Pork Chops & Chicken

Alaska In Six Parts

Back from a five day trip to Anchorage, Alaska. We were invited up for The Great Alaska Beer & Barley Wine Festival. Todd and Jason Alström were asked to be judges for the Barleywine competition. They were also invited to speak at The Great Northern Brewers Club. A massive group of homebrewers from the great state of Alaska.

There is a lot to say about Alaska. I really enjoyed visiting Anchorage even in January. It was pretty chilly outside but we missed the worst of it before we arrived and after we left.

Alaskans love their beer. They love big, bold flavors in their beers and they are not scared one bit of experimentation with their beers or styles be it professionally brewed, or concocted in their kitchens. Alaska has an an amazing beer culture. Everyone knows each other, everyone homebrews, and everyone supports their local beer scene with a protected pride in their home grown offerings.

They should be proud of what they have going on up there. I have never seen such a tight knit community of beer lovers. The people of Alaska are also some of the most generous, friendly, welcoming group of people I have ever met in my life. We were welcomed into their fold and treated like family members. I will forever be grateful for the way we were looked after and treated by the good people of Alaska.

The first thing we did when we landed in Alaska was attend a beer dinner at Sub Zero owned by Billy Opinsky. I am holding off on posting about that here in this post because it deserves it's own post.

The next morning we woke up refreshed and I, myself was finally free from a terrible jet lag induced headache, we decided we need a big hearty breakfast to set the mood right for our beer trek through Anchorage. I heard about this place down the road from where were staying called Snow City Cafe. I saw their menu online before we came up to visit. I had completely forgotten that Alaska is all about halibut, king crab, and salmon. When I saw that they have king crab cake eggs benedict, I would not stop until I tried them.

I had an excellent Almond Joy Mocha to wake myself up. And then I ordered the King Crab Cake Eggs Benedict. Picture came out a little dark, but it gets the message across.

These were awesome except for one thing. The poached eggs were hard boiled. I hate that. I want runny yolks with poached eggs. The king crab cakes made up for it. They were meaty with real king crab. That might sound strange to an Alaskan to say real bits of crab. Everywhere else you go it's faux crab meat. Or real crab meat that's mostly filled with more breading than actual crab meat.

Jason ordered an omelet and got a side of reindeer sausage. This is a very popular side dish for most breakfast joints in Anchorage. It tasted like smoked sausage but spicier and more rich in flavor. I haven't had reindeer meat before, but this was tasty.

We left this place very full and happy. It was snowing and the sun light doesn't come out until 10 or 11 am. It begins to set again around 2 or 3 pm. The best thing you can do for yourself if you are used to sunny situations is eat and drink yourself silly. It's a lot like Las Vegas. You never know what time it is, but who cares as long as there is beer?

We walked back to our hotel to get some last minute BA Magazine work done. While Todd and Jason were sorting that stuff out, I noticed that the hotel we were staying in was mentioned in some articles that it's haunted. Oh goody! Historic Anchorage Hotel.

The bottom picture are actual accounts that some of the guests have made about encounters with so-called spirits. One story reports that a couple came back to their room on the second floor and their door was blocked by a little kid sitting in the doorway. It turns out that there were no kids registered in the hotel at the time. Other stories say that the guests reported kids playing in the hotel when there were no kids registered. Apparently a little girl was shot in the hotel way back in the day and later died of a mysterious illness. Another little boy had drowned in a bathtub in the hotel.

Guest reports of seeing a man in a police uniform walking the hallways. The first police chief of Anchorage was murdered near the hotel in the 20's with his own gun and he refused to say who shot him in the back before he died.

The best story comes from the ghost hunters who came to the hotel armed with a tape recorder. The two ladies were talking in the recording, when you could hear loud breathing in the background. Then a creepy voice said "don't move that." Then it said "chocolate" and you could hear a chocolate bar wrapper being opened. Then the voice said "do her!"

Yeah, I am not quite sure what "do her!" meant either but it's pretty damn hilarious. Hilarious in the sense that it happened to them and not me. I did have a sheer moment of panic however, leaving my room when I saw two little boys in their pj's just staring me from the other end of the hallway. I found their parents down stairs in their pj's too eating a quiet breakfast. The boys came and joined them. I relaxed after that.

This is from the hotel's website:

Our Haunted Hotel – Where Ghosts Are More than Just Stories

Curtains rumbling, shower curtains swaying, pictures flying . . . it’s all par for the course at the Historic Anchorage Hotel.  Stories of ghostly happenings have been circulating at the hotel for many years, all thought to be related to the death of the first Chief of Police, Jack Sturgus.  On February 20, 1921 at 9:15 p.m., Anchorage's first Police Chief John J. "Black Jack" Sturgus was found shot in the back with a bullet from his own gun, steps away from the Historic Anchorage Hotel.  It is rumored that his ghost returns to the scene of the crime each year, haunting the location of his untimely death, seeking justice for a crime still unsolved to this day.

Sightings are so frequent that we keep a ghost log in which a number of our guests have shared their encounters. In addition to the ghost of Jack Sturgus, there are several different specters that past guests have seen make their way through our halls and facilities. A more detailed account of some of these ghosts were featured on Today MSNBC.com.

While an abundance of paranormal activity may scare some, we can assure you that the rich and interesting history of the Historic Anchorage Hotel will make for an unforgettable stay.

Awesome, but kind of not. Good thing the people who were working in the hotel were once again some of the kindest and friendliest people. If I had seen a ghost, I don't think they would have minded if I sat in their laps curled up in a ball, sucking my thumb and crying for my mommy.

Then we went out to Midnight Sun Brewing Co. for a quick pit stop and some beers.

We tried a ton of good beers here. I found and fell in love with Specialty XXX. A Black Double IPA brewed for their distributors 30th anniversary. It was so hoppy and good. Dry finish, roasted malts still fighting to hang on amidst the onslaught of big hops. The perfect beer for me. I took a couple of the bottles home with me, but the bottles are barrel-aged. 

We also tried Gluttony, a triple IPA and theoretical 200 IBU beer. Theoretical in the fact that the human palate can't really taste more than 100 IBU's. But supposedly this beer is about 200 IBU's. I tried the Kodiak Brown Ale as well and many other beers that afternoon. 

*For the Midnight Sun crew: Hot Peach Cobbler is the winner for a food pairing with this beer. Peaches braised in tons of butter and brown sugar, a nice crumble on top of the peaches.... Pure vanilla ice cream with it. There is more that can be done. We came up with a few combinations, but I thought I would elaborate on the "I am thinking peaches" comment. I had it in the bottle after we got back and roasted malts were more apparent. Much bigger flavors than when I tasted Kodiak with a shot palate after drinking Specialty XXX.

