ronnie_suburban

Bill, that butt looks fantastic! Nice work! Eric, that sounds like p-lenty of food but in all seriousness, you may want to add a butt or 2 (and cut it back to 2 briskets, maybe). I only say this as an often-neurotic host who worries that each guest won't get enough of each item. With only 1 butt, you may come up a bit short with 30 eaters, especially when you consider what the actual yield on a 9 pound, skin-on, bone-in butt is going to be. 6 slabs of ribs will be enough for everyone to have a taste (a little over 2 ribs per person if everyone eats them). If the whole briskets are as big as the ones I got last weekend, you'll easily have enough brisket for everyone if you make 3 and probably even have enough if you make only 2 of them. I would definitely brine the butts and the ribs. I always brine those items and for my taste, I think it produces a noticeably superior product -- especially when you consider that brining is a step which costs nothing but time. But, I'd skip brining the briskets. They'll essentially end up corned, which isn't what you want. Edited to add: I agree with Susan; brine the chicken, too. =R=

Yes, this is essentially true in some categories, with qualifications. It's unlikely that a major brand which produces and packages its own products will also co-pack for another brand. But, there are many brands (even many high-end ones) which farm out all their manufacturing. The companies which handle the manufacturing (private label co-packers) most likely package similar or identical products for all sorts of brands. But, ultimately, the brand whose label appears on the packaging (the marketer) controls the formulation and soucring of ingredients. It is up to them to direct the co-packer as to how the final product is manufactured. Even in cases where the manufacturer devises the formulation, the marketing company will almost always have approval over which proposed formula is chosen and used. I once walked through a manufacturer's plant and saw literally hundreds of different brands in their warehouse. I think there were at least 30 brands of mayonnaise alone. Each formulation could have been slightly different but there is nothing preventing 7 different marketing companies from choosing the same formulation for their own brand. =R=

Hey! Happy birthday! I think that if you've never been, you should go to Arun's. But, if you're seriously interested in going somewhere else, please check out this site: Silapaahaan.com which is run by Erik M., a local authority on the Chicago Thai food scene. I think you'll find everything you need there to make a well-informed decision. =R=

Tammy, Since I'm not 100% definite but very likely to attend, I'd appreciate it if you would include me in the directions/pm loop. Thanks =R=

Just to follow up on this, I read a note in the Chicago Tribune today that a local Chicago-area purveyor, The Spice House, is now offering sichuan peppercorns: Off the shelf =R=

July 6, 2005... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: Asian cool...Virginia Gerst reports on how flavors of the Pacific Rim have inspired a new wave of ice creams and sorbets here in the U.S. Cooler-climate wines better match to California meals...Bill Daley explains why California wines don't always make for the best pairings with "California" cuisine and reveals which wines do. Mastering the perfect diced onion...James P. DeWan continues his instructional series on kitchen knife-work. Life at the grill...Donna Pierce with a brief review of Peace, Love and Barbecue, which was written by BBQ guru Mike Mills and his daughter, Amy Mills Tunnicliffe. Tart cherries...Robin Mather Jenkins with a useful primer. Wittekerke...Jeff Boda continues his Beer of the Month series. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: We found our man! Challenge begins for Greg Ortiz...the mild obsession over nutrition and health continues at the Sun-Times as food editor Sue Ontiveros identifies their candidate for the food section's 40-and- Fitter Challenge. Cutting edge knowledge...Maura Webber Sadovi sits in on basic knife class recently held at Sur La Table. Shelf Life...Denise I. O'Neal reports on a variety of retail products intended to help keep things cool during the hot summer months. Tastings around town...Celeste Busk with her weekly preview of some area food events. This week's roster includes happenings at The Grille on Laurel (Lake Forest) and Ben Pao. Barbecue, grilling titles offer tips, recipes...Joan Brunskill provides brief reviews of some "hot" outdoor cooking publications. Restaurant celebrates museum's new exhibit...Denise I. O'Neal reports on what a few local restaurants are doing to commemorate Bastille Day. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: In quest of the homemade grilled pizza...Don Mauer chronicles his efforts to turn out grilled pizza at home. Food and wine classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming area food events, tastings and classes; broken out by day. ===== From the Chicago Reader...What's New section...reviews of Alinea and Porter's Steakhouse. ===== And last, but certainly not least, in this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish...Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby report on the arrival of Texas de Brazil, yet another Brazilian-style churrascarria, coming to Schaumburg (Woodfield Mall) this October. ===== =R= <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some Chicago media outlets, which do not 'go to press' on Wednesday mornings, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you.

