hjshorter

None of that homemade stuff for us. No no no. We don't even do gourmet takeout. Papa John's pizza, with the crusts lovingly dipped in the "garlic grease," or burgers on fluffy white buns with (gasp) Heinz ketchup and French's mustard, or frozen waffles with sausage and a ton of maple syrup. If it's a really ugly week, that calls for hot dogs with hormel chili and tater tots. Then the popcorn with 4 Tbs. of butter. And a Disney movie, since the kids are too little for "Ugly Betty" or the like.

I had the great pleasure of cooking with Ronnie at Varmint's second Pig Pickin', and of lunching with him (and Maggie, and the g-man) at Nuevo Leon during my last trip to Chicago. You're a great cook, a veritable salami inspiration, and one of the all-around good guys. I'll be back in your town someday, dude, and not just because of the great Mexican food.

My family did this too, there was always a stack of bread on a lunch plate, and alongside (sigh) was a tub of Parkay margarine. Any casserole can become a sandwich filling.

I won't go so far as to sing the praises of Wonder bread. But brioche, challah, a proper hard roll (which isn't very hard), Parker House rolls, onion rolls...yeah, I'm with you. I've never seen a burger on crusty bread, but a burger on a kaiser roll is awful. BLTs, dainty tea sandwiches, tuna salad on toast, and tomato & mayo sandwiches wouldn't be the same without Pepperidge Farm white bread.

It's not a waning tradition at my house. Both my kids come home starving. Some of their favorites are milk and half a sandwich, apple slices with peanut butter, cheese and crackers, and cold cereal. I had forgotten about the english muffin pizza - we may try that this week.

I am about 99.9% sure that Michel would agree with you. Don't smokers spend more?As an occasional smoker (only when drinking, and only around certain people), I am of two minds about this. One the one hand, I feel comfortable bringing my family to more places. On the other, when I am out late at night without the kids it would be nice to have a damn cigarette with my drink. I am down to smoking once or twice a month, so it's probably for my own good.

I was pretty unreasonably hung over this morning. We had lentil soup from the Bouchon recipe. Actually, my husband and kids had it since I was out. Apparently it was pretty good since I didn't get any.

In a way, though, that makes sense. You choose a place to eat from the available choices where you happen to be at the time, so those restaurants are measured against each other. You don't choose from restaurants all over the country when you're deciding where to eat on a particular evening. ← Yes, but it's ridiculous to think that a place in Carson City is going to be then equivalent of Per Se or Alain Ducasse. I have learned to give the Zagat rating about as much weight as I give the local paper's food critic, wherever we happen to be. ← Michelin is far more reliable, even for bib gourmand type places.

In a way, though, that makes sense. You choose a place to eat from the available choices where you happen to be at the time, so those restaurants are measured against each other. You don't choose from restaurants all over the country when you're deciding where to eat on a particular evening. ← Yes, but it's ridiculous to think that a place in Carson City is going to be then equivalent of Per Se or Alain Ducasse. I have learned to give the Zagat rating about as much weight as I give the local paper's food critic, wherever we happen to be.

Buzz, in Alexandria VA is spoken of highly. And DC has Mayorga coffee roasters, good coffee and they have a cafe in downtown Silver Spring.

This is the best definition of love and manners I've ever heard. ← Agreed. Here's what I said about that in the Food vs. Family thread.

If someone takes you out, and pays for your meal, but doesn't order anything for herself, would that make you feel uncomfortable? It would make me uncomfortable. There might have been some of that going on with the MIL. Go right ahead.

Sorry, I am not particularly hungry right now - must be the heat. Maybe I'll nibble on a salad or something. You go right ahead and have anything you like.

I think you will definitely enjoy it. We're headed there pretty soon ourselves.

I answered the question as it was initially presented. And IMO -- as it was initally presented -- she was wrong. I'd suggest maybe including all the facts in a post before asking a bunch of admittedly opiniated people for their opinions.

Pear juice, cardamom liquer, a herbaceous gin, and lemon, shaken and served on the rocks?

What was wrong wasn't not eating, the error was allowing one's food snobbery to make an elderly relative feel bad. It seems like polite excuses that should have been made were not made.

That's not what this is about. This is what the OP said: And apparently she let her MIL know that the restaurant wasn't acceptable, based on her MIL's reported response.What I don't understand is, why was half a specially-ordered Cobb salad OK, but a whole Cobb salad was out of the question?

Exactly. It would be mortifying to think that my family or friends would ever hesitate to take me somewhere, lest it be beneath me, or not "gourmet" enough.This is why God created the club sandwich. Regardless of what kind of restaurant it is, if it has a club sandwich on the menu, then there will be something that I am willing to take a few bites of in order not to look ill-mannered.

Hey now, no need for that. Pastry chefs get the cool tools, including big knives. And you usually get to work during the morning, before all the riff-raff show up.

When asked why I stopped cooking professionally, I always joke that it was a tossup between the misogyny and the substance abuse. But of course that was 20 years ago. Things must have changed since then, right?

He is an intelligent, well-mannered young man with more than a few of his dad's mannerisms (the better ones), and one of only three non-relatives ever trusted to watch my children. I am sure he will be a credit to you. (And he might well ask you what you're up to at 5 AM)

Bump... For the first time in acouple of years we will be having our pancake supper at home instead of church on Shrove Tuesday. The menu: buttermilk pancakes with syrup or some blackcurrant jam, served with bacon, sausages, and fresh fruit.

It's definitely walkable, if a bit chilly at this time of year. I lived a few blocks from there and never had any hesitation walking around during the day - it was my route to work for years. At night I'd take the usual city precautions - being aware of your surroundings, etc.My seven-year-old thought the lighted tree in the dining room at Firefly was very cool, and both she and the four-year-old liked Zaytinya (across the street from the Museum of American Art, see the Joseph Cornell exhibit!). If you're heading to the museums down on the mall I'd definitely consider lunch at the Mitsitam Cafe at the Museum of the American Indian, although as Miami Danny noted, the museum itself is not very interesting for kids. At the National Gallery of Art I can confidently recommend the gelato cafe and not much else. This is a great time of year to see the pandas at the National Zoo; they will come outside and frolic around in cold weather instead of sitting like bamboo-eating lumps like they do when it's hot. And the zoo has a new hands-on farm exhibit that's pretty cool. Be sure to eat somewhere else though, food options there are uniformly awful. The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts isn't far from your hotel. It has a free concert every night at 6pm. They have a rooftop restaurant and a cafe - food isn't great, but you could get coffee and check out the terrific view.

My kids love orrichette (sp?) with peas, fresh ricotta, a lump of butter, chopped mint, a handful of parm, salt, lots of fresh pepper, and a little of the pasta water to loosen if neccessary. Add the peas to the pasta water for the last couple of minutes and then drain using a fine sieve. Garnish with more mint, parm, and a little crushed red pepper.