Wild Wednesday at Thunder Burger

This past Wednesday I went wild in Georgetown. 

This didn't involve me maxing out my credit card with a bunch of trophy wives at Mineral Kingdom and Urban Chic (that was Thursday).  There's a weekly event called Wild Wednesday at Thunder Burger on M Street.  Every Wednesday, Chef Ryan Fichter serves something no sane person would want to eat: beer-braised alligator ribs, rattlesnake, boar, antelope, turtle, or llama.  And this past week, yak.  Birch and I immediately made plans to check it out.
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Thunder Burger started Wild Wednesday just last month, but it's already attracted some controversy.  City Paper and DCist reported that animal rights activists were "deeply troubled" because the restaurant was going to serve lion.  The restaurant caved and won't serve lion even though the animal isn't endangered (and tastes good).  Plus, Serbian Crown in Great Falls has been serving lion since the 1990s and I don't know anyone who has a problem with it. 

There's an important lesson here: serving Simba is a devastating blow to wildlife but only if it happens within 15 miles of D.C.

Wild yaks are extinct in Nepal, but there were no animal rights activists when I showed up for my yak because there aren't enough cartoon characters based on yaks.  The ambiance of Thunder Burger is a mix between biker bar (snakeskin leather menus) and Georgetown restaurant (the only piece of road the customers are biking is the Capital Crescent Trail).  The music (Wolfmother and Pearl Jam) strikes the right middlepoint.  The regular menu looked enticing, especially the Kobe beef burger, Pig in a Cow Suit (beef burger with bbq pulled pork), and the elk burger.  But then I spotted the white-board over the bar: "WILD WEDNESDAYs: YAK burgers."  I rededicated myself to the mission at hand.

I've never had yak before.  The closest I came was when Smita, the Nepalese checkout lady for the cafeteria at work, made me momos, but she's a vegetarian.  True or false: Once you go yak, you never go back?  I couldn't wait to find out.

When I got my yak burger, I was disappointed that it was covered in cheese.  I aimed my kisser away from the cheese so I could have some no-frills yak. 

Yak is a bovine, but I was still surprised when it tasted exactly like sirloin.  This made me wonder whether I was tasting pure yak or a cross-breed with domestic cattle - a theory supported by theyakranch.com (a website worth bookmarking if only for their catch-phrase: "YAKS ... not Gnu!  Are they for you?"). 

The meat wasn't particularly lean or gamey.  It wasn't uniquely marbled.  It was possibly the most average hamburger I've ever had.  It was about as wild as reading some articles about the debt crisis.

I'm not giving up on Wild Wednesday.  This week Thunder Burger is serving up black bear burger, and you can bet your ass I'll be there for that.  I guess once you go yak, you do go back.

Domku in Petworth

I could write a lot about the visit Rupa and I recently paid to Domku, a Slavic and Scandinavian restaurant in Petworth.  But I think this picture says it all.

Go to Domku only if you have a good place to hibernate afterwards.  Almost all of our dishes were crammed with thick cream, the kind of cream that dredges up memories of sloshing through foam parties in college, and then strikes you where you stand like narcolepsy.  With a meal like this, you have to wonder, how is it that Americans are more overweight than Scandinavians?  Just try taking down the cream baked smoked sprats, the pink peppercorn kulebiaka in cream sauce, and the swedish meatballs and mash.  A KFC Double Down will suddenly seem like lentil salad.   

Creamy sprats

Pink Peppercorn Kulebiaka (with cream)

Swedish Meatballs and Mash ... and CREAM!

Spike Mendelsohn Opening Food Truck; Prepare for Corned-Beef Sandwich Greatness

Below, some exciting news from Kate Nerenberg of Best Bites: a new food truck dedicated to the noble cause of perfecting the corned-beef sandwich.

"Spike Mendolsohn - Top Chef alum and owner of We, the Pizza and Good Stuff Eatery - wrote on Twitter Thursday that he's starting a food truck called Sixth and Rye, with a corned-beef sandwich as the signature dish.  The Feast had more detail: The truck, a Friday-only lunch option, is a joint project with Sixth & I Historic Synagogue and hopes to debut in April.  And New York's branch of the Feast had more Spike Mendelsohn-expansion news: HE's finally making good on his promises to franchise Good Stuff Eatery.  In an interview at the recent South Beach Food & Wine Festival, he said he's looking at spots in Chicago, Philadelphia, and, of course, DC."

