Several Random Things.....

First off I am saddened to hear that Solomon's has closed. We only had been there once because Max is only now getting old enough to allow us to go our for the evening. It was one the few places that seemed to be really trying.

I liked their scotch sampler, good single malts at affordable prices. Sheila loved the fact they served Fentiman's tonic water with their gin. This is a tonic water with real substance and flavour.

Discovery Coffee sells Fentiman's cola, lemonade and ginger beer but their supply comes to an end as Solomon Siegel has their supplier. We bought some of each to try them out.

Discovery is currently my favorite place for a coffee, this is primarily because I am really liking some of the beans they are bringing in. I also love the taste of the coffee that comes off of the Clover they use. They are the only people on the Island that I know of that have one. They are currently not available for sale, Starbucks bought the company and took them off of the market making them only available for their own stores.


Via Twitter I was made aware of Culinaire. This is a tasting event on Thursday April 22nd at the Crystal Garden. It is only $20 and I plan on going. Here is the list of who will be there:

• The Bard & Banker Scottish Pub
• Bistro28 Restaurant
• Blue Crab Bar & Grill
• Bon Rouge Bistro & Lounge
• Canoe Brewpub, Marina, Restaurant
• Clives Classic Lounge
• Darcy's Pub
• The Fairmont Empress Resort Hotel
• Fiamo Italian Kitchen
• Haros Restaurant Bar
• Irish Times Pub
• The Local Kitchen
• Neptune Foods
• The Oyster Bar
• Penny Farthing Public House & Liquor Store
• Pescatores Seafood & Grill
• Pig BBQ Joint
• Pink Sugar Cupcakery
• Phillips Brewing Company
• Prime Steak House
• Saltspring Island Brewery
• Sauce Restaurant & Lounge
• Strathcona Hotel
• The Superior Cafe
• The Tapa Bar
• Vancouver Island Brewery
• Vantreight Farms
• Veneto Tapa Lounge
• Vic's Steak House & Bar
• Vista 18 Restaurant

Last thing, I am amazed at the cost of canned dog food. If you are buying anything moderately good it is going to run you between $1.90 to $2.70 for a can of about 350ml. I normally make my own dog food, but over the last eight weeks I have not had the time I needed to make it and we had to buy dog food.

One type I bought was Trippet Green Tripe. The price was reasonable but the stuff is green tripe, something I had never heard of before. Green tripe looks vile and bad, it supposed to be good for your dog, but it REALLY puts me off.

Unwashed (or "green") tripe includes some of the stomach's last content, giving it an unpleasant odor and causing it to be considered unfit for human consumption. However, this content is desirable to dogs and many other carnivores and is often used in pet food. Though it is called "green," because it has a high chlorophyll content a green substrate, in reality it is often grayish brown as a result of other undigested compounds.

Borden's has the best prices I have seen for dog food, much better than the pet stores.

I made my own dog food yesterday, a stew of pork, potatoes, onions, carrots and celery. I ended up making it meat heavy as I was too busy to finish it as planned. I ended up with 16 500ml jars of dog food for a total cost of abotu $16. Buying the same amount of canned dog food would cost me over $50. Over a year I would expect to save over $700 making my own dog food. We feed Louie a mix of wet and dry dog food twice a day.

I find it easy to make dog food, I simply buy the cheapest cut of meet I can find, one with a lot of connective tissue. I slow roast the meat until it pulls apart. I then mix it in a large pot with onions and whatever veg I have that needs to be used. It all stews for a long time. I then fill 500ml jars with the dog food and pressure can it.

Anyway, as I said a bunch of small things and thoughts