docsconz

I certainly cannot dispute New Orleans as a great food city and a worthy candidate for discussion here, but I can dispute the statement of New Orleans as the first fusion cuisine. I'm sure that distinction goes back well before the City of New Orleans was a pipe dream in anyone's mind. While I doubt even Sicilian food was the "original" fusion food, it already had a multitude of influences by the twelfth century and hasn't stopped "fusing" since.

How would you prepare the jerusalem artichokes? Boil them until fork tender then rice them? ← yup, ~ 20-30 min depending on size. also, sometimes I add potato to the puree (jerusalem artichoke: potato, 2:1, w/w) silly trivia: I tasted this dish first at a cooking class/demo by Ron Siegel (of Iron Chef fame). ← Sounds good. I'll have to try it. Thanks.

How would you prepare the jerusalem artichokes? Boil them until fork tender then rice them?

I would place at least NYC and Chicago amongst American cities ahead of LA. LA may be excellent for what you mentioned, but lags in othe areas especially European haute cuisine. NYC is strong in most areas and Chicago may be the most interesting city in North America (and possibly the world) today vis a vis "creative" cuisine. Two immediate examples are the eGullet-associated restaurants Moto and Alinea. Although I've never been fortunate enough to experience Hong Kong for myself, it appears to have top quality interesting food in a truly cosmopolitan variety. Singapore sounds great, but is it so interesting because of its novelty to the non-Singaporean?

He is adding to the prestige factor - not that they needed it.

I still haven't had a response. Unfortunately, as a result my window has narrowed to the last week of August.

It's not as comfortable to get a good belly massage after dinner. Given that Saratoga is "Spa City" I'm surprised this hasn't been done before. Then again, as much as I love both dining and massages, I don't really see this as a natural combination.

Their web site is : <a href="http://www.smithcreamery.com">Smith Creamery</a> but no online ordering info that I could find. If anyone knows where to find some in the Philadelphia area, I'd appreciate the info. ← I can't answer your question, but why would you want to when you can get absolutely fantastic fresh amish butter at the Reading Terminal Market? This was not tested by Rosengarten and is as good a butter as I've ever had.

He did and it is. He actually tested butter in a number of different categories such as spread, saute and baking. Different butters had different strengths. The various butters can be ordered through igourmet.com.

As usual Victor, you are right. It would be more correct and not inaccurate to make the claim inclusive of Catalunya even if it is more than a city. As a greater metropolitan area it can stake its claim.

Heck, I wish I knew every city in the world to be able to make such a sweeping statement with full knowledge of what I was talking about... ← For a discussion on this topic click here.

The mar i muntanya concept has certainly gone well beyond chicken and lobster. It seems to have become a pervasive concept in modern as well as some traditional Catalan cooking. It was certainly everywhere I was when dining over there with many interesting and novel combinations.

In the Spain forum an assertion was made that Barcelona "is the most interesting food city in the world." For a number of reasons including the current level of creative cookery and the quality of available ingredients it may very well be (and currently is IMO as well), although I suspect other cities of the world including possibly other Spanish cities such as San Sebastian may be able to make a claim. What do you think? I want to know which cities and why you think they have legitimate claims.

I am personally excited that you are here for this discussion. I had hoped to read your latest edition prior to this discussion, but alas, I have yet to receive my ordered copy. An area of controversy here on eGullet in the past is whether the old dictum of cooking green vegetables in salted water to preserve the green color is necessary. What are your latest thoughts on the matter and what is the science behind it?

That Spanish Prawn is Aristeus antennatus, referred in Spanish as carabinero or gamba roja, crevette rouge in French and risso in Italian. (according to Davidson's "Mediterranean Seafood", Prospect Books) ← Pedro, since you provided the name in Spanish, French and Italian I would assume that this is a Mediterranean prawn rather than Cantabrian?

An interesting meal, although reading your description, it surprises me that you would have been getting full so quickly. What had you been snacking on beforehand? Did you notice any apparent lack of courtesy in the restaurant?

Another nice report, Bruce. When I was in Catalunya and San Sebastian in Sept., I found foie gras combined with either figs (predominantly) or mango. The canneloni sound good and are a take on the traditional Catalan dish. Which element comprised the "pasta", mango or foie?

Sounds like a superb meal, although I found this comment curious. Were the fig seeds unusually large or do you typically find them annoying?

Ellen, I am duly salivating! Congratulations, intraining! How long is your staige for?

Some potential differences for service to a "made" reviewer and an anonymous one: it may be assured that the "made" reviewer gets the best examples of product in the house and that they are prepared as perfectly as the kitchen can. This may or may not be the case for the average diner.

Perhaps this restaurant may have been more appropriately placed in the $25 and under category. That certainly should have been the case with anything less than a two-star review. The value of this review, as I see it, is that simply because it was the main NYT review and it was so positive, so many more people are likely to discover it than if it were simply in the $25 and Under category. In my mind a restaurant that serves truly great and unique cuisine (I have never been to Sripraphai so I cannot personally attest to this in this case) deserves this kind of attention no matter the location, decor or price point. Is the food special or is it not? According to Frank Bruni it is. I just hope that extra attention this is likely to receive doesn't ruin it.

The diner or breakfast joint will toast them because they're not as fresh as the bagel place! I don't toast fresh bagels, but happily do so to those that have been sitting around a little bit. Great post, Busboy! How did I miss this when it first came out? ← I always assumed you boycotted NYC posts because of the ancient upstate-downstate rivalry. ← With downstate origens and upstate presence I can enjoy the best of both worlds.

It seems as if this is a Co. of Italian origen, although there is no more specific information on the site that I can find.

To be at those price points they must have pretty big production. Any idea who is behind the winery?

The diner or breakfast joint will toast them because they're not as fresh as the bagel place! I don't toast fresh bagels, but happily do so to those that have been sitting around a little bit. Great post, Busboy! How did I miss this when it first came out?