Borough Market in London

The weekend before Valentine's Day, when I was in London, Ed and Betty took me to Borough Market, a huge open-air collection of food stalls south of the River Thames and London Bridge. 

The market goes back to at least 1276.  Its staggering size, about 85 stalls depending on the season, reminded me of La Boqueria in Barcelona.  Unlike Boqueria, though, Borough features a lot of fine food retailers – like the ones you see at Madrid’s Mercado de San Migel.  But there’s no analogy for the heavily sauced sausages, hot pies and stewed meats.  If you're looking for the full monty of Brit cuisine, Borough's the place.    

On a Saturday afternoon, the market is packed, despite its expansive territory.  Sometimes you're shoulder-to-shoulder with the other shoppers.  Not a new problem: in 1754, the market was causing so much traffic congestion that Parliament temporarily shut it down.

The market’s popularity these days makes it hard to imagine another closing.  I can’t report any celeb sightings, but Borough is supposedly one of the best spots for ogling your Jude Laws and Keira Knightleys.

I have a hard time picturing Keira diving into Borough’s extravagance.  The smoked meatball sandwiches, pork roast, asparagus soup, jamon (okay, that one isn’t so authentic), blood pudding, mashers and fresh cheese were all of highest quality and caloric content.  The highlights of the afternoon, though, were the hot pies, vegan roasts, wild rock oysters and reindeer burger - even though my request for the red-nosed variety was rejected by a humorless Brit.

We got the hot pies (and blood pudding) from the stall run by Sillfield Farm, which is located four hours away in Cumbria (northwest England).  The producer, Peter Gott, keeps no less than 150 rare breeds of pig.

Guess what they sold like

Not to be outdone were the oysters at the Haward stall.  The Haward family has been harvesting the waters of Essex since 1792, and their go-to items are the same now as they were then: Colchester native and wild rock.  I enjoyed both, although I'm not sure I agree with the Romans, who, according to the Haward website, declared 2000 years ago that wild rock oysters were the only good things to come out of Britannia.  

I wanted all of these

The vegetarian roasts, sold at the London Roast stand, are stuffed with beetroot, potato, carrot, apple and corn flakes, and seasoned with fenugreek, cardamom, cumin and sea salt.  Even better than their earthy taste is the shape of London Roast’s muffins, which are baked in clay plant pots.

Healthy stuff

We tracked down the reindeer burgers at the Ostrich and Exotic Meats counter.  Reindeer is the same type of deer called caribou in North America.  Prancer was tender and juicy.  More than 70 percent of reindeer that are slaughtered for meat are calves, which tend to have fatty, soft flesh.

Me, stunned at my good fortune in finding an exotic meats stand

A humorless Brit

Prancer burger

A bit knackered after our Borough feast, we got on line at a coffee shop, which was a ways from the market.  But cow monuments are always a good reminder that passionate meat purveyors are nearby.  Who is Valentine to judge the object of one's affection?

Where to Find Your Luxury Canned Food

Is there such a thing as luxury canned food? Is it an oxymoron that can only be eaten while wearing natural make-up in a room filled with deafening silence?

A&H Gourmet and Seafood Market of Bethesda believes that you can still be posh while working the pop-top.

In fact, on a placard in front of the store, right next to the fresh Siberian caviar, they had a picture of Conservas Ortiz Ventresca de Bonito del Norte. AKA, canned tuna.

But this isn’t your grandpa’s chicken of the sea. Imported from northern Spain, Conservas Ortiz uses the most tender part of the white tuna: the belly, or ventresca. Each tuna is line-caught by hand, which preserves the texture and flavor that are often missing from tuna that are subjected to the stressful process of net harvesting. The albacore is freshly cleaned and dressed, then hand-packed to ensure that the fillet stays in one piece.

Labor + parts + cool northern Spain cachet = $8.99 per can.

