Le's Chinese Bar-B-Que is a little hole in the wall "restaurant" located at 1600 2nd Avenue
just north of downtown Des Moines. I call it a restaurant loosely because there are a couple of tables in there but no chairs and I've never seen anyone there eating. Their business card says "Dine in & Carry out", but if you're going to dine in you'd better bring your own seat. What Le's lacks in ameneties though it makes up for with great bar-b-que. Not typical midwest bar-b-que though. No ribs, beans & slaw at this bar-b-que joint. What Le's does feature and specialize in is Chinese or more specifically Vietnamese bar-b-que pork and duck.
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Hello again. Sorry your wine and food guy has been so slack but I've got this baby you see... O.K. no excuses. But look at this girl. Two months old today. She was 6 lb. 13 oz. and 19 1/2" at birth and as of this morning she's 22 1/2" and 12 1/2lbs.. And growing fast. Enough of my Sanya Jaye.
Casa di Vino tastings have been going really great lately and some of the most popular wines include: Starmont Sauvignon Blanc with it's mouthful of gooseberry & grapefruit and St. Hallet "Poachers Blend", a blend of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc & Riesling from Australia that's a tropical fruit bomb that is just perfect for chilling down and chilling out with. This is one Casa di Vino will be running with(and consuming) all summer long. Try it with pineapple chicken or sweet and sour pork.
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I know there are many of you who believe it is sacrilege to open a bottle of wine and not finish it. This story is not for you. For the rest of us though there are occaisons when finishing the bottle just isn't feasible. Perhaps the next evening one has obligations and the next you just don't feel like a glass. What to do with this leftover wine? If I, your trusty wine guy haven't finished a bottle within 4-5 days of opening then I prefer to use these wines for cooking. Whether the wine is a red or a white I'll stick it in the refrigerator. White wines are great for using as marinades for chicken or fish. Add some herbs and spices or perhaps some Dijon mustard. Put the lot in a Glad Storage Bag. Leave it for 20 minutes, two hours, or overnight and you're good to go. Whites are also good for deglazing fry pans and making quick sauces. Turn the heat up to cook off the alcohol, scrape loose the cooked on bits, add some capers, salt & pepper, turn the heat down and reduce, and you've got a great sauce to pour over pan fried pork chops or a piece of fish.
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