MattJohnson

And residual sales from getting those little things to finish off the meal. I agree, sounds great.

Maybe I'll give this a go this weekend! ← I must caution you to be very careful!!! The acid fumes are extremely dangerous!! Don't even try it unless you have complete ability to evacuate the fumes. Do you have means to protect against acid splashing? Do you have experience in mixing and diluting acids? The base is equally as dangerous as the acids. And why are you going to try it, anyway? ← I meant it as sarcasm. there wasn't a sarcastic enough emoticon i guess. Theres no way I'd ever try that! I'd rather have pitted stainless steel than risk all the harm I could do to myself with that process.

ah, thats too bad. I really only went there for breakfast a couple times, and it was ok for that. Good to know. I'll steer clear next time I'm back in Madison. I liked the Great Dane too. Like the scotch ale. Yum.

no problem at all. If you find any other stores, let me know. I'm always on the lookout for new places to try. If you get over there, try out Jerry's Sandwiches (http://www.jerryssandwiches.com/). I've only eaten there once, but it was very tasty.

My brother brought some great rum back from Costa Rica. It was so smooth and flavorful, we drank it on the rocks. I can't for the life of me remember what it was called though...

man, they'd make a great Halloween decoration for a party. A big jar with a couple of those in some water, sealed up. Honestly, I've never had them. Its on my list of things to try. Although I'd like to try them cooked by someone who knows what they're doing first, just so I know how to expect them to taste when done right. Do they end up being expensive? I just got some chicken livers for a pate last weekend and they were really cheap for something that tasted so good when done right.

Once in my fast food working days, I was using one of those grease vacuums to empty the deep fryer. While holding the nozzle in the fat, i looked away and tried to reach for a rag or something. The metal nozzle slipped out of my fingers and slid down between my index and middle finger, burning all the way down the insides of both fingers. Holy crap did that hurt. It was one big blister. Note to self: pay attention to hot fryer fat and anything that goes in or out of it.

Oh, I see. I thought you were like me and when starting something new look for ways to spend lots of money. I understand your question better. I think alwang's lineup is just about right.

Maybe I'll give this a go this weekend!

Since you're just getting into cooking, I'd not worry about it too much. If you're a college student, I'd not invest huge amounts of money in fancy copper cookware. You're moving alot, have roomates, living in not the most secure apartments, etc. Things get ruined/lost/stolen in college. I'd get a few decent stainless pots and pans and start learning. Shop at some restaurant supply stores like bigtray.com. A decent sized fry pan, a 3 qt sauce pan, a smaller sauce pan and a dutch oven is what I started with. You can make quite a bit with just those. And you'll probably discover most will last a long time. Restaurants use these and they make the food we ooo and ahh over. After you start figuring out how you cook, you'll be able to start picking up fancier pots/pans if you need them. I'd not worry about it so much. I think once you get into the realm of decent cookware (not super expensive stuff) there are some diminishing returns. Save some money on cookware (spend 300 rather than 700) and spend some of that money on ingredients and cookbooks!

Its been a while, but I had pretty good luck with Cafe Continental. I think it was on King St.

All the places I was thinking of have been listed above. Good thread though. I'd forgotten about Pizza Capri. Its not a bad place at all.

I've been a big coffee fan for years, but lately, I've been drinking more tea. Where do you get your tea? Do you have an importer you like? An online store you frequent. I've been buying tea from Rishi at stores in the Milwaukee area (they are located in the area too) and have been very happy. One of my favorites so far is the Earl Green. Very tasty. .... sorry if there is a thread like this already, I did a quick search but didn't see anything....

Please post pictures! It sounds like its going to be a great adventure. Congrats on your first home!

I live in Milwaukee, but get down to Chicago quite often. I've been going here for some cooking supplies and haven't been dissapointed with their selection or prices. I know they have some of those racks you're talking about, but I'm not sure the size you're looking for. http://www.daplus.us/ShowPhoto.aspx?abi=12...&Partner=400240 Even if you don't find exactly what you're looking for, I'm sure you'll find something else. I got a really nice chinois strainer for 25 bucks. They also stock lots of Cambro plastic containers. Hope that helps.

haha. That would indeed be something new!

It went really well. We had a bunch of 1er cru. Puligny Montrachet and Chassagne Montrachet. As my appetizer, I brought my rendition of the cornets filled with creme fraiche and salmon tartar. I lucked out and my fish market has some nice salmon, so I felt comfortable doing tartar. If that didn't work, I was going to substitute some gravlax. I also through together chicken liver pate from the joy of cooking cookbook. It turned out pretty well, although I didn't get it quite as smooth as I would have liked. Thanks for all your help.

I'm going to do a dry run with some of your apps. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks for all the suggestions.

I wish I could find some place with equally detailed instructions on trimming the cuts... I've always wanted to learn to break down my own meats.

University of Chicago? Grad Student? Its not that hard to get into chicago proper without a car, but it isn't as easy as just walking down the street. The bus is easy (but it might take you an hour to get to the north side), and the metra works, but isn't as easy (at least I don't think so). I can't remember any of the names of the places we eat at, but I'm heading there tonight and will try to refresh my memory. There are a couple tasty bakeries. Some affordable thai joints. A BBQ place I've never tried. And theres a new hooka place that had excellent coffee (not sure if this was a fluke as I only went there once). One good thing is that many people living there have cars, so you'll probably make a friend that will be happy to leave hyde park with you. I like the area, don't get me wrong, but its nothing like the north side food/nightlife-wise, and not having an easy El stop makes it slightly tough to get around.

that sounds very reasonable.

I did split pea from Joy of Cooking with the ham bone this year. Simple and tasty. split peas + ham bone + water simmered for 1 hour add the carrot, celery, onion, garlic, and bouquet garni for another hour or so. salt, pepper for the win!

Not sure if my knife skills or seafood supply is up to that, however it sounds good. This is a really good idea. Actually a couple buddies and I are getting together to do some kitchen experimentation and one of the recipes we're trying is the cornet from the french laundry cookbook. Its filled with salmon tartar and creme fraiche with shallots and some other stuff. But I like the idea of smoked salmon... Have to see what kind of salmon I can get. Maybe I'll use the leftovers for the tasting on Sunday. The chicken livers are a good idea. I was thinking pate' as well. Doing a faux escargot with mushrooms is also a really fun idea too. All good ideas. If there are any others, please feel free...

A friend is having a white burgundy tasting and asked that I bring an app for people to nosh on. There will be 7-8 people and it will be pretty casual. An easy idea is a cheese plate - what kind of cheeses? Any other suggestions?

as a consumer, I like it when I can put my tasting fee towards a bottle or two. Its too bad the big bus loads of freeloaders ruin it for the rest of us.