Question: What did you take to Kenya?

Beginning to post some responses to questions that pop up.

Stuff I took for 14 days in Kenya in spring 2008

(packed in an REI Trail Pack and an Eagle Industries Alpha Bag)

1 x Patagonia Rain Shadow jacket
1 x Royal African fleece vest
1 x Exofficio sweatshirt
1 x Peetniks cap
1 x REI Welded Taku cap
1 x SmartWool cuffed beanie
1 x Seirus Hyperlite gloves
2 x Royal Robbins Half Dome cargo pants - tan
1 x Royal Robbins Khakis - tan
1 x Columbia Brownsmead cargo short
1 x Mountain Hardwear Canyon long sleeve shirt
1 x ColumbiaWiggins Pass long sleeve shirt
1 x REI Sausalito short sleeve shirt
1 x Mountain Hardwear ...: Canyon short sleeve shirt
1 x GAP pocket T
2 x Mountain Hardwear Wicked T
4 x ExOfficio Give-N-Go boxers
3 x SmartWool Ultra Light mini crew socks
1 x SmartWool Light Hiker socks
2 x Fox River Wick Dry® coolmax socks
1 x Wilderness Frequent Flyer belt
1 x Merrell Chameleon (Gore-Tex) shoes
1 x Merrell Chameleon shoes
1 x Teva Mush flip-flops

1 x Brunton Eterna 15x51 E1551 binoculars
1 x Swarovski 8x30WB SLC binoculars
1 x Lenspen
1 x Canon PowerShot A720 IS
1 x iPhone
1 x Bose QuietComfort 3 noise cancelling headphones
1 x Solio solar charger
1 x Eneloop AA & AAA rechargeable batteriese
1 x Eneloop USB battery charger
1 x Petzl Tikka headlamp
1 x Fenix L1D CE flashlight
1 x Timex Expedition watch
1 x Leatherman Wave (old style 67010103H)
1 x Rite in the Rain shirt pocket notebook
1 x Fisher Space Pen Bullet pen
1 x Fisher Space Pen Military pen

Thoughts on Portland, ME

Accommodations:
At present there’s really only one place to stay, the Hilton Garden Inn Portland Downtown Waterfront. We got a AAA Rate of a room for $279. Exactly one year prior, the same room was $189. Look for specials and perhaps ask about a suite.

Food:
There is still some stuff we haven’t tried and of course the scene is changing fast enough you should take a recent look. However, a few things make my “can’t miss” list.

Fore Street: This place was one of the early players in the food scene here and remains, in my opinion, absolutely first rate. Call and ask specifically to be seated at one of the tables in the kitchen. You want to be in the middle of the action. If you don’t get the mussels as a starter, you’re a war criminal. They do wonderful seafood and game. There’s also always a very classically German pork loin that will hit the spot if you’re in the mood for that sort of thing. Their servers should be very well educated so work with them to get the good stuff. You won’t go wrong.

Hugo's Restaurant: If there’s a better restaurant in America that you can call up and get reservations for, I double dog dare you to point it out. This place is stellar. Like Thomas Keller opened a corner restaurant. Get the tasting menu and drive on. Ask for seconds of the perfect mini biscuits before the first batch hits the table. The chef (Rob Evans) may be running the kitchen, but it’s Nancy Pugh’s place. Do what she says. Tell her you’re from DC and the guy who saved the place from burning down in June (mention the fire in the bathroom) sends his regards. If there’s anything on the menu with pork belly or tongue, get it.

Two Lights Lobster Shack in Cape Elizabeth: When you envision a cliché image of the New England coast, this is the place you’re thinking of. You’d make fun of me if I tried to describe it. Just get in a car and go. Get the lobster rolls, the fried clams and the fried scallops, and then whatever else looks good. If you get there after about 10:45am you’re gonna be waiting. But the line moves fast.

Five Fifty-five: A little more “fine dinning” than Fore Street perhaps but still very approachable. Lovely food. Nice service. The truffle mac’n cheese is cliché but worth it. The carpaccio was wonderful. Again, work with the servers.

Standard Baking Company: This place shares a parking lot with the hotel. I’d move to Maine if I could live within walking distance of this place. The croissants rock. The sticky buns are criminally good. The bread is a reason to bring an empty suitcase. Good coffee for the mornings too. I honestly tend to get a coffee, a pasty, and then a mini baguette just to gnaw on plain. The people are serious and the stuff is wonderful.

Duckfat: Just down the block from Hugo’s and on the other side of the street is their casual sandwich place. Get the frites fried in duckfat and whatever else looks good. Whatever justifies another order of the fries. While not a “can’t miss” it kicks butt.

