markemorse

My favorite eating in Hungary has been lunchtime goulash and dinnertime schnitzel...oh wait, I wasn't even actually in Hungary, this was eastern Austria next to the Hungarian border. Nonetheless, fantastic goulash and fantastic schnitzel...would love to see photos of both if you can make it happen... mark

is the phrase on the all-yellow sign on the right "10 Years"? And if so, could you tell me what 10-year-old cheese this fellow's selling? Your answer could help settle a long-running dispute in another discussion on this forum. ← Sorry, but that sign is 10 eggs for 1 euro...wish it held the answer to your 10-year-old Gouda question...

I became "familiar" with some pom (an amazing Surinamese dish of baked chicken, taro, salt pork, habanero/Madame Jeanette, and citrus) for lunch today (well, yesterday by now)...fantastic as usual. we've got to get a good Suriname thread going around here...

OK, you pretty much have to explain what "Texas pizza" is to our American eGullet friends, since it's something you would never ever find in Texas...probably "fish pizza" as well... There's a ubiquitous brand of frozen pizza here called "Big Americans", I'm not kidding, no apostrophe and everything. I'm wondering if this "Texas pizza" is one of their offerings.... This disturbing Texas fetish is very recent and extends to (or possibly originated with) multinationals like Burger King, who now offer a "Texas-style" Whopper with BBQ sauce and jarred jalapeños... mem ETA: I can't say you'd "never" find it in Texas, but it's really got nothing to do with Texas...I guess that's my point if I've got one.

I'd wager that Farmboy'd be more receptive to a photo tonight, post-brownies.... mem

hmm, yes...it's as if they are sure they're the only people on the planet...a variant on this behavior is when people see someone they know in the grocery store...now imagine a European grocery store, very small aisles, not really made for standing around and talking...and then add 3 or 4 parked shoppers taking a minute or 10 to catch up with each other, then add a team of shelf stockers who are convinced that what they're doing is much more important than you actually being able to get at the groceries themselves.... (can you tell i just got back from the grocery store?) but i'm sure this is not just a Dutch thing.... and while it sounds like i'm complaining about people taking a "slow(er)" approach to life, i'm not really complaining, i'm just crabby. mark

Is there a technical term for the hangover resulting from a badly-engineered attempt to relieve the previous day's hangover (um, yes Mark, I believe the word you're lookng for is "binge" )... The Duckster is correct: there is ton of readily available reference material out there. For example I just learned that Alice Waters and Jeremiah Tower cooked with herb (in addition to the usual herbs) back in the early days of Chez Panisse... Back to brownies: about the hashy aftertaste problem: agreeing with Kouign Aman, nuts and seeds go a long way toward minimizing the lingering hashiness of this kind of baked good... Some specific suggestions: macadamia, walnuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts. For example, I bet a zucchini/walnut cake would probably work out pretty good ...chocolate/hazelnut might be the way to go with brownies tho... But i would also love to have seen spekkoek/kuih lapis if that's the "Indonesian Spice Cake" you were talking about! I wonder if you'd have been the first person to ever make space spekkoek? mark ETA: Actually, I believe "bender" was the word I really wanted.

Hi vserna, Cool that you get to come back for a bit! Too bad you missed a rather warm October, the temps seem on their way down as of this week... It's worth noting that the Hague is generally known for having better Indonesian food than Amsterdam.... But as for Amsterdam: all the restaurants you've listed are very tourist-oriented, which to me usually means upscale environment, attentive waitstaff, and food that's less spicy and more expensive. Tempo Doeloe, probably known as the "Best Indonesian" in town, is probably the best of your list...it is very pretty inside, has a pretty comprehensive menu and the food is good and spicy. But it really is an unfairly expensive restaurant (a bottle of water is 6 euro), and because of this I haven't eaten there since I first moved here...there are just too many other places with comparable food who don't gouge you. Tujuh Maret is a few doors down from Tempo Doeloe and though the menu is not really "standard Indonesian" (it's a regional variant, from Minahasa, north of Sulawesi), I'd rather eat there than Tempo Doeloe. Although I've heard that Tujuh Maret's rijstafel is not very interesting and to be avoided. I've always ordered a la carte. That said, I only hear good things about the food at Tempo Doeloe, so if you're no longer impecunious and money is not an issue then it could be an option. Anyway, my short list, very much limited to neighborhoods in which I normally hang out: Restaurants Djago, Scheldeplein 18. Blue Pepper, Nassaukade 366. Tujuh Maret, Utrechtsestraat 73. Tokos Terang Boelan Afhaalcentrum, 2e Lindendwarsstraat 3hs. Waroeng Asje, Jan Pieter Heijestraat 180. Toko Ikan Mas, 1e Constantijn Huygensstraat 61. Toko Ramee, Ferdinand Bolstraat 74. I haven't eaten at Djago since I first moved here, but it was the best Indonesian I'd ever had at the time. I've also eaten tons more since, though, and it's probably time to go back to Djago to see how it compares. Blue Pepper i still haven't been to but reviews seem to be more consistent these days and some friends said that they had a fantastic meal there.

