Bistro de Leon Thanksgiving

I love St. Augustine's newest French bistro. I won't be able to go there for their Thanksgiving day feast, but if you don't want to cook here's the skinny on it:

Join Chef Jean-Stephane Poinard at the Bistro de Leon for Thanksgiving Dinner on Thursday, November 27. Choose from 2 seatings: 1:00pm and 4:00pm. Valerie and Chef Poinard will be serving the following menu as they COOK FOR YOU SO YOU CAN ENJOY THE DAY WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS.

THANKSGIVING DINNER $30/pp (children ½ price $15)

1:00 AND 4:00 SEATINGS

Thanksgiving Turkey OR Pineapple Pork Tenderloin
French stuffing with sausage and mushrooms
Mashed Potatoes
Carrot Cumin Flan
Tomato Provencale
Sweet Potatoes Gratin
Cranberry Relish

Optional Specialty Desserts ($5.95)

Apple Tarte Tatin with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
Poached Pear
Pecan Tart

Reservations Suggested!

Special Take Out:

Order Thanksgiving Dinner to Take Out by November 20 and receive a 10% discount on your order for Take-Out Only~


Bistro de Leon

12 Cathedral Place
St. Augustine
www.bistrodeleon.com
(904) 810-2100

Just came from the MySpace Jax Foodies October meeting. The theme was disgusting or strange foods.

The picture above is a durian fruit. A very stinky fruit from far away, but as you bring it closer to your nose (I swear) it's less stinky and more fruity. Doesn't taste bad, and it's almost creamy.

We also had 1,000 year old eggs, which aren't actually 1,000 years old. But they do look and smell fairly awful once you get the shell off. It looks a bit like a black jelly. Only one person was brave enough to try it, and she said that it tasted the wya it smelled--which, to my nose was pretty bad.

I brought kim chee from Koja Sushi, probably the best place to get it in town.

Plenty of other stuff we tried, but those were the strangest highlights.

Deep Fried Turkey Goodness!

There's nothing like a deep fried turkey. It is so darn good, I just can't express how moist and crisp it is at the same time!

But it's a bit messy and can be a little dangerous. Copeland's Famous New Orleans Restaurant and Bar is selling Cajun Fried Turkeys all throughout November and December. A 12-14 pound turkey costs about $50, not unreasonable when you consider that all the equipment needed, plus the raw turkey and the oil will run you at least $100.

I've not ordered one of these before from Copelands but am seriously thinking about ordering one if I have to hold Thanksgiving here.

To get more information about Copeland's Cajun Fried Turkeys, please contact Copeland's at 998-4414, or visit copelandsjacksonville.com

Banana Bread Variations

Lots of ideas to get you started in the quest to make new and exciting banana breads...

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1108778/banana_bread_variations.html?cat=22

Dish Update

Joining a host of other area restaurants, Zaitoon Mediterranean Grill (13475 Atlantic Blvd. Intracoastal. 904 221-7066) will be participating in the upcoming “Dining Out for Life” charity event on April 24th. Dining Out For Life was created by an ActionAIDS volunteer in Philadelphia. In 1993, ActionAIDS made it an international event offering licenses to AIDS Service Organizations around the country. Since Dining Out for Life International's founding the event has grown throughout North America and is now produced in over 46 cities. Each eatery involved gives a portion of their profit towards AIDS research. Go to diningoutforlife.com, for a list of additional participating restaurants.
If you have a favorite family coffeecake recipe and you’d also like a little r&r, take enter the Inn on Charlotte’s (52 Charlotte Street, St. Augustine) Coffeecake Challenge recipe contest. The grand prize winner will get a 2-night stay at the Inn on Charlotte (Sunday thru Thursday excluding holiday periods), gourmet lunch for two and Claude’s Chocolates – exquisite European chocolates made in St. Augustine. The prize-winning recipe will be incorporated into the gourmet breakfast menu that is served to Inn guests and be prominently featured on the Inn’s website. Visit innoncharlotte.com for official rules and entry. Entries must be received by June 15th.

Dish Update

If you want a base of cooking knowledge that you’re sure to use, don’t miss Apron’s Cooking School’s (10500 San Jose Blvd. 904-262-4187) hands-on Mother Sauces Course, held on April 7th at 6 pm. You’ll learn the composition of the archetypal sauces, so that you can have fun with variations of these five “mother” sauces. And if things don’t go exactly as planned, you’ll have the knowledge to fix sauce mistakes. The menu will be: Espanole – Mushroom Demi-Glace over Egg Noodles; Béchamel and Tomato – Pastitsio; Béarnaise – Veal Oscar Medallions; Veloute – Chicken Picatta

The Fairgrounds get fancy on April 5th for the Cowford Ball(904-398-0537), a large annual fundraiser for the Duval County Unit of the American Cancer Society. Gourmet food will be served. Expect live entertainment, auctions and dancing.

Dining Advice

So I'm hoping to launch a new Q & A advice section for my paper. Readers can present their food quandaries or dining etiquette questions.

Anyone can email a question in at jacksonvilledish@gmail.com

I will post them here from time to time! Here's my first question and my answer:

Q: My husband and I are going to the Jacksonville area for our anniversary this weekend. I am intrigued by the Tapas restaurants. There is nothing like them around here. Is it considered rude to eat at one of these establishments if you don't drink?

A: You're not obligated to drink anything anywhere, even at a wine bar. Even though waiters love lushes (because the price of alcohol drives up the bill price and their tip) as the customer, the staff is serving at your pleasure. If you're worried about what the people dining with you think, most of the time as long as you don't make a big deal about it, they won't. If they do, they're the one being rude. A person who doesn't know you might be curious and ask why, but that's no reason for you to fret. What you do or don't drink is your choice, whatever the reason. Just an FYI though, call ahead to find out what you’ll be drinking. Non-alcoholic beverages are often limited at a tapas place, so you might be drinking water.

If you have any dining questions for Dish, email us at JacksonvilleDish@gmail.com