Suzanne F

Done.

Thanks, Steven, and thanks Yvonne. To answer Yvonne's Q's: I meant the GBA? (sm) as a bit of a joke. People can be so touchy about poor service -- not seeing it for what it is, as you've pointed out. More likely that sort of thing is the result of bad policies, poor training, or just plain stupidity (assuming good policies and training). As for the smell: IMO, they simply need to clean the place better. Not that anything seemed dirty -- but a lingering odor like that could have been coming up from the prep area. I only noticed it at the door, near the head of the stairs. Never made it downstairs to poke around, though.

Matt: you are numero uno on the wait list. So there's still a possibility you'll get in. Here's the complete list as it stands now: Suvir; rstarobi; BklynEats; Charles Smith; Macrosan; Yvonne Johnson + g. johnson; Suzanne F +PDE; FG; Sandra Levine; CathyL; Double 0 and Mrs. 00; Tommy; Toby; Blondie; KimWB; StephanyB; Helena Sarin + Alex; ajay; Damian + Ann; Nina Wugmeister + her beau; MHesse; CooksQuest (Gary) + Diana; Cakewalk; Laura; Jason + Rachel Perlow; Rosie + consort (35) as of 10/19, 9:10pm WAIT LIST: Matt Zito 10/21,9:16am

I thought it was available through King Arthur Flour, but all I see in the print catalogue is "Everbake." Check the website; maybe they still carry it?

Try these: bawarchi.com and/or CuisineCuisine.com glossary

One more critter comment: glue traps are the pits. I felt so bad for the little guys who got caught on them. Ugh.

Took myself to fresh. (as it says on the charge slip) on Friday. My report: Arrived about 7:40. Was a bit put-off by the "fishy" smell (not as in FRESH fish, but as in fishy). Presented self to hostess with my usual statement: "One for dinner, no reservation." "How many?" "One, I said." "We serve a full menu at the bar." Gender bias alert? (hereafter referred to as GBA? "I'd prefer a table." "There'll be a little wait, about 15 minutes." "Fine." (Note: I could see 3 or 4 empty deuces and a couple of empty 4-tops but I figured they might be reserved for 7:45 or 8; so it didn't bother me.) Left my name with her, and went to the bar. Sat at the far end, the better to watch the kitchen. Bar not quite fully occupied. One guy eating there. Three bartenders, two of whom finished tasks and stood, arms crossed, leaning against the back bar. Not making eye contact. Several minutes passed, during which they went back to working, but still did not acknowledge me. GBA?) Eventually one did notice me, and apologized. My question: "Do you have any dry sherries?" "Any (mumble mumble)?" "Dry sherry." "We have Dry Sack." "No, DRY sherry." "??????" So I had a martini. She had to ask again to confirm that I wanted olives. EXACTLY 15 minutes after I left my name, the hostess came to get me. I was seated on a banquette, in the midst of occupied 4- and 2-tops, with a good view of most of the room, and of the half-wall alongside the stairs to below. Well, as good a view as one might have in such a dimly-lit place. My waiter, who looked about 15, was pretty good at answering my menu questions. Although he had trouble at first understanding that I wanted to order a different glass of wine with each course GBA? I thought it was hysterical when he started off with "We don't have any specials; we consider all our dishes special." I'm sure the "rillettes of arcadian gaspy [sic] cod and finnan haddie" is; but I felt bad for that poor cod who died of suffocation. I ate/drank: Sea urchin and Iranian caviar in fennel broth/Veuve Cliquot nv Broth a bit heavy on orange flavor and light on the fennel, although there was fennel brunoise; just a hint of cream; a touch of raw shallot that jarred; caviar added a saline note, and the urchins were truly fresh and delightful. Served in an urchin shell balanced on salt -- simple, nice. Whole roasted dayboat flounder with soy & ginger & garlic & scallion; jasmine rice; baby bok choy/Highfield NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc Again, the fish was impeccably fresh; but just barely the right side of being overcooked -- must have been roasted at a very high temperature, since the skin almost seemed fried. Cooked and served head-off but otherwise on the bone. The soy etc. was EXTREMELY strong, a bit too much for the delicate fish. The many slices of garlic were also just almost overdone. (So I guess they still have that same problem as others noted earlier.) The jasmine rice and bok choy were absolutely plain so overall the dish worked out, but milder sauce would have been better with the fish. Autumn Salad of Granny Smith apple, greens, Roquefort, and pecans/Robert Pinskey Pinot Noir Greens were frisée, watercress, radicchio, and endive. Apple slices, nuts, and cheese were placed on plate first, then dressed leaves on top. Much better that way, than when everything gets dressed and tossed together. Well-balanced dressing in the right amount, with sufficient salt (another of my peeves). Very pleasant, but not necessarily worth $10. BTW: the bread was just a simple country loaf. Nothing special. I did appreciate that when I asked the floor manager who was clearing the table after my main to please leave the bread, she did. And she brought back the menu and took my salad-and-wine order, which the waiter brought. No dessert, just green tea -- the sorbet flavors originally offered were not available after all. Seems a bit late in the year for litchee, anyway. By 9:30 there was a huge crowd at the bar (which had emptied out soon after I was seated). Not all that "trendy" looking to me, but I don't frequent trendy places much so what do I know? However, the deuces on either side of me, and the 4-top further along the wall, were all empty. ???? They were filled before I left, though. General observations: - LOUD!!!! There was some "music" when I first got there, but it was turned off (hostess said someone asked that it be cut). - Nice aquatic color scheme, but DIM, and made darker as the evening progressed. It's a good thing I always carry a mini-flashlight. Last time I was in the space it was Pierino, so the difference was dramatic (I blinked, so I missed David Ruggiero's steak place.) - Front-of-house seems to take the team approach -- whoever passed the table cleared, and other than one busser I recognized from elsewhere, it was difficult to tell the difference between waiters, runners, and bussers. And a BIG plus: not all the servers are 20-year-old models. Some actually looked like they might be professionals! - Did not check out the restrooms. - Even though the menu is now organized in a standard manner, the wine list is divided into Coastal/Hillside/Inland. A bit precious, to my mind. And no 1/2s. Bill was $112.50 before tax. Another place where I might go back, but only EARLY to avoid the noise. In spite of my first olfactory impression, the fish -- and other ingredients -- were in fact VERY "fresh."

