KatieLoeb

The Hot & Sour Soup or Pho with lots of chiles and herbs always makes me feel better. My OTC "wonder drug" is the Apple flavored Thera-Flu with a shot of bourbon or Stroh 160 Rum (160 proof - made from sugar beets) in it. You sleep like a hero, sweat like a beast and wake up feeling like a new person that isn't as sickly as the one that got into the bed.

Good call FG! Another possibility would be a big honkin' Nebbiolo based Italian red like a Barolo or Barbaresco. These generally pair very well with game. Depends on exactly what's in the sauce, of course. I'm still having trouble with the crabmeat paired with the elk. Seems like something will get overshadowed, probably the crab.

Kim: Don't forget to post a link or reminder in the PA forum as well. Road trips are always possible and there's plenty of good eatin' within an hour radius from Philadelphia, either eastward or northward. Perhaps you NJ folk need to try a few places further south? I'm certain we could help with suggestions

I haven't been to Molyvos in a while, but I found it to be very authentic Greek cooking. The whole grilled fishes are simply prepared with olive oil, sea salt and herbs. Delicious. Any of the lamb dishes are a good bet. The grilled octopus is excellent, as has already been reported. Wine list has some real gems on it that are quite reasonable and I found the waitstaff to be quite helpful in that regard. Saganaki is a Greek appetizer of Kasseri cheese that's been fried and then (usually) set aflame with brandy to loud shouts of "OPA!!" from the waitstaff and small scorch marks being left on the ceiling. Happy Anniversary to your parents!

Jacques Torres is a sculptor/artist of chocolate. The chances of me ever reproducing any of that stuff is less than zero. Doesn't mean I don't enjoy gawking at it and shaking my head in admiration and disbelief though. Of all the things he's done, the tuxedoed chocolate dipped strawberries are pretty easy. I've made these before for a party to great success.

According to the History of ice cream in Philadelphia, Philadelphia style ice cream is made without eggs. Thanks Heather! You are the undisputed Queen of Information!

I need more coffee. It actually took me a few minutes to realize your dog wasn't named Breyer.

Just skip that One. Last. Bite. that put you over the edge...(Mr. Creosote - would you like another? It is wafer thin!)

Nope. Sorry - this one's all about Philly. Bassett's Ice Cream has been around since 1795. Breyer's Ice Cream had a factory here for over 125 years until a not-too-long-ago corporate buyout. Ice cream is sometimes called "Philadelphia style". What that means I don't know, but I know this city has a longer history with commercially available ice cream than anywhere else. There was ice cream in Philadelphia loooonng before Cheesesteaks or pretzels.

How about anything you could manage in large hotel pans? Shepherd's Pie? Moussaka? Stuff like that.

Although this might qualify for your definition of "strange things" in your olives, I've always been partial to the Blue Cheese stuffed olives that they use at Martini Beach in Cape May, NJ. Now that's something to look forward to at the end of your drink!

I'm drinking the Diet Coke with Lime right now, jazzed up just a tad with the addition of some Dogfish Head Wit Spiced Rum. Makes for a very tasty cocktail.

I just test drove a couple of our lunch specials today. I had a bowl of Mushroom Bisque with Truffle Oil & Chives and a Roasted Beet Salad with Boucheron Goat Cheese, Crispy Shallots and Balsamic Reduction.

Beans: As I said, I haven't read it cover to cover and every word. I might be mistaken about the bars in other East coast cities being completely ignored (although I'm absolutely CERTAIN that no Philadelphia bars were listed ). South Beach might have gotten a mention. I don't remember too clearly. The article definitely left the impression, at least, of being about New York and the Pacific NW. Perhaps the way to get better coverage of the "forgotten geographic zones" is just to submit stuff to the magazine directly? Maybe I'll send them the recipes for the Sicilian Martini and the Key Lime Martini and see what happens. Recipes were quite interesting and there were several good ones, as I recall. I'd be really interested to see them do an article about "small batch" vodka distilleries like Hangar One, Charbay, etc. Actually even just an article on vodkas that are produced in the US would be pretty cool. All in all, I'd say the comparison to Bartender mag is a fair one. I almost always find something in there that interests me, like drink recipes for signature cocktails, but a lot of the other stuff is just so-so. And predictably, too many advertisements. Of course, it's not a subscription I'll necessarily purchase, but remember, we can write off these sorts of things on our taxes if we itemize The Pink Elephant merchandise is adorable. I'd love to see the Pink Elephant stir sticks. Those must be just precious! That's going to make for quite the conversation piece when you get the set coordinated!

I picked up an issue late last week but have only had time to skim it briefly. Interesting recipes, lots of "see and be seen" bars mentioned in New York and the Pacific Northwest but not too much in between. And you'd think that New York was the only city on the entire East Coast. Interview with the Porn Queen was interesting, but left me scrathicng my head as to what the hell it had to do with vodka, club culture or anything else the magazine purports to be about. The vodka reviews by the "Russian Chicks" were kind of lame. All in all (and I'm not totally done reading it), the magazine is about a 6 on a scale of 1-10. I love the Pink Elephant tote and the Pink Elephant Flask even better!

