rickmartin

Okay, so I'm a moron. I can barely navigate my own file cabinet let alone eGullet's. I'm sure the topic has been hashed many times. Anyway, visiting NYC in a couple of weeks and I'm seeking some of the better Farm to Table concepts to be had. It doesn't have to be upscale stuff, just real food and real growers. From the heart. Any suggestions on where to eat? Thanks! RM

I live by beerfly! I have a username and such but can never remember it. It lets me use the site anyway. Hmmmm. Thanks for the info, present and upcoming. Great idea on taking some American beer. RM

Unibrau Trois Pistoles and Chocolate Chip Cookies Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale and Sushi Imperial IPAs and Aged Sharp Cheddar Lindemann's Pomme Lambic and Chicken Liver Pate Imperial Stout with a salad of Arugula, American Blue Cheese, Figs, and Balsamic reduction Saison DuPont and New York Style Pizza Berlinerweisse and Egg on Toast Any IPA and White Cheddar Cheezits And I've always thought the Guinness and Oyster thing was much overrated. Try Boddington's or another nitrogen type pub ale. The burnt, roasted notes in the Guinness malt over power the delicate flavors in the oyster leaving the nitrogen as the only redeeming quality. RM

I'm taking a small group of folks to Belgium next month for a sampling of the local flavor. Funny thing is, I've never been to Belgium!! I have a pretty good itinerary set in place with all the usual suspects in Antwerp, Brugge, Brussels and Ghent but I need some insight on the lesser known beer bars, restaurants and food treasures in those places. I'm a chef at a microbrewery/restaurant so our goal is to have a complete beer and food experience while staying off the beaten trail and avoiding tourist traps when possible. So, I'm looking for suggestions. Any and all will do. Thanks, and I promise I'll be a better eG'er in the future! RM

Walking distance to transit definitely counts! Thanks, Rick

I'll be in DC for the Savor Craft Beer fest this weekend and being a first timer to the area, need some help on where to eat. I'm a chef who appreciates local, inexpensive, non-tourist places, preferably with a real emphasis on beer over wine. Cuisine is not important. The event is at the Mellon auditorium and am staying at the Liaison Capitol Hill. Walking distance is a must! Any recs or links would be appreciated! Thanks! RM

One thing thats always surprised me about roux recipes is the lack of advice on how to add the flour. I love roux. It's such a beautiful foundation of many a sauce or soup. I consider myself a master! Whatever your butter to flour ratio, you shouldn't add all of the flour at once. This makes the roux too cakey and allows pockets of flour to brown faster than others. Besides, browning the butter is the most important flavor feature. Keep the roux a very thin batter. I even keep it at a watery consistency if I know I'm going brown or darker. The thinner the roux the more consistent the surface of the roux is touching the surface of heat. Add a little more flour as it thins out. This is especially useful for really dark rouxs, the ones you really don't want to burn. You can keep a dark roux really thin through the cooking process and add the last of your flour in the end to start the cooling process. There's more than enough heat to cook any amount of flour. As for clarified vs whole. I've used clarified to make gumbo roux and it just doesn't result in the same flavor. You lose all of those nutty caramel flavors from the milk solids. And yes, roux is like tahini when it sits. All of the non fat solids sink to the bottom. Just warm it up and stir it smooth again. Sorry to sound like a nerd here. Just made tons of roux over the years. Literally tons. RM

I'm a chef at a midwest brewpub and I'm in the planning stages of hosting a beer and food tour of Belgium next April. My co-host, a brewer, has been to Belgium, I have not. Our brewery segment of the tour is pretty much decided on. My part, the food, is proving to be a bit more difficult in uncovering the local culinary delights. I need some recommendations for local, must-experience food destinations that will take us off the usual tourist map. Since I'm not the best at navigating this site, links to past threads would be appreciated as well. So far, planned stays are in Brugge and Gent, with possible stops in Antwerp and the Ardenne. Just think of a bus load of beer geeks in Belgium, hungry for lots of fat laden food and friendly hospitality. Thanks so much! RM

Maybe I skimmed through too quickly but I'm surprised I didn't read about retarding time for your dough. I mix my dough the day before, let it rise, punch it back, cover and refrigerate. In the morning I punch down and knead the dough adding some flour. Then refrigerate again for the day and pull it out a couple hours before needed then knead more. This process allows the flour to be reasonably digested adding an airy elasticity and chewyness as well as a slight sour flavor. If you let it go another day it gets even more sour. This dough is so easy and fun to handle and makes incredible pizza stone pizzas. RM

Travelling to Iowa City and Madison this weekend. Can anyone set me up with some egullet links for place to eat? Any immediate suggestions are welcome too. Looking for anything interesting, querky and ethnic. Thanks!

