Life’s twin pleasures: mac’n'cheese
Lately I’ve been having lunch quite often at Pamela’s Fine Foods at 607 Stewart (6th & Stewart), a deli so fine that I can hardly believe it’s in downtown Seattle. (Oh, we have some nice delis here, just not many.) They don’t just slap together pre-cut meats and cheeses on slabs of bread at Pamela’s. Instead, they make many of their food items by hand and those that they don’t are the finest quality ingredients out there. Besides sandwiches (all the usual and some in-house specials, including the best Reuben I’ve had since I moved back home from a stay on the East Coast*
Their soups are excellent–fully flavored and simultaneously hearty enough to be a stand-alone lunch and yet not overwhelming as an accompaniment to a sandwich–and their chili is definitely my Seattle favorite, spicy and sweet and thick.
Today I decided to try their mac’n'cheese. I should note here that I am somewhat of a self-styled connoisseur of mac’n'cheese. While I adore spicy hot food, my chronic digestive issues often lead me to blander fair. Since mac’n'cheese is one of those foods that when done right is both flavorful and soothing, I’ve made a point of seeking out the best of it out there. Until today I would have given the title of “Best Mac’n'Cheese in Seattle” to Café Venus down on Eastlake, but after the four cheese and toasted crumbed wonder served with grilled garlic bread that is Pamela’s mac’n'cheese offering, I may have to take that title away.
*In the course of looking of Pamela’s address, I discovered that I Heart Seattle agrees about the Reuben.
the best mac and cheese is the kind you make yourself. here are a few recipes (including our own) from a recent cookoff we had. we’ll have to check out Pamela’s and Cafe Venus to see how their recipes compare.
http://spanning-time.blogspot.com/2006/12/cheezening-in-review.html
I second the Cafe Venus Mac N Cheese. It is awesome. However the last couple of times I’ve had it something was different and it wasn’t as good as it used to be. Maybe a different chef… Good idea, maybe I will try making my own. I’ve never done that.