mikeycook

Not specifically Chinese, but at Morimoto a couple of years back I had a lobster tail roasted with five-spice powder. it was delicious.

The best risotto I have had in New York was the Green Apple Risotto with Fois Gras and Balsamic Reduction they used to have at L'Impero (extremely decadent). Currently, they have a Braised Rabbit Risotto with Organic Carrots and Foie Gras Foam. Has anyone tried it? L'Impero is my favorite Italian restaurant in NY, so I would chance it. Scott Conant can cook for me any time.

Back under quote now. Send away.

I don't doubt your statement that restaurants are a bigger cause of food poisoning than homes, but a big reason for this is that restaurants generally have inferior refrigeration (i.e. large open refrigerators that are opened WAY too frequently and, thus, don't stay below 40 deg.) This is the same situation you can create by putting large tubs of hot soup into a refrigerator. I can't speak for your specific method (although I would be interested in knowing how it is judged "perfectly safe"), but I have never found cooling soup before putting it in the fridge to be that big an effort. 5 minutes of stirring with a wooden spoon (I don't use the paddle) in a bath of cold water has never been a real problem. And I am certainly not following restaurant-safe procedures. Personally I find it easier to cool the soup in about 5 minutes and get it in the fridge than have to deal with it the next day. Regarding your method, do you do this for all types of soup (i.e. cream soups, soups containing seafood, etc.?)

The paddle is also called a "cooling wand." Here is an example called "Rapi-Kool". This site has 64oz and 128oz versions. http://www.superprod.com/webapp/wcs/stores...egory_rn=112983

A refrigerator is a poor vehicle for cooling things down, so you are much better off cooling your soup before putting it in the fridge. Refrigerators are made to hold a constant cold temperature and the compressors do a poor job of bringing the overall temperature down fast enough if it is offset by a very hot item in your fridge (and it will help wear out your compressor faster). That is why a lot of restaurants employ a blast chiller. Putting hot items in the fridge was a major no-no in my Serv-Safe program I have found the soup cools a lot faster if you use the following method at home. This method will cool the soup much faster than the refrigerator and won't affect other items. Put your soup vessel into an empty sink and fill the sink up with cold water to 2/3 of the way up your soup vessel (or as high as possible if you can't get it that high. Start stirring the soup constantly with a wooden spoon (not so hard that you splash water into your soup -- a metal spoon is ok, but will get hotter faster). If the water in the sink starts to get warm, empty it and re-fill the sink to the same level (do as often as necessary). Cool the soup to room temperature, then get it into the refrigerator asap. By this method, I am able to cool a 12-quart container of soup to room temperature within about 5-10 minutes. If you want it to go even faster, buy an ice paddle. It is a large icepack shaped like the end of an oar and if you freeze it, you can use it to stir the soup and you get cooling from the outside and inside as well. I have found this method to work consistently.

I keep a small personal collection and I have started signing up for mailing lists from some of the California producers to get an allocation. Some keep their minimums low, but I recently got an allocation from Kistler and saw that there was a minimum of 12 bottles. In order to keep this affordable, I can't afford to buy 12 bottles (even if it is Kistler). Are there local wine clubs where members can get together to share allocations? I would hate to lose the opportunity to get a few bottles.

Bintje is also a separate variety from both. Yukon Golds were developed at the University of Guelph and received a distribution license in 1980. Bintje and Maris Piper have been around much longer (I know Bintjes have been around since the early part of the 20th century.)

I have heard restauranteurs say the reason they fill wines by the glass to the top is because a lot of customers complain if they don't (think they're getting cheated.) The best solution I have seen is at Otto in NYC, where the "glass" of wine comes in a small (150ml) carafe. The customer (or server) can then pour an appropriate portion into the wine glass.

Thanks to all for this thread. We have been to Paris several times, but are staying in the Marais (at Caron de Beaumarchais) for the first time over Valentine's Day weekend. I had been looking for more details on the Marais. Throwing in my 2 cents, I personally always enjoy a trip to the Puces de St-Ouen (Clignancourt) flea market. A good Sunday option.

