Bux

Recently someone asked me where Sweet 'n' Tart was located and I said it was on Mott and that it must be near 20 Mott (the restaurant). In fact I said it must be the building just north or south of 20 Mott. Then I looked the address up and realized it had replaced 20 Mott.

I hope I didn't ruin the excitement of watching it tonight for you. The USPS team is one of the last teams to start the time trial, so there's some suspense as the other teams finish and leave their times. Team Bianchi is also one of the last to start. I think they start just before USPS. Jan Ullrich, who most people consider Lance's greatest threat, rides with them. Armstrong's coach was interviewed before the stage and said he hoped Lance could pick up a minute on Ullrich today. The USPS team was said to have blown away the competition, but in fact, the second place team was only thirty seconds off the winning pace. I'm not sure what one can make of any individuals chances at this point, especially before the mountains, but the USPS team was a very well oiled machine with a well planned and executed effort.

Nor would I. I suspect one will get private baths before one gets air conditioning, but you never know. The locations are all great. Rue de L'Hirondelle is really in the heart of things, but not inaccessible to shopping. It's just a few blocks up St. Andre des Arts to the Buci shopping street. The other places in the sixth and fourteenth are all central enough and in good neighborhoods to get a sense of Paris.

U.S. Postal Service just took today's team time trials. That puts the yellow jersey on Peña's back tomorrow moring. He's the first Columbian to take the yellow jersey in the 100 year history of the tour. Team mate Lance Armstrong is now second in the race, one second behind Peña. Peña beat Armstrong by one second on the opening day's individual time trials. Today was a great team effort, but the time gain for Lance is substantial.

When was 10% the norm? Just curious as it was 15% back in the late 70's and early 80's A few of us go back as far as Nickn. The truth is that the earliest I recall, the discussions among the new tippers -- those picking up the tabs as adults or college students -- were about whether you include the tax, or the drinks, in the 15% tip. Nickn must be older than I am.

As eGullet was the midwife, or unofficial broker here, we'll expect a post on the meal as our cut. Enjoy yourself ginger chef. We look forward to your posts not only on El Bulli, but for reports from Martin's kitchen as well.

At least. 20 Mott is gone. That's been Sweet 'n' Tart's address for some time now.

Tips in New York City generally range from 15% to 20%. Many people in NY double the tax, which until recently has been 8.25% of the cost. That means the base tip has been around 16.5% of the pre-tax amount or 15% of the amount with tax. 20% of the amount with tax is not uncommon where the service is exceptional or the patron is a regular. For many, 20% seems to be becoming commonplace.

The Tour de France is being carried by a cable sports network, OLN -- Outdoor Live Network. Here in lower Manhattan on Time Warner cable it's on channel 122. They carry the race, I believe live starting at 9:00 AM EDT most days, and rebroadcast it three more times during the day.

Tigerwoman, I don't know where you are from or what you are used to in creature comforts. Paris can be hot and humid in the summer. I don't personally know any hotels in Paris with rooms under 65 euros a night and the French don't seem to need air-conditioning as I do these days, so I won't laugh, but I won't be too encouraging. There have been some recommendations here for what I consider inexpensive accommodations, but few were under 100 euros and I doubt they were air-conditioned.

There's either a new, or recently relocated, Ruth's Etc. near a friend's house in Manhattan. I've passed it a few times and each time I wonder "why?" It's easy to say we're not the target audience, but why aren't we representative of that audience. Why do people seek out the commonplace, the familiar and even the mediocre? Varmint, I'm sure your clients didn't care about cost. I won't dwell on the thought that you must have cheaper restaurants.t I'll bet you have more interesting ones, probably have better ones and may have better ones that are also more interesting (and probably less expensive, but what are these clients paying you for anyway). New York (where I don't know the cost of eating in Ruth's Etc.) is a diner's Mecca. I understand even less why one would settle for Ruth's let alone seek one out.

There's a market on Edgar-Quinet a block south of blvd. Montparnasse and east of the tower. I think it's on Wednesdays and Saturdays, unfortunately. Paris is a great city for walking although it could be hot and humid in August. I wouldn't limit myself to the neighborhood. If you're interested in markets, hot on the metro or a bus and get around to the many street markets and market streets in Paris. The most comprehensive guide to that kind of information is Patricia Wells' the Food Lover's Guide to Paris.

I think I've seen those at the dumpling place on Mulberry across from the park as well, but I didn't get a close look at them. I was rather disappointed here by the rather lackluster way in which my dumplings were prepared the last time I was there. This is not to say that the final cooking and presentation are the high point at any of the three places with which I have some familiarity. I believe two of them are related, but I forget which two. The other one is on Mosco Street and has no place to sit and eat. The one on Mulberry seems to have the largest menu, at least in theory. A lot of the stuff is crossed out.

I continue to get more experience with creative food of course and my opinion is always apt to change, but when I had Liebrandt's food at Papillon, I felt the flavors were not thoroughly convincing. I thought it was still at the theorhetical stage. Sort of "what if I did this," where "this" sounds like a good idea, but where it also turns out that it doesn't taste as interesting as it sounded as if it might.

