BryanZ

Any guy who dresses like that and can still appreciate the nuances of Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle is a winner in my book, too.

OH MAN!! What a hilarious site. The rotating pictures on the right side of the "menu" are priceless. There is some decent content there, however, and he has worked with some pretty big names. This site only reaffirms that he is a pretentious "douche bag" (in the words of the ever-so eloquent Candace) but also has some skills and cred. to back it up. CIA to Cornell is not too shabby. I look foward to see what else he has coming in the future.

This appears to be a wholesale site, not to mention it also seems to be shipping from China. After a quick glance, I'm not sure how much use this is to a home cook. R4D came to mind for me, too, but I wasn't sure if Mussina was in NYC. I'm not sure if R4D does mail order either. ETA: FMC "Bippolymer" should be "Biopolymer". And again, this appears to be a wholesale site. Any retail sources that easily sell small quantities?

It's great to see people joining the Stephen fan club. I consider myself the founding member. I only watched the sixth episode tonight because it took forever for the torrent to get online. Anyway, like others, I did feel that Stephen's plating on the quickfire challenge dish was kind of obscure. The fact of the matter is he still wins and is in the top 3 more often than anyone else. I also noticed that the quality of the food went up dramatically in this episode. Harold said it well when he noted they were finally cooking real food, none of this microwave or gas station crap. Some of these cooks do have talent, regardless of what the show's haters have to say. Obviously Andrea was several notches below the others, and Dave just can't compete. Miguel seems to be the weakest of the others, and the last four have a solid battle ahead of them.

You might be using the incorrect spelling. I'm assuming you're talking about sodium "alginate" to be used with calcium chloride solutions. Let me know if you find anything.

And I'm guessing this probably wont make it to FoodTV in the good ol' USA?

Not that I use this tactic, but if we all acknowledge an underground economy like this exists, why shouldn't someone take advantage of it? To some people paying $50 to get a table now garners more utility than waiting a half-hour or any other given amount of time. The purported immorality of the tip/bribe clearly doesn't outweigh their desire to receive prompt serice and I don't really they can be faulted for having what is really just a difference in morals. At the end of the day, that this practice is generally frowned upon doesn't mean it doesn't happen. Those who grease may well think they're better/busier/etc but quite frankly are only paying for a convenience. Personally, I still find this practice a little bit smarmy, but if it works, it works. We live in a capitalistic society and undergound economies like this are pretty much unavoidable.

That sounds really, really good. Could you order less food and still have a full meal?

One of these recently opened up by me (Durham, NC) and is hiring sales associates and prep staff. I haven't been to check out the physical store yet, but the website seemed pretty accessible, if not all that exciting. The concept for this kind of thing is admirable for the upper-middle class family who wants "homecooked meals" but may not have the time to prepare them themselves or the resources to hire a private chef. I'm toying with the idea of starting something like this semi-underground and on a much smaller scale, obviously with an emphasis on quality and creativity. This concept is really just a form of catering, except the dishes that might be finished on-site at an event are instead finished at home.

A really interesting article. To see tactics like that working at places like Le Bernardin and Ducasse is quite surprising. I'm kind of ambivalent to the situation, as I have no problem making reservations and generally don't eat at scene-y places, but have no problem paying for a great experience, be it a bribe, tip, or anything else. I feel like there are more important things in life to worry about than spending an extra twenty or fifty dollars for a prime table.

Octaveman, those are seriously badass knives.

Wow, a month. That's a ballsy move. On a separate note, where do you keep a vacuum packer like that in your kitchen? I have enough stuff already and, though I have a relativley large kitchen, have no more counter or storage space.

You certainly don't have to spend over $100 per person. Though you likely won't get out for much less if you start experimenting and trying new things out. With that said, eating in front of Yasuda doesn't mean you have to try all the most exotic fish, it simply will guarantee an educational, in-your-face, and very enjoyable sushi experience. Overall, if you stick to items more or less on the menu and order a assortment of things that you want and he recommends, then it shouldn't be too bad.

Cool VacMaster, but it certainly isn't cheap.

Please do this. I would do 20 for my 20th, but I don't think I have 20 friends.

The uni and the bill at the end are quite impressive.

I actually found the Japanese-Latin one to be the easiest of the combos. If they had done some kind of grilled skewer they could've combined a lot of great flavors.

I've got a reso here in early June. We'll see if I keep it when report start coming out, but this is shaping up to be quite the rebirth.

Soooo tempted.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but they're little spikes on the inside of the pot's lid. During the cooking process steam condenses on the top and is channeled to these spikes. As the liquid drops from them, they baste whatever is cooking in the vessel.

What Ruth said. This is probably the web's best resource for real sous-vide cooking. Lots of experiments from chefs and home cooks like me and Percyn. Take the time to read through eG and you'll undoubtedly come out much wiser. edited to add: I believe Ruth was referring to nathanm's posts. He's awesome and offers a wealth of information. He alone is the web's best source of information on sous vide cooking.

How does the addition of those courses work in regards to pricing, if you dont mind me asking? I don't want to inundate the restaurant with eG'ers asking for this semi-obscure request but it does seem like an ideal way to eat for those who can't manage the full tour. With that said, Lollapalooza is in Chicago at the end of the summer with some pretty sweet bands. A revisit and perhaps a jaunt over to Moto might be in order.

Thank you. Someone else finally agrees with me. He is arrogant as hell, but for now he can be because he's among the best. The competition is called Top Chef and people like Candace simply should not be there. She has brought nothing to the actual competition and Stephen understands that. I do agree that he is becoming kind of like a one-trick pony but that could be editing, too. We'll see how the show plays out.

A place like Venue would likely not survive down here. Still, I would like to see compromise between modern techniques and more traditional approaches or flavors. It's not so much that I think there should be restaurants in the vein of wd~50 across the nation, but I would like to see more open-mindedness from local, talented chefs.

nathanm, it's good to see you back, contributing and educating those of us who may not know as much. First sous vide, now this, where to next?