Cooking Conversions

Here is a nifty little website I happened upon in WikiAnswers. I needed to convert "one 16 oz. box of confectioner's sugar*" to cups, since I did not have "one 16 oz. box of confectioner's sugar" and liquid ounces are not the same as dry ounces (2 cups vs. 3 3/4 cups.)

http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Homepage.aspx

*What, you may ask, needs 16 oz of powered sugar? A recipe calling for two sticks of butter, one package of cream cheese and a cake mix...none other than Gooey Butter Cake.

And the Tallest Mountain Award Goes To...

Everest Cafe started off in 2003 in what was then a non-descript section of Washington Ave between Jefferson and downtown. Now, various lofts and other bars and restaurants have sprung up. But, as the area was attempting gentrification, Everest up and moves to another down-on-it's luck area then known as Forest Park SouthEast. However, this strip of Manchester Ave between Kingshighway and Vandeventer, in the six years I was gone, brought in several bars, restaurants, and the like. They renamed it "The Grove" (as there is still Forest Park SouthEast), put up a few banners, and unofficially dubbed it the gay district of St. Louis.

The Everest probably was onto something with this move. For the lunch buffet on Saturday, there wasn't an empty seat. Since the cafe is named "Everest," they tout their dishes as Nepalese, but somewhere along the line, they added Korean and Indian dishes to the menu. Obviously, Nepal shares a border with India, so the food and flavoring are similar to North-India (although the spice was tame), but Korea? I just Google-Earthed the distance from Kathmandu to Seoul and it's over 2500 miles. And that's the way the crow flies. In addition to the hodge-podge of regional selections, the proprietor/head chef, wrote this letter to "his customers" telling us all about himself (he was adopted from Nepal by an American family) and how he wants everyone to be healthy so his food is such and also, since he is such a magnanimous public servant, he wants everyone to come in on Sundays for a free health screen.

The buffet was just ok. The butter chicken was awesome, but it's always awesome. In fact, I'm not even sure if it's something you can get in the region (think General Tso's chicken) but who cares? After three servings, I wondered how this fit into the "healthy dishes" and I was pondering getting one of those free health screens. The other dishes were hit or miss with the other star being the glass noodles prepared Korean style (tasted like oyster sauce maybe?)

The Everest Cafe has a menu at nighttime and of course the buffet at lunch. One other note-they open at 11:30 (odd) even during the week. They wouldnt let us sit down at 11:25 (I'm not kidding)-the waitress made us go back out to our car and wait until 11:30. Tim also wanted me to mention that the people that look as though they're regulars are quite ugly.

http://www.everestcafeandbar.com/

WaSAAAAAAAbi

Wasabi, recently voted #1 Sushi by RFT readers, is a tiny, bustling joint in the heart of Washington St. I went on a Saturday night (reservations recommended) with a couple of friends. I love sushi but don't get much more than a take-out from Whole Foods or the food court at the Galleria (don't knock it until you try it) since half of my household finds it "unfilling". But since these are take-out options, the selection is basic and not all that exciting.
However, at Wasabi, the rolls are imaginative and tasty. My friends frequent this little restaurant, so I went ahead and let them order, as I will eat just about anything on the menu [of an Americanized sushi restaurant]. One of the rolls used fried tempura batter instead of rice and a crepe-like wrap. Another had both avocado and unagi [bbq eel]. We ordered way more than we could possibly eat (unfilling?) and I can't wait to go back.

http://www.wasabistl.com

She's Not Fat, Just "Robust"

Robust Wine Bar is a cute little place in Downtown Webster Groves that looked like just the right place to patronize for a late lunch on a Saturday afternoon. As the name suggests, they specialize in wine, even offering wine "flights" to give a sampling of their offerings. However, we were not interested in mid-afternoon sloth, so we stuck with the unimaginative water and soda.

For lunch or dinner, they offer cheese and charcuterie plates as well as soups, salads, flatbreads, and for dinner, tasting plates. Our blue cheese plate came with a 2 oz piece of domestic blue (or in laymans terms, about the size of a small person's fist) and was given a supporting cast of dates, apricots, almonds and two different kinds of bread. I choose to have a flatbread, which was enough for me, after the giant cheese, for two meals. It featured smoked duck (!) and gruyere. Tim had an interesting twist on the BLT, including yet more blue cheese in a "schmere."
This bar, I think, draws a good crowd on a weekend evening and getting a table may be difficult. I would like to go back and try a wine flight, preferrably when there's not a list of errands to be run afterward.

http://www.robustwinebar.com/

Gumbo, yo!

Either you feel an atmosphere of peeling paint and employees who can't quite talk normally adds to the dining experience or you run the other direction. Since I have yet to make money off of my dining blog, I relish the opportunity to eat at a dive which tends to be: 1) cheap and 2) not disappointing. The Gumbo Shop, in a corner shack in Rock Hill, meets these criteria.

My coworkers and I decided to get some carry-out for a lunchtime meeting. It took us a phone call and several Google searches to try to find their ellusive online menu (sorry can't find it again...you'll just have to go), again adding to the "this is a total dive" experience. I went for their Thursday daily special Red Beans and Rice, enough for two lunches and complete with a huge-ass chunk of Kielbasa. My coworkers got the usual rundown: jambalaya, gumbo, po' boys, fried catfish. From what I could tell, everyone was satisfied with their fare, good as any New Orleans restaurant (ok, I really don't know) but at least good enough to rival anything in Soulard.

Website: Lost in cyberspace

Lorenzo's Olive Oil

Old Stand-by/New Adventure? Steal/Moderate? Loud/Intimate? Bar with Food/Restaurant with Bar? These are all factors one weighs when seeking out any restaurant anywhere. When parents roll in town, especially when they're not your own flesh and blood (READ: in-laws), the internal debate is taken to a whole new level. (I'm saying internal here as Tim is like ah, we'll figure it out). What happens if you suggest this place that had a great write-up in the St. Louis Magazine and come to find out the cheapest thing on the menu is 35 dollars? Or what if the daily special is something like liver? Despite our rapid approach upon our third decade of life, Tim's parents still like to pay for food (I wish my parents read this; they like to remind me that "we make less money than you")
Italian food and specifically, The Hill, provide the always-consist and parent-friendly option of Italian food. After an endorsement from my Sicilian coworker, we decided upon Lorenzo's Tratorria.
I looked up the meaning of Tratorria, and after seeing what Wikipedia said, I think the word Tratorria is slapped on the Italian eateries much in the manner "Bistro" has been tagged onto French-style restaurants. It just sounds fancier and more authentic.
Lorenzo's Tratorria is quite good-they have those long skinny breadsticks along with some sort of blue cheese spread for a gratis appetizer, into which some male members of our party had no problems double-dipping. We all ate pasta dishes: the housemade potato gnocchi was awesome and we were told the Bolognese was good as well. The House Salads, which are not included in the price of the entree, were large-I think two people really could have split one. Pistachios added a nice touch to these.

Since we have an unused Groupon thanks to the generocity of Tim's parents, we will return to Lorenzo's in the near future.

http://www.lorenzostrattoria.com/index.html