elfin

Chicago Mag gave it a good review as well. (Sorry Ron, read the mag on the train last night-would have posted both if I knew. I don't know how to link/post-) It is funny, I still rely upon e-gullet reports rather than a critic's review. I have never been burned by an e-gullet rec but have dined at places that received positive press and I left with a 'so what'. Based on poor word of mouth vs favorable reviews will this place make it?

Vettel in the Trib gave it a glowing review and 3 stars...

Attended a party this weekend and the host brought out a wine aerator-a long metal straw with a black balloon- like bladder at the top. The operation was similiar to an eyedropper-you squeezed air through the straw and pumped the bottle full of air until the bottleneck was filled with air bubbles. It actually made the wine taste better(as compared to the inital pour) as if it were properly decanted. Am I just swayed by a new gadget or does this thing really work? Are there several models/manufacturer's out there-I found one on the internet for 50$.

Leo Buscaglia wrote about his family taking his elderly and frightened mother on a flight whereat they bought hampers of their own food:-garlic perfumed the entire flight from the back of coach and they ended up sharing the contents with fellow passengers and staff.

I like coffee flavored candy, ice cream and pastries-but a cola does sound suspect...

We like early for the above reasons plus the traffic/parking is better-we are getting back while everyone is going into the city.

tamarind is in the L&P ingredients

I contacted the L&P consumer hotline. She said that the recipe had not changed and they had no complaints of a different flavor. I told her that others around the nation had also noticed a difference. She then said it could be a batch difference based on the ingredients-the stuff matures for 2 years. We have been using L&P since the early sixties and have NEVER had a bottle vary. Do I go out and get another with a different batch number? I probably will and taste it in the parking lot. If it tastes bad, I will return it-hopefully L&P will get the message.

Bought a new bottle of Lea&Perrins- and was disappointed in the flavor. I swear it is sweeter and less salty. My friend has noticed it as well. I always like L&P better than Heinz and now I am in the search for a replacement. Are there other brands in the US? Could it have been an old bottle(chain supermarket with good turnover so I suspect no)?. I have one recipe that depends upon the original formula.

We ate at Bhabi's on Saturday night. It was, again, fantastic. We declined the pastachio naan (overated and too sweet for an appetizer) and ordered the Kheema (meat) samosas. IM (and others) HO, the best samosas in town. My 3 y.o. loves the tamarand chutney and the mint chutney is good as well. We ordered the butter chicken (not very meaty but I just love the gravy and skip the meat anyway), the lamb and mutton gosht (Sayed always asks if we want all lamb which I find great when dining with anti goat folks), saag paneer, dal malkani (sp), the Bhabi's eggplant (that sauce!) and plenty of butter and garlic naan. We again took some folks who were unfamiliar with Indian food and not fond of overbearing curry flavor and they were licking their plates clean. The place was packed by 7 and service got a bit confused but unlike Hema's, Sayed actually hired servers to meet the increasing demand. Sayed's wife was in the kitchen that night and appreciated our thumbs up. The bill including service was $100. It is our 'go to' Indian place.

Jean, don't miss the corned beef (cold and extra lean) and rye bread(with seeds) at Kaufmans on Dempster.

God bless you both.

Not to beat a dead horse, but why doesn't Winnekta or Glencoe (and I think Northfield and Wilmette) have any Thai restaurants? Everyone says the need is there (and patrons) but alas none. They keep popping up elsewhere!

Ever since Winnetka Grill closed the place has indeed been doomed. I fear that soon the place will be taken over by a bank or cell phone store or the car dealership nextdoor. Winnetka does need more food choices. I wonder why nothing seems to work there! A bistro would be perfect! Little Ricky's just does not cut it for us. I LOL re the Willow Inn reference!

The show brought back memories of Uzbek cuisine and culture during our travels. 10 and 15 years ago we were there (Tashkent, Samarkand and Bokkhara) and the food universally sucked. Bad Russian pivo, awful hotel food in lieu of scarey food stalls and vodka. And those time warp discos did not have the belly dancers but rather , ahem- you know. Great show.

Ditto on the skim milk spoiling quicker. Why is that? It would seem that the higher fat content would go rancid first. Or is the fat a natural preservative?

Haven't heard if there has been any developments in the Chowdrow vs. Rocco lawsuit. Anyone?

Stopped by the CT To Go "Express". It seems to cater to the work out and lunch crowds. There were some delicious looking baked sweets and surprisingly puddings-chocolate and I think vanilla. That surprised me. When I think of CT I don't think of chocolate pudding in a plastic tub. Plenty of big lettuce-greens etc salads and small tubs of lentil, rice and tuna based salads. I took home the wild rice salad ($3.95) with dried cherries and vinagerette and the olive oil red pepper tuna salad ($4) to use as sides for dinner. WOW, the tuna was really good-a nice creamy red pepper sauce with pieces of fresh red pepper. The wild rice salad retained its wild rice crunch and had plenty of dried cherries. Did not notice soups but they had some breads and a refrigerated case of various bottled juices, waters. ( Did not see the typical sodas.) Was expecting hot entrees, roasted chickens etc but again did not notice hot foods. I guess that is what they mean by "express". I looked for a menu and a wall board toting daily specials but did not see either. I was running for the train however and my total time spent there was less than 5 minutes. Service was quick but it was not crowded at 4:30. Got a cute CT bag for the salads.

I like Rick Bayless' program One Plate at a Time on Chicago's PBS station.

A Trotter's to Go is going to be in the Loop- at Monroe and Franklin on the Northeast corner. There is a health club(Equinox) locating there as well. It looks like it could be open in a few weeks. I'll pickup dinner for the commute back to the suburbs-I know it will be pricey -any favorites?

Was able to get in early-6pm. OMG! One of the best Indian meals we have ever had. Best meat samosas and the veggie ones were gone before they reached my side of the table but garnered raves. Chili chicken, butter chicken, egg plant, lamb with spinach-yum yum. Great service I assume it was Mr. Sayed - and his wife in the kitchen cooking like mad -friendly and never felt rushed. I rec getting the pastachio naan for dessert. The onion garlic naan was delicious. Forgot to get the broccoli rabe---next time! Dined with two Indian food novices and two experts and all agreed that it was excellent.

The place is booked on Saturday night. Any other recs (preferably BYOB -ran a big bar tab last time at Tiffin)?

Hema's is great but the service (lack thereof) amd wait is really a drag-Have taken friends to Hema's, Viceroy, Ghandi and Tippen. Looking for another place for variety sake. Prefer nonvegetarian. Heard that Bhabi's on Oakley is really good. Anyone been? Thanks.

A Vodka Collins Slurpee?

Sopraffina still exisits in the Chicago's downtown Loop (Dearborn and Madison). In regard to Columbus OH chains-we could not believe the "Chain Massacre " on US70 in Lancaster OH (outside Columbus) OMG! Every chain was represented-even an Arthur Treacher's Fish N Chips!