Busboy

I'm pretty lucky in that I buy my heirlooms (and Early Girls and Beefsteaks) from Nina Planck's parents and the younger (equally dedicated) couple now holding down their farm while they do a little construction. Even then, the quality varies from week to week and season to season, this year's crop striking me as a little less acidic than I prefer. One thing I've noticed, though, is Whole Foods and other "gourmet" markets selling as "heirlooms" tomatoes with the irregular shapes of their open pollinated brethren (though no cracks) but with a thick, waxy skin that puts me off to the point that I've never been able to bring myself to try them. I wonder if some evil seed companies are crossing my Cherokee Purples with Mexican Reds in hopes of creating something that resembles an heirloom in every aspect except taste.

We look forward to having you at one or more! We are baby tolerant. And I come with a built-in babysitter. For anyone else out there, space is available and -- even if you're not coming -- any commentary on creative side dishes is welcome.

So, where'd you go?

I've started seeing phrases like "ecoganic" pop up at the markets around town. A quick chat with one of the farmers confirmed my suspicion: the paperwork and regulations required to claim the official "organic" label are so burdensome for small operations that they they grow organically but don't get certified and can't use the "O-word."

I'm not sure what you mean by "suspicious" unless you're suspicious that the waiter didn't know what he was doing. The cork thing is insignificant; though a traditional part of wine service it doesn't really reveal anything (unless you think they're serving bootleg Burgundy and you want to check the cork's stamp) and can safely be glossed over. Wiping the bottle with a bare hand, however, is gross. You would have been withing your rights to mention something about that.

The service (I would be more inclined to place responsibility with the kitchen, actually) was a distraction on my last visit, as well. Irregular to the point at which it occasionally became distracting.

Got a request from the kids to go someplace "different" in New York City Saturday night, which I take to mean no Chinese (we will be going to Chinatown Sunday) of French, and probably no Italian. So we're hoping that there's a new or little-known local fave someone can turn us on to in time to get dinner there tomorrow./tonight We're staying in Chelsea and can travel as far as close-in Brooklyn, but don't really have time to go chasing out to Queens or the Bronx, not that we don't love them both. Ideally the place would be: Mid-priced and casual with regard to dress Not a seafood place Obscure and/or unpopular enough that a Saturday night table for four is not out of the question Be quiet enough (comparatively speaking) to allow conversation. Have a decent, moderately priced wine list. Other than that, anything goes as far as decor, menu, whatever as long as the food is good. Thanks.

Related question: if we go to Congee Village (I'd like to do Ping's but the kids don't do fish) is it a mob scene all night Saturday night, or will showing up a little later than usual allow us to avoid the crush (and how late is that?). Also, no Sichuan or Hunan?

Generally speaking, price is no object (unless prices in Chinatown have escalated dramatically since my last visit). won't be doing dim sum, though. Like to have a long-ish feast as it is the last grand family dinner before my son heads off to college.

Any updates? Anyone been to Funky Broom lately?

Busboy: Good luck with the crab cake cook off. My wife turned deathly allergic to shellfish when she entered her 30s, so crab cakes don't make it to the table much in my house! Anyway, I had pretty good success with a crab cake recipe from Wine Spectator (you could probably find it in the archives on their web site). In short, the key was to use as much pure lump crab meat as possible, little to no filler, and handle very gently (I recall they were roasted in the oven to avoid death by spatula). They were finshed with a beurre blanc, if I recall correctly. One thing that will be interesting to see is the prevelance of Old Bay in the various recipes people bring. I like the taste of it actually, but a little goes a long way. Don't know what beers to recommend. I can say, however, that when it comes to wine, viognier is a KILLER with crab meat. Best, - VW ← We finish our patented "yuppie crab cakes" with a buerre blanc; I'm thinking a viogner would indeed be a perfect match -- preferably a Virginia producer, to keep the whole thing local.

Speaking of sea urchins, is there a market in Portland where you can buy fresh urchins? Ever since a friend told me of pulling sea urchins out of the Aegean and eating them from the shell with a dine Greek white, I've a hankering to do that myself. And, as I will be in Portland next week....

Interesting piece in The New Yorker. “Profits were comparable to cocaine trafficking, with none of the risks”

I had a glass of Skewis Reserve; Floodgate Vineyard at The French Laundry and thought is was the most delicious Cali Pinot ever made. Not cheap, but at $45/bottle retail, not absurdly priced, either. Might be worth a shot. (oops -- turns out they're not in Napa. Still worth a look, though.)

