raxelita

Shout out to Quito: After 12 hours on a bus through Ecuador with no food, finally landing back in Quito and finding Adam's Rib, a barbecue place run by an ex-New Yorker. Cornbread, Spicy potato soup, Ribs, Chicken, Steak, Fries, Slaw, Chocolate Cake, and a half a bottle of Malbec...I ate it all, and it was so good. NYC favorite meals/dishes were: Beet Salad at (Carmelini's) Cafe Boulud Mushroom salad at Upstairs The Bread, Miale and Panna Cotta at Falai Foie Gras and Passionfruit souflee at WD-50 Mushroom Risotto at Cafe Gray All 20+ Burgers I ate at Diner in Williamsburg

Mom came to visit from PA and brought turkey pot pies she made out of the Thanksgiving turkey I missed. Terribly sweet and so delicious.

I work in the Time Warner Center. Business was at usual at lunch. At dinner, the first seating was normal for a Tuesday but a lot of later reservations fell off. The Chef did purchase some rooms for those who live far away and had to return again in the morning. I'm not sure how many in the end took advantage of them.

USHG is definitely a great place to start. They have a philosophy of hiring people with little to no experience, just based on their personality and willingness to learn. You could take two approaches: one, start low in the office, even working reservations, and show your mettle; two: work as a server. If you are good, project a positive attitude, and show a desire to climb, you'll be surprised at how fast you move up. The BLT restaurants have a similar setup--today pretty much all of their managers are promoted former servers. If you do have solid NY restaurant experience already, then I'd suggest applying as a floor manager or office manager and go from there.

I second that. Kirara's fish is delicate, fresh, and moderately priced. The ambiance and service is always pleasant. It's my best sushi in Manhattan, taking value into consideration.

Hey Daniel, Coordinates, if you would? Is this one of the West 14th crew? Thanks, R

baguette smothered in chocolate-hazelnut spread from Le Pain Quotidien.

^ patty pan squash.

Ate at Upstairs two Saturdays past. I implore all to go while Bouley is still manning the stoves. You know that feeling when food is so good you sort of giggle? The mushroom salad had that effect on me. My boyfriend's main, a mustard crusted veal chop with red wine reduction and favas did too. I had the Pennsylvainia Chicken, and it was one of the tenderest birds I've had, though it still was chicken. There's a funny feeling in the dining room: Crowded from the strike of six on, but half of the people didn't seem to know why they were there, or who that guy was who kept tasting the sauces in public view (never double-dipping, but some remained incredulous). It's kind of an akward, chaotic scene. From prior reviews, I surmise the service has improved. I ordered a Cote de Nuits from Bouley's list and it was but five minutes until we had it in our glasses. They have a Maitre D now, and what seems like a lot of supporting staff. Nonetheless, our presets were practically thrown at us, and the busboys lurked annoyingly throughout the meal. Go for the food. Go early and often. Oh, and don't ask about dessert wine. Trust me on this.

Have you considered tablemats instead of cloth? They are easy to clean on your own and can look chic on a good table. How about hiring a designer to take care of the whole thing for you? If you do have a budget, this will allow you to spend more time thinking of the food/ wine logistics. What level are you talking here-- how much money per person?

You can also crumble some of the sausage and leave it in the pan to produce large "gibbles." Here in New York, they refer to the result as texture I concur with fifi; too much black pepper is not enough when it comes to biscuit gravy.

Robert Sietsema pronounces Pho Grand "The Best Vietnamese Restaurant in Town." http://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0547,s...a,70178,15.html

Done Babbo too many times, but that's the class I'm going for. Blue Hill's bar is an spot I hadn't considered, but do they have a special bar menu like Gramercy? This is what really draws me to the Tavern Room, that the same hands creating th $72 tasting menu will me making my $10 apps. Also, service is extremely important to me. I work in NYC fine dining and don't want to be all stressed out about negligent/smarmy...service on my boyfriends birthday.

Hi all, Boyfriend's birthday is this weekend. We usually go all out dining-wise for these occasions, but we've decided to spend on other things this year. Nevertheless, we'd like to have some good food and wine at a place where we'll be treated kindly even if we're only spending about $60 a piece. I was thinking about showing up at the Tavern Room about 5:30pm and trying to pull off a little dinner there. Could you all let me now if that sounds like a good idea? Does the service stand up to the main room; will we be rushed along or anything? Is that early enough to snag a table after not too long a wait? Thanks, as ever, for your input. And if there's somewhere else I should be thinking of going instead, would you perhaps pm me....? R

1995 Thomas Hardey's and pumpkin pie. Boozy & smooth to transistion into food coma.

Hal Rubenstein loves Cookshop: http://newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/food/revie...staurant/15051/ Haven't been yet myself, but I like Five Points. It's solid food, relatively inexpensive and friendly. I support them, in a political sort of way: the owners are both so warm and genuine that I go out of my way to patronize thier restaurant over others. Cookshop is on my shortlist.

When they visited my restaurant of employ over the winter, we knew they were coming days in advance. I'm not saying this is always the case, but people know people, especially in NY.

Do you attribute France's heat wave of 2003 to be the result of global warming, or a random isolated event? If the former, then you could definitely say that global warming is producing (bigger, extracted) higher alcohol wines. Have you tried some of the 2003 CDP's?

yep, all you do is search for ratings three stars and above.

Hungover Nachos

I'm updating this thread to ask about service. The common complaint I've heard around is that the service doesn't stand up to the food. Do people have recent experiences that comply/contradict that?

Here you go: Places that serve Fugu, courtesy of NPR I've heard that many places require you to call ahead to let them know your going to order it.

To bring this back to food for a moment, it seems obvious to me that travel brings better regional/ethnic cuisine to more pallates in the U.S. Travelling makes one aware of what people of a certain region actually eat, which has the effect of changing their dining choices and awareness at home.

re: travelling within the US vs. abroad: I recently returned from Ecuador (there three weeks): Plane $520 Hotels (single room, tv, hot water, own bath) $8 pp per night travel within, roughly $5/day food, $10-15/day (all at restaurants, including some nice meals) If I'd travelled to Chicago from NYC, I'd have saved a couple hundred on airfare, but would have far more than made up for it in hotels and food. It's all about your priorities (not ignoring that some can't even determine where their next meal might come from). I have zero savings despite working overtime because I'm young and feel its important to travel in order to better understand the whole picture. But I can understand that some may be able to find the whole picture right where they are.

Feeling a little off-balance--oh, I know why!--lemon-poppyseed bread, free macaroon & apple pie samples from Whole Foods, a brownie, coffee, red bull... Ah two jobs and school. And catering a fundraiser tomorrow---at least there will be good food available.