Bux

Nom Wah is where we first discovered dim sum. I remember a lot of very stodgy dumplings and a lot of water on the plate from the steaming. The was bland, at least in my memory. It was however, a bit different from the rest of Chinatown's restaurants and thus seemed either exotic or authentic. It was never crowded and I always wanted to make it a regular once a month meeting place, but could never find anyone else interested in eating there regularly. Admittedly my interest them was perhaps more in the novelty of the place, than in any quality. For years their window displayed a faded reproduction of a series of line drawings of the dim sum offerings--maybe a half dozen or so--from an article in what I think was the Herald Tribune. It's probably still there. My guess is that when I frquented Nom Wah in the sixties, it had not been renovated in forty years or more.

Schengen treaty countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. For the most part, there are no border controls between these countries. Old border stations are, for the most part, completely unmanned and empty. I am a bit unclear as the differences between Schengen country relationships and those of EU countries as far as borders are concerned. There is more information here and at the following web sites (both are in English). http://europa.eu.int/scadplus/leg/en/lvb/l33020.htm http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/www/en/will...n/schengen_html

I have no idea if Where has a web presence on any level. On the left bank, I've seen it at the Hôtel Lutetia.

Actually, I like the way John Travolta eats his pizza in the opening scenes of Saturday Night Fever, if anyone here remembers. Double decker. Word. Could I get a ruling on the authenticity of the food at Vong? Is this authentic Vongerichten food. Is it more or less authentic than the food at Spice Market? Does Market in Paris have the same claim to authenticity? Is it more or less authentic than Ducasse in NY?

Real New York Pizza is eaten out of hand, by folding a slice in half and authentic New York Thai food is eaten with chopsticks.

Frank Bruni: It seems to me he's paraphrasing Amanda Hesser there. Didn't she say almost the same thing about the difference between three and four star dining in her last review? It's a nice review in my opinion and he goes a long way, intentionally and without embarrassment, to answer the questions I'm sure he's heard and read about being capable to criticize restaurants. Whether or not you agree that Babbo serves food that's the equal of any in NYC, Bruni clearly notes his appreciation for fine dining and where Babbo aims not to provide it. Some may question his focus on the music and ambience, but he makes as good a case as anyone has as to why most diners should pay more attention to the text and less to the stars when choosing where to dine. I think the loud music is an much a metaphor for the rest of the service and ambience as anything. Babbo goes for the gut he says and Bruni seems to appreciate that Batali hits his target. Let's hope that Bruni can appreciate other types of food and cooking as well as he can this. From the tone of his review, I rather expect he can. As it's unfair to review a restaurant after one meal, I wouldn't think to predict how well I'll like Bruni's reviews, but he seems off to a good start.

Considering that this is an English language web site, it stands to reason that many of our members are going to be visitors to Barcelona and I suspect many Spaniards are tourists in Barcelona as well. An address of a place to get gastronomic gifts to take home is most welcome. My problem is not so much finding a place to buy such gifts, as it is in parting with them when I get home.

And don't forget he owes us a full report on what he's seen and done in France.

You didn't tell us he's already there. In that case it's too late for good advice. Please don't take that in a bad way, but it would have been good information to know. He's got little choice now but to play it by ear. I know my passport has always been stamped when I've entered or left France for the US via an airport. It's not stamped when I leave for a bordering EU country. I suspect it will be stamped when he leaves a Schengen treaty country for a non Schengen treaty country. If it isn't, he'll have no proof that he's not been outside the area. Depending on what the law really says, he could face bigger trouble by leaving than by staying. If he leaves after 90 days and tries to return, he could be stopped at the border and denied re-entry if the law says no more than 90 days within 180 days. His best bet seems to be to leave and return after maybe 60-70days and then risk a few weeks at the end, or just stay as long as he can and forget about leaving. I've never known anyone to suffer for having overstayed when leaving at the end of their stay.

Pan, the elegant ladies are slim. I suspect the elegant ladies are drinking water, that non-caloric drink. The brand is immaterial.

