percyn

Tim, you may have seen the post on other threads, but try Han Dynasty in Exton, the Chef is ex-Tifco, ex-Chung King.

I think this place is now closed.

Here is my list of restaurants which I have either visited or have been recommended to me by trusted sources: American: Black Lab Funky lil Kitchen - http://www.funkylilkitchen.com Columbia Bar & Grille - http://www.columbiabarandgrille.com Brew Pub: Da Vincci Iron Hill Brewery Cheese: Ramondo's Cheese Shop in Phoenixville - http://www.acheeseshop.com Chinese: Jasmine Asian House China Jade Diner: Collegeville Diner French (influence): Majolica, technically in Chester County - http://www.majolicarestaurant.com Birchrunville Store Cafe, also in Chester County Hoagies: Ace of Steaks in Trappe Indian: Desi Village - http://www.desi-village.com Mexican: Tortugas - http://www.tortugasmv.com Los Mariachis in Phoenixville Pizza: Roccos Bravos Seafood: Legal Seafoods in KOP mall - http://www.legalseafoods.com Sushi: Hanna in Wayne Bonjung - http://www.bonjungsushi.com ETA: While I have not been to Alison in Blue Bell, I have eaten her cooking and plan to visit the place. Are there any other must-visit places I should add to my list?

No, i don't really bother anymore. I used to soak them for a couple of hours in a few changes of water but i still found you can't really avoid the grit, so nowadays i just give them a quick scrub. Either they're gritty or they're not! I did try once to squeeze the dark crap out of them but it's quite an unpleasant task as they squirm... a lot. So I clean them up after they're cooked, remove the 'beak' and clean out as much of the green crap as possible. ... Have you tried soaking them in some water with corn meal? From what I am told, the clams eat the corn meal, which cleans out their digestive tract and the gritty sand in it.

700 pages whoohooo !!!

Prawncracker, any special preparation for the razor clams before stir frying them?

Went to this place that Just Opened last week Jasmin Asian House 130 W Main St Collegeville, PA 19426 (Trappe Shopping Center) (BYO) Their menu consists of Sushi, Chinese and some Thai dishes. Unfortunately, I did not see any Sichuan dishes on there. Ordered some Sushi rolls which were quite delicious, but in our hunger, we forgot to take a picture!! Next, we ordered the Dim Sum Sampler - Shrimp, Vegetable and Pork. They were tasty, though a bit overdone and the new bamboo steamer seem to impact of smoke like flavor to everything in the steamer. Since this was the first time in a newly opened restaurant, I stuck to the classics and ordered a Shrimp Pad Thai. Hiding underneath the crunchy bean sprouts were 6 generously sized shrimp. Rice noodles were perfectly cooked and not too mushy. Wifey ordered a Oriental Grill - Steak, shrimp and scallops in a Teriyaki sauce. Good, though too much sauce for me. Skip the Thai ice tea - it tasted like they added regular milk to regular Lipton iced tea. There were quite a few service snafus - lack of knowledge of the menu, writing down incomplete order, unfamiliar with computerized ordering system, a long wait for the food, wrong orders going to tables, etc, but hopefully those are things that will be fixed soon. The chief hostess (owner?) seemed to recognize and apologized multiple times, so I have some hope.

Another Scrambled Egg topped with Sichuan Chicken in Chili Sauce

There is thread on retaurants in Chester County, so why not one for Montgomery County?

Since Cosimo is "in my necka da woods" as Saxchick says, I dropped by for lunch the other day... For those familiar with Frazer/Malvern, Cosimo is located in the shopping center with the PA license center, occupying the space formerly used by Yamashiro sushi & steak. The essence of the layout is the same, with the updated interior split into a dining room, large bar area (with a few tables and booths) and a private dining room. Behind the bar is the main attraction...the wine preservation system. The wine selection by the glass is impressive and the whimsical offering of flights allow you to indulge in that experience even more. On this visit I went for the "Hooray for Chardonnay", deciding to savor the Cht Mouton Rothschild for another day. The choice of the 3 wines in this flight were well selected. The West Cape Howe was delicious and I have added it to my personal winelist. Paired the wine with a Chicken Panini that the friendly and knowledge waitress (I believe it was Karen) recommended. She mentioned that the chicken is cured for 36hrs? before being cooked. It was good, though the chicken was a bit over-powered by the flavors from the herb vinaigrette and prosciutto. The seemed to be commercially bought (I could be wrong - but they did not seem overly fresh) and the slaw it came with was a little over-dressed. The wine selection shines again as it dramatically changes the flavor profile of the panini sandwich. Ordinarily, I would not have ordered dessert, though having heard about the talents of the pastry chef Andrea Schwob, I had to take one for the team A trio of Passion fruit Panna Cotta topped with mango confit, coconut-almond cookies, and key lime pie sounded good. WOW !! That Passion fruit panna cotta bursted with flavor and the texture was firm enough to be scooped, but melted on your tongue. The mango confit added an additional kick to this masterpiece. The mango confit pieces still had some bite to them, which is how I prefer it. The mini key lime pie was very good while the coconut-almond cookies allowed one to cleanse the palate with something that is not too sweet. Yes, I will return and would recommend this place. If you go, definitely try some of the great wine selection and save room or better yet, start with dessert!!

