phaelon56

I just saw mention somewhere that City Bakery in Manhattan has some sort of weird machine/gizmo that keeps hot chocolate hot throughout the day. Might be worth checking out but I'd be concerned about waste at the end of the day until you have a relatively predictable daily volume.

Progress report: we just finished three weeks of being open for business and things are booming. On the third day we bested the same day sales of the smaller of our other two locations. On the sixth day, our first Saturday, we even bested the same day sales of our primary and original location, which is typically very busy on Saturday. Build-out costs including a last minute OUCH bill from the primary contractor, went well beyond estimates; the new revenue stream was not a moment too soon. Apart from not having quite enough storage space the new design seems ot be workign very well from an efficiency standpoint. Regardless, I still keep a memo page in which I detail the things I'll do differently in a place of my own. Best thing of all has been the incredibly positive reaction from the community. We've been welcomed in a big way and anticipate a serious growth in business once our existence becomes more well known - thus far there has been no marketing or advertising. The rational is to first ensure that we're properly staffed and understand the customer flow before we ramp up and make the push for more business - speed and quality of service are a priority. I'll wait until we have some proper china cappa cups in house to post some drink pics but they will be forthcoming.

I'll be cooking the Thanksgiving dinner this year and serving it at my house, now that I have a proper kitchen and space to entertain. My mom actually pulled me aside after Thanskgiving dinner last year and informed me that the task would be passed on to me. Regrettably, my dad has extremely narrow tastes in food and all the main dishes have to be tailored to his palate (i.e. unseasoned). The good news... a friend, whose invitation I was unable to accept due to family obligations, is making up a bunch of side dishes for me and the more adventurous eaters of the group. She's a good cook so it should be a treat and lightens my load as well.

Easy. You make it by the cup. The process of steaming the milk with an espresso machien or a dedicated milk steamer creates the more desirable texture that people have described but this texture doesn't last all day. If I was looking for absolute best quality and wanted to use a high quality non powedered chocolate that was mixed with sugar.... I would make a batch of my own custom blend chocolate syrup once every few days and keep it refrigerated or evenm just keep a jar of shavings adjacent to the steamer. Add X amount of shavings and X amount of sugar to bottom of pitcher and perhaps even a dash of vanilla extract (or better yet - infuse the sugar with vanilla in advance). Add milk, steam and serve. If there's a bit of hot chocolate left in the bottom of the pitcher and it's a slow time of day just refrigerate the pitcher and add more milk before the next steaming session. This will reduce waste but don't resteam even a small portion of milk more than once. I wouldn't resteam any at all for an espresso drink but for a hot chocolate I don't think the texture would suffer in any noticeable way. I've checked with other sources and found a few who have heard of a commercial milk steamer but no one who has seen anything other than the Saeco on the market at present.

Surprisingly well written article. The author really "gets it" regarding the nature of crema and a properly pulled espresso shot. Interesting that the pod machines got consistently poor reviews - Consumer Reports just did reviews of coffeemakers and coffees - pod machines were uniformly panned. They also ranked Starbucks beans very low in terms of quality and gave high marks to Eight O'clock coffee for its price/value ratio - both good calls. Then they proceeded to rate a number of different "Kona" coffees, apparently oblivious to the fact that not only are all Kona coffees not created equal.... but the "Kona blends" they reviewed can legally have less than 5% Kona and still use the name Kona on the bag. It's also telling that an experienced espresso technician had to pull dozens of shots toget the "foolproof" superauto dialed in to the point where marginally acceptable shots were being produced and then advised that with "another day" he could likely improve the results. The average person who does a minimal amount of advance research can fire up any number of machines like a Rancilio Silvia (and many other heading north of that in price) and get very, very good shots with a bit less trouble than that. Support your local barista (but $4 for an espresso shot? Even in NYC that's a bit steep!)

Probably not a coincidence. There's a Fairway market that opened in that area awhile back and I'm sure they took advantage of that. The owners of Dino are very good business people and ubdoubtedly they were aware going into the NYC market that it's hideously expensive to open a restaurant there from scratch. Add to that the fact that they keep their prices very moderate and it's easy to see why they chose that location. Not to mention the fact that bike parking is a must have and they should have room for it up there.

I've eaten at L'Ecole in NYC, the Frecnh Culinary Institutes's restaurant, on a number of occasions. There servers there are also student from the Institute and although the service was not highly polished it was always competent, efficient and genuinely friendly (without trying to be overly familiar). This dilemma at CIA sounds to me like a management/training issue. Admittedly, CIA is a much larger school, but anyone who can master the intracies and pressure of working the line in a commercial kitchen can surely become competent in FOH procedures, given the right training, supervision and motivation.

