May 19 - Japanese, Sandwiches, Farewells.

Miso face!

After our afternoon Japanese food fail, Xtine, Brenna and I gave it another shot. I'd never had luck getting into Maneki, something of a foodie legend in these parts. Also, incidentally, the recent winner of the American Classic award from the James Beard Foundation. Everybody I know has pledged their undying allegiance to the place, something like. . . "in sushi and udon we trust."

Anyway, we got random last second reservations and hauled ass over to the international district. Raw fish time!!

Xtine started it off with some surf clam with a miso paste. Accompanied by cucumber and some crunchy noodly things, she seemed to enjoy it. It was definitely pretty.

Like a raw fish work of art.

I was pretty jazzed to try out some of that sushi I'd been hearing so much about. Unfortunately, I can't for the life of me remember what it was that I ordered. I think I just asked what was good and got two of everything the waitress recommended. In any case, it was pretty delicious. The fish was super fresh, though I've seen better cuts at other places. For these prices though, I'll put up with some rough edges.

I didn't understand the lemon.

The roll was similarly rough-looking. And, as before, just as delicious, so who cares really? Sushi enthusiasts are always about things looking pretty, and to a certain extent that is a nice element of dining out, but I always think that if it tastes good, it doesn't matter what it looks like.

This does not extend to things that are made to look horrible. (don't click that if you get nauseous easily)

Tiny trees?

The final installment of our dinner was miso black cod collar. So where is the collar on a cod? Is it the part around the neck? Do cod have necks? I'm inclined to say no, but they do have heads and bodies, so I guess a neck could be implied there somewhere. Anyway, I really didn't know where in the anatomy of a fish this cut could have come from. How big is a cod, anyway?

Why was this so perplexing? It shouldn't have mattered. What did matter was that the fish was crazy moist and tender, with a maximum of fish flavor. The miso didn't compete for attention at all, and the dish was probably the highlight of my meal. Even though getting the meat out of little cartilaginous crevices was a little trying.

Labor intensive, but tasty.

Sadly, Brenna and Xtine had to leave Seattle sometime. Sniffle. boo. What's even sadder was that I was going to bring them to Paseo for an awesome goodbye sandwich but I'm an MRF and failed to recall that Paseo is closed on Mondays. Good lord that was heartbreaking.

So we made our way over to Roxy's to drown our disappointment in New York style sandwiches.

Who is that guy?

It was my first time at Roxy's, and upon entering I was already pleased. There are crazy paintings all over the walls and a little window into the kitchen. I like this. I'm not crazy about dining in restaurants with totally open kitchens, at it tends to be very loud and I always smell like food for the rest of the night. And that can be weird. The kitchen window is nice because you can still peak in on the foodmaking but it controls the noise/fragrance factor.

Window to food.

Roxy's specializes in East coast style sandwiches, so that's what we all ordered. I guess the best way to forget about sandwiches lost is to replace them with other sandwiches. Just like friends. And dreams.

Xtine had some crazy hybrid sandwich of pastrami and roast beef. Do those go well together? I don't know. They must, because she seemed pleased with the fooding. And I am on board with not having to choose between menu selections. Less responsibility, please!

Oozy goo.

Brenna had what she claimed to be "the best French dip sandwich in the world." My argument there is, how could she know that? But as an indication of quality, I guess it's pretty clear. It was a good damn sandwich.

Awww, joo!

My sandwich choice was clear when I read the word "tongue" on the menu. How can I pass up tongue, ever? When I ordered it, the waitress gave me a sly look and said, "good for you!" Yes. This is how I gain self worth - affirmation from strangers over my bold food choices.

I am so lame.

Hey, it's sticking its. . . oh, wait.

The sandwich, however, was not lame. It was tender and tasty, all toasty and slathered in spicy mustard. Plus, sweet potato fries! You know I love the sweet potato fries!

That afternoon, Brenna and I went shopping through Ballard while Xtine took a nap. We saw a dingo in someone's car.

I hope they took the baby in with them.

Final dinner was to be Thai food. My favorite Thai place, like way too many other Seattleites, is Thai Tom in the university district. This is too bad for me, because the place seats about 11 and is constantly packed. So packed that we were forced to sit right on top of the woks.

Flashy!

Xtine, being half Thai, has some pretty serious expectations when it comes to the food of her roots. Her mom is something of an awesome cook, from what I've heard. She was also not feeling great, so all she ordered was a coconut milk soup.

Cilantro = awesome.

I had a spicy vegetable stir fry over rice. It was very spicy, which I like, but I was unfortunately already sweating because of the crazy open flame mere inches from my face. Is that safe? Come on, Thai Tom. I know you're small, but it can't possibly be a good idea to have customers eating next to fiery explosions.

This will not, however, keep me from going back in the future. It's some spicy delicious food.

Eating on the edge of danger!

So that was it. Xtine and Brenna ended their Seattle adventure with a little fireside eating, and I saw them off the following morning. I do love it when people come to visit me. Partially because I can't afford to travel anywhere to see my friends, and also because I love playing tourguide in my new home city. There's nothing better than showing the people you love the crazy awesome cuisine native to your neighborhood. Except for peer pressuring them into singing Prince at karoake.

A lot of fire for a bunch of noods. . .