adegiulio

I'm sorry, I was misleading. An engineer can stamp them, but they still need to be submitted to the Bldg Dept. for approval. Bldg Depts won't (typically) look at plans unless they are stamped by an engineer or architect licensed in that state. For the changes you are going to make, a good contractor can handle the design changes, which can then be stamped by an engineer. I would think any decent contractor would have a relationship with an engineer for this... Sorry about the confusion, it was early!! Good luck

On two occasions this week, I have anticipated a restaurants shortcoming and altered my order to fix it. Both times I was disappointed with the results. First we ate at Outback (don't throw things at me, its great for a quick, casual meal). I am convinced that Outback undercooks their steaks by at least one level of doneness. I ordered my steak medium, hoping they would cook it to a nice medium rare. It came out completely rare. I ate half of it before asking the server to have them cook it a little more. I joked with him that I purposely ordered it overdone to cancel out their undercooking. He mentioned that he knows that they undercook their steaks, almost as a policy. Why they do this is beyond me, but thats another subject. Anyway, its frustrating to know they are going to f*ck things up, I alter my order accordingly, and still get my order f-ed up. Last night we ate at Epernay. I think they overdress their frisee salad, so I ordered it lightly dressed. It arrived swimming in dressing, as if I didn't ask for light dressing at all. Frustrating.... So the moral of the story...Restauranteurs, please listen to your guests! If they order their food a certain way, please prepare it for them the way they want it. Failure to listen will result in fewer sales. Mad customers. Lawsuits... OK, maybe not lawsuits, but at the very least grumpy diners. Ah, my kingdom for a really good frisee salad...

In these days of Fascino-Rocca-Village Green induced bliss, I thought it would be fun to head back to an old favorite of ours, Epernay. I've always enjoyed this place for its light-hearted approach to what is one of my favorite cuisines, french bistro food. Something about being there on a busy night, fighting for space, trying to hear my dinner guests, energizes me and reminds me that dining with people is more fun than dining alone. They also serve two of my favorite things to eat, frisee salad and hangar steak. It is with rare exception that I don't order these two. Last night was no exception... We arrived a few minutes late and were promptly seated by Courtnay without giving her our names. Considering it had been nearly a year since we had been there last, I was happy to see she somehow remembered us. Our server happily opened our wine (both bottles, need both a red and a white! ) and told us of the special (cote du boeuf). She was very nice and we enjoyed her service. I ordered my usual frisee salad and hangar steak. Amy ordered a tomato salad and halibut. Having eaten the frisee salad many times, I feel they really overdress their salad, so I requested they go light on the dressing. I was annoyed when it came out swimming in dressing. Ugh, its frustrating, and i am going to start a new thread about this subject. Anyway, Amy's salad was good. Entrees were terrific. I still love this place, even with all the new stars out there. The service is always warm, and I like the fact that one of the owners is always on the floor watching everything. The food is a terrific value and the atmosphere is charming. I wonder why we don't talk more about Epernay on eGullet. If you haven't been in a while make a reservation. For a friendly night out, it can't be beat...

If you already have blueprints, an engineer can stamp them for approval. That would be much less expensive than an architect doing it, not to mention that architects are all very busy right now also. I would assume that the property owner has these blueprints for you. If you need to draft blueprints from scratch, it will be very costly. I wouldn't even consider a space if there weren't blueprints available. The other benefit of hiring an engineer vs. architect is that the engineer won't be charging you for extra services. They examine the blueprints, make suggestions, and stamp it. An architect will almost always do a re-draft, make changes, and stamp. I'm not saying this to disparage architects, they are just doing their job. But if you simply need those plans approved and stamped, an engineer is the way to go, hands down. In my opinion at least...

This is pretty funny stuff. I would expect it at some local NJ joint, but not at per-se. We were told the same thing, I thought it was just us. I think one issue with the pricing discrepencies is that the 1x1 or 2x2 typically include 6-8 extra courses, which costs 100 dollars more. The mass substitution of course between diners, while maintaining the number at nine, seems to result in a 25 dollar charge...

