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Joe H

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  1. Upstairs is a bar with a bandstand and room/seating/standing for 250-300 people. They also publish a schedule of the various bands that appear there. I don't know if it's just Friday and Saturday or five or six days a week. It's called Suicide Bridge because there were four suicides in the early part of the 20th C. This is the link to their website explaining the "legend of Suicide Bridge." http://www.suicidebridge.com/legend.html
  2. This is the link to a post of mine from last summer for Waterman's Crab House in Rock Hall from another board: http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/board...ages/44687.html It is EXACTLY what you are looking for. You should also take a serious look at Suicide Bridge in Hurlock which is off of a tributary of the Bay. This is one of the best Maryland style seafood restaurants in the state; it also has a live band most nights of the week. Both Suicide Bridge and Waterman's have their own marinas. The second half of this post discusses the Suicide Bridge restaurant: http://www.chowhound.com/midatlantic/board...ages/44130.html
  3. This is their website. The first page is in English although the menu (E 50 is the most expensive prix fixe!) is not: http://www.ristoranteilpostale.it/index_eng.htm
  4. Il Postale is one of the best restaurants in Italy. It has a Michelin star and a Gambero Rosso food rating of 51 from their 2004 guide. For the level this restaurant is on it is a remarkable value; were it in, say, Rome or Florence it would cost at least twice as much. This is a post of mine about it from another board in December of 2002: http://www.chowhound.com/boards/intl4/messages/15993.html In reading the above post I note prices at Il Postale in dollars. Please bear in mind that the exchange rate in December of 2002 was about .93 to the Euro. Today it is 1.29. I believe that my wife and I were the first to visit it and to write about it. Since then I've seen many, many people on several websites rave about their experiences there. You should give serious consideration to visiting it. And, don't miss DeRuta either, which, with the current exchange rate may be nightmarishly expensive.
  5. Tom's Chat today had three different people report less than stellar experiences at "The Inn." For myself I have heard of almost no one who has not had very positive experiences at Maestro, Citronelle and Laboratorio, all three of which seem remarkably consistent. Yet I know a number of people who feel differently about "The Inn" along with several who consider it one of their best overall experiences anywhere. There seems to be no middle ground when spending $500 plus on a weekend.
  6. On another thread there are several allusions to the Inn at Little Washington and its over the top stage designer ambience. What many people may not know is that there is a "corridor" in the Inn with approximately five or six two seater tables that is so narrow, when they roll their cow shaped cheesecart down it, diners at several of these tables must physically stand up and push their chairs in for the cart to pass. My wife and I had an anniversary dinner there last year and saw this happen three or four times. Considering that Friday and Saturday night is now $168 prix fixe it would be outrageous to spend $500+ for dinner for two and be seated there. We were shocked that the Inn, given its reputation and (for some) sumptuous over the top luxury, would expect anyone to sit in a situation like this. The Inn has several dining rooms/areas; I would suggest that one's particular experience could vary greatly depending on where you were seated.
  7. The original Anita's (formerly a "Donut Dinette" from the 'late '50's) opened in the mid '70's and closed about two years ago. Whoever took it over didn't last long because there are no new owners-the sign in their window says, I believe Salvodoran Mexican. Anita's is still in her second Vienna location which, frankly, I never liked. I remember sitting in her parking lot at a table and eating before some county agency forced her to stop; this was probably the late '70's/early '80's. At the time she and "Speedy Gonzalez" on N. Randolph street in Arlington were the D. C. area's best Mexican dumps. (Georgetown had Enriqueta's.) I also found a big difference between her locations and who ran them. Wherever she and her daughter were at were consistently the best. Still, I would drive once a month from Silver Spring to Vienna to eat at Anita's. I also remember her husband driving a Cadillac with steer horns on its hood as well as her having a Rolls. Anita, her husband and her restaurants had a LOT of character. And carne adovoda as good as Albuequerque.
  8. Guapo's is a mini chain which includes Tenleytown, Manassas, Manassas Park, Gaithersburg and Bethesda. The Herndon location which looks like it will open in a couple of weeks will feature pollo a la brasa. Has anyone been to any of the Guapo's? Any thoughts on their pollo a la brasa and how it compares to Crisp 'n Juicy or El Pollo Rico?
