Fat Guy

I don't see anything in his review that he couldn't have learned from reading books and articles about Italian cuisine. By contrast, his reviews of French, Japanese and other non-Italian cuisines often evidence a need to read some books and articles. If that contrast constitutes expertise in Italian cuisine, so be it. Just to get a semi-random sample for comparison, I looked for reviews of Italian restaurants by Ruth Reichl. I searched the Times archive for the word "Italian" with "Reichl" in the byline and took the first result that came up, which was a September 1998 review of Da Silvano. So, pretty much 10 years ago, when Da Silvano was one of the better Italian restaurants in town, here's what the level of Italian-cuisine expertise was on the New York Times fine-dining beat: And so on. So there's at least something to be learned from Ruth Reichl's display of what strikes me as legitimate expertise. Also worth noting, Frank Bruni reviewed Da Silvano in 2006. His review begins: I definitely suggest reading both side by side. I think the strongest claim to be made in favor of Frank Bruni is that he knows sort of almost as much about Italian cuisine as Ruth Reichl did 10 years ago but isn't as good at distilling that knowledge and has only a fraction of her knowledge of every other cuisine. That's the most favorable reading I can come up with. Maybe someone else can do better.

In my experience, having been there about a dozen times now between lunch and dinner visits, showing up at Szechaun Gourmet without a reservation (you can make reservations no problem) during the dinner rush has always been a recipe for a 30-60 minute wait. That's not to say Bruni's review has had no effect, but the observation you're reporting isn't uniquely post-Bruni.

Just because Bruni spent time in Italy and occasionally engages in grade inflation for Italian restaurants doesn't mean he has "knowledge." What is there about his review of Scarpetta, or any other Italian restaurant, that demonstrates a particularly high level of knowledge (or judgment)?

By complete coincidence, I noticed a link to a brief interview with Yasuda on the Zagat website. He addresses the point we've been discussing here:

Marc, I think you should re-read Sokolov's piece. It's a broadside against the very notion of restaurants like Ko, and an ill-informed one at that. Sokolov decided what to write, not anybody else. He sets up the generational conflict with language like: So he gets that he's commenting on a youthful aspect of the dining culture, but he then proceeds to ridicule rather than try to understand it. He chooses language like: (note there's a contradiction between the latter claim and the way he got the reservation) and That's disdain, plain and simple. He also, as I've explained, totally misunderstands the cuisine at Ko: Followed by more disdain: If that doesn't bring to mind Lloyd Bentsen lecturing Dan Quayle -- "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy" -- I don't know what does. But it's not like David Chang has made a claim to genius or compared himself to Adria. Indeed, the whole comparison is utterly without foundation. It is the very definition of a straw-man argument. Yes, Sokolov does grudgingly acknowledge some good food at Ko. But read as a whole the piece is a drive-by.

I don't think the dynamic of pro-Chang or anti-Chang really needs to come into play here. Sokolov simply said some things that are pretty plainly wrong. Momofuku Ko is not a derivative of elBulli. It just isn't. I was there last night discussing it with the cooks and they couldn't even conceive of why anybody would say that -- and they're right to be puzzled. Meanwhile, the dim sum comment is entirely off base. (Not to mention, I think Sokolov is dead wrong in his assessment of Minibar -- but that's for another topic.) So even though he says nice things about Ko's food, he does so against a backdrop that undermines any comment -- positive or negative -- that he makes about the place. There are and were legitimate criticisms of Ko. It's very good but not as good as its popularity would or should indicate. Service was scandalously weak when it opened (it has improved dramatically), and the creature comforts (like the stupid stools) could still use serious improvement. But it's not comparable to dim sum and it's not elBulli light. It simply is not either of those things.

Freezing works but the frozen cheese is only useful for grating. One thing you might do is try to estimate how much cheese you'll use in 6 months, keep that much in the fridge and freeze the rest. But also consider that you should be using more than is your normal habit, because now you have a high-quality product around.

Not exactly what you're looking for, but one of our long-time members, Robert Brown, visited the elBulli "taller" awhile back and posted about it at length: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=24647

I do think he gives that impression but I really don't think that's what Sokolov is about. (I also don't think he was rushing to fill column space -- he traveled to DC, not to mention the Wall Street Journal is very methodical.) I'll propose an alternate theory: I think it may just be a generational thing. Sokolov is 65+ and has mostly stayed on top of things, and he has great insight on many aspects of gastronomy from fine dining to hamburgers. But when it comes to understanding trends and happenings at the leading edge of the culinary culture, he seems to be a bit tone deaf to the nuances at play here.

What are the key flavors of hot & sour soup? A restaurant near me in New York City makes it with no meat and it tastes pretty much like hot & sour soup with meat. So I'm happy to cook a meatless version, but I'd like to avoid a long ingredients list. I'm looking for a simple distillation of the key flavors.

