Rich Pawlak

I've actually had it both ways, with and without tomatoes. I prefer the tomato version, done by Freddy Carrabelli. I think of this kinda pie in the context of hot wings actually, where a sharp vinegar flavor blends with a tomato/pepper base and works very well with beer. You'll never know if you dont try. We'll just have to grab one together, Jeff, and soon.

It is the roast beef sandwich for which Shank, Evelyn's late husband became famous, as well as his morningtime "Giambott" omelet, an outrageous kitchen-sink omelet that's almost impossible to finish, but a must-have breakfast experience. Everything they make at S&E's is of the highest quality (soups are also very very good). Never ate at Shank Jr.'s upstairs thing (he also tried a similar place in Roxborough that was quite good when I lived there), but if he is still doing what he did back then, it should be damn good, if unevenly priced.

Shank & Evelyn's, 10th St above Wharton, has one hell of a meatball sandwich, even though it's usually hard to reist their roast beef combo sammie (with provalone and gravy) or any of their cutlet sammies (chicken or veal). I had several bites of a dining companion's meatball sandwich and it was really really good.

Sounds awful, tastes terrific! I swear.

Holy Shamoley, what an awesome meal/food orgy/Chinese banquet!!! Lauren and MAtt DID steer us well, as did Han, with the assistance of our Taiwanese friend, Judy (she and Han grew up just blocks from each other in Taipei! It truly is a small world after all...), who ordered some of her favoriite dishes in Chinese, so we kinda didnt really know what was coming. Fried dumplings were handmade, doghier than most standard dumplings, but nonetheless tasty. The sausage, slice of garlic and swig of beer was an amaazing synergy, definitely one of the best beer snack combos I've had (we were drinking Flying Fish Extra Pale, Yards Saison and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale at the table). We had the noodles with meat sauce to start after the sausage nibbles, and our friend Judy ordered it two ways: Taiwanese style (milder sauce) and Sechuan style (MUCH hotter sauce), and both were great. Egg drop soup, white rice and chicken lo mein for the kiddies, and we were off to the races, all while the kids fussed and slowly melted down (note to self: Sophie was quite quiet while nibbling that tasty sausage...). In quick order came out pork chop and rice, dry but crispy and tasty; 3 Cup Chicken, truly Taiwanese and pretty addictive to me; then came an incredible pork shoulder, tender and sweet and faintly five-spiced; kidneys served cold in a zippy sweet sauce, followed by the same kidneys is a fiery broth; lamb with cumin, every bit as painful and irresistable as Lauren told us it would be; pork spare ribs in garlic flavor, studded with crispy garlic sprinkles; dry green beans with garlic, bright green and snappy; eggplant, faintly smoky and tender. I may have forgotten something but it was a blur of dishes, each one great in their own way. Plenty of leftovers to divide up and take home, and additional gratis quarts (!) of hot and sour and egg drop soups to take home, as Han said "for your lunch tomorrow". Great host that Han, but we really had terrific guides with Judy, Lauren and Matt. I really cant wait to revisit this awesome restaurant.

I DO NOT get the popularity of Papa's; mediocre pizza at best. I've never had a tomato pie at the Ivy Tavern either, nor at Jo-Jo's in Mercerville. Is Jo Jo's worth a visit? The Championship Tavern pie is quite a good pie, Jeff, and Championship is one of the very few places I've seen (and had) the old-fashioned MUSTARD pie. Like hot wings, it's a great pie to eat with pitchers of beer and a football game. I've just seen the mustard tomato pie advertised at the new Peasants restaurant in Hamilton; they just hired the somewhat famous (in Trenton) Freddy Carrabelli to make tomato pies at this new restaurant. But, as of this date, NOTHING touches a Delorenzo's of Hudson Street tomato pie

Franco's? Wherezat? And please don't say "East River Drive".

I am heading there tomorrow night for the first time, with a Taiwanese friend, the twins, the Queen, and meeting up wit Mr & Mrs SaxChik. Hoping to steer through the truly Taiwanese dishes, and to learn the nuances of Taiwanese cuisne. Thanks for the previous posts and pics, because they comprise a great roadmap for us tomorrow night.

