Bux

That may be the reason Apple dropped the "think different" slogan.

Agen and Eugénie-les-Bains don't appear to be much further away than Toulouse. You're in, or near, Armagnac country, but if you're into eaux-de-vie, there is, or at least was, an incredible producer of artisanal eaux-de-vie south of Agen--St. Gayrand. We visited there eight years ago. You can click on that link for our report of that visit. It's in Moncaut, the postal code is 47310 and the owner's name is Calude Doubesky. I don't have a phone number, but you should be able to find one from the white or yellow pages at http://www.pagesjaunes.fr In any event you'll need to call ahead to see if he's still there, open for business and then for instructions on how to get there. It will be a boring visit for a non drinker, but he'll come in handy by the time you leave if you're going to make it back to Auch. Someplace in that area near Auch, I had some of the best pizza I ever had from a truck with a wood burning pizza oven in the town square of one of the smaller Bastide towns on market day. I can't remember the name on the side of the truck and there is more than one truck plying this trade, but it's worth trying any you might run across, especially if they're offering a regional topping such as chorizos and red peppers. That's actually more regional to the Pyrenees, but close enough.

But apparently "marine de loup" is not on the menu. I was wondering why it was "marine of the wolf" and not "wolf of the sea," As far as I know, Loup de Mer is sea bass. Mariniere de Loup would seem to be a preparation of sea bass--most likely lightly pickled (marinated) or possibly à la mariniere as in moules marinère (mussels fisherman's style). My sense of French grammer terms is very poor. In any event, making direct translations of the names of things can be misleading. We have our pineapple and the Spanish have an ox of the sea which is a crab.

Someone beat me to the punch. I've seen this practice a few times in my dining experience. It won't happen at many restaurants and it won't happen often. It will only happen in superb restaurants with very experienced and confident diners and then only with the kinds of wines a well heeled connoisseur might order. I think it might happen a bit more often if it weren't for the problem of the average diner screaming bloody murder about losing a sip of his precious wine. It is the ultimate service to a diner, in my opinion, but it can only be done in those very high priced restaurants with proper staff. The flaws in Ben Gilberti's arguments have pretty well been hashed out. If restaurants have been making obscene profits, we'd probably have all stopped eating out. An assumption that current wine pricing covers a new potentially expensive service is flawed. The suggested policy would increase prices not only enough to cover the profit on the flawed wines that are accepted, but to cover the anticipated expenses of scam artists who will order above their head once in a while knowing the can actually drink for free. We'll all pay for that. On an economic level, this is completely unthought out and impractical. I'll hardly defend every current restaurant practice, but we have a system that's the result of many years of wine service in restaurants and is in line with what's been done for centuries in other countries where wine with meals is an even longer tradition. Most of the inequities I see in how restaurants deal with diners, would have changed long ago, if it weren't for the resistance of diners, not restaurateurs. No, I've never owned a restaurant. As a New Yorker, I have mixed feelings about the comparison of the Washington Post to the New York Times. My chauvinism makes want to say, "Right on, we're New York, the center of sophisticated food and food journalism." Unfortunately, I've seen some pretty inaccurate things said in the NY Times. I haven't read enough of the Post to really make a comparison, but it seems to be doing a credible job. Perhaps I'm only directed to the best stuff, or maybe even only to the mentions of eGullet.

I think we've had this discussion maybe more than once in one form or another. It's similar to the one about eating rare meat, or worse yet, rare hamburgers. I suppose there are similar discussions to be had about shellfish. For what it's worth, I search out organic eggs, and those from small farmers who I have some reason to believe keep their chickens in cleaner and healthier conditions that the major chicken and egg factories and having taken that small precaution, I get the most flavor and enjoyment I can from my eggs. I eat my egg yolks raw. We eat soft-boiled eggs, sunnyside up eggs and when we make mayonnaise, we use raw eggs. For health and legal reasons, I won't advise you to do the same. I also won't advise you to cross the street as you may get hit by a car. The odds against getting hit by a car will vary and you have some control just by looking out and crossing with the light. I jaywalk all the time, but I certainly won't advise you to do that. An eggshell without cracks may harbor an egg contaminated with salmonella. The odds are quite low, but they're probably highter than they should be if the poultry industry took proper care and if the public was willing to pay a few more cents for a dozen eggs.

