insectrights

← I am very, very sorry that you felt rushed. I know that it can harsh the wonderful mellow you have been cultivating all evening. If you have any suggestions on how not to have that happen I am listening. Toby ← Since I was visiting from NC, I had no idea about the policies and figured that it was a legal issue, but I just had to make sure. My only suggestion would be to explain that when you know people who aren't native to the area or when the doorman is asking them to "find your way to the door" to include that in his suggestion. If I had known ahead of time I would have been a little quicker in my drinking pace. Thanks for the quick reply and explanation, it's great to see owners that really care. I think your bar just might trump your former employers if you ask me. Cheers.

In my opinion....yes there is, but I think it would be cool to start selling them there to see how well they do. As delicious as the homemade bitters were, that's not why I came here to post. I just got back from a weekend in Chicago and the first stop as soon as we checked in to our hotel was The Violet Hour. The wait seemed too long as more people were leaving than being let in, but not knowing how things work for this establishment I could be wrong. My girlfriend and I both had 3 cocktails each, so we were able to work our way through most of the spirits that we like as well as a nice range of flavors and styles. Standouts were the Red Moon Fizz, Chi-Town Flip, Golden Age, and Lady Grey. The additions of the little sidecar extras that come with the drinks in cocktail glasses were added bonuses, but left me wondering how much booze you guys actually pour. The glass looked to me like it fitted 3oz or so, plus an additional 2 in the sidecar. Also, the collins glasses looked a lot bigger than the ones that I work with. Don't get me wrong, extra bang for the buck is always appreciated. Now, onto the food...f'n amazing! The deviled eggs were ridiculously good and blew away all others that I've had(I'm southern). The PB&J was just so over the top, but so satisfying and also went very well with the Chi-Town flip. Had the waitress not pointed those two out, we would have missed out on two life changing appetizers. Our waitress by the way, couldn't have been more helpful and knowledgable. My only complaint of the service was that we were asked to leave by the doorman at 1:58am. I'm not sure the laws and policies of Chicago bars and restaurants, but I found it kind of rude considering I dropped over $100 in drinks and a little bit of food. So my three questions for you Alchemist are 1)How do you make your maraschino cherries? 2)Do you give more alcohol than the standard 2 or 3 oz pour? 3)What's up with the last call/get your ass out of here policy? Again, thanks for the amazing food, drink and service to boot.

There's not a noticeable difference between fresh and frozen btw.

Udupi is my favorite indian place all around....best bang for the buck and the food is very flavorful. Their homemade breads are fanastic. I'm sure there's better indian somewhere on the east coast, but not in nc.

Point being?

While I don't agree with the restaurants chosen in that statement, I know exactly what the guy above means. A lot of the starred restaurants seem like giant empire restaurants all shooting for 3 or 4 stars. The home grown-ness of these smaller places shooting for great food is what counts. My understanding is that the michelin guide is published for destination places only to be found in that city. While some of the starred restaurants are, others could be found almost anywhere. And while California did influence the local produce farm fresh approach, none of the places mentioned above use quite the blend of ingredients like they do in california. Their climate is different, therefore they can make use of various ingredients such as various citrus and more asian friendly produce. So no, none of those places mentioned above are contemporary California cuisine at all. I would appreciate it if Michelin could list the smaller places that you should go out of your way for. Sometimes they do.....although I don't agree, there's the Spotted Pig, but then how can the Spotted Pig and Craft be on the same level at all? One's casual and one's just the opposite. There just needs to be some congruity in the list, then I could use it.

As someone who has actually worked there, let me say that the kitchen runs better without having colicchio at the pass. What you people don't realize is that the big name has nothing to do with the food...merely the concept and face for the restaurant. Damon Wise has been running the place very smoothly for the last couple of years. I know it seems simple to put two and two together and blame it on the empire and expanding, but that's just not right. I wish this board had more people in the know and in the industry.

Here's an idea....find a restaurant you like, call them and tell them you'll work for free wanting to learn. I can't imagine a place that would shoot you down. And word of advice, stay small. Otherwise in a big place you'll be lost in a crowd and shoved in the back corner to cut mirepoix.

vin seems reputable. great chef and simple cooking. frasier's is also quite nice. only places i can think of in raleigh.

Is NC ready for this? Is NYC ready for this? Using avant garde techniques for the sake of using avant garde techniques sake is why this type of food isn't getting translated and taken in very well. Ferran Adria without a doubt started this and continues to do it better than anyone else. Not because he's the innovator, but because he takes something and although makes it magical, keeps it simple. I haven't looked at every single avant garde menu put out, but his food remains the simplest in terms of flavor. Keep it simple....stupid. Have fun with your dinner parties.

Orechiette is not served at lunch. And Del Posto is open for lunch friday saturday and sunday. There's also Otto.

By avante-garde, do you mean molecular gastronomy? Because there are plenty of people using new techniques but just aren't smearing it on their menu.

It really depends on the quality of meat as well as the type of pork served. I would imagine the iberico pig served above has a very different flavor than that of other heirloom varieties or your typical pig sold in the supermarket. Different pigs have different fat content, flavor, texture, etc. Just eat what tastes good, why care what temperature it is. Eating things more on the rare side just for the sake of having your food closer to a raw state is silly; it doesn't make you any more of a food intellectual.

I've never made it, but did you leave the skin on? The skin helps bring out the pectin which will help the paste set up. And yes, strain after you cook. If you have a fine strainer or chinoise, that will do. Could be off on this, but I think that should do.

lots of fresh basil, bring up to 140 degrees, take of heat

beef...cracklings????? i've never heard of turning pure fat into cracklings, i think you need skin for that.

it's good in person as well

So.....still no word on John Dory?

One thing is still uncertain....who is John Dory?

A Clockwork Orange - Not sure what they were actually drinking, but the fermented milk that was supposedly intoxicating. There's actually a bar in the east village themed after the bar in the movie with milk based cocktails. Not highly reccommended.

I went to Prune for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and ordered the bone marrow appetizer. It's almost identical to St John's parsley and bone marrow salad without a lot of salad. Quite good.

I'm not exactly looking for a college textbook on food science, but rather explanations on things in the kitchen as well as species descriptions of fish, meat, poultry, etc. Anyone know of anything even close to that? -thanks

what about The Red Cat? Sounds italian/new american enough and it's not far off.

insectrights, I may have been a bit hasty. Do you find the restaurants have to change their approach for first time diners (for this type of establishment) during the holidays? ←

I think you guys might be right for the most part as far as days like Valentine's Day go. But the restaurant that I work(highly rated new american midtown place) that was open on Thanksgiving kept around the better crew for that day and there didn't seem to be any complaints or send backs for the most part. There were a few picky eaters who requested all white meat or all dark meat for their turkeys, but nothing was out of hand.