Visit Midnight Sun's website and scroll through their profile of beers. It's a pretty stunning line up and some of the most creative beers from any brewery I have seen in a long time. Their beers are not just a couple of one off's that don't fit a certain mold. Their whole profile is off the chains.

One of the highlights was Bathtub Gin. A gruit style ale with juniper berries, grains of paradise, and other herbs. This beer was made by lead brewer Ben Johnson in honor of the Phish song Bathtub GIn.

Ben, I didn't know you were such a dirty hippy! That changes everything about our friendship.

If you haven't guessed, that's Ben on the label. Bathtub Gin was very cool. Crisp, dry finish, and big spicy nose and flavor. Again, very Alaskan with big, full flavor and a complete distortion of what is considered to be classic styles. I love it. They do what they want, make whatever beer they want, they don't give a shit about traditionalism because they don't have too.

Alaskans are living in their own quiet little world up there... Only it's not so quiet. They are making some noise up there and when you come into town, you either get on board or get out of town. It isn't hard to get on board with the delicious beers being produced up there. I love that kind of mentality. Who says you have to play by the same old boring rules? Midnight Sun is a perfect example of do what you want. Make the beer you intended to make no matter how big, or obscure, or undefined and the masses will follow you. It's so American, and I love it.

Later that day we made our way back to Humpy's Great Alaskan Alehouse. Owned by Billy Opinsky and shares the same kitchen with Sub Zero. Billy O had taken such good care of us during the whole time we were there. Taxiing us around, piling good food unto us to try. Like the amazing halibut fish and chips appetizer at Humpy's, and later treating us to sushi where we experienced White King salmon for the first time.

[Image via Food, Not Filler.]

When we got to Humpy's we were in the mood for some beers we have never tried before and appetizers. Smoked Salmon spread, Alaskan oysters, and King Crab bites.

 

All of these choices were great choices for an afternoon snack. I will say that the salmon spread needed more salmon chunks in it to balance out the cream cheese, but it was very smokey and tasty. And Hallelujah they give you a good amount of bread to go with it. I can't stand places that give you dips or pate and only two pieces of bread or toast points.

The crab bites had good pieces of crab in it. Served piping hot and great with some squeezed lemon. Perfect Alaskan bar food.

Upon further inspection of their menu, we saw this little note on it.

I would like to see someone take this challenge on up close. You can see the challenge on Man v. Food here.

Later that night we went over to the Sleeping Lady Brewery for the Great Northern Homebrewers meeting. Todd and Jason were invited to be guest speakers at their meeting. Todd thought it would be around 40 people. More like 120 people were there. Armed with their homebrews, and fresh imperial stouts pouring from Sleeping lady Brewery, we had a good old drunken night.



Getting a little Double Wit Bier from the tanks at Sleeping Lady. Dennis Sessler, President of the Great Northern Homebrewers Club kicking things off with Dr. Fermento ("Dr. Fermento is the alter ego of Anchorage Press and The Celebrator Beer News beer columnist James Roberts.") 

 

 

What are those two weirdos doing? Jason and Todd Alström.

That was our downfall right there. Jason and his multiple trips to get the Sleeping Lady Imperial Stout and Smoked Porter from Alaskan Brewing Co. The homemade meads certainly contributed a fair amount to our downfall as well.

 

Jamie Floyd from Ninkasi Brewing Co. in Eugene, Oregon with his geek tattoo of a D&D dice. You had to be there and hear Jason's reaction when Jamie mentioned his geek passion for D&D.

 

 

Uh oh. Here comes trouble. I am just kidding that is Barb Miller of Midnight Sun. She is the main reason we came to Alaska in the first place.

 

People were getting down to Tom Dalldorf's band the Rolling Boil Blues Band. The older gentleman in the picture was having himself a good old time. He was fun to watch.

There were a lot of homemade meads being tasted out and many homebrews being passed around. All I can say is that it is probably good for everyone including myself that I didn't take anymore pictures after this point. Alaskans throw down. We'll just leave it at that.

Here are a few pictures of the judging for the first round of the Barleywine Competition and the Winter Seasonal category.

Day one, first round Barleywines and Winter Seasonals.

 

 

Second day, round two, two tables one for Winter Seasonals and one for Barleywines.

The winner for Winter Seasonals: Glacier Brewhouse, Eisbock

The Winners for the Barleywine: 1st Place Lagunitas, Gnarleywine

                                                 2nd Place Midnight Sun, Arctic Devil

                                                 3rd Place Pizza Port, Blonde Bombshell Barleywine.

I did not take pictures of the festival itself for the two sessions I attended. It was quite a good time. A bit too crowded (much more room in the connoisseur session) and a bit too much puke on the sidewalks after the fact. But still a good a time. As I said, Alaskans like big, full beers. These people like to get crunked. It's my kind of town.

I also didn't get pictures of the incredible sushi we had at Sushi & Sushi or the tasting of all 18 beers at Moose's Tooth Pizza. That was certainly a good moment. Enjoying 18 different beers with Thai pizza, BBQ chicken pizza, and a McKinley meat pizza. That was heaven.

We ended our 5 day excursion back at Midnight Sun for a relaxing afternoon that spanned into the evening. We drank Good Mojo, Specialty XXX, more Gluttony, and Earth. We drank awesome beers, had good food, and said good-bye to our new found friends of Alaska.

I didn't get pictures with some of my new good friends in Alaska. Julie and Tim McDonald, Billy Opinsky (Humpy's, Sub Zero), Dena and Dennis Sessler, Ken and Shauna Pajak (Cafe Amsterdam), Barb, Mark, Ben, Gabe, Jeremiah, Gary, and Seth (Midnight Sun). All of these people made our trip to Alaska fantastic. The Generosity, the laid back and cool attitudes, the welcoming nature into their worlds. I have said it over and over again, I will forever be grateful for their tremendous hospitality.

Edit: I don't want to forget what a gem Tom Dalldorf is and what a terrific sense of humor he has. I knew we would get along good when he brought up the idea of prank calling Lisa Morrison!

How To Lose Friends And Alienate The Industry

This is my second ever published article. A full feature for the #35 issue of the BeerAdvocate Magazine. The topic is snobbery in the craft beer community with a closing word by Max Toste of Deep Ellum in Allston, Ma.


 



 

Christmas '09

I didn't have time to go through and take step-by-step pictures of all the foods I made for Christmas. But I did get some good pictures of the foods I made. Enough for a food porn post.

The first thing I made were truffles. I followed this awesome recipe for Cookie Dough Truffles from a FoodBuzz friend Kristen King or user KrisKishere.

