SobaAddict70

I'm thin and I adore cheese. Well, that's not true. If it's a strongly flavored cheese like cabrales or a Stilton, then I feel their pain. But in general, cheese is one of my favorite foods, precisely because it's milk in another form and I can't drink milk in its usual form. Soba

All right, as if last night wasn't enough, I had Chinese food for dinner again tonight. Lately, I've been eating take out a lot if only because the gas has been shut off in my building for a week -- because of a gas leak that Con Edison was working on on our street last weekend, and our building has lots of issues that need to be tested out. Probably won't be another week before we get our gas turned back on but I digress... Anyway, tonight was General Tso's Chicken from East Palace (819 Second Avenue, tel.: (212) 949-7708/fax: (212) 949-7702). Kinda ok gloopy sauce, -- just a hint of spice even with the scattering of dried red chiles on top -- crispy fried chicken chunks and plenty of vegetables. Now, I've had different versions of General Tso's. I've had thin sauced versions, thicker sauced versions, versions with chicken chunks coated in a heavily spiced sauce with sesame seeds tossed on top, etc. I've had GTC with broccoli, GTC all by itself, GTC with three token broccoli florets, GTC with cauliflower. And along the way, I've seen General Tso's Tofu, General Tso's Crispy Fish and....I kid you not, General Tso's Potatoes. Funny, I never knew he had so many relatives! So, how do you make your General Tso's Chicken, and what do you serve it with? Soba

the next time you're able to, try making some whole lemon or lime pickles, Indian style. Similar recipe to that of preserved lemons, but with a great deal less salt and many more spices in varying proportions. Soba

No, I'm sorry if you think the above is because of my current roommate. He's not that bad, although he has occasionally scarfed stuff even though it's pretty clear that I'm the one who eats REAL food and not junk food. Things like bananas and orange juice. (However, along the lines of keeping things in the refrig way past the due date, it may interest folks to know that he kept a tin of foie gras from Paris -- two years after he came back from France. He's absent minded that way. I eventually threw it out (unopened) the last time I defrosted the freezer.) I only posted the above to get the conversation going. Soba

Hokay, tryska. What iz dis? Inquiring minds want to know. Soba PS. The fractured heel is doing well on hydrocodone, btw. No surgery needed thank god.

What? No Otto?!?!!? Soba

Raise your hand if you've ever had a roommate who glommed off food from you, right from under your nose. Raise your hand if you have trouble keeping track of that wonderful delicious morsel of Key Lime pie you bought just for a midnight snack. Raise your hand if for some reason, your dinner of beer braised pot roast is reduced by two thirds by the time you get home. If you are like three-fifths of all roommates in the world and you have roommate refrigerator trouble or roommate pantry trouble, this thread is for you. So, what are your travails and horror stories? Soba

They're not boneless skinless, are they? I've heard that a little EVOO and Mrs. Dash does the trick. *hides behind a sofa* Soba

Last night, I had major Chinese food cravings -- and managed to satisfy some of it. There's a sort of ok Chinese takeout place near me that stays open late, around 2 am, called "Chef T". Soup dumplings (kinda average), vegetable lo mein and green tea ice cream. Their green tea ice cream was really outstanding. Sweet and intense, creamy, almost vanilla overtones. It got me to thinking -- this can't just be vanilla ice cream with green tea flavoring, could it? Maybe it's green tea infused ice cream. Why isn't this sort of thing around in the U.S.? And for that matter, well made red bean ice cream is pretty good too. So, are there any brands out there that make this sort of thing? And if not, have any recipes for either of these two, or other offbeat ice cream flavors? Soba

I'll second that, El Gordo. As I was drinking the soup, I kept thinking of a similar kind of soup that they do at Oriental Garden. The version at OG consists of a stock made from a just swimming, freshly killed grouper, along with tofu, straw mushrooms, mustard greens and Chinese chives. This version at China 46 clearly gives the one at OG a run for its money, and that's no joke. Hmm, maybe a return visit to OG is in order. I'm only sorry I didn't get a chance to have the rice cake or long life noodles. Those spicy capiscum (sp) noodles were another hit. Not sure what Sam would have thought if he had been there. Soba

