Celebrate Lunar New Year Korean Style

    Despite my largely ongoing pseudo poverty, I've spent a lot of time in Asia, and have been fortunate enough to see more of it than most have had the good fortune to visit in one lifetime.  Much of that time was spent working in China and South Korea, which has cultivated in me a love of all  things Asian, particularly in regards to cuisine.  Well a love of most things Asian anyway...I still can't stomach eating bugs, coagulated duck blood soup, the virility boosting dog soup or being shoved into sardine can subways by white gloved station attendants. However, other than that if you combine my enthusiasm for Asian cuisine with a HOLIDAY (my friends can tell you I am a little obsessed with holidays...) and I am going to be all about it!  That brings us to Lunar New Year, or Seollal as I came to know it in Korea.  In an effort to recreate my fond Seollal memories in which my Korean boyfriend's family had me over for dinner and his mother taught me how to make authentic (and delicious!) mandu or dumplings, I will be preparing some Korean delicacies at home. Some traditional Seollal foods include tteokguk, a broth soup with sliced rice cakes, rice cakes, fruit (like the delicious crunchy honey sweet Asian pears,) and mandu (or dumplings) among other delights. Seollal is one of the most significant holidays in Korea, generally taking place over three days when Koreans visit family in their hometowns and some still wear the traditional hanbok. In an act of filial piety, children perform  a sebae bow to their elders wishing them luck for the new year. Parents and grandparents then reciprocate with "pocket money" and blessings for the new year.

    For Lunar New Year I'm hoping to make it out (weather permitting) to Grand Asia market to shop and prepare some of my old Korean favorites at home.  For those of you out there who would like to celebrate Lunar New Year, although probably belatedly (as more authentic establishments are likely to be closed tomorrow,) Seoul Garden is a very authentic Raleigh Korean restaurant, with great Korean barbeque like galbi (one of my favorite foods on earth!), a sweet and savory marinated rib meat that you can cook up at your table and wrap in lettuce wraps with samjeong a salty fermented soybean paste that is better than it sounds, rice (bap,) or any of the assortment of small side dishes called bancheon that will automatically come to your table. Bulgolgi is another good choice, a very sweet marinated thinly sliced ribeye.  Bibimbap,  a spicy rice and vegetable bowl (definitely pay the extra for dolsot bibimbap so that the rice gets crispy at the bottom of the hot stone bowl) is another favorite of waegooken or foreigners. If you'd rather order Korean style and you like your spice, try the hot Kimchi Chige (Kimchi and meat stew.) For side orders try the japchae cellophane noodles sauteed with vegetables in sesame oil, Goon Mandu (dumplings), or pajeon a savory Korean pancake filled with either kimchi or seafood.  You can expect to pay a hefty sum for the privilege of such authentically tasty Korean fair.  A Korean barbecue dinner will run you over $20 a person and requires a minimum of two orders to grill it in front of you at a barbecue table, so be sure to go with at least one other person who has meat in mind.  Seoul Garden is likely to be closed tomorrow, but the still tasty though considerably less authentic Kimbap over in Seaboard Station is likely to be open (I would call and check first.) They don't have barbecue tables, but they can satiate the craving with some tasty mandu (dumplings.) They are named after the Korean version of sushi rolls often filled with such ingredients as processed ham, cheese, egg, canned tuna, spam or other items that wartime Koreans grew a fondness for from American imports. Kimbap takes this idea and "classes it up" a little with some more gourmet, and less processed fillings.  If you would like to make your own Lunar New Year feast, I highly recommend you check out Grand Asia Market in Cary. They are definitely worth the trip featuring fresh steamed buns and roasted meats.  They also have very reasonably priced produce, fish and meats for you underfinanced foodies out there. I've bought containers of curry paste there for half the price and twice the size of those available at the super market.  If you'd rather not trek to Cary, visit Kim's market in Raleigh. It's a tiny little Korean store, but they can set you up with the kimchi, japchae, and mandu needed for a Korean style meal.

                                           Saehae bok mani badeuseyo!  

   or      Please receive a lot of luck in the New Year!

