Kent Wang

What is Chiu Chow? Is this the style of braising with soy sauce, anise and various other spices? How is it written, or in Mandarin?

I've never seen the show before; does he only do high-end restaurants? I think Wink could be good. They make only decent food, so it'd be nice if they could be turned around to make great food. Then again, business seems good there so maybe it's not enough of a nightmare.

I'm very curious about this point as well. Can you just pay them to teach you how to do it? Can you poach a pit master? I doubt they have non-compete contracts. The fact that true Central Texas-style barbecue doesn't exist outside of Central Texas, not even in Houston and Dallas, boggles my mind. It seems like it wouldn't be that hard to do it, and yet no one has.

How about just some sparkling wine with a sprinkle of bitters? I find this to be an excellent way to showcase bitters.

This has really caught my attention. The smoker you refer to is the same as the big pits the Lockhart places use? I think I will definitely check this place out when I'm in Houston next, on Dec 4 to see Stevie Wonder.

Culinaire - A person who is interested in matters culinary. An alternative to that much-hated word 'foodie'.

There are also a few rums and a Ypioca (cachaca) that are wrapped in straw.

It can be pretty bad. I suspect most places just use canned stock, a lot of starch and probably lots of MSG.

Any idea when? I might delay my trip until that happens.

Rob Balon has a profile of the Yim family that is behind the new Shanghai.

Any luck with this? I have also tried several times and failed miserably. What vessel do you pour from? A rice bowl?

I spent the first six years of my life in China and have been raised on Chinese food. But I love egg drop soup. It's simple and delicious. My parents don't know how to make it, so whenever we go to Chinese-American restaurants I like to order it. Getting the right consistency for the eggs is pretty difficult. There's an old thread about how to make it.

What about the historic places, Sazerac and Herbsaint?

Leaving Central Market. What are we hauling today? Pumpkin pie supplies. Here we are at the Texas State Capitol. Next stop...

She's not always open during the day, and is even closed on some slow weeknights -- despite what the posted hours are. I would recommend calling ahead. There really is not much of a wait, unless your group itself is more than six people. I remember going with eight people once and it took a while for everything to come out. It's possible that if another large group arrives at the same time, they would slow your orders down but that has never happened to me.

"Whole Foods' global cheese buyer, Cathy Strange" from Austin Chronicle, 2 Nov 2007, by MM Pack. I do find Whole Foods' cheese section to be quite impressive. I wonder if the flagship store here in Austin has a particularly large selection. Is there no such thing as a dedicated cheese shop in America, like there are throughout Europe? Will Whole Foods be the cheesemonger of choice throughout the country?

For Halloween, pumpkin and squid ink linguine. Left is raw, right is cooked with a tomato sauce. The color retains very well. Squid ink doesn't add much flavor but the pumpkin is more assertive.

Spec's doesn't have it, so I doubt anyone in Texas will. You can order it from Astor Wines in New York, among a few other places. If you're ever up in Austin I can also pour you 200 ml or so -- along with some other stuff I picked up in New York.

I like bigger glasses that are not filled to the brim, so less spilling, which is wasteful and leaves the glass all sticky.

Wow! Are there such markets in the US? I assume so, but not of the same size? This is really terrific to have an "industry insider" blog. Very good analogy. I completely agree.

Perhaps he would like to go on a trip. I can send him to you, and maybe you can take a photo of him near one of your local landmarks. You can then do as you wish, wrap him around a book or pass him on to another person.

This is a bag from Central Market, an upscale grocery here in Austin. I am nonplussed by the writing on this bag and am a bit resentful that it attempts to guilt me into making it into a kite. Sure, I enjoy flying kites -- at my leisure, not when pressured to do so by some paper bag. Do your grocery bags also attempt to browbeat you into doing them favors?

Beautiful charcuterie. I have had some locally-made bresaola that was still red on the inside, as you have shown, and found that to be superiour to fully-curred. Is semi-cured usually available for sale?

I haven't posted in a while as I've nearly exhausted the entire selection at Central Market. There are still a few left, though: Ham Pannonia (left): Rubbery, "hammy" texture. Minimal flavor, slight sour aftertaste. This is in comparison to the Vande Rose, which is just excellent. Compared to most other hams, it is quite good. Vande Rose: The best ham I have ever tasted. Meat-like texture, instead of hammy rubberyness, where the grain and individual muscle fibers are much more distinct. Pork quality also appears to be superior, better marbling. Vande Rose is made with the Duroc breed. Slightly more flavorful, with more porcine character than the Pannonia. No aftertaste.

I think you're correct about the cuisine. The ambiance, however, is rather Old South, especially the house and grounds. Judging from their website, a lot of organizations have large group dinners there. I think it's a great venue for that.