Will it make milk that has denser foam with tiny bubbles? Something more akin to what you can do with the steam wand on an espresso machine....

Can you share the name, brand, model number of this device? Is it electric or is it a stovetop model? I know of someone who is actively in search of such an item and the ones I've found thus far on the net look cheesy. The Jura is one of the better super-automatics machines on the market. It does a really good job for being a super-auto no, muss-no fuss machine but a super-auto will never match the performance of a good semi-auto machine and a quality grinder. But the manual route requires the interest and desire and the willingness to clean up (it can be a just a trifle messy but I live with it).

I have n many occasions used small curd low-fat cottage cheese mixed 50/50 with low fat ricotta in my famous Irish-American lasagna. I'm basically a culinary heathen so authenticity is not an issue but at the time I was making it fat grams were a concern. I made egglplant rollatini last winter and tried adding some tofu to this same cottage cheese/ricotta mixture. I used the tofu I happened to have on hand and it was not a success due to the firm texture (but was edible). I've been advised that one can make a pretty decent vegan lasagna by using the silken variety of tofu.

Granted... I'm sure you're exaggerating with the one hour figure but I'm with ya on that. I won't wait more than 3 - 5 minutes from start to finish in a line for any coffee or espresso drink no matter whose shop I'm in. Even when we're doing some blender drinks we get the typical customer through the line in 45 seconds to 3 minutes depending on drink type and customer volume. I applaud the NO coffee culture and tradition but would love to know where to get a really good espresso drink next time I'm down that way (which I hope to be in Spring '06).

Right. Instead, you have like what, a dozen or so Cafe Du Monde stores? LOL! EDIT: Only seven CDM's so far. But I think you have another small beignet/cafe au lait chain, Café Beignet taking up the slack, right? DOUBLE EDIT: 24 PJ's and 13 Community Coffees as well, not to mention 3 or 4 other smaller chains. I think the Coffee chain biz in New Orleans is pretty saturated. ← Yet you still can't get a truly outstanding espresso in NO (or at least I wasn't lucky enough to find one). CC had a passable cappa when I was there but not exceptional. But their coffee was indeed very good. Starbucks has educated the public about specialty coffees and also raised the bar for consistency among independents. It's not that tough to deliver better quality than Starbucks but achieving that kind of overall ambiance and consistency is something that some independents could do better at. In January or February they'l open less than a block away from our new store and I can't wait. We'll look even better than we already do by virtue of comparison and our business will probably increase. I like them for the reasons that others have stated (although I find their sweet frou-frou specialty drinks to be revolting). They do engage in a few under the radar practices that are troubling but legal, For example.... once they have a few locations pen in a given community they often search to find out who the best pastry supplier is that sells to local independent coffehouses. Then they cut an exclusive supply contract with that baker which disallows them from selling to the other coffeehouses. Oh well. We're opening our own in house pastry kitchen that can and will run circles around anything I've ever seen in a Starbucks in terms of baked goods. That works for us but a smaller shop or one just getting established might be negatively impacted in such a scenario.