A search on "tapas" here might bring up half the threads in the forum, so here's some stuff that comes to mind. These two bars are quite near each other. Bergara was closed for vacation in October when we were in Donostia. They are across the river from the older part of town, but it's not too long a walk and Aloña Berri has excellent tapas. It's rather outisde the frenzy of the Parte Vieja and a friendly neighborhood place with award winning tapas. To visit both bars might make the walk doubly worthwhile. I mention it in this thread. It's a dialog with some recommendations that were made on eGullet while I was in Donostia and my response to the bars I visited. La Cuchara de San Telmo in the Parte Vieja is the other really interesting one. Here's some of the better stuff from my October 2003 notes. I thought I posted this, but can't find it online. The sources range from eGullet, friends and relatives to the well known local chefs. Aloña Berri barrio de Gros, Bermingham, 24 tel: 943 290 818 Very friendly, quiet neighborhood bar, some "nueva" tapas - erizo (warm) - langoustino (wrapped in brik) with a salsa verduras - brandada w/ poached quail egg on tartlette shell - we drank a rosado, (rosé) and a zurrito (dribble of beer, not much more than a shot of beer. If you want to eat more than you want to drink, this is worth knowing how to order.) The tab was 8,30€ La Cuchara de San Telmo Parte Vieja, Plazuela de Don Alvareo del Valle de Lersundi off Santa Modern pinxtos - list on the blackboard - hot, kitchen in the back, tables outside on Santa Gorda - risotto cremosa con idiazabal - zurrito 2,80€ Haizea Parte Vieja, Aldamar, 8 - Pudding de txnagurro - zurrito 2,60€ Goiz Argi Parte Vieja, calle Fermin Calbeton Our first stop, very friendly, smiling service, great variety - txangurro (warm ramekin) - morcilla con arroz - atun, boccarone, pimento verde (open) - dos zurritos 5,40€ Another day - calamar a la plancha - zurrito 2,75€ La Cepa Parte Vieja, calle 31 De Agosta Jamon - nice & friendly Ham, lots of ham. - jamon jabugo (small baguette) - morcilla con cebolla - dos tintos 7,10€ Ganbara Parte Vieja, calle San Jeronimo Reported to be less then friendly, it was very crowded and not paricularly welcoming, but it was not unfriendly. lots of mini croissant and mini baguette sandwiches, ham, smoked? salmon and cod? also setas y hongos (mushrooms) - hongos (cèpes) salteadas (racion) good sized portion - dos rosados - un zurrito 15,20€ Return visit - jamon baguette - croqueta - zurrito 5,50€ I'd go back to any one of those in a second. If any one of them moved around the corner from my, my neighborhood would be improved, although they would be even more packed and I probably wouldn't go there. Come to think of it, if they were in NYC, I might not be able to afford what they'd charge. The following were on our short list, but we didn't make it, largely because many of them were on vacation and to some extent because Mrs. B rarely recovered from our lunches enough to have an appetite in the evening. All are in the Parte Vieja. Txepetxa calle Pescaderia - anchovies - reported to be very nice & friendly - on vacation Aralar calle Puerto/Portu Kale - cepes Portaletas calle Puerto/Portu Kale - on vacation Alotza Fermin Fermin Calbeton Casa Bartolo Fermin Calbeton Bar Sebastian overlooking the old Port - for grilled fish outdoors Astelhena Portaletas, near by the Plaza de la Constitución - on vacation Ambosio Plaza de la Constitución (south side)

I'll concur regarding the Auberge Grande Maison. We stayed overnight as well. What I remember was a superb pigeon that was prepared à la bécasse. I'm not exactly sure what that involved and we didn't quite get the explanation in French, but it was sauce rich with the duck's offal. Bécasse, is usually prepared with its entrails intact, by the way. I don't think that was done with the duck, although perhaps, in some less literal manner, there was a connection there. In any event, it was a dark rich sauce and most satifying. Most people come to Brittany for the seacoast and the beaches, but the interior is quite nice. Mur de Bretagne is on a lake, but we never got to see the lakeshore facilities.

