ned

Just read the review. Man it's fast for a review, even a diner's journal. I kind of wish Ismail had been given more time to pull things together. Now's the time to forgive small inconsistencies, pecadillos like over-steamed halibut or the occasional cacophony of seasonings. That said, based on my limited experience, Bruni gave a faithful review. I forgot about those chicken samosas. No adjustments needed there.

The owners of Kalustyan's are muslim. They won't allow pork in the restaurant.

Thanks. I'll be in Jamaica in a couple of months. Maybe I can find it there. Out of curiosity, can you describe what is special about it? I got some Barbancourt's 9 year. Not bad but I imagine also not terribly enlightening about the white variety of rhum agricole.

Pan, Very vindaloo is very spicy. To be perfectly honest, I don't remember the prices. I seem to remember initially being surprised at how much it was because of its location geographically but when it came time to pay the bill it looked like a very good value. The restaurant is a bit of an anomaly on curry hill. I expected highfalutin Indian but that's not really what it is. Mohan Ismail was chef de cuisine at Tabla before Spice Market, but wasn't creating the dishes at either location. At KC he's set out to carve his own niche as exec chef etc and with Kalustyan's as backers. As we unearthed in the thread on Spice Market, Mr. Ismail is a very multi-culti fellow. Add that to the rest and it becomes clear he's pulling from a wide variety of influences. The menu isn't highfalutin Indian, but it is highfalutin. You shouldn't go there expecting to have a curry hill experience. I don't think the menu on menupages very accurately represents what was there last week. Likely as they are so new the menu changes often.

How come? Political reasons?

Kalustyan's Cafe has re-opened with a fabulous chef, Mohan Ismail formerly of Spice Market, and a strange but wonderful menu that is inspired by spices sold at Kalustyan's just across the street. I've been only once so far. Ate some grilled shrimp and a veal vindaloo. The vindaloo, served on top of rice cakes was very vindaloo and was excellent. Anyone else been there? My early impression is that this has the potential to be a very special restaurant.

Do you know where in NYC I can get Rhum Agricole? And what makers are available and which ones of them are the best?

Pozole Verde is traditionally made with a split pig's head. It's a Mexican chicken soup. Don't have a recipe for it though. The trotters: I'd, boil em for an hour or so, debone em, reserve the skins (dry them off), mix the contents with minced shallot, salt and pepper, a little olive oil, garlic and parsley, put the mixture back into the skins, tie em and roast for half an hour or until brown and crispy.

Smoked marlin is divine. If you don't want to eat it rare, put it in some water with salt and sugar, some sliced onion, cracked allspice and pepper, maybe some lemon or lime zest, and some white rum. Sort of an escabeche. But then you pull it out a few hours later and cook it as you did before. . . though you could do it on the grill, in a pan or broiled. Should end up very nice. Doesn't have to be rare but you shouldn't go too far with it. Marlin is considered a game fish because it's a fighter. Strong as hell and a very fast swimmer. This translates to muscley. And not much oil. It's a difficult proposition for cooking. Gotta take extraordinary measures for success. The best form I've had it in is brined for a short time in a jerkish solution and then cold smoked. Good luck.

On the question: I have performed this experiment and must proclaim loudly that the answer is NO. Medium-rare breads have the consistency of whole raw lobster tail. Not good. Cooking clearly breaks down the sinewy, chewy, stiffness. I recently made seven single portions eating one and then making the next for patient and open-minded friends. I wasn't terribly scientific but I expected some sort of learning curve. I made a lot of good sweetbreads but didn't crack the code. What I do know is that they must be cooked through. Do you want to be past the edge of under-cookedness? Much further along? I can't say.

No one's talking about the real issue here. That drink has about as much in common with a latte as it does with a banana split. I wonder when they're going to reach the point of omitting coffee and just mix up a syrup, whipped cream, and half and half with sprinkles. That'd alleviate the mulatto problem at least. They can give out party hats to wear while you drink your triple-dessert morning snack drink. It'll be like Farrells. The only problem is you can't say, "Let's go get a cup of coffee" when you leave your desk to get one of these. . . you could call it a giant cup of milk fat and sugar beverage. Some day people are going to scale back from these drinks and go back to 7-11 for 32 ounce cherry cokes. Have they found a way to make skim ones yet? Low carb milk fat bombs?

