cabrales

Jinmyo -- Why did you pick the porcinis over the morels, given their relative condition?

I agree with Simon. In my mind, Giles Coren lacks substance as a reviewer. Other ancillary, but irritating, aspects of his reviews include: (1) tasteless illustrations that occupy at least 1/3-1/2 of a page (perhaps Web viewers are spared this aspect of the column), (2) provision of ratings to two decimal points (why that level of precision?), (3) a pretentious writing style, and (4) a "try too hard"-looking photo included with the column (the same one, unlike Winner, sic, who at least has different photos each week). I like reading A A Gill's column, although my favorite London food reviewer had been Jonathan Meades.

Liza -- Yes, although I still like chanterelles better. I've noticed restaurants have at times offered them up in tiny, tiny sizes (e.g., Gordon Ramsay, RHR in London). I like them that way, as well as in larger versions. I am not knowledgeable enough about mushrooms to speak to the range of different types of chanterelles (I seem to be receiving yellow-footed ones with some frequency over time). However, that is an area that perhaps B Edulis can explore with us when she has time.

Liza -- Yes, how could I forget, especially since they are now available ... I like them better than enoki.

Steve Klc -- Yes, I have always felt that, by not knowing how to cook, not only am I missing the joys of planning and preparing a meal as an extension of it, but also I am unable, in many instances, to discern its preparation method and the equipment used. (I have been interested in, for example, bain-maries after sampling two dishes made in that fashion at Troisgros). I agree that understanding cooking methods and the reason behind the utilization of particular ingredients, equipment or culinary procedures would markedly bolster my appreciation (incl. intellectual understanding) of cuisine.

indiagirl -- It's hard to describe the taste of the fish, turbot, but below is some background. I started becoming interested in turbot a while ago, reading Brillat-Savarin's The Physiology of Taste, in which the turbot is (if memory serves me) praised considerably. http://www.gortons.com/cookbook/gl_ti_tu.html (contains a picture; "'True' turbot are harvested in European waters from the Mediterranean and North Seas to Iceland and Normandy; related fish inhabit marine waters worldwide. . . . This large flatfish can weigh up to 30 lbs. (most range from 3 to 10 lbs.). It is sand-colored and scaleless, with bony tubercles speckling the skin, which is usually removed before the fish is eaten. . . .The white flesh of the European turbot is prized for its lovely, delicate flavor. It is firm in texture . . . ") http://www.patriciawells.com/glossary/atoz/t.htm ("Turbot(in): turbot (small turbot), Prized flatfish found in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.") On cocotte, it is indeed a cooking receptacle. http://www.patriciawells.com/glossary/atoz/c.htm ("Cocotte: a high-sided cooking pot (casserole) with a lid; a small ramekin dish for baking and serving eggs and other preparations.") As I cannot cook, other members would be better positioned to further discuss the range of cocottes available. If you are comfortable discussing it, your tattoo, since you are thinking about utilizing it as an Avatar -- I assume the tattoo is not based on a cooking theme?

TheBoatMan -- Prior to my edit of this post, it had described the possibility of sampling Conticini (Petrossian Paris)-supervised patisseries at Petrossian NYC. However, below is an update from Steve Klc:

What are members' favorite mushrooms? Mine are, in order: (1) chanterelles (aka "girolles"; by far my preferred category), (2) black trumpet mushrooms (aka "trompettes de la mort", which have been discussed in the thread "Trumpet mushrooms" in this forum), and (3) enoki (I like the feel of the tiny bulbous area on top of their thin stalks). I don't particularly like porcini (cepes) or shitake, although I readily take them in when they are included in an otherwise attractive dish.

Leslie -- If you have the information readily available, what are some of the brands of Ontario ice wine worth considering? I have seen a decent selection of ice wine available at several shops in Vancouver's airport.

So far, I haven't bought butter in large quantities for freezing. However, it would save me travel time if butter could be bought in larger quantities and frozen and not have its taste diminished. I'd appreciate input from members on the effects of freezing on butter (please specify temperature at which the freezer is kept).