  9. Hey Joe - it is armagnac prune at Berthillon. I only point this out because a) it is literally one of my favorite things on earth and b) I think prunes are underrated. ← Mea culpa, I believe you are correct. I remembered it as armagnac raisin (after six years). What is a prune, but a form of raisin anyway? I am looking forward to having it again this summer though. In the meantime 2 Amys' caramel chocolate chip will continue to haunt me (in a good way). ← If you make ice cream yourself this is the recipe for the absolute best ice cream that I have ever tasted in my life. http://www.chowhound.com/boards/general21/...ages/75763.html I have a reputation, of sorts, from a post on the other board about three years ago for risotto that generated about 300 responses over time. This was a follow up to it. One clarification: in using a hand cranked freezer in a wooden tub (like the White Mountain) the proportion of ice to rock salt has a direct effect on how long it takes the ice cream to harden. I have found since this post that a ratio of about 4 to 1 works best and then, after finishing the cranking, I'll pack it with a ration of about 3 to 1. I've also added chunks of chocolate after the cranking. Locally, I'll use Lewes Dairy heavy cream and Harrisburg Dairy creamtop milk.
  10. The food is excellent. Because I travel over 100 days a year and spend far too many nights in hotels I find the ambience for the second floor dining room lacking and nondescript-for me. If his same dishes were in a room with more "character" in, say, Old Town (to compliment Eve) this could be an outstanding experience. In the right setting this chef could really soar.
  11. Two Amy's has several flavors which are as good as any restaurant/store that I have ever had anywhere. My guess is that they use pasteurized cream (Lewes Dairy?) since the texture is close to what I get with a hand cranked White Mountain freezer using this with rock salt and dry ice for packing. I actually think their ice cream is the single best thing there. I've had the armagnac raisin at Berthillon and make hazelnut (toasting and grinding the hazelnuts myself). In America I probably like both Bart's and Steve's in Northhampton, MA along with Kopp's in Milwaukee (caramel pecan frozen custard that is 16% butterfat which is unheardof for frozen custard)and Graeter's for their "chip" flavors. Also, I've had a half dozen different pizzas and, for me, it is ONLY the Margarita that I really like at Two Amy's. I don't know why but all of the others have been very good but it is only the Margarita that seems outstanding. Having said this it really does remind me of, say, Brandi or da Michele. (Pepe's and Sally's are still my favorites for whatever its worth.) Your comment about the Margarita vs. the other pizza was interesting. A group of us had lunch at Two Amy's about a month ago and all four of us agreed that for whatever reason it was only the Margarita that was really exemplery. As much as anything Two Amy's FEELS like an Italian pizzaria.
  12. I have absolutely no problem with corporate sponsorship as long as there is no corporate control. For the corporation just having their name associated with a specific restaurant or chef can be a very positive association for them. Same as having a name on a football or baseball stadium or arena. It is also true with having a "patron" for the opera or the arts where major contributions are made by indivduals or groups without any benefit other than helping a performance come to or remain in their city or enabling a Hall to be built or a theatre to be restored. To me it seems foolish not to accept some type of sponsorship if it is offered and there are no strings.
  13. Yes YEs and Yes...America has amazing products plus we can get anything we want from Europe.......Yes DC can support a HIGH end restaurant like the one in San Sebastian and Barcelona........Small and unique............And will be coming in a year or two.....My word ← Whoa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jose, that's an incredible statement; can I assume that you've given some thought to what could be a signature restaurant on a national level, perhaps an international level? If this is true this would be a fantastic addition to Washington.
  14. Jose, could DC support a restaurant similar to several in San Sebastian such as Akalare, Arzak or Martin Bersategui? Are there sources for their ingredients? I personally believe that there and Barcelona are where the most exciting developments are coming from. This could be your signature restaurant....
