slkinsey

the metro detroit area covers 3 counties, not just wayne. it is hard to define what's detroit and what's not becuase the suburbs keep going and going and going, in some cases until you hit another city (ann arbor, flint, saginaw) That goes directly to my last point. Ann Arbor is not a suburb of Detroit. No place that is an hour's drive away is a suburb. It takes longer to get from Detroit to Ann Arbor than it takes to get from NYC to Rye, New York. And you know what? Rye is not a suburb of NYC. The reason I made my "comparable list of 50" from NYC is that density is also important. Are there as many outstanding restaurants in the whole state of Michigan as there are in New Orleans? Well... no, actually, there aren't. Bad example. But the point is that Detroit can't be a "great restaurant city" if you have to expand your area of consideration to 2,000 square miles in order to fit in a reasonable number of good restaurants. Especially when you consider that, for example, a good restaurant city like Philadelphia has a larger number of great places to eat in only 369 square miles. Phoenix is 515 square miles. Los Angeles is 498 square miles. New Orleans is something like 350 square miles. Chicago is 234 square miles. Madison is 219 square miles. Portland is 145 square miles. Seattle is 142 square miles. Las Vegas is 131 square miles. DC is 68 square miles. Miami is 55 square miles. San Francisco is 47 square miles. Manhattan is 23 square miles. Density matters. I hate to join in the piling on, but are you seriously suggesting that this menu at Traffic Jam & Snug or this menu from Andiamo West even remotely begins to stand up to this menu from Blue Hill, this menu from Babbo, both in NYC, or this menu from Charlie Trotter's in Chicago? It's hard to know how to respond to that, except to say that if that's Detroit's idea of a first-rate restaurant that would make Detroit a "restaurant city" then it's little wonder that it doesn't have that reputation.

Just found 4 bottles of Malacca. May have a line on a full case. <rubs hands together and chuckles evilly>

I don't think your views are in the minority as to the criteria (although I do think most people feel like there has to be a sufficient number and density of good restaurants). I do think your views are in the minority as to whether Detroit has really, really, really, really, really good restaurants.

The answer is yes, and you answered the question yourself: two great examples are Houston and Los Angeles. I am more familiar with Houston, so I'll use that as an example. There really isn't much of a "dense inner core" to Houston. To someone who is used to pre-automobile East coast cities, it all seems like a gigantic suburb of various densities. Houston covers 600 square miles. Considering that all of Wayne County covers 672 square miles, it's hard to argue that Detroit has "more spread out suburban areas" than Houston (I would argue, rather, that if they become any further spread out than Houston is, they're no longer "suburbs"). Houston's mass transit is largely a joke -- you need a car to get around in Houston. As for the "list of 50" -- I think it says something that one has to go that far afield (Ann Arbor?!) to compose such a list. Here is an off-the cuff list of Gramercy/Murray Hill restaurants. All are within walking distance of each other. 15 East A Voce Artisanal Asia de Cuba Asia Sushi and Hibachi Barbounia Benjamin Steakhouse Beppe BLT Prime Blue Smoke Blue Water Grill Bocca Bolo Casa Mono Cinque Terre Country Craft Craftbar Devi Domenico's Eleven Madison Park Fleur de Sel Gramercy Tavern I Trulli Japonais La Carne Grill La Pizza Fresca Les Halles L'Impero Lucy Latin Kitchen Park Bistro Pera Porcao Churrascaria Pure Food and Wine Rosa Mexicano Rossini's Silverleaf Tavern SushiSamba Tabla Tamarind The Garden Cafe The Water Club Tocqueville Union Square Cafe Urena Veritas Wild Salmon Wolfgang's Steakhouse Zana Restaurant Zereoue This is a good example of why NYC is a restaurant city and Detroit isn't.

If it's maraschino, the liquid should be clear. Click here to see Maraska's packaging for their maraschino.

