ludja

Thanks for sharing this personal story, FabulousFoodBabe. There are often many interesting stories behind dynamic people, but it is wonderful to hear the personal ones as well; especially the postive examples when they exist! I thought that there might be a number of people on eGullet with personal interactions with Gallo or the company.

Thanks for mentioning, "Mindless Eating"; I may check that out. Some of the issues you outline regarding the very real economic drive for restaurants to increase serving are also discussed in this article by Michael Pollan which I give a link for in this post: click I also don't think there is a conspiracy for restaurants to serve supersize portions rather I think it is purely a straightforward business decision to increase profits. While there is nothing wrong with that persay, the results in persuing that goal may not always be best for society or the consumer in the long run. (There are other examples of this in our society as well.) Poor diet and too much food have effects over a much longer time period and direct cause and effect between long term diet and particular health issues is not simple to understand or study. The restaurants and other processed food makers are not in controll of a conspiracy in the sense that they hold all the strings (factors) in achieving the outcome. Nor do they hide what their goal is; namely, to increase profits each year for their shareholders. And as you pointed out, they need to do this no matter how much cheaper foodstuffs becomes or no matter what the population growth. Chain restaurants are not increasing portion sizes because of consumer demand, rather they are constantly trying to figure out how to sell more food (more portions or larger portions). That is their job, but is it not necessarily good for us. I think a number of factors "conspire" to achieve the upselling that the restaurants have successfully implemented. So, if this upselling is considered a problem (i.e. obesity and health-related issues) one can look at all the factors involved. Some of the factors that aid businesses in increasing their profits are the use of powerful marketing tools (often directed at children), benefitting from government- subsidized tax breaks for production of for eg., soy and corn and lobbying efforts of very large food processing companies in order to have foodstuffs cheap enough so that they can increase profits even as they increase portion size. And, these factors all dovetail very neatly into the other drivers in people's lives that affect their food choices--convenience for those with less time, a "good" deal (lots of food for relatively cheap prices), natural instincts for people to like fats and sugars, a trigger for saiety that can be easily and persistently overrun, etc. Thinking about making calorie and fat information available for people at restaurants may be helpful but it is only one of many factors that affect our food choices. I think that people who are interested in losing weight or increasing their health should look at all the factors within their controll. Does this mean that we should ignore the existence of all factors that are beyond our direct personal choice or that we should not attempt to understand the complex set of factors that are behind our own personal choices? This is what JohnL seems to recommend although I don't understand why. Although some change might be effected by people's votes if some of these issues become part of the national dialogue, I agree with JohnL that the quickest and most direct way to effect change is through ones personal choices. Unlike JohnL (perhaps), I think it may be easier for people to make the "right" choices for themselves if they understand more explicity, the factors behind their "simple choices" and in some cases, to be given information to help them make their choices.

With the attempts of restaurants to promote healthier options, I wonder if part of the problem is pointing them out as such. Are the healthier dishes listed as just another item on the menu, or are they highlighted in some way to draw attention to the possible reason for ordering them? . ← Good point regarding the segregation of "healthy" items to one part of the menu, JanMcBaker. I often wondered how that affects people's ordering choices. For those that are explicitly dedicated to ordering lower calorie items it might be helpful, but it may put off many others. I know my Dad would flat out nor order something if it was labeled "healthy" although he has not problems ordering cups of soup, salads, etc that would fall under that category.

I want the garlicky creamed collards that The Blissful Glutton posted about on the Dinner thread. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...dpost&p=1375274]click

The whole meal and plating are just wonderful and I'm loving the idea of garlicky creamed collards! Thank you for sharing this menu. Thanks also for sharing the nice German pork roast recipe, Blether! Our thread on Sauerbraten has been making me hungary for not only Sauerbraten but other pot roast dishes--even though it is starting to get warmer in these parts.

Thank you for your years of service and wonderful posts, Mayhaw Man! I can only echo the postive things that others have made about your contributions. Your stories and knowledge about life in New Orleans and the area have been very special. Thank you also for sharing your knowledge and emotion after Katrina; I'm sure it has not been easy to do that; even from a time perspective. It will be great if you find more time to post! My initial Mayhaw Man encounter was on the first thread that I started on eGullet. I was looking for information on the net regarding soup recipe ideas and ran into the eGullet forums. In my first thread querying for "Good Thanksgiving Soup" ideas, Mayhaw Man replied with one of his family traditions: New Orleans Artichoke-Oyster soup. I haven't made it yet, but it's one of those dishes that I had never even heard about before but now hold as something special to look forward to someday. Thank you!

