anil

Beer at 2 AM EST ?

That would be not possible here in NYC - The game is pretty much done before lunch time EST.

Rice as we all know is so vared and subtlly different in asia that many cultures have many names to distinguish it. The region, time of the year harvest; length of the grain; colour, and on and on... This not to even mention about cooking styles... We indians in the US tend to eat mostly basmati rice,a dehraduni if possible. In Thailand and Indonesia its different than in places north east as in Vietnam, China etc... NOt to talk about Korea and Japan. It would be nice if we could all start to list a few of our favourites, and where to taste them and how ?

I was waiting to make a second trip before writing about it, so we went on our second, past friday - You beat me to it so I'll just compare and contrast to your points. 1. Paint - I agree 2. Better than Chicama - I'd say the same. 3. ceviche ? I had snail with cilantro,tomato avacado - ceviche is my weakness so I tend to have a positive bias 4. Slow (I never care about it) 5. Good Mojito : First had tad bit more of mint - more ice, more booze Also tried chacsha and kiwilime a.k.a kiwiriania (sp?) killer drink 6-7: read 5 8. Bite size tapas - Rodriguez's Oysters - similar to Oyster Rockfeller 9. Potato Crab empanadas with cream and caviar - again bite size A. Crispy Cuban Pork - A nice sized well done pork. B. Seating on the lower level is a bit tight C. While it is still new, you'll get to see a lot of eye candy - Ford girls with chaparones (Sp?) I gather there are two big apartment Ford Agency has in that neighborhood - and Ola serves for the weight watchers Inc. D. Surprised to find the names of every employee and their roles listed in the menu ... E. Will they dilute the mojitos as time goes by ????? F. Not inexpensive nor a highway robbery.

After reading another excellent article by FM (Steve Shaw), and a quote by Jinymo sums this debae too as well -- So “Rolling something in rice and nori and calling it ‘sushi’ does not make it sushi,”explains Jinmyo Renge, Ottawa-based chef and Zen teacher, very patiently. “Risotto is not pilaf is not congee is not sushi. As [Confucius] taught, we call things by names so that we know what we are speaking of.”

I was talking to folks back home - India vs Pakistan - Kebabs, vegetable pakoras, chicken tikka and lots of XXXRum(Army Canteen Issue) and Coke India vs SriLanka - boti-kebab, sookha mutton, hox-mix from haldram in Gurgaon; and again Army Rum and Coke. Needless to say these two matches always invoke hightened passions in the country.

The secret 199 out of 200; sending DES-3 encripted messages are in my opinion, not a useful indicator, just as using taxi-drivers as a measure of excellent ethnic food is a useless one. If I , a non-carioca; also a non-porteno; am not afraid or ashamed to put my likes and dislikes of Brazilian and Argentinian cuisine here in NYC or in their native lands in writing in gullet or any other forum - I see no reason of the others to hide There is no final exams here; and no ! you don't get the girl in the end for being correct and right either And Of!Course we indians will not laugh (OK I don't speak for simon dada, I gather he is a bhodrolok....) So one is -- in essense is a goan chef and a name of indian musical instrument - using indian spices - So is it Indian ? Nyet The other is -- a rajasthani/Awadhi raised chef with the indian word for respected man - using indian igredients and indian techniques and associated concepts - It is Indian ! Da. It is unfortunate that this discussion has even reached this far --

I do not know what you expect of sophisticated dining ? But I'll tell you what we do (depending on number of days we are in Vien) Have a late-night dinner with booze at the open-air dining stalls by the university area - just outside the inner ring (Walking distance from Stephanssplatz.) Enjoy Viennese desserts [They are in some places a meal in themselves] Wrenkh, avegetarian speciality, this restaurant is in the centre so is Korso which offers traditional viennese dishes (whatever that means The thing to do is sit in a beer or wine garden. and spend the time. Where you are staying and how many days you'll be in Vien will also help. On my first trip to VIE, a greatful grad student, who was home for the summer, helped us navigate and explore things that we would have otherwise missed. The second time, was much better because we had a head-start on many things.

