2) Bold all of the dishes you’ve eaten–or make them a different type color.
3) Cross out any of them that you’d never ever eat.
4) Consider anything that is not bold or crossed out your “To Do” List.
Schatzi: 1. Venison (Well, in so far as venison applies to any meat that was hunted, I’ve only had elk. But if you also mean simply deer meat, I’ve enjoyed that as well. Good stuff.)
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros (I’ve never ordered it for myself, but had bites of others’—and I did finish someones at the legendary Anthony Lakes Breakfast.)
4. Steak tartare (never in a restaurant or officially prepared, but I do eat a lot of raw beef. And bacon.)
5. Crocodile (I’ve eaten alligator a few times, and I did try a crocodile jerky a friend sent me from Australia.)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue (I can’t wait to own my own fondue pot! In the meantime, I hit up the Berlin Inn for excellent fondue, and Gustav’s for inexpensive fondue.)
8. Carp
9. Borscht (I’d be a terrible Trans-Carpatho Ruthenian if I didn’t love borshch with smetana, and fortunately for me, I do love it. My little sister makes an amazing vegetarian version.)
10. Baba ghanoush (mmmm, garlicky!)
11. Calamari (Only the bar snack version, but I’ve enjoyed it.)
12. Pho (On sick days and hung days Pho Van and Pho Hung save my life.)
13. PB&J sandwich (I am of the school that believes strawberry jam belongs on toast and only toast. Grape and other berries are fine for sandwiches, however.)
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart (The only time I ever have was after getting out of the club in Seattle. I was very drunk and it was delicious.)
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle (I had an amazing truffle ice cream a few years ago.)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes (Blackberry wine when I was housesitting a while back.)
19. Steamed pork buns (I heart manapua. That’s what you mean, right?)
20. Pistachio ice cream (Pistachio anything is wonderful.)
21. Heirloom tomatoes (My roommate Jenni just tried feeding me one of these. I have to say, my deep-rooted loathing of fresh tomatoes remains. She thoroughly enjoyed my reaction.)
22. Fresh wild berries (Fresh huckleberries right off the bush somewhere deep in the Cascades. Why are huckleberries not more popular?)
23. Foie gras (I wish.)
24. Rice and beans (I’m especially fond of red beans and rice, or Cuban-style black beans with rice.)
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (It will probably never happen.)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters (I had my first raw oyster at an oyster farm right outside of Newport. It was fresh out of the water, and I did not enjoy it. I am a barbarian.)
29. Baklava (Love it! My Auntie Cynthia makes amazing baklava.)
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas (Eh, wasabi is not relevant to my interests.)
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl (The last time I tasted clam chowder, I described it as tasting like seagull vomit. I just haven’t found The One, yet. I do enjoy split pea soup in a sourdough bread bowl, however.)
33. Salted lassi (Not a lassi fan, so this will probably not happen, either.)
34. Sauerkraut (Kraut rules.)
35. Root beer float (Also enjoyable is the close cousin Coke float.)
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (While I love cognac, I don’t smoke, so this is unlikely, though I would probably try it.)
37. Clotted cream tea (This makes me think of Anne of Green Gables—I want!)
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O (Both Sewickly’s Addition and Ladd’s have excellent ones.)
39. Gumbo (Does anyone make better gumbo and jambalaya than Letty Leftwich from Louisiana?)
40. Oxtail (My first taste of this was at Pambiche, and I loved it. Right up there with marrow for delicious meaty richness.)
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal (I have a very low heat tolerance, so I don’t want to contemplate this one. I would probably taste it, but cry afterwards.)
44. Goat’s milk (Only goat cheese so far. I do love my goat cheese.)
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more (A swinish ex of mine was house-sitting for his sister and brother-in-law, and we sampled some of the latter’s thirty-two year old Scotch, since Swinish Ex was the same age. He didn’t finish his. I finished them both, but I did not enjoy myself.)
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala (Delicious.)
