Lights Out Films » Food and Drink

Voodoo Doughnut

admin — Sat, 20 May 2006 05:54:20 +0000

Voodoo Doughnut
Originally uploaded by lightsoutfilms.

Goddamn best doughnuts on the West Coast. Seriously. Funny, delicious and unusual. The one doughnut missing here is a “breakfast cereal doughnut”, a plain doughnut covered in iced frosting and sprinkled with Froot Loops. Seriously good.

What you see here here is a McMinville Cream (the genius idea of maple + cream filling, a VooDoo doughnut (little chocolate man with bloody filling) and a delicious apple fritter.

Open only after 10pm, downtown Portland. The perfect drunk food.

The Best Food in the Whole Wide World

admin — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 03:29:23 +0000

I had a conversation today with a burgeoning blogger who was slightly embarrassed at the inane and unimportant subjects that she was covering in her blog. Things like laundry, for instance. I however, relish in such an amazingly unimportant series of subjects. Like this post here. I’m writing about the best thing that I can remember tasting in a very long time.

It’s no surprise to anyone that knows me that I loves me some food. I relish in taste and texture. One day, should god smile upon me, I shall travel to the hallowed den of the French Laundry, Per Se, or Le Cirque and really get to know the master chefs and their wonderful ways. For now, all I have is snack items.

Like these Hawaiian Kettle Style Potato Chips, Luau BBQ treats. So the breakdown: they’re kettle chips, so that’s a good thing. Really crunchy, not too greasy. Then, there’s the taste of BBQ. It’s your standard taste and again, a good thing. Then the sweetness comes, which is almost out of place for chips. Then the kicker — these things are actually rather spicy.

It’s a nice little combo that makes me buy an extra large bag and completely forgo the running and "healthy eating" nonsense.

Why mention such a thing? I really have no reason. Maybe it’s to remind myself that the next time I’m in the grocery store, I’ll go and visit the snack isle and stuff a few dozen of these bags into the cart when my girlfriend isn’t looking.

Brewfest

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 04:52:41 +0000

Just to answer Todd’s comment on the Brewfest a couple of posts below:

Yes we did go to the Brewfest, but the thing was such a clusterfuck of drunken humanity that we bailed out and met people at Rock Bottom Brewery (home of a kajillion beers on tap, and I’m not kidding: 6 hefeweizens) .

At the Brewfest you had to wait in a huge line for tokens which were a dollar for a quarter of a small beer. In other words, 4 oz. Not the world’s best deal. That wasn’t even the biggest problem though. You then had to stand in a huge line for every beer that you wanted to taste. We didn’t even get to the mug part, so crowded was Waterfront Park.

Seriously, there were easily a couple of thousand people there. All drunk.

So, it was a bust. But maybe if we went early on a Thursday or Friday, it wouldn’t be so bad. 6pm on a Saturday was terrible.

Oregon Brewfest

Drink of Choice

admin — Sat, 27 Aug 2005 06:13:41 +0000

Perhaps I really am changing as I grow older. In college and soon thereafter, my gorge would rise at the taste of hefeweizen. Its sour, non hoppy taste would cause me to gag if I even thought about it.

But, now embolden by my girlfriend’s love of the stuff I gave it another chance. And I’ve come to say that I downright love it too. The drink of choice?: Widmer Hefeweizen of Portland, OR. Out of the tap, it’s cloudy – almost like a yellow Guiness. With a piece of lemon in there – you’re bound to love wheat too.

There’s really no point to the post above, except I’m drinking now. And I want the world to know it.

http://www.widmer.com/beers/hefeweizen.html

The Psychology of Lines

admin — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 03:10:16 +0000

The longer that people are forced to wait in line, the longer that they want to stay at the table of a restaurant or buffet-like establishment. This is my own hypothesis, and for the moment, does not draw on the socio-psychological research that has been done on the subject. If any.

Admittedly, I do so consciously – if I have to wait an hour and a half for a table at somewhere like PF Chang’s, you damn well better be sure that I’m not going to move my ass when the server try his “do-you-need-dessert” annoyance tactics. Not like I blame the guy – the more tables he’s able to turn over, the more money he makes. I feel for him, but I also feel for my behind which has just been sitting on the curb for the last hour because there was no room on any bench and the inside of the place was too damn hot to stand in.

Atkins – As Dead as Bread

admin — Tue, 02 Aug 2005 20:07:00 +0000

Since Glenn gets so much comment spam, he shut down comments on his posts and is using TrackBack only. Less fun for me, but better for him I’m sure. It’s a good way to keep me writing and interconnected instead of on some lonely "blog island." Anyway, he seems to think that the death of the Atkin’s company (or at least bankruptcy) is a good thing. I couldn’t agree more.

Not only was my former workplace infested with Atkin’s addicts, they couldn’t even stick with the plan. All this talk about Atkins, so quick to fall face first into that gigantic cheeseburger with bun. And that’s the real problem with Atkins – it works for a short while, but who can keep up that kind of diet more than a month? What kind of stupid-ass plan has you eat no bread? The foundation of our civilization as we know it?

