rlibkind

If you don't have an aebleskiver pan, you're missing the most essential kitchen implement there is.

Today's B.C.: http://www.comics.com/creators/bc/archive/...03121016506.gif

'Attagirl!

Katie, Your post caused no offense to me, so there's no need to apologize. It's a trying time for all employees, I'm sure, and I hope my post caused no offense to you. What's most difficult is precisely what you pointed to in your second posting, the sadness that comes with breaking up a team (indeed, a family). FWIW, I recently attended a memorial service for the leader of the company I served for 20+ years before it got sold and broken up. Probably 200 former managers and employees attended, and we all looked back upon our years together under that leader as among the best of our lives. It was more fun than a college reunion. (The leader died of natural causes after of life of more than four score years). Once you get past the current situation, I hope that one day, you can look back at the last few years (and the years go come) with fondness as well. In the meantime, keep on doing what you do so well!

I understand employees' feelings (having had my middle management position eliminated in a takeover and having to re-interview with the new owners), but the fault lies not with the messenger but with the management. Michael Klein could only get his information from one or both of two sources: (1) what was public at the official proceedings and (2) management and/or employees. If senior management knew what was happening and told him before it told middle management and employees, well, clearly senior management made a decision that that was in its best interest, which may or may not be in the lower level employees' interest. Alas, this happens all the time. As for the employees who felt like they've had the rug pulled from under them, that's a good description. It's how I felt when it happened to me, but I should have seen it coming. Indeed I did, I just went about my daily life and didn't let it get in the way. And that was with a company which wasn't bankrupt! When a company is bankrupt, the fate of its employees has little to do with how dedicated they are and how well they excel in their jobs. It has everything to do with local economic circumstances, and who controls the money. I don't have the knowledge or experience to know whether it was mismanagement on the part of Mr. Stein or simply the circumstances and the economic environment, or some combination therefore, that led to the bankruptcy of Striped Bass and the apparent outcome as reporter by Michael Klein. But I do know the employees should not blame the messenger.

Who the heck cares about cannoli or cannolo. Let's talk sfogliatelle! I'll have to do a taste test and report back.

Spatchcock is a great way to grill small and medium-sized birds. It's also a way to freeze fresh, whole chicken without taking up much freezer space. By removing the backbone and breastbone, a whole chicken is as flat as a book (especially, if you cut slits into the tail into which you insert the drumsticks. Another benefit of this butchering/prep technique, vs. whole bird, is that you're less likely to have an overcooked breast and undercooked thigh -- the bird is more nearly (though certainly not perfectly) uniformly dense and no part of the bird is closer to the eat source than any other part (a frequent problem when you leave the breast bone in).

I used to make lamb riblets because it was an great means of getting the taste of lamb at a bargain price, usually under $2 a pound. After seeing this message string, my hunger for little lambies skyrocketed, so I looked for them at Whole Foods today (it's rare when my Reading Terminal Market butchers have them). They were priced at an outrageous $4.49/pound. Half a case away, however, boneless "humanley raised" (whatever that means) Canadian rolled boneless breast of veal was selling for the same price. No contest. I came home with the veal. Not the same meat, of course, but tasty in its own way and way, way more frugal.

I cook them at least a couple of times a year. You don't necessarily have to braise them first -- you can par boil first to get ride of excess fat, then do a slow grill or broil.

For three years, while my spouse was working in Ithaca and I was still in Phila., making weekend commutes to the Finger Lakes, I regularly made visits to the Ithaca Wegmans. What a store! But as others have noted, although they instituted a "popular price" policy a few years ago, they are still a tad high on staple items, though not as ridiculous as they once were. And their store brand products (at least the few I've tried) seem to be better than other chains'. Compared to other supermarkets Wegmans excels in the non-staple areas: prepared foods, meat and fish, produce, etc. Until about a year ago, for example, I could rarely find "dry" scallops in Philadelphia, but could count on obtaining them at Wegman's. That said, they are now regularoy at Golden Seafood in Phila.'s Reading Terminal Market at $9.99 a pound; at Wegman's, unless on sale, they tend to be in the $12-$14 range. When you've got a nearby mecca like the Reading Terminal Market (I live in Center City), Wegman's is superfluous. When you don't, it's a necessity. Still, when Wegman's finally opens in Cherry Hill a couple of years from now, while I won't be part of the crowds on opening day, it will be a regular stop.

Casey & Lauren, Why are you complaining about people treating the new Wegman's on opening day as an excursion? Seems to me, that's precisely what both of you were doing! That said, Wegman's is worth an excursion.

Whole Foods is sterile. RTM is merely sanitary. Besides, Golden at RTM offers dry scallops at $9.99/pound. They're not diver scallops, but they good and good value.

