dls

Then try this one. The featured food item is "Explosive Pissing Beef Balls". ←

Then try this one. The featured food item is "Explosive Pissing Beef Balls".

Dr. Strangelove. How about this one: "Creme de la creme, a la Edgar" ← That didn't last long. OK, what's the name of the movie that featured, among a variety of food items, bread and butter.

This looks like a fun thread. What movie is this line from? "Do you realize that in addition to fluoridating water, why, there are studies underway to fluoridate salt, flour, fruit juices, soup, sugar, milk, ice cream?"

Daniel - For the Italian beef, you can make it easy on yourself and have the entire setup shipped to you from my long time favorite, Al's # 1. For Indianapolis, I like the mini pork tenderloin sandwich idea. Nothing else strikes me as being unique to the area.

That would be my guess. Might be interesting to check with other restauranteurs in the area that also sell foie to see if they received a similar call / reservation cancellation.

Nice list Ron... Though I'm not familiar with many on the "Cheap Eats" list, Nuevo Leon anjd Al's on Taylor are long time favorites. With the exception of Le Francais and Butter, I dined at the remainder on the "Finer Dining" list in 2006. I checked Butter's web site and it looks like I'll be making a reservation very soon. Poli's credentials look pretty impressive. Stints at Le Francais, The French Laundry, and Sergi Arola's La Broche, one of my favorite restaurants in Madrid. I'll throw my hand up for Vie also. I eat there 3-4 times monthly. Fortunately, it's less than a 5 minute drive from my house or 60 second walk from my commuter train stop. Your comments are right on. In addition to outstanding food and service, there is a certain vibe that makes you happy to be there and want to return often. They really have their act together. For those who might be interested, a copy of Vie's menu can be found here.

I've been going to Spiaggia since it opened - 4 or 5 times a year - and I have always enjoyed it. It's a beautiful room and the food and service have never been less than excellent. And yes, it can be quite pricey, but no more so than a number of other fine dining restaurants in Chicago. That said, I've only ever had an ocassion to complain once. A couple of years ago, my wife selected Spiaggia for Father's Day dinner. Along with our daughter, who was 9 at the time and had dined there previously, we were joined by my wife's parents. I don't recall what the adults ordered but, my daughter mentioned she was not feeling well and that she would like to order off the menu - a simple plate of penne and marinara sauce. The server acknowledged her order. When the meals were served, my daughter received what she ordered and it was perfect - a smaller starter portion of quite good pasta and sauce. Nothing more. When it came time to settle up, my wife requested the bill and when reviewing it, stated "Oh My God". Since she is familiar with the prices at Spiaggia, I was somewhat taken aback and asked her what the problem was. The little plate of penne and marinara was $35 - probably comparable to, if not more expensive, than the individual entrees ordered by the adults. When questioned, the server told my wife that $35 was the minimum charge for items ordered off-menu and that the charge could not be adjusted to a more reasonable amount. Something about their "system" not allowing it. My wife took the bill to the manager who found an easy solution - he simply voided the bill and issued a new one removing the pasta dish altogether.

Come on down. Had one for lunch today.

There is a well written and informative article in the current edition (23 Dec. 2006) of The Economist entitled "Cured meat-feet in the trough". Thought it might be of interest to some of the participants on this thread. Click here.

I've made a similar glaze for pork tenderloin with minced garlic and 1 or 2 stemmed/seeded chipotles in adobe blended in. Great flavor. Also, for an app, I've made this version of muhammara many times. If I recall correctly, Paula Wolfert has a very similar recipe in one of her books.

I warm a bit of it over low heat and use it as a finishing glaze on pork loin.

Here's a variation that I have a few times with good results.

Same results here. To my way of thinking, it's more like "steaming" the bird rather than "roasting" it. I continue to use them however, to hold the bird when brining it.

Great flavor, reminiscent of the lomo I did a few months ago. I'm quite satisfied with it. ← Glad to hear it. I've not yet done the coppa. You've inspired me to give it a go. Did you follow the recipe from the book verbatim, or did you make any alterations?

Looks beautiful. How's the taste?

I will be using apple and cherry (same as last year). ← Same mix here. Goes very well with turkey.

