scottie

In Bali, I enjoyed ketjup manis with sliced green chilies. It often appears with corn fritters, but it's also good on rice. My Dutch ex-husband loves Maggi.

We call that break-even point the "par". As in, the par for lunch in the downstairs dining room is 30 covers, to pull a number out of a hat. The accountant's office has a list of the upstairs/ downstairs, lunch/ dinner pars posted. I'd hate to have that thing staring down at me during the slow times.

In the past year and a half, I've cooked for: Martha Stewart Lewis Black Jude Law Jimmy Fallon Danny Meyer The Rolling Stones Those are the ones I know about. Jude Law was the most exciting, as that happened late at night in an open kitchen, and he and Sienna and her mom were about the only people there. Brad and Angelina came in about a month ago, but left after being told there was a wait. I'm getting married soon, and the caterer has a list of the celebrities he's cooked for on his info, which I think is really cheesy.

I am saddened to hear of this loss. I wrote to Bux for advice before moving to NYC this past year to pursue a career in cooking. He had posted in detail about the restaurant I was planning to work in. When I emailed him to clarify some of the points he had made, he responded promptly and at length about the restaurant, the NYC restaurant scene, the life of a professional cook, etc. I ended up working at a different restaurant, in part because of Bux's words of wisdom. It was valuable advice, and I took it. I have not regretted that at all. He clearly touched many lives and will be missed by all.

Well, the hours and pay will always suck. You know that going into it. But if cooking becomes an unenjoyable chore, that's a different story. I work in a kitchen with a lot of negative reinforcement and a lot of disgruntled people, though I hear it's one of the nicer places to work in. Much of the time I'm cranky myself, usually due to the unrealistic timeframe expectations. At that point, cooking becomes a chore and I fantasize about opening a corner bodega. Why go back? We had a guy last night say he's travelled a lot and that was the best food he's had in years. And I cooked it for him. So that's why. Pride, glory and a sense of utilizing your talent to thrill and amaze. Ask yourself: What would you do if you didn't do this? I know I'd be at home, cranking out dish after dish, with a full freezer and no one to eat it all. Best of luck to ya, let us know what happens. You can always go into catering or small commercial production somewhere, or private cheffing. One of the most enjoyable cooking jobs I've had was for a meals-on-wheels-type charity- hey, it's not like they're going to pay any less.

Man, Ilan really is a child. I hope he's the one who goes this week. I liked him at first, but he needs to grow up.

I second the Worcestershire. Thanks to my father, I grew up believing that it is the only acceptable condiment to pour over steak. I put it on my eggs just about every day, and it is the secret ingredient in my famous Curried Squash Soup. Underappreciated: LeSoeur canned peas. Or do those fall under the category of Guilty Pleasure?

I'm going to have to do this one a little differently: Queen Elizabeth II visited Belize, a former British colony, in the early '80's They eat nutria in Belize The Queen ordered it and ate it whilst visiting there Ever after, Nutria is known as "the Queen's Rat" in Belize

Street Meat. I have a weakness for the stuff. Especially gyro sandwiches with both hot sauce and white sauce. Yuck and Yum at the same time!

Thank you, Shaun. I always enjoy your writing. This is a fascinating, and devastating, tale, just one of the many frightening challenges currently facing the security and integrity of our food supply. I want so badly for the public to be better informed about this. I was left wondering, What can I do to help? Maybe one day, I'll take my cousin's old 4-H beekeeping equipment and start a hive of my own here in Brooklyn. There's a great book called The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It, by John Seymour. He tells you how to raise bees in an urban environment, among many other things.

Man, I thought I was old getting into this industry at age 32. Those young whippersnappers have so much more energy and stamina than I do. Are you planning on going into restaurant work, or private cheffing, or what?

Now the crew at EMP can be treated to "You're a bunch of two-star cooks at a three-star restaurant!" -type dressdowns we get sometimes at (undisclosed location). This speech would make a lot less sense at the Modern, though. "We're a bunch of three-star cooks at a two-star restaurant!"

Do you know if you have to be a James Beard member to go? Thanks! ← You do not need to be a member. Members will be admitted a half-hour early, but the general public is welcome to spend their money starting at 10 am.

This one actually turned my stomach. It's like the alternate name for the Hawaiian Tropic Zone. Here's mine: Redwing Rider's Bloody Mary Bar The LongPig Lounge (in beautiful Irian Jaya) Lobster Sundae's

I'm sure if you dined at Bread Bar 50 times (I'm sure I have, in fact) and you ordered Goan avocado salad and pulled lamb naanini, you'd get the avocado salad first and the naanini second all 50 times. ← Tonight, on visit 51, they came out in reverse order. Scottie, were you toying with me? ← You got the lamb sandwich first? That's weird. Even when it's already made, browned, and cut, it takes longer to reheat than it does to scoop the avocado salad in a bowl. I might have toyed with you had I noticed you were there, but I didn't see you until you guys were already leaving! And then I didn't get your PM until the next day, and then my internet's been broken until today...*sigh* I'm so sorry. I would have sent a complimentary cheese kulcha or something. Oh well, next time.

Yeah, I think the decor could use some work. the crowd was a little young for my taste. We gave the doorman our number after he told us there was a half-hour wait, and he called like five minutes later. So giving him your number, then having a beer at the Sidewalk might be the way to go. If you can handle the significant difference in atmosphere. I'm afraid perhaps we could not. I must say I did not care for the Jersey Tenor, and my fiance felt like he paid ten bucks for a shot of his usual with a cinnamon stick in it.

