jgould

LOL just what i want to do - travel diagonally from UWS to manhattan bridge & back. is it not better to walk 1.5 blks, n'est-ce pas? or, u could drop off a few bottles every month??

as a point of reference, i don't believe it would be possible to find "real" southern BBQ pitmasters who WOULD agree with the above 2 statements. while it is probably true, the actual pitmaster IS less dogmatic than the NYT/VV reviewers, that does not necessarily "imply" they would agree with suppositions made by those who somehow think their overall knowledge of foods can be applied to such a regional dish, as well as assume those who do this for a living or even as a serious, & i mean serious, hobby, have the same viewpoint as those who do not understand the value of tradition.

in the beginning, fairway's cafe had promise, regardless of the amazingly bad service. with byob, & a very good menu - from amouse-bouche - to - dessert, it was worth putting up with whatever service you received. unfortunately, mitchell got more ornery, the wine policy changed, the amouse-bouche disappeared, prices went up, but the service remained the same. early on, i approached mitchell & one of fairway's owners with some suggestions that would have improved the ambiance & the experience. mitchell, to his credit, took the list, but did nothing with it. the owner was a complete buffoon. its too bad, because i don't consider myself having the last laugh. the restaurant is empty at nite, but i was hoping it would have been an excellent addition to the area. with everything needed at their fingertips, it would have appeared this should have been a "can't miss" alternative to the many mediocre places on the UWS. i like fairway market & it fits into the fabric of NYC. vs whole foods, it still comes out ahead. obviously, whole foods is larger, cleaner; but the food offerings are not any better, & this is after repeated trips. initially, its a rave, but the more familiar one gets, the luster is gone; while fairway is always an adventure - sometimes not a good adventure, but nevertheless, an adventure. whole food's "food court" is a cesspool of germs" from fingers - to - breathing. its a great concept , obviously the stk mkt agrees, but probably better for areas that do not have a zabar's or a fairway nearby. 1 additional note: westside grocery on broadway bet 76th & 77th, continues to amaze me. although it does not have the "buzz" of fairway, nor does nora ephron write about it, BUT i always seem to find products that one cannot get anywhere else!!! ex. "texas pete" hot sauce - i had asked the owner to order & he did. this in addition to many "difficult to find" products they carry. less hectic, small meat & cheese selection, but for a "grocery" store, its very good.

as stated before, one cannot find good bbq above NC! dinosauer was a no-brainer in terms of bbq. i thought the nyt was generous its funny, i had thought blue smoke would be a contender, but alas, not even a respected restauranteur can climb that mountain. daisy mae's is also a very sad substitute, tis somewhat discouraging that some believe it is representative of serious 'Q'. btw, has anyone been to robert's steakhouse?

what size french press do u use?

thank u for the explanation. if the 51 oz does NOT affect taste, temp, as alluded to above, it is certainly a significantly better deal. i was under the impression the medium size was better for 2-4 cups, which is probably the amount most often made. another thought, those who like to drink several cups, an electric brewer stays on for a couple of hrs keeping the coffee relatively hot; whereas, coffee from a french press cools quickly. how does one justify a french press vs. a electric brewer, also assuming its the beans that make the difference?? as for the beans, will take your suggestion. i find it odd, one has to mail order for freshly roasted beans, as result of NOT being able to find in NYC???

interesting point! i could either amend the original inquiry to reflect grand,premier/village ac's; or hopefully others will chime in with why the grand/premiers DO make a difference, in that strictly speaking, pretty much ALL wine is meant to accompany food, & not really for drinking by itself. ← ok, i'll start: which would match better with a steamed lobster? & which would match better with a broiled lobster stuffed with crabmeat?

the idea of a quaint village patisserie is charming; however, the croissants were simply average - too doughy & undercooked. its very difficult to find a "superior" croissant in this city from fauchon - to - ceci-cela - to - balthazar - to - payard - to - silver moon - to - pain quotidien - to - ???? also, would love to know where one can find the layered rainbow cookies ???

interesting point! i could either amend the original inquiry to reflect grand,premier/village ac's; or hopefully others will chime in with why the grand/premiers DO make a difference, in that strictly speaking, pretty much ALL wine is meant to accompany food, & not really for drinking by itself.

see above

i guess not too many white burgundy lovers on egullet

have been; however, somehow did not seem as good as the "castles" in the heartlands.

has anyone discussed the differences bet the "grand crus" of chablis, meursault, puligny-montrachet, & chassagne-montrachets??? & what foods they best match with?

Yes, yes, yes and YES!!! ← OK, i bow to the MASTER!!! so, i know where to purchase the grinder (the solis maestro plus); the french press (the bodum 34 oz for $27, although the 51 oz is the better "deal" @ $35); now the last, & apparently the most important: THE BEANS!! as an initial purchase, could u make a recommendation as to which bean(s) & amount i should purchase? CORRECTION: the solis "166" has been renamed the solis "maestro classic" & sells for ~ $80 + tax + shipping @ CostCo ~ $96 the solis "maestro" is the next generation of grinder from solis & sells for ~ $115 the solis "maestro plus" is the newest & best & sells for $130 @ Zabar's starbucks sells ITS grinder, the "barista" for $99, which is actually the solis "maestro", but with a 2 yr warranty. ACTUALLY IT IS THE "MAESTRO CLASSIC", NOT THE "MAESTRO".

