philadining

We were in Ithaca too, and I wish I'd known about Lokelani! Actually it might not have made a difference, we were just really in the mood for Moosewood, largely for sentimental reasons. There was a bit of a wait on saturday night, Moosewood remains a very popular restaurant, despite doing largely the same thing for as long as anyone can remember. The menu is not very large, but changes (a bit) daily. Most everything comes with a salad, which is fresh and carefully-made, and, well, not all that interesting, but hey, it's a green salad! We noticed that they're pretty spare with their dressing, which is usually my preference, but in this case we suspected a little bit of the "it's good for you!" school of austerity. And that's probably true for much of the cooking here. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but not everybody's preference when they go out to dinner. From the size of the crowds, it's clear that plenty of Ithaca residents appreciate that approach. But this isn't nuts and berries and twigs judgmental health food, it's certainly meant to be tasty, and we found that it indeed was. We had a very nice bowl of pasta with eggplant, tomatoes and various other veggies This was really quite delicious, with not even a hint of bitterness to the eggplant. The sauce had a pleasing thick, stewy consistency and great not-too-sweet, not-too-acidic balance. We also ordered the vegetable curry, with currants, cashews and yogurt. I'm not sure it needed the potatoes, which had turned an unattractive color, but it was a good curry, with a very pleasing range of tastes and textures. This is not a complaint or insult, but if you own the Moosewood cookbook, you could probably make all of this food at home, and it would turn out the same way as it does in the restaurant. It's homey, comforting, easy, tasty food. I certainly wouldn't go way out of my way to eat there, it's not a spot for culinary thrills, they're not trying to push the edges of vegetarian cuisine, but I had a very enjoyable dinner nonetheless. I went partly for old-times' sake, but I wasn't disappointed at all. The service was excellent in that mellow Ithaca crunchy kind of way, the whole vibe of the place was nice, and the food was very well done for what it was. They have a decent wine list with several things available by the glass (we had a Gewurtz with the curry and a Cab Franc with the pasta, both of which were very nice. ) I liked it. But next time - Lokelani!

