hwilson41

S'kat; I'm very sad to hear about the fate of Nick's. I should have guessed that the owners probably couldn't still be around, but didn't think of it. In its glory days, both the decor and the food were wonderful. Reminiscent in a way to Hausner's in Baltimore, also gone now, alas .

Quinn; this info may be waaay out of date (someone please correct me if it is), because it goes back to the 1970s when I was in Richmond, but there used to be a superb seafood place in Yorktown called Nick's Seafood Pavillion. Decor was upscale Greek bordello, but the food was out of this world. Whether that's still the case or not, I don't know, but might be worth asking around if you feel like driving the 35 miles up to Yorktown. S'kat, if you're into seafood festivals, you might want to look into the Urbanna (VA) Oyster Festival in the Middle Peninsula the end of this month. More info here . Oysters fixed in every way imaginable plus maybe a few you've never even thought of. Lots of other seafood too, although oysters are the stars of the show. The best way to get there is to drive to Whitestone in the Northern Neck, on the north side of the Rappahannock River bridge, with your bikes on the car. Park the car in Whitestone and bike to Urbanna. A bit of a trip (~15 miles), but you'll sail past 1/2 mile or more of cars trying to get into Urbanna. If you're into oysters, the food is outstanding. THW

Hollywood; I would argue that Bob Vila whored out a lot more than Bayless has done. That asshole (Vila) is trying to persuade folks to do something that is at best fraught with danger and probably downright stupid, namely, put your house up to back up your overgrown credit card bills. If you follow his advice, you may be a renter again before all is said and done. The only folks that is good for are the ones holding the second mortgage on the house. Bayless may be hawking second rate cheeseburgers (or whatever), but they are about as good as any I've ever found in fast foodom. And you don't lose your house if things don't work out . THW

This is truly amazing. Tommy may be a little angry, but I am blue perfect pissed that I'm not there . Great pictures, Varmint. Keep 'em comin', and y'all have a wonderful time (as if that needed to be mentioned ). THW P.S. IPA really is the Breakfast of Champions!

Varmint, please describe cooking vessel. Big steel smoker? Homemade pit? Pictures would be great (hint, hint ). Has anybody come up with THE name for the pig yet? Surely in a crowd with this much creativity, we can come up with a name for a damned pig . THW

When I was one and twenty, I heard a wise man say; Give crowns and pounds and guineas But not your bacon away. Give pearls away, and rubies, But keep your bacon near. But I was one and twenty, And gave it do my Dear. When I was one and twenty I heard him say again. The bacon from the belly Is never giv’n in vain. ’Tis paid with sighs a’plenty, And sold for endless rue. And here I sit with no BLT, And oh, ’tis true, ’tis true. [Apologies to A E Housman]

Would that be Bill Neal's Shrimp & Grits by any chance? If so, and if you've never had it, you're in for a real treat. Not that anyone needs this message of encouragement, but y'all have a great time. I am so jealous I'm making myself sick. Guess it's time for another glass of wine . THW

Yeah, what she said .

I am insanely jealous of all the folks who will be dining at Chez Varmint this weekend. Spouseperson and I had a prior commitment, and I've tried my best to wriggle out of it, but alas it is not to be (because I'm supplying some of the food). It's a wine tasting party, and those are usually a lot of fun, but it pales into nothingness compared to eating pit cooked whole hog and smoked bunny. One question for Lord Varmint: Where in the hell is that written down? That's sure not the way we used to do it in Texas . Lots and lots of pictures, please. Y'all enjoy now, hear? THW

Soba; I am a big fan of Brussels sprouts, although that's a distinctly minority position in my family. My favorite recipe uses bacon, red onion, brown sugar, red wine vinegar and Parm Reg. Clean and trim the sprouts, then blanch in salted water for about 5 minutes and let them cool. Saute diced bacon in a sauce pan until most of the fat is rendered, add a quartered, thinly sliced red onion and saute until it is soft and translucent. Then add brown sugar and wine vinegar and cook until thoroughly mixed and heated through (this should yield a syrupy sauce). Put sprouts an oven proof dish, pour the bacon/onion mixture over them, and dust heavily with grated Parm Reg. Cover with foil and bake at 350* F for 15 minutes. [Optional: uncover for the last 5 minutes to let the cheese brown a bit.] Yummy. I'm also very intrigued by your roasted sprouts recipe. First one I've ever seen that turns them sweet without the help of sugar. Will try that one soon .

[setting stage] Wife out with "the girls" for a birthday dinner, one of whom is about to become a 50-something, so YHS is on his own. Shrimp and cheese grits, a la Bill Neal, accompanied by a bottle of Vina Mayor Tinto Roble (very good 2001 Spanish Cab/Merlot type IMHO). Dave Evans in the background singing (on repeat) The Last Public Hanging In West Virginia, and reading Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, on which I've been procrastinating for god-knows-how-long. Bluegrass, Bourdain, and Bill Neal. How much better could it get ? My only concern is how could I be this lucky? Life is good, very, very good . THW Edited to get grammar at least approximately correct .

The kitchen definitely looks like a challenge, but challenges are what make us strong (or totally bezoonkers). How tall are the ceilings? Wall space, if the ceilings are high enough, can store a multitude of stuff on pegboard or something similar. It won't give you any more counter space, but could keep utensils close at hand without have to worry about digging them out from a small storage area. Just a thought.