Dining - I'm not that familiar with the dining scene in GB though I have a client that bhas taken me to nice little place downtown known as Bistro John Paul. My guess is that it is probably the top spot in town. Avoid, at all costs, Brett Favre's steak house. I had the misfortune of going there once the night before a game. The place was a zoo and the food sucked. Hotel - Not sure where you're staying since I thought that Four Points was a Sheraton brand. Clothing - Start with long underwear. Add, jeans, hooded sweatshirt, flannel shirt, big heavy insulated boots, heavy gloves, a bacalava, stocking cap, and ear muffs. The snowmobiling outfit's a good call. If you can't score one, any heavy ski parka will work. Also, you might want to add a pair of those heavy tan twill overalls that construction workers wear. When finished, you'll look like the Michelin man and fit right in. Tailgating - If outfitted as above, you can probably join any group without a soul not knowing that you're not a member. If you're still uncertain, just chat up and take an off-duty Hooter's employee with you as a pre-game guest. You'll be welcomed with open arms. Have fun and enjoy the game.

BP has also been my source for quite some time. I checked out SM a few months ago and was stunned by price difference. Another example - 29mm-32mm hog casings (to stuff 100#) BP $16 / SM $25. No thanks.

I Include some as an ingredient for braised short ribs. Also, as an addition to a turkey brine.

A short list, in no particular order, of some of my favorites.... Derek's Selva Grill The Table Sangria Tapas Bar Southgate Gourmet

Grant Park Packing has caul fat, leaf lard, and everying else from the pig. A pork wholesale operation that is open Saturday morning for retail customers. On Lake street a little west of Halstead. They only sell in 20 lb. packs (get a few friends together or freeze what you don't immediately need). As I recall, the price is about $.90/lb for the CF and $.45/lb for the LL.

Poignant. The intro brought back a ton of memories - some good, some not. As a member of a special operations group, I was in Saigon in April of 1975 and involved with the coordination (and chaos) of the evacuation. I frequently thought to myself "If I ever get out of here alive, at least I have a home and future to go to. These folks have lost everything, don't know where they're going, or what they're going to do". On April 28, 5 days after the departure of Andrea and her family, Tan Son Nhut was heavily bombed and fixed wing aircraft could no longer be used. Evacuaton, on a large scale, was over. The next day, the President ordered Operation Frequent Wind. In less than 24 hours, nearly 500 helicopter sorties were flown from the US embassy grounds to ships lying offshore in the China sea, carrying, if I recall correctly, another 8000 evacuees. I finally got off around 7:00 AM on April 30th. As our helicopter was rising from the embassy roof, the look of horror on the faces of those who knew they were not leaving told me that the evacuees were the lucky ones. Two hours later, NVA tanks were at the embassy gates. For the past 31 years I've maintained a close relationship with many of the South Vietnamese that I worked with during that period and I'm forever inspired by their achievements. So much of it seems to be tied to family and the kitchen. Best wishes on great success with your book Andrea. I just ordered it and can't wait for it to arrive. BTW, I agree with comment by chrisamirault regarding the carmilization technique. That's my project for this evening.

Yep-- egg pizza as in two eggs cooked on top of a pizza crust, with cheese! It's pretty good too. No tomato sauce. It's at an Armenian pizza and kebab place. I tried to find a picture on eG cause I thought there was one on the Pennsylvania board. If I can work the connections, I'll try to send the picture that I have on my PC at home. ← Jan - Are you referring to Zeps? I had a small egg pizza there the last time I was in Philly. Pretty good.

Spikemom - I'm on the same quest this week. Over the years, I've learned that the restaurant folks in Sarasota take their holiday closings pretty seriously, even in season. Once you have found a place that's acceptable to all parties, you need to book it well in advance. So far, I have found.... 4 that are open.... Bijou Cafe (Downtown) Mediterraneo (Downtown) Fred's (Southside Village) Mattison's (Siesta Key) and 4 that are closed... Derek's Fleming's Zoria Ruth Chris If it's a viable option, the suggestion the suggestion on Morton's carry out is a good one. I did it a couple of years ago and it turned out well.