jwjon1

Holy smokes! Where have I been? Boy am I glad I ran into this thread! I'm pysched to see some modern/molecular gastronomy cuisine coming out of Philly post kitchenstudio, and I'm a bit ashamed this is coming as a surprise to me. I've spent the past month trying to land a reservation at Chef Andres's minibar on a weekend to satisfy my exploratory dining desire when I lo and behold I just had to look as far as Philly! Bravo Johnny Mac for infusing some creativity into the mix. Can't wait to check snackbar out!

Turns out the bottle in question, 1996 Clicquot La Grande Dame (item 005889), is on closeout for $90, which is an absolute steal. The current release (1998) sells for $145. Guess its a shelving space issue, but if it were my shop, I'd discount the '98. I'm not complaining, however!

been a while since I shopped at the PLCB, but was near one for business so swung by for giggles. I was psyched to see a Priorat as a CS so picked up a bottle. Pulled to cellar temp, popped, poured, and immediately remembered why I haven't been to the PLCB in a while: yet another cooked bottle from the LCB. My personal experience has been that its quite a crap shoot getting well conditioned bottles there. I'd venture 1 in 4 have been off in one way or another. Am I alone in this experience? Importantly, I saw a blatantly underpriced high-end bottle (as labeled on the shelf) that I considered picking up. Any experience on price label "errors" and having management agree to that labeled price? The shelf label clearly referenced the bottle in question, so it wasn't simply a mis-placed product. I normally wouldn't even consider rolling the dice given storage concerns, but at the price listed, I might be willing to gamble. Any clue on how the temperature controlled room inventory is stored prior to being shelved?

Fingers crossed indeed! Thanks for the potential heads up Philadining! I'd love to hear if any of these rumors come to fruition... and hopefully in time for me to get my foot in the door.

Excellent thought provoking posts in this thread! I love it! Thanks for taking the time to envision and organize this, Vadouvan--I'm throughly enjoying it. I'm particularly intrigued with the notion that the consumers on this board stand a chance at turning the tide on products available to us at retail. In the very least, my experience with DiBruno's convinces me that they would be willing to listen to our requests. My personal next step is to comprise a letter to them regarding meat purveyors, and I'm sure I won't be the only voice doing so! I concur with mrbigjas's proposal to split this thread into more manageable pieces according to the event.

What Alexis said! You should definitely try a knish from Yonah Schimmel, and since you're in the area, a trip to Russ & Daughters would be in order. If nothing else, try one of their excellent barrel pickles from Guss'. If you're in the area of 54th and 5th (next to MOMA), enjoy brats, and looking for one of those budget saving but excellent lunches, pick a dictator combo from the Hallo Berlin Cart. Food Cart you say? Trust me, its worth it. I coupled Hallo Berlin for lunch with WD-50 for dinner, and gotta say that's been one of my best culinary calendar days ever. Based on that experience alone, I'd confidently say that early Katz with a late WD-50 and plently of trekking around the city in between is definitely doable. And if you feel the urge for a NYC bagel at some point, my favorite has been Ess-a-Bagel. I've only been to the one on 21st and 1st, but understand there's one in mid-town as well.

Dewey was there in full force during my recent visit, and was quite the amiable character. He seemed to be having just as much fun as Wylie, which was a nice sight to see!

Great photos, Doc! I couldn't agree more with your commentary, and it doesn't surprise me one bit that the kitchen was receptive to your tasting menu requests. One more reason why I also cannot empathize with any less than positive critiques on this board. Once additional criticism I didn't include in my post above, but one which got under my skin during dinner was the poor choice of stemware used at WD-50. For such a detail oriented establishment, I found the rocket launcher (re., swirling is NOT recommended ) stem choices abysmal. Granted, I didn't pull $$ bottles out of the cellar as some restaurants require in order to break out decent stems and instead went with the pairing menu... but how hard is it to stock up on glasses more amenable to drinking and enjoying wine, rather than encourage the customer to curse the gods for serving tasty juice in less-than-optimal conditions? Kinda defeats the pairing purpose when you get excited about the food but not the wine. Anyway, just so as not to toss criticism out without offering a solution: while I'm not in the glass business, Schott Zwiesel makes some versatile Tritan stems that are both restaurant (economical, multiple shapes/designs, and super hard TiO2 glass=dishwasher safe) and wine snob friendly.