Although a few reviews I saw online gave Altman's, "Health" a low rating, I think it would be fascinating to see how he spoofed these issues 27 years ago. So much has changed since then in terms of personal and public health perceptions, diet and restaurant trends that it might be surprising, funny or sad to see what he spoofed then and how.

I agree. I pointed this out to the chef via pm about a month ago before the onslaught of public comments. I'm not sure if there is an appreciation for how bad the style and grammar is in the text portions of the site and how it also undermines, in some way, the other claims for excellence. As Infrasonic suggests, it would certainly be worthwhile to hire an editor or a good writer to go over the text

This is such a fun idea; I'm adding it to my list of special menu days! Apple or Pear Pie jump to mind first this time of year. (Pear and Ginger pie is excellent) but I guess you could also look to a citrus chiffon-type pie if you want a lighter, brighter taste. I'm not sure if meringue pies hold up as well the next day. I think my choice this time of year though, would be coconut custard pie or coconut cream pie! (I really like making thesepies (and also coconut cakes) with fresh coconut. The prep work can easily be broken down over several days in terms of cleaning and grating the coconut in preparation for the pie.) (There is a funny link in that article which also mentions Mole Day in honor of Avogadro's Number. I think I'd rather cook "pi" than moles... )

Darn it all, ludja, but I was counting on all that scrolling to be my weight-loss exercise for the day. ← I occasionally forget myself, but trimming quotes both helps to focus the discussion and makes for easier readibility. Sorry for the diversion! I'm looking forward to any new perspectives anyone has on the topic! Thanks for mentioning the movie, JohnL and rconnelly. It sounds like the movie reconnelly was referring to was 1994's The Road to Wellville based on Kellog's life. And it looks like "Health" or "H.E.A.L.T.H." by Altman in 1980 is a different movie which spoofs the politics and hypocrisy behind the scenes of a fictional world health organization.

David Lebovitz has a great entry and recipe for Kig Ha Farz from Brittany: click It is crumbly buckwheat dumplings cooked in a piece of clean cloth; traditionally a shirt sleeve. Actually, the dumpling is cooked in one large mass in the cloth ‘bag’; then it is broken up into crumbles after it is cooked. This is typically served as a starchy side dish. The ingredients are buckwheat flour, eggs, milk, butter, salt and a bit of sugar. (This isn’t the first time I’ve heard of cooking dumplings in a piece of cloth; Austria has the “Serviettenknoedel” or “napkin dumpling”. This isn’t made with buckwheat though.) Some quotes from the article: Has anyone made this? I really like the taste of buckwheat and imagine this would be pretty tasty.

Thanks vivremanger! Here are a few great French-based blogs that are written in English. Clotilde Dusoulier's well-known Chocolate and Zucchini from Paris and two great contributions from eGullet members Bleudauvergne’s Lucy's Kitchen Notebook from Lyons and Pastry Chef David Lebovitz’s blog from Paris: click (I'm not sure if Clotilde Dusoulier is a member of eGullet; apologies if I got that wrong.) Any other French-based blogs in English that people care to recommend?

I guess scrolling doesn't take *that* long, but consider trimming quotes to the relevant portion... (The plus side is that it builds up suspense...)

Thank you for sharing this! Here are the blogs listed in the article: Cafe Creole C'est moi qui l'ai fait Clea Cuisine Frais! La Cuisine de Mercotte Papilles et Pupilles Papilles et Pupilles for allergy sufferers Tasca da Elvira

This sounds wonderful; one could also make the aspic spicy as well. I wouldn't mind getting my dairy (and gelatin) supplement each day with a panna cotta for dessert or breakfast. For variety try regular milk (organic), buttermilk and goat milk and garnish or not with different fruits or fruit sauces. These are easy to make up in series of ramekins or other dessert dishes and keep well, covered. Besides Jello, you can make some citrus-flavored gelatins using citrus juice and unflavored gelatin.

These jars may be the "gift that keeps on giving" as well. I've read that the beans are strong enough that one can successfully replace the removed volume at each use for a few years. If I had extra vanilla beans I'd also make some vanilla sugar. Split and scrape 2-3 pods and bury all in 4-6 cups sugar. You can use granulated or confectionary sugar. These can be used to sugar the outside of cookies (warm or cold), dust a cake or used to add in another layer of vanilla flavor in baking. It will be interesting to see how strong this extract is and how it tastes. Some of my recipes for making homemade vanilla extract use 2-3 pods per 12 oz of alcohol. (brandy or bourbon)

Any luck with meeting the caterers and tasting some samples?