How much are you looking to buy? My understanding is that it comes pre-squeered in various sizes starting at around 10lbs.

A few years ago I used to frequent the Palace of India in Lawrenceville. They had good food, though no comparison to the now defunct Bukhara in Chicago, which IMHO served the best Indian food I found in the US. Palace of India had decent "Chaat" on certain nights of the week and I hope they continue to offer that.

Happy belated birthday wishes Brenda !! Today's breakfast was a fresh young coconut

WOW, that looks like the soup I had from the streets of Bangkok.

Now that's a breakfast Prawncracker !! Every time I am in England, I make sure I have a "Full English Breakfast" (with the roasted tomato). This was the first breakfast in our new house and stove.... Omelette with Chinese Pork Intestine Stew Topped w/Chili Oil - the stew had bean sprouts, congealed pork blood, chilies, etc ETA: The pork stew was left over from a recent eGullet Chinese dinner outing.

Isn't black pudding one of the dishes you have to make at the CIA?

Not only did we finish what is pictured, keep in mind that we had 3 big bowls of the dumplings in hot oil, 2 plates of lion head meatballs and 2 plates of the sausage. Who's up for going again today ? To comment on the Imperial soup in one word - delicious. Delicate broth similar to the fish with pickled vegetables, accented with succulent shrimp, squid, snow peas and carrots. Don't worry about not saving me any chicken, I was there a few days before and made this with the leftovers...

Dave, let me start by saying.... "you are spoiled and undeserving" But seriously, you could cook it on the stovetop where you can control the heat a little better and then finish it on the grill, preferably charcoal, for enhanced flavor. Any neutral oil with a high smoking point should give you a good sear in a high quality stainless steel pan. Depending on the thickness of the steak, you will need to cook it for a longer duration than what you may typically be used to, though be careful not to over do it. Lobel steaks are best eaten on the rarer side of medium-rare. If you are really concerned, get a infra red thermometer or at least a probe thermometer which will monitor the internal temp while cooking. And most importantly, once the steak is off the stove/grill, cover it with an overturned stainless steel bowl and let it sit for 15 min before cutting into it to allow the juices to redistribute. Are you planning to season it?

Thumbs up - simple ingredients cooked well. Dining room can get a bit loud. Get the octopus and lamb.

Ashamed for making pork belly for breakfast ?!!?? Hold your head up high !!

Yellow tomatoes (in this case low-acid ones from an Amish organic farm) is the main difference. There are many versions of the recipe, some with blanched almonds. For a really great version, check out this StudioKitchen blog.

Left over Chinese is always good over some scrambled eggs. Soft-shell crabs over Scrambled Eggs Sichuan Spicy Chicken over Scrambled Eggs

On a hot summer day this week... Chilled Golden Gazpacho Rotisserie Chicken with Herb Yukon Gold Potatoes and Roasted Garlic Earlier in the week.... Homemade Lobster Bisque w/Crusty Bread Ribs - These were actually cuit sous vide and then finished under the broiler (it was raining that day).

Jeff, Piperade was pretty cool. Its a bit out of the way, but worth the trip. I was in SFO for a conference and then stayed a few extra days as a vacation - so it was both. Couldn't get to Sanoma/Napa on this trip, but plan to on the next one.

Parsi Kid Gosht ( Young Goat or Lamb Stew ) Serves 4 as Main Dish. This is a popular Parsi recipe that has been adopted from Katy Dastoor. Can be served with rice or roti or bread. 2-1/4 lb Kid Goat or Lamb 1 Garlic Whole Head 1-1/2 Inch piece of ginger 6 Black cardamoms 5 Cloves 2 Inch piece of cinnamon 3 Red Chilies 2-1/2 oz Ground Cashew nuts 1 c Coconut milk 2 Potatoes cut lengthwise 3 T Oil 3 Large Onions (Yellow preferred) Cut the meat into large 1.5 inch pieces. Grind ginger and garlic together into a paste. Heat the oil and sautee the onions, cloves, cardamoms, cinnamon and chilies. Onions should turn soft, but not brown too much. Add the meat and cook on low heat until the water is dried up. Add a few pinches of salt (you can add more later to suite your taste). Add a cup of water to the meat and cook until half done. Add potatoes and a little more water. Make a paste with the cashew nuts and coconut milk. Pour this into the pan when the potatoes are almost done. Cook on low until mean and potatoes are fork tender. Serve with white basmati rice or roti or bread. Keywords: Intermediate, Main Dish, Lamb, Indian ( RG2004 )