JAZ

Exactly, Trillium. If there is such a list, it's undoubtedly very short. But I, personally, think there is a list, short though it may be. And that's what I was interesed in. Right. An entirely different question. Just to reiterate, I'm not talking about walking into a bar, asking for a martini and getting the martini of my dreams. I'm not talking about the bartender reading my mind about the type of gin (or vodka, as the case may be) or the type or amount of vermouth I prefer. I'm talking about walking into a bar, ordering a martini, and having a bartender who knows that a martini is made with gin (or vodka) and vermouth, and not -- say -- tequila and buttermilk. And, as I said upthread, I think that's a pretty reasonable expectation. That's why I used it as my primary example. Everything else I've suggested has been just that -- suggestions. Most of the drinks I mentioned are actually examples of drinks I don't have that expectation for -- an Aviation, a Bronx, a Negroni, etc. My gut feeling is that there are a few more drinks that should make that list of reasonable expectations. Not a lot -- but the Manhattan, maybe. Margarita, almost certainly (I mean, didn't we all get a kick out of the story on the Mixologist Incompetence thread where the poster asked for a Margarita and got tequila and Sprite?). Daiquiri? Maybe not -- I found it very interesting that on Charming's list, a Strawberry Daiquiri was listed, but not the basic drink. I personally have been surprised -- both pleasantly and less so -- by what individual bartenders know how to make and what they don't. I was suprised the first time, in response to my request for a Tanqueray Gimlet, the bartender said, quizzically, "That's with an onion, isn't it?" Yes, it was a neighborhood bar, not very sophisticated, but I was still surprised. I'm no longer surprised when a bartender doesn't know what goes in a Gimlet. But I am disappointed. On the other hand, I'm happy when I ask for a Negroni, and the bartender knows how to make it. I don't really expect that -- it's a nice surprise. In short, I don't expect a bartender to read my mind. I don't expect him or her to be a walking database of drinks. I do expect a base of knowledge about their craft. It's no different from any other profession. I mean, if I were talking with a professor of English, for example, I wouldn't necessarily expect her to be able to quote long passages of Shakespeare, but I would expect her to know that "To be or not to be, that is the question. . . " is from Hamlet. And as far as the food analogy goes, to me it's closer to this scenario: You hire a cook, you have certain expectations. You expect him or her to know the difference between a coarse dice and a fine mince; you (probably) expect him to know what a mirepoix is; you expect her to know how to make chicken stock; you (again, probably) expect her to know what goes in a bechemel. And that, it seems to me, would be regardless of whether you had dishes that called for mirepoix or bechemel.

I've had a food processor for years. Much of that time, I dragged it out when I was cooking for a crowd and needed to make coleslaw for 20 or that sort of thing. The rest of the time, it sat in the cupboard. Because I didn't have the space to keep it out, it usually seemed not worth the effort to get it out and assembled, and then put it all away when I was done. Now, however, I have enough space to keep it set up and plugged in, and I find I'm using it more and more. For example, when I need to grate a carrot or two, it's there and ready to grate. Now I use it for coleslaw for one or two. Suzanne's list of questions is a good one to ask. Also think about the time and effort it will take to to set it up, if you can't leave it set up.

I guess I wasn't clear in my original post. I'm not talking about "playing stump the bartender." I'm just trying to see if there's agreement on a basic list of drinks that a customer can reliably order in most any bar and expect the bartender to know how to make them. Another way to phrase it is this: if I walked into a bar -- any bar, anywhere in the States -- and asked for a Martini and the bartender said, "What's that?" I'd be worried. But if I walked into that same bar and asked for a Bronx, I wouldn't be surprised if the bartender didn't know how to make it. I wouldn't expect that he or she would know it. What I had in mind is the first sort of drink -- in addition to the Martini. So it's not a matter of what bartenders can "get by with" really, as Sam suggested. But I'm not talking about the ideal list at the ideal cocktailian bar, either. Somewhere in between, perhaps. Cheryl Charming's list (the link to which beans provided) is one answer -- I'd say I agree with some of it, but feel that there are gaps, and it lists drinks that I would not consider essential. ThinkingBartender's list is another -- it seems more reasonable to me. But maybe it's not possible, after all.

Here's an old thread with a wide variety of suggestions and opinions: Best gins

I'll echo this suggestion, and add that you should be sure to read their descriptions of the beers -- that helps in learning the terms used to describe certain styles of beers and will probably help you in choosing new beers reliably. And talk to the employees at brewpubs -- they love to talk about beer and will (in my experience) be happy to make suggestions when they know what you're looking for.