Places I’ve heard nice things about but haven’t gotten to yet include: Caiolas; D B Street & Co (AKA: “Street & Co”); Local 188; Scratch Bakery (apparently good bagels); Two Fat Cats bakery (purportedly has great chocolate cupcakes and whoppie pies)


Details:

Hilton Garden Inn Portland Downtown Waterfront
65 Commercial Street
Portland, Maine, 04101
207-780-0780

Fore Street
288 Fore Street
Portland, Maine
207.775.2717
www.forestreet.biz/

Hugo's Restaurant
88 Middle St
Portland, ME 04101
207.774-8538
www.hugos.net/

Two Lights Lobster Shack
225 Two Lights Rd
Cape Elizabeth, ME 04107
207.799-1677
www.lobstershacktwolights.com/

Standard Baking Company
75 Commercial St.
Portland, ME 04101
207.773-2112

Five Fifty-five
555 Congress Street
Portland, ME 04101
207.761.0555
www.fivefifty-five.com/

Duckfat
43 Middle Street
Portland, ME 04101
207.774.8080
www.duckfat.com/

Caiolas
58 Pine Street
Portland, Maine 04102
207.772.1110
www.caiolas.com/

D B Street & Co
33 Wharf St
Portland, ME 04101
207.775.0887

Local 188
685 Congress St.
Portland, ME
207.761-7909
www.local188.com/

Scratch Bakery
416 Preble St.
South Portland, ME 04106
207.799-0668
www.scratchbakingco.com/

Two Fat Cats
47 India Street
Portland, ME 04101
207.347.5144
www.twofatcatsbakery.com/

Trip Report: Hot Doug’s Sausage Superstore & Encased Meat Emporium

No trip to Chicago is complete without a pilgrimage to Hot Doug's

The interesting question is: What happens when a culinary school grad decides the world needs a great hot dog stand?

The answer apparently involves a good deal of encased meat magic, various incarnations of duck fat, and the unyielding - even combative - dedication to crafting the magnificently mundane that seems to mark today’s great culinary craftsmen.

And that's apparently good news - as you can tell from the line at Hot Doug's at 10:45am on a weekday: IN THE RAIN!

You should note that the first time my buddy took me to Hot Doug's it was FEB. He picked me up from Chicago O’Hare and drove straight there. It was in the low 20s and snowing . . . and the line was LONGER.

The place is open every day, but always has the air of a county fair. The pumped crowd jamms in . . .




The crew is slammin . . .



And it all boils down to this . . .

From the top left corner working around clockwise, we have:

• The Sally Vega (homemade corn dog)
• Duck fat fries
• Another Sally Vega we really didn’t order
• The Dog (Chicago-style steamed dog with all the trimmings)
• The Kira Knightly (fire dog with hot relish & peppers)
• The Atomic Bomb (spicy pork sausage w/chipotle-honey mustard & cranberry-chipotle cheddar)

Two minutes in:

Seven minutes in:

'Nuff said.

Hot Doug's

3324 North California
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 279-9550
www.hotdougs.com/

Chicago Burgers!

So after the various frustrations of experimenting with restaurant burgers, my buddy JB’s homemade burgers were a welcome reminder of what we’re really trying to capture. A simple summer Boy’s Night dinner at his place turned out a perfect meal.

JB fired up his grill to flawlessly prepare grass-fed beef burgers with Vermont white cheddar. We toasted some fresh buns. There was some heirloom tomato. Accompaniments included: sautéed baby spinach with shallots and red wine vinegar; baked herbed baby red potatoes; stir-fried Brussels sprouts with chili, garlic, and ginger; & canned domestic beer.

The “secret”? Same as always.

• Good quality ingredients (local, properly raised, fresh) treated with respect and simply prepared.
• Great company.
• A clear summer night on the deck.
  

What more could we want?

Big Buns

So, in the wake of my experience at Ray's Hellburgers, I wanted to check out a few other places people mention as Five Guys alternatives. My buddy SV and I hit Big Buns in Ballston today after hearing good things.

Bottom Line Up Front:

I don't need to go back. If I want a good burger, Ray's is still my choice; and I might even head to Five Guys before Big Buns

Details:

Good news! They have fries and they have beer (highlighting the limitations of Ray's). The place is comfortable. The service is fast, friendly, & efficient. The prices are reasonable.

We ordered a bunch of things to share.

The beef burger on wheat bun w/pepper jack & sautéed onions was nicely prepared (they didn't ask how I wanted it cooked) and flavorful. Unfortunately the hugely thick and seriously mediocre wheat bun loomed over the experience of eating the burger. It also overshadowed any flavor that the cheese might have had.

