Chris Amirault

Not at all! I'll bet that there are quite a few people who would agree, in fact. I learned how to kill a lobster a while back, and the first few efforts were... shall we say... trying. It's particularly wiggy cut up a lobster quickly enough to be able to watch the meat wiggle in the split tail...

Now this is what I'm talking about: Simple, excellent -- and better than you can possibly get at a restaurant, with very few (and very expensive) exceptions. My point exactly! You are clearly a clear-headed, right-minded, intelligent, very friendly and attractive person.

Sign me up.

Now, now, we're not talking about recipes that include lobster. The test here is the following: "I went out to dinner last night!" "Really? What did you have?" "I had LOBSTER!!" That's what we're talking about. edited to replace a double-post and to clarify arbitrary thread rules -- ca

She who reports a good meal at Jimmy's Harborside has done far, far more research than should be expected of anyone, and has my respect. Well, as a smart person once said, the best thing to do with one's obsessions is to foist them upon unwitting others. Perhaps in service to eG and New Englanders everywhere the research needs doing once again!

Oh, now you've got me going. Lazy man lobster is a crime, I tell you, a veritable crime! Once, my Gloucesterman grandfather sat me upon his knee and said, "Lobster must be earned." (Or, at least, he would have said that, if I had asked, or should have said that, anyway.) Like the fertile yet rocky New England soil, the lobster gives its sweetness most to those who apply good, hard toil to the recalcitrant body, resistant to giving up its goods. [Jonathan Edwards]Lazy men deserveth lobstah not.[/Jonathan Edwards]

Say more. In my experience, that has consisted primarily of doubly- and thus over-cooked meat dumped into shells or ceramics, with some butter and bread crumbs tossed on it. For $28.95, no less. Since there are now two claims to this dish's superiority, I want answers. Answers, dammit!

Having spent a bit of time over at the Bookbinder's thread in the Pennsylvania forum, I realized that I have never eaten a lobster out at a restaurant. Growing up in Massachusetts with lots of family in Maine, I ate lobster quite often, usually outdoors on a newspaper-strewn picnic table, accompanied by lots of Fanta, Schaefer, cole slaw, and Humpty Dumpty chips. But I can't remember ever eating it in a restaurant. And I can't quite imagine it now. Given the price, mess, and risk of overcooking, what's the point? The stale bread crumbs, oyster crackers, little plastic bibs, what?!? edited for formatting and to name the correct beer, "Schaefer[, which] is the one beer to have when you're having more than one!" -- ca

Thanks, Mr. Newman, for joining us here at our little website. My question requires a long-winded introduction, I'm afraid! On a typical evening during which I enjoy a bottle of wine, my $10-15 purchase occurs right after work and involves going from a grocery (at which I've just selected ingredients for dinner) to the wine shop or liquor store on the way home. I cannot remember having had a bad bottle of those ready-to-drink wines for over a decade, and (unlike most food and beverage expriences) I can regularly count on an unknown product being better than I expected. Katie emphasized your role in bringing fine wines to the rest of us, but my question addresses these ready-to-drink bottles. It seems to me that my wine options have increased geometrically in terms both of variety and of quality in the last decade, so much so that I wonder if there hasn't been a revolution in the production, marketing, and distribution of these sorts of wines. If this is so, can you tell us a bit about it? Thanks so much in advance for your response. edited to clarify question -- ca

He's also selling us Vegas -- click here.

There's a great Tuscan bean puree in Cucina Simpatica, a.k.a. the Al Forno cookbook, with rosemary, EVOO, and garlic. It's smooth, great with lamb, and might change your wife's mind about beans and purees -- though it's not as spring-like as you might want.

Like Mary, I'm on both sides of the fence here, depending utterly on the expectations of my guests -- invariably a few of our very close friends. Though we occasionally throw a blow-out dinner party, most meals I host or attend are informal affairs involving a regular set of folks who insist on bringing desserts or wine, who invite us over in turn, or if they don't cook, who take us out to dinner. That is to say, my circle of friends consists of a thoughtful and giving group of people who give and receive as part of the relationships we share. Given that context, if they believe that they are coming to be given food and drink, it is because I have made that very clear to them, and I want to pay for all of it. Meanwhile, unlike Really Nice!'s really nice cellar, my house has half a bottle of Big House Red on the kitchen table and that's it. We don't have the income to create a $60-70K cellar, and we're unlikely to have a $50+ bottle of wine unless we're explicitly purchasing it for the experience of something out of the ordinary (for us). Given that, I can imagine proposing to certain friends that we split a bottle of something that we otherwise would not have a chance to taste. Because we have the sorts of relationships we have to those friends, I can imagine some of them being happy to share a pricey bottle of wine with us and pay for half of it. I can also just as easily imagine others opting out, since they, too, don't have the income to create a $60-70K cellar!

Another pair: Breath of the Wok and Herme's Chocolate Desserts.

I'd guess that the substitution would be hard to detect for most people, but that the discerning curry-o-phile would miss the nutty flavor and rounded mouthfeel that gheee provides.

