Live It Up
-
Posts
311 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Store
Help Articles
Posts posted by Live It Up
-
-
I tip 20% as well on all restaurant/bar bills, as long as service is good.
Cheers!
Yes, I tip %20 at restaurants as well, but at bars I tip at least a dollar a drink, usually more, depending on the bartender. Maybe I should explain why I don't know whether a percentage is appropriate: If I order 2 bottles of wine that cost $20 each, a %20 tip would be $8. If I order 2 bottles of wine that cost $40 each a %20 tip would be $16. Yes, the bill is double, but the amount of work that the bartender/waiter does is the same. Perhaps I'm the only person that worries about this. When I worked as a barista, I would get pissed off when people did things like tipping pennies or nickles, even though it might be a %20 tip. A cafe is more like a bar, where I think there is a minimum acceptable tip. Of course, I always said thanks, because if you haven't worked in a cafe you might think any tip in a tip jar is good. That's why I'm curious about the wine bar situation...anybody who has worked in one want to chime in?
-
I nearly forgot about my worst ever coffee mishap - from back in 1978 when I was in the first few days of my first real waitering job. I yanked the filter basket out of the Bunn brewer to empty and reload only to find that the filter had folded over, the hole clogged and the basket full to the brim with scalding hot water came pouring out over my hand.
One of my quick thinking co-workers grabbed a huge leaf from a nearby Aloe plant (we were a "garden" cafe with lots of huge real plants). Sliced the leaf open, wrapped it around the burn and then tied a towel on tight over that. Great stuff that aloe - I had almost no damage form the burn and three days later it was as though it had never happened.
Actually, that exact same thing happened to me, but I wasn't so lucky to have an aloe plant handy. I had scars for about a year from my hand to my elbow. In the cafe where I worked, it was a big problem for a while with the drip machine overflowing from the filter baket several times a day at some points. One stupid mistake I witnessed a few times but never did myself was I would start the brew cycle and then my co worker would come over and pull out the fliter basket without checking to see if it was on. It was actually kinda funny if no one got burned. Of course, getting burned is just part of the job at a coffee shop.
-
I went to the same wine bar twice this week and though I was received warmly both times, I feel I may not have tipped appropriately. I've worked as a bartender and also a barista, so I'm very sensitive to the whole tipping issue...perhaps a little too sensitive as I know how nuaced the whole thing can be and what might be perfectly fine for one situation is not for another. If you go to a bar and drink beer or cocktails, most people will tip per drink ($1 per drink seems to be most common). However, If you go to a restaurant you would tip a percentage of the total bill. So my question is, when you go to a wine bar how do you figure the tip? Percentage of total bill or per "drink"? And if you figure per drink is it by the bottle, glass or what?
-
I don't think this will help at all, but I've had a very similar experience with rabbit. Let me start by saying I love eating rabbit, and I cook it all the time, but I always have the butcher cut it up for me. Once I bought a whole rabbit and I managed to get through the whole cooking process. However, after I served it up I realized I couldn't eat it and cried hysterically for the whole night. Don't know, there was just something about seeing it on the plate. Perhaps your husband could do the cutting for you?
-
I'm surprised that no one on the other thread mentioned the Presto Scandinavian Design Coffee Maker. It's been all the rage over on coffee geek. I got mine from amazon for $34.99 with free shipping, but I see that it's gone up to $45.99. However, it's still one of the only automatic drip brewers for under $100 that reaches proper brewing temperatures. As I said, there's lots of threads about it on coffeegeek.com, but I'm not savvy with the linking yet.
-
This is one question I have no problem answering: PIE! However, truth be told, most of the time I would choose neither. I don't have much of a sweet tooth and I hate (hate!) frosting, so most cakes are out. I do like flourless chocolate cake with ganache or whipped cream, but that almost doesn't qualify as cake. Usually I won't eat pie either unless I have some reason to expect that it will be reasonably good (like my mom made it). But, if I have to choose, I'll always choose pie or tarts. Actually, I like most tarts...must be the lack of goo.
-
I'm not sure about the hot fudge recipe, but her lemon curd recipe is available on the food network site. However, it's kinda hidden in her lemon meringue tart recipe. Strange, because I know I've seen her make stand alone lemon curd on her show...
-
Hello,
I don't have it (yet) but the Clear Solutions Jumbo Cookbook Holder was the top rated one by cook's illustrated magazine. They have it at amazon for $39.95. I would make an eGullet friendly link if I knew how. Hope this helps you, despite my lack of personal experience with it....I'm hoping I get one of these for my birthday.
-
All, I'm wondering how to 'glue' the puff pastry without egg. Is water the best idea or a little butter?
Does she have a problem with eggs as an ingredient (such as in egg wash) or is it just eating eggs as eggs? My husband will not eat eggs, but he has no problem with them when they're used as binders (like in meatballs) or as a glaze. I would guess that she probably won't know the difference if you used egg wash, but it is still a no no, I suggest using a little cream.
