jm chen

Well, he used taro leaves and Elia used ti leaves, so I thought it was silly that they made this distinction. He boiled taro and no one else did, that was much riskier. But the judges kept bringing up the freakin' leaves. The "didn't cook anything" and "played it safe" were totally trumped up to get Sam out of there. If he were in the final he would win; they didn't want him to win (too Haroldesque); so he couldn't be in the finale. Ergo, the lame-ass Marcel-Ilan grudge match, which I will not watch. I agree with whoever said earlier that Ilan just keeps cooking off the Casa Mono menu. Saffron is lovely, but it's not a culinary vision, it's just saffron. Really unhappy with how this season has turned out.

I've always wanted to try the Thanksgiving meal at Corduroy. I bet it's awesome. Their food is great every other day of the year, so I assume the bottom doesn't drop out on Turkey Day. The hotels tend to be open, everything else tends to be closed. At some point OpenTable will have a list of which places are offering T'giving set meals, in which case you could bring specific names and we could offer up our opinion on those. Good luck!

I find Leopold's sterile, with its industrial, white-and-metal look. Bistro Francais and Bistro Lepic both serve great food in more welcoming settings. I really like the lunch at Agraria, but many disagree. There are definitely some service issues. But for me, they are overcome by the utterly drinkable iced tea and stuffed-to-the-brim charcuterie sandwich.

Another DC resident here -- I haven't been to a Whole Foods in a while, but I get my La Quercia proscuitto from Cowgirl Creamery. Dang, that's expensive stuff, but oh-so-delicious.

Made the Zinfandel Pot Roast with glazed carrots this weekend, and MAN was that good. The sauce gets so flavorful with the wine and aromatics, I could have happily drunk a glass. Also, it's the first time I've successfully glazed anything. As always, adjusted the recommended temps downward.

I haven't checked the prices lately, but Spices, on Connecticut Ave in Cleveland Park, may be able to handle your group. It's Pan-Asian stuff, lots of noodles. If you're in the Van Ness area, just north of Cleveland Park, I really love the sandwiches at Schlotzsky's. I don't think you mentioned whether you were also looking for lunch options. Pizza might be a practical way to feed all those hungry teens. There's an Armand's branch in Tenleytown on Wisconsin, maybe 3/4-mile north of Cactus? They're good with groups.

We were in town last weekend and ended up there twice -- Friday night for dessert and drinks, and Sunday for lunch. Ate at the bar both times and the bartenders were polite and attentive, making it a really pleasant experience. And man, that was a good cheese plate. Not to mention the gnudi.

This is a very good point. I, for one, have not gotten much of a wine-tasting education, and cost is certainly part of the reason. Maybe I should embark on a beer-tasting education instead... I think in both cases, beer and wine, it's hard for me to generalize from what I know -- I love Bluebird Bitter, and I love Iron Horse Rosato di Sangiovese -- to what else I might like --other beers labeled "bitter"? I hated Iron Horse's Rosato of Pinot Noir...

The Inn at Little Washington has strengths and weaknesses too. Haven't been there myself but I often hear that both the decor and the service can come off as stuffy. That said, they DO have a cheese cart that is shaped like a cow, and moos. I echo others who say if you really want something spectacular, arrange ahead of time for the chef to create a special menu. You could center it around favorite wines, or favorite ingredients, or let them go wild. I have no idea what something like this costs, but it sounds like you're willing to invest in making the evening memorable.

Glad I didn't read this thread (the part about gastrointestinal distress and health code violations, anyway) before stopping by Shake Shack last Saturday during a visit from out of town. DANG that was a good burger, savory and soft with just the right amount of crust. Vanilla shake wasn't bad either. Taxi dog: well, next time we'll just get another Shack burger instead. Is the mushroom burger a mushroom ON a burger, or just a mushroom? It was impossible to tell from the menu...

One of our writers at Intrepid Media (and an enthusiastic home brewer) has published an article putting forward this controversial idea: beer is more complex than wine, and that's why wine people don't like it. A Hop From the Grape Vine. Among his points: Thought the beer aficionados around here might be interested in reading and weighing in.

Don't forget the cheese either! We got some Womanchego from the Cato Corner folks here on Saturday. Deeeeelicious.

