Seattle Cheese Festival

I wouldn't be a Seattle Food Blogger if I didn't make it to the Cheese Festival. It's the second year I've gone. It seemed more crowded than last year, even though there were less people. Maybe it was the umbrellas.

People and Cheese

Look at these crowds. They're too big to be fun, really.

More People and More Cheese

What was fun was the "Cheese Nun" movie (scroll down to Friday Afternoon at the Movies). The Cheese Nun, Sister Noella Marcellino, was there to answer questions.

Sister Noella Marcellino, the cheese nun
(sorry about the poor quality photo)

I thought she was just a nun that made really good cheese. It turns out that her desire to make the best cheese she could for her cloister took her to University, where she ended up getting a Doctorate in Microbiology. From there it was off to France to work with cheese researchers. It's a neat story.

So next year I'm just going to the special events. That's where the fun is. The giant crowds around the free cheese tables just aren't worth it. Think about it. How are you really going to appreciate a fine cheese while you're getting elbowed in the face?

TASTE Café

Looking at art is hungry work. That's why it's so great that the Olympic Sculpture Park Café has such good food. It's not even that expensive. I was kind of surprised.

mmmmm. salad

Let's be clear. It's not a destination that's about the food. But the food is good. The 'grown up grilled cheese' sandwich is exceptional. Rakka and I have tried to copy it, but it's just not the same. The salads are really good too.

there it is, the grilled cheese with green apple, caramelized
sweet onion & sharp white cheddar on potato bread

One of the coolest things, other than the actual food, is that most of the containers are are compostable. Even the plastic ones. The cutlery is made of renewable bamboo. That's pretty darn cool.

airy, open, but please, no food in the art

So, go see some sculpture. And get a sandwich.

bamboo garden

I have a lot of favorites. Bamboo Garden is one of them. It's a cheap, all vegan, Chinese restaurant, and easy to get to.

the sign comes with real bamboo!

Strangely enough, pure vegetarian restaurants are rare in Seattle. So, pretty much every vegetarian in town knows about this place already. But it's not all about the tofu and TVP. A lot of omnivores are down with BG too. This may be because we're even shorter on good Chinese food than the vegetarian.

friedee balls (Mandarin Chicken)
a great bet for non-vegetarians

I don't know why this is. We can hardly walk down the street without tripping over Thai, Teriyaki, Phở and Sushi places, most of them good. Why is it so hard to take Chinese beyond overly MSGed Fried Rice? The only places that seem to be able to do it are the vegetarian ones. Bamboo Garden is on the top of my list of proofs, along with vds and teapot vegetarian house.

Crispy Fried Taro Root Patties

Not that I want to imply that BG is super fancy. It isn't. And it's not authentic either. Well, not authentic to China anyway. It is authentic American Chinese food. Fans of the genre need no further explanation.

Kun Pao Chicken

What it comes down to is good, American-style Chinese food at a fair price. The vegetarian thing is just a bonus. Just go for something fried or plain veg if you're not a fake meat fan.