  15. Hanneford in Portland? Oregon or Maine? I lived my first 19 years in Portland, Ore. and I don't recognize the name. Maybe I'm having a brain fart or perhaps it's just that I wasn't as much of a foodie at 19 (that's about 14 years ago, BTW) or maybe it's in Maine? I tried to google Hanneford, Grocery, Portland and didn't get anything. If I was after good cheese in Portland, I might go to Zupan's or Strohecker's or Elephant's (though I'd probably ask my parents who are foodies and actually live there). I seem to recall going to a Hanneford in Albany, NY, which was not incredible but possibly a step up from the Price Chopper, one of the other big chains up there. ← Hanneford is a New England chain that has an approximate 60,000 square foot flagship store about two or three miles from Old Port. By 1990 standards it was a big deal. Today it leaves much to be desired. Still, Portland does not have much of a reference point for comparison.
  16. If you go into a grocery store in Paris you will have a choice of the frozen "TV dinners" that you can buy: perhaps Robuchon's, or Alain Ducasse or Troisgros or any of a half dozen other two and three Michelin star chefs. And, yes, they will taste like frozen dinners that have nothing in common with the E 295 prix fixe dinners teir respective restaurants serve. Massimiliano has a coffee shop and deli next door to his three Michelin star restaurant outside of Padua. On the nearby Autostrada he also operates a cafe for "travellers." Adria and SantiMaria both have their own semi casual operations in Spain. If a chef can make a bit of money that will allow him to continue to operate a serious restaurant, then more power to him. For those who expect outposts and frozen dinners to have anything in common with the original, I believe this is their problem. Were it not for subsidies of one kind or another much of what we would consider extraordinary would not be available. What is important is NOT the quality of the franchise/branch/outpost but rather the quality of the original where the reputation was built. More often than not this is fairly close to what was originally established while branches are homogonized and have little in common. Sometimes, however, such as with Emeril's on Tchoupoulitas street this is no longer true. (For me Emeril sold out long ago.) Other times, for all of the Wolfgang Puck cafes, there is still Chinois on Main and the reincarnated Spago where the pride of the original still survives. It would seem that Cafe Atlantico and its MiniBar still rep well for Jose as does Zaytinya. I think he can be excused for the various and many Jaleos and upcoming clones of Oyamel. As long as Roberto still holds court in his Laboratorio three nights a week I can put up with a great deal of other ventures that he might get into, knowing that Laboratorio is still an extraordinary opportunity to taste true genius. As is Citronelle and Maestro-where Fabio now spends a fair amount of time opening and developing new restaurants for Ritz Carlton. Still, Maestro and Citronelle are BOTH as good as there is in the United States and banners for DC. I would have no problem with Michel Richard's butter pecan ice cream @ $3.99 a pint knowing that his hazelnut ice cream at Citronelle, certainly, is far superior.
  17. In 1990 I stopped in a recently renovated Larry's in Bellevue which, I believe, was the first of a new "generation" of groceries stores, not just for them but for anywhere in America. It was heavily influenced by the Pike Place Market in Seattle and other city markets. The result is that there were wooden floors, numerous stalls or stands for cheese, meat, seafood, the wine department was fairly large and extensive. In produce there was track lighting complimenting the wooden floors. At this time, to break up the monotony of travel, I was in the habit of searching out larger grocery stores in cities that I would stop in for business around the U. S. The result is that I I had been most everywhere from Schweigmann's (sp) in New Orleans to Hanneford in Portland to Larry's to Wegmans to Stew Leonard's. This was the FIRST store of any that had this type of city market ambience. A few years later I stopped in a new Wegmans in Rochester which had just opened. Apparently they had drawn (and improved) on the concept which Larry's had pioneered. You may want to check out the Safeway in Arundel Mills by the way.
  18. I once brought back loads of Salami from a legendary Macelleria in Greve which I was too naive to vacuum pack. This was shortly afer 9/11 and the Beagles were at Dulles en masse. They didn't even look in our direction. One wonders what others may have in their luggage that could so divert their attention... The Macelleria in question is Falorni. Egulleteers travelling to Chianti: drive through Greve and stop by. My wife had to pull me out. More than the taste of the smuggled Salami, what I remember most is the aroma of that place. Think Frager's Hardware on the Hill but stuffed to the rafters with cured meats instead of hardware. Incredible. ← This is the exact same salumeria that my Chianti flavored/infused salami was from. The beagle knows it. He knows it well!!!! My guess is that in a previous life he lived there and spent the better part of his day jumping up and trying to pull the salamis which hang from the ceiling!
