Seattle-area steakhouse El Gaucho puts the same attention on their custom-ground, dry-aged burger as they do on their steak, and it's a bargain for only $9 during happy hour. More
There are burger purists who want nothing to come between the beef and bun, and those who don't mind piling on the toppings to push the hamburger envelope. Lunchbox Laboratory falls in the latter category, experimenting with flavor combinations and encouraging diners to do the same. More
Don't ignore this little dive bar and their chili burger made with a signature 30-year-old recipe. More
Chef B's Lamb Burger from the Fireside Cellar at Willows Lodge will convert you to a lamb burger fan, especially during their "Happier Hour" weekday specials. More
This English pub-style restaurant is a local favorite and a burger haven for those wanting a good, affordable quarter-pound burger. More
Icon Grill's Special Grind Burger steps away from burger tradition with a spice blend that takes cues from masala and uses chiles from the Southwest. More
Despite the well-worn interiors glazed with a fine mist of grease, Broiler Bay is a rare family-run burger joint that's defied the odds and remains a local staple. More
This is far richer and more flavorful to the Sloppy Joes of childhood. The ground angus beef is mixed in a "boozy" tomato sauce that tastes like a sweet and sour whiskey barbecue sauce, topped with fried shallots and sage leaves to give it some crunch and round out the sweetness. Lot No. 3 smears the bun with a house-made Dijon mustard; it's spicier than what you'd find at other places, and it gives the sandwich an almost wasabi-like burn. More
Despite the late summer arrival of heat-wilted afternoons, the chill of the evening skies and whispering hints of autumn are signs that the farmers' markets in the Northwest are coming to a close. So to finish out my own season for Market Scene out in Washington state, what better way to bid farewell to summer than from my own backyard—welcome to Duvall, just northeast of Seattle. Won't you visit for a final stroll through our little market? More
Cravings for hearty grilled burgers are relieved at Munchbar, a restaurant that's all about comfort food. More
The sun was shining from a clear blue sky at the Redmond Saturday Market over the weekend, promising a warm, summer day. Entering its thirty-sixth year, this farmers' market in the Seattle suburb continues to bring together fresh, local produce and hand-crafted goods. People start arriving at 8:30 a.m. for the first pick despite the official 9 a.m. start time. Snapshots of the strawberries, cherries (Rainer and Bing), summer squash, and more! More
An old metal bell signals the start of the Bellevue Farmers' Market, but even before it rings at 3 p.m., the official start time, people start gathering. Bellevue is about a 20 minute drive east of Seattle (not counting traffic), across Lake Washington. For the most part, the market has a local-edibles-only rule—only food that's grown or prepared in Washington can be sold here. Leeks, hothouse-grown heirloom tomatoes, wood-fired pizza from a mobile oven, and more. More
Munchbar's Sloppy Jack Sliders are little sandwiches with big flavor More
The Redmond Saturday Market is located in the open gravel lot next to the Redmond Town Center, a large retail and business center in the downtown area of the city. It's open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and offers fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as prepared foods and craft items. They also have a small stage area, so it's a family-friendly place to bring the whole family (dogs, too) and listen to some music while shopping. Check out photos of the seasonal produce. More
It's the secret nobody in Washington wants to share with the rest of the world—summer is absolutely bee-you-ti-ful around the Seattle area. The weather is just right, the sun makes an extended appearance and the long days make for double the amount of activities. So when friends come to visit and want something to do, instead of tipping them off to the typical Pacific Northwest amusements, I tell them: check out the farmers markets. It's a great way to get a sense of the neighborhood and truly sample local flavors and goods. More
In the lush evergreen lands of Washington state, for those who live on the Eastside, across the lake from Seattle, you long for the daily farmers' market freshness of Pike Place Market, but feel guilty about that pesky carbon footprint of driving a few cities over for a fresh bit of leafy greens. Thankfully, there are several great neighborhood farmers' markets that are in full swing, offering the latest midsummer goodies and their own unique charm. I recently visited the two main markets in the city of Bellevue, the Bellevue Farmers Market and the Crossroads Farmers Market. More
Would I consider myself a green thumb-obsessed environmentalist who loves the planet? Not really. All this started from the fact that I'm just cheap. Keeping a small herb garden and growing some even from seed isn't difficult. For the most part, the herbs one uses in almost daily food preparation are ones that are hearty enough for the even the most questionable green thumb. Here are some herb-growing basics for the no-muss, no-fuss crowd. More
The Kung Fu is strong with Washington State's microbreweries, and the talented, imaginative local brewers were in top form at the 2010 Seattle Cask Fest, held at the Seattle Fisher Pavillion on March 27. Produced by the Washington Beer Commission, an organization devoted to promoting local brewers in the state, Cask Fest is an annual celebration of a method of beermaking that is rarely practiced, but one that yields truly unique results. More
Update on the burger - it sounds like the name is going through a change, but I don't know what the new one is; it should be revealed at the end of the month, so stay tuned, if your arteries can stand it!
