melkor

I use my microwave to defrost stocks, melt butter, and dry fresh herbs. That's pretty much the whole list. Microwaved food has a foul texture and it never cooks evenly.

Good wine needs to be in balance, acidity is a critical component but hardly the entire story. There are delicious age worthy reds with low acidity and high acidity, the same is true of whites. A crisp acidic vinho verde, or NZ sauv blanc won't age at all yet a lush white burgundy will age for decades. Beaujolais nouveau is plenty acidic, more so than most vintage ports yet 6 months after release the nouveau will be awful and the port will have another 30 years before it hits its stride. Acidic whites are in general better able to age, german riesling, and the sweet wines of the loire are prime examples of that. Reds on the other hand, I think tannin does the lions share of the work. That isn't to say any tannic red will age gracefully, but a high acid red with little tannin will end up thin and sloppy in old age.

Cooking anything in an oven full of burning grease isn't going to make it taste good... You'd need to add liquid throughout the cooking process, a half inch when the bird goes in the oven would be gone in short order. You've got other issues if your oven smells like its on fire when its simply running at 500*F. It'd almost certainly work in a good oven if you added a bit of stock every half hour or so, I'd probably also rotate the bird in the rack at the same time.

I've had several California wines from the 70s and 80s in the past year that have been very good, I'm not saying they can't age - more that they generally aren't aged. There are a lot of good wines made in California, I'd bet that a fair number of these cult wines are picked around 28 brix and the must is dealt with accordingly to prevent the wine from ending up at 17% ABV while producing that bright fruit that makes people buy Napa cabs.

I don't see why it would be hard to roast a turkey at high temps, you'd just need to add stock from time to time so the bird and roasting pan stay moist. It'd be a huge pain in the ass, but I'm thinking about roasting 4 small turkeys for thanksgiving to see how this high-temp thing turns out. Two birds at high temp, two at low, one of each being a regular white turkey the other two being heritage breeds. I'm not sure I want to occupy both of my ovens for that much of the day and air-drying 4 birds seems like a giant hassle. We'll see.

28 brix will net somewhere around 16 or 17% alcohol on its own (with the right yeast of course), but reverse-osmosis and the addition of 'jesus units' and other wine making tricks can bring that level down to the 14.5%-15.5% range that these wines are bottled at. Winemakers think that super ripe grapes will get them thee top scores from Parker and the Spectator so that's what they are doing. The general trend in California seems to be moving farther away from age worthy wines while focusing on instant gratification. There isn't anything wrong with that, especially with the more heavily allocated wines being sold mostly for on premise consumption rather than to wine shops where they are likely to be consumed less than a year after release. I'd also argue that higher alcohol levels don't prevent a wine from being age worthy, look at the wines that are made in the Rhone during ripe vintages; Janasse, Pegau, Avril, Vieux Telegraphe, etc - all over 14% alcohol, all of their better cuvees need a decade or more of rest in the cellar before they reach their peak.

Bouchon of course, twice actually (both reservations are for lunch). We're also going to check out Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen. Other than that, we'll play it by ear. I have no desire this trip to commit myself to multi-coursed, multi-hour meals with white tablecloths and foam and gelees, and torchons and what not. Just bistro food, casual environments, and lots and lots of good wine. ← Don't miss the Martini House - it fits the description of what you are looking for perfectly.

Of course she didn't invent simple cooking. But her restaurant has directly or indirectly trained an entire generation of chefs and it really is impossible to ingore the impact it has had on cooking in the region.

Patterson makes a perfectly valid point that successful restaurants in the Bay Area for the most part share the Chez Panisse philosophy of preparing simple and delicious dishes using great ingredients. Why torture the Frog Hollow peaches we get all summer into something unrecognizable, when a simple grilled peach with crème fraiche is so satisfying? Have you seen the greens that White Crane is selling at the Ferry Plaza farmers market? They clearly should be served in a simple way. Chefs here have the luxury of serving amazing fresh ingredients year round - no need to truck your veg across the country. The short winter days bring an end to the peppers, tomatoes, and stone fruit but they also bring the mushrooms, citrus and winter greens. What I disagree with is Patterson’s argument that the result is bad. Delfina, Incanto, A16, Zuni, Quince, 1550 Hyde, etc, etc, etc are all serving seriously delicious food. Isn’t the point supposed to be making food that tastes good? The now defunct Antidote in Sausalito is a prime example of a restaurant that ignored the advice offered by Chez Panisse 25 years ago that you should do what’s best for the ingredients and the end result will be good. Their food by many accounts was awful and they closed their doors. Winterland is a ghost town; they are on the same path as Antidote went down. It isn’t that people don’t want to eat interesting food, people want to enjoy their food.

