ulterior epicure

you guys wear me out!

docsconz. thanks for the bit of comfort - for those of use not in nyc. it's great to see that naomichi is still going strong - i can't wait to go back!! 1. can you articulate how the siberian uni was different from the maine? i don't believe i've ever tried the former... you know me, i'm'a always "urchin" for some uni!!! 2. Best of luck to your son on his college search. I bet you're hoping he ends up in NYC so you have one more reason to get some Yasuda-lovin' more fruequently!!

The Crum family had an irresistable array of heirloom toms yesterday at the Parkville market. I bought a half-dozen different varities: everything from golden yellow Valencias, blushing Oxhearts, dazzling Green Zebra to the tubular San Marzano. I also bought another big round tomato that was similarly coloured (sort of pink) as teh Oxtheart. Oh, and my favorite - a small pepper-shaped red tomato streaked with yellow - amazing!! I had that for dinner sliced on salad. Oy, now I gotta eat all of it before I leave town tomorrow!! Yikes! u.e.

Did anyone try their gingerbread cake while at the Deli? Talk about OHMYGOSH GOODNESS!! I LONG for it now... if only they'd publish a full-scale cookbook disclosing all their yummy secrets! ... and yes, the Hang Town Fry is really good! u.e.

It's called, believe it or not, the Zingerman Roadshow!u.e.

The amount of food consumed was obscene, even by eGullet Society members' standards.... Wish you had been there. ← I'm not sure I would have made it back home! Ohmygosh - did you all hire wheelchair service after the dinner?

Okay, I posted a question just a few posts up, but with this near-live feed, I'm afraid it's gone ignored. For those of us who sadly didn't make it - could someone give a de-coding of all of the attendees (ie. real name to handle)? Ronnie, FG, Tammy and Judy I've figured out - the rest are hazy. Thanks! u.e.

Oh... gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous... I'm stuffed. How much food did you all consume?!?!? Very impressed. Sorry I missed this grand affair! Sounds like you all had so much fun! u.e. P.S. Sorry, can someone do a list of real names along with their handles so that I can know who's who? Sam? Joyce? Tammy, Ronnie and Judy I've figured out - but others, not too familiar with real names.

... that' you're one helluva great friend - duh! Obviously you care enough to guilt the very best! u.e.

It's great to see the Show Me State get some representation at the Heartland Gathering! Thanks moosnsqrl for being our ambassador! u.e.

Wow guys, that reads ambition. But, I have full confidence - can't wait to hear how it all goes! Curious - where did you get your charcuterie from - c/o of ronnie, et al? Or by way of Zingerman's/Big Ten (or whatever it's called now)? Heirloom tomatoes from an eGulleter's garden?? ...so jealous! u.e.

Big Country. Are you sure you can' pospone the dinner just a few more weeks so that I can return from my trip to enjoy this wonderful dinner? *pout* Seriously - it looks great. I look forward to the report. u.e.

Ahhh... memories of (tortured graduate) days gone by. Hi all, I'm about to jump on plane to go around the world - but it sounds like you're all havin' a blast! Tell Duff, the "Chocolate Lady" at Zingerman's Deli hello for me! She fed me well during my sojourn in A2! u.e.

Thanks Pete! So, you gonna let me come in to make a pictorial study of your food sometime? u.e. [edited for grammar]

Thanks JWest. Thanks to the late sunset summers (and the window), my pictures turned out okay. Yeah, no kidding - ChefCAG didn't ever make an appearance at my table last night - and it was a First Friday!! Just kidding ChefCAG, I know you got better things to do!

