Carrot Top

I'd like to add "Charcuterie and French Pork Cookery" by Jane Grigson, first published in 1967. Classic, informational without being precious or self-important, an all-around good reference that will not lose in value or tone as time goes by.

Once in a while over high heat there are some minor bits of scorching in spots if I am not literally sauteeing (tossing). I don't think this is due to the pans but rather due to the horrid sorts of electric stoves that exist in rental homes. The burners are not all that stable besides not being efficient. Blech. I can control this by paying closer attention to trying to fine-tune the heat from the burners (again, not easy, the controls on these stoves seem to operate like dinosaur feet - clunk, clunk - ) or lowering the heat and fussing which is boring and exasperating. Neither of these are great options for me because I have two children in the house so that my focus is not that great - certainly not as great as it was when I was a chef. When you are a chef, people tend to appreciate a focused mind. When you are a mother, they try in whichever way they can to destroy it. But again, I do think that it's due to the stove, not due to the pans. I've had the sort you describe with a "just aluminum" core and think they are even that much worse in this way. Even less heat distribution. When I finally decide where to buy a house and settle down (naturally, the house *must* have a gas stove ) I'll let you know. I *do* know that I have not found cookware that resolves this problem of tool vs. badly-designed heat source yet, for higher-heat cooking besides straight cast iron for some things, good quality teflon for others. This set is good for soups, stews, braises, easy quick light browning with pan sauces to follow, poaching, the sort of middle-of-the road general stuff.

So your hopes from a blog would be to find reportage (if that's a word ). What did you think of the Julie/Julia thing? Did you bother with it at all? I'm curious because it did end up being one of the most famous/successful blog concepts that I've ever heard of (though there may be others that I simply do not know about . . .)

Can you give the examples of whom you are speaking of in the phrase written above please, Sandy? I'm curious. Most bloggers are writing more in the style of personal journaling, perhaps? Blogging seems to have that sort of personality as a natural trait, unless one actually *tries* to stretch it.

I have that set plus some more pieces of the same. Gift from bf. I like them for most general-purpose cooking. Nice-looking, nice heft, and the balance of handle/body seems "right" to me, more "right" than the other sets in the same range. Good extension of arm, not unwieldy or requiring odd little stretches of upper arm or movements/shifts of wrist as some of the others did that I tested. That may be specific to me, as I am petite. Before deciding, I would go with your wife to a good department or cookware store and *feel* the various pots and pans. Lift them. Move around a bit with them. That can help a lot in terms of making a decision.

I've decided in my own mind to title Serious Eats a "blogeteria". A collection of many things, laid out nicely, easy to access.

Igorot recipe? The closest I've had to lizard is this. But I'd definitely try grilled lizard.

And yet, I can remember being a manager in a corporate setting and in actuality, having to find solutions to work problems caused by . . .guess what . . .children. Those things that require care by the parent, those things that do *not* go away. Children. And yes, children don't always act like adults in restaurants. Do we live with that as a part of life, as Miligai suggests? Not usually, in our culture. We push harder, to make them *not* be a problem, for anyone. And we push harder with less support, often. For the traditional systems of being surrounded by family and neighborhood supports are often not there, as well as the reality of more of us actually being "one" raising the children rather than "two". "No problem!" A shiny happy people life is our goal.

I'm in agreement with all of the above, Ingrid. But added to "guilt" I'd add simple tiredness and overstress . . . and added to women that leave the workforce I'd add women that remain, too. And those that have no truck with any of this would respond "Anyone that chooses to have kids should know this." I turned fifty years old this year, and am still learning things that I *should* have known. Goodness knows how those people who mouth quotes like the above "you should know this" manage to get through life knowing it all, and so very early and securely. Wow.

I've read some posts here and there from servers who claim that the reason they are in the business of being servers is *one thing*. One thing only. Not as a career choice, you know. Unless it's somewhere where the tips will be very very high (and then of course it really is the same thing in a way but shaded just a bit differently . . .). They are there to *make money*. Some servers see a table with children and they think: Not as high check average. Chinka-chinka-chink. The decision is made. Pay attention to another table first.

