2/23/2017 This idea came after I asked Jeremy how his Chipotle was that day, knowing full well that is where he went for lunch. We started talking about how we so often stay in our little food eating box when we are on a workout regimen. The conversation then naturally fell into a discussion of who are we fooling? We are total culinary creatures of habit. We have things we enjoy and why branch away from those things? Way too risky. I then put out a fake challenge for us of going to the Pho restaurant the next time he is in town. This of course sent us on a search of the internet to find the appropriate pronunciation of Pho. While Jeremy was looking it up and explaining to me that it doesn't sound the way it looks, I was hatching a plan. What if I try 50 new foods? I've never had Pho before. That is breaking out of my box in a small way. Maybe I will like it.
My first opportunity came up the very next day when I looked at my calendar and saw I was eating lunch with a couple of my teachers who had already chosen the restaurant. When I looked up Motomaki, the first thing I saw was the word sushi. Nothing strikes fear in a non-adventurous eater like sushi. I have actually had some sushi before when a teacher whose wife was Japanese made some for us. Thank God he did not stay to watch me eat it, because most of it ended up in the closest trash can. I think it was the seaweed. Needless to say, I know close to nothing about sushi and eating sushi. I quickly let my two teacher know I would have to be coached. The response was a relief.
Don't worry, Chris. This place is like an Asian Chipotle. The clouds part and the angels sing. I was not going to be threatened with vulgar foods, maybe just some new tastes. That I can handle. When I got to the restaurant, it indeed looked like a Chipotle style eatery. I was also thankful my two teachers weren't there to help me or see me order just in case I still didn't know what I was doing. I have to admit, I did choose the menu item that looked the safest...Motomaki Chicken. I had no idea what that meant, but I typically like Asian chicken dishes. BTW, I have no idea if Asian is the correct term here. It seems way too generic. Asia is a huge place that could include Indian food and Russian food and Japanese. I looked it up and Motomaki is "Fast, Casual, Japanese Sushi." There. That is specific.
I was able to choose whether I wanted my meal as a wrap or a bowl. Bowl seemed way less threatening to me since I had no idea what it would be wrapped in and I was pretty sure it wasn't a tortilla. My meal turned out delicious. Chicken, rice, sprouts, some sort of green veggie (maybe zucchini) and avocado. I do not equate avocado with Japanese food. I will have to go back to Motomaki and try something else. I even took home leftovers and had them for dinner.
The funniest thing that happened was I was asked if I wanted wasabi and ginger. I can't say no because I am trying new things. Of course, I have had ginger before and I am sure at some point I have had wasabi, but my memory of it escaped me. It looked so innocent in the little side dish. A pretty little dollop of bright green cream. I think the avocado in my bowl threw me off as well. I take a good sized forkful of the wasabi. I do not taste test. I just put the whole glob in my mouth and immediately want to cough and splutter and gasp for breath. Let's remember I am with two teachers who are eating adeptly with chop sticks and who obviously know their way around Japanese food and probably many other Asian foods as well. I thus pretend that everything is normal in my little world and attempt to carry on a conversation while trying to figure out how to secure my next breath and not hyperventilate. Thankfully the feeling was short lived, but my sinuses cleared and I could feel the effects of the wasabi for quite some time. Catastrophe averted...this time.
2/25/2017 My next culinary adventure is not much of an adventure and really just a place I have never been to and always wanted to go. I love a good salad bar and Jeremy of course is less than enthused by them. So I came across a place called Sweet Tomatoes not too long ago and have been looking for an excuse to go. Found it on Saturday when I took Kaleb to band practice. They could do a bit more to explain the process when you walk in the door. I could see a salad bar, but nothing else. Do I only get one plate? How much does it cost? Is it all you can eat? I still don't know the answers to all of these questions. However, after you get your salad and pay, you can see there is a pasta bar and potato bar and soup and ice cream. My salad tastes do not go very far. I am as happy as can be with lettuce, dressing and croutons. In fact, I could have had a whole plate of the Caesar salad. It was so good. I also got a small plate of mac and cheese, very yummy, a small bowl of ratatouille, also very good. By the way, I had never eaten ratatouille, so this is a double whammy day...a new restaurant and a new food. They also served a rose, raspberry, hibiscus tea, which seems a bit overkill, but I mixed it with regular black tea and loved it. All in all, it was the perfect lunch for me and I would do it again.
I didn't blog about all of these places but some of them were pretty good and others were just crossing something off the list and won't go back. Not going to be a fan of the pho movement. I tried a place there in Parker, but I really cheated and didn't actually eat any pho. I'm sure Pho Vy is super yummy, but it was more expensive than I wanted to pay for noodle soup. Such a wimp.
Tokyo Joes was not my favorite. I think it is a wee bit bland compared to other Asian restaurants if you can call that a restaurant.
