docsconz

Do you or anyone else know anything about this book?

Wow! Going through photos of the 2005 season made me realize that my experience was only the tip of the iceberg. It is incredible how many different dishes they invent each year.

I would think August and September are the best months for diversity and quality of product for NY greenmarkets. One can get the incomparable Rancho Gordo products via the internet, but one can only get Rancho Gordo himself in California.

Thanks. I will remember that when I am up there.

While not inexpensive, I have received better fruit from California via mailorder than I have ever found retail in NYC. In the height of the season I can get excellent NY peaches, but still not at the level of California. My experience at Ferry Plaza in March sounds like it was much better than the one Todd describes above, but then I think that is when it will be significantly more impressive. Right now is the season when NY produce shines. Caolifornia produce shines all year long.

I believe there is, although I am not certain of it.

The platings are certainly not contemporary trendy, but embarrassing? I respectfully disagree.

Moderator's note: Since this is posted in New York this topic needs to remain relevant to New York. Todd's intention is to compare his experiences in California to what is in New York. Anything that does not conform to that is off-topic unless specifically adressing an informational point such as Ferry Plaza Market Farmer's Market days as above. Please keep any responses within these parameters. Personally, even in these days of intense globalization, I find it very difficult to compare California and New York. While New York has wonderful Farmers markets, they cannot compare to California's for diversity. What is available in New York is done exceptionally well, it is just that there are so many wonderful things available in California throughout the year. It is for this reason that I find that the California restaurants that tend to excel compare to their NY peers are those that emphasize fresh and local. Ny is great in the summer, but restaurants like Chez Panisse are great year-round. I think NY is better in terms of haute cuisine though.

Nice to read a good report about this once-hot restaurant. It seems that most of what I have read for some time has been negative. I loved it my one time there several years ago. I thought that it was comfortably elegant and the food was great. I would love to see it regain some of its glory.

Doc, The chef calls her food contemporary American with Hawaiian and Asian influences. She is a "self-described surfer girl" from LA so she fuses American food with some other influences. Molto E ← I got thrown off by Ronnie's comparison to Roy's. Sounds and looks good, although i am not sure I would appreciate the din either.

Nice reports and excellent photos as usual, Eliot! Looking at the menu and the photos I can identify some Hawaiian "influence", but is it really significantly any more "Hawaiian" than anything else going on in the country right now? Peeky-toe crab, for example,is from Maine and neither artichokes nor tomatoes are notably "Hawaiian".

With the departure at the end of last summer of Matthew Secich from the Inn at Erlowest, Lake George for me returned to the culinary netherworld of largely uninspired and uninteresting tourist food. I have heard reports that the food at Erlowest is still good, although I haven't returned. Over the past week I heard several reports from friends about a worthy destination in Lake George Village, Perreca's. While the restaurant has been around for some time and is attached to a motel, I had never previously heard of it. The reason I was hearing about it now is the chef for the summer, Nick, a Perreca family member, CIA-trained with an impressive pedigree of cooking in New Orleans, NYC and France. He was most recently cooking at Daniel in NYC. I was curious to try what he had to offer so last night my wife and I went with a couple of friends. The space is vintage Lake George - comfortable but nothing special. When we arrived on time for our 7:30 reservation, only a couple of other tables were filled, an ominous sign in this town of family vacationers that closes early. A couple of large parties did indeed follow us in, however. The menu is very limited and centered around traditional Italian American fare. I was beginning to wonder where the buzz was coming from. I was wondering some more with the service, friendly and well-meaning, but essentially inept summer resort quality. I asked for a Negroni cocktail to be told the bartender didn't know how to make it. This was not a big deal, although I was surprised that they did not even have a basic bartender's recipe book. I settled for a Campari and soda. I will admit that so far this is not really shaping up as a really good review, but then i haven't yet arrived at the truly salient features of what sets this place apart. A lot of care is given to the food if not the peripherals. They make their own butter, fresh mozzarella and bread - all excellent. We started with appetizers. I had an appetizer portion of shrimp marinara with homemade pasta -very tasty. My wife had a beautifully presented and tasty shrimp and chickpea salad, while our friends had fried risotto cakes and bruschetta. I was beginning to see the light. My main course was butterflied pork chop milanese with dried tomatoes, fried arugula and sweet russian banana fingerling potatos. My wife had one of the best eggplant parmagiaanas that I have ever tried. It was crisp, light and well balanced with excellent flavor. One friend had a pancetta ragu pasta while the other had a fantastic goat cheese-stuffed free-range chicken. Everything was beautifully plated. The only complaint about the food was that it was a bit heavily salted. I was thinking that very thought as my friend voiced it. The funny thing is that I like salt. I don't know if that degree of seasoning is standard there or a function of the moment. the dishes were far from ruined by it (for us), but somewhat less great than they otherwise might have been. This was most prominent with the milanese and pancetta pasta. The four of us split a bottle of servicable chianti from a very limited wine list. For dessert we split a lemon tart and chocolate mousse bathed in a strawberry sauce. Both were good. I enjoyed the food very much. Chef Nick certainly seems to know what he is about in the kitchen. The best part though was the value received. The bill for the four of us before tax and tip came to about $160 and included a cocktail each, appetizers, mains and dessert as well as a bottle of wine. While I wouldn't go so far as recommend it as a destination restaurant, I would certainly return and recommend it to anyone who happens to be spending part of this summer in the Lake George region. It would also be very appropriate for families with children.