Adults (or I should say parents, as nobody so far has identified nannys or babysitters as being problematic in this way - but of course they are getting paid to watch the children which somehow makes it different in our society, doesn't it . . .) who are too busy doing "their own thing" (talking to each other, using their cellphones, whatever) to supervise their children in restaurants or more often coffeehouse-type-of-places are (to my mind) the indirect subjects of two recent stories in the NYT. One is about the culture of multi-tasking that pervades our society at various levels (sometimes, maybe, this *can* be geographically sorted to a point) and another is one step further away, but speaks about the desire to succeed. The second article focuses on young women, who still even today generally more than their young men peers, will have to struggle with whether they will be mostly a career woman or mostly someone who raises children, or whether they will get up on the high wire to do the lovely acrobatic act called "having it all". We've got a lot of mixed messages going on that affect these young women. Obviously these mixed messages will ultimately affect our society at large (yes, in restaurants, that most public place where we show ourselves to the world and to each other) and will affect their own families as those families grow. It's sort of hard to have it all. Yet somehow the seed has been sown that indeed, it is possible. I wonder, myself, how possible this is for how many, ultimately. Can the best cellphone and the right shoes make life flow in some special way? This, is what it seems to me is happening, mostly, when disruptions occur with children and their adult attendees in restaurants. Kids, often enough, are just not as well loved as a cellphone and a double latte with the perfect haircut. Or maybe its not that they are not as well loved, but they sure can be more difficult to deal with.

Performance art. When I read this, it lodged there for a bit, as it sort of made sense. But something was bothering me about it. Something just didn't fit. And then that bothered me, for one does want to believe in people doing good things for good reasons. This morning it came to me in a flash. Why I couldn't wrap my mind around it as performance art. The reason is that it's not. The right pieces aren't there, somehow. What it is, is a sit-com. Perfect. Every single piece needed is in place. Could be a winner, too.

Happening upon this book was certainly an eye-opener for me, Sandy, and I'm glad you found some things of interest in it too. My own background as a "self-taught" chef whose formal education only went as far as the ninth grade in school did not offer me the varieties of cultural initiations to readings on race, gender, and class that are now more commonly found at the university level for those who attend. Of course I learned a lot on my own, as we all do, in different ways and forms. But the specific focus on the dinner table as expression of these things, and the impact of how the literature discussed in the book affected our culture, was absolutely scintillating reading. I did not find the tone overly academic at all or boring in the least bit, as sometimes happens with me in terms of academic sorts of tomes. A bit of the alternate universes of all sorts that co-exist as we all live together and dine together (or not) is shown in these chapters. Funny, but since then - when expressing some of the things I read - I actually got called a "fast-food feminist". Which had the hint, when written by the person who wrote it, of the "N" word about it. I have to admit that the only way that affected me, in the end run, was to finally say to myself, "Yes. I *will* be a feminist now. For *you* are an (ignorant) idiot." My mother would be proud. (Edited to add the word "ignorant". Meow. )

I'm wondering if anyone has read this, this year. I didn't, but am curious as to what those who did read it might think of individual pieces or of the collection chosen for 2006 in general . . .

Ah, yes indeedy. The movers and shakers of the business world that choose to meet in the booths of Burger King rather than in the corporate dining room. Why they are not meeting in the corporate dining room, I can not imagine. But they *are* impressive, and I am startled that you would even say a word against them in their choice of sitting next to the little kids area and then asking for quiet. (I didn't mention it myself for fear they might take out their matching sets of Donald Trump wigs and hoodies, put them on and all point their fingers at me, scowling, "You're FIRED.")

You spell "behaviour" I spell "behavior" You say potahto, I say potato . . .

If you can locate a copy of Jane Grigson's "Charcuterie and French Pork Cookery" there is an entire chapter devoted to "Blood and Black Puddings". Twelve recipes, all with ingredients easily found.

That is beautiful, Paul. It's the music that must be sought, not the boombox.