Oh, and shouldn't you be doing the laundry instead of hanging out on eGullet??

Who is this Anthony person you are talking about? He sounds very nice, generous, handsome, smart, and funny...

Living in Northern NJ, we get a little spoiled when it comes to availablity. Need Foie Gras? Drive to D'artagnan in Newark. Chocolate? La Maison du Chocolat is a quick drive to the city. Cheese, bread, gourmet items are all close (Artisinal, Hudson Bread Co., Dean and Deluca) But there are still two things I crave... Nueske's bacon Peet's coffee Throw in some fresh eggs from Bobolink and it's breakfast time....

We ordered the 2x2 pairing when we were there. It was $250 per person, plus $100 per person for the wine pairing. It was 16 courses, so we did get more food for the money (at per se that means about 2 1/2 ounces ). Total bill, with tax, tip, water, and adding in our insobriety, was $2000 for four people. It's not so bad though, I just need to park my car in a different spot every night so the repo man can't find it..

You can buy it at Whole Foods. The hazelnut is our favorite. Fascino also serves Ciao Bella gelato...

the advantages of BYOB have nothing to do with cost, for me at least. Most restaurant wine lists are so weak, it hurts me to have to give them my money. When restaurants put even a little thought into their list, I am more than happy to buy. As for the issue of having your menu choice limited to the wine you bring, the same is true of restaurants that offer wine. Most people (I would think) buy a bottle of wine versus trying to navigate the even weaker by the glass list. If you don't bring the right wine for the menu, you should bring more wine! We actually do bring both a white and a red quite often. We just don't drink it all (though I try)

Going back to school, huh??

We enjoyed one of these chickens at Per Se about two months ago. They presented the roasted chicken to our table, then brought it back to the kitchen for carving. When we were presented with the plated dish, it consisted of a portion of the truffled breast with some garnish. No leg, no thigh. I jokingly commented that I thought there was a whole chicken the first time they brought it to our table. Our server chuckled and headed back to the kicthen. Five minutes after our plates were cleared, they returned with a second chicken course of the dark meat with a truffled sauce. Our server said she told the kitchen of our amusement at only being served a fraction of the chicken . They promptly pulled the rest of the meat off, came up with a new presentation, and sent it out... It was cool-warm, but so delicious. Better than the breast meat we were served (which was also quite good). I sure could go for some of that chicken tonight, instead of the boring lemon-pepper grilled chicken breast I am going to make... Anyway, can't wait to get back to Per-se....I just hope the bank will give me another mortgage on my house!

The best chili in New Jersey is in Wayne. Actually, it's in my house. I make the best chili around... Just ask my wife...

Actually, Rosie may have unintentionally brought up a good point. If you don't want people to stalk you after reading about where you are eating tonight, just post tomorrow!

I have found quite a few good restaurants thanks to eGullet. Sometimes I wonder what the impact of a good or bad review may have for a restaurant. So, tonight I'd like to see where everyone is eating, to see if in fact eGullet matters. If we get a lot of votes for the "standouts" (Rocca, Village Green, Fascino and others), we might deduce that these restaurants are gaining business from their positive feedback on eG. If the results are more spread out to less hyped places, maybe eG isn't that big of a deal. Either way, it isn't scientific, but satisfies a strange curiousity in me. I, for one, will be home alone. Amy is away for a three day walk for breast cancer. Just me and my dogs.... a

Years ago there was an awesome pastry shop in Hawthorne called Guy's Pastry Shop. I forget exactly where is was, but he had the best everything...sfogatelle, rum babas, cannoli, pignoli cookies....everything there was fantastic. He is gone now, and I can't find really good pastries anymore. Yeah, I've been to Calandra's and Corrado's, and they are ok, but I want something special, something worth the calories and guilt. So, where are the best of the best in Northern NJ??

They are pretty big, and though they look like sugar cookies, they aren't nearly as sweet. They are very crumbly thanks to all that shortning. I love the texture, firm yet they fall apart in your mouth. The chocolate is firmer than a ganache, but not as hard as plain chocolate... They're an enigma...

click here for a picture of chinese cookies... Definately sounds like a NY thing

Yeah, I don't think they are actually chinese cookies...they are just called Chinese cookies...

