Rebecca263
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Posts posted by Rebecca263
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Gee, is NOTHING "OT" on this site? I think that the political thread starting up here needs to be, because it's taking away my APPETITE!
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Being from South Beach, I've mainly dined well there on my own. I've been treated well at Osteria Del Teatro (nice Italian), Da Leo (amazing vegetable puree soups, and home made pasta!), Papillon (casual French Bistro), Joe's (hit them for lunch, they love women!) and Pacific Time(what can I say???? amazing).... many a time! I don't usually order the most expensive things, sometimes it's only soup, appetizer and dessert! I am incredibly outgoing and 'smiley', though, and that always colors my experiences in a friendlier light. AND, I've read a book in each and every one of those nice places, as well as in numerous diners and other restaurants. Megan Blocker, if you feel like it, take a book! Reading a book and sitting at a nice table, full and with a nice dessert in front of me, is one of my happiest alone with myself pleasures! What, I don't deserve to enjoy my meal AND a book? It's a religion now to eat? There are RULES about not reading? Believe me, it is a pleasure to see someone truly enjoy the experience of a meal to the chef, proprieter and staff. Life is horrible and wonderful, and I expect my personal time to be pleasant. I never expect to be asked to sit at a 'bad' table, just because I'm alone on one particular night or day, but i don't mind being seated near the kitchen, etc. After all, it's a great spot for seeing what everyone is getting for THEIR meal! I'm always very kind to people, and I tip VERY well, I think of the tip as part of the cost of the meal, and not as a punishment. I have had so few bad experiences in restaurants on my own (other than mediocre food a few times) that I can't recall any right now. In fact, I've driven all up and down the East Coast and had some amazing experiences as a lone diner in many places. Many times I am in a small town and I am obviously not from the neighborhood, and I've been given free drink or food(yeah, that's why I had to eat the 2nd dessert, it was a gift!) and free tickets to shows and zoos. I also have received art from a few folk artists because I happened to be eating near them, more than once, which is a testament to the huge amount of folk artists in the South East, and not to my considerable charms! Gee, kiddle is out of town for 2 weeks, it's time for a Mommy alone road trip!
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I adore eating on my own, whether in a restaurant or at home. I DO sometimes take a book with me, for dessert and coffee time, and I always make sure to tip extremely well for good service, more so than when I dine with others. My reasoning is that I'm still taking the same time at the table as a larger party would. Of course, on road trips I sometimes eat alone in great casual road side places, and meet a lot of interesting people that way!
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I'm average,
Anchovies
Artichoke Hearts
Beans
Beets
Black Olives
Caviar
Hearts of Palm
Pineapple
Pineapple Juice
Pumpkin
Salmon
Sardines
Tomato anything
Israeli Pickles
Tuna
V8
Water Chestnuts
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I can only tell you that I haven't seen cheese on a stick up here, but I was so in the mood for it a few months ago that I made my own version at home. I took some mild cheddar, cut it into stamp like squares, about 1/2 oz each. Then I dipped them in an egg wash, then some well seasoned bread crumbs, and I sauteed them in a skillet with a spritz of vegetable/olive oil. They were delicious! I served them with a huge amount of chopped fresh parsley on top, slices of plum tomatoes to layer with, and brown mustard on the side for dipping. OM, OM, they were good! I think they would have been good with pesto or tomato sauce, too.
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A few years ago we were 'at the lake' (Webster!) in New Hampshire and my uncle took us to a McDonald's. Why, all of us foodies wondered on the way, but when we got there, they had these up North sandwiches called lobster rolls. Being a kid from the Florida clan, I'd never had one of those. They were incredible! And, I think they were only about 3 bucks. I've still never eaten a McDonald's burger sandwich, how do they call those things burgers?
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OK!
CHEAP: the list is LONG!
MEATS, I only buy what's on sale cheap! And, I only buy kosher, although we don't keep 100% kosher, truth be told.
TOMATOES, canned. I really love the imported ones with basil, and they're CHEAP!
BEANS, canned or dried.
MILK, sometimes. I go on binges where I only buy the organic, but other times I only buy the cheapest quart that I can find in cardboard. I don't like plastic milk jugs!
EGGS, I dream of having truly fresh ones someday, but I've taste tested a number of brands and found it's all hooey, so far.
OATMEAL, for cookies and baking, I get the cheap stuff, but my daughter and I really eat it every day, and we appreciate the steel cut organic for a meal.
BOTTLED LEMON JUICE, WHITE VINEGAR, HEARTS OF PALM, CANNED ARTICHOKES, EVOO, ONIONS, POTATOES, FROZEN VEGETABLES, FROZEN FRUIT, COOKING SPRAY, BAKING SODA, CONSTANT COMMENT TEA(it reminds me of MY Mommy),RAISINS, POPPING CORN, RAISIN BRAN and BROWN RICE, our favorite brand is the cheapest, go figure!
