john b

My last meal(s) in Philly would take place at the RTM, starting at the Down Home Diner or the PA Dutch place for breakfast, continuing to eat everything in the place--soft pretzels, ice cream, smoothies, fried chicken, fried seafood, a cheesesteak, topping it all off with Dinic's roast pork (and one final stop at Bassett's for a shake to go!).

Is moldy, outdated and spoiled food common in all supermarkets? I've seen (and inadvertantly purchased) more bad food (yogurt, prepackaged cheese, etc) in my local Acme than in any other market. I've seen sausage and bacon that had turned gray because they were left on the shelves for so long past the expiration date. I've had to put cartons of milk back on the shelf after picking them up and finding out that they're not cold, not even cool. Same with eggs. This week it was moldy Tastykakes. I checked the date on the box (10/11) and emailed Tastykake last night to let them know that one of their retailers was selling what I thought was outdated Tastykakes. They called me today and told me that they're going to contact Acme, and send me some coupons--excellent customer service. Acme, on the other hand, continues to leave outdated, foul looking food stocked in the stores. (yes, I will no longer shop at Acme after this incident)

Cool. January 2005 it is for Mount Laurel. I just read something from early this year that indicates that the development replacing the Garden State racetrack will include a Wegmans. So that'll be the Cherry Hill one I suppose. No idea on latest news about that. ← Just a day or two ago, Cherry Hill approved the plans for a "town center" at the grounds of the former Garden State racetrack. It is to include retail, residential and commercial properties. The article I read contained no specifics as to the retail/commercial stores/restaurants/shops.

I agree with Dana and chefdg. Since risotto needs to be cooked to order, why not make it into something of an occasion and rope your guests into the kitchen to help you stir the pot. I've made risotto ai funghi for about 100 in a single pot, cooked outdoors over a big paella gas burner to feed hungry cyclists after my annual charity century ride. Took a damn long time to cook, and as everyone was starving I enlisted help with the stirring, which with such a large amount of rice is very heavy work. But the risotto turned out well, al dente but cooked through. Cooking for 14 should not be too much of a problem - remember, you need less rice per person than you might think (a rice such as Vialone Nano, my favourite for risotti, will absorb more than twice its volume in liquid). MP ← I like the idea of a stirring party. Thanks!

Frankford? It's near the corner of Robbins and Frankford.

I'm thinking of doing some kind of risotto (probably pancetta and mushroom) over the upcoming holidays. Most of the recipes I use serve 2-4 and I'll be cooking for 10-12. Can I double/triple/quadruple the recipe and cook it in one large dutch oven, or should I make the 2-4 serving recipes and use multiple pans? I may be in in need of an octopus to do all the stirring.

Can anyone fill me in the beer (and wine, although I'm not a wine with Q person) selections?

Two thoughts come to mind as to why he did what he did and did it alone. SPOILER ALERT READ NO FURTHER IF YOU DON"T WANT TO SPOIL THE END YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!! First, it would have been too much of a movie cliche' if he drank it with Maya. But here's what I really think. He probably thought that the special moment for which he was saving the Cheval would be a moment that he'd share with his wife. After seeing her at the wedding, he realized that it was over for good, forever. So he drank the wine. The realization that he would now move on with his life and pursue the woman he wanted to pursue became his special moment.

It's like this...if I went into a bar and saw the usual suspects on tap plus a Magic Hat beer (#9 seems like it's everywhere all of a sudden), I'd gladly drink the MH. But...if the same bar also had (insert your favorite micro here) Victory, Dogfish Head, Yards and Allagash beers, MH would be my last choice.

Digging up an old thread... The building which once hosed Tommy's (Brace Rd, Cherry Hill) has been rebuilt and reopened. Unfortunately, Tommy's is gone and Quizno's is in.

