Mano

Any excellent BYOB's or is that primarily a Philly phenomenon?

I've made duck with blackberry sauce from epicurious about six times. It's outstanding. Read the personal reviews and tweak accordingly. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/1265 BTW, I cook ducks using one of those poultry stands so the fat drips out, the skin is crisp and the meat is moist.

Not me, but a babysitter who arrived at 4:00 was instructed to turn off the crock pot at 6 p.m. She'd never seen one before and at one point thought to herself, "shouldn't it be on the stove to cook?" She turned on the electric element and put the crock pot, which had a plastic bottom, on the element to "cook." Needless to say, we went out and got a new crock pot and a new babysitter.

ChefCrash, those look terrific. The only problem is, my wife is lactose intolerant. Peter, same concern, but I really like the idea of putting the escargot in something other than puff pastry or mushrooms.

We have a couple of tins of escargot and plan to use them this Saturday. I usually follow Craig Claiborn's NY Times cook book recipe and sometimes stuff them in mushrooms. Any other recipes? Thanks in advance.

The Chairman's Selections are deeply discounted, but you're right about prices on most all other wines and spirits; they're higher than states where a competitive market exists. Don't get me, Katie, or anyone else from PA started on the downside of the PLCB system. You'd think that with the buying power of the ENTIRE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA all the prices would be the lowest in the country. There's so much more to it than that, but if one choses to look at the system optimistically, at any given time there are a handful or more of wines here that are amazing bargains.

Living in PA means you must go to a Commonwealth owned Wine and Spirits store run by the PENNSYLVANIA LIQUOR CONTROL BOARD (PLCB). There are positives and negatives to the "State Store" system, but one big plus is the Chairman's Selection of wines. The PLCB chairman, Jonathan Newman, buys entire allotments of particular wines and passes the savings onto the State Store customer. Some wines are a fantastic value, others are not as great, but Newman has developed a good palate for wine and gets good wine buying advice such that there are few, if any, duds. . Most stores carry at least a few of the Chairman's Selection, but find a Specialty Store and you'll have most all of the Chairman's Selection to choose from. PLCB employees take wine tasting classes and you're likely to find reasonably good guidance, especially at a Specialty Store. Nevertheless, taste lots of wines, make some notes, and try wines recommended by different reputable magazines based on their description of the wine as much as by the score. Eventually your own preferences will emerge and you'll understand your palate. FWIW, over the years I've learned that certain importers bring in wines that I like. I'm just as likely to look at the back of the bottle where the importer's name is, as I am the front label. To find a PLCB store near you, look here: http://www.pawineandspirits.com/webapp/wcs...10051&langId=-1 To peruse the current Chairman's Selection look here: http://www.lcb.state.pa.us/webApp/Product_..._Selections.asp To see if a wine you want is available at stores near you, look here: http://www.lcb.state.pa.us/WebApp/Product_...fault_inter.asp

Thanks, again, for your suggestions. As we opened the door to Nan, I realized we'd been there several years ago after, I believe, a positive review from LaBan. I remember dining there because the food was good but service was poor. Throughout the entire evening our waitress kept forgetting us! The manager, who was a Doppleganger for Philadelphia DA, Lynn Abraham, saw that all was not well as we were waiting for our check for quite a while. She explained the waitress was getting ready to leave for college and her mind was elsewhere. "Lynn" apologized and said that to make it up to us, we should remind her of who we are and what happened the next time we dined there. Fast forward to September 2006. We arrived at 6:00. The food was very good and we drank an Alsace, which paired well with the Thai dishes. The service started out fine, as there were only about ten other diners. Soon, Nan was about 75% filled and the one waiter and his assistant/server couldn't keep up. We absolutely had to leave at a particular time and figured 1.75 hours would be plenty of time for four people. Seeing the waitstaff struggling, we even asked for our check as we were finishing our meals, with about 30 minutes to spare. I had a credit card ready and waiting, but when the check finally came, there wasn't enough time, so I left cash. In the end, we were out of there at exactly 7:45. Unforturnately, "Lynn" was nowhere in sight.

Thank you all for your recommendations. We decided on Nan but will be visiting often enough that we'll certainly try RX, Marigold Kitchen. Penne and White Dog. Any wine suggestions for Nan? They have venison (zin?), lamb (cab?), pad thai (Belgian beer or a Gwertztraminer?), duck (pinot Noir?). I could bring a rhone...

Good point. Looking for something in the Penn/Drexel neighborhood. Rx and Marigold sound good. Keep the recommendations comming!

What restaurants would you recommend within 1-2 miles of Univ. of PA? Looking for a Wednesday around 6:30 reservation, moderately priced.

While in graduate shcool about 20 years ago I waited tables at restaurant in Long Beach, CA and made Ceasar Salad, Steak Diane and Bananas Foster at tableside. They were always crow-pleasers and yielded nice tips. For the life of me, I can't remember the recipies for any of them.

Great thread Dave! I have a question about IKEA cabinets, which I had always dismissed as consistent with the average build quality of their other products. What makes them "second to none"? I like the idea of saving money by using their cabinets but having the doors made elsewhere. Are the cabinets available sans doors so you don't have to go through the trouble of returning them?

