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Every Friday, I meet up with a couple of work friends for breakfast before heading into the office. We try to keep our breakfast meetings central to where we live and also close to our Chandler office, which doesn't leave a whole lot of places to choose from. While I was surfing the web a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon a restaurant I had never heard of before - the Hangar Cafe. Even more interesting than the fact that it was previously unknown to me was its location, the Chandler Municipal Airport. This Friday, we finally got a chance to pay the Hangar Cafe a visit.

Turns out that the cafe is actually located right out near the flight line, with a great view of the planes and helicopters both on the tarmac and in flight. When we arrived, the place was almost packed inside. There were a few people out on the patio, and with the temperature still fairly cool, we decided to sit outside so we could better take in the view. I had just seen the movie Flyboys the previous night, so I was pretty excited when a replica French Nieuport rolled out of the hangar next to us with two parachute clad pilots ready to take it for a spin.

The menu at the Hangar consisted of typical American breakfast items including bacon, eggs, sausage, pancakes, several omelets, a breakfast burrito, corned beef hash, and chicken fried steak, among others. I opted for the chicken fried steak with eggs over medium, hash browns, rye toast, and coffee.

The wait staff at the Hangar Cafe was super friendly and the service was prompt and competent. I never had to ask for a refill on my coffee. When my food arrived, it was cooked as ordered. Breakfast at the Hangar Cafe is nothing fancy, but the food I had tasted great. The chicken fried steak was one of the best I can remember having. The gravy was a standout. The hash browns were good, but I would have preferred them a bit crispier - something I realize very few breakfast places can pull off successfully.

I really enjoyed our outing to the Hangar Cafe and plan to keep it in my regular rotation of breakfast spots. It's also open for lunch, which presents another opportunity for a repeat visit. In addition to the good food, friendly service, and relatively cheap prices, the fact that you can relax and watch the planes take-off and land is n added bonus.

Pere and were both craving BLT's the other night, so we thought it might be fun to make them for dinner, only stepped up a little. Instead of the standard version, we made ours from slices of crusty artisan bread, heirloom tomato, romaine, and thick cut smoked bacon. We each made two. Pere's were both toasted, with mayo while I had mine untoasted, one with mayo and the other with salad dressing. Both were delicious, although I liked the one made with mayo a little more. The heirloom tomatoes we used were so much more flavorful than standard beefsteak or other hybrid varieties.

Last night, I happened to be back in Santa Clara on business and needed a decent place for dinner, ahead of a big customer meeting the following morning. We decided on Parcel 104, partly because we had heard good things about the restaurant, and also because it was only a mile from our hotel.

Parcel 104 is Bradley Ogden's place (with Executive Chef Bart Hosmer), located at the Marriott Santa Clara. The entire restaurant is built around the concept of fresh, local ingredients. To uphold this philosophy, Parcel 104 changes their menu daily. That's the entire menu, not just the specials. Additionally, the wine list is managed by Master Sommelier Randall Bertao (there are only 124 master sommelier's in the entire world).

We arrived a few minutes ahead of our 7:45 reservation, so we decided to have a drink at the bar while we waited for our table. The drink menu was fairly extensive, with a number of signature martinis. I decided to go with the "Paint the Town Brown", a chocolate martini made with Hershey's syrup, Godiva dark chocolate liqueur, cream, and creme de cacao. It was pretty tasty, although not quite as smooth as other chocolate martinis I've had. It wasn't long until our table was ready.

There were several options on the menu worth noting. Options included ordering à la carte, a three course dinner (appetizer, entree, sweet course), a vegetarian tasting menu, or the chef's indulgence - a six course tasting menu, with or without wine pairings. After agonizing over what to have (there were so many interesting options), we all decided to go with the chef's indulgence with the wine option.

The first course was known as "A Little Bite" and consisted of a small espresso cup filled with corn bisque. This was served with a glass of Iron Horse Blanc de Blanc, 1998. The sweetness of the corn bisque was nicely balanced by the dryness of the sparkling wine.

Next up were Alaskan Halibut cheeks served with a green olive-molinari "salamitini" and a toy box eggplant "barta". I haven't seen cheeks on most American menus, although they are very popular in Asia. In this case, the Halibut cheeks were firm and sweet. They were paired with a glass of Leitz Riesling Rudesheimer Klosterlay, 2005. The Riesling was very delicate and not at all too sweet for the dish.

