SobaAddict70

Dinner last night (Friday) was so-so takeout Japanese: gyoza, tonkatsu (with Japanese rice), miso soup and tempura red bean ice cream for dessert. What I want to know is, if "tempura ice cream" has reached Japan or if this is a purely American invention? It wasn't bad, mind you. Just different. Think a ball of tempura coated ice cream. Retained its structural integrity at the slight cost of muddling some of the flavor. Soba

I take it these are unsweetened? Soba

Chef Laurent Tourondel, formerly of Cello on the Upper East Side, presents a style of cuisine firmly ensconced in the New York steakhouse tradition but also rooted in simplicity. BLT Steak (Sam Sifton) (from this weekend's DIGEST update. You may have to scroll down for the appropriate link.) Soba

Kind of like spearmint colored Listerine? Could've been maybe blueberry? You're not talking about something like "fruit rollups", are you? Soba

As a guide for finding street locations and addresses in Queens, all you need to remember is that orientation in Queens is reversed from Manhattan. Most streets (with some exceptions) run generally in a north-south direction (as opposed to Manhattan, where the layout is in an east-west direction). Most avenues (again, with some exceptions) are laid out in an east-west pattern (as opposed to Manhattan, where the reverse is true). All addresses in Queens have two pairs of two digits, separated by a dash. The first pair of digits refers to the nearest cross-street or cross-avenue from that location. The second pair of digits refers to the number of lots a house is from that street. Therefore, the address 32-17 37th Street is near 32nd Avenue (aka Broadway) and is 17 lots away. Make sense? Now you can use that information to find the coordinates of almost any street address in Queens! Soba

In the Passover thread, I came across this little gem of wisdom from El Gordo (Fat Guy): What's dis? It has to be something god awful tasting, like fruitcake right? Just curious here....I'm not even remotely Jewish. Soba

A few Pesach-related articles of interest: Heirloom Recipes Reveal Kosher Roots (Joan Nathan) (this and the articles below are from Wednesday's NYTimes DIGEST update. Scroll down for the appropriate links.) Wines of the Times: Taking Up the Kosher Challenge (Eric Asimov) Pairings (Florence Fabricant) Soba

Shanghai Pavilion (Eric Asimov) (from Wednesday's DIGEST update. You may have to scroll down for the relevant link.) Chef Zong Xin-tu, formerly of Joe's Shanghai (Flushing), offers a fresh new look at Shanghai cuisine at Shanghai Pavilion. Note that the restaurant is a reincarnation of a branch of Evergreen Shanghai. Shanghai Pavilion 1378 Third Avenue at 79th Street (212) 585-3388 Has anyone yet been? Soba

New York Times Weekly Update Wednesday, 31 April 2004 Apologies for the late update, hence a truncated DIGEST. --Soba Dining In/Dining Out Section New Zealand Lamb -- It's What's For Dinner (Marian Burros) Heirloom Recipes Reveal Kosher Roots (Joan Nathan) Click here to join a related discussion on Passover. When Food Pix Becomes Art (Sam Sifton) La Bottega (Amanda Hesser) Click here to discuss the review or contribute your experiences. Shanghai Pavillion (Eric Asimov) Click here to discuss the review or contribute your experiences. Bits and Pieces (Florence Fabricant) At Nigella's Table (Nigella Lawson) The Minimalist (Mark Bittman) Wines of the Times: Taking Up the Kosher Challenge (Eric Asimov) Sidebar: If you navigate your web browser to the New York Times' Dining In/Dining Out home page, you can hear an audio online presentation given by Eric Asimov, Amanda Hesser, Howard G. Goldberg and Jose de Meirelles (executive chef and owner of Le Marais) on kosher red wines for Passover. Click on the box marked "Kosher Reds" to begin the presentation. An Organoleptic Beer (Matt Lee and Ted Lee) Pizza Rustica (Dana Bowen) Pairings (Florence Fabricant) Recipe: Ragout of Spring Vegetables with Morels Corrections Recipes in today's issue: 1. Lamb with Anchovy and Garlic 2. Lamb with Parsnip and Pancetta Mash and Pinot Noir Sauce 3. Pinot Noir Sauce 4. Roast Loin of Pork with Caraway, Lemon and Garlic 5. Baked Custard 6. Matzo Krimsel 7. Stewed Apricots and Dried Plums 8. Braised Duck with Green Beans, Thai Style

