weinoo

After 30 years or so of using mismatched this and that (from Ikea, to Crate and Barrel, to Fishs Edd)y, I took the plunge and put together service for 8 from this brand at BBB: Nevaeh White® by Fitz and Floyd® Didn't do mugs, as I've got a nice collection of mugs, and they're only used for the 2 of us. I got 8 (9 of everything, actually) dinner plates, salad plates, shallow soup bowls, luncheon plates, appetizer plates, little dessert/app bowls. For the stuff that I know I'd never use at a dinner party, I took 5 of those; for example, cereal bowls, and I got zero coffee cups and saucers. One of the reasons I wasn't looking at sets is simply because they all seem to come with something I don't think I'd use. Coffee cups, weird bowls, whatever. Of course, if you're serving high tea or brunches, your needs are certainly different.

I was ahead of my time.

I tip 20% on the total bill (after tax) at restaurants; but if I'm comped a drink or a dish, that tip goes up proportionately. At my regular places (i.e. the places we go weekly), the tip tends to be 25%. At fancier bars, $3 a drink; at my local bars, it's hard to figure, but they get tipped handsomely. I don't get groceries delivered. Food delivery guys get $4 or $5; I'm not usually ordering food for delivery that costs more than $25 or $30.

I think you might want to do a little research into porcelain, bone porcelain, etc. Some stuff is made to last, without getting scratched or chipped; some stuff, not so much.

Stay hydrated. Say hello to Don and John.

At this point, my biggest concern is that @rotuts has not participated in this damn thread!

Hmmmm...very cheffy. Yes - the PB acting the same as butter on a tartine, and keeping the bread from getting soggy.

We're not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy!

I can see I've touched a nerve. In any event, I didn't have any squirting out of the middle of my sandwich today; but I was frugal with the jam. Or was it jelly? And no one goes for cashew or almond butter, it appears.

Nope, not joking; it's what I made for lunch, but with peanut butter (Wf's organic, freshly ground peanuts) on both slices of (Breads Bakery's 7-grain) bread and then Favorit Swiss Preserves of red cherry in the middle. I'm a heathen! And I forgot that when I was a kid, peanut butter was allowed, gluten-free didn't exist, and we all managed to reach our youthful middle age. Then again, I was often told to go play outside - in the streets of Forest Hills.

So - I'm making myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch today. And I'm stymied by a few things. Peanut butter on both sides and then jelly in the middle? Peanut butter on one side and jelly on the other? Favorite nut butter? Cause peanut isn't really a nut, is it? But - it's what I like. Favorite jelly? Jam? Preserves? HELP!

I find that soap and water does the trick.

I keep a pair of these at the ready, next to my sink, at all times. Makes it quick and painless to do a quick wash up of a big, dirty bowl, blender jar, etc.

I almost never put mixing bowls, pots or pans in the d/w. And never put any knives or wooden stuff in there either. This stuff gets washed and put away as it's used. I can go 3 or 4 days without running the d/w this way. And then I use the dishwasher for, ummm, dishes.

Melissa Clark does a nice job in this ice cream primer. How To Make Ice Cream

We're paying $2 each for these medium sized ones (4225). But I guess the industry calls them "large."

I often avoid using eggs because I like the taste of good cream. Also, it's easier for me to make Philadelphia stye ice cream. I find cream to milk 2:1 works nicely.

Ceraldi gets an award... Boston Magazine

This morning's.

It's getting hot... So it's time for cold (vegetarian) borscht, with boiled baby potatoes, sour cream, and dill. Served with a big salad.

I had never made a sherbet, but when a friend linked to a recipe for Roasted Strawberry Buttermilk sherbet, and when I was able to get excellent strawberries at the greenmarket, I forged ahead, and was delighted with the results... Now, it's certainly not as creamy as a great ice cream, or as wonderfully delicious as a great gelato, but it's easy and good!

It's funny, but when I make gelato, I use milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, and maybe fruit - and it comes out great. The above reads like a chemistry experiment.

Anna - what's exactly a separate sprayer?

As we're moving forward with a gut kitchen renovation, and we've dialed in base cabinet sizes to fit in our NYC apartment galley kitchen, I'm wondering what sink/faucet combo people love. Or hate. Would buy again. Would never look at again. Sink cabinet will be 30" wide, no disposal.

Phil works a couple of nights a week at the Long Island Bar, in Brooklyn. Give them a call to see when he's behind the stick. All of the bars you mention are quite good. If I were going to add one or two to your Death & Co. wish, I'd be at Pegu Club 1st, because it really was the incubator for so many more. Dead Rabbit, Pouring Ribbons, Attaboy (nee Milk and Honey - RIP) are all fine too. The restaurants you mention all seem to me to be mentioned because of maybe how hip they are or were, or because of the scene, etc. But I think there are better choices for the actual food. For Italian, for instance, Rubirosa would be my choice above Monte's. We're big fans of Wildair, for a great wine list, excellent food and fine service. No reservations, so get there early-ish, or you might have to wait. When we have to wait, we go next door to its sister restaurant Contra, where they have good cocktails. King is great, recently reviewed in the NYT. We also very much enjoyed our 2 meals at The Beatrice Inn. And it's hopping. I don't know much about Shabu Tatsu; when we want Japanese food (non-sushi) in that neighborhood, we hit Sobaya, for their house made, awesome cold soba noodles. For hot pot style dining, we're fans of Hot Kitchen. For my money, the best burger is still to be had at J.G. Melon's, though Minetta Taverns' and others are good too. The newest McNally restaurant, Augustine, is fun to check out, but the real killer is the 9-story atrium lobby bar between it and Tom Colicchio's Fowler and Wells, in the classic building at 5 Beekman Place. For breakfast, I highly recommend Russ and Daughters cafe. If you'd like delicious dumplings and other dim sum, I'm still a fan of Nom Wah, on Doyers Street. Oh yeah, Staten Island ferry is great for stupendous views of lower Manhattan. And free. And you can get into the Met museum for anything you wish to pay. But the new Whitney is a stunner as well. And I'm still a fan of hot dogs at Katz's (on their griddle) or the original Gray's Papaya (72nd and Broadway). And since it's the season, a walk (early) around the greenmarket at Union Square is fun - Wed, Friday or Saturday for the most vendors.