Three of Escoffier's recipes appear in what is an English translation of a bood first published as the Guide Culinaire in France. They are for curry butter, curry sauce and curried lamb (or mutton). While not overwhelmingly represented in French cooking, curry powder, which Escoffier uses in his recipes, has been a standard seasoning for a long time and it's not unusual to see it appear in dishes at restaurants of all levels. One of my favorite dishes has been a langoustine dish with spinach and curry sauce at l'Ambroisie. It's been the subject of some discussion here in a couple of threads.

Not without the written permission of the publisher. Your instincts are good on this. Our policy regarding other people's intellectual property is here.

Great posts. You manage to blow away some of my prejudices of Greek food and reinforce others. I would have never expected great oysters. I am a fan of cold water oysters and that may account for part of my prejudice there. In France, I've never found oysters from the Mediterranean to compare with those from the Atlantic. So it's "who would have guessed" and "why did no one tell me." Alas, wonderful, but overcooked, fish is a complaint I've heard elsewhere. Eye candy ... Women's Beach Volleyball ... 6'4" (+) blond Austrian Beach Volley competitor, then you had to blow the whole image with "him."

I think there's some kind of energy at the festival that has some appeal, at least until you actually get there. On some level, I have to respect the interest people have in going there if only because I've gone out of my way for less or worse in foreign countries. If you're on a diet, you won't waste you time looking for good food. Personally, a lump of dough that's been deep fried and powdered with sugar is never all bad, but I might feel guilty walking into Babbo smelling like the festival. It's not just that the food is mediocre, but it's more expensive than what you can get in a restaurant of the same or better quality. I'm not sure the festival even brings much business to the restaurants on the street. It has no effect on business at restaurants as far away as Babbo or Hearth. If people had a reservation at a decent restaurant, they would have something better to do and not go to the fair. As it's lost the last of its ethnic character, it's really become just another anonymous tacky street fair. I think it's finally even begun to shrink a bit, although it's doubled in size since I've known it--which is about forty years.

Precisely, and if it is an important subject, it deserves more research than has been put into this thread. In any event, a broad guideline is useless as it doesn't let you know exactly how many in any group are not covered by the material included. A truly observant Jew would not eat meat from a plate or a fork that ever came in contact with a milk product and vice versa. On the other hand, many people who profess to be Jewish, have no trouble eating bacon. Following your broad guideline one may well have gone to needless trouble, or not nearly enough trouble. I am very well aware of the slew of warnings that are whooshing past for this topic and frankly it confounds me. A little information can be a dangerous thing? OK. So what are you suggesting? That such threads shouldnt exist or that it should be exhaustingly elaborate and precise? This was also meant to be an invitation for others to participate and some of them have done that. Did I, at any point of time, suggest that this thread is also to serve as a source of religious information? Tell me, please? Because I am utterly confused. The messages that is coming through from most of the people(especially, the established older members of egullet) is discouraging as it seems to be a rap on my knuckle for bringing this topic up. Worse, I see to have ruffled many a feather for not going into 'more research'. Is not knowing that Jews dont mix meat and dairy better than NOT knowing anything about it at all? If there are subtleties about the various dietary practices even within the religious groups, maybe this is a place to register it instead of flogging the validity of the thread itself. What *is* the point of discussion if it's credibility is questioned because of the lack of reams and reams of papers of 'research'? Have a nice day. Perhaps you haven't suggested that this thread is also to serve as a source of religious information, but it's hardly likely that it wouldn't be taken as that. I believe it's reasonable to suspect that more than a few readers of the thread might latch onto your post and the posts that follow as all the information they need to say they made an effort to accommodate their guests. The answer to your question is that it is my belief that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing more often that it is a helpful thing. To know not to mix milk and meat would not lead to keeping bacon off the table, let along not serving the hindquarter of beef. Cakewalk seemed to understand the nature of my reply. Were we to decide that this thread should not be here, it would be deleted. On the other hand, it can only remain with the caveats of those who point out the flaws. Read my response to Jon's post above. When this thread attempts to get people to think about the needs of their dinner guests it serves a good purpose as far as I am concerned. When if attempts to offer answers, or even solicit answers from other members in the hope of building a useful compendium of information, it may be doing a disservice to many. As a responsible person, I feel moved to point out the problem. As a manager of the site, I feel it is my duty to err on the side of pointing out the dangers of regarding any information that appears on a site such as ours, as the answer. I apologize if I come off unappreciative of your contribution, but not all criticism is meant to be a rap on the knuckle. The information offered in this thread regarding dietary restrictions is but the tip of the iceberg. It will never be more than that, in my opinion. Ships have sunk not by hitting the tip of the iceberg, but the part that was not seen. Threads of this sort can be very misleading, it is only with that warning that they can be allowed to continue.

