KatieLoeb

Chowfun: Happy Birthday from one Picean chick to another. Mine's today (Sunday 3/4) and I'm celebrating by heading to Osteria for my first meal there Sunday evening. Thanks for sharing your experience at Blackfish. Sounds like a place worth a drive to the "hinterlands" to check out.

Yup! That's the one! I don't recall if mine is left-handed or not. I myself am sinister by design, but I'm certain if there had been that option I would have eagerly purchased the proper spoon for myself. I'll have to go give mine a better look tomorrow and report back. Did you know that about 1500 hundred left-handed people die every year, using tools designed for righties? I doubt that any of them suffered "Death By Spoon", but still, it's a scary statistic. I hate not having a proper left handed zester.

Are you sure that wasn't the Eagle RARE? It's at about that price point and is very good for the money.

What happens when there's a lunar eclipse? I believe we're about to have one this weekend, but not visible in North America I think they said? It didn't make sense to me. We're all looking at the same moon, right? I was in the bathroom when I heard the news anchor talking about it, so I might have missed some of the salient details.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, my friend. Sadly, my knowledge of places in that area is quite limited. I didn't even think of Rat's until someone mentioned it! Are there BYO places in that neck of the woods? Are there any that can seat that many people?? That might really be the issue, since most BYO's tend to be small. Once you're forced to find a place that has a liquor license, you're either forced to buy whatever they have (and places with a banquet room large enough to handle 50 people might not necessarily have a great wine list), or pay outrageous amounts of corkage fees to have what you want. Sounds like it would be better to have it at someone's home and rent the glassware and a couple of staff from a caterer. :shrug:

I just posted a comment to the effect that they'd be a lot more credible if they'd bothered to spell check Marc's name. The steak might be a winner. Miss Claire and I are both confirmed carnivores. It's also my last hurrah for pasta for a while. I'm starting a medically supervised diet the next morning, so I'll be on 800 or so calories per day plus two meal supplements for the next 12 weeks. I'm going to eat like it's my last meal, 'cuz it sorta is, at least for a short while. Thank you for all the suggestions. I will report back dutifully.

I am loving my Fee Brothers Lemon Bitters. I've been adding it to a lot of cocktails with most favorable results. So far the two favorites are the Parisian - a twist on a French Martini with Hendrick's gin and thyme syrup and a Provencal Martini made with Citroen vodka and lavender syrup. Both get a dash of the Fee Bros. Lemon bitters at the end and it works just right to dial back the sweetness and wake up the flavors in the drink.

I suspect that sharp, spicy and herbacious flavor of cardamom would be exactly what I'd expect from antifreeze green coloring in a cocktail...

I'm finally going this Sunday, for my birthday dinner. Frequent Dining Companion Miss Claire is a far less adventurous eater than I am, so I doubt we'll be trying tripe or octopus pizza. Should we stick to the Pizza Neopolitan and some pasta? What are the absolute don't miss dishes since there are only two of us and we'll be looking for the more "identifiable" proteins?

At least part of it is going to Conti's six figure salary...

An Espresso Martini with a hint of cardmom liqueur sounds good. So does an Appletini, but not with that heinous Sour Apple Pucker but Berentzen's Apple Schnapps. Try a spiced Calvados Side Car with a little cardamom liqueur instead of part of the Cointreau. Think of all of the flavors where cardamom is complimentary (coffeee, apple, vanilla) and play with standard drink recipes from there. Please report back. This stuff sounds delicious!

Thanks for the tip about ISB, Katie, but I don't know that I'd go back there for a free meal, let alone to pay for one. I was headed to Pho Ba Le and missed them, as they closed early. Went to ISB instead and ordered Bun Bo Hue. It came with NOTHING the way that it should have been: no herbs, no lime, no blood, no sprouts, no nothing, and with bare traces of meat apparent at the bottom of the bowl. I complained and was told that "you people don't eat that stuff." "You people" ?? ← Wow. I don't even know how to respond to that. What a shame. All of my experiences at ISB have been good ones. I get take out from them pretty regularly as well. You could always try Hello Cafe a few doors down. Not quite the same thing, but great cheap Hong Kong cuisine with no atty-tude. I think good Korean is tough to find in these parts without some part of the equation being not quite right. Giwa closes too early and is too casual for a comfortable leisurely dinner, Kuk-Il is gone and I never got the chance to try it, ISB apparently has a problem serving "we people", Musictown at Front & Olney is far and fun if you want to sing for dessert, but I'm not sure I'd go there without my karaoke singing buddies, Beawon in Cherry Hill just turned into a nightmare after our DDC dinner a few nights ago. Mrbigjas has to let us in on the secret places he's been keeping to himself, I think.

Bruce: I should have been clearer. Go back and tell them you were with the DDC dinner and it's such a shame they handled that so poorly since everything else went so well. I think that might at least get their attention. I doubt this place will close anytime soon and I suspect they could care less whether they see our mostly non-Korean dining club members again. They have a loyal local following amongst the Korean community, who pack the place for them nightly. And I suspect the sorts of gaffes that occurred due to the language barrier with our arrangements are highly unlikely to occur with their regular clientele. :shrug: It's just a damned shame. The problems we encountered were just bad restaurant management mojo regardless of the type of cuisine being served. We weren't trying to pull a "dine-and-dash", but they made us feel like criminals. It was poorly planned and poorly executed hospitality from their end.

Have been making the Parisian Martini variation with Lavender syrup and a lemon twist. It's going over well as the Provencal Martini. Others have suggested we call this drink the Pantie Drawer.