I should mention that there are companies that one can order from online that will ship frozen green chile. The recommendations for these firms are sprinkled throughout varous threads; maybe we'll build up a good list again on this thread. Since one is allowed two checked baggages, I guess I should dedicate a second checked piece of luggage to a styrofoam cooler filled with green chile... A friend recently did this on a trip to North Carolina in wonderful food trade: New Mexico Green Chile for North Carolina bbq from Allen and Son's outside of Chapel Hill. Both traders were happy with the results.

That is wonderful! I think you or someone else did previously mention that some Albertson's were stocking Bueno green and red chile. I did check at that time but should do so again to see if any of the NoCal branches are now stocking the addictive green or red! I've often wondered why New Mexico green chile hasn't taken off in terms of being readily available in other parts of the US. Many people do enjoy particularly enjoy it and frozen 'local' food is now shipped around the country. Do you think the crops are not large enough to support heavy "export" out of the state or is there another reason?

I'd have thought the information in the original and subsequent posts would be of interest to everyone whether thin, medium or large and no matter one's attitude on staying that way or not. Some of the results of eating this way on a regular basis could certainly be health-related even independent of weight gain persay, as CarrotTop pointed out. To me, it was interesting to become fully aware that these restaurants frequented by millions of people weekly across the country are very often serving single portion items that exceed the total "daily recommended" calorie intake and often double or triple the recommended fat intake. I think it is good to be aware of that fact.

I am not sure if adding calorie and fat gram information to menus will help or even if it could have other unintentional negative effects. For that reason, I'm not personally for any type of legislation in this regard and at this point. Also, as some of the previous posts have pointed out, if you do put information on the menu, what would be the best or reasonable way to do it? What type of restaurants should it apply to? Right now, I think it is a least useful to understand for oneself what the portions and calories are for dishes served at fast food and at sit down chain restaurants. I also don't think it is harmful for this information to be disseminated through various channels independent of how the restaurants themselves decide to handle it.

If you're like many who have visited New Mexico and fallen in love with the green chile there, you've probably grappled with deciding how to bring some home! My usual technique had been to bring frozen green chile back in a soft, insulated cooler chilled with a frozen water bottle which fit into my carry-on baggage. I'm not sure if this method would "fly" now since the latest restrictions regarding what can be toted in carry-on luggage. I'm interested in other's strategies, but here is something useful I learned in reading a post by hummingbirdkiss in the Costco thread. click

^Portion size is also very difficult to guage and sometimes it is not possible to bring leftovers home. Most restaurant portion sizes are much larger than what would be appropriate for one of three daily meals. I suspect that in general, people's notion today of what constitutes a "normal" portion size has also been severely skewed by the example of restaurant portion sizes.

Any comments on breakfast/brunch at Canteen? (I think now they are only open for weekend brunch.) I had a great dinner there a few weeks back so I'm pretty sure I'd be happy with the brunches as well, but would like to hear other's comments. I've heard they make killer eggs benedict and breakfast hash with corned beef made in-house. The seaonally-inspired French toasts and pancakes also sound great and I think they also typically offer some more "lunch-style" options at brunch as well.

I like some of the suggestions so far. Piperade and Quince are both favorites of mine and I've reallly been wanting to try Aziza for awhile now. Boulevard may also be a nice option for impressing business associates although I haven't been there in a few years. Has anyone been to Rubicon or One Market lately? They are both very nice, sleek, "city" restaurants that I've enjoyed in the past. Rubicon, One Market and Boulevard would probably fall under New American/Californian-inspired cusine. Quince is Italian, but with strong influences from the Chez Panisse school. I've really enjoyed all my meals there. Another new Italian-inspired restaurant that is getting a lot of buzz is http://www.perbaccosf.com/index.html]Perbacco. Some reviews of Perbacco as well: click I'm also a big fan of Zuni Cafe; an SF classic (California-Mediterranean) with a relaxed but elegant SF feel to it. I also like Kokkari, a high end Green restaurant in the Financial District. (I haven't been there in awhile either so any updates are helpful.) edited to add: Please let us know how their dinners turned out, maggiejiggs. It would be great to hear the feedback on their experiences.