Autumn is a great time to drop by some wineries around the Finger Lakes, and thanks to some posts here, we made a point to check out Dano's Heuriger overlooking Seneca Lake. It's a lovely place: a modern yet earthy building with a great view out over the lake. A small garden sits at the back, just across a wall of glass from the spacious kitchen. The dining room is one large airy space on two levels, with high ceilings and spare but elegant wood tables and chairs. Over the kitchen is posted the menu: Beneath that is a case with the wide array of spreads and salads on display It's nice to scan the board and get a look at some of the selections, but there's regular table service with menus, so one doesn't need to order at the counter. There was a whole page of specials, but we decided to stick with some of their signature dishes. But first - a mug of Hoffer Gruner Veltliner! They were running low on the GruVee, so we just got the one mug, augmented by a glass of Gewurtztraminer from down the road at Leidenfrost. There were 8-10 spreads to choose from, and it was hard to narrow it down. Each is $2.50, or one can get 3 for $6.25. We tried the Liptauer (no it's not a cholesterol medicine, it's a cheesy spread flavored with paprika and other additions,) the Pumpkin Seed Oil, and the Gorgonzola. All were quite good, especially spread on their excellent assortment of breads. That's a half-basket, but we ended up needing the other half to accompany the generous scoops of cheesey spreads. The whole basket, a large portion of 4 or 5 different kinds of bread is $4.75 There are even more salads than spreads, priced the same way, so we somehow narrowed it down to three: A mild, but pleasant Viennese Potato; a creamy Salsify salad spiked with dill; and the winner of the bunch, a Beet salad exploding with Horseradish. There's a selection of smoked and cured fish, but we moved on to the hearty meats, splitting a Farmer's Plate Up front is a braised Pork Shank, the little drumlin of to the left is a Viennese Dumpling, in back are a Smoked Pork Chop and a Knockwurst, all blanketed by sauerkraut flavored with bacon. All of the meats were tender, juicy and flavorful, the kraut a vivid acidic counterpoint. I suppose it would be possible for one hungry person to eat this, but I'm glad we split it between two of us. It was a big pile of food for $18. Just for the sake of excess, we added on a Smoked Hungarian Sausage, which had a nice assertive flavor that added an extra note to the chorus of pork in front of us. They brought us some extra plates to facilitate sharing, and I love these, the one flattened edge handy on a crowded table. We'd had entirely too much food to even think about dessert, but the various tarts and tortes loked so good that we decided to take one for the eGullet team, and ordered a chocolatey, nutty, Kugelhopf, served with sour cherries. We ate at a pretty casual pace, and our server even made the point a few times that this is what a Heuriger is all about: just relaxing and having some food and wine, ordering some more when you feel like it... I think we might have been there about three hours, although we saw plenty of other people come in, order a Wiener Shnitzel or one of the specials such as Chicken Pakrikash, and be out of there pretty promptly. Personally, I liked taking it slow, and if there had been any physical way to accomplish it, we would have started all over again with some of the spreads and salads we didn't get to... or maybe the Viennese Eggplant that looked so great in the case, or maybe some of that smoked trout... This is actually pretty simple food, very straight-ahead and un-fussy. But there's great virtue in just doing it right, with good ingredients. We liked every thing we had, even though nothing was especially innovative, just delicious. No one thing was mind-blowing, but considering the variety, the inherent quality of the food, the beautiful view, and the pleasant feel of the place, it made for an extremely enjoyable meal. I'm eager to get back there when I'm in the area again, but I may have to wait, they reduce their hours significantly in the winter. I think they pretty much close-up, but the menu says "call for Winter Hours" so maybe they'll be open now and then. I think it would be a lovely spot for a warming meal on a snowy day. As Bob posted above, their website is www.danosonseneca.com, the official address is 9564 Route 414, Lodi, NY, 14860. (which means - roughly half-way up Seneca Lake, on the east side.) Phone: 607-582-7555.

FWIW, I love Dumpling Master, and keep trying to think of excuses to go there when I visit LA. Haven't managed to get there in a while, but I dream about it... Indeed, it's a "joint," no atmosphere whatsoever, but you'll have your eyes closed in noodle rapture most of the time anyway.

Katie's got a container of rice the size of a bathtub that she took home as leftovers. And we needed a hand truck to get 2 take out containers to the Fentons' car.... If I were you I'd find an excuse to drop by one of their places, think of some way to distract them, then make a run for the fridge. Me, no, I don't have any left... nope... at least I'm not answering my door!

I don't think it's regional, there are big fancy, expensive brunch buffets all over, often in hotels, but not always. The Lacroix brunch is certainly an extreme example, it's the most expensive (and the best) that I've encountered, but I've seen plenty of elaborate, pricey brunch buffets on various scales. That said, I can see the confusion, there certainly is a tradition of the casual, low-key weekend brunch as well. We in Philly will just have to be a little more careful about setting conditions when recommending a "great brunch."

Aranitas Chicken Empanadas Beef Empanadas Ham croquettes Arroz con Pollo Estilo Cubano Tostones These, or Maduros, came with the Arroz con Pollo, in case that big bowl of rice was not carbolicious enough! Ropa Vieja Bandeja Tipica Colombiana (note, this had a plate of fried ribs and an Arepa on a separate plate, which somehow didn't get photographed...) Masa de Cerdo Montuno I managed to taste just about everything, and I thought it was all delicious. I could eat those aranitas all night at a bar, and I think I could could eat my shoe if it were dosed with a bit of the magic garlic sauce the aranitas are served with. The Chicken Empanadas were especially good. And I stole a rather undignified amount of Katie's Arroz con Pollo - both the chicken and rice were delicious, but the chorizo in there made it just irresistible. Good stuff all around.

That realmilk site is fascinating. Still, no sheep's milk, like, anywhere, apparently... I wonder why?

