Dave the Cook

Pam, you say it's unrolled. Do you mean it's a flat slab of meat, like 40 - 50 mm thick?

Meaning that she didn't want the secret out, was so excited, or she had an allergic reaction? ← Meaning it's not true, at least according to her. Holeman & Finch is packed every night, they're trying to get H&F Bread open, and no one's had more than a day off here and there in months. That's not to say that Chef Hopkins doesn't have plans for an oyster bar, but it would be odd for one of the principals in H&F not to know about it.

http://www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com/Chef Linton Hopkins founded it.

H&F Bakery's launch has been delayed (though I parked next to a nicely decorated delivery van tonight). The overwhelming response to the product at the Saturday market at St. Philip's has sent them back to the org charts. I asked one of the H&F proprietors about the oyster bar. She practically broke out in hives.

A few people have had luck ordering Niman Ranch through Whole Foods. It seems that the likelihood of success depends on how cooperative the meat manager is, and whether or not you'll buy the whole case, or they think they can sell it. Other possibilities: 1) make friends with the meat dude at your grocery store, then ask them to order for you; 2) call up Cochon and see if they'll sell you one; 2) find a better Asian market. I've been getting whole bellies from Super H Mart, and the quality is quite good.

I thought I had Rittenhouse, but alas, no. Wild Turkey rye worked just fine, though. Stirred with languor (and chipped ice) and strained into a heavy chilled glass. Thanks, Mr. Wondrich (Sam, too).

I was leafing through Joy of Cocktails -- can't remember what I was looking for -- and came across the Gotham: 2 oz. cognac (Landy) 1 oz. Noilly Prat dry 1/2 oz. creme de cassis 2 dashes lemon juice Not having cassis, I subbed Apry, and dashed in some lemon bitters. On the sweet side, but a little more lemon (or less Apry) should balance it out next time.

Maybe Dave himself can comment on that. Without speaking for him, I can say that Bulleit is a Tales sponsor, and I'm pretty sure that's why it's specified. Again, without putting words in his mouth, Mr. Wondrich is quite the fan of strong drink, I doubt he'd object to your substitution. I myself am going to try it with Rittenhouse Bonded tonight. I watched her make quite a few of those, as I had cornered a hero of mine right next to her table, and I was peppering (he might say "annoying") him with questions. If I had to guess, I'd say yes, for two ounces of cognac, a scant tablespoon would be in proportion (the drinks at the Cocktail Hour are about half-sized). I'm guessing that problem was that the Hennessy (another sponsor) softened the Herbsaint, requiring a green boost. Maybe that accounts for the Angostura as well. I can't argue with the results; it was very tasty, and I wasn't the only one who thought so. She couldn't make them fast enough, and ran out of cups at one point.

Floridita, more or less: 1 oz. Rhum Clement VSOP 1/8 oz.Creole Shrubb 1/2 oz. Martini & Rossi Rosso 1/4 oz. white creme de cacao 1/8 oz. grenadine 1 oz. lime juice Sorry for the confusion, though it's not entirely my fault. The Tales card calls it "La Florida." Regardless, using a really fancy rum and adding a rum-based curacao doesn't make it any more appealing to me. It's just a weird drink.

Your instincts are correct. I'd give them a nice soak and more leisurely smoke. On the other hand -- using charcoal -- I get a pleasant smoky flavor from the 300/45 combination, so you might look at a couple of other possibilities: you're not generating enough wood smoke from your basket; the location of meat, basket and vent aren't optimal for smoking; maybe you're anxious and opening the grill too often?