Today's Chicago Tribune reports that the Spice House is carrying 3 new spices: Sichuan peppercorns, crystallized ginger nibs and bittersweet, crunchy roasted cacao nibs. For details, click below: Off the shelf =R=

Sorry, no pics here either (at the moment) but my briskets also turned out great. I smoked them over mesquite for about 14 hours at around 200 F. Between what was eaten during our party and what folks took home, 24 pounds of brisket is now down to less than a pound. Because I spend such a long time smoking briskets, I only end up doing them about once per year. It's rare that I have such a long chunk of time to spend around the smoker. But that once a year sure is worth the effort. Next weekend, it's back to ribs =R=

This is so true. I've always felt this way but I've never heard the sentiment expressed so succinctly. I think this is why I almost never bring a (leftover) lunch to work. The thought that whatever we are going to order in that day could open a new door is just too compelling for me to pass it up. Leftovers be damned! (even though they often would be better than what we end up with) =R=

Chef Achatz has graciously forwarded to us a copy of the new Alinea menu, which will bow on Thursday of this week: I'm intrigued by the descriptions and I have a lot of questions, but I'll happily wait to have most of them answered in person, later this month. That said, I'm wondering what the difference is between eating wild celery and eating regular celery and where one would source wild celery. Pillow of lavendar air?!?! I can't wait to find out what that's all about. Damn! This is a lot of new dishes. Is this the regular frequency with which new dishes will be introduced, or is this more of a tweaking of the original game plan? =R=

I love when that happens. =R=

I think Ronnie Suburban offered to sell Daniel one for his roadtrip, you should PM him ;). ← LOL! Nah, wasn't me. If I'm in that market at all, it's on the "buy" side as well. I agree with the many who've posted about the thoughtfulness of jbonne's list. I thought it was a fun and discussing-inspiring piece. =R=

No, the meat will not take on as much smoke if you cook it first. However long you smoke it, that stage should come first. =R=

LOL! Oh, I've been there and I definitely like their burgers but don't love them. But, it's a great place and definitely one of the most unique and charming joints on the north shore. I love that electric train that travels on its high shelf around the entire place; kinda reminds me of the old Sweet Shoppe in Winnetka. =R=

I'm doing 2 whole briskets and only have 1 side dish decided upon. It's basically some grilled green beans in a sauce comprised of a bit of canola oil, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sriracha, a touch of sesame oil, s&p and toasted sesame seeds. A friend is bringing a cold cellophane noodle salad with seasonal veggies (and pork?). Another friend is bringing another, as yet unnamed, salad. So, I too am still looking for one or two more side-dish ideas to match up with the brisket. I made slaw and baked beans at the last "smokefest" over Memorial Day weekend, so those are out this time. =R=

I really enjoyed this week's installment and I look forward to seeing all the remaining contestants cooking in an actual restaurant. I'll admit that Katie has really grown on me. I didn't like her very much at the outset. And forgive the moderately snarky comment but wtf happened to Norman Van Aiken? When did he become so pompous and humorless? I remember seeing him years back on Food Network and he always seemed personable and easy-going. Oh well, maybe I'm just misinterpreting things but in last night's episode he seemed very crabby from the start -- long before he was served those bones by Matt. =R=

With a few days of Taste still left, I wanted to add a bit more information. Each booth has 1 "taste portion" item which costs 3 tickets ($1.50). For the most part we thought these offerings were great values. In almost all cases the taste portion was the item at each booth that we most wanted to try. There were only a few exceptions. Only once, and I cannot remember at which booth, did we feel that the taste portion didn't exceed the $1.50 price. At one booth (Kitty O'Shea's, IIRC), we purchased a small portion of Bailey's Ice Cream for 2 tickets. Most items cost between 7 and 9 tickets. I didn't see any items which cost more than 9 tickets but we didn't buy any beer or cocktails. We really had a great time. There are a few places from which we tried food that was so good, we will definitely hit their HQ locations. In the end, that's what Taste is all about, so I'll happily categorize this year's installment as a mild success. =R=