me too. Our neighborhood is rife with critters. And everytime the street gets torn up (like, ever other day), they all look for new homes. Fortunately our super is the biggest clean-freak, so the building is pretty empty of unexpected animals. But when we did have mice, we got some pellets of pretty turquoise poison that we placed near likely points of entrance/exit. No pets, so not a worry about that. Seemed to work. BTW: the mice in my kitchen cabinets preferred Hershey's chocolate chips to Nestle's -- ate through one bag but not the other. Or maybe the other way around. Anyway ...

Oh, I use mine very often. One with olive, one with canola. More for sautéeing and grilling than baking. Then I do the butter/flour thing. I recently found out that some of those pan-release sprays have a lot of WATER in them -- so actually they'll have the opposite effect from what you want. Read the label carefully!

When making dressings at work I always measure, because I've got to make a consistent product. One recipe I had to use was 1 : 2 : 8 Dijon : Sherry vinegar : Olive oil, made like a mayonnaise. Another was 1 : 2 Balsamic vinegar : Olive oil, with a little grated ginger and chopped shallot. Yet another started with 2 egg yolks beaten to ribbon stage, then 4 cups of oil and 1+1/4 cups of ginger juice (ginger pureed into lemon juice, then drained). It all depends on what you want it to taste like. At home, we almost never mix a dressing before putting it on the salad. Herbs go in with the other leaves; then just pour on some oil, mix, sprinkle with vinegar (and sometimes S & P), and mix. Of course, you have to taste it while you're mixing, so you can adjust. Since we make a salad almost every night, we've both gotten a lot of practice.

In time the Rockies may tumble, Gibraltor may crumble, they're only made of clay. Nope.