What are your favorite sides? Biscuit and coleslaw for me @ KFC. Soba

I wish we had more of these, when Ruth Reichl used to use the first half of her reviews to describe the couple sitting at the next table, it used to drive me crazy. In other words, you want a William Grimes. Part of the difficulty of being a restaurant critic is in writing style. You want to write a review that while technically and materially accurate, will want to make a potential customer informed enough to want to (or not want to) patronize any given restaurant. A restaurant review has to have SOUL. The problem is that for many -- and for me, in my opinion -- some reviewers' styles lack that intrinsic quality. Reichl had it in abundance. (She has a degree in creative writing I believe.) Grimes, probably not as much. (Compare the two and you'll see that paragraph for paragraph, there is a vastly distinct style as to be almost night and day.) Hesser has ability -- and more than a bit of talent as well. Maturity and style are neither. In my humble opinion, these things take time to develop. We can only hope that they do in Hesser's case. Soba

Given the last paragraph in the review of Asiate, her preference for JGV shouldn't be much of a surprise to anyone. You could sort of smell it coming from miles away. Soba

Plus it's a bit of a walk from 17th and Irving to Waverly Place. Possibly doable in 20 minutes if you were walking fast. Probably not a pace for a romantic stroll. Soba

I think the show that cinched it for me (as far as my watching him was concerned back in the day) was the show he did on Filipino cuisine. You have to understand that this is one of those cuisines that hadn't (at the time) been exposed much to mainstream audiences. The Frug had an entire show devoted to the food of my native country. I mean, wow. I don't recall how the recipes sounded, but it sure was interesting to say the least. This was probably around 1985/86. I grew up out of FG-nostalgia soon after that -- I could never get around how he talked more than he cooked. Soba

Second what Jason says. I used to live in Astoria (7 years, baby!), and the most Uncle George's was good for was a midnight snack of roast chicken and lemon potatoes. S'Agapo is infinitely better, but Stamatis, as Christopher Walken would say, is "da shiznits" as far as Greek food is concerned. Omonia otoh is amazing when it comes to Greek pastries and desserts. Soba

Could be "Roxanne's East". It'll be interesting, in any event. Soba

Eleven Madison Park. Soba

Welcome to eGullet, AES. A simple follow-up statement made on a semi-periodic basis, even one to the effect such as "We are unable to accurately predict our opening date at this time, but will contact all who have made a reservation once we have more reliable information" would go a long way towards dispelling any negativism that may have accumulated to this point. How much effort does putting out such a statement take? Not much, I bet, especially in the larger scheme of things. That the PR gods haven't....well, you can draw whatever set of conclusions you like from that. Soba

But are they good? Soba

I was thinking more along the lines of the boyfriend. I'm more sympathetic to his needs than I am to hers. (Not to mention I already like tofu, so I'm trying to see how someone who doesn't like it for whatever reason could be tempted to try it.) Soba

He had guests on his show? My memory is vague on that one. It seemed his show was in syndication on most cable channels such as Discovery or TBS Superstation or WLIW (21) here in NYC....as recently as 1998. Now, it's like he's virtually disappeared. Soba

Easy. Handel's "Water Music". (Can't id the exact movement or suite.) Soba

Mock duck (made from pressed tofu skin) is actually pretty good but I wouldn't want to eat it constantly. You could also try hiyyakko tofu (chilled cubes of silken tofu, topped with slivered scallions, bonito flakes and a light sprinkle of soy on the side). This is absolutely divine served alongside soba noodles. The thing with tofu is to keep it as simple as possible. It's when you start to add things that the potential for gunkiness increases drastically. A dessert such as steamed tofu with honey is wonderful: steam a block of silken tofu in a wok or bamboo steamer and top with honey or honeycomb. Soba

Speaking of takeout fried chicken from Chinese restaurants, these are really amazing come to think of it. Nothing really hits the spot like half a fried chicken, hacked up with a cleaver and duly doused with hot sauce and ketchup over a bed of pork fried rice. Yeah, I'm pretty shameless but sometimes cheap Cantonese takeout is "appropriate" too. Soba

I've never heard of a Bojangles either. Where do they exist? Soba