The third course consisted of cocoa crusted venison tartare accompanied by a white bean "mash", blueberry compote, and a cumin seed cracker. The tartare consisted of both seared and raw chunks of venison and was absolutely delish. Paired with a Tantara Pinot Noir, 2004, the fruity notes of the wine really stood out.

The main entree of the tasting was a Cedar Springs double lamb chop with Terra Firma Farms charred tomato sauce and caramelized fennel mashed potatoes, The lamb was done rare and had a nice meaty taste without even a hint of gamey flavor, as can be the case with lamb. I really enjoyed the mashed potatoes. The caramelized fennel added sweetness with just enough bite to make them interesting. The wine pairing, a Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, 2002 was well balanced and stood up to the strong flavor of the meat.

After the lamb came a small plate with a piece of "Rouge et Noir" Camembert from Marin Cheese, a piece of toasted walnut-currant bread, a few almonds, and a fresh sliced fig. The cheese was good, but what really stood out was how nicely it went with the Sauternes it was served with - Castelnau de Suduiraut, 2001.

By the time the final dessert course, a Gran Marnier creme brulee arrived, we were all completely stuffed. Somehow, though, we managed to make our way through it. The crust was golden brown and perfectly crisped while the inside was nice and velvety smooth, thanks no doubt to pastry chef Carlos Sanchez. The final wine pairing was a late harvest wine from Dolce. They only produce a single wine and as such label the bottle simply "Dolce". The vintage we had was 2004. It was very sweet, like the Sauternes, but more concentrated. It lived up to the "liquid gold" moniker it's also know by.

A few other points about our experience worth noting. First, our waiter Rusty was excellent. It's been a long time since I've had a waiter as knowledgeable, courteous, and friendly as Rusty. He was very passionate about the restaurant and what it serves, and it really showed - all without even the slightest hint of condescension. The second point has to do with pace. Our dinner was nice and leisurely - something that doesn't happen often enough in American restaurants. If there's one thing I hate, it's feeling like I'm being rushed through dinner just so the restaurant can turn another table.

Overall, our dinner at Parcel 104 turned out to be fantastic. It was pricey for sure, but when you consider the wide variety of items we were able to sample, the expert wine pairings, and the prompt and knowledgeable service, it's definitely worth a visit.

Growing up, the one thing I could count on for my birthday every year was a multi-pack of mini cereals from my mom. After I moved out (just a few miles down the road), she would still give them to me as a present. When I moved to Arizona three years ago, come my birthday, there it was, shipped via UPS. Last year was the first year I didn't get the cereal for my birthday. To my surprise, when I celebrated my birthday a few months ago, Pere surprised me with an 8-pack of sugary goodness.

I don't normally eat sugary cereals as I'm more of a Kashi fan these days, but once a year, I make an exception. Tasting Fruit Loops and Pops really brings back memories...

I love SPAM Musubi. What is SPAM Musubi you ask? Think of it as SPAM sushi. Before you go "eeewwww", read on. I was in Hawaii for vacation a few weeks ago. Apparently, Hawaii is the number one per-capita consumer of SPAM in the nation, consuming over 6 million cans a year. Armed with those facts, I set out to find out just how all that SPAM could be consumed by such a small population.

It turns out that one of the most popular snack foods in Hawaii is SPAM Musubi. It's essentially a big ball of sushi rice with a slice of SPAM on top (or in the middle), all wrapped in a piece of nori. It's incredibly popular and can be found at most convenience stores. The first day I tried to buy a SPAM Musubi from a place called the Nagasako General Store in Lahaina, I was told that I was too late and should try again the next morning - early. Asking what time "early" was, the woman behind the counter remarked that they opened at 6:30. Since we were planning a long drive the next day, I figured that would be a good time to come back.

Trip two to the Nagasako General Store proved to be fruitful. There on the counter next to the cash register was a huge pile of neatly wrapped and stacked SPAM Musubi. After paying the $1.40 or so that it cost, I left with a big smile on my face. The SPAM was mine! I can't say that I'm a huge SPAM fan - it's something I can remember eating every once in a while as a child, but not something I remember making since. Oh well, here was a chance to give it another go.

