Damian

Great ideas...thanks again all for responding.

Thanks all for the suggestions - looks like I'll pick up a bottle of the Cuervo Reserva for sipping and a bottle of Sauza or something else a step up from regular Cuervo for mixing. Cheers! (More suggestions welcome!)

Am constantly looking to stock the liquor cabinet with good things. It occured to me that I am missing a tequila. Any favorites out there? I don't often drink the stuff, but recognize that is an essential for certain guests. In the past I have enjoyed Sauza Commemorativo, but I confess my ignorance on the subject of worthy tequilas. Can anyone begin my education?

My wife and I had the pleasure of dining at Blue Hill not long ago and had a great experience with the tasting menu. One of the dishes particularly stood out, White King Salmon with morels, pickled ramps,and a ramp sauce. I had never seen nor tried white salmon before and found it to be very delicately flavored (not as gamey as regular salmon) with a silken texture. How did you come upon this ingredient and where is it from? What about it do you particularly like? Incidentally, other highlights for us (the whole meal was good) were the amuse of asparagus soup with pistachio and mint for its unique flavor combination, and that fantasitc bread pudding dessert.

More Blue Hill Threads (Click) Carry On.

Are you sure the beach area is unchanged? That nice lawn is still there? Man, when I was there last, it was depressing because that once beautiful space seemed to be destroyed.

It's been under renovation for a while now - not sure of the current status, but as of last November it was a complete mess. It used to be very nicely landscaped, a kind of oasis with a lovely lawn. The beach side is probably still OK, but the pool area is now kind of a blocky concrete looking thing - memories of Eastern Europe come to mind. Maybe I caught them right in the middle of renovations and it is now beautiful again, but when I saw it the whole outdoor area looked really unattractive. I'd be really disappointed if I had paid to stay there (we stayed at the Convento in Old San Juan).

I love the threads on this board, always.

Link for continuity purposes Blue Hill Thread Carry on.

Again, thanks. It is so much fun to read these.

Just ordered a first edition in fine condition w/ dust cover from Alibris, thanks all - am looking forward to this one.

Thanks lizziee, I'm sure I can find the book using Amazon's search function - I just wanted to ensure that it was the correct book I was finding. Blake and Crewe, correct?

This is a belated post to your sushi request, Miguel. I agree that Yamato has pretty good sushi - I also found the sushi at Yukiyu's Old San Juan branch to be pretty decent. Dunbar's used to have "sushi night" on Wednesdays with not great, but passable and very cheap sushi platters. As an aside, I miss Dunbar's, everytime I would go I saw people I knew. If nothing else was happening, it was always a reliable place to go and be social. I should have mentioned it for the cheap eats section - but it is better known for the social scene than the dining experience. Did you ever go to the trendy Ground Zero on Fortaleza during its short life? They had surprisingly good sushi at the sushi bar. I never ate at the Cherry Blossom in Condado, but the one at Conquistador had good, if wildly overpriced, sushi. The Yukiyu in the BP building was good for a quick lunch with lower expectations, and yes, it was overpriced. Edited: Spelling

Just to be clear, this is the Anthony Blake and Quentin Crewe book first published in the late 1970s?

Nothing offensive or terrible about them, they were just kind of there. A bit limp, not crisp the way I like 'em. Flavor was nondescript. Just your typical less than average fries, I suppose. I'd rather waste the calories on something else.

I did indeed make it to Blue Smoke and it thoroughly satisfied my barbecue cravings. Ribs were really good - and you just can't beat Anchor Liberty as an accompaniment! That frybread was good as promised, but skip the fries. Next time I might try onion rings or something. I'll be going back- best 'cue in the city or no, good enough to satisfy the urge.

mitosis - you don't mean the specific form of cell division that happens in the gonads to make haplotic sex cells. You were going for the more general term for cell division as a metaphor, right?

Can't stand all this talk of barbecue... that settles it, I'm going tonight. Am calling now to cancel 7:30 reservation at Artisanal.

This is so much fun.

Sprinkled with salt and pepper is the only a way a self-respecting Marylander would eat an Eastern Shore 'lope. Peanut butter and olive sandwiches, PB and salami on rye. Dark beer and chocolate. Velveeta, mayo and mint jelly Speaking of mint jelly - talk about an odd pairing that is completely acceptable to most people, lamb and mint jelly.

Candied fennel seeds may be an example of preferred treatment. The hot chocolate and marshmallows, however, were part of my meal (see above). Manager did introduce himself to us, and I saw him fully engaged with other tables several times. I also had another discussion with the manager when he gave me the menus. I'm going to read the review now, thanks Jordyn.