[Moderator note: The original Momofuku Ko topic became too large for our servers to handle efficiently, so we've divided it up; the preceding part of this discussion is here: Momofuku Ko (Part 1)] There's a piece in the Wall Street Journal by Ray Sokolov that talks about Ko and Minibar. I usually agree with or at least strongly respect Sokolov's views and think he's one of the most sensible dining commentators out there, but I think he's dead wrong on key points here. One theory Sokolov puts forth is: "Minibar and Ko are following a path blazed by El Bulli in Spain, the Fat Duck near London, wd50 in New York and Alinea in Chicago." I think it's factually incorrect to lump Ko together with Minibar and the rest of the places on that list. It's true that there's a little bit of sous-vide and other technology in play at Ko, but no more than at Per Se, Bouley or Gramercy Tavern. Indeed, Ko is quite rigorous about sourcing ingredients from small farmers and the like. It's not all the way in Blue Hill territory, but it's more along those lines than it is along El Bulli lines. Sokolov also belittles the food at Minibar and, to a lesser extent, at Ko. But I think he goes way to far when he concludes: "If you like small plates and odd ingredients, try walking in to your local dim sum palace. The seats have backs. There are tables and servers. And you don't need adolescent reflexes with a mouse." Sokolov's tastes couldn't possibly be that pedestrian, or his thinking that reductive. I do think, however, that he might like the Kitchen Counter at Beacon more than he liked either Minibar or Ko.

I just don't see what they were worried about. They were willing to seat you for a full meal, but they couldn't accommodate you on account of too many 4:30pm reservations? Yet, if you'd just had snacks and wine, you'd have been out much sooner than if you'd had a multi-course meal. They totally could have said they'd need the table back by 4:30pm, though I doubt that's even true. Sounds like a breakdown in hospitality wrapped around a bunch of lame excuses, and given the bureaucratic service I've experienced too often at the Batali/Bastianich restaurants I'm not surprised. Sheesh, they should have just let you sit and eat some food.

It seems to me that restaurants wishing to sell only full meals have the simple option of offering only prix-fixe menus. You'd never have this problem at Gramercy Tavern, for example, because a full meal is your only choice in the main dining room. If you want less than a full meal you need to eat in the Tavern room, simply because there's no other way to order less than a full meal. By offering an a la carte menu with individually priced dishes and no required meal structure, Lupa brings this sort of awkward situation on itself. I mean, what would they have done if Vivin had just taken a table and ordered less than a full meal?

You can also cook some of it up with scrambled eggs.

Well, Yasuda is idiosyncratic so he could very well reject the requests that other sushi chefs accommodate, however I'm sure I've seen him do less rice with the same size toppings (of his own volition, not on request) -- so I don't think he has an absolutely fixed ratio in mind. If you have the book "The Zen of Fish," by Trevor Corson, there's an interesting general discussion of this issue on Page 272. One priceless quote: "Look, if a big, fat guy sits down at the sushi bar, you figure he likes carbohydrates, right? So you make his nigiri with more rice."

One thing that's basically indisputable is that at some hours of the day and night the choice is easy: during the day, Noodle Bar is superior because it serves the same menu from open 'til close while Ssam Bar still (though it has improved) has a weak daytime menu; late at night, Ssam Bar simply stays open later so if it's 12:30am on Thursday night/Friday morning your only chance of a Momofuku fix is Ssam Bar. That's how I wound up at Ssam Bar last time I went, and it was my best Ssam Bar experience in quite a while. Service was better than on my last several visits, when it had ranged from indifferent to incompetent. I attribute this to the return of Cory to the floor. Also there was more care taken with plating and handling of food, though I still had some quibbles that I wouldn't have had in the past. Here's how I see it overall (and I'm only talking about the 5-6 hours of each day when you have a non-obvious choice between Noodle and Ssam -- see above): 1 - In the beginning, when Ssam Bar introduced its late-night menu and expanded its availability to regular dinner hours, there was nothing like it. Noodle Bar was still in the cramped old space (which is now Ko, seating only 12 people), with inferior kitchen equipment, less skilled cooks (though some cooks worked at both) and less ambitious food than Ssam Bar. Even then, I should note, some people preferred Noodle Bar (my wife, for example, has been unwavering in that preference all along) but the foodie consensus was strongly in favor of Ssam over Noodle. 2 - When Noodle Bar relocated to its new, larger digs and Ko took over the smaller space, it started to improve and the menu became more ambitious. 3 - At the same time, I believe (and many have confirmed this observation, though some disagree) that Ssam Bar went into a slide mostly service-wise but also somewhat food-wise. I think some of the best people in the Chang Gang were focused on the Ko project and Ssam Bar slipped as a result. So while Noodle Bar was blossoming Ssam Bar was wilting. 4 - Recent indications are that Ssam Bar is back on the up and up. 5 - I think you can eat fabulously well at Noodle or Ssam. Noodle has the reputation of being more rustic, and I think it's true that the center of gravity of Noodle Bar's menu is more rustic than the center of gravity of Ssam's menu. But both restaurants effortlessly blend haute and rustic, and each menu offers plenty of examples of each. All that being said, I like Noodle Bar better, because my favorite Noodle Bar dishes (tri-tip, fluke, sweetbreads, smoked duck, prawns-and-grits, fried poulet rouge) are my favorite dishes within the Momofuku kingdom (in some ways better even than the food at Ko) and because I think Noodle Bar has superior service and I just like the vibe of the place better. I'm also a regular at Noodle Bar now so I get some extra special attention and free stuff, but I made this decision when I was not a regular there. Also, in the realm of the obvious, if you're serious about wine then Ssam Bar is superior -- it has a more elaborate beverage program than Noodle Bar.