I've edited my post above to include thoughts on my dinner. Sorry for the delay, and the thesis.

December 2006 tasting menu Dish 1: Spanish mackerel, nori, kohlrabi, mustard paired with Champalou Vouvray Brut Method Traditionelle NV Dish 2: Carrot-coconut "sunny-side up" paired with Champalou Vouvray Brut Method Traditionelle NV Dish 3: foie gras, candied olives, green peas, beet juice paired with Wegeler Kabinett Wehlener Sonnenuhr 2005 horrible funky photo of foie gras mold displaying beet juice Dish 4: crab "roll", black bean, mint, pickled ginger paired with Blanc de Morgex et de la Salle 2005 Dish 5: beef tongue, fried mayo, tomato molasses paired with Blanc de Morgex et de la Salle 2005 Dish 6: miso soup, sesame "noodles" paired with Au bon Climat Pinot Noir 2005 Extruding and congealing the sesame "noodle" Dish 7: langoustine, popcorn, hibiscus, endive paired with Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir 2005 Dish 8: squab breast, beets, wood sorrel, coconut pebbles paired with Isis els Guiamets 2003 Dish 9: cream cheese, concord grape, black sesame, brioche interior of cream cheese mold showing grape pocket Dish 10: yuzu curd, spruce yogurt, pistachio paired with Scheurebe Spatlese Herrenberg Pfeffingen 2005 Dish 11: soft chocolate, avocado, licorice, lime paired with Commanderia St. John NV Dish 12: cocoa shortbread, menthol cream hanging with Wylie Night caps at Loreley, a killer German Beer Bar a short distance from WD-50 (off-topic, but an excellent end to a wonderful evening) I cannot comment on repetition of menus as this was my first visit to WD-50. I did not find any of the tastes from this menu repetitive, however. In fact, I'd be hard pressed to find a common string between the dishes (although the curd and soft chocolate dishes played well with each other and would have succeeded even if served simultaneously). That said, there were plenty of aesthetic ties to be had in the dishes, so much so that I nearly went through imagery overload having just walked through MOMA prior to hitting WD's :-) . And I think it a fair and high compliment to compare WD's and AS's platings to many of MOMA's pieces. While the lack of a theme might have put off some diners, I was more than up for the experiment as was the rest of the group. I don't feel qualified to discuss in detail the merits of each dish, but I can say that I didn't detect the chemical qualities discussed elsewhere in this thread in any dish. Rather, as with docsconz, I found the quality and freshness of the ingredients to be extremely high. The entire table commented on the high quality ingredients, particularly of the mackerel, squab, and crab. From a taste only standpoint, the weakest dish by far was the "fried egg"; our entire group agreed on this one. But I can also say that this dish was the most memorable to me for other reasons, including its uniqueness, creativity, irony (vegetarian eggs? but is a coconut a vegetable or a nut?), and overall execution. My personal favorite dish was the squab. I love fresh beets and eat them any way I can get them (saved for pickled, that is). But I have never even thought about rubbing an extremely flavorful and rich cut of meat in chopped beet. And then to pair the richness of the squab (which was perfectly cooked, to no one's surprise) and the earthiness of the beet with well-portioned slightly sweet coconut morsels and the slightly spicy sorrel was a stroke of sheer genius. As for describing the coconut pebbles: maybe WD or AS can comment? I have no clue how they were prepared, but if I had to guess, I'd say fresh coconut was ground to a paste and then suspended in some time of confection to add firmness and a touch of sweetness. But chances are I'm way off. I'll concur with the richness and salinity of the foie gras mentioned previously as well, but I also could have gorged myself on this dish. The play in texture and taste contrast with the dry peas was exceptional. This was one the favorite dishes for one of my dining companions, who fortunately was able to eat a small portion off the plate of another companion who found it too rich to finish. So as has been written before: not for everyone. The langoustine dish had a lot going on with it, but the hibiscus (was it candied? it kinda was like a glassy hibiscus roll-up. strange yet fun. and tasty.) overpowered the dish rendering the endive and seafood moot. Most likely this was a concentration effect as the volume of hibiscus was overwhelming as can be seen above. Nevertheless, for me, the star of this dish was the popcorn paste which is not something I had seen before. My guess is that it was prepped from coarsely ground grits and not popcorn at all, but I was the only one at the table with this conviction. The langoustine, paste, and endive tips sin hibiscus worked well. But let me reiterate that I did enjoy the hibiscus, just not en mass with the subtle shrimp/grits things going on. My second fav. dish of the night was the yuzu curd. All the dessert courses were QUITE tasty (I don't know any better, but I would find it hard to believe that the quality of WD-50 has suffered with the departure of Sam Mason given the kick ass work Alex is churning out) and exceptionally pleasing to the eye, but the curd did it for me. Nice and tart, with excellent consistency and none too sweet. Made me want to incorporate a pistachio crust into the next key lime pie I attempt to fail at. Continuing with the dessert praise, I found that the best pairings of the night came from the pastry chef. All worked well. The traditional vouvray played well with the mackerel, but not the "egg". The medium dry riesling complimented the salty foie gras; I would have preferred a pinot gris with the crab over the too-fruity Blanc de Morgex which also didn't work too well with the beef tongue; the Isis els Guiamets needed a serious decant or time in the bottle to pair with the squab... as it was served, it didn't work at all. Finally, as for the Au Bon Climat, this pinot was a sub in for a Burgundy from a producer who's name escapes me right now. It isn't such an extracted PN that it didn't work at all with the soup and langoustine, but it certainly didn't add anything to the food, or the food to it. Again, not recalling the original pairing but wildly assuming it to be more acidic and less fruit forward than the Au Bon Climat, I still struggle sensing how well the original would have paired with both dishes. Ironically, the group ordered a bottle before dinner started and I discussed with the waiter options for something that would work with a number of courses. In particular, I made it known that I had been DYING to find any Radio Coteau offerings and lo and behold, here was one on the menu! Sadly, he described it as a fruit bomb and did not recommend it with the menu, instead pointing us to a 1er Cru Burg (Chambolle Musigny 2001). I folded to the will of the table and waiter. So imagine my disappointment when another "fruit bomb" (waiter's words, not mine) showed up with the tasting menu! Given the wine menu switch, I promptly asked for him to sub in the Radio Coteau in lieu of the Au Bon Climat, to which he politely replied that he couldn't do it because of the price differential. My only disappointment of the night. Should have gone with the Radio Coteau to start so I could have finally tried a jar :-) . I've rambled enough so let me end with a final praise for WD-50: while it sounds like the fried mayo and friend ginger are WD staples, I found myself blabbering on and on with my companions about how I planned to try to recreate them at home. If these comments are not obvious enough, I truly felt inspired by this meal which I suspect is WD's intent. Well, that and encouraging diners to come back. Clearly, I'll be back. [edited to correct my lazy editing. gin infused ginger anyone?]

