Hing Loon Seafood Restaurant

I saw Hing Loon Seafood on msg150 a while back, and thought it looked good. So I went, and it was. The shocking thing is that I did this weeks ago and am just now getting around to telling you about it.

Better late than never.

Hing Loon is a solid, down to earth, borderline $$ Chinese restaurant. They do more than just seafood, but when a restaurant puts an ingredient in it's name it's a good bet that it's their specialty. So seafood it was!

Fish hot pot with tofu and mushrooms. Everything that I love.

The fish hot pot was great. The fish came in the form of dense doughy balls. There were a couple different kinds, both tasty. Over all it was pretty mild and it glistened with corn starch.

Kung Pao Prawns. Shrimpy goodness.

The Kung Pao was pretty standard, but it had prawns! And, as a bonus, they were not overcooked and were, in fact, very tasty.

The outside

Urbanspoon says it's $$. You can probably keep it under $ if you skip the seafood and go for the cheaper ingredients, like chicken. It's probably still good.

[where: 628 S Weller St., Seattle, WA, 98104]

Hip Top Hop Pot [Top Pot's second annual doughnut eating contest]

I skipped the Bite last weekend, and I think I got away with it. But if I tried to skip Top Pot Doughnuts second annual doughnut eating contest I'm pretty sure they'd take my food blogger license away.

Chomp! The winner is in peak form.

The Saturday Knights played, actually during the eating. It was a little weird, but good. I think some of the contestants were in it more for the music than the confections (check out the guy all the way on the left, in the cubs hat, head banging his way to last place. He mentioned that he had a hard night last night :)

Sorry about the crappy video. Being the slacker that I am I got there late and had to stand in the back on a chair.

It was fun to see Nancy Guppy in person. I've been seeing Seattle through her eyes since the first day I was in town. She was covering bumbershoot while we unpacked (yes, we moved to lower queen anne during bumbershoot. that was fun, let me tell you).

[where: Top Pot, 2124 5th Ave, Seattle, WA 98121]

It has Begun. Taco Combat!

I lived on Taco Bell in college (and beyond), because it was so cheap it didn't matter if it was nasty. So when the KFC around the corner from me closed down for a while then reopened (just yesterday) as a KFC/Taco Bell I was cautiously optimistic.

Blerg.

I've actually been afraid that having a TB so close to my house (the closest 'restaurant' by almost half a block) would entice me to go there all the time. Luckily, I have changed since college. The fact that two people can have dinner for less than $10 no longer outweighs the stomach-full-of-clay feeling that comes with it. I remember now that TB also stands for Tuberculosis.

Although, if you're in to it, the new KFC/TB is clean and fast. It's still an eyesore, but at least it's because of the paint choices and not the filth.

[where: 201 W Mercer St, Seattle, WA 98119]

spendy spendy (Collins Pub and Shiki)

If all you have is a ten spot, you won't like this post very much. Collins Pub and Shiki are both quite nice, but neither are really ce places. Collins is closer, in the low $$. But Shiki is all the way up in the $$$. They're the only places I've been this week, though, so they'll have to do. Since neither really count, I'm rolling them up in to one post.

I promise I'll get you some cheap eats next week, or maybe I'll tell you about my obsession with japanese curry paste. What do you say?

My trip to Collins was impromptu; I didn't have my camera, so no pictures. My eloquence will have to suffice. I get sammich. It fish. It good!

*cough* Sorry, I mean, I had the ahi tuna sandwich with mustard aioli. The tuna was seared on the outside, and was still beautifully pink in the middle. I was a nice thick cut of fish. I was pleased. The fries were tasty. It was $13, list.

[where: 526 Second Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104]

Now lets switch over to some really good sushi. At Shiki in LQA. There's not much bad I can say about Shiki. Some days the need for quality can trump the need for quantity, even for my cheap ass. For days like that, there's Shiki.

If I have any complaints, it's that the cream cheese in the washington roll sort of overpowered the fish. And the same can be said for the fried crab in the spider roll. Of course, I sort of blame myself for ordering american sushi. What a rube.

blurry sushi

Anyway, the place is right around the corner from me. The hard part now is going to be to prevent myself from blowing my quarterly bonus on fugu and sapporo.

[where: 4 W Roy St, Seattle, WA 98119]

On skipping the bite (and going to metro market)

The Bite of Seattle was this weekend. I live about a tenth of a mile away. It seems like, as a food blogger, I'd go. I didn't. Sorry. Carnival crowds make me stabby.