  19. Kinda like my memories of Byerly's in Minneapolis--larger than life. ← Byerly's is excellent as is Wegman's, Central Market and several of Seattle's Larry's Markets (which started the whole market ambience trend 15 or 20 years ago). Excepting the Pittsford store most New Yorkers have no idea how superior the Dulles/Fairfax/Downington/Princeton/Woodbridge Wegmans are to their own stores. Still, having been obsessed with grocery stores for years and stopping in them all over North America and Europe (while travelling on business) I would rank the Dulles Wegmans as perhaps the best I have ever been in, slightly better than the Central Market in Austin and an Auchan at Val d'Europa east of Paris. Having said this my neighbors who have never been to Austin let alone Paris prefer Wegmans Fairfax store so....... Still, none of these take the place of a really good centrally located market, like the Lexington Market in Baltimore.
  20. I've carried eppouisses (sp?) for years on planes from France. It's actually much easier than you would suspect: I merely threaten the attendant that if they don't refrigerate the cheese the plane will truly stink about the time we pass over Greenland!!!! In December I brought back an incredible Barolo flavored cheese from Le Calandre's cheese shop near Padua that I haven't found anything even close to here. As for Customs, the beagle is obsessed with salami (particularly Tuscan salami). Last September I had Black Forest ham from Freiburg which was vacuum packed. He walked right by it!!! Right by it! I toasted him that night as we sliced it. In almost twenty five years of heavy European travel I've had my luggage opened when I had almost a case and a half of wine-twice; salami, proscuitto and Serrano ham confiscated at other times and far too many times to count, carried various cheeses by various dogs at Dulles. Cheese is not a problem nor is wine, even larger amounts as long as you declare "wine" and a value. (They just looked at me each time sympathetically, "What a wino!") But salami and other meats which are NOT vacuum packed are a whole different matter. Once I stopped in a cheese shop in Bologna (written about in this earlier post on the other board: http://www.chowhound.com/boards/general13/...ages/41002.html ) and brought back gorgonzola en malga au naturale and Ferron's violane nano arborio along with 2 kilos of Reggiano cut from a whole wheel with a moist center. Two hours after landing I made risotto from this. Dulles' beagle could care less about cheesy rice.
  21. What do you consider good prices on lobster? It depends on if I'll make the trek over there or not...! ← As of a year ago there was only one retail market in Jessup. It had a fraction of what can be found on Maine Avenue and was more expensive overall. ← Joe H. Super H is good for specific things: fish of 3+ lbs which are skinned, fileted and returned with the frame, head and filet are not among them. Maine Avenue does this extremely well, better than anywhere I've found in the D. C. area. Plus they have Carolina/Crisfield lump crab meat for $21 to $23/lb. I think there were two retail places the last time I went and to be honest I wasn't blown away. I just walked around the loading docs of the wholesale area and asked a few of the folks (I was looking for very specific items). It was about 10am so must of the activity had been done, I got a price of $8.99 per pound regardless of size. I remember I got a couple pound and half lobster and two 3 pounders. I was specifically looking for larger ones because of the person I was cooking for. As for Maine Ave, I've been a number of times but I don't go anymore. I can find better stuff at better prices at Han Ah Rum or Super H. Super H is good for specific things: fish of 3+ lbs which are skinned, fileted and returned with the frame, head and filet are not among them. Maine Avenue does this extremely well, better than anywhere I've found in the D. C. area. Plus they have Carolina/Crisfield lump crab meat for $21 to $23/lb. For 21/25 and 11/15 shrimp Maine Avenue is better and less expensive. For smaller shrimp Super H is superior. NEITHER is good if you are looking for fresh shrimp. Once a month I'll make bouillibasse/Kinkead's Portuguese stew/cioppino. Over the years I've tried everywhere even driving from Reston to Jessup, note that Super H is only ten minutes away. For my purposes it is really a combination of