Kim WB

On the coldest day of the year, I brought some teens and myself into NYC for a Broadway show. We had plans to eat at China Club, and then over to the Plymouth Theatre. After an hour plus backup at the Lincoln , we were late and grouchy. I suggested a back up plan, just park near the theatre, go to Grand Szechuean for a quick bite, and then the show. Grumbling teens, frigid weather, inappropriate footwear, lack of hats, ( why do 15 year olds think they are invincible?) and a quickly ticking show clock landed us at Joe Franklin's. I didn't care, just get these little pain in the asses settled, out of the cold, and fed..and get me a stiff drink or two..then onto Boy George and Taboo. Ok, I can't believe a place like this can be in business. First of all, its prime realestate and its BIG. I understand the concept of Tourist Trap ( though I was the only one in our party who knew who Joe Franklin was) but it was empty. 6 diners at 7 pm. Horrible menu, horrible food..hey, I knew that going in the door. But it was unimaginably horrible! Not even close to Friday's or Houlihans or whatever. All in this big cavernous space. It really was a reminder of just how bad a restaurant can be. Raviolis still partially frozen. Salmon so grey it was spooky. Choc mousse so plastic it bounced. And, to anyone interested, ignore the reviews and the gossip. Taboo is simply one of the best casts, best shows ever.

This topic falls into the "with all the REAL problems out there, who cares who gets the wine list" category. My husband is an alpha male type. He always gets the list, he usually ask for it or agressively nails it the moment its placed on the table if its not directly given to him. He has extensive wine knowledge and experience as well. He orders the wine 95% of the itme. ON occassion, I will be in the mood for a white burg , and he'll hand the list over to me to choose, as he does not drink whites other than champagne. IF I order the wine, then I expect to taste it as well. I guess I'd be a little put off if it was presented to the man to taste if I placed the order..I don't recall this happening ever. Also on occassion, because he knows my preference for big CA Cabs, he might look at the list, decide on having a big cab, and then hand it over to me so that we can discuss the offerrings and decide. This male power issue is one that I resolved in my marriage long ago, so its become a non-issue of sorts to me. The power structure within our relationship is not augmented nor diminished by how a sommelier perceives us...we know who's REALLY in charge!

I just heard about a bucher named Louie on Applegarth Raod in Monroe Township. IN a strip mall, past the over 55 housing, and the store is not named Louie's but the butcher is. I'm going to take a drive, but thought I'd check here..any word?

I'm pretty sure that NJ is the number one producer of Cranberries..you can see all the bogs when you travel down 206, thorough that little pretty town, Hammonton, that leads to the AC expressway. Blueberries? I don't know nothin bout no stinkin blueberries!

Whoa..this absolutely changes everthing! YOU are a plebian! A Philistine! Not worthy to lick my Manolos! Vodka Gimlets, indeed! ( I hope I don't need to add the smileys, but you never know, so.... )

I think that the members who feel alienated might also be personalizing things a bit. Saying " That pasta dish is not going to be near as good if you use Prego and cardboard boxed parmesan," does NOT mean " IF you use Prego and boxed Parmesan, you are a terrible person who can't cook, knows nothing about food and should not be posting here!" The truth is, the dish will be better with different ingredients. If you like xyz restaurant, and someone suggest abc restaurant because they add truffle oil and caviar to the dish..it's not diminishing your preference, but rather keeping the topic alive and interesting with relevant contributions.

milk chocolate, banana and caramel figs, gorgonzola, and a big Super Tuscan ( adding beverages into the mix!) lays chips, Lipton's onion soup, and Breakstone's sour cream

Or played a lot of Pac Man! Chad Exactly! With the twists and turns,and the red counter top, and all those hidden monsters ( like the dishwasher underhang) , Varmint has a video game kitchen!

Dave, that drawing really brings out the maze like qualities! Varmint, was your FIL a researcher or someone who worked with rats, cheese,and mazes?? Perhaps designed cornfields in his spare time?

