By Kevin Finch on January 6, 2011
I think of myself as open to change.
Yet the latest Starbucks logo leaves me cold. Maybe I’ll get used to it. Maybe not.
The Wall Street Journal story quotes Shultz as saying the design will give them more freedom as they broaden their product line. I beg to differ. I think they diluting their identity. Ironically, the new logo feels more “faceless” even as the actual face in the logo is larger. For me, the text and stamp-like quality of the the old label was the real face of the company rather the the smiling merperson that relates to their core business how?
My hope is that in our current society of hyper-feedback and public polling the reaction will be negative enough that the new ‘fish face’ logo for a coffee company will go the way of new Coke.
Posted in culture, drinks | Tagged coffee, Coke, Howard Schultz, logos, new Coke, Starbucks |
By Kevin Finch on January 14, 2010
I’m in love. Mocha love.
This comes from a guy who only orders coffee if it might go well with what I plan to eat. It is a good thing I don’t live anywhere near Redmond WA or my wife might look at our VISA bill and begin to ask questions.
“What are all these charges at Kitanda Brazilian Bakery and Espresso?”
“Uh…”
“This isn’t like you. Are you meeting someone?”
“Well… um…”
“What is it? Tell me! There are 100s of dollars of unexplained charges here.”
“I’m too embarrassed. I didn’t think it would go this far.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m in love… but wait… before you do anything rash. It is only coffee. Nothing more. Delicious, beautiful Brazilian coffee, but that’s all.”
Counseling would probably be required. Things would be rough for a while. We’d make it. I’d probably be drinking green tea again within a few months, but there would be times I would break down and cry.
Yet since I live in Spokane I hope to never need to have the imagined conversation above. Our VISA bill won’t reflect daily charges at Kitanda and I won’t need to invent excuses to drive to Redmond day after day. But you can be sure I’ll be back when I’m in the Seattle area and I suggest you do the same.
One sip and you just might be in love too.
Posted in dining, drinks, play, travel | Tagged Brazilian mocha, coffee, good coffee, Kitanda Brazilian Bakery and Espresso, love, mocha, Northwest restaurants, Redmond WA, Washington restaurants |
By Kevin Finch on November 20, 2009
Full Disclosure: I’m not a coffee aficionado. I know plenty: Lea Greene, Daryl Geffken, Jake Reidt come to mind immediately.
Maybe I’ve hung back a bit because I so mercilessly made fun of my mom for her coffee addiction when I was in high school. Or I maybe the taste of coffee itself never thrilled me without so much sugar it made more sense to order something else. As the risk of being expelled from the Northwest, I’ll admit we still don’t brew a pot at home except when guests (or mom) comes over. But after hanging out with enough people who are borderline fanatical about their coffee, I’m working to develop an appreciation for different roasts and blends if only not to embarrass myself in public.
This said, I met two friends at Caffe Delicio on North Monroe yesterday, and I suggest you go out of your way to try not only their coffee, but enjoy the space they’ve created. I’ve driven by their double lane commuter establishment for years and never turned in. Yesterday I parked and walked in only to be surprised and delighted by the design work inside. I also appreciated the collection of unique mugs they use to serve customers who plan to drink their coffee at a table rather than in traffic.
Posted in culture, drinks | Tagged Caffe Delicio, coffee, coffee aficionados, coffee fanatics, Daryl Geffken, Jake Reidt, Lea Greene, Spokane |
By Kevin Finch on October 1, 2009
Chef Anna Vogel is offering $25 Prix Fixe Dinners on the Luna Daily Fresh Sheet inspired by the communal dinners she remembers from childhood that were served each night during the grape harvest. “Grape Picker Dinners” they are called and come with a choice of two small plates, an entree, and two options for dessert.
I stopped by Tuesday night to try the dinner along with the Vin du Jour that is offered alongside the Prix Fixe for $5 a glass. Both the dinner and the wine were a delight. I started with the Organic Roasted Beet Salad featuring greens from the restaurant garden fifty feet from the side door, and finished with a simple vanilla bean ice cream served in a martini glass and topped with grappa macerated concord grapes. Yet on the food front it will be Vogel’s “Pork Ragu” that I’ll be dreaming about for a while. She braises the pork in tomatoes and fennel along with plenty of bacon and serves the pork and the rich sauce over creamy parmesan polenta. Think high caliber comfort food.
But the other star of the evening arrived in a glass: an 2007 Cotes du Rhone from Le Pas Du Meunier.
The menu noted that this particular Cotes du Rhone was only available with the Prix Fixe dinner, and I’d say it is worth ordering the dinner just to get the wine. Of course the huge bonus is the great food, but the wine itself was quite satisfying even before the food arrive. Drinking it felt like sipping the best of autumn in a glass.