Highlights for me: The 50-50 Manhattan, made with John Deragon's bitters: 1-1/2 oz. Rittenhouse 100-proof rye 1-1/2 oz. Martini & Rossi Rosso 2 dashes Deragon's "Abbot's" bitters Having never had (or heard of) Meeting House Punch, I found beer as an ingredient a pleasant surprise (you'll have to invite a couple of friends over to consume this one): 75 oz. Cruzan white 112 oz Rhum Clement VSOP 400 oz. Red Stripe 25 oz. lemon juice 25 oz. muscovado syrup Another surprise was the Grand Marnier Margarita. I've never cared for either anejo or curacao in the Margarita, but this was nicely balanced (if you're playing along with the Tales cards, this one has a misprint. There's no OJ in the drink.): 1-1/2 oz. Partida Anejo 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier 1 oz. lime juice 1/2 oz. agave nectar I've always found the Cocktail Hour crowded and noisy, with a lot of hastily made drinks (no reflection on those tending bar; it's a difficult venue). But this year, two drinks really stood out. First, Dave Wondrich's Improved Whiskey Cocktail: 2 oz. Bulleit bourbon 2 dashes Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel bitters 1 tsp. simple syrup 1/2 tsp. Luxardo Maraschino 1 dash Pernod absinthe lemon twist The second was Sara Roahen's Sazerac, adapted for both cognac and plastic cup (hard to do a rinse in those things). Looking at the ingredients, I expected a sweetish mess, but I was wrong: 2 oz. Hennessy VS 3 dashes Peychaud bitters 3 dashes Angostura bitters 1/2 T simple syrup 1 T Herbsaint lemon twist Many, many thanks to the D&C crew, especially for the best Mojito I've had in a long time, and a perfectly awful Margarita brought out to showcase how not to make it. But I still don't like the La Florida, no matter how well it's made.

How to fabricate a chuck-eye: First, get yourself a blade roast or underblade roast. Ignore anything called the top blade roast (we'll get to that in later chronicles). The first place I went to was the local Publix, where we have a good relationship with the meat dude. He rubbed his neck and said "That's going to be difficult to find at a grocery store. Very difficult." I asked how he got chuck-eyes. "We don't mess with intermediate cuts. We just cut the roll off and slice it." What he's referring to is the chuck-eye roll, NAMP item 116D. There's a great picture of it on the Bovine Myology website. While you're having fun rotating the photo there, note the four muscles that make up the chuck-eye (they're outlined in green on the end view). Those muscles are the key to identifying the steak. Trying to avoid a trip to the butcher (few and far between in the ATL), I tried Costco. Luck prevailed: These are both underblade roasts, but they're not from the same place along the shoulder. In fact, I'd guess that they didn't even come from the same steer. You can tell by the size and shape of the muscles in the eye area: That part of the roast at the top is barely recognizable as the eye, though sometimes you'll see steaks this large in the counter. My opinion is that this is too far away from the sweet spot of the chuck-eye. Let's go to extreme close-up mode: Note the well-developed gristle. Now, it would be external to the steak, but what it tells me is that this is a pretty well-exercised part of the muscle -- not the tender part we're after. Anyway, once you've got the right kind of roast, the rest is easy. Separate the chuck-eye from the rest along the fat line: Trim those hunks of fat from the non-steak, and you've got yourself a chuck-eye and a nice little pot roast: Questions?

With all due respect, my method is my method (not to mention Tom Colicchio's). Your method is your method. There's room for both (and many others, too).

Chuck-eyes as end cuts of the chuck roast are typically sold by themselves. I buy them whenever I see them. Since there are only as many as there are roasts on display they can be hard to find right away. It's a very inexpensive cut of meat but very, very, tender with lots of fat to give it good flavor. It saddens me to see this secret get out. ← Availability varies with region. In Atlanta, I see them all over the place, but they're scarce in other areas. Regardless, Chris raises an interesting issue. You can cut your own chuck-eyes from a blade roast with interesting results. I'll post some photos later (there's an illustration here, but it's hard to see what's going on), but the essence is: Trim off the flatiron (the thin portion above the bone). Remove the bone, if you wish. Look for a thin arc of fat delineating the chuck-eye muscles. Cut (though you can practically pull it out) the steak from the roast. This leaves you with three pieces of meat: a pretty small flatiron which you can grind or cut for stew; the chuck-eye; and a smallish boneless chuck roast that's just right for two people. Tie it and braise it.

To be more specific, it's at the far west end of Riverwalk, next to the Convention Center. If you enter Riverwalk at the east (aquarium) end, you've got quite a stroll ahead of you.

Of course, the day I ended up going was the one day I went out without my camera. They've done a terrific job of retrofitting the space (a former clothing store) into a cozy set of information-dense displays. I know that Dr. Cocktail, especially, not only donated many of the items, but also applied a great deal of elbow grease -- he was changing light bulbs when I went through. My thanks go out to the founders and members. You've created a precious repository.