So many - no surprises to those here (I got all of my ideas from eGullet!). Gramercy Tavern (next month!), Le B, Cello, Jean Georges, Ducasse, Bouley, Babbo, Union Square, Tasting Room, Picholine, Craft Reasons for these? New York experience that is hard, if not impossible to find elsewhere. Reasons for not going- time and money. Haven't had time to go to them all since moving here. Done pretty well for seven months and counting, however: Daniel, Cafe Boulud, Artisanal, Union Pacific, Tabla, Eleven Madison,Gotham Bar and Grill, Blue Hill, Compass, Ouest, OIBL-TIBS, Ilo...assorted others not as good or great but lowbrow. Thanks again eGullet!

Just returned from a meal at Compass and am pleased to say that Neil Annis is still doing wonderful things at this beautiful UWS space despite the name change. We walked in off the street at 8:30 on Friday to a half-full restaurant and were immediately greeted and seated. Extraordinary menu We ordered from the tasting menu, an incredible value at $30 for three courses (not available after 6:30 on Saturdays) Would get right to the menu, but the bread basket came with these scallion biscuits that were so buttery-good, I could have eaten those and nothing else and been happy. Tasting menu as follows: Starters - Chilled corn soup with grilled shrimp; Chopped salad with Maytag blue cheese and sherry grapeseed vinaigrette; or saffron risotto fritters with spicy red pepper coulis. Mains - Parmesan herb-crusted cod, wilted spinach, tomato coriander sauce; Organic Hudson Valley calf's liver with kohlrabi, apple, and spring onion; or Pan roasted hanger steak with paprika potatoes, red wine sauce. Dessert - Basil cake with mint sorbet, mango hing mache salad; or Lemongrass panna cotta, tarragon pineapple grape salad. It was hard to choose the tasting menu over the many intriguing offerings on the a la carte side, but the value proved to be too good to pass up. Amuse of generous two-bite portion of poached lobster atop a chilled soup of tomato and gooseberry with halved gooseberries. Light, refreshing, succulent, an excellent apetite inducer. I had the chopped salad which was very flavorful mixing sweet and savory flavors (apples, radishes, hearts of palm, many more items). The mixing of sweet and savory was the very definite theme of this menu, and a raging success. Partner had the fritters, sweet rice dumplings with tart coulis - this was less successful at first as the fritters were underseasoned and somewhat bland, salt and pepper woke things right up however, and completely turned my opinion completely around. For mains, we were both in the mood for steak and so shamefully ordered the same dish, it was hard to pass up the other options, both of which sounded terrific. Hanger steak was intensely flavored, a somewhat small portion. The potatoes were sweet, not spicy as advertised, and I swear had some sweet plaintain or some such mixed in. I love hanger steak, and this one tasted as good as the Artisanal version I had not too long ago. Dessert was a real star, both were so surprising and so so good. The basil cake served with a salad of tender herbs was simultaneously sweet and savory and the mint sorbet bit the right note. The panna cotta with tarragon continued the theme and was an equally fascinating mix of flavors. I was worried that these were combinations for the sake of novelty, but both desserts were so delicious that I was won over. After dessert and coffee, the chef sent out warm shots of chocolate spiked with anisette and handmade marshmallows on a plate to accompany. Upon paying the check, we were presented with a sack containing scones for tomorrow's breakfast - and I am looking forward to those as I write this. Service was exceptional - not for its polish but for what Steve Shaw characterizes as being on the diner's side. They really were concerned with us having a fabulous time. A couple of minor technical glitches (somewhat slow food, wrong cutlery brought and then removed, etc.) simply vanished in the glow of the helpfulness and attitude of everyone from bussers to maitre d' to floor manager to food runners to our excellent waiter. My overall impression is that Compass is really trying hard to please. They have a simply beautiful modern room (reminded me a bit of Radius in Boston), a really cool lounge area, and spaces for private parties including a truly stunning table in the wine cellar. The food alone is worth going for - I'd rate it similar in style and in the same league as Blue Hill. I can't understand why this place is not selling out a Friday night and has been so slow to catch on now that the initial chef exchange is long in the past. The tasting menu is an unbelievable value. When I asked for a copy of the menu upon leaving, the manager simply handed me one. I offered to simply take the paper inserts, but he gave me the permanent folder with his compliments. This place gets it, and is getting it right on all fronts. I can post more from the menu which includes a grill section and an a la carte raw bar along with a very versatile selection of starters and mains if people are interested.

There was a documentary made about Sherrill's about ten years ago. I can't recall the name. That was a local joint. The food at the Tune Inn is nothing special, greasy spoon stuff at best. Something about the old-school nature of that place with the trophies on the wall etc. reminds me of old Capitol Hill. The one item that the Tune used to do pretty well was its burgers, haven't had one in years so can't attest. The best part of the Tune Inn was that at about 1:30 on a weekend night, after everyone had gone out somewhere else, you could always a friend or two from the Hill neighborhood there. It was, and probably still is, just a classic place to get a beer.

Velati's, yes. My grandmother used to get Velati's for the holidays too. They would get hard and crumbly if left too long, Terrie, so I know where your mother was coming from. Gifford's caramels are still the ones that ring in my memory.