Posted in dining, drinks | Tagged Anna Vogel, Cotes du Rhone, ice cream, Le Pas du Meunier, Luna, Northwest restaurants, pork ragu, roasted beets, Spokane restaurants, Washington restaurants, wine |
By Kevin Finch on September 5, 2009
DEFINTION: Cuvée – [KOO-vay] a word derived from the French “cuve” meaning “contents of a vat” that outside of France usually refers to a blended wine produced using a special (and often secret) formula. A cuvée can be comprised of wines from different vineyards or different grape varieties.
This past week I discovered a great bottle of wine in the cool basement cupboard that masquerades as our wine cellar. It was (or is) the 2005 “Sarah’s Blend” from Marquis Philips.
I didn’t buy it so I’m guessing it arrived as a gift from a friend over for dinner. I would check for fingerprints and run the prints against my extensive database of chefs and foodies, but by now my own prints are all over the bottle.
The problem is that I’ve only been able to nurse this one bottle for a few nights, and now I’m down to the dregs. I want more. Thus the APB: All Points Bulletin. If you happened to be the one who brought it over for dinner, let me know. If you know where I might still find a few bottles from the 2005 vintage, let me know.
And since this is an APB I should include a description as well as a picture. Here is how the the Wine Advocate describes this bottled beauty:
“One of my favorite Marquis Philips cuvees is the 2005 Sarah’s Blend, a concoction of 60% Shiraz, 22% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc fermented in wood and aged in both new and one-year-old French and American oak. Its deep ruby/purple hue is accompanied by aromas of flowers, spice box, blueberries, black currants, and smoky oak. Opulent, voluptuous, and full-bodied, with low acidity and sweet tannin, this is a blockbuster red that sells for a song. If you like fruit, flavor, and character, this is a big-time winner to drink over the next 3-4 years.”
Posted in drinks, wine | Tagged 2005 Sarah's Blend, APB, Australian wine, blended wine, cuve, cuvee, Marquis Philips, Wine Advocate |
By Kevin Finch on August 25, 2009
Kalispell MT: Some of my favorite English authors met regularly in an Oxford pub. It seems that the western equivalent of such a meeting would take place in an old saloon. And instead of asking for a pint, you should order a pitcher of beer and the barkeep would slide it across the bar full enough that a bit sloshes out.
In my western recreation of literary community, the mugs should be so cold that a little of the foam around the edge of your first glass turns to ice.
Since it is a saloon, it should be dark. Any picture would turn out grainy and washed out, and ideally there would be sawdust on the floor and years of names carved into your table in the corner.
The author in question this past weekend was Leif Peterson rather than Lewis or Tolkien or Williams, and you’ll find both his short stories (Normal Like Us) and his first published novel (Catherine Wheels) compelling and full of memorable characters that will stick with you long after you’ve met them on the page. Leif writes the kind of people who you want to meet and talk with, people who would invariably have something worthwhile to say. Not all of them would make great friends, but almost every one would be a good bet for conversation at a party and a few are guaranteed to make the night unforgettable.
The beer, by the way, was Beltian White from Harvest Moon in Belt MT. And the bar? Any of you who know Montana can probably guess.
Posted in culture, drinks | Tagged author, beer, Belgian ale, Belt MT, Beltian White, Catherine Wheels, great fiction, Harvest Moon Brewing Company, Inklings, Leif Peterson, Normal Like Us, novel, Oxford, short stories |
By Kevin Finch on August 24, 2009
Polson, MT: A tip from a friend in Spokane sent me out Highway 35 to hook up along the east side of Flathead Lake. The mission? Taste the smoked Prime Rib at the East Shore Smoke House. It was out of my way, but the friend in question has opened and managed more restaurants than some people will visit in their lives. If he suggests a place, I’m willing to go out of my way.
The low-slung Smoke House now looks nothing like the pale blue building that used to house a German restaurant before Jim Bassett bought the property. “I don’t think there is a single thing in the restaurant that you can see that we haven’t redone,” Jim says with a grin. “I didn’t intend to do this much. Originally I planned to just open a hambuger joint.”
I, for one, am delighted Jim got carried away. The restaurant… both inside and out… invites you to forget what is beyond the gate and settle in for a meal in a space designed to be both visually intriguing and down-home comfortable.
There is bar and dining area outside and both are completely enclosed with tall log slab fences. The eating area offers welcome shade in the summer – much of it from trees and bushes carefully built around rather than removed. In fact, if you spend any time looking around before you dive into the menu, you’ll notice careful details and quality everywhere. The corrugated metal up in the eves was salvaged locally with Jim and his family digging much of it out of the ground where it was buried. And Jim designed and built just about every light fixture in the restaurant.
In addition to using this steer skull, he created another wall fixture using the old boiler door from the Lake City Home Bakery in Polson. Next time I come I might ask to sit inside near said boiler fixture for reasons of pure nostalgia. I worked as a short-order cook at the bakery during high school, and occasionally had to venture down in the basement near the old boiler for supplies.
