Pizza Oven, Pizza BBQ

A delicious margarita pizza. Simply mix 1/4 cup of olive oil with garlic, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper. Once the grill is super hot, add dough to the grill. I noticed it takes around 3.5 minutes on each side. That being said, once air pockets start to form its time to flip your pizza. Once flipped, I generously spread the oil spread all over the pie and quickly add buffalo mozzarella, fresh roma tomatoes and basil. I prefer my pizza to be made this way. It works best with three people. Have one person in charge of the sauce, one in charge of all toppings and a third person in charge of removing the pie and slicing the pizza.


This pizza was cooked in the oven at 500 degrees. I used the same olive oil blend for the base of the pie and generously topped it with goat cheese, red and yellow bell peppers and arugula (as a garnish). Dough-wise, I was more satisfied with the BBQ. This pizza was delicious, however, you dont get any char—or small burnt parts on the crust. Overall, both great pies...just stick to the bbq.

a delicious sandwich for picknicking

This is a great sandwich i created for a hot summer day. ok, ingredient.

*fresh baguette
*brie cheese
*heirloom tomatoes—the weirder looking the better.
*frisee
*cucumbers

Simply cut the baguette in half. Spread a generous amount of brie cheese on one half of the bread. on the other half add tomatoes, cucs and frisee. salt. pepper. olive oil. a thicker, sweeter balsamic. Turn on the broiler and just barley melt the brie cheese. assemble the sandwich and eat.

however, if used for picknicking, skip the melting—its delicious as is.

enjoy!

!!Tour De Taco!!

Ladies and Gentlemen, recently my friend Mike Malone and I created what is now know at Tour de Taco. The concept is simple. We both love to ride our bikes and we both love tacos. Therefore, because of popular demand, this has become a weekly tour. Every thursday we meet at Couch State Park on 19th and Glisan. There, we decide what type of taco we will be focusing on. The first week (below) was carne asada. Super Burrito Brothers in St. Johns has the best carne asada taco. However, it is also the most expensive taco. below are some photo's of the idea in the making.


Sweet view from the St. Johns Bridge.





El Rancho is located in the Killingsworth food pod. Neither mike or I were a big fan of this taco. For $1.50 they were a bit small, the meat was obviously cooked the day before and burnt when reheated. We decided that we would not be including Rancho in our future tours. below is a photo of their taco. i know...looks good. sorry guys.




!!Super Burrito Brothers!!





Above, is our favorite taco. This is their version of the asada taco. Fresh meat, cook to order. Fresh, delicious tomatoes, onions and cilantro. however, the best part of this taco is the verde salsa. Salsa verde is made with tamotillos, onions, jalapenos and cilantro. However, they add avocados while blending the salsa making it creamy, cool/refreshing and simply out of this world delicious. it makes the taco.



Ah, the Red Fox...a Tour de Taco approved watering hole. $1 old germans!








Below is Chefi's Gourmet. THESE ARE INCREDIBLE.



Margarhita prepares all of the food cooked to order. She hand rolls all of the tortilla's and all her produce is garden fresh. She told us a lot of the carts prepare meats and prep veggies/salsas the day before. you can taste the difference. Also, this cart is located DIRECTLY across the street from por que soexpensive. more authentic. more fresh. simply, a better taco for half the price.






Laurelwood Brewery (54th and Sandy) Tour de Taco approved watering hole.



La Bonita (alberta).

$2.50—decent taco, wont be returning though. Tour de Taco has a $2 limit that we created directly after finishing this tasty, but expensive taco.

a nervous MELT down.

While venturing through Northwest Portland, my partner in crime and I decided to check out Melt Sandwiches on 21st. After spending plenty of time and money at other sandwich joints such as Bunk, Meat Cheese Bread, Kenny & Zukes and Foster & Dobbs, I was pretty excited to taste something new. However, right from the get-go I was slightly disappointed. First of all, MELT offers 10 sandwiches ($8-11) and only one of which truly is a "melt," which happens to be a tuna melt. That's right folks, no patty melt, no hot brown, just a plain old traditional tuna melt. Personally, when I go to a restaurant named MELT I want the cheese to stretch a mile from my mouth when biting into it. I've seen it. I've experienced it. I love it. As for the restaurant itself, I felt like I was in a hodgepodge of bunk and the tin shed along with strategically placed Urban Outfitters lamps and mismatched furniture.


