fiftydollars

So an open bottle of sake will keep for 6 months to a year in a cool, dark place?

Could you be turning the dough before it has had enough time to rest/cool? whenever I rush the turns I tend to get indistinct layers. I usually have to rely on the feel and firmness of the dough instead of just the time. It takes about 45 minutes to one hour for me to get it cold enough to turn properly. If the dough is turned too quickly, before the butter has time to set, the layers just blend together when folded. Don't rush the turns and be sure the dough is ready even if it takes a little longer.

The pulled pork is a definite miss. It really sucks. I once heard someone say how they supposedly made it when they worked there... and it ain't pretty. Allegedly they toss the pork in a large pot to cook with little or no seasoning overnight. Then the barbecue sauce is poured in as the pork is shredded the following morning. I'm told the pork has a quite hideous smell before the sauce is poured on. The smell was described as absolutely horrible and a very good reason never to order The Pig. Now this actually doesn't seem to have anything wrong with it in and of itself as a cooking method, but it does seem to guarantee a mediocre barbecue sandwich. The ribs are also dubious in their barbecue heritage. I don’t know the particulars, but I’m kind of sure they are not smoked. They do feature a tasty seasoning that is used throughout the restaurant by Firestone and which is very similar to a rib seasoning (rib roundup) made famous by a local deli. The seasoning, which is on the fries and just about everything else, is quite tasty and makes just about anything, including the ribs, delicious. With the exception of the pulled pork almost everything at Firestone is good and if you like it, then you should also like the Mainstreet Grill in Cambria. Cambria is a town about 40 minutes or so North of San Luis Obispo along Highway 1. The Mainstreet Grill is a restaurant owned by the same folks as Firestone. The food is also great and, from what I recall, just a tad bit cheaper. Cambria is a great place to visit and if you happen to want to see Hearst castle or whatnot, it's only a few miles from San Simeon, which also features a mission that may or may not be open to the public these days. This mission has what I believe is the best view of all the CA missions. It’s worth pulling over and taking a look. The Madonna Inn is definitely worth visiting, but you might not want to eat the food. The food is quite disappointing and rather expensive, much like the rest of the Inn. From the controversial use of neon colors on the hotel’s sign to the compulsive overuse of a particularly offensive shade of pink, the Madonna Inn’s fatuous design is legendary. Guided by a uniquely gaudy aesthetic, the Madonna Inn boasts design elements reminiscent of a Graceland had Elvis not been quite so restrained.

Wow! How was there any time left for cooking?

I usually brine and rub. I don’t brine for very long and my rub isn’t too salty, so it works out alright. Alton Brown has a recipe where he brines and then uses a rub that has no salt. I haven’t tried it, but if you’re worried about over salting it might be worth a try.

I've heard this about white truffle oil. I've heard it is almost invariably made artificially.

← Welcome to egulle Isabelle Prescott! That's a great first post. Chicago Style Italian Beef is exactly the thing I need. I can't wait to eat a sandwich...

I’m not comfortable with giving out my card # more often than I have to, but if you want to eat at certain restaurants, it just has to be done and trying to work around this is a hassle that I don’t find to be worthwhile. So I just use virtual card numbers. Ask your credit card company about them. You can have a card number and corresponding expiration number generated for a single use. I’ve started doing this on a lot of online purchases, too. It helps me feel a little better about giving out the number. It also satisfies the restaurant and avoids an unpleasant argument over why I don’t feel I can trust them. Not all card companies offer them, but they should.

You guys are right and a little cloudiness in the stock won’t matter for whatever it is I’m usually doing. It’s not like it’s going to cloud my risotto. It’s also not going to make any difference whether the stock boils violently while I make it or while I’m braising something. I like to braise short ribs in a little stock and wine for about 2.5 hours at 325. Therefore the sauces I make with braising liquid are never that clear at all anyway. You can blame Jaques Pepin for my phobia of cloudy stock. In his Complete Techniques I believe he writes that boiling clouds the stock and makes it less digestible. Of course, as I read it I could hear his voice admonishing me with a French accent and at the time I swore I would not let such a terrible thing as cloudy, poorly digestible stock happen to me. And I never really thought about keeping the pressure cooker below a boil (Duh!). Thanks for the tip, JayBassin. I’ll have to put the pressure cooker back into my stock-making rotation.

They say you'll get a cloudy stock that way, but it sure beats a can of Swanson's. Yes, it's not as clear and tastes different than a traditional stock, but it's very flavorful, fast, and homemade.

