donbert

Economies of scale + ocean freight.

That was my response and I apologize if it was cryptic. It was a short reply to a gchat message and I should have been more specific. First, as a full disclosure I work at Cocktail Kingdom doing R&D and Product Development. Second, all the products we make at Cocktail Kingdom are high quality and I wouldn't work here if they weren't. To explain why it sounds like I'm hesitating in that comment above. I am generally hesitant to suggest any product to someone without knowing what they want to achieve. This isn't because there is a problem with the products but from past experience people often come into our showroom thinking that they want one product when they actually need a different one. This is usually the case when a commercial bar want to start a high volume ice program and they have unrealistic expectations of the quantity/quality of ice. The Ice Ball Maker does essentially operate itself. Starting at room temperature it will melt a 2.5" block of ice into a sphere in less than a minute. If you want it to work faster all you have to do is run hot water over it before you place the ice inside. This should cut down the time in half. This is especially useful if you plan to make many in a row since after the first one the metal will be colder and will take longer. The three additional considerations:1.) if you're not going to use the ice immediately it will continue to melt. for commercial purposes this means that if you make these in advance you will need to refreeze the ice balls. further complicating things is the fact that when you refreeze a bunch in one container they will stick together. so you will need additional trays or some other means of keeping them separate. liquid nitrogen is great for this but most people don't have easy access to it.2.) even if you use the ice immediately because the ice ball maker works by melting the excess ice the entire surface of the ice ball will be wet. this will cause an initial bump in dilution before the melting of the ice changes the temperature of the drink. therefore if you want an ice ball as opposed to an ice cube because you want less dilution from the decreased surface area this will not do what you want unless you refreeze the ice ball.3.) the quality of the ice cube that you begin with will determine the quality of the ice ball you get. If you are producing cloudy ice in your freezer and not starting with the clearest possible ice the end result will be a very cloudy ice ball. this will be worse than a cloudy ice cube because with the cube the cloudy part is generally in the center and you have clear dense ice along the outside of the cube. To create a high quality ice ball you need to go through extra steps in producing your own clearer ice cubes or you need to purchase ice carving quality ice. For most people using an Ice Ball Mold will be more cost efficient and will produce a better quality ice ball. That said using the ice ball maker is always an impressive show if you're doing it a la minute in front of guests. This is just a quick explanation and I can elaborate further on how/why ice behaves the way that it does and various ways in which you can tweak your process to achieve the best result. If anyone has any questions about any Cocktail Kingdom product and they live in NYC they should come visit our showroom. We have all the tools out for people to try them. Otherwise they can email info@cocktailkingdom.com with questions.

I was part of Kathryn's group and her description of the meal is very accurate. Everything was executed well and there wasn't a single dish that I thought was "off" or a "miss" in terms of flavors. But at the same time there was nothing particularly memorable about any of the dishes. I would much rather go to a restaurant where I don't like a few dishes but I really love a few others than a restaurant where I'm ambivalent about everything. And at $10 for a single portion (1 lobster croquette or 1 lamb chop) in an entree I expect more given what else is available in NYC. I really wanted to like this restaurant and I'll definitely try it once more after they've had time to work out any opening issues. That said my initial impression is that given number of ingredients in each dish while everything was balanced it still lacked gestalt.

KanoYama in the East Village is a solid neighborhood place that won't break the bank and open on sundays.

Word. And I'll say it again. You guys think about this stuff way too much.

While I completely agree with phlip, the scientist in me wonders if to finally put this question to bed we should be testing the reverse as well. Could a more serious bartender learn to free pour accurately and consistently?

The bouchot mussels with miso garlic sausage, black kale, and fennel at Momofuku Noodle Bar right now is great. If I hadn't ordered a ramen I could have happily finished off the broth with a bowl of rice as a meal.

When and where has anyone ever praised Momofuku for their attractive wait staff? In what world does that even matter? 908 people did vote for Kevin Pemoulie in Eater's Hottest Chef in New York Contest...

It's a pickled crab dish called Gae Jang (게장). Traditionally there is a soy sauce version as well as a spicy one. BCD does the spicy one. Here's a photo of it from BCD in LA: Unfortunately this dish isn't spicy enough in the NY branch. Also the tofu and crab combo is only available for lunch unlike the LA branches where you can get any combo 24/7.

I really enjoyed the onglet at August last week.

Don't forget to stock up on pizza pebbles before you leave.

[shameless plug] If anyone is planning to take the Home Bar Basics class please use the POSTPDT code for 10% off. [/shameless plug] I have taken a few classes and been to a bunch of events and I have to say that there hasn't been a single one I didn't enjoy. Most recently I attended the liquid nitrogen demonstration by Aki Kamozawa and H. Alexander Talbot of Ideas in Food. Their blog is one of my favorites that I refer to and find inspiration in all the time. It was great to see them in action and ask questions as they did their demo. Here are a few things they went over: Shrimp Powder Popcorn Gelato Rum Rasin Ice Cream Balls

Someone just forwarded me this link and thought it would be interest here. I've never been to the diner myself but it looks as though it is going to be destroyed unless someone can physically move the entire diner to a new location. Here is the text with all the information but you should check out the photos on the actual site:

I think they only serve the brownie pie at lunch.

I believe a certain Mister Damon Dyer will also be joining us in Sicily for the finals... Here was my entry: La Cola Nostra 1.5 oz Ron Zacapa 23 1 oz Averna .75 oz Lime .5 oz Simple .25 oz Pimento Dram Shake and strain into a tall glass with ice. Top with about 2 oz of Moët White Star. Garnish with candied lime wheel.