We were barely five minutes down the road before I had the wrapper off and had taken my first bite. It was still warm from the heating of the SPAM. I was surprised at how good it actually tasted. There's a definite comfort food feeling that eating SPAM Musubi evokes. Pere doesn't like SPAM much, but she tried a bite as well in the name of novelty. She was actually surprised how much she liked it as well. Our only regret that day was that we only bought one!

If you are interested in Hawaiian SPAM recipes, you might want to check out Hawaii's SPAM Cookbook and Hawaii's 2nd SPAM Cookbook, both written by Ann Kondo Corum.

Last night, Pere and I had dinner at the Salt Cellar in Scottsdale, before heading off to see the touring Cirque du Soleil show Corteo. Because the show started at 8, we figured we would need to do an early dinner, sometime around 5:30. Normally I don't like doing dinner out that early, but we didn't really have a choice as we needed to be at the show by 7:30.

The Salt Cellar is one of those places I've been meaning to go to for years yet never seem to make it to. It's considered by many to be the best place for fresh seafood in the Phoenix area. What really makes it unique, though, is the fact that the restaurant is located entirely underground. From the street, you would hardly know that it's there. There's only a small building with the entrance door and a stove pipe sticking up from the ground that give the location away.

When we arrived, there were already a few people at the bar, presumably for the happy hour (5-7) specials. We were seated almost immediately in one of the many small dining rooms. I'm not sure how many there are in the place, but the dining room we were seated in was very intimate - only 6 small tables in the room. Our waitress was very friendly and went into great detail about all of the menu items, including the special board which had about a dozen daily specials.

While we tried to decide on entrees, we went ahead and ordered a half-dozen oysters on the half-shell along with a bucket of steamers. I also ordered a bottle of David Bruce (2003) Pinot Noir. David Bruce makes on of my favorite Pinot Noir's, so I couldn't pass it up even though it may be a little heavy for seafood. In the meantime, our waitress brought by a bread basket with slices of three different breads, an olive bread, a sesame loaf, and a piece of sourdough. The sourdough had a perfectly crispy crust with a nice chewy inside, as did the sesame. Pere and I were both less than thrilled with the olive bread, though as the olives seemed to have all pulled to the same spot in the slice making it a little too briny.

The oysters were the first appetizer to arrive. They were decent sized and smelled very fresh. We had them with a squeeze of lemon, shot of Tabasco, and a little cocktail sauce - just enough to enhance the flavor without totally killing off the taste. I thought they were great, but a little pricey at $12.95 for 6. Just as we finished the oysters, the bucket of clams arrived. One think I found a bit odd. The clams were completely dry, as if they had been baked and not steamed. It didn't really matter, though, because they tasted great, especially with the drawn butter and a squeeze of lemon. All of the clams they served us were open, which was good. I can't stand when a restaurant brings out clams or mussels and a bunch of them are dead (haven't opened).

For entrees, I went with the "small" baked stuffed lobster while Pere chose the salmon wellington. The small lobster was actually 1 1/4 pounds. It was stuffed with a mixture of king crab and scallops and topped with a Ritz cracker crust. Accompanying the lobster were sauteed vegetables and a lemon and pecan wild rice. When the entrees arrived, our waitress explained that they crack all crabs and lobsters table side. She then proceeded to remove the claws from my lobster and crack them using a combination of a clean cloth napkin and a cracker. In about 30 seconds, she had cracked both claws and all of the knuckles, each with a satisfying crunch that told me the lobster hadn't been frozen for 6 months then overcooked in a pot of boiling water. She obviously had a lot of practice. The lobster also tasted great. The meat was done just right - not at all overcooked. The Ritz cracker crust was tasty as well, but I would have been just as happy with the naked lobster. I'm a bit mixed on the stuffing of king crab and scallops. While I thought the crab was good, I found the scallops (there were three) a bit mushy. All in all, though, I was very happy with my lobster. I was so full after eating it, though, that I only had a fork-full of the rice and vegetables. That's okay, though. Who really goes to a seafooder and has any interest in the vegetables and rice?

Pere's salmon wellington turned out to be a huge hunk of salmon wrapped in spinach, then topped with mushrooms (it didn't look like duxelles) and wrapped in pastry. She thought it was ok, but it didn't live up to her expectations. We both thought that the quality of the seafood at the Salt Cellar was quite good, but the prices were a little higher than they should have been to be considered a good value. I do plan on going back for their happy hour, though. They run a lot of specials at the bar during happy hour, and that seems like a much more reasonable way to get decent fresh seafood without breaking the bank.