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut (They are amazing right off the assembly line, and I one day hope to try a Luther. Caveat: After one, they get kind of nasty.)
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi (They come in musubi a lot.)
53. Abalone (The fourth grade English classes read Island of the Blue Dolphins. I’d already read it, so mostly did other things when they read aloud in class. This was right before I was switched to GT. One day, our teacher brought in dried abalone for us to taste because Karana ate abalone. I loved it, but haven’t had it since.)
54. Paneer (I do not like paneer. Sorry.)
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal (I do not eat Big Macs. I think they have mayo on them, and that is not a good thing.)
56. Spaetzle (The Berlin Inn has a spaetzle mac and cheese on the kids’ menu, and it’s not bad. They let grown-ups order it, too.)
57. Dirty gin martini (I don’t touch Mother’s Ruin with a stick—and neither do I drink it.)
58. Beer above 8% ABV (Stronger isn’t always better, of course.)
59. Poutine (I would love to try this. I was always a big fan of Zippy’s French fries and gravy, and I can only imagine that adding cheese to such a combination would
60. Carob chips (Grossocity! I can’t stand carob, after having crappy trailmix and hippie foods forced upon me as a child.)
61. S’mores (In third grade, S’mores were my contribution to a class “cookbook,” largely because they were easy to make and take in to class.)
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (Unless my mother ever fed me kaopektate, I don’t think I have. Or especially want to, not when people in Haiti are living on mud.)
64. Currywurst (The Berlin Inn makes their third appearance here! The wurst sampler they offer includes a curry wurst.)
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake (Elephant ears are a time-honored Portland Zoo and/or Saturday Market tradition. Beignets I’ve only sampled at Newport Bay Sunday brunch, and I’m not sure I’ve tried funnel cake, though it is a fair staple.)
68. Haggis (This is something I honestly do long to try. Do they serve it at the Highland Games? I’ve never made it out there, but I would for haggis.)
69. Fried plantain (Also something I had at Pambiche—and loved. Especially with the banana ketchup. Om nom nom.)
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho (I can’t stand tomato soup in any form. Gag me with a spoon!)
72. Caviar and blini (St Petersburg, here I come!)
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost (I heart cheese, and feel this is something I would enjoy putting in my mouth.)
75. Roadkill (I expect Eli has some recipes for this.)
76. Baijiu (Right up my proverbial alley. I’ve tried soju, so why not?)
77. Hostess Fruit Pie (I am often tempted to buy these when I’m stopping in a mini mart on a road trip, but I feel like they couldn’t live up to my fond childhood memories. Perhaps I should take the plunge—or are things better left as they are?)
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong (It’s not my favorite, but I enjoy it.)
80. Bellini (My Aunt Joanie made these for a party once, using peach sorbet. I can see why they’re so popular.)
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict (Probably my all-time breakfast favorite. My preferred places in PDX—how alliterative!—for bennies are La Provence/Petit Provence, Sanborn’s, and Genie’s.)
83. Pocky (Vastly overrated. I mean, it’s a tasty snack, but Yan Yan > Pocky. It’s a fact, weeaboos.)
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef (It’s like butter. I freaking love it. I’m really anxious to try the Kobe beef corndogs at Rogue.)
86. Hare (Are we counting rabbit? Because bunny is scrumptious! Cute, delectable bunnies everywhere! Especially with white wine and tarragon, or in cacciatore.)
87. Goulash (I’m a sucker for stews, and for Central and Eastern European food.)
88. Flowers (As a child, I was delighted to learn that nasturtiums could be eaten out of hand or in a salad. I’ve since eaten sugared violets and pansies.)
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam (Where am I from? Who eats more Spam than anyone else in the world? I am not ashamed.)
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish (I was surprised by how tasty catfish is.)
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor (This is on our list of things to try making and eating, that or Lobster Newburg. Or both!)
98. Polenta (I just love polenta—aka, pole corn pudding.)
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee (I don’t drink coffee.)
100. Snake