 

 

Then I made a batch of Bourbon Pecan Truffles. I put so much Buffalo Trace bourbon in them, I thought the ganache wouldn't set enough for me to form in to balls and dip in chocolate. But I learned a good lesson that you can never use too much bourbon. A recipe that called for 2 tbls. of bourbon was amped up with nearly a full cup!

 

Then I made Pumpkin Pies with Toffee-Walnut Topping. I made these pies before and they are really good and rich. It's exactly what you want for Christmas.

Then I made the stuffing. Originally I was going to make smoked oyster stuffing. But when I went to make the Sweet Potato and turkey bacon stuffing, it yielded me two large and very full 9x13 pans worth. Naturally I nixed the oyster stuffing. The stuffing was awesome. It originally called for bacon, but they folks I was making the stuffing for, the head of household doesn't eat bacon. But she is quite fond of turkey bacon. No problem at all in substituting. I also added fresh sage to go with the fresh thyme the recipe called for.

And lastly, I made Pfeffernusse. A German black pepper spice cookie. These are so yummy and fabulous they should be made all year round. I even had them a few days after Christmas with hot mulled cider with rum. They are wonderful. There are many variations to this cookie. I have used this recipe several times now and it's just fine.

 




 

And that was my contribution to Christmas. The only thing missing were chocolate cupcakes. The head of household requested a chocolate cake of some sort. As I went to make them, I discovered I had no more cocoa powder. Had plenty of hot fudge for frosting, but no cocoa powder for the cupcakes.

30 Taps, 30 IPA's

Last night for NYE I spent a low-key night in the crazy packed Cambridge Common. They were featuring 30 taps with 30 IPA's on. Even though the whole place was slammed, we ended up in a good spot and had a mellow evening with a few good friends around. It was exactly what I was hoping for.

A very solid night for hops. Though I didn't really do any venturing through the hop list. Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA is my session beer. Sometimes you got to stick with what works and be consistent. I did try the Clown Shoes Black IPA. I wasn't feeling it. Big roasted beer with a dry finish but no bitter hop characteristics like an IPA. Then again my palate could have been shot from all the 90 Minute IPA's.

CBC Autumn Brewers Dinner Nov. 14, 2009

Cambridge Brewing Co.'s Autumn Brewers dinner from November 2009.

This was a fabulous beer dinner I went to last minute at CBC back in November. I wasn't sure if we were going to end up going or not and then two friends called saying they really wanted to go too so off we went.

Amuse Bouche:

Double Happiness Cocktail. Tangerine twist with duck crackling and apple cider caviar.

Double Happiness- strong golden ale refermented in chardonnay barrels with Brettanomyces and lychee fruit. Bright with perfumed tropical fruit and a lightly tart finish. 10.4% 

This was an awesome little opening. The caviar was solely made from apple cider. The duck crackling added an odd but oddly necessary hit of grease to the whole tasting. It seemed strange but it worked.

The brettanomyces was low and not dominating in this beer, and the fruit flavors were crisp and fresh, not cloying as it would seem with something sweet and sticky like lychees. Very refreshing and unique.

Apple cider caviar? At first I thought it was actual caviar in apple cider. But it was apple cider in small pearls like caviar. It even had that little bursting effect when you eat caviar. Very interesting and cool.

For those of you who haven't been to a CBC dinner before, the way they offer the courses is to have a few selections from each course to choose from. When the waiter comes to take your order you generally order the whole meal in one shot. I am going to post the menu and and then talk about the courses I myself had and some of the folks at our table had.

CBC Autumn Brewers Dinner
November 14, 2009

Amuse:
Double Happiness Cocktail
Tangerine Twist, Apple Cider Caviar, Duck Crackling

First:
Island Creek Oyster Bisque
Butter Poached Yukon Gold Potato, Leeks, Fried Salsify
Blackout Stout

Local Celeriac Soup
Beer Brown Bread Croutons, Crispy Carrot-Celery Salad, Raisin Jus
Cambridge Amber

Second:
Long Island Duck Rillette
Cerise Cassee Cherry, Clear Flour Sourdough, Beer Mustard, Micro Green Salad
Cerise Cassèe

General Gau's Frogs Legs
Steamed White Rice, Broccolini
Biere de Gourde

Maine Lobster Pierogies
Local Spinach, Porcini Cream, Amaretto Crumb
Om

Warm New England Vegetable Timbale
Spaghetti Squash, Glazed Root Vegetables, Aged Gouda,
Braised Greens, Hazelnut Vinaigrette
Red God

Third:
North East Family Farms Venison Loin
Sweet Potato and Chestnut Puree, Swiss Chard, Sweet Ginger Salt, Natural Jus
2008 Bannatyne's Scotch Ale

Wild Mushroom Cannelloni
Autumn Squash Bolognese, Toasted Pumpkin Seed, Parsnip Béchamel, Crispy Kale
Great Pumpkin Ale

Braised Rabbit Stew
Gnocchi, Tomato Confit, Hen of the Woods, Local Spinach, Butternut Squash,
Piave Cheese
Sgt. Pepper

Nantucket Bay Scallops
Brown Butter Fried Cauliflower, Fingerling Potato, Candied Kumquats,
Toasted Pinenuts
St. Alphonso

Dessert:
Vintage Blunderbuss Barleywine Flight
Stilton, EVOO Fried Almonds, Heirloom Apple Compote
2009 Port Finish, 2008 Bourbon finish, 2007 Dryhop finish Blunderbuss Barleywines

Benevolence Bread Pudding
Barleywined Fruits, Apricot Caramel, Pumpkin Ale Ice Cream
Benevolence

Gingersnap Napoleon
Sweet Pumpkin Custard, Cinnamon Cream, Bittersweet Ganache,
Candied Ginger
Olde Pumpkin Porter

Second Course:

Local Celeriac Soup
Beer Brown Bread Croutons, Crispy Carrot-Celery Salad, Raisin Jus
Beer: Cambridge Amber

Cambridge Amber- Well balanced, medium-bodied, deep amber-red. Malty caramel notes, hints of chocolate, slightly roasty finish, complemented by a touch of fruity, spicy hops. 4.7%

This was an excellent pairing. The soup was creamy and rich. The amber was a perfect match. The soup actually brought out a lot more of the complex characters of the Amber like the roasted finish. The only negative to this course was that I finished it all the way through and it was more filling that it sounds. We had a whole evening to get through....

Sadly my shot of the amber was blurred, but I got a somewhat decent shot of Todd's beer. He had the Island Creek oyster bisque paired with the Black out Stout. I did not however, get a shot of his soup. Todd gets annoyed when I take foodie pictures while we're trying to eat. Boo Todd.

