weinoo

Oh, I just looked at the menu and we had the ice cream sandwich, and it was very good - and demolished!

Final day in Portland, I'd been alerted to a seafood market/ quite casual restaurant located in South Portland, and called SoPo. So off we went for lunch. Greeted by a nice display... Sat at the counter, drank an iced tea... Had to have some scallops on the half shell... While Significant Eater had to have a lobster roll... And I, a crab cake... I'd be surprised if @johnnyd doesn't know about this place. Recommended! For dinner, we finally got to Twelve...sat at the bar for a cocktail, then moved over to a great table. Twelve is located at the new-ish waterfront development known as Foreside. It's not in this building... But it's close enough... Twelve has a distinguished team, led by... They offer both an a la carte and a prix fixe dinner... Everything on the menu is available a la carte: The app portions are not skimpy...actually, they're large: This is the quite wonderful asparagus with a morel vol-au-vent. And the equally delicious fluke crudo with rhubarb and cucumber: Had to have the house-made bread and fermented butter as well, so: This is the tautog, in a carrot bisque. Tautog, if you've never had, is a pretty delicious fish: But enough of the fish already; I had the duck: Nicely cooked, the confit is the fried baton on the plate. Beets and beet jus - I put up with. I'm sure we had dessert - and I'm sure it was very good, but I didn't take a pic! We had a really nice time, with a wonderful bartender and a great waiter. Would I choose this place over, say Scales, if I had to make that choice? Hmmmmmmm...

This was kind of a special trip to Portland, because for the first time we were able to visit a place that had not been accessible on past visits. It started at the Portland Museum of Art, where a number of Winslow Homer works are on display. This is Weatherbeaten; I don't believe it made it to the grand show that the Metropolitan put on in 2022; that was called Crosscurrents. But the fun was just starting; after a quick tour of a few of Homers' works in the museum, we headed out to Prouts Neck... And Winslow's studio. The only way to visit the studio is via the Portland Museum. His studio was originally a carriage house next to the family home, but the carriage house was moved a number of yards away from the home, and it was expanded to eventually include the 2nd floor, a gift from his brother (who was a chemist for Valspar, and a co-inventor of clear varnish!). When you visit Prouts Neck, not only can one look out this window, which is the exact same size as the painting Weatherbeaten... (That's Sig Eater!) But one can also stand at the approximate spot where Homer worked on that piece of art... On a much nicer, less stormy day. One can really work up an appetite after all that schlepping around. What can I say - we like this place...Scales. I'd even reserved bar seats; to me, it's the best place to sit, our bartender was great, and they make proper cocktails. \ 3 local oysters on offer tonight; I like the way they are served... In a trough on the bar. Maine oysters are my favorites. This wasn't bad, either... Littlenecks, with chunks of house-cured belly. And the star... A 1 1/2 pounder, perfectly cooked, and possibly the best whole lobster I've partaken in. We each had one - and also some vegetables... Three peas. A good Portland day and night.

As duly noted above!

After spending a few nights in Montreal, we drove down to Portland for a quick 3 nights, during which we did manage to get a fair amount of eating in. Compared to crossing the border at the I-87 area into NY State, this was a breeze, coming down through Derby Line, Vermont. And a beautiful drive through the White Mountains didn't hurt. Checked into our AirBnB, this time on the eastern promenade as opposed to more "downtown," where we had a nice view of Casco Bay's comings and goings... But we're not necessarily here for the view, we're here for the food (but the view doesn't hurt!). First night, a favorite we've eaten at every time we've been to Portland. This time we started with cocktails in the lounge... TI'm just posting this because I wish these were the prices in NYC...they're not! Menu - and then how do you fucking choose?! I know we had a few of these... And the scallop "brandade" sounded too good to be true... It was. Significant Eater had the crab stuffed haddock, roasted in this wood-fired oven: I opted for the pork (with 3-bean salad), and was not disappointed... Dessert tonight was simple - a couple of scoops of their house-made ice creams (one probably had something to do with rhubarb). Fore Street is a classic, and never disappoints. Bustling, with lots of happy campers.

By comparison, @rotuts, here's the BTG last from a local (my neighborhood) restaurant, with food prices that are somewhat similar to the restaurants' prices you reference above. Wine prices in NYC have gotten exorbitant. Jean-Pierre Robinot, Chenin Blanc Pet Nat 'Fetembulles' 2022 18 Adrien Renoir, 'Le Terroir' Extra Brut (from magnum) 26 Herbert Zillinger, Grüner Veltliner 'Horizont' 2022 20 I Vigneri, Etna Bianco 'Aurora' 2022 21 Meinklang, Skin Contact, Weiber Mulatschak Osterreich 2021 15 Bodega Chacra, 'Nacha' Pinot Noir Rosé 2022 15 Bruno Duchêne, VdF Rouge 'Titet' 2023 17 Domaine de la Grande Colline, Côtes-du-Rhône 'Bibendum' 2021 17 18 Then there is the line suggesting asking them about their special pours of the day, which are always in the $25+ range. Let's just say that the pours here encourage one to order more glasses!