I suppose it's not surprising that the appreciation expressed for WD-50 is all over the place, but mostly at the extremes. Without managing to have eaten there yet -- and nothing I've read or am likely to read at this point will be likely to change my mind about wanting to eat there -- this thread has been food for thought and most of that thought is about the changing nature of restaurant food and cooking and how much more difficult it is to rank restaurants these days. Michelin has had it easy for most of its time. The French have had a pretty stabile idea of what a good restaurant is and how food should be cooked. Moreover, they've had a really strong single model with bistros and fancy haute cuisine restaurants at opposite ends of the same scale. In the US, we have a long tradition of taking many different types of food and places in which to eat that food pretty seriously. Maybe the NY Times is not going to give four stars to any barbeque place, but we do tend to talk of four star hot dogs along with four star haute cuisine. It is possible to rank things in a similar group. So if we have trouble matching Thai food against French or Italian food, we can rate an individual restaurant against the others in its group. Restaurants such as El Bulli and perhaps WD-50 -- and I'm not saying they're comparable to each other in quality or innovation -- may not be so easy to rate without a specific target audience in mind, and it might not be so easy to predict who the target audience is in these cases.

Scallion pancake is not one of the things I frequently order, so I have only a passing knowledge about them. Spotting a beef/scallion pancake on restaurant menu one afternoon, I ordered it. What I got was pretty much a sandwich of sliced beef with lettuce and hosisin sauce between scallion pancakes -- or at least that's what it seemed to be to me. I was more intrigued than thrilled by it. I wondered if it was a traditional dish or one that paid hommage to the all American sandwich.

The proper way to quote a book is to underline its title if you're using a typewriter. Typewriters don't have an italic font. You shouldn't see underlining in a magazine or newspaper as it disrupts the flow of text. On the web, underlining is also the convention for showing links and should really be reserved for that use. Italics are just as easy to do as underlined. Click on the "I" button above the text box and enter the text to be italicized or learn the code. [i]test to appear in italics here[/i] will render as text to appear in italics here

The three course menu at dinner is $68. If the lunch menu is the same, it's a bargain. Thursday night, Independence Eve, dress wasn't much more formal. As we were celebrating and the weather took a turn for the cooler, I wore a tie and was one of three diners with ties. The dress code is "business casual - jackets requested." Most men weren't wearing them at dinner. The food in NYC keeps getting better and the dress more casual, especially in summer. That's just an observation and it's only the first part that I care much about. The operative word for our meal, and for just about every dish, was impressive. We didn't get to have the swordfish, which I am not sure was on the menu, and counter to what was said, we didn't get to taste every dish on the menu because we didn't get chicken -- except for the mousseline. Reverse engineering that dish -- of course the mold was lined with cooked spaghetti and the mousseline piped into the mold. Still it's a neat looking package as it is coated with sauce and the pasta is not immediately evident. Cutting into the ring and seeing the strands of spaghetti, I was reminded of a comment I posted about eating spaghetti with a knife and fork. That was a very mildly flavored dish and quite classical. In most ways it was unlike the fish dishes, unrepresentative of Gallagher's cooking but an excellent foil in our menu. Most Gallagher's cooking is tied to classic cuisine only by the deftness of technique and attention to detail. As Mrs. B. intimated in her post by commenting on flavor surprises, sauces and garnishes -- which to a large degree are indistinguishable from each other -- are composed of bits and pieces that vary from bite to bite and which continue to tease your palate in a contemporary style different from the one that used triple strained homogeneous sauces. I don't mean to imply it's a better way to cook, only that certain changes and innovations are exciting. We've had David Carmichael's desserts before at Lutece and Oceana. He has a deft hand with fruit desserts as well as a range of chocolate, nut and carmel.Our appetite was flagging by the last savory course and neither of us quite finished all four desserts set in front of each of us, but I can vouch for the quality of six of the eight. I never got to taste two of them as Mrs. B. didn't slack off until the third one. It would be inaccurate to say Neal threw everything in the kitchen at us, not because we didn't get to taste his range, but because the food is very deftly delivered to the table. I thought the service was terrific. It seemed to combine the best of classic formal service without being stodgy. I suppose as it was evident we were being treated as friends by the kitchen, we would have seen both the best of the service staff as well as seeing them relaxed.

Thie might be a good time to ask members to post a brief synopsis of any story and not just a link as most news links expire and we may be left with a thread that has limited meaning. I've done some web design for two NY restaurants. Daniel Boulud's organization was one of them. Perhaps my bills were minor in comparison to those of the provisioners, but I was always paid within about a week. It left me totally unprepared for the next situation elsewhere, where the proceedure ensured that no bill was paid any sooner than five weeks and two months was no unusual. It's also possible that some restaurants have different schedules for professional services than for suppliers. I won't dispute that great restaurants under pay their cooks. At the entrance level, it's worth it to the cook for both the line on his resume as well as the education and discipline. Consider it graduate shcool of the highest level. I'm continually reminded of a young cook who told me that if his work satisfies Boulud, he can get a job anywhere and work with confidence. He had just come from working at Commander's Palace and was truly impressed with the bar of what was not considered acceptable at Daniel. At the high end there's the pride that goes with being an important part of such an operation, although inevitably there's the urge to do one's own thing and have one's name on the menu. The credential of "executive chef" or "sous chef" at any of the four star restaurants is an impressive one. As for the central issue of this thread, I'm a bit uncomfortable with hearsay remarks, but I've met more than a few industry people who have grumbled about the funds received by Bouley at a time when many of the other restaurants were donating food, facilities and time to feeding the rescue workers without pay. It wold be nice to get some sort of closure on this.