Third course:

Long Island Duck Rillette
Cerise Cassee Cherry, Clear Flour Sourdough, Beer Mustard, Micro Green Salad
Beer: Cerise Cassèe

Cerise Cassèe- sour ale spontaneously fermented along with 300 pounds of tart red cherries and aged in a Solera system of wine barrels. Aggressively tart with flavors of sour cherries, malt, vanilla and oak tannin, and a finish that defies description in its funky-yet-balanced uniqueness.  8.5%

Another great course. The Cerise cherries were so delicious and sweet. The duck was simple, flavorful and fatty. This batch of Cerise Cassèe was more acidic and tart than normal. Usually Cerise is a sour beer with a decent level of acidity that doesn't burn the throat when drinking. so people live for that burn I do not. Having said that, the fatty duck helped tone down the acid. The acid in turn helped cut the fats and oils and allowed the flavors of the mustard, sweet cherries, and duck to add their own pop. Lots of different tastes, but very tasty. 

Sadly my pictures of the beer are not doing them any justice to get the full effects of their rich colors.

Warm New England Vegetable Timbale
Spaghetti Squash, Glazed Root Vegetables, Aged Gouda,Braised Greens, Hazelnut Vinaigrette
Beer: Red God

Red God-  Featuring Simcoe, Amarillo, and Columbus hops at a rate of over three pounds per barrel, with American pale and Belgian caramel malts providing a malty but dry pedestal upon which this hop fest rides to its long, lingering, hop-bittered finish. Beware this vengeful god.8.5%

My friend Courtney went with this course. She suffered the same fate I did with the soup. It doesn't look like it from the picture, but this course was huge. And she weighs all of 90 pounds soaking wet. But from what I gathered it was hard to stop eating this course. And it was paired with Red God which is one of my all time favorite beers from CBC. Courtney is a hop head too. So this course was hard to not gorge on.

And Todd had the lobster pierogies.

Maine Lobster Pierogies
Local Spinach, Porcini Cream, Amaretto Crumb
Beer: Om

OM- Strong golden ale aged in French oak chardonnay barrels. Brettanomyces exresses with flavors and aromas of pineapple and peach fruit, creating a harmonious balance of honeyed malt and hop, yeast and flora, and oak character. 9.4%

Fourth Course:




Wild Mushroom Cannelloni
Autumn Squash Bolognese, Toasted Pumpkin Seed, Parsnip Béchamel, Crispy Kale
Beer: Great Pumpkin Ale

Great Pumpkin Ale- 150 pounds of fresh, locally grown, organic sugar pumpkins are hand-carved and added to each batch, along with a touch of cinnamon and allspice. An appropriately orange beer with subtle pumpkin flavor, enhanced by a touch of traditional autumn spices. 4.2%

I didn't get a shot of the beer because I jumped right into this course. This thing was fabulous. And it paired really well with the Great Pumpkin. GPA from CBC is one of my all time favorites. They have really mastered making a pumpkin ale that tastes like squash and not over-spiced. It's so tasty. It went amazingly well with the cream sauce and rich mushroom cannelloni. I loved this meal. And unusual for me is getting a vegetarian course when there are meat options. This sounded terrific and it was. Very rich and filling. Noticing a pattern here?

This was our other friend at the table Mark's course. Originally it was supposed to be be scallops, but he ended up with monk fish instead. I am not sure if they had run out of scallops, or if it was requested to be different. Mark was happy with his course.



Nantucket Bay Scallops (Monk Fish)
Brown Butter Fried Cauliflower, Fingerling Potato, Candied Kumquats,
Toasted Pinenuts
Beer: St. Alphonso

St. Alphonso- Our American take on the Belgian single, or table beer, with our house Belgian yeast strain and bucketloads of American hops. Well-attenuated, super-dry, light-bodied beer with tons of fresh hop flavor. 4.5%

Dessert:



Gingersnap Napoleon
Sweet Pumpkin Custard, Cinnamon Cream, Bittersweet Ganache,
Candied Ginger
Beer: Olde Pumpkin Porter

Olde Pumpkin Porter- After one year of age in bourbon oak with Brett., this porter was blended with fresh pumpkin, crystallized ginger, whole cinnamon, and new toasted oak. Very complex yet drinkable, with smooth blending of subtle spices and roasted malts. A great dessert porter! 6.5%

This was amazing but messy! This was by far the worst thing I could have done to myself ater having this insanely rich meal before and finish it off with a decadent and super rich dessert like this. The cookies were weird though. They tasted amazing and were soft, yet you couldn't just cut into the dessert. It smashed and squished all the insides out. So while it was delicious and awesome, it was incredibly messy.

This dessert paired awesomely with the pumpkin porter. Another brett beer that didn't overwhelm me with funk. Brett beers are an interesting thing for me. My body will either respond well to them or not. This was one of those days where the funk just added some flavor and didn't make me ill. It wasn't overwhelming to the beer either. Sometimes when working with brettanomyces it has a propensity to completely overtake a beer and all other flavors there may have been in the beer.

I had a hard time noticing the ginger in the beer with ginger cookies and crystallized ginger on the plate, but the pumpkin spices, and the rich notes of the porter were enough to come through and make this a flavorful and yet again, super rich course.

Todd got the cheese plate and flight of barleywines.



Vintage Blunderbuss Barleywine Flight
Stilton, EVOO Fried Almonds, Heirloom Apple Compote
Beer: 2009 Port Finish, 2008 Bourbon finish, 2007 Dryhop finish Blunderbuss Barleywines

2009 Blunderbuss Barleywine, Port barrel finish- A delightful sneak preview of this year's unreleased expression of Blunderbuss. Aged in vintage port wine barrels, which provide a touch of fruit and oak to this massive, malty brew. 13.2% sherry glass

2008 Blunderbuss Barleywine, Bourbon barrel finish- Last year's expression spent time in barrels from the Buffalo Trace distillery, where it picked up notes of caramel, vanilla, hints of cotton candy, and toasty oak. Super smooth. 11% sherry glass

2007 Blunderbuss Barleywine, Dry Hop finish- heavily dry-hopped with Simcoe and Ahtanum hops before its annual release. This extraordinarily complex ale boasts flavors and aromas of caramel, dried fruits, toffee, lots of spicy, resiny, and floral hops, and a very warming alcohol finish. 11.5% sherry glass


This is generally how CBC rolls when they do a beer event. Their pairings are spot on and the food is always creative, good, and really filling.

*Beer course descriptions via CBC menu courtesy of Will Meyers, Brewmaster.

