huiray

I dislike microwaved broccoli. To me, it tends to stink. It also lacks the "mouth-feel" that blanching it in oiled simmering water gives it.

Soup & Salad. Tomato soup. EV olive oil, chopped-up onion, chopped-up celery, tomato flesh w/ juices, sea salt, water, fresh basil, simmer, break up w/ a stick blender, simmer. Served w/ a generous dollop of basil pesto & basil sprigs. On the way there: tomatoes [Van Antwerp Farm] after de-skinning and de-seeding. Salad. Red-leaf lettuce hearts, cooked (fresh) soybeans; sugar snap peas & peeled baby potatoes both just-barely cooked (separately, though) in salted simmering water; golden beets cooked to crunchy tenderness & de-skinned; hard-boiled eggs; chopped parsley. ETA: ...and sliced wong nga pak (Napa cabbage) leaves. Vinaigrette made w/ whole-grain Dijon mustard [Maille], EV olive oil [Alziari], Agrodolce Bianco Delizia Estense, Maldon salt, turbinado sugar.

I've been sampling the "2 McPicks for $5" at a few places in my area, devoting it to just the Filet-o-Fish. Not bad. But, as has been mentioned, the slice of American cheese has shrunk to approximately a quarter-slice. Regrettable. Still, in most places it is "melted in" insofar as *that* goes. :-) Some places give what *seems* like a little bit more cheese, but overall they aren't THAT substantially different from place to place - but some places do do it just slightly better than others. I have a couple places that I will be returning to for more. The pics below do not account for all theF-o-F's I've had. A couple places had me wishing for a 3rd F-o-F after I had eaten the second one. Nowhere served me a F-o-F with a quart of tartar sauce; in fact, I would have asked for more if I had been ordering one of these at some other time - and being charged for the "more" nowadays, of course, whereas in years past there was no extra charge. A sampling of F-o-F sandwiches from three places: #1 #2; and #3 with the bottom bun peeled back (& torn) to show the"melted-in cheese".

I am guessing you went to the McD's in the mall across from the Sheraton & Convention Center. Hmm - did you notice this place on Google Maps, just a short distance away and very close to Dock's?

Perhaps you might have been thinking of what I described as blanching in simmering water to which some oil has been added. That I often do, with many types of vegetables, then dress with a sauce of my choice. I described it previously in this post. As for bamboo/metal steamers here's what I said in another old post. Other posters (e.g. Keith_W, Dejah) not residing in mainland China also chimed in on that thread about steamers.

Earlier in the day... Soft boiled eggs. Drunk straight from the bowl. Slurp, chew, gulp. Then... Boiled edamame w/ Maldon salt. Later on... Chinese take-out from a local place.** Hot & sour soup. Added some chopped scallions. Quite good, actually. General Tso's Chicken (左宗棠雞; Jyutping zo2 zung1 tong4 gai1). With rice. There was more of both. :-) **ETA: From this place.

Ah. What is his dialect group? GTC is an American-Chinese dish, so I would not expect it to appear in that "All Under Heaven" book. I would murmur that American-Chinese cuisine can be considered as an acknowledged cuisine in its own right.

Yes. It's his job, for which he is being paid a salary. If he walked out before the entire meals (multiple) were done he would be accused of not giving the restaurant a thorough and fair review, for all the dishes served. I would consider it dereliction of duty. As for the two-star rating - the profile on him linked to here explains why he did so.

Fedelini with basil pesto. Plus simply-done broccoli.

You're in New Jersey, USA. Was this in NYC or a Chinese restaurant in NE New Jersey? If so, it's possible the chap in question was from Fujian/"Fook-chow" or Jiangsi/"Kong-si" or related areas (i.e. a Wu dialect speaker) --- I *think* the pronunciation would then be closer to "chu" (as you describe) or "tsu"? FWIW the Cantonese for it would be zo2 in Jyutping, and Cantonese is still a widely-spoken dialect (if not necessarily the dominant one) in many areas in North America. (Certain forms of Fujianese would compete with Cantonese in NYC, I believe, and possibly NE Jersey; newer Chinese-heritage immigrants I suppose would speak standard pinyin/Mandarin more routinely) For myself I can't remember the last time I ate General Tso's Chicken. A long time ago, anyway, even if I guess I have had it in the past. ETA: I think I ought to check out a plate or two of it again, soon. :-)

Beans with grilled octopus. The softer, hexagonal variant of oyster crackers served with Cincy chili. See here and here too.