Had a really fabulous meal at C&O last week, I highly recommend it. Keeping all the seating areas straight might be a little confusing (upstairs, bistro, mezzanine, covered patio, open patio) but wherever you sit, it's good food. We sat in the mezzanine, because there weren't enough reservations on the books for them to open the upstairs. And the covered patio (which was also closed because it was too hot) was a really, really pretty space. Handwritten menu. Great fish. Great cheese plate. Friendly service. Quail and gnocchi, out of this world.

We have such a tiny kitchen I try to be really careful about not acquiring. Accordingly, there's nothing that I've *never* used. However, I have used the following only once: * ceramic peeler (it's fine, but the metal Y-peeler is magic) * rice cooker (why bother?) * mini-muffin tin (not all that into muffins) I've only used my poultry shears once, but I'll definitely be using them again. It's just that I don't spatchcock all that often.

So there are two of us out there. Awesome. Make it three. Melonhaters unite!

I've never been to Devi, but reviews lead me to believe it is both scene-y and tasty. If everyone in your party is up for Indian it might be an option.

These turned out just great. Really wonderful sauce. I read the directions wrong and put too much oil in the marinade (some of that oil is for the marinade and some for the pan... oops) so I ended up chilling the sauce and then skimming off the green layer at the top before reheating and mixing in the heavy cream. Served it with spaghetti squash, which was also delicious in the sauce of cilantro, mint, garlic, ginger, cream, and rum.

Any kind of sampler, especially a cheese plate. I can have delicious cheeses at home, but not, say, five of them, with two kinds of grapes, fresh walnut bread and a cherry mostarda. And I rarely make dessert at home because I don't want to have leftovers in the house, so a good restaurant bread pudding will get me every time.

Herbs at the farmer's market yesterday looked good, so I picked up some cilantro and mint for the Goan Chicken Thighs, which I will make at long last in the next couple of days. Will report back. Haven't decided yet if I want to bother buying heavy cream to add the three required tablespoons to the sauce, or whether I'll just deal with a less creamy sauce to save the waste and the waists.

Beautiful photos, Doc. Really captured the flavor and mood of the place as well as the sights. It definitely sounds like the guac prep has changed since I was there last September. Previously the thin avocado roll was filled with a very cold tomato sorbet. Since this was not one of my favorite dishes there I'm happy to hear they've changed it. I can taste those feta water noodles again just looking at that gorgeous photo. Thanks again for sharing your experience!

I have a block of stainless Chicago Cutlery and they do the job for me. I hone 'em regularly with the included steel. Succumbed to the siren song of ceramic and bought a 5.5" Kyocera ceramic chef's knife, though, and BOY does that thing cut. It's like the onion just melts away from the blade. I use it rarely, though, since I'm afraid of breakage.

Oh, and I thought Katie Lee Joel was surprisingly lifelike!

I'm pretty sure that bottle that Stephen was holding was empty by the end of the show. And I'm glad, because otherwise he might not have made that apology to Candice, which is one of the few moments in which I've really respected Stephen. Harold is... not available. Well, damn. Lee Anne looked gorgeous. I don't know if it was different makeup or what, but she was HOT. Lisa, I didn't like her new hair. I agree with others who've said Dave did not come off well last night. Andrea always annoyed me because of her obsession with... waste management, but I have to admit her joke about getting eliminated twice because she was "always so focused on elimination" was downright hilarious.

Stephen's blog does nothing to improve my opinion of him. Wow. Can't wait for tonight's reunion show!

I was FURIOUS when they sent Lee Ann home last night. FURIOUS! Now, of course, it's very easy for me to root for the one remaining person I want to win, but that said, there seemed to be a lot more praise for her dish than Tiffani's, even taking all the previous stuff aside. I wonder if it's all the double-fakeout-type editing. Clearly we were set up to expect that Lee Ann stay, especially with Harold and Dave hoping aloud for it -- but every time they set up something like that, then their choices seem less reasonable, because they lay the groundwork for the wrong guess. (I may watch too much competitive reality.) Glad to see they're keeping the Reunion episode just like Project Runway had. Let's get ready to scuffle! And drink!