I don't know about that.... "Free Bird" might just work... [cut to young kids flying down the interstate in a covertible with soundtrack] "And this bird you cannot change...." [cut to steaming fried chicken pieces with voiceover] "Now at KFC, the Free Bird Meal Deal! Buy one classic KFC bucket and get a two pieces absolutely free! (Limitedtimeofferforparticipatingrestaurantsonlysomerestrictionsapply.)" [cut to young kids smiling, flailing drumsticks, and singing along] "Won't you flyyyy hiiiiigh freeeeee bird, yeah!"

Perhaps Lisa Marie wouldn't let them use her dad's version of "Blue Moon of Kentucky"? Just as well, as it would probably skew a bit older than the marketing team wants -- and I can't imagine that KFC wants us to think of Elvis (especially circa 1976) to sell fast food....

All summer long, there are Del's lemonade and Saugy hot dog stands on or near the Brown University campus -- if yer lucky, one next to the other!

Can someone -- Chef Achatz? another attendee? -- help me understand the dynamic to which this sentence refers? Were the assembled chefs expected to obtain approval from Chef Trotter? Dish sounds great to me, btw! edited to clarify a question -- ca

For those who don't know, archestratus is known beyond eGullet as Clifford A. Wright. I'm a fan -- as are many others here on eG -- and count "Sardinia from the Inside" (from Saveur, No. 68 August/September 2003) among my favorite pieces of writing in that great magazine. Given my admiration, it astonishes me that Mediterranean Feast, a book that won two Beard awards and was nominated for IACP's book of the year, took six years to earn out its run. That's a sobering warning about the realities of who makes out in the "booming cookbook industry".... A question for the authors: To what extent do you feel that TV is an important component of cookbook marketing? It seems to be a crucial element of the business, particularly concerning the importance of having a very explicit, focused, niche angle for your book. However, given your intelligent approach to cuisine and cooking, "act[ing] like an asshole" must be... er... challenging.

It was a while ago and not lunch, so I can only comment on PF at Nougatine generally. We had a wonderful time there, probably far better than we would have in the main dining room (which feels a bit too too for my tastes). We not only had an amazing PF tasting menu (only slighty different than the main one -- no lobster with the foie gras or something), but being in that room had certain unexpected perks. For example, the sommelier, based at the bar across the room, was very attentive, and when I put myself in his hands he came up with an impromptu and amazing five-glass flight just for my meal for 25 bucks. He could have charged us twice that and I would have gratefully paid for the wines and the attentive, respectful treatment. In addition, our discussion about the dishes prompted the wait staff to bring additional little tastes of things that we hadn't chosen. Finally, on the way back from the restroom, I stopped to watch the kitchen (open to the back of Nougatine), and started chatting with someone working the front of the house. After a while, he asked me if I was in the business and invited me back into the kitchen. I couldn't (sadly, we had to be somewhere), but as a home cook who dreams of the life of the chef (sans 14 hour days on the feet, of course) I will take that compliment to my grave! Surely not every experience would be like this, but I daresay that these things would never happen in a place that treated the crowd in Nougatine as second-tier. We would have been very happy to leave with our fine meal, but all of these extras made it one of the best meals we've ever had. So: one vote for Nougatine!

Don't you find that's true for most "flavoured" herbs. The "doesn't taste all that good" part, I mean. Can apple mint justify its existence? Is there a truly worthwhile use for pinapple sage? Lemon thyme looks and smells great but I have a hard time finding a place for it in the kitchen: the occasional fish dish, maybe, but not much else. Hybridization run amok? Vanity herbs? ← Now that you mention it, yes, I do think that's true about many of these, especially the "vanity" mints (great name); however, having both peppermint and spearmint is a nice thing, as they have quite different qualities. I also think that having a variety of basils is a great idea, as they can be very different and play different roles in various cuisines. Maybe you don't want this many varieties, but having sweet, holy, thai, and purple is what we go for each year. edited to fix an error -- ca

Now that sounds like a great place to eat! Welcome to eGullet, camilleboudreaux!

They're planting zones.

Great thread! Yes to everything people have said. What a bunch of smarties we've got around here! A few additional thoughts. I really agree that parsley is a great thing to have since you often use it in small amounts. They can get titanic, however; click here for a great salad to make when you're trimming the plant back. Planting different varieties of certain herbs (thyme, basil, and mint in particular) is also a great idea for a little... um... variety. Susan, do you find that the chives toughen up each season? Ours seem to do that, but I can't tell. Finally, I grew two wonderful rosemary plants last year, and over the course of a brutal NE winter (third worst on record or something) they died. I deeply envy those on the west coast who plant this and lavender as perennial shrubs. Anyone have ideas on how to do this around RI way?

Another awestruck person with his jaw on the floor, Pam, particularly when I saw those boxes of chicken -- "about 1/3 of the boxes." Fantastic work! May your stamina hold out through your seder!