I've been back for a couple of hours now, and am in the process of converting my computer to Windows XP. (Well, we'll see how it goes at any rate. Windows XP = Winblows XP but gotta keep up with the times seeing as how I'm running on Windows 98 Second Edition.) Anyway, kudos to Rachel for putting together this extravaganza. Had to leave early due to El Gordo driving Ya-Roo and I back to New Jersey, which was ok cuz I was approaching my limit even pacing myself. For all y'all wine trackers out there, I had a glass and a half of various rieslings. Definitely near my wine record, not close, but near. Ask Suzanne F to explain. My favorite dish of the evening? Not the ruby pork, which came a distant third, but the superior seafood soup. Clear, pristine flavor accented by shreds of crabmeat and water chestnut. Stuffed blue crab came second. The combination of crab, shrimp and crab roe was just this side of amazing. As for the ruby pork, it was all right -- just a bit heavy for me at that point and I could have done without all that sauce. I'm already looking forward to the next visit. Soba

Fish eyes might be threatening to some people. Definitely not to me. Chicken feet is another. Take a look at Ellen's Mongolian foodblog (see part 8) and don't tell me that cicadas or chicken embryos on a stick aren't threatening to some person, somewhere. Soba

Just want to add a comment on the sweets thing. If you can, get a bowl of red bean soup. Quite simply, one of the most sublime Chinese desserts around. Not for everyone's taste I should point out, but extremely simple to make and a nice, subtle taste that takes a bit to appreciate. If you like the texture of lentils, then you'll like red bean soup. Remember, it's just red beans, rock sugar, water and sliced ginger. Not usually served at dim sum, but well worth getting in any event. Soba

Guess. SA

Now, if it's up to and including $50 a head, we have: Home (American, in the West Village) Honmura An (Japanese, in SoHo) Prune (American, in the East Village) Country Cafe (French bistro, in SoHo) Mare (seafood and fish, on Eighth Avenue, in Chelsea) Jarnac (French, in the far West Village) Wallse (Austrian, ditto) Campagna (Italian, in the Flatiron district) Meet (in the meatpacking district) Lupa (no introduction necessary) Casa Mono (ditto) The Red Cat Le Jardin Bistro (French, in SoHo) and that's 13. Pretty sure I could dredge up a few more. Soba Honorable mention: Florent (in the meatpacking district), for their absolutely wonderful foie gras rillettes and daily specials. Even fits Pan's requirement of being under $30 although you can certainly go for broke. And there's the crepe place across the street from Pastis whose name escapes me at the moment. French as well, wonderful crepes suzette and sandwiches on crusty toasty baguettes. Also a bargain, could fit under the $30 requirement.

More or less, but not in Chinese restaurants, for example. And Katz's is basically just a pastrami sandwich with a soft drink and cole slaw, though I've had cake there once and liked it. You'd be hard pressed to name more than five or six that fit that description? You mean exactly that description, with the three courses? And are you including Outer Boroughs or not? Katz's Grand Sichuan Congee Village Kangsuh Cho Dang Gol Madras Cafe DiFara's Sripraphai Restaurant Malaysia Woo Chon's Kissena Blvd. location Sichuan Dynasty That's 11, with one in Brooklyn and 4 in Queens. Let's argue about these suggestions. You would not be, of course. But speaking for myself, I would be hard pressed to name more than five or six that I regularly dine at or know of, for the amount of money that we're talking about. And no, we're not talking about your local Cantonese take out palaces, correct me if I'm wrong. For me, the bar has to be set at $50 a head. For you, $30. A difference of $20 is not going to break anyone's bank, is it? I mean, really. At this level, it's like the difference between a Sassy's Slider and a Big Mac. (yes, I'm being facetious) Soba

There are many good restaurants in Manhattan that serve great food for $30 a head, and I am assuming you're talking about three courses (appetizer, main and dessert) without wine, tax or tip, but I would be hard pressed to name more than five or six that fit that description. If you were to extend that to about $40 to $50 a head, that might be a more apt or accomodating category. It's possible to eat well at $30 a head, but you're not going to have a very extensive list, of the sort of standards that people have on eGullet anyway. For instance, Home (the restaurant) on Cornelia Street is a prime example of a restaurant where, you can have a great meal at about $35 to $45 a head without wine but including tax and tip. How do I know? Because I've done it several times, not to mention I don't drink. Amma is another, as is probably Otto (although that might be a stretch). As it is, I think that setting the bar at $25 to $30 would be doing many of these places a great disservice. Soba