Thought I'd just stick this on the end of an existing thread...looking for cheap eats in Boston in a restaurant that is, ideally, uniquely Boston or just unique (though holes in the wall are fine, too). No seafood, but anything else -- from excellent burgers to funky ethnic -- appreciated.

Still plenty of room left!

I worked at a bar that rounded to the nickel. Seems like a pretty absurd little spat on either side.

Garlic afficianados should know that the wool ladies at the Dupont Market had their rare and obscure bulbs for sale today. Well worth the somewhat breathtaking (for garlic) prices to have your own little taste test. This usually only lasts a couple of weeks, so git on down!

I was working at a pretty rowdy bar back in the day when certain hobbies were considered less dangerous and unhealthy than they are now, and the owner - a middle aged guy who'd bought the bar in the midst of a mid-life crisis, I suppose -- came downstairs to a very crowded bar with a couple of suspicious characters and what might be termed an "illegal smile." I told him "I know you don't do anything illegal but unless you go like this right away (rubbing my fist beneath my nose) people are going to get the wrong impression." He was most grateful. Especially since his far more conservative wife was on the prowl that night. The waiter should wait until speaker gets quickly to a breaking point -- not necessarily the end of the thought/story -- and push the "pause" button. If that doesn't happen in a few moments, though, the waiter should nod subtly and perhaps quietly say "be right back" and go tend to his or her other business while waiting for a more overt sign that the table is ready to parlay. Ideally, this -- as with much waiter-customer communications -- should be done by restaurant semaphore: catching the waiter's eye and nodding meaningfully.

I was working at a pretty rowdy bar back in the day when certain hobbies were considered less dangerous and unhealthy than they are now, and the owner - a middle aged guy who'd bought the bar in the midst of a mid-life crisis, I suppose -- came downstairs to a very crowded bar with a couple of suspicious characters and what might be termed an "illegal smile." I told him "I know you don't do anything illegal but unless you go like this right away (rubbing my fist beneath my nose) people are going to get the wrong impression." He was most grateful. Especially since his far more conservative wife was on the prowl that night. As far as how the flow of conversation goes when the waiter approaches, I'm a little confused on that one--obviously it's bad form to ignore their presence, but isn't it equally rude of a waiter to break into a conversation in full flow? The speaker should get quickly to a breaking point -- not necessarily the end of the thought/story -- and push the "pause" button. If that doesn't happen in a few moments, the waiter should nod subtly and perhaps quietly say "be right back" and go tend to his or her other business while waiting for a more overt sign that the table is ready to parlay. Ideally, this -- as with much waiter-customer communications -- should be done by restaurant semaphore: catching the waiter's eye and nodding meaningfully.

I don't think so. Somewhere in the back of my mind was the idea that Marcel's was the only top-end restaurant open Sundays, though according to your post Citronelle is, as well. I do know that Sommelier Mark Slater is off Sundays, but I also know that his list is sufficiently well-chosen -- having won the Beard Award this year -- it's hard for even the least competent wine-orderer to go wrong.

Agree with pretty much everything you said -- though I'm told that Marcel's is working on democratizing their wine list a bit and Paradou is inconsistent food-wise -- but the key to the request was "open Sunday' which I don't think most of these spots are. While I'm here, I might through in a suggestion for one of our new trio of upscale bistros, Michel Richard Central, Brasserie Beck and Cafe du Parc. All are open Sundays. Which is "best" likely depends on one's mood, but I'd suggest that Park Cafe is the most romantic, Central the hippest and Beck the most fun in terms of decor and menu. A quick google should gather all their websites and reviews.

I noted the unfortunately swarthiness of Skinner myself and that, along with a number of other cues made me wonder if there was a deeper subtext to the movie. I'm no Jewish Studies major but the assimilationist conflicts within the rat community (did I just type "rat community") and grim scene at the rat-trappers, along with the definite French-Arab appearance of Skinner (cf Disney Cartoon Bad Guy Jafar) struck me as a little, I don't know, allegorical or something. I told this to a friend and he said I had too much time on my hands. On the five star rating system, I assumed that they purposely avoided any comparison to Michelin.

Sounds like you did it right. Looking forward to the pics.

OK, no love shacks as the wife will not be in attendance. However, my son and I will have a couple of days on the New England coast in a couple of weeks and any suggestions will be much appreciated. We are determinedly downscale but ability to purchase a Narragansett would be nice and, as the boy is not so big on seafood, a grill that serves up burgers or dogs is appreciated. Also, if anyone knows any dirt-cheap lodgings in the area -- can be a couple of miles inland -- suggestions are greatly appreciated. We are not picky; any place where they're not actually dealing crack out of the next room is probably OK, though local charm is always appreciated.