Although I know many have already responded, I'll give my 2 cents. First, I think the term Great Chef is wholly subjective. Second, I really don't think whether one considers someone a great chef or not relevant to the real point. In my opinion, the real question is why there are not more female Chef-Owners working in top restaurants. This is what most people mean when they say a "Great Chef". A lot of people who have never eaten in a Mario Batali restaurant would call him a "great chef". They go by reputation and the fact that his restaurants are successful. The public (and even most of us foodies) knows little about a chef unless they a. Own or are head-chef at a top restaurant or b. Are a sous chef at one of those restaurants. So, in order for women to be recognized as "great chefs" by most people, they need to attain these positions. And here is where the problem in restaurants is the same as it is in the corporate world. In order to get a top position, you need to be put in that position by someone who has a higher position (i.e. the head chef, the owner, or investors). As is evidenced by the Bocuse quote, that was not happening in the 70s. While it might be happening today, it is certainly still rare. Women in financial services are still underrepresented in top positions for this reason. Until head chefs and owners start promoting the women under their charge, this situation will not change. As is true in most businesses, investors want to invest in people with a track record of success. If women are not given head chef positions, they will not be in positions of visibility for investors, won't get their own restaurants, and will not be able to establish a pattern of success. While there may be some investors that are not inclined to invest in women chefs, they will prove the exception rather than the rule once a track record of success in ownership is established by women.

I have been in the bar twice. Only once did we eat any food (we were there for the wine.) The bar did not take reservations at that point, but after the review, who knows. As there are few restaurants that have high-quality wines by the glass, a friend and I went to Cru just to taste wine. Among the offerings we tried were the 88 Clape Cornas and 90 Rayas Pignan, as well as some lesser wines. Granted the prices for these were a little high, but certainly cheaper than buying a bottle. Hopefully, the wines by the glass selections will be expanded, or at least rotated to include more high-end offerings.

I live just over a block from Indochine and I had long forgotten that they were still there. Ate there once, about 5 years. Ok. Nothing special.

When I used to work in a seafood restaurant in New England, the blue cheese dressing was alway fresh blue cheese crumbled into sour cream. I would think creme fraiche would be an excellent substitute. As far as the cheese goes, you can choose your favorite bleu. I would probably opt for a Stilton, or Cabrales, or, if not, a Gorgonzola or perhaps even Roquefort.

I have had a pumpkin seed sauce called pipian that I love in a number of mexican restaurants. I have seen a few recipes for it through Google.

I am a purist when it comes to wings. I would mix melted butter and Frank's hot sauce to taste (depending on how you like your wings) and toss the fried wings in a bowl with the sauce. Maybe choose a nice blue cheese and make your own blue cheese sauce (just mix w/sour cream).

Actually, as of Q3 of 2003, the average price of a Manhattan apartment was $916,959. It is probably close to, if not over $1M now. Of course, some people rent and some people got in earlier, but they are certainly living in million dollar apartments now.

I completely agree with this....I've never had a bad meal there, either. It's certainly not billing itself as any sort of "destination" restaurant. And depending on what you order and the night, the food can be far better than "pretty good". The rigatoni country-style and the Tuesday night double-rack of lamb special are pretty consistently wonderful....not haute cuisine, certainly, but damn good food. And the chocolate chip bread pudding is probably my favorite dessert in North America. As for overrated (although I don't hear too many people talking about it these days): I was never more disappointed in a restaurant, in relation to the ridiculous hype, than my meal at Ouest. ← My comments on Carmine's were not related to the food so much. The food can be very good at both locations and the family-style serving can be a lot of fun. However, I have an aversion to going places where people treat you like (insert unmentionable reference to bodily function here). I don't care how good the food is. The hosts at both Carmine's have been among the rudest I have ever met (La Cote Basque would give them a run for their money if still open). They rarely seem to care if they give you a table wait time that is within an hour of when you are actually seated and if you ask when the table will be available, I always get condescending smirks and comments. Obviously, they are usually packed, so I guess they don't care if you leave or ever come back. Just so folks don't think I'm the type of customer that's a handful for the staff, Carmine's is the only place, other than La Cote Basque, where I have been treated like garbage and, unlike La Cote Basque, I have experienced this 4-5 times at Carmine's (in short, every time I have been, at least twice at each location). I would certainly not call the experience fun and I would never take my family (I can always treat them like garbage on my own). If they aren't trying to impress, then they have succeeded with me. Is that flippant and impulsive enough?

