mattohara

If I were you I'd solve this even more simply by carrying an atomizer with vermouth in it and asking for Stoli up. I personally like 3:1. I know, how odd, right?

In my experience, both working in and eating at, Starr joints instruct their bartenders to not add any vermouth when someone asks for a martini excepting when they ask explicitly. Maybe the bartender last night was more classically trained. You might be better served by asking for chilled vodka up or just vodka on the rocks.

Off-topic but fries in cones can be killer! next time you're in NYC: and it's byob.

It was a lot of fun and very informative. M. Dupont sat down with us and told us all about the history of the distillery, the process for distilling, and about the 3 expressions we were sampling. The sidecar was the first I've ever had that I've really enjoyed. You can find Dupont's cider (which is similar to, but not the same as, the cider he distills into Calvados) at the newish store Food & Friends on 20th and Spruce for $18. The Foodery probably has it too but seeing as how everything else is less expensive at F&F the same is probably true about this cider.

somebody get him a picture-book deal already

Here are some threads that might help: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=103943&hl= http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=102666&hl= http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=108127&hl= http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=100056&hl= http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=100772&hl=

I'll be at Yard's Brewery soon after 11AM on Friday the 13th for the Smoke 'em if you've got 'em event. 15$ gets you food and your first beer. Smoked beers and smoked foods and live music. Yard's will be premiering their own smoked beer at the event, according the the Yard's people that were at Tria last week. I say just after 11 because *at* 11 I will be at Homesweet Homebrew getting the discount for smoked beer kits that's specific to that day. I'm also going to the Extreme Homebrewing competition on the 9th at 7PM at Jose Pistola's. It's $50 this year. I think last year it was free. It's a good chance to taste some great stuff from some of the more experienced homebrewers in the area. I may also go to the It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Trivia night. I have some friends that will be competing. I'll likely head to one or two more events if I can find rare/odd beermaking knowledge.

Karen and I went for our 3rd anniversary (we also went for our 2nd). When she made the reservations she asked for a blue cheese to be included somewhere in the meal. We were pleasantly surprised when we had our own private tasting menu. The only picture I have of the cassoulet is of it half-eaten and it's not very appetizing. Everything was fantastic. I may write it up a bit later.

I wouldn't go anywhere near a restaurant involved in Restaurant Week during Restaurant Week. I've worked a few of them. Of course, I also try my best to never be at a restaurant on a Friday or Saturday. And I never sit down between 7 and 8. I just like better service and dislike crowds and crowded restaurants. I haven't had anything else to eat at XIX besides oysters and I've been fortunate enough to always have good experiences. It's too bad that yours was not. Perhaps the rest of the experience affected how you felt about the food. I've had that happen to me before.

Still, nobody's been? Below is an email they sent out to their list. We should really get a big group together to get the private room and the 65$/person menu. Check out the link to the private dining options at the bottom.

I'll note again that I'm far from an authority on Thai food, but we hit Cafe de Laos on 11th and Washington a few nights back and I thought everything was excellent. Has this place been written off by everybody? The atmosphere is also really nice. The service could step up a notch and give enough glasses for wine, replace your flatware with each course, etc. I don't mind that stuff too much though. The real complaint is with the menu, which is a mess.

three pieces served on three small pieces of brioche, with pink sea salt and parsley was my favorite. he usually reserved the in-bone version for Pif, but he tried it at Ansill for a short while. i think now he's serving 3 pieces on a single larger piece of toast? pretty much the same as the first prep. i'm pretty sure that he cooks the marrow inside the bone. then he chills it till it's cold so it can pop out of the bone. but maybe that's changed since i worked there.

it's been open for months. admittedly i work right across the street, but i've been there probably 20 times. in fact i was the first customer on the first day and got 5$ off my 15$ order. i never got a chance to go to the old Minar but i can report that i've had absolutely nothing less than great here. the vindaloo is very spicy, the jalfrazi mildly spicy, the keema naan is delicious. there are two things i don't like and they aren't food-related. i don't like the 15$ credit card minimum and i don't like the method of service. when it's crowded right around lunchtime you walk all the way to the back so that you can stand in a group of people all milling about waiting for their food. you order from one person and then walk over to the cashier, who you have to tell your order to again. then she gets your drink order and starts to talk to the first order-taker while they try to figure out who was getting what where when. sorry for the rant. i wish the cashier would just take the order and give you a number so everybody could sit down.

off-topic, but Byblos hummus, which can be bought at Sue's Produce right next door, is tops in my book.