We began with a pickle. The pickle was quite soft, had no crunch and frankly tasted like it could have fermented for a week or so longer. Did I mention it was served with two slices of pepper? Overall, I think the jar full of pickles should simply be for decoration until perfected. Please, avoid the pickles.

A quick observation I made was that none of the sandwiches describe the bread. Is is a roll? Ciabata? A Sub? Without knowing, it is hard to make the proper decision. The bread makes or breaks a sandwich. Delicious fillings can be easily ruined if not properly paired with the appropriate bread. We decided to try the Pulled Pork as well as the Grinder sandwiches. Side note: All sandwiches are served with your choice of soup, salad or fries—frozen, but local.

The Pulled Pork ($8.5) sandwich (pictured above) is served with roasted green chilies, caramelized onions, melted havarti and a cilantro aioli. Perhaps the best thing this sandwich has going for it is the aioli. The Pork lacks flavor, could be more tender and seems to be the scraps (myself submitting that the employees are snacking on the best shreds of belly). I didn't even notice the onions and a SHARP havarti, to me, is a necessary change. I know, the sandwich looks extremely tasty, nevertheless it simply wasn't. In all honesty, don't mess with a classic sandwich. Grab a roll, some sloppy pulled pork with a spicy or tangy sauce, some cheese and coleslaw—serve it with chips, done.




The Grinder($9) consisted of Italian cured meats, melted provolone, spicy peppers, tomatoes and a basil olive oil. The meat trio, which are practically glued together (possibly packaged?) is salami, mortadella and coppa. As mentioned previously, the cheese was not MELTed and the basil olive oil combo turned the bottom half of the sub into a wet sponge I could no longer pick up. Therefore, for a cured meats/peppers sandwich I'll go elsewhere.

MELT is a definite gut bomb. Do yourself a favor and walk around the blocks for an hour or so after eating. We will not be returning and neither of us recommend their sandwiches. Also, when checking out the menu online, the fries are served up in a tin pale. Mine were thrown onto the plate and served with half a portion of ketchup.

If you're willing to take a risk (because I have heard people actually enjoy these sandwiches) visit melt at 716 Northwest 21st Avenue Portland, OR 97209 or call 503.295.4944

Chop Butchery & Charcuterie

GO HERE NOW.

CHOP Butchery & Charcuterie from wetcoast productions on Vimeo.

Olympic Provisions = Room for Improvement.

A friend of mine and I decided to check out Olympic Provisions the other day while walking around in the industrial neighborhood of SE. Before dinning, I assumed I would be entering a deli of some sort with a smorgasbord of delicious locally cured meats. However, the restaurant is still awaiting a USDA certificate, therefore, I plan on adding to this review afterward. I found the staff to be a outgoing. However, the space (quite large) felt under lit and cold. After being greeted, we sat down and took a look at the menu. The waitress explained that the main goal was to formulate a European and North African restaurant, promising a wide selection of cured meats in the near future. This excited me. However, I must admit that the samples we were given were way to salty. Nevertheless, we ate the entire plate. We chose numerous items and were both pleased and upset. The Ham sandwich, which my friend thought tasted more like turkey, accompanied with zucchini pickles, butter, Dijon and a delicious baguette was ok. I dont think I can justify spending 7 dollars on it. The bread was good, however, the ham could have stood out more. The pickles could have been sweeter. I give it 2.5 jalapenos. However, the sausage with cooked greens was done to perfection...a dish I will recommend to friends. I am curious to try other sandwiches, however was not a fan of the ham. Overall, I felt like the main ingredient was missing. The menu mentions that it is an American Charcuterie establishment. However, where is the charcutere plate? Why chicken salad sandwiches? I do see things headed in the right direction, I only hope that when they are able to sell their own cured meats, they will be included in the sandwiches...if not replacing the ones currently existing. Once again, the staff was great. They were nice, we well knowledged and seemed to be very ambitious about future plans for Olympic Provisions. I certainly will return and look forward to trying some of Salumist Elias Cairo's meats. I do like the open kitchen. I do like the giant "MEAT" sign...and the stickers are a killer for advertisement. However, if they are as successful I as their potential to be...I think they'll need a slightly larger deli front.

