A Little Sump'n Missin'....

I want to start off by saying that I am truly head-over-heels in love with Seattle. I so wish that I'd moved here long ago. That being said, there are still some things that my love can't seem to supply to me.
Today I had lunch at a place called Bayou on First. It's billed as Cajun/Creole food, and the food is good, but it's lacking a major ingredient.... Okra. Any true recipe for either gumbo or jambalaya is supposed to have okra. At least they always do in the south. This lack of okra is not just a phenomenon at this eatery, I've had either gumbo or jambalaya at 3 other restaurants in town, and they all have this same omission.
I also noticed that Bayou on First didn't offer Fried Okra as a side dish. However, in one of their veggie dishes, I did see okra as an ingredient. So this confuses me. Why omit a key ingredient in one dish, then offer it as a meat substitute in another? I don't know. I do have to admit that their corn muffins were passable. They didn't taste like Momma's, but they didn't taste like the "cake" flavored corn muffins I got at Ivar's. :)
I've also noticed that I haven't seen okra available in Safeway or QFC either. I need to do some checking at the vegetable stands at Pike Place Market. I think I might be able to find some there. At least I hope that I can. If not, I might be forced to bootleg okra up from Alabama. I might have to get Mom to Next-Day some to me. :)

I ♥ Teriyaki Day...

At work we have a Wednesday ritual that was started long before I was hired. Wednesday is teriyaki day. For lunch on Wednesdays, a group of us walks about 3 blocks from the office to eat at a local teriyaki place.

The meal is very simple, just a bowl of rice with teriyaki chicken on top (or spicy chicken, my fave). It's surprising to me just how much I look forward to this. Even when I forget it's Wednesday, someone will stop by my desk & ask, "Teriyaki?" It's always a moral boost, and I've not gone only when a meeting or task has prevented it. Even then I usually ask for someone to bring one back for me, and hand over the money.

Now you also should know that I'd never heard of a "Teriyaki" place until I moved to Seattle. Apparently they haven't caught on in the south. When I moved here, I was amazed at how many places I'd pass with the name "Teriyaki" on them. I'd venture to say that there are more teriyaki places here than Starbucks, and that's a pretty bold statement. However, I'd never say that there are more teriyaki places than coffee places; that's just a lie. :)

Even if you arent' a fan of asian (read, chinese, japanese, thai, or vietnamese) food, I think you'd enjoy this. The chicken is grilled and marinated with teriyaki sauce (not soy sauce, there is a difference), sliced into strips (about 1/4" wide), and place on top of the rice. For the spicy chicken, a spicy sauce is used instead of teriyaki. And believe me, this is NOT restaurant spicy. I like spicy food & this is just about at my threshold. But it is good. It's spicy enough that my nose runs for about 10 minutes after I've finished.

So now I'm filled with rice & spicy chicken. Now I just have to find a place to take a nap. :)

I'm SumDumGuy, and I'm a burger-holic......

Food has never been an enemy of mine. In fact, I'd have to say food is way too good of a friend; food could back off a bit.... off my waistline mainly. :)

One of my all time favorite foods are hamburgers. Of course I've had all of the major chains (Micky D's, BK, Wendy's, Hardee's, Sonic, White Castle, Krystal, et al). However, I've found that the best burgers are made in local chain places, and stand-alone places that appear somewhat dumpy/greasy-spoonish. By local chains, I mean chains that only exist in a metro-area or a small part of a state. Usually they have less than 20 locations.

To that end, comes another of the things about Seattle that I truly love; Kidd Valley, Dick's, & Red Mill burgers. Those of you who live here probably already know about all or most of them.

My move to the Queen Anne/Interbay/Magnolia area has put me less than 2 blocks from one of two Red Mills in the entire Seattle area. I've been here only two weeks and I've already had 4 different sandwiches from Red Mill. All have been great too. I actually have to stop myself from eating there every evening when I get off the bus from work. Some days, it's about all I can do to make myself turn right & walk up the hill to have a bowl of soup instead of first turning left & going to the Mill. My hope is that I can keep it to a minimum & work off more of this gut. :)

I can't describe why I think each place is so good; it's just something you have to experience, I think.

It used to really bug my Dad that I'd eat a hamburger for every meal with no problem. The day I got a part-time job at Sonic Drive-In while in high school, he was sure that I'd soon be sick of 'burgers. How wrong he was. It was actually like letting a junkie loose in a field of poppies; I loved it, and I fed my crave every day I was at work.

I think if I had to pick my all-time Top 5 burger places/burgers they would be (in no order)....

• Sonic
• Krystal/White Castle (both the same style of burgers, Krystal is in the south, White Castle in the north)
• Big Springs Cafe (used to be on Govenor's Drive in Huntsville, AL, but I don't think it's there anymore)
• Red Mill (Seattle chain)
• Jack's (a north Alabama chain)

My family can back up the fact that one of the things I make sure to do when I visit my Mom is eat at Krystal, Jack's, & Sonic since none of them exist here in Seattle. Hey, I have my priorities. :)

So what about you folks out there? What are your favorites? Holla back! :)