Category Archives: Restaurants

Places I’ve eaten in, worked in, or read about.

Cooking as comfort: Ribollita

Posted on June 7, 2020 by warmkn

I wasn’t sure whether or not to write a post this week but silence didn’t feel right. I don’t have words that might inspire or illuminate, but I do want to acknowledge the tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, … Continue reading →

Posted in Recipes, Restaurants | 4 Comments

Dive bar or neighborhood tavern?: Iowa tavern sandwiches

Posted on February 8, 2020 by warmkn

You’ve just gotta listen to this week’s music video.  Blake Shelton Garth Brooks, Dive Bar I ate my first enchilada in the late 60s at the Half Moon Inn. The Half Moon, three dramas short of a dive bar, was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Restaurants, Travel | 2 Comments

Sound Food, the beginning: Chocolate Mousse Pie

Posted on February 1, 2020 by warmkn

Crosby, Stills, Nash, Teach Your Children A girl can always use a little money of her own. It was 1973, I was bored, new to Vashon, and wanted a job. Choices were slim—my previous work history consisted of picking currants for … Continue reading →

Posted in Family and friends, Recipes, Restaurants, Sound Food | 2 Comments

1979, 1989, 2019: Remembering

Posted on August 31, 2019 by warmkn

Charles Aznavour, Ne Me Quitte Pas Seems as if friend-making years occur when we are the busiest: during college, on our first jobs, when we’re young couples, or as playdate Moms. The Sweetie and I are lucky to have friends we … Continue reading →

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Japan and Gypsy’s: Inauthentic Fried rice

Posted on April 13, 2019 by warmkn

Eddie Raven, Bayou Boys  I assumed that my first food experience in Wichita Falls would be something Texan—barbecue, Mexican, Tex Mex, or Roadhouse. My Sunday plan was to take the downtown bus to the Gypsy Kit Cafe (eclectic Mexican/Asian/Cajun food, Cajun … Continue reading →

Posted in Recipes, Restaurants, Travel | 3 Comments

Make ‘em laugh: Caramel sauce

Posted on March 2, 2019 by warmkn

Bruce Springsteen, “I’m on Fire” Give a tribe of mostly twenty-something male misfits access to sharp knives, hot oil, and fire, add a healthy dose of cruel, X-rated humor and you have a restaurant kitchen—what could possibly go wrong. In … Continue reading →

Posted in Restaurants | 3 Comments

Jon: Lebanese cabbage rolls

Posted on January 19, 2019 by warmkn

  My son Jon was born smiling. He seldom cried; he slept through the night and loved his big sister from the start. As a rambunctious three year old, he delighted in storming in to Ed and Sophie’s house see … Continue reading →

Posted in Family and friends, Recipes, Restaurants | 3 Comments

A Christmas Caper: Pumpkin Bars

Posted on December 22, 2018 by warmkn

 Henry Mancini, Pink Panther Dennis gave me a key to Stratton’s back door so I could go in early to prep for Sunday brunch—I hated brunch. You would be hard-pressed to find a restaurant cook who doesn’t hate brunch: the … Continue reading →

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Over the River: Gene Stratton’s mother’s cranberry relish

Posted on November 24, 2018 by warmkn

“Cooking up something good,” Matt Demarco Dennis, the Chef at Stratton’s, worked hard to develop and execute a top-quality “Continental” menu, using the best ingredients and CIA-grade culinary techniques, but was not particularly interested in creating new dishes, securing a … Continue reading →

Posted in Recipes, Restaurants | 1 Comment

You can run, but you cannot hide: Hickory-smoked black bean soup

Posted on November 17, 2018 by warmkn

Light My Fire, The Doors It was late and I was tired. The dining room was empty, the servers were tipping out at the bar, the floor manager had been fed, the bussers were piling dirty dishes into plastic tubs, … Continue reading →

Posted in Recipes, Restaurants | 4 Comments