EXPENSIVE: Well, there are some things I can't do cheap, SALMON, I only buy wild because we eat it often, and I'm concerned about the lead content. BALSAMIC VINEGAR, my kiddle loves this stuff, and will only eat certain brands, Kosher Balsamic that is decent is PRICEY!, MUSTARD, I only buy Kosciusko, and there is no room for argument, SWEET RELISH- no corn syrup in my house!, SODA, again, no corn syrup!, SUGAR I only buy Florida's Natural, I like the taste, FLOUR-hey, it's self explanatory, my pizza dough is the best, KOSHER SALT I like Diamond and that's that, SPICES AND HERBS you can't skimp on cinnamon and cumin, or paprika, etc.etc., CANNED TUNAS look, kiddle won't eat solid white, I won't eat her mushy chunk light, we just get what we like, FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES, I'm on a tight budget, so we only buy what's in season, COFFEE, I'm a retired barista, don't get me started! TEA, have you ever had cheap green tea? fishy, feh!, FROZEN CONFECTIONS- OK, repeat after me, Mommy doesn't like the taste of corn syrup, CHOCOLATE, CANDIES AND GUM, FRUIT PRESERVES, BREAD, KETCHUP, kiddle prefers Gefen to ANY other brand, Heinz is second, MAPLE SYRUP AND DRIED FRUIT.
So, did I miss something, and, am I typical?
On a side note, I buy Arm & Hammer Dye Free laundry detergent and it happens to be cheap; I only buy Palmolive Dishwasher detergent, and it's cheap, too. But I'm driven by phosphate content, not price.
We buy paper towels once or twice a year, and we go cheap on that too. The one item I can not under circumstances skimp on is TOILET PAPER! Go figure, I like the good stuff. No matter how tight our budget is, we don't skimp on Balsamic vinegar, shower products, lipsticks or toilet paper, LOL. SOCKS is another story entirely.
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Tonight I had the most delicious simple thing. An entire head of Romaine lettuce, torn into tiny bits, with a chopped onion, a chopped home grown (NJ!!!) tomato and a handful of fresh parsley, chopped into smithereens; dressed with a heavy dose of cumin and paprika, a dash of kosher salt, and a good lashing of both olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It was heaven! And, no you can't see a pic, it's in my tummy! I'm home alone for another week, and I'm eating dinner BEFORE my dates so I don't have to share. Well, I share my popcorn, or my dessert, I'm nice!
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Those Toufayan buns sound good! I'm just your basic foodie, but I can tell you that at home I take a really thick, large slice of egg bread or rye or white mountain bread and I toast it in the oven for a few minutes. I then fold the bread into a bun, it's delicious to me. I wager it would even better if I put it on a grill for a few minutes with some kind of fat, but not practical with my little newspaper grill! So, you could offer to do that for an extra charge, use a heavy slice of your excellent breads! You can always have 2 versions of dog service, the $3 meltdog and the $4meltmelt..... I am going to bring my daughter as soon as she gets back home in July and we are going to share a sandwich and each have a hotdog.... I can't wait to share your place with her! Wish I lived closer to you!
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Roasted chicken "butt"..... well, what do you know, I'm a girl who likes tail!
Also, I avoid it almost completely, but I adore BUTTER. On almost anything, really. Like, oh, what say we try it on a spoon....... with a sprinkle of salt or lemon..... sooo bad, but sooo good! ACK! I'm on a diet, so I'm spending way too much time on eGullet this week!
BUt, one of my all time favorite bad things is a small amount of salad dressed with an immense (at least 10 oz.!) quantity of Blue Cheese and a few drops of Balsamic vinegar smushed together.
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Gee, I suppose that ALL kosher cheeses are made with vegan rennet? Someone in the know, please let us know!
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Oh, you're the Melt man, with the amazing sandwiches! I love you! $3.00, for a jumbo, excellent hot dog, is a pittance. I promise. Now, don't forget the brown mustard! I adore relish but as I'm having to avoid raw onions and garlic, I tend to avoid the homemade relishes, so a good brown mustard is a MUST! I personally like Kosciusko. What's with that yellow stuff? It's inedible except for a soft pretzel. Honestly, I've paid $5.00 for an excellent and large well grilled hot dog and felt that it was worth it. A good hot dog is a meal! And I'm just a poor single girl who needs her extra do-re-mi for shoes. Of course, I've also paid $2.00 for a big, spicy sausage hot dog from the Cuban carts in downtown Miami and been thrilled as well, girl taste buds, go figure. So, can I tell you that I really don't get the cotton buns? I almost always end up throwing out the bun. Why do those buns taste like paper? Are you planning on a premium bun? I'd pay extra for that, too! I dream of a hot dog bun that equals the dog it swaddles, it's only happened to me 3 times in all of my years! Once, I had a hot dog in a bun made like a parkerhouse roll, it was delicious! OK, I'll stop rambling now; I suppose I'll be one of those crotchety old ladies......... "Where's the beef?"