When this thread deals with courtesy, and promotes communication between host and guest, it best serves everyone's interests in my opinion. When it offers "answers" it can be misleading and dangerous.

I never thought about goats as kid is not seen a lot in NYC. It's available frozen in my butcher shop in Chinatown, but I've not seen anything as perishable as kid sweetbreads. I guess it's not surprising to learn they exist. I assume they exist only in the very young. I know that only young lambs have sweetbreads. The name I have seen used for them in Spain has something to do with "suckling." (Lechoncillas comes to mind, but that might not be accurate.) I assume that's an idication that they exist only in suckling lambs.

There are many bars that specialize in one dish and more than a few that don't, or if they do, the specialization is in a range of tapas rather than one sort. I've also found that at times I've like the mushrooms more than the ham in a bar reputed to be known for its ham and vice versa. By all means go for the specialities, but don't be limited and pick what looks good. There's a great concentration in the old city, but by no means are the tapas bars restriced to that area, nor are all the best ones there. Look for old threads on tapas bars here on eGullet. I know I've read some very helpful posts and have posted my comments when they were fresh. If you're eating in any of the better restaurants in the region, ask if the chef has a list of favorites. I've seen mention of lists from Arzak, Akelarre and Berasategui.

Now there's a reason to visit France, not to mention Italy and Spain.

Lucy (Bleudauvergne) lives in Lyon and should be back online in a day or so. I'd look for her advice on the local places. She's mentioned one or two of her favorites. You might also look for old threads on Lyon. I've generally found one can eat well in Lyon at a moderate price.

It appears to be either at attempt at what Mabelline says it is or more likely, an attempt to guide a prospective host. On that issue, I'll repeat my warnings that a little information can be a dangerous thing and an assumption that one has learned enough to be the good host can lead to many unforeseen problems. Those who get the religious information from this site, or from this thread and act upon that information may regret that they didn't learn much more. Precisely, and if it is an important subject, it deserves more research than has been put into this thread. In any event, a broad guideline is useless as it doesn't let you know exactly how many in any group are not covered by the material included. A truly observant Jew would not eat meat from a plate or a fork that ever came in contact with a milk product and vice versa. On the other hand, many people who profess to be Jewish, have no trouble eating bacon. Following your broad guideline one may well have gone to needless trouble, or not nearly enough trouble.

After having an extraordinary sandwich in a rather unimpressive looking little bar in Madrid, olive oil packed tuna (actually I've given up on all the rest anyway) anchovies (also in olive oil) and roasted red peppers, all dressed with good olive oil. That might not be what you're looking for, but who knows, I wasn't really looking for a tuna fish sandwich when the peppers and anchovies caught my eye. By the way, we've had a few tuna fish threads and maybe a few tuna salad threads and each time, olive oil packed tuna comes up. It's way more expensive than what most of us grew up eating, but it's incomparable. The really good stuff will be at an Italian or Spanish grocery.

That's something I have to do. Everytime I don't order merluza when it's offered, I fear I'm not making an effort to really understand Spanish food or calibrate my palate. Every time I do order merluza, I tend to regret it, however. I appreciate your information on how it became such a national favorite. If the eggs are good, I'm not above having fried eggs for supper. If the ham is really good, I'd never take ham and eggs as deprivation food. I don't know how soon we'll get back to Galicia, but I sincerely appreciate these posts for the understanding they bring about the food of Galicia in particular and Spain in general.