Ah, thanks...I can almost hear the screeching beetles from here! You're doing great, Mei...I'll try to answer your "where to find pandan leaves" question in a bit, got a Halloween-related hangover to deal with at the moment ... mark

According to my team of Field Tasting Agents, it's not easy to find a spacecake with the appropriate mix of, well..."space ingredient" and, um..."not tasting like ass". However, it can be done. Homegrown Fantasy (Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 87a) has a walnut cake that you might willingly eat regardless of its astral properties: moist, chock full o' non-stale walnuts, a little vanilla sugar on top, and just barely reminiscent of doobage. Taste-wise. According to my field agents. mem

You mean you're not going to make homemade spacecake? That would instantly propel this foodblog into the annals of eGullet legend! mem

I think you were right in avoiding Wau...I ate there twice when I first moved to Amsterdam a few years ago, and while the first time was pretty good, the next time was more expensive and much less interesting. BUT: the dining experience there is definitely one of my top 10 most memorable, because the ambience is so, um...exotic? The lights are extremely dim, it's actually quite beautiful inside, what you can see of it, but instead of music they play nighttime insect sounds (um...vs. "daytime insect sounds"? right.), very loud. I should mention that I actually have many CDs full of music that resembles insect sounds, so this in itself is not a problem. But the darkness combined with the unexpected volume and speaker placement led my dining companions and I to just kind of sit there in speechless amazement while the beetles, crickets, cicadas, and who knows what else crescendoed around us. We could barely hear each other talk (all of this is not really a complaint, either, it was just...odd. I can't imagine people without insect music in their CD collections enjoying themselves there...and how often do you get to say that about a restaurant?). My point is: much better (and a bit cheaper) than Wau is Nyonya Malaysia Express on Kloveniersburgwal just south of Nieuwmarkt. You'll have to bring your own deafening cicadas though. mem

Hi Mei, Always nice to see another eGulleter in Holland! Though it sounds like eating out is not really your thing, I'm interested to know if there are any Malaysian restaurants in Weesp that you're aware of (I'm assuming no, because here in Amsterdam there are only two that I know of)....I'd love to know what a Malaysian person thought of the Dutch-Indonesian-Malaysian-Surinamese-Indian-Chinese hybrid food that is such a staple of restaurant/takeout eating here. mark ETA: You could almost hear Klary and I simultaneously pouncing on this blog!

I would try the big Natuurwinkel on Elandsgracht first...beyond that I don't think i have any great ideas...I'm not much of a baker, though.... mark

Hey IlCuoco, it's definitely worth a stop and a peek. They do have nice cheeses and cured meats, but in terms of packaged items, they don't really have too much that you can't find elsewhere on Haarlemmerstraat (mostly Italian and Spanish pastas, preserved items, and tuna). One thing they do have that I stop there for is salmon cakes from Frank's Smoke House. Very nice for a quick and easy appetizer. And they carry Dolfin chocolate bars from Belgium which come in flavors like curry, anise, and pink peppercorn...an interesting change of pace for dessert, not as good as Puccini's though, IMHO. mark

Thanks Klary...actually cassoulet is on FLO's website menu, underneath Les Specialites. I'm pretty sure that it's exactly the same menu that's hanging in the window. It's pretty ambitious at those prices, I hope it works out... And Klary what were your two JvDs that didn't workout? mark

Well, on my quest for a Halloween costume today I coincidentally answered my own question: Flo (near Rembrandtplein) has cassoulet on the menu. I was really just looking for a cash machine when i spotted Flo...it looks great, has anyone eaten there? It's exactly what I'm in the mood for...I hope it's good. And...Fred and Yolanda do indeed have duck confit. mark

