BigboyDan

Robin and jfl91 have it right. But, IF between the two, go with the 70 IF you can have some idea how it has been treated. Drinking the 88 offers nothing to your life.

I do this in a dutch pay situation: I always pick up the check and I pay the tab. Then, I have everyone pay me their part of the bill and what part of the tip they wish to offer. When I pay the waiter, then I leave a minimum of two dollars per person served or 20%, which ever is higher.

Grillin' ain't barbecuin', sweetie. And if anyone thinks that grillin' or barbecuin' can be done with gas... * shudder *

Be sure to visit Alain Chapel in Mionnay (just north of Lyon), I worked there in 1979. The restaurant was once a three-star, now two after Chapel's death; Jousse, has been the chef there since. The inn has several beautiful guestrooms, and the whole atmosphere of the place is just wonderful in the Summer. http://www.alainchapel.fr/

Should be fun.

I know Wright, he's now near 40 years-old with a French technique background. If he is to be hired, then the Mansion did indeed want a new menu.

25 minutes for a 5 pounder: Lobsters Online

Wow! Indeed.

Here's what I always have in a small container in my pickup truck: a small bottle of tobasco; packets of castup, sweet and sour, salt, pepper; alka seltzer, asprin, ibuprofin; napkins, plastic knives, spoons, and forks; a $20 bill; and a bottle of water.

russ parsons stated: ...the only chef i can think of who actually got new mexican cooking right in a creative format was john sedlar, who had the lamented st. estephe in manhattan beach here in southern california. it was no accident that sedlar had long roots to new mexico (iirc, his aunt was georgia o'keefe's chauffeur). john was able to distill the flavors of new mexico to their essences. This statement is so true. The rest of the Modern Southwestern Cuisine bunch: Del Grande, Miller, Fearing, Pyles, and Greer, were all California trained or influenced (Alice Waters and Jeremiah Tower) and it showed. Menu item: Duck Tamales with Maple Syrup and Ancho Glaze along side Shrimp and Chorizo Bread Pudding. Please. Interesting how tastes change and evolve. In 1990, when the Southwestern Cuisine was in full bloom the restaurant guide Gayot had Coyote Cafe rated as one of the Best 40 Restaurants in the USA, now the guide has the Cafe rated 10/20, as mediocre. There are many places in the Santa Fe area that do enchiladas and chiles very well, but the best of today's Southwestern cuisine has been re-simplified and narrowed back to that which Sedlar cooked...

You can get Cheddar in Paris, of course; also, the Tex-Mex and American diner places around the city use it.

Not a bargin if several courses, especially a range (here seafood), are "substandard" to everything else - you tellin' me that they can't cook fish? This is a real problem at some 3-stars: weak courses. Infuriating.

Pacific Restaurant Supply on E. Hastings will order you one, and you'll have it in three days.

...eventually the Terrails will leave, and it will begin anew...

There is no real difference between the two - same quality, same price range. Fleur de Lys has a more Frenchy feel to the dining room, while La Folie is in a more modern setting. Choose from that...

Yep.

Mark's is fine, but nothing great; there are a couple of hundred restaurants doing it better across the US. It's just that there is such a derth of anything really good in Houston, that Mark's stands out. Mark's is voted best in Houston by Zagat but correctly rates 16/20 from Gayot... oh well.

Mark's is OK. Really. It still blows me away that Houston doesn't have at least one great restaurant...

My favorite high-end places in München: Tantris, Johann-Fichte-Str. 7 80805 München; ph. 089 3619590 Königshof, Karlsplatz 25 80335 München; ph. 089 55136142 Acquarello, Mühlbaurstr. 36 81677 München; ph. 089 4704848 Orientel Mark's Restaurant, Neuturmstr. 1 80331 München; ph. 089 290980 Schuhbeck's, Platzl 6-8 80331 München, 089 2166900

Mmmmmm, birch bear, soft pretzels, hoagies; friendly people. Oops went to far...

Two Fats Ladies were great. The best cooking shows on the tube are from Pepin, still great after all these years; and the absolutely magnificent America's Test Kitchen. As far as the celebs go, I only like Ming...

Frankly, the blue steel pans are obsolete in a professional kitchen.

Generally an Anglo marinara sauce is a spaghetti dish made in the pan, sauteed with fresh tomatos; not a sauce that is stewed for a great length of time in a pot. Ingredients vary, but it is normally made with fresh white fish and mussels, if it's not with vegetables only.

Bigboy is a nickname I got from my uncle because he said that my early teenage personality reminded him of the lead character, Big Boy Matson, in The Hi-Lo Country by Max Evans - no other reason for it.

I'm even more specific about my choice in mayo: Hellman's. Actually, my first job as an apprentice in a French kitchen (Pantry, I was 18) was to make the condiments from scratch - mayo, mustards, steak sauce, salad dressings.