weinoo

I have searched my collection, high and low, for two of my older Oz Clarke books; one speciically focused on Italian wines, the other more of a general wine book. They were great and I CAN'T FIND THEM! Also, Kevin Zraly's Windows on the World Wine Course was a nice intro book. I just got one of these; The New Wine Rules I've had for a while - it's fun, and a very easy read, and he's a great writer. I'm enjoying the other and it's done in an interesting way. These I've had for a while; much more like textbooks, as I try to delve into one of my favorite grapes...

Yeah, but think of all the money you'll save by not going to Portland! Abraco now is nice and roomy, with seats and tables. And well-made cocktails in the eve. Agree about the issue with espresso and milk drinks , which no self-respecting Italian would be caught dead consuming after, say, 11 AM. They might as well use Folger's for those milky things.

This is the start (middle?) of a New Mexico Hatch Chile Verde, using some boneless shoulder (for she) and some neck (for me). Served with Rancho Gordo's black beans, white rice, avocado, tomato, lime, cilantro, etc. Never got around to a picture of the finished dish.

Last night... Miso butter glazed haricots. Four mushroom sauté. Ginger rice donabe made. Night before last... Greek salad, with red and yellow tomatoes (still decent), cucumbers, scallions, feta, Kalamata olives, house roasted red and green peppers, etc. Minestra.

Are vegans somehow restricted from uptown? Are non-vegans allowed to answer the op? But seriously, folks...I can't believe no one is gluten free in this dining group?! And he who needs "meat?' Does he include proteins like chicken? Duck? Rabbit? Pig? Pigeon? Cuy? Shrimp? Or must it be steak? And what's your definition of midtown and below? Like what street delineates midtown? Conversation - in NYC?! Not too pricey - in NYC?! If you're not a troll, go to an Italian restaurant like Pasquale Jones or Lupa. Meat man gets meat. Vegan orders pasta with tomatoes or with garlic and oil and some sautéed broccoli raab on the side. Maybe a salad? Vegan tells wait person to make sure his order is veganized. Everyone is happy. Well...as happy as they can be in this scenario.

Probably after the fact, but: Where to Eat and Drink in Bed-Stuy via eater.

I've really narrowed it down. Some produce, when necessary, with lots of inspection. I like the small apples in a bag this time of year; good for snacks to pack in a lunch bag. Frozen Argentinian wild shrimp are quite decent. Those New Zealand lamb racks, too. And ours has kosher chicken in various iterations. Eggs when I haven't shlepped to farmer's market. Certain cheeses, nuts, dried fruits are all fine. The latter especially for baking. We have a nice selection of cut flowers too.

Except I can cook on my stove if (and when) there's a blackout, or the electricity is turned off for some other reason.

I've given up on espresso at coffee shops (maybe in San Francisco, definitely in Italy, but that's a whole, different ball game) here in NYC; tired of throwing over $3 to a shitty coffee. And I can't remember the last time I've ordered a milk included drink. Friends whose judgement I trust definitely enjoy the drinks at Abraço.

I think Joe's roasts up at their shop on W. 21st St.? I've never been to Coffee Mob; good excuse to take a ride to Brooklyn this week! I've been a coffee subscription person for a while now, but when I run low in between deliveries, I walk over to Grumpy on Essex fo a bag - I do find their beans good for my pour over stuff. And it appears they roast in Brooklyn as well.

I've been to Schwartz's in the past and it's very good; I'm just not one to wait on line for hours for a specific food. Now - as to the bagels, since agreeing to disagree is disagreeable to me... The older style bagel (dense, somewhat plump, chewy crumb AND a great crust) is hard to find these days, but I've got a few decent enough places I still go to. And these days, you can be sure I'm buying (if they have them) mini-bagels, which are the same size as bagels of yore were at one time. As you know, old @rotuts, when bagels started to become sandwich bread (something they were NEVER meant to be), that pretty much screwed the pooch for us old-school bagel lovers.

Kinda boring, but if that makes you happy...

No negativity; just that they're not bagels. And if they are, they suck.

The mushroom guy at Jean-Talon has a wonderful selection. Always enjoy Montreal, and Joe Beef; and even though they screwed up our reservation , it worked out fine. All of our meals were worthy.

A very nice weekend in Montreal, even with a snafu at Joe Beef, which aggravated me. But prior we did stop in to LVP, consuming a few glasses of wine and a snack... Grilled haricots, with harissa yogurt, bread crumbs and mint. Delicious (and maybe we should have stayed here to eat). Haricots were on every menu, and deservedly so, especially after seeing these at both Atwater and Jean Talon... Saturday's dinner was a new restaurant from the Toqué group, Beau Mont, in the gentrifying Parc Extension neighborhood. We'd not eaten at Toqué, so this was high on my list. Located in a semi industrial office building, quite modern and spacious inside. We decided to sit at the sparsely populated bar, comfortable and with lots of room. Great service from a fabulous bartender, and we dove in. Fine technical cooking, I guess to be expected from a Laprise run kitchen, focused on local ingredients, etc. etc. Bluefin is around, as noted on an earlier visit to Montreal, and here it was offered a few different ways. We went for the off-menu appetizer, cured and served with local artichokes and strawberry puree dotted around the plate... A Nordic-ish (well, maybe everything is Nordic-ish?) seared cucumber, hollowed out and filled with local Beurrasse cheese, topped with cured herring row, won me over. So much so that the picture sucks... Significant Eater opted for a really lovely pasta for her main course, while I, after reading about D'artagnan's Quebec sourced salt-marsh lamb, opted for the salt-meadow lamb from Quebec. Lamb "steak" from the leg, with pureed coco beans... Champignons on the side for both of us. Cheeses, dessert. A very nice meal all around. With a bottle of wine, a martini, 2 glasses of wine, $306 CA pre tip, so quite reasonable for food this good. Sunday night's dinner at Lemeac was also a winner, if a little more crazy in the service department. Including a great smoked hareng, duck confit, more haricots, a pretty damn good crab cake, moules frites, and profiteroles. Everything fine, if not revelatory. A wee bit more drinking than the night before, but the bill was exactly the same. I found their wine prices to be more on a par with the mark up we see here, except in Canadian dollars...so it doesn't feel quite as rough. Light market lunches both days. Oh, and for me, there's this fun stuff too (when in Canada)...