thanks for pointing me to the burgundy outlook! unfortunately, looks like there's only one PN on its way... but the 1er cru white burgs have me excited!

I'm in the same boat with cap regarding the Saralee Syrah from Arrowood... super ripe (and by default quite high in alcohol) and super extracted makes for quite a heated fruit bomb which doesn't do it for me. I'm surprised no one has mentioned the many PNs now available. I cracked open a bottle of the 04 Rutz Dutton Ranch ($17.99!) and found it quite enjoyable. It is quite a big, powerful PN with excellent floral notes and decent fruit. It reminded me of the St. Innocent style: tannic, made for food, and made for bottle aging. Took a few hours to open up, but when it did I couldn't believe the Chairman was able to obtain this at such a killer price. The tannins were tamed on day two which made for an fabulous bottle. Based on pedigree alone, I'm more psyched about the Burnside (Martinelli!) and Windsor Gardens (one of Merry Edward's favorite but unfortunately now defunct vineyards... so you know its gotta be special), so I picked a six pack of all four Rutz single vineyards on the promise of the Dutton. If anyone else breaks open any of the Rutz PN's, let us know how its drinking. As for the Dutton, I'd give it at least two more years of bottle age or a vigorous decant... well worth the space in your cellar at this price, though! The Felton Road is a fun PN as well, but if you're not into new world PN, or PN that has flashes of a syrah identity crisis in the glass, this won't be up your alley.

