insomniac

for tapas bar Gandarias (sp?) in the old town near the cathedral was my personal favourite. No-one ever mentions Berasategui when restos are mentioned, it was our best meal the last time we were there, along with the usual suspects. The sommelier from Montreal was particularly kind to us and we had way more wine than we were charged for.

I remember being forced to eat a cotton wool sandwich after I had inadvertently swallowed an open safety pin when I was 6

and another: "bring me my Obsession perfume, a couple of macaroons and my computer, I need to do some email." ....have you heard the one about the rabbi and the priest? Keeping the Faith

A couple cooking a late dinner of lamb curry and tea, interrupted by a neighbor. Adam and Amanda are interrupted by Kip(?) with a song in Adam's Rib ( one of the many movies I would pretend to be too sick for school for to watch on Midday Movies in Oz. when I broke my ankle aged 10 I was in seventh heaven

living in Rabaul, New Britain in the early 70's, before it was blown away by a massive volcanic eruption (but that's another story)...long Chinese history, fleeing Nationalists, KMT Club, a small trade store on a dusty street called ah Chee Avenue..the BEST cooked chinese style whole chicken I have ever eaten. Around the corner the best Indonesian food I've ever had, including in Indonesia, the place run by a half Dutch, half Indonesian man who also had a 4 piece jazz band...wow, and this was New Guinea........ hadn't thought about these places for years til I saw this thread and dug into my memory

1000 year old egg.............

Pretty Woman

just had a flash about the putanesca meaning naughty girl pasta...is it the Lemony Snicket Series of Unfortunate Events as the Baudelaire children make it a couple of times, once using a spitoon.....??

Sam Elliot was always talking about sarsparilla in The Big Lebowski, another Coen Bros. gem

if the basket of figs had a snake hidden inside the movie is Cleopatra

We adore Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. It seems to cover northern Vietnamese dishes more thoroughly than Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table, but I have been quite pleased with both.Not coincidentally, tonight’s dinner was from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. I started marinating pork shoulder this morning for char siu. This evening, while the oven was warming up I made the everyday daikon and carrot pickle (do chua). When the oven was up to temperature I threw in the pork, dipping the it in the marinade every ten minutes. I had never made char siu pork before and it was absolutely delicious, especially the caramelized sweet-spicy crust. Now I feel compelled to try Chinese char siu for comparison. With the sliced char siu pork, the daikon and carrot pickle, crusty baguettes from the store, mayonnaise, Maggi seasoning, cilantro, and thinly-sliced cucumbers and jalapeno chiles, we made banh mi. Another first for us, and another clear winner. Char siu pork (thit xa xiu) Banh mi ← Bruce, this has really got to stop...0700 in the morning and I'm ripping the pantry apart with my fingers crossed looking for ingredients to make char siu (nearest Asian store 40 miles away nooooooooo)

Additional CLUE for #128: the car in question is a grey 1968 Mercury Monterey for which "twenty-eight hundred" was paid ← The Getaway?? as it can't be Knight Rider.... Ali McGraw hits another car with it at the drive-in??

hey Bryan, just had a look on my timetable and there seems to be a noctilien N35 from the resto to Gare de Lyon but you had better confirm as mine is last year's

One for the Martini Girl!!! Good catch---Pleasantville was guessed earlier, with Joan Allen making the treats, but she was a teenager in PSGM, and probably partook of them. Just a little side bit of coincidence. ← ah, Rachel, I didn't notice the Pleasantville guess but I did consider it, then thought that Peggy Sue was more your sort of movie; that's the deductive path I took

I think #134 is Peggy Sue got Married??

Thanks and LOL at the 'ps', we try to keep our hands clean since we always seem to have food in them Amazingly I actually lost weight on this trip We actually stuck out like sore thumbs in our jackets. I guess I should have asked for fashion advice in addition to the food advice...oh well, live and learn ← oh, Jerry, I wasn't being sarcastic, beautiful jacket, elegant scarf and yr wife's lace frock is lovely...I'm sure you blended right in as Germans/Austrians are very classy dressers....you know, when son and I went on a (very decadent, hide $$$ from the husb) michelin crawl in Spain and France we also LOST weight??

Great report Jerry....knew I was living in Europe for a reason...checking out the flights as we speak............. ps. you and your wife have beautiful hands pps. very European outfits you have there

I've never noticed the duck Austin, how is it served?? now laab pla duk, that's a different story, mmmm

you triggered my memory WD...remembered it cos I saw Diva, liked it, so rented other stuff by the same director................ and my rugby team, as a good Ozzie, is any team except Pomgolia (tho I must admit after a few years here I find myself disturbingly shifting in attitude; next it will be my accent )

They do make a difference! I also sometimes add some concentrated stock to my sauce mixture (or poach the meat in stock) to bring out the meaty flavor. It's absolutely possible to have the chicken play a flavor role in the dish; it definitely takes a bit of careful flavor balancing and maybe some practice and kitchen intuition, but you can do it. Another thing you can do is to use turkey or duck or another more strongly-flavoured poultry rather than chicken; I feel like even the most assertively flavoured chicken isn't as poultry-ish as good free-range turkey. ← Perhaps it is the type of chicken you are using Emily. Can you get free range? In Thailand the only substitute would be pork (turkey is unknown in cooking there and duck is not used for laab). But, having said that, if it tastes good to you, go for it

FG, maybe you are fortunate in the States about the provenance of your soft squishy bread,however commercial English soft, squishy bread is a step too far (check out the baking method)

A well traveled turkey held hostage, raw potatoes that don't mash, Krispy Kremes. Has to be 'Pieces of April' starring the lovely Katie Holmes, wife of the lovely Tom Cruise, as I sit and recover from the loss of my rugby team to *England*

you are my friend for life for googling before me...I will now happily remain ignorant (and don't PM me!!)

maybe not

I hesitate to ask, Baggy, but what is 'lung butter?'