I, too, am sometimes taken aback by the different prices of the RTM fish vendors for waht appears, at least to the eye, to be similar quality fish. I don't find the prices on the fish to be uniformly high, though. They are almost universally at least a couple dollars a pound less than what you'll find at Whole Foods, and while supermarkets may sell some fish at lower prices, the quality is way below my standards. As for Downtown Cheese, yes, the prices can be high. I don't get to DiBruno's as regularly, but the prices there seem slightly (very slightly) less dear. Did you check out Iovine's for produce? Their prices are usually quite competitive.

Yup, mrbigjas. we both have a big beef about the price of prime, dry aged beef. Sometimes it's worth it, sometimes it's not. For an occasional steak, it still beats the price at a steakhouse. For hamburgers, I'll spend the extra bucks ($5 or $5.50 a pound) for the angus organics frozen ground beef sold by the Fair Food project, but when it comes to making chili or pasta sauce, well, then good ol' ground chuck at three pounds for $5 is my meat. And watch out for those hyperbolic statements! I find that anything with avocados takes at least a little planning or taking advantage of opportunity. I tend to check them out every trip I make to the produce vendor, and when I see them ripe or close to ripe, I pick up a few for either guacamole or another use (as a dressing mixed with yogurt or mayo for chicken salad, it's superb).

Nothing wrong with frozen fish, at either Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. (I also find the fresh fish at Whole Foods exorbitantly priced, though the quality has improved somewhat over the past two years). In fact, I love the tiny (maybe 3/4-inch long, tops) Canadian frozen shrimp (cooked and devined) in the freezer case at Whole Foods (not the awful thawed out shrimp or the individual frozen ones in the reach-in case). They're prefect for a quick pasta topping with garlic and oil, or as shrimp salad. Just be sure never to cook them other than to briefly heat them up. Great value, too, at something like $5 or $6 a pound. As for dry aged beef, yes, Harry Ochs carries it -- at a price. As an example, this past weekend he had aged Delmonicos (rib eye steaks) for, I believe $12 a pound. He had dry aged rib steaks (with bone) for $15 or $16 a pound. Reason: The more expenive dry aged ribs hang at least four weeks before they're cut. When I worked in center city, I used Jim's regularly and found it quite satisfactory. But where Iovine has the advantage is that they have developed direct relationships with some local farmers for at least some of their produce. Jin's, I'm fairly certain, relies entirely on the wholesale markets. As for the ripe avocados, if you normally can find them ripe at Jin's I would suspect they have an awful lot that have to discard for going over the edge into battery acid territory.

My Latin is a bit rusty, but Degustibus Non Disputantum : there can be no arguments in matters of taste. That said, let me politely disagree. While quality fishmongers can be found here and there through the city, including D'Arigo's at the Ninth Street Market, few offer the consistent quality and wide variety of the three vendors at the Reading Terminal Market. Like any other fresh food vendor, quality varies with season and species, but I find that if I'm set on fish I can always find very fresh specimens at the RTM. And this goes well beyond farm raised salmon, which any purveyor can offer reasonably fresh with hardly an effort, just good refrigeration. I feel your pain about Saturdays at the RTM. I'm fortunate in that I'm free to shop any day of the week and any time, but even on Saturdays, if you finish shopping before 10:30 a.m. it's quite manageable. After that, it's Grand Central Terminal. I find Thursdays and Fridays before the lunch rush are ideal times, particularly to shop for fish. I know of few places where you can get better produce than at the Reading Terminal Market. On Saturdays, Earl Livengood offers quality produce at the same (fairly high) prices as he does at the South & Passyunk market on Tuesdays and a few of the other local farmers' markets. The Fair Food Project, at the RTM on Fridays, offers a wide variety of produce, dairy product and meats from a variety of regional farms, some of whom market directly at the smaller farmer markets. I buy from both the Fair Food Project and Earl Livengood, but much of my produce shopping is done at Iovine's. The two brothers who own Iovine have developed direct relationships with farmers in PA and NJ so, as much as they are able, they bypass the wholesale market. That said, because of their volume and knowledge of produce, the Iovine's command respect when they do pick up the bulk of their merchandise at the wholesale market. They are priced way better than supermarkets and offer far superior quality. And where else in Philadelphia are you going to find salicornia? The area of meats is one where the RTM is strong, but can be equalled elsewhere. The exception is Harry Ochs where, if you can afford it (I usually consult the loan officer at the bank before buying any), the dry aged prime steaks are unsurpassed. (Just try to find USDA prime elsewhere; you can, but it's not easy.) That said, although I'm not a huge fan of Whole Foods, I do find their red meats quite good. Poultry is another area where, although the RTM offers excellent quality and prices, other markets can compete. Still, it's hard to beat the selection at Godshall's. And in how many other places can you find Muscovy duck? Not your local Acme. Please understand, I'm not saying that every single item of fish, meat or produce you find at the RTM is uniformly perfect. The RTM caters to a varied clientele, at varied price and quality levels. But be picky, as you claim to be, and you'll find plenty of good, wholesome, fresh, tasty food at the RTM. Do yourself a favor, and try, try again.

