lambretta76

Guys - don't forget the drinks, too. I had a taste of the coyly named "Maybe the best mojito around" (or something like that) and it was fantastic - instead of mint, the drink used African basil. As for the food - everything was fantastic except for the cocoa granita on the chocolate menu, which I enjoyed, but it was served over what could only be described as cornbread, which I did not. And, if anyone can clue me in, the "chantilly cream in the style of Herve This" or whatever it was called on the peach tasting menu - how is it in the style of Monsieur This? Again, though, it was a fabulous evening.

Truly sad news, but I look forward to it reopening, even if it is in Manhattan. (Could you make sure the charred longbean salad ends up over at Stinky, still - man that stuff is outstanding!) I guess we'll see what you have in store for us in a month or so - good luck!

Hopefully Eater has gotten a bad tip, but this was over on that blog: 3) Smith Street: "Taku on Smith Street closed. Last Sunday was its last night after just over a year of operation. It is going to turn into a slow-simmered Italian restaurant under the same owners." A follow-up post over at CH, from the user bloodorange: "I'm designing & printing the wedding invitation of one of the owners right now, and he mumbled something over the phone to me yesterday about relocating Taku to Manhattan?? and opening a Mediterranean place in its location??. I didn't totally follow what he was saying, but there does seem to be some serious overhaulin' in the works." Can anyone actually confirm this? Taku was one of the few "great" restaurants on Smith Street, and I would be sad to see them go. If it's true, I hope they contunie to supply Stnky with their long bean salad.

I had wanted to try this place out a while ago, but it was desserted and, let's face it, it's not exactly the most well-designed space in the city. Makes me think of what someone would refer to as "Club New York" in a place like Topeka, Kansas. I'm glad to find out that that food is much better than their sense of style. (Well, the presentation of the food did look awesome, and they weren't dressed too horribly.)

The people at BBG actually discouraged a friend from putting the white sauce on his sandwich. I, personally, find that it goes really good on lots of things - french fries, jerk chicken, cuban sandwiches, etc. It was nice to grab a bottle without a trip to Decatur.

Are there any good sites out there for sake etiquette? I know theres the pouring of others' drinks based on seniority/status, but is there anything else involved besides a hearty kampai! ? For instance, is there anything that should be said when receiving a pour of sake from the owner of the establishment? Any specific way to drink from a masu? My wife is going to un upscale sake tasting and doesn't want to embarass herself.

Go to to Bohemian Beer Garden to watch the Czech games (just not the US one). La Nacional for the Spanish games. Anywhere on 32nd Street for the Korea games - they'll most likely be showing them all live if the last World Cup is any indication. For England - hit Floyd New York in Brooklyn Heights and bring in takeaway British food from the Atlantic Chip Shop next door. No idea where the US fans are gonna be, though it's likely Nathan Hale's. (Us sad ones who couldn't make it to Deutschland, that is.) For Brasil I went to Made in Brazil out in LIC last time - may hit up the Ironbound in Newark this year. If I can think of anymore I'll post them...

So is it open to the public during its "soft open"? Does anyone have a menu?

Seabra's Markets, in Newark but also strewn throughout the Northeast in Portuguese areas, sells dozens of varieties of baccala, ranging from about $3.99 a pound to like $20 a pound (that must be some good cod!) I just got some from the Fairway in Brooklyn and am going to make baccala mantecata once it's cleaned...

Not to be a pooper, but soju is the best accompaniment to the spicyness of Korean food. Also, rather generic beers such as pale ales tend to work (as do Korean beers such as Cass, OB, or Hite.) I have never found a wine that has held up to the spices, but low-mineral gruner veltliners and drier rieslings have fared OK. For sojus, I like Green Soju and Jinro Chamjinisulro Soju. The regular Jinro is pretty vile... Soju should be drunk very cold and in small glasses. Always pour for those with an empty glass; never pour for yourself. And cheers is "Gun-bae"! (Though, more appropriately, they also say "one-shot".)

This is the old Time Cafe space, no?

I don't know if they're the same things? There's the fragolino which is the strawberry wine, then there's another fragolino bianco that's sparkling. This was not a sparkling wine, didn't taste like strawberries, and was definitely not sold everywhere. It was just barely sweet - I'd love to make more notes on it but I'm saving this bottle for a special occasion...

