Jason Perlow

Tracey, in those situations, its okay to send something back. You should have called Vincent over, and told him what was wrong with the dish, and I bet he would have sent out something else. He probably wants to know if something is going wrong in the kitchen.

Rooftop: I'm not sure what went wrong with the tuna, it was actually one of our favorite dishes. My only problem with that dish, and its more of a presentation issue, was that it was sort of blackened with a crust, and instead of it being sliced nicely for service, it came with a regular knife instead of a steak knife, so it was hard to cut into. But otherwise I really liked the dish. The other fish dish, the Miso Salmon with the cold sesame buckwheat noodes, is also very good.

I do have to admit we haven't bought Haagen Dazs on a regular basis in a while. We usually buy the ice cream brands that are on sale these days, Edy's being the one that frequently is discounted at our local Shop Rite. That being said, I am actually quite impressed with what Edys is doing lately. They have an awesome Spumoni flavor, as well as a new Girl Scout Cookie line -- I've tried the Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookie with Chocolate Ice Cream, and its outrageous. I really want to try the other two flavors.

Carrot Cake? I must have missed that one. Bananas Foster does sound inviting, I'll have to try it.

Wow. That sounds particularly complicated. A 30-35 hour process? Yipes. Leave it to the pros, I say.

Some new photos of Ginger and Spice: (note all food shown is in tasting menu portions) Dining Room Left to right: Pastry Chef James DiStefano, Owner Vincent Chin, Exec Chef Doron Wong Fried Wonton Appetizer with Cumin Citrus Glaze Wonton Soup (excellent) Pan Stickers Yin Yang Rolls Rainbow Beef Salad Thai Curry Udon Noodles XO Fried Rice XO Fried Rice cross section Miso Crusted Salmon with cold soba noodles Roasted Lacquered Duck with Lychee Salsa, Sesame Mantau and Hoisin Mustard Glaze Mesclun Green Salad with Lotus Chips and Soy Ginger Vinaigrette Coconut Crepe Strawberry Granite Soy Milk Panna Cotta, the signature dessert of the restaurant

In order of favorites, I would say 1) Coffee -- probably one of the best coffee ice creams there is, by any commercial ice cream manufacturer. 2) Chocolate -- this is THE benchmark chocolate ice cream, in my opinion. Their plain vanilla is also excellent, but I dont like it straight, its good with pie or as accompaniment to another dessert, or in a float. 3) Strawberry -- great natural strawberry flavor. I like it best in Shake form. 4) Dulce de Leche -- one of the newer flavors, but one of their best. The tres leches they introduced recently isn't as good. 5) Macadamia Brittle -- Just vanilla and macadamia nut brittle. Simple in concept, but incredibly good.

$500 for a freaking blender? That must be some blender.

First of all, as a food discussion site, I think it is our duty to address all kinds of food, from all walks of life, and this reflects my personal views on food as well. I can just as easily enjoy microwaved White Castles as I do artisanally-made Pizza from anthracite coal ovens, or as I do a meal at one of Manhattan's top restaurants, or a Gumbo made from scratch at home with premium sausages imported from Louisiana. I dont necessarily think they equate on all levels, or I derive the same levels of enjoyment from all of them, but they are all to be enjoyed, period. That's what this site is all about.

Its interesting, but I actually feel the frozen White Castles you get AT White Castle are superior to the ones in the supermarket. I'm not sure why, and Rachel is convinced they are the exact same thing, but I beg to differ. That being said, White Castles bought fresh and thrown into the freezer and then reheated are my favorites -- I like to buy extra Doubles and freeze them right away. The supermarket ones are good, though. Well, good in a junk food way.

Yup, and then you have Prune Juice for Lt Worf "This is the drink of a WARRIOR!" and Romulan Ale for Dr. Mccoy, a banned substance which he keeps around for "medicinal purposes". And I recall Scotty with a bottle of Whiskey in one of the old episodes as well, but I don't remember which one it was.

Okay. I'd like to get past making this a referendum on whether supermarket heat and eat products are evil or inferior to fresh food or food made from scratch, and return to the original premise of the thread, which are products we LIKE, Thanks. Please feel free to start a "Why we hate heat and eat products" and "tater tots are the spawn of Satan" topic elsewhere.