I just got back from dinner at bluestem and boy have they made some changes to their menu. Not that it wasn't good before, but now it's more fun than ever! ChefCAG has completely shifted bluestem's service to a prix fixe format. Now diners have a choice between: 3-Courses ($55) 1 Starter, 1 Fish/Meat, 1 Dessert 5-Courses ($65) 2 Starters, 2 Fish/Meat, 1 Dessert 7-Courses ($75) 4 Starters, 2 Fish/Meat, 1 Dessert 12 Courses ($100) Up to the ChefCAG & Co. Diners choose from: Starters: Caviar (that's right, you read me correctly), Crudo/Cold, Hot/Pasta, Soup/Salad; Fish; Meat; and Dessert. I'll spare you the details because you see the menu here. I had the 7-course tasting, with a couple of supplements. I started off with the Caviar Service. Ohmygosh this is exciting!!! Your order comes with golden trout roe, but you can supplement Sevruga for an extra $20 and Osetra for an extra $50. Caviar comes with the LIGHTEST blinis EVER!! I swear I had to keep my fork on them to keep them from floating away!! Caviar also comes with creme fraiche, sweet corn panna cott, and organic egg. My only complaint was that those blinis weren't big enough to fit everything on them. Selfishly, I wish they were blini pancakes!! From their Crudo/Cold, I chose the "Crab, Tuna, and Rock Shrimp" - a cold "salad" of the three seafood, barely cooked, if at all - very fresh and clean. I think there was an orange on top and a gorgeous magenta swatch of beet paste across the plate. This was probably one of my favorite courses of the evening. The Hot/Pasta is perhaps the most exciting of all the courses. All three choices tonight were pasta based. Fidua pasta with linguica sausage and escargot; Orecchiette with mussels and tomatoes; and the one I ordered, with bottarga and tomatoes. The cavatelli was just a bit too al dente for me, but otherwise, the pungent bottarga was exciting. My friend who had the fidua licked the bowl clean! Orecchiette Cavatelli For the salad course, I had a wonderful Smoked sturgeon salad - with a bunch of watercress (very peppy) and "12-hour tomatoes." ChefCAG - can you tell me what/how the sturgeon was smoked in? The meat was more fragrant than smokey - and it was amazingly sweet! I :wub:'ed this salad. For fish, I couldn' just pick one, so I tried all four... and I wasn't disappointed. The Tasmanian sea trout, served with oxtail and shell beans, was divine and a treat - I've never been disappointed with this cut of fish before, and bluestem didn't fail me. The sea scallop with sweet corn, potatoes and miso butter was outta this world good (sinfully so). I think this was my favorite fish. The tombo tuna was a bit too "steaky" for me - but also very good - the crispy artichoke and wonderfully soft rendered fennel were just GREAT!! Finally, the naturally oily escolar (see below) - wonderfully prepared served over heirloom green beans and softened red torpedo onions glistening with a luscious beurre monte. OHMYGOSH... I was crying!! My friend had the La Belle Farms duck breast, which I had before - with red curry foam. It looked just as good as I remembered (except it had eggplant, which I'm allergic to). She must have loved it too - it was ALL GONE by the time I looked up from my escolar! I'm lucky I remembered to take a picture!! La Belle Duck Desserts: My friend snarfed down the Raspberry Parfait before I could get a taste, but I was busy working on my Chocolate and Lavendar souffle duo - with vanilla bean whipped cream. I loved this dinner format - it's a lot more flexible. Better yet, each diner can choose whatever they want and however much they want - there's no requirement that the entire table agree to all of have the same tasting! WOW!! I've NEVER been in a restaurant where this is possible! Usually, it's all or nothing. Because it was "First Friday," the dining room was pretty full, but not enough where I felt self-conscious bustin' out my camera. I managed to take photos. I'm exhausted, but managed to post some of my pictures. I hope you enjoy them - but even more, I hope you get to enjoy them in person soon! Go visit bluestem - NOW!! Dozing off... u.e. [edited for spelling]

Today on the Walt Bodene Show, Ferruza says that he had poor timing on his visit - as Chapin had just published her review and the bakery was pretty picked over by the time he arrived...

Yes, I second JWest's congratulations on taking the James Beard House! I look forward to hopefully trying out some of the food you served! It all looks great! u.e.

Glad to hear it. I look forward to more chances to get to the Cafe. u.e.

Tonic gets 2 1/2 stars from Lauren Chapin: (Click). I still haven't visited yet, but I know JWest and moosnsqurl had seemed a bit down about their latest vists. u.e.

Thanks estufarian. That's too bad about J-G. The one in NYC is one of my top 5 as well - so the one in Shanghai's not worth it because of the poor quality - or because it's too similar to the one in NYC? Has anyone been to M on the Bund? u.e.

I think they get pretty saturated even on weekdays.

Slightly off topic: Didn't the NY Times used to operate on a 3-star format? If so, who was the first critic to establish the 4-star review? u.e.

Thanks all. I take it that mine is ripe for the edible picking? u.e.

I recieved some seeds from a Chinese chef through a friend. The closest description I got was "gourd" - but I'm hoping these are edible too. You can read all about my mystery squash/gourd here as well as see a picture of it. Can anyone help me identify this plant? Thanks!