After looking at the pictures, I'm going to join the camp that suggests some interim fixes, but no major investment until you're ready to gut it. Not having a functional kitchen with small kids is a real PITA. A month now, and two months a year or two from now..crazy. I'd pinpoint a few of the more crazy idiosyncrancies, like that oven/dishwasher/marble trio, and focus on that. It seeml difficult to work in, and I can imagine your frustration..but I would look into a home equity loan or skim off the kids college funds...and go for the total redesign. In the redesign, there are ways to cut corners as well..for example, countertops ( in a normal kitchen ) are relatively easy to replace, as are sinks and appliances. I dumped money in hte cabinets and flooring, but wnet with cheaper countertops and appliances..for example, I designed the space for a big sub zero..and then bought a Sears Kenmore. It had a big gap between the wall..for three years, until I upgraded appliances. I had not beautiful but fully functional formica countertops..for five years until I got the Corian I wanted. And, I say no way on anything but ceramic on the floor...I'm in homes all the time with destroyed hardwoods. These designer surfaces are great in showrooms, or in low traffic homes..I've got mastiffs, kids..I've had lots of surfaces, and ceramic is the only thing that looks good five years later. Good luck, it's an interesting thread.

Oh ferchrissakes, tell us about the dinner! Nothing is ever as perfect as we want it, and when a dinner seems so, it's just one of life's bonuses. So tell us what you had! And why it wasn't what you were expecting. Sorry, Rich, I've just recently had time to really catch up on some old posts...I don't recall much about the dinner at this time, only that the guinea hen was very ordinary, the skin was limp and underseasoned, and the pasta was dry and bland...I can't recall desserts, etc. or what the others at the table had.

ok. e gullet spellink queen..Murphy's Oil Soap. SoA p. Recipe for dirty floors: Go to nearest super Food Mart. Buy Murphy's. Add to bucket, have very hot water and clean mop. Mop. rinse. mop again. Voila.

Little known but true fact - if you ever hope to refinish your hardwod flors every so many years by just buffing out the top surface and having a new topcoat put on... you should never clean them with anythign other than plain water or at most, some water with a few drops of liquid dishwashing detegergent in the bucket. Most cleaners will leave waxy residues in the interstices of the poly finish and recoating after a simple buff-out will result in orange peeling of the new finish. Murphy's Oil Sopa is the absolute worst offender (this is according to the guy who installed and finished my hardwod flors and he's been inthe business for many years). If you inherited hardwods in the house when you moved in, it's safe to assume that you'll need to sand in order to refinish. If you have new floors installed or existing oens refinished - heed the above. It's relatively cheap and easy to get a recoat every 5 - 7 years rather than a complete sanding. interesting thread..note to readers: this applies to REAl hardwood floors...most likely if you live in newer construction its simulated or sealed wood, so any task specific product will work. And don't forget Murphy's oil soup for the real pine and walnut floors( circa 1960-85 east coast, pre 1980 central region...I don't know west coast or southern stats) ..I'm a real estate agent and work with cleaning companies to get homes ready for sale...Murphy's can really make a difference! Swiffers are great..2 teen boys, its the only thing that makes my baths not turn into Grand Central... I did the cheerio training in the toilet, but aiming continues to be a problem. Press and Seal is great, on clean dishes. I had a mishap on a bowl of duck broth...the floor still has a certain slickness from it! Ziplocs rule in any capacity...I have my medicine chest filed with them, labeled "cold and sinus", Pain relief, tooth/mouth. cuts/scrapes and antibiotic ointments, bandaids and bandages, Eye/ear/misc..and " heartburn/indigestion. My kids are responsible enough ( and old enough) to self medicate, but even to an experienced person, a medicine chest can be overwhelming. Plus, I can mark on the bags when I last did a purge...I use ziplocs for spices too...I only believe in having a small frequently used spice rack...the rest are sealed, dated and in a big 5 gallon rubbermaid container in the pantry. ?Rubbermaid and ziploc..perfect together. I like the Saran disposable cutting sheets..for chix, hens, poultry. I plop one on top of a wood cutting board, and don't need to worry about contamination...I don't like plastic boards. Easy clean up, too. I also like my reynolds easy sheets..little baked potatoe sized wraps, single dispensed...I like to make the kids breakfast sands, and most days I can do it a la minute...but if not, I like to make a sand and wrap it,, ready for the bus stop. And, I dont' use them at home becasue I have a differnt system for wood in the house...but my car has a wood'like dash, and I use those Pledge orange dust sheets to clean off the dust tha accumulates. I need an extremely clean car bcause of business, and this might be over the top, but for those that want a dust free car, it works. Also, my big cooking hint is bottled Ceaser dressing, with really good fresh grated cheese...um....no one knows the difference! wait...replace your boudoir bulbs with pink ones..OH SORRY...different set of suggestions!