I for one will be glad to not have to read or hear anything about this until June. Of course, there will probably still be debate here---why, I will never know. Talk about beating a dead horse. There is simply nothing new to say now.

Controversies like this make for increased readership, too, don't discount the fact that our very discussion is a calculated ploy to draw even more attention to the paper on Sunday. As the old adage goes, "There is no such thing as bad PR." I imagine that is why he is allowed to run as wild and obviously biased as he has become with the work of this couple. Would never fly with any other major newspaper, including the Daily News in Philly.

Now that is classy, Newark-style. Bravo Pru Center!

Doesnt that create some kind of hole in the space-time continuum?

Fried chicken at Warmdaddy's is world class, maybe the best in the city.

Several beer and wine pairings occur to me after enjoying this exceptional chicken pot pie (bought another one on Sunday, BTW, because the twins absoluteky love it too!): Yards Saison Yuengling Lager Troegs Rugged Trail Brown Ale Saranac Pumpkin Ale a good dry French rose' a dry Chenin Blanc perhaps?

Downed several bottles of this year's version of Saranac Pumpkin Ale with a plate of cheesy, spicy nachos, as perfect a beer pairing as exists on this earth, I swear.

Twenty Manning for a dinner with the guys? Cmon. Shilling is a no-no here. I'd choose Fogo de Chao, at Juniper & Chestnut for the Argentinian take on rodizio, with lots of skewered meat, an impressive service staff and a jovial tone to the whole place. I'd also consider Nineteen atop the Park Hyatt at The Bellevue for an impressive raw bar, a swank bar, a world referenced menu and a breathtaking airy view at night.

Hard to believe but I bought my first Griggstown chicken pot pie on Sunday at the Lawrenceville Famers Market, along with some of theiur chicken and broccoli rabe sausages. Great googly moogly, that is one hell of a pot pie.

Must haves at Standard Tap: Double standard burger Fried Squid Fried smelts Roast pork sandwich with provalone Duck salad Mussels were a bit too gritty for my taste the last time I had them, and I've had both the chorizo version and the Italian suasage version, both respectable dishes, but they've gotta do a better job of cleaning their mussels. Also theier mussels were not as big and plum p as those served at the Grey Lodge, still, for my money, the best mollusks in town.

This is sad news, but I'm glad Todd was able to quickly make it to another place; I 've always found Todd to be a refreshing culinary voice, no pretense, just a sincere passion for cooking and hopsitality, and I cant wait to finally get to Duece to see what he cooks up.

I've sampled the pizza at Magma several times now, and I find it quite good, too, Jeff. Terrific thin crust with a good yeasty chew, and best of all, FLAVOR in the crust. They also make a superb pita bread and hummus. I suspect that they employ some farina and semolina in thier pizza dough, as some Syrians and Egyptians in the pizza biz like to do. It resembles very closely the pizza I used to enjoy in Baltiumore at the old, original Al Pacino in Fells Point, founded by an Egyptian fellow who grew up in Rome. His secret was the addition of farina and semolina into the dough mixture and it also produced a superb yeasty, chewy crust, very very similar to Magma's.

Coincidentally, we stopped in for pizza on Thursday night and heard that Chick was not in good shape, but this still remains a shock. The full, front-page story in the Trenton Times can be read HERE. The words "giant" and "legend" are tossed around so liberally these days, but not in this case. A true giant and a legend has passed; godspeed, Chick.

My favorite scene from the Herb Dennenberg report on street vendors selling pretzels was the shot of the vendor near the Tacony Palmyra Bridge taking a wizz in the nearby shrubbery, wiping his hands on his pants and heading back to the curb to sell his pretzels. Skeevey with a capital S.

I would only add one must-have to Katie's spot-on list. Grab an Italian hoagie at Carmen's in the Reading Terminal Market, and eat half; head onto DiNic's for that flawless roast pork sandwich with provalone and broccoli rabe, and eat half. Save your half-sandwiches for a killer late-night nosh in your hotel room. Pure, unadulterated Philly.

Um , the dates are wrong.

The GREY LODGE is my regular stop for a terrific meal at the bar, and a surprisingly sophisticated one at that. On my last visit they added a bunch of things to the growing menu, including CHEESESTEAK SPRING ROLLS, the new heroin. And only 39 miles from my house!