Dining @ Chang’s

Pat and I had dinner at Peter Chang’s China Grill tonight. We had stopped there on a whim Thursday, because we were both late at work and wouldn’t be able to prepare a reasonable meal; not knowing that reservations were needed, we couldn’t get a table that night. So, we made a reservation for tonight.

We arrived a couple of minutes late, only to learn that we had the wrong time in our calendars. Not a problem! We had it early, so we were not late. We were just a couple of minutes early! As Pat and hostess discussed this, pouring over the reservation list, I nosed around the dining area.

Then we were seated in a booth. As often happens, we’d forgotten to carry in our sets of metal chopsticks. Sigh.

The menu had many dishes we remembered from our two meals at Taste of China, Mr. Chang’s previous venture in Charlottesville. There were only two of us, though, so we couldn’t order everything on the menu, even if we were skipping the mammal and fowl. We ordered coriander fish rolls, dry-fried eggplant, braised bean curd with vegetables, and Hunan fried fish. Wooohoo!

Food came to the table quickly, and it was delightful. Oh yes, the eggplant was spicy, as was the fish. I liked the spiciness a lot more than Pat did, but she was going back for more and following bites with lots of rice to absorb the spices. The bean curd had complex flavors, but I could still taste the individual onion, bok choi, and such in it. I had a fine time over-indulging.

Prices were pretty reasonable: $6-10 for apetizers; $10-18 for entrees (with a couple of higher items). I didn’t see the wine list, but it appears there is wine served.

The venue is the old Wild Greens location in the north wing of Barracks Road shopping center. The large bar that dominated the entry room is gone, making room for many more tables. By my rough count, there are nine or ten 2- or 4-top booths (we were at A2, which is in the lower, western room), a few other small tables, a dozen or so 4-top largish square tables (we saw a group of five seated at one), and perhaps five large 8-top tables with lazy susans at their centers (these reminded us of banquet tables we have seen in Asia).

Although the dining room was not full, the receptionist was turning away walk-in guests. According to our waitron, the ownership wants to get control of the schedule before having to deal with a full dining room that is turning over rapidly. Pat noted that they are likely to have to handle such a situation; they will need to get ready quickly unless they irritate enough customers that the clientele disappears. After we got home, I learned that there have been features on local television as well as a the Hook piece.

As I walked around the dining area, peeking into the hall toward the kitchen entrance and such, I didn’t see the array of certificates and medals that I remember from the wall when Chef Chang cooked at Taste of China in Albemarle Square. I don’t know whether they are hidden in an office, just not on display yet, not going to be displayed, or what….

Zincing

Pat had the local chicken last night at Zinc. She said, “Yum.”

I had excellent tomato soup and tuna.

Justin et al. done gooood.

Pat eats meat!

We are dining at Zinc tonight. Some will note that there was a feature in Edible Blue Ridge recently about folks raising pigs for local restaraunts. Pat, who doesn’t usually eat meat, ordered a bit of ‘Doobie,’ one of those pigs for dinner.

The first photo shows her preparing to tuck into the dish. The second shows Zinc proprieter Vu Nguyen sitting with Pat during her first bites.

The idea is simple. Coordinate the entire process from production through serving of food. The local team includes Jarrett Freeman and chef Justin Hershey.

Vu says, “Jarret was the developer of our version of the concept. He deserves the credit.” He also characterizes the Zinc approach as, “Seasonally inspired, locally acquired.”

Read the EBR article. Eat at Zinc.

---

HB, J. Child

It’s Julia Child’s birthday again. Had she lived, she’d be turning 98 today. Ms. Child’s mother, Julia Carolyn McWilliams, who lived with John McWilliam in Pasadena (CA, US), named her daughter after herself. The younger Julia later married Paul Child in 1946 and took his last name. When Mr. Child was assigned to a United States Foreign Service post in Paris (FR), they moved there and Ms. Child learned about French cooking.

It was Ms. Child’s “The French Chef” that made me think cooking could be not only rewarding but fun and intellectually engaging, too. Pat and I would watch it on our old B&W TV and then cook things we’d seen her make. Our menus were not grand (chili beans with souffle and salad!), but I got the general ideas of the recipes and the nerve to try them.

Our friends Alan and Diane shared our interest in fine food and gave us Mastering the Art of French Cooking (both volumes). Another friend, Jim, edited the title, replacing “cooking” with “kissing.” We still use them.

It’s wonderful to see that sales of Ms. Child’s cookbooks have increased recently. Those increased sales are the result of renewed interest because of the movie, Julie & Julia. I’ve not yet read Julie Powell’s book Julie & Julia, based on her blog, Julie/Julia Project. A few days before I drafted this post, we saw a trailer for the movie based on the book. And then we saw the film the day it opened (7 August).

PZ’s wit bites another one

In “The Work of the Devil,” PZ Myers explains why some folks who write blog entries get hate mail.

It’s a strange, weird world out there. I get hate mail all the time, but you know me — I’m mean and cruel and I don’t hesitate to pull out the sharp, sharp knives of unkind rhetoric. Other people get hate mail, too, and here’s one that made me laugh and laugh (which is also really mean, since I’m not the recipient.)

rameniac

Rickmond Wong has a Web site called “rameniac” devoted to ramen. I knew that there was a lot of variation in this noodle dish and, because of Tampopo, that folks sometimes go pretty deeply into the subject. Mr. Wong has gone way far. This is a fun and informative food site.