Joe; thanks for the heads up. I wasn't aware of Total's coupons. When/where do these coupons come out? Sounds like a good deal if you're buying by the case (which I frequently do). THW

All dates back to the days when 1) folks raised their own swine, so no doubt about the content, cleanliness, etc., of the scrapple, and 2) you wasted nothing, because food was difficult to preserve, and you might run out during the winter if times were hard. Most of us are so far removed from that now that it's difficult to envision, but if your nearest neighbor was five miles away and you had both run out of meat last year due to a poor harvest and a real bitch of a winter, preserved scrapple would probably look pretty good to you. BTW, it's actually pretty good if you dust it lightly with flour and fry it in bacon drippings. With cheese grits, of course . THW

So I should be looking over my shoulder when I leave the house, right ?

OK, as long as we're being opinionated, I’ll play too. This may get me thoroughly flamed, but I’m a big boy, so here goes. One of the dishes I don’t get is pasta. It’s just disguised bread, fer chrissakes. And neither nearly as attractive nor as tasty as a well made baguette, a good sourdough, or dozens of others we all could name. And then it’s often served with...garlic bread. No shit??? We’re having bread and bread for supper? Did the market collapse and we went broke while I wasn’t paying attention? Where’s the beef? [Geez, I miss Clara ] Yes, you can sauce it with anything you like, including some of the super-trendy concoctions that give a thoughtful person pause (blackened salmon infused with absinthe, in a coulis of raspberries, dandelion blossoms, and Pennzoil 10W40). But you can do the same with rice (if you insist on a real carb hit). I might make an exception for egg noodles, although frankly I prefer beef Stroganoff over a pilaf made with chicken stock. Pasta sauced with EVOO, garlic and coriander? Naaah. Pass the sourdough and butter please . THW

FG; my guess would be the latter (working on high end), although I really don't know. What I do know is that there is a vast amount of skim milk masquerading as cream out there, and the kitchen designers I've encountered are astonishingly short on common sense. I consulted two "kitchen designers" about 10 years ago when we tore our kitchen out to the studs and remodeled, and ended up rejecting both and doing the design work myself. Like some of the avant garde dishes that are so common these days, it may sound sexy and look "modern", but it just doesn't work, nor does it make any sense (a frequently overlooked criterion IMHO ). THW

Mark; I live in Virginia (also ABC stores, and ridiculously high prices), and the best bargains I've found on spirits and wine are at Calvert Woodley on Connecticut Ave (link). A typical example: for the 1.5L Jack Black, those foolish or unfortunate enough to buy in VA pay around $45 ($38+/- if it's on sale) plus 4.5% sales tax. At CW, it's about $26 plus 9% sales tax, and I know damned well that the VA ABC stores buy in at least the same volumes as CW, so quantity discounts can't be the issue here. CW are particularly good on "young" wines, like the new 2001 Spanish wines that Michael Franz raved about recently in the Post. Does Paul's have better prices/selection than CW? THW

Malawry; I checked the link you provided (thanks - don't know why I couldn't find it) and they now sell over the internet without requiring that one be a member . I'm going to try to run down there this week sometime to see what they're selling, because to an amatuer like me, the product descriptions on their web site are pretty cryptic, but this could be a real boon to us non-pros. Thanks again for the link. THW

Yeah. I was heartbroken when they closed.

Until recently, I would have agreed completely. I live only a few miles from Loehman's, and used to go to Celebrity Deli regularly. The last few times, the Reuben has been really disappointing, far below earlier standards. I have no knowledge, but am wondering if maybe the place has been sold or is under new management. THW

With a bit of advance notice, I'm definitely in. Al's in charge of planning . THW

Oops. My ignorance exposed for all to see once again. Sorry for that . Actually, in retrospect I should have picked up on that, because I thought it was odd that no cheese was offered on any of the sandwiches. Seems obvious after the fact [duh]. Me too. I'm especially sorry I don't still have my $15 . I haven't tried Parkway Deli in Silver Spring, but will the next time I go in to Calvert Woodley for wine. Thanks for the lead. THW OT [to Malawry] I looked for the Restaurant Depot in Alexandria that we discussed in another thread, and couldn't find it on the web or in the phone book. Could it be under another name? TIA.

Has anybody else tried Stack's deli (north side of Pennsylvania, between 11th & 12th)? I was near downtown today on other business, and decided to give them a shot in my never-ending search for the perfect Reuben. They got a very favorable review here, but frankly I was underwhelmed, to say the least. For starters, they don't even offer a Reuben. No shit!! I'm not a native New Yorker by any stretch, but I thought every kosher deli sold Reubens. OK, strike one. I ordered hot pastrami and chopped liver, on rye, with mustard and onion. When I got the sandwich home, I discovered that what I got was cold corned beef and chopped liver, on pumpernickel, no mustard, no onion. Maybe they were out of pastrami, rye, mustard and onion . Strike two. And all for only $15 (no sides, no drinks, no nothin'). Strike three. At best, these folks are batting under .200, which might get you a decent paycheck if you've also got a good fast ball, but otherwise will get your ass fired in short order. My gut feeling is that if this deli were in NY, they'd be out of business by...um...maybe Friday. Monday for sure . THW P.S. The best Reuben I've found so far is at Krupin's on Wisconsin in the Tenleytown area. Any other suggestions would be welcome.

Varmint; I'm a rank newbie, but am trying to work the schedule out. Motel rooms, etc., are not an issue, because my daughter and son-in-law live in Chapel Hill. If it all comes together, I'll be there, and will be glad to work the night shift if you're short of help . This is a really neat thing you're doing. Many, many thanks for your generosity. THW