Jason Perlow

The other thing I would like to add is that in Northern NJ, we have a LOT of variety in the types of Korean restaurants we have here. For example, We have a North Korean dumpling place, several Korean-Chinese (for those that are unfamiliar, its Chinese food for Koreans, totally different from any other sort of Chinese cusine), several noodle specialists, seafood specialists, barbecue specialists with coal fired grills, and tofu specialists. Not to mention 3 different chains of Korean cafe-bakeries and coffee shops serving uniquely Korean (and Japanese) stuff. Plus we have no fewer than 6 Korean-megasupermarkets with top quality produce and seafood, poultry and meats and other items for sale.

a) This may be in upstate NY, but around here in Mercedes land in Northern NJ, most korean restaurants are on par in terms of total end-user bill cost with a Japanese restaurant and use some pretty expensive ingredients, particularly in cuts of meat. In fact, because of the unique situation here where Korean restaurants cater to Japanese clientele as well, you get a lot of these places also serving sushi with full blown sushi bars and Japanese sushi chefs. b) I havent seen evidence of this locally. c) This is probably true for here as well, but this has been changing. d) yes, I agree with that.

Steve, the Japanese have also been here significantly longer than the Koreans have. In Hawaii Japanese cuisine is ubiquitous and totally assimilated, as is korean food. Thats because there a relatively equal concentration of both. In northern new jersey you get a very similiar type of situation, except many of the Japanese are migrant and are here on temporary visas from the host companies that they work for. So you don't get a lot of Japanese merchants. The korean community in Northern New Jersey is 15 years old, tops. Yes, some of the Koreans in NJ are merchants. Most of them primarilly sell to other Koreans.

Steve, Korean food is wildly popular in Japan. Its assimilated itself into Japanese food in the form of Yakiniku. Just because you dont see bulgogi sandwiches at Subway in the US doesnt mean its not being assimilated. For the most part, Korean communities are very tight knit and enclavish in the US, and most of them are less (many much less) than 20 years old, which would explain why their cuisine has not been assimilated by american popular culture yet. That doesn't make it any less valid as a complex or well defined cuisine. Nevertheless, in Northern New Jersey, especially where I live, you might as well be living in Seoul. Its all over the place, in many forms.

icewine gastrique would be a good idea, considering that its a product native to Canada where you live. Inniskillin? Take a digital photo of the dish when you are done, if its possible.

It can sometimes be prepared as Pate de Foie Gras , but its a lobe of the liver of a Goose. This is usually sliced and then seared or cooked, etc.

I like chocolate covered matzah. Hmm... we do have a lot of valrhona and scharffenberger lying around...

You Canadians love to be different, don't you. Seriously, are they any different in Canada?

That's because you can segregate yourself into little comunities in thd suburbs in a way that you can't do in the city. You mean like Chinatown? Or the Lower East Side? Or in Brooklyn?

Yes, definitely in the right direction. Maybe with some bleu cheese too.

Most definitely hot meat chilis, with no beans.

Why not make it a fig bread? and do the bacon, maybe with some kind of a wine reduction sauce or something?

Too sweet. Get some more savory stuff in there. I think the maple syrup goes over the top a bit.

Brandy Ho's for hunan near the transamerica pyramid. Not expensive, has an exciting open kitchen, food is very spicy and very good.

The Oxo Good Grips Peeler. Its not just a gadget, its a necessity.

What about David Niven or Sean Connery? Or Peter O'Toole? Sorry. Back to food guys. EDIT: Only one is English. Duh.

Steve, clearly you havent eaten enough Korean food or have lived among them enough to allow you to make such an unqualified ignorant statement like that. Why don't you just call it a day? Koreans have TONS of white collar people in their populations. Every single Korean restaurant in Northern New Jersey, as well as every high end Korean supermarket in the area caters to them.

David Corcoran is a great guy and also one of my occasional dining companions. He also bases some of his reviews on my recommendations. That being said, I don't always agree with EVERYTHING he writes. I like Jerrys. I think its a great Italian place. Not every dish is a home run and I have had some stuff I genuinely didn't like there, like a lobster ravioli main dish that was very disappointing because it had too much breading in the filling, but some of them are very good -- a simple dairy-free mushoom soup they sometimes make there is outstanding, and they do a very good job with their seafood (their grilled seafood platter is fresh and very good) and I like quite a few of their other pasta dishes as well as their veal and chicken mains. I also like their antipasto selections, which they rotate around. So while they are an occasional miss, and what retaurant isn't, I still go back. Maybe its because I like to go local, but I still like the place. Meanwhile, we went to Armando's for the first time last night In Fort Lee. I thought it was good (they do a nice job with the vegetables, doing simple sautes with garlic and not overcooking them), but I definitely prefer Jerry's. I can definitely tell you this though. Whatever faults David has found in his review, I am sure Jerry will correct, he's a smart business guy and he and his staff has been open to criticism. When I was disappointed in that Lobster Ravioli dish, I left the balance of it on my plate, and towards the end of the meal, the captain asked me why I didn't send it back. "If you don't like something, definitely send it back, we'll get you something else next time, we WANT to know about those things." So I told him what was wrong with it, and they comped us on dessert. So thats probably why I go back. I think attentive and nice service can compensate for the rough edges. I genuinely like the people over there, and I know they WANT to make you happy.

http://www.momotours.com/specials.htmNot only did they use the word "delicious," they even used the word "dance." I love their momo recipe... funny as hell. http://www.momotours.com/recipemo.htm 1. MAKE SURE YAK IS DEAD 2. IF NOT, KILL 3. EXTRACT 1KG, LEG MEAT 4. MINCE 5. MAKE SURE YAK IS DEAD ...

Oh my god I can almost taste that bacon now.

One of my favorite toppings for a good, medium rare hamburger is mayo mixed with worcestershire and grated horseradish. Oh man.

Its the nest of a swallow. Which is made from stuff that swallows regurgitate. Apparently, its kind of gelatinous in texture.

Its also common in Japanese and Chinese dishes, especially with Sushi and Dim Sum. Not to mention New England, lol.

My vote goes to Czechvar (aka Budweiser Budvar) from the Bohemian region of Czechoslovakia. Its one of the most popular beers in that country and you can get it here, so it counts as mass produced. I also like Tsingtao. Presidente from the Dominican Republic, when ice cold, is good too.

Youre not gonna spend $250 for dinner at America, unless you order some really expensive wine. I think rachel and I have gotten out of there for under $120 a few times. You also have the option of eating in their bar, which is nice too.