Just one comment about "upgrade fever" and also the wisdom of "should I spend the extra money for an HX machine?". If you really enjoy good espresso drinks just bypass the low end entirely. I started with an $80 De Longhi thermoblock pump machine and a $50 Braun or Krups (can't recall which) blade grinder. After a few months of practice I was able to get good results... generally a bit better than Starbucks but never great. At the time $500 was a big chunk of money for me and I just couldn't see my way clear to jumping to $1200 - $1300 for a high end machine/grinder combo. Instead I opted for a Solis Maestro grinder and Gaggia Baby machine combo for about $500. I could get great shots form that gear - no question about it - but it was inconsistent and I was never satisfied with the steam power (Gaggia's have a small boiler) for milk drinks. I regretted not spending the extra $100 or so originally for a Rancilio Silvia but at that point jumping over to a Silvia was just a bit better than a lateral transfer - it would have been an upgrade but not a significant one. After a year or so with the Maestro/Gaggia I broke down and bought an Isomac Tea with a Mazzer Mini grinder. It set me back $1380 - a huge chunk of money for me then and even today a purchase I'd wince over were it not for knowing what benefits this would bring. The Solis Maestro is a good grinder but if you grind a pound or two of coffee every week (or more), after two years or so the burrs will show significant wear and a small bit of sloppiness may develop in the burr positioning because it uses plastic mounting assemblies. You'll still get decent shots but they could be better. If you jump up to the Rocky or some of the other higher end grinders in the $200 - $300 range (I think Anfim and Cunillo both make some decent ones) you'll have a grinder whose burrs will last the average person 8 - 10 years before they need replacement and you'll eventually pass the grinder on to your kids. It's also worth noting, as chrismirault mentioned, that with a bit of practice, the Silvia can make top shelf drinks - every bit as good as machines that are much more money. what it can't do is steam milk while you're pulling shots or even immediately afterward. The ability to make two or more milk based drinks quickly was a big issue from me. I know from both research and experience that the precious crema of a great espresso shot dissipates within a few minutes. Crema is where it's at - that's where the most intense and best flavor components of a shot are delivered. Being able to blend your foamed milk with a fresh shot just after it's pulled will improve your cappa's and latte's. Being able to knock out five or six milk based drinks in short order when you have guests is truly a blessing. If you stick mostly to straight espresso shots or Americano's the Silvia is all you'll ever need. If milk is your thing just bite the bullet now and get an Expobar for $600. It's the "ugly duckling" of its category (E61 style machines) but all I've heard indicates that it's actually a pretty good looking machine in the flesh and it also takes up less counter space than many of its competitors (all of which range from $900 - $1300 in price). Expobar costs less because it dispenses with having pressure gauges available (I rarely look at mine at home) and is built in Spain rather than Italy. Long term reports form users regarding availability have generally been good. If you visit a site such as Coffeegeek you'll find folks who discuss the more arcane and esoteric aspects of espresso machines and espresso production endlessly and in great detail. It's fun to read but some of, myself squarely in this camp, are not gadget nuts or tweakers by nature. Al I ever awnted was really good espresso drinks at home and I now have them. After thre years of owning and using my current gear I can hoenstly state that I've never once felt the need to upgrade my equipment - I know it will buy me nothing tangible in terms of improved drink quality. Bottom line is.... research a bit so that you're sure you're gettgin equipment that will be suitable for what you anticipate using it for, dont cheap out for the sake of saving a few $$ in the short term and understand that there is a short learning curve involved in using the gear. The results are more than worth it. In very little time you should easily be able to make espresso drinks at home that are equal to or more typically far better than you can get in any local cafe. All in the comfort of your PJ's I use commercial espresso equipment five days per week but still love to stay home on Saturday mornings and make that glrious late that I enjoy in my own kitchen).

I suggest starting by reviewing this Least Expensive Machine For Making Decent Espresso? thread The short version is this.... - The "steam toy" machines that have no pump and rely on building up pressure from heat alone are a total waste of time and money ($30 - $60 price range). - Cheap thermoblock pump machines (DeLonghi is one of the better ones) are better but require plenty of practice and are time consuming to use. Under best conditions, with practice, they can deliver a drink about as good as Starbucks. - $200 to $300 gets you into real genuine consumer espresso machine territory such as the Gaggia Carezza or Solis SL-70. Solis and also the Starbucks machines (which are rebadged Saeco's) will have pressurized portafilters - not good. Add $25 - $30 to get a non-pressurized portafilter. - $500 gets you into a Rancilio Silvia - a real espresso machine that is capable, with practice and patience, of delivering shots as good as what you'll get in some of the best cafes. - $700 - $1200 gets you into the "E61 style" machines. These deliver shots as good as the Silvia but with a greater ease of use for the non-tweaker. All in this category are also HX (heat exchanger) machines - a crucial feature if you're making mostly milk based drinks and may want to make several of them at one time or in rapid sucession (e.g. for guests after dinner). A good whirly blade grinder will suffice for a cheap thermoblock pump machine but an entry level good quality burr grinder such as a Solis Maestro or Solis Maestro Plus at $100 - $150 is a better choice. That level of grinder or better is crucial for best results when getting into "real" consumer espresso machines but the Rancilio Rocky (about $270) or its equivalent is a better choice. You can always put some elbow grease into it and get a Zassenhaus manual mill grinder for about $70. It will be sufficient for all the but the highest end machines. Don't underestimate the advantages of a good grinder, even with a modest espresso machine - it's a crucial factor in achieving good results. Great espresso machine and cheap grinder = lousy espresso.

I just though to revive this topic upon discovering an interesting "add-on" at the cafe where I recently began putting in a few morning shifts each week. As a customer of theirs before I began workign there, I paid no attention to whipped cream as I rarely have a drink that calls for it. Here's the good part: they offer four styles of whipped cream! - espresso flavored - vanilla - regular - macadamia/caramel I'm a cappa/short latte/coffee drinker but people love this offering. I'm surprised I haven't seen it elsewhere.

Great travelogue, wonderful photos. Being who he is... JJ probably lost weight doing all that eating. Now I need a road trip.

