KatieLoeb

Sandy: I'm perfectly happy to go later if that works for you, our host for this outing. Or go Sunday the 23rd instead. I'd just like to know sooner rather than later so I can plan the rest of my weekend. Might I suggest we all PM Sandy with our availabilities and preferences from here forward and then he can post an announcement for all of us when the votes have been tallied.

Excellent! Show everyone what we've got Sandy! This is going to be fun.

I noticed earlier and wanted to think about it before shooting off my mouth... Certainly Overtures is an excellent suggestion. I'd probably also recommend Rx, Branzino or Scannicchio's. I'd call and see how amenable smaller places would be to accomodating a group your size, especially on a Friday night. If you were flexible and came on a less busy night you'd have better luck with places like Django or Mandoline. I'm sure tying up 12 seats for the better part of the evening on one of the busiest night of the week would make that impossible on a Friday for many places.

I just got a whole bunch of great Newark restaurant recommendations from one of our suppliers of authentic Spanish products at Amada. He's originally from Barcelona, so I trust him implicitly. I need to dig up the business card he wrote down the names of the restaurants for me so I can report back.

Thanks Pam! You're amazing! I can barely manage on a day to day basis to keep up with my end of being a host, so your stellar efforts at blogging while doing your job so well at your busiest time is truly awe inpiring. Happy Holiday! Now go get some rest!

Butter Macadamia. Like Butter Pecan or Butter Brickle, but better.

Tonight's effort, as a reward for finishing filing my taxes online, is a riff on a Margarita with Drambuie instead of Triple Sec and a bit more aromatics added to the mix: The Bonny Maggie 2 oz. Herradura Gold 1.25 oz. Drambuie .75 oz. fresh lime juice 2 dashes Fee Bros. Orange Flower Syrup 1 barspoon Ginger simple syrup Very tasty. Clean and refreshing like a Margarita but a bit more subtle with the citrus flavors. A more elegant Margarita if you will. The honey/herb flavor of the Drambuie works well and the Orange flower syrup tames the tartness of the lime a bit, while still making it recognizably a margarita-like drink. The ginger is really in the background but goes well with the other flavors.

HERE is my report in the PA forum. What a great little coffee shop. Cheerful, clean, and pulling a damn fine shot. Thanks for the headsup on this place.

Inspired by the thread HERE in the Coffee and Tea forum, I was in Chestnut Hill today and stopped by Chestnut Hill Coffee Co. for a latte and a snack. I had the pleasure of meeting proprietor Sultan Malikyar very briefly, and talked to John Hornall, the barista for a couple of minutes. The shop is lovely and cheerful and was doing a reasonably brisk business for a lovely Saturday afternoon. My very large latte was absolutely perfect and I had a nice Hot Cross bun to go with it. Very tasty and reasonably priced at $5 for the two. They also sell their own beans. It seems like the sort of place I'd totally hang out if it were in my neighborhood. It's nice to see an independently owned coffee shop that takes pride in their products and service giving the Fourbucks empire a run for their money. Apparently last Christmas the managers of the Starbucks down the street didn't get their bonuses because their sales weren't high enough. Ha! Take that, you evil corporate giants! Here's hoping that more of the locals get a clue and start supporting Chestnut Hill Coffee Co. instead of Starbucks. It's a much better alternative.

OK - so you're not changing the dishes and pans at home, so you wouldn't expect the restaurant to be doing that either. That makes it easier. So a "regular" restaurant that has Passover dishes on the menu would be fine. I think London Grill knows enough about keeping the flour and non-Pesadich items off of your plate that might have formerly had those items on it before it went through the dishwasher. If that works for you, perhaps you could call and check to see what's on the menu this year and see if it interests you. Don't know how long a drive it is from where you are, but it's close to some of the sights in Philly so a trip to the Art Museum, Rodin Museum, Franklin Institute or Eastern State Penitentiary could be combined with a nice dinner.