Yep, nice peice by Mark Bittman here: Frosty the Vegetable (NY Times)? By the way, I completely agree with Michel Richard about frozen Brussel sprouts, particularly the bags of minature, marble-sized Brussels. They are awesome -- defrost, toss these up with some olive oil and garlic, and saute with some salt and pepper to taste. Goes great with any meat dish. Modern IQF technology is a significant, almost quantum leap improvement in food preservation technology than the bulk freezing technique originally pioneered by Clarence Birdseye which was in use from the 40s to the 80s. I'm guessing people who disdain frozen veggies remember the bulk frozen, freezer burned stuff from the bad old days and have never tried current IQF products.

er, "Vodka Martini, Shaken, not Stirred?" and "Bollinger, 1958"

I can see similarities between Puerto Rican, Dominican and Cuban cuisine, but grouping these under the term "Caribbean" is a little too broad for me. Jamaican cuisine is as unique and different from Cuban as Mexican is. ← I should have said Western Caribbean or Caribbean Latino. Yes, Jamaican, Barbadian, Antillean, Virgin Islander, East Indies, all that stuff is quite a bit different.

Yeah, just about the only thing the two countries have in common food wise is the use of rice. In addition, Mexico heavily uses corn while Cuba for the most part does not -- even the tamales ("tamal") in Cuba are completely different, and I have even seen them done with mashed plantains instead of Masa.

Oh man. Cuban food and Mexican food are totally, totally different. In fact I would say that Mexican food, at least in concept and in native implementation, is totally unique and different from virtually any other Latin American or Caribbean cuisine. The ingredients used in a lot of Mexican dishes do not exist in other Latin counterparts. While there is some Spanish (i.e. Spain) influence in Mexican food, as well as from other immigrant groups such as Germany, there is a lot coming from the native Indian population as well. The heavy use of fresh and dried Chile peppers in the cuisine is also completely unique as opposed to other Latino cuisines as well. Cuban food, on the other hand, while it has a distinct identity, can probably be grouped best with other Caribbean cusines since it shares a number of common dishes and basic ingredients -- Puerto Rican and Dominican and even the cuisines of the various Central American countries can probably also be grouped in the same "family". The cuisine of these countries is an amalgam of Spanish influence and the African slaves/creoles that settled there area in the 1500/1600s.

The Old Liquor Store in Phillipsburg is a good place to look for wine. Theres also several decent places on the French side in Marigot. I'd also ask Bourdain. The main supermarket there, RAMs, has a pretty decent wine and liquor selection as well. Good shopping suggestions also here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=8362

In your supermarket's freezer case.

What about going halfway with a Boboli? Boboli is another heat and eat product that I am greatful for.

Frozen Peirogies: The Mrs. T's brand is quite decent. as to Goya frozen products -- I agree wholeheartedly. They also have these beef-stuffed potato croquette things that are really good. Following the empanada theme, While I question their wholesomeness, I also like the Tower Isle Jamaican beef patties.

In the spirit of the Store Brand/Generic Products thread, I'd like to start a discussion of what I would like to refer to as commercial/mass market "Heat and Eat" products you can buy from your average supermarket that are actually good. The premise is you can't always cook from scratch or even mostly from scratch, either because you are busy, tired, or don't feel like procuring ingredients for dinner or whatever -- but there are some decent products out there that you can just heat and eat which in entirety or in combination with other things, make for a decent meal. I've already gone on record that I love Tater Tots. Another product that we like to use at home are the Barber Foods pre-cooked stuffed chicken breasts: http://www.barberfoods.com/ These are your typical breaded and stuffed Chicken Kiev, Chicken Cordon Bleu or Chicken with Cheese and Broccoli type things (they also sell unstuffed Italian-style breaded chicken breasts if you want to make a fast and easy chicken cutlet sandwich or a chicken parm, and chicken strip type things) and most supermarkets and Costcos carry them frozen in boxes of six or ten. They are also sold for food service as well. I like them -- paired with a starch like a pasta, rice or a potato and a green vegetable, they make a nice, easy dinner. Back in the day I was also fond of Marie Calendar frozen products particularly their pot pies and prepared pasta side dishes, but I haven't bought any in a while. Anyone else got some good ones?

Oeneo gets cash for its corks (Food Production Daily) Wine-Stopper Company Sells Natural Cork Business (Wine Spectator Online, requires subscription)

Michael isn't just an eG member, he is Forum Host emeritus of the eG Pastry Forum. :) He's totally drunken our Kool Aid.

I also like http://accidentalhedonist.com and Orangette(Both eGers)