R Washburn

slkinsey, If you like a thick burger try the Triple Shack Burger. Way too thick IMHO. I usually order a double Shack Burger, cheese fries and an Arnold Palmer. What would be the closest comparable burger to Shake Shack's? White Mana? I can't think of any other fried burger I really like.

I really like their fries, so it may just be a matter of individual taste. The shack burger is definitely the best fried burger I know of in NYC. Are all of the profits from the kiosk being used to maintain the park, or only a portion?

"Ethereal pear charlotte" is one of my favorites.

Those steak frites do look good. I wish that place was there when i worked in Phoenixville in the late '90's. We used to trek out to Green Hills Inn for fine dining.

How about Le Bernardin? Isn't Laiskonis' still there? J-G is also very good. I haven't tried too many desserts at the Modern, but the pastry chef there trained with, and is heavily influenced by, Pierre Herme.

I have had the Cuisinart supreme for almost a year now and I really like it. Very nice if you are interested in making icecream in 1 Qt. batches. The only downside is that it is rather noisy.

I am pretty sure that ADNY serves a custom roast La Colombe makes just for them. IMHO, La Colombe doesn't get nearly the praise it deserves.

Also note that, although the prices are the same, appetizer portions are smaller than the entree dishes. So you might be disapointed with the portion size if you happen to choose all appetizers (which, IIRC, are towards the top of the menu).

You may be right. The patisserie Miel is getting away with charging New York prices in Center City, so maybe an upscale sandwich shop could do the same.

I like Scharfenberger's but it is way too expensive to cook with, so this news really doesn't affect me. Now if Hershey's buys Callebaut and Valrhona, then i will be concerned.

Holly and Daniel, Same bread same everything. All ingredients are trucked in from Philadelpia, which is only 90 min. away. I would say that the Philadelphia location is more consistent, but the NY location is good enough that I don't bother visiting Tony Luke's when I am in Philadelphia. I am much more likely to get a Hoagie from Sarcone's, if I am eating at that price point.

Daniel, It is the same pork, since everything is trucked in from Tony Luke's in South Philly. The differences were probably in the skill of the person assembling the sandwich. i know my cheesesteak hoagies in the NY location have ranged from better than the typical oregon ave. version to considerably worse.

I prefer frozen custard. If you are not happy with the cake part of the pave you could substitute another recipe. The really key elements of the pave, IMHO, are the ganache and apricots.

I have been meaning to try the "Flash Inn", which is reputed to be a very good Italian restaurant. It made the Village Voice "Best of" list. Address: 107 Macombs Place.

Have you been recently? I stopped going there after I detected a sharp decline in the quality of the pastries a few years ago.

Petrossian and Fauchon if you are interested in high end French pastry. I would classify them as remarkable. Are you going to be on the East or West side?

Yes, we need restaurants for people who don't care about food.

I would rather have the one meal at Per Se than three at OIBL. I am not saying it is a bad restaurant, just that Per Se is more than 3x as good. If your main interest is food, you can do a lot better at that price point.

I am going to be in St.Kitts for my vacation. Any ideas about rums i should buy? IIRC, Wray and Nephew products were very cheap.

Same here. I never get dessert for that very reason. I tried the triple shack burger on Sunday (about a 15 min. wait in line at 1PM), and while it was good I will opt for two single patty burgers in the future. Better meat to bun ratio. The crinkle-cut cheese fries were outstanding and the Arnold Palmer very refreshing.

I value perfection. As Chefette wrote above, flaws are just poor craftsmanship. I would also point out that since I make my own chocolates, I would prefer to buy ones that are better than the ones I make.

Mel, J.B. Prince is a good source here in NY. They have a website: Acetate sheets

I would recommend using a relatively inexpensive, high quality chocolate like Callebaut(I buy it for $2.83/#), and work with it in # quantities. I usually temper 2 or 3# of chocolate at a time using a double boiler, a digital thermometer and an ice bath. I had a lot more problems with the tempering process when I used to try to work with small quantities of chocolate (<1#).

Anyone try the chicken? They looked very tempting at $12.95 each. Twice as much as "El Malecon" or Fairway, but I expect that they are at least twice as good.

I really like Valrhona's Cocoa powder, which I buy in 6kg. boxes (3-1kg bags/box) for $39.26 from Assouline and Ting in Philadelphia. They would probably sell smaller quantities as well, if you ask nicely.