SobaAddict70

Oh, I forgot to include a couple more (ideas that just hit me): taking a page from a visit to GT last year with cabrales and I, you might also think about: thin slices of seared foie gras, thinly sliced or shredded dark chicken meat (either from a leg or thigh will do), citrus reduction (fresh OJ, reduced and mounted with butter; add chopped crystallized ginger or a smidge of fresh grated ginger (maybe slivered crystallized or dried orange peel); stir for a bit, then strain), a TINY amount of slivered piquillo peppers. thinly sliced or shredded chicken breast (from either leftover roast chicken or cold poached chicken, or even red-cooked chicken), sauteed sweet peppers, shredded lettuce, sprouts (either alfalfa or bean sprouts); drizzled with a sauce of mushroom soy, sesame oil, a splash of mirin, and a smidge of either hoisin sauce, Chinese hot mustard or spicy red bean paste, chopped scallions, minced ginger or garlic. maybe substitute shredded duck meat (and skin) from either a roast duck or Cantonese bbq or red-cooked duck. you've got me on a roll...and I'm starting to get hungry again. not sure if these work, but they sound like a project in the near future. heh. SA

they're really variations on a BLT. I think if I were to do the fast food option, and I've been known to do that on occasion, that Wendy's would fit the bill. McD's never comes close -- too skimpy. I want a sandwich with some HEFT to it. Still, homemade is best. SA

Meet one "foodie" who doesn't. A cold sliced chicken sandwich (from either leftover roast chicken or leftover fried chicken) on a baguette or an Italian hero with any of the following combinations: Bibb or butter lettuce, Canadian bacon, sliced plum tomatoes, thinly sliced Vidalia onions, roasted pepper aioli; Roasted garlic mayonnaise, slices of queso blanco, fresh cracked black pepper, sliced beefsteak tomatoes; either cranberry honey mustard, or Russian dressing, fried green tomatoes dusted in spicy cornmeal, bacon and bacon drippings (sometimes I substitute bits of fried pancetta for the bacon) salsa verde or other type of freshly made salsa (maybe some pureed chipotles en adobo), avocado, either Spanish or Filipino chorizo, and thinly sliced Vidalia or Bermuda onion. SA

But why is it that something like creme brulee and tiramisu have become pervasive? When was the last time you saw a dessert souflee or a napoleon offered on a menu? More excitement, less boring please. SA

your standard workout dinner, part the second ( ): leftover paneer korma (cubes of paneer, along with chopped peppers and onions in a cardamom infused yogurt sauce) broiled steak coconut rice Mineral water. Oranges (for dessert). who said that workout food has to be boring? SA

On the subject of Otto, I hope it does well, simply because the restaurant is a) located in an area not specifically known for being a restaurant destination, and b) is in I believe a landmarked-status building, which would make placement of a banner, signage or awning somewhat difficult. (I may be wrong on this point.) I think however, that people will come, due in no small part to the Mario connection. SA

Expect the opening to take place sometime in late January or early February. SA

Of course, but my point was that when we asked our question, it was with the understanding that in a hypothetical situation, if a regular/big spender/person who ordered expensive wines had dinner at Babbo, would it be possible for the chef to personally attend to that person's experience and elevate his or her experience to a higher level. I was expecting the answer I received, not because of Steve's prior post, but because it fits my perception of Mario's style (which is, perhaps a slightly higher level of attention for such a patron, but not to the extent that he or she would be treated to a significantly different experience than your average patron). I think Mario's experience, record and reputation speaks for itself, and is the main reason behind Babbo's enduring popularity. SA

Actually, Mario was not even present during the time of our dinner. Susan (our main server) explained that he usually shows up at Babbo late in the evening, and seems to be concentrating most of his energies at opening Otto (his new place in Clementine's former space). In fact, Joe Bastianich was present -- not that we managed to get a hold of him, only that one of our servers mentioned it in passing. SA

