Not Sober - - Page 10

by Emily

Endless Road Trip Seattle: The Most Powerful, Brouwerful Hour

As loyal ES readers may remember, earlier this year I moved to Austin, Texas from my longtime home of Seattle. Last month I went back home for a visit, and I made it a point to be a food tourist in my hometown and revisit my favorite food and drink experiences of the Emerald City.

Seattle has a pretty intense happy hour culture. Seriously — every bar, restaurant, and coffee shop has some sort of drink or food special going on in the early evening. Why? Probably because it’s so dreary and unappealing outside most of the time, businesses need to drag people out of their cozy apartments by any means possible.

One of my favorite happy hours in Seattle technically isn’t a happy hour at all; it’s Power Hour at Brouwers, an amazingly stocked Belgian beer hall in the pleasantly funky Fremont neighborhood. With 64 beers on draft (almost all local or regional craft brews) and over 300 beers available by the bottle, this place is heaven for beer lovers, especially those seeking out hard-to-find European varieties.

Not only is Brouwers’ booze selection great, but they have a solid food menu. These are no average happy hour bar bites; we’re talking freshly baked pretzels with beer-cheese sauce, Belgian-style mussels, frites with spicy, creamy Dragon Sauce.

Brouwers is also home to some of my favorite sliders ever: Carbonade Sliders, Belgian-braised Kobe beef with bacon and St. Bernardus beer, topped with the aforementioned beer-cheese sauce on a brioche bun. Richest baby sandwiches ever?! Maybe, and perfect when washed down with a strong, sweet ale.

Power Hour can be enjoyed from 3-6pm any day of the week, either inside Brouwers’ cavernous, castle-like inside or their serene outdoor patio. Happy hour pricing or not, this little taste of old Europe is worth a trip outside, rain or shine.

Brouwer’s Cafe / 400 N. 35th St, Seattle, WA 98103 / 11am-2am daily

in Drinks 0 comments

by hungry monster

Attack of the Oreo…Cocktails!

I’ve never been one of those people who can’t say no. I have no problem saying it.

{In school}

Can you copy my test? I think not.

Lunch money? Ain’t got none (clearly our school system is failing).

{As an adult}

Need help moving? I’m busy that day.

Oh, I also can’t help you paint your house. I got a thing.

Yeah, I can’t babysit your kid ’cause I don’t wanna.

Your birthday is coming up? I’m no good at cakes.

Also, I have given to a charity already this year, so not today, seedy people who approach me at the gas station.

Yeah, there’s a lot more stuff to say no to as an adult. But, when your co-worker of 5-plus years asks you to make some of your “very delicious Oreo truffles, pleeeaaasse” for her son’s wedding on a budget…sometimes you gotta suck it up and say yes.

Months go by and I’m dreading it and dreading it. Ugh. Today is the day. OK, so I’m gearing up to make a million truffles, but clearly I need to make a stop at the liquor store to get through this madness. I texted my brother updating him on my situation. Then he said the best thing ever.

by Twin Tastes

Cocktail O’Clock: Spiked Coconuts

Sitting in the sand, we sipped our spiked coconuts while sampling grilled mussels, pulled pork tacos, and assorted kebabs, and taking in the vast ocean views. Yep, coconut is yet another food that’s even better with booze.

The best thing about this beverage is that it’s beach-friendly: it can rest upright in the sand without tipping or getting sandy inside. Also, even if you’re not at the beach, one strawful of the subtly sweet spiked juice transplants you to a coastal town on the South Atlantic Ocean.

Directions:

Using a small drill bit or screwdriver, punch a hole through the exterior of the coconut until you reach the center. Insert a small funnel into the hole and pour 1 shot of vodka inside. Cap with a small cork or whittled piece of wood, and refrigerate. The longer you let the coconuts steep, the stronger!

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by Katt Kasper

Freaks and Philosophers

I’ve recently discovered that alcohol brings out the philosopher in some, the freak in others. After a long night of tasting and comparing the virtues of different single-barrel bourbons with a small group of friends, the discussion turned to favorite erotic movie scenes, and then onto which past or present celebrity we’d like to spend an active evening with. After we debated each individual’s choice, one of my freaks…err, friends came up with the following philosophical question: If you could go all American Pie on one dessert, what would it be?

Yeah, that was a show stopper for sure, but after we all acted out our best “Oh, that’s disgusting!” response, the bourbon kicked in and a heated round table discussion ensued. The women, it should be noted, requested to use produce instead of dessert items, but we made them adhere to the dessert protocol.

The following is a list of our top five desserts for both the men and women in my twisted little group. I’ve added my own highly researched opinion of the type of person or personality that would be likely to choose each selection.

For the men:

#1. Warm cherry pie (High school virgin)
#2. Two, deep-dish fruit pies (A pie threesome? Bragger/Porn star wannabe)
#3. Cream-filled sponge cake (I’m assuming the cake was filled with cream prior to the act, so I’ll say someone who has been in a long-term relationship)
#4. A large Jell-O mould (Possible necrophiliac)
#5. Freshly baked tunnel-of-fudge cake (I’m not even going to comment on THIS one)

For the women:

in Desserts / Lists / Personal 0 comments

by bakersroyale

Endless Poptails: Orange Creamsicles

Competing against the fruit based poptails this week is an ice cream based poptail. Remember those orange creamsicles when you were a kid–bright sugar glowing orange on the outside and ice cream on the inside around the stick?

I’m here this week to bring back that bit of nostalgia with an adult twist, but without any adult complication.

In staying that with that theme, I skipped the sheathing or any swirling or layering finishing effect for a 1 bowl, 3 ingredient, simple-style poptail. That’s right I threw the chopped up Valencia oranges, vanilla ice cream and Marshmallow vodka all into a food processor bowl and pulse, whirl, pour – done. It’s spot on like the orange creamsicle but with a heavy hint of booziness.

Parting note: Forget the napkins, popsicle drips are best wiped away by using the front of your shirt -just ask any kid.

Orange Creamsicle Poptails

in Desserts / Endless Ice Cream / Endless Poptails / Recipe 3 comments

by BS

Gratuitous Adult Milkshake Porn of the Day

I just realized if I post this, it will be our third story in a row about mixing sweet treats and booze. Clearly, I’m continuing.

This beauty of a bourbon-spiked shake is brought to you by Puccini & Pinetti in San Francisco.

Screw you, Monday. Is it milkshake o’clock yet?

Vanilla Bourbon Shake

6oz. vanilla gelato
1.5 oz. bourbon of choice
3-4oz. whole milk

Blend all to desired thickness.

More: Milkshakes Gone Wild!

in Desserts / Drinks / Endless Cocktails / Recipe 1 comments

by bakersroyale

Endless Poptails: Melon Berry Diablo

When someone tells you your food is “interesting,” is that the equivalent of being told you look homely?

It’s a shitty statement to make about someone’s food. And I had a pissed off look to follow after being told my cocktail popsicles were “interesting.” Maybe I’m too defensive—I know food is subjective. But I still felt like shoving this popsicle in the guy’s face and asking him how interesting that way.

What he labeled interesting was this tequila-based, honeydew-body popsicle, which is mixed with ginger beer and softly stirred with a raspberry cassis syrup, turning the classic Diablo cocktail into an Endless Simmer Poptail classic that is anything but just “interesting.”

Melon Berry Diablo Poptail

in Desserts / Endless Poptails / Featured / Recipe 3 comments