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67 of 67 found the following review helpful:
Amazing kitchen resource as well as a great guide to Seattle Jun 23, 2001
By mirope
"mirope"
Point number one: As a Seattlite, Tom Douglas' three fabulous restaurants have always been among my favorites. I'm thrilled to have the recipes for all my favorite dishes - Lobster Potstickers, Tuscan Bread Salad and Cornbread Pudding, just to name a few. And then there is the world's most amazing dessert: Triple Coconut Cream Pie. I don't particularly care for coconut, but I'd walk miles for a bite of this marvel. Whenever visitors come to town, we inevitably take them to the Dahlia Lounge and insist, no matter how loud their protests, that they at least try a bite. Without fail, they, too, become converts. Trust me on this. Douglas' recipes are well-written and adapted for the home cook. He does a great job of explaining off-beat ingredients and preparations. Where appropriate, he even includes photos of how to tackle some of the more unusual preparations that make his recipes even easier to follow. Point number two: Not only does Douglas give you his best recipes in this book, but he has also written what should be considered a mandatory guidebook to visitors and newcomers to Seattle. Douglas generously mentions most of the other great restaurants in town and tells you when to go and what to order. His description of the local markets is so comprehensive, it should be mandatory reading for every new cook who comes to town. Clearly, this man loves Seattle, and he wants to share all the best of it with his readers.
28 of 28 found the following review helpful:
Outstanding! Nov 26, 2001
By leosam116
"leosam116"
Amazon featured Thanksgiving recipes from Tom Douglas' book last week, and the three I tried made me and my family believers in this man's genius! His Red Bliss Mashers were my sister's fave dish of the day, even though she usually won't eat mashed potatoes made with anything more complex than butter and salt. The Cranberry Chutney with Dried Apricots and Currants was a tangy delight, even for a die-hard jellied cranberry sauce lover like myself. But the star of the meal was the Spice-Rubbed Turkey -- Tom's delectable spice rub that married brown sugar and cinnamon with paprika and cayenne pepper guaranteed that there wasn't much leftover turkey! Excellent recipes with explanations that even newbie cooks like me can follow -- now I'm going to buy the book! Outstanding!
22 of 22 found the following review helpful:
Already my favorite cookbook Jan 16, 2001
By M. Neilson
"parent of two young girls"
As a huge fan of Etta's & the Dahlia Lounge, I couldn't have imagined being able to create meals as wonderful as the ones they serve. Yet, every meal I have prepared from this book has been incredible and I continue to receive compliments from those I've made them for. The book is chock-full of great preparation, shopping, and other cooking tips. It includes the simple timing and other how-to's lacking in many cookbooks. Further, it manages to fuse various ethnic styles in a way that is actually do-able if you are not a culinary expert.
18 of 18 found the following review helpful:
 Get the Book Sep 26, 2003
By Jadepearl
"geezer geek"
It has taken me awhile to write a review for this book due to the fact that I have been testing as many recipes as possible and while in Seattle compared the restaurant version with the home version. The verdict is: Get the book. The recipes are very easily done in a standard home kitchen and they are the recipes of the restaurants in question. If there is a flavor difference it is easily explained by the author such as, the restaurant version of the salmon rub uses smoked paprike (very hard to get) while the home uses the sweet variety. The book reflects a deep love of Seattle and is informative in a chatty way. I think though, for the Asian food information sections you may want a little more depth with Bruce Cost's book on Asian ingredients. For the experienced cook this is a great book to have on the shelf showing a fusion of traditional and international influences in the menu. For those looking for soemthing in between a beginner's and a hardcore pro level this book is excellent. People at my various parties and catering gigs have loved the food prepared from this book and it has achieved the status of favorite on the shelf. It is approachable in tone, style and technique. It is also helpful that he provides a supplier section for those hard to get items like kazu. The fish section maybe a no go for some people due to freshness issues but the section on grilling/barbecuing is nice and the dry brine method for roast chicken was very reliable. All the side dishes were easily done as well with a standard grocery store available. Recommended highly and I look forward to his next work.
17 of 18 found the following review helpful:
This man is a genius Mar 19, 2001
By Dan Taylor
I first experienced Tom's cooking at the Dahlia Lounge about 3 years ago, and I was completely blown away. Visit after visit, meal after meal, his dishes always suprise and amaze me. His imagination with regards to food is incredible. The menu changes constantly and I think it just keeps getting better. But this is a review of his book... All of the recipes that have made all three of his restaurants famous are here. The thing that suprised me is that he is completely open with his "trade secrets". He's like a magician that can't wait to explain to you how to perform his trick, because he loves the magic that much: he wants everyone to be able to do it. And all the recipes work, too! I've made about 20 different thing from this book, and not one of them hasn't turned out perfectly. His style of writing is very accessable. And for the seattle resident, there is the bonus of a complete list of where to find all the best ingredients. A priceless book.
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