I recently got a serious urge for an Italian beef sandwich, but living in CA there is nothing close to Italian beef in sight, so I need to take matters into my own hands. Can you please help? I need to find a recipe for a great Italian beef. Thanks.

Congratulations, Steven! Are you going to head out to California for any book signing on the tour?

oscar meyer cheese dogs wrapped in store-brand white bread

Alioto’s at San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf is pretty much guilty on all counts as described by posters above. It shows all of the tell-tale signs of a tourist slop factory. But I know a few “locals” who just love this place… does anyone know why? I sure don’t. I’ve been a couple of times. The first was as a kid and the second was after one of the mentioned locals told me I had to try their shrimp Creole. It wasn’t bad (a few small little critters, just a hair bigger than so-called “salad shrimp” served with a rice featuring some tomato product and shrimp stock), but I still don’t get it.

Oooh! This is very exciting! I can't wait to see how this turns out for you. Does anyone know how to make an adobo?

I'm a regular lard freak. I love it! But Rancho Gordo is, as always, completely right. Leave that shelf-stable Armour (hot dog drippings?) stuff behind and step up to the real deal. I recommend rendering your own after a visit to a good butcher. There are quite a few instructions on how around here. For an awesome treat get yourself some good leaf lard. The fat around the kidneys is incredibly clean and works great in pastry. I can't wait for my uncle's brutal pig slaughter in November.

My rapidly accelerating spiral of downward mobility has been fueled by my appetite. I’ve eaten almost every dollar I’ve ever made.

Yes of course - after all.... this IS egullet! excerpted from a Fortune article posted on Spacefem.com ← Thank you!

You have to be right. I'm thinking that at such a low temperature the air inside the oven is much lower than the thermostat or the thermometer (magnetically attached to the oven wall)detect since they are both really taking the temperature of the oven itself, not necessarily the volume of air it holds, and as the oven cycles on and off the oven holds the heat while the temperature of the air in the oven drops substantially.

You mean Big Sky Cafe, right? Nice but I always think their stuff needs more salt ! (easy enuf) Kinda depends on what you are looking for......... I agree.......Paso is the best bet for GOOD restaurants ! Edited to make a Paso comment...... ← Yes! I was wrong. Big Sky... As I said... once in a while. I've had some very good meals there, but for the most part these have featured a great ingredient of some sort.

fiftyD's, I'll have to try Jocko's again. It's been a while. I've been doing some "research" on steakhouses in Southern California. Which cut would you recommend? New York? Rib eye? I want the pure flavor of the meat, no sauces .... As for McClintock's, Jean should at least go inside to check out the ... uhh ... atmosphere. Heck, she can get that at AJ Spur's as well. And for something completely different, isn't there a restaurant called the Gardens of Avila, right by Sycamore Hot Springs?? Last, but definitely not least, Jean, visit a winery over in Paso Robles (... hint, hint, Rebel Rose ... ) ← I don't think you'll find fancy sauces at Jocko's. It's a simple place. The salads and sides are fresh but simple and definitely not the reason to go there. We're talking iceberg lettuce (not saying there is anything wrong with ice berg lettuce salad, but these days I think it says something), solid potato preparations of all sort, salsa, vegetables... none of which I remember very well. It's all quite good and whatnot, but it is all several orders below their steak. I am definitely not saying they don’t have tasty sides to go along with their steaks, but on my steak house scorecard the steak counts for a lot and this is the only reason I regard this place so highly. Their steaks are just awesome. I don’t know what kind of satanic deal might be involved. There is no logical reason that this place should serve such a fine steak. It just doesn’t add up. Nothing but the long line of customers ahead of you no matter when you might decide to drop in for dinner would clue you into the caliber of steak they serve. These boys could give Peter Luger a run (minus the pre-cutting, slathering in butter, and the beef juice… oohh the beef juice). But it’s decidedly not fancy, even by steakhouse standards. The two big dining rooms are just large rectangular rooms arranged to pack in as many diners as possible. The bar between these two dining rooms is more likely than, say, other places to feature the occasional disgruntled imbiber from the local populace who might want to pick a fight if you encounter him (her, too… I suppose) on your way to the restroom. The wine list can generously be described as, uh, featuring an unusual assortment of modestly priced varietals. But despite anything else you could say about the place, the steaks are just really incredible. Hell, I still don’t believe the steaks I’ve had there. I usually stay away just long enough to talk myself out of the idea that they serve the world’s best steak (it’s been about that long). Then I go and I am once again left dazzled and befuddled by that steak. It just doesn’t make sense that they would have such a fine steak. No sense at all. Remember to only go for dinner. They don’t fire up the oak pit for lunch and the difference is staggering. Get whatever cut you love. I generally love rib eyes, but at Jocko’s, with the inordinate tenderness of their meat and all, I tend to go for the New York or the spencer. They also do a solid filet, if that is your idea of a good time.