The calm before the storm; approximately 10:45 am CT. Taste officially opens at 11:00 am. Wild Boar Sausage from Grizzly's Lodge. Decent but, as you can see, the puffy whitebread bun and lack of condiments made me feel that they really mailed this in. Breaded Steak Sandwich from Ricobene's. This was terrific; piping hot and crispy. The sauce, gardiniera and bread were also excellent. Jerk Chicken cooking at Maxine's. Maxine's Jerk Chicken makes its way to being served. Oxtails with Rice & Peas from Maxine's. This was my favorite item of the day. Pierogi's (potato, cheese and sauerkraut) from Polka Sausage & Deli. Ribs from Robinson's #1 Ribs. Not very good and WAY too much below-average sauce. Frankly, this picture shows exactly what is wrong with most ribs in Chicago. Fried Cheese Ravioli from Tutto Italiano. Not that my expectations were high but these were really lousy; cold and chewy. Foodservice dreck...blech. Fried Chicken Wing & Battered/Fried Okra from Harold's Chicken. Absolutely delicious stuff. Piping hot and crispy. Mustard-Fried Catfish from BJ's Market & Bakery (with some hot sauce and honey mustard sauce in the boat). Hot, crispy and pretty good but I had this in a "very full" moment, which happily, subsided a bit later on. A grillman from Tuscany Restaurant multi-tasks. By noon the crowd begins to fill in. Jamaican Red Beans & Rice with Plantain from Jamaica Jerk. This was probably the worst thing I ate today. It was extremely dry and flavorless. Sauteed Goat and Plantain from Vee-Vee's African Cuisine. Very delicious but even within this little serving boat, the goatmeat was inconsistent; some tender and some as chewy as rubber. Seating tent. There were several of these situated throughout the Taste and they never seemed full, either. Pineapple Sundae from Zephyr. Sorry for the poorly-focused shot. This was just ok, nothing special. Mutton Biryani from Zam Zam Restaurant. A bit skimpy on the mutton but this was outstanding. The rice was wonderful. Alcapurria (pork-filled banana dumpling) from Sabor Latino. This is the first time I've ever had this and it tasted great. However, the exterior was very hard and seemed like it had been sitting around a while. In a cute marketing move, the Maalox guys were making the rounds. Samosa from Arya Bhavan. This was pretty good. I've had better and I've had worse. I thought the filling was extraordinarily spicy for a samosa but I still enjoyed it. I wish they'd asked first before pouring the two chutneys all over it. Pierogi's (potato and sauerkraut) from Kasia's Deli. These were not as good as the pierogi's from Polka, pictured above. Cheesecake from JR Dessert Bakery. Again sorry for the poor focus. This was really bad. It was served way too warm and just laid there in my mouth. I'd heard great things about JR Dessert Bakery and I was looking forward to it. Maybe this wasn't the best venue for cheesecake. A happy taste-goer enjoys a cup of Rainbow Ice Cream (which was nothing special) from Original Rainbow Cone. Thin-crust Pepperoni & Sausage from Father & Son. The junior member of our party insisted on having this one. Corn roasting at O'Brien's. Looked good but I was too full as I walked by their booth. Italian Watermelon Ice from Franco's Ristorante. This was excellent and even had some watermelon seeds in it. Very refreshing in the 90+ degree F heat. Finally, I found some shade. Loukoumathes (fried honey donut holes) from Buckingham Cafe. Very well done and the honey really tasted of apple. These were piping hot and could not have been served any better. Deep-Fried Twinkie from America's Dog. I had to try this and it was surprisingly delicious. Inside the deep-fried Twinkie. Sorry (again), for the poor focus. A look at Buckingham Fountain with part of the Chicago skyline in the background. "Boss" Pork Sandwich from Sweet Baby Ray's. In spite of the over-application of SBR's sauce, this was very tasty. Potato Chips from Harry Caray's. A bit more than we could handle and we actually had to ask them for salt because they didn't have enough on them as they were originally served. Italian Beef Sandwich with sweet and hot peppers, from Buona Beef. I wouldn't classify this rendition as "upper tier" but it was damned good. The peppers and bread were excellent too. Curried Goat from Maxine's. I decided to go back to burn my last few tickets but this wasn't as good as the oxtails. For one, it was way too salty. Oh well. Hot link from Robinson's #1 Ribs. Better than their ribs but not by much. At least the sauce was applied more judiciously. I spent my final three tickets here on our way out. =R=