I usually angle the worm into the cork applying pressure to the side of the neck rather than down. ← Gordon, how is that done? I use a Screwpull pocket or their lever model, both of which applies equal downward pressure to the neck.

Set it upright anywhere from the day before to the morning of your dinner. Keep it at "room temperature", which, for a bordeaux is around 60-65F. Strain through a cheesecloth or one of those wine strainers. Decant, but for how long, better ask someone else. I'd give it 30-60 minutes, but there's no rhyme or reason why. Enjoy the wine, it's from a spectacular year.

Jason, I'm not a rum drinker, but the Ron Zacapa Centenario sounds terrific. Neat, on the rocks...?

That's only because Fidel won't let them drink port or single malt.

For a whisky that will go well with the nutty flavor of a Montecristo, try an Islay single malt. The peaty and smoky flavors of the malt complement the cigars. Tallisker and Lagavulin are great recommendations. If you're new to single malt, go with the Tallisker. The Lagavulin is a gentle giant that may be too much. Both have plenty of snob appeal. I've never tried it, but you may want to check out Dalmore Cigar Malt. Dalmore makes some very nice SM and this was concocted specifically to compliment cigars. http://randalls.stores.yahoo.net/mb311674.html Not to get too far afield, but as an inveterate cigar smoker and single malt lover, I'd also recommend a Port. For snob appeal, go with a vintage or Late Bottled Vintage. Heck, a really good Tawny Port also goes great with cigars.

Maybe I missed it, but are there guidlines restaurants agree to follow in order to participate in Restaurant Week? If so, what are they?

Here's a link to the audiophile equivalent of the wine clip: http://www.referenceaudiomods.com/Merchant...Product_Count=2

I bought one for my office and returned it the next day. Loud (but most burr grinders are, but not this loud), inconsistent grind and terrible static electricity problems (but many burr grinders have at least some SE problems if they have plastic parts.) It was cheaply made but looked nice. FWIW, I'm sticking with my Kitchen Aid A9, which has been great for drip and Krups Moka Brew. At $99, it's easily three times the machine as the President's Choice. (IIRC, it's the choice of the president of the He-man Woman-Hater's Club)

He is. I had the pleasure of working as a prep cook with Rick and his wife, Deanna, while in grad school about 20 years ago at a California Cuisine inspired restaurant in Orange County. Even back then he had "chops" as they say in the music business. Deanna was a dessert and pastry whiz and was fairly shy. Rick was as you see him on television, energetic, outgoing, down to earth, curious and eager to share. He discussed the menu with the staff and had us all taste the dishes and give feedback. He also arranged for wine tastings for the staff. A funny story about one of the few times I saw him get irritated. Rick taught me how to make ice cream from scratch, using a bain marie (sp?). I had a great time making a different concoction each night, using various flavorings, chocolates and liquors. One night, I uncorked a good one, so to speak and people were raving over the ice cream. Rick asked me for the recipe, which I didn't have, as I made it up on the fly. As a professional chef, he couldn't believe I didn't write it down. After they left, Rick was replaced by a prima donna who changed the menu and couldn't be bothered with the rest of the staff.

I have no affiliation with this seller whatsoever: http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/for/182118685.html

Owen, why is that? What beans do you use and where do you purchase them? I grind 1/3 cup of beans a day and enjoy a rich cup of coffee made 90% in a Krups Moka Brew, with the other 10% made in a Malitta drip with a SwissGold filter. IMO, oily beans tend to have more flavor, but sometimes they're over-roasted. Most all my beans are bought on sale from Porto Rico Roasters in NYC (I live in nearby PA, so they get to my doorstep within a few days). I was recently given a gift of Raven's Brew, which is very good, but was made in Seattle or Alaska, and was sitting on the store shelf for a few months. I'd be very interested in your preferences or recommendations for the KMB and drip.

I previously posted my view of what to expect from a restaurant critic: Professional reviewers of food, wine, music or art must be experts. Either they received formal training at an established institution or they had extensive training "in the field." By expert, I mean someone who has the practical and academic background and knowledge to understand and appreciate what constitutes excellence in a particular area. But this is not enough and in fact, many excellent reviewers share their expert knowledge only sparingly in their reviews. The best food critics have a depth and breadth of knowledge that extend far beyond where they might have eaten. They are passionate about knowing the history of the food and region, and delight in their ability to know what ingredients work best together and why. Professional food and wine writers should be "super-tasters," who have the ability to taste and identify a wide range of obvious and subtle flavors and ingredients. I know super-tasters who can consistently identify wines in blind tastings and who can identify most all ingredients in dishes. One of the things that makes a critic great is their ability to also take on the perspective of the average customer and explain to that customer why the food is great or not so great. In other words, to take the customer by the hand and show them "This is why this sashimi so superior" and have the average customer say, "I get it." This ability is why I like Antique Road Show so much, and why Julia Child was so popular and why the art critic, Sister Wendy, is so fantastic.