Dinner @ Green Street

I realize this is my second post on dinner at Green Street, but I can't help it. It's my neighborhood bar and restaurant and I love this place. This is what a typical dinner at Green Street is like.

Braised short rib with citrus on a bed of creamed cabbage.

There was no bone for the short rib which was fine with me since it only gets in the way at presentation time anyway. The meat was so soft and rich. You barely had to use your fork to cut a bit out of it. This should be an entree portion. It tastes so amazing. And the creamed cabbage was so soft and delicious. The orange added a good little pop to the dish.


House made franks and beans.

Oh man this was delicious! The beans were good and sweet. The franks were nice and soft and flavorful. The mustard added a nice tangy kick to balance the sweet from the beans. Not to mention mustard is classic with franks.

And now one of my favorites.

Chicken Schnitzel with brown butter, mashed potatoes and greens.

This is my absolute favorite. It's pan fried chicken schnitzel with brown butter perfectly fried and juicy. The potatoes are delicious and creamy underneath the chicken. And the greens with a light vinaigrette, cherry tomatoes and fennel add freshness to the dish. God I love the chicken schnitzel.


Macaroni and Cheese with bacon and tomatoes.

The mac'n'cheese is awesome. It's a bit pricey for mac'n'cheese, but its really creamy, rich and delicious. Plus it has bacon in it. Bacon makes the whole world go around, and makes something like this fantastic. It's so rich and delicious that it's hard to finish it all. But that's worth it to me. I want a meal that makes me satisfied and is filling. It's a great adult version of a kids classic.

After dinner, the owner Dylan Black surprised us with a rare beer offering.

A Russian Imperial Stout from Brouwerji De Molen in the Netherlands. 11% abv with a strong Belgian influence in nose and steel-y malty taste. Very big and rich but drinkable. Notes of toasted malts, vanilla, caramel, and chocolate. Nice little night cap from the dinner above.

Clearly you can seen why I keep writing about Green Street.

Gallia Belgica @ Eastern Standard

This has been long overdue for a write up. Thankfully I took mad notes during this dinner that even though it's a little over a month after the fact, I still feel like I just came back from this dinner.

It's taken me a little over a month to get this written for a couple of reasons. This beer dinner took place the week of our Belgian Beer Festival. So during the week I had zero time to sit down and write this out. The next week I was off to Las Vegas to celebrate my 30th Birthday. And right after that I was right back out to the west coast to San Francisco for the FoodBuzz Blogger Festival.

Now that I have settled down a bit, I can give this post it's proper dues.

Why was this beer dinner called Gallia Belgica (Gal-ee-ah Bel-gee-ka)?

I had a brave idea to ask one of our favorite restaurants Eastern Standard, to a beer dinner. Word on the street was, it would never happen. But I couldn't imagine why they wouldn't. They feature good beers for a high end restaurant. A slow moving trend for fine dinning is to serve good craft beer. Not only does Eastern Standard serve good beer, but also make mind blowing beer cocktails. Yes actual cocktails with beer as the base and high end bitters and liquors to enhance them. You have to be there to see it and try it.

I ran into a former waiter from Eastern Standard who overheard me talking about this grand plan for a dinner at Eastern Standard. I asked him if it could be done since there hadn't been beer dinner there before. He said "Yes Garrett will do it.... But only if the concept is so HOT." Oh great. The only super awesome concept I had come up with recently was for The American Psycho beer dinner. Yes, based on the movie. "It's a laugh riot." And totally would be a "laugh riot" with all the ideas we came up with for it. But I knew I couldn't bring the "laugh riot" to one of the hottest restaurants in Boston and expect this to fly. And then relaxed knowing that the Belgian Beer Fest was soon upon us and all the amazing brewers that would be in town to woo ES with.

When I approached Garrett Harker and Jackson Cannon of Eastern Standard (the owner and bar manager extraordinaire) to do a beer dinner with BeerAdvocate.com, I needed to make sure I had a good strong concept for the dinner. I almost always do a themed beer dinner or have a main concept that the dinner is following. Since we were going to have a big collection of brewers in town for the BBF, I decided a Belgian theme would be perfect. I did not however, want to do a traditional Belgian beer dinner. No Belgian waffles, or Moules et frites. I know how good they are, but it's so typical that the last thing I wanted for the first beer dinner Eastern Standard has ever had, was to be typical.

Garrett said yes and showed us a new private dining room they had acquired for the restaurant capable of seating up to 75 people. Perfect timing for us.

I came across the name Gallia Belgica while searching for traditional Belgian food. Looking for anything not mussels and waffles. I found a Wikipedia page talking about old Roman history and provinces. A quick passage from Wikipedia:

Gallia Belgica (sometimes given as Belgica Prima[1]) was a Roman province located in what is now the southern part of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northeastern France, and western Germany. The indigenous population of southern Gallia Belgica consisted of a mixture of Celtic and Germanic tribes, often described as the Belgae as well. According to Julius Caesar, the border between Gallia and Belgica was formed by the Marne and the Seine[2] and that with Germania by the Rhine[3] The area is the historical heart of the Low Countries, a region corresponding roughly to the current Benelux group of states, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg as well as the French Flanders and some part of the Rhineland.

I loved the name and thought it sounded cool for this kind of format. It also freed us from rigid borders. We could go an old, rustic route with the food and and add some modern twists. This concept is exactly reflected in our menu for this dinner.

As for the beers, well that was easy. I immediately called Tomme Arthur of Lost Abbey after Garrett said yes to the dinner. Then I called Patrick Rue from the Bruery, Will Meyers of Cambridge Brewing Company, Rob Tod of Allagash, Duvel, and Dann Paquette of Pretty Things.

Picking Dann Paquette was an easy choice but I had to go back in and meet with Jackson and Garrett to discuss the beers and we had everyone on board but were still down one beer. Garrett had told me to run with the beer, and I had to call people ASAP to make sure they hadn't booked other dinners for the BBF. When I told the guys that we would have two locals, with Will and Rob Tod, and two well respected Cali brewers who specialize in Belgian beers, plus Duvel we had a well shaped dinner a head of us. But then I said I wanted to talk about bringing in a good friend of mine (Dann) who just came out with a new beer project called Pretty Things. Jackson immediately said "yes!" It was exactly what he was thinking and hoping we could bring to the table. I was very happy and exited that Dann's beers would be part of the dinner. The other brewers are some heavyweights in the industry and Dann deserved some credit for his long standing history. And for how amazing in such a short period of time his new beer project has received good word and accolades all over Boston and the New England area. Now we were ready to go.

Jackson and I hand picked the beers for the dinner. We carefully made sure that each beer was different in style from one and other but was a good representation of classic Belgian styles.

