[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

Actually, no In 'n Out on the East Coast at all. Only in my imagination. So . . . yeah!

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

You guys are the best! In 'n Out might be just the thing; we'll be in a bit of a hurry and won't want a long dinner. I think there's one in Connecticut now, but I've never been.

On the other hand, the Buckeye sounds pretty tempting.

Thanks again!

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

I admit I was skeptical about the Rockers Oysterfellers name, but I trust your recommendations.

How about a place to stop between the San Francisco airport and Point Reyes? Our plane gets in at 7:00-ish on a Thursday evening.

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

Thanks, you all. Oliveto it is, since it turns out that Chez Panisse is closed on Sundays. I've made reservations for Osteria Stellino and Saltwater. Oysters and crab and fog and headlands--I am so looking forward to this. (Coyotes we have here in Connecticut. But last time I was at Point Reyes, a mountain lion crossed out path. Ulp.)

I really appreciate the advice.

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

Absolutely! Will it be Dungeness crab season? That's the best news I've heard in a while.

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

Thank you so much! It will be fun to go to Chez Panisse again.

Anybody know about Point Reyes?

[Point Reyes in March (and one evening in Berkeley)]

My husband and I will be staying in Point Reyes for four days in Mid March. Any restaurant or other food recommendations? We have read good things about Osteria Stellina and a new place called Saltwater Oyster Depot--any reports?

Also, we'll be meeting friends for dinner in Berkeley. Should we consider Chez Panisse these days? (We live in Connecticut and haven't been to the Bay Area in years.) Where should we eat?

Thanks for any advice . . .

[Cooking the can: A Maillard solution, or kitchen hand grenade?]

I will confess that I have made dulce de leche a score of times by simmering cans of sweetened condensed milk in a deep pot of water. I actually discovered this method long before I discovered dulce de leche. Half a century ago, I saw one of those i-hate-to-cook kind of cookbooks that had this "recipe"--probably called something like "Spanish Dessert"--and I was fascinated. I might be up to my ears in bpa, but I haven't--yet--had a can explode.

[Blue Hill at Stone Barns]

Always wanted to go and am considering it for my upcoming 60th birthday. Has anyone been lately?

[Stepping Down (Back, but Not Out)]

I agree with Katie--I've been in awe of your energy and multi-focus. You are one of the people who make eGullet feel so welcoming. Thanks, and see you around.

[Restaurant near Newark Airport]

I'll answer my own question. We found So Kong Dong (Soft Tofu Restaurant) in Fort Lee, practically on the on-ramp to the GW Bridge. It was just the thing. The menu is just several variations on tofu soup, and kalbi (ribs). An assortment of kimchi are served with it, and a stone bowl of rice, into which tea is poured after the rice is served. Evidently, you are supposed to drink the tea at the end of the meal. It was straightforward, delicious, and satisfying--the perfect place to stop. It's open until 10:00 p.m.

There's a good article about the place in Serious Eats.

[Cake Wreck - What Happened Here?]

I once tried to make maple cupcakes with my daughters and it ended up looking like that. I still don't know why, but we renamed it maple surprise and that's been a family joke ever since.

[Restaurant near Newark Airport]

On the off chance that someone is actually looking at this right now, I'm about to head from CT down to pick up my daughter at Newark Airport. She'll get out of there between 7:00 and 8:00 p.m., and we'll all be hungry, no doubt. Any recommendations on a place to stop--not too complicated or fancy--heading out of the airport and back toward Connecticut? She's been in Haiti for a couple of months, so will appreciate some good fresh food. Chinese, Japanese, maybe?

[Middle East groceries]

Bumping this up: I bought this beautiful jar of "honey nuts" at a Lebanese grocery recently. Can anyone tell me how these would traditionally be served?

[Blue Cheese – Please help me like it.]

I'm with you, TylerK. I consider it one of my great failings, but I just can't get beyond the moldy taste. I love smelly cheeses, and rich ones, and pungent ones, so it's none of those qualities that's the problem. Just the mold.

[Bread Puddings: Because stale hot dog buns are a certainty regardless.]

Breathing heavy here.

[What You See - It Isn't Always What You Get, Is It?]

In a Connecticut supermarket, I bought a bag of "Vidalia onions" labeled "Locally Grown." Turns out "Locally Grown" is the brand, and they were grown in Ohio or someplace. We're getting pretty meta here, since Vidalia is in neither Connecticut nor Ohio.

[Returning bad produce to the store]

Today I bought some locally grown romaine lettuce at a nearby IGA. It looked a little ratty, unlike the prepackaged threesomes of romaine that have become ubiquitous. I was fine with tossing the outer leaves, or trimming them way down. Turned out, though, that every single leaf, straight down to the core, was dotted with brown spots. Really, the whole heads were unusable, although, out of desperation, I managed to trim enough of the stalks to add some crunch to our tacos.

Here's the thing: if I bought some manufactured product that turned out to be defective, I would return it to the store. An appliance with a button that didn't work would go back. If I opened a jar of jam and found it moldy, I'd bring it back. With produce, though, I almost never do. A pineapple that's rotten at the center, winter squash or tomatoes that are utterly flavorless, pears that never ripen--I chalk them up to experience.

Is it just that the cost is too low to bother? Well, I once returned a tube of almond paste to the store because it was absolutely, impenetrably rock hard. Is it because the standards are subjective? I'm not talking about just disliking the taste of something I hadn't tried before. Is it because the window of opportunity to return it is smaller? I can let the appliance sit in its box on the counter for a week or two, and the problem will still be the same, while the produce will have developed other issues. Do New Yorkers who have a grocer down the block that they walk past every day return bad produce? I wonder.

It feels to me as if somehow, with produce, the risk is on the buyer. We are supposed to be responsible for selecting the good peach. Maybe it's our hunter/gatherer genes. Anyway, it seems there's an interesting set of conventions here. Or am I missing something obvious?

[Dinner! 2012]

Ah, fennel pollen. Thank you, Percyn!

[Dinner! 2012]

Percyn--May I ask what you put on the scallop crudo?

[Dill -- how do you use it?]

Yes, Greek: chicken with avgolemeno--egg and lemon--sauce with lots of dill is lovely.

[Industrial/mass-produced food products that are better than I can make]

Triscuits

[Dining in Copenhagen - Relae or Radio or Kadeau?]

My husband went to Kiin Kiin, apparently the only Thai restaurant in the world with a Michelin star, and said it was possibly the greatest meal of his life. (And we went to Saulieu years ago.)

[Mexican "moussaka"? I don't think so.]

We had a Mexican immigrant doing some house painting for us, and once he realized I like to cook, he would tell me about his wife's "Mexican lasagna" every time he came. I make a version with layered tortillas, beans, and cheese. It's delicious, whether or not it's traditional.

[What's good to eat in Cleveland?]

For some reason, I didn't get notified of the last two replies, but thank you anyway. Last night we ended up with eight people at Spice Kitchen and had a very nice meal. The polenta/chickpea fries were a hit with all of us, not just the gluten-avoiding sister of the graduate. Several of us had the evening's appetizer special, a soft-shelled crab with a very tasty slaw and a miso rhubarb sauce that really worked. The pork with black-eyed peas and kale was excellent. I was impressed with the balance, originality, and unfussiness of the food.

Wish I could try all the other recommendations (but happy that my daughter is graduating, which will take away the opportunity for visits for a while).