[Unexpected Food Gifts]

If you wind up liking the olive oil, its available in the U.S.  Although you can find it on Amazon (approx. $35), "yummy bazaar" (which I've never used) has it for around $18: https://yummybazaar.com/products/nyons-cold-pressed-extra-virgin-olive-oil-a-o-c-by-nyonsolive-8-45-oz.  When we rented an apt. in Vaison la Romaine several years ago, we drove up to Nyons a couple of times for their town market.  Their local olives and olive oils were pretty damn good.  Enjoy!

[We Eat at The Worst Michelin Starred Restaurant, Ever]

The problem with being on more than one food board is resisting the temptation to carry on duplicate discussions/arguments/agreements/disagreements.  Suffice it to say that I found the piece entertaining and laugh out loud funny.  Enough so that I've now subscribed to her blog and am reading her other stuff.

[Destinations for Culinary School Graduates]

On 11/26/2021 at 4:47 AM, Umar Abraham said:

Just finished Culinary School and now I am nervous because now I have to work in a real kitchen which I have never done before. So I am nervous and excited. Can't wait to see what the future has for me.

So, there we were in Lyon, eating at the Bocuse restaurant/training center in the Hotel Le Royal (I love how pretentious that sounds) several years ago.  Our trainee server was a very nervous (but personable) woman in her 20s, who was trying to get everything just right but finding everything way too stressful.  Wrong silverware, some almost dropped food.  We were supportive... really.   Next thing we know, our soup is being delivered by the Manager/Trainer.  When we inquired as to where she was, he hesitated but then revealed that she had quit on the spot, saying that Front of House wasn't for her.  Maybe I'm imagining it, but I think that this came with a look from him that could've been translated as "what the hell did you do to her"?!  I prefer to think of our role as one of "career counseling".  😎

You'll be fine.  Happy holidays! 

[Food Funnies]

Are we not noticing that this was The Onion reporting?

[Remembering Anthony Bourdain]

Yeah, Bourdain did his share of upscale but was at his best, in my opinion, at places like the ones that Williams took him to in Crown Heights, Brooklyn (Caribbean).  There's an episode of Bourdain at Ali's Kebab Cafe in Astoria (Egyptian), an old Chowhound (& subsequent food boards) hangout,  and one where he's at the Red Hook Ballfields (Latin American), where I first met him, that are great.  The Obama one in China Vietnam aint half bad either.

[Sicily-Catania and Palermo]

On 7/19/2021 at 5:12 PM, IEATRIO said:

....Would appreciate any good suggestions for traditional local Sicilian specialties. Trying to avoid touristy and Michelin (not interested in modern or international styles) type places. 

Well, in addition to the requirement that you eat everyone’s “special” rice ball, the chickpea fritters and the spleen sandwiches made fresh at the street market stands in Palermo are not to be missed (yes, spleen).  Also, the sardine dishes.  And the marzipan pastries.

[Sicily-Catania and Palermo]

While we're at it, there are several nice small Mt. Etna wineries that are worth a visit, but you might need someone to make arrangements.  We especially liked Romeo Del Castello, a mother/daughter operation on the lower slopes of Mt. Etna.  

As has been said, Palermo is the better food town, with several street markets selling items that can/should be eaten on the spot.  Growing up in Brooklyn, NY I was familiar with the chick pea fritters, the spleen sandwiches and the various sardines, cheeses and other street food.  But this was freshly done right in front of the stores selling the meats and cheese and the taste was way better.

[Sicily-Catania and Palermo]

Could it be: http://anticamarina.it/en/home/

 

Its in Catania's fish market, is informal and was (is?) very good when we ate there 3 years ago.  At lunch, the fish market is open and its a little loud/bustling.  At dinner, the market takes on a nice glow.

[Remembering Anthony Bourdain]

15 hours ago, gfweb said:

The director sort of shoves the ethical lapse to the side when asked. Ain't no thing says he.

Not so sure, myself

Its just one more line that we've crossed over, making it harder and harder to tell reality from, well, fakery.  Although the couple of AI clips in this "documentary" seems to be faithful to what Bourdain said in writing, the Director admits that we don't know how many other AI's are in there and, therefore, how accurately they reflect AB's voice.  And, straying from this particular piece, among the things that one can now do (with ease) to misrepresent reality are:

-call from Paris and claim to be home in NYC (by cell, zoom, what's app...)

-answer a door bell from afar and pretend to be home

-photoshop into pictures when not present 

-insert into videos when not there

-create AI visual "settings" (like the moon) and insert people, buildings, etc

-put a "voice" somewhere that the person didn't speak

-watch "reality" TV and believe its not as scripted as NCIS

 

And we wonder why so many folks cant discern what's real anymore and follow Ms. "Jewish Space Lasers" down the rabbit hole?

