Kim WB

I prefer the roll to be dense, and the filling to be portk and cabbage or leeks/scallions. Steamed, or course! Best I ever had were at the bakery across from the Mingyuan XinduHotel in Nanning, China. They had regular and sweet versions, the sweetness referring to the sauce the pork was in...and I had at least 20 pork buns throught small villages and mid sized cities in Southern China...there was a small amount of pork filling in each bun..similiar to the small amount of meat eaten with each meal. US Porkbuns from Philly, NY and SF chinatowns all had more pork filling than those I had in China.

Hi Rory, I attend every year, too..and it is more Street Fair than Shad fest. However, all the restaurnts have excelletn shad specials during the season..Manon had a poached shad roe that was sublime last year, and Hamilton Grill does some great specials..Wegman's in Princeton has shad and roe already, but its not Delaware Shad.. edited to add that we discussed it here :http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=ST&f=6&t=17696&

I agree...I went to purchase D'artagnan Chorizo 2x, after I had seen it...but when I went , no inventory. I spoke to the managar, explained that if there was not consistancy, I could not depend on them...chorizo every week...yes, I buy three packages and freeze what I don't need, in order to prove a point!!LOL!

trippo, or whatever.

We were there once and never need to return. Went to a wedding there in January, had way above average food and service...however, I've never been there for dinner, and most of the reviews, both official and on the grapevine, match Rosie's opinion. However,its almost as "oceanside" as you can get! If you are in central NJ, then Bucks Cty PA is a good choice, along the deleware. I like the Landing.

Matisse in Belmar

not my wainscotting, my tile backsplash, silly! I have a giant pot rack with the clean, pretty All Clad, and the rarely used Calphalons, and some non-creuset enamelware for color. I also have some bright aprons and such hanging, to brightne things up. My kitchen is mostly white and stainless, so I need a color punch. My everyday most used calphalon and all-clad stainless are in a pot drawer in the kitchen island.

This goes back to the issue of accountability. If a grown woman has an allergy so severe that it can result in her death, than she needs to confirm every bite of food that she puts in her mouth that she did not prepare,a nd read the ingredient list for, herself. Does that become cumbersome to her...yes..it does..but it is still her responsibility. Especially peanuts, since peanut oil shows up in LOTS of places. I've mentioned on these boards before about my son's best frined, who is allergic to peanuts and carries an epi-pen. He was in a coma for 11 days when he was 16 months old from a peanut reaction, so its serious. When he was in kindergarten, On the first play date at my house, his mother came with lists of foods with peanut oil, special treats for him to have, and was generally very proactive about his condition. The kid has been like a third son to me for years..so now, I'm comfortable with it. He has been trained to question everything, and if its an unknown, he skips it. Because he is wanting to get more independent from his mom, maybe go to Chilis with friends or something, ( they are 13 now) , she has developed a comprehensive list of what foods he can and can't have at local restaurants he'd visit...so if after the movie the carpooling parent wants to stop at Burger King , he pulls out the index card and is reminded of "safe" Burger King choices. Unless this new allergy drug works for him, and since not every restaurant will fit on his index card, he will need to ask each and every time. And I adore this kid, and I feel bad sometimes for his limitations...but it is a fact of his life. And, chili is on the list for peanut allergies as a "hidden " ingredient.

I agree that it is the responsibility of the person with the food allergies or preferences to make that known to the wait staff. In the case of severe food allergies, I would not trust them, and ask to speak to the chef. ( after all, a lot of the servers don't have any idea of food or food preperation..they're going to tell you what they think is true, but they might not be correct) To suggest that servers should notify patrons that a food is wrapped in caul fat, or print it on the menu, is not realistic. Instead, the customer needs to preference his order with, "Here is what I would like to order from the menu. However, I do not eat red meat ( shellfish, whatever) products of any kind..so can you please let me know if anything I'm ordering has these ingredients?" However, in Paul's scenario, if his company has been getting non-bacon wraps for months, and this time it came with bacon, then the onus was on the caterer to notify them in the change of preperation.

possibly..they used to be a BYO, and then they got a LL and put together a not too impressive wine list...the dishes I've tried lacked subtlety. But they're often busy, ( I live 3 miles from there) so I suspect that my opinion is the minority! In general, Italian is not my favorite cuisine.

Rosie, it was called something else at first, and then had to change its name because it was the same as another Italian place. Sounds like Rich and his group had mostly hits with some misses..but I've always had misses, myself. I am suprised to discover the pasta is homemade...it didn't have that taste or appearance when I was there. Sometimes these little hole in the wall places can be inconsistant.

I actually got up from the computer and counted. 47. Plus 10 signed copies of my ex-husband's cookbook, which I give as teacher's gifts. They shouldn't count, I think.

jersey girls. yeah..someone ought to write a song about us...'sxcuse me, I have to tease my hair..

forget that wilifred nonsence...all us Jersey girls think Paul is..well...dreamy!!! edited to admit that I was not there... but I know the crowd, and the hero!

