H. du Bois

I'm not a big television watcher, but I happened to stumble upon this episode unexpectedly last evening, and I was quite impressed. I like Bourdain as an author very much (I still remember reading his New Yorker article that started it all when I was on the subway, and the OMIGOD moment I experienced there). I've not been terribly impressed thus far with what little I'd seen of him on television, though - his Food Channel Show reduced him from a lively, irreverent and intelligent presence to their usual dumbed-down-crap-for-the-masses fare. But last night's show let him be himself, and I was hooked. I've had the same scepticism that Bourdain had about Adria from what I've read of him, and seeing Bourdain's open but sceptical approach to this method of preparing food was exactly what the world needed. That he was won over by the experience of consuming it says everything. Great show.

Baby greens with a real vinaigrette, probably (I'll eat just about any dressed uncooked green as long as it doesn't have glop on it). A salad that sticks out in my mind though, for completely turning my head around when I hadn't expected it to, was one made with roasted beets, blue cheese, arugula, toasted walnuts, and a vinaigrette made of walnut oil and sherry wine vinegar. I had always hated beets and blue cheese, and thought, "oh god, I've got to gag this down and pretend I like it," when a friend served it to me. Oddly, the sum of all those flavors worked so well that it cancelled out the objections I had to the parts. I ended up having seconds.

All this talk of pork made me crave it so badly that I grilled myself a nice, thick loin pork chop last night. Pan grilled, that is - barbecues on fire escapes are illegal here. Perfectly pale pink and glistening in the middle - a little darker pink than I've ever been served before on one outer, thicker edge. No metallic taste whatsoever, and very juicy. I couldn't say what temperature I grilled it to, as I've never used a meat thermometer on a pork chop in my life. I'd eat it that way again for sure. Re: docsconz's comment above, I once knew a physician who offered to send me all kinds of literature about parasites when I mentioned that I love sushi.

I third the Marcella Hazan recipe. It's fast, easy and good, and I've never had a problem with it. I've also used walnuts when I was out of pine nuts, with no ill effect. Can't imagine what went wrong here. Try the Hazan version and see how it tastes to you. Also, did you try it on the pasta itself? Could the unadulterated flavor of it be too strong for you? It's potent stuff.

Oddly, I might trust Wegman's more than an unknown entity. I'd been to Wegmans in Greece and in Brockport last year, and though they weren't a gourmet's paradise, they did offer some items that I can't live without. I've definitely got to check out Pittsford's "shrine to food."

Thank you! Good to know this. Try Tasting's for authentic sushi/sashimi. The new sushi chef is Satoshi yamaguchi and he is a total witch. The plates are more composed than traditional roll joints but the fish is top notch and he is really talented. Dude, you stole my thunder - Hey, you both get props for steering me right. Where is this Tastings?

Sherlock Holmes and Mrs. Hudson's excellent breakfasts.

It's good. Really good. But I didn't see this, so I don't know if any stops were being pulled out.

Thank you! Good to know this.

Perhaps no one answered it because there aren't any, at least none on par with average NYC sushi. Why would you want to go out for sushi in Rochester anyhow, entertaining friends? I know that the Korean place I mentioned has a sushi menu, I never seemed to get in on it however. There was a Sushi bar a couple blocks down the street from it about 5 years ago, what was it W. Henrietta, it was average for upstate. I wasn't really impressed, but I didn't get sick either. ← I was up there for a length of time last year, and after a while, I developed a serious craving for it. No one I know knew of anyplace, so I had to bear up till I got back to town. Was curious for future reference more than anything.

I'd asked upthread if there were any decent sushi places in Rochester, but I think the question got lost in the shuffle. And I'm asking for "good" by exacting standards - really fresh. Does it exist? Will be flying up for a quick visit shortly - not enough time for a restaurant tour, but am entertaining the notion of bringing some Zweigles back with me - all this talk of them has made me nostalgic.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love tonkatsu (also think of it as a winter dish), and didn't know there was any decent tonkatsu to be found in this town. Yeah Katsuhama is great, they have Japanese beer on draft too. On par with some places in Tokyo, probably the only place doing it properly in the NY Metro area, that I know of anyway. It would be great if they could go even higher grade on the pork, which is what you'll get in Tokyo. I've only ever eaten it in Japan. Can't wait for the weather to cool down to check this out!