Got me curious so I stopped by today. Had an excellent hoagie. I'm not sure it's up to Sarcone's Deli or Chickie's, but close. I asked about the bread. They said that they used a combination of Sarcone's and a bakery "just as good as Sarcone's - it's the same bread" that started out in Philadelphia but moved to South Jersey. Name started with a "L" but didn't get the rest of it. My hoagie today was on "L's" bread. Very good, but not Sarcone's. I really did like the sliced to order and sliced very thin cold meats on my hoagies though. Place didn't have the energy, the buzz, the feel of a hoppin' hoagie place either, but I was there around two so they weren't all that busy. ← Where does Primo's fall in the Philly hoagie hierarchy? I've never been to Chickie's. I like Sarcone's variety of hoagies better than Primo's, but Primo's uses better (IMO) meat and Sarcone's bread, so I think overall Primo's is making the better hoagie.

They're open in Voorhees (Camden County), too. There is a similar chain out west called Rubio's. I like Rubio's a little better (I am addicted to their fish tacos), but Baja Fresh is pretty tasty.

Yeah that would be helpful huh. I live in Pittsburgh. ← Look for beers from Penn Brewing Co (in your hometown). Since you like malty beers and the holidays are approaching, try their St. Nikolaus Bock. It's one of my favorite holiday beers. Their wheat beer is good, too, as is their pilsner. Also from PA are Yards (Philly), Troegs (Harrisburg), Victory (Downingtown) and Stoudt's (Adamstown). If you look up their websites, you'll get some good descriptions of thebeers they make. If you're not into hoppy stuff, try Stoudt's Gold (lager), Victory Lager and Dark Lager, Victory Fest (if there's any left), Troegs Nut Brown Ale and ESB (just a little hoppy).

Where are you located? Many micro/craft brewed beers have limited distribution, so it's tough to make suggestions without know what state you're in.

Prima Pils is very hoppy.

We didn't make it down for the F & W Festival, but we were in WDW in May and dined at Flying Fish, California Grill and Le Cellier. All were great. Le Cellier had a "chef's thunder" special--three courses for about $35--salmon cakes, dry aged strip steak and dessert sampler (whiskey cake, maple creme brulee, raspberry sorbet). I'd bet that it's the best dinner deal in all of WDW. Flying Fish is VERY kid friendly while at the same time, they provide a level of food and service you'd expect at "adult" restaurants. CG--the only thing better than the view is the food.

I'm surprised that Coke hasn't seized the opportunity to make and market "Vintage Coke" in the US.

When it's hot (and it doesn't really get Florida hot in NJ), I like beers like Hoegarden, Victory Whirlwind Wit, etc. Something about the lightness, slight yeastiness and hint of lemon/citrus is pefect on hot days.

You're right. We who know more than the masses about good beer should not mock the, "Bud is good beer" posts, but take the time to suggest what we think would be good beers to make the jump from mass produced industrial beer to the good stuff. So, with that in mind, I offer the following: New Belgium Fat Tire Flying Fish Extra Pale Ale Victory Lager These are all well made beers that generally unoffensive to someone who has had nothing but Bud and/or CoorsLight all their life.

We're sorry, the Last Comic Standing auditions have ended.

The Bahia Mar brings back a few spring break memories. Our wealthy college buddies stayed there, when we were sleeping on the floor in another friends' parents' hosue in Hollywood. Oh how I miss the Button...

I may have an hour or two to kill tomorrow night in FLL. Are there any bars of note with good beer selections? I didn't see anything on pubcrawler.com that jumped out at me.

I second the Shangy's and Beer Yard suggestions. A way around the buy by the case requirement--find a few friends to go in on a multiple case purchase, then split the cost and mix/match the beer. Canal's, with a bunch of Burlington and Camden county locations, is hit or miss with their beer selection. Generally, the stores on Rt 73 and Rt 70 in Marlton have pretty good selections. Cook's Liquors in Westmont and Voorhees Discount Liquors have some good stuff, too.

It's probably too far for you, but Severino's in Westmont has them.

The Gino's in my town became a Roy Rogers, then a Boston Chicken, then a Boston Market (same place, just a name change). When the Boston Market closed, the building was knocked down and now a McDonald's stands in its place.