So instead I stopped off at Larry's, by which of course I mean the LQA Metropolitan Market (link may be busted), for some pre-prepared goodness. I have to admit to a certain fondness for Metro's deli. It's not as good as Larry's was, but what can you do? Despite the fact that it's stupid expensive, I go there all the time.

Ok, it's not really that expensive. But it is as expensive as eating out. They have some pretty healthy stuff though. Other than maybe sushi, there's not much in LQA that is better for you than these salads and they're under 10 dollars.

They really are pretty tasty too. So are the sandwiches, chicken bits, and the pasta with garlic aioli is to die for... I tell a lie, my life is worth more than pasta, liberally coated in rich, creamy sauce; so dense and filling; bursting with flavor... No, I would die for it, which can be easily achived by eating it every day (it's very rich). It'd be a pretty good way to go.

Oh, and their soups are good. And they have these little sample cheeses some times so you can try the really fancy stuff for cheap.

Rolls n Sushi

Still playing catch-up after a busy week, I have another slightly out of the esculents price range place for you, Rolls n Sushi. It's in the marion food court downtown (the same place as yo berry).

It's reportedly not the best sushi in the area, with nearby Imo being the winner. I don't know that I agree, but I've only been to Imo when I'm drunk, so who knows. RnS is certainly faster.

Rolls n Sushi

It's pretty good for lunch, but a little pricy. The above set me back $13. It's a lot of food though. Unlike my recent visit to cafe paloma, this sushi left me stuffed silly. I chose to get two rolls; I was pretty hungry. On a normal day I could probably get by for about $10.

spicy salmon

The spicy salmon was actually spicy. I was surprised, in a good way. It's refreshing to ask for spicy and then get it. Seattle is a pretty mild town.

boston roll

The boston roll was pretty good too. But, being relatively cheap sushi, the salmon wasn't super flavorful, so the crab almost over powered it. Still, there's other stuff that might be better balanced. The Mexican and the Hawiian sound good.

[where:823 3rd Ave. #101, Seattle, WA, 98104]

cafe paloma

I know what you're thinking, and you're right. Where have I been this week? Rest assured, dear readers, that while I may have been too busy to tell you about it, I haven't given up food. So let's catch up, shall we?

This week I finally made it to Cafe Paloma, after about a year of meaning to but never making it. I actually tried once, at noon on a friday. Couldn't get a table then. And the same was true this week, we settled for take out.

Eggplant is rarely done this well

I'm going to say right now, take out is not the way to go. I think part of the point of Paloma is sitting round a table with friends sipping wine and talking. For an hour, hour and half. I think you lose something when you scarf down your nosh at the office lunch table then rush back to your task list.

Atmosphere isn't the only thing going on at Paloma though. There is the food, and it is really good. Of course, the price reflects that. We're at the fuzzy line between $ and $$ just getting a quick sandwich here. It's $ on the menu but you'll need a ten spot and a handful of change to get your eggplant panini out of the building. (I think their online menu is out of date. I'm pretty sure it's more like 9.50 now)

My fully omnivorous friend reports good things about the prosciutto

I was left a little hungry by my sandwich. I think I skipped breakfast that day though, so don't listen to me. It was hella flavorful, sweet and tangy. The salad had a citrus dressing that popped like orville redenbacher. And that's what's important.

Paloma has moved from my places-to-try list to the places-to-revisit-and-sit-down-relax-have-some-olives-and-some-wine-and-generally-spend-some-serious-time-at- list, which I just made up. It's a new list, just for Paloma. I have to be honest, that's probably not going to be an esculents visit; too many dollar signs... Ah, hell, I'll tell you about it anyway.

[where: 93 Yesler Way, Seattle, WA 98104]

Top Pot on 5th

lemon bismark

Everyone loves Top Pot. Now it's my turn to sing its praises.

It's not just the doughnuts, though those tend to be very good. I like the lemon bismark. Can you tell? It's not just the coffee, which I also like a lot and is perfect for dipping. It's the place itself.

Top pot has a certain aesthetic, which it applies at all its stores. It's always nice. But it fits perfectly in the location on 5th in Bell Town. It's a perfect place to have a sit down while you're out on a downtown walk-about.

A few more photos for the curious.

Real Foods (company)

I love hummus, but I'm never happy with my attempts at homemade. Which is just my round about way of saying that I buy a lot of premade. The best hummus that my favorite retailer (amazon fresh) carries, is from Real Foods. It's really tasty, and only two chemicals on the ingredients list.

For the 4th of July we tried to be traditional, but also lazy, so we got some Real Foods ballpark potato salad. It was fantastic. It had hard boiled eggs in it. It was really peppery and super dense.

