robyn

What about other gins? I'm a Beefeater's girl. Robyn

You'll have to ask your wife (and me next week because my husband got me chocolates from Torres too this time around). He's ordered from several places before. We both like Vosges (I like the chocolates - he likes the web site). I like Maison but he doesn't (he says the web site is a mess and ordering on the phone is worse). And even if the chocolates and the web site are good - there's always the matter of shipping (I live in Florida and if chocolates aren't packed/shipped right - I'll just wind up with a pile of goo). Vosges and Maison are both good on that count. Let's compare notes next week. Robyn

They have blue cheese olives at the Ruth's Chris where I live. Love the olives - but on the side. They're a bit much for a martini in my opinion. Robyn

OK - I admit it. I had no idea who you are. But I read that story somewhere (don't think it was in a book - I recall a magazine - and I also recall an anti-government regulation slant). And it included the part about his son being shot. Great story. Do you have any idea where I might have read it (and whether you wrote that particular piece)? Blue Mountain coffee is great. In fact - it's the only thing I liked about Jamaica. But it isn't the same when you buy the "10%" stuff in the US. Robyn

P.S. Just saw you want high end. On my last trip a couple of months ago - I liked Bizcaya Grill at the Ritz Carlton in Coconut Grove the best. Azul (Brickell Avenue) was nice - but I didn't like it as much as Bizcaya Grill. Both of these places are about 20-30 minutes from the airport. Robyn

I have no idea. Near the airport, I guess. But I'll have a car. How far can things be? Bruce Things can be *very* far in terms of both time and distance. Miami is kind of like Los Angeles - albeit on a smaller scale. Note that La Broche closed a while back. I also wouldn't recommend Joe's unless you're willing to wait 2 hours - or give a nice gratuity to the seater (or have a friend who's the G_dfather to his grandchild). Where will you be - and what's your timetable (are you staying overnight - or are you just trying to catch dinner between flights)? By the way - I also do not recommend driving at night unless you're at least a little familiar with Miami and don't plan to drink. Florida is kind of death on DUI these days. Do you want high end - low end? Give me a clue and I'll try my best. Robyn

No thank you. I'd rather not bore myself with tastelessness. Again, the key expression in your post is "to me." Chacun a son gout, n'est-ce pas? So here we get back to the heart of the matter again. Tasteless or allegedly tasteless food. Now I have had tasteless food before. Like when I would visit the town where my inlaws used to live and went to the Golden Corral (best place in town ) - and had macaroni and cheese which tasted like styrofoam with glop (you can understand why people who eat like this all the time get fat - they just keep eating to try to get a taste of something). Or one of those things that frequently passes for a tomato in a supermarket. But real food/ingredients have taste. Sometimes it's bold - e.g., a ripe Epoisses. Sometimes it's subtle - e.g., a briny oyster. And sometimes the basic ingredient is bland - a foil for other tastes - e.g., most mashed potatoes. But you don't want to dose all of these varying ingredients with large amounts of herbs/spices so they're totally overwhelmed. That would be like a symphony orchestra that had one volume level - loud! You could never hear the flute. By the way - I was just having random thoughts about instruments and thought of Peter and the Wolf. Have you run across the new politically correct Peter and the Wolf yet (it played for the first time here this year - and I thought it was totally ridiculous). Robyn

I think we all have to do a little historical homework. And the history of spices is really intertwined with a lot of important historical events. Salt and the use of it is ancient. I suspect it was reasonably widespread around the world - but it wasn't easy to get for the most part - and it wasn't cheap. Black pepper came from the "east". It too was hard to get - and not cheap. When Columbus went to the "New World" in 1492 - he was trying to find an easier way to get to the "east" - in part to get spices - including pepper. According to historical accounts - he was the first European to discover capsicum - chili pepper - which was native only in the "New World". And a lot of discoverers around that period of time were also driven in part by the desire to expand the "Spice Trade". Now maybe some chili peppers made their way to India (and other countries) before the end of the 15th century - but - if they did - I doubt there were many. They weren't on the shelves of the local supermarkets . And although food items from the New World did make their way to Europe over the next 300 years - I doubt they were - for the most part - anything other than exotic expensive items which were sometimes used by the "rich and famous" - sometimes not - depending on what was fashionable at the time (just think of what it was like to travel from Europe to the "New World" and back even in the 19th century). In fact - a lot of these products - like chocolate and tobacco and corn - have pretty interesting histories. So perhaps the cuisines that developed outside of the "New World" - which many people think of as "haute" these days - developed the way they did simply because New World products were hard to come by. Robyn