$200 after tax and top would be no more than $160 for food and beverage. You should be able to have two a la carte dinners and bottle of wine for that at Blue Hill. I'm a fan of the restaurant. I like the style. It is as has been pointed out elsewhere, gentle food and not agressive food. Some people may find it too gentle. There's no accounting for taste. I find it among the most sophisticated food in NYC. The chef at Suba was chef at Meigas. I liked Meigas a lot, but was rarely thrilled there. I liked it enough however to be eager to try Suba and the food looks more up to date, modern and exciting. As I haven't had the opportunity to try it, I can't say much else about it. I've generally been happy with Eleven Madison Park and the space is wonderful. I think it's really a beautiful restaurant space. The wine prices are also terrific and that almost always makes the final bill seem so much less expensive than I expect for the overall quality of the meal. I concur with tommy's suggestion.

L'Ambroisie is in Paris, in the 4th arrondissement on the place des Voges. It's been a three star restaurant for years. Vmilor's post was a paen to a well known and highly respected chef and his restaurant, but also a reminder that chef's who are successful in the kitchen are not always the ones who are in the news.

Following up on Matt's (hotle) post, I think it's worth mentioning that Julliard has demanding entrance criteria, you don't learn how to play an instrument at Julliard. The top academic colleges also do a pretty heavy job of trying to assess your academic prowess and penchant for learning. No one is going to take their first math, science or literature course at Yale. People go to culinary school without ever having eaten in a white tablecloth restaurant. Students at Julliard have undoubtedly attended many concerts. Yalies have most likely read a belly full of books without pictures. There are students at culinary schools who may never have eaten at a white tablecloth restaurant, let alone one with three or four stars -- forget Michelin starred restaurants. For the most part, it's a vocational school rather than professional school, but of course culianry schools vary. I am also aware I was the one who said "blue collar" was an absolete term. I'm not demeaning the education or the people who go there, but I'm pointing out that many attend with little idea of what's at the end of the rainbow -- and I'm talking about the ones who intend to enter the profession more than the amateurs.

Cocktail, my caveats were purely abstract and not meant to cast doubt on your offer. It's for your own sake and protection against having your name associated with "no show" that I suggest the name on the reservation be changed if El Bulli permits that. I can well understand your attachment to this reservation. I suspect you may feel more like an organ doner than someone giving up a pet for adoption. We should all appreciate it that you come here looking for a deserving diner.

I've only eaten in l'Ambroisie once, and that was some time ago. There was a seriousness and church like pallor that loomed large over the entire restaurant. I thought it came largely from the American, English and Japanese clientele. I couldn't tell if that was typical, but I have heard that the room is more joyous these days. I hope so, because such perfection in cooking and service is really a joy to experience. It's a pity that three stars can bring diners who exhibit serious respect and reverence, but not enough pleasure in eating. I've probably been guilty of this myself and hope I am able to smile and laugh with the food more easily as I get older.

Florence Fabricant reported that Alex lives in Port Washington which is a long haul away from Manhattan. Alex has two kids. I don't know Alex that well, but under those circumstances I don't find it all that surprising a move. I like Alex and and think he has great talent and love for food. Alex has been with Daniel longer than anyone. I believe he came with him from le Cirque. Of course he will be missed. On the other hand, Daniel is as much an executive, trainer and organizer as he is a cook and promoter. His kitchens have always been deep in strength and some of the best meals I've had in Daniel have been served when neither Daniel or Alex were in the kitchen. That the chef is not in the kitchen is one of the deep dark secrets at most restaurants, but at Daniel, it was never a dirty secret. My guess is still that Alex' departure is likely to put a crimp in Daniel's charity cooking appearances all over the globe and in his bood promotion appearances as well, but that you may be more likely to see him at the restaurant for a while. It would be hard to believe that other kitchens in Manahattan haven't eyed Alex for a while, likely even well before he started to get some overdue publicity, but it's interesting that of all the kitchens in NY, Daniel seems to get the most loyalty from his cooks. True, his ex-sous chefs are all over NY, but that's the norm. It's not that common for any chef to retain an employee for ten years. In a NY Times article, one restaurant head hunter was quoted as saying he (or she?) never solicited anyone currently working in Daniel's kitchen. I suspect it was out of interest in not encouraging Daniel's wrath, but it was an interesting statement. As far as I know, Daniel still has one person in his organization who's been with him since he opened the first restaurant. That person has had the liberty to move in and out of the restaurant. He's been sous chef at Daniel and exectutive chef at Feast and Fetes, the catering division, and currently working on what might be called special projects.