Just a pic of the ornament Umami made for Honolulu City Lights 2011:
Honolulu City Lights 2011 Ornament
Because the theme is "holoholo" (i.e., to go out gallivanting), everyone was to make an ornament using a slipper. Umami takes his reimagining very seriously, hence this marvel of "what-the-hell-ish-ness?!"
Looking at it now, perhaps Umami was inspired by R.E.O. Speedwagon, who he just saw in concert . . .?
Inspiration?
It was definitely inspired by Journey's "Infinity" album cover . . .
Inspiration
Regardless, it'll be on one of the trees in the Honolulu Hale Courtyard, December 2, 2011 - January 1, 2012. Trees are still being set up, but it looks to be a fun set of trees!
Umami and Elle wandered over to Enchanted Lake for lunch . . . Umami had a craving for a pizza from Round Table, and Elle had never been.
Pizzatatoes - with Olives, Ham, Onions, Jalapenos
First up, Pizzatatoes ($6.25 for four), which are potato skins. Elle likes potato skins. It's interesting: Round Table lets you choose any pizza topping for these, so when asked, Umami and Elle chose Olives, Ham, Onions, and Jalapenos, expecting that each skin would be loaded with all four toppings. Nope, instead, each skin comes with one of the toppings! So be warned. But the skins were fine.
Chicken & Garlic Gourmet
The Chicken & Garlic Gourmet ($14.49 for a small) has chicken (duh!), garlic (duh!), and mushrooms, Roma tomatoes, red and green onions, Italian herb seasoning, three cheeses on a creamy garlic sauce. From the name, and without reading through all of the ingredients, Umami thought this would be a relatively low fat choice. It's obviously not. But it is delicious, and Elle liked it so much that she wants to go back for her birthday. So they'll be back (and paying more attention to the ingredient lists next time!)!
Round Table Pizza Enchanted Lake Shopping Center 1020 J Keolu Drive Kailua, Hawaii 808-261-4644
Umami and Elle had a quick jaunt to Vegas for a Duran Duran concert at the Hard Rock and "Frozen Fury XIV," an NHL pre-season game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche. Oh, and there was food, too!
Fix - Pork Prime Rib
Umami had the Pork Prime Rib ($41) with Carmelized Onion and Apple Bread Pudding at Fix (in the Bellagio). It's two beautiful ribs, with a thin layer of fat, wrapped in bacon, that's cooked to just the right tenderness to preserve the essence of pork flavor (and juices). Umami's never even heard of such a thing before, but now will visit when he can. After all, you always get a beef prime rib, but when have you ever had pork?
Fix - Seabass
Elle's Seabass with Risotto, Baby Shrimp, Lobster Broth ($44) was very good. The fish was nicely crisped on top, and the risotto appropriately creamy. But because neither Umami nor Elle eat a lot of red meat, the Seabass paled in comparison to the sheer decadence of the Pork Prime Rib.
Simon (front) and John (left rear)
Duran Duran was playing The Joint, which is the concert venue at the Hard Rock. Umami and Elle were in standing in the pit, maybe twenty feet from the stage.
Simon and John
Umami's favorite Duran Duran song is "Come Undone" . . .
. . . which they played!
Joe's Bloody Mary
Umami's been to Joe's Seafood Prime Steak and Stone Crab many times, but has never tried their Blood Mary. It's a thick, hearty drink. Love the shrimp and cocktail olive garnish!
Todd English's Olives is in the Bellagio, in the long shopping corridor called Via Bellagio. Umami's always wanted to try it . . .
Olives - Breads, Olives, and Two Tapenades (Green and Black Olives)
Olives - Chilean Sea Bass w Risotto and Scallops
Olives -Wild Mushroom Fettucine
Olives - Panna Cotta
Really, a fine meal. Olives' Sea Bass was a stronger dish that Fix's, with a richer risotto and scallops. The fettucine appears to be a smallish dish, but is intense and loaded with umami.
Elle had never seen a live hockey game, so was excited to see Frozen Fury XIV, an NHL preseason game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche.
Warmups
It basically serves as a home game for the Kings, as their jersey-clad fans drive up for the weekend. Unfortunately, the Kings went down two early in the first period and never really got into the game. But there was a fight in the stands and then a big fight on ice late in third period, so Elle got the full NHL experience. Good fun.
Finally, breakfast at Bouchon, another regular stop for Umami.
Roast Chicken and Waffles
Roasted chicken, bacon and chive waffles, Tahitian vanilla bean butter, maple syrup (for the waffles), sauce chasseur (for the chicken). The waitress explained that the sauce chasseur was like a brown gravy, and, in true local style, Umami wasted no time in deboning the chicken and pouring the sauce all over it . . . soooo good.
So that was Duran Duran in Vegas 2011, a quick, but very fun trip. Visited some old favorites and, maybe, found some new ones (Hello, pork prime rib!).
Fix
Bellagio
3600 Las Vegas Blvd. South
866.259.7111 or 702.693.8865
Joe's Seafood Prime Steak & Stone Crab
Forum Shops @ Caesars (Las Vegas Blvd End, Street Level)
3500 Las Vegas Blvd. South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702) 792-9222
JoesLVCS@leye.com www.joes.net/las-vegas
Todd English's Olives
Bellagio
3600 Las Vegas Blvd. South
866.259.7111 or 702.693.8865
Frozen Fury XV
No date or venue yet . . . but Umami wants to go!
Bouchon
The Venetian Resort-Hotel-CasinoVenezia Tower (to the right as you face the registration desk)
3355 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV 89109
702.414.6200
Reservations can also be made online through OPEN TABLE.
Umami first ran across this recipe in a collection called "Aunty Marialani's Go Cook 'em," a huge .pdf file of recipes assembled by someone with a great deal of affection for local food and Rap Reiplinger:
The David Eyre pancake recipe came from a Honolulu Star-Bulletin article, "Chef makes entrance with luscious pancake," which in turn cribbed it from Craig Claiborne's 1966 article in the New York Times.
Umami's been meaning to try it for some time and finally gave it a try one Sunday morning before the early football games. The recipe is super simple:
Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
Pinch of ground nutmeg (Umami didn't have nutmeg, so used cinnamon instead)
4 tablespoons butter (It's a lot of butter . . . can probably be cut down to 2 or 3 tbsp)
2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
Juice of half a lemon
Fig or blackberry jam, pear butter or any kind of marmalade, for serving (optional) (Umami says: you won't need it).
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a mixing bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the flour, milk and nutmeg and lightly beat until blended but still slightly lumpy.
2. Melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet with a heatproof handle over medium-high heat. (Umami used a 12-inch cast iron skillet.) When very hot but not brown, pour in the batter. Bake in the oven until the pancake is billowing on the edges and golden brown, about 15 minutes.
3. Working quickly, remove the pan from the oven and, using a fine-meshed sieve, sprinkle with the sugar. Return to the oven for 1 to 2 minutes more. Sprinkle with lemon juice and serve (with jam if you want, but you really shouldn't, the lemon and sugar are awesome as is).
Serves 2 to 4, though Umami and Elle, armed with a fresh pot of coffee, finished it off with no problem whatsoever. Very easy, even at 6:30 on a Sunday morning. Highly recommended.