I trust there's no confusion here that Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract has anything to do with the whiskey. You "trust" there is no confusion? That's a rather arrogant comment to make. I didn't realize that the actual bean had "bourbon" in its name. I'm a fairly well educated foodie, and I didn't know that; something tells me I'm not the only one. I trust there's no confusion about that...

I am looking for a recipe for those chinese cookies you find in jewish delis and italian bakeries. The cookies themselves are very short, and contain a dollop of chocolate in the middle. They aren't the almond flavored cookies that are also sometimes called chinese cookies... Any bakers out there have a recipe they can share?? Pleeeease..

Use the artificial stuff. It is actually more pure "vanilla" flavor than real vanilla extract. Vanillin (the actual stuff that makes vanilla taste the way it does) is very easy to make. In steeping vanilla beans in bourbon or some other alcohol, you are getting flavor compounds that you often don't want. By making vanillin artificially, you can single out the pure flavor, while being sure you dont get any of the other stuff in your vanilla. With all due respect to the people who think they can taste the difference, the difference you are tasting is the other stuff that makes it way into the vanilla, not some flaw with imitation stuff. And to the poster that says chemicals are "unstable", vanillin found in real and artificial vanillas are the same thing, chemically. They will both be stable or unstable at the same rate. I feel some people have been brainwashed into thinking that something artificial must be inferior to something grown in nature. I think for most things that is true. In the case of vanilla, however, it isn't.

It's been a while for us, but we finally went back to Fascino last night after a three month hiatus. As always, the Depersio family was everywhere, warmly greeting everyone. The chef Ryan was in the dining room when we arrived, and after handshakes and kisses asked if we wanted a tasting menu. ABSOLUTELY!! We started with a delicious tartare of salmon belly marinated in raw clam, with mint and oven dried tomatoes. This was stupendous. The clam added an additional layer of ocean flavor, without being overly clammy. The tomatoes added a bit of sweetness, while the mint offered an herbal presence that was right on. I made some grilled salmon with a mint gremolata a few months before, and was thrilled to see how well the two flavors worked together. It was perfect tonight, and this dish was fantastic. Only available with the tasting menu, so GO FOR IT. Next was Halibut with shaved fennel, grapefruit, and Kalamata olives with a blood orange sauce. Best dish of the night and one of the best dishes I have eaten at Fascino. Halibut was seared then roasted (i think), cooked to perfection. Halibut is my favorite fish, but unfortunately it can go from underdone to overdone very quickly. this was great. The garnish and sauce was right on. A real winner and new addition to the menu as of last night. Next was a zuchinni blossom stuffed with duck confit and foie gras, fried, and served with a spiced port reduction and organic peaches. Peaches were a perfect foil for the super richness of the blossom. The foie and confit filling were wonderfully seasoned and very flavorful. The sauce was lovely, though the juniper aroma threw me a bit. Overall, the dish was outstanding. And next was Niman Ranch Pork Chop over corn, peas, and morel ragout, served with a black currant and caper emulsion. Not a fan of pork chops, as I think they are usually too dry and flavorless. The garnish and surprisingly good sauce helped, but in the end it was still a pork chop, though it was cooked to a juicy medium-rare/medium. A very good dish if you like pork chops, still quite good if you don't. Desserts were a summer chocolate cake served with whipped cream and vanilla ice cream, and a serving of both hazelnut and espresso gelato. Both desserts were, of course, fabulous. As I mentioned to Cynthia last night, after a year, Chef Ryan's cooking has evolved wonderfully. The cooking was very good last year, but you can sense the additional refinement in his dishes and cooking. They should be very proud of this and the whole family's continued dedication to their clientele. Most restaurants are failing after a year, Fascino just gets better. If you haven't been in a while, go to Opentable.com and make a reservation now, you will be happy you did.

Oooh ooh, where in Napa are you going? Love napa...love it