Every Friday morning, I meet up with friends for breakfast before heading into work. The breakfast scene in the East Valley is woefully lacking. We usually end up at chains like Waffle House and Village Inn, which I don't mind, but I don't consider them particularly great. This morning, however, we met at Wonderful Wanda's Breakfast & Lunch. Wanda's is in a small stand alone building off of Chandler Blvd, just East of I-10. Stand alone non-corporate restaurants are rare in Phoenix as most tend to be located in strip malls.

The place itself is fairly small with only about 12 tables. The place was packed when we arrived, but luckily there was still one table open which we promptly grabbed. I don't know if Friday mornings are usually this busy at Wanda's, but they weren't prepared for the volume. There was only a single waitress on duty. She was running around like mad, but there was just too much going on for a single person to handle. As a result, it was a good 10 minutes before she finally got to our table to take our order. Fearing we might never see her again, we ordered our drinks and food at the same time.

Wanda's menu is fairly small. There's a selection of omelets, breakfast burritos, breakfast sandwiches, and assorted items such as biscuits & gravy, pancakes, and French toast. During a previous visit, I had tried one of the breakfast burritos, and it was pretty good. This time around, though, I was interested in an omelet. It just so happened that there was a special. $4.95 for a bacon and Swiss cheese omelet with onions and tomatoes, served with hash browns and a side of toast. Sounded good to me. My friend Moody ordered a breakfast burrito while Adam went with the biscuits & gravy.

Surprisingly, the food came up pretty fast considering how busy the place was. My omelet looked to be a three egg version and was nice and light. The first bite was a little disappointing, though. Both the egg and the filling were in desperate need of seasoning. I added some salt and pepper from the shakers, which helped a good bit, but it's never the same as when it's incorporated into the cooking process. My hash browns came out a little undercooked. They were about two inches thick, which meant that even though the outside was browned, the center was still a little raw.

All in all, my breakfast at Wanda's was ok, but it didn't rise to the level I had hoped. Moody really liked his breakfast burrito, and it seems like that might be what they do best. I'm sure I'll be back again, hopefully when things are a little less hectic and they have a little more help.

Pere was in the mood for salmon the other night, so I picked up a nice skinless salmon filet and decided to make it on the grill.

I started by soaking my cedar plank for a few hours in cold water. I've used this same cedatr plank now about 10 or so times, and I'm sure it still has a few more uses in it.

Next, I washed and patted the salmon dry, then sprinkled salt and pepper on both sides, before laying the salmon skin (removed) side down on the cedar plank. I topped the salmon with lemon slices and place over indirect medium heat on the grill for about 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, I made a dill cream sauce for the salmon, one of Pere's favorites. The recipe is as follows:

1 cup light sour cream (I can't taste the difference between light and full fat)
6 tablespoons chopped cornichons
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined. I like making the sauce a few hours ahead and refrigerating it so that the flavors have time to combine.

Once the salmon is done, remove from the plank and serve, spooning some sauce over top. Leaving it on the plank too long will continue the cooking process and could result in dried out fish if you aren't careful. If you plan to leave the salmon on the plank, you may want to pull it off of the grill a few minutes earlier than recommended.

For Catherine's birthday, Pere and I took her and Moody to Zest Spirited Dining for dinner. We had been meaning to try Zest for a while, and Catherine's birthday provided the perfect excuse to go.

When we arrived, our table wasn't quite ready yet, so we decided to have a drink at the bar and look over the menu while we waited. Pere had a Sapphire and tonic, Moody had a Crown Royal Manhattan, and Catherine and I both went with the Zest Fresh, a specialty martini made with gin and citrus crush. The Zest Fresh was pretty good. Nice, smooth, and tart.

After about 10 minutes, our table was ready, and the hostess walked us across the fashionably designed main dining room into a smaller, more intimate back dining room. The location was great because it was away from the hustle and bustle of the large and open main dining room yet it wasn't at all hidden out of the way to the point you felt isolated from the rest of the restaurant. Once seated, our waitress stopped by and dropped off menus as well as a wine list.

The ladies were in the mood for white wine, so we went with a bottle of Luna Pinot Grigio. I also asked for two of the eggplant cheesecake appetizers. I had previously read about the eggplant cheesecake at Zest, and was dying to give it a try. Anticipating how good it might be, I decided we would need two orders to split.

