slkinsey

Much like Audrey's champagne riff on a Mojito, you could try a champagne riff on a Sazerac, which consists of rye (or sometimes bourbon) with Peychaud's bitters, a dash of absinthe-substitute (e.g., Pernod, Ricard, etc.) and a lemon twist. Does it get more classic New Orleans than the Sazerac?

Most places I have ever been that do tasting menus ask if there are any serious food dislikes, allergies or other restrictions at the table. If I didn't like lamb, I would tell the waiter I didn't like lamb. And I would expect to get no lamb. Similarly, if I was really wanting duck, I would tell the waiter, "I love duck and would love it if I could have some duck tonight." That said, your point is well made that if you want a big does of duck you're better off with a traditionally-structured meal featuring a duck course. Hmmm... perhaps we should split off a separate thread on tasting menus versus traditionally structured meals? It seems that there is much to discuss here beyond the context of Per Se.

Like something I'd be very skeptical of. I love mushrooms, but I've never thought much of ferns. Ramps aren't ferns. Fiddleheads are ferns. Ramps I would tend to describe as a mild single clove of garlic with a stem coming out of it to which is attached a blade-like green leaf similar in flavor to leek greens. See some pictures of ramps here.

Very interesting and illuminating post, Robert! Besides touching on similar ground as Fat Guy's comments regarding the effects experienced when eating a larger piece of meat, you pointed out something that's been in the back of my mind for some time now: Most people who have visited one of Keller's restaurants report that at least one or two dishes were in the range of "just okay" to "not all that good." This is perhaps somewhat inevitable in the context of a megamulticourse tasting menu. In contrast, one most often hears of, say, ADNY, that every course among the much smaller number of courses approached perfection. Given the opportunity to eat at only one of NYC's tip-top restaurants, I am not sure I wouldn't choose ADNY over Per Se. It strikes me as very interesting that fooderati are clamoring nonstop for Per Se while something incredibly significant is happening at ADNY with the arrival of Delouvrier as chef de cuisine.

Dude. If you don't go, then who will come back and report to us about how they are doing without Jason Neroni? You have to go.

Interestingly, he seems to take serious issue with the fact that it's a pizzeria more on the Italian model than the NY model. I'll have to see what I think when I go there, but from what I have read this isn't anyone's idea of "what Brooklyn pizza should be." It does, on the other hand, sound exactly like my idea of what modestly upscale trattoria/pizzeria in Italy pizza should be. It's hard for me to take a reviewer's opinion seriously with respect to informing my chices when he doesn't like ramps, fontina or pancetta on a pizza.

I usually get the butcher to run 'em through the band saw a time or two if they're big bones. I also have a very powerful home grinder.

Made this one last PM, and it was well recieved by all. Nice drink.

Could definitely happen. Will be interesting to give it a try and see. Again, many people would tell you that cooking a chicken stock with the bones for 12 hours will give you a "bone taint" as well, but my experience is that it isn't true. As for little pieces of bone... I'm not talking about grinding these things down into sand. I'd use the coarse plate on the grinder. Regardless, since I clarify my stocks with egg whites, I'm not concerned about sediment, etc.

I don't think you'd want to use the smoked pork bones unless you wanted a smokey-flavored stock. There's no reason not to make a pork stock, though, or to throw some pork bones into your beef stock. I'm not sure I'd put them into white chicken stock, however, because it might intrude upon the chicken flavor. I also like to start with raw bones rather than reusing cooked ones, although I suppose it makes less difference if the cooked bones are tossed in there as a supplement. I almost always chuck a couple of pig's feet into my beef stocks.

Personally I think that doing this might backfire. I think it will cause too many impurities to be released and you'll have to skim it nonstop. Even if you don't mind about the clarity of the stock all that scum will negatively affect the flavor. I don't know about this "impurities" thing. The scum that rises to the top of the stock is largely composed of proteins, etc. that coagulate in the early stages. Personally, I find that I rarely if ever have issues with the formation of excessive scum -- perhaps because I use very gentle temperatures. I would also suggest that the very same mechanisms by which you think excess "scum forming agents" might be released would also release more flavor and more gelatin. The entire idea behind grinding the ingredients is that the surface area of the "dry" ingredients is significantly increased when they are ground up. Since the surface is where reactions happen and where flavors, gelatin and, yes, scum-forming agents are released into the liquid, increasing the surface area should have the effect of increasing the rapidity and thoroughness of such effects. Most "impurities" are released right at the beginning of the stock making process when the liquid comes up to temperature and a scum forms. This is when most of the skimming is done, with only very occasional skimming required thereafter. Grinding the dry ingredients might very well have the effect of releasing all the scum-forming agents more or less all at the same time as a result of the increased surface area. This would tend to suggest that less scum would be formed in the later stages, rather than more. It is, of course, possible that certain undesirable chemicals might be liberated into the liquid as a result of the grinding which would not be present if the ingredients were kept whole. For example, maybe there is something inside chicken bones that we don't really want in our stock. I doubt this will turn out to be the case, but you never know. Only one way to find out. There are a lot of things people say about making stocks (e.g., if you cook your chicken stock for 12 hours it will be bitter and cloudy) that turns out to be entirely untrue. So who knows? It'll be an experiment.

