DonRocks

I've heard many names for masturbation over the years: roughing up the suspect, phoning the czar, walking the plank, etc., but "cutting the croissant" is a new one to me. Very impressive that you injured your elbow John, but would have been double-barrelled impressive had you complained of a sore shoulder (or two!)

If you didn't know your roommate was stealing from you, he'd still be your best friend.

Yeah, you bet it's awesome food, Mr. Slater. Sheepishly slinking into the bar, underdressed, I was nevertheless welcomed by the ever-gracious and professional staff at Marcel's. I ordered three small courses and batted three-for-three, plus a complimentary amuse-gueule: a fennel flan with crème fraiche and smoked salmon was an impossibly small tureen, about six nibbles, and signaled the first of three flans I was to have that evening (by sheer coincidence, I ordered the only other two flans on the entire menu). Oven roasted tomato soup with Pipe Dreams goat cheese flan and 'parmesan crisps' leapt beyond its description: the flan resting in the middle of the bowl, topped with microgreens and two cross-sticks of parmesan. And then came the soup poured atop it, blistering with aromatics and roasted goodness. Escargots with garlic flan and onion-chive butter was essence of reduced garlic, and Bach was astute in recommending a Viognier with it, with a white Burgundy being his second choice. The final course was Wiedmaier's famed Boudin Blanc with onion confit, potato purée topped with lardons, resting in a reduced red-wine sauce, and served with a Drouhin Cotes de Nuits Villages Red Burgundy. It was great as it has been in the past, and the potato purée combination with the lardons was as good as it could have been. Marcel's doesn't get enough verbage here, and it deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the very finest restaurants in the city. It's expensive as sin, but merits its lofty prices. I love eating at the bar here, and always feel welcome at Marcel's. Cheers, Rocks.

I had it two weeks ago at Pesce, and the chef told me it was the last order he was going to serve this year due to end-of-season, so I suspect you won't be finding it any longer on area menus - maybe your Paradou information is from a couple of weeks ago? Picture the taste of liver with the granular texture of oatmeal. Cheers, Rocks. Edit: The "gritty grits" description of the texture is better than what I came up with above. For what it's worth, the owner of Pesce (the affable Madame Palladin) described it as "the liver of the sea." Whatever it is, it's pretty strong and rich.

Yes! The problem lies in you glossing over the "crap on the plate" statement. If you genuinely thought you were being served a piece of crap, and I mean a literal piece of crap, you would not eat it. I'm not sure I buy into the term "evil" to describe McDonald's, but I'll use "uncaring about the health and welfare of its customers" instead. Is apathy evil? No, there are plenty of decent human beings who buy, consume and enjoy Quarter Pounders with Cheese. Perhaps I'd describe them as being less thoughtful about the short- and long-term implications of ordering that sandwich, and maybe not thinking terribly globally in scope at that moment; they're just hungry and want something cheap and tasty, and it's an easy way out (as is throwing the wrapper out the car window and not exercising an hour later and ignoring the small farmer who didn't just sell you his product and subsidizing the flavorists who are paid big money to create savory flavors in a chemical lab). It's a choice, a choice I make sometimes, but I am aware that every time I make that choice, I create a small amount of harm to this world. It doesn't make you a bad person. Never having been to In-and-Out, from all I've heard about it, it's the equivalent of a really good version of that taco truck (if you'll allow me to stretch the parallel a bit). In-and-Out sounds like it tastes good, and it really is good. Everything is in shades of gray (we could discuss styrofoam containers, wages and health benefits paid to their employees, etc. etc. ad nauseum), but this sounds like a fine, non-snobby example of the original proposition I made months ago. I think you get it just as well as I do! Cheers, Rocks.

Doveryay, no proveryay. -- old Russian proverb

Don't forget the last few chapters of the book: skyrocketing demand requires enormous additional supply, supply becomes mass-produced, quality falls off the cliff (refer to Starbucks), consumers get finessed through brand image, chemically induced flavors and savvy marketing. To date, the McDevil remains undefeated.

Hidden salt often serves as the devil's mask. I won't overstir this pot because I don't have anything bad to say about Chipotle Grill, but I do think a healthy degree of skepticism about the future is in order. Look at this article. Can this level of care be exercised when the chain grows tenfold? Double, double, foil and trouble, Rocks.

I'll piss on the party, and come right out and say it: McDonald's! The sodium comment is noteworthy, and I do think the food lacks depth and soul, though I admit to having enjoyed it in the past. The uncritical acceptance of Chipotle Grill in this thread is troublesome to me, but you need to remember where I'm coming from. Cheers, Rocks. P.S. To avoid being labeled a nattering nabob of negativism, I enthusiastically concur with recommendations of The Well-Dressed Burrito!

Not enough edge to this thread. Ten years ago, I used to mail order my coffee beans from Starbucks in Seattle, and they were pretty darned good, too. What will happen when there's a Chipotle on every streetcorner? Dilution of quality? Inconsistency? Dumbed-down fare? And yet for the time being, they blow the doors off of Baja Fresh. Worth noting the long-term trends for an exercise in sociology? Rocks.

