Alex

Thanks so much for a great report, Stalder! I just hope that enough people appreciate this kind of cooking to keep Globe in business for a long, long time. I see you're doing your part. Now, if you could do something about that exchange rate...

I'm completely with Tammy on this one, right down to her cocktail preference. (I wasn't drinking this night, but she was kind enough to give me sips of her cocktail and wines.) I also didn't care for the buffet-style service. I think it would have been more fun, educational, and better paced to have had individual courses -- for example, a plate with ten varieties of sliced tomatoes, three cheeses, and an accompanying information sheet. Outside of dessert, my favorites were the cheeses (marinated goats and very fresh mozzarella) and the fried green tomatoes with bacon (Neuske, I think). If I had known how great the dessert was going to be (one of our tablemates knew, but wanted it to be a surprise ), I'd have saved room for a few more servings. Good? Certainly yes. Worth $39? With the fine company of my tablemates, yes; without them, probably not.

Yes, the Indian restaurant is Raja. I discussed it briefly in this post. I'm massively jealous. I wish we lived close enough to Stratford to be regular and frequent patrons of Globe. Could we hear some more about your recent visits? It's all terrific, I know, but are there any dishes or wines that stand out for you?

Thanks for reminding me that I need to buy more. Most frequent use = kosher salt storage by the stove. It's not as cute as a salt pig, but the salt definitely stays drier during our humid Michigan summers. (Yes, I know that salt pigs help, but they still don't work as well as a sealed container.) It also prevents easily distracted cooks like me from knocking over the container and spilling salt all over the counter.

And a New York Times article about the subject. (The article may be available w/o a subscription for only a limited time.) Hmm. How long do you think it'll be before well-meaning or Moore-prompted citizens (or PETA) start in with the complaint-filing?

Having completed my patriotic duty, here's my report: Dark Wheat Ale: Well crafted, smooth, not at all heavy, but, as the NYT said, rather one-dimensional. Good, but not worth $2.50/bottle. GW Porter: Coffee, malt, a bit of chocolate and molasses. Nice, but again, not worth the price. Root Beer Brew: The NYT loved it; I though it was just weird. I'm a root beer fan, but this had too little sassafras and too much other flavorings. Wintergreen? Bleh. Ginger Honey Ale: My favorite of the bunch. Light, refreshing, just enough ginger, only a touch of sweetness. A great summer drink. I'd easily buy it again, but only w/o the others.

There's so much to eat, see, and do, especially if you're willing to hop on a train or bus (or taxi). What are your particular interests in food and merchandise? For example, there's a great medium-high-end resale shop just off the Brown Line that Ms. Alex always makes a point of visiting, but I don't know if that's your thing. Others may say a Chicago dog or Italian beef is quintessential Chicago and a must-eat; I say, not so much. <ducks quickly to avoid a barrage of sport peppers being fired from across the big lake>

Welcome to eGullet, Matcha Eyes. From my time in Macomb County in the 80s, I seem to remember Mt. Clemens as pretty much a restaurant wasteland. How's it doing nowadays?

Peanut butter ice cream, with chopped Lindt bittersweet chocolate mixed in. Incredibly rich, like Reese's on steroids. Kitchen Chick's husband, eG'er jmsaul, made it, sans chocolate, for the recent Heartland Gathering. Unfortunately I had to back out of attending at the last minute, so I made a batch of the ice cream a few days later, in tribute.

I also stumbled across this collection today at my local supermarket. It was trying to avoid being bought by anyone, perched as it was on the top shelf of an end cap of the wine section. I'll contribute my 999 cents (plus deposit) after it's been suitably tested.

What kind of "education" did those polled receive about foie gras, you may ask? Looking at a breakdown of the poll, 48% of those polled had never eaten it, and 34% of those polled had never even heard of it. So what's the follow up question, the question that generated the "nearly 80 percent" statistic in the ordinance? There's an unbiased poll question for the ages. Especially when 82% of those polled had never eaten it, or never heard of it. ← dividend, do you have a web page(s) reference for the Zogby poll and, especially, for the wording you quoted? That would be a great example for my Intro Psych classes.

Lawsuit!!

"Woodland Shopping Center will get a new eatery when Bar Louie moves into the former Max and Erma's site..." Their director of operations talked about their other mall locations being "open for shoppers during the day" and a "destination point in the evenings." I wouldn't count on that destination point thing here in GR, but maybe they know something I don't. Any opinions about the food?

Mine works well, and I wouldn't be without it, but it doesn't eliminate 100% of the splatter. At times -- for example, when I'm pan-searing a steak -- I'll do a belt-and-suspenders and place a paper towel on top of the screen. (But not overlapping the sides: overlap = fire!) In general, the finer the mesh, the better the performance. Maybe I need to try a new one. Amazon has a bunch for sale.

Two more. Will the madness never end? 1) From the used book shelf at a Barnes & Noble: Eat Right, Eat Well -- The Italian Way, by Edward Giobbi and Richard Wolff, M.D. Touted as a "low-fat, low-cholesterol cookbook," which normally would sent me running in the opposite direction, it's actually a very useful companion to Giobbi's wonderful Italian Family Cooking. The recipes are authentic and straightforward, and the book is filled with his pen and ink (I assume) sketches. (Giobbi was best known as an artist.) I recently made his Pistachio Sauce (pistachios, pine nuts, anchovies, oil, lemon juice, mint, pepper), which partnered sautéed chicken breasts very nicely. 2) From eBay, to fill a large gap in my collection: Larousse Gastronomique, the first American edition, 33rd printing.

