i Napoletani

Rather than be 'that girl', I have decided to only blog about positive dining experiences, and so I have been delayed for a few weeks with a few not-so-blogworthy dines, but I have to report about our tried and true Seattle pizza place Via Tribunali.

I have an ongoing/ever-changing 'visitor list' of Seattle restaurants for out-of-town guests, or if I am recommending restaurants for someone...Via Tribunali always makes the list (the rest to follow in an upcoming blog, so stay tuned). It is the perfect trifecta of atmosphere, food and price, a rarity in Seattle or really any city. It's also a true testament to the place that it's become one of our staple everyday-weeknight joints to grab casual dinner and drinks with friends. We get quite a lot of guests, but this place is so great, sometimes we just can't wait that long between visits.

The original location in Capitol Hill is my favorite. It's in an old building with tall wood ceilings, hefty beams and exposed brick walls (the architect in me speaking). The space is overall dimly lit with candlelight from these gorgeous blown glass lantern pendants over the bar and stained glass decor that create this sort of rustic ecclesiastical romantic feel. Sitting in the big wooden high-back booths in the back, not only can you get a better view of the studly pizza-tossers, but you feel like you are in your own little world amidst the loud, bustling conversations and goings-on of a busy restaurant in action. (We've recently been to their new location in Queen Anne - they have done a good job of trying to create a similar atmosphere here, but trading brick for drywall and candle light for dimmable incandescents, it's just not the same - with the exception of the food).

After Jeff's tall order of Peroni (in the special glass shown here) and house-Italian-wine-by-the-glass, we always start with the Misto Salumi aka the 'meat plate' - thinly sliced prosciutto, salami, fresh green olives and chunks of fresh Grana cheese (similar to Parmesan). Magnifica!

Our favorite pies are the Margherita (self-explanatory), the Funghi (cause Jeff's a fun guy - ha!), the Lasagna (ricotta and prosciutto with pomodoro sauce), and the Salsiccia (basil and Italian sausge with pomodoro sauce). Delizioco! They even have these special pizza scissors to cut the pies into large wedges!

So, this is true Neapolitan pizza (board certified no doubt) - extremely thin, hand-tossed crust baked in their signature right-of-the-boat-from-Naples mosaic-tiled mega wood-burning brick oven that makes it nice and toasty, perfectly lightly charred in places like it was cooked on a camp fire. The website indicates that the bricks in this oven were made from the ashes of freaking Mt. Vesuvius!, which apparently allows the oven to achieve higher temperatures than that of lesser ovens.

People, it doesn't get more authentic Neapolitan than this, in Seattle that is.

Moxie to the rescue

Anyone who knows me knows that I will never be known for my punctuality. Friday night I was not the only one running behind schedule. The plan was to meet Alysa at 6:30 at Moxie to grab a bite to eat and glass of wine before attending Pacific NW Ballet's All Tharp program at 7:30. Alysa is my token cultural-event buddy as she is typically willing (cultural events are a hard sell these days), and Moxie is our favorite pre-ballet spot in lower Queen Anne as it is just blocks from McCaw Hall where PNB performs.

Well, when I was the first to arrive at 6:45, I knew I had to move quickly. I snagged a bar table for 2, and soon the bar tender/server arrived to take my drink order. I explained the situation, and indicated that I was going to order not only drinks for 2, but our food as well to try to make the 7:30 show. A nod indicated he was on board. Not to worry.

First things first: wine-by-the-glass. Expecting to have to debate over which one to order, I was thrilled to see Hedges CMS Red 2005 blend. Not only a know quantity, but a fabulous full (affordable) red! 2 glasses please. Check. Next, food. I was looking for a few things to share, a nice combo of meat, veggie, cheese...mini steak frites? baby greens salad? clams? (Alysa and I usually have similar tastes but you never know). The server must have sensed my deliberation, and boldly recommended the gnocchi, their new vegetarian dish which he really liked and said was easy to split. I typically don't go for vegetarian, but in a rush, I went with it and the greens salad with Gorgonzola & candied walnuts.

The handsome waiter did not disappoint (the handsome part being a bonus). He had the wine at the table within minutes, and Alysa soon arrived, relieved to not have to make any decisions. We barely had time to hug and explain to each other where we'd parked when our food arrived. So far so good. The salad was great - but really, how can you mess up green salad with Gorgonzola and walnuts? Pomegranate seeds added a nice, unexpected touch. The moment of truth: The gnocchi. Awesome. The gnocchis themselves were drier than your typical Italian gnocchi, but it worked well with the dish - an overall sweet flavor of roasted corn and kale, pine nuts and finely-grated sharp, dry cheese (I'm guessing Asiago) lightly mixed with olive oil. The roasted corn kernels made the dish! Bravo.

Alysa and I finished each and every bite, split the wonderfully-affordable bill, and made it into our seats at McCaw as they were flashing the warning lights. Moxie nailed it, and we gave Tharp a Bravo as well.

B'opping Atlanta

I just returned from spending a long weekend visiting my mom and sister in Atlanta. Regardless of where you are (no offense to Atlanta), it's hard to beat quality time with family.

First, let me explain the term b'opping. If you haven't already figured it out, this is an apostrophized word combo of bar and hopping, newly-coined by my sister Lauren and her boyfriend Brian (I'm sure they will both claim to be the brain-child of this term, and I'll let them fight over it). It is an official method of experiencing a city via the finest local establishments, and has become a tradition associated with any gathering of 2 or more members of my family in the same city. We've b'opped Seattle, we've b'opped New Orleans. I'm sure you will hear me reference this term often, so become familiar.

So we continue. Lauren recently moved to the Virginia-Highlands area of Atlanta, and we spent quite a bit of time b'opping around her new 'hood. Friday night, we b'opped into Pozole Neuvo Latino y Tequila Bar. The atmosphere was lively and loud: the good kind of Friday-night loud and rowdy where you can tell people are on a mission to drink their week away. My husband Jeff being no exception, Patron Silver shots with Mexican beer chasers for the boys, despite Pozole's extensive tequila menu. Can't blame him - if it ain't broke, don't fix it. For the ladies, a tall carafe of red sangria, with a paint-stirrer stirrer that was excellent for preventing too much ice from falling into your glass, like a tongue-depressor. I LOVED this sangria - taste, presentation, the whole thing. It was the perfect proportions of wine, brandy and citrus - not too milky as some sangria can be from too much juice.

Set with drinks and seated quicker than expected with 6 on a busy night, we ordered and quickly devoured their chips and salsa trio including pineapple salsa. Yum. For main dishes, I believe I was the only one at the table who did not order some combination of their choice-of-two taco plate. Rave reviews on the slow-roasted pork and braised beef from the gallery. I opted for the special, a chile relleno stuffed with ground beef & spicy goodness, grilled and topped with queso fresco and tomatillos, sided with black beans and Mexican rice. Heaven in my mouth. This dish was EXCELLENT and made me want to work on mastering the art of the chile relleno myself. I was only disappointed with how fast we were seated and served so that the experience didn't last longer. As it goes with b'opping, off we were to the next place...

This was a great stop on our b'opping Atlanta tour, and I have to admit, just one example of how Atlanta grows on me with each visit.

Here goes it.

And so it is October. And so goes the summer. And so might as well start talking about what we're eating (and drinking). The idea is to savor the notable details of my eating & drinking outings, observations and experiences for your viewing pleasure, or whatever. Just for fun. Here goes it. Enjoy.