Holly Moore

Props to Bowan's Island outside of Charleston SC for being designated an American Classic. Too bad the late Mrs Bowan is no longer guarding the door to the oyster room or able to receive the award. I'm wondering where they're going to hang the plaque?

Having served 4-5 years far above Cayuga's waters, I came to know Louie's lunch well. Probably helped formulate my quest for great grease.

Maybe if, Superman style, you drove real, real fast in reverse from Key West you could make it back to April.

A bit of clarification please. Why was your excellent New England adventure designated a mere "Unofficial Trip" as opposed to a genuine, official Road Trip?

No relation between the Louis Lunches in Gainesville and New Haven. But the one in Gainesville dates back to the 20's and is a quirky, Twin Peaksy place worth a stop.

One strongly urged route suggestion: A highlight of my recent trip to the keys was taking route 41 through the Everglades from outside of Miami to before Naples. Beautiful scenery, all manner of birds, and great tourist stops for a swamp boat ride and a variety of alligator preparations. This route will take you up the west coast which wasn't all that interesting for me except for Snook Haven in Venice. Beyond that, must stops from my site - Bowen's Island outside of Charleston if they'll be roasting oysters (might be out of season) (spend a couple of days in Charleston if you haven't before and can), the other Louis Lunch in Gainesville, Carl's Frozen Custard in Fredricksburg VA, and for BBQ, the Skylight Inn in Ayden NC and Sweatman's (if they're open) in Holly Hill SC. In Key West, tell the folks at B.O.'s Fish Fry I said hi.

There was irony that the truffles and fine wine appeared on the show following Stephen's departure. I think I also would have enjoyed Stephen's interplay with the Napa chefs as they tasted and commented on his dish. I suspect there would have been a low tolerance around that table for Stephen's persona. A business in which I'm involved has supplied personnel for and assisted in the production of reality show segments. The director will do whatever it takes to bring out emotions. Makes for the best reality TV. Also consider that with multiple cameras running days on end, the director edits a couple of hundred hours or more of video tape down to approximately 40 minutes of television. It's like reducing a stock. Only the intensity remains.

At a wine dinner this evening at Fork in Philadelphia the dessert course was truffles. Three truffles and a strawberry. I picked up one and took a bite. Then I looked around the table. It was like the Seinfeld show where George unwrapped a Snickers bar, or some other Mars product, and proceeded to eat it with a knife and fork. All my table companions were consuming their truffles with knife and fork. I continued hand to mouth. This was not covered in my upbringing. I have fried chicken down pat. But what is the proper way to consume a dessert plate of truffles?

Actually I am currently circulating a treatment among network programming departments for "Project Top Food Stylist," combining the best of both shows. Having spent many a morning watching a food stylist paste sesame seeds on a Big Mac bun, I can not think of a more entertaining television competition.

How about Tom asking a Tim-like, "Has anyone seen Stephen?" I could see Tom walking around here tasting, suggesting flavors etc. He did some but was no where near the presence of Tim. And what cook / chef can't cook or prep and talk at the same time. If there are any, they didn't work for me.

I'm going to miss Stephen. Stephen was fun to hate, but he wasn't mean. It is going to be a far less entertaining show without Stephen. The comment that Top Chef needs a "Tim Gunn" is right on target. Tom Colicchio, at least within the constraints of the TV production, is more adversary than mentor.

Missing from your list but easy to add as they are fortunately open after most if not all of the other places have closed - Haven Bros. Diner which rolls up along side Providence's City Hall at 5 pm and serves burgers, dogs, fries and shakes late into the night, as they have been doing since the 1880's.

Egads. Steven is a alumnus of both the CIA and the Cornell Hotel School. And all that prepared him to be a sommelier for a casino restaurant? It is puzzling that the elimination challenge placed a third of each team into the dining room, away from the kitchen, and that the winner won for chummy service and not for superior kitchen skills.

No basis in fact. Just gullet-feel. But for me, with pan fry, the crust is not as hard, the crust has more flavor, and the chicken is juicier. My guess is that this depends a lot on the skill of the person doing the frying and that pan frying, by its nature, is often more personal and perhaps tended to with a little more love.

Either of these places pan frying chicken? Mayhaw Man - got any chicken frying friends, relatives, in-laws you can send Philadelphia way?

Go to Tommy Dinics in the Reading Terminal Market. If still hungry, give John's a try.

Taking one final whack at the dead horse, I didn't even get half that amount.

I went to the 13th Street store. Guess next time I'll try 20th Street

Neat that John Reitano responded. Decided to see for myself, not that I need motivation to head to Capogiro. Went there after lunch today. I also felt my small size portion was skimpy. I got two flavors - kiwi and butterscotch. The server put one spatula of each flavor into the small dish (wavy blue stripes). It is the first time there were 1/2" gaps on each side of the slathers. Another first - I could see the bottom of the cup on each side. I think the problem is training on the temporary cups. Or maybe server resistance to the temporary cups. Perhaps the cups are awkward to work with.

Anyone know if Hoover's is still a great bet for chicken fried steak?

After the dismal performance of Philadelphia area professional and college sports teams, I was just glad to see Philadelphia No. 1 in anything besides taxes on businesses.

In a thread on tipping in the New England Forum, Fat Guy posted: While I am loathe to use "research" and "Zagat" in the same sentence, the perception appears to be that Philadelphia leads the way in tipping. Conventional wisdom and my past restaurant experience maintains that, especially when it comes to gratuities, the old money along the Main Line to this day holds in reverence Benjamin Franklin's observation that "A penny saved is a penny earned." The remainder of Philadelphia must be exceedingly generous, tip-wise, to overcome our miserly heritage.

Alas your cab bill may well exceed your hotel bill. I'd recommend that you reconsider renting a car. Your hotel is considerably out of the way from most everything except the new Grand Ole Opry. My Nashville experiences run more towards eating than fine dining. My favorite for home cooking (meat 'n three) is Barbara's Home Cooking in Franklin, just south of Nashville. In Nashville, itself, Swetts or the White Trash Cafe. For barbecue, Judge Bean's. Hog Heaven for more traditional southern style. For breakfast the Original Pancake House. More of a trek, and not as good as it was when it earned its reputation but still quite good, the Loveless Cafe. A bit more upscale - and somewhat inconsistent in my experience - the Tin Angle for eclectic dining. Got a bunch more Nashville places in the southern section of my site.

As said. Mike feels there a better things to do in a sunner Saturday than sweat it out over a hot dog steamer.

Rich did a great article. Thanks. To answer Philadining - a number of companies have tried to franchise hot dogs. Der Wienerschnitzle, Dog House and Dog and Suds are top of mind. No one has taken off like the hamburger or fried chicken places, even though hot dogs have the reputation as the All-American food. There are all sorts of reasons why it should work as a franchise. Easy to consistantly prepare. Good food cost / profit margin. Appeals to the national palate. Maybe because it is too easy to prepare - hot dogs are everywhere - convenience stores, street corners, movie theatres, Home Depots. Too much competition. Maybe because many people associate hot dogs with occassions like a baseball or football game and therefore don't see it as an everyday lunch or dinner. Maybe because of health concerns - nitrates, food coloring, an uncertainty as to what is ground up into the mush (pate). People are likely to trust the local hot dog guy more than some faceless, greedy chain. Maybe because hot dogs are more regional than hamburgers. Hard for a chain to serve the same product coast to coast. Whatever the reason, the local, independent hot dog stands around the country seem to have staying power. A lot of them never seem busy, but they go on and on, generation to generation.