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love tonkatsu (also think of it as a winter dish), and didn't know there was any decent tonkatsu to be found in this town.

Probably--there's another cart on the opposite corner, but it isn't nearly as good. My cart's called Moishe's. I'm disqualified from mentioning Blue Ribbon Sushi (Brooklyn) because of its nearness to me, but I can't help where I live (any more than I can help being a regular there).

I hear you. (If that's the same falafel cart I go to at 45th & 6th, it's about the best falafel in town). Geez, you'd better retitle this thread "New Yorkers With Money." Between my present budgetary constraints and the criteria above, I'm ineligible to comment.

Philadining, you're cracking me up! It takes a good eye to spot an identifiable object on that plate. And I love it that it's served with bread and butter on the side - is that in case one feels peckish afterward? That's why I loved the old Smitty's Birdland - Smitty served the best fried chicken in hot sauce I've ever eaten, and after 2 AM, the crowd got really funky. One time when I was there, a pimp brought his entourage of ladies in to treat them to a hot meal before a long night's work. Everybody was always very nice (maybe because Smitty was a former boxer, maybe because they were transfixed by the food). Or maybe because all the real riff raff were hanging out in Nick Tahou's parking lot.

Wonderful blog - I can't believe it's over! I'm glad to hear you are well and safe. Take care, and enjoy the rest of your time in Texas with your family. I presume you'll be back to NYC to sample another few hundred of our finest restaurants!

I'm afraid to budge.

One has to aspire to something. I traded braving the tranny hookers on West Main Street for a garbage plate at Nick Tahou's, for braving the tranny hookers on the West Side Highway for boudin noir at Florent.

Hey! Zweigles white hots (the kind with skins) aren't junk food, they're delicious! Trash them, and you're trashing bockwurst. Speaking of trash, that garbage plate in the garbage plate thread bears no resemblance to what I know of them - I once watched two guys eat garbage plates at some place in the 19th ward, and they had two hamburgers on top. (Never had the urge to go that route myself). When I lived there, NOBODY went to Nick Tahou's (or admitted to it). Not unless you wanted to pick up a tranny hooker or get shot. Or both. (edited to correct my wursts)

Today there are so many different teas which have become popular and with which Americans have become familiar, surely Twinings is just another tea in this ever expanding market. Just my humble opinion, from what I've tried and what I've been served (both here and in the UK). And I've tried many. PS: I'm only referring to one class of tea - I'm not talking green teas, which are a whole nother thing, and which I love, too (anyone ever tried roasted rice tea from Japan?). Nor am I talking about herbal teas or tisanes, which I loathe.

Oooh! I think you'll like it ... Sneakeater, I've never been able to find Al Di La with the search engine - didn't even know there was a thread. Pan, that map portal is great! Therese, I don't really know Queens very well, but the one restaurant I always thought was worth the trek was Jackson Diner in Jackson Heights. It had the best Indian food I've eaten in this town. Haven't been there in a few years, don't know if it's still great, but it certainly once was.

I've been a serious tea lover all my life. My favorite tea of all time used to be Twinings Earl Grey, but the past 5 years or so, it's somehow lost its flavor (it's a mere shadow of its former self). I'm not the only one who thinks so - there are a number of people I know who were devotees who've noticed it, too. I still think that in America, the best tea you can get is Twinings, loose, brewed properly and served from a pot. But after having spent significant periods of time in England, I've gotten hooked on the tea most of them mean when they say "tea" - P.G. Tips in its pyramidal bags. I've brought back boxes in my luggage, but it's also being sold in some specialty coffee and tea shops in the US, and I've seen it in Wegman's grocery stores. Big, full, rich, can stand up to milk in the tea. Also best made in a pot.

They still sell real absinthe in the Czech Republic, so if you know anyone who's going there, ask them to bring you back a bottle. Or (and this is really obscure, but what the heck), if you know any chemists ... some time ago, Scientific American published the original recipe for absinthe. I know someone who actually made it from that. As I recall, it's made from distilled spirits, anise seed and wormwood. Anyway, it can be gotten - just depends on the lengths to which you're willing to go!

Er, I'm a total ignoramus. What is the whacking of the avocado seed technique? What's it for? ← ummm...getting the seed out of the fruit without damaging the fruit. How do you get the seed out? ← I damage the fruit. (I pry the seed out with the tip of a knife).