Yet all the architectural love in the world can’t keep a restaurant open if the food is forgettable. Thankfully, Jim and his staff seem to know this.
Bassett did his homework for the barbecue, and Chef J.R. Daniels is turning out some great, straightforward food that begs for a cult following. Three days out and I’m already wishing I’d smuggled out several bottles of the their house-made rum barbecue sauce. It provides a sweet-savory counterpoint to the each of the meats I tried. This included their (1) chicken (2) chopped pork and (3) St. Louis style ribs as well as (4) their smoked Prime Rib. All four were cooked perfectly, still moist, and touched with a distinctive smoky tang.
The prime rib sandwich ($13.95) comes with whipped cream horseradish sauce, but the barbecue sauce was close enough to addictive that I felt compelled to slather it on the Prime Rib as well as on the chopped pork and St. Louis style rib.
The spot probably isn’t the place to host a convention for vegetarians, but feel free to drag along a couple friends who are avoiding charred beast. There are several good options absent the meat even if the most compelling culinary reasons to show up come out of the smoker. I plan to try the brisket next time, convince someone with me to order the smoked Prime Rib so I can steal a bite or two, and then I plan to turn my attention to the generous number of microbrews offered on tap.
Posted in dining, drinks, travel | Tagged barbecue, BBQ, East Shore Smoke House, Flathead Lake, Flathead Lake restaurants, Flathead Valley, J.R. Daniels, Jim Bassett, Lake City Home Bakery, Montana restaurants, rum bbq sauce, smoked chicken, smoked Prime Rib |
By Kevin Finch on August 21, 2009
St. Regis Travel Center Edition: Western Montana travel kitsch seems to lean heavily on huckleberries and outhouses for the local items, but a number of more generic items also caught my eye in the food-related kitsch category. Weigh in with which of the items you think should take top honors.
Entry #1: “Chili Makins” that claim to not to contribute to global warm or ozone depletion.
Entry #2: Silicone bakeware with a conscience. “Let them eat cake” takes on new meaning.
Entry #3: Ice cube nostagia for the early video game addict.
Entry #4: Possibly the strangest of the items in the expansive local huckleberry line-up.
Entry #5: For the butter challenged who appreciate single season, single action gadgets, comes the Butter Boy. I believe it runs on ethanol.
Entry #6: When just a state-branded shot glass won’t do, go for the one with the miniature bear camped inside.
Entry #7: The Celene Dion soundtrack is optional.
And our final St. Regis Travel Center entry, #8: The moose-chugger bottle holder.
Your votes please.
Posted in culture, drinks, kitsch, travel | Tagged Butter Boy, coffee, Gin & Titonic, huckleberries, Ice Invaders, Montana, outhouse, Peace of Cake, St Regis, travel kitsch, western Montana |
By Kevin Finch on August 19, 2009
Does one of these new wine cubbys at the Rocket Market on Spokane’s South Hill have your name on it?
Wine guru Carl Carlsteen says they are just about ready to launch their wine-of-the-month club, and soon these cubbies will be home to specially selected wines each month. Details are still being finalized, but if your tastes in wine match Carlsteen’s passion and palate you might want to consider joining the club and score a cubby.
Posted in drinks, wine | Tagged Carl Carlsteen, Rocket Market, Spokane WA, wine, wine of the month club |
By Kevin Finch on August 4, 2009
While I should probably reserve judgment until after downing an Ichiroll, my second visit to Safeco Field was marked by the discovery of a new personal favorite: the Ivardog.
In honor of my Grandpa Peterson, I am working hard to develop a deeper appreciation for baseball strategy and statistics. But the honest truth is that my orientation toward all things edible insured that the most memorable part of both recent trips to Safeco was the hunt for the best stadium food. On my first visit earlier this year we knocked off the Garlic Fries, the deep fried mushrooms, and a monsterous plate of nachos. The verdict: (1) overrated, (2) decent, (3) too many colors not found in the natural world.
This trip my daughter Megan opted for the clam chowder and I spotted a relatively-reasonably-priced menu item called the Ivardog ($5.75). In a departure from ballpark norms, it promised actual shredded cabbage in addition to something deep-fried on the bun. Perfect: I could count it as a salad for the day.
It also turned out to be quite good. Visit three to Mariner World will require some sushi sampling, but chances are I’ll also find some flimsy excuse like a double play to celebrate with another Ivardog.
Posted in dining, drinks | Tagged best stadium food, clam chowder, Donald Peterson, Ichiroll, Ivardog, Mariners, Safeco Field, Safeco Field garlic fries, stadium food, sushi |
By Kevin Finch on July 28, 2009
Seattle WA: Walking up First Avenue tonight I noticed an apparently unplanned billboard combination that suggests something quite unintended, but entertaining.
Maybe we need to add a warning: don’t drink and text.
Posted in culture, drinks | Tagged AT&T, billboards, Bud Light, drinkability, irony |
