We going our fourth week back at home in Oregon. We've been spending some time in Portland getting reacquainted with friends, but mostly hanging out in Hood River working and getting to know the area once again. We've set up a full office arrangement at my parents' house and it seems to be working quite well.
The first two weeks we were here we had beautiful fall weather, sunny days and cold nights. It's since shifted into rainy weather and it's been pouring ever since. We had some massive flooding by the Hood River and substantial damage to Highway 35 which runs from the town of Hood River over Mt. Hood. It was amazing to watch the chocolate pudding like river rip tall trees out of the riverbank and hurtle them downriver to the Columbia. The event site and sand bar at the Hood River marina are littered with trees and other debris from the flooding. It'll take quite an effort to clean up the mess.
On Friday, we drove to Keizer and met some 5 week old standard poodle pups. They were as soft as chennille! Now we're trying to decide if this is the right time and these are the right puppies for us.
I've been contacting lots of poodle people and I'm amazed at how forthcoming and willing people are to share information with a total stranger. Guess they don't work in corrections! I've also been reading too much information about all the potential diseases that dogs can get and now I'm nervous about the potential vet bills and emotional pain associated with a sick dog.
Of course, part of our work here has been checking out the local dining establishments. Since I'm behind on that, I'll fill you in quickly. The first weekend we were here we went to dinner at Wild Ginger in Mosier with Brett's Aunt Suny and her husband Dave, my sister Karen and her husband Todd.
http://www.hoodrivernews.com/KFBC%20stories/067_business_1.htm The chef / owner is Barry Rumsey who is from Baltimore. The funny thing about this restaurant is that IT IS Mosier. I don't know if there is anything else in the "town." It was dark though, so perhaps there was a closed gas station or convenience store that I didn't see. The restaurant was packed and we had to wait briefly. The hostess seemed horrified at this and kept reminding us that it would be at least 20 MINUTES!!! The bartender whipped up a nice Negroni (with coaching) and they make their own habenaro infused vodka which was excellent. The food was OK. I had a nice beet salad followed by an appetizer size ravioli dish which was dry and lacked any attention to presentation. My co-diners had a trout with a mustard sauce which also lacked visual appeal. It might have been that it was one of their first weekend nights and they were still working out the kinks. I'll try it again though, it's in a beautiful building.
The following weekend we dined at Abruzzo Italian Grill in Hood River with our friends Scott & Jennifer who were in town from Honolulu.
http://columbiagorge.citysearch.com/profile/36401299/hood_river_or/abruzzo_italian_grill.html The friendly restaurant owner makes this place. The dining room is a bit noisy and there is no waiting area if they're full, but the food is consistently good. That night I had a lamb special with house made gnocci. The rest of the group had pasta and everyone was happy with their choices. We followed up this meal with a 1.5 hour drive to the Rock Creek Tavern
http://www.mcmenamins.com/index.php?loc=48. This is so typical Northwest that I spent the night wondering into which planet I had been transported. Granted it was the Saturday before Halloween, so maybe the people aren't quite so "alternative" on other nights. The beer and the music were great though and we lasted until the band "The Brother's Jam" stopped playing.
http://www.jameyhampton.com/ . We had such a great time with Scott & Jen, including a hike up to Sleeping Beauty Peak near Trout Lake, Washington. We haven't laughed so much in a long time.
Dinner on Saturday November 4th was in Hood River at Celilo
http://www.wweek.com/editorial/3150/6855/Our east coast friends will appreciate that "the space has an overall effect of Manhattan style meets West Coast eco-friendly sensibilities." I had a fennel and white anchovy salad that was memorable and followed with a Tagliatelle Bolognese with lamb that was not so memorable. The pasta wasn't terribly fresh (I'm assuming they don't make it themselves) and the lamb was mostly missing. Three people at our table had steak and loved it. Next time I'll stick with the steak. We had some great wine - two bottles of the 2003 Sineann, “Old Vine”, Columbia Valley, Oregon.
Most recently, last Friday we visited our old neighborhood in Northeast Portland and dined at Ciao Vito.
http://www.realgoodfood.com/ciao_vito.html This building used to house Chez What, an alternative diner full of alternative wait staff. We used to take my father to the place for lunch just for fun and to hear his inappropriate comments about the server's belly rings and sleeve tatoos that were displayed for all to see. Now that the neighborhood has grown up a bit and matured from a place where one locks one's doors and rolls up the windows when driving down the street, to the "Alberta Arts District," it has REAL restaurants, but still maintains a bit of an edge; almost a shadow of its former self. Ciao Vito was pleasant, dark, chandeliered, and lit with pillar candles. I'm not sure what their goal is with the decor, but it didn't detract from the food. Once again I had the special with lamb and gnocci and it was definitely a thumbs up! The beet salad starter was good as well although the beets were cut into very small pieces, which made it a little difficult to eat. My dining companions both enjoyed their entrees; one chose a stuffed manicotti and one had the hanger steak. Both were happy with their choices and now that I'm writing this I realize I need to branch out in my food choices. I have apparently been on a lamp kick lately.
To top off all those wonderful meals, Sue and I made dinner this Saturday and shared some fine chicken chili
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/232878 and cornbread with Kristin & Dave, Benjamin & Darcy, and the four of us (Sue, Chuck, Brett, and me). We had a great meal and lots of yummy wine, including a very tasty Andrew Rich Malbec. It was a perfect meal for another stormy night. It was so good to spend time with friends over good food and wine. It made us think fondly of and miss our Boston pals, the excellent conversation, and the always wonderful food and wine. Salut!!
