Lesley C

I walked past the St-Laurent location tonight and it seems as the the Kaizan people will be taking over.

As a former pastry chef, what I value most in a pastry book -- pro or amateur -- is good taste. I'm not talking about recipes that taste good. I'm interested in seeing someone with a style I admire. Claudia Flemming and Nancy Silverton are great but they have nothing on French pastry chefs such as Pierre Herme and even Yves Thuries, the king of the croquembouche. I think the beginner should leaf through good pastry books, even professional pastry books, to understand the difference between something that is done in good taste and something that isn't (no offense to Mr. Malgieri, but I have never seen anything even remotely artistic in his books). Silverton has terrific taste but many of her recipes are expensive and overly complicated. As teaching books, I think they fall short. Nonetheless, she has a lot of great ideas. The Roux Brothers also have great taste and their books are teaching books because there are plenty of technique pictures along with the recipes. If you want a glaring example of why trendy pastry books are a waste of time, check out Thuries' plated dessert book from 1989, Joel Bellouet's Entremets et Desserts sur Assiette book or the first books released by the Pastry Arts and Design people. Those towering desserts are so passé it hurts. Classics are the only way to go when learning pastry, and when well executed, classic French pastry is still hard to beat. But I see little interest in American pastry books filled with layer cakes, squares, cookies and such. I could make all that stuff with ease before I got to pastry school. Where's the challenge there?

Hi. Thanks for the interest in my book. I think it's being reprinted in French so it might be available again in Canadian bookstores soon, but only in French. I'm thinking of rewriting it in English if I find a publisher. I didn't think beginner-type pastry books were that popular, but considering the number of threads about these kinds of books, I might think again. I have a few English copies on hand, so you can PM me if you're interested. It's a book geared to technique with pictures of each step in the recipe. This isn't a book for recipe gatherers. Though the recipes are solid and original (as in, all mine ).

Hey Rabbit, great post. Welcome to eGullet. Looking forward to hearing more from you!

Hmm... I like the smoked meat at Snowdon Deli. It's moister.

If you must stick to the blocks, try zapping them in the microwave for about thirty seconds before chopping. It really cuts down on the effort (I do this when I make chunks for cookies).

Chez Louis is the only store that sells Daignault's products to the public. Otherwise it's all direct to restaurants. Chez Louis also doubles all of Daignault's prices, so don't think it's always the farmer who is cashing in .

Hmm, I like Delfino. The owner, a man by the name of George Georgi is very nice. The big thing to try there is the grilled octopus. It's like something out of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Service can be a problem there, though. I think their son waits tables on occasion, and he aint that big on smiles and menu recommendations. Thank God I went three times when I reviewed the place. But I agree, fish-wise it's excellent. The scallops are also quite something.

unreserved, who is the chef at Agapes?

I'm considering a visit to Roellinger later this month. I have only heard raves, but I can't seem to find a single appetizing recipe in his repertoire. Has anyone been lately? I need a thumbs up or down. Thanks.

Thank God. I don't think I could handle another move. I'm working on my next dining out guide and if one more chef jumps ship, I'll throw in the towel.

Janick Bouchard is leaving Le Remparts! Gosh, everyone is moving around these days.

Is Nava closed? (I have to get out more )

Chewie I'm with you on the simplicity thing. I don't think it's really about fuss or no fuss, but as you said, it's about seasoning, exploiting the product and good taste. I think all this elaborate restaurant food is an attempt on the chef's part to be original. But then you have to ask how original it is when you see plate presentations lifted straight from magazines like Art Culinaire. But I would argue that some people just don't care about what they are eating. That can change if they are exposed to a lot of good food, but I know a lot of people who don't give a stuff about food and who shovel back bad Chinese and dreary pasta raving about how good it is. OK, this is getting off topic. I'm sure plenty of people have opinions on this topic, but they will never find this discussion going on in a thread about the Modavie Wine bar.

Why do you think it's so tough to get a reservation at Gibbys?

No no, it was sparkling. It was a Bertani Recioto Spumante, Valpolicella Valpantena. This was at a Valpolicella tasting dinner that included Recioto as well. The sparkling Valpolicella was with a chocolate and cherry dessert. Very nice, if a bit intense. They say it should be served at 12 degrees.