Omen does in fact serve sushi and sashimi with unorthodox accompaniaments, but that is not what they're known for. Click here for a mini-review of Omen. A friend went there a few months ago and recommended the pan-seared flounder in white radish sauce and the steamed kabocha squash with tofu and vegetables. Omen used to have as its focus Japanese peasant food and to a certain extent still does (i.e., Omen noodles), but its primary current focus is food served in the style of Kyoto. Soba

It's amazing that no one's mentioned Omen, which serves among other things, Japanese peasant food. I've been meaning to try them out for a while now but haven't had the time. Once I get back on my feet, they're a must-visit place, along with a return to Jewel Bako. Soba

Ok, I admit it. In a moment of weakness, I bought a jar of Lidia's Puttanesca sauce. And what do you know? It's actually fairly passable. Those big pieces of Kalamata olives in the sauce and those capers really do make a difference in what would be an otherwise mediocre, non-descript sauce. Ok, so there you have it. Add this sacrilege to the list of ingredients that I have in my refrig. Right behind the Mrs. Dash. Soba

If no one volunteers for Jenny or if she fails to tag someone, I nominate Pan for next vic-...er, blogger. Soba

Yay! As for me, I had take out Indian from Chola. Lamb and mint biryaani, saag paneer, spiced potato patties with chickpeas, tomatoes and tamarind chutney, kulfi, carrot halwa. Nice pix. How was the burger pie? (Er, what exactly was it?) Soba

First food memory: something I used to do when I was a kid in the Philippines was to sit at the table for hours and hours, long after people had gotten up. I remember having the unreasonable fear of choking to death, so I'd sit at the table with food still in my mouth. The term for it is "ba bad" (BUH-buhd; pronounce the second part of the phrase with an "uh" sound, as in the word "lunch"; say it fast). Oh, and also being told to clean my plate. There's an old Chinese folk myth that says if you don't clean your plate, your future bride or husband will have that many pock marks on her or his face for each grain of rice you leave on your plate. First food remember hating: That's easy. Garlic. I HATED garlic with a passion. I remember picking out all the little minced black and brown bits that Grandma or Mom would put in the fried rice. Fried rice was and is a mainstay in my family -- just leftover rice, garlic, scallions; sometimes sliced Chinese sausage, sometimes egg. On occasion, with salt dried fish. Very rarely with soy sauce. Also, the garlic hatred extended to any time I saw a piece of garlic, to the side of the plate it went. Funny how times change. At six years old, it was bologna sandwiches. Or deli meat, the staple of much of my elementary school lunches. To this day, I loathe Oscar Meyer lunch meats. That, and Hellman's mayo. Brings back too many bad memories of Wonder Bread stuck to the roof of my mouth. As for college, who can forget cream of broccoli soup that the cafeteria at Hunter College does so well? And the mystery chili, so named because sometimes it was ground turkey mixed with ground beef, sometimes with red kidney beans and ground chuck; once there was a vegetarian version which I promptly threw out after the first bite. Oh, and the falafel stand. A nice bargain -- a falafel sandwich and a Snapple for $5.50. Four giant sized fried mashed balls of falafel, stuffed in a piece of pita bread, scattered with lettuce, tomato chunks and sliced onion, served with white sauce and hot sauce, sometimes a bit of zaatar. Great stuff. Friends of mine that I lost touch with whilst growing up in Jersey City -- the Moores on Gautier Avenue. It was the first time I had spaghetti with butter and Parmesan cheese, at age 8. A more recent memory is the first time I saw Swedish meatballs, while with friends several years ago. These are ground pork/beef meatballs that were cooked in a mixture of Welch's grape jelly and hot sauce. They were actually good in a weird, funky mad scientist kind of way. Soba

Does PLM surf eGullet? Soba

Don't forget insurance, in case anything untowards occurs that might be cause for regret later down the road. Also, best of luck, Y-R. Soba whoops, NYCChef mentioned it already. You mentioned Lower East Side. That area has had a history of conflict with the local community boards with respect to the "bar and restaurant NIMBY syndrome". Hopefully things will work out in your favor that this issue won't be too much of a thorn.