The cassoulet cook-off has reminded me that I have never eaten cassoulet and would like to begin doing so immediately. Has anyone ever eaten one in Amsterdam? Also, does anyone have any idea where i could maybe buy some duck confit in Amsterdam? I am imagining somewhere like Fred & Yolanda on the Utrechtsestraat, but really have no idea.... thanks! mark

La Tienda looks better than ever, new website and everything. I noticed they've got the Ortiz stuff prominently displayed...if anyone is placing an order with La Tienda you might consider adding some Ortiz Bonito del Norte or ventresca to your order if you've never tried it before...it's a completely revelatory canned tuna experience! It's pricey (actually quite a bit pricier than here in Holland), but if you're a tuna lover you owe it to yourself... mark

I'd chalk it up to bad timing/kismet/whatever in Rome and not worry about it in Florence and Bologna...u be fine. mem

As a long-time (almost 20 years) Atlantan (now elsewhere), I'm wondering if there's any indication of progress in solving Atlanta's "downtown dilemma"...IOW, the impossibility of getting around it without a car, and how this frustrates any easy chance of achieving critical mass in terms of building an independent, vibrant, and vital urban center. Maybe this is off-topic, since I think the answer probably has something to do with MARTA and crime...but I think it's the fundamental obstacle to Atlanta's obtaining a "real downtown" (you know what I mean) and the culinary options that seem to go along with that. Anyway, if anyone has any links or pointers to recent analyses of the situation, I'd be interested. thanks, mark ETA: Oops, somehow I missed the 2nd page of this topic. There is obviously progress afoot...but I'll leave my original post intact JIC anyone else wants to chime in.

Bummer: due to "real world" commitments, I completely missed the conversation with Jose...nonetheless--fantastic that that kind of thing can happen here, and thanks to Jose for participating.... The revelation that some people weren't using pimenton in their preparations of these recipes was interesting (though I completely understand the difficulties of sourcing "exotic" ingredients), b/c to me it's one of the fundamental taste elements of the cookbook in general. I mean, these days I think my copy of the book even smells like pimenton (due to page-turning while cooking)! The book also brought into focus another ingredient that I'd never really "gotten" til now: bay leaves. Maybe i'd never had fresh enough bay leaves before, but they never really seemed to have any discernable effect when I used them. The ones I've used to cook out of this book with, however, are a revelation, especially in the tomato-based recipes like sofrito. Amazing! So, I'm curious....is anyone else experiencing any ingredient epiphanies here (other than potato chips )? mark

BTW, I had lunch at New King the other day (a great time to go), and tried the oysters for the first time. Klary's photo doesn't really give you a sense of the scale of these oysters....they're each about the size of (searching for a universal reference point here...), um...my wireless mouse? They're big is what I'm saying. And great, the highlight of my lunch. I also had some ha kauw and Szechwan chicken, both nice. Should mention that the Szechwan chicken is served "dry" (as in sauceless), so you've got to work out your own lubrication if that's important. I turned to the chili oil and sriracha-like sauce on the table to moisten my kip and by golly it sure did work out nicely. Still my favorite Chinese in town. mark

Wow cakewench....see, this is the kind of thing I miss out on b/c I don't have kids--I went way beyond not recognizing Nemo in the picture, I had to go Google it to find out what Nemo was.... At least I think it's b/c I don't have kids. Anyway, I can assure you that they don't have Nemo sushi. Actually I've never tried their sushi, and I'm not sure I would, either...Nemo or no. I really try to leave sushi to the Japanese...which leads us to the question: where might one find interesting sushi in Amsterdam? I think I've only had it at three places: Shinjuku (Kloveniersburgwal), A-Fusion (Zeedijk), and the now-missing Stereo Sushi (which was my favorite of the three). I know of nowhere in my current 'hood (Stadsliedenbuurt/Haarlemmerstraat). Anyone? mem

Wowee, fantastic photos in general, but especially the Siena shots...I lived there for awhile several years back and am regularly haunted by ricciarelli dreams.... And, we were actually fortunate enough to live on Il Campo for a few months when we were there...Il Carroccio was a weekly visit for me, more if my GF was out of town. So, thanks again for the "memories".... mark