While we waited for the wine to arrive, two more servers showed up. One had water for the table, and the other a plate of lemon and lime slices, which he would place in your water glass upon request. I think it's little touches like this that don't cost the restaurant much at all, but have the potential to really set a restaurant apart.

When our waitress returned, she poured the wine, and brought us a basket of bread. She also took our orders. Catherine ordered the osso buco. Both Pere and Moody went with the domestic lamb shank, which I originally was going to order as well, but once I knew Pere was having it (and I'd get to taste hers), I opted for the rainbow trout, which also sounded interesting.

The wine was good - crisp and slightly fruity, but otherwise unremarkable for a pinot grigio. The bread was good too. There was no butter, but there was olive oil, which went well with the bread's firm texture and crispy crust.

A few minutes later, our eggplant cheesecakes arrived. At first glance, it looked just as you would expect a piece of cheesecake to look. I took one bight and I was hooked. It had almost the same consistency as regular cheesecake, but it was completely savory. It's made from cream cheese, eggplant, eggs, and basil, and topped with a roasted garlic tomato sauce. I swore it also had goat cheese, but I may be wrong. In any case, it was simply amazing. I think this has to be one of the best uses of eggplant I've ever come across.

All entrees come with a house salad served table side. The salad server asked if we would like any mixins included with the basic greens and house citrus vinaigrette. Choices included gorgonzola cheese, pecans, dried cranberries, and oranges. I took all four. I enjoyed the salad, but Pere found it to be a bit too sweet for her taste. She's not a big fan of fruit/sweet ingredients in salad, but I am!

It didn't take long for the food to arrive once we had finished our appetizers. The pace at Zest was steady, but not at all rushed. As I mentioned, Pere and Moody both got the domestic lamb shank. It came wrapped in grape leaves and had been braised in a Syrah tomato sauce and was served over fusilli. It sat on a goat cheese cream sauce with sun dried tomatoes, artichokes and fennel and had another side of "grape feta relish". The lamb was fall off the bone tender (as it should have been from the braising) and had my mouth watering with each bite. I'm a fennel freak, and I really appreciated the balance it added to the dish.

Catherine had the osso buco which was served with a vegetable mirepoix in a Grand Marnier citrus sauce on smashed potatoes. It was also very tender and perfectly cooked. I had a taste and liked it a lot. So much so, that it'll be a toss up between the osso buco (I want to eat every last drop of the marrow from the bone) and the lamb shank.

I saved the description of my entree for last. I was in the mood for something lighter, so I had the rainbow trout which was pan fried with a citrus breading. It came served on crab spinach with a gratin of yukon gold potatoes and was topped with an oyster mushroom and vidalia onion sauce. A hand full of grilled asparagus with chive orange aioli rounded things out. The dish really came together for me. The trout was nice and crispy on the outside and very moist on the inside. The asparagus were especially good having picked up some nice carmelization from the grill. All in all, I was very happy with my choice.

Even though we were all completely full from the meal, we couldn't end the evening without something sweet, so we opted to split the chocolate caramel fondue flamed with Grand Marnier and served with fresh fruits and sweet cakes. When the fondue arrived, it came complete with a small birthday candle. When our waitress presented us with the dessert, she wished Catherine a happy birthday, then told us that the dessert was on her. This was a very nice touch. Normally, I wouldn't order chocolate fondue for dessert as this is something we do (rather well) at home, but it made sense since the four of us wanted to split something. The fondue itself was okay, but not nearly as amazing as everything else we had. It was almost anti-climatic.

I'm very happy I finally got around to visiting Zest. It's the type of restaurant I'd love to have in my neighborhood. If it weren't so far away, I'd definitely make myself a regular there. As it stands, though, it's worth the drive, and I do see myself making the trip out there much more often.

Strange title, I know. One of my favorite snacks is one I tend to have only once a year around the holidays. It's that tri-flavored tin of popcorn that seems to be such a popular gift.

What's so special about a big tin that contains three different flavors of popcorn (butter, cheese, caramel) separated by a cardboard divider you ask? Nothing really, until you pull out the divider and let the three flavors mix! That's right, pull that divider out, put the lid back on, and give that tin a respectable shake. What you'll end up with is a snack that's so wonderfully sweet and salty that you'll wonder why you never tried it before.