BryanZ

The French Laundry of dinner clubs. How classy. Congrats.

The melt characteristics are not nearly as luxurious as, say, Wagyu or foie gras, but as the fat melts slowly you get more of the rich nuttiness. And compared to other hams, I think this fat is much more subtle and silky in texture.

It would actually make for an interesting thread. Regular posters (with a lot of time on their hands) putting together maps of places they like. I don't think that this one alone is of any particular merit, but it would be interesting to see where people go/are interested in going.

Obviously a big part of a restaurant like this is how one orders. My problem with Lupa is that I enjoy it so much that I manage to spend like $65 for lunch, making it not so cheap. There are other restaurants, and this category has many of them, where one feels content with a well-cooked main or pasta and can get out of there for $35 with a glass of wine, tax, and tip.

I left Babbo off because I considered it a big player already. Blue Hill and Hearth are good options but perhaps a little "boring" for a visitor who has limited meals. They're both very good restaurants, yes, but not particularly exciting ones. If you've got some time to kill, you can kick it on this Google Map I've made that's, like, places I've been recently/go to regularly/am interested in. Everything on it is unequivocally good, and I don't think you can go wrong at any of them. It's eclectic, however. http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=...f23e1b026eb355e

When I first say this thread, I admit, I was a bit skeptical. A "beginner" looking for recommendations. Not to sound condescending (I start thread like this from time to time), but there are many, many threads of this nature. That you've got hospitality industry connections at what appears to be a relatively high level, however, makes this a perhaps an interesting challenge. If you've got the big players (who, might I ask?) under control, I'd suggest the following as definitively NYC that you can't get in London or would be interesting to compare: Old School -Katz's Deli -Late-night Papaya dogs -Russ and Daughters (For the cultural significance, not necessarily because its selection will blow you away. Something like Harrod's food court blows most anything we have in NYC out of tomorrow. Then again, if you've never been Tokyo...but that's a different thread and trip altogether.) New School -One (or a few) of NYC's newer cocktail lounges to compare what's going on here to what's going on in London. -wd~50/Tailor -Momofuku Ssam -Yakitori Totto/Torys -Lunch at Jean Georges (technically a big player, but I'm more and more of the opinion that, when value and approachability are taken into account, lunch is better than dinner. With the exchange rate, it'll be like the cost of getting a doner at the corner shop). For My Personal Amusement -Would love to hear what someone with your experience thinks of Gordon Ramsay at the London. Others will undoubtedly chime in.

I'd hazard that few people would call you cheap, tupac. I think the idea is that people often order primi as their main course. Perhaps Nathan was implying that the maximum price for a main, be it primi or secondi or whatever the restaurant chooses to serve in whatever portion size maxes out at around $25. I think its reasonable to call a decent restaurant with no main above $25 or so (relatively) cheap.

All fair points that Bruni brings up in the review.

My camera is small and I try to be discrete. I never ever use flash. In fact, flash in restaurants is one my pet peeves. I digress. In general, I don't care because I'm not imposing on anyone else with my picture taking. I'm actually not the picture taking type--for instance, all my eating in NYC goes undocumented--unless I'm blogging for a specific purpose. Then again, more power to those who do take great pictures. Ulterior epicure, docsconz, there are undoubtedly many others.

Bruni drops the deuce on A&D. This is the second week in a row that Eater has made the wrong call. I would've predicted two based on his preferences.

Thank you for the kind words. The pictures were taken with a standard 3.2 megapixel point-and-shoot bought circa 2003. It's pretty crappy actually. I Photoshop some pictures if they're really bad, but it's really all about having a steady hand and getting as much light on the plate as possible. Not flash mind you, but I've been known to move the plate in question halfway across the table to get more light on it.

I think the Daniel Bouloud brasserie joint has 3-courses pre-theater for about $40ish.

Much, much silkier and richer. It tastes of salt and ham, yes, but there's much more complexity. It's cliche, but there's a distinct unctuous nuttiness that works its way through the fat.

It's probably not bellota. Just the "normal" Iberico, which is still pretty sick. ETA: Haven't the Atelier(s) Joel Robuchon been claiming to serve Iberico for a while now? How is that possible? The whole Iberico-in-the-US thing is great, but confusing. ETA redux: Via Grub Street, "Intriago assures us that more hams are on the way, but if you’re going to blow money on a pound of the stuff, keep in mind it’s the free-range ibérico and not the top-shelf “bellota,” which is made from pigs that are fed on acorns for the last four months of their lives. That variety, which we taste-tested a while back, will be available in July of next year."

The obvious and wonderful answer is PDT. Just call at exactly 3 pm to make your reso.

Actually the Dirty D (aka Durham, NC) has some pretty amazing Mexican. I eat tacos and tortas at least twice a week. NYC's Mexican cuisine is lamentable, however. Thanks for the help so far, everyone. I'm quickly building a list of places to check-out and people to meet. Should be a good time. Once I firm up my itinerary and other responsibilities I will post a rough itinerary. Yes, I am staying right in downtown, so that's my base of operations. Should be within walking distance of a lot of nice spots. I'm very excited. The only disappointments are that I won't be able to make it to Salumi's retail location because my flight on Friday arrives too late, and, similarly, I won't be able to eat dozens of happy hour oysters. Oh well.