Nothing like sharing fine wine with friends to run away the blues! I'm just impressed that you still found the time to share this useful info with us after such a rough day. So thanks, Katie. Hope your weekend shapes up to be a great one, lord knows you deserve it!

i have no location preference either way... we'll end up hitting the other sections of the city eventually anyway. afternoons are preferred on my end, but there's no such thing as a bad time to eat pizza so bring it on!

We just returned from an extraordinary trip to San Fran/Napa/Sonoma. There are many highlights which I will discuss elsewhere, but in keeping on topic with this thread, the most memorable and enjoyable dining experience all week was had in Sonoma at The General's Daughter. As you may recall, I teetered between La Toque (which I'm positive would have been an awesome experience, but we simply ran out of time) and TGD. We ultimately decided to go with TGD due to its proximity to our hotel on Sonoma Square. Thank heavens we made this choice and were able to experience this treasure of a restaurant! The staff at TGD was very courteous and easily accommodated our relatively large group. While we would not have felt out of place in semi-formal attire, neither did we feel out of place in our business casual (with the emphasis on casual) outfits, which made for a relaxing atmosphere. More impressive was the menu, which all looked tempting to not only myself, but even to the most finicky (re., non-adventurous) eaters in our group--I'm sure it helped that we are all southerners by birth as the menu has a number of quintessential staples such as fried green tomatoes (out of this world good!) and shrimp and grits (ca. 40% of our group ordered this dish... and all were ecstatic to have done so). I do not recall all the dishes that the group ordered, but my dishes included a tasty yellow fin(?) tuna ceviche served over thinly sliced heirloom tomatoes in a crisp and light citrus vinaigrette, a healthy portion of foi gras (if I had to guess, one side of the foi gras was crisped in rendered bacon fat and gave it an awesome taste/texture combo), and a hearty kobe beef ragu/roast for lack of a better descriptor served over polenta and topped with white truffle (quite a unique and tasty dish, reminding me of a tomato based chopped beef barbeque which is atypical of carolina barbeque--of course, vinegar would not have played well with the flavorful beef/truffle combo). There were others, including dessert, but at the risk of sounding like a broken record, all were expertly prepared, quite original, and extremely enjoyable. And each was carefully paired with wine, but as I did not take notes and as it was a long week full of fine wine, I cannot comment on the selections. I do specifically recall an A.S. Kiken cab being served with the beef, but it was memorable for the unique winery name :-) and not because I felt the need to seek this cab out at the store. After dinner, Preston obliged our request to personally thank him for an excellent meal. It only took a few minutes speaking with our group to understand why this was the best meal of the week: his love and passion for cooking coupled with the availability of exciting and excellent ingredients as well as fine local wines creates one heck of a synergistic combo. We are thankful that Preston spent so much time speaking with our group. He truly made us feel welcome into his restaurant and we are all convinced that if he so chose, he has the charm, skill, and overall personality to make for quite the entertaining celebrity chef. Fortunately for us, he chooses to create masterpieces in the kitchen instead! Provided the kitchen isn't too busy, I highly recommend spending a few minutes with Preston just to "chew the fat". His generous hospitality and amicable demeanor really will add another dimension to an already excellent culinary experience. My only regret is that we did not have more time to spend in Sonoma valley as we were unable to return to the wonderful building Preston and his wife have breathed new life into. My own wife was particularly bummed about the lack of free time as she lives to explore unique landscapes and gardens, and the Dishman's many heirloom varietals would have been sights to behold. One last thing in case this is not already clear: although we initially decided to eat at TGD due to its location adjacent our hotel, having now eaten there, I'd willingly commute to TGD even if we were staying in Napa, San Fran or elsewhere in the general vicinity. It really was that good!

Count me in for the tasting, too! I had my first Capogiro experience two weekends ago (pics to follow once I find enough spare time) and have been dying for a return visit. Thanks, Katie, for pointing my group to the 20th St. site. We were all in heaven!

