Holly Moore

The Beaumont Inn in Harrodsburg KY sets the standard for Country Ham. Their version is aged a total of two years - a year by the smokehouse and a second year by the Beaumont Inn. The second year gives it a rich red, amost burgandy color and a deep, mellow flavor. According to Beaumont Inn's owner, cutting into one is like opening a bottle of aged wine. You know it's going to be great, but you just don't know how great until you slice off a taste.

Do any of the places above add a coddled egg to the salad? It's rarely done but is a must for a true Caesar Salad.

As you say there are at least three great pork sandwiches in Philadelphia, probably more. My first Philadelphia style pork sandwich - an eureka moment akin to my first Famous Deli chocolate chip cookie - came from Tommy DeNic. Maybe that's the reason I still believe he serves the best pork sandwich - or maybe because it is the best.

Ron's Ribs on the 1600 block of South Street sells their excellent sauce. Don't know if they're open Christmas Eve, though.

Except, at least, for Singapore Airlines where the Dom Perignon flows freely, even for breakfast mimosas, and foie gras, smoked salmon and such are the rule. But again I ask, Toad In The Hole ???

Every once in a while I amass sufficient frequent flyer miles to rise from the riffraff and fly first class. It has been my experience that the international airlines view first class travel as an opportunity to showcase their countries' finest cuisine. Frequently a nation's top chefs are engaged so that the dinner will be the best possible within the confines of an airline cabin. I recently flew Virgin-Atlantic Upper Class on a flight from Barbados to London. Virgin-Atlantic offered, as the sole alternative to a Christmas Dinner of Roast Turkey, Toad In The Hole. It was a very tasty Toad In The Hole - slices of sausage aswim in onion gravy snugly nestled in a hollowed-out cube of Yorkshire pudding. I imagine Virgin-Atlantic summoned the finest chefs from England's finest boarding schools to prepare the dish. Toad In The Hole is certainly a welcome step up from the typical US airline domestic first class meal of tepid, medium-well-done, mini-filet mignon. But as Upper Class fare... fine British cusine... Perhaps not.

I have always felt a drop or two of sweat from a cook's brow adds a bit of soul and flavor to any dish. But the gadget manufacturers seem determined to remove all the actual labor from the kitchen. Two recent cases in point. The electric jar opener. No more rapping the side of a jar or trying to twist a top with wet or greasy hands. Just push a button and "psst" the most tenacious of jars pops open. The electric grater. Say goodby to scraped knuckles, sore wrists. There is now a power driven grater that runs cheese or carrots back and forth, back and forth. Coming soon, I'm sure, a kitchen robot programed to stir custards, separate eggs and scrub pots.

Even before I moved here, I believed pepperpot soup to be a Philadelphia New Years tradition. And every year since I moved here I have sought confirmation only to find that no restaurant and not even the Union League concurs. My quest continues. Has anyone else heard of such a tradition? And more importantly does any Philadelphia restaurant or tavern brew up a kettle on New Years Day?

A day of North Jersey dog eating, especially for the uninitiated, is incomplete without a Rutt's Ripper.

Strikes me as a Saturday well spent.

Yes Tony Lukes is no longer associated with the store now know as Tony Jr's

I suspect a savvy restaurateur could peruse the pizza club thread for a pic of Rich

Tony Luke sandwiches are indeed excellent. But the last time they tried to expand - to Center City Philadelphia - it was less than a success. Ambience was way too bland to be a "Tony Lukes." As good as Tony Luke's food is, what really makes the place are the people behind the counter, the building, the location way deep in South Philly, and, especially, the clientele. That just doesn't translate to a midtown Manhattan store front. If New Yorkers merely want a great cheesesteak or pork sandwich, they will get it. But if they are looking for the Tony Luke's experience they will have to go to Oregon Ave. in South Philly.

As long as one of their options is cereal topped with sausage gravy, I'll stop by.

My instinct tell me that Wilma's Drive-In is the place to go for breakfast. The fact that there is both a Wilma's and a Wilma's 2 in such a small town tells me it has to be the place for solid home cooking. ← Or Not Wilma's Drive-In Now I'm recommending Tucker's Main Street Cafe for breakfast.

My instinct tell me that Wilma's Drive-In is the place to go for breakfast. The fact that there is both a Wilma's and a Wilma's 2 in such a small town tells me it has to be the place for solid home cooking.

M.E.L.T. More Eating, Less Talk Nah, maybe not.

I wrote them, suggesting that. Got back a somewhat terse response that translated to "ain't gonna happen." In protest I boycotted Trader Joes for 5 days. Will be broiling up one of Mr. Ochs finest rib eyes the evening. They are sufficiently savvy that they built an ATM machine into a corner of their display case to cover unanticipated aged dry beef purchases. I've found that Whole Food's Coleman beef steaks undependable. Sometimes excellent, sometimes reminiscent of grain fed cardboard.

Around my house, through the weekend after Thanksgiving at least, it was cold turkey, cold stuffing, cold gravy, real cranberry sauce and the piece de resistance, crisp iceburg lettuce. Our name for it by Sunday was "not that again!"