Pasta. dammit, I'm making noodles! I've tried, with glompy less than Babbo-like results..the dried Ronzoni would have been better. I know it takes time, and practice, and I got really impatient, stored the pasta attachment to the kitchenaid in the basement pantry...but I need to perservere.

furthermore, I just told my husband about the thread and the owner's response. Bob made me promise to post that HE thought RN was one of my better choices, and that he knew the wine was going to be a little young, but ordered it anyway. And the decanters were fine, and the service was excellent, including the entire wine service which was professional and unobtrusive" and his steak was great, and he doesn't care about the sides or the dessert because he never eats then anyway...and that I am wrong on everything except that the place does look " a little bit like a modern art museum". So, like Rosie said..vanilla and chocolate, even within a happy marriage! Happy New year all!

Glenn, I'm glad you had a good experience..there has certainly been enough good press about this place to assume that most people do like it. My above post was somehow missing a line..and its too late to edit. For those following along, Nicholas privately e-mailed me regarding my post, and I encouraged him to publicly post it on this thread, as I thought it would provide a different perspective.

I bought myself a Christmas gift that looked interesting. I am only a chapter or two into it..but not disappointed. It's called " A Thousand Years over a Hot Stove" and subtitled: An History of American Women told through Food, Recipes and remembrances" by Laura Schenone. It's part history, part story telling.

It should be noted that Mr. Hararay, owner of RN, e-mailed me a response to this thread. I introduce bring a different perspective. I hope that he does so, but in fairness I will not post personal correspondence.

If I had this set up, I don't think I would answer the phone during dinner either..but probably because I could not figure out which one was ringing!

When I was a kid, we used to walk barefoot through the snow to talk to people. Even in the summertime. uphill, both ways. I just bit the bullet and got a different cel phone for personal use, so my other one is just real estate. That way, if a call comes in on one I know I can ignore it completely, but if it comes in on the other, its a family member or close friend and I should answer it. I'm really limiting who gets that number. I was becoming a phone slave of sorts, but this greatly improves things.

Yes,t heir background is familiar to me, but I never met them..so I would not know if they were in the restaurant Saturday night. The place was empty, btw. 5 tables filled at 7pm . Perhaps 1/2 full by 8, but never more than that. Holiday weekend and all that, so I'm sure tha's why. I was also suprised buy the lack of attentiveness in wine service. There was certainly no discussion, or attempt to engage in any, about the list. It was the perfunctonary handing of the list,and coming back a few minutes later to take the order. Which is what my SO prefers..I even said in the car ride there something like" The folks who run this are wine people,so if they want to talk to you about wine selections don't be rude!" He often brushes off sommeliers. I love him anyway. And now that I am recalling it, the waitperson was definitely the same person who decanted the wine. BTW, he felt their Italian selection was "ordinary" and their CA selections much more unique and special from what you see on many wine lists.

Not to many excellent meals this year, and I dined out as much as usual. Lots of new entries dissapoint, and a few old favorites are on the downhill ride, but mostly its inconsistancy from one visit to another. Great dining experiences, including wine, food, atmosphere and service were rare: Rat's and SHI. Origins and Passage for always great food. Rat's Stage House Inn Origins Passage to India inconsistant: Can be great, can be not even near great( within a month!): Stage Left, Harvest Moon Inn, Brother's Moon, No. 9, Amanda's downhill slide: most of Chambersburg, except maybe Marsilio's and Chick's. Diamond's is a lost cause, used to be the shining jewel. newer entries that never clicked: Lawrenceville Inn, Brother's Moon, Penang in Lawrence

oops double post

Are magic wraps the same as magic bags? The site seems to only offer the wraps?

Aw, its a shame its been cooked. I would think that Bear should be cooked on an open flame..a big ol campfire..it just seems to fit better than, say, a gentle sautee.