My apologies (again) to Muza for my inability to read. On the L'Impero thought, I have to thank eGullet because I had no awareness of it (other than just a name in Zagat) until I saw the excellent responses on this site.

My bad. Apparently I can't read.

Underrated: L'Impero - Generally, I find most Italian places in NY to be overrated. This is definitely an exception. Conant is currently my favorite NY chef (and I am usually a devoted Francophile). Tocqueville - I know muza thinks it's overrated, but I wholeheartedly disagree. It is one of my favorite restaurants in Manhattan. It is also a place a lot of New Yorkers don't know much about. Babbo - Perhaps an odd choice, but so few of the restaurants owned by Food Network chefs are worth going to, it deserves mention. It would be a great restaurant whether or not the world had heard of Mario Batali. Overrated: First... good places that IMHO are not great places (but others consider them so) Le Bernardin - Solid meal (but not mind-blowing). Room was ok. Expected more from a 4-star. Bouley - Pains me to say this as it has long been one of my favorites, but not what it used to be. It was overrated when it had the 4th star. It may not be overrated by the Times now, but IMHO it is still overrated by most foodies. Chanterelle - Beautful room, but in my opnion the food is good, not great. Blue Hill - A good, solid meal, but I am surprised at the number of people who consider it their favorite restaurant. (Speaking of the NYC one, not Stone Barns, which I have not been to.) La Cote Basque - I know they closed, but I was treated so poorly in my one trip there that I had to mention them anyway. :-) And then the rest... Da Silvano - Mainly for celeb sighting now. Mesa Grill - Always has left me kind of cold. Carmine's - Never have understood the attraction. Places where you stand in line and get treated like s**t by the host/hostess are not for me. Besides, I can serve family-style pasta at home. Grimaldi's - Good pizza, love the coal over taste, but worth standing in the line? I think not. To me, places like this get by on reputation. Lombardi's - Ditto Grimaldi's. Tavern on the Green - Doesn't even really need to be said.

Red: 1990 Paul Jaboulet-Aine Hermitage La Chapelle White: 1989 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Montrachet

Most of my wine knowledge is self-taught, but I would see some advantage to taking a class. The hardest thing to pick up on your own (IMHO) is tasting, particularly knowing how to taste isolated flavors in the wine (i.e. smoke, toast, vanilla, black fruits, etc.) While I have not taken a formal course, I have paid for a few tastings. I have found them to be a good way to taste a number of different wines and, most important, compare them. I attending a 1988 Bordeaux tasting a few years ago. Although the quantities weren't huge, it was an opportunity to taste a dozen good-to-great quality Bordeaux (including Latour, Margaux, and Petrus) for a reasonable price (certainly more reasonable than buying a bottle of Petrus).

Had a nice time at the Union Square market on Saturday, despite getting there late and putting up with some heavy wind. Bought some aged goat cheese with green peppercorns from coach farm. Served it with a couple of varieties of heirloom tomatoes (wild cherry, small green). Bought buttermilk and some nice fromage blanc from one of the vendors on the southwest corner of the park (nice lady and her daughter, not sure of the name). Other than that, mainly fresh herbs (thyme, parsley, etc.) and basic veggies (beets, onions, garlic, shallots, etc.) Lastly, bought a large jar of Dark Amber A maple syrup. Was disappointed that Ronnybrook had already left by the time I arrived (around 4-4:30pm), but was to be expected.

Both good points. They have a prix fixe, but not a tasting menu.