Does Wells sell to the public at the plant off Delaware Ave? I'd add two "outsiders"/relatively recent arrivals to the list. Trader Joe's on Market Street and a place I finally gritted my teeth and got to, Costco out behind the King of Prussia Mall. I am not a fan of warehouse stores and even less of a fan of the traffic between Center City and KOP and the whole KOP mall complex, but I grudingly admit that Costco has some great quality meats, seafood and even produce, and even greater value.

Don't know the brand of dog and agree with rlibkind that it's not premium. But when you're talking about a dog that is split and grilled and topped with mustard, onion and a spicy sauce, premium is not all that important to me. The overall dog is first rate and that's what counts. Philadelphia style Texas Weiners are typically split and grilled. I like it that way. More grilled flavor mixing with the other strong tastes. A Texas Weiner isn't really a chili dog. It's a Texas Weiner. The sauce is usually thinner than chili and, with the exception of APJ and a few others doesn't have the kick of chili. I want to spell wiener, wiener. But it's weiner on APJ's sign and has been for 84 years. So there, at least, it's "weiner." For some reason I've never been all that excited by Franks-a-lot. No good reason other than, most likely, I'm distracted by everything else at the Market.

Every once in a while it takes me 25 years of driving past a place before I discover it. So it goes with A. P. J. Texas Weiner Restaurant on N. 13th Street across from the Criminal Justice Center. The neighborhood ain't the best, though better now than ten years ago, and it doesn't look like all that much from the outside. All lousy excuses for my passing by it so many times without stopping. A. P. J. stands for Arthur, Paul and James - the three guys who opened the place in 1920. 1920. That's gotta make it one of the oldest continuous running restaurants in Philadelphia. And I'm just discovering it. I'm still pissed at me. Anyway, Jimmie has owned it for the past 22 years. The first thing Jimmie is going to say after he's laid down a plate of Texas Weiners in front of you is, "How do you like the sauce?" Jimmie is proud of his sauce. "People come to me from the place in South Philadelphia - they think we're the same - and they say what's a matter with their sauce. No taste. I tell them sauce has to be spicy." Jimmie's sauce is the best Texas Weiner or Coney Island sauce I've had anywhere - North Jersey, Philly, Fort Wayne IN, Cumberland MD. It's right up there with Pink's chili out in LA. That good. And I've wasted 25 years in Philadelphia not eating APJ's dogs. Jimmie got to talking about how things used to be. "My wife used to cook 500 hot dogs each lunch. Back when the City Hall Annex was still there. Got all the lawyers. Now, with the Criminal Justice Center - the people, they're not the same. They're afraid of the sauce. It's too spicy. They just want sandwiches." But the sauce has to be spicy and Jimmy's not changing it. "The cops, they still come in. Lots of Cops. They like the sauce." First time in I got a couple of Texas Weiners. A Texas Weiner is a split and grilled hot dog served with sauce, mustard and chopped raw onion. Second time in I noticed a couple of fish cakes sitting by the grill. I figured I'd have a combo, like at Levis' or Johnnie's Hots. Something got lost in translation. I got a plate with a Texas Weiner on one side and a fish cake served Texas Weiner style on the other. Took a few bites of each, then discarded one bun and made my own combo, squashing the fishcake on top of the hot dog. Damn good eating. Five grease stains worthy in my book.

What Jimmyo said. I've got a Garland range with salamander and probably get as much use out of the salamander if not more. I even use it as my toaster.

I made it to the Smoked Joint for a late lunch/early dinner. Had the combo - chose the ribs and brisket. Two sides: root beer baked beans and collard greens. The sides were fantastic. The root beer baked beans deep and rich, a kick of bbq sauce. Excellent collards cooked with ham. The brisket had the requisite ring around the edge and a good taste of smoke. The ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender. Maybe a tad too fall-off-the-bone tender for my taste. I prefer ribs that have a bit of chew. Good sauce. Tried both meats with and without the sauce and preferred them with the sauce. My only real complaint. No bread. There's just something in me that wants bread with my ribs. Maybe even wimpy supermarket white bread. That's what I'm used to with ribs. Or corn bread. There's corn bread on the menu, but it's a $5 hit for a skillet full. They bake it to order, so it's gonna be good. But if I'm laying down over $15 for a plate of BBQ I'm thinking I deserve a square or wedge of corn bread thrown in. Mentioned it to one of the owners, but got the feeling I wasn't all that persuasive. As I was leaving I heard the couple at the table next to me voice the same desire to their waiter. My only other suggestion. Mac and Cheese is on the menu as an entree. I'd like to see it also as one of the side options. Overall I liked the Smoked Joint alot. A welcome and needed addition to Center City.

I opened a package from American Express today and what to my wonderous eyes should appear but a complimentry copy of Food & Wine Magazine's "Wine Guide 2005." It appears to be a gift for AMEX Open (Business Card) members. And I didn't get anything for them...