As with many spots, I think it may come down to finding this place's strong and weak points. It took me a few visits to Penang to figure out what I liked and didn't... A few things we had were really outstanding, like the Roti Canai, the Tom Yum, the Satay, the Mango Salad, the Aqua Tofu. A few other things were good, just not mind-blowing. A couple of other things we has were probably correctly done, it just depends on whether one likes the style. And a couple things just weren't all that well-executed. But I'll give some of them another chance, it could have been just that day, that dish. My overall impression is still quite positive, and I'll be going back.

Very positive review In the Inky.

Returned to Aqua, and we weren't quite s blown-away as the first time, but it was still very good... Started with Tom Kha This was a very solid version of the classic Thai coconut milk soup, perfectly fine. But their Tom Yum is really extraordinary, so I think I'll stick with that in the future! Mixed Satay (Beef and Chicken) This was very tasty, and pretty similar to the versions at Penang and Banana Leaf, in that the meat has a sweet glaze, and the peanut sauce has a nice, thick, pumpkiny thing going on. For better or worse, this dish came out pretty quickly, in contrast to there always being a bit of a wait, especially for the chicken satay, at the other Malaysian places. This makes me think that they might have some of these ready to go, which is convenient, but the meat was not quite as hot and fresh-off-the-grill as might be ideal. That is a small quibble, it was still quite delicious. You get two beef and three chicken skewers in the mixed version. Kari Ayam The curry sauce on this was really great, but sadly the chicken was a little dry, seeming a bit over-done. It wasn't a big problem, breaking the chunks of chicken up a bit and letting it absorb the sauce solved that issue. But I've had this dish elsewhere with more thinly sliced chicken that was moister. I'd read an account on-line of someone really loving the Volcano Ribs, so I figured we'd give them a try. Im not entirely sure why, but they arrive like this: Tear open the foil, and you find these: The ribs were cut into approximately 2-inch segments, deep-fried, then tossed in a sweet sauce, dusted with sesame. I have to say we just didn't like these very much. Because of the sauce and from steaming in the foil, there wasn't any crispness from the frying, the meat itself was pretty chewy, and the sauce was rather one-dimensional. We ate them, I don't think there was anything wrong with them, we just didn't like them as much as most other things we've had there. Overall, a good meal, but not quite as impressive as our first visit. I'd get the satay again, and try the Kari Ayam again to see if the chicken is any better. Looking forward to trying more, for sure! The service once again was very good, very friendly and helpful. And we didn't use one, but we noticed that there were credit card symbols in the window, so I assume that they take cards now.

I just did some code clean-up - the pics should display here:

Yep, the steak is a regular menu item. For better or worse, the menu stays pretty much the same. This is OK with me because there are several things that I'm happy to get again and again, and there are usually a couple of specials if one gets bored with the usual. The only reason I'm not at this place all the time is that it's so freaking hard to park around there, and that on weekend nights, the waits are pretty brutal if you don't get there right at opening. So I don't go as much as I'd like, but I think my visits are in the double-digits, and I've enjoyed every meal I've had there.

All this Vetri talk in another topic reminded me that I'd failed to post about a recent Melograno meal that totally rocked. Sorry, I didn't have the good camera with me, I feel like I'm letting you all down... Darn, guess I'll have to go back! Chicken Livers These were really great, crunchy, creamy, with some nice acid from the accompaniments. Arugula-Prosciutto salad Simple, straightforward, perfectly fresh, delicious. Pappardelle with mushrooms and pancetta I'm not even sure this is on the menu, but man it was good, that pasta has the perfect texture. Love the version with mushrooms and truffles too. I somehow managed to not get a good photo of an unexpected concoction my dining partner made from two entrees combined: seafood and beans mixed with penne. Not sure I would have thought of it, but it was really tasty. Bistecca alla Fiorentina Yeah, I know, why order a steak at a place like this?!? Because it might be the most delicious one in the whole damn city. Seriously. It's tender, assertively herby, and nicely complimented by the beans it sits on. It's not especially thick, but plenty big, at least for me. LaBan raved about it in his review a few years ago, and his description intrigued me, and sure enough, it's really good. I've ordered it a few times now, and my dining partners always look at me like I'm crazy, but change their expression when they get a taste! All in all an excellent meal, and thanks to some sound treatment on the ceiling, not as punishingly loud as it used to be. It's still pretty noisy, but at least my ears weren't ringing when I left. Kudos to the owners for at least trying.

