JosephB

Great. Thanks Kara.

Are you so sure that sweet potatoes can be simply substituted for boiling potatoes?

When guys like Charlie Trotter are co-authoring raw vegan cookbooks, I don't know if I would be so dismissive of this movement. Here's a Business Week article about Roxanne's.

You gotta think that Chodorow wouldn't be backing an idea whose time has passed.

For future reference from Amanda Hesser's review of La Bottega - Here: "Mr. DeLucie's real specialty is pizza. His crust is flavorful and thin, and the toppings are added with restraint, so that each bite is an intense taste, not just filler."

Shad roe is in season again, at least in the Northeast. Anyone have a new and exciting idea about how to prepare it?

New York City released a study today showing that the restaurant and bar industry has prospered despite the smoking ban. NY Times. Some bar owners are dubious because the study lumps all food and beverage establishments together.

Pan, Maybe I wasn't clear. The point was that the hostess wasn't satisfied that we were going to eat enough. The bar seats are meant for diners, and apparently only for diners who understand the "concept."

I was never a big fan of matzoh until I had some of the artisanal stuff at the home of one of Donna's relatives. This matzoh had the same irresistible char that I associate with fine pizza from a coal-burning oven. I never found out where the matzoh came from. Does anyone have a source in NYC?

Last Thursday evening I met my brother at Casa Mono/ Bar Jamon. The plan was to have a pre-dinner bite and a couple of glasses of wine. I arrived first at 5:30 p.m., and waited for my brother outside so we could decide on Casa Mono or Bar Jamon -- both were very quiet, but gearing up for the rush which probably begins after 6:00 p.m. We decided to go to the bar at Casa Mono because we'd have more plates to choose from. I also was anxious to give the place a second chance. We walked in past the hostess who was on the phone, and headed for the bar. The hostess called us back. I told her that we were going to have something to eat and drink at the bar. She told me, rather coldly, that Casa Mono was a dinner place, and that Bar Jamon was the place to go for "something to eat." I asked her what constituted dinner, and she impatiently said that it was not a dollar amount (I never mentioned money), but a "concept." I decided to give up and go next door, we're we had several fine dishes and a couple of glasses of wine, which came to $75. I've had it with Casa Mono. Concept? Please. Notwithstanding the potential quality of Casa Mono's offerings, we are after all talking about tapas. We will gladly return to Bar Jamon.

This sounds unwieldy to me, and may justify the case people have been making to me to buy the KA attachment, which frees up both hands. On the Altas, when I get to 6 I simply cut the dough in half and do each piece on 7. Voila!

On the strength of NY Magazine’s recommendation eG discussion here, last night the NYC Pizza Survey visited Giorgione’s in far west SOHO, across the street from the Ear, one on NYC’s legendary watering holes. I waited at the bar as the rest of our group trickled in between 6:00 and 6:30 p.m. The room and staff were very inviting, as were the reasonably priced drinks. We were soon approached by a buoyant fellow name Jose (hard “J”), who proudly told us that pizza was the best in town. When I told him that we were from eG he reached out to give me hearty handshake and a warm pat on the shoulder, and promised that we wouldn’t be disappointed. Then he turned to introduce us to Giorgio DeLuca, the owner, who confidently seconded Jose’s promise. We never found out, but I would guess that Jose was a manager or co-owner. We lingered at the bar a while longer, and then headed to our table, which had been reserved. On the way to our table we passed the pizza oven. I was immediately disappointed, expecting to see a beautifully-built brick oven with a dome. Instead, the oven at Giorgione was a metallic gray cylinder, measuring no more than 48” in diameter to my eye. I knew right away that our group would be eating in shifts. Through the open front one could see a healthy fire burning, fueled by wood. On the front of oven was a digital readout, which indicated an oven temperature of 666 degrees. Later, when I looked at again later, the temperature had risen to 684 degrees. As has been the case in each of the places we’ve visited, I had little success engaging the pizza maker in conversation. These guys are focused on their work, and have no interest in making small talk with voyeurs. Our table was fine and in close proximity to the pizza oven. Plenty of good bread and oil for dipping were put before us, as well as some crunchy radishes. We settled in and looked at the menu. We came for the pizza, but decided it would be foolish to leave without a platter of oysters and clams from the impressive looking raw bar. Boy-o-boy, was that a smart decision. I had twelve of the most glorious Little Necks – stop. The pizzas were served in the Italian fashion: one 12” pie per person. This made it difficult for us to each try the same pie. I ordered a sausage pizza. The sausage was very good. I thought the fennel flavor was fine, though others in the group thought that Grimaldi’s sausage had a superior flavor. The sauce was delicate and naturally sweet. The cheese was fresh mozzarella. It was good, but there was a little too much of it. In addition, my pie had cooled on the way to the table, which left the cheese a bit stiff. As for the crust, it was light and crisp more in the way Grimaldi’s crust was crisp, i.e., as soon as the pizza cooled, the crust went limp, especially at the tip, but never really got chewy the way it did at Grimaldi’s. This may sound contradictory, but there also seemed to me a lack of moisture in parts the crust, which suggested a Roman style to me. We sat in amazement thinking about Patsy's brilliant crust. I also don’t think the flavor of the crust was as good as the crust at Grimaldi’s. The bottom of the crust had some golden spots, but paled in comparison to the blackened bottoms at Grimaldi and Patsy. The outer edge of the crust, however, was nicely charred, and proved to be the most flavorful part of the pizza. Can wood-burning ovens do the job? Then there was our waitress, Lisa. From the moment we sat down to the minute we left, we were treated to competent, thoughtful, and wonderfully enchanting service. Brava Lisa! And Bravo Giorgio for doing something right and making your guests (and apparently your employees) very happy.

I think that would be Hunt's Point in the Bronx, but I don't know if organic stuff passes through there.