I like the Allagash white a lot but the Hitachino red really hit the spot with some of that food.

I like the sushi-rice ratio he uses but I think it should be easy enough to ask for less rice. I've seen several people in several sushi bars tell the chef "small rice, please; I get full easily" without offense. I've also seen chefs adjust the amount of rice per customer, such as giving less to a small woman than to a big guy like me (this happened to me and a petite female guest once at Yasuda).

Yeah I can get to and from the Union Square Greenmarket pretty easily on the number 6 train. And I can carry a bunch of stuff home in two shopping bags. So for a special dinner or two (or three) I can shop there. But multiple trips per week would be out of the question. Today I just needed some non-crap non-supermarket tomatoes and I didn't have the sense of humor to brave Union Square. The West 97th Street greenmarket was just the ticket.

I think if you disregard any issues of cost Yasuda's sushi is amazingly good as is the delicate rice-fish balance. And if you want to factor in cost then get the sushi matsu lunch special, which is amazingly good and an amazingly good value.

I've been going to the Burger Bar at Beacon pretty much once (sometimes twice) a week without fail since late May, always with my son and sometimes with other folks. We're pretty friendly with Frank Diaz and Karen Schloss-Diaz, who are restaurant publicists and have represented Beacon for ages. I learned one day that they had never had lunch at the Burger Bar so I made them come with us, not only because I was aghast that they'd not experienced the Burger Bar, not only because I knew the meal would be free if we ate there with them, but also because our son really digs their daughter, who is a couple of years older than he is (he likes older women, what can I say?). I was able to convince Ellen to bring her camera and I asked Waldy to cook a few of the items from the kids' menu. So here are some illustrations of what I've been talking about above. This is at the beginning of the meal when they bring the kids the french-fry appetizer. These are the cheap-ass straw-cups that Waldy Malouf purchased a villion of at some fire sale. They're decorated with unidentifiable Asian anime characters. This is the adult burger, in this case with mushrooms and Gruyere. Here's our son making a mess of the kid burger. The kid burger, like the adult burger, is made from Niman Ranch beef, but it's 1- a little smaller (though not small), 2- served on a burger bun rather than country toast, 3- served with plain fries not garlic fries, 4- served with regular commercial ketchup not Waldy's own spicy ketchup, 5- garnished a little differently (no onions). These are the mini burgers, an adult menu item but kids love them. This is the kid pizza, round with just sauce and cheese (the Beacon signature pizza is oblong with wild mushrooms) These are the best chicken fingers I've ever tasted. Basically they cook a chicken schnitzel and cut it into strips. Finally, at the end of the meal, as has become our standard practice, my son and I went into the back kitchen with Waldy to make cotton candy.

The Union Square Greenmarket is the iconic farmers market for the New York metro area, but unless you live near Union Square it's only practical to do a small percentage of your shopping there. But for the other 99% of us there are 44 other greenmarkets around the city. I've only been to about 5 of them, and was hoping we could assemble some thoughts and observations here about the non-Union-Square greenmarkets in New York City. This morning I stopped by the one on West 97th Street just west of Columbus Avenue. It was, I thought, a credible microcosm of the Union Square market. There were plenty of vegetables and fruits from 3 or 4 different growers (I got some tomatoes and peaches from New Jersey -- both excellent) as well as a meat vendor, a bakery, a creamery and a fishmonger. So it would be possible to do a pretty comprehensive shop here, albeit without the diversity of choices that Union Square offers. I've also been by the one near Columbia University, on Broadway between 114th and 115th Streets. I wasn't all that impressed, but it was much earlier in the season so who knows. One I really like is the one near my mother's apartment. It's in the triangle where Columbus and Broadway meat at 66th Street. A lot of vendors. The number of vendors seems to have a strong correlation with the overall quality of a given greenmarket. There are two relatively near my apartment on the Upper East Side, neither of which is as good, in my opinion, as the two I like on the Upper West Side. One is near Mt. Sinai hospital and the other is on 92nd Street way over by First Avenue (I actually think, as the crow flies, 97th and Columbus is closer to me even though it's across the park, because I live near Fifth Avenue). Most of the small greenmarkets are not year-round operations. Several opened this month (or in June, or a few in May) and will run through November or thereabouts.

Papaya King and places of that ilk use something like this, which I think you can pick up for a mere 10 grand.

I couldn't stand to watch the whole episode (which is about Laurent Tourondel), and Hulu makes it difficult to jump around, but if I'm not mistaken the footage is here, in the first few seconds after the mid-show break. The time stamp is roughly 16:50.

One thing mentioned in the New York Times piece that I don't recall being mentioned in the Picayune review is that Anderson's rating of three beans is actually a demotion from the four beans the restaurant previously held. Do I have that right?