Nova Scotia offers oysters, although Prince Edward Island is another Canadian source. I think at least PEI offers Malpeques (??). http://www.citarella.com/Product.asp?SubDe...18&Department=5 http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/zone/underwater_s...ster/oyster.htm As for the West Coast of Canada, Fanny Bay is available from BC. However, they are not one of my preferred oysters (alas, I have to say I like French Marennes the best and I have a special interest in the tiny French "papillon" oysters). http://www.bctravel.com/fannybay/ As Leslie mentioned, BC has great seafood, with crab, geoduck and lingcod being some items of particular note. Lingcod is perhaps an acquired taste, but it's plentiful in the region. http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/sci/sa-mfpd/e...ing-Fishery.htm (on lingcod)

. . . Its shape was somewhat rectangular, but not with clear definition in such way. . . . There was no fan on top of the chocolate sorbet. Steve Klc -- My photos from the Fat Duck meal became available today. Suffice it to say I'm surprised by certain inaccuracies in my memory of the dish relative to characteristics made clear by the photo: -- The caramel piece was generally rectangular, but it had very rounded edges and could also have been characterized as a "disc". -- There was a veil-like "fan" placed on top of the chocolate sobet. This item was of a 3D-looking quasi-triangular shape, and was larger than the caramel piece. It was semi-translucent, having a pale blush/ivory color and having limited "specks" and other areas of chocolate color. -- The caramel was ringed by a brown sauce. The ring had a small section omitted that made it an incomplete circle, and near this "gap", there was a progressive larger quantity of sauce forming part of the ring. Kind of like the shape of certain babies' teething mouthpieces.

Speaking of the Raffles Hotel, have members been to the annual, multi-day (?) Raffles food extravaganza (not the official name), to which well-known French and other chefs are invited? I have not participated. :confused:

Bux -- I didn't include those because they are gone after consumption. I have lugged edible items from R&C places too frequently, including: (1) jams, and armagnac with the M Guerard affiliation from Pres d'Eugenie, (2) Framboise liquer from Alain Chapel, (3) Gentiane or Genipi (it's one of the two after-dinner drinks available at the restaurants) from Auberge de l'Eridan, (4) chicken dishes and pates from Cote d'Or and Georges Blanc (the shop across the square from the gastronomic restaurant even sold uncooked Bresse chickens, and had various saucissons that seemed interesting) (Loiseau's jams are really good), (5) citrus fruit tea and sesame oil from Troisgros, (6) a green tomato item from Le Moulin de Lourmarin, and (7) the sauce used frequently in Bruno's desserts (kind of light syrup/honey, with crushed truffles) from Lorgues. But what is more burdensome to carry are bottles of old Champagne.

robert brown -- Yes, because I collect certain Guide Rouges (to see, among other things, what dishes are listed from year to year), I am often tempted to offer to exchange a new Guide Rouge (if I have one handy) for old ones that I do not have. I have never actually done so, though. No, the spreadsheet does not contain any information on past meals. The ways I document past meals are (1) tasting notes written fairly shortly after the meal (initially in notebooks, but now increasingly on my laptop, to facilitate posting) -- these are really enjoyable to read for me, (2) sets of photographs of dishes (I began doing this about a year ago) in albums that are dedicated to food (I have separate photo albums for other personal photos), (3) menus which I fairly proactively request, (4) sometimes, matchboxes, (5) a single presentation plate or other available plate, when available from restaurants -- I like plates that are actually utilized in the restaurant, and (6) other souvenirs I purchase from French restaurants' boutiques, for restaurants outside of Paris (e.g., aprons with logos, marked wine glasses, egg cups, napkins). Sometimes, I receive these items from the restaurant/hotel as gifts from the chef/maitre d'.

Adam -- I for one welcome it. I am quite interested in sea trout references. I saw sea trout on the Rhodes in the Square menu yesterday (see unlinked thread on that restaurant), and almost ordered it. I would go to Clarke's for the sea trout alone (leaving aside the nice-sounding guinea fowl), but for some personal obligations today.