I remember exactly where I was, chatting with my dining partner in a restaurant, when all of a sudden she let out a muffled shriek. "What's wrong?" "I don't want to tell you." "Tell me!" "It will ruin your meal." "Tell me!" "Look at the person to your right when she takes a bite of her food." I stole a glance over my right shoulder and saw fork being raised to lips, when, like a viper, darting directly underneath the fork, came projecting out of the mouth approximately four inches of tongue. Yuck! Unfortunately, now that you've been presented with this, you will notice that a large percentage of diners in restaurants see it fit to use their tongues as a catchpan for anything that might happen to fall off the utensil. Doing my part to combat global obesity by inducing mass nausea, Rocks.

It’s over, call off the dogs and come home from the hunt: Buz and Ned’s Real Barbecue is the answer to any problem you can possibly have. Lack confidence when performing a pancreaticoduodenectomy? The glazed chicken skewer will set your nerves at rest. Finding it a challenge unifying quantum mechanics and general relativity? Try the pulled pork mounded on a bun with cole slaw and hot sauce. Trouble solving the halting problem? The beef brisket and sour-cream redskin potato salad will do it for you. Feeling like Sisyphus trying to balance the boulder? Let it roll and order a full rack of baby back pork ribs. Visualizing dark matter proving elusive? The homemade chocolate chip brownie brings it within reach of the eye. At the intersection of Broad Street and The Boulevard in Richmond (1119 N. Boulevard), Buz and Ned's Real Barbecue is everything you need to achieve enlightenment. Last night, Buz's brother (a good friend of mine) stopped in with a care-basket full of goodies, and I gorged like a tick on what may just be the best barbecue I've ever eaten. Is it always this good? He says it is, and he's a huge Perlow, one of my most trusted food friends. Based on what I had last night, this is worth a special trip to Richmond. Cheers, Rocks.

I'm going to pay dearly for cracking open the off-topic door. If it provides any amusement, rest assured I'll be getting a colonoscopy from Klc in the next day or so.

Was that snarling Dennis Miller lookalike working behind the bar? He has been there the last couple of Saturday's I've been, and I suspect he wouldn't care much about wine pairings. That said, I'm not sure a Chardonnay of any type would be a wise selection with this cuisine ... well, maybe a chilled Blanc de Blancs Champagne with a Saag Aloo, or even a Grappa (yes, there's Chardonnay-based Grappa) to neutralize the heat of the Lamb Vindaloo? But I've always been happy with those sneaky-strong tamarind torpedos. On the, Rocks.

I agree it's great Hot and Sour Soup, as good as I've ever tried, but I think it's still within the realm of the earthly (corn-starch thickener, standard 'shrooms, tofu sliced from a wedge). I think next time I'll try the Roasted Duck Vegetable Soup or possibly the Scallop with Mashed Bean Chowder for something more radical, radicand that I am. The Spicy and Sour Baby Wontons that I ordered (carryout) was surely the wrong order: the broth was fiery hot, watery thin, and laced with chilis and oil. I was wondering why you would tout this particular dish - then I looked at the menu again, and noticed that there's an item called Baby Wontons with Chili Oil Sauce, and this was that, without any doubt. And it was diablo hot too, both temperature-hot, and spice-hot. Not recommended, as the oil smelled like ... oil. This is often the problem with even the most lauded of Chinese restaurants: at the end of the day, and after all the cultural wonderment has been achieved, you're still eating bad oil. Tears, Rocks.

Color me narrow-minded and hysterical, but I for one get tired of needing a pogo stick to avoid all the crottes everytime I walk down the sidewalk in France. Yeah, okay, those turds may have three Michelin stars, but they're still turds. (That previous paragraph refers to the excrement on the sidewalk, not to the chefs themselves). Has anyone noticed that the usage of the word glitch has taken a turn for the mundane? It now means a problem, e.g. a computer glitch, but it used to be the standard onomatopoeia in Mad Magazine for whenever a guy stepped in dog doo. I miss that. With tenderness, Rocks.

