jpr54_

i drink many varieties of tea- my favorite teas are from taiwan-green oolong teas-baozhong- these teas are expensive- $6-10 for sample sizes joanne

i enjoy their teas as well as those from le palais des thes

i also plant nasturiums-they are delicious to eat- slightly peppery and the flowers are very bright chervil scented geraniums heliotrope lemon verbena joanne

there is a post on egullet in another forum on dragon beard candy- also check out www.yuzumura.com i would check out the korean stores and not chinatown- han ah reum in midtown or out in queens

I'm suprised, however, that no one mentioned the market in Hackensack between Main Street and River Street. May not be too noticeable because the large parking lot faces River Street, and the building, while large, does not front Main. Don't know the name....not even sure it has a name visible!!!!! Caters to a large and diverse ethnic base, so the selections are great! Also, given the location and clientele, the prices are every bit as reasonable as Corrado with none of the crowding. I have not been to Corrado more than 3 times in the last two years. Produce is very "tired" in my opinion. The Hackensack store typically has very reasonable yellow/red/orange peppers, 2 or 3 types of cukes and zucchini, counted 5 kinds of eggplant, 6 types of onions (including cippolini). Hass avocados usually 89-99 cents each, and 4 or more types of loose hot peppers like habenero, jalepeno, etc. this is giant fruit and vegetable in wednesday's record they had a nice size ad joanne

yes- i am refering to that market-

giant can be hit or miss- my personal favorites are 17 farmers market and hanah reum

i would try not to use mineral water but filtered water- poland spring-not sure of names of british/european brand

Harolds II in Paramus-is a kosher butcher store with a snall deli and appetizing section

i was at the store last week and saw the indian restaurant-the food looked good and there were ppl eating joanne

scanio's in oakland on ramapo valley road

where in new jersey?

not quite a restaurant- 161 st. cafeteria in the bronx

queen anne liquor in teaneck on queen anne road and degrraw avenue has an excellent selection of kosher wines- kevin the owner is very helpful and knowledgeable joanne

tea needs to breathe- but not by not using the loose tea leaves- many teas like oolong taste better the 2-3 brews- i usually "rinse" leaves first and throw out the first rinse- with only a small amt of water- then brew tea

i stopped at the bakery last night-just b4 closing they were out of most pastries and bread but i did buy a slice of chocolate cake-forgot the name and sampled some of the pastries, anne was very pleasant and happy that ppl from egullet are stopping by- she was thrilled that a lady from waldwick had been in the shop- joanne

I noticed that tea made in those iron Chinese teapots seems to kind of stew the tea and I notice a difference in flavor---- iron japanese pots are called tetsubin what type of teas do you enjoy? glass, porcelain, yixing clay are better than silver in mho

although i am drinking mostly tea now i was a coffee drinker for many years. i never cupped coffee but i did appreciate a vast variety of coffee from many coffee growing regions- i usually brewed coffee with melitta filter- and ground my beans- in the late '60's and '70's this was avante guard- one of the best books on the subject is ukers "all about coffee"(this is a volume classic) this is the same writer as "all about tea"(2 volumes)

i wish i was going to montreal this weekend to try some of these chocolates- i went to website-only telephone numbers and addresses of shops in pq-no e-mail does anyone know if they ship to e.u.? joanne

it would be my pleasure to send you some new jersey/new york hamantasch- i live in teaneck, new jersey and there are 2 kosher bakeries- prune, apricot, poppy seed i,personally, like the prune- joanne

i use the whistler tea kettle-glass works fine and lasts a long time joanne

Orange Flower Water produced in France by A.Monteux-Vallauris(Alpes Mmes)

you can purchase rose water in most indian shops-at least here in new jersey i haven't seen lavender water- there is orange flower water made by same company as rose flower water i purchase-it is in a dark blue small bottle- when i get home i will look at bottle to find name and address- if you want flavored syrups you can purchase these from online from monin joanne

i went to the restaurant this afternoon with my son- both of us were disappointed-the fish was fresh but boring- we ordered sushi and sashimi bento boxes- there was little variety- service was ok but little things were forgotten like hot towels

is tea like coffee in that it should be consumed within a period (?) after roasting/prepping for market? Is fresher tea (whatever that is) better for you than tea that's in bags (and boxes)? yes, tea should be consumed within 6 mos. of purchase but alot depends on how tea was stored/pacaged when purchased and how it was stored/packed at home after opening and using. i personally purchase sample sizes of teas when available so i can use them fairly quickly- i store my teas in cannisters i purchased from www.imperialteacourt.com i also place some teas in original packing in ziploc containers-not bags i would not purchase teas from company that sells tea from glass jars- most of my teas come in sealed aluminum(?) sealed pkgs. i also purchase teas from reliable online dealers, etc. joanne