This is amazing - Within a span of one day + a discussion about two different restaurants and it distills down to parsing spices ??? Much of these agruements hold no interest to many of us Because the cluelessness factor and signal-to-noise level is very high. If Tabla had changed its name to say Drums would it matter ? Comparing Tabla and Diwan is going to crop up because many believe Tabla to be indian - It is not. I have not eaten in any egullet bauquets - I have been to Diwan and Tabla about half-a-dozen times. I take folks who cannot absorb indian cuisine, but are fascinated by spices and aroma some of the preparations give out - So Tabla to them is better indian food. To many indians, French food is bland; and needs to grow up and become bolder; To the French, the opposite - Fact of the matter is it is an uninteresting exercise based on cultural bias. Many bigoted indians, would also say that Indian culture is thousands of years old, and inhabitants of France in that era were mere savages. Which is also an uninteresting excercise in inciting the population Having travelled extensively in both countries over the decades, I know that true native clued folks from both counties would merely shake their head at the things going on in this thread.

This is an excellent point - In fact a critical element in understanding many restaurants, and even cooking traditions. In Delhi, India; there are some restaurants that do certain dishes superbly and that drives their fame and major business. It's like at Peter Lugars; We order the same usual stuff, except in summers I change my libations to stein of beer. OfCourse there are steaks in non-steakhouses - Cuban fare - Victor's and Argentinian Chimmichuri Grill in Clinton I was not excited about Outback in the MidTown-East

It is mostly make it up as you go kind of a thing...............

You guys make me cry !!! About two decades plus; I had my 1st tasting of fresh bamboo shoots, sliced ginger and pork & duck skin delicacy. Since that day I became enamoured with fresh bamboo shoots. We make it a point to inquire if the kitchen has some of those, and what dishes may they be using it in ....

Nyet ! If you are in Montevideo,Uruguay and basmati is unavailable at the local grocery store, then by all means use texamati......

Not really true - Agreed that roomali rotis are rarely seen to be made in homes in northern india; specially in hindu house-holds. In two occasions - 1) In a household of very talented metal engraveaurs inn Moradabad, UP 2) Second generation family of wazirs to Nizams of Hyderabad. We found roomali rotis to be the default bread - However, in pure statistical terms, your statement holds true "rarely" Much has to do with its association with muslim households - which is unfortunate because I loved it over tava chapatis (rotis) or tandoors

Most mustard oil in NYC stores are imported from France - They do indeed say 'for external use only' I think they should be OK. Mustard and Coconut oils are also popular in India for massages and other external uses.

While mezes in Beyoglu (3rd & 81st) are excellent ,the main course have not kept up- I have noted that most turks at the upstair seating prefered to just get a bottle of Raki - hence little or no interest for turkish or other wines. Pasha on Columbus &71st ?, on the other hand has a more balanced menu - A tad bid expensive. Then there is Efendi on 55th & 2nd, which is a small turkish place - No reservation and quite crowded at times.

If this is in context of the Greek Restaurants in NYC, I would hazzard a guess that diners are squimish about dealing with it. The new seafood restaurant Thalassa in Tribeca will serve you just that if you ask - As would Captain's Table in Astoria (this was eons ago I gather it has now closed or changed hands). Also in many places a 1-1/2 ln lobster, simply steamed is served chopped and neatly placed - back in Maine, it was served whole. Many of the 1st generation greeks in NY are also not quite versed in eating smelts- sauteed; when in season

Wow, I take a few week off visiting and a great debate starts Much of what is Turkish food is influenced by the era of the Ottomans - As a center of trade and immigration through last two centuries and before, IST adopted everything of value and importance. None of the Greek cities had that thing going - The immigration was also very limited. One look at Topakapi Palace's kitchen would give one an idea - Imagine thousands of pieces of chinese ceramics all devoted to the palace's kitchen. Hundreds of cooks, from all over the world cooked meals for the Sultanate - Spice Bazzar, an amazing place (not in its prime glory - but still fascinating, working bazzar ) It allowed for turks to use and experiment with different herbs and spices. Even in the most touristic places in Greece I've not seen vendors speak that many languages, as few in the spice bazzar - One in fact spoke three indian languages - Does business with South Asian spice boards and its ilk. The diversity of restaurants from all over the world in Istanbul is substantial compared to those in Athens. Yes, in the current era, turkish dishes one finds in Istanbul are more nuanced than say in Greece. (....to be continued....)

http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/wchuang/coo...dian_Spices.txt and http://www.foodsubs.com/SpiceInd.html Two sources where Ajwain is explained in non-hindi terms

anil, are you saying that you didn't like the oysters? No, I did& do like the raw oysters (also herrings, but that was not mentioned) For booze we whent over to McAnns - They had bass ale on tap

No - only Colonia and Montevideo -

Yup! It was big news in India last month while I was there - That is how I knew of her existence

Is she not the model who was with Salman Rushdi ?

I agree about the oysters. I remember going over to old McAnn's Bar for a couple beer instead.

Please educate us. I promptly forget all their names - except yours