Let me say two things off the bat. The first is to warn you that this is not a lawyers office, not to mention not a direct link to the French ministery of immigration or whatever. It should be obvious that no one here should be considered as able to give legal or medical advice, even if they're a doctor or lawyer. I've known consulates to be misinformed and to give out erroneous information. The second is that many people continue to stay in France well beyond thier legal 90 days. The goverment doesn't routinely go around rounding up those who have entered the country more than three months ago. The more rational fear is that if you're stopped for a traffic violation, it's just as easy for them to deport you as to do anything else. The questions I'd ask are about the stage. How official is it? Is he getting paid, is he paying, is this stage registered in some way, is it through a school, etc. Is it something that would enable him to get a visa, or require him to have a visa, for instance? I've heard the 90 days in six months, and I've also heard 90 days in a row with a maximum of 180 days within a year. A US citizen doesn't need a visa for 90 days, but you can apply for a long stay visa of over 90 days as a tourist and possibly under other circumstances. The question is whether his stage is something that will help get the visa or something that has to be hidden. What other people have gotten away with in the past, may not be the best guide on what he should do.

I think I may have mentioned Batali's Casa Momo earlier. It's a good example to use here, especially as it's not Italian in any way. Little about the food is authentically Spanish, nor does much of it remind me very much of any tapas I've had in Spain, yet there is something authentic about it in a very un-theme park way. If that same restaurant appeared in Madrid, I would not find it to be alien and would quickly accept it as a unique native restaurant much as I accept other original restaurants in Spain. To address Mags' "context" I need only think about the way I'd approach this restaurant if it were in Madrid and how I approach it in NY. If the restaurant were in Madrid, the question of how I'd regard it if it were in NY is meaningless in terms of "authenticity," while in NY, it seems to be a natural question to ask. I'm not sure how this relates to what others are saying. I don't think it necessarily challenges or reinforces anyone's points completely. I still feel we're discussing how we'd like "authentic" to be defined as opposed to how it's used. I think few would find Epcot authentic. False authenticity is recognized for its lack of depth. We, as a society, look for more dimension before we accept authenticity. Intellectuals can easily debate the lack of any authenticity in an attempted reproduction or conversely, that all restaurants are authentic to themselves. When I've eaten in a Chinese restaurant in NY, I've never given that much thought to a nation or place, as much as I've given to a culture or a people. Yet after a brief trip to Hong Kong and a short few days on the mainland, Chinatown seemed more alien--less a traditional part of the New York in which I've grown up and more a representation of a culture that was transported from another place, with emphasis on the place. Although I now have some small yardstick to make a comparison of the differences between Chinatown and Guangzhou, it is the similarities that strike me. Of course NY's Chinatown is not an authentic Chinese city, but having seem a real Chinese city, I can spot certain resemblances here. To continue using Chinatown to discuss authenticity, and not to argue a point as much as raise issues about how we view authenticity here, I find that restaurants that feature new food ideas imported from Hong Kong, to be less "authentic" than the ones that serve old fashioned food, but not "chop suey." If I'm at all typical, and I'm probably not nearly as iconoclastic as I'd like to think I am, "authentic" means meeting our expectations more than anything else.

hmm. i didn't read "class" as socio-economic class, but rather a group of people associated by having similar traits. in this case, big-ass tight-wad complainers. I also read "class" as "group" or "classification." The people who make up this class are those who always complain about spending a lot of money on a restaurant meal, plain and simple. They come from all social and economic backgrounds. What I find interesting in regard to the article and this thread is not whether someone is poor or wealthy, or spendthrift or tightwad, but how extravagant their own dining is in relation to what they spend on other activities or products and how judgmental they are in regard to how much others spend on other things in comparison to food and dining. It's one thing to eschew box seats, fur coats, fancy cars and expensive meals, to live an ascetic life style. It's yet another to attach moral decline to some of those things and not others. It's even more interesting to find those who frequent a food site, that strikes many as a hangout for the food obsessed, but who don't regard food as a legitimate object of one's willful extravagance.

What a decidedly unFrench and New World looking label. In a way, it's more shocking than screwcaps or Starbucks in Paris. This reminds me that I've heard from my friends in the lower Languedoc that a local winemaker of some repute and talent has been experimenting with zinfandel grapes. I should note that he's doing this legally with permission of the government. Anyway, he's apparently bottled his first vintage of the Zinfandel and call's it "Z." I'm told it's not quite as rich as better American Zin's but a very drinkable wine and fairly priced at 13 euros. The winery is Arjolle. On the whole, I think I prefer my cheeses neat, eaten with a fork and knife.

