
Yes, it is another internet “community” but you don’t have to live there to enjoy the 200 food and drink specials.
Who’s your Dining Mama now!

I will state this; there was no lull in the conversation the whole evening, but then, I’m loquacious by nature. Juliette and I are pretty diverse in age, background etc.: she is a young modern whose parents were writers and I’m a modern senior whose parents were retailers. Her husband is an architect, handy around the house changing the environment and my husband is a flea market aficionado who takes 4 hour naps on weekends. We are from different worlds but our glue, our link together, is a passion for food.
Juliette and I decided to go with two soups: Spicy Corn Soup with Crab with grilled corn salsa and chive/cilantro cream ($7) and Chilled Melon Soup with cream fraiche, almonds and chives ($5). We ordered two appetizers as well: Sautéed Shrimp with fava beans, chorizo, pearl onions and red pepper reduction ($13) and the Tuna and Avocado Tartare ($12). Our big plate choice was Duck Two-Ways with a rendered duck breast, spicy duck spring roll, kohlrabi two-ways, tamarind, Korean chili sauce ($24).
Aaah ha, the shrimp and tuna tartare arrived. My photo of the tuna tartare was blurry, so I hope Juliette’s story has a better picture. I have had the tuna tartare at Bicycle before when Barry Rumsey was chef, and I remember it as okay. I believe Chef Batey has put a bit more spice to the accoutrements and I liked it.
As the guests on the patio thinned out and the dark of a lovely evening set upon us, our waitress, delivered our Duck 2-ways. It was artfully split on two plates by the kitchen so we didn’t have to break it up at the table – scoring big points on service.
I was quite shocked when Chef Barry Rumsey and his wife, Deborah Mazzoleni, decided to sell there very popular, highly recognized restaurant, Bicycle. It seems the urban life wasn’t for them anymore, so they packed up the family and moved to Oregon selling Bicycle to Chef Nicholas Batey.
It was a friend’s birthday party, it was a crab feast, and it was under a tent in the same location where Julia Child had her first crabs (and I was there). This stirred a conversation about all the current hoopla about Julia being OSS in World War II. If you have read anything about Julia Child, the fact that she was with the OSS was not a secret: although, it is news to the general populous as certain documents from the war have become unclassified.My grandmother treated me to my first taste of the pomegranate’s juicy seeds that are squished together, side-by-side, like the audience at Jonas Brothers concert. I love tart/sour flavors tempered with sweet (lemonade, mojito) but I don’t like sweet and sour concoctions like a red barbecue sauce or sweet and sour chicken – too cloyingly sweet for my taste.
Like a matador challenging the bull with a red cape the bottle of Pama has been sitting on my counter, tempting and teasing me to get started. So I did.
Recipe Development
I wanted all the flavor profiles of the tongue to be engaged: sweet, salty, bitter and sour along with a fat that would enhance the longevity of the flavor on the tongue. My end goal was to come up with a glaze/sauce for chicken and pork. I created three recipes, similar but not the same.
Recipe One – Pama Dessert Syrup
1 cup Pama Liqueur
1 tsp honey
1 tsp Asian fish sauce
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp Dijon mustard
3 sprigs fresh thyme
½ Tbsp unsalted butter
Combine the Pama Liqueur, honey, Asian fish sauce, ground black pepper, Dijon mustard in a medium-small saucepan and mix so the honey and Dijon mustard evenly disperse. Add the fresh sprigs of thyme. Turn the burner up to high and let the mixture reduce to ¼ cup. Remove the thyme sprigs and stir in the butter. As the mixture cools it will thicken. Refrigerate once it comes to room temperature
In tasting the finished product I couldn’t help thinking this would delicious over vanilla ice cream or drizzled on pancakes/waffles. It would be good on chicken and pork as well but this still tends to be a bit tarter and the ice cream is a perfect foil.
Recipe Two – Pama Glaze and Sauce
1 cup Pama Liqueur
2 tsp honey
2 tsp Asian fish sauce
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, smashed
3 sprigs fresh thyme
½ Tbsp unsalted butter
Combine the Pama Liqueur, honey, Asian fish sauce, ground black pepper, Dijon mustard in a medium-small saucepan and mix so the honey and Dijon mustard evenly disperse. Add the smashed clove of garlic and fresh sprigs of thyme. Turn the burner up to high and let the mixture reduce to ¼ cup. Remove the garlic and thyme sprigs and stir in the butter. As the mixture cools it will thicken. Refrigerate once it comes to room temperature
The garlic and increase on a selection of other ingredients really added a depth of flavor, much more savory and ideal for saucing and glazing chicken, duck and pork.
Recipe Three – Pama Dressing Syrup
1 cup Pama Liqueur
2 tsp honey
2 tsp Asian fish sauce
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, smashed
3 sprigs fresh thyme
This is the same recipe as number two with 2 changes:
1. reduce to ½ a cup
2. eliminate the butter
Combine the Pama Liqueur, honey, Asian fish sauce, ground black pepper, Dijon mustard in a medium-small saucepan and mix so the honey and Dijon mustard evenly disperse. Add the smashed clove of garlic and fresh sprigs of thyme. Turn the burner up to high and let the mixture reduce to 1/2 cup. Remove the garlic and thyme sprigs and let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate once it comes to room temperature.
Use this as a substitute for vinegar for a salad dressing. I would use two parts oil (extra virgin or canola oil) to one part Pama syrup. Think arugula or mesclun greens with goat cheese and nuts for your salad. You can also use this as a bread dipper by adding it to a dish of extra virgin olive oil. When the syrup separates from the oil, let it.
*****
In the end, I had about a shot of Pama left over, so I did what any pomegranate lover would do and enjoyed the Pama straight up.


When I crave anything BLT, I have Laurent Tourondel’s new cookbook, Bistro Laurent Tourondel and have prepared his pho recipe. The recipes for Lemongrass Rock Shrimp Risotto and Cornish Hen Diablo have caught my eye and seem perfect for entertaining. The recipes are not for beginners but are doable for the cooking enthusiast.