maggiethecat

In the words of Pete Townshend: I wannit I wannit I wannit!

Welcome to eGullet! Great story. More , please.

Thanks Nero, I was wondering to think I was crazy for loving a nice charred rare filet Mignon and a nice cab... Two of my favorite things! I do too. So there. Maybe we're crazy, fellow Chicagoans...and that's why we have so much fun together. Nero...to find the right char, just keep practicing!

Canadian thing: Butter tarts. The apotheosis of the raisin.

Pilsner Urquell . Geez. Nothing else easily available is close.

Same general idea, with a twist. Instead of the rubber mat, glued a strip of corkboard the width of the drawer. The strip is about three inches wide and 1/4 inch tall. The knives lean against it without slipping.

JAZ: I am completely down about raisins in chicken salad. Otherwise, I'm perfectly happy to eat your piece of my grandmother's raisin/sour cream pie. In High School I would pack this snack for myself every morning: baggie containing a mixed handful of sultanas and walnuts. A snack even greater than the sum of its parts. Guess we would have sat a different tables at lunch.

May I mention the Anglican clergyman, wit, supporter of women's rights, reforming politician and gourmet, the Rev. Sydney Smith? He's one of the guests at my "If you could have dinner with any three people in history dinner party.." H is the platonic ideal of the C of E clergy man. What's not to love about a man who said: "What two ideas are more inseperable than beer and Britania?" "I am convinced digestion is the great secret of life." "I have no relish for the country...it is a kind of healthy grave" "Heaven is eating pates de foie gras to the sound of trumpets" "How can a bishop marry? How can he flirt? The most he can say is "I will see you in the vestry after service" Jane Grigson devotes a chapter to Smith in "Food with the Famous." The other two diners vary (Lizst and Balzac show up a lot) but Sydney Smith is My Main Man. (If someone has already mentioned him here, I apologize. Haven't read all of the thread.

Food eater: Let me be the second one to welcome you. Sorry I can't help, because I live in Chicago, but I must tell you, that as an expat Montrealaise this: "Ste-Patate-24hr-grease-joint" made me smile. And get very nostalgic.

Briggie, my brother... Thanks for posting this. Maybe an upcoming Chicago chapter night out? Great review, great pix. But mostly...my love to Allison on her birthday. Kisses to my adopted nephews. And hey...your face finally came out on eG! Love and kisses, Magz

Yes. Now. Abomination.

I too have forty bottles of condiments cramming the racks of the Kenmore. But always: Moutarde. And mayo. Hellmans or TJs.

Welcome to eGullet , Hickory! And thanks for reminding my of All Sandwiches Egg. I am living proof that one can live to ones very late forties even though one ate a ton of unrefidgerated egg sandwiches. In any of their delightful guises.

Be still my heart! If even half survive, you'll be fine! Canterbury bells.....sigh. I've lost my glasses and am begging eGulleteers to help me find them. When I do, I can give your post the attention it deserves.

Joe...because of geograhical challenges, I haven't been to Schwartzes in way too long.. Does the heavenly meal you describe still come accompanied by crabby counterstaff? I kind of hope so.

Jumpin' jeeminy Jackal! That is one serious garden! Question: I see you planted comfrey. I did, and it is now the scourge of my existence. Everywhere! How do you keep it under control? Snowy: Yes. Winter Interest. The coneflowers I would not dream of deadheading. Birdie buddies, and all that. Winter Interest. Winter Interest. I like your mind, Lady.

Estrellita: Gracias! (And I'm working on it as we speak.)

Yeah - and around midnight, we sneak out and go TP someone's house. And then, at 2am, the boys come over and catch us in our nighties and we all squeal in mock horror. And then a few wussies fall asleep. Whereupon they get their bra put into the freezer. And their hand laid ever so gently into a bowl of warm water. Ah - the good ole' days. Hey Jaymes..Admit: we could still do this.

A game plan! You've spent your winter wisely. I can't see that it would hurt to start tilling now.What the heck? And you would have the happy gardener feeling of checking one thing off your list My game plan? To clean up all the stuff I should have done in the fall and didn't. Are the doomed shrubs part of a foundation planting? Is so, double kudos yo you for tearing them up!

Did you check out the first page of the travel section of the Sunday NYT ? Both Opera and Kleiner's other joint, Red Light, got favorable reviews. Wha hoo! (They read eGullet.)

This is kind of scary, my Illinois sistergirls. Yeah we like each other a lot. And we're already cycling together? The power of eGullet and hormones!

La fete de qui? Une des soeurs epatantes? Fritz: I'll be over shortly. I might have to come to blows with you for the bagels and potatoes.

Fellow zone 5ers: It's gorgeous today. Is it too soon to plant my sweetpeas? (A couple of Old Spice hybrids.) Too often I leave it too late. Sorrel is surging.

Gah. You win. Aurora: Yes, you win, girlfriend! And BTW, I loved your post. Will join you with the whitehaired set anytime. "The Music Man," perhaps? Don't mind smoke. Can block the floral fragrace easily enough. Can pray for the life ahead for couples who haven't taught children manners...they are setting themselves up for a rough ride when the kiddies are in high school. I don't like sloppy service. But if I can't converse because the music's too loud, I will never return.

Thanks, JFL! My daughter lives in LA and I'll make sure she checks this out. Great stuff.