I forgot to write about our New Year's Eve experience there. We did the full menu and everything was amazing. The foie mousse and the cassoulet were standouts. Gene's wife said that they are trying to have weekly menu changes. I suggested a mailing list like Matyson and she said she'd work on it.

I would eat there daily. I would have chicken liver mousse and then curry with sambals.

I don't understand why this place isn't packed. I've been twice now and have had some amazing dishes. Last (a Thursday) night Karen and I stopped in after going to a Tria beer event. There were about 5 tables. We sat at the bar and had Plates (the largest size of dish). I had short ribs with creamy polenta (best polenta I've ever had), little teeny mushrooms, and caramelized pearl onions. The texture of the shortribs ran the gamut from crispy and smoky to lusciously soft and tender. Perfect portion, killer dish. Some bitter greens were also on the plate. Karen got smoked duck that came with raisins and....something else. It was very good as well. Karen's former co-worker from Caribou waits tables there now and he recommended the (I think smoked?) butternut squash soup. This soup is a must-have. It's incredible and actually made for a perfect dessert. It has diced apple and sage leaves in the soup. The side is schmeared with a cinnamon marshmallow. The bowl was completely Hoovered. I'm going to be going back here a bunch. I totally understand what people are saying about price, but I think the pinch is with the alcohol. The food prices are really right on par with other places in town if not below what they are at places like Amada. We ventured upstairs and there is a really cool little lounge area where I plan on chilling with a bottle of wine some weekend afternoon. There's also a whole 'nother bar up there that they open up on the weekends. But this place should be seriously packed every night.

I went to the Tria event last night. There were three beers being served in smaller pours for 2.50 and pints were also available. The Gruit ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gruit ) was my favorite. It tasted yeasty but somehow more...big? than just yeast? Hard to describe but definitely my favorite. There was also a Scandinavian style that I can't remember the name of and a rauchbier. I always love the rauchbier's smell and wild flavor. All three beers were killer. Tom Baker was popping by tables to chat. A very nice, inexpensive introduction to the man and his beers. Apparently the 7 and 8 lines run on either side of the restaurant/brewpub so we'll be heading up there soon. If the food's half as good as the beer we'll be happy. edit: The rauchbier had smoked malt *and* smoked yeast, if I remember correctly.

If you go south of South Street and east of Broad go to: Cochon (french byob) Southwark (get a manhattan) Chick's (get any cocktail and some charcuterie) Taqueria de Pueblitos (tacos al pastor) Supper I live near James and have been a number of times. It's always been bland and boring except for a sunchoke soup they had once. I don't recommend it.

So the question is 'what restaurants have you been to that are absolutely horrible,' right? The only one I can think of is that Thai restaurant on 2nd that seemed to be going down in flames around us.

i know nobody's going to believe me, but the Snow Palace in York, PA is the same thing. shaved ice, hundreds of hand-mixed flavors, marshmallow/peanut topping. worth the trip if you're ever in York!

I resolve to: Go to Cajun Kate's more, Get to Bell's Market more, Find ways out to West Philly more, Finally get out to Fuji, Experiment with making my own Char Siu Bao and similar treats, Perfect a couple of beer recipes. Anybody else?

everybody who has posted in this thread should watch this video: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dan_bar...as_parable.html there's another cool one about american chinese food.

cool! glad it worked out well! and i'm also psyched about Snockey's. it's just a few blocks away from me as well so give a call some time Katie!

Not sure about "too good to be true": Oceanaire has very good oysters, at a very high price point. I've never eaten them at their bar, but I've ordered them as an app. Really wonderful. ← i don't get what would be "too good to be true" either. what? that they have oysters? that they have a huge selection? that they're fresh? i'm pretty sure those things are all true. and the price point is *not* too good to be true because...it's kinda pricey. but then when you put XIX into the picture i don't think you'll find it that far off the mark.