Yes!! Love the squeaky cheese, especially from Wisconsin -- great cheesemakers! The blueberries look lovely; we're finally getting some here in the Pac NW!
I adore apricots -- so many uses! If they can survive not just being eaten as a snack, they make for great preserves, and it goes so well with goat cheese on flatbread or crostini! We used to have an apricot tree when I was a kid, and we'd pick them early when they were still green for pickling -- that was also a great use if you have a tree that didn't yield super-sweet fruit.
It's definitely worth a visit if you're in the area -- there's a note about the burgers being flavorful due to their extensive menu of burger types. I haven't tried every single combination, so I don't want to speak towards every choice. They're not gimmicky, they don't do crazy things with their burgers, it's simply well-made comfort food that's satisfying and classic if you're in Duvall, since it's a bit of a ways outside of the Seattle metropolitan area, but I think it's worth noting as a classic hamburger place to try, as people may not think to stop by when they're zipping through the small city.
Nice! These are great tips, as every week always felt like an episode of Iron Chef, trying to make sure we used everything in our CSA and trying to figure out creative ways to put it all to good use!
Mom lives a ways off (she's in Hawaii, I'm in Washington State -- a wee bit of a distance) but just baked some chocolate cookies for her, collected some photos, and an article about one of her favorite actors from a really obscure magazine. Nothing fancy, but stuff she likes. I hope to cook a real meal for her if she comes out and visits this year!
lol - Serious Eats typo! I wrote it as "thick cut," as Teddy's doesn't do shoestring-style fries, which is just as well, since the sauce gets really drippy and you need substantial fries to soak things up.
Agreed on the rosemary -- when it takes off, be prepared for a small tree! So wonderful when you can just take handfuls of it -- the flowers are tasty too. I tend to start stuff from seeds extra early, like February, and in our laundry room because it stays warm, plus it's got a small south-facing window. I like to get the starts as big as possible before putting into pots outdoors. We have a squirrel problem, but cutting a plastic soda or water bottle in half and putting it over the little starts can act like a cloche and protect from small wildlife. Soaking seeds before putting into soil packs or peat pots can help, but I've had successful sprouting from both dry and soaked seeds. I got extra paranoid about winters after Washington State got a wicked winter the other year; killed off a lot of my plants, but if your heartier, woody herbs like rosemary are used to it, they've likely cowboyed-up to winter chills.
I know the beers made at the Cask Fest weren't to strict ye olde code, since the containers they were aged in varied in material, and they leaned heavily towards the use of hops, but hey- it's Seattle. We're hop-addicts! I was comparing the higher alcohol content to commercial, large-scale beers, which tend to be more in the 4% range and these cask brews were usually about double that.
Cheese ring. Oh lordy. It's both awesome and wrong, all at the same time. But I'm sure it tastes great with a pitcher of PBR.
Exciting world of metrics? I'm getting excited just looking at it!!
Still need a Halloween costume idea? You can do what Burger Lab writer Kenji did two years ago and dress up as a Burger King. The story: "I needed a costume. I had an orange shirt, I bought some felt and a crown... that's it." Easy peasy. (Or you can check out these other burger and food-related costume ideas.) More
This pumpkin is for the pumpkin carving contest. I always carve a pumpkin of someone who I find entertaining. This year, it was Hugh Laurie who plays Greg House on the show House. This took me 8 hours.... More
Birthday strawberry rhubarb pie, baked from The Newlywed Kitchen cookbook... More
Colorful leaves of Swiss chard from the Redmond Farmer's Market.... More
Anaheim peppers stuffed with a combination of ground turkey and spicy pork sausage, wrapped in bacon, smoked, then glazed.... More
A pan seared pork tenderloin with a summer berry wine sauce and sauteed colorful Swiss chard from the farmer's market... More
Spam & Egg breakfast sandwich... More
Leftover kebabs of grilled sausage and zucchini make for delicious summer sandwiches!... More
A celebratory shot of a local favorite, Spam Musubi, getting festive for Hawaii's golden anniversary of becoming a state.... More
Oyster, miatake, & lobster 'shrooms--pretty to look at, tasty to eat.... More
Experience Naga, the cocktail lounge inside Thai restaurant Chantanee, where their drink menu is as exciting as the food.... More
Pad Thai made with snowpeas from our garden.... More
Blueberries coated with flour, being folded into a muffin batter.... More
You are evil, not only tempting me with the promise of delicious chips but the purchase price is pretty dang good. I know it's a lot of chips, but I'm such a potato chip fiend, no such thing as too many bags. In Washington, my favorite is the Tim's Cascade jalapeno flavor - the thicker kettle chip is necessary to really carry that punch of flavor.