jsmeeker

Dallas was mentioned a few times in this thread. Would a true cocktail lounge (not a bar at a restaurant or hotel. Not a nightlucb) work here?? I dunno. I want to say no. I guess the Dallas crowd is too fickle. It may work short term if the "cool people" latch on to as the current in place to be. But that is only temporary. People here like their beer. And that is usually Coors Light or something like that (though we do have a few really good beer bars here). Where could you make some inroads into cocktail culture? Maybe the steakhouses. We have tons of them. Many are really good. Start off with some "masculine" drinks. Manhattans, maybe? I dunno.. It could be a start. Of course, a lot of that business is out of towners on business, but there are still a lot of locals there too.

No way! She needs to stick around in Dallas and cook for us! Congrats to Hung. Solid effort. His "worst" dish was a tasty chocolate cake. But Dale's lamb looked and sound awesome. Poached in duck fat? Sounds delish.

i've bought it. That is, I have bought their salads. Not bad, really. If you were somplace where McDonalds was the only convenient choice, or were with a group of poeple that just insisted in McDonalds, the salads aren't a bad choice, especially if you go with the grilled chicken as opposed to the breaded one. So, I appreciate them being on the menu.

I like Kathleen's Art Cafe for brunch. LOVE LaDuni, too. ARe they open on Sunday? if so, go there and save room for cake.

No kidding. I see this with wine by the glass all the time. Server wraps his/her hand around the bowl of the glass and carries it over to the table from the bar or wherever it was poured.

Bumping this thread as I have begun to develop a great fondess for this cocktail. Not only will I order them at a bar/restaurant, I've been fooling around with them at home. At first, I made them with Jim Beam (I had some kicking around for other drinks). Then, people here and elsewhere tipped me off to the rye thing. So, I bought some Wild Turkey 101 and started to use that. That's generally how I've been making them and ordering them these days. But maybe I should play around with Makers. I've had them made that way at bars a few times. For vermouth, I've always been using Noilly Prat (sweet). Always garnished with a cherry, too. (just looks "right" to me). But I would like to experiment with this component some. I should see if they stock Vya at my local liquor store since lots of people here seem to be fond of it. The last component is the bitters. I didn't see much talk about that essential ingredient in this thread. Until recently, I always used Angostura. But I have some orange bitters (Fees) now, and piced up Peychaud's. What are others doing here? Different bitters for different base whiskey/bourbon? Or do you always use the same? I love this drink. Three simple components. But it looks elegant and refined. And IMHO, plenty masculine. It's no foo foo "martini", even if some people mistake them for such.

I've never seen a grocer in Texas who carries ROB but it might be worth a shot. If you're interested in pursuing the liquor store thing, might help to tell them that Republic Beverage is the distributor for Buffalo Trace products (where ROB is made). Of course if you get 3-4 or more bottles the shipping works out to be pretty reasonable so you could just order it. -Andy ← Thanks for the info I was in my local liquor store this weekend stocking up. I picked up some Peychaud's and notcied that the Fee's Orange was all out. But they had plenty of all the other flavors. And Angustora too, of course. I'm about half empty on my Fee's Bros. Orange. Getting some ROB would be nice. I also think I need to take/send a bottle to Ohio in November. Going there to hang out with some friends and would like to be able to make them some cocktails.

second episode was better than the first. But the show still seems to be geared around on having a "bad guy" to go after. I guess that's the TV formula at work here.

Right, it falls in the same legal category as something like Vanilla Extract, which is typically around 35% abv. ← so, in that case, if a liquor store blaks at stocking it for some reason, hit up a grocery store. I know the ones around here in Dallas all carry Angostura.

what part of town will you be in while you are here? That will help narrow down the list of possibilities.

you can get it mild. and really, the spicy isn't that spicy.

I'm really looking forward to this one.

you know, this is really spot on, too. Sometimes, I think this may be a stumbling block to getting a good cocktail at a place where you otherwise could have. I've ordered Negronis several times this way and frequently have been met with the confused look on the waiter's face. Happened to me on Saturday night a local Italian restaurant. Really, such a shame..

Has anyone been here yet? http://www.brutdallas.com/events.html I'm intrigued by this place since I really do like sparkling wines and I really would like to get my hands on some grower Champagne.

Popeye's all the way. Spicy. Dark meat. Red beans and rice. That's how I always order my 2 piece or 3 piece combo meal.

I started to do this to some degree as well. My choice is the Manhattan.

I'm curious. What's the difference? The stuff sold in the USA is the only kind I have had.

a third vote for the crepes. love 'em.

Interesting... I might have to give this a try. Currently, I use corn starch to dust/very lightly coat chicken wings before tossign them into the hot oil for frying.

ATK is the TV show that supports the magazine CI (and vice versa, I suppose)

I've been travelling a lot the past 7 years. A large portion of that is on my own, so I've had many a meal alone. I used to really hate it. But I've gotten better at it. Still, I'm almost always sitting at the bar/counter unless it's not a full service restaurant. And I'm still very relecutant to go to a high end place all alone and get a table for one and have a really nice meal. As much as I want to go to a place like Spago when I am in L.A., I just can't pull the trigger on doing it alone. I've even tossed around the idea of going there just for dessert as a "test run" to see how I would be treated. But I am still holding off. Dunno why. I guess I think dining alone as a negative stigma attched to it, especially in a place like that.

Cleveland was great! Tony and Ruhlman together is awesome TV. The meal at the house looked amazing. Loved watching both guys break down all of the pig for the meal. Good stuff. I think it's safe to say Ruhlman knows what he is doing. That chili is an abomination!!! (ducks and runs)

I'm still at work, so I have not had a drink today.. But yesterday, I made an Americano Campari sweet vermouth soda water. all on ice in a tall glass. Very nice.

This is the one make. Done it several times with a few different chocolates. Can't recall if I have ever donw it with Callebaut, however. It's very dense and rich. So, maybe too much for the OP. Still, it's really good. I love this pie.

I had a nice meal at Craft Dallas not too long after it opened. If they did as good of a job in L.A. as they did here in Big D, then I bet you won't be disappointed out there. I see the Le Meridien every time I go to L.A. In fact, I've been there a few times for some work functions (but never stayed over night as a guest). The Sofitel was my haunt for years until they completed THEIR renovation and jacked the room rates sky high (nice place though, and I like Simon L.A. and met Kerry Simon a few times and chatted with him briefly. Good guy). Anyway, I don't get to D.C. often, but if I keep going to L.A., it might be nice to get a Jose Andres fix For the rest of the L.A. food scene? I've got such a long list of places to try out. I'm there all the time, but need to convince people to go to some of these places. (I have ventured out on my own, though, and was at least able to hit A.O.C solo.) Spago is still high on the list (if not the top). Gotta try it. Hear it's still solid