Violetta and Lardo at the Belmont food pod - 43rd and Belmont

so...... was hungry for lunch

was heading to try Lucille's Balls

CLOSED

crap , i'm hungry and standing in the middle of a foodpod 

let's take a look .

ooooooooooooooo......fresh burgers with all the good stuff ok

If you need to know what's inside here ya go . It's all good :)

Amy indulged me and hooked me up . she informed me an order like this earned me a spot in the big dog club . not bad for me first attempt . She also let me know they are made with love .

SO TRUE - SHE WAS RIGHT :)

Let start with an organic oak hills burger and oregonolla , really good bacon , carmelized onions , 

fresh roasted tomatoes , homeade pickles , a fresh mushroom cheese soup , lettuce ,

special aeoli , and wrap it up in a bun and walah !

I stopped and had a private moment after the first bite ;)

she threw in some really good homeade fries and ketchup .

THAT WAS LOVE IN A BOX !

THANK YOU AMY :) 

so definately feeling dessert today

Ate one of these before my burger and had to come back for another one for dessert .

The brown butter makes this pecan pie on ROIDS .

so much more flavor :)

So with a happy belly i say given a chance ,

who knows you might get happy too

Huge cudos to Amy @ Violetta

She is one of those shining happy people that put her love into all she does and i could taste it in every bite

Thanks for sharing the love Amy ,

Still warm and fuzzy and happy inside :)

Pho - vietnamese beef noodle soup

so you might be going vietnamese ..........really ?
Yes folks because Vietnam has been occupied by so many other cultures including the french they actually have a culinary prowless that might suprise you .

Today I had a friend who wasn't feeling so well and was requesting the wonderful brothy goodness called Pho . an amazingly light yet filling broth coupled with an array of veggies and meat cooked in the broth it is unique and stands alone as a very filling meal.

For those in the know not all Pho is created equal . Each chef bring something unique to their Pho .

The two that i tend to like and are very simular is

Pho Oregon -2518 N.E. 82nd
Pho Hung - 4717 S.E. Powell

Favorite appetizer

Salad Rolls

veggies and shrmip wrapped and served with peanut sauce

                                   

Beef broth with 3 different kinds of beef and veggies 

At Pho Oregon this is a number 11

Sometimes it pays to adventure outside your comfort zone .

I did this with Pho about 2 years ago and can't get enough :)

Laurelhurst Market Restaurant and Butcher Shop - 3155 East Burnside

yes there really is a butcher shop here .

That's right they have duck fat !

This is their dining area with the bar behind it .

Yes that is the available cut list

your water

Fleur de Lis Breads 

 served with Rose Valley Organic Butter 

WEDGE SALAD 

Iceberg , blue cheese dressing , Bacon

Fried Shallots , Fresh Herbs , Celery

I was really enjoying this salad , hits my favorite flavors :)

BUTTER LETTUCE SALAD

Pickled Bosc pears , Cypress Grove Chevre ,

Brown Butter vinaigrrette , Hazelnuts

very sweet

DUNGENESS CRAB SALAD 

Belgian Endive , Grapefruit , Chervil ,

Sunchoke puree , Orange Chili Vinaigrette   

Roaste beets  with strawberry Gastrique ,

Pistachios & fennel Pollen

Fingerling Potatoes , Oil cured Olives ,

Black Garlic, Oregano , & Hazelnuts

Mom's Baked Beans

Mac & cheese with Tim's Chip Crust

Surprisingly this was a standout really good and different :)

GRILLED RIBEYE

Blue Cheese Butter 

Fried Walla Walla Sweet onion rings 

Tasty Beef . locally source beef really good quality .  

BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIBS

Port & Prune Sauce , Fingerlings , Roasted Parsnips ,

Sage & Orange Gremolata

Beef was like butter and full of amazing flavor :) My favorite meat of the night .

Dulce de Luche Cheesecake

with Pecan Prailine Sauce

This was the standout of the night . Well thought out and balance and flavor through and through :)

I have eaten alot of desserts in my day and this is definitely in th top !

The service was excellent and discreet . I will return to try the Wagyu beef . Not a bad way to spend my birthday dinner with family . Thank you guys .

Dean' Homestyle Cafe - 15730 S.E. 130 Avenue Portland ( Hwy 212 )

This was the breakfast spot for me today

This is what i look for . If they claim to be the best outside i wont go inside but effort means everything to me

Nice thing also is I can feed my breakfast craving at 2 pm :)

As I was shooting pictures my server Tyler came out to welcome me - that has never happened - WOW

Even the ashtray has the right attitude -

Reads " Get your butt in here "

It's also nice to see the sign in instructions clearly posted

Hillbilly Home Security System

3 slices of Cinnamon French Toast - really great flavor

Their omellete are 5 egg omelletes , come standard with hashbrowns

on board this bad boy -

cheddar , swiss , sausage , SLICED RIBEYE ( that's crazy good ! who offers that ? no one  ) , mushrooms , olives , tomatoes , onions , and BACON ( very meaty , sliced just right , and so smoky good ! )

There is a really good biscuit hiding under that biscuit lotion .

For a few bucks you can have your own coffe cup waiting for you at Dean's when you go there to eat .