Jim: Are we talking lavender flavored or lavender colored?? Lavender flavored would have to be some sort of house made lavender infused vodka. Lavender colored could be achieved by using the Parfait d'Amour, as Beans suggested, or using just a bit of Blue Curacao rather than the standard triple sec and the usual splash of RED cranberry juice. About five drops of Blue Curacao can turn anything into a Windex lookalike so you have to be judicious with it, but properly applied should turn a standard issue cosmo from slightly pink to Lavender.

I'm with the slightly fibrous but sweet and delicious crowd: Mamey Mango Pineapple My first stop in Miami (or any well stocked Latino neighborhood) is for a Mamey shake too. Those are the absolute BEST!

I will undoubtedly be working on Saturday 3/20, when Rouge has our dinner with Sondra Bernstein of The Girl & the Fig restaurants in Sonoma. She's a native Philadelphian and a graduate of the Restaurant School, made good out on the Left Coast. The galley of her cookbook which I've been perusing has some very Country French meets Calfornia style recipes in it. Should be a great dinner and I'm really looking forward to it. Per Sondra's request, I'll be pairing all Rhone varietal wines with the dinner. Some will be French and others will be Cal-Rhone. I've already put in an order for Unti Vineyards Grenache Rose from Sonoma for one of the courses. We had this wine in excruciatingly limited quantities at the Bass last vintage and it is DELICIOUS stuff. So I worked my connection and got the vineyard owner to commit a small allotment to me to be delivered in mid-March. Other wines remain to be seen, but I suspect there'll be a Syrah and/or a Viognier in addition to the Rose, and perhaps a Muscat de Beaumes de Venise to go with dessert. Once all the wines are chosen I'll price out a "wine pairings menu" to go with the dinner and I'll let you all know what the additional charge will be to have the wines included. Dinner itself will be $60/person for three courses. As for attending and not having to WORK one of these gigs, I haven't had time to really explore the list of options on the website yet. Once I've done that, I'll probably be trolling for dinner companions right here in our humble PA forum!

Great article Craig! The Castle Rock Carneros Pinot Noir that is recommended in the article has been a standard glass pour both here at Rouge and formerly at Striped Bass for all eternity. There are only a couple of glass wines that I absolutely can NEVER take off the list here or there'd be a mutiny, and that's one of them. The other is the Schuetz Oles "So Zin" Zinfandel. That's about $14 at retail. Fantastic stuff and consistent from vintage to vintage. And of course the Chianti Toscolo you recommended so highly is a new favorite as well! My latest favorite is a Montlouis Chenin Blanc "Les Tuffeaux" from Francois Chidaine. It's kind of like "Blue-Collar Vouvray", but it's absolutely luscious. My first home run with the staff too It's the first thing I've picked that EVERYONE likes. I definitely agree heartily regarding finding the off-the-beaten-path wines (e.g. the Montlouis Chenin). Way better values and often much more interesting wines.

Speaking of re-tooling... What a shame that space is still empty. Someone needs to open a restaurant there. Anyone?

Tell me more about these. PLEASE!

Hi Janet: Thanks! I thought of you while I was experimenting with this. It's definitely a take-off on the Hangar Mandarin Blossom and Lillet combo you suggested previously. This is just more of a "girlie drink", I think. They are quite tasty, if I do say so myself! It's really only about 1/2 - 3/4 oz. of soda so it doesn't do much in terms of fizzing it up. More like a very very light "schpritziness" by the time you strain it into the glass. It wears off quickly too. I haven't noticed any problems with it "fizzing over", so to speak. I suppose if it did you could merely top it with soda at the end. I think it tastes better with all the ingredients well incorporated though. The Sprite in the Sicilian Martini is to take that overly "alcoholic" vodka taste away a little bit. (people who order these sorts of cocktails usually don't want to be reminded that they're drinking VODKA. If they did, they'd just order a vodka martini, right?) Club soda would also work, but I'm afraid would make the drink taste more watered down. The Sprite tastes almost neutral with all the other ingredents and doesn't seem to make the end product as watery somehow. The very slight hint of lemon/lime blends into the background.

Key Lime Martini 2 fl oz Charbay Key Lime Vodka 3/4 fl oz Licor 43 (a vanilla and herb flavored liqueur) A splash each of sour mix, pineapple juice and Sprite Shake over ice and serve in a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wheel. If you're feeling really ambitious you can rim the glass with crushed graham craker crumbs for a Key Lime Pie effect. This tastes just like a slice of Key Lime Pie! Keywords: Cocktail ( RG861 )

Key Lime Martini 2 fl oz Charbay Key Lime Vodka 3/4 fl oz Licor 43 (a vanilla and herb flavored liqueur) A splash each of sour mix, pineapple juice and Sprite Shake over ice and serve in a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wheel. If you're feeling really ambitious you can rim the glass with crushed graham craker crumbs for a Key Lime Pie effect. This tastes just like a slice of Key Lime Pie! Keywords: Cocktail ( RG861 )

Sicilian Martini 2 oz Charbay Blood Orange Vodka 1 oz Lillet Blonde 1 T Blood Orange Puree Sprite Shake over ice and serve in a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange zest curl Keywords: Cocktail ( RG860 )