-
This is such a wonderful thread. As the future mr. and I plan to run off and get hitched by ourselves, but maybe, MAYBE have some sort of party/celebration after, it has been great to read the range of things that people have done. Especially the celebrations that fall outside "standard" reception perameters-catering yourself, the picnic/bbq potlucks, the small restaurant dinners-I found some of these so touching and so much more special than any lavish cookie cutter wedding reception. Thanks for sharing.
This is exactly what my now husband and I did last summer--we were so repelled by the idea of having a "wedding" that we got married at City Hall and had a party for only our friends...didn't even tell our families until a month later. We had our party at a bar, which we rented for a sunday afternoon. I catered it myself, and it was all about what we wanted. We bought WAY too many oysters from the lobster place and hired an oyster shucker, which everyone agreed was the highlight of the party. I didn't get to eat as much as I would have liked, but I did eat. Here's what I made:
duck prosciutto with red onion marmelade (from the Babbo cookbook)
roasted wild mushrooms with truffle vinaigrette
roasted asparagus
spiced nuts
shrimp cocktail and a lot of sauces to go with raw oysters
wild rice salad with roasted pepper vinaigrette
spiced melon balls
Here's what I bought:
fresh mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes
prosciutto and capicolla
several beautiful cheeses
breads from Amy's
olives
no cake, but veniero's specially made mini chocolate dipped cannolis for me, and we also had some miniature raspberry tarts and my friend brought ridiculously beautiful strawberries from the farmer's market.
We had way too much food, but it was lots of fun. I know I wouldn't have been able to enjoy myself so much if I had to worry about my family's approval. Of course, my husband might not have gotten so embarassingly drunk if his family was there...
-
I can't vouch for martha stewart's version of empanaditas, but I make a version from the too hot tamales cookbook that were recently devoured at a small dinner party. As per the previous poster's suggestion they are great to make ahead because you can freeze them. I've been working on finger foods lately because I'm going to be catering a wedding for 60 in september (I'm not a pro), and I'm trying to come up with the perfect filling for parmesan wafer cups. So far the winner is sauteed mushrooms pureed with creme fraiche, chives, lemon juice and a bit of truffle oil.
One that I did get from martha stewart that I love is to blanch snow peas split them along the seam and pipe in some soft cheese (I like goat cheese with pink peppercorns).
Hmm...anything in an endive leaf is good...
Also, to supplement labor intensive items, it's great to have some items you can buy like a nice platter of cured meats and olives.
-
I have tried to go to both applewood and chestnut during restaurant week before and have not been able to get reservations. In addition, I would suggest that restaurant week is NOT the time to try Blue Ribbon. They do not take reservations for parties under 6 people and there is always a wait. I did go there for restaurant week about 2 years ago and wound up waiting about 2 hours for a table. Once we got a table we had a great time, but we didn't even order off the prix fixe menu because the choices were not that appealing (ie only one choice of dessert). As far as I can tell the waiting situation is just as bad a Blue Ribbon Sushi which is next door. Sorry I can't be more helpful on which places you should go.
-
So I guess it's a little late to be joining this thread, but I am new to eGullet and I just read through all 18 pages. I usually wind up making soup at least once a week, because that's how often my husband requests my spicy tomato corn soup. Actually, I don't always indulge him because I don't like eating or cooking the same thing all the time. I'm so jealous of all of you who have huge freezers in which to keep stock...mine is tiny and always full (who knows with what). The spicy tomato soup is perfect because it's just as good with broth from a box (actually, I wouldn't waste precious homemade broth on it because it's too spicy to taste the broth). Here's how I make it:
poach one half of a chicken breast (about a pound) in one quart box of chicken broth
while that's poaching griddle roast dried chipotle chiles. I use 5 or so, but I like it almost painfully hot. Probably 2 would do for normal palates. Also, anchos or other milder chiles are good for additional flavor. Seed chiles and soak in hot water to soften. Griddle roast 6 plum tomatoes, 3 or 4 garlic cloves, and a medium onion. Once chiles are soft, place in blender with tomatoes, garlic, onions and the chile soaking water. Puree. Remove chicken from broth and shred. Add puree and shredded chicken to broth along with some frozen corn (or fresh shucked if you have it). I never measure it, but I would guess about 1 1/2 cups. Season with salt and pepper. I usually add some cloves and cumin too, all to taste. Squeeze in some lime juice and serve. I serve mine kind of like tortilla soup with cilantro, chopped chiles, avocado and tortilla chips on the side.
I'm looking forward to making this in the summer with fresh corn. Hope you enjoy it.
-Jessica
Dried Morels
in Cooking
Posted
There's a recipe in an old issue of Food and Wine that is the reason I keep dried mushrooms on hand at all times. I was trying to find the orginal recipe on their website, but it wasn't there, so here's my remembered version.
Cut up and render some pancetta, then sweat some chopped shallots and garlic to the fat in the pan. Add some fresh thyme, chopped dried figs, and your soaked and drained morels. Strain any grit from the morel soaking liquid and add to the pan. Reduce to desired consistency and serve over soft polenta with grated parmesan cheese.
Sorry about the lack of amounts, but it's really a "to taste" kinda thing anyway. It's simple and that allows the dried mushrooms to star. I ususally have all these items in the house, so it's a great quick meal.