So, I think I'm a fan of this company. I just ordered some of their Tzatziki. I'll let you know how that goes.

Oh, by the way, their website is a little misleading. Amazon has a lot more than one item when you search for Real Foods.

update
The Tzatziki is good!

out on a Whym

Whym is the one that replaced Cafe Minnies; comparisons are inevitable. Let's get it out of the way; Whym is not Minnies, thank christ*.

Admittedly this was my first visit. And it was between lunch and dinner, so it was really slow. But the service was super fast. My glass was never empty; it felt like that time with the Pham's I told you about a while back. The kitchen was really fast too.

It's a little pricey for an esculents restaurant; you can get something for less than $10, but not much. That's what happens when you cross Denny, I guess.

The food was good. Rakka liked her mushroom sandwich a lot.

Mushroom sandwiches are tasty

My eggs benedict was yummy too, though the hollandaise wasn't very subtle. I mean, it was bright neon yellow. The flavor was 'rich', but I can't think of any more adjectives. It was ten bucks.

Eggs Benedict, Florentine style
(there are 4 styles to choose from)

The name is a little too much for me. It's like they're trying to make me pun, the bums. It's like they know my weaknesses. Don't worry though, I'm not going to do it. Except for the title. At least I used the least sensical pun I could think of. It made me feel better somehow.

[Insert Whim pun here]
[no, don't! -ed]

I'm pretty happy with with the place, overall. I'll be back, I'm sure. Their dinner menu is said to be fantastic (source: head server).

* there's something about waiting an hour and a half for food that makes you sick, that makes you only do it once.

[where: 101 Denny Way, Seattle, WA, 98109]

Jackson Grill in Paradise

I'm a hungry traveler with a love of road food, so it's not surprising that I photo documented lunch at the Jackson Grill. It's in Paradise on Mt. Rainier, which I visited for the first time this weekend. (more about that on leff, if you're interested)

One of the things I most wanted to see other than the mountain itself (which was a bust, btw. stupid weather), was the Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center. It's not long for this world, and I'd hate to have missed it. The Jackson Grill is the food concession in there.

I'll be honest. It's not the best food you'll ever eat. It's certainly competent and useful national park concession food. I'm totally down with it. The perfect pick-me-up after a long drive up a volcano.

It's not the only food choice on the mountain. There's the restaurant at the Paradise Inn. It was serving thirty dollar brunch when we were there. Not my cup of tea. The other option is the restaurant at the National Park Inn, down the hill in Longmire. They mysteriously warned us about two large parties that were just seated. Not sure why, the place didn't look half full. Maybe we were smelly after our light hike.



Anyway, I totally dig on the Jackson Grill and plan to go back as many times as possible before they tear down the building (next year).

[where: paradise, washington]

Asia Ginger Teriyaki

Everybody loves Yakisoba, right? I hope so, because that's all I got for you today. Not that Asia Ginger's menu is limited in this way. It's just the only thing anybody happened to get last time. Doctor D, who turned me on to the place, goes there for the Udon, btw.

So, here's some GC's chicken version.

And, I got the shrimp.

Undo pictures were not taken. Oops. Too busy chomping on the ridiculous amount of carbs, maybe. I'm no expert, but it's not a dish I expected to be served over rice. Damn filling, though. I can say that much.

Pretty good flavor too. And cheap, oh so cheap. The place itself is nice on the inside. Yeah, I'll be back.

rice-n-roll

We've talked before about my second favorite parking garage restaurant. Rice-n-roll is the #1 favorite. Best place! Parking garage food doesn't get much better.

Salmon teriyaki bento lunch. a bunch of stuff for ~$8

It's got my two favorite things: cheap and tasty. And healthy. Which is three things, but who's counting? You can order individual rolls and stuff, but I usually go for the bento. You get to choose one of three or four main dishes and one of three or four sushi rolls. They all come with edamame and miso soup.

The salmon is an extra buck. You can get a bento for about seven dollars. I will not complain. See, this is me being happy about that.

Spicy Tuna roll. it's not top notch, but I think tasty

Full disclosure time. Not everybody likes it. There's at least one person in the office who claims to have had a bad experience. Resulting stomach trouble was implied. I, myself, have had no problems.

I have to admit, it's questionable if RnR should be considered parking garage food or not. The building that houses it is an office building, not a dedicated parking structure. But if you look closely, the only entrance is in the parking garage. I think it counts.

That entrance was designed for cars, not people

[where: 214 Madison St, Seattle, WA 98104]