I can not say enough good stuff about these guys . This is traditonal down home done right . The service is exceptional and my special requests didn't phase them  . I had no less than 3 patrons chat this place up with me while i was there and you can't buy that kind of excitement and it don't lie . This is what I look for in a restuarant that I like to call home . Will have to return and put the burger to the test and that will require a 40 minute drive . Grab your friends and take a trip to Dean's . Happy live here :)

Gustav's happy hour

if you ever want a taste of a place happy hour is the cheap easy way to go .

mini fondue

potato pancakes

scotch eggs

chicken scewer with veg rice

slider plate - chicken , brautwurst , and burger

It's a food of love thing

when it comes to food for me there is a lot of food I love ( at least enjoy emensely ) , most of which is comfort food ( feels good to eat it, not so good for the body . The question i wrestle with this year is , " am i eating food that loves me back ? " sure it is fun to indudge and i can say that i will ever totally quit , i am a big fan of enjoying things but can i slow down this year and treat my body right and feed it healthy food that will love me back ?

This is my challenge to myself this year  - create meals that love me and my body that i enjoy and minimize the food that I love that doesn't treat me so well . Kind of sound like relattionships in life ? That is because we have a relationship with food - eating is a relationship with our body . If you wouldn"t put up with someone abusing you then why abuse yourself . Food for thought :)

Hello again world and chinese food

   Hey guys . Sorry about the break in the action - too much drama and not enough time to address it . Good news I have access again and am standing here with a new zest for life . Things are looking better here and there is a whole new world of food to explore ( amazing how sharing your life with the right friends can change your entire perspective )

A few notable things -

Killer Burger t-shirts  - get em while they are hot !

Stand out for me this christmas - Voodoo donut made a present cream filled donut and a pumpkin spice ( sorry no pics , they didn't last that long ;) )

So ................today's mini rant

AMERICAN CHINESE FOOD

   This is a tough one for me . All of my friends and i have those major cravings for it and yet we always settle for the less than stellar , usually with only one or 2 items really being standouts .All of that said like a bug to the light we can't resist and the really bad for you is the best of it ! Crab puffs , bbq porkk , pot stickers , chicken egg roll , fried shrimp ..................... the list is endless . Somehow we find comfort in the deep fried  and gravy laidened ( that seems to be a truth everywhere we go but i really enjoy super fresh too ) .

    What makes this whole thing worse is I grew up with several Sunday afternoons when i was young at Mrs. Lee's house . A wonder first generation chinese woman built like Julia child that took genuine joy in hosting our  whole family at her house for real chinese lunch . Sad part was i was so young it's just a glimmer of a memory and had no idea how special it was at the time  .

   Last night we did Chinese Delicacy at 111 and Foster . Crab puffs were pretty good , pt stickers had almost a meatball quality which was nice , Bbq pork was a stand out , ans the chicken low mein was reall interesting because of the presence of what looked like ramen noodles instead of low mein . Still you average garden variety chinese food but when you want it , it's the thing !

My adult drink of choice last night - seagram's citrus vodka , 7-up , and dekyper's watermelon pucker .

My choice to ring in the new year - Modoro Italian sparkling wine Asti .I have one bottle that has been set aside of a few special occasions that has not come into being yet  but i still have hope .

A few of the highlights of my break

Recently attended a friend birthday and she changed a self professed non bait eater into a sushi eater . Who knew . Fuji sushi 122nd and Sunnyside road , liked everything I ate , even hit the leftovers for breakfast the next moning . Will have to revisit for a review .

Went to a distiller's festival , highly recommended for any curious foodies . 40 plus distiller's in one place all smpling their wears - oh yeah baby !  Definintely want to invade this next year with a group of friends , that way we sip and pass and get to try way more . Highlights of this trip 1954 Don julio tequela ( we all had a t least 3 and it was amazing ) - Fortuniella tequeila being distilled by a member  of the Sauza family ( gorgeous repesado  tequila   ) and Hudson Whiskey . Their single grain and blended whiskies are the stuff i love but one single source stand out was a corn whiskey that tasted like a butter popcorn jellybean  ( dead serious ). great time with friends and then we dropped into Melt for happy hour to nosh away the alcohol , rice fritters ( deep fried risotto balls ) and many other great choice got the job done .

I believe butterscotch rum soaked

I believe Chocolate Scotch Stout on left and Bailey's Latte ( coffee cake with Bailey's )

All really good but the Bailey's and Scout really good and recntly had her mexician chocolate ( choclate with chilis ) OUTSTANDING

One of the most beautiful moments for me this Christmas was dodging raindrops at night with one of my friends to go get cupcakes at Melt . It's always the simple things that bring the most joy for me ,especially all the beautiful smiles we shared , even the poor girl who was closing early but indulged us to get some for us to take to go ( yes they didn't travel well cut in haf but still tasted good :)  ) and smiled when she remember who i was , the crazy guy taking pictures of all his food .

Hadn't been to slappycakes in a couple months and took my cousin . Was welcomed with a hug by Micki  , and Eve , Stephanie and crew where all there saying hi like an old friend had come home . Still love that place


And finally on to the place that is Cheers for me - Killer Burger

obligitory food porn - todays burger

a classic with cheese , swiss , and jack with mushrooms , bacon , lettuce tomato , etc ,

The Killer Burger family will be one member bigger soon . The shining smile behind the cah register is having a baby girl - congrates Honey !

There is talk of the invading a neighborhood near you with one or two locations to open soon .
 i keep joking with them  that i will put in a shift down there soon . may be reality soon.

The beautiful Killer Crew making bacon - enough said ;)

Now that i am back with a new year dawning more reviews , rants , and raves to come soon .