Interesting, I have several pieces of antique Griswold and Wagner cast iron that I inherited. If anything, I would say that it's somewhat heavier than new cast iron one finds today. Keep in mind that you do not want light cast iron. The heavier the better! Due to cast iron's thermal properties (very high heat capacity/relatively poor heat conduction) it is important to have a very thick layer of metal. Thinner/ligher cast iron will definitely have hot spots.

An even better analogy would be opera direction. The Metropolitan Opera, for example, has a production of La bohème "directed by Franco Zeffirelli." They present this production just about every year, and have been doing so since the premiere of this production over 20 years ago. Now, what does this mean when they say "production: Franco Zeffirelli?" Does it mean that he shows up at the Met every season to direct every new cast? Of course not. That task is left to the staff assistant directors who direct the new casts from notes. Many times, the staging will begin to diverge from the original over time. Sometimes, if there is an important cast or a series of noteworthy performances, Zeffirelli might come back and work with the cast. In general, the "director" conceives the staging, trains the staff assistant directors and that's that. Anyone who goes to La bohème at the Met expecting to see singers who have recieved personal direction in their roles from Franco Zeffirelli because his name is in the program doesn't understand how opera works at this level. Similarly, Keller conceives the dishes at Per Se, he hires and trains the staff in the execution of his dishes, he hires and trains the chef de cuisine in his culinary and management philosophies to oversee the kitchen, and he returns to the kitchen on a regular basis to oversee and tweak same. One who eats the "oysters and pearls" at Per Se during a time when Keller happens to be in California is still getting "Keller's cuisine" -- and to a much fuller extent that one get's "Zeffirelli's bohème staging" at the Met. Indeed, if Per Se's chef de cuisine Jonathan Benno comes up with a dish for Per Se all on his own, I'd still call that "Keller's cuisine" because Benno's job is to conceive and execute dishes according to Keller's philosophies.

It's that time of year again! The next time I go to the Union Square Green Market, I'm coming home with radishes and making some sandwiches!

Gougeres made with velveeta = les poufs fromagent

Okay, you shamed me into trying it again, and it was much better this time. hee hee hee! Right. That might have been it. This is a drink where I think you really need the acid kick of regular lemon juice to obscure the white creme de cacao until the finish. At least when I make them, the chocolate flavor is only substantially present in the finish. I wonder, also, if there may be differences in the strength of flavor between different brands of white creme de cacao. I think I have Laird's, just because that happened to be what the store had when I went out to buy some. Perhaps this is a milder brand than yours? Sounds tasty. There are a lot of interesting drinks that could be made on a similar formula. Another drink I've had that I didn't think would work (also from Gary Regan's newest booK) are "squirrel sours." These are drinks made with a base liquor, citrus juice and creme de noyeau or some other nut-flavored liqueur. I made one with gin, Frangelico and lemon juice that turned out to be really good. Again, I wouldn't have thought that hazelnut would go with either gin or lemon... but there it is.

I highly recommend the two-stage under-sink water filter here with the ceramic sediment filter and GAC ("granulated activated charcoal") filter. NYC already has excellent water, and this baby gives me what is better than any bottled water money can buy right out of the tap. If I were living somewhere with water that is substantially more chlorinated than NYC water, I'd consider something like this a necessity. The 0.5 micron ceramic filter means that nothing that isn't dissolved in the water (including copepods) is going to make it into your glass. The GAC filter takes care of the dissolved stuff.

Also reported in the International Herald Tribune. Hmm... I have a 0.5 micron "sediment filter" leading to a large GAC filter under my kitchen sink. Does this mean that my tap water is still kosher?

The only report I have seen on the site thus far was from someone who bought a larger C1 piece (saute pan, I think), warped it on the first use and got her money back.

I always clarify my stocks, so I am not particularly concerned about muck. That said, my experience has been that a cloudy stock is usually the result of too much heat (i.e., too much agitation of the water) rather than having the ingredients in small pieces.

The site says: Well, okay then. Why would anyone be interested in this? Why don't they call it "beer-and-a-shot, we're proud to use sour mix monthly"? I see that you are dismissed as someone who "hosts websites." Whatever.

For the artichokes, either carciofi fritti (bite sized pieces of artichoke -- either halved babies or guartered larger ones -- battered and fried) or carciofi alla Giudea (large artichokes de-choked, flattened out and deep fried in evoo) would work well.

Hmm. Interesting. Well, everyone can't like everything. I've heard that there are even people who don't like gin.

I agree with Alex re the heat issues. Any time a delicate, aromatic food is subjected to a lot of heat over a substantial length of time, the very same volatile chemicals that give it all its interest are driven off. As for other truffle products, I have always felt that the best bang for the buck is "truffle carpaccio." This is a jar of the trimmings from black summer truffles in oil. It provides a nice truffle presence without breaking your pocketbook. If you want to make a risotto or potato puree with truffles, you could do much worse. I think it's better for these uses than truffle oil (which, AFAIK, are all artificially flavored). That said, truffle carpaccio (and black summer truffles overall) are no match for real black truffles or, better yet, white truffles.

Do they really say that?! They were very polite about it, but yes, they made clear there is a dress code. That says something very interesting about different restaurant cultures around the US and, one supposes, the world. I could never imagine walking into a place like Per Se in an outfit that included shorts, jeans, t-shirts, or sneakers.