On another note, I was at whole foods the other night and asked the butcher if their meat (hanging + curing) behind a window was USDA approved and how long it had been cured in house. The butcher told me, "ever since I've been here...and I've been here for almost 2 years." —Therefore, I'm now a bit cautious about what I choose to believe from the people at Olympic Provisions. Nevertheless, I haven't visited since and there is a chance of improvement. Therefore, I will let you know if any changes have been made. For now, I suggest you head to Chop Butchery and Charcuterie on 21st located inside City Market. Also, check out Edelweiss Sausage and Delicatessen on SE Powell (just past the Hotcake House).

The Milk Man, Very Much Alive.

Noris Dairy is cool. Very cool. Located in Crabtree, Oregon—they promise purity in food and all natural products provided by very happy Oregon cows. They pride themselves on being a family operated business and offer a wide variety of dairy products. However, the most impressive offering is their door to door delivery service Monday-Friday pretty much anywhere and everywhere between Eugene and Portland. The company states that if you purchase $18 dollars or more of Noris Dairy products they will hand deliver that week.

Also, Noris Dairy farms promise all natural diary and meat products. They guarantee no additives or preservatives and believe by doing so the person(s) consuming their products will stay healthy. When picking up (or being delivered) your milk will have cream at the top base of its glass jug. This is because Noris Dairy refuses to homogenize their products. That being said, give it a solid shake and your in business.

Personally, I am a HUGE fan of the chocolate milk. Is is good for me? Probably not. However, if your going to enjoy a cup of chocolate milk, why make it 1% or fat free? Also, its ingredients are quite simple. Organic whole milk, organic cocoa powder, organic brown cane sugar. That's it. It literally tastes like a melted, still cold, delicious chocolate malt.

So, ladies and gentlemen, the milk man is very much alive, and now offers eggs, yogurt, a wide variety of cheeses, creams, and meat. Indulge yourselves.

In this case, it's totally acceptable to drink the pickle juice.

After speaking with a few friends from Brooklyn and Detroit—as well as local chefs in Portland—I must agree that McClure's pickles are among the tastiest I have ever tried. Recently, I was lucky enough to find the "Spicy Spears," "Garlic & Dill Spears," and their infamous relish. Perhaps the best thing about co-owners Joe and Bob's pickles/condiments is the simplicity and close attention to ingredients (as well as the crunch).

McClure's spicy pickle is the best pickle I have ever tasted. The jar includes (roughly) 12 pickle spears, a few small, some cayenne and habanero peppers, garlic, dill and other spices—and it is recommended to use left overs for cooking and bloody concoctions. The pickles themselves are thick, extremely crunchy and loaded with juices that excrete from the inner cucumber. Quite spicy, but only for a matter of seconds.

The relish is good. However, in this case, it's not quite sweet enough. I normally put relish on a sausage, sometimes a sandwich. Nevertheless, in this case, I feel like the McCuler's simply took all the ingredients from their Garlic/Dill pickles, threw them in a food processor and canned the newborn "relish". Overall I know I will enjoy the relish, however, next time I head to Williams Sonoma, I will probably just spend the $12 dollars on a jar of pickles.

So, check out McClure's pickles online or buy them at Williams Sonoma on SW 5th and Morrison.

Spicy Spears = $12/jar

Garlic + Dill Spears = $12/jar

Garlic + Dill Relish = $7/jar