laniloa

I can vouch for these. Lightly crispy without the taste of fried overwhelming the crab.

Congratulations bilrus! I've really enjoyed following along. It looks like things turned out really well and you had a great experience. I think it is almost right to have one dish not quite work but leave you with ides to make it work -- somehow validating the effort you put into it (and Keller too).

What a great thread. If my kitchen weren't the size of a postage stamp, I'd join in. I miss kitchen gadgets. So, what time should we show up for dinner?????

I didn't think it was that odd either. Several of the people I work with in downtown DC commute from Baltimore. I wouldn't expect a lot of Baltimore reviews, but here and there is reasonable.

I had my first taste of fried pickles last summer in Houston. They were unexpectedly addictive but not the best snack before an 8 hour boat ride in very rough seas. I think I need to try again on dry land.

For a brief period I was referred to as gumdrop for no apparent reason. Perhaps why the nickname didn't stick. I work in the fish world and for a while we referred to a friend's as-yet-unborn child by various fish life stages. When the kid was born, it became pollock which has stuck.

Monument's closed for terror-proofing, anyway. ← I think it is supposed to re-open the first week of April.

How about some of the places with pre-theater menus? Go there, have a great meal, and then elsewhere for drinks and nightlife type stuff. Cafe Atlantico (I think they still do this but not entirely sure) , Tosca, Chef Geoff's, Les Halles, and Melrose are all places that have some sort of pre-theater meal ranging from $22-$40 I believe.

What about the flip side? Sometimes I ask about the presence of an ingredient because it will make me more likely to order it. Think of all the varieties in preparation of even classic dishes. That said, I don't like the assumption that if someone is asking about something they don't like or can't eat for whatever reason that the follow-up will be to ask to make the dish without it. That there will be more work involved in pleasing the customer. Sometimes it really is as simple as choosing between dishes.

I haven't been in a while, but I used to enjoy the brunch at 15 ria fairly regularly when my cousin lived around the corner.

I love Utz's Salt and Pepper. I also avoid the chip aisle because I can't resist the siren song of these chips. My second choice would be the Chifles plaintain chips mentioned below. Local stores carry both strips and chips as well as various flavorings (I like the garlic but the regular salted work better with salsa).

I've noticed this place but haven't tried it yet. I was impressed to see multiple people there each time I've passed by which was never the case with the place that used to be there.

Thanks for the notice...gives me a chance to come in for one last ragu before welcoming spring!

I just loved Kirk's savoring all the burnt food. The pancake he thought was blackened meat. Not wanting to spoil the good char on the meatloaf with ketchup. Scraping the burnt off the toast to mix it in with the runny eggs. The place is empty but he can't get enough of the burnt stuff. A wonderful snapshot of why there is the saying "it is all a matter of taste" -- we all like what we like. Well, Kirk being odd helps too.

I used red pepper in mine because it was what I had on hand. I like how it blended colorwise. I'd think green bell peppers would look pretty pale, almost like the color difference with canned veggies.

I think you missed the phallic adornments. They were suspended from the top of the curved lounges past the bar.

I went with friends for drinks the other night and really enjoyed it. None of us fall into the tragically hip category and no one cared that we didn't. We did however spend a lot of time giggling at the odd phalic pieces hanging down from the top of the lounge area. We sampled several drinks from their a-little-too-cute metro map drink menu. The winners were the blackberry mojito and a gin-basil sirop concoction that was a fabulous blend of sour tang. If it were summer and we were enjoying this outside it would've been perfect. We had several appetizers that quickly disappeared and are a little fuzzy to me after having too many of the gin-basil things -- the lentil doughnuts previously mentioned and duck samosa. I'm definitely interested going for a full meal and I'll be back for drinks.

My lazy but good pasta is to roast whatever veggie I have handy with olive oil and garlic while the pasta cooks. Toss together with a squeeze of lemon juice.

I particularly liked that Rory put together a tasting menu of different pretzels to enjoy while watching the movie.

I've eaten my gumbo with regular white rice, brown rice, and jasmine rice in attempts to use up leftovers. All worked well but different. I'd repeat any of those in future servings.

I used uncooked chicken in mine. I don't always like the texture I get in other soups when adding pre-cooked chicken. If I'm adding chicken leftovers to a soup I do it almost as a garnish at the very end.

I treated my colleagues to gumbo on Friday, made stock yesterday, and will be making my second batch of gumbo tomorrow following the things to do differently I mentioned up thread. I also found some turky andouille sausage that looked much better then the regular andouille offered. Mayhaw, you're right, we've been deprived and this has been a great project. I'm looking forward to the next. I'd leave Italian stuff to the summer when we have access to great tomatos and basil. I could get into a paella (but I'll be subbing chicken and veg for seafood since I don't eat that). I'm up for Indian -- I'd love something that used tamarind as it is a favorite flavor but one I've never cooked with. I have a jar of tamarind paste in the fridge just waiting for me to figure it out. I'd also be up for baking just about anything. While I do bake a fair amount, I'm always up for a push to think about technique and try new combinations.

You know how to contact me if you ever feel the need to re-live the pain. ← There was a restaurant near where I grew up that had a really large dessert buffet that you got for free when you ordered a meal. You also got soup or salad. Every now and then, we'd go and eat the soup or salad, have the entree boxed to go, and go to town on the dessert buffet. I consider it a valuable lesson from my parents!

I do this all the time. Sometimes I add shallots or garlic to roast with them. Sometimes I give a squeeze of lemon or orange juice to finish them off. Sometimes I toss with lime juice and cayenne to finish them off. Sometimes I toss with toasted nuts -- hazelnut, almond, pine. They are great added to pasta. They are great mixed in with other roasted veggies but you may need to add them mid-roast since they go quickly.

Mine is a variation of mdt's...peanut butter and honey on whole wheat toast. Toasting is key because the peanut butter gets all melty and wonderful. Second choice would be peanut butter on an apple.