Spiritos Restaurant 714 3rd Ave, Elizabeth, NJ 07202 (908) 351-5414 Is this it? If so, it's awful close to Staten Island. Between SI and the airport during those pick up/drop off runs. Do they sell slices? BTW, what is "Elizabeth's "Burg" section?" That's it. Fairly easy on/off between SI and EWR, as you noted. In warm weather, follow the pizza with lemon ice from diCosmo's a block or two away on Second Avenue. They don't sell slices.

I was going to tell you to try the Reading Terminal Market, 'til I read that you are "not a big fan" of the RTM. Pray tell, why"? What is it about the market that off-puts you?

Whoa! There's not one single best pizza place in NJ, but there are lots of contenders. My fav is Spiritos in Elizabeth's "Burg" section.

It's been at least 8 or 9 years since I've been to the 640 (I moved from North Jersey to Philadelphia 24 years ago). We mostly ordered the prime rib, although I believe they also served rib steaks, strips, etc. Nothing fancy, by any means. The less said about the decor the better. Just a tavern that serves grilled red meat. Always good value -- they make it up on the beer.

It's worth traveling to Elizabeth to the 640 Club, which is about as unpretentious as you can get. It's a tavern at 640 South St. (near the former St. Elizabeth's Hospital and Elizabeth High School). In the plain back room they serve steaks, chops and prime rib. Get a "family style" salad: simple lettuce and onion salad with Italian dressing. In my youth (oh, so long ago) all the doctors at St. Elizabeth's or Elizabeth General (both now Trinitas, I believe) would eat there. Of course, 20 or so years ago with the cholesterol scares they stopped. I expect that with Atkins, they've repopulated the joint! Alas, it may not fit your criteria on a Friday or Saturday night, because there's apt to be a line. But I can't think of anyplace that serves decent steaks where there won't be a line. I doubt 640 takes reservations.

I always thought Laird's was strictly a NJ product, but the company's website clearly says it isn't so: "Currently, all apple distillation is done at our plant in North Garden, Virginia. The orchards of the fertile Shenandoah Valley amply supply our apple needs each harvest season.": See Laird and Company website. The website is not clear on the subject, but it appears the distillate is cut with water, aged and bottled in NJ. But since the actual distillation and source of the apples takes place out of state, I'm not sure one can claim Jersey Lightning as a pure NJ product.

The Elizabeth Ikea (and Jersey Gardens) benefitted from lots of tax incentives to build where they did (on top of the former Elizabeth municipal dump, for the most part) which significantly altered the economics.

Different profit margins makes the land/building costs sensible for Ikea, prohibitive for Wegmans.

All the West Philly choices would be good, though a few might stretch your budget a little. It's hard to find a place with other than diner-type food where you can get out for less than $25, including tax and tips, since entrees are going to be from slightly under to slightly over $20 at most establishments. Also, the Windsor is not walking distance from Penn and West Philly (except on the nicest of days, when you've got 25-30 minutes to spare). A cab ride from your hotel to there would run less than $10, including tip. The Windsor is at 17th and the Parkway, and it is walking distance from Restaurant Row (Walnut between 15th & 18th) and Rittenhouse Square. However, most of the places at either location will be well above your target budget. A few Rittenhouse Square area eateries fit the bill, though. Pizza, of course. Lombardi's at 132 S. 18th St. or Pietro's Coal Oven Pizzeria at 1714 Walnut are only a 5-10 minute walk from your hotel. A bit pricier but still within your range (if the ladies don't order lobster!) and walking distance is Philadelphia's classic fish house: Sansom Street Oyster House is at 1516 Sansom St. That would be my choice. If your daughter is a true 'foodie', recommend the oysters and the snapper soup. Yum. Chinatown is an easy eight block walk (or $5 cab ride) -- just walk down Arch or Cherry street (the latter can get a little desolate at night, and you might not wish to go that way). Lots of choices there. The Rose Tatoo might be a good choice, though it would stretch your budget a little. It's at 19th and Callowhill, just four blocks away and a pleasant walk through Logan Square and its Calder fountain. Let us know where you wound up and how it was!