Here's our list to date: San Fran: Chez Panisse, Zuni Cafe, Jai Yun, Koi Palace, maybe Taylor's Refresher for a cheap Ferry Building experience, and two play it by ears (on the short list: Tokyo Go Go or Ino, burgers at Joe's Cable Car, Swan Oyster Depot). Napa/Sonoma: picnic at a winery, Rutherford Grill for ribs, the girl and the fig, La Toque, the French Laundry, burgers at an un-named place that my uncle claims is the best burger in the states (Un-named because he knows the location only and not the name of the restaurant), and one play it by ear (maybe bistro jeanty). This is a lunch/dinner mix only, and we'll prob. hit some bakeries for breakfast before the wineries. I'm this close to pulling TFL as some in our group doubt they'll enjoy it $300 worth... and I am honestly teetering on that line myself, particularly after speaking with a number of friends who have dined there and whom I trust. There's also the TFL jacket factor which I typically rebel against, but would be willing to make an exception for. Obviously, we are trying to mix it up a bit with styles, and I'm quite psyched about Jai Yun and Chez Panisse. Most in our group (myself included) make it a point to eat in relaxed, non-pretentious establishments. Not knowing the atmosphere at either La Toque or the General's Daughter, I could use some guidance. I have no doubt the food at both are exceptional... but which has a more laid back atmosphere? Chances are that is the one that will end up with our business, particularly after a long fun day of winery tours. [edited for spelling]

Glad I ran into this thread: I was looking for info on the girl and the fig but found so much more! I've been planning a trip to food county for the better part of three months now, so my dining schedule is just about full (and yes... we'll be in the area for the wine, too). I need some help from anyone willing to respond: should I cancel a reservation at La Toque in Napa in favor of The General's Daughter? Based on this thread alone, the price/quality mix is more favorable at TGD, and since TFL is on my list, value becomes quite important. My gut says TGD over La Toque for a number of reasons, the least of which being that Chef Dishman participates on this board (gotta love that!). We are also staying off Sonoma Square, which adds a little weight. Just so I don't muddy the water any: cuisine type/style is unimportant to me: I just want high quality food prepared well. But I'm preaching to the choir here on that one--which is why I love the board! Thanks in advance... and we might be seeing you soon, Preston!

Amanda and I are unfortunately out of town that weekend, so will have to pass. I can feel the envy already starting to boil for missing out on this adventure.... but I'll take solace in the fact that we'll be trading Tacconelli's for Chez Panisse on the 24th , with other food adventures to follow.

For fear of retribution from Katie , I haven't posted similar sentiments as Capaneus. Well, that, and I don't have enough data points to comment fully as I have only performed a single bottle experiment. But since the ice was broken by the fearless not-that-impressed boy, I'll have to concur. I tried to search for some character in the Kaiken, but all I kept running into was cooked fruit, and I rarely enjoy that quality in a wine. Could be due to poor storage, it was a one bottle trial after all, but I have not had any desire to reproduce those results. Thanks for the Panarroz tip, Capaneus!

Took me a while to get back to this thread, but I've been thinking about pizza today... so I'll do the next best thing and relive our Marra's experience. Needless to say, I found both offerings to be damn good pies! Still worthy indeed! The provalone on the white pie was a huge hit, and as Charlie mentioned, had a great bite. The freshness of the toppings was also noteworthy, but even the standard cheese pie was outstanding in my book. I tend to rely heavily on basic plain cheese pies to compare place to place, and I doubt I'll find many other places around the area that can top Marra's. In addition to the lightness and crispness of the crust as mentioned previously, it was nicely salted... I'm not talking salty, but subtly seasoned. Moreover the sauce was fresh and the brick oven broil did wonders to the cheese as evidenced in Sandy's photos. I loved this pie, which held its own against one of my other downtown fav's, Lombardi's, which is a sob story in and of itself! As for La Rosa's, I'm with Katie on this one: The convection oven made a world of difference, but not enough for me to frequent the joint. If there were a Sicilian style category of best pizza, La Rosa would be in the running... but it would not get my vote for a general pizza category. But that's just personal preference. All in all, it was tasty and the potatoes and sweet peppers were worthy of recognition. So when's the next outing?

I'm saddened to report that Mutt's on N. Orange Street is no longer is business which is too bad cause I was really looking forward to a dog and fries today! back to the ol' dog house standard, i guess... but you'll hear no complaints from me on that one!

