Alex

What an amazing chef! It's a lovely obit in the Post. This is my favorite quote of his: And this is my second favorite:

We have Bean By Bean, mentioned earlier We also have two oldies but goodies (at least some people think so): The Brilliant Bean (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) The Instant Bean (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) And one newer one: The Better Bean Cookbook (eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

Ick. The winner was one of the weakest of the bunch, in my not-so-humble opinion. I'm curious what other eGers think. My vote would go to #8, no question. And it's even food-related.

Ah, I had thought about recommending Gage. We've eaten there multiple times. And someone we knew here in GR is now the Wine Director for The Gage and the Corporate Beverage Director for the Gage Hospitality Group.

It's just sprouted rice with an ostensibly catchy name. My rice cooker bowl has a marking for it. GABA Gabba Hey!

I like that, except for the a cappella part. When spatulas sing, they're usually flat. And shouldn't that be Amazing Grease?

Ms. Alex has had some luck doing walk-in for lunch after 1 p.m., but as rotuts suggested, I'd call and find out what's what. I'd also ask if there's a wait list for cancellations.

It's always best to call and make sure the outdoor dining section is open. That said, here you go... We love Bistronomic, about 5 blocks from your hotel We also love Piccolo Sogno, which has a very popular patio. It's a short bus, train, or cab ride from the hotel About 7 blocks from the hotel is Siena Tavern And about 6 blocks away is Tanta (Peruvian, but more than just ceviche) Beatnik on the River (dinner and weekend brunch) Jaleo (Jose Andres's tapas place -- not sure about patio, but has seating by open windows) There are tons of suitable places in the West Loop. For example, on just one short stretch of Randolph there's Little Goat Diner, Bar Siena, and Leña Brava For breakfast/brunch, on Clark near Frontera, is Beatrix Also for breakfast not far from your hotel is Edie's All Day Cafe & Bar, but I don't know if they have outdoor seating True Food Kitchen is right across the street, but I don't know about outdoor seating Breakfast and lunch near the Hilton (I assume the one on Michigan across from Grant Park): Eleven City Diner ------------------ You also might want to search and/or post on LTH Forum; that's where ronnie_suburban now makes his online home

I don't know about Basmati, but I used it about a half hour ago for jasmine, and it worked perfectly -- no lost grains.

Atlantic Coast Conference -- big-time college sports conference, especially football and basketball

US$13.89 today

Sounds like an excellent plan. One of our long-time members, gfron1, is the chef-owner of Bulrush, in St Louis. Have you had the pleasure of eating there?

I used to, back when I was in the business of extracting confessions from suspected spies and saboteurs.

Oh, darn. I was planning to stop by for dinner, but now I just don't know...

I put my rice in a very fine mesh bag and run it though the quick rinse cycle of my washing machine. Heh. Actually, I also use an Inomata. I like it.

Indeed. See the second quoted paragraph above.

James Webb Space Telescope images ranked by how good they look to eat (by Alexandra Petri in the Washington Post) Click

A "cow" will be my standard measure from now on.

Our favorite nearby supermarket recently started carrying Duke's, and a mainly Japanese "Oriental food" store carries Kewpie, so it's a good mayo life here in GR.

Dijon mustard (Maille) Horseradish Dijon mustard + horseradish Bacon jam (Serious Eats recipe) Mayo + oil-packed sundried tomatoes One sliced of smoked ham

I finally heard back from Greg Massa. This was his distressing reply:

Let's raise a cup of espresso today in his honor.

Nearly everything you read, even from reputable sources, says that before frying or sautéing most foods you should heat the pan before adding oil. And nearly all of those folks say it's because the cooking surface has microscopic pores that close up when heated, ergo less opportunity for sticking. This notion might have been debunked somewhere, but I can't seem to locate it at the moment. Harold McGee does indeed say to preheat the pan, but that's because "The longer the oil spends in contact with the hot surface, especially metal, the more time it has to be broken down by the extreme conditions and exposure to oxygen. Broken-down oil gets viscous and gummy, and even a slight degree of this can contribute to sticking and residues on the food." However, Kenji López-Alt says, "You may be asking why you can't preheat the pan, then add the oil, and the answer is that you can, technically. The problem is that without oil in it, it's very difficult to determine how hot a pan actually is. Starting with oil in the pan is a good indicator of how hot the pan is. We know that shimmering oil is hotter than pooled oil (it starts shimmering at around 300 to 400°F), while smoking oil is hotter still (depending on the type of oil, this begins at around 450 to 500°F). The oil is a built-in temperature indicator."

Still no reply from Massa Organics. That's not good.

Those pans taste much better with some sort of strong seasoning, e.g., berbere. If instead you decide to cook with it, seasoning the pan isn't necessary. Re caring for it, remember that it's not a hammer. Oh, and don't hit people or objects with it.