Lupa's focus is supposed to be more informal than that of Babbo. They don't take reservations nominally, unless for parties of more than six (they may have changed this policy, so I could be wrong.) You're comparing apples to oranges. They each have their strengths and weaknesses -- I mean, it's not like one is superior to another in every respect. As has been pointed out earlier, Babbo isn't for everyone. (Actually, I don't really care much for the secondi -- I have a problem with the contrasts in flavors and pairings in many of the offerings -- so whenever I go, I usually get an appetizer, a pasta, maybe a contorni, and then dessert.) *shrug* Suzanne didn't mention that we asked (in fact, *I* asked) our waitress as a potential hypothetical if the chef would cook for us, if in fact we asked him to -- to which she replied, that it was a matter of policy, that they would not due to the volume of orders and dishes cooked each night. (She understood our request perfectly, having worked at other restaurants in the past where this was a matter of course (i.e., Montrachet); whether the justification she gave us was true or not remains to be seen...I'm sure if Mario accedes to a Q&A request, that sooner or later, someone will ask him that question.) SA

not baked goods, but stuff you can serve with bread (preferably hot): Roasted Tomato, Onion and Black Bean Soup Spiced Butternut Squash Soup for the cheese course, I was thinking of something savory/sweet like a fruit chatni menu subject to change based on what's available at the market, of course SA

G. They both hurt only one hurts an animal and the other hurts.....well, an animal. Not to mention that re the latter, two souls are injured in the process. *cough* SA

I thought the Jewish version of Christmas was Hannukah. (only because of one obvious similarity between the two: they're both in their own way, all about "light in the midst of darkness"; Hannukah being literally "the festival of lights", a celebration enshrining the miracle of the menorah lasting eight days and nights in the Temple; Christmas being a celebration of the birth of Christ -- God self-transformed as a human being which paves the way for his eventual selfless self-sacrifice for all of humanity, yadda yadda yadda) Aw, I'm blabbing.... SA

Sure -- I'll post it when I get home tonight. (at work right now) SA

They're great, pickled in a sweet and sour marinade and served as an antipasto. SA

New Year's Eve party: "Asian" bhel puri (with crushed shrimp chips and panko, in addition to the usual bhel mix; diced potatoes; tomatoes and chickpeas; tamarind chatni; and coconut chatni) rogan josh lemon rice stewed cauliflower, with tomatoes and paneer cabbage masala sweet laasi -------- pear pan dowdy (at the stroke of midnight) --------- last night: roasted some brussel sprouts, finely chopped, and sauteed with minced pancetta and caramelized onions, a sprinkle of red pepper flakes and white pepper, and some EVOO, on top of penne rigate (herbed fried bread crumbs) roast chicken, mashed potatoes (with lots of butter and cream AND NO ROASTED GARLIC!!!), green beans with a little almond oil drizzled over them haagen dasz mango sorbet SA

Somehow it's more fitting if Her Worshipfulness said it, than if His Nibs did....don't you agree? SA

A direct quote from the Culinary Goddess herself, during an television interview last night. SA

You mean, of the canine variety? The practice does go on in certain unexplored (read: "rural") parts of the United States, that is, if internet posts are to be believed. As to their consumption, besides Korea, I can point to the hinterlands of the Philippines, in which the wild variety has proven to be popular. A wild, feral dog should not be thought of in the same vein as your local neighborhood pooch. For the record, I've never engaged in either practice (and the thought of either is revolting...to me). Yet, I can comprehend without resorting to likeability, the reasoning and even the justification behind consuming certain animals for food. SA

Ugh. I thought Kant was about as incomprehensible as Heidegger, and that's saying a lot. Put me to sleep in my epistemology seminar, it did. =P Maybe next time we see each other you could translate his Prologamena (sp) into PLAIN ENGLISH for me. None of this crap about a "categorical imperative". SA