Likewise, my wife and I took Holly's advice on Deerhead last week. While it was a decent dog, I have to say I was confused as to how this dog rated better than The Dog House's offering on the South side of the city. I didn't find the Deerhead sauce all that interesting, it was actually a little bland, and sin sauce, you are left with a standard dog on a standard bun. Nicely cooked fries, though, which were served with a vinegar bottle and a can of old bay. The Dog House is where it's at in Wilmington, or for the area in general. Holly notes that its all about the sauce for Deerhead. Well, its all about the bun for the Dog House. Lightly toasted on the face with a slightly flakey exterior and chewy interior. It is a roll worthy of discussion. I'm not a fan of the Dog House's watered down chili from a can (at least, I'm guessing its not homemade), but every other dog combo offered is exceptional. Personally, I just stick with two cheese dogs with mustard. Comfort food at its finest!

After all the incredible reviews of STH, I HAD to give it the ol' college try. Without this board, and without an address, I never would have found the joint. Moreover, if on the off chance the bland store front happened to catch my eye, the fact that there were a grand total of four patrons in the restaurant at 8:30 on a Saturday evening would have been quite the deterrent (granted, it was a rainy night). We were nevertheless filled with anticipation and overjoyed when upon seating a pot of hot tea was immediately served. Great way to escape from the rain, and a great start to a meal! Because I had piled through this thread previously, my party of four "forced" me to order for the table. No surprise then that the spicy dumplings and golden coins came out as apps, with a bowl of egg drop soup for my wife who was feeling a little under the weather. I did not partake in the soup, but the phrase really good was used quite a few times to describe it. I was not able to say much myself from the fact that I could not stop stuffing my mouth with either the dumplings or the golden coins. The above descriptions for both are spot on. Personally, I can't imagine a much better dumpling/sauce combo than these, but am ready to take the Yuu Kee challenge. Our next plate was the crispy salt and pepper shrimp. "Fry master" expertly describes the skill of the chef: both the golden coins and the shrimp were perfectly cooked and extremely pleasurable to eat from a taste/texture standpoint. Although I often find battered sea creatures to be quite bland primarily due to battering, I enjoyed the shrimp which has a nice salt and pepper balance. So the table was on a roll: three hit plates (and a soup) with the star braised beef and a Kung Pao dish yet to come. When the beef arrived, I paid no attention to the half inch five pepper dry flake coating on top (okay, maybe it was more like 1/8th of an inch) and dug right in. In retrospect, I wish I had paid more attention to the words fiery, inferno, burn, grenade, etc repeated throughout this thread. We didn't go in naive about Szechwan cooking, but the five pepper coating was really much more potent than imagined. So much so that the two ladies of our venture were unable to eat more than one mouthful of the beef, and that singular bite ended any hope they had of eating the Kung Pao dish that followed. As for the gents in the group, we did our best to finish both dishes but the damage was done: whether the braised beef was also salty, tangy, sweet and bitter was beyond the reach of my dulled taste buds. As were the flavors of the Kung Pao, which I suspect would have been enjoyable to experience. I’m not by any means knocking the use of heat, or even STH. Although I’m not a chili head, I really do love hot food and consider myself as having a high tolerance for capsaicin. But damn if the five pepper blend didn’t steal the thunder from the other dishes! Either the majority of you have an extraordinary tolerance for pain, or our table just happened to draw the pepper placenta/seed lottery. I’m looking forward to a return visit to sample something other than a five pepper dish… but I fear I may be returning alone! Of course, the golden coins and dumplings were huge crowd favorites, so maybe I won’t have as tough a time as I think getting my wife back in the STH saddle. Besides, our total bill came to $45ish before tip and she certainly appreciates a great deal. But with so few people in the restaurant on a Sat. night, I wonder if this deal will last? As a side, we brought the obligatory Riesling to pair with the food, but I also threw caution to the wind and brought a nice medium bodied pinot noir to celebrate an evening out with visiting friends. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the pinot worked to quell the fire, and although our taste buds were dulled, we even found the pairing to work quite well. Next time we joked that we would bring our own stems, however, as it was challenging aerating the pinot in a wide water glass. I have a feeling STH would be game with just about anything we wanted to bring. [edited for spelling]