← Absolutely wonderful, if put into practice consistently. Not the norm, in many if not most places. As mentioned above, it seems certain venues with certain cultural traits might be better at this task than others. Or at least it has appeared to be so to me. Personally, my kids have never been *out of control*. They have, however, been difficult to settle in happily, as kids can be (or oh . .my kids can be, anyway. ). When this happens, usually nobody notices but me. I can assure you that as a single parent I more than deeply appreciate every single act of kindness shown towards my children (and therefore myself) in restaurant situations. Therefore I tend to take the kids to eat where I can be hopeful of finding small bits of kindness - rather than glares of anger from those whose drinks are slowed down because of a child's needs . . .or arrogant smarminess from youthful servers whose manners really show not much better than a cranky child's themselves. There is often no quarter for the child edging towards heavy discomfort in these situations. There is no quarter for the singular parent who must take charge of it all, and take everyone out if we go, rather than struggle through traipsing back and forth like a small army through the scene. A simple bit of care shown could alter the situation to a brand new thing - to a good thing. One smile, one act of intelligent care by a server who knows how to talk to children (which after all, is part of the act of hospitality, if children are to be considered humans) can make a difficult moment go drifting right down the stream. And yet how often do I see this? To quote from J.B. Priestly, who was talking about another thing, but what I'm talking about could well be substituted, in my mind:

My theory is to let the kids find this out for themselves with their own common sense, choices, and experiences, not by a parental proscription from me that they can not eat from the children's menu. That way (to my mind) they know it from a true place inside themsleves, rather than because "Mommy said I can't do that." An entirely different feeling, to my mind.

Then blessed be the situation and may it thrive and bloom, across the land. P.S. I like picnic tables.

Hah. I went back and linked to it too, at the same time you were posting, so there will be double-hits on it now from everyone.

I wasn't talking about your trip, Varmint. It hasn't happened yet, and you said you would tell us about it. If joyous things occur (which I image they may) then that is wonderful. A personal invitation of that sort from the owner of Union Square Cafe is not the norm for most diners or from most restauranteurs of that caliber. If it were me issuing the invite of that sort (as owner or manager) to a venue of that sort, I'd be damn sure to instruct all the staff involved to be on their best behavior. (Edited because "caliber" is not spelled "cabiber". A "cabiber" is someone who drinks in cabs.)

Duh! That's what the kids are for. ← Yeah babe. And that's what *you* are there for, to wash the dishes. With a winning smile tossed over your shoulder while doing so.

Ah, well. I am reminded these last few days of an eG member whose sig line had a quote something like "eGullet: Where all the children are well-behaved and [. . .]". "And." Naturally. To each their own, and let the swords rise and the trumpets blare. I still say there are people who haven't learned their fish forks from their spade handles who I would find it prefereable to spend time with, in or out of a restaurant. Even if they speak a different language, I guess I could point with my finger. "FISH FORK" I'd have to mouth, in a loud whisper, kind of secret-like, so the other foodie diners would not know this important knowledge was not known. I still say that there are people who lack the best manners that I'd rather know than many I have known who were capable of showing great charm and knowledge of forks spoons and wine who in a blink of an eye would strip your business of its profits to put in their own pockets however they could, or strip your wife of her clothes and put whatever it was they wanted from her in their own pockets, too. And, it's my feeling that venues planned, designed, developed by restauranteurs for adults, adults with some sort of adult "grown-up" way of being that comes with being an adult (hopefully), designed for those who are cognizant of what adult behavior involves, should be frequented by adults, not by children whom the adults wish to mold into mini-adults *now* "for their future". I say give the kids a break - let them be kids - take them out to eat if you can - try to make it pleasant for all, which means giving consideration to *everyone* at the table including the kids. If extra napkins are needed, let it be that they are eating somewhere where the adult at the next table will not be upset if the server's time is taken by this act of service rather than the act of service of bringing an adult a drink. They will be grown up soon enough. As far as expense goes, no expense is too large to spend on something that will be a good thing for a child. I just can think of better things to spend both time and money on than this rite of initiation that more and more "foodies" seem to think important as more and more "foodies" become a vital (sic) part of our culture. I've heard the argument that job interviews have been lost, for "good jobs" because of table manners. My response to that is, that if a person manages to get through college to be considered for such a job, and they then can not figure out how to act *wherever* they go, then they are just overeducated idiots anyway, bless their hearts. Burger King and Olive Garden, and a spouse who cooks frozen TV dinners will be their sad, sad future undoubtedly. Every parents nightmare. Of course. Excuse me. I must run. My linen tablecloth requires ironing, the silver needs polishing and darn it all if I don't think I might have a Michelob beer with lunch if I can find a Seven-Eleven. I'll see you later, some time later, at The Colony Club. Kisses! Mwah mwah!