Bruce: It was a pleasure meeting you as well. My rant wasn't directed at you (or indeed any specific member of the no-show contingent. I didn't even realize your wife was going to join us at any point), but more how silly it was for the restaurant to be arguing with us over a relatively small amount of money, and the ill will they generated after what was clearly a completely successful event from everyone's standpoint. The dinner was excellent, the service quite efficient. I wouldn't dissuade you from going back to Beawon at all, in fact I'd encourage you to go back and tell them you were one of the attendees at the DDC dinner, so they understand the full impact of their idiocy. Leaving low level employees with no authority in charge of a special event is just bad business. The person Herb dealt with who was the source of the misunderstanding wasn't on the premises for our event. That's just poor planning on their part. Suddenly producing a "contract" after the event, is bad business. I think the restaurant is some of the best Korean food I've had in the area. I will certainly go back to dine a la carte in the dining room. But it'll be a cold day in hell before I'd try to arrange a banquet or special event there ever again after our experience last night. I'm certain Herb will be happy to hear from you regarding your wife's cancellation. It's a shame she couldn't make it. It was a great dinner up until we tried to pay and leave.

International Smokeless Barbeque in the strip mall at 6th & Washington does a serviceable Korean BBQ. Good soups (the Tom Yum is my fave) and Japanese pancakes too. Not quite the same as P&P's, but will do in a pinch.

This was truly the most exhausting waste of time I'd ever experienced. The amount of ill will generated by the restaurant over a relatively small amount of money was not a balanced equation. And Herb should absolutely dispute the credit card charge. The restaurant doesn't have a leg to stand on legally. There was a written contract, but it didn't appear until after the event and had NO signature from Herb on it. It was extortion plain and simple, and based on their error/lack of understanding, not ours. At one point I suggested they call the Cherry Hill Police Department and have us loaded into a paddy wagon for theft of services to see how far that would get them. The entire situation was preposterous. Note to future DDC hosts. NEVER make arrangements without making sure everyone is literally speaking the same language and that all costs per person are inclusive and that there are no hidden minimums or any other surprises that might rear their ugly heads after everyone else has left the party.

Too bad you missed the circus with management after everyone left. There was suddenly a written contract produced that had never existed before and they attempted to extort more money from us in the guise of tax and tip that was supposed to be inclusive, as it has always been for every other DDC dinner we've ever arranged. The banquet manager, who was not present, clearly didn't have as good a grasp on the English language as she claimed to, and conveniently forgot that the $30/person price she negotiated with Herb was supposed to be inclusive. They also charged Herb for the no-shows out of his own pocket. Anyone that was rude enough to RSVP and cancel with less than 48 hours notice or simply not show up owes Herb some money. It's not fair to make the host pay for you if you didn't make it for whatever reason. I thought the dinner was great. The aftermath left an exceedingly bad taste in my mouth. As a restaurant professional, I was appalled at the lack of consideration and lack of professionalism shown to us by Beawon. I think they owe Herb an apology and a refund of the money he put out on his own.

We may have, but Amada is Amada, not "Tapas Bar". The implication of naming your "source" in the name of the restaurant comes with the responsibility to reflect your self-imposed description.

Sandy: I'm sure your assumption about the bartender is correct. My co-worker that told me about it used to work at Lula as well, so I'm sure that's the connection. Sadly, the nasty weather kept me inside. But I cheered for Jennifer Hudson too! Maybe next year we can plan on attending an Oscar party en masse...

Would someone please go and take a picture for me? I need something more up to date than the one every single restaurant in town has on the bulletin board of him in the tuxedo. I would go but I'll be working...

How big was your serving of octopus? Without naming names, someone I know and trust went to Osteria and was the first bad report I've gotten from anyone. I was told there were four tiny pieces of octopus on the plate for $16! That's highway robbery by anyone's standards, I'd think, I don't care how good it tasted. It seems to me the problem with Osteria is the same problem that Brasserie Perrier has - and it's not semantics. If you call yourself an "Osteria" or a "Brasserie" then you should understand what that really means. Both places are far too "fancy" and the price points are too high to qualify to be what they describe themselves to be. Whether there is good value there isn't my argument. But over $20 for pizza is not a price point you'd find in any osteria in Italy, nor are $30+ entrees a price point you'd find at a true brasserie.

You'd have to travel to North Philly and Tierra Colombiana for that. Best Cubanos I've had north of Miami.

All I can say is WOW! Holy moley that's some beautiful food, and your descriptions are awesome. The wine choices are really interesting too. Thanks for sharing Percy...

Barbara: How many guests are you expecting? No offense meant, but unless your guests are seriously into wine, after a certain point, paying $20 corkage per bottle gets ridiculous and into the area of diminishing returns since most of your guests won't honestly know the difference. The reception is about celebrating the bride and groom and wishing them happiness. Most folks are delighted to have an open bar even if it's well liquor, cheap beer and jug wine. Don't stress over it and make a big dent in the budget over something that will sail miles over the heads of 95% of your guests. If you really have a problem with the "house wines" then buy one case of good stuff and have them serve it discreetly to the "head table". No one will notice, and if they do, offer to pour them a glass. Paying that much corkage for a lot of people is just wasteful, IMHO. I handled this issue a bit differently at my wedding. I had my reception catered by the local culinary college and had permission to bring in my own wine and spirits. That was a far bigger criteria for choosing my reception site than anything else. Since I wasn't getting charged corkage or overpriced markups for crappy products I spent more money on the food. We had a cocktail hour with butlered hors d'oeuvres, a five course dinner with paired wines for each course, and schnapps and liqueurs for dessert. Since I do have a very food and wine savvy friends and family, that played heavily into the decision of where to have the reception. It's all about juggling the details that matter most to the couple. We cut back on flowers (small potted ivy and roses arrangements) and music (just had a dj instead of live band) so we could spend where it mattered to us (on the food and beverages).