SobaAddict70

From today's Diner's Journal: A little over the top, eh wot? Soba

Very interesting that this should appear three weeks later. BLT Prime (Frank Bruni) Related discussion regarding Mr. Bruni's style as the main restaurant critic for the New York Times and the star system can be found here. Sounds like a two star rating. Has anyone been here lately? Soba

I used to be like this. I think my record stands at 45 minutes. By then, people had moved on to dessert. I'm hoping I've improved over time... Soba

This thread will be open for the remainder of today in case anyone wants to post follow-up questions or wave goodbye. Tune in on Saturday when the eGullet Foodblog reappears in the wilderness of North Cakalacky. (That's North Carolina to all y'all Yankees. ) Soba

Bar Americain (Frank Bruni) Soba

Welcome to eGullet, Adam. Good to see you here. Please keep us updated when you can about your new place. I'll have to go out there sometime and check it out. Soba

No, but it reminds me of the orange food incident in the Worst meals in someone's home thread: and also this particular gem:

Applewood (Frank Bruni) Related discussion regarding Mr. Bruni's style of reviewing and the NY Times star system can be found here. Soba

Absolutely they should be mentioned. If there's, say, outstanding food but in a 'broken down' atmosphere, I want to know that. Yes, he should definitely mention it. Its important information for me; therefore, not filler. ← Perhaps, but for such mention to constitute more than 10% of a restaurant review serves no real discernible purpose. People do not read restaurant reviews to hear about the aesthetics of bathroom design. Less smoke, more substance please. Your mileage may vary considerably. Soba

The Stanton Social (Frank Bruni) Related discussion regarding Mr. Bruni's style of reviewing and the NY Times star system can be found here. Soba

Since the thread has been moved to the General Food Topics forum, it might be worth opening up the dialogue to other Society members, eh? I don't live in Vancouver but I'm sure many of the issues talked about amongst the participants so far are universal the world over. What have your experiences been in restaurants where you live? Soba

Jack's Foodblog installment will remain open for the remainder of today until early evening in the event anyone has followup questions or commentary. After that, we'll take a short break for a day or so. Tune in on Wednesday morning when the Foodblog returns to the other side of the pond -- this time to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Soba

I had errands to do all day, but managed to make room for an hour or so this afternoon. Just got back a few minutes ago -- have laundry to do in a few minutes. Impressions: 1. A Bubba Fast Pass is crucial. There were people who waited on the regular lines for upwards of half an hour only to find out that what they wanted was close to gone. Imagine a line twice as long as the length of a regular New York City block and you'll see why a BFP is practically mandatory. 2. I didn't get to sample everything but I was disappointed by Mitchell's (a bit too fatty to my liking though the crackling made up for it); Dinosaur's baked beans are amazing and the pork sandwich was no slouch either, and Elgin's.....O Elgin's, well let's just say that if I my evening was free I'd still be there. Kudos especially to Mr. Meyer for making this brainchild come true. Soba

C'est incroyable! Soba

I just wanted to point this out again. Anyone know why? Anyone care? Yes eddie, please enlighten us tourists... MOO SHU PORK Moo Shu Pork is a northern Chinese egg dish typically wrapped in wheat flour pancakes. In Chinese, the words ‘Moo Shu’ are the name of the yellow cassia flower, a poetic reference to the look of the scrambled eggs in the dish. Moo Shu Pork first became popular in the US during the late 60’s and early 70’s. There were so many exciting things about it! Here was a delicious new dish that was fun and authentic, and you could eat it with your fingers. Classically prepared Moo Shu Pork is a stir-fry of scrambled eggs, pork shreds, tiger lily buds, shredded bamboo shoots, tree ears, and scallions. It does NOT contain: carrots, cabbage, nappa, ginger, garlic, mushrooms, chicken, beef, or shrimp. When properly made it is ‘dry-cooked’. This means that the finished dish should have no visible sauce. There are liquids that flavor it, but they are used in small quantity and then reduced away during stir-frying. The distinctive aroma of an authentic Moo Shu Pork is created by the subtle muskiness of the sautéed lily buds combined with the smell of the just warmed sesame oil. When cooking Moo Shu Pork, the goal is to bring out this subtle musky aroma and combine it with a tasty/savory background of flavor. ← More information can be found in this thread in the China forum. Soba

