Beachfan

Delas Clos Boucher, along with the Vernay are my top choices. But Paris prices aren't better than US prices.

L'affriole is great. Lunch at Le Grand Vefour is the best bargain in Paris. Bistrot du Dome is a good option

There were two within 3 miles of my house (one went out of business). I tried it once and I blissfully don't remember why I vowed Never Again. But I"ve kept my vows. Not as good as Haagen-Danz, Ben&Jerry's, Huntz and Halls, Abblot and Costello's. Clinton and Gores bor Nixon and Agnews.

Bad wine makes for a bad ingredient. (This is different from good wine that has broken down, IMO. That can still make good ingedients, like wine vinegar).

There's also a lot to be said for dressing down. Like Babbo, especially in summer. Sure a sport jacket and smart casual makes sense for an elegant evening, and I"ll occassionally wear a tie, but normally enjoy my meal more when I'm not wearing a tie. Valentino doesn't enforce it's dress code by the way.

I prefer Bouley's Vahlrona chocolate souffle. And you can't beat the price for lunch. You'll have money left over for a Broadway show!

Most debit cards in the US tack on an additional 2% over the 1% interbank rate (total 3%) when they convert cuurency. Moral: Always keep those fine print service agreements.

The little known Amtrak card is free, earns points on a couple of airlines, and does not have an additional conversion fee (over the standard 1% that Visa/Mastercharge charge and everyone passes it on). It's considered the best card by a large percentage of the people who angst over these things. I use it for foreign travel. Another good deal is the AAA club cards. Free, no additional conversion fee and best of all, you can charge travellers checks like a purchase if you do it at the AAA office. But for travelling abroad, the best thing is my Schwab debit card. No charges at all other than the standard 1% conversion fee - no ATM charges by Schwab (sometimes the host machine will charge), no commission, etc.

Measuring by Los Angeleno standards, you'd include Philadelphia and Boston with NYC.

Castell del Remei makes Gotim Blu. In 2000, it was fab, I bought 9 bottles @ $9 each. Now it's $10, except in NY where they don't allow direct shipping. Zachy's has it at $15 with a case discount. In NJ, Clinton Fine Wine and Spririt has it for $12. This wine will hold a few years too.

I've been enjoying Umbrian wines. What do you think of La Palazzola Rubino 99. I'm not sure it will age, but was quite delish with meal Monday.

The service at Fleur de Lys was reason enough not to return, the food was very good but not at the level I expected. Ah, yes, just like you said 10 posts up. You win

I've had nothing but absolute wow's at Fleur de Lys (about 7 times). The sommelier is great to us, and we always BYO. It is an older, more formal crowd, but the main room is stunning. Do a search for several posts. Haven't been to fifth floor or Danko, heard great things about them. Fifth floor would be much more that $100/head unless you didn't have wine. Farrollon is great fun, see if you can't fit a lunch in there. Swan Oyster Depot is another great lunch place. Oysters and a glass of wine/beer at the counter. Definitely quintissential SF. Ton Kiang was very good, but I'm not a dim sum maven. Delfina is excellent, but not a joint as mentioned before. At the opposite end is Osteria del Forno, an SF insider spot, only a few tables, limited menu cheap and excellent.

I haven't been there.

I haven't been there.

To clarify: Are you saying you thought it came across as the official editorial position of eGullet.com? Or are you saying you thought it came across as non-editorial in nature, i.e., a reported news story? (And, if so, do you think that distinction makes sense or do you think it's mostly used by traditional media as a cover for editorializing in news stories?) We publish articles most every weekday, and they pretty much all contain statements of opinion. Mamster says chicken breasts are good. I assume that everybody reading Mamster's article knows that's his opinion and not news-reporting or the official position of the publication. I don't feel the need to attach various disclaimers and labels to get that point across. I thought it came off as non-editorial in nature. I do think the distinction makes sense. It allows for ranting in the editorial pages; I see it as giving more license there than in the main section. Certainly TDG doesn't need to be constricted by what others do. But if you don't want to have to clarify that it isn't a news story (a news story which the editors then should be standing by), then something different may need to be done. Not anything drastic, but the lead in "New in the Daily Gullet" get's blurred with the "Daily Gullet News" in the casual readers mind. Maybe all that needs to change is "New {insert appropriate noun} in the Daily Gullet" Does this help?

I loved Aqua at the St. Regis, much better than my meal at Bellagio's Aqua.

I'm not sure the context that F-G outlines above is clear. I didn't care for the article. I thought it was ok to publish, but it didn't feel like it was a guest op-ed piece. Maybe they are all guest op-ed pieces but that's a new way of thinking about it for me.

I found Mise en Place to be very good to excellent (appetizer was the excellent one, entree very good). It has a phenomenal wine list ; maybe not Bernsian but 90 Togni Cab for a very fair price for example.

Yes, although I drink many a port before it's 20th year. 1985s are fine now.

The article underestimates what I've seen in the market, espcially for Chateauneuf du Pape. Prices for 2001 futures are up closer to 20%.

Any suggestions for Sienna within the walls or just outside. While I stayed in the country once, and loved the hotel, taking an 8 mile drive at the end of each evening was not prudent given my enthusiasm for the the local vini. I've stayed twice in the walls, didn't like the hotels but loved the location.

Was the primary color of butter still the main one on the pallette?

The only real success I"ve had is buying them on futures: 98 Vieux Telegraph, 98 Croix de la Casse, 2000 Pontet Canet, etc.

I'm pretty similar. Grafton extra old cheddar (or well kept Neil's Yard Montgomery, even better) Parmigiano Reggiano Boucheron