Of course you're right. But my point was more that, regardless of what drinks a particular bar or bartender serves regularly, there still seems to be a short list of drinks that any bartender should know how to make. The Aviation isn't one of them, but certainly every bartender should know how to make a Martini and a Manhattan, right? Are there others?

A couple of posts in the Mixologist Incompetence thread got me thinking about what drinks a bartender should be expected to know. Obviously, the drinks a bartender serves are dependent on the type of place and the location as well as other factors, but it seems to me that there's a list of drinks that any bartender worth his or her salt should know. In The Joy of Mixology, Gary Regan lists the drinks he thinks are essential, but I think he's asking a lot -- the Blood and Sand makes his list, as does the Twentieth Century Cocktail. Not that these aren't worthy drinks, but I'd hardly consider them essential. I would certainly not expect the average bartender to know them. But what are the essential drinks? Obviously, Martinis, Manhattans, Margaritas, Daiquiris, Old Fashioneds would make the list. I'd expect Gimlets and Gibsons too be on it as well. Rob Roys? I don't know. I used to expect bartenders to know how to make Sidecars, but have found that many do not. Here in San Francisco, most bartenders (even at divy little neighborhood bars) know how to make Negronis, but I suspect that's not usual. On the other hand, I once ordered an Americano at a nice hotel bar and the bartender there was clueless. As for newer drinks, I'd think that Cosmopolitans and Lemon Drops are a given. Mojitos, while not exactly new, are so popular here these days that it's a given that bartenders know how to make them. This is, of course, not a complete list but rather a suggestion of what sorts of drinks should be part of a well-trained bartender's repertoire. And it's also from the point of view of a patron, not a bartender. What does everyone else think?

No one's mentioned the Flama grill, so I will. It's got removable, reversible plates, ridged on one side and flat on the other, so you can use it as a griddle as well as a grill. And not that I'd put them in a dishwasher, but the fact that they're removable means you can soak them in the sink if necessary, plus they're much easier to clean. The grill can be opened to lay completely flat, so you can have double the grill (or griddle) space if you want to use it that way. Instead of having a floating top, it has three settings for differing thicknesses of sandwich. It has 5 settings as well. The Flama Panini Grill

Oh, Tito's! I haven't had that in ages. Now that's a vodka.

Since it was Vox's private event (Sur La Table simply provided the venue and we coordinated the logistics), it wasn't really appropriate for me to post about it in advance.

Oh yes, I did attend (coordinated the event, actually), and now I remember that as I was posting on the event, my possessed-by-Satan computer crashed, and I never did get back to the post. Thanks for reminding me. The event was fun – even after trying to accommodate the Vox vodka folks (who sponsored the event), the food caterers and the bar caterers, all of whom appeared never to have communicated at all. Logistics aside, it was a good event -- well attended by press people, a faint scattering of restaurant/bar employees, and other guests. Ben was great -- personable and funny and well spoken, plus he had a bar kit that would make anyone in the business salivate and paw over it. He did a wonderful demonstration with great examples of garnishes too. As it was sponsored by Vox, the cocktails served were vodka-based – three of the recipes in the article, in fact. The grape one was by far the most interesting: as with the “smoking martini” slkinsey mentions elsewhere, the neutral vodka provided a good backdrop for the wine. The fruits of the forest drink was pleasant if simple, although it did leave guests with odd bits of flowers stuck to their teeth and lips. Sort of cute. Quite frankly, I couldn’t bring myself to taste the melon thing. Sorry. And I bought the book, naturally. How could I not? As for a review: Well, it’s a great resource to find new and interesting drinks. It's also a beautiful book -- talk about Cocktail Porn! But I think that, somehow, cocktail books are seriously personal, and though I’m very glad to have this one in my collection, it hasn’t inspired me in the way that Paul Harrington’s Cocktails did, it hasn’t given me as much information as Gary Regan’s “Mixology” has, and it certainly hasn’t made me laugh out loud, as has Dave Wondrich’s Esquire Drinks book. But as it’s probably the only trendy sort of drink book I’ll own, it’s a good one for me to have.

Okay, this may sound weird -- and it's certainly a very unattractive drink -- but: One recent evening, after a dinner where I ate a little too much to be entirely comfortable, I came home and couldn't quite decide between a scotch on the rocks (which is what I really wanted) and a Fernet and soda (for the fullness). Something prompted me to mix the two, and godawful as it looked, it was very good. I'd say about 4 parts scotch to one part Fernet, and the merest whisper of soda.

I'm glad you liked it. And it's good to know they worked in a larger size. The one time I tried to make them larger, I used maybe two tablespoons of dough and the centers didn't get cooked by the time the edges were done, so they were gummy. I never tried it again.

