I ate at PING the other day. I spilled palm sugar on my shirt and the handsome bartender offered me soda water for the clean up. Ping is basically the ex-boyfriend of Pok Pok, a very attractive ex-boyfriend. Owned by the same innovator, Andy Richter,  Ping diverges from Pok Pok’s ”reel you in and nurture you” style.  You are allowed to hang with Pok Pok’s ex because she is a really cool lady who wishes you the best. She’s also glad he chose to locate across the river so she doesn’t have to watch him flirt with you all night.  

Delicious Quail Stain

See that sauce? Picture it on my shirt. . .delicious. The meat and structure of this quail was impressive, juicy and BIG. You take some quail, dunk it in the sauce and then take a bite of raw ginger and pepper.

Toast with Kaya

 Kaya is basically a coconut jam. . .more like a coconut curd? I liked this even though I have no idea why we ordered it, but that is what happens with good-looking ex-boyfriends, you do strange things you can’t explain.

Wild-caught prawn skewer.

For example, I sprinkled the Vietnamese sea salt and pepper on a shrimp and ate the crustacean with the shell still on because I am an ANIMAL. There in so much flavor in the shell. Try it sometime, you have nobody to impress.

Baby octopus skewer.

 These little guys were carefully grilled. . .and they’re addictive. I could not shake this Ping dish from my mind and ate squid for lunch the next day because I have real problems.

I drank a Singapore Sling and something else that I can’t remember. BUT, Ping is the sort of guy who mixes you strong and highly drinkable cocktails. If you want nuance and intrigue, go see Pok Pok.

After dinner I ran around the city with an awakened fervor and zest for life, because Ping is just that attractive.

I live next door to Danielle Pruett, a pastry chef. When Aaron and I first met Danielle she simply mentioned that she was a baker at a place downtown. “Just a little place, you’ve probably never heard of it”, she explained. I didn’t inquire any further and privately continued to make my way through a long list of restaurants, food carts, and regional ingredients that I wanted to try. I’m no where close to the end of my list. But towards the top of the list there is a restaurant that I have visited more times than any other restaurant in Portland and this past summer I finally learned that Danielle is the pastry chef at that very restaurant.

Clyde Common is not really a “little place”, nor is it very unknown. I’ve taken three different friends visiting from out-of-state to their Happy Hour and on a few occasions I’ve stayed for dinner.  The unsolicited Yelp chorus gives Clyde four stars and they’ve received some impressive national press. However, this post is not really about Clyde; it’s about my good friend and neighbor Danielle Pruett – pastry chef extraordinaire.

I cook with wine. Sometimes I even add it to the food.

This is a picture of a huge rolling-pin on Danielle’s oven. She actually uses that rolling-pin. The top of her fridge contains a professional mixer and a cake stand. Her kitchen is incredibly clean and she has an amazing collection of cookbooks, many of the books are family heirlooms from Milan, Tennessee where Danielle’s ancestors were the town bakers. It’s not so surprising that her and I get along so well. My ancestors were just on the other side of the Smoky Mountains in Burnsville, NC.

After college in Eugene, OR Danielle went to culinary school and over a glass of wine she told me a story about finding an old list she made that included her goals in life. One goal read, “become a great pastry chef at a top restaurant in Portland.” Even by her own high standards, Danielle has arrived and thrived at her own goals. I love it when that happens to people. I love it even more when success looks like this. . .

chocolate baked Alaska, Elijah Craig 12-year whiskey ice cream, pecan praline

The Alaskan Interior.

One of the inspiring aspects of Danielle’s desserts is that they have a voice. You will not find the standard panna cotta or pound cake on her menu. You will only find inspired items that are seasonal in their approach and convincing in their flavor. They have a whimsy about them without being overly dainty or cute. I suspect this is what Portland Monthly means when they describe her offerings as unprecious - in a good way. Danielle’s creations go very well with the concept and “voice” of Clyde Common. The similarities are not accidental. Danielle’s approach seems to use desserts as a closing parentheses to a great meal, not a period. For example, after I consumed this. . .

offal ravioli

I tried this. . .

caramel fig tart tatin, balsamic, cream

These dishes were an extension of the other, working in tandem to create a mood, the apprehension of the Fall season, a voice. When you order a dessert at Clyde, which you simply must do. You may be stuffed, you may be late for your next engagement, but you will want to linger at your table for a moment – not grab your check and dash. 

When the desserts come out of the Clyde kitchen, customers around the restaurant crane their necks and ask the name of the dish. It’s so fun. You know what’s more fun? Dining at Clyde Common with Danielle and watching her smile as her desserts are delivered to tables around the restaurant. A goal on a list made years ago, accomplished.

gingerbread stout cake and cream cheese ice cream sandwich with raspberry "stuff"

Okay. I recently became overwhelmed with how behind I am in my blogging. So without further explanation, let’s remember back to July of 2009 when I ventured to see friends and family in NC. I discussed Yum Yum in the previous post.

Crab Bisque with my Mom

My Mom and I went to Ganache for dinner and I was really pleased the see some positive changes in effect. The last time I ate dinner at Ganache it was 2006 and my sister and I were presented food that was definitely over salted by what must have been an angry, sabotaging chef. It was so gross. . .and painful, huge salt crystals all over everything. It looked like Christmas in Vermont. Ugh. However, Ganache was once just a tiny dessert (walk-in, no table service) cafe that was right next door to the Greensboro Music Academy where my sisters and I studied notes and tunes after school. I have fond memories of the dainty berry tarts that followed my jazz flute lessons. The crab bisque in the photo is garnished with crab roe, fresh chives, an “Old Bay dipped” spoon and Sherry on the side. Truly tasty.

My dear friend Katie Southard, owner of the Green Bean Coffeehouse visited me last June and she was inspired by the John’s Collins cocktail at my neighborhood tavern, Savoy. She created the same drink back home and poured it in a Mason Jar – the KT Collins was born. It contains bourbon, fresh ginger, something else I can’t remember, and some ginger beer. I miss Katie and the KT Collins!

The infamous KT Collins.

I know, let me explain. . .

San Luis is a Mexican Restaurant that borders a neighborhood in Greensboro where most of my friends in GSO live. Therefore, everyone I know loves this place and has for years. I like it here too. I was feeling more adventurous than enchiladas, and I know the city of San Luis is known for seafood so I tried a seafood special. Don’t ask me what is was called, I can’t remember. It’s a bunch of scallops, oysters and clams swimming in a house-made cocktail sauce, garnished in avocado, cilantro and lemon. Not your average ceviche. I might have worried about eating raw oysters in a land locked town but I was more skeptical of the cocktail sauce. It looked like tomato soup and the whole ostentatious gobblet of bottom feeders was surrounded by a bed of Saltines. I felt like I was in the 1960’s and I wished I was wearing an appropriate wool suit with matching handbag. I digress. . .I loved this dish, the sauce was very tomato-y but it packed a load of bright citrus flavors. It made me happy, and the oysters were completely fresh and delicious.

Also, they have tiny margaritas for a dollar.

Okay! That’s it for my NC wrap up! Is it okay that I am relieved? For the foreseeable future I will be catching up on blogs about Portland. In a few weeks I am going to Canada for fun and no doubt food. Check back soon!