Garbonzos was Mediterranean food and I am not experienced with it. The Falafal samples were yummy. I would try it again but I kind of wish I could have a sampler of the sauces.
Star Fruit was a produce section purpose on a whim. It tasted good, but more a novelty than anything and a fun picture.
Pei Wei's kung pao chicken was super good and I would totally go there again. Really enjoyed that one. Way better than Tokyo Joes. I have been surprised at how much I have liked the Asian food places I have tried considering how I used to not eat any at all.
Cafe Rio is a great little Mexican chain. Yet another walk through the line and choose your toppings, but I like it a lot because it tastes fresh. They use cilantro in the salad which can be eaten without dressing, but the dressing is super tummy too. Been to this one several times.
Mod Pizza is an overpriced Chipotle style pizza place. I am not into the novelty of choosing your own toppings and that being amazing. Just not that great.
Farelli's is a wood fired pizza place and again, not that impressed. I'm sure it is more authentic and actually I have had pizza in Italy and yes, it is more authentic, but I like my thicker crust stuff.
Maple Valley Bar and Grill was good, but was way more expensive than I wanted to pay for a burger. I made the kids split stuff because I was taken aback. Funny thing is before we went to this place I took them to what I thought was a dive burger place. Turned out to be a bar and the first thing the waitress did was to ask for IDs. Well, that was a lesson learned.
El Caporal is a totally generic family Mexican restaurant in Maple Valley. Nothing special and probably won't return.
Hop Jacks has some interesting sandwiches. I tried a tomato pesto grilled cheese which was yummy. Jeremy and I have been here a few times and I try to get something different each time.
11/23/17 Jeremy helped me add two new foods to my list today (#s 14 and 15 if anyone is counting)...Cheap Dates and Jalapeno Jelly. The Gorgonzola cheese in the cheap dates was a little overpowering. I think if it had been milder, I would have liked it way more. He also brought home the jalapeno jelly to go with the cheeses he had bought. That was surprisingly good.
8/7/18 I have been to so many new restaurants since moving to Seattle, I can't even count them all. Just this last weekend, Jeremy and I went to a total hole in the wall place in Maple Valley I have been wanting to try. It is called the Village Inn, no relation to the pie place. It is listed as a teriyaki restaurant, but they also serve burgers and fries. And sure enough you walk in and there are people ordering chicken fried rice and others orders a double cheeseburger and a shake. I could Jeremy was hesitant, but he was in the mood for a burger and I convinced him there is always a line so it has to be good. It did not disappoint. We both really liked it. I need to go back and try the Asian food. Maybe it will become a favorite place for the family.
We have also tried Hop Jacks and Gino's Italian and a not very impressive Mexican restaurant in town. David and I went to Stockton's for breakfast which was good, but not as good as the Original Pancake House, also new to us and just down the street. The gelato place in town is good, but too expensive. And the same goes for S'wiched. Fancy schmancy sandwich shop that was good but too expensive. I made 12 different cake mix cookies from recipes on Facebook and they were very well received by everyone who ate them. Have several more recipes I want to try when David comes home.
A not so great choice was a steak house in Auburn. We should have turned around right when we got to the table because I could smell the sewer. If you can't hide that smell, then you don't care a whole lot about your food. Same goes for the Red Dog Saloon, which leaves much to be desired for me.
We've been to the pizza place that is the sister to the Biscuit Bitch, but I can't remember what it is called. Funky pizza when all I really wanted was something good. We do like Mod pizza which is also in MV, but I still prefer Domino's on Friday nights. Domino's doesn't count for this challenge. Believe it or not we had to try the highly rated chicken bake at Costco. Still prefer the pizza. And recently Jeremy and I went to New Orleans where we tried muffalettas, beignets, Aunt Sally's Pralines and a wonderful restaurant called Jimmy J's for breakfast. Yummy!
On our driving adventures David and I have been to Legendary Doughnuts, The Dough Zone, Cafe Rio (favorite fast Mexican food), and Nikki's (breakfast restaurant in Covington). Also took the boys and my mom to a burger place in Auburn that turned out to be really good, but I can't remember the name. Tried another Mexican place in Auburn and it was no good. We haven't found a great Mexican place. Although, some friends of ours swear by a place in a hotel in Enumclaw. Will have to give that a try sometime in the near future.
There have also been several restaurants downtown when we have met up with Jeremy's work friends, but I can't remember their names and they weren't so amazing that I would need to remember.
When Julie was here we tried Ivar's down by the water. I of course got chicken, which can't be a great choice at a fish place. We also went to a restaurant by the water, but on Bainbridge Island when we were visiting friends of hers.
This challenge was an easy one, because I love to eat. I am going to call this one finished, but I am still going to keep on eating new things and going to new restaurants. Makes life more spicy.