If you are looking to go to Dock's perhaps its sister-restaurant Knife and Fork might also be a consideration (not inexpensive steak house). Or, for a fun scene, Chef Vola's, from what I read. Also, Cafe 2825 also gets some love on other boards.

Ligurian-type-inspired pasta w/ pesto. Fresh basil pesto made w/ a French-Italian inflection (basil, garlic (Music), pine nuts, Pecorino Romano, Parmigiana Reggiano, Maussane-les-Alpilles olive oil, plus some Arbequina olive oil). French filet beans (both yellow & green) cooked in simmering salted water. Ozette fingerlings cooked similarly. Torcetti pasta [The Fresh Market] cooked in the same pot of water. All assembled & tossed in large bowl. Plated, dressed w/ fresh basil & additional Parmigiano Reggiano.

A dry ramen plate. Yakisoba last night. Two farm-fresh eggs beaten w/ some salt, hon-mirin, sake, water, ground white pepper, oil. "Flash fried" in a very hot pan w/ generous oil for a bubbly lightly-browned omelette (less than a minute in all), removed & reserved, roughly "chopped" into strips. A bit more oil in the pan, then lots of sliced lightly-crushed garlic (Music), some of the white parts (sliced thinly on the diagonal) of an entire large-ish negi, toss/stir quickly; chopped hakusai (wong nga pak; Napa cabbage), stir in on high heat; the yakisoba seasoning packets (2) from the nama yakisoba package [Maruchan] (fresh yakisoba), then still-wet fresh yakisoba (from the package) rinsed under hot water, stir in, splash some water in, stir/turn over; add back in the reserved egg strips and the rest of the sliced white-parts of the negi, final toss & stir. Plate, garnish w/ the green parts of the negi, a quick drizzle of Bulldog tonkatsu sauce.

A riff on canh đậu hũ hẹ. This one had: chicken stock, water, oil, minced sirloin, halved unpeeled straw mushrooms [Dragonfly], soft tofu chunks, yellow Chinese chives (garlic chives). Chopped scallions. Afterwards, a nice eclair from Rene's Bakery.

Last night. Pasta w/ tuna, tomatoes, capers. EV olive oil [Maussane-les-Alpilles Fruité Noir], medium heat; chopped smashed garlic, diced Vidalia onion, soften but not brown; several olive-oil-packed anchovy fillets [Bella Famiglia], mash up, gentle sauté till they "dissolve" into the mix; white tuna in olive oil [Ortiz, El Velero Bonito del Norte] with some of the oil as well, break up a bit, gentle stir-around/fold-in; some hot red chile flakes, Salina salted capers (rinsed, soaked), stir/gentle sauté; chopped Cherokee Purple tomatoes, stir in, fishing out skins as the tomato pieces soften; just-cooked wet linguine [Rustichella d'Abruzzo], fold in on heat; chopped parsley [from my deck]. Plus sautéed long flat pole beans. The beans ("fagioli corallo") were cut French-style into shorter segments, blanched in simmering water to which a shot of "kan sui" (potassium carbonate/sodium bicarbonate solution) had been added, drained, rinsed; then sautéed w/ sliced garlic (olive oil) and some Agrodolce Bianco Delizia Estense (this one) splashed in just before the end. (The blanching in alkaline water "fixes" the green, at least for a while, in the subsequent presence of acid from the white balsamic vinegar; yes, they eventually still turn olive-y green but it takes a while)

Neither appeals to me, nor even the notion of doing those things. I'm NOT a vegetarian/vegan and am certainly an omnivore - but in the E/SE Asian style, as that is what I am by heritage. I eat vegetables as vegetables, and cook and treat vegetables as what they are, and am not perturbed by the absence of meat in many of my meals. I am amused by the deceit that vegetarian burgers have to look and taste like meat. It's pandering, in my view, and even a little cowardly - insofar as it applies to the carnivorous Western diet. Why not simply rejoice in those vegetarian dishes without pretense that it looks and tastes like meat!!! Sigh. But I suppose I am not the demographic you are looking for.

