Sartain

No offense taken, Matt. There were a couple of false notes in the brunch, such as roasted veal short ribs that were tough, and a uni-pekee toe crab shooter that didn't quite work (rich yet dull), but for the most part the quality was there. Some kitchen staff had that bewildered look about them that never left their eyes when I was in the kitchen, but that may have to do with the women eating right there on the buffet line and exclaiming "I've never seen such food!" or the man who randomly snatched a tablecloth from a rolling-by cart.

Boy, get buried in work miss out on the scoop. I was there for brunch last Sunday and I did miss Chef's presence. The food was a little off, but only a little (fewer interesting combinations, less perfectly cooked) and the kitchen was a little less precise. I chalked it up to Chef not being around that day. Now it will be really interesting to go back and see. Nevertheless, the Upper East Side stiff upper lip crowd were certainly wowed. I kept seeing them at the stations falling over themselves to get to the food. It was quite a sight.

I've been holed up in my office - can you elaborate on the "coming events"??

You'd still have to do some additional research (hanging out at the Union Square Greenmarket always works), but another place you may find some general guidance is in Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page's Culinary Artistry. There is a section in the book that lists ingredients, their season and "classic" flavor pairings. Just another place to look

I thought so too. And did she really say that her unique contribution was that her food had the ability to "move your bowels"? I mean, so can anyone, as long as the basic rules of sanitation are not observed. I do get her point of "healthy eating," but she came across as a convert who is now going to do what she can to bring people around. I don't think she necessarily considered who her audience was until she actually brought the plate to the table.

Of course Katie has great suggestions. On the other hand, in case you are looking for a Chester County Caterer, and the party is 30 people and under, I'd recommend the newcomer Eau Private Dining. Owen Kolva and Joe McAllister do some amazing stuff (610-389-4505). Hope you have a great party and easy planning. Steph

They carry belly lox as well, if that's your preference. No, sturgeon, but they have smoked white fish. Herring in wine or cream sauce is a regular item as well. Full disclosure: I work there on Sundays.

They look like moon cakes for some reason... I see that Tepee beat me to it. ← Not just any mooncake either - the box said "Mooncakes of the Palace."

Pastoral on 13th between Walnut and Locust does a good job too. The individual ingredients stirred together is a great illustration of the adage "the sum is greater than its parts."

Actually, not limited to crazed chefs at all. The cleaver continues to be a favority weapon among the Triads. Hong Kong newspapers will occasionally feature these incidents. I'd stick to vegetables.

The chinese style cleavers from Dexter Russel are more like knives, but the ones you get from Chinatown can actually be heavier. They also classify them into vegetable cleaver or bone cleaver, with the bone cleaver being significantly heavier, of course. My mentor always told me that one could use a chinese cleaver for almost every task in the kitchen. Off the top of my head: it makes for a handy meat pounder and a bench scraper; makes crushing ginger pieces or garlic pieces a snap; and now that it's Fall, it comes in handy when splitting / cutting up winter squashes.

I humbly submit my first post to this thread - please be kind! Porterhouse with a Madeira cream sauce, and sugar snap peas.

From a decidedly city-dwelling Pennsylvanian: Parsi and Indian dishes and Amish Farm (with or without pictures), please! That's one adorable kitty. My own 23lb Highness graciously limits himself to pates and mousses when it comes to human food, and yes, he would like that on a plate at the dining room table. Sounds like a foodie play date in the making ...

Does it have a temperature control? It could also be good for poaching fish fillets, and shallow frying goodies like Hungarian angel wing cookies.

Kris: I am normally not one to argue with Mario , but I think if your dough was sticking to everything a bit more flour was necessary. Also, when you are rolling it out, a judicious use of dusting flour wouldn't hurt either. I sometimes dust my hands with the flour (a la gymnists before they mount the instrument) and then just lightly sweep the rolled dough, fold, and roll again. I would also go with a harder (higher protein) flour next time. I usually go with anywhere between 33% - 50% semolina to all purpose flour. At culinary school, Chef taught us the stiffness test: after you have kneaded the dough, flatten it (or a portion thereof) out into a flat disc. Place this disc horizontally on the side of your outstretched index finger. If the sides of the disc droop, then you need to knead it some more. If it is stiff enough to retain its shape, then wrap it up and let it rest, it's good to go. Last night I made some agnolotti stuffed with a roasted garlic, roasted eggplant and ricotta mixture that has a dab of vanilla, and served them with a sage butter sauce. They were pretty tasty, but I might take the pasta dough all the way out to the last setting next time (I stopped at the next-to-the-last setting). editted for spelling...

