Schneier

Can you explain this better. I did pour from the sides, but I poured from the sides towards the center. Is that what you mean? I worry about using pitchers, because I worry about portion control. The idea is to put exactly the same amount of each soup in the bowl, which I think will be harder with a pitcher of soup. It's easier for me to pre-measure the soups into mugs and then pour from there. My main problem is that my dominant hand pours the soup faster than my other hand, and I need to practice compensating for that. Bruce

Is there really no thread on double soups on eGullet? Something must be done.... A double soup is a bowl of two different soups, one on each half of the bowl. Done well, it's a really pretty effect. Someone told me once that it was invented at Chez Panisse, but I have no idea if that's true or not. Double soups work best with thick soups, preferably of the same thickness. That's pretty much all I know about double soups. My plan is to serve one this Thanksgiving. One side will be pumpkin, and the other side something like turnip or parsnip. Tonight I did a test run. I found that using two ladles didn't work very well. Better was to ladle the soups into mugs, and to pour the soups into the bowl from the mugs. I also found that my dominant hand tended to pour faster. I found that pouring the soups into the sides of the bowl into the center worked better than pouring them in opposite directions. I didn't try -- ran out of soups -- using a rubber spatula as a wall in the middle of the bowl as a poured. Any other suggestions of things I should try? I'll probably do another test run tomorrow night. Bruce

I just sent in my request: any date, any time. Bruce

Sounds like a superb meal, although I found this comment curious. Were the fig seeds unusually large or do you typically find them annoying? ← They were unusually large. Large enough that I wondered if it was really a fig, and asked the waiter again to make sure I heard him properly. Bruce

No. It was lunchtime, and the restaurant was mostly empty. I found the service to be professional. My dishes arrived on time and in good order, the food was explained to me, and my questions were answered. The waitstaff wasn't friendly or chatty, but that's okay with me. Bruce

The mango. Bruce

I'm going to Janos on Saturday. I'll let you all know. Bruce

The meal was 45 euros, I think. I did have two glasses of wine with the meal, both okay and neither terribly memorable. Bruce

(eGullet doesn't allow you to search for two-character words, so I can't promise that there isn't another thread on this restaurant. I did page through the forum and didn't see one, though.) Ot is a tiny restaurant: six tables and no more than 28 people. There's no menu, just a single eight-course meal for 48 euros. The meal started off with bread and olive oil: three different breads and two different olive oils. And some small green olives from La Mancha. It was a pretty restaurant: the walls were painted bright orange and the ceiling bright green. The wood was blonde, and the tables nicely set. With only six tables, it felt lively but intimate. First came two tapas. On the left was a small glass of soup: chopped lettuce, sea urchin, and black pudding (sausage). It was delicious; the brineiness of the sea urchin blended with the earthiness of the sausage. On the right was a small piece of pickled mackerel, served with a bit of lemon and celery jelly. Good. The first appetizer was a mango and foie gras canneloni, served with Dalira (a Spanish sweet wine) and coffee sauce, and a bit of greens on the side. Another delicious dish. The mango and foie gras combination was a surprise, and the sauces were strong without overpowering. Next came soup: chickpea cream soup. The soup came with pieces of quail cooked with caraway and some coconut ice cream. I like the hot-and-cold-at-the same-time trick, and this dish did that. Another surprising and tasty blend of flavors. First main course: fish. Turbot with something he called "sea mountain sauce." I think this means that it was made with fish and poultry stock mixed together, but I'm not sure. Anyway, the dish was served with celery puree, coriander oil, and cock crests. Yeah, that's right: cock crests. I don't think I've ever eaten cock crests before. They sure don't taste like much. The fish, however, was tasty, and the sauces were tasty too. The second main was rabbit loin with mushrooms, potato crisps, French mustard, and chocolate sauce. According to the waiter, the mustard/chocolate combination was discovered accidentally when one of the waiters dropped a piece of chocolate into mustard: kind of a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup moment. I was surprised, too, but the flavors really blended interestingly. This was my favorite course of the night. Cheese came next: a Spanish cheese kind of like Brie, Muenster from France, and a weird grainy strong Spanish goat cheese whose name I never quite understood. First dessert: milk and rice mixed together, served with tangerine sorbet. Good. Second dessert: sweet potato ice cream, mascarpone cream, chestnuts, and a sweet wine sauce. Delicious. And to end, yet more sweets: a bit of elderberry foam, a peach-scented marshmallow, a fruit gelee, and a chocolate truffle thing. All good, and surprisingly reasonable. My waiter spoke excellent English, which made the whole meal a lot easier. And he poured me a variety of interesting Spanish wines with the meal, none of which I had ever heard of or can remember. Bruce