When I have taken trips in France involving considerable driving, I usually bring along the heavy Michelin guide and specific directions from the Michelin site to get from place to place. I generally have every destination planned out even in these situations. When I have targeted limited, specific restaurants or am in Paris, I do bring the guide. I have an Excel spreadsheet that tracks reservations and contains restaurants' addresses, phone numbers and the date (if indicated by the restaurant) for confirmation (otherwise, several days in advance). I usually print out this spreadsheet. I tend to have a lightweight laptop with me on all trips, for work considerations. Thus, I can usually access information that way at the last minute. Also, all hotels have the Red Guide and sometimes other guides.

Gavin -- While locanda is popular, being booked through the specified date sounds extreme. As discussed earlier on the board by other members, locanda has a general tendency to want to portray itself as being super-busy (e.g., not accepting the times requested by callers, what many believe are artifical busy signals). Do you think another call, perhaps on another night or this one, asking about last-minute cancelled reservations (incl. later dining) might result in a table? I'm not surprised Le Gavroche has a table. I called Rhodes in the Square (yes, Simon's lobster dish to be sampled for the first time as part of a Pounds 36.50 prix fixe menu) just now, and they had a table for me.

Adam -- I was wondering the same thing, given Clarke's emphasis on sourcing from quality suppliers. The described poaching preparation of the sea trout should allow its flavors to come through.

Gavin -- While I have never visited Roellinger or Bras' restaurants (a misfortune that is high on my priority list to rectify), I agree that Fat Duck does not approach the level of French three-stars (except perhaps Bocuse, but that's because Bocuse's cuisine is so poor). For the greater London area, though, except for Gordon Ramsay, La Tante Claire and arguably Waterside Inn, my current assessment (albeit based on one FD visit; that hopefully to be soon rectified as well) is that FD is the restaurant where I would want to eat.

Akiko -- The brunch menu is not comparable to what you would experience during dinner. It consists primarily of traditional "breakfast/brunch"-type items, with also two interesting-sounding sausage dishes. I strongly doubt one could taste the nature of Clarke's cuisine through the brunch menu. As the April menu is indicated to be for the first brunch, it's a useful place to keep in mind, though for that limited purpose. When I navigated the site, though, I noticed that dinner menus are posted for all of this week! That would also be very helpful to you, if you can secure a reservation. http://www.sallyclarke.com/cgi-bin/sallyclarke/DinnerMenu.pl Based on my subjective preferences, Wednesday's dinner appears interesting, with wild sea trout in the appetizer and guinea fowl in the main.

It's interesting that both Malawry and indiagirl appreciated lamb dishes as part of their foray into meat-land. I would have thought that lamb might have been a bit more "aggressive" and strongly-flavored than meats like chicken or pork.

Akiko -- The "no choice" aspect didn't particularly bother me because I reserved in advance and called early on the day of the dinner to inquire what the dishes would be. I know it's inappropriate and I wouldn't recommend it but for the lack of alternatives, but I was prepared to potentially cancel dinner on the same day, had the day's dishes sounded unsuitable for me. The food was well-executed, although I think Chez Panisse has a history that renders it more special than Clarke's (despite the latter chef's advocacy role in the UK context). I didn't find Clarke's well-prepared meal justified my return, but that is in part because I prefer French restaurants. Note that, for me, the G/F area is nicer than the lower floor, although the G/F area can appear a bit cramped.

Patrice -- Skortha told me that the notebooks are beautiful, with sketches drawn by Bras of dishes, etc. in some cases (instead of photographs). Are they dedicated to particular topics?

Amigo is a restaurant opposite one part of the Happy Valley race track. I visited a long time ago, and thought it was decent. That was many years ago. If you have visited Hugo's, at the Hyatt (?) on the Kowloon side, I'd appreciate an update on that too. For weekday lunches there, a set menu would offer prime rib if one arrived early enough. The appetizer choices include an hors-d'oeuvre (sic) trolley that had probably 20+ items -- egg salad, smoked salmon, parma ham with melon, crunchy small octupi (well-marinated), medium prawns with mango, etc. Not cutting edge food obviously, but well-prepared. It has been years since I visited Hugo's. For Sunday lunch, Hugo's has a brunch that includes all-you-can eat lobsters (boiled) and smoked salmon. The "cold" dishes were better than the warm ones. One could request that one 1/2 lobster be made Thermidor style. Also, all-you-can-drink fresh fruit juice. I'm uncertain this brunch remains available.