dear own: thank u VERY much!! we have been buying "flavored" coffee beans off- the- floor, grind enough for 3 days & refrigerate; & freeze the rest. remove whatever amount we desire, not de-thawing, & grind using a braun. i "guess" i'm asking IF we were to buy beans mail order, use a solis maestro plus, & a french press; we would significantly notice the difference??

katie, rest assured, sevilla is as good as it ever was. as long as the same cast of characters continue to be there, it will always remain the same.

somewhat confusing, but to summarize (correctly?): the solis "166" has been renamed the solis "maestro classic" & sells for ~ $80 the solis "maestro" is the next generation of grinder from solis & sells for ~ $115 the solis "maestro plus" is the newest & best & sells for ~ $150 starbucks sells its grinder, the "barista" which is the same as the solis "maestro", but with a 2 yr warranty. is all the above true??? zabar's in nyc, is selling the solis "maestro plus" for $130 (on sale price). the manager claims it is made especially for zabar's??? 1 other: zabar's also sells the bodum chambord french press coffee maker in 3 sizes: 12 oz for $18, 34 oz for $27, 51 oz for $35. which size is the best for 2 full cups, or does size not make any difference, just buy the largest which is the best price, & use the appropiate amount of coffee? lastlly, if doing all this - buying mocha java, vanilla almond, vienna, french vanilla, & french roast beans from bags "on the floor", is this considered "fresh" such that one experiences a very good cup or what is the alternative? seems like, in mail ordering, the freshness is somewhat lost???

Time mag had a recent issue of cool inventions. 1 of many was a label using thermosensitive ink that lets you know when the contents of the bottle are suitably chilled via "grantusa.com". this "sounds" like a great idea. any comments?

2nd Gavroche re: steak frites - great frites!!

HOLY SHIT VMILOR!!! what a fantastic post, much appreciated for both the insight & detail! merci

c) Just to clarify, its formal name is "Brasserie Les Halles," so it's a brasserie, not a bistro. d) We've been going to Park Bistro with some regularity for more than 10 years. Despite the changes in chefs over the years, the cooking has mananged to remain pretty consistently solid. thx for the correction, i do know les halles is a brasserie, but u, like me, know "its in the details..." used to love PB, but it was going downhill so fast, that i stopped going. do u know who the new owners are & who the current chef is?

ok, what's the deal. les halles is: a) too noisy b) lousy service c) living off its laurels d) the branches are simply terrible (wall st should be closed) e) absentee owners & exec. chef too busy promoting d) all of the above OR: a) one of the very few honest-to-goodness French bistros in NYC b) a menu that is both varied & interesting, although many stay with the beef c) hey! its a bistro/brasserie - don't sweat the other stuff d) is park bistro across the street better or not worth the effort have only been back to les halles once AFTER the enlargement, & only for drinks at the larger bar. is it now easier to snag a table without reservations? of course, the smaller version took reservations, but it meant nothing

firstly, its great that a real restauranteur is responding in such an honest & forthright way. not only is it greatly appreciated, but also very refreshing. therefore, i assume, constructive criticism is welcome(?) please excuse my directness, done for brevity: a) the service has not really improved. i have found the employees, mostly, friendly & sweet; however, they do seem, at many times, to be too casual, "AS IF" they are simply doing this as a stop-over, & treat it as such. this type of ingrained attitude expresses a lackadaisical approach & condoned by management. b) its terribly naive to have been in the restaurant business, knowing how competitive the nyc restaurant scene is, & TO NOT HAVE ANTICIPATED a large turnout, particularly a N.O.-style restaurant with a successful parent already much beloved!! as well as NOT expecting to be reviewed & compared against others! that's just the way it is. c) neighborhood restaurant?? for whom? the same crowd as brother jimmy's? loud, young, etc... if that's your concept of a neighborhood place, then it fits right in with all the other nondescript "neighborhood" joints lining amsterdam bet 80th - 83rd. yes, that's exactly what we need. no wonder the UWS is considered a restaurant wasteland. d) lastly, when jacques decamped back to N.O., the quality & ambience did change dramatically. it doesn't appear that anyone with responsibility is in charge! i don't know why, but it seems as if the casual nature of N.O. cannot be transferred, nor can a cajun-creole restaurant succeed. without constant attention & tweaking, it may be difficult to sustain. a number of well-intentioned have attempted, but all have failed. will jacques be another?? be curious as to what the next 12 mos bring for jacques-imo's nyc/uws????

unfortunately, Lang has gone astray from his 3 rules. first, he has forgotten that service can never be allowed to become what it has at his restaurant. second, he should remind his current employees of his second rule. finally, with the obnoxious prices that he charges, its insulting that his so-called "craftmanship" is so far below average. as per the negative comments here & elsewhere, it is amazing this place still exists, which goes to show that P.T. Barnum's famous quote is still as appropo today, as it was when it was first uttered! the murals, so fabulous & enchanting, are the only reason i can think of, as to why people continue to go.

I don't know if Nice Matin qualifies as a bistro. It seems a bit on the expensive side for that, and I had once thought of it as a bit more an upscale, reservation place than Le Monde or French Roast. French Roast does certainly serve its purpose and I would frequently find myself there despite any reservations, if only for a glass of wine late at night. Being open late into the night is a big advantage and was for me at the time. Le Monde, well, was never very good but I did go occasionally for their burgers and fries to get out of my routine of eating at Toast 2 to 3 times a week. And I'm a--YIKES--Barnard alum. ← this group includes all of the above; therefore, the thought process behind French Roast is the same as their 2 "upscale??" bistros - Nice Matin & Marseille. possibly Pigalle qualifies as 1 of there "premier" restaurants?????????/