Megan Blocker

Well, I wouldn't turn my nose up at either. And to clarify: just because I love it doesn't mean I own a lot of it. I will not be going to Morimoto any time soon - too much of a manufactured scene for me, as is most of the Meatpacking District. I'm more of a Hearth kind of gal...(quiet) casual luxury.

Amen.

Cookbook upon cookbook upon cookbook. This is in part an extension of my general passion for all things book-related, and in part an expression of my belief that by reading about it, I can become an expert at doing it. Although, in this conviction, the French Laundry cookbook has proven me wrong. Similiarly, my obsession with dinnerware, flatware and table linens is analagous to my love of clothing (favorite designers are Prada, Nanette Lepore, Michael Kors, and Carolina Herrerra) and shoes (Manolo, Kate Spade, and Prada - again). I am drawn to a mix of classic/timeless/sophisticated and frilly/bohemian/girly. And there's no such thing as enough. As for cooking choices, I tend to choose simple recipes I know I can do well. Those recipes often feature one or two standout ingredients, but the preparations are rarely complicated. I like to feel in control, and I prefer something simple and delicious to something complicated that I've butchered. Dining out? I ultimately prefer places that are slightly upscale but where I can still wear jeans. Where the food is excellent and the service attentive, but where I feel comfortable laughing out loud. I suppose I aspire to a life of casual luxury. Sigh.

Yes! Back when I was a recruiter for an investment bank, one of my hiring managers had bottles of liquor (mostly unopened, all gifts) all over the place. Every time he did an interview, I had to go to his office beforehand and hide the booze, because he always forgot.

As for what I am...none of the above, really! I sometimes buy breakfast to eat at my desk (usually a bagel with peanut butter), I take a quick coffee break with my colleague around 10:30 or 11:00 (just to the coffee machine down the hall...we're cheap, and there's no great coffee in the 'hood in any case), and I buy my lunch every day. Usually it's a salad, a sandwich, or a gyro-esque thing from a cart on Park. Boring, I know. ETA: I really miss my old office. We had an incredible cafeteria - it wasn't free, but it was partially subsidized, and it was really good. Tossed salads, which go for about $8-10 a pop in Manhattan, were about $6.00. A turkey sandwich could be had for $3.00, and a cup of soup was $1. Amazing. And huge variety...sigh. The breakfast in the morning...oh, man. Now I'm nostalgic.

As someone who once worked in a ten by twenty foot space with five other people, often for 10 to 12 hours a day, I can tell you that smells that linger all day really are a problem, not just something non-foodies complain about. When you've been working non-stop for eight hours post-lunch and you're hungry but also so tired that you're queasy and the air still smells of curry and tuna fish, it's not a good time. We made a rule that any fish had to be eaten in the cafeteria. Beyond that, we went on a case by case basis.

Ditto with me, except sub in Diet Coke for Diet Pepsi. I'd rather have wine every day than not, but I have less trouble giving it up when I'm sick than I do my beloved caffeine fixes.

Together? Or just, you know, sprinkled in over the course of the day?

Coffee, water, and salad. I cannot remember the last day when I did not have salad in some form, usually a tossed or chopped salad. I just love it, and I like that something I love is so good for me and comes in so many variations. But, as will surprise few of you, I always make sure to include cucumber.

Ooooh, Susan, that noodles with greens and gravy is making me droooool all over the keyboard.

New York Magazine Digest - 3/20/06 Reviews Hello, Moto Adam Platt reviews Morimoto, giving two and a half stars to the main dining room, three stars to the sushi, and four stars to the omakase menu. Openings and Buzz Openings for the Week of March 20, 2006 The list includes Zibetto's Espresso Bar, Sascha, and A Voce's Eames chairs. Features Eats Street With the opening of Trader Joe's at the eastern end, 14th Street is officially the boulevard of food. The magazine takes stock. Good Eggs Eggs have a season, too! And here are some spots to enjoy great egg dishes, including Casa Mono and Telepan. Say When A look at the growing trend of buying pizza in ways other than by the slice: by the pound, the inch, the foot...

Oh my goodness. Apparently there were lines to get INTO TJ's this weekend. People, really - do you need to wait on line to get into a grocery store and then again to get out of it? Wow. Check it out.

My goodness, Henry! How are you still moving? I think you must have at least two hollow limbs. Bravo!

And, apparently, the wine shop isn't open yet. What's the point without the cheap hooch?

I was thinking this...more like it grips something slippery (peeled peaches?) so that you can cut it.

I now have this image of Rebecca forcefeeding frozen puff pastry and containers of stock to a group of 16-year-olds.

Aaaaaand...here we go. Click here for the latest on TJ's opening, courtesy of Gawker.com. Anyone going today? Please do report back. ETA: Aaaaaand...a link the The Observer's full-day coverage. Seriously? Wow. Seems like there are people more obsessed with this than even eG'ers.

Which is, you know, not so romantic. I second the Old Cuban - sooo tasty, and a little pink from the bitters! A very pretty drink.

Bump! Was perusing the nominations for the Ellie's (American Society of Magazine Editors - ASME - awards for excellence), and I saw that Gourmet was the only food magazine to receive a nomination for food photography. Click here for the ASME press release.

My thoughts exactly...before I even read the review this morning, I saw the headline and thought, "Why?" Why on earth would he review this restaurant? I don't get it. Sigh.

A new article in today's Dining section of the New York Times...click. From the article:

Where on earth will you store it? When you live in Manhattan, at least, that's the easiest way to talk yourself out of buying something like this.

I'll definitely be checking this out the next time I have a weekday off...I can't stomach TWC on a weekend, but you can bet your butt I'll be stopping in for breakfast one morning soon. Opens at 7, right?

That looks great, Janet! I made chowder tonight...corn chowder, based on this recipe from Epicurious. I used only regular potatoes, since I'm not a big sweet potato person. It was really good, but if I make it again, I'll probably deglaze the pan with some wine or sherry before adding the stock. The best part about the chowder was how pretty it was...with the celery, the red pepper, the carrot...very colorful. And tasty.

I would safely say that I would feel safer eating something cooked sous-vide than some random supermarket pre-ground beef. I am much more worried about ground beef -- to the point where if I need ground beef, I grind it myself. As people have mentioned, sous-vide has been around for years. It is hardly "trendy", it is just becoming more visible. Have you ever had beef stew, or other stew like dish from room service in a hotel? Sous-vide and they have been doing that for quite some time. I think there are far more important food safety issues that the NYC DOH can worry about than this. ← No - I have never eaten beef stew in a hotel room. Am I missing anything ? Sous vide has been around for years primarily in commercial food production facilities - where the preparation of the food is regulated by the FDA. There are some pretty strict rules (with regard to things like cooling the food down quickly - the shelf life - etc.). So are you saying that there shouldn't be any rules at all - or that New York health inspectors should simply adopt the FDA standards when it comes to using sous vide in restaurants? Robyn ← I think it's probably more a matter of adaptation than one of adoption - the standards applied to commercial production may be the same for the end product (e.g., how much bacteria is acceptable), while the standards for the setup may differ, simply because the setup needed to reach said end result may be different based on volume (smaller volume in a high-end restaurant than at the airplane food level). This is where the questions about the current restaurant setups come in. I think.