Carolyn Tillie

In today's BBC Online: Michelin guide pulled over gaffe I'm in the middle of reading a preview copy of "The Perfectionist" about Bernard Loisseau's suicide because of his losing a Michelin star. I continue to be astonished how much power this publication has.

Darn... beyond the Corti Brothers, I'm at a loss!

In the restaurant world, that is... LA Times Article -- Nancy sells out of Campanile to partner with Batali for an Italian restaurant somewhere in Los Angeles.

Cucina Viansa is the correct name. A branch of the Viansa establishment that is mostly set up for tourists. The business is for sale -- may not be around much longer. Perfect analogy -- it is actually a large chain which is exactly like Denny's. Has been gone for almost eight months. Is now the new home of Meritage. Della Santina not "Santinia" I've eaten there four times -- twice it was exceptional and twice it was just okay. Not that I have found. But it is more than morning pastries. They make pretty good sandwiches, have a small wine bar, and produce fabulous breads. See above Not "traditional" Thai but I really like this place. Everything I have had has been incredibly fresh. Saveurs not 'Savers'. As indicated in the Foie Gras to be illegal thread, they have cut back their hours and may not be open much longer. Pity. California Pizza Kitchen. Innovative, small, single serving pizzas with odd toppings. Yep, the Red Grape is tyring to be exactly that, but not as good, IMHO. Also, two great stores: Sonoma Market and Nonna's.

Gads... for a minute I thought this thread was new and I was having a bit of deja vu (until I read my post) and was going to rejoice at the return of the Mudpuppie... I need to read dates more closely.

LaSalette 452-H First Street East, Sonoma, CA 95476 707-938-1927 LaSalette Website A bunch of us gathered in Sonoma on Saturday afternoon to be transported to a new land... Portugal! As always, great friends and great food makes for great times, but I would like to believe all were impressed by the quality of the food and the mere fact that finally there are some other wine-friendly, innovative cuisines showing up In Wine Country other than French, Italian, California Cuisine, Cal-inspired French, Cal-inspired Italian, and a smattering of Spanish... I can't tell you if it is authentic as La Salette is my first exposure to Portuguese food, but I can tell you that now having eaten more than two-thirds of the menu over several visits that there isn't anything I haven't enjoyed (okay, a tad too much cilantro on the mussels for MY taste). I hope the others will chime in with specifics as to what they thought. Any favorites? Small Courses Tripe Porto Style, oven based with white beans, linguica and vegetables. Spinach Salad with warm roasted garlic and presunto vinaigrette, goat cheese, and spiced almonds. Sardine Special -- Second time I've had this dish and has proven fabulous on both occasions. Smoked Rabbit, warm salad of house-smoked rabbit, white beans, and roasted peppers. Nice combination of flavors and textures in this dish. Octopus Salad - on special that day. Mussels and Clams, steamed with linguica, coconut milk, curry, white wine and garlic Dungeness Crab in puff pastry served with fennel-bell pepper slaw and tomato-shrimp sauce (Carrie's Favorite!) Cod Cakes, salt cod, potato and onion are baked then served with cilantro mayonnaise and romaine. Portuguese Cheeses, a tasting of island Queijo do Topo, mainland Serra da Estrela, homemade Queijo Fresco, and Linguica garnished with marmelada, fruit, and candied almonds. Main Courses Mozambique Prawns, pan roasted in Piri-Piri, with coconut rice and tomato-peanut sauce. Petaluma Duck, crispy-roasted with honey and pistachios served with duck stock reduction. Bits of duck confit highlighted this dish when Bruce shared! Veal Shank, stewed in red wine and veal stock, with roasted potatoes and baked vegetables. Grouper Special: Feijoada Completa, Brazilian national dish of stewed beef, pork, smoked sausage, and black beans, served with rice, collard greens, and traditional condiments. Pictures of diners whose permission I have received, still waiting to hear from a few! Winesonoma and Patricia: Irish Cream and Russell: Not Pictured: Wolfert (who would only consent if her picture made her look like Jennifer Garner), Carolyn Tillie (because I'm holding the camera!), and Shawn (well, you can see part of Shawn in Citizen Cane's picture if I get to post that one). And Jschyun, do I get to post your's? Oh yeah, and there were these rolls made of a corn-based dough, fresh from the wood-fired oven...