There's always the French 75: Shake 1/4 oz each of gin, Cointreau and lemon juice over ice and pour into a chilled champagne flute. Top with champagne.

I should mention that with my cookie recipe (above), the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. That is, it doesn't sound like much, and as I mentioned, they're not the greatest looking cookies in the world. But trust me: once people try them, they can't stop eating them.

I love the look and feel of the bamboo boards, which is why I got one. But I agree that it's not a good cutting surface. However, I don't use it for cutting; I use it for serving cheese. I bought one of the new Epicurean boards, mostly because I got a good deal on it and the small one was the exact size I was looking for. It's fine -- lower maintenance than wood, doesn't seem to stain. It could go in the dishwasher if I had one. The chief drawback is that it slides all over the place -- worse than anything else I have. I've actually found that of all my cutting boards, the one I prefer is the poly board with the rubber back, precisely because it stays put, without having to put a damp cloth on the counter.

Here you go. You don't even need to use a mixer for these -- a spoon works fine. The only trick to them is that you can't make them very large -- the texture gets weird. I use a small cookie scoop but you can also use a pastry bag and squeeze out teaspoon-sized balls. Browned Butter Crisps 1/2 cup butter 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg 1 cup flour 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon cardamom pinch salt 1. In a small heavy saucepan, melt the butter and continue to cook until it browns. Watch carefully to make sure it doesn't burn. Let cool slightly. 2. In a large bowl, mix browned butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the egg and mix until smooth. 3. Stir the flour and spices until spices are distributed evenly; add to butter mixture and mix until blended thoroughly. 4. Drop by teaspoonfuls on parchment lined cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes, or until edges are turning golden and the tops have begun to crinkle. 5. Let cool on the sheets for a few seconds, then remove and cool completely.

Are you still looking for a cookie recipe? I make one most years for Christmas (and use it in a lot of classes) that's as close to foolproof as I know. It's easy too, and produces cookies that ship very well. It's a sort of butter cookie, but calls for browned butter, so the flavor is sort of caramel-like. They're flavored with a hint of cinnamon and cardamom. The only drawback is that they're not the most visually stunning cookies in the world. Let me know; I'll post the recipe if you're interested.

New places (new to me, that is) to try: Quince Petit Robert Frisson Plouf Places I'd like to go back to soon: Incanto Fringale Nizza La Bella* * Nizza La Bella's in Albany. Everything else is in SF

As Marlena mentioned and Squeat reported, the Chronicle's cooking classes are now going to be held at the Ferry Building (click here for article). The classes are reasonably priced and sound interesting. But I'm curious about how well they'll do. I have heard that the original slate of Chronicle classes weren't very well attended. Frankly, I'm not surprised -- and this has nothing to do with the quality of the classes they offer, by any means. It's just that, well, San Francisco, for all its food oriented citizens, doesn't seen to the the most successful place for cooking classes. The Maiden Lane Sur La Table, where I work, has suspended its regular cooking classes in favor of private team buildings and other private classes/parties. Those are wildly popular. But the regular classes? Unless it was a Hubert Keller or a Jacques Torres teaching, it was hit or miss whether we'd even get enough students to hold the class. Honestly, we could never figure out why. It's a "foodie" town. Lots of classes on lots of topics in venues all over the Bay Area, taught by a wide variety of instructors -- was it too much competition? And how important is venue? Will the Chronicle classes be more successful in the Ferry Building? I know the SLT classes that involved shopping tours were always among the most popular -- maybe that will prove to be a key. What do you all think?

Well, then, I guess I'll just have to organize my schedule so I can make it there before work some Saturday. Thanks for that visual image; it's been ages since I've thought of Senor Wences. Back when I did go to the market on Saturdays, it seemed that all the stands serving prepared food were in the back, which led to massive traffic jams in that area. Is that still the case?

If you don't count lunch places, it'd be Chou Chou, Chenery Park and Incanto. If you do count lunch places, it'd be Lee's, Briazz, and the salad/juice bar place on Sutter by the post office, which I never remember the name of.

Well, I can see marinating London Broil, but that's cooked "dry" and quickly. If you're braising short ribs, I can't see the reason either (three hours braising in wine or beer will make the toughest short rib meat fall off the bone).

I have a great recipe somewhere for sweet potato and apple soup. It calls for pureeing and adding cream, but it's great without the cream too.

Well, I experiemented a little with Cynar and Boodles, and have a starting point, at least. 1 1/2 oz. Boodles 1/2 oz. triple sec 1/2 oz. lemon juice 1/4 oz. Cynar Shake over ice and serve up.