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robb

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Everything posted by robb

  1. I guess I'm a little more open to the idea of another guide or restaurant rating system in New York. I often disagree with Zagat and I sometimes disagree with the NY Times. Perhaps my tastes are different from the mainstream. In fact, I'm sure of this. I personally welcome another perspective whether I agree with the ratings or not.
  2. There is tension in just about every field between the views and interests of the cognoscenti and the views and interest of the general public. Someday maybe a new food channel will be created especially for foodies. For now, we have Food Network and they are interested in making money. Whether I or anyone else likes it, Rachael Ray makes them money. Lots of money.
  3. greek olives, a couple of perroncini, and a slab of feta with good olive oil and a little greek oregano.
  4. Looks great. I'm making something like this for dinner tomorrow.
  5. Forgot one - I really like Old Bay Seasoning too.
  6. I don't like ketchup much. The major reason is that I am not much of a fan of things which are sweet (with exceptions). Ketchup seems overly sweet to my taste. I prefer mayonaise or mustard. I do use Mrs. Dash and Lawry's Seasoning Salt now and again. I like horseradish and hot sauces and have many that I keep around. I also keep many asian condiments around like sambal, ume boshi, furikake, etc.
  7. I think Megan Blockers comment about Zagat is very relevant here. Zagat is purely about popular opinion rather than professional critique. I've seen a good Zagat rating in a mediocre restaurant drive a lot of business. I also can look at this like the way I view film criticism. There are some critics I agree with and some I don't. If a critic I often agree with recommends something I might be more inclined to see that film than I would otherwise. At the same time, there are many film critics for a single film. But unless you are in a huge market like NYC or London, you're likely to only have one or two opinions on a restuarant.
  8. I'm feeling a bit guilty about this but the best thing I've had today was a pork chop, breaded, well seasoned and then fried in bacon grease.
  9. Goofy is good. It's nice to see a "travel" show that isn't just showing us the best of everything. He obviously didn't like everything he saw and did in Iceland. Personally, I'd love to go to iceland. I'd just like to do it in August and it wouldn't be about food. I'm enjoying the series a great deal.
  10. robb

    Rachael Ray

    I think that this is a key complaint of many who now criticize FN. When they began watching it when FN was new, it was geared toward foodies. Now it's dumbed down for the masses. One other point - for those who are old enough to have seen Julia Child's cooking shows on PBS know that it is possible to do a cooking show that's well done, uses good cooking techniques and is still fun to watch.
  11. I don't live in Indiana but have been visiting for a little while. I've eaten at a lot of unremarkable places. But, here are two choices on the West side that I found to be fairly good. Zydeco (Mooresville): This is a cajun/creole restaurant on the tiny main strip in Mooresville. It's definitely a bit out of place in this little country town. Still, the owners have created a nice taste of New Orleans here. I found the Ettoufe to be very good. The chef knows how to make a roux. The gumbo, red beans and rice, and blackened fish were also good. While I've had better versions of each of these in New Orleans and found that they lacked a bit in spice (oregano, thyme, and heat), for Indiana it was a nice change from buscuits and gravy. El Jaripeo (Plainsfield): This is a little mexican place in a strip mall near an Old Navy. I believe it's one of several El Jaripeo's in the area. Generally I found the mexican dishes here to be surprisingly authentic. The menu goes well beyond the usual enchillada's, taco's and burritos. The spicier dishes as well as their salsa's can be quite hot, especially comapred to the bland mexican you usually get in middle america.
  12. I think pickles of all types are great enhancers to many foods. They can be sweet, sour, bitter, hot and all are usually at least a little salty. They add texture and color and brightness to richer or bland dishes. Here in the west we usually see cucumber pickles and a few other vegetables normally brined in some kind of vingear with salt. But in eastern cusines, pickled food is much more varied and more prominent. The japanese have numerous techniques for pickling that go well beyond the simple salt and vingear pickle like using rice - bran or miso as the pickling medium. Koreans have the fabulous and very spicy KimChee. Then there's capers and olives... these are technically pickles too. What's the point? Traditionally, of course, pickling was a way of preserving food. Now it's just as likely to be used as a sharp, bright burst of flavor or something to be used to whet the appetite and awaken the palate.
  13. Couch / coffee table in front of the fireplace (cold months). On the deck (warm months)
  14. Greetings, I ate there last night. I had made the reservation after seeing the NYT review. There were 4 of us and, thus, we were able to sample a number of dishes. With the exception of service, which was fine on this night, our observations were similar to Frank Bruni's. The wine by the glass list is impressive and memorable. The beet salad is superb. The osso bucco tortellini is very good while the fish was fine but not worth the price. The cheese list was pedestrian for NYC but many of the desserts were interesting. Cost for 4 of us: $375 before tip. (Note: we had wine by the glass so we could drink several - we all had 2 glasses plus dessert wine. This was close to half our bill.) Overall Impression: Good. No fireworks but very solid food and a pleasant atmosphere. I'd go back.
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