Andrew Fenton

Thanks, Greg. I'll definitely let y'all know when I'm coming in. Definitely check out Bell's; there are all kinds of crazy Eastern European foods there that I've never seen. I'd love to see what Tim would do with, say, kvass. (And, frankly, to see if it could be turned into something potable or edible: my take is that hey, you can't say "kvass" without "ass". But then, I'm just an amateur.

Funny. I've actually eaten at what must have been the original Famous Dave's, soon after it opened in 1996. I remember liking it; but at that point I hadn't had much to compare it with (one trip to KC, and not a whole lot of BBQ in the Northwest... let alone Minnesota). It'll be interesting to see if barbecue can be replicated well in a national chain.

It might be a consequence of success (I mean, it's a success to keep a restaurant open for more than six months, right?), or it might be a consequence of realizing, six or nine months in, that costs are higher than initially expected. That's what happened at Sazon (as the owner explained to me). Dmitri's prices are stable, but then, they've been in business for like a million years and know what to expect. Or there might be the sense that it's not fair to charge full price when you're still working out the kinks (I'm thinking here of that Indian place in NYC that had a pay-what-you-think-fair policy for the first few months). Whatever the reason, it's a pretty common phenomenon: I remember Django's prices rising after they'd been open a few months. I like your "founding patron" idea: but in the case of Marigold or Django, I'd rather have a card that let me get a table easily than one that got me a cheaper dinner...

I usually get the sharp provolone there, 'cuz there aren't many places that will do that. Seems weird that they'd use a cheap whiz substitute (because what? Cheez Whiz is more precious than rubies?) but also have expensive aged cheese.

Indeed. It's gotten attention from one of the major business mags (can't remember which one) as one of "the best places in America to work". Obviously that's a hard claim to judge or evaluate, but they interviewed lots of employees who had worked there for decades, who had been lent money to put themselves or their kids through school, et cetera. Pretty impressive. And I've never eaten there! Which shows that I don't knows. And that I need to add it to the list. This weekend, maybe.

Yeah, I like their fruit tarts a lot, and they make a mean berry turnover. It's true that they fly somewhat under the radar: I have the sense that they don't do a lot of walk-up business, and mostly sell to restaurants.

I've tried a couple of desserts and remember them being quite good. I'll be damned, though, if I can remember just what they were. I seem to remember a cheesecake? with a chocolate-ancho crust? Something like that. I definitely liked it, whatever it was. Here is an eG review of Next. And another one. I was underwhelmed; but I ought to give them another try one of these days.

Email rather than phone. Shola much prefers it, he's pretty fast about getting back to you, and that way he can send you a list of dates. Figure on a month or two out; more if you have to do it on a weekend.

Of course not. They know perfectly well that America is a place where "die Brüste wachsen auf Bäumen", just like Hootie says.

Motzt meinen Burger auf! Awesome.

Chloe (2nd and Arch) is another New American BYOB that has never steered me wrong. Lolita (13th and Sansom): Mexican-influenced BYOT-- bring your own tequila, to add to their terrific margarita mix. And afterwards you can go across the street to Capogiro for the best gelato you've ever tasted.

Today was the day of our epic, Lewis and Clark-style journey to the Northeast. We brought no provisions, hoping to live off the bounty of the land and the generosity of the natives. And our plans proved correct! First stop-- on which we were joined by Janet McBaker/McGlynn and Herb the Smiling Armenian Pizza Clown-- was Zeps Pizza and Shish Kabobs for some Armenian-style goodness. The kabobs (we had lamb and ourfa kabob- AKA ground beef and eggplant) were good. But I was more impressed by some of the other Armenian dishes. Spinach and cheese boreg (flaky turnovers) were very nice, as was the "spicy ajvar": a spicy roast pepper spread flavored with paprika and ground walnuts. There was also a sign advertising khinkali: 7 for $7.50, but only if you call ahead. I asked about them and was told that they're dumplings: very good, but also very labor intensive, so you need to call a few hours in advance. I'll do that next time. But most surprising were Zep's Armenian variations on pizza. First, lahmajune (aka "Armenian pizza"), two soft rounds of dough with a ground beef and onion topping: Still better was ajarski khatchapouri. This one is more like pizza than the "Armenian pizza": the dough is a chewy pizza-style dough, topped with a mild pizza cheese and-- here's the kicker-- two fried eggs. Oh yeah: This was really, really good. They also have regular pizza (which we didn't try) including a couple of house specials with basturma (dried spiced beef) and soujough (spicy sausage). All of which made me think that this spring we should have a NE Phila. Pizza Club outing, with stops for upside-down tomato pie and some hot, eggy khatchapouri action. On to a few doors down at Red Lion International Market, where I had an interesting Russian/ Georgian pastry filled with chopped veal. It was pretty good, and the price ($1.25) couldn't be beat. Red Lion can also fill all your smoked fish needs: again, next time, next time... More shopping at Bell's Market. I'll let Bob's description of the place stand: suffice it to say that it has a pretty amazing selection of all kinds of things you never knew you needed. Probably thirty kinds of honey. Tea and all kinds of interesting cookies (I'm eating some Israeli honey gingerbread cookies now that are really amazing). Pickles... oy, do they have pickles. We skipped happily down the aisles, selecting items almost at random: cornelian cherry jam, a few kinds of pelmenis, kvass, sour cherry juice, and the amazingly-named Lithuanian snack treat, Magic Sticks: Endorsed by 50 Cent, y'all! And finally, for a well-deserved break over a beer at the famous Grey Lodge Pub, where I enjoyed a Riverhorse Belgian Frostbite. I'd never been before, but it lives up to its reputation: a great bar, with great beers (and the best decorated bathrooms I've seen in ages!) And now that your humble correspondent has presented his experiences, it's time for a nice Saturday-afternoon nap. Whee!