Brining is about shape and thickness, not weight. So if your hunks are cut from the whole brisket, and the same thickness as the whole, brining time is not affected.

Something I've always wanted to try is a tomato-water bloody mary: you make tomato water by roughly chopping tomatoes, salting them and putting them in a colander over a bowl. Give it a few hours, and you'll get a clear, slightly viscous juice that tastes just like tomatoes. You'll have to vary the drink recipe (maybe use white Worcestershire?) to maintain the color. Rather than vodka, a softer gin like Plymouth or Bombay will give it more character. I should admit that I don't much like Bloody Marys; I've just always wanted to surprise brunch guests with a clear drink that tastes like tomato.

Has anyone tried one of these?

As long as we're on the subject of steels and honing rods . . . I have a plain steel rod, which I got on your (Chad's) recommendation in the original eGCI topic. Unfortunately, the steel fell apart after a couple of weeks, and I didn't follow up on the warranty, which is beside the point, since I have an unrelated question. I never felt like I had any "feedback" from the steel. There was no rasping sound or tactile response. The blade just glided along the steel, so I never felt like anything was happening. Was I missing something? How can I check the effectiveness of a smooth steel?

FastTalkingHighTrousers might be correct, But maybe you could check in at the Edge in the Kitchen Q&A, where questions like yours are being answered with aplomb, acumen and expertise.

As long as we've got Shun on the table, what's the deal with their Wasabi line? Can you explain bead blasting in the context of making a blade? How does Daido 1K6 steel compare to say, the VG-10 in most of the other Shun lines? And finally, how can they be so cheap (the 210 mm Deba is $40 MSRP)? I ask because it seems like an inexpensive path to explore the single-bevel knives.

I agree with the second and third sentences; in the absence of someone's actual experience (e.g., "I have a scratch on my ceramic that is definitely a scratch and not a thin streak of metal filings"), the first doesn't make sense. No matter how sharp you get a blade of VG-10 steel, you won't be able to scratch a diamond, let alone a slab of ceramic. You might, with enough force, break it. The quote from the user's manual is almost word-for-word what mine says. Nevertheless, I think what the manufacturer is trying to do is present the explanation most likely to prevent people from doing a stupid thing. Now, in theory, a scratch acts as a 'stress concentrator' providing a point from which failure can occur. But that glass ceramic material is pretty damn tough, and designed to have almost zero expansion on heating, and so, in my (relatively limited) acquaintanceship with the things, I've not heard of even one cracking from a user's scratch. So, I'd say its very much less common than Pyrex shattering from a scratch, when it is later subjected to thermal shock (rapid heating or cooling). And, with any reputable brand, a new ceramic surface should be obtainable as a spare part should it ever became damaged - though I'm not saying it would be cheap! ← Good points. I've dropped a nearly-full liter of olive oil on my cooktop from a height of about three feet. The cooktop survived, and even got a soothing extra-virgin bath. (The broken glass did not scratch the ceramic ;-)) The worst damage I've seen done to a ceramic top was when someone spilled sugar directly on the burner while putting sugar in a pot, then proceeded to make candy without cleaning up the spill first. The sugar became one with the ceramic. (I should note that this was one of the first generations of ceramic tops; I've spilled sugar on mine, had it cook in, and removed it with a putty knife. Back then, putty knives and razor blades were no-nos.)

You're welcome! None of this is to say that ceramic cooktops can't get alarmingly filthy. I'd be happy to post a pictorial on cleaning, if peeps are interested.

If you'd told him you had aluminum cookware, he'd probably have told you that it would scratch the surface, too. But they can't, because the ceramic is harder than any of these metals. What can happen, if you slide pans around the top, is that the ceramic can abrade the metal, leaving "skid marks," if you will: microscopic bits of the pan's metal left in the grain of the ceramic, like wood dust in sandpaper. But this is theoretical, though the manual for my range does warn about it (aluminum and copper, not cast iron). In practice, I use stainless, aluminum, copper and cast iron (and enameled cast iron, for that matter), I'm not particularly careful, and I'd never had a problem.