The Parlour Ice Cream Shoppe

     I would venture to call my friend Emily a connoisseur of ice cream, so when she recommends a place for the cream, I take it pretty seriously.  Some time ago I had sampled The Parlour's wares from their roaming food bus, and I was excited to relive the pleasure by visiting their brick and mortar location in downtown Durham. I was immediately taken by the olde timey feel of The Parlour, with its sugary pink walls, classy glass ice cream dishes and cake stands.  Even the mustachioed hipster soda jerk seems to fit the scene. However, the real allure of The Parlour is it's offering of unique flavors.  While they have the old chocolate and vanilla standbys, they also offer a rotation of more exotic flavors like quince or jasmine tea.  From the copious samples tasted (and by dipping my spoon into the dishes of others...) I've managed to taste quite a few flavors. I've sampled the delightful salted butter caramel (although it seems to melt more quickly than some other flavors,) which is my friend's favorite and one of the few flavors she claims they make better than she can.  The coconut brownie (creamy coconut flavored ice cream and chunks of legitimate brownie...the good stuff.) The Vietnamese coffee, is sweet with enough of the natural bitterness of coffee to make it best complemented with chocolate fudge.  The eggnog ice cream has the creamy spicy flavor of the holiday favorite perfectly captured. The Parlour even offers vegan-friendly options like a vegan chocolate or a grapefruit sorbet.  On my next visit I'm looking forward to sampling toppings like the espresso whipped cream, or their all natural sprinkles...maybe a sundae will be in order

So when you're craving the cream, hit up The Parlour, or go stake out their next bus stop.

Triangle Restaurant Week Reminder!

Fellow foodies, make sure you get out this weekend to enjoy the last two days of Triangle Restaurant Week! You can sample an appetizer, entree, and dessert from a prefix menu for $20 or $30 depending on the restaurant.  This is a great opportunity to get out and try somewhere new, even somewhere you may not ordinarily be able to afford to enjoy.  I'll be out there and will report back soon!
Visit the Triangle Restaurant Week website to check out the participating restaurants and menus.
Bon Appetite!

Serena Sicilian Influenced Cucina, Picky Eater Friendly

So, I haven't posted in quite awhile, but that certainly doesn't mean I haven't been eating! I'm working as a teacher these days and my schedule has been a little nuts.  Another contributing factor has been my super picky dining partner as of late.  My current boyfriend would just assume EAT A HOT DOG FROM A GAS STATION!!! Yes, unfortunately, you read correctly.  An unlikely pair we make indeed, what's a foodie to do?  I've been working tirelessly to expand his culinary horizons and have been met with considerable resistance, but many small victories as well.  Thanks to me Mr. Gas station "cuisine" can say he has now tasted the following items for the first time ever:

fresh raspberries
lychees (he didn't like)
mangosteen (I'm obsessed with these)
avocado (he didn't like)
pesto
honeycrisp apples (loves)
Korean barbecue
pomegranates
egg whites
cashew chicken
asparagus
fresh sauteed green beans
tofu
brussel sprouts
cilantro
chorizo
chicken tortilla soup
mushroom ravioli
homemade chicken noodle soup
......so on and so forth....

Every weekend is a battle to find a place that we are both willing to eat.  I stick my nose up at chain restaurants ( though I did take him to Outback Steakhouse for his birthday...because I'm a good person) and he breaks into hives at the mention of Indian or Thai food.  A compromise we can agree on, as with so many families with picky eaters before us, is Italian (provided it's good Italian.)

We recently visited Serena and both myself and Mr. Gagsatcurry were pleased.  The comforting Italian food was well executed and served up in good portions.

A friend of mine brought trays of Serena's eggplant rollatini to a holiday party I hosted.  Even, cooled off, the rollatini was fantastic, rivaling that of Gravy downtown.  After that tasty sampling and her Italian husband's assurance that everything he has tried there has been good, I was ready to head over with my picky man in tow.  The menu suited both of us well, he could get his comfort foods like pasta, pizza or even french fries, while I could play around with custom combinations of salads or pastas (pick the pasta, the style of sauce and an assortment of toppings from grilled octopus to Jail Island Salmon.)

Strangely we both settled on the lasagna at the recommendation of the waitress. The lasagna was made with Merquez ground steak, no ground chuck here, three cheeses and a nice tomato sauce. Mr. Bleedsfryergrease pronounced it the best lasagna he's ever had. I prefer Daniel's lasagna in Cary/Apex, but was still well pleased.  The salad and large piece of garlic flatbread that accompanied the meal were very tasty as well. I wasn't entirely blown away, but was certainly pleased enough to make plans to return. The prices are in the $10 to $20 range with the lasagna coming in around $16.  My boyfriend seemed to think this was a bit pricey, but he certainly got his money's worth since he went through two bowls of freshly grated parmesan that they good humoredly kept our table topped off with.


I do think Serena should hone in their concept a bit. Are they a gastropub? A pizzeria? A fine dining Italian Restaurant? Regardless of what they pick, the dance music they played needs to go. Otherwise, Serena is a safe bet to take a very "selective" dining companion.