"Mixologist" is just a word to describe a bartender who is experienced and skilled in making cocktails, as opposed to the more common "beer, shots and the occasional G&T" bartender. Some people in the business like the word, some don't. It all depends on what you consider "creative" and "orginal." Is there anything strikingly original about Alain Ducasse's work? I would argue that the creative output of people like Audrey Saunders and Dale DeGroff is every bit as original as Alain Ducasse. As for whether they're returning to the classics, that's a more nuanced issue. If by "returning to the classics" you're suggesting that they're simply repeating drinks invented by someone else and found in a dusty old tome, you are not correct. Of course they are familiar with the history and the tradition, and many of the drinks they make may be classics, but even a brief glance at the cocktail menus of leading NYC bars demonstrates that they are continuing to grow the craft and create new cocktails. If by "returning to the classics" you mean that they are returning to the classic tradition of crafting a cocktail rather than continuing the newer path of "3 fruit-flavored vodkas shaken up with 4 different fruit-flavored liqueurs, two different citrus juices and the ubiquitous splashes of cranberry juice and sour mix" mixology, then I would agree. Seriously, that is a ridiculous statement. A "chef" is simply the boss of a professional kitchen. Once you run a professional kitchen, you're a chef. Basta. The guy who runs the kitchen at The Modern is a chef... so is the guy who runs the kitchen at Carmine's. And plenty of people attain that "title" at a relatively young age and after relatively few years of experience. Returning to Alain Ducasse again, as good an example as any, he begain in the culinary field in 1972 and had his first "chef" gig in 1980. So, after 8 years and at the tender age of 24, Alain Ducasse was a "chef." Four years later (for a total of only 12 years in the business) he was awarded 2 Michelin stars. A good example of a young up-and-coming cocktail designer would be Phil Ward, currently head bartender at Death & Co. Phil takes his craft very seriously. I'm not sure how long he's been bartending, but it's got to be at least 8 years. Since I've known him he's worked several years at Flatiron Lounge with Julie Reiner and around a year and a half at Pegu Club with Audrey Saunders, learning and growing with people at the very top of the cocktails world today. If he continues to improve and grow and explore his options, there's no reason he shouldn't have his own place and be considered one of the elite figures in the cocktails world by the time he's put in 12 years. I think people are having a difficult time believing that you got a drink with too much bitters, especially for the bitters aficionado you claim to be, for several reasons: First, knowing the skill and expertise of the PDT bartenders this seems unlikely, especially considering that none of their drinks call for more than two dashes. Second, it is possible that a drink with the proper amount of bitters had too much bitters for your taste. Third, there isn't much to suggest that you have a level of cocktail expertise which enables you to distinguish between "too much bitters for me" and "too much bitters for this drink" (especially considering your original estimation of "probably 10 shakes" of bitters). Notwithstanding the foregoing, of course it isn't impossible that your drink had too much bitters in it. That's not the point. It would be interesting to know what cocktail you had. Some cocktails are supposed to be bitter. PDT has an Aperol cocktail on the menu, for example, and it would be silly to order, say, a "Death in the Gulf Stream" and complain that it had too much bitters in it. Considering that you can remember that the cocktail had fruit juice and a spirit, and considering that you remember the drink well enough to know that it had "too much bitters," it seems like you ought to be able to remember enough details about the drink (what kind of spirit, what kind of fruit juice, what kind of glass, etc.) for us to get a reasonably good idea of what drink you were having.

Naftal, I'm not sure I buy your arguments either that Detriot is unique in being tied to automobile travel and that this is a primary cause of its current and historical culinary doldrums. There are plenty of cities that are dispersed across an equally large or larger acerage and which have equally ineffectual public transportation (I would argue that there is no such thing as a post-automobile-age low-density/high-area city with effective mass transportation) and which nevertheless have good restaurants and culinary culture -- Houston comes immediately to mind.

NYC, where our alchemical friend cut his cocktailian teeth, is one of the epicenters of the cocktail revival movement. "Serious cocktail places" in NYC are the likes of Pegu Club, Flatiron Lounge, Milk & Honey, Death & Co. -- establishments that are considered among the best in the world among the cocktailian set. It remains to be seen whether The Violet Hour will compete on this level, but I have a hard time believing that The Matchbox, The Green Mill and various Chicago restaurant bars are competing on this level of "serious."