I just tested out my oven's holding capabilities when set to around 160 degrees and the results are not promising. As doctorandchef got me suspecting, the temperature at which you set the oven can differ substantially from the contents. After 4 hours or so of sitting in the oven, a previously boiling pot of water was at just over 110 degrees. While the thermometer in the oven said it was at just under 170. Air is obviously not the best conductor of heat, but I didn't expect this to be quite so dramatic. I haven't yet tried to see at what temperature the oven might hold the water in the pot at a safe 140 degrees, but I'm definitely curious.

I previously chimed in with my observation that The French Laundromat has long had a service charge. But reading through the posts it seems I missed something… Is Thomas Keller really discontinuing the practice of tipping at Per Se? Is he taking out the gratuity line off the check that at TFL is reserved for whatever you feel like giving over that 18%? Or is he just adopting TFL’s M.O. at Per Se? If he’s still giving you a place to throw in a gratuity, then it is not quite right to say he is eliminating tipping. He is basically establishing a standard where his service is worth at the very minimum X number of dollars. He’s establishing a minimum that his servers should be paid. Then gives you a chance to add more on top of that minimum. This is an issue separate from the pooling issue, which is controversial in and of itself without introducing a tip minimum. I don’t disagree with a tip minimum in a setting such as TFL and Per Se where you are being provided a very unique service and where this is understood as part of the implied contract when you decide to dine there. I am certain that absent a tip minimum the diners at Per Se and TFL would often fall shy of the 18% minimum that Keller believes their service is worth. This is similar to why they substantially raised their corkage fee. Back when the Chronicle first reviewed Per Se in 1994 I seem to recall reading that the corkage was $4. But people started bringing in bottles of wines of embarrassing quality and TK decided a higher corkage would help insure that his customers brought their A game to TFL. He’s trying to raise the bar… at least in regard to the tip minimum. I agree with that within the context of his operations, which strive to raise the bar across the board. He demands a lot of himself, his staff, and it seems, his patrons. I would not agree to this for long within the context of lesser outfits. If Denny’s announced they were doing away with tips and bringing in a service charge, my reaction would probably be quite different.

For lunchtime I like Firestone Grill. They have good burgers, tri-tip sandwiches, a great cobb salad, and whatnot. San Luis Obispo does not have a lot of choices on the higher end of things. Italian food is your best bet in this department. Buena Tavola and Benvenuti are usually pretty good. Café Roma, is not bad, but they have some bad nights. I like to go to Blue Sky once in a while. They serve interesting food, usually with local provisions. I am a big fan of Hoppe’s Garden Bistro in Cayucos, a small town about 30 minutes north of San Luis Obispo along Highway 1. Just 30 minutes south of San Luis Obispo, in Nipomo, is Jocko’s, the place that gets my vote for best steak house in California. But do not stop for lunch or any other time but dinner, when they fire up the oak pit and crank out the best steak you’ll find anywhere in the area. There are other steak houses in and around San Luis Obispo. Stay away from all of them. AJ Spurs in Templeton is ok, but I wouldn’t waste my time. McClintock’s is to be avoided at all costs. Never, ever go there. It is a hideous excuse for a steak house. The flagship of this local chain in Shell Beach pulls more money than probably all the other steak houses in the county combined, although the food is horrible… just horrible, but the tourists love the place and will happily wait 45 minutes (no reservations) for a bad steak and some fried turkey testicles (the house specialty). If you go to Pismo Beach, you’ll no doubt want some clam chowder, fish and chips, etc… Pretty much any place in Pismo Beach will have it for you. I can’t recommend any. Thursday night, if you happen to be in town, there is a farmer’s market on Higuera. I recommend going. You can see the local folk, talk to some farmers about their produce, eat some of the local specialties (tri-tip sandwiches), and just enjoy the fall evening in the happy little downtown.

Hunts! That’s really bothersome. I lack your obvious expertise on the subject, but I share your dislike of the Hunt’s. Last year, a local burger place got a little political and stopped featuring my favorite ketchup because apparently it was too blue for the owner’s liking. It really pissed me off and I haven’t been back since. Politics is one thing, serving fries with bad ketchup is entirely another. A local burger chain, Nation’s, uses Miracle Whip instead of mayonnaise. I find that revolting. But that’s a whole other subject.