I trust none of us will take anything that's said here as gospel, any more than you'd depend on a legal defense in court based on what someone said on the Internet. I'm not someone who could correct any mistakes or even fill in the blanks on what's been posted so far, but focusing on the dietary restrictions of Judaism, I'd say the the comments are incomplete, not necessarily balanced and possibly misleading by exclusion. Shellfish are among the many sea animals proscribed and I do not believe pork is actually mentioned. Pigs and a number of other four footed animals don't meet the qualifications required which included having a cloven hoof (pigs meet that qualification) and chewing one's cud. I'm not sure which animals chew their cud besides cows. Leavened bread is proscribed only during Passover and the laws about what's allowed during Passover can be complex. When you invite a person to diner at your home, a good deal of the burden is on the guest to inform you of his, or her, dietary restrictions, especially if they are of a moral, ethical or religious nature. Coming from a family that paid little more than lip service to tradition and much less to religious observance, my background may not be representative of much, but I was always told it was a disservice to the higher power to make a fuss in someone's house or make a host feel uncomfortable and thus a refusal to eat proscribed meats might well be seen as a the greater sin. I will take exception to the statement that "almost all religious dietary laws were designed for healthy living in harmony with the environment," although I don't want to start a discussion on that. In my view, many, if not most, are quite arbitrary and seemed designed mostly to foster a kinship and shared set of rules and values to protect the community, i.e., to keep it intact and apart from other communities. Many, if not most, of the explanations I've heard defending dietary laws on the basis or environment, health, etc. seem to searching for a rational explanation that says we're not different from other people, we just knew more earlier. Either that, or they're searching for a rationale not to keep the dietary restriction today when sanitary conditions and testing are better than they were millennia ago. Most of us can explain our points of view, but it's rarely useful to discuss them as there's little reason for anyone to change his mind and discussions of faith are not within our policies here on eGullet.

Yet, gourmet is given as a symonym for gourmand. Thus, as Carrot top has already suggested, the term "gourmand" is not clear unless put in context.

Everything? If I read everything, I might feel like a glutton. If I just read his best work, I'd be an epicure. No? I wonder if a distiction could be made that a gourmet will only eat what is judged to good, while a gourmand is still willing to go the proper exploratory work. Perhaps we need to coin the word "gastronaut" to describe eGullet members.

I think the connotations of those words have changed over the years. Frequently epicure is offered as a synonym for gourmet and glutton for gourmand. I suppose those meanings are worth noting if you intend to call someone either of those terms, but I find all four of those words misleading. As long as I've been old enough to use the word "gourmet," there's been a hint or more of pretension in it. All one has to do is go to the "gourmet" aisles of the supermarket or look at the products advertised for "gourmets" to find finicky over processed foods of great pretense. Of the two, I'd prefer to be called a gourmand, personally. On the whole, I prefer to use the term "gastronome" as an adjective for those I think have a serious appreciation for and devotion to good food. I'll add that I hesitated when choosing between "fine food" and "good food." They both mean the same thing to me, but only sort of.

I rarely write about andouille or andouillette to proselytize. Occasionally I write to share my thoughts with others of the same persuasion, but more often to warn Americans to be sure they know what they're ordering. Too often they see "andouille" and think it's some hot sausage with which they have some familiarity. I'm sure I've written about my first encouter with andouillette, perhaps more than once, here. I won't bore everyone again with a tale of repulsion, fear of embarrassment, curiosity, obsession and a dozen other feelings I should rationally want to hide or forget for one reason or another. It may only have been the sheer size of the thing that insured it became a part of my cosmology by the time I finished it. I was nevertheless hooked. Having been sickened by one's first tast of booze doesn't stop people from becoming alcoholics. I recall my wife being quite bored and getting rather impatient while sitting at the table with an empty plate during the time it took me to finish that object and I must admit, I may have spent more time thinking about whether I wanted the next bite than I did eating. I have over the years encountered a few other anglophone fans and may have been responsible myself for introducing a couple of them to the taste, but on the whole, I've met more people who are delighted to leave them to me and this includes some very serious francophiles.