Carswell, there are plenty of chefs on this board (make that chef/owners) who talk about their restaurants all the time. Different people do it in different ways. BUT what I know (I've been hosting this board for a while) is that posts like the one above hold little weight. Unless people go into a bit of detail, someone saying something is delicious is no big deal in my book. When they start posting the price of the daily specials, then I'll start to get annoyed. Also, if the restaurant isn't good (which I'm not saying is the case with this restaurant because I haven't been) I know people will jump on board and start to give their opinion. Notice, that's exactly what happened here. So in the long run, the mysterious breezer's spam-like post did more harm to Mondavie Wine Bar Jazz than good. Let that be a lesson to future spammers. (and PS about the CH MTL message board: I've found inaccurate information on there, and that to me is more harmful than spam)

OK people, let's not jump to conclusions too quickly here. I have no problem with people who come here to plug restaurants, though I'd take them a lot more seriously if they posted or signed under their real name. I, for one, can hear about a new place, check it out and judge for myself. If I haven't heard of this establishment it must be pretty casual. After reviewing over 200 restos, trust me, I'm always glad to hear about something I might have missed. And for new people posting, please if you can, try to go into a bit of detail. A mere delicious doesn't really tell us much. Also, price range is helpful. Thanks.

Hi Breezer, welcome to eGullet. Can you give us more information. Is this a restaurant? A stand for the Jazz Fest? What exactly is it?

A savvy chef can make good money. We aren't talking lawyer salaries here, just a good living. Not that you'll have much time to lead your life... If you have the energy to do extras, you can always find some caterer on the side who is willing to pay you under the table. Good salary, plus cash on the side or the occasional teaching gig and you'll make a few bucks.

I had a sparkling Valpolicella last year. It was quite sweet and very very expensive. Apparently it's quite rare. Otherwise I'm drinking chilled Chinon and Saumur-Champigny and lots of rosé (I just tasted a nice one from Pic St-Loup and would kill to get my hands on a bottle of Mas Amiel rosé).

You know who's really underpaid? Food writers. And that leads to all kinds of corruption. I made a lot more when I was working as a chef. It's interesting to note that pastry chefs usually have better starting salaries than cooks. My starting salary in a pastry shop back in the 90s was $11/hour, whereas a few of my cooking friends working in the city's best restaurants were making no more than $8. I wonder if this still holds true?

No, he was a diplomat. Maybe he was doing research.

No. I never had a problem with anyone -- pros or amateurs -- going to school. To repeat myself for the tenth time...I just think people who want to be professional chefs should be in a professional school that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, and that people who want to cook as a sideline should stick to focused, paying programs. The examples I know best are the vocational programs here in Quebec and the CAP/apprentissage route in France. These schools aren't just cheap, they're free. My big beef is with schools like the CIA, FCI, CCI and LCB that feed off the students who choose to cook for a living and don't have tens of thousands to spend on school. A system of public education for future chefs would cut costs for a student who don't have that kind of money. Chefs jobs, for the most part, are not high paying. I don't know how students could manage to pay back such exhorbitant fees. I see no problem with expensive specialty courses for working professionals, but for beginners, it seems insane. No wonder so many young chefs contemplate skipping school to go directly in the work force. They can't afford school. Here and in France most chefs go to cooking school because it's free. The minute you or sandra decide to earn money cooking, you become a professional. If you're even contemplating going into the business, it's worth going to a professional school. I had an amateur student who showed up with his secretary to take notes for him. Very nice man, very passionate about cooking, but I wouldn't want to see that person in a professional class.

Kurt has balls. I'm not sure his approach would have worked in France, but I admire it just the same. I had plenty of students who worked in the family restaurant, especially Italians, who decided there might be more to life than working for dad and making fettucini Alfredo so they enrolled in cooking school. They did well in school but we constantly had to hold them back from using chicken base and Aromate. One thing they did learn on the job was how to work hard. Most of these kids were the last to leave class and the first to finish their mise-en-place. When I used to teach pizza in class, I'd turn the demo over to the student who worked in a pizza parlour -- there was always at least one and he was usually brilliant. So much depends on each personality. But I think school is a great thing for chefs and amateurs alike. It's an eye opener, and it gives you the chance to mess up or shine.