Jinmyo

Egad. So he's no longer your father, of course.

I can certainly see soft rolls and soft breads being heated. What could it matter? Sure, they taste better because, although they're soft, at least they're not cold. Which is at least something. But heating a baguette, a levain, or a petit pain to accord with a patron's delusions about "fresh out of the oven" is appropriate for a Pillsbury's advert (which is the kind of source such delusions have) and not for a restaurant that might take some justified pride in their product. A patron might want to put ketchup on their quail, stick the whole bird in their mouth with the legs protruding, and let the ketchup drip off their chins while they go from table to table and leer, moving the legs back and forth with their jaw. I don't think that this should be accommodated. Nor should a demand for warm bread when that bread should not be warmed. Unless it's just soft rolls or such, of course. Because they're better that way.

Anna, I've only seen creton as a loose pork pate without much spicing. Onion. Occasionally cloves and/or cinammon. Not a very good example of the genre.

I don't have a favourite dish but I do have a favourite method: roasting.

Sounds good. I could go for the hotpot right now.

Adrian, sounds nice. Looks like you've got a lovely bunch of tomatoes. What greens with Salad of Black Pudding, Smoked Bacon, and a Poached Egg? They'd have to be a bit hardy, I think.

Gee, g, no. I prefer "fine dining" to "haute cuisine". Both are precious though and I can't seriously think of an alternative. So "fine dining" doesn't particularly bother me.

Ladybug, your reaction is not only understandable but the only one a sane person would have. Nevertheless, I implore you to give it several more goes before swearing off the stuff. It's rank odour dissipates quite quickly and enfuses such wonderful flavours...I'd hate for you to miss out on these. Please?

These sound like pleurotus eryngii (Also known as King Oyster, Eryngii, King Trumpet, Pleorote du Panicaut, Argonane, Bouligoule, Champignon de Garrigue, Cardoncello, Cardarello). They're actually a kind of oyster mushroom which is why the flavour is so mild. See here.

Just so. The aisle of raining despair more so. And the cheese shelves.

The few times I've been to Costco reminded me a bit too much of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner.

Butter. With cream. Oh, and some mashed Yukon Gold potatoes. Roasted pork loin (marinated in shoyu, ginger, scallions, red wine vinegar; dried, rubbed with chipotle paste and cumin seeds; seared; basted with orange juice) sliced in one inch thick pieces then several times on the bias served atop the butter (and cream and potatoes) with Sage and parsley sauce (made with sweated brunoise of mire poix in a chicken stock, pureed and strained, chopped herbs added at the end). Roasted cremini mushrooms and sauteed Swiss card greens (the stems were sliced into julienne pieces and are pickling for another occassion) with sauteed lemon brunoise. Roasted red pepper bisque with a small piece of braised pork belly.

Rich, do please post the menu and your comments.

FoodMan, excellent. Monkfish with rosemary is brilliant.

Gah.

melkor is correct. Putting an adequate layer of sauce in the bottom is essential. But par-boiling the noodles is fine too.

ferdlisky, welcome. Steve, who wouldn't want to lose a few million on your thing in order to build cred? A winner for sure.

?

Rib-eye steaks, black and blue rare, sliced thinly. Horseradish with minced jalapeno, Dijon sauces. Frites with fresh mayonaisse. Thumb-sized plum tomatoes, split, blackend, tossed with arugala and radicchio, EVOO vinaigrette, pecorino. Crostini with onion soup.

General, my sincerest thanks.

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Not any more. But don't mind me. In Toronto I'd probably just go to Susur's or Canoe or a few others. In Vancouver, West (or whatever they're calling Chef Hawksworth's place now). And so on. I'm a tough old hag.

What I usually do with squash that is less repellant to me than the squash and shrimp soups and such is to blacken it. Thin slices, blanched slightly, then seared until crusty and black, served with shoyu and wasabi. Still don't like it much though.

Nick, I wouldn't do it either. But some others have.

Anna, I don't much care for lentils or squash either (though I cook them frequently). Trotter's book is great, isn't it?