Bond Girl
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Posts posted by Bond Girl
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The domaine caneros is a informative site. Never knew that Le Reve cost $50 a bottle. Looks like I should have stocked up while I was dating the guy who could get those things at a discount.
Must visit the west coast more often.
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I don't know anything about wine, but two years ago I was at Domaine Caneros and tried a pink sparkler called Le Reve which was really nice.
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Now that summer is here, you can basically concoct a cobbler like filling and put crumbs on top of it and stick it in the oven until the topping is golden brown.
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Use the tiniest amount on your first try. I made the same mistake of using too much on the first try and it tasteed awful.
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Had take out from there last night. 9 itsy bitsy little pieces of sushi for $18. It's most certainly well made. Not as expertly crafted as JB proper but above average overall. Not cheap but well worth it.
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I agree with you. I think the thing with LCB is that people used to want dishes like that but they don't want it any more.
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Thanks Pan!
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Since I live in a 450 square feet apartment with dog, deep frying is out of the question. But I made the okra with onions, green chili, ginger, a pinch of tumeric, red chili powder, garam masala and seasoned with salt as Monica suggested. Cooked with extremely high heat, the okra didn't have a chance to be slimy or burn. It was just slightly browned around the edges. The result is....really really good! Very yummy, especially with naan bought from Indian takeouts across the street.
This is definitely going to be a staple in my house. My Indian friend also suggested ajuwain seeds with okra, though I haven't try that this time, has anyone heard of the combination?
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I think food is an evolving art form, even our concept and definition of what is "classicism" evolves over time. As a musician, you are probably more familiar with the evolution of classicism than anyone else here. And, understand that it is in the subtle change of nuances of that re-interprets the classics, while in keeping with the true spirit of the art form.
The problem with LCB's food is that it seemed rather stuck in time. Take the appetizer I had for example, you get a very giant silver martini glass with a lump of crabmeat sitting on a bed of fanned out mango slices. On top of the crabmeat, you get another huge lump of lobster meat, and on top of that you get a dollop of caviar decorated with a tall sprig of chives. It's all very impressive looking. And, I'm sure that many years ago, this is the sort of dishes that people go out to dinner for. It puts together three or four ingredients that used to be considered "rare" and "expensive", so the customer is wowed by the sheer excess of the dish rather than the way the dish tasted. They can turn to their fellow diners and say "Look! I'm getting crabmeat! And, Lobster! and Caviar!"
Now with internet, global economy, overnight deliveries and vast agri-farming, you can practically get anything you want at any given point in time. It is no longer an impressive thing to put crabmeat, lobster, and caviar on a bed of mangos. With the exception of Caviar, you can basically find all the ingredients in your local supermarket and if you really want to you can mail order the caviar and have it sitting on your door steps by the next day. So, the diners now re-define their sense of classicism. Instead of being wowed by the whole combination, they are asking question like: What am I tasting? Is it crabmeat, the lobster or the caviar? Why put a sweet fruit like mango with a sweet meat like crab? How many grams of carb is in there? Should I be worried about my cholestral level? And, what's this tuft of chives doing here?
Like a Chanel suit, bell bottoms, or the mini-skirt, you can bring back the classics, but they have to be slightly different each time you bring them back.
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Thanks Monica! The day to day recipe is exactly what I am looking for. What do you serve it with? Basmati rice or some kind of bread? With the stuffed okra, do you make a paste out of the spices or do you just sprinkle them?
Can you get mango powder in just about any Indian grocers?
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Does anyone out there have an Indian recipes to share on Okra? A friend recently send me a huge box of it from her garden and I'm tired of using them as thickeners for my Gumbo.
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As someone who is allergic to most meat and poultry except fish and shellfish, I am wondering if it is possible to have vegetarian tex mex? I've made BBQ swordfish and put spiced rubbed mako shark on the grill from time to time, but that is hardly authentic. To stretch the concept further, suppose that I can't eat any meat at all, is there a place for vegetarians in the tex mex cuisine? What are some of the substitutes you would recommend? Or, is the concept simply an oxymoron.
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I strained my Panna Cotta mixture through a fine sieve whenever I need to make it for company. The seeds in the Vanilla beans tend to make it grainy.
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Obvious this lady had no clue and when you first noticed that, it would have likely been a good idea to tell her anything she wanted to hear.