I could care lesss about the attire or the ability (or lack of same) to afford such items. Theft is theft and regardless of whether it's in a restaurant, a hotel or someone shoplifting from a retail store (or even breaking and entering for that matter) it's all the same. I've knowno fo several restaurants and at leats one tavern locally that experienced serious financial problems due to internal theft, nearly all related to cash skimming and liquor pilferage in the bar operation. Absentee owners and managers who don't keep a very careful eye on operations are ineveitably subject to such scams unless they're very lucky and just happen to have really good people working for them. That said... my mea culpa relates to the summer I spent working in a big classic old school style hotel in my hometown (it's now defunct and has closed its doors so no harm done in fessing up). Employees were generally treated like expendable crap but the maitre d' was off on Sundays. One of my enterprising co-workers figured how to get us unlimited Manhattans from the room service bar to sip on during our shift and also found out how to bypass the locking system on the walk-in cooler so we could eat unlimited jumbo shrimp. It was a short but memorable summer....

Damn. Think about all the years I've been providing this service and never got a penny for it. Then again... the massage followed dinner and there was typically an agenda Seriously speaking though - wouldn't you rather have the massage after dinner rather than before?

Geetha - I'm glad to see that you're making progress! Just don't give the results to any three year olds to drink or they'll end up like Tryska! (on second thought... maybe you should do that because tryska is a very cool person indeed ) What kind of coffee did you use?

Oh just suck it up and drink the floaties.... how bad could it be? I was thinking about this recently (an indication either of hwo excitign my life is at present or perhaps a telling commentary on my prediliction for all things coffee related). I used to get little floatie scum thigns exactly like those you describe when I was regularly using a stainless steel thermos. I rinsed it our with hot tap water upon arriving home ach day but after a few weeks the floaties would start to appear and not until I'd already had a few cup's of coffee from that day's thermos batch (which was a full quart - about five 6 oz cups). I started cleaning it once a week with a bit of boiling water and some baking soda. It was amazing what crap would come streaming out when I rinsed it. You can buy Urnex to do the same thing but baking soda works just fine.

Fortunately there is rapidly increasng awareness in the US market and elsewhere that espresso roast does not need to = dark and oily. Starbucks carries much of the blame for foisting on the US market the notion that dark and oily beans are the best choice for espresso coffee. Spanish and Southern Italian traditions do in fact call for this roasting style but Northern Italian style roast can deliver far greater nuances of flavor from the beans and produce superior espresso if it's brewed correctly. Good temperature stability during the shot pulling process may be a bit more stringent with this roast style but the results can be spectacular if done correctly - lots of flavor and oozing crema with a noticeable lack of bitterness. For those not familiar with it the Northern Italian roast level could best be described as roasted to a nice mahogany brown with no oil visible on the surface of the beans. Small amounts of oil appearing at the bean tips after 3 - 5 days of resting is acceptable but if bean surface oil is noticeable immediately after or within a day of roasting, current best practive leans towards that being too dark. As with everything of course... it's matter of taste. There's a certain sort of smokiness that can accompany a dark roasted coffee and some find this to be a desirable attribute although it does mask the more subtle flavor components.

Yes... Alberto is 100% correct. What the Illy rep might be doing is comparing Illy to other popular Italian espresso blends. Most of those use anywhere from 10% to 25% robusta in their blends to boost crema in the espresso and to add a certain bitter edge that is favored by some drinkers (there is such a thing as high quality robusta and it's way better than the bad robusta used in typical US supermarket coffees).. I suspect that relative to other all Arabica blends, Illy is probably about the same in terms of caffiene content. It is worth noting that an espresso shot contains less caffiene than a standard size (i.e. 8 to 12 oz) cup of coffee. This is due to the short 25 - 28 second extraction time of the espresso process vs the 5 or 6 minutes that most drip coffee takes to brew. Longer brewing time = more caffiene extraction. It's also worth notingh that coffee which is roasted very, very dark is said to have slightly reduced caffiene content but I'm uncertain of the reason for this.

At $69 per 12 pound bird plus $30 for shipping I think I'd be better off buying really good steaks for Thanksgiving. Why are these birds so expensive? Is it that costly to raise them to such a size? I'm not criticzing, just curious. Even relative to the cost of free range chicken (which can be very pricey) these prices seem a bit steep.

I was afraid you'd say that. I should have posted under some fake identity I will take it under consideration. My blender has not yet been put away for the winter so I guess there is still time to do homework.

If you're adding any kind of syrup, be it chocolate, caramel or others, I should think that a quality syrup made with sugar rather than corn sweeteners (HFCS) would be a a good bet. Strictly from my own highly biased viewpoint I think that malt powder (or whatever is is that they used to make a chocolate malted milkshake) should not be underestimated. Someone needs to make a shake that tastes like Vietnamese iced coffee with condensed milk. That would totally rule and would definitely be a unique offering.