tommy

this seems like a dichotomy of sorts, no? no, they are not the "most fascinating" dish in the world. but they are universally loved, for the most part. raw tuna isn't fascinating either, but no one needs to defend it. why am i finding myself defending mashed spuds? i need a new t-shirt and a nap.

no suvir. no one there would walk away considering themselves "lucky". back to potatoes.

yeah yeah, it'll be like a pot-luck thing or something.

a steak sauce used mostly in england. similar to A1.

a bad oyster. don't worry about it.

WHy do you not volunteer to demonstrate for me what FG suggests one does with Mashed Potatoes. Maybe you can race while doing the Demo. as anyone who knows me will tell you, i have no problem with walking around nekid. i will certainly consider fat guy's idea, at his home, if he'll have me.

americans have been enjoying tamarind for a very long time, without even knowing it. it's in A1 sauce. and HP i'd imagine.

butter. salt. cream. i mean, what's there not to like? roasted garlic? c'mon! chives? cilantro? basil? chopmeat? au jus? rosemary? all at once for that matter. thai curry paste? curry powder? it's a clean slate. have your way with it, and get back to me. edit: somehow my post seems less effective with the image of fat guy's suggestion racing through my head.

yeah yeah. east like the other southern states, but closer to the atlantic, or whatever ocean is thataway.

ok, now i'm back to not liking you very much again.

i now have respect you.

c'mon jaymes!! not even a little pinkie finger in the sauce every now and again.?!~?

as suvir suggests, mashed potatoes have been just sitting there waiting for something really incredible to happen to them (although in their most simple form, they are near perfect). although not on topic, i would love to persue discussion on this.

no, the shrimp is a *lot* like ceviche, flavor-wise. had it sat there for another 10 minutes, it would have been pretty much exactly like what people expect when they say "ceviche". i've had ceviche where the color of the shrimp still indicates that it's mostly raw. although, as you say, it seemed that this was made to order and the shrimps were tossed in right then. that, actually, makes me wonder if it's a very safe thing. but i suppose it is. the papaya salad was nowhere near as spicy as the shrimp. you're simply wrong on that point. clearly. the white wine was brilliant as well, with a bit of bubble to it. perfect for this food in my uninformed opinion.

i gotta figure that restaurants aren't making mashed potatoes to order. after i realized this, i figured it's just a matter of extra milk/cream at cooking time. i often let them cool, and reheat, with a little extra milk or cream before serving. it seems too simple, but sometimes the most clever things are. i also eat them the day after, without much deterioration in quality (although i wouldn't serve the leftover version to guests)

it sucks because there are an almost infinite number of better choices, in practically every market, bergen county being no exception. the people who realize it sucks don't expect anything from it, therefore, they do not expect "too much" from it. go to brooklyn's pizza in hackensack next time. save yourself a couple of bucks.

i finally tried sripraphahahahah thai in beautiful woodside today. the service was lacking. however, the food was very good. ordered a beef salad on the strength of some reviews. however, they had several versions on the menu, so i'm not sure if it ordered "the" dish. it was very good. ordered "thai medium spicy" as far as i know. and it was good and hot. it seemed that the spice came from additional thai chilis. i don't know that that contributed to any great "depth of flavor", but it was fresh tasting, and spicy. the raw shrimp dish ordered by slappy was the spiciest of the lot. this dish apparently is not on the menu. it's raw shrimp, served in a citrus broth, not much unlike a ceviche. very, very spicy. the spice overpowered the shrimp. although, raw shrimp, to me, is more about texture than taste. they really don't taste like much. had a rose, for the first time in probably 8 years with this meal. it worked quite nicely with this spice-fest of a lunch. i'm looking foward to taking in a few more bottles of rose before the summer is over. i think i'm on to something. at the end of the day, it was just as good if not better than my current favorite thais in nyc (pams and whatever the place is on 1st and 50th that i generally mention). although, much less convenient for me to get to, as i'm a jersey boy. the 7 train ranks right up there on my list of "top ten places i'd prefer not to be".

...or is it...

the cheesecake factory is generally viewed as a slightly upscale houlighans, with good cheesecake. i say upscale probably only because of the locations that you seem to find them (upscale malls, high rent buildings, etc.)

well, i serve it with french fries. also, i mix ketchup, store bought bbq sauce (at little), sriracha, thai chili sauce, and lime juice for grilled pork chops. it's so easy and just adds so much to grilled pork. hell, i've served it spooned over a grilled pork loin as well. thai chili sauce looks like this, but not as blurry. thaigrocer.com carries it for all of you people living in culturally challenged areas.

i mix thai chili sauce, which is sweet and spicy, with ketchup when i'm have something that needs a little more than ketchup. ketchup is a great produce. although its aggressive sweetness that turns some off, it has acidity, sweetness, spiciness, and color. it can be used in cooking as well as as a condiment. i like ketchup.

oh please. if that were the case, everyone on in the US would be fat.

oh my god. who doesn't used fresh ground pepper!?!

one of my newest ones is "putting [fill in the blank] on the stove/oven and going up to check egullet only to return waaaay to long after i should be to find [fill in the blank] burned/gone/etc"