For no good reason at all, I've never been to Vetri. I've tried a few times at the last minute, and as Bill discovered, it's not a last-minute kind of place... I haven't been avoiding it, it's just been something I've been saving for a special occasion, and then the scheduling never works out. But for what it's worth, I've had a few trusted friends go, and they all raved about it. I agree with the V that the majority of the Italian restaurants in town aren't striving for this level of refinement, or using ingredients of this quality, and that sets up a contrast of cost/value. As many have suggested, at this price level one can reasonably expect to be amazed by the food. Perhaps it raises a question about this particular style of cooking: is it inherently show-stopping, fireworks-launching, mind-blowing food? I always had the impression that the ultimate expression of this style was simplicity. One would hope that excellent ingredients, expertly prepared, would indeed be amazing, but I wonder if the price point and setting create an expectation of something that it doesn't intend to be. I'm not accusing anyone of not understanding Italian food, or this particular regional focus, but I guess I'm wondering how good a roasted goat gets? I've heard raves about Vetri's version, but I have no doubt that there are also some great versions being made in parking lots, on smokers pulled behind beat-up pickup trucks. Vetri's going to charge more for it because of the context, and that gets back to the enduring, unanswerable "worth-it" equation. Clearly, a fair number of people weren't that impressed, and didn't feel it was worth it. That's valuable information, and I'm glad they posted about it. But obviously, from the fact that they're full most of the time, as well as numerous rave reviews from serious writers, others do find that it's worth it. Of course the reports of things seeming un- or under-seasoned are troubling, but I wonder if sometimes that comes down to personal preferences and biological differences. One person's subtle elegance is another person's blah. I can't comment on Vetri in particular, but I have been surprised to encounter this occasionally in even very refined kitchens, and it did make me wonder what was up... In any case, I still hope to eat at Vetri sometime soon, maybe before the Osteria gets going... Just look for me booked as "Dumas, party of 4". And yes, I'll take pictures for the book!

Daniel, was this the Beef you had? Braised Beef Filet with Szechuan Style I really like this! It's not as savagely hot as it looks, but there's certainly some pepper in there. I'm very fond of the Tasty House, but just for the sake of doing the survey, next time you're in Philly, try Chung King Garden (right across the street) they do some serious Szechuan food there too, that I thought compared well with Grand Sichuan International and Wu Liang Ye. Not to steer you away from STH, there's plenty more good stuff to eat there. Oh, wait, it's Daniel: go to BOTH! Or no, I can see it now, we can hit all the best dishes in Chinatown in one day - PM us - we'll get a crew together!

There are actually several really good things on this menu that are not spicy at all: As mentioned, the Golden Coins (deep-fried eggplant stuffed with ground pork,) Ban Ban Chicken (cold chicken breast with a sesame sauce,) Dan Dan Noodles, Chang Du Cold Noodles,Ginger Shredded Duck, Pork with garlic Sauce (sounds boring - isn't!) there's more... Even the dumplings in spicy sauce are all that spicy, depends where your threshold is. All of those are dishes I'd recommend from experience, and there's lots more on the menu for the heat-averse. I can't vouch for the more conventional entries on the menu, I just haven't tried them, but they might be very good. Obviously the strong suit of this place is the spicy stuff, but you'll have no trouble getting something tasty while your husband leaps into the flames.