My ex and I made a huge jar (at his persuading) of dried organic plums in a high quality armagnac. They've been soaking in that liquor for the last 2 years and I never even thought to use them, not knowing quite what to do with them. I'm sure they're still good, considering the amount of armagnac that was used. So they're good on ice cream? Tell me more. I'd like to use them. John ← As Pan said, he was referring to Prune-Armagnac Ice Cream, although I'm sure yours would be great just chopped and served on top of (or smooshed into) some good vanilla ice cream, with just a bit of the armagnac. I've used Paula Wolfert's recipe for Prune-Armagnac Ice Cream, from The Cooking of Southwest France, and it's absolutely wonderful. If you like, PM me and I'll send you the recipe.

They're also much cheaper at the Farmers' Market here in Grand Rapids, on the other side of the state. My impression is that the cost of living in general is higher in Ann Arbor than in other cities in Michigan. I should add, though, that the quality of life is higher, too.

Reminiscent of our old friend The Wine Clip (and The Wine Clip, Part Deux), there's now a marketing blitz for yet another magnetic wine "enhancer," the Bev Wizard. What's different about the Bev Wizard is: 1) it uses less esoteric magnets, so it's selling for $30, not $79; 2) the inventor is a certified master of wine; 3) his claim for the device is free of hyperbole and more or less matches the impressions of those eG members who tried out the Clip -- that the device accomplishes the same thing as aeration, only quicker. However, he claims it speeds up the process by "hours"; those eG'ers who thought magnetic treatment made a difference said that it it was more like 15 to 30 minutes. I find it fascinating how new variations of this kind of device pop up every so often even though none seems to sell very well.

I'd bet a bushel of beefsteaks that these are the genuine article, and tasty to boot. (Link goes to a .pdf download, moderately lengthy for dial-up users.)

Actually not fortified. Baby Duck was like fizzy pop with alchohol, the perfect drink for teenagers of my generation that wanted to get drunk without tasting booze. Ruby Rouge was just a revolting version of 'buck-five, come alive'. ← Having wicked flashes to some of my own adolescent misadventures with crap booze. There was this crap sparkling rose that my parents used to get all the time called Cold Duck, made by a vinyard in upstate New York called Andre. I wonder if this stuff is related to its fellow duck up north. Heh. And I'm digging the expression "buck-five, come alive". That's a new one for me. ← ... Anyway, Andres wines is owned by the Peller family, here in the Niagara peninsula. Old man Peller came from the old country and couldn't convince people hereabouts that respectable wines made from European grapes were desirable (same thing was happening in California at the time). So he made crap wine from labrusca grapes - Cold Duck, Baby Duck - anything the locals would drink. He had vineyards in upstate new york as well. He bidded his time, getting wealthy on the crap people would drink, growing better grapes for his own consumption, and when the turnaround came the family opened Peller Estates, which makes considerably more respectable (and respected) wines from wine grapes rather than grape juice and jelly grapes. Gus Peller, a son, gave up his job as a family physician in Grimsby to run the operation in the states. We miss his hilareous antics, he is quite the character, though it perhaps sits better with wine folk than it did with some of the patients. ← Actually, the original Cold Duck wasn't plonk and even had a certain cachet. It also was one of Detroit's lesser-known inventions, in which we took a strange sort of pride. It dates back to the 1930s, to the Ponchartrain Wine Cellars restaurant, one of THE places to dine in Detroit back when. According to wikipedia, it was "...based on a traditional German custom of mixing all the dregs of unfinished wine bottles with champagne. The wine...was given the name Kalte Ende (cold end), until it was humorously altered to Kalte Ente meaning 'cold duck' in German....The exact recipe now varies, but the original combined one part of Californian [sic] red wine with two parts of New York sparkling wine."

Ms. Alex is finishing up a four-nights' stay in Madison and has appreciated all the information on this thread. She opted for dinners at Magnus (she was there two years ago), Essen Haus, Harvest, and Cocoliquot. I also heard her ears perk up when I told her about Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, so she might head over there tomorrow. I'll see if she's willing to dictate a report after she gets back home.

Thanks for the appreciative words, Tammy. I'm sad as well. But, to honor of the spirit of the Gathering, I'll make some blueberry cobbler and cardamom ice cream at home tomorrow night.

But I was so looking forward to the snorting... However, I'm still looking forward to the rest of the Gathering. And Susan, have no fear -- there will be lots of photos. (Cameras + laptops + wi-fi = nearly real-time reporting.)

As Muffinzz said, you can use a cut that's labeled for London Broil. A sirloin or round steak might also work, if sliced fairly thin across the grain. BTW, I'll also be bringing my laptop to Ann Arbor, and Tammy has hers, so I suspect there'll be lots of posting and picture uploading.

Hi, Randi (and Christine). I'm looking forward to seeing you in Ann Arbor later this week. (Don't forget to bring back some of those expensive but really good grits from Zingerman's for Christine. ) Was the picture of Robin taken at The Common Grill?