Alex

You're also going to be very near Sarah's Pastries and Candies. Excellent baked goods, chocolates, coffee (Intelligentsia), and sandwiches.

Has anyone been to Due Venti in Clawson yet? Northern Italian, 50 seats, everything -- including pasta -- house made. Sounds really good. No reviews so far on Yelp. Detroit Free Press review Detroit News review their wine list story (all wines are from Fenn Valley Vinyards)

Do you know if the adjacent, more upscale, Louie's Las Vegas is still open?

One obvious answer: When we're in DC, we often go to Teaism. Good breakfast food, bento boxes, ochazuke, too.

Might you be thinking of The Newberry Library? As a regular visitor, I agree that Navy Pier is undoubtedly touristy, but it does house the Chicago Shakespeare Theater and the Smith Museum of Stained Glass, and is a relatively convenient place for a walk to the Big Lake. I've found the CTA transit map, sometimes in combination with a standard Chicago street map (I use Rand McNally), to be the most useful. I'm sure others will have different suggestions. I don't know if CTA will mail you a map, but you can contact them at 1-888-968-7282 (weekdays from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.) or email them at ctahelp@transitchicago.com. You can view CTA maps online here.

Could you say something about your preferences (both yea and nay) about food type, cost, willingness to take public transportation and/or taxi, etc?

Intention sheshmention. Sometimes inebriation happens in a bar. I would just say to make sure you stay 3 nights so you can go twice with a hungover day between. Then get on the plane on the forth day and head to Betty Ford, or some awful lemon juice/maple syrup/cayenne cleanse. Between the food and drink you will need it. Toby ← Mmm, lemon juice, maple syrup, and cayenne. I wonder how that would go with bourbon. Blitzing and cleansing, all in one convenient package. On a side, but related, note, have you ever had BLiS Bourbon Barrel Matured Maple Syrup? Amazing stuff.

'Fraid not. We literally have no room for any more books, cook or otherwise, unless we start making piles. At least ten cookbooks are still completely unread. Self-discipline is no fun at all. ------- My name is Alex, and I'm a cookbookholic. [Hi, Alex.] It's been over three months since my last purchase. <applause>

I loved Entenmann's (and Drake's) coffee cake when I was growing up in NYC. So I really AM a slut. I had my suspicions...

Sorry, Alex, but it is, in fact, Loui's, without the final "e"...they did it purposely. And yes: he was the one who gave both Shield's and Buddy's their recipes. Credit Buddy's for better overall marketing, since they've expanded the most, but their pizza is now pretty far from the way that Loui's is. Buddy's is a good "second place is the first loser" substitute when Loui's is closed for vacation or something like that, but Loui's absolutely puts out a far superior product, without a doubt. In fact, the last time I had Buddy's (at their Warren location), I was downright disappointed. Noble is definitely still in their little grocery in Clawson. Didn't know about the URL thing, though. Is Nobana still owned/run by the Noble Fish folks? ← Oops. Thanks for the check on Loui's. The copyright notice at the bottom of Nobana's home page says "One World Market," which IIRC is under the same ownership as Noble.

When you navigate to Noble Fish's URL, you're redirected to the one for Nobana (see my post above). I don't know if Noble is still in their little store in Clawson. Louie's (not Loui's) is a great idea if one is in the mood for pizza. When I go to Detroitland nowadays I gravitate toward non-pizza items, so it's been a long, long time since I've been there. I seem to remember a great Loui's vs. Buddy's vs. Shield's debate. In fact, IIRC (and this is a very vague memory), wasn't Louie the chef or part owner of Shield's?

Ah, so you're adjacent to the mall. If you go west on Big Beaver to Coolidge, south to 14 Mile, west to Greenfield, then south to almost 12 Mile (about 5 miles total -- see a map), you get to Sweet Lorraine's. Highly recommended for any and all meals. Can be crowded at peak lunch/brunch times. Turn right into the adjacent driveway and park in the back. On 13 Mile just east of Greenfield is Fiddleheads. I've never eaten there, but several posters on the Detroit Restaurants thread like it. If you're up for sushi, on Crooks Rd north of Long Lake Rd (about three miles from you), is Nobana, formerly Noble Fish House.

This is speculation, not documented fact, but I'm guessing that white rice is universally preferred because brown rice goes rancid much more quickly, especially in the absence of refrigeration (and FoodSavers).

There are tons of restaurants in that area (e.g., in or within 5 miles of Troy). Could you give us a general idea of the kind of cuisine or restaurant (other than locally owned) you'd prefer and how far (minutes, not miles) you'd be willing to drive? BTW, there's an "upscale" shopping mall in Troy, The Somerset Collection.

Hello-I was just wondering: Have you had a chance to get to China Cafe? In a more general vein: I don't know how I could have forgotten it, but I would like to add my hearty,if belated, praise of Diamond Jim Brady's ← Naftal, could you elaborate on your praise of DJB? Back in January, boagman opined that DJB was far superior to Steve and Rocky's. Boagman, if you're reading this, could you expand on that? Thanks.

You're welcome. There are several Japanese restaurants in Bucktown/Wicker Park, but I believe the close by 11 or midnight, except maybe Fri/Sat. I lived for a long time in Detroit and environs, but moved to the west side of the state a number of years before Tribute opened. When I get back to the east side I'm usually not in the Farmington Hills area when it comes time for dinner, so unfortunately I haven't been there yet.

It's not a noodle place, but a lot of people like the 24/7 Arturo's Tacos, on Western at Armitage (about a half mile from Takashi).

Any particular area(s)?

The photo gallery from the Detroit Free Press is from last month, I think, but I just discovered this photo of the Yardbird sandwich from Slows Bar BQ. Oh, oh, oh.

David Burke's Primehouse has foie gras on the appetizer menu and offers a foie gras and truffle sauce for their steaks, so I suspect they can prepare the combo however you like.

Stillwater, MN. There's a link to their web site on H20's post.

Green Zebra I seem to remember a similar thread, or portion thereof, about this topic. Try searching a bit.

Full story in The Detroit News

Start, All Programs, Accessories, Calculator (I'm assuming you're not using a Mac.) Still, I'll often do my calculations on paper or in my head. Got to keep that decrepitude away from those old neurons, you know.

← Obviously from anyone who has one of these at TVH it is NOT a play on the dirty F*&King martini, the salt is there to bring forward the cucumber, not be an aspect of the drink. I should have given the amount of grains, (about 15-20 of kosher salt) and then it's possible that it would have come out more like it is at The Violet Hour. This is the problem, and the joy of recipes. There is always room for some interpretation, and sometimes it works out well and sometimes it misses the mark. I am not sure who has seen the thread over at the LTHfourm about making TVH drinks at home. This is the link. http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=20283 It is better to give specifics and hope and prey it gets made correctly. Toby Edited to remove venom, bile and spite from post. ← On LTH you specified Beefeater's gin, but IIRC, at TVH you used Hendrick's. How would you alter the LTH recipe, if at all, if we used Hendrick's at home?