Devotay

I urge everyone to visit both of Robert's websites (in his post, above). He's a great example of the people who are in the trenches doing the tough work that needs doing. The world would certainly benefit from a lot more Bob Waldrops. I had the honor of working with him to help feed the Coalition of Immokalee Workers when they passed through OKC. Quite an uplifting experience. In regard to what NulloModo said: I partly agree - they do not need to be chained to the vicious circle that is part of the hidden cost of cheap food, but they are at the moment, as are many people who are not low income. My 3 stage solution to this problem (and many others) has always been the same: 1) Education 2) Education 3) Education

Dr. Elizabeth Barham addressed this at a conference I attended last summer. Here are some brief excerpts from the minutes of that conference: Check out the website, it's very deep. Also, Maytag is not the best blue from Iowa. Check out "Schwartz und Weiss" from the Golden Ridge Cheese Co-op in Cresco to know good Iowa Blue

Not at all, I think you're right. I especially like the Moscato d'Asti from Michele Chiarlo and Bricco Riela

Oh, Jonny did you back the wrong horse. It's not about that. Trying to define flavor using science is like trying to define love using science. I doubt that you would suggest that we manufature a drug that causes the exact same neurons to fire in our brains as do when we fall in love. Flavor is like that, it's a passionate emotional experience and, well, ain't nothin' like the real thing , baby. Tell ya what, I cook with olive oil, butter, grapeseed oil, even lard sometimes. If it has negative effects on my heart, well, it has positive effects on my soul and I'd rather live a short meaningful life than a long boring one. I'll take real life and real love over synthetic fat and love potion #9 any day.

You also missed a treat when you skipped Lucia's restaurant & Wine Bar. Check'em out at www.lucias.com

Nature has your answer - cook with grapeseed oil. It is virtually tasteless and has a very high smoke point. The words "synthetic" and "food" should never be same sentence together.

One word: heirloom If you are looking for massive variety and amazing flavor it's the only way to go, especially with your tomatoes. And the best place to find a huge selection of them is at Seed Savers Exchange - Iowa's gift to the gardening world.

Robert Barral was my mentor. He guided me through culinary school, and he hired me to teach at NECI. I trust him implicitly and can't wait to get back to VT to try out his new place.

There is life outside Chicago, y'all. For the high end stuff: Lucia's Restaurant and Wine Bar - Minneapolis L'Etoile - Madison Harvest - Madison Handke's - Columbus The Refectory - Columbus Lydia's - KC For the great grub Battle's BBQ - Ames Zingemann's - Ann Arbor Baldy's - Iowa City And as for Chicago, I love Wishbone, and had a great meal at Red Light last time I was there. In addition, here's a shameless plug for an aquaintance of mine who runs a restaurant & food website in Chicago - simplyfoodchicago.com

I have had nothing but great experiences at North Pond. In addition they are great supporters of my friends at Slow Food Chicago, have a great write up in the Slow Food Guide to Chicago, and will receive high praise in my book as well. The way I see it, they're doing everything right. Brad, you said: All very subjective stuff, but I suppose that's what it's all about. For me, the service has never seemed rushed, and I like crowds - makes for a convivial atmosphere. I guess I see your point about the prices, but as an out-of-towner, all the prices in Chicago seem outrageous to me. Regarding the wines, I fully appreciate your broad expertise, but I don't see what's not to like in this list (see it at http://www.northpondrestaurant.com/text/menuWine.cfm) It's not the biggest, but a vast majority of us have trouble choosing from a list of just 20-30 wines. I don't like the enormous lists of 100s of bottles. part of the Sommeliers job is to narrow down my choices for me. I found plenty of interesting stuff.

Currently, even with all the ice we're having, the Cuevas de Castilla Rueda, Spain, ‘02 is our #1 selling white. Tough to beat at the price, too. In a recent column about it I wrote:

My favorite is not in New Jersey (my former home - exit 8) but rather in my current home out here in the hinterlands. With over 450 labels in stock, John's is hard to beat. Good news for you easterners, they ship from their website atwww.johnsgrocery.com Doug Alberhasky runs the Beer Room, and Wally the Wine Guy has a stellar selection of his own. Tell'em I sent ya!