Comerc 24 for lunch. Barcelona is the most interesting food city in the world. Blame it on El Bulli: the restaurant, the people, and the aura. Comerc 24 is a result of the second: Chef Carles Abellan is an El Bulli alum. Comerc 24 is known for minimalist cooking, startling flavor combinations, and just plain weird food. I had the festival menu: sixteen small courses. It came in six waves. First wave: tapas. A large green olive stuffed with an anchovy and covered in olive oil. A dollop of mashed potato, with tuna tartare on top, and flavored with lemon, apricot, chives, garlic, and olive oil. Sweet popcorn. Mashed banana on a banana chip. Yucca chips with a dipping sauce made from brie and nut flavorings of some kind. Potato chips with olive foam to dip them them. Some kind of sweet drink thingy that I never had explained to me. The standout was the olive foam. Second wave: One: A green salad with octopus civeche and apple soup. There were tastes of cilantro, shiro, and a hint of wasabe. This was one delicious dish. Two: Smoked salmon with salmon roe and a bit of very light vanilla oil and beans. Also, delicious. Scallops with tangerine and orange bits, olive oil, and soy sauce. Again, delicious. These started to get interesting: interesting flavors and interesting combinations. Third wave: One of the dishes was goose foie gras served with piece of persimmon -- yummy. The other was called "roast beef" on the menu. It was actually three different animals in a roast-beef-like preparation: lamb, duck, and cow. This was surprisingly good. Fourth wave: "Mushroom cake" with truffle oil. This was some kind of cracker base with chopped wild mushroom tepanade on top, and slivers of some kind of white mushroom on top of that. I can't even begin to describe how good it was. Amazing. The dish of the meal. The other item was called "cephalopod with mentaiko," and was lightly grilled squid with fish roe on top. Delicious. Fifth wave: A plate of sauteed red mullet served with mushrooms and diakon. Tasty, but I was getting full. Sixth (and final) wave: French toast with vanilla foam. Again with the foam, and another delicious dish. This is Spain, so the restaurant opens for lunch at 1:30. I was done by 3:00. Luckily, the restaurant I'm having dinner at tonight doesn't open until 9:00. Bruce

I went for dinner yesterday; had the tasting menu: Course 1: Foie gras with onion, beer sauce, licorice cream, and coffee ice cream. This was an impressive start to the meal. The smell alone was swoonworthy. Course 2: Pork and octopus terrine, fig terrine, served with chocolate sauce. Chocolate is the trendy designer ingredient in Barcelona this fall. I had it in once course for lunch at Comerc 24, and two courses during this dinner. Tasty dish, although the fig pits were large and annoying. Course 3: Prawn, mushrooms, and pumpkin puree served with smoked eel and saffron soup. How do you make a soup that smells like the essence of smoked eel? How do we convince Campbell's to sell it? This was a great dish all around. Course 4: Hake served with mushroom puree, garlic puree, and herb puree. Served with a piece of pork fat and a test tube filled with mushroom infusion. Garlic puree is an excellent idea. This was all good, especially the earthy mushroom flavor. The test tube was for pouring over the fish and for drinking by itself. Course 5: Venison with salsify, served with a red wine and red pepper sauce and chocolate sorbet. Again with the chocolate. A fascinating and tasty dish. Interesting flavor combinations. Course 6: A cheese plate with five different cheeses and a slice of membrillo. Course 7: Caipirinha sorbet served with a mint infusion. Course 8: Fried slices of fig and fig sorbet served with bread soup. Great meal, marred only slightly by people smoking across the room. I forget that smoking is permitted -- anywhere -- in Spanish restaurants. Bruce

I just saw that in the newspaper today. Fascinating. Bruce

Lunch at the Hawker Center near the old airport. A Hawker Center is like a food court, but more informal and less clean. There are rows of food stalls all around, and tables in the middle. You order what you want, from this stall and that, and then wait at your table until the food is brought to you. I went with four locals today, which made is easier to get a large array of food. We had barbecued duck, braised pig leg, some dish made with pork intestines, a seafood noodle dish, Malay-style fish cakes cooked in a banana leaf, and some kind of slightly pickled cabbage dish. And noodle soup. And soursop juice. Definitely delicious. Bruce

I regularly cook ten-course tasting menus for 8-to-10 people. It's possible without an assistant, but you have to plan properly. I generally start with a couple of cold amuses, pre-made. I do a pasta course, which is easy. I do a salad, also pre-made. A cheese course. And a dessert. That's six courses right there. So all I need to cook is an appetizer of some sort and a couple of main courses. And maybe a second dessert. It's a lot of work, and it really helps if you have enough dishes for the entire meal. But you can do it. B

Is there someone with a Spanish Michelin (or other restaurant guide) who can give me a hand? I'm travelling, and I need to make some Barcelona restaurant reservations. I need someone to look up some restaurant phone numbers for me. PM me if you can help, please. And thank you, Bruce

Two, I believe. Bruce

I bought six overnproof snail crocks--the kind where you put the snails in to cook without their shells--and six of those silly tongs for three euros at a brocante sale here just the other week. I'm still looking for fresh, but I've found frozen snails at the HyperChampion. Bruce

Bad news about the restaurant, though. I hope Donna manages to weather this and remain open. I'm hoping for a Laboratorio dinner in December. Bruce

Reporters invariably use the one sentence you wish you said, which is why I always say something like "please don't use that" if I say something that, upon reflection, I wish I hadn't. But honestly, if they spell your name right consider it a win. And if they get your quote right, and in context, well...I don't know what you should do. Bruce

Tell me about Allard. I've never heard of it, and my Michelin doesn't have it in its Paris index. A Google search tells me that it's an old and good bistro in the 6th. Is it possible that Michelin isn't perfect? Bruce

Had the soup tonight. It was good. Not as good as making it yourself, but for store-bought canned soup, it was delicious. I would buy it again. I wish it were available in the U.S. Bruce Just tastest a different Soupe de Poissons; this one was sold by the fishmonger at my local market. MUCH better than the Reflets brand. Bruce

I've done it repeatedly. Pack things well, as you would for any mailing process. Declare what you've got, but not too detailed. And hope for the best. Bruce

And imagine how cheap it would be to buy just the grapes. Bruce

I never found it insulting. A restaurant meal is always more expensive than buying it at home. Markups are how restaurants stay in business. But thanks for the restaurant recommendation. It sounds interesting. Bruce

I visited Chidaine, at least their store on the main road. They sell their own wines, as well as an interesting selection of Liore wines. And I saw a large Couly-Duthiel sign from the ramparts of Chinon castle. Bruce