wingding

When I was little,our next door neighbor had a beautiful grape arbor,and I remember snaking my arm over with a pair of scissors,and snipping off the forbidden fruit-nothing tasted sweeter..........the Good Humor man occasionally had a chocolate covered black raspberry ice cream bar in the spring-I waited for these.....once,in the 1960s,my father worked on a photo shoot for Esquire Magazine,and brought home a hunk of Beef Wellington,which I sampled early the next morning-it was a revelation.

All of Paula Wolferts' books-her attention to detail and authenticity is awesome Desserts,and Pastries of La Brea Bakery;Nancy Silverton[my favorite pastry chef] Simple Cuisine;J.G. Vongrichten The Italian Baker;Carol Field Simply French;Joel Robuchon & Patrricia Wells A Taste of India,Flavors of India;Madhur Jaffrey- wonderful regional home recipes,charming text Classic Home Desserts;Richard Sax Authentic Mexican;Rick Bayless

Thanks to all for a fascinating thread;I spent a month traveling around India a few years ago,and quickly realized that most good food was probably being served in private homes.I also spent a lot of time in the street markets[ my afternoon in the pink city in Jaipur was totally fascinating and overwhelming].The produce often did not look real appealing-where do wealthy people [or their cooks] purchase produce?Do purveyors come to them?Do they grow their own?

I like Braulio,which I've only been able to find at the Italian Wine Center on 187th St. in the Bronx.It's a liitle less sweet than Averna.Any other favorites?

I had lunch at the Da Silvano Cantinetta today-a good panini of spiced tripe,prosciutto,arugala,and one more meat that I can't remember...It is a wonderful spot;unfortunately,they were in the process of installing a wide screen tv above the bar,which sets off my aesthetics alarm.But,no worry,sit outside,and watch the passing show;it's much more interesting.

Fresh bacon is pork belly[not stomach],a cut of pig usually used for making bacon.The term seems to scare a lot of people off,which is too damn bad,cause the version at GT is so damn good...

Most chefs[and Martha Stewart] would tell you that astute shopping is integral.Of course,knowing how to use ingredients to maximize their flavor,and compliment other flavors and textures is where the talent is.A farmer who has a small crop may reserve it for a certain chef,but otherwise they're trying to earn a living and sell to a circle of people.There are a variety of factors that affect trends-this is just one of them...

A lot of food trends start with an ingredient that is newly grown,imported or 'rediscovered'.Some chefs get dibs on foodstuffs from a certain farmer or fisherman,but in general,it's good business for the purveyor to get as many customers as possible-and the trend begins.Fennel pollen and arugala flowers are thrown around with abandon....

Steve:I've been using a mix of almonds and apricot kernels to infuse custards for a real strong amaretti like flavor.I've recently gotten green almonds,bitter almonds,pastes,extracts from various places-in search of better flavor.I think that Italian manufacturers make much more use of bitter almond to flavor their almond products.Someone sent me a small packet of bitter almonds from California,and the flavor blew me away.A Sicilian almond paste recently given to me was miles ahead of most Amereican product in flavor.The bitter almonds are nearly impossible to obtain,but I'm looking into sourcing Italian products,including almond milk.

Use apricot pits or bitter almonds with caution!Roasting them dissipates the cyanide....The laws about growing and selling both in the U.S. are a little vague to me,but apricot kernels are sold in Chinatown[N.Y.],sometimes under different names.They do add a wonderful depth to almond flavor.I recently spoke to an almond grower in California who pulled up all of his bitter almond trees,fearing legal problems.

I spotted some nice porgy and manila clams in Chinatown late today.Made tomato sauce with some smoky chiles,golden onions,fresh bay leaf and rosemary from the fire escape garden, and saffron water.Poached the fish and clams in the sauce,served with scialatielli.The porgy and clams absorbed the flavors of the sauce nicely-I've never made this before,but definitely will repeat it...

Speaking for myself,and the back of the house,I don't think people are working well after 11-13 hours.Most kitchen workers for evening service arrive at work between 1 & 3 pm,and work until 11-closing,so in all honesty, the late tables aren't appreciated.[and the chef has probably gone home earlier]If you've done a double shift,and been working since 9 am,it's torture...

Would anyone care to name favorite restaurants,design wise?I'm curious...and there are many places in the world that I've yet to visit.My absolute favorite is the River Cafe in London.

On an even more picky note,I won't go to places where I don't like the decor.All the slick,over designed places that have too much theme going on make me feel silly and overwhelmed.Understatement in design leaves more room for the food,staff, and clientele to show themselves.[for better or worse]

For really good mint ice cream,try to find fresh black mint or peppermint.Steep a bunch in your hot milk/cream,and be careful to keep it submerged,so the leaves don't turn brown and give the ice cream an 'off flavor.By the way,one of the best simple desserts in Italy is affogato[drowned].Pour a fresh cup of espresso around some ice cream,top with whipped cream.It's usually made with vanilla or crema gelato.

Thank you,I'll find it.I stopped in the wine store at Chelsea Market today,and they had a fairly decent selection.By the way[off topic],check out Murrays' for an ever expanding selection of very tasty Spanish cheeses.

Design affects the ambience in any room,and if you've come for the whole experience of a restaurant,of course it matters.Lighting,acoustics,and a comfortable table matter,especially if you are having a long meal.I'm still wondering how many people have figured out how to latch the bathroom door at Craftbar...

I had lunch at Nobu today;was underwhelmed by the sushi,but two special dishes were memorable;uni tempura-great combination of crispy-creamy,with sea urchin flavor that people love or hate,and the squid pasta-unusually cut squid with great texture,stir fried with shitake and asparagus.

Any recommendations for retail outlets in Manhattan with a good selection of Spanish wines?

In addition to Kitchen Arts & Letters,try Bonnie Slotkin on West 10th st.,just east of 7th Ave.-it's a small 1st floor cookbook shop with lots of old kitschy stuff.

Re Jim Dixon;It's true in N.Y. also-there's local stuff that's almost impossible to find retail in N.Y.A lot of the best fruits and vegetables are held for chefs,and local farmers will tell you that a lot of salsify and greens.etc. will rot at the market because there aren't that many people who cook at home,and a lot of them will be happier buying flowers.Once you've tasted the incredibly fresh wonderful fish that top end restaurants buy,retail stuff will be unacceptable for the most part.A large part of good cooking is about good shopping,and knowing what to do with the food once you've sourced it...

The restaurant that I was happy to see mentioned,and have patronized for years,is Pho Viet Huong on Mulberry St.I love the duck soup;a roasted duck leg in a delicate broth with egg noodles and mushrooms.Simple and cheap with clear flavors,no glop....and wonderful on a cold windy day.

I'm here,and I'm laughing.The biggest failure of most of high art and foodie culture for me is their inability to laugh at themselves once in a while.

Suvir;My apologies for offending you so,but I wasn't attempting to compare apples and oranges.I've seen all kinds of abusive situations in this business,and don't justify any of them;Immigrants without papers being paid criminally low wages,bouncing checks,unpaid purveyors,people on set salary working extra shifts without compensation.Hence,the high burn out rate-people leaving the profession,feeling unappreciated and bone tired.I just have some personal frustrations with the internship situation in restaurants,and maybe aired them in the wrong place and time....but no worry,I have a sense of humor about all of this,and hey,I'm off to work a 15 hour shift today!

Many of the top restaurants in New York could not get all their work done without the help of stagieres-I've worked in a few of them...It's not abusive or anything,but there is a strong mutual dependence.Yes,it gives people coming into the field a chance to get their feet wet...and yes,there is a lot of picky work that the paid staff is hard pressed to find the time to do.