[No! No! No! Stop it! The bad ideas topic!]

Do we move this to the "APB - Missing Member" thread now or wait until you've fully digested?

[Heirloom Beans by Rancho Gordo (Steve_Sando)]

1 hour ago, Alex said:

 

Just curious, thanks; no big thing. I was in Brooklyn in May and I'll be in Queens (my home town) in December, but buying RG isn't on my agenda.

I knew that... just prodding a little.   If you're interested, when you're in NYC, let me know & we'll do drinks or dinner.  Did you go anywhere worth mentioning in Brooklyn when you were here?

[No! No! No! Stop it! The bad ideas topic!]

C’mon.... I mean, what could possibly go wrong? 🤢

[Heirloom Beans by Rancho Gordo (Steve_Sando)]

4 hours ago, Alex said:

 

Cool. Which ones do they carry?

 

You comin’ to Brooklyn?  I’ll check.

As an aside, is everyone aware that there isn’t a bean emoji?  Do I have to join a “bean emoji club”?

[Heirloom Beans by Rancho Gordo (Steve_Sando)]

An entire row (6 or so varieties) at my local, less-than-gourmet, Key Food.  

[Children Who are Fussy/Picky Eaters]

4 hours ago, weinoo said:

Pretty much the same here.

 

However, I don't recall my dislike of anything that was served, since most everything that we were served was fairly benign.

Sorry we didnt know each other when we were kids.  I could've invited you over for dinner.  The various canned vegetables, "cooked" to a boil, were real treats.  Especially the canned asparagus.  My mother only had salt in the house: not even black pepper or garlic made the cut.  

[TikTok - Become a Food Star in 60 Seconds]

As an admittedly older cranky guy, I'm having trouble deciding whether he's too young to know enough to do this or old enough to know better and shouldn't have done it.

[Feeding People with Special Dietary Needs and Challenging Personalities]

Seems like a good place to mention the difference between andouillette & andouille.  

[Feeding People with Special Dietary Needs and Challenging Personalities]

Great story.  As for “I’m a New York Jew. This is how we are.”,  did you think that she would be self aware enough to know that she only represented one tribe of my people & not all of us?  Overall, her tribe is large but generally harmless & she was only following its "make first impressions a trial by fire occasion" mandate & testing your tolerance.  As we say, if you get the worst over with upfront, it can only get better from there.  Consider it a bonding ritual.  Two things you should note: firstly, bacon is exempt from Kosher laws when traveling more than 100 miles from home to a place that makes good bacon.  Sometimes we add shrimp and cheeseburgers to that exemption.  Secondly, my aunt said she really liked you.

[Stranger in a Strange Land]

I too am sorry for your loss.  I had never seen this thread & just read it, start to present.  Thank for for sharing.

[Eleven Madison Park goes vegan]

11 minutes ago, dcarch said:

You can save even more $$$$. Have lunch at Per Se, then dinner at Masa. They are in the same building. No need to pay for subway.

 

Dont bet on it.  I heard that both Uber and Lyft were bidding for the escalators.

[Epicurious to Stop Publishing Beef Recipes]

see, its working.... people are talking about epicurious.  

[Shanghai Restaurant Sexism]

I always hated going to restaurants with my ex-in-laws in the 70’s when only my father in law got menus with prices.  It really hindered my ability to order all the most expensive items. 😇

[Xi'an Famous Foods]

So, I checked their website and Jason says that they opened the Golden Mall stall a little over 15 years ago.  I know that Bourdain followed shortly thereafter and that I went (with Dave Cook, pre-"Eating in Translation" blog) a month or two after Jason’s father hung up Bourdain's picture (I think that I mis-posted above that it was a review - my memory now tells me that it was AB's picture).  That makes it a long time ago.  

[Xi'an Famous Foods]

Yes.  That was the 1st place the son opened outside the 2 Flushing mall spots.  I went to the opening.  Well after Bourdain though.

[Xi'an Famous Foods]

I remember going downstairs at Golden Mall to the 1st place, listening to his father try to communicate how proud he was of Bourdain’s visit, yelling “Bourdain, Bourdain” to any non-Asian passing by & pointing to Bourdain’s review, hanging on the stall wall. The notoriety allowed them to afford another stall at a now defunct mall 10 or so blocks away, staffed by his wife.  Then his son joined the business with marketing skills & away they went.

 

As an aside, the original “Dumpling Lady” stall was right around the corner at another stall in Golden Mall, offering a large variety of fillings.  She also got famous, and a large restaurant & well reviewed cookbook resulted (Helen You: Dumpling Galaxy).  That mall was great.  Dirty but great.