So, the first question -- what did YOU do and second question -- is your friend still with this chick?

What? And not ZAP, San Francisco, January 24, 2005???

Bruce, the odd little things you pull out of your hat never cease to amaze me! Bravo.

Yes! I lived near Torrance for a number of years and ate there a few times, preferring to head out to Tung Lai Shun out in the San Gabriel Valley. There was a recent eG excursion to the one in Torrance and you can view pictures and read the discussion here. I need to hunt out the Islamic Chinese restaurant in NoCal -- there is nothing like a giant plate of Beef Tendon or steaming bowl of Duck Tongues!

I was born in Tustin, California. When I was born, my father was in Japan (something about a war in Vietnam...) Consequently, the first truly original, elegant meal I remember as out of the ordinary was a Japanese restaurant in Orange County called Miyako's. It was our special occasion restaurant as my Dad sent home cool Japanese stuff to decorate our house and we all knew how to work chopsticks at a very young age. Miyako's was one of the Japanese restaurants where you had to remove your shoes upon entering -- that was very cool for a kid. My mother always ordered Sukiyaki and a child's version of Tempura was ordered for me. I loved the pretty colors of the food and how much prettier all the food looked than what Mom made at home. When I was nine, both of my sisters left for college and instead of keeping a big, giant house, my parents bought a condo on the beach in San Diego county. That opened up the world of 'real' Mexican food as dashing across the border for fish tacos and grilled lobster on the beach in Rosarito was an easy thing to do. Occasionally we would visit a fancy French restaurant because I was totally obsessed with the French culture and French food. My parents started eating escargot because their 9-year-old daughter wanted them. When I was 20, I married this man who brought me to a Greek restaurant for the first time in my life. While my parents were in the military, they had had their fill of mutton cooked in the mess hall and hated lamb. I had never eaten lamb before in my life. Thinking back on it, my Dad didn't like Spaghetti so we never went to Italian restaurants either. The entire spectrum of Mediterranean food became a new playground for me to play and experiment in. Up until my 20's "Italian food" was only pizza and then it was from Shakey's! (edited to add that when I was 26, I got divorced and moved from San Diego to Los Angeles... not wanting anyone to think I'm still married to "this man!") Now, in my 40s, there is not a culture whose cuisine I won't try. I am enamored with Islamic Chinese food and curious what Estonian's eat. I'm still not thrilled with Mexican food, but am learning that there is more than just tacos and enchiladas. And I love Japanese food more than all...

When I lived in Los Angeles, I would go to a Burns dinner every year at the Tam O'Shanter Inn. I had a special date, Rob, every year as Shawn never was interested. Rob ended up marrying a Scottish girl who didn't like Haggis so I still had my standing date, even after their marriage. I greatly miss that part of Los Angeles as I have not yet found a restaurant in the San Francisco area which does all the bells and whistles; bagpipes, dancers, the full poem recited whilst the Haggis is being cut (from memory, please!). If you live in SoCal, I'm sure Tam O'Shanter is already booked up -- I used to book the day after Christmas to assure my seats and it always books up early.

What a great website! To retro and yet looking forward. Serious congratulations!

I've figured out the Red Lobster secret. They put cocaine in those cheese biscuits, I swear... My whole family loves the place and I used to always get ill after I ate there (under duress, I might add - except for those biscuits). Then I figured it out. I was ordering stuff that is ALWAYS on the menu and thus must always be frozen. Now when I am forced to Red Lobster for familial togetherness, I order whatever is fresh. Grilled with their garlic butter sauce is usually okay and I don't end up losing my cookies as I used to do.

Hazardnc, don't assume those spices are obvious ones. I am relatively new to this and just learning about the joys of couscous (I don't own a couscousierre yet...) Ironically, I picked up a bag of that Osem brand and it has been sitting on my pantry shelf for some time. I guess I'll be opening some cookbooks in the next few days to figure out the best thing to cook for my bag. Thanks again for this -- what a great thread its become!