I'm presuming we're 6 confirmed, but I'll wait until after lunch to change the reservation in case someone jumps in at the last moment. Confirmed: JosephB and Donna slkinsey bergerka Eric_Malson SarahD

Stunning! Bravo Moby! Questions: 1. Why the oil in the dough? I have always used Hazan's recipe which uses only eggs and flour, and makes no mention of oil. I haven't found a book which calls for oil in the dough and explains why. 2. What kind of yield are you getting with your basic recipe? If you were to 2x or 3x the recipe would you work in one large batch? I find that it becomes difficult to contain the eggs in the well when the volume grows. 3. I've often played around with the ratio of yolk to whole eggs, thinking the yolk would add richness and color, but I've never thought that the white part of the egg could be eliminated completely. Doesn't the albumin contribute something to the structural integrity of the dough?

I made a reservation for 8 people at Giorgione at 6:30 pm (the best that they could do.) and at 7:15 at La Pizza Fresca. Giorgione 307 Spring St (Hudson and Greenwich), New York 10013 Phone: 212-352-2269 Fax: 212-352-8734 La Pizza Fresca 31 E 20th St, New York 10003 Phone: 212-598-0141 So far the following people have confirmed their availablity for Friday evening, 3/26: JosehB and Donna slkinsey bergerka SarahD Eric_Malson alacarte I prefer 6:30 at Giorgione. Pleeeeeeeeease re-confirm with your preference. I will keep the reservation with the majority of votes.

One feature you definately want is pulp ejection. Some models are here.

Is the pancetta avaiable in the US all produced in North America?

I can't make the reservation until I hear from everyone, which means we may get shutout. I'd hate to break stride at this point, so why don't we consider an alternate pizza place that we would eventually visit anyway. I'm anxious to try Giorgione (far west Soho) and La Pizzeria Fresca (Flatiron), both of which have wood-burning ovens.

Ellen, Thank you for sharing your clam education with us, and so beautifully capturing the moment. I particularly loved the photo of the clam "farmers." Someone should cast those guys for the next Cohn Brothers' film!

Welcome to eG and NY Jonnie! It seems to me that the Whole Foods revolution is taking over NYC.

Actually... I've mentioned the site to Scott a few times. His answer is always something like: "How the hell does a working chef find the time to read and post to an Internet discussion board?" You should mention one more thing to Scott. Tell him that the extra cost of changing the silverware between appetizers and the main course is small compared to the return in customer satisfaction. Mind you, @SQC is hardly inexpensive. When I was there for dinner recently the waiter put our used forks on the table (no tablecloth) after he picked up our appetizer plates. Not good. Otherwise the food and wine are very good at this place. Boy, I'm being a real bitch today.

After a delightful French film (Bon Voyage) and a good night's sleep, I’m feeling a little more circumspect in my criticism today. Maybe the stars weren't lined up for us yesterday at 1:30 pm, but things will be great the next time -- estrangement from Casa Mono would be hard to live with. Maybe it really was all the fault of one waiter. That would be a good thing because the hostess volunteered to tell us that it would be his last day.

Donna and I had a dismal experience at Casa Mono this afternoon. It was our first visit there. We arrived at 1:30 pm, and were seated right away at the last free table. We were given menus and water, followed by a bowl of very good olives and bread, all in the ordinary course. We waited longer than we should have to order, but things were still moving along reasonably well. We selected the calamari, croquetas, lamb chops, and sepia. I also selected a nice quarto of red for me. As we waited for our food to arrive, I started to overhear grumbling coming from surrounding tables. The worst of it was coming from the table adjacent to ours. It seems that their dessert and coffee still hadn't arrived after 20 minutes. I smelled trouble. Happily, before long our calamari and croquetas arrived. OK, just bring me the wine and we're on our way. After a few bites of food, no wine. We slowed the pace anticipating the wine's arrival, still no wine. I asked another server to get the wine, still no wine. We were nearing the end of the first two dishes, and still no wine. We finally finished. That's right, still no wine. By this time the people at the table adjacent to us had cancelled dessert and were begging for the bill. They begged some more to no avail. Finally, they got up and told the hostess that they were leaving, and that she could collect the bill from them outside if she cared to -- she did. As they walked out, one guy in the party said that he felt abandoned. I decided it was time to plan an exit strategy. Oh no, we checked our coats -- we may never get out! It was laughable, but at that moment our waiter came over to our table and inquired how things were going. I gave him the short version, asked for the bill for the two dishes that we ate, and gave him my coat-check ticket. I reached for my VISA card, and then thought exit strategy -- cash. The bill arrived but was incorrect. The hostess fixed it; we paid; we got our coats; I stole a menu, and we left. I was smitten the minute walked into Casa Mono, but hurt and angry after just one visit. One thing really got to me as the nightmare was unfolding. Even though the service was self-destructing, as soon as a space was available, the hostess calmly seated the next person waiting at the door, and told the very next person that she'd be right with him. Wouldn't it have been better to stop the bleeding before seating more people? I for one would rather wait a little longer at the door if it meant that I would be properly served once I was seated. The only regret I have about leaving when we did was not waiting to see what would happen with the couple seated shortly before we left. They told the hostess that they were in a hurry to go to the theater. She told them, "no problem."

On our first visit to Hearth two weeks ago we had the misfortune of Marco's first night off since he opened. The food was very good nonetheless. The service was also good. We were treated very well by Paul Grieco. In fact, when we left we noticed the cheese cart in the window, which we had overlooked when we ordered dessert (It was never suggested to us). We headed back inside and made our way to the cheese cart. By this time Paul was sitting with friends and having dinner. He got up and met us at the cheese cart, and proceeded to offer us a delicious piece of cheese for a night cap. Nice touch Paul.