My aunt used to make Chinese red-cooked chicken with a braising liquid of soy, coke (flat), ginger and scallions and the usual Chinese cooking suspects. It was the family hit. She also used to boil coke with lemons and give it to us kids hot as a sore throat curative. That gave way to tea with lemon and honey as we grew older, but I still remember that concoction fondly.

Rice in its various forms are classic home remedies for the Chinese household. Plain white congee for indigestion and plain rice for diarrhea. Works, too.

Kris: For the sauce for the rest of the family, there is always the classic bonne femme: basically a cream reduction sauce. Remove the fillets after they are done poaching, the add some sliced mushrooms to the poaching liquid and let it reduce for a minute or two. Then finish with half a cup of heavy cream and let it reduce till it reaches sauce consistency. Adjust seasonings, throw in some chopped parsley. Thanks for reminding me of this, I may try this tonight. S.

Deux Cheminees took an extended July 4 weekend and is closed until this Friday.

Scoats, If you are after some of Reikers' weiners and bratwursts, the new DiBruno's store on Chestnut carries a selection of these. Happy Grilling!

One of my first solid foods was duck hearts with rice. An early childhood favorite that remains is braised pork tongue. Loved durians at first bite at the tender age of 4. My sister, on the other hand, ran screaming from the room. I used to help my nanny wash out pigs' lungs for soup, pick out the debris from birds' nests and clean mung bean when I was 6 or 7. This was around about the same time that I learned how to make steamed custard too. My family used to have me pick out all the fruit at the stalls. This was after a few weeks of them noticing that I had picked out all the sweetest, tastiest fruit from fruit bowl and left them with "inferior product."

Totally agree that Larousse Gastronomique is essential to the list. John Thorne's Outlaw Cook was mentioned upthread; I would say his Pot On The Fire and Serious Pig likewise deserves a place. James Villas' books are likewise educational and entertaining. The list as it stands is rather Euro-American centric. Can anyone recommend any text on other cuisines?

For a closer source of Horlicks, you might want to try your closest Asian (Chinese) supermarket, I've always been able to find it in the chinatowns where I have lived. It's a staple for Hong Kong Chinese. The recipes sound great. I might try it this weekend too.

Just fought the crowds and came back and have to say it's something to behold. Finally all of the incredible cheeses, salumi, packaged and prepared food items are properly displayed. That alone would be have been wonderful, but they have managed to add more to their already great selection. The space itself is really beautiful as well. Honestly, I can't even remember what was there before, but they have done a really spectacular job. They will be open till 8pm on weekdays, a bonus for those of us who work late. (Actually, they are closing early today for a party, but going forward it will be a bonus.) It's not there yet, but a hot buffet is also coming on the second floor kitchen. It is a great boost to the neighborhood. Gbredben, I agree with you on the torture. . .but in a really really good way...

Some of my contributions since Christmas: From random trips to Borders/Barnes&Noble: The Bread Baker's Apprentice, Peter Reinhardt Louisiana Kitchen, Paul Prudhomme All about braising, Molly Stevens Broke down and joined Good Cook Book Club: Buchon, Thomas Keller Barefoot in Paris, Ina Garten On Food & Cooking, Harold McGee Marcella Says..., Marcella Hazan Other bookstores: Good Enough to Eat Cookbook (totally from nostalgia of my college days, when I took significant others to the restaurant for brunch) License to Grill, Chris Schlesinger (grilling weather here we go!) How to Cook Meat, Chris Schlesinger (mmm meat...) Nancy Silverton's Breads from the La Brea Bakery Food of New Orleans Louisiana Real and Rustic, Emeril Lagasse (got this from ebay, normally not a bam-man fan myself, but heard this one actually is pretty good, so...) Martin Yan Quick and Easy Rick and Lanie's Excellent Kitchen Adventures, Rick and Lanie Bayless From the Dining Car, James Porterfield Essentials of Asian Cuisine, Corinne Trang David Rosengarten Entertains coming from bookcloseouts.com: A Return to Cooking, Eric Ripert and Michael Rulman; and James Peterson's The Duck Cookbook. These are the ones that I can remember now, sitting in my office. I know there are more, not to mention the bunch in Chinese that I brought back from Hong Kong in January. That's over 5 new books a month. This is an addiction! edited to say - eh, that's 20 - so no one has to count for me.