From their website:

There are several pastas on the menu, including Fettuccine Alfredo... I had intended to try this place a few weeks ago, but there were surprisingly few vegetarian options on the menu outside of that pasta, and our veggie friend was a little weirded out by the cognitive dissonance inherent in eating that in a Mexican restaurant. Not sure I saw much more that I remember as being more "European" than Mexican, but it did look good, if a bit pricier than others in the neighborhood. Thanks for the report, Buckethead, I'm even more eager to try it now. ETA: whoops, urbanfabric beat me to it...

Another visit to Vietnam restaurant: the barbecue platter and salt-baked squid mentioned upthread are excellent, but we also recently tried a couple more things that are definitely Chinatown highlights: Crispy Duck with Pineapple sauce Too often "crispy" duck ends up all dried out, but not this version, it had a nicely crisp skin, but the meat was very juicy, and the fruity, citrusy twist on the typical Nuoc Mam is a great accent. And I forget what these are called on the menu... super garlicky greens.... they're awesome...

That actually sounds OK to me, what does it take to get somebody to hold a Locatelli to my head?

Ahh, Sneakeater, finally, you managed to find the holy grail! And you didn't even need to drive 6 hours to do it. After a culinary highlight like that, I'm sorry that the rest of your dining this year will be all downhill from here... The big question is: can you get a garbage plate with white hots there? And really, it's New York City, I can't imagine it would be too difficult to dig up the proper, umm... companions... if you really wanted to recreate the ambiance of a Nick Tahou parking lot.

I think I'm mid-way between Gordon and H du Bois: it's possible to eat very well in Rochester, but there aren't any really jaw-droppingly great restaurants that are going to completely floor people with their combination of food, service and setting, like is possible to find in Manhattan, or even Toronto. And it's true enough that prime rib and a view seems to be the most common expression of "fine dining" in the area. I'm not sure I'd go so far as to say that there have ever been "lots of top-notch restaurants" although I've found plenty that I've enjoyed. I can't imagine that Therese was expecting to find a Per Se in Rochester, just an impressive spot. I trust Gordon's recommendation of Max's (either one.) Despite having the word "Grill" in the name, Sienna is in a lovely space and is doing serious cooking. It's not ultra-elegant, but it's not casual, or inexpensive, so if food is a higher priority than the setting, it's worth a serious look. Once upon a time the Rio Bamba was the default swanky splurge restaurant, but whether or not it ever deserved that reputation, apparently that's not the general opinion right now, both from change in concept and in staff. I'm not sure there's an indisputable heir to that throne. Sneakeater has a point: Nick Tahou would be impressive.

I always think it's dangerous to generalize from isolated stories, especially from sources one is not familiar with. It's entirely possible that the customer who voiced the complaint was treated poorly, while it's also conceivable that she contributed to the problem. I'm much more likely to give weight to the opinions of regulars here on this board, because eGullet, in addition to being moderated, is more of a community, and we come to know whether a person is never happy about anything, or conversely too forgiving, or somewhere in-between. There had been a funny post on Chowhound a while back that related an incident at Famous that sounded alarmingly like the Wheat Toast scene from Five Easy Pieces, so who knows, maybe there are some customer service issues. But from my own experiences, I'm with Holly, they've always treated me very kindly, and like Holly, my only complaint would be that they served me sandwiches that caused me to violate a maxim I picked up from the title of a B. Kliban book: Never Eat Anything Bigger Than Your Head.

Oh, right, thanks for the reminder mod*betty, the G-Lodge on rt 23 between Phoenixville and Valley Forge Park does indeed do good, basic, diner-like breakfasts. Nothing all that creative, just good pancakes and the like. Pretty crowded on weekends. Iron Hill Brewery should be open soon in Phoenixville, and I would assume that they'll do a sunday brunch like the others do.

I'm sure you saw it in the other thread, but I'll just reiterate that I was very impressed by my meal at Sienna. I've heard some other good reports too. It's a nice space, interesting food, not cheap... And the fabled Rio Bamba has gone through some kitchen/concept changes recently, for better or worse. Last I saw it was being billed as Bamba Bistro, but I haven't heard anything about how it is.