Megan Blocker

71 is fantastic - it's not in my neighborhood, so I could never claim it, but I do love it there. This is how I feel about Java Girl on 66th Street - walking in is like arriving in my own space, no matter how crowded it is. If this thread proves anything, it's that there's nothing precocious about that at all. "Morning coffee routine" has quickly become "morning coffee ritual." I'm reminded of one of the duller books I read during my time as a religious studies major - we all hated this book, rebelled against it, and yet it was one of the more important, conceptually. It was about the study of ritual as a means of identifying the truly important aspects of a religion - ritual theory, something borrowed from anthropology. This thread reminds me of how interesting that concept is in application, if not as reading material in and of itself! New York may be crowded, and it's certainly expensive, and, yes, it can even be painful at times. But one thing it is not is dreary. Can you tell I love it here?

Woo-hoo!!! Go, Toasted! And congrats to Dave, Marlene and Susan (and Matt, Maggie, and all the other fabulous quitters) for a fantastic and inspiring blog. Way to go, guys - this has been awesome!

Makes up for?!?!?!? You really ARE a southerner, Melissa! My thought when I saw them was, what a great way to celebrate the beautiful snow!

Because I've been such a good girl, that's why!!! I agree - a winter without snow is just...sad. You know you're a true New Englander/Upstater when...

This isn't my normal coffee routine, but... New York is in the midst of the first and only serious snow we've gotten this year (almost two feet outside my apartment right now and still falling at 2-3 inches per hour). And, of course, I'm an idiot, and didn't think to buy coffee beans and milk last night. So when I woke up at 8 AM, I immediately poked my head out the window to see if my coffee place (which is right across the street) was open for business. The snow was so thick, I couldn't even see if their lights were on. However, about an hour later, I checked again, and someone was shoveling a path to their door. SCORE! I finished making the bed, threw on some jeans and boots, and headed down the stairs about 10 minutes later. The path had been totally covered by a half inch of snow. TEN MINUTES LATER. I was covered in snow when I walked into the empty coffee shop, normally packed with people at 9:30 on a Sunday. So I got my coffee, and I got it fast. One of the best things about snow in New York is the way it brings together neighbors who never speak to one another. I had a small conversation with every person I passed walking down the block, crossing the street, and coming back. I watched dogs cavorting in the snow, and two kids building a snowman on the sidewalk in front of their apartment building. The other great thing is how it mutes everything. Even the cars and buses braving the snow are quieter, muffled by all that great white stuff. I love New York in a snowstorm - it's like a quiet little town, and nothing is more beautiful than those rows and rows of townhouses, their railings and steps covered in snow, their old-fashioned street lamps festooned in white... And I love my coffee. Mmmmmmm...

Yup! For me, it's the Joy of Cooking. Don't use it for much - but I do use it for pancakes, waffles, or when I want to understand basic concepts. Fantastic.

To that end, here's a link to some information I found via TransFair's website. They're also selling Fair Trade certified chocolates! The first link will take you to an NPR podcast...haven't listened yet, but plan to tomorrow!

I'll have to do more research into this. I do eat foie gras, but I do try to stay away from things I think have been raised or cultivated with a lack of respect for the farmer, the animal or the earth. Far and away, child slavery for chocolate falls into this category, and I want to learn more.

OK, I'll bite! Why? This, combined with Jason's Hannibal Lecter reference, is making me nervous. ETA: OK, now I'm thinking illicit substances rather than body parts. Much nicer.

Back to an oldie but goodie tonight...chocolate chip cookies.

New York Magazine Digest - 2/6/06 Reviews Vegas on the Hudson Adam Platt's review of Del Posto acknowledges that the place's main object is to bring glitz and glamour to the traditionally homier realm of Italian cooking. This being a Batali/Bastianich venture, he finds the food to be predictably solid, but notes that: Ultimately, Platt delivers three stars to Del Posto. For Valentine's Day The Sweet Lowdown The magazine lists the top ten chocolate desserts in the city, and in so doing discovers a few trends: Included in the list are, among others, Jean-Georges' warm, soft chocolate cake, The Spotted Pig's flourless chocolate cake, and Gilt's chocolate/chili. Just Desserts Take your honey bunch to one of these dessert-only spots for a bite to eat on Valentine's Day. Or any other day for that matter. Room 4 Dessert is at the top of the list! Fan Meal In honor of her fellow chefs, Tia Pol's Alex Raij will serve a Valentine's Day menu based on their best dishes. Included are call-outs to Banh Mi So, Pearl Oyster Bar, and WD-50. My Funny Valentine Cabaret is the perfect date - music and food, but still swanky and classy in an oh-so-old-New-York kind of way. The magazine lists its favorite spots to toss one back while listening to those glorious standards. Ask Gael Is It The Real or Discount David Burke at Bloomie's? Gael visits David Burke at Bloomingdale's and finds it to be, on the whole, good and promising. She thinks a bit more attention from the chef whose name the place bears might do everyone some good.

Pentecost is the same in English, at least for Espicopalians! Whitsunday means the same thing, but you don't hear it much in the States, at least. I don't think. My church usually had a pancake lunch that weekend. No stollen in sight.

