Rich Pawlak

RIP, Mr Cutlets.

RIP Steven Shaw.. He was far beyond the trite term "foodie", he was a compelling writer, adventurer, mentor to so many, inspiration and friend to countless numbers of aspiring food journalists and culinary professionals. My personal memory of him was enjoying rodizio with him (he was decked out in loud, splashy chef's pants!) in Perth Amboy at a gathering of Philly's Dangerous Dining Club. A great meal made greater with his participation. Godspeed.

I'm looking for a good Thai restaurant for a group of 6-8 near the Theater District, post-matinee on a Saturday. I've heard of PONGSRI on W.48th, but I've never been. Worth it, or are there better nearby? I know this is a narrow request, but that's the consesnus of the group, food-wise.

Villa di Roma, rec #4. Classic on every level. Killer meatballs too.

A little while back, I compiled this list of beer-food pairings on my blog: http://theomnivorenow.blogspot.com/2008/12/beer-and-food-pairings.html I hope it can be helpful, or better yet, inspirational.

The Brewers Association has just produced a pretty comprehensive list of Beer and Food Pairings the kind of thing I always enjoy reading, but frustratingly, it's a tad incomplete. Hell, it's more than a tad incomplete. Now this list has a lot of the usual suspects (and an inordinate amount of barbecue pairings), and I would imagine that it serves a beer novice pretty well. It also has a nice column devoted to just cheese pairings. But it still seems incomplete somehow. Maybe I'm just expecting too much. It's missing a few beer styles (Saison, anyone? Or is it just classified in a way that I don't understand?), and some terrific, obvious food pairings, some of which I've written about previously here, and on my blog, The Omnivore. If you know me only slightly well, you know I live for beer and food pairings. It's an almost endless labor of love for me. Did they leave off any of your favorite beer-food pairings? Let 'em fly here.Don't hold back.

Matt: Thats Stone stuff is some prized brew. I've had several of the Vertical Epics, but not 09/09/09 yet. Definitely sounds like a beer I could love. Whatcha doin in Rochester?

Flying Fish Exit 16 WIld Rice IPA, a pretty impressive brew from the mighty Casey Hughes, brewmaster there. I got a burst of hops and citrus (citra hops, Hughes told me) with a steady tangerine note and some hints of melon. Nice, crisp pilsner-like finish. 8.3 % ABV. Had the very first tastes of this beer last night at its debut at McGillin's Olde Ale House in Philly. Hughes uses wild rice in this brew because its name, Exit 16, represents the area in NJ now popularly known as the Meadowlands,now home to football stadia (the old Giant Stadium and the brand new Meadowlands Complex), and an indoor arena (Izod Center), but previously home to endless fields of wild rice. Clever, that Casey. Get this beer. It's a keeper.

Trader Joe's coffees are a ridiculous bargain, especially for the French Roast, Bay Blend and Volcano dark roasts, and their new whole bean "Joe" line, which makes a fabulous cup of coffee, $3.49 for 12 oz of the "Joe" beans. Ridiculous.

HAN DYNASTY on Route 100 in Exton, for fabulous Sechuan and Taiwanese food ---lion's head meatballs, lamb with cumin, noodles with spicy pork sauce, chicken with hot pepper, extraordinary stuff, really. It's located across Route 100 from the DRAFTING ROOM restaurant ---another place you should definitely stop into for decent food and a huge selection of craft beers. Another great place, almost at the midpoint of your trips.

I second Blue Point and Ferry House, and add Tiger Noodles, a few doors away from Blue Point, for very well executed Sechuan Chinese cooking.

As in "starter"? I've never heard your term before. But thanks!

What do you do with leftover pizza dough? Well, you make MORE PIZZA, of course! But this isn't your standard, sheet pan/Brooklyn/Old Forge/Sicilian style p;ie. No sireee! This is the result of careful Saturday afternoon scavenging in the refrigerator. The brief backstory: Had a bunch of folks over last Saturday evening for a homemade pizza party; dear friend John Hamada, the twins' Catholic godfather, and his 12 yr. old son Joseph (whom the kids positively idolize); and Scott & Nicole Hibberd, new parents of 3 mo. old daughter Paysen (whom I teasingly keep calling PayPal, Peyton, Pesach etc.)and almost 4 yr. old daughter Quinn (with whom the twins just LOVE to run around the house and scream!). I made a HUGE batch of pizza dough in the big Cuisinart stand mixer, and the kids and I had fun punching it down throughout the afternoon as it rose in its gigantic bowl. Just before the two families arrived, I stretched out dough to make 4 small (9-in.) pies on two big sheet pans, and set up the kitchen table so the kids could design their own pizzas. Scott and John each brought various toppings and we got them all into small bowls and lined the kids up to make their own pizzas. It was great fun, and each small child was intensely creative in their own way, a terrific thing to watch. Their pies went into the oven, and we set to making as many large round pies as we could. In total, we made the 4 kids' pies, and 9 other big pies, including a gluten-free dough pie for you-know-who (more on her later...). After it all shook down, there was lotsa leftover slices of pizza for taking home, and a small portion of dough left, which went into the fridge in an airtight container. Little bit of pepperoni left over, some mozz, and that was about it. So today, I discovered the dough, took it out and let it come to room temperature, whereupon it begain to rise again, almost fresh as a daisy, with no sign or smell of fermentatiuon (sourdough pizza, anyone?). It looked a bit to large to stretch over one of my ancient charred pizza pans, so I took out one of the baking sheets, sprinkled some cornmeal around it, and began to stretch the dough with some additional extra virgin olive oil. It was exactly enough to make a full sheet size pie. Around here they would call this size a "Brooklyn" pie, which means a thin crust, rectangular pie made with fresh mozz and sauce and basil. One problem: no red sauce. Anywhere. Not wanting to take the time to make even a small batch of sauce, I resorted to jar of salsa (Newman's Own, medium heat), pureed it a bit with the stick blender, and built the pizza with grated pecorino, salsa, some leftover sauteed peppers and onions (made for a weekday meal of Sicilian pork chops), mozz and thickly sliced pepperoni. 25 minutes later in a 450-degree oven, and we have the beauty pictured above. I think I have my pizza rhythm back. I reall missed it. Ever forward!

Pics? Recap? Story? Video?

If you like Sierra Nevada Celebration during this holiday season, you'll like Victory Hop Devil year-round!