Duvel, Brouwerji Duvel Moortgat (Belgian Strong Pale)
Baby Tree, Pretty Things (Belgian Style Quad)
Curieux, Allagash (Bourbon Barrel-aged Tripel)
Sgt. Pepper, Cambridge Brewing Co. (Saison/ Farmhouse Ale)
Red Poppy, Lost Abbey (Flanders Oud Bruin)
Barrel-Aged Autumn Maple, The Bruery (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)

*Click on images to enlarge.



Opening Reception:

Duvel with passed appetizers of smoked trout and fried Island Creek oysters.



 

 

Perfect bite size appetizers that worked really well with the Duvel. The light sweet taste, the sweet steel-y malts of the beer work well with fish and other sea food. The crisp, cold carbonation cut through the oils of the fried oysters, and the oils in the trout to let the sweet malts and hops play with the flavors of the oyster and trout.

At our tables, Duvel presented with Duvel bottle openers.

A quick look at the menu.

First Course:

Jackson Cannon opened the dinner and welcomed out guests and brewers to the event. Then introduced Dann and Martha Paquette of Pretty Things.

Olive oil poached Arctic Char with Alyson's Apples and Curry Purée paired with Pretty Things Baby Tree.

Jackson enjoying the Baby Tree.

This was a delicate pairing. The beer is a 8.7% abv Belgian style Quad made with dried plums. It's very fresh tasting and crisp for a quad. Most Belgian Quad's are big, alcoholic, and cloying on the palate with big malts. This beer does none of those things. It's one of the most enjoyable quads out there. The plums or prunes are present in the beer to add nice flavor without overpowering and making the beer a fruit beer.

It worked well with the pairing despite being a big quad with a fish pairing. However, it was a bit borderline. The beer was almost too big. But with this pairing, the apples, trout, and the curry purée all needed to be on the fork in one bite. You needed all the flavors to pull this pairing together. The only qualm was that there wasn't enough curry purée on the plate. As someone who isn't a fan of curry, this is one variation of it that I could handle. It was very delicate and light. 

Second Course:

Berkshire Pork and Lamb Terrine paired with Allagash Curieux.

 

The terrine was served with pickled onions, whole grain mustard and sliced of a French baguette. Allagash Curieux is a 11% abv Bourbon Barrel-Aged Tripel.

This was an excellent contrast pairing. The beer is soft around the edges from being aged in Jim Beam bourbon barrels. It has big wood notes on the nose and heavy vanilla. The pickled onions on the plate added a brillaint sharp contrast to the beer. This helped keep the beer at bay from dominating the palate with all the bourbon and vanilla flavors. The salty meats and tartness from the mustard also had this same effect of contrasting with the beer allowing all individual flavors to present themselves. 

Third Course:

Hudson Valley Foie Gras Stuffed Vermont Rabbit paired with Cambridge Brewing Company's Sgt. Pepper.

Jackson introducing Will Meyers, Brewmaster of Cambridge Brewing Co.

Hudson Valley Foie Gras stuffed Vermont rabbit with wild mushroom ragout and sparrow arc potatoes paired with Sgt. Pepper. A 6% abv Saison-Style farmhouse ale with peppercorns. 

Sgt. Pepper is quite a unique beer. I have had some beers made with pepper and it can be good or it can be bad. Pepper is hard to get right in beer because it has a tendency to completely overwhelm the beer and all other flavors it may have. This was not the case with the beer. The pepper was upfront in the nose and definitely present in as the first thing you taste, but not dominating. It has four different peppercorns in it. Pink, white, green, and black. It had a little bit of a heat kick to it from the peppercorns. It was lightly sweet an delicate underneath the peppercorns.

The rabbit was fantastic. To me this was one of the best pairings of the night. The salty meat and rich fatty foie gras was amazing. The meat was nice and soft. It was as though Sgt. Pepper was made for the meal. Instead adding pepper to season your food, the beer did that for you. The rabbit helped enunciate the sweet characters the beer had. The rich mushrooms and potatoes was more like a stew adding more depth for the plate. There was a lot of flavor going on for this course but mainly it was the game flavors of the rabbit highlighting he sweet flavors of the beer and being rounded out by the big pepper taste. Wonderful pairing!

Fourth Course:

Smoked Venison Saddle paired with Lost Abbey Red Poppy.

Jackson handing the room over to Tomme Arthur, Brewmaster of Lost Abbey.

When we first approached Eastern Standard with doing this beer dinner, I immediately went outside of the restaurant to call Tomme and ask him if he would be apart of the dinner. I had one thing on my mind, Red Poppy! I am not a huge fan of sour beers, but between Supplication from Russian River and Red Poppy from Lost Abbey, they are total conversion beers.

Smoked Venison Saddle with mustard spaetzel and winter greens paired with Red Poppy, a 5.5% Flanders Oud Bruin, a sour brown ale aged in barrels. 

The venison was gorgeously smoked. The aroma dominated the table. Big smoke flavor and game taste from the venison. Nice and juicy portions of meat. The greens were earthy and vaguely tasted like beets. Their salty, buttery taste worked well with the beer. Again contrasting with the beer to bring out it's sweetness.

The beer had a big red cherry nose, and sour aroma. The metallic flavors of the meat allowed those big cherry notes to pop rather than subdue them. Soft wood flavors on the beer also help round out a sweet flavor on the beer. The sour character was very palate cleansing instead of cloying. Even for a sour brown ale, that's quite unique. 

Another winning course, but very filling. This course nearly sent me over the edge and we still had dessert on the way

Fifth Course:

Pan Perdue paired with Barrel-Aged Autumn Maple.

That's my homie Patrick Rue, Brewmaster of The Bruery. He is fairly new to the world of brewing, but he has already made such a tremendous impact by way of American-Style Belgian beers.

 

French toast with pears and cinnamon-maple cream paired with Barrel-Aged Autumn Maple. A 10% abv fall seasonal brewed with yams, maple, autumnal spices.

Barrel-Aged Autumn Maple was brought out specially for this event. The only place you can regularly have this beer is at the brewery itself in California. The regular Autumn Maple is bottled and distributed during the time of it's release. 

So we had a small emergency for this pairing. Initially it was going to be a waffle course. But 75 waffles without 75 waffle irons is a bit tricky. I am glad that it never happened that way either. Part of the reason for this dinner and it's name was for it not to be typical and what we know of today as traditional Belgian cuisine. Though no one probably would have cared if we did serve waffles, I am still glad it didn't end up being Belgian waffles.

The dessert sounds fairly delicate for this big 10% monster beer. This dessert was like Uma Thurman in Kill Bill. Look's pretty, and delicate, but wound up holding it's own next to this big beer.