Of course, I had to try one. I also bought a can of Starkist tuna for a side-by-side comparison, and it wasn’t even close. As advertised, the most impressive trait of the Conservas Ortiz was its texture. Whereas the Starkist was predictably chalky and stuck to the mouth, the ventresca was delicate and light. The taste was slightly smoky. Usually I have to throw the Starkist in a sandwich or salad just to tolerate it, but the Conservas Ortiz satisfies by itself. I also noticed that the Starkist had a much fishier odor than the luxury model.

Two more items at A&H caught my fancy for fancy cans. One was Cofimar cockles in brine. Cofimar is a dry cargo company that is relatively unknown, and based on their cockles, I completely understand why. Imagine tiny tasteless bivalves sitting in water mixed with about four tablespoons of salt and a dash of sand. Now imagine throwing most of it away, as I did.

My third purchase was Goya’s Eelbroods of Surimi, the best of my buys at A&H. Yes, even better than the Conservas Ortiz tuna. In taste and texture, if not in appearance, the silver eelbroods reminded me of the glass noodles in chap chae bap – sweet and slightly chewy. And Goya packs them with enough garlic and cayenne for just the right amount of kick.

But when I looked at the ingredients, I realized that Goya had tricked me. These baby eels are born on a Goya assembly line. Which is to say, they aren’t eels at all. They are “surimi,” a mix of fish meat, water, white egg, vegetable flour, and, last but not least, “natural aroma of eel and ink.” Goya didn’t think the actual eel was important, but the genuine aroma of the eel – that was indispensable.

But what do you expect? It’s sold in a can.

AGAINN Celebrates the ‘Luck of the Irish’ With An All Day Happy Hour,

Immediate release from Heather Freeman:

WHAT: AGAINN is celebrating all things Irish with signature beverages and traditional fare this St. Patrick’s Day.  Happy hour specials will be available at the 19-seat bar including drafts of Harp Irish Lager, Guinness, Smithwick’s and Kilkenny, plus shots of Irish whiskey each priced from $5 to $6. Traditional Irish fare from a special St. Patrick’s Day menu will also be available with standouts including House-Smoked Scottish Salmon; Bangers and Mash; Fish & Chips; Lamb Stew and Sheppard’s Pie.  Additionally, guests will enjoy Irish tunes courtesy of O’Kane Mutiny who will be performing from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.  (A $5 cover charge will be in place starting at 4 PM).

For those looking for a more intimate gathering, the 14-seat private dining room, complete with plush chairs and flat screen television is also available for booking on St Patrick’s Day.  Priced at $2,500, guests will receive three bottles of Irish whiskey including Jameson, Bushmills, and Black Bush for the room along with a choice of two Irish beers per guest, unlimited food from the featured St. Patrick’s Day menu, and party favors.

WHEN: Thursday, March 17, 2011 from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. 

WHERE: AGAINN is located on 11^th Street, NW (between K Street and New     York Avenue); phone (202) 639-9830.
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WHY: St. Patrick’s Day is an Irish holiday celebrated all around the globe to honor the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick.  Guests are encouraged to wear green to avoid being pinched on this festive night.

Curry Shrimp and Iranian Rice, German-Franco Style

This past weekend, Marcy and I were treated to a meal cooked up by Anja and Christian.  They’re a German/French couple.  Of course, the menu was curry shrimp and Iranian rice.

Ok, so they like to go outside their comfort zone.  Anja has spurned the kielbasa and tinkered with her curry shrimp for years.  Christian didn’t have to experiment.  His ex-wife was Iranian and spoon-fed him all the insider tricks to her country’s ancient rice recipe.

The curry shrimp was salty sweet comfort food with a kick.  The rice, called tadig or “pot bottom,” was cooked in a cast-iron non-stick sauce pan.  Christian used regular short-grain.  You cook it really slowly, then add boiling salt water and continue cooking until you hear a frying noise.  By the time you remove the lid, your rice has transformed into a cake.  Cake with a crunchy, buttery, saffron-infused crust, and an interior filled with perfectly fluffy grains.

Self-proclaimed tadig experts on Chowhound say you need to use basmati rice for a good tadig.  I know a French guy who puts them to shame.