There is, lol. The best authentic Americanized Chinese, in my opinion, can be found in this thread: Shun Lee West runs a distant, distant one hundred and fiftieth by comparison (in my opinion). YMMV. As for authentic Chinese? Well...I can name a half dozen places but very few beat Mom's and Grandma's cooking. I have yet to find a restaurant that can make lion's head meatballs that beats the version my grandmother makes. I think a better question to ask is "What does authenticity mean to you?" and to keep in mind that there's more than one valid definition. Soba

The ironic thing is that I took a course in Middle English lit as well as a Chaucer course as little as seven years ago (English major here with a concentration in British literature) and I can't translate that quote anymore. Time flies. Wonderful photos, Jack. Soba

*drool* I have to go to the gym later today. Not sure when I'll be able to make it to MS park. Most likely tomorrow though. Soba

I might be reading the above incorrectly. Do you mean crab ragoon is authentic Chinese? Is cheese a traditional Chinese ingredient? The first time I had cheese was from a British lady living next door when I was a youngster in HK. The only cheese I knew until then was Chinese Cheese: fuyu... and somehow, I can't imagine that in wonton skins. ← I am saying that there are two kinds of "authentic Chinese". There is the authentic Chinese which we (you, sheetz and myself) know to be authentic and there is the Americanized "authentic Chinese" exemplified by crab rangoon, chicken Soong and fortune cookies. They're both valid, just not to the same sets of people. Soba

Ah, lol. Must pay attention to work (not eGlutton) on a Friday afternoon. The "A" word can be so tricky sometimes. I have my own issues with fusion food -- namely that most fusion tends to blur the boundaries of taste and become mostly one note wonders -- but that's a separate thread. Authentic Chinese food to me is something that respects the source cuisine and attempts to replicate it with a reasonable amount of substitution, taking into account modern taste. Some renditions of authentic Chinese are more authentic than others. The soup dumplings at China 46 come to mind (vs. the xiao long bao at say, Joe's Shanghai), for instance. Then, to some people, something is authentic because it matches up with their expectation of what it ought to be, not necessarily with how it ought to be. The type of food served by Shun Lee West in NYC comes to mind. Both versions of Chinese food are equally valid, in my opinion. They're both authentic, but to different sets of people. Soba

Even if I taught my Toisanese grandmother how to make fettuccine alfredo that wouldn't make it Chinese. ← Isn't that a bit limiting? I'm not Italian but I can make a mean minestrone invernale. What makes it Italian isn't necessarily the person behind the stove. Soba

The bao gave me an idea... How about a rendition of pork bao, only this time with bacon and mushrooms? You know, like a re-interpreted version of a Chinese steamed bun and a Cornish pasty? Well, maybe not mushrooms. Without knowing how the bacon tastes, I'm kind of at a loss to suggest an accompaniament. Soba

Perhaps not, but somewhere out there I'm sure there is an amah slaving away on a hot stove, stuffing cream cheese into wonton skins. You can never tell. Sweet and sour pork is a traditional Cantonese dish but the Americanized version is so far off the mark that it might as well be its own version. Ditto for moo shu pork (more egg, less pork). Soba

Not necessarily.... I am Filipino-Chinese-American (born and partially raised in the Philippines) and I can attest to having had Americanized interpretations of Cantonese staples such as sweet and sour pork for dinner when I was growing up. (Yes, the kind with chunks of Dole pineapple, although if memory serves, Mom used water chestnut powder to coat the pork.) Soba

I wonder what Mr. Bruno (any relation to Frank? ) would have thought of El Bulli. Soba