FG, do you still enjoy dining at Tabla's Bread Bar? You stated in last summer's foodblog that you enjoy dining there regularly. Is this still the case? I ask because the servers there deliver the little spiel about "family style" and "you get it when it comes out." Full disclosure: I'm a cook at the Bread Bar. The sous chef or the senior cook expedites. We do things in a coordinated, logical order, so I don't even know why the servers deliver this disclaimer. I guess to encourage tapas-style dining. But we do offer a tasting menu that progresses from lighter to heavier, and is served in order, not all at once.

Marcel reminds me so much of this guy in my class at culinary school. We called him Douchebag. DB ALWAYS had to do his own thing, and screw around with the recipes, and was never a team player. It was clear he thought his ideas were always the best. Mostly people just ignored him, until it got to be too much, and I ended up as the one who lost it on him during class. So while I don't think Marcel deserved all the b.s. he received in the last episode, especially from Betty (hiss), I do empathize with Sam flipping out on him, as unprofessional as that was. Ilan was way out of line with that comment to the guests. I was sorry to see him behave that way.

There will be a cookbook and "culinary tag sale" at the James Beard House on February 3, 2007. Sounds interesting.

Tzaziki is good with chickpea-based Falafel. Chickpeas

My gf thought this was hysterical, like Marcel was trying to be all high-end. Personally, I've heard this term used many times over, especially related to cooking -- it almost seemed like more of an inside joke than Marcel trying to be highbrow. ← "Soignée" is a little more intensive than refined/elegant. A better translation (IMPO) is "impeccable, verging on perfection". Still, It is chuckle ammunition! ~C ← The word "Soignee" appears on our tickets at work when the guest is someone like the owner's mom or a fellow cook, so "make it nice"! I think "Impeccable, verging on perfection" is exactly what we are shooting for in that situation. I had never heard the word before starting this job. I was glad to hear Marcel use it, even though it was a little strange, because I knew immediately what he meant. However, I bet many viewers were like "WTF?" And not just because of his hair!

Here's a link to an article about the contamination of long-grain rice crops over the past five years in the Southeast U.S. by a genetically-engineered experimental strain that was never tested for consumer safety: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_2159.cfm Rather than imposing a massive (and massively expensive) recall of all food products containing the contaminated rice, the USDA is fast-tracking approval of the mutant rice for market. The E.U. and Japan are refusing shipments of American long-grain rice. Meanwhile, the American mass media is having a field day with e.coli spinach from an "organic" agribusiness. Where's the Frankenrice coverage?

My boyfriend's office is on the same block. We thought this place was going to be another cheesy theme restaurant/ lounge on a block full of mediocre gimmicky places. I only put it together that it was Tim Love's place when he was featured in Food & Wine a couple issues back. Then we started looking forward to it. Seems kinda pricey, but we'll definitely try it. Can't be worse than Porky's.

One of the best dining experiences I've had involved the sommelier. My boyfriend and I chose a very nice place for my birthday. We researched the menu ahead of time and decided we'd probably go with the five-course tasting, with wine pairing. But when the time arrived, we both felt the options on the three-course prix-fixe menu appealed to us more than the tasting menu did. But of course there was no set wine pairing with that. So we asked the sommelier if it would be possible for her to choose wine to pair with each of our courses, despite the fact that we had each ordered different items. And then we proceeded to have the best wine-pairing experience of our lives thus far. We were blown away by her enthusiasm. She told us that it was rare for her to get a request like that. We got the feeling that her talents were severely under-utilized, and she seemed almost giddy to have the chance to use them. We got star treatment and very personal service from this woman. She even pulled out a Pouilly-Fume that was not on the list, this one bottle of which she had ordered to try before adding (or not) to the list. That was quite special, and her instincts were correct, because it paired beautifully with the food. I just wanted to share this happy tale. I will not hesitate to enlist a sommelier's help in the future, even if I just order off the regular menu. A true professional will appreciate the opportunity to share his or her knowledge.

Eggs are a lot bigger now. Supermarket chicken is more tender, so needs less stewing time, but it also has less flavor. Also, chicken these days is generally bigger. Supermarket pork is way leaner now. Again, less flavor. There's an interesting article in the September 2003 issue of Gourmet magazine, where they reprint Julia Childs' original Coq au Vin recipe from 1968, along with notes adjusting cooking times and methods for modern chicken: "To account for the difference in today's chicken, we found that we needed to brown the chicken in batches instead of all at once, then cook it, covered, for just 5 minutes rather than 10. We simmered it in the wine sauce less than the 30 minutes in this recipe- our chicken needed only 15 minutes for the white meat plus an extra 5 minutes for the dark." (Joe Dolce, "The Accidental Purist," Gourmet v.63 no.9, pp. 86-93). I realize that was 40 years ago, not 60, but I hope it sheds some light on the matter. I've cooked recipes such as cassoulet and oxtail stew from 1960 or so with no problems. My biggest problems with older recipes have come from the differences in equipment and method- a post-blender, pre-food processor recipe does not necessarily work best in a blender. A lot of cookbooks from that era are very enthusiastic about the blender, and with good reason, but kitchen technology has advanced so much since then. OTOH, you can't beat a tamis for a really smooth fish mousse.