We generally just mix some olive oil with the greens, then vinegar -- occasionally with a little S & P. Depending on what the main is, I might use one of my herb vinegars (a bunch of herbs jammed into a bottle of white wine vinegar) -- right now I've got lemon thyme, rosemary, and "Texas tarragon." Paul usually uses supermarket "balsamic," but sometimes he mixed "white balsamic" with the lemon thyme. That works pretty well to cut the unnatural sweetness of the "balsamic." I sometimes make a "creamy vinaigrette" that was in the NY Times in 1978. I'll pm it to you, if you like. It is one of the best I've ever had.

With the addition of Helena's Alex, and Rachel Perlow, we are now at 35 (except for those who are younger, and those who admit to being older.) Should you be unable to keep your reservation, we ask that you cancel as soon as possible, so that someone else may take your place. Oh, wait, this is a group of ardent restaurant-goers; I don't have to remind you all of that. Keep checking this thread for updates.

Current list as I've been keeping it: Suvir; rstarobi; BklynEats; Charles Smith; Macrosan; Yvonne Johnson + g. johnson; Suzanne F +PDE; FG; Sandra Levine; CathyL; Double 0 and Mrs. 00; Tommy; Toby; Blondie; KimWB; StephanyB; Helena Sarin; ajay; Damian + Ann; Nina Wugmeister + her beau; MHesse; CooksQuest (Gary) + Diana; Cakewalk; Laura; Jason Perlow; Rosie + consort (33) as of 10/19, 5:00pm If you should be on here and I missed you, please respond to this thread. Anyone over the next 2 who want in will be placed (very gently) on the wait list.

Steve -- any chance you'll be able to post a picture?

Suvir, everything you have suggested so far sounds great -- especially the price! Yes, cash is easier. I certainly won't feel "ignored" if others get served before me. And I'll be very interested to see what others bring for BYOB. If you can give us suggestions there too, I'd really appreciate it. All I ever think of is beer, but I'm sure there are other possibilities. My personal preference is NOT buffet, for the reasons you state. Do you know yet if we will have a couple of big oblong tables, or more, smaller round ones? The latter would be better for conversation -- but if we do bigger tables, might we play "musical chairs" at some point (talk to more people )? And if I am not happy with the event, it will definitely NOT be your fault. Thank you for all your careful consideration and hard work.

So you're saying that maybe nothing was wrong after all? Oh well. All the advice given was still good, even if unnecessary.

How much did you beat the egg whites? If you got them to the point of very dry stiffness, you may have overbeaten them. In which case the air in them could not keep stretching the egg as it heated and expanded. So instead the egg whites kind of cracked and released the air -- deflating instead of further inflating. At least, that's one possibility.

I just thought it would be a "learning experience" that way. But you're right. And no matter what we have, it will still be a "learning experience" Suvir, I was assuming this would be communal, no? -- sharing dishes, that is, rather than individual thali. Including, I hope, the etiquette lesson on how to eat with only the right hand. That could be tough for some of us, but I do not fear laughter and ridicule.

That's why I asked, rather than dictated. Thanks for the prompt response.

Would it be too forward of me to suggest that we ALL share a vegetarian meal? As much as I enjoy meat, I would love to learn more about veg dishes. (I presume dairy is all right? I love a lassi! ) How do the rest of you feel about an all-vegetarian meal? And CooksQuest, the 2 of you are on the list. If the upper limit is 35, there is still some room left before the waitlist starts.

What CathyL said. Well done, Malawry -- now I can't wait until you finish school and REALLY get into food writing!

Boyajian really makes good products. I received a set of samples -- 1 oz. bottles of Pure Orange Oil, Toasted Sesame Oil, Garlic Oil, and Vanilla Vinegar. And I bought the Pure Lime Oil. They are wonderfully aromatic and concentrated. Just a few drops are sufficient to perfume a dish. The same with "O" California Olives crushed with Organic Blood Oranges. A drizzle on grilled fish -- mmmmmmmmmmmmm. Once you get your Microplane, you will also be able to grate fresh cheese on your pasta, and grate fresh horseradish, and and and. One of the greatest kitchen implements of all times.

Figuratively. I didn't think they made anything but fried. Hey, Les Halles makes a damn good roast chicken! And it comes with frites!! And that's what they use for the sandwiches, no?

I don't much like them -- they're too sweet, kind of greasy, and way too small But this is my favorite Krispy Kreme story.