One of my favorite salads is watercress, caramelized shallots, and a Champagne vinaigrette. Delicious. Also really good to use in salad dressings...chop finely, soak in sherry vinegar for a while, then mix in some dijon, S&P, and whisk in some olive oil. Lovely. Or, you could follow Mark Bittman's lead in yesterday's Times and make Steak Diane!

Flamed? Hardly!!! Actually, reading this, it epitomizes to me the kind of spot traditional for a ladies' lunch. OK food (with low-cal chicken broth one of the better things on the menu), proximity to department-store shopping (in this case, to Needless Markups), and full of puppy purses. Snekse, I think you've hit the nail on the head.

Next spring, my mother and I will be heading to Italy for a two-week vacation. Why? Because neither of us has ever been, and we really want to experience Italia together! We are planning on spending our time primarily in Florence and Rome, with a few days in the Tuscan countryside (town TBD). We're city girls, so this itinerary suits us immensely. We're also girls who love to cook, and would like to spend a few days (2-3) taking some cooking classes while in Florence. I've taken an early shining to Divina Cucina (I'm particularly smitten with the idea of visiting the market and making a meal based on that trip), and would love to hear either your opinions on this choice or your recommendations for other schools in the city. I definitely want to take the class(es) in the city; when we head out to the country, it's going to be our downtime, so no shuffling around a kitchen at that point. Please enlighten me!

Well, there's always Magnolia Bakery on Bleecker - their red velvet cake is supposed to be pretty good, and you can get either a slice or a cupcake. You can also order a whole cake if you call a day or two ahead. Then you've got its rival/offshoot, Buttercup Bakeshop, but that's up in the East 50's. However, they will deliver to businesses... Another great spot for this on the East Side (also uptown, though - 88th and 2nd, to be exact) is Martha Frances Mississippi Cheesecake. She makes a great red velvet cake. Finally, a bit of Googling (amazing what you can find these days ) led me to a Brooklyn spot called Cake Man Raven Confectionary on Fulton Street. Seems they may have some, especially on Valentine's Day. Of course, you could always make it yourself!

These terms do tend to degrade over time though, viz. 'artisinal;' I'd hardly be surprised if the fine folks at Sysco now offer 'artisinal' canned or frozen products for all your food-service needs. Sigh. ← Yeah, I suppose that's where I have issues with things like this, too - when the term becomes a buzz word rather than a true descriptor. Sourcing is not one of my personal pet peeves, at least as far as food is concerned, but "artisanal" definitely is. So is "homemade."

I trekked down to Starwich today, and had this!

It's really funny - every time I decide to go to Starwich for lunch, it's suddenly cold out. Anyhoo... Headed down there today with the idea of creating my own sandwich from the list of ingredients, which turned out to be an overwhelming task. Should have prepped before I left the office. I ended up going for an old-fashioned BLT, made with the slab bacon, baby romaine, heirloom tomatoes and mayo on the five-grain bread. And, since for make-your-own you get five ingredients, I decided to go all crazy and slap some roasted corn on there as well. It was delicious. The bread was (once again) toasted to perfection, and the balance of ingredients was perfect. The bacon was tender and juicy without being greasy, and all my qualms about the over-dressed chicken sandwich were quieted by the just-right amount of mayo on this sandwich. Next time, I may have to do their filet mignon sandwich. Yum.

Exactly. The fact of the matter is that business in NYC did not go down;* people did not all rush over to Hoboken to light up. If that performance is any indication, things in Jersey should be fine. If people are going out only to smoke (rather than for other parts of the ambience), then they may stay in. But my gut (and the results of the NYC ban) tells me that people go to a bar for the company and the atmosphere, and are willing to duck outside for a quick cig in between beers. Therefore, my prediction would be that business will not go down, at least not in the long run. *ETA: Tommy, I will try and find some of the other stats on this; I believe there are more than just the liquor license figures. Also, anecdotally, none of the neighborhood places I frequent have closed since the ban went into effect - they were all smoky as hell before, and are just as crowded now - as are the sidewalks in front of them. ETA again: OK, here's a link to an excerpt from a 2004 NYT article.

Guess I had that coming, eh Catbert? ← Sass for sass, my friend.

Indeed, one can have it for lunch! "Kraft dinner," I think, refers to the mac and cheese from the box, often dressed up with additions. Popular in my house were peas and cut-up hot dogs. These days, I prefer it plain, when I do make it. And I like the character noodles best. They hold the sauce better than the actual macaroni.

Supply-chain manager?

Megan, that is SO five minutes ago....it's Human Capital Management (HCM) now. Where have you been? ← Good point! I stand corrected. HCM it is indeed - both a fancy name and a fabulous acronym.

Seriously? Who has that kind of gall? Holy man. Do they mean to invent a new, obnoxious way of saying "converse," or do they just not know that the word to suit their needs already exists? The job description certainly isn't new, but it used to be called "Purchasing" - and still is, in some organizations. However, as with the now outdated "Personnel" (replaced, as you are all no doubt aware, by the supposedly sexier, broader and more strategic "Human Resources"), "Sourcing" has come to represent a new generation of the purchasing function. THIS is probably why Nick calls me Catbert.