places with Whole Foods having excellent farm raised mussels, clams, etc. which neither Maine Avenue or Super H do as well. For produce Super H is outstanding. But Whole Foods and Wegmans are too; unfortunately they are more expensive for the same quality. Soup ← ← Joe H. Bouillibasse sound real good but I'm intrigued by the stew. Mind sharing the recipe. On the Super H and shrimp and mussel, I'd agree. The large shrimp I actually get at costco. For 11/15 shrimp, Costco has it for $9.99 lb. That's where I get the shrimp for that size. I also buy the mussels there (the size is good and most are alive) and I get those at costco for $1.19 per pound. The issue with the mussel is you have to buy it in 5 lb bags but that is not a problem as my family can down that without much issue. Now, were can I find softshell crabs for a reasonable price? I think the season is soon? Soup ← This is the recipe for Bob Kinkead's Portuguese Seafood Stew. For the stock I use a fumet which incorporates frames and heads from approximately 6-8 lbs of red snapper/grouper/sea bass that I buy on Maine Avenue. As complex and time consuming as any seafood stew I have ever tasted; certainly as good. http://starchefs.com/chefs/BKinkead/html/recipe_05.shtml
  22. What do you consider good prices on lobster? It depends on if I'll make the trek over there or not...! ← As of a year ago there was only one retail market in Jessup. It had a fraction of what can be found on Maine Avenue and was more expensive overall. ← Joe H. Super H is good for specific things: fish of 3+ lbs which are skinned, fileted and returned with the frame, head and filet are not among them. Maine Avenue does this extremely well, better than anywhere I've found in the D. C. area. Plus they have Carolina/Crisfield lump crab meat for $21 to $23/lb. I think there were two retail places the last time I went and to be honest I wasn't blown away. I just walked around the loading docs of the wholesale area and asked a few of the folks (I was looking for very specific items). It was about 10am so must of the activity had been done, I got a price of $8.99 per pound regardless of size. I remember I got a couple pound and half lobster and two 3 pounders. I was specifically looking for larger ones because of the person I was cooking for. As for Maine Ave, I've been a number of times but I don't go anymore. I can find better stuff at better prices at Han Ah Rum or Super H. Super H is good for specific things: fish of 3+ lbs which are skinned, fileted and returned with the frame, head and filet are not among them. Maine Avenue does this extremely well, better than anywhere I've found in the D. C. area. Plus they have Carolina/Crisfield lump crab meat for $21 to $23/lb. For 21/25 and 11/15 shrimp Maine Avenue is better and less expensive. For smaller shrimp Super H is superior. NEITHER is good if you are looking for fresh shrimp. Once a month I'll make bouillibasse/Kinkead's Portuguese stew/cioppino. Over the years I've tried everywhere even driving from Reston to Jessup, note that Super H is only ten minutes away. For my purposes it is really a combination of places with Whole Foods having excellent farm raised mussels, clams, etc. which neither Maine Avenue or Super H do as well. For produce Super H is outstanding. But Whole Foods and Wegmans are too; unfortunately they are more expensive for the same quality. Soup ←
  23. I suspect that Vienna has gone through a great deal of restoration and renovation similar to some of the ways DC has changed since the '60's when there were temporary buildings on the Mall left over from WWII. White Austrian wine is among the finest in the world; I've had several reds that I really enjoyed. Not as, say, a first growth but very good for what they are.
  24. I think you were extremely fortunate to live there. It is one of the most beautiful cities that I have found anywhere and I've been in probably every major city in Europe. I found a restaurant called Harry's Time (Gault Millau 15 for food, very reasonably priced) that I really liked. So much that I had dinner there three nights out of four! I would love to own a wine bar here similar to what I found in Vienna. Unfortunately this is not a possibility in the D. C. area. My wife and I will probably do a vacation in September that includes Vienna, Budapest and Prague and a bit of exploration between them.
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