Chris Amirault

Sometimes yes, sometimes no, but I've never had a problem with astringent smoke flavors.

Can you say more about the interior design? What were they shooting for? And is there any beverage program save the wine list?

Huh. I've never had any astringent or bitter taste from (many, many) Bradley sessions. One thing to note: I replaced the water pan that came with the unit and now fill a larger hotel pan with lots of water to check it. Are your pucks smoldering in the overfull pan?

Holy cow. Was it as simple as that? It looks fantastic.

I love that drink, too, but the perfection and iconic status of both drink and creator aside, I definitely feel like I'm supposed to dig someone in the ribs like Eric Idle in the "Nudge Nudge" sketch every time I tell them the name. "Early Grey Mar-TEEEEEEA-Ni? Know what I mean? Know what I mean?" (This from a guy with more stupid names for drinks than pet forums have for dogs.)

So, in AmEx speak, what are the "takeaways" from this? One from me is a cliche that, in my own work, is very true: never let your team suffer abuse from customers. It's not only a thoughtful managing strategy for collaboration and a healthy workplace, but it's also a way to avoid being sued for workplace negligence.

Here you go: There's no taper along the spine: Of course, there's a taper from spine to edge: I couldn't get a good shot of the heel as you look down the underside of the handle; it's impossible with my lousy camera skills to focus on the edge and not, say, the table.

Meatballs and sauce (in separate packages). Braised proteins with sauce or gravy (again, in separate packages). Cabbage stuffed with (uncooked) rice and (cooked) meat.

Depending on your curry flavorings, you could do mint, cilantro, or both sorbets, perhaps with some cumin and lime.

Maybe you freeze the lid with a cap of ice if you want to go from "spectacular" to "ultrastupendous."

Stovetop only, I assume.

Geeky is good. Meanwhile: come on. There's gotta be more.

Are they always covered? That may be the culprit...

Thanks, John and Charles. I am accommodating others in the party (as well as severe reservation and transportation constraints), so Zaytinya and not much else it will be. Though that cassoulet sounds tempting.

I should have said "how hard it is to brine a ham effectively." Sticking the thing in a cooler with brine and ice-packs is easy to do. Actually brining an entire butt -- and not just the outer fractions of an inch -- effectively is another thing entirely.

I'm a rub convert. I keep thinking about how hard it is to brine a ham, and then think about my dinky one-day brine, and, well....

Well, sure. Jack Damage Manhattans with Antica are pretty amazing for the buck.

Just piling on with the propers. Read the book in two days, and it was fantastic all the way through. I can finally explain that damned double bevel to myself, and I have a MAC paring knife going home with me tonight. Great work.

The interface is terrible and you'll want to break the screen because of the weird camera angles, but this series of video clips with Tom Colicchio provides a pretty compelling look at the business of restaurant development, operation, investment, and ownership. I'm still making my way through them, but I'm struck (as I was listening to him at the NYC Food & Wine event) by Colicchio's ability to be blunt and interesting about the sort of back-of-the-back-of-the-house oversight and management that takes up a big chunk of the restauranteur's 80-hour week. There's nothing in here about plating or flavor combinations, as far as I can tell, but I'm rapt listening about his reaching his limit as financial overseer with the Craft organization and deciding "when to fire a customer." It's just the sort of stuff that you'll never see in Gourmet or on Food TV, but it's probably got more to do with which restaurants live and which die than most of us realize.

Lots of liquid that has been expelled by the muscle fibers is an indication that the meat is likely to be less, not more, juicy.

Nope, a problem with the smoke box heating element that lead to the whole unit going kaput.

I think that's right. I struggled a long time to try to isolate that slightly citrusy, slightly sharp element that I called lemongrass and kaffir, and wouldn't put the house on the block to prove it's accurate (whatever that means).

After a mechanical mishap with my Bradley (no longer under warranty, mind you), I've just learned that the swell folks at Bradley are going to be sending a slightly dinged replacement model. If you've ever tried to deal with something past the warranty, you know how remarkable this is, and it confirms the positive reputation that Bradley's customer service people have.

Fine on the two initial cuts, but because the edge is so heavily curved, you have to rock it on the final dice cut. Yes, I'm left-handed. Didn't need the other side ground; as the website states they come with a 50/50 double bevel edge.

I didn't use tomato paste in the mix-n-match recipe I used, culled from several sources. Thanks for that photo, btw, which illustrates one of the points I've been trying to make about the cartouche. When I use one, I don't have that collar of fond (and lost flavor) around the edge.