Thanks for this tip, plattetude. I just read Gary Regan's wonderful Joy of Mixology and immediately ran out to get a bottle of the Luxardo maraschino. This was a fantastic first drink to test it out. ← That is a great drink. I tried it and loved it too. If only replacing my bottle of Luxardo Maraschino wasn't such a pain in this state... Try making one of my Red Feather Boas from upthread and tell me what you think. The really good Fee Brothers grenadine is crucial but I think some homemade grenadine might work too. My understanding is that equal measures of Pom Wonderful juice and sugar brought to the boil and simmered for ten minutes and then cooled and a small measure of vodka thrown in for preservation is pretty good stuff.

Pam. Oh. My. Goodness. I am awed by the sight of all that lovely food you've so lovingly prepared. I didn't even realize that matzoh meal and potato starch came in such big sacks! Truly amazing. No wonder you're exhausted. Get some rest, girlfriend. You have most certainly earned it. I discovered today that leftover charoset makes a pretty good breakfast with vanilla yogurt.

How strict are you in your observances? Do you expect a regular non-kosher restaurant to have cleaned and changed over all the pans and dishes, or are you just looking for a place that might be serving some Passover inspired foods? There's a huge gulf between those two things, so you need to be more specific. Many of the Philly restaurants I've worked in had matzoh available instead of bread for Passover week, but that was the only concession to the holiday. Chef Michael McNally at the London Grill has made fantastic Salmon Gefilte fish for Passover in the past, and they normally serve some a la carte Passover dishes for Passover week. You'd have to call and ask what's on the menu this year, but I'm certain it'll be up to their usual standard.

I'm with Brad on this one. I don't like to pair soups with a full glass of wine. It's just too much liquid too early in the meal and just fills everyone up too soon. A small 2 oz. glass of sherry is a much better pairing. I like the idea of a glass of Amontillado or maybe a Palo Cortado. If you really can't bear not to serve wine then try a Gruner Veltliner from Austria or a Txakoli from Spain. Both pair well with vegetal flavors.

When I'm working on a drink recipe at work, I'm still expected to ring in what I've used and have a manager comp it off. There has to be a record of it for inventory comparison, and to be certain that free booze isn't crossing the bar. If it isn't rung in and then comped it looks like it was "stolen". ← Would the customer necessarily see that charge, though? ← No. Customer has no need to see it. But there has to be a record of product used.

When I'm working on a drink recipe at work, I'm still expected to ring in what I've used and have a manager comp it off. There has to be a record of it for inventory comparison, and to be certain that free booze isn't crossing the bar. If it isn't rung in and then comped it looks like it was "stolen".

Do you remember where the bar in Philly was located?? I wanna know who's doing the cool cuke drinks! You can muddle cucumbers with mint and then do a riff on a Pimm's cup or make a very refreshing gimlet with some Hendrick's, fresh lime juice and some simple syrup. Or you could skip muddling the mint and just muddle the cukes and use a mint simple syrup. Shake, strain and enjoy. Repeat as necessary.

