The Best 24 food hours of my life (thus far) – Part 1
Oh my, I have fallen behind, haven’t I? I ditched the rest of the Okanagan Food and Wine Writers’ group, who are heading for an interactive wine blending session at Laughing Stock Vineyards, so I could get you all up to speed. If you’d care to indulge me a bit, I’ll sum up the past 64 hours or so – I still have photos to upload from our last day in Vegas, where we went to Hash House A-Go-Go! Yes we did! And I can’t wait to tell you about it!
The week has gone roughly as follows: Monday I disconnected at 11am to check out of our hotel in Vegas. Our flight wasn’t until late that night, so we cabbed it off the strip to Hash House A-Go-Go, then to the outlet mall (again, no sign of recession there), and between customs and the cab home, then kissing W approximately a hundred thousand times, I didn’t crawl into bed until after 2am, at which point I promptly got insomnia.
Tuesday morning I was thrust back into the thick of it early – phone calls, emails, the accountant (did I tell you I’m being audited?), and then I left for Red Deer at noon to teach a class on cooking for kids with allergies to a group of day care cooks. Arrived home again at 8pm and read W stories before unpacking, doing laundry, repacking and doing a ton of prep for BT on Wednesday morning, which took until almost midnight. I did BT (cooking with rice) on Wednesday morning, then ran home to tape some segments for Good Bite, and left for the Okanagan at noon. We arrived at about 8pm local time (construction and a motorcycle accident that closed a chunk of the highway slowed us down quite a bit), having spent most of the drive filling out stacks of legal-sized documents for my accountant (they want to know how much I spent on everything in 2003 – food, cel phone, shoes-who remembers this?) – we arrived at the Delta around 8pm, an hour and a half after dinner started, so I peeled off my disgusting car clothes, put on what I had that was the least wrinkled, and ran over to RauDZ, where I arrived just in time for the entrees. (Even though I was late, they managed to bring mine along with everyone else’s.)
The meal was brilliant. Mine was salmon atop caramelized fennel gnocchi with pureed cauliflower and poached tomatoes. (You’ll have to trust me on this one – it was too dark for good photos and I don’t have the benefit of Photoshop on my laptop.) For dessert there were boozy fresh peach milkshakes, and panna cotta, and double chocolate mashed potato brioche, and roasted hazelnut creme brulee, and ice cream atop local golden raspberries and huckleberries in a sparkling broth. (Yes, I stuck to one.) I need to tell you more about this place, but I suspect I will be back there soon. Meanwhile, if you’re in the vicinity, you should go and conduct your own research.
Back to the hotel at 11 (midnight Calgary time) I was wiped – completely unable to muster a post. But wait - I did manage a quickie from the business centre! It looks like the jig is up: I am a full day off. More? This was Wednesday night. I’m totally out of whack. But honestly, I have eaten so much food that must be adequately lingered over here, that I have to do this in order, even if it is a day behind.
And then Thursday morning there was breakfast. The talented (and so friendly) chefs at the Delta just whipped up something light: two-bite crabcakes Benedict made with genteel quails’ eggs and a lemony hollandaise sauce, bruleed muesli, breakfast corn dogs – local sausages dipped in pancake batter and fried, then served with honey mustard, granola with yogurt and fresh blackberries, ox blood plum shooters (there were also roasted peach, but I had to choose), chewy bread with chunky peach and vanilla bean jam, and a kitchen experiment: bacon profiteroles drizzled with chocolate. To wash it down, Red Roof Apple Cider from nearby Oliver.
Not a bad view from our breakfast table either, don’t you think? How can I possibly go back home and eat toast and peanut butter in my messy kitchen?
But wait: there’s more. Lunch at the Naramata Heritage Inn, then dinner at Township 7 winery. When people ask me what my most memorable meal was, I generally don’t have one. Now I do.
To be continued… (tomorrow, I promise!)
One Year Ago: Bulgogi Beef and Marinated Cucumber Salad
September 18 2009 10:51 pm | eating out
Anonymous on 19 Sep 2009 at 12:26 am #
Yumm
Aimee on 19 Sep 2009 at 4:13 am #
I know how good this weekend is going to be for you! You’re in one of my favorite spots on the planet–have a great time.
If you get a chance to meet the chefs from Joy Road Catering, say hi from me. Cameron & Dana worked with me for ages here in Montreal.
Wish I was there–enjoy!
supersu on 19 Sep 2009 at 6:44 am #
OMG!!!! what a week…i am drooling
safe travels
Theresa on 19 Sep 2009 at 6:55 am #
Are the two people behind you PRAYING that you’ll stop licking your plate??
the other Al on 19 Sep 2009 at 7:34 am #
Do you think the food is this good because the restaurants were given a heads up that Food Writers were coming? This is great to see. I have been looking for better places to eat around there for ages and not having much luck. Now I have some places to check out when I return. Glad to hear your having great food again after our Vegas burnout.
pauline on 19 Sep 2009 at 9:20 am #
Wowwwwwwwww thats all I can say.
thepinkpeppercorn on 19 Sep 2009 at 9:27 am #
Awesome, awesome, awesome. AUDITED??? OH dear.
Erica B. on 19 Sep 2009 at 12:40 pm #
Audits are such a long and tedious process…worse than dental work imho.
Wow – even in the near-dark those food pix look better than Vegas. RaudZ is definitely on the list for our next trip west… as is the Delta – kids love the suites and I’m loving the breakfast corndog. Do you think they used a plain pancake batter and deep fried it or is it something you could pull of in a skillet?
Looking forward to the next installment
Joni on 20 Sep 2009 at 6:54 am #
I didn’t know you were staying at the Royal… that’s where our condo is! Seeing that picture of the pool makes me miss it.
That restaurant looks amazing too. We’ll definitely try it next time we’re out there.
Cheryl Arkison on 21 Sep 2009 at 7:13 am #
Damn, I’m sad I missed this day of activity…