Who could pass up world famous anything?

I've only driven past the Willie Bird restaurant/shop, the Monday before Thanksgiving will be my first visit - might as well eat something while I'm picking up the bird. The generic Willie Bird turkeys are $2/lb at the shop and the Bourbon Reds are $4/lb, a much better deal than the Heritage USA $7-$8/lb birds.

I haven't been in about 6 months, but it was very good then. This is a great time of year to eat there - wild mushrooms are in full swing and the Martini House is one of the best places to enjoy them.

I was just there tonight and had their white truffle tagliatelle, it was really excellent.

I've had the truffle menu at La Toque though not in the past couple of years. My experience was very positive.

The Bourbon Red breed is apparently a heritage breed - I found the willie bird info in an old slow food press release. I've been cooking the normal Williebird turkeys for the past few years, I'm interested to see how different this one will be.

Williebird Bourbon Red turkeys are selling for $4/lb at their shop near Santa Rosa CA. Count me out of the $100 turkey club. I've got some sympathy for you $100 turkey people, if I couldn't get a good bird locally the cost of shipping would make any good bird cost that much.

I think Gayot is significantly more flawed than the rest, the Times and Michelin at least pay for their own meals...

I have no first-hand experience with one, but I've heard only good things about the machine. Before I upgrade from my e61 HX machine I'm waiting for the residential LM machine that is supposed to be coming out next year..

Seriously, who cares is zagat covers the central coast? They offer nothing more than an easy way to find the address and phone number for restaurants listed in the guide.

I've got a bit of turkey fat in the freezer, it isn't as good as chicken or duck fat, but it makes a great roux and will work for roasting veg. It'll also work in a pinch to top up your fat collection for confit.

I use subterraneum in oakland. Good prices, nice people, and easy to get to (right off the highway).

Bof. In the first place, why are you taking what was obviously a rhetorical question so literally? Second, I wasn't referring to the number of people who are able or likely to lay down $5K for a home espresso machine but rather the percentage of home espresso enthusiasts (including the Silvia/E61 crowd) who would covet such a machine and be able to afford it. Quite different groups. That said, thanks for the price quote. ← First, because I am a moron . Second, you're welcome. Third, does anyone actually talk like this? I'd seriously consider a $4,500 machine if it really is the end-all be-all espresso machine. My Isomac makes great drinks but isn't as consistent as I'd like it to be and it doesn't do a very good job of steaming and brewing at the same time. I'd like it to be able to steam faster, hold its temp better, and be able to drain directly as I've overflown the drip tray more times than I'd like to admit.

Absolutely. Duck fat is the key. Oil will work, but it isn't as tasty and I wouldn't age the confit in oil the same way you can in animal fat.

The La Marzocco looks like it'll cost around US$4,500. I think you may be mistaken on the number of people who can afford it. They aren't trying to sell to the existing E61HX/Silvia part of the population, they are targeting the people who already own commercial equipment and are using it at home and the people who are spending $100k+ remodeling their kitchen where another $4,500 won't make any difference anyway.

I honestly don't pay much attention to the price of drinks in bars. Katie said earlier in the thread "And the upscale customers continue to bitch about getting "price gouged" by nicer establishments with higher costs.". I'm just offering my 2 cents on the topic as someone who has a drink or two at a bar maybe twice a month - my math comes from the example provided earlier in the thread. Bars can charge whatever they want, but how can you say that a restaurant bar can be a huge source of profit and that the customers are wrong for thinking their drinks are overpriced? I don't think your food cost example is relevant. If someone shows up at your house and asks for a martini, you'll smile and make them one - not so if they knock on the door looking for a plate of fresh pasta with clams, pancetta, and chilis. One takes a couple of minutes to make and most people have the ingredients on hand, the other takes an hour plus cleanup and requires some skill and ingredients most people don't have on hand.