I think here you've put a finger on one reason the whole idea bothers me. It isn't the hostess or M D's item to sell, so why should they benefit? Shall we extend the practice to busboys to insure clean silverware and refilled waterglasses? No, because it's something we feel we are entitled to when we decided to patronize the restaurant, and busboys have no power anyway. But when it comes to the part when I actually come through the door and ask for a seat, I've got to grease this one person to get there? It's the restaurants seat to give, not the Hostess' or M D's to sell or deny. ← If a bartender gives you "one on the house" do you tip on it? ← I partially addressed this briefly up thread, and yes, I do. My first tip to a bartender who is not already a familiar is overly generous to help make me memorable. If a bartender "buys me one," which is the euphemism in these parts, they receive the same tip I would have made if I had been charged. And I realize that goes to the point about whether it's theirs to sell and admitted in my earlier post that, though I never thought of it as such, my intention is to influence their behavior and thus it is a parrallel to which I do subscribe. I've asked bartenders about comping drinks and been told various things about having a certain allowance for it, and spillage, and whatnot. In other words, the implication was that it was an accepted, planned for practice and occurred as part of the course of running a bar. Is this a point that can be made with regard to the Hostess/M D'? (And I admit my point is only anecdotal and therefor would need more support from someone in the industry -- Katie?) And I would have, in the normal course of events, tipped these bartenders anyway, after they gave me what I asked for. But your point is taken. ← Here I am! This practice varies in restaurants. Some places have a "comp" check with a certain allowance for the bartender. Other places you ask the manager if it's OK to buy Customer X a drink and you ring it onto the check and the manager comps it off for you so the customer can see the pre-comp total on the bill. It's different everywhere. The "spill" check is for exactly that, accounting for waste, and putting a beverage that was consumed in its entirety on to that check is quite simply stealing from your employer. So is merely pouring the drink and giving to a customer without any record of it. These are offenses worthy of being terminated, IMO. As for the host(ess) and/or M'd, I personally think it's sleazy, but I've certainly seen it happen. Whomever said the job is to maximize seating and minimize chaos was correct. The one that can turn over the tables, keep folks waiting the least amount of time and make sure everything is running smoothly is doing the best job. Sometimes that's the reservationist who isn't present on the evening in question.

Woof! I just got home from the first seder and I'm stuffed! Dinner was lovely: Gefilte fish Matzoh ball soup Salad Brisket with Prunes Turkey meatballs Steamed broccoli and carrots Tropical Fruit kugel Savory vegetable kugel Fruit salad Assorted macaroons, mandelbrot, etc. & coffee How 'bout everyone else?

I was so exhausted today when I came home from work I took a long nap. Hence I'm up at ridiculously late hours but all is finally finished. Thought I'd share a quick snapshot or two of the Magnum Opi for this Passover season: One of several containers of the Sephardic Charoset The horseradish. Too bad we don't have Smell-o-vision or you'd all have watering eyes right now. I test drove this on some gefilte fish and it's all it should be. You shouldn't eat horseradish if you don't want to cry... Off to bed so I can go to work and then bolt home tomorrow, change into something more appropriate and go enjoy the first seder. Happy Holiday everyone!

THIS Video has to be the funniest thing I've seen in a long time. And it totally reminds me of myself when I'm on a hormone induced bender. Look familiar to anyone else?

Now that's a gulleteer. Sounds tough, but tasty Evan ← [Charlton Heston voice] Kuk-il BBQ is PEOPLE!!!!! [/Charlton Heston voice] ← This is in bad taste on several levels....

Damn! That looks soooooo good! So sorry I missed this. I completely spaced out on having Passover preparations for 26 people and have been dutifully spinning nuts and fruit through my food processor all evening as well as watching the new updated Ten Commandments whilst doing it. (Sidenote - this guy could definitely pry the staff out of Charlton Heston's cold dead hand) Looks like much fun was had and the food looks delicious! I'll have to go back here another time. Maybe I'll take the niece and nephew. They'd love the idea of barbequeing right at the table.

The restaurant in the back of Ba Le, which was once Le Cyclo (Bizarro) is now Pho Ba Le. And I've definitely seen folks drinking Viet coffees in there, as well as bubble teas.

Dulce de leche shouldn't be to thick to dissolve in, well, anything. However, it's kind of pointless to dissolve it in milk. After all, it's made out of milk (dulce de leche = milk jelly). Traditionally, milk and sugar boiled down to the right color and consistency. Now we pretty much just grab a can of condensed milk and simmer it for a couple of hours. It's too easy to make for me to go and buy some overpriced "flavored" syrup. In any case, I would use it as a sauce to top or stuff churros or pate-au-choux. Or to go with crepes and ice cream edited to correct spelling of pate-au-choux (no, I won't tell you how I spelled it originally ) ← I realize what it is, and I've made it by the same method myself, but I hardly think it's "pointless" to have instantly available caramel flavored milk. Sounds like something I could develop a crack-like addiction to, in fact.