I too, enjoyed reading this account. Coincidentally I was the house guest of Alan last week which ended with him cooking dinner for several of us on Friday night. The menu consisted Chinese Meatballs, Vegetable Tempura, Crab Cakes, Prime Rib of Beef, three step potatoes, roasted brussel sprouts and roasted carrots and we finished with a banana cream pie. He offered to make the pigs and the blanket and the salad, but we decided it was too much. I had volunteered to stop in in Lobel's and pick up a Prime Rib of Beef, but Alan was insistent that I get the full A&P experience. While I can see how some might find Alan curmudgeonly in his writing, he is in fact quite the opposite in person. I have had the pleasure of accompanying him on a few restaurants reviews and he could not be more insightful and professional in his approach. He looks for ways to love the food and the experience, which despite his optimism, seems to be getting harder and harder these days. He is also a gracious host and very good cook. Dinner was excellent. His simple Chinese meatballs were excellent. In fact, I duplicated his recipe for some guests in my home earlier this week. The texture of the tempura was excellent. Crunchy and bright giving way to perfectly cooked vegetables on the inside. I particularly enjoyed the yam version. Steven made a comment above that he preferred the second batch to the first (I believe) and I think I was the opposite, I found the texture of the tempura more crunch and clean in the first batch whereas the second was a little more toasty to me and had less crunch. I am not a big fan of crab cakes, but these were wonderfully lumpy and held together quite nicely. Clearly a signature dish in the Richman House. The prime rib, despite not having Prime pedigree, was excellent, perfectly cooked with an excellent beefy flavor. The brussel sprouts which were sauteed, then roasted were excellent, almost as good as the nearly perfect ones we had the night before at Momofuku (which was an incredible meal in and of itself). The carrots and potatoes were both very good. I am not convinced, however, that the three steps to the potatoes yields a noticeably superior result than simply tossing with fat and roasting (I prefer goose or duck, but will use olive oil in a pinch). In any event, I enjoyed Steven's write up and I was glad that I experienced very similar treatment the following week. For those that criticized Alan's choice of ingredients or ability to cook, let me address the latter first. He can cook, he understands food and he loves to eat, drink and entertain. As for the ingredients, I, like many others here, may opt for the better quality (more expensive ingredients) when preparing a meal. But the proof is in the results. Alan's prime rib (which I would have never purchased myself) was as good as any that I have prepared from better pedigreed meat, it was different in that there was less inter muscular fat, but its flavor was excellent and it was perfectly cooked. The meat balls were made with simple ground chuck, but couldn't have been better. I attribute this simply to the right choice of ingredients he chose to mix with the meat and his deft hand in creating the perfect texture for the balls. He also performed similar culinary alchemy with his banana cream pie...made from simple boxed ingredients and one banana, but transformed into a tasty, lovely dessert (and I never eat dessert) While I would cringe (being a bit of a food snob) at the thought of serving mini frankfurters wrapped in Pillsbury biscuit dough I would have no trouble trying them if Alan were to make them. Steven clearly liked them and I have seen what a capable cook can do with modest ingredients, so I think odds are pretty good that would taste pretty good despite their humble components. Thanks for the nice read
