sammy

You and Rachel need to get out more. Throw a scoop of Haagen Daz vanilla on top and I bet it's still delicious.

I don't recall lemon or sugar being added at Harry's Bar in Venice. I've done a quick search on google and although not reprinted directly from Harry's Bar Cookbook, it seems to indicate that it is simply white pureed peaches and prosecco.

There is a train that goes from Venice to Florence. I believe there is also one that goes from Florence to Milan if you decide not to drive.

I wonder if Adria is yet aware of this wonderful new tool.

Insert "my mother" instead of general public and you'll get no argument from me. My impression is that no one is at fault for Adam's dining experience. CT has a certain service and food style that works well for their particular restaurant. Adam has probably just learned that he does not care for that particular style. Some "upscale" restaurants have a style that attempts to make everyone feel comfortale. Gramercy Tavern comes to mind. That doesn't mean CT's service is worse, just different. I've had two dinners there and thoroughly enjoyed both experiences. Others that I was with felt differently, however they were no less prepared to eat at CT's that I was. It's just not for everybody and I don't mean that in a condescending way. You simply don't like it because you don't like it. My mother on the other hand.....

I believe made famous by Harry's Bar in Venice. I think the "official" Bellini is made with fresh peach nectar and sparkling wine.

What if you sealed the top of the bag with a Wine Clip?

Doesn't the cheese on the pizza get all schmushed by the bag?

You must be from the midwest. That's a joke from the Babbo thread for you newcomers.

Sorry, I missed that. I was referring to: And I was responding to: Clearly for dinner, Bouley is at a different price point than Blue Hill.

Nobody was complaining about the pricing, they were complaining about the service.

Maybe Mix but not Blue Hill. Blue Hill's entrees are priced from $21-28, about $10 less than Bouley. Apps are approx $5 less and desserts are $2-4 less. May not seem like much but it adds up to almost $20 more pp. I haven't seen the Bouley wine list but I'd venture a guess that the prices are higher than at Blue Hill. Regardless, any place that is charging $35 for entree should have their service act together.

Sam, what do you mean by tradition? I don't know anyone other than you that would consider "eating squirrel's brains" a "tradition in the U.S., unless of course you use a widely different definition of tradition than me. 1. The passing down of elements of a culture from generation to generation, especially by oral communication. 2a. A mode of thought or behavior followed by a people continuously from generation to generation; a custom or usage. b. A set of such customs and usages viewed as a coherent body of precedents influencing the present: followed family tradition in dress and manners. See synonyms at heritage. 3. A body of unwritten religious precepts. 4. A time-honored practice or set of such practices. 5. Law Transfer of property to another. And secondly, why do you seem to be able to make whatever statements you want and then ask others to prove you wrong?

I added roasted pieces of cauliflower (from the heartlanders bash) and white truffle oil. The cauliflower was crunchy and made for an interesting "crouton" plus added color.

My wife and I have a pact never to order the same thing and the rule goes for Apps, mains and desserts. When we order wine by the glass, the same rule applies; never the same. As for how we choose, she picks what she wants and then tries to talk me in to her second choices. Sometimes I go along, sometimes not. I for one can't understand couples who order the SAME thing at restaurants. Why wouldn't you want to try more items? Last week at Blue Hill, there were two couples dining together at the next table. They all ordered the same lamb entree. Ugh!

I meant 7th Best as was quoted in the NY Times.

Bux, I respectfully disagree. Zagat may be lumping overall food scores together but anyone that takes the time to read the short write-up with each listing should be able to recognize that there is a difference in the level food served. No one will expect the same dining experience at Soup International as they would at ADNY. Everyone should be smart enough to compare the food ratings of Grimaldi's and Lombardi's when looking for pizza and not Grimaldi's and ADNY to decide where to have dinner on Saturday night. I haven't yet seen the new guide but I can't ever remember using Zagat and been overly suprised with the level of dining experience from what I expected from the guide. I may not have agreed with all of the ratings. If readers can't see the difference, they should be banished to eating the RB Sandwich at Burger King. That being said, their methodology that allows The Grocery to be the 7th favorite restaurant is clearly flawed.

Tuesday Dinner: Made the roasted cauliflower from the Heartland event until they were nicely browned and crispy and used them as "croutons" for a roasted squash soup. Drizzled a little truffle oil on top and dinner was done.

Done. The oven is already pre-heating.

So how was the roasted cauliflower made? I've got a bunch at home I'd like to cook tonight.

While not a tour, I found the tasting at Joseph Phelps to be worthwhile and educational. You get to taste several different types of wine and the guide helps you identify the different flavors you are tasting. I believe you need to make an appointment. The best tour and tasting we ever went on occurred from just pure luck. We stopped in at Plumpjack right when they were closing. While the staff at the actual tasting room and store was not very accomodating (they wanted to go home) a winemaking staff person (his jeans were soaked with juice) noticed us and offered to show us around. He took about an hour with us and spoke with a tremendous amount of passion about the wines being made and provided tastes, some right from the barrel. Made for a great late afternoon.

On the on-line version of NY Zagat, a place called the Garden Cafe in Brooklyn gets a 28 for food and is ranked 4th when sorted behind Le Bernardin, Daniel and Peter Luger. How come this place didn't get any publicity?

We want to see pictures of the INSIDE of the meat!

So did you use the recipe from the Virtual Weber Bullet site for the smoked prime rib?

A creamy consistency but not creamy like ice cream. Or as my wife referred to it, an herbal facial product. I know I'm not doing a good job of describing it. I'll try to come up with a few more things to compare it to. Maybe there is someone else here that tried it and can comment on the lemon verbena sorbet.