Well yes, BasilGirl, thanks to your recommendation. This outstanding find is in the same shopping center as the Fair City Cinemas, one of the best houses for independent film in all of Virginia (Little River Turnpike and Pickett Road, sort of). China Star is right up there near the top of all Szechuan restaurants in the DC area, the key word being Szechuan, incorrectly dissed as China's Tar, hence the name. The Scallion Pancake BasilGirl recommended is hors classe, served in a globular puff and just an unbelievable combination with the pickled cabbage and broccoli that are served as a small amuse-gueule (along with spicy peanuts which are equally irresistible). Fish with Sour Mustard is a must, the filets of white fish simmering in a quasi-hot-pot of burbling hoodoo spices and chiles. You might not think it necessary or even desirable to order Marinated Duck Feet with such a dish, but it's beautiful combination when the two dishes are worked together: the duck feet served with root vegetables (carrots, turnip-like things), in a cold vinaigrette sauce, and presented in a locked-lid apothecary jar. You need the sweetness and coolness of this dish to neutralize the fires of the first, and they work wonderfully in tandem. Crystal Shrimp is a fine, glossy plate of good shrimp, and Shredded Pork with Dried Tofu is another dish that manages to be soulful without excessive spicing. On another visit, this restaurant proved useful for people I know ranging in age from 7 to 80, and even their Americanized fare such as Beef with Broccoli and Lemon Chicken are a strong cut above what you would normally find in a local restaurant. I've found "authentic" Chinese restaurants that do a great Chinese menu, but completely drop the ball on the Americanized stuff; not here. By my experience, you can order the entire menu with confidence. Shredded Pork with Green Pepper is a completely different dish than the Shredded Pork with Dried Tofu, hotter, deeply sauced and homestyle. Man, there's so much left I haven't explored on this menu. Look at this stuff: Five Flavored Smoke Shredded Tofu, Ma La Diced Rabbit, Pork Scallion Pie, Triple Stuffed Bean Curd Skin, Spicy Peppercorn Pig Feet in Hot Pot, Beef Triple and Pig Blood with Bean Sprouts, Braised Fish, Spicy and Sour Squid Roll, the list goes on. Tsing Taos, $3.25, and you'll need them, too. I was there today with a Chinese woman who asked the waiter why they weren't that crowded for lunch. The reply? "Because people are in a hurry for lunch, and it's difficult to eat Szechuan food in ten minutes and then rush out. When people do come, it's often in large groups, and we're busy for dinner every night of the week." China Star is a huge addition to the Northern Virginia chinese scene - many Chinese people feel that for spicy food, it's the best Chinese restaurant around, and I've seen no reason not to defer to their wisdom and experience.

I think you answered your own question (refer also to Wazuri - can Caravan Grill be far behind?)

Hell, Coche-Dury's Bourgogne is great compared with "regular" Meursault. Cheers, Rocks.

It's not cheap, even for what's on the list. Assuming the 1900 Margaux is the most expensive wine there (and I'm not certain that it is), this wine goes for about $10,000 per bottle. You could have an all-you-can-drink buffet of 1900 Margaux for under $25,000, and most of the wines being served are waaaayyy less expensive, with some running in the hundreds-of-dollars rather than thousands. I suspect the retail price of alcohol consumed at things like this is $5,000 at most, given the average cost of the bottles, and given that one person can only consume so much alcohol. Spitting? Unthinkable, and there should be mandatory prison time for those who do. I hate events like this because the ever-dwindling supply of these precious wines is wasted on people who just want to say they tried them. It's like flying over the Grand Canyon and saying you've "done it." Longing to curl up with just one of these bottles and actually enjoy it, Rocks.

If "Bar Crawl" sounds too tacky, christen the event "Barcarolle" and get hammered on Chopin. And happy birthday in advance! Rocks.

Looking for a rusty trombone.

Q: What happened when Napoleon went to Mount Olive? A: Popeye got pissed. The sautéed spinach at Tonic is a simple little plate of barely cooked greens, unadorned, and strong to the finish. At $2.25, it’s a fine cru in a fleet of outstanding vegetarian side dishes: real mashed potatoes with sour cream and a shipload of butter, baked beans that actually taste as if they’ve been baked, corn bread that’s so evil that it’s the devil’s work, cole slaw that’s snappy, acidic and fresh. If you’re a vegetarian, abandon all notion of being so for healthful reasons and head directly for these terrific, expansive side dishes. The half-rack of ribs special was chef Bernie’s own recipe, and was emblematic of this kitchen’s use of spice: not hot spice, but spice spice. Cooked with Jack Daniels, and covered with a ghastly looking paste, the subtle use of spices in this saucing was almost Indian in its influence, and grew on me as the dish wore on even though the quality of the ribs themselves seemed merely good at best. And the Tonic Salad had the odd combination of curried sausage and blue cheese, mixed in with high-quality greens and a perfectly fine vinaigrette. However, if you toothpick the pieces of sausage out from the salad and mix them with the mashed potatoes, you get the best bangers and mash in the entire city of Washington despite that not being the intent of the kitchen. Leave the pizzas for elsewhere, as they’re okay but nothing more than that. The crust is thin and matzo-like, and the tomato sauce and cheese are decent but ultimately boring. Half-price drafts and rail drinks are served from 5-7 weeknights (not sure about Friday), as well as half-price hamburgers and veggie burgers. The hamburger that came sailing by looked terrific, and all the sandwiches are served with tater tots (tater tots!). I nabbed one from my neighbor’s plate and they are housemade and really good if a bit too salty. The evening ended on a sour note (literally, sour) with a Gimlet at the ever-charismatic Bossa in Adams Morgan. Feeling guilty for contributing to the gentrification of a previously interesting neighborhood, Rocks.

Clearly you didn't experience the Nic-o-boli.

Finally went to El Pollo Campero today, and I agree with everyone that it's great chain fried chicken (I hesitate to call it "fast food fried chicken," because it isn't fast). At 1 PM on a Saturday at the Falls Church location, there was only about a ten-minute wait. The fries were quite good for frozen. However, the cole slaw managed to look like pure mayonnaise while at the same time being salty - can you imagine how much salt they must dump in there to pull that one off? Terribly thirsty right now, Rocks.