I don't think I made my point very well. What I was saying is if you're used to using tons of herbs/spices - try cutting back a lot for a while. Then gradually reintroduce the herbs/spices. You'll be surprised how a little goes a long way. And - to me at least - the tastes are - for lack of a better word - clearer - less muddied. Robyn

Thanks for the information. If you had to pick any place in Scottsdale/Cave Creek to eat - and someone else was picking up the check (we'll be picking up at least one check for my brother and his family) - where would you go (we're eclectic eaters - we like everything as long as it's good). Robyn

What's sad? The only stuff that's grown locally where I live is potatoes and cabbage and collards and mandarin oranges (and they're all *very* seasonal). Let's face it - everyone doesn't live in the heavenly produce valleys of the world. Maybe you do - but I don't. As for my local wines - how about peach wine? I dare you - no - double dare you . I shop at Costco all the time for things I can't even find in my local supermarkets. A preliminary menu recommendation is something that uses their great red/yellow/orange peppers (full size or mini) and sausages (I like the andouille sauages by Amy). Italian? Jumbalaya? I'm game. By the way - I had no idea Costco was in Japan. What kinds of things do they sell there? Robyn

Perhaps the point is just to use common sense - and moderation. We no longer have to use large doses of herbs and spices to mask the flavors of somewhat spoiled food. That is relatively new. My parents grew up in houses with ice boxes - which certainly didn't do as good a job of keeping food fresh as electric refrigerators. And my grandparents didn't even have ice boxes when they were growing up in Europe. On the other hand - a small amount of herbs and spices can do wonderful things to a dish - as can a beautiful sauce prepared with a deft hand. Just think of mashed potatoes. With no salt. They're totally flat. Add a little salt and there's a world of difference. I know most of you are younger than I am - but I can tell you that one of the largest areas of "spice abuse" that I see is in people my parents' age. These are people who got used to eating lots and lots of salt on their food. Now that they're 75+ - a lot have high blood pressure - congestive heart failure - etc. Not to mention that one's sense of taste tends to diminish as one ages (along with the other senses). Anyway - a lot of these people can't eat salt. So what do they do. They substitute massive amounts of pepper - on everything. I like a lot of pepper on a cucumber sandwich - but most ingredients are stronger tasting on their own than cucumbers. You just have to cut back on the salt - pepper - whatever - for a while - and allow yourself to taste the essence of the ingredients you're eating. Then start adding the herbs and spices again. You'll be surprised how a little goes a long way. Try it. You'll have plenty of time to overdose your food when you get old and lose your sense of taste. Robyn

I got this off a high class botanical site. I have no idea what half of it means . Looks like it's not your normal plant in the ground and it sprouts 2 weeks later kind of seed. Robyn Propagation Notes: Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe in the autumn. Stored seed may requires up to 3 months cold stratification, though scaritication may also help[113]. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as early in the year as possible. Germination should take place in late spring, though it might take another 12 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in early summer. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Root cuttings, 3cm long, planted horizontally in pots in a greenhouse. Good percentage[78]. Suckers, removed in late winter and planted into their permanent positions[113].

My brother lives a bit north of Scottsdale (Cave Creek) and we'll be visiting him again this summer. Why the summer? Because we live in Florida - so we're not freezing in February. And because a room at the Four Seasons is $155/night and the spa there doesn't care whether it's hot or warm or cold outside. Anyway - I'll track these threads for our trip. I'd like to say that the last time we were there - a couple of years ago - we didn't have a bad meal. Nothing fabulous - but everything was very good - and the prices weren't fabulous either. Only name that rings a bell is Roxsand's <sp?> (although I could look up the names of the other places if necessary). Even "little deal meals" were nice. E.g., we had really good tortilla soup for lunch at the big mall in Scottsdale. It may not be the best eating city in the US - but it's very good. Robyn