As a recipient of the kilbasa, I can ascertain that klINK IS THE REAL DEAL...he sends the sausage/product..you get it, he sends you the most polite of e-mails reminding you to pay...you send him anice fat check with tip...and forever. you get great Klink product! Really, he'ss let you know the final cost, as it varies by destination...but my first exposure to his product left no doubts that this guy was for real!!!

I'm a better than average American cook, trying mightily to become better Indian/Asian.European cook...anyway, corned beef is never a success fior me. or my guests...PLEase, the difinitive recipe. ???

really, the imbibing /burping guy in the sig tag line is much cooler!

I've had luck with Prudhomme's site..but also the super touristy tateofNeworleans site has the same links..tasso never tastes quite the sam eoutside of NOLA, IMHO.

Ajay, thank you for such a thorough report. It was an interesting read. Reviews of Rutt's Hutt hotdogs and ADNY...what makes e-gullet the best!

In other soups that I make, in order to reduce the cream/butter, I take out about 1/3 of the beans or whatever, and process until smooth, then add it back in. It'snot hte same, but it gives the suop a "thicker" if not creamier, feel. Perhaps you can adapt this method, pour and reserve the liquid, puree some of the beans, return to pot, and simmer while adding reserved liquid? No guarantees, and I'm sure someone will have reasons why it won't work..but

I think that what specifically intrigues me is the young cook's, and serious food devotee's, venom towards this commercialism... This disdain seems disproportionate in this industry, which is why I suggested the topic. I might be wrong, and I've appreciated your comments so far. In a law firm, there is a new associate who busts his a** for years, billing amazing hours, no vacations, etc. He's looking at the senior partner in the corner office, wining and dining, , sitting on boards, European vacations. He is motivated, and he knows that the partner in the cushy chair once worked the same long hours. To take it one step further, that senior partner is looking at the retired "of counsel" names in his firms letterhead, who no longer really practice law...they take out some old clients from time to time, but mostly show up for social events in the luxury suites of the firm. So Senior Partner aspires to be at this level when he retires. Throughout the process, the junior associates are not disparaging the Retired Partner. Every time the Senior partner lands a new client, they're not proclaiming how he's not a competent lawyer... In my restaurant experience, I recall the young cooks sitting around, reading reviews and articles about some "hot NEW CHEF" and insulting him, everyone knew someone who worked for him who said he was a poser..etc, etc. Then, they would wonder outloud why chef XYZ was not on the list, he's so talanted, best stuff in NY, etc, etc...THEN, when Chef XYZ made a blurb in the food section, the same cooks were lamenting how he stole the dish from chef ABC! Is it envy taken to an extreme? Or is it a non-supportive atmosphere? Perhaps it was just this particular group of cooks, , but I see shades of it on e-gullet, and can't help but think it is pervasive in the industry. I apologize for all the analogies, but my writing skills are limited and this is one of the more effective hopes I have to get my points across.

I agree with this..in fact, I remember many dinners where my chef/ husband would say to me in an aside, " you can tell this guy smokes, there's too much salt".

So, I had the opportunity this week to make a detour into Hunterdon Cty to visit Verducci's. I guess the bottom line is that if you live nearby, its a great place for fresh produce, and gourmet food items. Also, but harder to determine quality, a nice beef, fish and game selection. Lots of precut cheeses, mostly cow but some sheep and goats...also a case filled with fresh cut to please cheeses.Certainly a better, fresher selection than perhaps your local grocers, but nothing compared to a Wegman's. The baked goods looked above average...french pastries, the ubiquitous (sp?) butter cookie selection, and what looked like sourdoughs and crusty Italian loaves..artisinal, to use a word I dislike. However, if you have access to a Wegman's,or high quality cheese, bakeries, butchers, etc..there is not anything at Verduccci's that is unique or a stand out. While the shelf goods were diverse, it appeared to be a similiar selection to what you'd find in your local fancy foods store: mustards, jams, oils. Perhaps a larger selection of each..its a big store..but the same kind of products. I did find a mustard, by Terrapin Ridge, a small producer in Illinois. Thai Curry and Sweet basil...great with Snyder's Hard pretzels! I bought some Crystallized ginger, and Procuisine wasabi stir fry oil. ( this is the brand thats in the squeeze bottles) Again, not anything that I could not have found at Bon Appetit, my local foodie store. All in all, a nice store but not worth a major detour. Helena, its about 5-7 miles from central Flemington.

I find it amazing that it is still in operation...I haven't been in 20 years, and even back then, with a lot less dining experience under my belt, it was really bad...though, as Steve mentioned, its reasonable to assume its changed hands or been updated in some way. My dim memory is that there is a large mural on the wall of ..a gondola?

Hi, I'm bowing out of this one, it just won't work out. Have a wonderful time, and stay on your best behavior... Don't want to tarnish the stellar reputaion on NJ e-gulleters!