Reignking

This recent thread may help...

I don't understand the pickles... I hate McDonalds, but for some reason, that's the one thing I like from there (maybe because it is somewhat unique for fast food). I did stop by one this weekend, during a long trip, to buy a Coke, and saw that they had the McRib in NC.

McRib. Chomp. They never came off the menu when I was in Spain (2003). Of course, pork is quite popular there.

I always spoke in Spanish, and never had a problem -- well, except for a humongous math error (I just don't know how many grams of jamon I need). You'll find the people of Barcelona extremely nice, even if all you can do is point.

I did the same for about 3 weeks, 4 years ago, but I was so in love with the ingredients (jamon, cheeses, etc) that I didn't even need to actually "cook"

Towards the end, when they were eliminating someone, they mentioned that they had been to 3 cities in Europe. I thought they had gone straight to Munich (well, via Frankfurt)? Just some serious editing, I guess?

At the Boqueria, visit egullet's pedro's stall: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102993

For the most part, it doesn't taste like pork -- what is scary is what they do to make it look like bacon. It's all cooked up (not cured), formed into bacon-shape, and given beet juice and something else for coloring. Still, it is a healthier alternative for someone that wants to think they are eating bacon. The peppered version at Whole Foods (can't recall the brand) is good, actually.

What, you don't want their German pizza, with yellow mustard and some kind of wurst? There was an Italian chain that I enjoyed there, for its BBQ chicken pizza...but I really can't recall having any other Italian while I lived there. Tried looking for it via Google, but no luck... ETA: Figured it out -- I knew it was part of VIPS. Gino's is the name. Again, it is a chain, but it isn't Telepizza

Eh, it was more fun that way. With the right link, we ended up having to look at two wheels, spinning simultaneously.

Singaporean...

Wow, great web site. It doesn't provide a menu, phone number, or address. Brilliant!

One thing that Top Chef did, that TNIC could learn, is to provide more information via blogging. It was incredibly helpful, for example, to find out that Casey failed the prep challenge because she hadn't sharpened her knives, and not because she didn't know what she was doing. It would be great to get a better breakdown on the details that they can't squeeze into a 1-hour show.

Oh, I definitely laughed at that, too. And this was the second consecutive week that an old woman wanted Gordon. Perhaps he should have gone to the retirement home right next door to drum up more business.

How could you miss that awful lavender sweater??? I keep an eye out for them, too, and they were glaring this time. The diners for the initial dinner and the relaunch meal were identical (at least from the ones I noticed). The lady that had the oversalted mushroom risotto? She was back. The kid with the spiky skateboarder hair? He was back. I'm sure that there were more...

I really enjoyed the last show -- I'm glad that they really challenged them with these techniques that I'm so fascinated with. I was hoping Richard Blais would walk out Food-wise, though, a lot of things just didn't seem to work. Freeze-dried orange rind? That had to be awful.

Leblon cachaca's site has plenty of different recipes: http://www.liveloveleblon.com/caipirinhas-and-cocktails.aspx The caipirinha-of-the-month section has some good ones, too -- I've made the strawberry and basil and loved that.

Could we call minibar (Jose Andres, DC) successful? That is certainly small (6 seats?). WD50? The trick is to elevate is from novelty to really good food. I thought the salmon & smoked mayo did that, but other dishes were more about presentation than taste. The manhattan with a smoked cherry was also unique, different, and quite flavorful.

Tourists? A restaurant like this could really shine in a tourist trap area... You were right about having 80% "real" food -- even I couldn't see going except if I had guests in town (and those guests would have to just as adventurous/curious).

Fantastic! FN has dumbed down the show because they don't want her to be her -- apparently, being a Francophile doesn't appeal to the Rachel Ray devotees. "She hadn't seen a reality show before her Food Network experience because she doesn't own a television." Wow. That does explain the kids' names, though.

No, it isn't like that -- I have smoked salt, which I use on meats. This is a finer grain, like table salt, and undoubtedly is flavored artificially (I need the check the label). I received the shipment a few days ago, but didn't get to try it until now. The first smell instantly reminded me of Bacos (which, in retrospect, I shouldn't have been surprised by). It went great with asparagus and a bit of butter, and on my eggs this morning. It isn't too salty, either -- more bacony-flavor than salt.

There's a link on ajc.com now (has a "]" in it so won't post here). Element Gastro Lounge abruptly closes Element Gastro Lounge and Food Lab — the Midtown venue for chef Richard Blais' better-living-through-technology brand of cuisine — shuttered its doors today. Citing financial woes after a tough summer downturn in business, owners Anouk Esmail and Christopher Neal put all the furnishings and equipment into liquidation. Blais took over the kitchen this past spring, immediately capturing the attention of a small but impassioned group of local restaurant goers who applauded dishes such as kumamoto oysters with Meyer lemon "dippin' dots" and panna cotta with frozen Coca-Cola "rocks." "It was exciting and so playful," says Jennifer Zyman, who often praised Element on her food blog, blissfulglutton.com. "As much as I like new Southern cooking, it was nice to have somebody who was switching it up a bit." Blais has brought out his liquid nitrogen and calcium chloride at several local restaurants over the years, including One Midtown Kitchen, Bazzaar and his brief-lived showcase restaurant. The chef, on a "culinary sabbatical" for the next month in California, was unavailable for comment.

Well, I'm glad that my friend and I had a chance to go a month ago, but at 9 on a Saturday night there were just a few tables occupied. I think the problem is that it is a fun an interesting thing to do every once in a while, but not something you want to go back for constantly. As soon as I get some photos sent to me from my friend, I'll post them. I really enjoyed the sous vide salmon with smoked mayo -- alone, the "elements" were boring, but bringing the two together made you think that you were eating smoked salmon. The other thing that I really enjoyed was the make-your-own-ice-cream dessert, allowing you to make your own dipping dots to add to either sweet tea or cream cheese ice cream. I wonder how his Kennesaw airport project is going? Can his concepts work out there if they didn't in midtown (this time around)? Do you have a link for the story?

They finally returned to the restaurant, two months later -- sans Ramsey. 3 episodes, 3 idiot managers to blame. Some variety would be nice... Anyone notice that on Ramsey's first night at the restaurant, when they claimed it was dead, that it was packed? You could hear it in the background, and see it when he walked outside to look at the dumb signs.

I purchased the 3-pack today -- I'll let you know how it is!