Ok, help me here. (btw, before anyone corrects me, I'm using my own term for God here, as applied to my own belief system.) Assuming that Being is omnipotent, benevolent and omniscient: A. In Genesis, Being creates existence. That includes plants, animals, etc. In Genesis, there is an injunction that man is a steward for all these things and that he may use and consume all that there is. And this is done for the sake of the good. In fact, a necessary implication is that anything created by Being is inherently good and serves a function in existence -- because if this isn't the case, that implies that Being is imperfect which turns the entire premise of Being on its head. B. In Exodus, Being proclaims that He is the God of the Israelites and their descendants and makes a covenant with them, blah blah blah. Therefore, the dietary laws associated with the covenant are meant for the people of the covenant and no other. When Being is saying that an animal is unclean or unfit for human consumption, it conflicts with "A" above. Its unclean to whom? Being? (That can't be, if you take "A" at face value. Being can't make an unclean animal, by definition.) And that's the heart of my problem (which more or less overlaps a bit with Steve's problem). Religion is a man-made construct that exists to serve a function such that man is able to put a face to the unknowable. It brings comfort to his existence. People have argued that the Bible is a literal record of the history of Being, that the laws in the second, third and fourth books of the Pentateuch (sp) are the Word of God as transmitted through a human vessel. (My response, that if the Word of Being is filtered through a human vessel, then that introduces a minute amount of imperfection in transcribing the Word, because humans are supposed to be imperfect versions of Being, right?) SA edit: added afterthought

Confucianism (more of a philosophy, but it qualifies). Buddhism (again, more of a philosophy, but it also qualifies). Neither of these two religions/philosophies espouses a belief in a "God" per se. SA

Well, naturally, the answer is a lot more complicated than could be answered in single sentence, although g. j. put it pretty astutely in three words: politics and economics. As you have seen in many situations, in the hands of a skilled orator or imam, certain topics are treated as a question of faith and you have the makings of a powerful tool or weapon in your hands (i.e., the wrath of the masses). When you are told by figures in your government and religious hierarchy that the "rich and decadent West" is the root of all that is not right within your world, and if you, as most people are within the Islamic world, belong to a certain social class (i.e., the working poor, or the less-than-college educated, or even below the poverty line), and have done so for most of your natural life, you begin to believe what they are saying. It takes a very strong will to question what people, especially figures of authority keep saying and repeating over and over. (It doesn't help matters when these attitudes are entrenched within your society via childhood inculcation and education (e.g., the madrassas). It also doesn't help our view when current events support what people say (of course, viewed through their twisted prism.)) Factor in the fact that members of the Arab world, especially societies within Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iraq and Iran are essentially tribal societies rapidly thrust into a modern setting, with almost none of the niceties of what we take for granted in Western civilization (i.e., freedom of speech and thought), and what you have is a tremendous pressure within members of those individual societies to conform to the accepted standard of behavior. The ruling parties in certain of these countries may have figured out long ago that the way to ensure loyalty of the people and perpetuate their hold on power was to establish the appearance (whether real or imagined) of a faithful adherence to Islamic teachings. Witness the pact made by the Saudi royal family and the Wahhabi (sp) sect of Islam within Saudi Arabia, the Jordanian monarchy, and the theocracy in Iran. As a vast oversimplification, the reasoning behind Islam's success in the context of the Arab world and the Middle East, lies in the divide between the rich and the poor. Its VERY successful in uniting people of uncommon backgrounds together on the premise that it is an alternative to the "rich and decadent West", and that, if nothing else, is useful for those in power. SA

hm, the answer to that depends on the historical era of your choice. I don't know about you, but I would convert to your favorite religion if a spear was held to my entrails. Survival tends to do weird things to people. (Ok, I'm not the best candidate for a Christian martyr. Sue me.) Seriously, in societies that have less emphasis on freedom of individuality, the power of peer pressure takes on an entirely new level of meaning. And even then in Islamic democracies, one could argue that it is the nature of Islam to be the "great leveller of men" so that all are equal before god, thus perpetuating and ensuring a certain standard of social behavior. SA

you're joking, right? I know there are laws written in Leviticus and Deuteronomy that forbid all manner of things, but this is something new to me. SA