Archives for April 2008
While I was gone.
28 April 2008 | Ten 01, review, news | 3 Responses
While I was climbing Monte Baldo, Food Dude released a review of Ten-01 on his website, Portland Food and Drink. Somehow, this guy has become the definitive voice on the Portland food scene, and his highly anticipated reviews seem to knock newspapers and food publications neatly in behind him. If a restaurant gets a good review from him, more than likely this sentiment will be seen across the board. He gave Ten-o1 3 1/2 stars (out of 4,) and he had this to say about my desserts:
Pastry chef Jeff McCarthy is a recent addition to the staff, and he’s infused the desserts with a whole new decadent passion. It’s one of those menus where many items are as good as they sound - “chocolate whiskey cake brown butter caramel, toffee-caramel ice cream”, or my favorite, the “chocolate chip banana bread pudding with a rum/caramel.” The latter is the best bread pudding I’ve ever had. The caramel has a nice rum flavor without being overpowering, and the balance of chocolate to bread is nearly perfect. Other desserts which rotate on and off the menu are also excellent. A recent standout was the peanut butter crème brûlée, with its crispy crust, nice custard, and a layer of really good jam underneath. It was like a decadent peanut butter sandwich (all $8).
Wow. Thanks, Food Dude. Glad you liked it. You can read the entire review here. And boy, those pictures look great! Some of my other favorite quotes were about Chef and his food, such as”… the goat cheese flavor went beautifully with the lamb. The combination laid waste to any other lamb I’ve had in Portland” and: “Jack Yoss has completely revamped the kitchen, making it one of the most sophisticated in Portland.” It’s true. We’re fucking sophisticated. Come down and eat.
How to Gain 15 Pounds in 20 Days.
24 April 2008 | Europe, food | 2 Responses
As my faithful readers know all to well, I love to eat. My recent trip to Europe was a whirlwind of raw milk cheese, artisinal beer, deliciously fresh produce, excellent (and cheap) wine, amazing chocolate and pastries, and many, many, good eats. Kate of course, was right there with me. Having said that, I learned one very important thing: You can get crappy food in any country. For some reason I thought in Europe, the age-old birth place of deliciousness, you could throw a rock with your eyes closed and hit a good plate of food. Not true. In fact, when you throw that rock, you should throw it hard, and hope you hit the cook. While I’m not the type of diner that nit-picks every little thing and sets out to not like things, I truly enjoy food and eating. But man there was some serious SHIT. Also, why can’t you get a fucking coffee to go? They simply do not offer paper cups in European countries. Okay maybe they do, but we didn’t see them or know how to ask for them. No, they want you to sit down, and if you do, the’re going to charge you do so. Not until Paris did we find a Starbucks, which just felt wierd. Oh, and I did go to McDonalds, and I did get the Royal with Cheese. And a beer! But only because we were tired and desperate. Anyway, we had mostly good meals, and some things that I’ve never tried before. We had some really incredible meals as well. We ate chocolate in Switzerland, and waffles in Belgium. We ate spaetzle in Germany, and gnocci in Italy. I ate veal sweetbreads on the Champs Elysees. Over the next few months, or however long it takes, I will at random intervals be posting about my culinary adventures abroad. I predict you will enjoy thoroughly. 
An Engaging Journey.
22 April 2008 | Europe, jeff, news | 3 Responses
A light rain gently cascaded down, the Eiffel Tower loomed overhead, resplendent in all it’s glory, and I, on bended knee, asked Kate to marry me. She said YES!! She accepted the cheap stunt ring I presented her in lieu of the real one that was tied up in customs. Okay it’s not that big of a surprise to anyone, we’ve been seeing eachother for 4 or so years, and living together (in sin) for a time as well. Like any relationship, we’ve had our ups and downs, and we realize as much as anyone that it is work. You’ve got work at it. I mean being considerate? That was a tough one for me. Putting the toilet seat down? Forget about it! Seriously folks, all kidding aside, I am extremely excited to make Kate my wife and official life-long companion, I would be lost without her. She continues to make me laugh daily, and cares about me more than anyone ever has. She has shown me what love truly is, and I couldn’t imagine being away from her. The three week trip we just took was a good test of this thing we call “us.” Sure we bickered. Sure we wanted to punch eachother in the back of the head. Sure we made people uncomfortable with the way we talk to eachother (”well you’re a fat idiot,”) but like I said, that’s us. We haven’t set a date yet, or really set anything in stone, but we’ll probably give ourselves about a year with this engagement thing. The only thing we know for sure is we’ll be wed in Colorado, where we met. And that we love eachother.
Back In the U.S.A.
21 April 2008 | jeff, news | 4 Responses
We returned to the United States of America at about 3pm on Sunday afternoon. After walking down the jetway, our ears perked up to the sounds of loudly spoken ebonics, the smell of fried food and freshly brewed venti white chocolate mochas. It was good to be home. To blog abouty our trip all at once would be an excercise in futility. Suffice to say it was (in a word) outstanding, and I’m now engaged to be married to my soulmate and best friend, Kate. We ate, we saw famous art, we ate some more, we saw famous architecture, we ate again, we walked miles and miles, we drank wine and beer, we got engaged, we ate, then we came home. Over the next X amount of time, I will be posting random excerpts from my journal and pictures from our journey, so sit tight faithful readers, they’ll be plenty of that to come. I’m excited to get back to work, and return to reality. Three weeks of trains, planes, and automobiles, hotel bedrooms, eating out and walking your ass off gets to you after awhile. Traveling thorough six countries in 20 days was quite an adventure. By the time we reached Brussels, Belgium, we didn’t care if we saw another painting, ate another fancy meal, or rode on another train ever again. We just wanted to be home. Its good to be home, there is in fact, no place like it.