I'd like to know of the answer to this - assume that the reader was referring to fragolino bianco. I jsut recently tried some of this illicit wine in Venice and was taken aback at how good it was - it's perhaps the best dessert wine I ever tried. It's apparently illegal because of high levels of methanol, and the place we purchased it from had it in unmarked bottles which they then put their store sticker on. Since it's illegal to sell, I imagine that it's also illegal to export, but you never know. (To my knowledge, it's not outlawed in the US.)

Anything new on this resto - any "must haves" on the current menu?

Also - if anyone knows of a place to score a nip of Fragolino Bianco, could you please PM me?

Kevin72 - that was the only one I had planned on hitting already - if it was good enough for Casanova then it's good enough for me...

Kevin72 - thanks for the info. I'm actually heading there in a couple of weeks - can anyone comment on the best bacari for cicchetti and tramezzini? Msoon-to-be wife is allergic to shellfish and is thus limited to what she can eat in Venice. Plus we want to do the little neighborhood places and save up for one big blowout (of course, a recommedation for that would be good, too.) Lastly, we have tickets to La Fenice on a Wednesday - can anyone think of any great places nearby that will be open after the opera?

I look forward to your report. If you have any recommendations for the town opf Praiano, be it markets or coffee shops or whatever, I'd be interested to hear about it if you have a second. (Please PM me if you can.)

At Chip Shop it is a great value. The fried macaroni is a disappointment, but I've always wanted to try it. The fish fingers are slightly smaller than the normal portion - otherwsie everything is the same. If ordered separately, you'd easily spend $20 pp. The spotted dick was a bit dry this past time, but the berry soup with cream is as good as always...

Anyone have any recs for the town of Praiano?

The sandwiches at Le Sandwicherie are the bomb! Had the saucisson sec - fantastic. Their vinaigrette is addictive. I really enjoyed Social for global tapas - the Chef is Chef Sean Mohammed, who worked with Troisgros and Collichio and ran the Lake Placid Lodge in upstate NY. The jerk lobster skewers and tuna/watermelon dish were great. Nice cocktails and a great room, too. Not outrageously expensive, though pricey.

menton1 - I think you're correct - around Providence, the chowder is most likely the red chowder. I asked several friends, who hail from Bristol, Little Compton, and Kingston, and they all supported the clam broth "clear" chowder theory, while a friend from Pawtucket supported the red chowder. So I guess Rhode Island Clam Chowder = clam broth/"clear", while Providence Clam Chowder = red chowder. Doesn't really matter much to me as I love caldo verde and stick to that when I'm in the RI area. (Unless someone makes a Green Clam Chowder.)

Could I ask a couple of questions - what is the cost of the tasting menu (is there one, or is it just the four and six course menues) and is it still BYO? If it is BYO - what are some wines recommendations that you may have for this place?

Alright - I'll try to get trip reports up in appropriate places. Immediately after getting our rental car at MIA, we headed to Versailles. First off, the place is enormous. No problem with seating a party of six, though it did fill up by around noon. We started with two orders of the fried calamari, which were among the best I've ever had - slightly spicy and nearly grease-free. My friend said that they were famous for them, and I was hesitant being that it's not a Cuban dish, per se, but they were great. For lunch I had the cubano especial, which I assume to just be a larger version of their regular cubano. Just order a regular - the sandwich is stuffed thick with ham and pork. Very, very good, but I can't say it's the best I've ever had. (I like a little more garlic kick on mine.) The tostones were very good, and I asked for some mojo to dunk them in, also fantastic. My friend's raved about the Basque tortilla, which was an omelette with chorizo and peas, among other things. The scene-stealer of the day was the bolliche, a pot roast stuffed with chorizo. It was moist and flavorful - simply fantastic. I've not seen this on Cuban menus here in NYC and don't know if it's a faithful reproduction, but it was darned fine. A friend also had the ropa vieja which he really liked, but I did not try it. We ordered a cafe con leche from the takeaway stand out front and got in the car to drive down to 13th St, where we ordered amazing batidos from Los Pinareños Frutería. At $2.50 a piece, these were amongst the biggest bargains in Miami. I had the mamey, while others sampled orange, mango, guava, and guarapo (sugar cane). I love mamey, and therefore thought mine was the best, though I really liked the guarapo one. They were sadly out of gunabana, which is another favorite of mine. I'd have to say that it's the best batido I've ever had, with the old standard being Snack City in Tampa.

IVanC - have you tried the JMJ versions? Are they close to what you'd have in Malta? Also - have any recommendations where you can find other Maltese treats or food in the NYC-area? Closest Maltese restaurants I've seen have been in Toronto or Detroit.