docsconz

Right now I am extremely frustrated. I was supposed to have 4 dozen oysters delivered from Browne Trading Co. yesterday. They were shipped Priority Overnight via Fedex on Monday. Needless to say they weren't delivered yesterday nor have they yet been delivered today. The problem is we should have left this morning to go to relatives' for Christma Eve dinner where the aforementioned oysters are anticipated with much saliva coming from sides of mouths. Because Fedex didn't deliver, I won't be able to deliver. On contacting Fedex, the shipment is out in a rental truck for delivery, but because it is a rental truck, they cannot get hold of the driver. This in a Priority Overnight delivery that is already a day late. I can't believe they don't have a way of contacting the driver. I own stock in Fedex, but if this is how they do business, it won't be for long. And yes, I do realize that given the problems in the world today, this is a minor problem. Nevertheless, I am pissed

I'll throw in my nod to Napa as well. While I have had some outstanding wines from there, they are almost uniformly overpriced.

I forgot to mention that I would be taking the bus between places. 100 euro tasting menu would be out of price range. I only have about 1k USD outside of plane ticket cost to spend, so I'll probably be just squeezing by. I was thinking of one place to splurge, and by splurge I mean 30 something euros. I was thinking of either visiting Basque area, Seville, or Barcalona. I'm trying to do a european tripbefore attending culinary school in the fall. A great place to eat well, varied and relatively inexpensively is the Boqueria Market in Barcelona. Two places I can recommend from personal experience are Bar Pinotxa for wonderful Catalan cooking and Kiosk Universal for fresh seafood. I believe these are only available for lunch, but I might be mistaken.

Pesticides are another whole issue and are of more concern to me personally. This might be a reason for using the spray-on stuff if it works to remove any residual pesticides.

The meal I had at Susur about a year and a half ago was one of the best I've had anywhere. I liked the reverse format, although wine pairing is more difficult. I did not get any sense of the restaurant not being "genuine", whatever that means.

We will be cooking at home and sharing the responsibilities with friends coming to visit. Dinner is shaping up to be: Winterpoint oysters from Browne trading Co. with lemon and a sauvignon Blanc that I haven't decided on yet. Fresh homemade pasta preparation of my friend's. Wine TBA. Roasted beef tenderloin with sides of sauteed mushrooms, lentils and most likely spinach. This will be served with a vintage Bordeaux - possibly 1982 Gruaud LaRose Dessert TBA with dessert wine TBA 1990 Taittinger Comte de Champagnes for the moment.

That is good information. Thanks.

While good, one thing they are not is inexpensive.

Great job, Dave! Still no mention of salt in the water, although it is conceivable that salts containing minerals could act like copper as could harder water. This could be the origen of the "myth". If that is the case it might be that the addition of pure NaCl wouldn't do anything one way or the other, which may explain why it is not universally seen. Your research also explains why lemon juice can give broccoli or other greens that olive color.

I agree, Victor, that the traditional places offering food with centuries of honing and history shouldn't be missed. As much as I love places like Alkimia and would love to get to El Bulli, places like Universal Kiosk in the Boqueria and Hispania shouldn't be missed on a trip to Catalunya. One of the best dishes I had on a recent trip to Catalunya wa a roast lamb shoulder in a small restaurant in rural Andorra.

The further upstate one goes from NYC and the more rural the area the more homogenous it is. The area where I live (Glens Falls) is fairly homogenous, but getting less so every year. It is a very difficult restaurant area. In the past ten years Glens Falls had two different Thai and two different Indian restaurants, all of which were good and all of which failed despite my attempts at providing them business. Surprisingly, we have had a japanese-korean restaurant that has been in business for over twelve years, although I'm not sure how they are surviving. The area is fairly blue collar and does not seem to be too interested in trying new (to them) things. Fortunately, Saratoga isn't too far away. That has a much better restaurant environment.

Depending on one's definition of ethnic food, it may be difficult to come by in parts of upstate NY. Italian and chinese are probably the most ubiquitous with varying quality and may be considered mainstream along with french (I know this is debatable). Hispanic, non-Italian or French and non-chinese asian are more difficult to find and african almost non-existent. These are what I am focusing on with this thread. My favorites in northeastern NY are probably Mikado in Glens falls, Thai-Sushi Garden in Saratoga and Yono's in Albany. I have yet to find any really good mexican or hispanic restaurants upstate. Any thoughts?

Mariebelle is another. Their hot chocolate mixes are particularly good. I think their chocolates are over-priced.

Perhaps the water you use is relatively hard already. My experience using Culligan treated water is that without salt the veggies do not turn that deep green and then when lemon is applied as with broccoli it turns a yellowish green. When I boil it in salted water, the bright green color is there. My experience tells me that this is not a myth. Perhaps we can do a wine clip type experiment with liquids of known pH and mineral content and controlled cooking times and temperatures. Any Chemists?

Adding salt to boiling green vegetables preserves the greenness. That is how you get nice deep green broccoli and green beans for example. It has to do with making the water more alkiline. Conversely adding acid such as lemon juice degrades the green color. You wind up with yellowish veggies.

"Arrancino" means little orange. They are indeed supposed to be he size of a small orange, therefore golfball size is too small. As Craig says the rice needs to be sticky so they shouldn't be too dry. On the other hand, they shouldn't be soupy either. My son and I made them for Christmas eve last year. We learned how to make them from Ana Tasca Lanza at Regaleali in Sicily. Yum.

I love the half bottle format. It is the perfect thing for a weeknight dinner. My experience with them has been good, but what do you mean, Mark?

Man, I love your writing, Craig. I also love brunelli. I visited Il Greppo back in 1998. At the time, I understood that there was a family squabble centering on the traditional Biondi-Santi style versus the more modern style of Sassoalloro (which I must admit the few times I've had it didn't appeal to me). If I remember correctly, there was even concern about the family breaking up the winery. Do you or anyone else know anything more about this?

Shigella is a dangerous bacteria that can be quite uncomfortable (I speak from personal experience) to say the least and deadly to say the most. While good basic hygeine is a wise thing, I'll add my opinion and that of many others in the medical field that excessive hygiene can be counterproductive. Our immune systems need some exposure in order to work properly. The more fastidious we become the more likely a particular encounter with a pathogen will be significant. Of course that doesn't mean I want to be unnecessarily exposed to shigella or other pathogens. It does mean that small exposures here and there are probably not a bad thing to a non-immunocompromised individual. Jeffrey, any thoughts on this?

When is fresh date season for mail order?

Great report about a restaurant I have been very interested in (moreso now), but this sentence took the cake! I rolled on the floor.

You might also consider heading over to Saratoga. Putnam Wine on Broadway is an excellent wine shop with a very eclectic selection. William Roach, the proprietor is very knowledgeable and a lot of fun. I haven't been there in a while because I always walk out of there having bought too much wine I can't resist

This is a tough thread. I don't think I'm ever going to be able to describe or review a meal again

Where do you shop in Vermont. I have had pleasureable shopping in the past in Gillingham's, a shop in Woodstock.

Too true of so many wines, nevertheless, if the price is right it sounds like a pleasureable experience. I love the direction of Sicilian wines using native varietals.