I have some experience researching high protein intake for my mother-in-law - but it's in the context of kidney failure and dialysis. People on dialysis need huge amounts of protein. There are literally a ton of web sites devoted to how to get sufficient amounts of protein when you're on dialysis. So I'd start searching through those web sites (do a google search on dialysis and protein) - and throw out any suggestions that aren't appropriate for someone who's having the kind of surgery your wife is having. In my mother-in-law's case - she weighed about 90 pounds so losing weight wasn't at all important. But - due to other parts of her medical history - she did have difficulty consuming anything but the smallest amounts of food. So the supplement products were really important for her. Robyn

How about differences not in quality - but taste? I would nominate oysters. You can take 3 types of oysters - all excellent - yet each will have a different taste. When I see people dumping so much pepper sauce on them that you can't possibly taste the oysters - much less the differences among the oysters - I always scratch my head. By the way - I don't have a particular objection to pepper. I dislike overdosing anything that's really good with excessive amounts of any herb or spice which masks the taste completely (in the south - the main culprit is salt - you might as well just throw away the food and eat the salt out of the shaker). Robyn

The best place to buy these cheeses considering where you (and I) live is fromages.com. Overnight delivery from France. I've ordered from them many times. They're reliable - and their cheeses are wonderful. Robyn

My husband and I both practiced law state-wide for a fair number of years. So we have been just about everywhere - many times. My husband once spent a week in Sebring trying a case. Way back then - it was a little strange. But now you can get home delivery of the New York Times there. So times have changed . How are you trying to sprout the seeds? It really isn't germination time for hardly anything now in the US no matter where you live. March is about the earliest time seeds like to sprout. Like I said before - if I were interested in trying to grow this - I'd probably buy some small plants off the internet (after checking agricultural regs). Robyn

For what it's worth - Zaika - along with several other "new wave Indian restaurants" - was written up in Travel & Leisure in the December 2003 issue. Robyn

What is the "potentially significant" benefit? Robyn

robyn -- have you ever head of the expression of the brigade system used in reference to commercial, restaurant kitchens? No I haven't - what is it? Robyn Here's a brief explanation in a nice nutshell. Hi Beans - Thanks for the link. I wasn't familiar with the word - but I am familiar with the concept - both in its full blown form from eating in fancy restaurants in France - and its lesser form(s) from eating in simpler restaurants elsewhere (and just about every restaurant in the world is more simple than a 3 star restaurant in France ). By the way - I recall one 3 star restaurant in France that had full length windows in its kitchen facing to an outside walkway. So when you woke up in the morning (it was a restaurant with rooms) - you could walk outside and see the start of preparations for the evening meal (like the fellow at the bottom of the totem pole who was just hulling strawberries). Pretty amazing stuff. Robyn

If any eGulleteers are able to grow plants from dried Sichuan peppercorns, I hope they'll be gracious enough to tell us about it! I read a little about the culture on the internet. It's not a super easy thing to grow. Apparently - it's hard to get the seeds to germinate. Also - you need both male and female plants for pollination. So you have to plant more than one. And you need a suitable substitute vector for pollination (since the plants aren't native to the US). By the way - the plant is only hardy to zone 6. That kind of surprised me - since there's hardly any domestic citrus that is hardy north of zone 8. So that piece of information might be wrong. On the other hand - there is at least one company in the US that sells plants on the internet. So - if you're a devoted gardener and willing to give it some research and time and effort - it might be worth a try. I'd check on any state agricultural regs before buying and importing plants from out of state though (not only with this plant - with any plant - most states that produce crops - and that's almost all states - have regs to protect them). I'm a pretty decent gardener - and if I were interested - I'd probably buy a half dozen established plants on the internet to give myself a fighting chance. I didn't find any information about how long it takes this plant to go from seed to mature plant (capable of producing flowers) - but - with most plants - you're talking about a bunch of years. Robyn

