Mnehrling

I love the smell of smoked salmon (ok, almost anything smoked), rosemary, nutmeg, coffee, and apples. The only smell that stands out in a negative way is eggplant. I literally get nauseous every time I smell it. I think I have an allergy to it. How do chef's handle working in environments were an ingredient makes them sick just to smell it?

One of those 3000 degree wok burners.

I absolutely love this stuff. Many times people walk in my office when I steep a pot to see if something is burning. I have learned this makes a wonderful seasoning agent. The last time I brined a turkey, I put about 5 teabags in the liquid and it infused a great smoke flavor. Also add it to steaming liquid.

Hey, I'm in Texas. They probably call everything a 'California Roll'. We even have one place that has a Dallas Roll, Cowboy Roll (Unagi & BBQ Sauce- really gross), and Longhorn Roll.

Remember 2002 had really really bad weather in western and central Europe? http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn4684

A small Vietnamese place I frequent is just like this. I always want to tip well because they are a new business and I know what its like to just start out. Plus, their food and service is wonderful. The sad part is the more I tip, the more I get free the next time (and we eat there about 2-3 times a week sometimes). The last time we went, I couldn't figure out why our bill was $10 for two meals, French coffees and desert. She wouldn't let me question her, she said, no no, its correct.

Rerun: Iron Chef America: 2 on 2 The Grand Finale offers an unexpected twist! Iron Chef Japanese Masaharu Morimoto and Bobby Flay will team up for the first time against Iron Chef French Hiroyuki Sakai and Mario Batali in the ultimate battle of culinary champions I think Flay uses poached eggs in this one too.

I sometimes worry if the wait staff get in trouble for tips like this as their boss may think the waiters are trying to scam the customer by changing the ticket. The other day I left a $50 tip to a wonderful waitress after I heard her talking to friends at the next table that she was getting married the next day. As soon as I left I worried that they may think she modified the ticket.

To make this Texas relevant, I am surprised how many people here (Texas) are stingy tippers for good service. I always watch when people are overly demanding to their waiter or waitress what it looks like they tip. I have seen highly demanding people leave a pile of change in a very expensive restaurant. Normally I try to compensate as I know how little a waiter makes (I did the table thing a few months in High School). I remember once a person left 1/2 a cent (not kidding) to a fellow waiter. This turned me into a high tipper (30%+), unless the service is completely awful.

So when O' when shall this show be reproduced stateside? Tony? Hell Yes! As long as it isn't like the crap rip-off of BBC's Coupling that NBC attempted.

Actually Juan wants to do Iron Chef, he said he would be throwing the healthy cooking out the window and go full on butter and fat.... ← Man, I can just imagine what he can do with a sugar and lard buzz going. When you get as excited as it seems he is about low-cal/healthy, I would like to see him 'gloves off'. ← I think it would be much more interesting to watch him compete in the style that he is known for. I think that would be a definite first. No one has ever tried going healthy like that before... Although there was that one guy that competed on the original series who was known for cooking medicinal chinese food. I seem to recall that one of his medicinal ingredients was a black chicken. But no one has "gone Juan" before... that would be cool to watch. If he cooks just like everybody else, he misses out on a good opportunity to share his noble, albeit annoying, food philosophies (cardio-friendly yet just like the "real deal"). ← You have a point as it would be marketing his product. On the other hand, he may consider himself typecast and feels he has a lot more to offer than low-cal. I am sure people will watch for what he is known for, but he should have the freedom to choose what face of cooking he shows. Of course, this is TV and nothing is real!

A critic, like any other writer, has a product to sell. It is their job to find something to write about. Think about journalists, its not their job to find what is going right in a situation. They must find what will draw readers. The public will be more drawn to nightmares than someone saying 'its good.' Specifically in your example, it seems the critic searched hard to find something that will meet the demand of 'criticism.' I do believe that restaurant critics are often too hard, but many times they have saved me from a bad choice. There have also been many times when I wish a critic had warned me. The problem, I suppose, is not the critic but the public. As long as we demand critical chop jobs, that's what we'll receive. It takes real talent from a critic to draw us in on the positive. One of the few I can think of is eGullet's own Chris Cognac, (the culinary detective.)

Actually Juan wants to do Iron Chef, he said he would be throwing the healthy cooking out the window and go full on butter and fat.... ← Man, I can just imagine what he can do with a sugar and lard buzz going. When you get as excited as it seems he is about low-cal/healthy, I would like to see him 'gloves off'.

For nigiri sushi, I love unagi and tamago (or nori-tama). For sashimi, it is otoro tuna (I prefer this for sashimi instead of sushi). As for rolls, I like futo-maki for something more traditional. I hate to admit, but I do like the very American California roll (Avacado, Cream Cheese, etc.)

Actually - all non-farmed catfish taste muddy (which makes sense - since catfish are bottom-feeding scavengers that live in the mud). And - like I've said here in the past - it is very much an acquired taste (which most people never acquire - yours truly included). So perhaps the fault is not with the judges - but with the people who chose this as the "secret ingredient" (if they were going to use catfish - they should have used farm raised - it has a delicate flavor and can be used successfully in a ton of dishes - like any white fish with a delicate flavor). Doesn't anyone know who the woman sitting between Zagat and Steingarten was (no answer to my previous question yet)? Robyn ← This reminded me of something I saw on Discovery Health a while back. It is very very dangerous to eat any bottom feeding freshwater fish raw as it has a microbe called a Liver Fluke that will distroy your liver faster than Teddy Kennedy's drinking.

Yea, that's my excuse too.

I have found my consumption has increased exponentially to my salary. I am moving more toward the European way, usually buying wine when I grocery shop so each meal has its own wine. Last week I had wine in 4 of the 7 dinners we ate in. Normally I won’t have more than two glasses during a meal, although I will finish a bottle during an entire Saturday of cooking. I don’t think it excess as it is over a 4-5 hour period.

If anyone has ever wondered what wine to serve with fish, this should answer your question. Waiter, There's a Fish in My Wine!

They do this just to make 'foodies' cringe.

I haven't tried this type, but I do have some herbal coffee substitute called Raja's Cup produced by Maharishi Ayur-Ved (you can find it in health food stores). It claims to be 100% caffeine free- what's the point? It is made from Clearning Nut, Kasmard, Licorice, and Winter Cherry. Plain it is very bitter, however, with a good cream and honey it works for a late night cup when you don't want to have caffeine but crave something strong.

From a business perspective, this is a good choice if its used correctly. First, you have to determine if any of your competition has 'Baking' in their name and see if they market that part of their name in any catchy way. If they do, you'll want to set yourself apart. I can see your entire line branded around this name. Bakin's choco crumbles Bakin's razzy scones etc. Using the casual spellings in your products like your company name will produce a hook for your individual products. You then could use a peer to peer viral marketing plan to spread the name about. Hire a couple of temps for a day, give them about $20 to go to coffee shops, sit in the middle of people and order similar items, exclaiming outloud how the scones here are no where as good as Bakin's Razzy Scones (This could also be done in grocery stores, hotel lobbies, malls, etc...)

They looked far to busy to me. Maybe if they just had duck, but to have lobster, crawfish, and duck; what's the point of the grits in the dish? Just make a etouffee and be done with it.

I'll gladly vote for Hans. After viewing the videos and bios, to me he seems a lot more 'real' than the other contestent.

Does it really add in a unique flavor?

We all, I'm sure have the infamous French Laundry cookbook and have tried many of the recipes inside. I was wondering, before I become too adventurous if anyone has tried to extract chlorophyll as Keller does for some of his sauces? Is this worth the trouble? Is there anything beyond the unique value behind what it can add to food?