Text 8791, 74 rader
Skriven 2014-01-12 23:12:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: YZF 2013 trip 59
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YK Jim was on hand to greet us and help us wait for our
baggage, which as usual was delayed by the Star Alliance
Priority tags. We went out into the parking lot - bright
sunshine made the bitter cold seem less so.

Before heading to the house we took an introductory spin
around, taking in the native village of N'Dilo, the ice
castle on the lake, and downtown. The native village
(cleverly not indexed on Google Maps, so you have to guess
where it is - not a particularly hard thing) I'd seen
before. I guess it was at one time a bit grotty, but
although some of the original huts remain, occupied and
unoccupied, the properties have been generally speaking
fixed up nicely. The ice castle is apparently an annual
project by the Snow King and his buddies and is a
centerpiece of the Snow King Winter Festival. It's a bit
less formal and elaborate, perhaps, than ice buildings in
more civilized locations, but on the other hand, the
festival is cheap, and you get about the same experience
as you'd pay $800 a night for at the fancy ice hotels.

Downtown has not much going for it - the highlight and
lowlight both being bars, and Jim's realty office somewhere
in between. There's a KFC that used to be the only KFC in
the world that served hamburgers (not exceptional, as I
recall, more like meatloafburgers), but that's no more.

For our welcome dinner we deserved nothing but the best.
Thornton's, set in the corner of a bowling alley, has been
blessed with a good chef and a wise wine buyer and is now
Yellowknife's premier dining establishment, now that Pierre
LePage has left with his tail between his legs.

Its having been part of a bowling alley has been well
disguised by clever decorating and toe-stubbingly dim
lighting. Service cheerful and pretty good.

I had the bison steak blue, tasty though lean, almost
indistinguishable from Angus, especially as the grain had
not developped; a touch of gaminess, but truth be told a
good grass-fed beefsteak has much the same. It came with
orange saffron rice, okay but not a great idea, and a
ratatouille that was almost peppery enough to interfere
with my enjoyment of the meat but not quite: the main
problem is that it didn't go with the rice.

Across the way, pulled pork lollipops, listed as an
appetizer but generous enough for a main dish. These from
what I saw were corn dog shapes but with real meat inside
instead of franks.

Also a rack of lamb that I understand was quite fine.

Carrot cake and several utensils was a pleasant after, a
wise choice as the piece was enormous and rich.

Our wine was the estimable Clancy's 09, good to see up here.

Nightcaps at the house:

White Owl white whisky, which is actually unobjectionable,
with a muted but distinct rye taste and some spice and oaky
notes. I'd not buy it but would welcome it if offered.

Fighting Cock Bourbon was pretty much the opposite. Hot
and estery, it was sort of like good Bourbon on steroids,
true to its name. It wouldn't be my first choice for
sipping, but I imagine it would go nicely in a more manly
sort of mixed drink, of which I can't come up with any names
as I don't generally drink them.

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