Thursday, March 26, 2009

Favorite Cuisine

The question came up at work, "If you could only eat the cuisine of one ethnic group, which would it be?" A few people said Mexican, one said Italian and one said Japanese. I thought about it for a while and then answered "Irish." I got some funny looks, but I stand firm that is my favorite.

I don't like spicy foods and I'm hit or miss on fish. However, I have never met an Irish dish I didn't like. The first time I was ever in a real Irish pub was in San Diego. Most Irish pubs aren't really Irish. They are just pubs that have Guinness on tap.

I found a real Irish pub here in Seattle called "Fado" which is Gaelic for "long ago." How do I determine if it is real or not? Easy. If they serve my favorite dish, boxty.

Boxty is a potato pancake that is rolled like a crepe. You roll it like a burrito and fill it with different things. Here are your choices at Fado, for example:

Trinity Steak Boxty
Grilled steak, sauteed mushrooms, and onions rolled in our own boxty topped with a whiskey-garlic sauce. Served with seasonal vegetables.

Corned Beef and Cabbage Boxty
Corned beef, buttered cabbage, and a creamy mustard sauce wrapped in a potato boxty. Served with seasonal vegetables.

Blackened Chicken and Shrimp Boxty
With tomatoes and mushrooms in a spicy cheese sauce. Served with seasonal vegetables.


I had the trinity steak and it was awesome.

In case you doubt Irish cuisine has other great foods, here are just a few examples from the Fado menu:

Appetizers - Béaloga

Smithwick’s Mini-Burgers
Two Smithwick’s ale flavored beef burgers with pickles, onions and melted cheese.

Guinness BBQ Wings
A dozen extra plump wings tossed in our own Guinness BBQ sauce. Served with blue cheese and celery. Also available tossed in hot sauce.

Cheese Dip And Wedges
A creamy blend of Irish cheddar, pepper jack cheese and green onion served with boxty wedges for dipping.

Traditional Fare- Bia Traidisiúnta

Homemade Shepherd’s Pie
Ground sirloin and diced vegetables in a rich beef sauce, topped with colcannon.

Corned Beef and Cabbage
Tender corned beef topped with a creamy white wine-mustard sauce. Served with red-potatoes and buttered cabbage.

Bangers and Mash
Irish pork sausages on colcannon with a savory onion gravy and peas.

All-Day Irish Breakfast
Two eggs, two Irish sausages, two rashers, two black puddings, two white puddings, two tomatoes, mushrooms and pan fried potato bread.

Grilled Pub Steak and Chips
A tender flat iron steak grilled to order with a red-wine sauce, mushrooms, broiled bleu cheese, tomatoes and thick-cut chips.

Desserts- Milseog

Black and Tan Brownie with Guinness Ice Cream
A warm, rich chocolate brownie topped with home-made Guinness Ice Cream, whipped cream, pecans and chocolate sauce.

Harvest Bread Pudding
A flavorful pudding with apples, cinnamon, sugar and walnuts topped with our own brown bread ice cream.

Brown Bread Ice Cream
A blend of vanilla ice cream and caramelized brown bread topped with whipped cream and caramel sauce.

Fadó Irish Coffee
Cleanse your palate with an age-old recipe. The Fadó signature drink features Bushmills Irish Whiskey, brown sugar, coffee, and fresh whipped cream with cinnamon swirls.

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