Hello again all. I am just posting to renew this thread. I have 4 months in which to complete my research. Remember that, for the purposes of this book, the Midwest is defined as a 13 state region from Ohio to Oaklahoma to North Dakota. Suggestions are welome from anywhere in those states, but I especially need help with the states along the northern missouri river (Nebraska and the Dakotas) Looking forward to hearing from you.

Unless I missed it, no one mentioned any Cava. Here's my column which ran on the Wednesday before New Year's. It includes a nice mussel recipe:

It's legal to do so here in the hinterlands, provided the cork is "firmly replaced" and the bottle is transported "out of reach of the driver."

Several years ago when I was EC at a local hotel, we suspected a bartender of skimming the till, so we hired a PI to watch him. Turns out he was bringing in his own bottles of Jack and Absolut, pouring from them and pocketing the cash - never bothering to ring it up. We had the police come and handcuff him and haul him out in front of a lively Saturday night crowd. Not so long ago, in my restaurant, we noticed that the morning and evening drawer counts weren't matching up. They were off by $15-$25 every other morning. We finally figured it had to be an employee keying in after hours. We called the police and asked them what to do, and they actually came and placed a hidden camera in a tea box with a little hole cut in it. The camera caught the culprit the very next night, and he had taken the twenty and the five that I had marked with little x's because I watch too many movies. Not only that, but when the cops busted him outside the restaurant, he was holding half an ounce of weed, too. Turns out it was a former employee who had swiped a spare key. Mess with the bull, get the horns.

Glad you enjoyed that shellfish event. Hope you'll go and disuss it and more at the PNW section of the new Slow Food Forum

She is on the list! Right now I am merely compiling. The travels and interviews begin in the spring. Do you have any other suggestions? All are welcome!

Yes, Sumac, I've known Ron for a few years. He does good work up there. Please send your suggestions to me via "PM" I look forward to hearing from you!

Well, maybe in a way, pigs lead very happy lives if they're raised sustainably. But what I really mean is people who have shunned the fast-paced, indutrialized, drive-thru world in favor of a life where the kitchen and the table are the centers of culture, community and family life. As for my affiliation, yes I am involved with Slow Food, but this project is not an official Slow Food publication. In that way it will be more like Corby Kummer's The Pleasures of Slow Food than the Slow Food Guide to New York

Cabrales; and Iowa's own Maytag Blue

Howdy. New to the board, so I'll have to give you the full inventory (not gonna list them all, though, maybe someday). Cookbooks - 226 Most important - Larousse; Child's Way to Cook; Notebook of all my menus from 25 years in business Favorites, lately - Batalli's Babbo; Chalie Palmer's Great American Food; Cafe Boulud Cookbook Other books about food - 78 Most important - Schlosser's Fast Food Nation; Nestle's Food Politics; Thorne's Serious Pig; Pollan's Botany of Desire Favorites. lately - Fried Butter by Abe Opicar; Slow Food - The Case for Taste by Carlo Petrini; Coming Home to Eat by Gary Nabhan Books about writing and food - 8 Most important - The Elements of Expression by Arthur Plotnick; Allen's The Resource Guide for Food Writers; Writer's Market Favorites, lately - Osterman & Baker's The Recipe Writer's Handbook; Forche & Gerard's Writing Creative Nonfiction

Hello, eGullet in the Hearland! I am conducting research for a new book, Sow Living in the Heartland: A Cook's Tour of the Serene Life, to be published by UI Press in 2005. I am looking for stories of people (whether food professionals or not) who are living the ideals of the Slow Food movement. Not sure what that is? Go to SlowFoodUSA.org For the purposes of my book, the "Heartland" is defined as a 12-state region stretching from Ohio to Oklahoma to North Dakota. If you know of anyone (including yourself) who should be included in this book, please reply here. They needn't be Slow Food members to be considered. Please post suggestions here, witha brief description of what qualifies them. Don't post contact stuff, I'll PM you to get that so we don't violate anyone's privacy. I believe that in addition to being a tremendous help for my research, this will also make an interesting topic of discussion here at eGullet. I'm happy to have found the forum, and thank you in advance for your help! Peace, Devotay