I have the world’s easiest and permanent diet: eat pretty much what you want (excluding the fried food. Good god stay away from the fried food. Once in a while won’t hurt you, sure) and exercise your fat ass. I’m no model of health, but in the past few months I’ve lost 10 lbs. That is, when I’m not too hobbled by a permanent ankle inversion injury to exercise.

Post-Turkey Hangover

admin — Sat, 27 Nov 2004 22:27:06 +0000

It’s a bit like a love hangover. For some unknown reason, my family is going to have a “second Thanksgiving” wherein we cook a smaller, freer turkey and use the leftover bits of fixings as accouterments. It makes sense to me, and I suppose it’s fairly easy to do, though the prospect of more tryptophan entering my bloodstream makes me instantly sleepy.

I’m so sleepy that I can’t even think of anything else to write at the moment.

French Laundry Restaurant

admin — Tue, 03 Aug 2004 18:00:00 +0000

Introduction to the “French Laundry Experience” was via Anthony Bourdain’s fantastic “Cook’s Tour” show on the Food Network. Bourdain is the dude who wrote the excellent “Kitchen Confidential”, a seedy and exciting story of just what it’s like to be a chef.

Cook’s Tour is equal parts travelogue and educational food show. Through Bourdain (a gruff New York, cigarette smoking, drinking, rare-meat type. He’s no French wussy), we learn what’s good, what’s bad, and why. In one show, he went to The French Laundry in Napa. Run by Thomas Keller, widely considered to be the best chef in California, if not the West, the place is a three star French country style food extravaganza.

He LOVED the place.

Given that it’s uber-expensive, a short 45 minute plane trip near my old stomping grounds, and has a 2 month waiting list, I want to go. I’m just that kind of guy. A stuck up prick.

Not really.

I just want to know what it is to have very, very good food. I don’t think I ever have. Check out the website, the menu and the prices. 9 course Chef’s tasting menu. I think that’s what I’m going for.

http://www.frenchlaundry.com/

Better start saving a few bucks here and there…

PS: Sports coats are required for gentlemen for dinner service and requested for lunch service. Ties are optional. No jeans, tennis shoes, shorts or t-shirts are permitted in the dining room.

Tell those sloppy bastards.

PPS. AWARDS AND ACCOLADES
• 2004-2003, “Best Restaurant in the World,” Restaurant Magazine
• 2003-1998, Voted #1 – Top Food, Zagat Guide to the Bay Area
• 2002 Awarded the top honor of World Master of Culinary Arts 2001,
a 1st annual award given by Wedgewood
• 2001, “America’s Best Chef,” Time Magazine
• 2000, “Favorite Restaurant in the U.S.,” Food & Wine Restaurant Experts’ Poll

Honestly, how could you go wrong with THE BEST RESTAURANT IN THE FUCKING WORLD? Yay!

Mexi-can’t Margarita

admin — Sun, 25 Jul 2004 18:52:35 +0000

Had a family party this weekend and stuffed my gourd. Anyway, we also had margaritas (of the frozen variety, not over ice). None of us particularly care for the margarita mix that comes in those plastic bottles. It’s often too sour, too sweet and doesn’t quite taste like the real thing. Maybe that’s because we’re spoiled by a very good, very strong margarita recipe that’s been floating around our family for many a year now. And now I share it with you, intrepid blog reader. It’s deceptively simple, but tastes really, really good. As far as I remember:

6oz limeade concentrate
9oz tequila
6oz TripleSec

Put in blender, fill to the top with ice and blend. I’m not the high and mighty type, but you really shouldn’t use the tequila that comes in a plastic bottle. Not only does it taste bad, it gives you a killer hangover. Cheapest you should use is Cuervo, but if you really want to live, use Padron Silver. The difference between the two is akin to driving an Accord, then jumping in a Mercedes.

Here’s a hint.

admin — Mon, 22 Sep 2003 05:01:08 +0000

Here’s a hint. I know this has been written about in various magazines and newspapers ad infinitum, but this is for those of you who haven’t heard. If you’re a big fan of wine, you can do no better than Charles Shaw at Trader Joes. It goes for about $2 a bottle. For that price, you’d think it’d taste like swill. I must report that it tastes as good as the $10 to $15 bottles that I usually purchase. I just tried the Merlot and it’s just right. In fact, if you care to know, I’ve tried more expensive wine that tasted significantly shittier than this. And in case you want to know the credentials, well, I don’t have any. But my family has always been big on the red wine, so I’ve had my share. And I’ve taken viticulture and enology classes. I don’t mean to sound like a complete prick, but I know bad stuff when I taste it.

http://www.traderjoes.com/new/chuckshaw.asp

So go ahead and buy a few bottles if you enjoy the vino. If you don’t, this is a damn good time to acquire a taste. Wine is the drink with thousands of years history. It just feels right.