Funky nice. Thanks! That helps. Any others? RM

Need a nice place to eat in Minneapolis,downtown/uptown, where my employees can eat well and dress nice. Please tell me your favorites. Thanks. RM

Throw a few hard boiled eggs in the brine a few days for a tasty snack. You'll still throw most of it away, but at least you've given it a second chance. Also, makes a great chaser or mixer for substandard tequila. RM

Oyster crackers are perfect too. Especially the ones you flavor with butter and cayenne and bake in the oven. In public school in Kansas and Missouri, chili was always served with a cinnamon roll. Whenever I mention this people think I am crazy. Any body else experience this? American "chili" is so un-ethnic that I would never think of eating Mexican type garnishes with it. And I'm speaking of the ground beef, tomato sauce, stewed tomato, kidney bean, and cumin version my mother made. She always served chili with white vinegar to dash on top. Really good! Any one heard of this? RM

Gourmand is someone who consumes to excess. Or yes, a glutton. RM

Blanched beets, arugula, chevre, white balsamic vinegar, olive oil, walnuts, and if you want the ultimate flavor combination, some pickled herring. I'm so hungry now. RM

Thanks for this information. As a person who has scoured the country trying to find cheesemaking programs geared toward small, artisan production, your post has rekindled my ambition. I am in Kansas where dairy production is very small. But in my area there is a concentration of dairymen struggling to survive. I have hopes of opening a small cheese production, buying the milk at a premium from our local farmers. There are some programs out west that are designed for the farmer making cheese but none for the cheesemaker buying the milk. When will this institute begin? Will it be available to us who will never see it happen in our state? If you have any more detailed information I would appreciate everything you can pass on. Thanks again, RM

When eating shrimp meant to be finger food, simply squeeze the tail section while biting and all of the meat will pop right out. But I agree, a dish that requires a utensile should never have the tails on. I personally like as much shell as possible for flavor reasons but I am a freak. I like to get dirty when I eat. RM

Okay, back from my Tahoe trip and I have some info to report. Stayed at the Hyatt Regency in Incline Village which was spectacular. The beach is cushy and pampered. There was about one server for every 4 people. Food was about what you would expect from a hotel. We went to the local grocery and bought some picnic items including some Truckee Bakery bread which was incredible. Had lunch on the beach. Later that evening we ate dinner across the street from the hotel at a place called Austin's. It was surprisingly good. I would say it was upscale comfort food with a decent wine list and excellent casual service. I could tell there was a hard working chef/owner in back sweating away for his customers and employees. I like those places. Plates at the table were: steamed artichoke(overcooked), pork chops, blackened ribeye and others. Went to Truckee the next night. Had appetizers at Dragonfly and was very impressed. They serve a sake cup of miso as an appertif. It was perfect. Had more apps and dinner at Pianeta next. It was a very memorable meal in flavor, but especially atmosphere. I had the pork tenderloin with polenta and wilted red chard. I highly recommend the place if you are ever in the area. I apologize for writing so quick but hungry customers await. RM

We will do a pilot dinner later this month for some reporters, historians and the like. In August we will do a couple larger dinners (40-60) for the paying public at Free State Brewing Co. where I am the chef. It will be a charitable event for some local museums and such. I will also be doing a grass-fed beef dish, a game hen to simulate the unavailable prairie chicken, and some primitive handmade farmers cheese along with some other fun stuff. I will send you a message when we set the dates if you are interested. RM

I've worked in restaurants for years and know that roaches are a constant battle. The worst is when you spend lots of money to irradicate the things and they scramble out into the open areas and your customers think you are infested. Or when your neighbor sprays and they scramble over to your joint. They are in most places that you would never expect. But even though they are around, and even though they are eaten as food in some places, they should never be in or around food. Even better: nothing should be in food ever that is not intended to be there. This shows carelessness and neglect. It means there are other problems that you may not know of. And depite the fact that I have eaten insects by choice, it doesn't mean I want one in my rice. A roach on the wall, be cautious. A roach in the food, leave and don't pay. Oh, and a meal should always be comped if a roach is anywhere near the customer, let alone the food. RM

I bought it on the internet from Seattle Exotic Meats. I say "well cared for" because it came in neat little 2 lb. packages on dry ice and, although frozen, appeared quite fresh. All of the meat has a distinct blood-reddish hue so I hope it is void of the "impossible" bits referenced above. I have more than I need for the first dinner and intend to do some flour-dredged, quick fried pieces to see what type of tenderness I get. This is a pioneer dinner and the food should reflect that which was available 150 years ago. This said, if the meat is tough the guests will experience it the way it should be (or rather the way it was). However if I can make a delicious example using the proper cooking method, then I have 60 people walking away wondering why they never tried turtle before. I know the settlers of the area had very limited recources and apparatus for cooking and so became quite skilled at cooking things properly to compensate for the lack of variety. RM

I am preparing a series of dinners based on the food of the settlers of Lawrence KS, my fair city, 150 years ago. There is one item I plan to serve that I have never cooked before: turtle. My supplier says it is more specifically snapping turtle, and it has arrived cleaned, semi-boneless, and looking quite cared for in a meat buyers opinion. I plan to make a simple soup of turtle and corn or hominy in broth. My main question is of cook time and tenderness. Some say the texture is of frog legs or lobster which would persuade me to think it would be a short, "til done" cook time like chicken or shrimp. Others have said you have to cook the bajeezes out of it to reduce the strong flavor. This goes against everything I believe in. Since I paid about $18 per pound after shipping I would love to hear some experiences and tips before I tear into it. Thanks RM

In Kansas, 6 plants will produce tomatoes for the whole block. This summer has been very mild and the plants are fruiting double the rate of last year. I have to use some green fruit or I'll lose ripe ones later. I'm pickling some right now. I'll let you know how they turn out. RM

Have you tried Krizman's in KCK? For the price it is some of the best andoullie I've found. Their Kobasa is the best! RM