PS: I really like your shop.
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I LOVED the old Hawaiian (sp?) ice cream sundae from Carvel in the 70's. It was basically canned fruit salad combined and pineapple served over vanilla soft serve, but I could live on it, it was so good! Does that count as fast food?
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The best yebrah I ever had were my mother's (isn't that always the way?) and she used a lot of allspice and tamarhindi in her recipe, also, I remember her putting lemons in the bottom of the pot no matter what version she made, but sometimes apricots as well. Even if she made her tomato sauced version there were lemons in the bottom of the pot. Now, about 20 years ago I received the Deal Cookbook, a red vinyl covered book filled with Syrian recipes, and the yebrah recipes in it were almost verbatim my mother's standbys. If anyone has access to a spare copy of this book I would be grateful for the opportunity to buy it, as my copy was stolen a few years ago! I make my yebrah with brown rice now, and they are still the item that is most irresistible at any meal. I personally think that yebrah is the most delicious food on the planet, and I can't understand people who dislike them.
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To us umami is a mushroom* that is sauteed with a bit of soy sauce and bitten into while it is still hot and juicy. Try it, you've found Umami! I agree with the above posters, umami is a delicious, meaty and primordially satisfying taste, but I think that properly used the termis not meant for meat. Strawberries macerated with Balsamic vinegar have a tendency to an umami moment, but not as well as vegetable proteins cooked with some kind of salt. Tofu is particarly wonderful, but tricky to find in the umami realm, it won't give you the sensation if it is breaded or soft. Of course, I heard "Umami! Yay!" last night when we ate our turkey meatballs, but I'm certain that's just anime loving teen talking, and not accurate usage of the term.
*edited to mention, a BIG mushroom, like a Portobello, not those white buttony ones!
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both me and my little kiddle have written!
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My memories are of me deciding to make "healthy" brownies and dumping a bottle of vitamins in the batter! And then, in 5th grade I made hummous tahina for my public speaking assignment, and everyone in class had garlic breath contests for the rest of the day! No, really my DAUGHTER is the foodie, from toddlerhood she adored pate, sushi in all it's guises, carpaccio and caviar. She remembers all of our travels by the cemeteries and the food. She loves New Orleans, and wants to get married there, just so we can eat at Muriel's! She actually has a favorite brand of ketchup(Gefen). Heck, she's even dragged me on day long road trips for certain Strawberry festivals! And, we have to bring our own balsamic vinegar, in case they only serve berries with whipped cream or chocolate, or how can we eat the berries for 'dinner' too? One funny bit, I once came into the kitchen to find my 16 month old kneeling with a cracker in front of the cat's plate (Fancy Feast)... she turned to me, grinned and said "Mmmm, pate! Needs something, Mommy." OK, she's not just a foodie, she's a critic! I love this thread.
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That last recipe sounds really good! We've been looking for a consistently good challah recipe to make at home. I'm going to bake it on Friday and
I'll let you all know how it turns out on Sunday.
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Hi! I'm new to the North East myself, we bought Beefsteak plants 2 weeks ago and I also planted my own (from last year's Florida garden) plum tomato seeds then as well. The plants are all thriving in my tiny townhouse backyard, and the beefsteaks have begun climbing. I got them at a garden center, and this morning I saw lots of different kinds of tomato plants at Home Depot (home of the $3.33 evergreen for Floridians who don't understand Northern plantings!). I get free coffee grounds at Starbucks monthly for my garden. You can just walk in and ask, they put them in a five pound bean bag for you. It's loveliest when there are no grounds when you arrive and they give you fresh ones, so warm and fragrant! I've enriched any garden with it for years, and it really seems to help my tomatoes, peas and pineapples best. Good luck!
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You MUST try Shorty's, they're an institution. Forget the sides, everything is overcooked and oversweetened, but DO go for the ribs and the chicken. A really good sticky sauce, you'll be glad!
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When I'm visiting someone who doesn't have cinnamon in the cupboard for my milk, I put Coca Cola in the milk. Yum.
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My daughter eats grapes with soy sauce. She's loved the combo for years. I've tried it, but UGH. TRULY HORRID. However, if you mix some cut grapes into a stir fry with ginger and soy sauce, heaven!
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If anyone is interested in getting a group together for a weeekend forage in the Monmouth County area, email me!
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Oh My Goodness! Kiddle and I would love to go to farmer's markets up here.... I'm getting a map and figuring all of those Monmouth County places out for the weekend. Anything off of Rt 9 is a mystery to me.
Hershey's, Scharffen Berger & Joseph Schmidt
in Ready to Eat
Posted
Gee, I adore Scharffen Berger, AND I indulge in a classic Hershey bar or Special Dark once in awhile, too! Maybe this will mean a NEW mini in the mini bag? heh heh... must remain positive.....