Phil, with all due respect, I think the record shows that you're not exactly a cocktail expert and sometimes make grand statements for effect. I point this out not as a gratuitous slam, but to contextualize your remarks for others who may be reading along. Most likely the drink you had was a Pisco Sour, which is currently on the PDT menu. This is comprised of pisco (a kind of Peruvian or Chilean white brandy), lemon juice (or lime juice, or a combination), sugar and egg white. It is traditional to add an "aromatic garnish" on top of the egg white foam after the drink is strained into the glass. This occasionally means finely grating cinnamon or nutmeg on top, but more commonly means tipping in several drops (not dashes) of Angostura bitters. These drops are often swirled with a cocktail pick for decorative purposes, like this. I've had a Pisco Sour at PDT, and it is garnished with 4-5 drops of Anostura bitters in the foam. This can look like a lot of bitters, but in actuality amounts to less than two full dashes. You assuredly did not have a drink with ten dashes of bitters at PDT, as such a drink would be almost undrinkably bitter. Most pisco appropriate for use in cocktails is quite mild in flavor. In addition, PDT uses lemon juice in their Pisco Sour. Lemon juice can often be observed to quietly make its contribution to a cocktail and blend into the background rather than broadcasting its presence up front as is often the case with lime juice. If you were unable to distinguish separate, distinct and unblended flavors of spirit and fruit in PDT's Pisco Sour, and if the aromatic garnish of Angostura bitters found its way into your sensorium as you drank, adding to the overall impression of the libation... these things are a sign that the cocktail was properly, perhaps flawlessly executed -- not, as you suggest, that the staff at PDT are "ambitious imitators." As I think I suggested back in the Pegu Club thread around a year ago, just like with sushi, wine, haute cuisine, literature, opera, ballet, fashion, etc... cocktails prepared in the classic tradition can be immediately enjoyable, but one would like to have accumulated a certain amount of knowledge before suggesting that the emperor's outfit might be a little revealing. Edited to add: Well, the "Fitty-Fitty" at Pegu Club is a Martini as well. The "Astoria" part might be to evoke the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel (as in a "Hoffman House Martini"), and the "Bianco" part refers to the use of Martini & Rossi Bianco vermouth instead of the standard French/dry/white vermouth. M&R Bianco is a sweet white vermouth, with vanilla notes.

The point I think Nathan is making here is that, yes, some processing is needed if you want, say, the red coloring from beets but not beet flavor and other potentially undesirable things that come along with using beets. If you happen to get a red color because you use beets (or turmeric or whatever), then they aren't "coloring agents," they're ingredients.

I often see it at Union Square Wines & Spirits, but that's about it.

Some little known "facts" about saskatoon berries:

People have been known to go into anaphylactic shock and even die from eating honey.

If you're at a dancing place and want a drink at right around the price everyone else is paying, just get a whiskey on the rocks (with a splash of soda if you prefer, and a dash of bitters if it looks like they might have some).

It's a bit of a semantic argument, I think. A color is a color. It can't be artificial. Red is red. There is no such thing as "artificial red." What there can be is "artificial red coloring" ("artificial" meaning "contrived by art rather than nature"). Of course, there are plenty of "natural" coloring agents that are produced from a fairly intensive refinement process that may strike some as "artificial" (such as cochineal, the red coloring in Campari, which is derived from beetles).

Hmm. I've got several 10-inchers and one that's around 12. Part of the edge does stick out, but I never thought of this as dangerous (certainly no more dangerous than a knife magnet where the entire edge is exposed).

My favorite: Simmer in water until barely tender, drain and set aside. Warm up an ungodly anount of good quality extra virgin olive oil in a pan with some thinly sliced fresh garlic and a nice pinch of crushed red pepper. Add the beans to the oil and warm everything up. Throw in a fistfull of chopped parsley. Season with coarse sea salt. This preparation works with any kind of bean, and really allows you to taste the differences between different the different kinds.