Various meals. Another round of phở. (see here for the prep) Ran out of normal limes so grabbed some fresh calamansi limes from the plant on the deck. Raw shaved ribeye, tendon, tripe, raw onion slices, chopped scallions, broth augmented by simmering more w/ the oxtail meat + recovered fatty marrow & etc from the bones. Calamansi limes, sawtooth coriander, Thai basil, coriander, bean sprouts. Pad woon sen, the night's version. Hot peanut oil, garlic, dark meat chicken, some of a sauce mixture, poblano pepper, sweet red Carmen pepper, white onion, eggs, presoaked glass noodles, rest of the sauce mixture, Thai basil, bean sprouts. Sauce mixture: Fish sauce, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sang chau, sesame oil, white pepper, Shaohsing wine. Soup. Shaved ribeye & tong ho (茼蒿) in some of the Phở broth/stock diluted down w/ water. A tofu & mince rice plate. Hot peanut oil, chopped smashed garlic, sliced young ginger (season's fresh crop), minced sirloin, hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, Bulldog tonkatsu sauce, soft tofu block crumbled by hand into the pan, lots and lots of chopped scallions. White rice.

And, just for the hell of it, here's a clip taken by Kat Kinsman (one of those at that meal, referred to in the New Yorker article) of Jason Biggs having a good time. https://twitter.com/kittenwithawhip/status/765991106949554176?ref_src=twsrc^tfw

Heh. I didn't know how useful they were too until Rob described them... And it seems they are one of the most useful things around. http://www.ediblewildfood.com/cattail.aspx http://www.eattheweeds.com/cattails-a-survival-dinner/

This episode (season opener) is airing on September 25. http://www.eater.com/2016/9/6/12818530/parts-unknown-anthony-bourdain-obama-season-8

Glad folks appear to enjoy the article. Here's an Eater article on this. :-) Sadly, the NYC Señor Frogs has closed. Eater.com put out a follow-up article on the New Yorker profile: http://ny.eater.com/2016/9/6/12812332/pete-wells-profile-8-things-we-learned A commenter there remarked that Chang did not come over well. I myself would agree.** As for the review on Momofuku Nishi, for those interested here it is. ** As an aside, I for one look askance at the adulation heaped upon Chang here in the USA. His vaunted pork buns, just as one example, are but a rework of a dish/preparation that has been known and eaten for years and years in E/SE Asia; and food bloggers etc (some of whom I respect) in those locales have laughed at this weird adulation in the States of this pork bun, and at the notion held by some that he even invented it (not!).

It sounds like something not dissimilar from what a burger joint in my area serves - see here, scroll down to the fries. Yes, it gets soggy fast. You have to eat it while it's still hot, right after they toss the fries w/ the dressing. You need a fork after 5 minutes or so (at best) if you haven't scarfed it down yet. And if the fries were not cooked in hot-enough oil (i.e. they were slightly greasy to start with) they go downhill even faster. So, getting it from the drive-thru at a McD, with time delays between the fries being done , the holding of them, the dressing, etc - then driving away then eventually opening the wrapped-up fries (steaming away under the waxed paper or whatever) may not be the best idea anyway, if that is anything like what might have happened? (and the steamed hot parmesan just converts to oil...)

A New Yorker article written by one Ian Parker, who accompanied Pete Wells and talked with for a bit of time, and who wrote about the way in which Wells does his reviewing and some of what goes into them. Plus other associated stuff. http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/09/12/pete-wells-the-new-york-times-restaurant-critic

I don't remember having lettuce or tomato slices with a Filet-O-Fish in the USA nor even back in the 70's in the UK. But my memory may be playing tricks on me. Still, I don't think I *want* lettuce and tomato with it. I think it is complete the way I've had it served, with a slice of American cheese and lots of tartar sauce. No fancy cheeses please, no special chopped-pickles-tartar sauce on it. For myself, the F-O-F is fine for what it is. It isn't gourmet food. Sure, it was better years ago - but time marches on and nostalgic reminiscences are subject to the Law of Diminishing Returns. It is not eGullet-oh-so-special food. Just eat it. Well, I do - and like it - and would always willingly eat one and seek it out when I am in the mood.