The portabella "burger" on white bun with black bean mango salsa & grilled pineapple was a generous (almost comical) slab of mushroom. It was grilled nicely. The salsa was fine, but the black beans themselves had an undercooked texture and distracting flavor. The mango made little contribution. The pineapple was a nice touch but there wasn't enough to accompany each bite of the monstrous 'shroom.

The sweet potato fries were the one thing we dug without reservation. They were well prepared – flavorful and non-greasy. They also made useful tools for sampling the various dipping sauces offered at the counter (sweet chili vinaigrette, honey mustard, etc.). We liked them all.

The conventional fries were underwhelming. They had little taste, a fluffy interior (I know people disagree about the desirability of this trait in a fry), & no snap or crunch.

The chocolate shake was probably the biggest disappointment. It was hyper sweet and a weird powdery aftertaste asserted itself strongly. While I am not doctrinaire enough to assert that proper milkshakes must be made with ONLY vanilla ice cream, milk, and chocolate syrup, I DO think that many of the failed efforts I encounter include "enhancements" other than these basics.

And there's the parable to contrast this place w/Ray's. Ray's Hellburger and Ray's the Steaks both seem focused on doing one thing really well through a simple approach using a small set of high quality ingredients. The burgers at Ray's didn't need any three-ingredient salsa because the burgers were so damned well done and made from killer quality meat (Hint: Big Buns is using the made-up branding-drivel term "Angus" to describe their beef). Their root beer floats are made with good vanilla ice cream and good root beer. Etc., etc.

Summary:

Nothing wrong with the place if you're there and a burger is what you need. However, I would not consider it a destination. I'd get a simple burger there and probably ask for it without the bun (they'll put it on a bed of greens if you want). I'd use my carb quotient on a beer or perhaps some sweet potato fries.

Burgers!

I have a confession that I know will earn me much derision but . . . honesty first. Deep breath. I am underwhelmed by Five Guys.

I love the idea of Five Guys. I like the theater of Five Guys. But in the end, I think the food is just OK. And when it comes to a quintessential American food in the nation’s capital, “just OK” just ain’t as good as we deserve.

I think it’s easy in a landscape totally dominated by burger-as-manufactured-item to get really excited over any venue where you can see actual human beings actually cooking your burger - and Five Guys gets deserved props there. But the end results should, in my option, be better: even at a sub-$10 price point, even at fast-food speeds. It’s a burger for goodness sake. I shouldn’t have to spend $35 and make a reservation to get a good one.

Well, it seems that Michael Landrum (of Ray’s the Steaks in Arlington and Ray’s the Classics in Silver Spring) may just agree, if my meal last night at Ray’s Hell-Burger (aka, Butcher Burgers, 1713 Wilson Blvd.; 703-841-0001) is any indication.

Bottom line up front:

Damn! For $7, Ray’s Hell-Burger is serving up the burger I’ve been waiting for. This is it.

Details:

We walked in ~ 8:15pm on Tuesday night and there was a (fast moving) line to order. The nine-ish small tables and three standing tables were all full and there was a brisk take-out trade happening as well. The “atmosphere” as such included a lot of expectant people, bare walls, the smells and sounds of grilling meat, and a slamming kitchen.

The menu consisted of a chalk board listing cooking temperatures, another listing free toppings (including sautéed mushrooms, grilled onions, charred jalapeños, etc.), and then one with the toppings they charge for (lots of different cheeses, bacon, guacamole, etc.).

That’s basically it since this place serves one thing: 10oz open fire grilled burgers. As we got closer to the counter, we could clearly see a dude trimming and grinding beef that was then formed into patties to hand off to the grillman. A burger joint owned by a guy who runs a steak-house is clearly not a bad thing.

Two significant limitations became rapidly apparent. There’s no beer and there are no fries. Call it focus or oversight, but there it is. We grabbed a pitcher of draft root beer (gotta like that) and a bag of chips. We never opened the chips.

Each burger came on a platter with lettuce, tomato, a small ear of (quite fresh) corn, and a wedge of watermelon. A knife but no fork accompanied each. I tried VERY hard to stick to basics so I could understand if they were getting the burger itself right. I ordered mine with a slice of Vermont white cheddar and grilled red onions. Fantastically good. While the quality and freshness of the meat is key, they are also taking care to form the patties GENTLY, without crushing the freshly ground product into a tight brick. This allows you to appreciate the texture of the burger. My buddy TK chose the Au Poivre version with bacon and even with these complicating flavors, the quality of the underlying burger shone through.

They’re open Monday through Friday from 5pm and Saturday and Sunday from 12pm. They’re open as late as there’s business. Go now before word spreads further and the lines grow larger.