None of these pans is worth spending big bucks for copper. The "Pommes Anna pan" is good for making Pommes Anna. If what you really want is a pan for gratins, etc. -- then I suggest a gratin pan. Tarte Tatin is reliably (and perhaps best) made in regular, cheap cast iron. The potato steamer: Not useful to have unless you steam potatoes... a lot. Copper does not confer any special advantages when it comes to steaming. Rectangular braiser: I can't think of anything I'd use something like this for. Poaching whole beef tenderloins? Confiture pan: This is an unlined copper pan for making jams and jellies. Not really useful (and actually dangerous) to use for anything other than sugar. Paella pan: A real paella pan is made of carbon steel and costs very little money. If you want a fancy paella pan, I'd suggest one of the Paderno Grand Gourmet stainless steel paella pans with a 7 mm aluminum base. These will outperform the Mauviel pan. With all of these, there is also some question in my mind as to the thickness of the copper and the metal used for the lining. I am a hige proponent of stainless lined heavy copper, but the fact is that it is not always the best solution for the job. It's also expensive and somewhat difficult to maintain.

I have a large and eclectic collection of knives, and recommend the Kapoosh Universal Cutlery Block. It accomodates any size of knife in any combination, and due to the design it's not hard on the edges like wood slot blocks can be.

News flash: starting this Sunday (July 15) PDT is open on Sundays!

Good points, Mike. Having many friends in the business, my observation has been that fulltime shaking is a young person's game. At some point you either move up the ladder to designing cocktails and being the head bartender to eventually managing staff, mentoring younger up-and-coming talent, consulting and/or owning your own place (where you might, e.g., shake on Sunday evenings to keep your hand in but that's about it)... or you get out of the game. I don't know too many people in their 40s making a living shaking on Friday and Saturday nights for tip money.

Here's something that perplexes: Why is it that premade sandwiches in the US are so horrible, and yet most panini and tramezzini in Italy are made ahead of time and are generally very good?

My most unwavering culinary rule is that I don't partake of foods or drinks that may be described, in part or whole, as "mucilaginous." For people who like this sort of thing: make at home! All you need is boiled okra slime and sugar!

I can't think of any reason it would make any meaningful difference to add the salt only after the water is boiling. Salt can cause pitting in stainless steel, which might argue for minimizing the amount of time salt contacts the interior of a stainless steel pot, but I can't imagine that this becomes a problem before one has got his/her money's worth out of the cooking vessel (it also doesn't explain why this advice is given with respect to boiling water but yet we still long-simmer stews, sauces, etc. that include salt).

This seems like an odd situation. Based on what, other than the name, is the current LES Guss' Pickles something to save? As I read the article, Izzy Guss sold the shop to Harold Baker, who then presumably turned the shop over to his son Tim Baker, who is now leasing that shop to one Patricia Fairhurst. The current Orchard Street storefront is not the original location, the store having changed locations at least twice previously. Also as I read the article, Guss' doesn't actually make the pickles, and hasn't made them for quite some time. For a long time, they apparently purchased pickles from United Pickle, but Fairhurst has recently changed suppliers. According to the article, Baker at some point sold the rights to the Guss' name to the Leibowitz family, which owns United Pickle. They were apparently willing to allow the store to call itself "Guss' Pickles" so long as they sold the United Pickle Guss' Pickles. Now that Fairhurst has changed suppliers, they are less willing. This would all seem to hinge on the question of whether Baker sold the rights to the name or not. If he did, I'd think Fairhurst is SOL. If not, then United Pickle is SOL. Or, perhaps they can both use the name? I know that the original Patsy's Pizzeria licensed their name to a NYC chain that is not under the same management (and not nearly as good) but they didn't give up their right to continue using the name in doing so. Really, I'd be a lot more sympathetic to Fairhurst if she were making the pickles herself, or even if the current storefront had been in the same location since 1920, etc. Or am I missing something here?