Spent the evening last Friday in Kerhonksen Ny, knocking out friends and family with Appleton's rum and tonics. Today, back in NYC it's rum (more Appleton's) and cokes.

Here's one: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=45122&hl= Off the topic of this thread: On where to buy sweetbreads: Ottomanelli's usually has them But the best breads I've gotten are from Sylvia Pryzant of Four Story Hills Farms. She'll Fed Ex them to you. It's worth the trouble. PM me if you want to get in touch with her.

I second the Prune suggestion and would add that if you're a big fella like me, going early or late is a good option for less elbow jousting. Also if you're a little squeamish (shouldn't be, sweetbreads aren't an organ, they're a gland, and as such are less challenging than say a sauteed veal kidney which you should get involved with after falling in love with sweetbreads) try them at Hearth where they're served alongside a beautifully braised piece of veal breast. It's a small portion and somehow the juxtaposition enlivens the breast and mediates the bread. Great dish. Good luck.

Baba ganoush sandwich at Kalustyan's. Be sure to get the pickles on it. Cubano at Maybar Cafe in the South Bronx(135th and 3rd avenue). Get it with garlic and ask for some skin in the sandwich. From Russ and Daughters: bagel and lox. Eater's choice of lox. The wild white salmon is a favorite in my house these days. At Romeo and Giuseppi's in New Haven (forgive the distance but I haven't found a match in NYC), on a hard roll that is actually kind of soft: proscuitto, buffalo mozarella fresh basil, oil and vinegar, salt and pepper. Slice of tomato optional. If New Haven is too far, ask for the same sandwich at Mike's deli on Arthur Ave. I second the bahn mi option especially if the above-mentioned place is the one next to the firehouse on Broome. Ask for fresh chilis at your own risk. That's all for now.

Craviation: Gordon's gin maraschino dash yuzu few dashes angostura bitters splash of elderflower syrup Served up with no garnish Whoops. Needed that craviation

Thanks for the input. Your link brought me to this one: http://www.math.columbia.edu/~bayer/coffee.html Fabulously obsessive and so, quite convincing. I bought the pavoni less than retail, 140 or so. After two days I'm convinced the Blue Mountain beans for which I bought the grinder are over-roasted. The grind-size calibration may be something that has been sorted at the factory or maybe, pavoni being pavoni, every grinder that comes out is calibrated differently. Mine would need attention if it were to be used for anything other than espresso. Thankfully, it won't. Fingers are crossed on durability.

Anybody have a take on the PG series La Pavoni burr grinders?

If you love a good espresso and you get anywhere near Greenport on the north fork of Long Island, you must stop in at Aldo's Too. Aldo roast his own beans, makes his own blends and is obsessed with extracting the perfect espresso for his customers. I was there yesterday. He spent five minutes composing an iced cappuccino for the person ahead of me in line, talking all the while about the whys, hows and wheretofores of the perfect iced cappuccino. . . nearly steered me off the espresso I'd been anticipating for the previous two hours. When asked about what type of bean and roast he prefers for espresso we were treated to a generous fifteen minute soliloquy. The essence of his message I think was that the barista must determine a specific set of variables: blend, roast, pack, pressure and temperature and work to create harmony within them. Each of the particulars matters less than the sum of the parts. Then he went on a jag about roasting.

BTW, I had two fläder GT's last night. That should explain why no phone call.

Really there are two questions: 1. What's a sweetbread made of? 2. Based on the answer to the first question, how should you cook it for the optimal result? A minor quibble: While it may be true that a sweetbread contains no collagen, respectfully I must point out that it is not an organ. It is a gland. Reading upwards from this post, what I've learned so far is that unless it's quite necessary, it might be a good idea to skip the blanching. The dreaded chalky flavor may be the result of over-cooking. It's a good idea to get in and get out fast with a sweetbread. Which spawns my next question: Would it be fine to eat a rare sweetbread? As of yet, nobody seems to know what a sweetbread is made of.

Thank you so much for this photo essay. Fascinating. Makes me want more but also raises the bar impossibly high for our sad school lunch programs here in the states.

I've had/made this drink in Jamaica usinng Wray and Nephew overproof rum. Always thought of it as a mint-less mojito. I agree with the use of crushed ice, especially if you happen to be near the equator while drinking.

This is a genus-species question. In other words, a ship is a boat but a boat is not necessarily a ship. Animal fat notwithstanding, yorkshire pudding is a popover. But all popovers are not yorkshire pudding.