Gourmet & Healthy in Bellevue

The chefs at Gourmet Dog Japōn tinker with the classic hot-dog recipe, incorporating Japanese flavors such as wasabi mayo, seaweed nori, and red ginger for internationally flavored sandwiches in grilled buns. Classic dogs come topped with pickles, pizza dogs are piled with pepperoni and mozzarella, and hawaiian dogs are freshly picked from fields planted in underwater volcanoes.

Beneath paintings by local artists, stainless-steel countertop fustis protect each bottle of extra-virgin olive oil from heat, light, and the oil-seeking hands of neighborhood mechanics. Founded by two sisters from Arizona who shared a passion for balsamic vinegars and olive oils, the store stocks a rotating selection of olive oils, both natural and fused with fruits, spices, or herbs. During tastings, instructors match complementary oils with vinegars, pairing up such selection as the blood-orange extra-virgin olive oil with dark-chocolate-aged balsamic, the smooth chocolate of the latter enriching the light, citrus notes of the former.

At Del Fox Custom Meats, each part of the butchering process takes place onsite, from carving choice cuts of fresh meat to curing and smoking homemade sausages. Besides standard cuts such as rib-eye steak, their spacious fridges yield beef cheek, pork stomach, and other specialty meats. Del Fox's butchers will also prepare wild game brought in by hunters or equip barbecues with whole pigs or straw effigies of unpopular gym teachers for roasting.

Nestled near the banks of the Columbia River, scores of leafy fruit trees bask in the sun's mild rays, free from the shock of hail or snow. This is Tiny's farm, which benefits from a unique microclimate ideal for growing stone fruits, whether those are their 10 peach varieties, six types of cherries, or nectarines glanced at by Medusa. Apples and pears flourish at a second, cooler farm location, and a bevy of heirloom tomatoes and leafy greens take residence in the nourishing soil as well. Once these chemical-free morsels have been picked and inspected, staffers haul them off to pickup locations, farmers' markets, and doorsteps throughout the area. Families can fill their pantries with organic goodies by joining Tiny's CSA program, which does double duty by not only granting a heaping bag of fruits and veggies each week, but also directly supporting a local farm. Offices also benefit when they snag a weekly office fruit box full of energy-boosting sweetness sure to stave off the sugar crash of break room donuts or water coolers filled with hummingbird nectar. :m]]

Today's Groupon frees you from the daunting decisions of canned-soup shelves: get 12 gourmet, pre-packaged, well-balanced meals designed by world-famous chefs Graham Kerr (TV's "The Galloping Gourmet") and Karl Guggenmos from Day-by-Day Gourmet. For all 12 tasty, one-portion meals, you pay only $59 (normally $99). Each perfectly portioned, healthy meal saves you days of mulling in the spice aisle, sobbing over chopped onions, scrubbing burnt rice off pans, and bleaching the mixing spoon.