Krik's Picks

I just got back from a business trip to Washington , DC . While I was there I attended a reception in honor of Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut . When I got the invitation, it said that it was a cook-off in her honor. When I replied that I would attend, I asked, “So what does it mean ‘cook-off?’ Is this like ‘Iron Chef DC?’” Well it turns out that this is an annual event, and several members of Congress, including Rep. DeLauro, and other DC luminaries do indeed prepare specialty food items for the reception. I noted that I would be interested in preparing my personal specialty – Risotto alla Cardinale – for the event. I got a reply indicating that I would be welcome to participate in the cook-off. o.m.g. As I began to think about what would be involved, it suddenly struck me that I had rashly volunteered for something that was way outside my comfort zone. For those of you who have read Krik’s Picks for a while, I think you realize that I like to cook for my family and friends. But as...

After a day of wine-tasting and sightseeing in the Napa Valley , we checked into our Bed-and-Breakfast in the town of Napa . Though we have visited the Napa Valley many times, we’d never stayed there. As we considered where to stay, wavered between staying in a quaint little wine town like Yountsville or in a bigger town like Napa where we might find a little nightlife. We opted for Napa . Our lodging for the night was the Blackbird Inn . We checked in, got settled in, then went downstairs to enjoy the nightly wine reception with the other guests. Then we strolled downtown to find someplace to eat. We had done a little research on line, so we weren’t wandering aimlessly. We read about two places that advertised live music, so we walked to both, checking out other places along the way. We were surprised how lifeless downtown Napa was fairly early in the evening. Nearly all of the shops were closed and there weren’t many people on the street. Most of the restaurants though ...

Thomas Keller has a bistro in Yountville just up the street from his world famous destination restaurant, the French Laundry. It’s called Bouchon . During an afternoon of touring Napa wineries, my wife and I decided to give it a try. We didn’t have reservations. Fortunately for us, it was a Wednesday afternoon in early March. The hordes of visitors hadn’t begun to descend on the Napa Valley yet, and we were able to get a table. When they designed Bouchon, they spared no expense on making it look and feel like a French bistro. Everything – the lights, the wall tiles, the bar, the brass rails – conjures images of a casual restaurant that serves simply prepared, delicious food. Which is, of course, what a bistro is. We’d just come from a winery and planned to visit more after lunch. So we decided not to have a glass of wine at lunch. Instead, I had iced tea and Linda just had water. Our server brought some French bread and a small pot of butter that we enjoyed as we per...

My daughter was in town last weekend. We went to Stella’s for dinner. I’ve written about Stella’s before so I don’t feel like I have to give you a lot of background about it. So this will be a short post about our meal … which was fantastic! It might have been the best we’ve had of our many visits to the restaurant. All three of us had entrées from the Chef’s signature section of the menu. I had pan-seared scallops on mango risotto. The scallops were moist and tender, cooked to perfection. The risotto had diced pieces of mango in it. The sweetness of the mango was a delicious compliment to the scallops. It was finished with a jalapeno cream which added a contrasting heat to the overall dish. My daughter had char-grilled seafood kabob. This might have been the best bargain of the evening. If you click on the photo, you should see an enlarged view and if you look closely, you can get a sense for how much fish was on the skewer. There were two large chunks of tuna, two lar...

Why did it take me so long to try Solera ? It’s been around now for several years. It gets mostly good reviews. Several co-workers have recommended it. Now, having eaten there recently, I’ve discovered that I love it and regret that it took so long to try it. At the end of February, during the Land O'Lakes annual meeting, a group of us made plans to entertain visiting leaders from the National Milk producers Federation . The person in charge of picking the restaurant suggested Solera. I thought it was a great idea – close to the convention center where the annual meeting was being held and with a menu that would offer enough variety to suit everyone’s tastes. We had eight people in our group; not too big, but they gave us a private room anyway. The décor in the restaurant is really fun. Our room evoked a cavern with red-draped walls and ceilings and ornate cloth hanging lanterns. The Spanish theme is reflected throughout the restaurant with saturated reds and blues. The Span...

After dinner at Solera (previous post), our group walked across Hennepin Avenue to the Chambers Hotel to experience their ice bar. None of us had ever been there, even the locals. But the concept of an ice bar was pretty alien to our guests. A bar, literally formed from ice, serving iced vodkas, outside, in the middle of winter, temperature hovering in the mid-teens (Fahrenheit) – now that is something they don’t see in Washington, DC, or California (or many other places either, for that matter). There was a small but friendly crowd huddled around the open fireplace in the courtyard of the Chambers. I think the ice bar probably is pretty conducive to breaking down social barriers so that total strangers feel comfortable joking with you and taking your picture. In the summer, they have a traditional bar in the same courtyard. The restaurant at the hotel (Chambers Kitchen) is one of my favorites in Minneapolis . I’ve written about it twice on Krik’s Picks.

After Land O ' Lakes annual meeting, we stopped in to check out a new luxury hotel and condominium complex – the Ivy Hotel & Residence – and the new restaurant there called Porter & Frye . It looks very promising. We had a cocktail at the bar while checking out the menus for the restaurant. The bar is very stylish. It’s at street level and looks out on the 2 nd Avenue traffic. It almost has the feel of an English pub (and I suppose the name it intended to convey the same comparison). While you can order food in the bar, the main dining room is in the basement level, very similar to the configuration of the lobby bar and lower-level restaurant at the Chambers. Unlike Chambers Kitchen , which is more open, Porter & Frye has several small nooks and private dining areas. I thought the lunch and dinner menus looked very promising. Porter & Frye also is open for breakfast, but seemed expensive, even for a high-end hotel. As we were leaving, we bumped into a coup...

On the Thursday before Oscar night, the Taste Section of the StarTribune ran in item on food in the movies. The article singled out two movies with food-related themes that came out in 2007. they were Ratatouille and The Waitress . So far, I haven’t seen either, and I probably won’t see The Waitress. From the Strib article and reviews I’ve read about the movie, I don’t think I’d like the plot. I also would quibble with the Strib about the food theme, which sounds pretty incidental to the plot of the movie. Ratatouille, on the other hand, is on my list of movies that I’d still like to see someday (maybe when my granddaughter is old enough to watch a movie with me). It sounded like a clever story, and food certainly plays a central part of the plot. I love how when the movie came out, it inspired a (brief) renewal of interest in ratatouille as a dish. It began appearing on menus and recipes were published for people to try. I’m glad the movie picked up an Oscar for best animated fe...

For our Academy Awards dinner this year, I made Pizza Rustica . I made the recipe once before several years ago and it turned out good. When I decided to make it again, I looked it up on Epicurious. When I looked it up for my encore preparation, one of the user comments referred to a better recipe on the Food Network web site. There actually were several on that site. I liked the one by Giada De Laurentiis the best. The recipe below is adapted mostly from Giada’s version. I decided to layer the ingredients instead of combining them all in the ricotta mixture. I also substituted mushrooms for sausage, I included roasted red peppers in the mixture, and I didn’t include any prosciutto. It turned out really well. Try it and enjoy! Pizza Rustica 2 tablespoons olive oil 8 ounces white mushrooms 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1 (10-ounce) package frozen cut-leaf spinach, thawed and drained 1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta 12 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded 1/3 cup plus 2 tab...