This, to me, seems like the logical response to finding oneself in a situation where one is too weak or has too little endurance to meet the demands of one's professional environment. It's what I did. And that's exactly what frustrates me about many women kitchen workers and what I believe contributes to the sexist attitude of the industry. They don't. They expect people to make allowances for them because they're girls, and girls just aren't as strong. I've consistently come across this bizarre attitude of entitlement from women who seem to think they shouldn't be held to the same physical standards as everyone else simply because of their gender. They want to be treated differently. And so they are, but not in the way they want. I'd generalize based on my experience (which may differ from others') that the men who have difficulty with the physical requirements of the job tend to be far outnumbered by the women. Maybe it's because men don't feel like they have the "I'm a girl, so I'm not very strong" excuse to fall back on, so they see no other option than to acquire the strength and endurance expected of them. There's nothing wrong with crying as an emotional response. God knows I've cried over being reprimanded. There's been times when I've barely made it down the block after leaving work before I burst into tears. But I don't do it while I'm working. I belive you said you were a lawyer. Surely you wouldn't start sobbing in court, or in a meeting when something upset you? You would suck it up and do your job, then wait until you were back in your office or until you got home to shed some tears. It's the same thing. You can't start crying in the kitchen because things don't go you way anymore than you can start crying in any other workplace. It's unprofessional. I'm in my late twenties, and I've been cooking professionally for about 12 years now. The thing is, it's not that I had to prove myself way back when. It's that I have to prove myself all the time. Every time I go someplace new to work, I have to start all over and prove that I'm not that wimpy girly girl. Every time someone new joins our team, I'm the one who has to show them that I deserve respect. And I don't resent any of my co-workers for taking that attitude towards me, because I understand why they have it. I've developed it myself. I admit to being suspect of women co-workers, but I think that I have good reason to be based on experience. It's certainly not that I believe women are incapable of being cooks. There's just some mystery reason why most of them aren't. What I do resent is the many women who I believe are responsible for causing this attitude. Why don't they work harder to fight to disprove the stereotype? That's the only way to we'll ever overcome it. But apparently girls will go on being girly girls, men will go on continuing to assume they're girly girls who can't pull their weight, and nothing's ever going to change. Exotic Mushroom - What I hear you saying is simple. A lot of kitchen work requires a fair amount of upper body strength. Unfortunately - it is a fact of life that women - on the whole - don't have as much upper body strength as men of similar size. Plus - they tend to be smaller. If anyone doubts me about this because I'm a lawyer - I'm also a pretty good tennis player. I know a lot about the game. Upper body strength or the lack of it is evident - and important - in tennis. The strongest women aren't anywhere close to the strongest men. Also - for an emotionally satisfying and poignant story about upper body strength in women - see the movie "An Officer and A Gentlemen" - where the female officer in training had a heck of a time learning to "climb the wall". So it's similar to women wanting to do other jobs where upper body strength is important - like being a fireman. The difference being that a fireman without sufficient upper body strength can endanger the lives of others - whereas an aspiring chef mostly pisses off co-workers. So - I understand what you're saying. But I am just a bit surprised that many of the women you've encountered in the workplace aren't dealing with this in a constructive way - which is not - as you've stated - with a sense of entitlement (in my opinion). Since I've never worked in a kitchen before - I can't draw on my own experiences. But if what you say is true - it's sad. On the other hand - I haven't encountered many women gardeners (where upper body strength is also important). Perhaps women think that they can side-step the physical job requirements of a job since it involves being in a workplace like a kitchen. I don't know. I'm curious what other people think about this? As for crying - I have only cried on the job twice. The first time was when I was very young. A judge said that because I demanded a jury trial for my client in a silly who hit John case in a parking lot argument - my client (a state worker) would go to jail (as opposed to a probation type thing) if the jury found her guilty. We both had a cry over that in the conference room. Then we went out in front of the jury - and got a not guilty. The other time was when some SOB judge held me in contempt and threw me in jail for doing something on behalf of a client that I thought was the thing to do. Jail is a really lousy place. Luckily - I recovered enough to make my one phone call. I called a friend who was the best criminal lawyer I knew! And he got me out. I don't regret crying either time. But it wasn't an everyday thing for me. Robyn

If anyone is planning a trip to this area - and you're a garden fan - don't miss Villa Taranto. Robyn

Get an affinity credit card for the bonus points. Robyn