Yes, Bryan, enjoy your birthday. You are still at an age with all the world in front of you. It is wonderful to see you grasping it with both hands and making the most of it. Life has provided you with opportunity. Seize it!

Bryan what made the stuffed crab claw weak? In general this is one of my favorite standard dim sum dishes. Do you simply not care for the dish in general or was this a poor rendition? If the latter, what made it so?

Hi Terri and Welcome to eGullet! It makes me very happy that you have been inspired by this thread. Mexico is a big and wonderful country with a lot more variety to it than most people from the US know. I know that I hope to become much better acquainted with it over the rest of my life. If there weren't so many other places I want to get a taste of too, I could see spending a lot of time there. Best wishes on your new endeavor. It is a brave and wonderful thing to do. I hope that we get to read a lot more about it here on eGullet! Thanks also to AzianBrewer and others for their comments both on this thread and via PM and email.

What kind of growing conditions do they require/tolerate?

I love ideasinfood. It is one of the very best foodblogs I have seen. It is also nice that the bloggers are also members here. Their food is amongst that I most desperately want to try. A couple of thoughts here. One can use a hypodermic syringe to extrude thinner noodles, though that wouldn't necessarily help a whole lot with the hassle. What about using a potato ricer to extrude more noodles simultaneously? Bryan, this has been a superb blog, as I knew it would be. I wish that I would have been able to keep up with it better. Unfortunately, I have been rather busy lately and not very available for posting or even reading. Enjoy the rest of your trip!

I haven't yet been able to enjoy a full meal in the new restaurant, but tonight I attended an opening wine and hors d'ouvres party. The space is indeed beautiful. It is sophisticated and elegant without being pretentious. It also provides a fine way to display Joseph Parker's (and others') art work. The space fits the kind of cuisine they make. With the skill and dedication of Paul and Cheryl parker, I have no doubt they will be successful here.

I very much appreciate Bryan's taste in food, but I must diverge here. I think these buildings look pretty cool. Bryan, did you ever get a chance to make it to Studio Kitchen in Philly? Shola's cooking is on a par with anyone's in this country right now. When do you anticipate opening ZKitchen? I gather from your post that it has not yet served its first meal. I anticipate starting some College touring with my son soon. If by chance we make it down to Duke while you are there you will be hearing from me. I am hoping that he will be interested in and get in to my alam mater, but he has expressed an interest in experiencing a more urban lifestyle. I am trying to tell him to wait for graduate school for that. Keep it coming!

I don't blame the winemakers or anyone else in the trade trying to make what they can. It is a free market. I find that I am now priced out of a lot of these wines and even though I can afford many relatively expensive wines, I no longer feel that the value is there for so many of them so I will not buy them. of course that is my choice. Perhaps it technically is not a boycot, though I would buy them again if the prices fell back to what I feel are reasonable. If others can and do buy the wines at the prices offered, power to them. I won't sweat it.

I find that the foodblogs in general move along too fast for me to follow, but this is one I must follow! Looking forward to the continuing exploits of BryanZ!

The Times obit is now on "select" basis, which means that one must now pay for it. In any case, from that article, I hope this helps illustrate better what the NYT felt his role was. I don't know anyone who was as feverish for these wines as some other Cal cabs like Silver Oak, Harlan, etc., so I don't believe they had the same "cult" status. I do believe that they were amongst the first if not the first to have single vineyard designations on their labels, at least in the US.

Count me in. I think wine prices have gotten ridiculously high. While I will continue to spend money on wine, I will be very discriminating and buy only wines that I perceive as excellent value. I have already started doing this for some time now.

Having dined with Molto I would expect no such correction. Robert, you hit the nail on the head!

I have also stopped shopping at Whole foods. I don't patronize retsaurants that advocate against foie gras, although I don't require it to be on the menu. I think your concerns are legitimate.