Mel, I know that the 'biggies' use oak from both French and American forests and there is a great debate between French Oak and American Oak. but I am curious about the beginning use of oak from other countries like Hungary or even China. Do you believe we have a finite supply and will have to start looking for oak in alternate locations and are there any oak forests which hint at having the same qualities as those we have pulled from in the past?

I am unfamiliar with it. But this press release from the TTB (née BATF) makes me very curious. Anyone got some insight or info on it?

Vietnamese Cinnamon is a new concept for me! I'll start looking for it (I'm too afraid to go to the Penzey's site -- I KNOW how much money I'd spend and am trying to be strong).

Actually, no. I'm not a huge fan of Mexican food and having grown up in Oceanside, when my parents wanted Mexican, we went to Anitas on PCH (then Hill Street). It has been there over 30 years and has become an institution down there. Later, while attending San Diego State, there was an occasional dash across the border for grilled lobster or fish tacos, but that's about it. (Allergic to raw tomatoes, can't stand cilantro - hence no salsa for this white chick).

Gosh, the weekend I was in SoCal for my Mother's funeral (last October), I made a point of heading down to Chuao and picking up their biggest assortment box (24 pieces?). While not quite as delicate as Rechiuti, I enjoyed the variety and odd flavor varieties (except for the Goat Cheese one). Maybe I got a good production lot or maybe, experiencing the other loss, I just enjoyed something for sake of wanting to enjoy it. I had intended to go back (there is this pastry shop right next door that had a line out the door!) to the Encinitas store, but perhaps my money will be better spent mail-ordering those Vosges I've been craving...

I'm going to let others add the commentary from our visit last Saturday evening. Suffice to say that we all had a lovely time and Mourad pulled out all the stops, serving us practically the entire menu... Harrira Soup: Sunchoke Soup: Beet Salad: Carrot Salad: Feta Fingers: Sesame Crusted Goat Cheese with Tomato and Zatir Croutons: Lima Beans: Mushroom Triangles (with a hint of Truffle Oil): Dayboat Scallop on Spiced Vegetable Salad: Bastilla: A palate cleanser of Green Tea Granita with Lavender Gelato: Clay Pot Cod: Veal Tagine: Vegetable Tagine: Lamb Shank: Cornish Game Hen: Couscous Aziza (with Prawns and homemade Sausage): Squab: Quail Eggs: Huckleberry Sorbet on Chevre Sauce: Ice Cream Sandwiches (I loved these!) Chocolate Pot de Creme:

Controversy = Huge deal ITB. Basically, Laube of Wine Spectator conducted some independent studies of their bottles and determined that MANY of them were corked. He subsequently gave them ratings in the 70s (unheard of for that producers). Now they are fighting back, it seems. The original Spectator article which started all the controversy.

Well, this was my first attempt. Sadly, I must say it is pretty awful. I should have been a bit suspicious when I read the recipe. The first thing that struck me as ood was the 1/4 cup of cornstarch -- I've never seen that in a cake recipe before. The other thing was the order of production. I'm used to creaming the butter and sugar together first, and then alternately adding a flour mixture with a liquid. This recipe had both; a mixture of flour, spices, and cornstarch and a liquid mixture of milk, eggs, and vanilla. In these instructions, you are to mix the flour mixture with the softened butter, THEN the liquid, THEN the sugar. The resulting cake smelled just okay in the oven. When it hits your tongue, the first taste which hits the tongue is PASTINESS. As you can see from the picture, I couldn't event get a solid, cohesive slice out of the pan. It immediately crumbles apart. You can't even fork-cut a bite off without it falling into bits. There is no delicacy and the subsequent sponge fails in height or structure. I think there are boxed spice cakes with more substantial flavor. Sorry, Swisskaese! The quest continues! Kit, your Caramel Cake will be next!

I have all three as well and as an amateur, have enjoyed preparing most of the cake recipes in the book at one time or another. My favorites include the 'Old Fashioned' Layer Cake and all the cakes in the Dementia section. My personal fav is toss up betwen the Chocolate Espresso Fudge Cake, being the ultimate expression of a huge, overtly chocolate cake and the Death By Chocolate because of the contrast of the Meringue center. I really like both of those cakes.

It's LOVE, M-L, simple pure unadulterated LOVE! Is that sooooo wrong???!!!???? ← We all want some of RG's LOVE...