Thanks guys. So far, it's been six months into the venture, and I've encountered:
* One highly temperamental chef who changed his mind every other day
* One condescending chef who didn't hesitate to informed me that I don't know shit about food.
* A shark like deal broker who wanted 10% finder's fee and equity in the business.
* A dirty old man who would invest if I make it worth his while.
* Two guys who wanted a chic trendy lounge on the UES, but didn't want to give any one any salary increase in five years.
* A flaky banker who never returns calls, but will call you just to tell you that he's going to be calling you.
* A lot of investors who thought "fresh" meant anything they found in the frozen section of the supermarket. It's "freshly frozen".
* One investor who thought morrells looked like animal organs.
But there are also a lot of people who gave me a lot of help and encouragement. And, even more to give me sanity checks when I needed. Otherwise, I would have given up a long time ago.
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The problem with having investors from outside of New York is that quite often their idea of "seasonal food" is not your idea of "seasonal food". This is particularly the case when your investor is used to seeing Greenhouses and import labels on their produce. While presenting my restaurant business plan to an extremely wealthy investor from Texas the other evening, I hit a stone wall on the concept of "Seasonal Menu" (after having explained to her the difference between farm raised salmon and wild salmon). The investor wanted to know what will be the "signature dish" of my restaurant. I patiently explained to her there won't be a specific signature dish per se, as the menu is seasonal, it will probably change from time to time to reflect the season and the ingredients that are available at the time.
"Well, isn't that what all restaurants do anyway?" she replied. "And, they all have a signature dish!" She proceeds to tell me theb signature dish of the restaurant in her town.
I think I am beginning to learn that your investors not only need to have money, they need to be food-smart as well.
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Is this in the Blue Goose Cafe space? Or just around it?
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This is definitely not two stars. I would probably put it at a one star category. The food is not contemporary enough and many of the details in the restaurant needs to be ironed out.
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. This is a bit of a gamble, and it won't pay off if the service doesn't become much more attentive than it was during my visit, when I waited a good 20 minutes after asking for the check.
LCB Brasserie Rachou (Frank Bruni)
Soba
That's pretty wild. I had great service at Brasserie LCB. To my great embarrassment, my friend had one too many to drink and was flirting shamelessly with the maitre'd. Thinking back, may be that was why we had great service. It was embarrassing though...
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Bleuauvergne
cdh
Project
Glasshouse
Foodie52
Each of you will get a copy of the Cheese Primer
Congrats to all.
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As this is the last day of the Q&A session, I want to thank Steve Jenkins for giving us one of the most unpretentious, informative and insightful Q&A. Steve, you've really expanded our horizon on cheese. Thanks again.
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I use the recipe from Dorie Greenspan's Paris Sweets book and experiementing with infusions like lemon verbena. Spoon the batter into a heavy aluminum brushed with butter and powdered with sugar, let it rest, and bake. The consistency here is more like a cake and less like a cookie.
The Joel Rubichon and Patricia Wells recipe never worked for me for some reason.
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What about Black Hounds on 2nd Ave and 11th street? Not my thing but taste acceptable and looks pretty.
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Lemon Verbena Peach Ice Cream.
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Find Natchez rather unexciting, the food there has lacks spark. Mara's is okay but too salty most of the time. Never tried Jack Imos. I always maintained that if you want good gumbo in NYC, you still have to make it yourself.
Starting a Restaurant in NYC
in New York: Dining
Posted
Things just keeps getting better each day. At least, life is not dull when you are trying to get a restaurant investor. I met another broker yesterday who makes the bully you met at school looks like a class dork. Before, she even read my business plan, I was told to refrain talking about my business to anyone, not to compare the terms that other people have told me, not to compare the terms that my friends who owns actual restaurant have with their investors, not to talk to investors on my own, and leave everything to her.
Right! And, I'll take that bridge in brooklyn that she just tried to sell me.
Meanwhile, an investor friend called asking for advice on union negotiations. Once again, I am faced with an ideology versus profitability problem. As a personal belief, I want all workers to have minimal wage, set increases, benefits, and someone to fight for what they cannot fight for themselves. As an aspiring business owner, I want to minimize labor cost, keep everything as low as possible, stretch the working hours, and drive profitability....Man, I haven't seen this much personal conflict since high school.