argument that what is killing us is the over processed foods that are filling the shelves at grocery stores and restaurants and ultimately our cabinets and stomachs. I was reminded of my first course in anthropology which was taught by one of the most interesting professors who had a way of intimidating you. She was one of those professors who reminded you that even though you made it into college, you just barely knew the world. There were more students in the room than seats. It was simply a class that you did not skip because you wanted to hear stories like how she offended the native people in a small tribe in Africa because she ate her food with the wrong hand.
The first assignment she gave us in Intro to Anthropology was to write a paper on "food". She didn't want us to do research, she just wanted us to write about "food" using our brain. I decided to do an ethnography on the grocery store. Here are few excerpts from that paper:
"For a better understanding of Americans view on food, I went to the source of much urban food, the grocery store. Going into a Kroger with the purpose to observe it, came many realizations. The way a grocery store is set up, and especially the merchandise that it sells parallels American culture. Americans are obsessed with being entertained, and this thought has leaked into our perception of food. It begins with the packaging, which is bright with the intention to catch our attention. By looking closer at the products, I come to realize that the food does not serve the purpose of food, in the natural and nutritional sense, but it is full of chemicals with the purpose to entertain our taste buds.
When we walk into a bright grocery store, all of the food products are screaming out to us from the shelves asking us to buy them with their loud colors. Most of the labelling does not pertain to the product. For instance, an eight pack of small yogurts that Dannon produces that is marketed to children has so many images on it, none of which have anything to do with yogurt or the fruit flavor.
Another aspect of food packaging is that we do not want to be reminded of the fact that what we are eating was once alive. This concept starts when we are young. We are taught to disassociate the cow from the beef or the pig from the pork. We often see that many children, as well as some adults, do not eat any meat that is still on the bone. Because of this, many companies have products like chicken nuggets in the shape of dinosaurs or stars.
Also, the majority of companies avoid having any pictures of animals or uncooked vegetables on the label. Some do not even mention what the product contains. For instance, Doritos do not even print on the front of the bag that they are made out of corn. The only time a picture of a vegetable is even put on the the package is when it is supposed to be a "healthy" item. It often states that it is "natural", but the ingredients printed on the side often show it is far from it.
An interesting thing happened when I was at the grocery store that proves that many people are unaware of what they are eating. A young girl approached her mother with two boxes of cereal, Fruity Pebbles and Fruit Loops. The mother tells her, "Only one, they are the same." The little girl then asked her mother, "Why are they the same?" The mother replies with, "They are the same because they have the same colors." The mother ignored the fact that both cereals were similar because they were supposed to be "fruit flavored" as their names indicate. Whether or not the cereals actually contain fruit, she still told her daughter that it is not the fact that they have a fruit flavor that is important, but instead the color is what makes the cereal.
This shows that many people do not even realize what they are eating. We do not question what products contain in them and we take on the attitude, "What we don't know won't hurt us" when it comes to food. Because of this, we dissociate that the food goes into our bodies. We do not realize that the food that goes into our bodies is what carries us through life. Today our food is being creating the same way as some of our household products. It does not bother us that possibility of the same person who invent an ingredient in our cereal, may have introduced a new color paint for another company.
The truth is that many food products are created in the factory and come out of the factory to go right into our mouths. They are full of chemicals. For instance, Little Debbie's Nutty Bars contain mononitrate ribofavin. Does that sound like something we should be putting into our bodies? Looking at the ingredients of many foods, in most cases I do not know the meaning of what half of them contain. One reason why many of these chemicals are put into the products is to kill its natural flavor, which again may have to do with the fact that the natural flavor will remind us that we are eating something that was once alive.
By examining grocery store foods, I have come to realize that food has taken on the common characteristics of American culture. It has to be busy, meaning it must be full of flavor. It must be exciting and colorful. Americans want to be entertained by everything including our food. Not only that, but we cannot be reminded that something was killed. More and more chemicals are being put into foods to meet our criteria of being amused by our food. The consequence of this is that they take away the basic nutritional role of the food and it is becoming harmful to our health."
My professor read my paper out loud to the class and was probably one of the few times that I felt like I stood out. In some weird way it probably started my obsession with food. Michael Pollen would of been proud of the 19 year old version of me.

Posted on June 22, 2008

Let me explain why I'm doing this

I am not a Chef. I do not own a restaurant. I did not go to culinary school. I simply have a passion for food. On the biological level it is essential for us to live, but culture has defined it in so many different ways. I find the relationship between the food we create and our bodies fascinating.I grew in the suburbs of Detroit, but my home could have been situated in the country side of Italy. My parents were born and raised in Italy. They moved to America, but did not leave behind their culture. I grew up with good food…no let me rephrase…I grew up with great food. My father was passionate about gardening, wine making, and hunting (mushroom and animal). My mother made everything from scatch. What I learned from them was the importance of that relationship between you and the food you eat. It’s not that Italians know how to make food better, they simply are aware of that relationship.Another thing that was taught to me was loyalty to where you grow up. I have tremendous pride in the fact that I grew up in the greater Detroit area. I am saddened to see many people move away because of the economic challenges that we are encountering. I understand that it will take time and healing to get Detroit to where it has the potential to be, and know that we can get there. Part of the reason why I am writing about food and Detroit is because I feel that part of that healing is to focus on the good that is already in place.I work in the food industry at a non-profit organization that is passionate about the Slow Food Movement, as well as, makes an effort to support local farmers and companies. It’s a big part of who I am. On a personal level I try not to eat at chain restaurants. I think it is important to support independent restaurants. Because of that, I frequent new and old eateries in the area.So why am I writing this blog? I want this blog to be a place where people can reference to find a new place to eat. I want this blog to remind people of the relationship they have with the food that they put in their body. I want this blog to remind people of some of the great things that Detroit has to offer through its restaurants.

Posted on May 20, 2008