I am back (and yes, in one piece) from the Taste where we had a fantastic time today. Going during a weekday -- and arriving right as it opened at 11 am -- turned out to be a great idea. We never waited in line for anythying; not for tickets, food, beverages, bathrooms/port-o-potties, rides or souvenirs. We parked just west of the loop, right off the Kennedy for $9 (all-day rate) and took $6 cab rides to and from the Taste. In all, we spent about 4 hours at the event. The food was about what I expected with a few surprises in both directions. I took a bunch of pictures of what we ate -- which I will post a bit later on -- but for now, I have to say that my favorite savory food was the oxtails with peas and rice from Maxine's Jamaican (booth #16) and my favorite sweet item was a tie between the watermelon ice (complete with actual seeds) from Franco's Ristorante (booth #34) and the battered and deep-fried twinkie from America's Dog (booth #64). More in a bit . . . =R=

I'll bet their prices just went up =R=

Buca Di Beppo's corn dogs are $50?!? I know they're known for huge portions, but that had better be one BIG-ASS corn dog! All kidding aside, I agree that it would be nice to have representative dishes from the participating restaurants - isn't that what it's all about? Unfortunately, there are probably a lot of folks out there who don't really care either way. Ronnie, could you appoint me executor of your next Alinea reservation? I'm happy to fulfill your last wishes regarding your next-in-line. ::says a very small prayer for Ronnie's continued health :: ← LMAO! Yes, George, if I haven't posted by sometime this evening, consider the reservation yours. And thanks for the calls of prayer regarding my health. They certainly couldn't hurt We're off! =R=

June 29, 2005... From today's Chicago Tribune - Good Eating section: Tiny sparklers...Bill Daley with a guide to selecting a quality "split" of sparkling wine to help celebrate the 4th of July holiday. Tasting notes are included. The Three C's of summer...Michele Taylor on cobblers, crumbles and crisps -- ideal uses for summer's fruitful bounty. An appetizing evening with M.F.K. Fisher...Thomas Connors previews I Was Really Very Hungry: A Portrait of M.F.K. Fisher a tribute set to bow at the Live Bait theatre on July 11. And the winners are ...Robin Mather Jenkins reports on Steve McDonagh and Dan Smith who together won the recently-completed Next Food Network Star and who will now have their own show on FTV this fall. Raspberries...Bill Daley with some tips how to buy, store and prepare these little gems. ===== From today's Chicago Sun Times - Food section: Butters churns huge interest in organic farming...Sandy Thorn Clark reviews MaryJane's Ideabook / Cookbook / Lifebook for the Farmgirl in All of Us by MaryJane Butters. Eating in at hotels can be as exquisite as dining out...Jennifer Olvera explores the "ins and outs" of hotel dining. Here's chance to try Japan's Echigo beer...a detailed list of upcoming wine, beer and spirit tastings in the area. 12 will save you on 5...Denise I. O'Neal previews a variety of upcoming food events and fundraisers. ===== From today's Daily Herald - Food section: Ice chips in hamburgers? Who cooked up that idea?...food editor Deborah Pankey revisits last week's hamburger tips column by Don Mauer to provide some additional focus and touches on a few other points of culinary interest as well. And in this related column, she provides some additional food safety advice and tips as we head into the food-heavy holiday weekend. Diplomacy at the dinner table...Laura Bianchi reports on the culinary challenges one Naperville family faces as they move from place to place, across the globe. Food and wine classes...a comprehensive listing of upcoming area food events, tastings and classes; broken out by day. ===== And last, but certainly not least, in this week's installment of Chicago Magazine's Dish...Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby report that Deleece's chef-partner, Carol Wallack, will depart this fall to open her own place, Sola. ===== =R= <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some Chicago media outlets, which do not 'go to press' on Wednesday mornings, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you.

George, I'm sure they can source just about anything you could ask for . . . as long as you know what to ask for (and maybe even if you don't) The sausages were excellent. I enjoyed the spicy italian variety a bit more than the bratwurst but both were very good. I'd expect nothing less since they are made on premises. Still, it's nice not to be disappointed. Last time I was in no one could answer the question about their connection to the old Reagan's Drugs but I will definitely ask again when I stop in later this week to make my holiday weekend pick-up. =R=

This was the case again this year. You could not buy beverages at food stands. There weren't any lines to buy drinks today, but I could see the lines getting very long on a more crowded day since there didn't seem to be that many beverage stands there. ← Thank you for the scouting report. I appreciate it. My co-workers are all dancing about today in anticipation of my demise in tomorrow's heat. One of them even joked that he was going to take the day off and accompany us with a camcorder just so he could record my meltdown on tape My hope is to hit all the booths I mentioned upthread, plus at least a few more. I'll have my camera with me and I hope to post some images of the Taste sometime after Wednesday. =R=

No, that was Michael, IIRC. =R=