They do this at Vientiane, too. It's not something I'd seen before, and I assumed it must be Laotian. Good to see my supposition confirmed. I'll have to head over to Cafe de Laos one of these days. I'd heard mostly lukewarm reports before, but this thread is making more psyched. Maybe even for the ant egg soup. Well, if somebody else orders it, I'll try a bite, anyway.

This is exactly what happened to me. (Well, it was the bathroom doors.) I suppose I could have bribed the maitre d' to get a decent table. But the whole point of living in Philadelphia is that you don't have to bother with that kind of nonsense. I actually disagree slightly with the concept vs. food description of Starr restaurants. Certainly Buddakan is probably at the top of the heap in that regard. They show just how hard it is to do fusion well: my experience was that the Asian dishes (Singapore noodles, dumplings) were not nearly as good as what you'd get at a good restaurant in Chinatown. And the genuine fusion dishes were generally disappointing: ponzu chicken with brown butter, for example, was a greasy mess. (But I did like the eel dice.) On the other hand, some of the other Starr restaurants are pretty good. I liked Blue Angel. And Tangerine has excellent food. It's expensive, maybe too expensive, but it's good; maybe because Moroccan fusion is easier to pull off.

My two cents? I hated Buddakan. I thought the food was only okay, and that the service was downright insulting to anyone who isn't a big wheel or that big wheel's supermodel girlfriend. I wouldn't go back there if I could avoid it. On the other hand, I've never eaten at Fork. But still... I'd go there.

Yes absolutely, also with lime juice... Sounds like a shandy: a great drink for hot summer days at the beach. I also know lots of folks who like beer and tomato juice, aka "redeye".

As in Guinness Stout? You put beer in the brownie batter? ← I'm intrigued by this, too; I'll bet they're good. And St. Patrick's Day is coming up... A little Google-fu turns up this recipe, by Grace Neill. What seems weird is that the recipe calls for bittersweet and white chocolates, mixed together. I don't understand the reason for that part. Anyway, somebody should try this recipe and let me know if it's good. On the subject of flavor combinations, spicy and chocolate is good, as for example in cayenne-chocolate ice cream. Kicking it Aztec-style, don't you know.

Life has handed me grapefruits; lots of 'em. I want to make some sort of dessert for tomorrow night, but the only grapefruit dessert I know is curd, sorbet, or maybe broiled grapefruit. So, then, what's the best way to use up all this citrusy goodness?

Since the lemonade is diluted, the citric acid and the tartaric acid increase the sourness. I usually make it with tartaric acid but not citric acid (feel that the stronger sourness of the citric acid overpowers the lemon a little). Interesting, and thanks for the explanation. I've never had any problem with the lemonade being insufficiently sour: I like it sour, but just use less sugar. I suppose pimping it up with acid would be a good way to stretch the lemon juice.

The nice thing about doing my own cooking is that I like everything on my plate. If there's something that I don't like, I don't eat it. Simple, really, and that way I can work out which combination of flavors will work best for each bite, or sequence of bites.

I'm drinking a glass of TJ's Gala apple juice right now. This stuff isn't half bad: not too sweet, with a nice apple aftertaste.

"Fancy-ass." "Midwestern." "Casserole." Would I have expected ever to see those three words together? I'm gonna say, mmm, no. Not even with a crack team of an infinite number of typing monkeys on the job. Jaymes, take a bow!

As you say, dilutable is good. (That's what I do in summertime, when I buy lemons for like 10/$1 and drink lemonade all summer: just keep lemon juice + sugar syrup in the fridge.) But what do the citric and tartaric acids do?

You know, after more than two years on eGullet, I don't believe I've ever posted to this thread. Time to change that: Dinner was a lamb shoulder (organic, free range, elocution lessons, junior year abroad in Europe) braised in red wine and lamb stock that had been in the freezer for a couple of months. Along with it is a white bean puree finished with some truffle oil; caramelized root vegetables (I knew the beets would stain them, but I couldn't help it; I love beets so) and spinach sauteed with garlic. A nice glass or three of 2001 Ravenswood Teldeschi Zinfandel along with it, and I'm feeling nice and mellow on this cold winter's evening, thank you very much.

Evan, thanks for the Hahn Ah Rheum heads-up. I'm going to head over there this week (spring break road trip: woo hoo!) and we'll see what we find. The leaves are on the regular menu (and at $10.50 or so are the most expensive of the vegetable dishes), so they must have them year round. It's easy to believe that they'd be best seasonally- early to mid spring, I'd guess? But these were pretty damn good.