The beer was aged for one year in rye barrels. The yams gave off big sweet, buttery and baked yam flavors including a burnt sugar taste. Big vanilla flavors giving a butterscotch like taste. The bread and pears acted like a cleanser for the palate leaving the cinnamon and maple to play with the maple and vanilla flavors of the beer, but wasn't overkill on those specific flavors. Warming esters from the beer were balanced by the cool whipped cream. This dessert and beer worked extremely well together.

Simple and delicious and the perfect way to end the meal. After that venison course, if we have presented a big chocolate dessert or anything like that, we would have all needed dolly's to wheel us out of the place. 

For my first beer dinner with Eastern Standard, they really did an amazing job. Anyone who has been to Eastern Standard, knew that they would nail it. Garrett and Jackson get huge praise for my demanding emails, and anxious nature in making sure we were all on the same page. Though I slightly blame Garrett for putting the fear of god into me and making sure I could sell out their new 75 seat private dining room. As if that would be hard with their reputation.

Executive Chef Jeremy Sewall.

Garrett Harker.

Tomme Arthur, Will Meyers, Dann Paquette, Patrick Rue, and Rob Tod.

Sausage Gravy and Cheese Biscuits

Just a quick post about breakfast I made for dinner with some modified buttermilk cheese biscuits with sausage gravy, and fried eggs.

The biscuits were modified by using lemon juice in milk and letting it sit for a bit to compensate for not actually having buttermilk. And with the addition of a cup and half of shredded cheddar cheese.

The recipe for my sausage gravy and the recipe for the biscuits can be found here. Sausage Gravy and Buttermilk Biscuits

Lord Hobo in Cambridge, Ma.

Lord Hobo has been open for a week now and it has been getting nothing but big praise for the most part from those who have visited the new restaurant so far. I happen to agree with the praise.

Lord Hobo is the new restaurant in Cambridge, Ma. in place of the once famed B-Side Lounge. A former bartender of the B-Side gave the best description of the new bar and restaurant. "If there was a movie made about the B-Side, Lord Hobo would be the Hollywood version of the bar." That's because it's been brightened up, walls painted a muted rustic red, the floor was completely redone, the bar widened and finished with new, beautiful wood, and finished with 30 taps in the middle, and the layout of the room has opened up with the removal of oddly placed dividers and booths from the old B-Side. It's really nice and sterile inside.

We went to Lord Hobo last Monday for the soft opening and had a wonderful time just drinking and sampling the über fresh beers. The Spezial Rauchbier Lager was pouring so good. I drank that pretty much all night on Monday and hung out with some good friends from the neighborhood.

Saturday night we went in for dinner.

A tip for those wanting to try Lord Hobo, go early. Get there early or there will be a line to contend with just to even get in. It's not a huge line or anything to be intimidated by, but getting there early gets you a table right away. The worst I heard anyone has had to wait is 20 minutes. Turn over is good and while you wait, you have 30 beers or a good cocktail list to choose from.

Another good tip is that their wine list offers all choices by the glass with the exception of their reserve list. I find that awesome.

We started with the Truffle Chips. They come with a variety of sauces which we were told change every day. These are perfectly cooked hand cut fries. I usually hate hand cut fries. They are usually too soggy, or cut too fat and big. These were right in the middle of soft, not soggy and crispy. The sauces were a garlic aioli, a vinaigrette, and a sweet and garlicky ketchup. I was more a fan of the ketchup.

The fries also tasted so good with the Spezial Rauchbier Lager. Man that beer is so good and so fresh tasting at Lord Hobo right now. And they give you big mugs of it.

We also ordered a charcuterie plate. It wasn't big or grandiose in it's offerings which happened to be a good thing. It's small but if it were any bigger, ordering dinner might have become a problem.

A simple offering of mustards, Pȃte de Compagne (country pȃte) and duck liver mousse. Simple and delicious.

Then we ordered dinner. Todd ordered the gnocchi with oxtail in parma cream sauce.

I had the Shepherd's pie with braised lamb, root veg, and colcannon.

I have to admit I had a hard time with my entree. Todd's was fantastic. It was super rich, hearty, and delicious. Mine on the other hand tasted amazing, but there were some issues with the meal. It wasn't fresh it was reheated. It's a little too expensive for a reheated meal. The lamb was the key. It wasn't hot. It was served warm, and the braised lamb was not soft because of this, it was stiff. The reason I am so torn about it though was because despite being reheated, it still tasted so good. The flavors were excellent. Next time they should make sure it's so hot and have a warning on the skillet. If it comes in a skillet like that, it should be a dead giveaway that this meal is super hot. Sadly it was luke warm. I can't complain too much though because I ate nearly all of it despite my observations about this meal.



Lord Hobo is a really great new place for Cambridge. Lot's of fresh beer, good food, and the way the room is laid out, it's a comfortable place to hang out.

Honorable mentions for the food are the deviled eggs. I tried them on Monday and they were pretty good. The Maine lobster mac'n'cheese on the appetizers has been a huge hit for a lot of patrons so far. I saw the Seared Local Cod, mahogany clams, potato "risotto", leek, trumpet mushrooms being served to a customer right next to me on Monday. It smelled terrific and looked fantastic. The woman who ordered said it was delicious. And I hear the burger is quite fantastic.

After dinner we tried two Nordic beers we have not tired before courtesy of Daniel Lanigan, the owner of Lord Hobo.

Haandbryggeriet Odin's Tipple. A big 11% abv strong dark ale from Norway. This beer is basically an Imperial Stout. It's so big and strong with rich complex flavors like coffee, molasses, tart cherries, and toasted malts. Yet this thing is so drinkable it's almost like a session beer. It drinks real easy, for something so big. Delicious beer and drank like dessert.

Nørrebro Bryghus North Bridge Extreme. An Imperial IPA from Denmark. This too was a tasty beer. Slightly soapy and reserved on it's hops, Euro-style hop characters meaning more hop flavor than bitterness, compared to giant DIPA's from America. Big sweet malts that were not steel-y that is usually the trademark of a DIPA. I don't have too much depth for this beer though. I ruined my pour of it by mistake. My glass had some weird extra bit of a glass shard hanging from the lip of the glass on the inside of the glass. It looked like a chip and naturally I touched and it broke off super fine shards of glass into my beer. Strange. Just a weird side effect from when the glass was made.

If you haven't been in, make sure you check it out. The waitstaff is super friendly and helpful, the beers are very fresh, the cocktails are good, and the food is fantastic. It's a comfortable place to hang out and will make for a great neighborhood bar and restaurant. All the people who were worried about their precious B-Side can relax. I loved the B-Side and will miss that gouda skillet forever, but this will never be the B-Side and they are not trying to be that. They are a totally different entity and in my opinion for the better. I now have a 30 tap bar around the corner from my house.