Maybe...

Hi everyone, I'm visiting Seattle (and actually the PNW, not counting NorCal) for the first time from January 11-14 (Fri afternoon - Sun morning) and want to create an itinerary centered around the city's best, most distinctive eats. I will be staying downtown at the Max Hotel (620 Stewart St.)--not my choosing but it seems to centrally located-ish. My means of getting around will be limited to the city's basic public transportation and taxis. Besides that, I'm open for anything. Really. I eat anything, go anywhere, and will meet anyone if it ensures me a good meal (or drink or snack). I'll be traveling alone for this trip, not that that really matters since I have no problem fine-dining, drinking, or exploring alone. Price is really no object, so propose the itinerary of your dreams. With that said, those who have read of my eating pursuits here on eG know that "value" is important. I will pay literally whatever it costs for a meal but don't want to waste money on experiences that can be had elsewhere. If you had convince me that Seattle was a better eating city than New York or Chicago, where would you tell me to go? With this carte blanche of sorts, I'd like to be able to impose a few general guidelines: -Would like at least one blowout tasting menu. Creative cooking that still evokes the PNW, nothing classical French or anything. Mistral seems to be the go-to for this but steer me otherwise. -Markets. Pikes Place, right? When to go, what to see, who to talk to? -Casual eats of all types. And by casual, I mean anything but fine-dining tasting menus. Like Batali's father's salumi joint. Want to hit that up and try as much as possible. Who do I have to schmooze with to get into one of those special meals there? -Underground dining. I hear lots of this type of thing goes on in Seattle. Are there any that are particularly distinctive that will take a solo diner cut from a similar civilly disobedient cloth? -Cocktails/wine bars. I've also heard Seattle does a nice job with the cocktail thing. Where should I go? Any particularly notable wine bars? Thanks so much for your help. I look forward to eating my way through the city. The real reason I'll be in Seattle is also related to the culinary arts, so I might as well make this trip as food-centric as possible.

I'd like to share an experience that happened to some friends and coworkers of mine this weekend. I'd love to hear if anyone here has heard of this, as it seemed almost too serendipitous to be real. Unfortunately, I was not a part of Saturday afternoon's events, but I was informed of what happened in intimate detail by my glowing friends. Anyway, as part of a scavenger hunt a large group of us was doing as part of a company bonding weekend (bear with me), one of the stops was Charlie Trotter. Not for a meal, but just for a picture in front of the restaurant. My group arrived before many others, took our picture, and headed on our way. It was my first time seeing the restaurant so I was poking around outside a little bit, but there wasn't a lot of activity. About five minutes later, several other groups arrive (about 15 people total) and began taking pictures in front of the restaurant. A man walks out of the restaurant and says something to the effect of "Why are you taking pictures, you must be cold [it was snowing at the time], you've got to come in an eat." Since I was not present, no one in the group recognized Chef Trotter immediately. Chef Trotter proceeded to let them into the restaurant, into a private room, and served them a four course lunch, with wines, gratis. Seriously. I'm still bitter I wasn't there more than a day later. So, has anyone heard of this before? Chef Trotter claimed that he does this from time to time. I can't imagine why. The people were all young, college-aged individuals, many dressed in jeans and hooded sweatshirts. There is the chance that my firm set this up as part of a private, "secret" event, but even the recruiters were completely shocked by the events that transpired. My theory, if we assume this wasn't planned, is that Chef Trotter foresaw a good deal of no shows for that night's service due to the bad weather and decided to take pity on a bunch of cold student-looking types.

Stopped by TVH for a quick drink this weekend. It's unfortunate that my visits here have to come under such tight time constraints. Nevertheless, a nice experience. The snow allowed me to walk in on a Saturday night at about 10 with no wait. By the time we left there was a line in the vestibule but no one outside. My evening included a lot of other imbibing at other (less pleasing) locations so I don't recall the names of my drinks. One had tequilla and an egg yolk. I know the crushed ice is a conscious move, but I thought there was too much dilution. Overall, a nice and creamy winter drink. My friend had a drink made with Gruet (it seems like Gruet is all I drink in restaurants these days); I believe it was called the Airmail. Lighter with a more fruit/citrus centered profile, but I quite enjoyed it. I'm always shocked as to how big this place is. The separate rooms make it feel more intimate, but they do have a good amount of space.

Yes, seeing the menu itself suggests it's not a precursor to Ko. I was imagining previews of Ko-like dishes, perhaps like the shaved foie from above.

But to take credit for them is unethical. This idea has been discussed at length, especially with regards to more distinctive aspects of hypermodern cooking. How forthcoming you are in sharing your inspiration is entirely up to you, but I would never want to look the fool and claim an idea as my own when the guest in question has actually had the original.

Exciting! A precursor to Ko?

That you have 179 photos in your Ssam Bar photo set is very amusing. This place obviously has very devoted fans.

Bruni drops the trey on Fiamma. Perhaps this is the review that the original Alto wanted? Or something like that.