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Andrew Fenton

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Posts posted by Andrew Fenton

  1. Bringing this topic back to ask if anybody else has tried Tostitos Gold chips? I bought a bag yesterday and have found them quite good. They're thicker than most chips, a little less salty, and are designed to dip without breaking. They're also a little more expensive than regular chips (same price, but for a 12-oz bag instead of a 14-oz bag).

    They definitely handled the guacamole I made for dinner last night. I like the thickness (more like deep-fried tortillas) and they have a nice corn flavor. I think they'll be my go-to chip, at least for now.

    I also note that the bag I bought is partly in Spanish; something I haven't seen on American chips before.

  2. For my first go at tamales, I started with vengroff's excellent Two-Spice Chicken Tamale recipe from RecipeGullet. Obviously it's not vegetarian, but it'll give you the methodology involved. I've discovered that basically anything will taste good when wrapped up in a tamale. Try a spicy vegetable stew or ratatouille for starters.

    A hint is to use banana leaves instead of corn husks. While they're not as cute as husks, they're a lot easier to work with: you can cut them to the size you want and they fold easily. You can find banana leaves at Asian markets as well as at some Latin markets.

  3. I like to keep chicken salad basic, and all about the chicken. Stew the chicken with plenty of oregano, a little cumin, some onion, garlic, bay leaf, and cayenne pepper.

    Shred or roughly chop the chicken, add some mayo, hot sauce, and tiny chopped pieces of onion and red bell pepper, maybe even a little celery if you are of that type. Throw in some salt and pepper and you are ready to go.

    Now we're talking! But I wonder if a chicken salad with cayenne and hot sauce isn't a little assertive for a baby shower. I should ask if this is to be served on crustless white bread, or in a more rustic format.

  4. Lauren, I assume the quotes around "wonderful" are meant for emphasis, not to call the wonderfulness into doubt (as in, "popular or critical opinion has it that they're wonderful, but I disagree")?

    I would very much call the wonderfulness of Starr's restaurants into question. Not least, the wonderfulness of the original Buddakan (note spelling).

    Cf. this recent thread.

  5. I ve only ever gone to the water ice place on main street in Manayunk, it may not be the best but the pistachio.choc mix is hard to beat!

    and Cath wrote:

    Went out on a limb and got a S. Philly "gelati," cookies 'n cream water ice w/vanilla soft serve. The cookies 'n cream was surprisingly good, sorbet-like in texture and not overly sweet, and rendered the ice cream unnecessary (which I of course ate anyway).

    I've always been suspicious of non-fruit-flavored water ice. Can chocolate or pistachio be good without a dairy base? And what about cookies n' cream? Is that made with, well, cream? And if so, is it still water ice?

  6. My wife is hosting a baby shower on Sunday, and I have been tasked with making chicken salad for sandwiches. Anybody have recommendations for such a salad?

  7. I don't do pomegranate: too much work and too much mess, for too little reward. Other food (especially meaty food) that requires lots of effort-- shrimp, crab, Chinese duck soup with bones and chunks of fat-- are fine, however.

  8. My concern is their set-up. When you walk in, the salad bar to top off your falafel, and the line to order are in the same spot. Even on an empty day, it seemed inefficient. I can't even imagine it working on a busy lunch hour.

    Exactly. I found myself elbowing aside people in line as I tried to get to the salad bar or the ketchup. Granted, it's a very small space, but I'd have hoped that they would have spent a little more time thinking out their layout.

  9. I've spoken to Grimes about checking out eGullet and offered a Q&A to him. He's about as interested in eGullet you and I would be in going for extensive reconstructive dental surgery.

    So what you're saying is that he recognizes that eGullet would be a way for him to fix any number of his unsightly and unhealthy flaws?

  10. Really? I've been there twice in the last month or two, and while the service isn't exactly licketly-split, it hasn't been slow, either: maybe a 10 or 15 minute wait for my food. Definitely nowhere near an hour. Both times were in the afternoon (one weekday, one weekend); don't know if that makes a difference. (For what it's worth, I've always found LL's service to be friendlier than Tacqueria Veracruzana: not that TV is rude, just not particularly warm, at least to a gringo like me. Doesn't stop me from going there.)

    One time I had a bowl of posole, which I hadn't had before, but was pretty damn good: big, lots of hominy (not as much meat as I'd like, alas), with a tostada on the side.

    I agree that each place has its strengths: I stick with the tacos at TV, and usually get the enchiladas at Plaza Garibaldi. It's LL for burritos, though.

  11. The GF and I are heading down to Philly this weekend to once and for all end our ongoing debate about the best cheese steaks in Philly.  We will be hitting Jim's, Geno's, and Pat's all on this Saturday. 

    If you're interested in the best steaks (as opposed to the most historically important ones), skip those three and instead hit Tony Luke's, Steve's Prince of Steaks, and maybe Dalessandro's. Just a FYI, and opinions may vary (though mine is, of course, the absolute truth).

    As to Buddakan: I've been once, and was underwhelmed. In my opinion, while the decor is striking, the food is only so-so, and ditto the service. It's also pretty expensive: unless you're dead set on it, I'd go somewhere else. If you want to stay within the Starr organization, you'd probably be better off at Tangerine or Striped Bass (caveat: I haven't been to SB. It may also be more expensive than Buddakan).

    Here are my thoughts on Buddakan, from Feb 2002.

  12. I've seen it spelled "dough" and I get it fresh and uncarbonated in my favorite Afghan restaurant.

    Yup, I've seen it carbonated and not, and fresh and bottled. Lots of spellings, thanks to transliteration.

    I guess it must be Afghan or Persian originally- it's at those places that I've seen it fresh- but I've also had it bottled by (if I remember correctly) a Lebanese company. Can't remember the brand name, alas.

  13. The Ten Commandments of Grits

      1.Thou shalt not put syrup on thy Grits

      7.Thou shalt not put syrup on thy Grits

      8.Thou shalt not put syrup on thy Grits

      9.Thou shalt not put syrup on thy Grits

     

    Good point. Because then the chocolate chips make the grits just too sweet.

  14. I haven't been there too recently, but the cilantro-lime truly rocks.

    And you're right about the Mexican chocolate, which, like, totally blows my mind, dude. One second it's sweet, and then it's hot, and then it's, like, woooaaaaah.

  15. Has anybody mentioned doog? Delicious, delicious doog, in all its salty carbonated yogurt goodness. Each bottle will set you back for like 30% of your daily sodium. Aw yeah.

  16. So there's this Dutch falafel chain. And they've opened their first US branch at 3rd and South St. The falafel is pretty good, and it's really cheap. For less than $6, you get a falafel, hummus and fried eggplant sandwich with as many toppings as you can cram on board, plus frites (thick-cut: either you like that kind or not. I'm pretty neutral). Plus- and here's the kicker- a fresh-squeezed orange juice. It's the latter that really makes the deal, in my opinion.

    What I like about the place is that they have a very small menu. Pretty much just falafel, frites and a small salad bar (with lots of olives, slaws and so forth). Downside is that it's wicked disorganized: nobody there really seems to know what they're doing. Worth a try, though, and it's a nice alternative to other South St. junk food.

    They have a website, of course. "Trying to spread the vegetarian lifestyle worldwide"... well, whatever. It's no Soylent Green, naturally, but it's a good start.

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