Admittedly some of the food and beer prices will shock patrons. Those who are craft beer lovers and fans of Daniel's former establishments such as The Moan and Dove and The Dirty Truth, will understand how amazing the line up of beers are and why they are priced the way they are. A couple of offerings of beers on tap are $10 bucks. But what you are not being told by a tiny handful of hater reviews I have read on Yelp, is that you get a 20 oz. mug of rare beer for $10 bucks. For example Spezial Rauchbier on draft in 20 oz mugs that you will never see on tap anywhere else and the bar doesn't even make money on it at that price. Any other bar would charge the maximum mark up to make the money back and still brag that they have an amazing rare beer. Daniel has it because he loves it. It would be one thing if you were being gouged like Bukowskis, where they charge whatever they want on their beers because they can. And they have admitted to doing so from people who have worked there and still work there now. But no one says you HAVE to go to Lord Hobo and order a $10 dollar beer. It's not like every beer in there costs that. Also none of these complainers made mention of a huge line up of Cantillon on tap which is a pretty amazing feat. Some of these beers are not cheap. But the line up is impressive. And the average cost for beers is more like $6 to $7 bucks a pop. More than the price of Highlife, but it's craft beer people. Not all the beers are priced at $10. A lot of people who were expecting this to be the B-Side revamped will be the top complainers about prices. The folks who love Miller Highlife and a shot of bourbon. Nothing is wrong with that, but you can tell they were expecting the same thing when they walked in to Lord Hobo. Get used to it being a craft beer bar. And they also carry a decent line up of Bourbons too! Boston and Cambridge need more of these kinds of places and bar owners who actually give a fuck about their beers and the quality of beer you are getting.

Something else I noticed in a few reviews on Yelp is that people were saying "Lord Hobo is no Publick House." This is an unfair remark in that Lord Hobo isn't trying to be the Publick House. Just a bar with a solid offering of craft beers, cocktails, wine, and food. Also what is unfair is that most people do not realize that David Ciccolo of TPH also went through the exact same amount of scrutiny in the beginning. When he changed Anam Cara, an Irish bar to a Belgian beer bar. The gripes and complaints about the prices on the beer were the exact same. Now it's revered as one of Boston's best beer bars. It just takes a little bit of interest and knowledge in craft beer to understand what it takes to be a great beer bar in Boston.

Thankfully for once, the majority of Yelp users give Lord Hobo high praise. I happen to agree that it deserves good praise. And seeing as how it just opened, like any new establishment, it will take time to work out any kinks they may have even if there are only few. I have to remind myself to avoid shit like Yelp and Chowhound on a regular basis. It's less and less about being helpful sites for tips and reviews on places and more and more about being a place for people to bitch and complain about the tiniest of details when going out. When one person reviews the Maine Lobster Mac'n'cheese as a disappointing amount of food and not make mention that it's an appetizer course, I have to close the book on that. Toss yourself off a bridge, because you are just looking to complain and take it out on these restaurants and businesses the bitter miserable life you lead thanks to Yelp giving you a place to cry and complain. No one says you can't have an opinion but shouldn't it at least be honest?

Edit: I made a mistake with the number of draft lines Lord Hobo actually has. There are 40 draft lines not just 30 as I made mention twice in this review. Plus a few cask engines and a gravity served cask.

I also went back for the burger, and it was pretty damn good as others have expressed.

Sunday Brunch Buffet @ The Wynn, Las Vegas

I was told by several people, if you want to get the best buffet on the strip in Las Vegas it's either at the Belagio or at the Wynn. We went with the Wynn. We did not lose on this deal. And although I haven't seen the Belagio's Buffet, I feel confident enough to say that Wynn Buffet was the best.

The Wynn hotel is amazing. It's gorgeous, has all the high end shopping and beautiful gaming areas. The only problem I had with the Wynn is that you can't win on their video poker machines that well. Their Black Jack video poker removed the double down feature. Total bullshit and scam. Nothing was paying out for me over there.

But this post isn't about the gambling. It's about the food.

The Buffet at the Wynn is huge. It has a whole separate room for just desserts. Of course it has meat carving stations, but everything is super clean and steril and broken down into regions. Asian section, American food, Italian, ect.

Before we went over to the brunch, we stopped to have a drink at Up Parasol while waiting for a friend to join us. I was in the mood for a Dirty Martini and they made me the best Dirty Martini ever. It was so smooth and tasty and I could have had 50 of them.

Up Parasol is a beautiful lounge in the middle of the gaming area. It's bright, colorful, and comfortable with sofas and couches everywhere. The waitress was the friendliest person we had come across in Vegas. And that's saying something because everyone is cool in Vegas. At least to us anyway.

Our friend finally came and joined us and it was off to the buffet. Keep in mind it was a Sunday at noon and the lines to get into the buffet were long. It didn't take too long, but be prepared anyway.

They also offer a cool deal. For $60 bucks you can eat there all day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It's a good way to economize while you blow all your money on gambling or drinking.

I went the hot route first.

Okay there is a lot going on on this plate. Let me break it down. Sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, french toast, pancake, waffle, eggs benedict, stir fried shrimp, cornish game hen in southwestern sauce and corn, pulled pork with cole slaw on corn bread, and a cheese and beef enchilada.

Every last bit of it was awesome! And you better believe I ate it all.

The cold route.

Shrimp cocktail, Mediterranean tuna ceviche, Tropical scallop ceiche (in cup), sushi rolls, Chow Shao Bao, and smoked salmon. 

There was so much more food to be had, but my belly only had so much room. My husband managed to get some carved meats. Although I wanted them, I am glad I didn't get any carved meats. It would have sat like a lead brick in my belly and I wouldn't have been able to taste all the desserts we had.

Now for the dessert. A small disclaimer is that I did not, I repeat did not eat all that is pictured. I had a bite of each and shared. After the last two plates, there is no way anyone could eat all things I am about to show you.



Grasshopper Mint Slice and Banana Cream Slice.



Blueberry tart and Oreo Mousse slice.



Bailey's Panna Cotta and Hazelnut Chocolate Decadence.

Caramel, Chocolate parfait and Lemon Meringue Pie Parfait , Mango and Lychee Parfait with Tapioca Pearls, and Strawberry Parfait.

And Caramel and coffee ice cream. The coffee ice cream came highly recommended and was amazingly good and creamy.

After this we were the walking dead. Zombies who have succumbed to the dreaded food coma.