Food & Wine give their take on 16 of the best Doughnut shops in the country. In the first spot, I am happy to say, is The Doughnut Vault in Chicago. I haven’t been here yet but I heard the line is long and starts early. A good sign, if you have time.
Another two on the list that I’ve had the pleasure of tasting:
maple bar with bacon from Voodoo Donuts I've been back living in Portland for 3 years and finally got around to trying Voodoo on Saturday. Evil, but so good. Better than I had expected (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This weekend, a friend of mine was boarding next to a flight to New Orleans and she sent me a text reminiscing about our trip to Mardi Gras back in the day (very memorable but not repeatable). It got me thinking of my most recent trip to New Orleans and a place I fell in love with, Yuki Izakaya. Happy Fat Tuesday, Laissez le Bon temp rouler!
I had been to Frenchman street early in the trip for dinner and drinks at the gastro pub, The Three Muses. Very good food (fried pickle chips, Moroccan Lamb Shank Pizza, Fish Tacos), even better drinks, friendly atmosphere and great live music. So on the last night there we decided to take a break from the French Quarter and go back to Frenchman street. Wandering down the street trying to figure out where to go I heard some faint music that caught my ear. Getting closer I could tell it was an accordion and pictured a Frenchman in 1950 playing “La Vie en rose.” The sounds were coming out of a bar that looked to be Japanese…I was intrigued.
You could describe Yuki Izakaya as a dive bar I suppose. It’s got all the good characteristics of dive bar (immediate comfort, strong drinks, cool crowd, kitschy decor, dark, atmosphere of being content where you are) without the bad (dirty, greasy and beyond scary smells — although the bathrooms here need to be brighter). Technically an Izakaya is a Japanese pub that is a casual, after work type place that also serves small plates.
Listening to the accordion, drinking one of the best lychee martinis I have had in my life and watching the Japanese animated movie flicker on the brick wall I thought, this is one of those bars you see in movies that looks impossibly cool and you just know doesn’t exist. I was in love.
I can be a sucker for some kitsch too.
Yuki Izakaya is a nice break from the New Orleans/French Quarter/Mardi Gras madness. Go for the live music and drinks but based on reviews the food is also worth it. Stuff your face; it is Fat Tuesday after all.
The season finale of No Reservations is tonight on the Travel Channel. They will be in Louisiana and the cast and crew of Treme will be joining in when they are in New Orleans. Get your No Reservations fix while you can.
Maybe it’s the chicory, maybe because it is served au lait but whatever it is, I fell in love with this coffee when visiting New Orleans. I was never a coffee drinker and thanks to Cafe Du Monde I became one. Don’t bother waiting to sit on the patio. Head to the to go line and get your cup and beignets. If you really don’t like coffee then the beignets are worth it. And, this is coming from someone who really doesn’t even like beignets.
Saturday morning brunch at Big Jones in Andersonville was a nice change from the jam-packed breakfast places. Not that this place was empty but when I walked in I felt the pace change and I could be in New Orleans instead of Chicago. As much attention was given to the grits and potatoes of each dish as the main attraction of trout and eggs. For anyone that is trying grits for the first time I highly recommend starting with the cheese grits, you will not be disappointed. Good for anyone that likes to ease their way into the morning.
Fish and Grits: corn flour-dredged Rushing Water trout, cheese grits, two eggs, cornbread
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
