The Pink Door

  Seattle is one of our favourite weekend destinations. It’s a city with many attractions and charms to appreciate. We both have our favourite stores and places we go back to. Pike Place Market has many fascinating venues and little nooks to browse through. The fish vendors always have a crowd of people waiting to see their latest antics of tossing fish around like expert jugglers as they hawk their catch of the day. Fresh flowers are always popular and the rainbow of colours and variety are so cheerful to see on a cool winter day.

  There are quite a few restaurants we have tried over the years, and many are worthy of repeat visits. But there is a well known adage that says ‘variety is the spice of life’ that can also be applied to restaurants. Rob and I love finding new places to try! Lucky for us that there are still so many places to sample!

  This past weekend we had an opportunity to try a new to us restaurant, The Pink Door. We’ve passed by the location many times on our way to other pubs and venues. This time we opened the door and went down into the restaurant. Yes, that’s right - you go down the stairs. The restaurant is below street level due to the fact that the waterfront is built up in terraces going up the hilly streets. If anything, the subterranean locale adds to the restaurant’s charm. Part of it overlooks the water of Elliot Bay. Part of the restaurant, the part near the front door, is more intimate.

  We sat at a small table next to a fountain that acted as a musical divider from the table next to us. Our section had the soft diffused lighting of candles placed strategically on every available surface. It really added to the ambiance. Above us hung trapeze bars used by the artists who sometimes entertain the diners. We didn’t stay long enough for the performance but I’m sure it’s very interesting to see. Especially given the close quarters and the proximity to tables and chairs.

  The menu is Italian-American and offers a wide variety of favourite dishes many of us grew up with. The ingredients are organic and served up in tempting mouth-watering feasts. We started off with a dish that can only be shared. Bagna Cauda comes from the Piedmont region of Italy where Rob was born. It is a kind of fondue in which fresh vegetables are dipped into a concoction of olive oil, heavy cream, garlic and anchovies. Sounds a bit strange but is truly delicious. It is a dish shared by friends, as anyone who doesn’t share the dish, may not be able to stand near to those that have enjoyed it! Rob ordered trout for his entree that was grilled to perfection. My pork Arista was delicious and very filling.

  Of course, we couldn’t leave without sampling the desert menu. Rob had a favourite of his, creme brulee. Except he had a trio of cups, usually with different flavours. He opted for having just Zabaglione.

My choice was an Almond Apricot Tart that was really yummy. I wish I had the recipe for it. This is another restaurant we’ll definitely be visiting again!

Snowdrops and Love

   It’s Valentine’s Day. This has always been an important day for my family and for me. Yes, I know it’s a day to celebrate couples in love, but my Mom thought otherwise. For her, it was also a day to celebrate love you felt for everyone in the family. Once we came to Canada, we embraced the newer Holidays we hadn’t known before in Germany; like St. Patrick’s day and Valentine’s Day.

  I did a very quick sketch of this snowdrop and have another story about it on my other Blog here.

 Happy Valentine’s Day!

Marechiaro Restaurant in Chelsea

  Just before Christmas, we travelled to London for a short visit. Our wanderings took us into Chelsea and we had a specific address in mind. I wanted to visit this well known art store at 259 Kings Road, which had been recommended by several of my friends. Of course, I had to take my time looking around.

  There was so much to see! That cute little antique pen holder you see in the case on the bottom right, eventually came home with us. Now I use it for a brush holder. By the time we were through at this artist’s mecca, we were really hungry! Just next door at 257 Kings Road, is a wonderful Italian restaurant called Marechiaro.

  At first glance, I thought it was Deli. There were all these cured meats hanging in the window. Once inside it became obvious that this is a favourite place for locals and visitors to eat. One thing we noticed though, everyone spoke Italian! It seemed like that was either a prerequisite or it was something they put in the water they served! 

  It was already a bit after lunch, but the place was still fairly busy. My choice was big fat noodles served with mussels, shrimp and even some squid. Good thing I was hungry - it was a huge serving! I’m not so keen on the squid, so Rob was more than happy to have those added to his lunch. He had chosen Linguine with Truffles. The fungus, not the chocolate kind!                                                                                                                   

  Lunch in Italy is never a hurried affair. That’s the time of day people get together with their families and talk about the events of the day and plans for the afternoon. Or friends will talk about the latest soccer match! We also took our time. We had nothing more urgent then a Christmas Concert later that evening in St.-Martin-in-the-Fields. But that came much later.

   Desert was not to be missed! A cafe latte for me and an espresso for Rob. I don’t know which of our deserts was more delightful! Actually, we shared with each other. I must have had the chocolate espresso cake simply because if chocolate is being offered, that will usually be my choice! Rob had the cannelloni. Cannelloni is also a type of pasta that can be filled, but clearly this was a crepe type pastry rolled up. I can definitely say we had a fabulous lunch!

Café Rouge

  We had a lovely weekend trip to London. It was an early Christmas present to ourselves and a very welcome break from contracts and deadlines for Rob. In only two and a half days we really managed to do and see quite a lot.

  Just after stepping off the plane, we checked in to our hotel and then decided to see St. Paul’s Cathedral. It was very near our hotel, just across the Millennium Bridge. Rob managed to talk me into climbing all the way to the top of the dome saying: ”The weather is perfect and it might not be that way tomorrow.” It turns out he was right. To say the view was incredible and breath taking would be obvious, but it really was spectacular watching the sunset.

  After climbing up - and then down 537 steps - we really needed to stop and have a fortifying Latte.

 

  Cafe Rouge is just across the street from the Cathedral entrance at St. Paul’s Churchyard.

  Feeling a bit hungry, we also ordered a lovely Camembert au Four, served with toasted baguette slices to go with our Lattes. Exactly the right choice for snacking on something light and not spoil our appetites.

   The proximity to the Cathedral was the main reason for choosing this Cafe but the atmosphere is also very elegant and trendy. This is a nice choice for a light meal if you happen to be in the area. I wouldn’t mind going back there another time.

Lunch in Florence

  Almost exactly a year ago Rob and I spent a week in Florence. We were to spend Christmas with his sister and her family, but we had a few days to ourselves first. Everywhere we looked, Christmas ornaments were put up and the store windows were decorated to entice shoppers to browse inside. We had no real agenda to follow and spent leisurely hours browsing in stores and seeing the sights. Walking along the Arno River we found a lovely store that sold hand made leather journals. Of course, I couldn’t resist buying a lovely sketchbook in red!

  There are a lot of jewelry stores on the Ponte Vecchio bridge itself and many people were shopping for Christmas  gifts or souvenirs. Across the bridge on the other side of the river from the stationery store, we found a great restaurant. Golden View Open Bar was still doing business for a late lunch. We were given a seat next to the window and looked right at the Ponte Vecchio with its overhanging houses. These were actually the backs of the stores we had passed earlier.

  Our lunch consisited of Pasta, Braised Boar and a wonderful Cheese and Pear Plate which was drizzled with honey. Oh and the photo in the Banner at the top of the page? That was dessert!

  If you were tired of looking out the window at one of the most well known bridges in the world, you could always direct your gaze at the beautiful works of art lining the walls. These were pieces painted by local artists and were done in every style imaginable.

  If you are in Florence and are near the Ponte Vecchio, this might be a place to consider for lunch or dinner. We certainly enjoyed it! Buon Appetito!