Wright Eats

Last month, we mentioned that Txori was starting up a new monthly dining event called Txoko.  This past Monday was the first event, and we thought we’d do a follow-up posting as part of the first Seattle Restaurant Review 360 event.  The Herbivoracious blog started this new food blogger event, where bloggers around the city post reviews about the same restaurant on the same day.  Today is Txori’s day.

The Txoko dinner is quite different from the normal Txori experience (see our first posting for more on that).  Instead of tiny, bite-sized pintxo portions, the Txoko dinner is done family-style, for a fixed $45 price.  They advertised four courses when we signed up, but I guess they didn’t count the pintxo that they served as we sat down, or the pintxo-sized cheese course later – two added bonus courses!

The pintxo was the tortilla española from their regular menu.  I haven’t had this since back in November when they first opened, and I had forgotten how good it is!  Crisp bread topped with a warm slice of potato omelet.  Really tasty, and I’ll have to remember to order this again next time we’re in.

Next up were the family platters of beet salad.  Everyone at the table was enamored with this salad.  A colorful presentation of golden and red beets surrounding a green mâche salad, it was perfectly dressed.  The woman across from me commented how she never used to like beets, but she’s recently come to appreciate them.  It speaks for itself that she (and the rest of us) went back for seconds as soon as our plates were clean.

The soup course followed.  This was a hearty fish stew.  It was very flavorful, but I found it a bit too salty for my taste.  I still enjoyed it, but it was my least favorite course of the meal.

The showcase was the suckling pig, served with potatoes, spinach, pine nuts, and golden raisins.  They roasted a whole suckling pig, and after Chef Joey displayed it for the table, they took it back to the kitchen and pulled the pork to present it on huge platters with the potatoes and spinach.  A delicious dish!  The best part was the skin cracklings on top.

I really enjoyed the cheese course – a few pieces of Spanish cheese with quince and spiced nuts.  It sounds fairly standard, but it had a very nice presentation, with the quince layered above one of the cheeses, and the spice really went nicely.  Although it was diminutive (it was a pintxo, after all), it was just the right size to leave room for dessert.

The baked custard tart with dark cherries was a nice finale to the meal.  I’m a huge fan of Carolin’s desserts, and honestly think she’s one of the best pastry chefs in the city.  This tart didn’t quite shine like some other desserts that I’ve had at Txori and the Harvest Vine, but it was a sweet, light ending.

The part of dessert that was really great was my coffee drink.  They have lots of interesting cocktails and drinks on the menu, which you might expect from a bar, but they even have some interesting espresso drinks.  I had espresso with milk, caramel and cinnamon, topped with whipped cream.  Carolin first had a drink like this in Spain and enjoyed it so much that she knew she had to put it on the menu at Txori.  It isn’t as sweet as it sounds, and the cinnamon was nicely balanced.  I am definitely ordering this again next time!

We like this type of communal dining event because it’s fun to meet like-minded people and swap Seattle dining tips.  Sometimes it’s a mixed bag, depending on who you’re seated with (case in point: a wine dinner we once attended, where our table-mates planned Bridge moves on paper the entire evening), but we had a really great time on Monday.  Maybe you’ll see us at a future Txoko event.

pintxo de tortilla española
potato – onion omelet

ensalada de remolachas
baby beets – green salad

marmitako
fisherman’s stew – tuna – potatoes – peppers

cochinillo
slow roasted suckling pig
patatas panadera
potatoes – onions – olive oil
espinacas a la catalana
spinach – pine nuts

pintxo de queso
cheese

tarta vasca
buttery crust – baked custard – dark cherries

Txori
2207 2nd Ave, Seattle
(206) 204-9771

Eric made me his famous waffles this morning.  What a great way to start the weekend!  He also makes a mean cappuccino.  There’s nothing like a Saturday morning with fresh espresso, waffles, and my favorite waffle topping, apricot syrup.  Eric usually opts for maple syrup, but ever since we came across this apricot syrup at ChefShop, I’ve been pretty hooked on the stuff.

In case you’re not familiar with ChefShop, it’s an online gourmet food shop.  They sell a lot of interesting foods that you can’t find elsewhere, sourced from artisan producers and small farmers.  They’re based out of Seattle, but they can ship to your doorstep.  Luckily, they also have a retail store in Seattle, and it’s fun to stop in and see what they have.  They offer samples of some products so you can try before you buy, which is nice when there is such a large array of vinegars and oils.  During the holidays, they even offer tastings of all of the holiday cakes that they have available.

There are so many things I love about ChefShop, but one of my favorites is Cornelia’s Apricot Syrup.  This stuff is amazing.  It’s like summer in a bottle, and combined with Eric’s waffles it’s… yum.

ChefShop.com
1415 Elliot Avenue W, Seattle
(206) 286-9988

One place we try not to miss whenever we visit Vancouver, BC is Vij’s.  Hands down, this place has the best Indian food anywhere.  There’s usually a wait for a table, but it’s no problem when you’re drinking a cup of their homemade chai tea.  It’s fun to go with friends so you can share, since there are too many tempting dishes to choose just one.

They also have a more casual cafe next door called Rangoli.  We haven’t eaten there, but you can grab take out or bring home some pre-packaged meals for your freezer.  When we went to Vancouver in February, we brought a small cooler with us for the express purpose of bringing some food from Rangoli back to Seattle.  We weren’t really sure what we were allowed to bring over the border, but when asked by the border guy whether we were bringing back food, we said we had Indian food, and then he looked at us very grumpily and wanted to know what sort of Indian food.  We said “Vij’s” and he said, “Oh, ok, go ahead.”  See, even the border guy knows about this stuff. :)  Tonight, we pulled a couple packets out of the freezer, threw them into a pot of boiling water, made some Cumin Basmati Rice, and heated Rangoli Naan in the oven.  A very satisfying dinner, indeed.

A year or two ago, we heard rumor that they were trying to start selling their frozen food in Seattle area grocery stores.  I haven’t seen this happen, however.  Has anyone heard or seen anything more about this?

The Cumin Basmati Rice recipe is from their cookbook, Vij’s: Elegant and Inspired Indian Cuisine.  We hadn’t cooked Indian food before our friends Rachel and Steve gave us a copy of this cookbook when it was first published, and wow, what a way to start cooking Indian!  We dove right in by making an entire meal, right down to the homemade paneer.  It was a huge success.  I highly recommend this fantastic cookbook.

Vij’s
1480 W. 11th Ave, Vancouver, BC
(604) 736-6664