On our last day in Montreal, I ventured out to Jean Talon, one of my favorite markets anywhere. For our final dinner, we wanted to dine early, as we were out to get an early start the following morning. Mon Lapin it was, for our 2nd time. I'd seriously dine here biweekly if I were local. Reservations were barely secured, by playing the online game 30 days prior. The wine list is extensive, though once again we chose to sample various glasses, as recommended by our delightful server (s): It's a lovely room. I particularly like this cart's usage: The astounding petoncles (scallops) with rhubarb. Along with our other starter (oh yeah they totally know how to course stuff here, and there's no rush job), the radish with liver pate below and the ramp biscuit. Just two great dishes, showing off the product. The rhubarb with scallops is amazing, both texturally and in the different flavors of the two components; one sweet and saline, the other tart, juicy...wow. Significant Eater had this lobster agnolotti,; how could she not! It's beautiful nettle agnolotti and lobster chunks, perfectly cooked, morel butter. I had a light main - the fried soft shell, with lettuce. Hah, that's like an appetizer, so i also had the ribs, served with a counter point of nicely dressed bitter herbs. There were 3, so I shared...don't worry. We also shared: The rhubarb sorbet and an ice cream sandwich. Both fabulous. This is a restaurant, simply put, not to be missed.

They are healthy pours, I'd say between 5 and 6 oz. Or you get a nice pour more like 7. Never underpoured.

Our first full day in Montreal we spent walking and walking; many places we walked were automobile free, so that was nice. There was some giant comic arts festival on Rue St. Denis, and we strolled through that, not understanding a thing we were looking at! Coffee at one of our favorite Montreal coffee spots was good... And dinner, at a place we hadn't been to in a few trips, was very nice as well. I posted above this herring starter, which is fabulous. At Leméac, a very staid, old-school Montreal place. Once in a while, we enjoy this type of restaurant; less noisy, dressed-up, etc. But enough of that...the following night, a well-known place we had never been to, entered the scene: L'Express. Starter of rillettes. Extremely rich, try not to eat the whole thing. More asparagus - when in season, why not?! Significant Eater's cold pea soup with crab was lovely, and unpictured. As was her main, a simple onglet frites. My favorite dish of the night, grilled quail, with fresh peas, on wild rice. A very excellent prep. Dessert was nothing exceptional, just some ice cream and digestifs. I'd return here - it's a fun, classic bistro.

Our recent four-night trip to Montreal, while it included the great smoked meat sandwich pictured above, also had some other edible highlights. There won't be any of the gorgeous pictures and scenery like @Duvel and @BonVivant post, but suffice to say the city of Montreal is lovely, and its roads suck. The drive up, from where we are located in NYC (i.e.: way the hell downtown), took between 7 and 8 hours, including the border crossing (which going into Canada is quite quick). So we arrived at our AirBnB, on Rue Mont-Royal Est, at around 5 PM, settled in, and were ready for a drink. Headed over to Le Vin Papillon, and stopped into a bar across the street, for an aperitif. Back across the street, and seated promptly for our 8 PM res. Sorry, no picture of the menu at this place; it was a long day. However, here's the BTG list; we like to order glasses of wine at places like this, as we're trying so many different foods, and often the BTG list is well curated. And some food: Bread, a simple salad of bitter lettuces, and "croquettes à la tête fromage." Another small plate, since it's perfectly in season: Asperges & petites patates. Our shared main courses... Grilled chicken thigh, small order. And some delicious short ribs, flanken style. Finished up with an ice cream "sandwich" and a glass of Madeira for me. A good start to 4 days of fine restaurant meals. Thankfully, the US dollar is strong in Canada; taxes on restaurant checks are high, at a total of about 15%...makes NYC seem, well - still expensive!

Sure @rotuts! Here's the general outline that I followed the first time or two I made the curry...https://www.justonecookbook.com/simple-chicken-curry/ Everything is pretty much open to interpretation. I like using mushrooms in the stew, and I evidently used red bells in the above picture, along with red onion (because that was probably what I had on hand). Also, you can punch up the curry flavor with a little more curry powder, spice it up with more cayenne, etc. etc.

Here's a Japanese chicken curry, probably using 1/2 to 2/3 the amount of brick called for... Plated, over rice...

I make that curry brick recipe in a double quantity. I also find that I don't need as much of the curry brick as the recipes call for, but as with everything, try it and see how you like it.

I definitely add the garam masala, provided I have good (i.e.: fresh garam masala).

Trying to remember, but I think I make the roux first, then add all the spices. Easier to discern th color of the roux that way.

We only now comment to each other about restaurant noise levels when they are quiet enough for the two of us to have a conversation without shouting. And we also (now) often try to dine earlier. First, the staff is less harried, especially the kitchen. Second, if restaurants are gonna crank up the music, they tend to do so a little later in the evening. We were just in Montreal and Portland, and I have to say that at most of the places we dined, noise levels were acceptable.

Interesting: So Yellow Tail basically slaps their label on Santa Carolina wines.

Really? Does it say that on the label?

Those lamb chops look great. How's their lamb - mild, or a little more funky?

I've found that a "cup" of rice (a Japanese GO cup) weighs between 145 - 150 grams. Most Japanese rice is cooked at 1:1 water:rice ratio; that much water weighs 180 grams. Don't forget the water that clings to the washed rice!

In my mind, the biggest mistake made when cooking rice is using too much water. And not washing the rice. Most ( all?) rice cookers have markings which help alleviate the problem of too much water.

I agree with you as well! Then there’s this, from Sonoko…https://www.sonokosakai.com/shop/curry-brick-kit I have this kit in my pantry, but haven’t had the opportunity to use it.

I definitely follow the advice you found on the internet, though I think it was just common sense that led me to Saran wrapping cut onions. I also put them into a small freezer bag, as I find it helps keep any stray odors from emanating from the cut onion. Most of the time, the leftover onion is getting cooked, but if the plan is to use it raw (i.e.: as if it were fresh), I just cut off a thin slice from the cut end, and discard it.

We’ll, that’s what life is all about, isn’t it?

Or even make your own, and keep it in the fridge or freezer in portion sizes; it’s quite easy and the salt content is more easily controlled… https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-make-curry-roux/