Where is a pretty common publication in many cities. I assume they're all published by the same international company. I've seen them in hotels, usually major hotels, all over. I also seem to recall seeing them in tourist offices in some locations. I wonder if they're also distributed by any of the tourist office kiosks in Paris, of which there are a few in odd places. They're tourist oriented and sometimes very useful just for the local maps. I've generally felt the restaurant listings are driven by advertising. It's good to know that the Paris edition is worth reading. Unfortunately, by the time the visitor is in Paris, it's usually too late to get a reservation in any worthwhile place. If From the Foodie Front Lines reports on interesting new places that might not already have a following, it would be a great source for visitors.

Here's a link previously posted to his web site in the Pastry forum on eG. why yes tan319! There is! I just found it! Try this web address! Pretty cool! http://oriolbalaguer.com/ It's a rather maddening site if you want specific information. There's a mouse rollover that will display the address, but you can't copy and paste it. You have to keep the cursor on the button while you copy the address on a piece of paper. From the web site, you may or may not be able to tell which operations are open. It's an interactive web site. You can click all over it, but it seems to do what it wants to do.

Um, the menu I'm looking at online says "frozen almond milk". Am I going crazy? That's what happens when I cut and paste just as I'm asnwering the phone.

I'm rather suprised to see Daniel Boulud's most luxurious restaurant at the top of the list and ahead of his Café Boulud and db Bistro. The other two strike me as far more relaxed and suitable for dining alone at the bar. I believe Daniel has a bar menu that is served in the lounge area with comfortable chairs and coffee tables. Does it also serve food at the actual bar. I suppose it might but I'd recommend Café Boulud where I know people who have enjoyed dinner at the bar and db Bistro which has a bar height common table with stools. That's also been recommended to me. I'd avoid pretheater at db Bistro as it's near the theater district and likely to be both crowded and rushed before 8. I'm surprised Gramercy Tavern is not on the list. Wait, this is Zagat's survey. Nothing surprises me about other people's tastes.

See http://www.bltsteak.com/ for menus. Whoops, I copied and pasted the wrong one. As noted, the web site advertises, "frozen almond milk."

It's pleasure to eat in a fine restaurant. It's a pleasure that I find increased with each meal, perhaps because as I became more familar with the nature of fine dining I was more able to appreciate it. Not to ever eat again in the finest of restaurants would be to deny myself a pleasure. The cost of such diners is far out of proportion to what I spend on the rest of my life's needs, but so what. I enjoy a great meal more than I would box seats at the super bowl, world's series, or opera. Unlike Mulcahy, I don't even own a car.

The argument that Chapel's preferred style of dining offers something that cannot be had with tasting menus is absolutely true, as is the corollary that tasting menus offer something unique. I don't doubt that Chapel said and believed that a tasting menu was composed of dishes in a capricious order. It nevertheless doesn't make it so, nor should we accept his implications that should it be done so, it's a bad thing. Capriciousness has it's place in the arts and crafts. One assumes Chapel would dismiss kaiseki cooking as well. It could be argued that Japanese cooking is not part of his background or expertise. If so, I'd make the same argument about tasting menus. I don't really want to argue with dead white men. Neither do I want them to dictate my tastes. Chapel's way of dining is an exquisite one. To have experienced it may be enough to make one assume it is the best, or even the only way to eat, but it's not likely to be the only meal that's affected people this way. It's sad that opportunities to "have full-blown dishes from the hands of top chefs are steadily diminishing," but this is not an either/or situation. A proliferation of tasting menus does not preclude a proliferation of other types of restaurants. While Robert says "that the chance of having a sensational meal from beginning to end is zero to none," [with a tasting menu format] I would reply that the total reward of such a meal is often greater than the sum of the parts and that with a bum dish, a tasting menu may still be a great experience. This is not to say I necessarily have a preference for the tasting menu, although I find I have a preference for the food of chefs who enjoy making tasting menus. I'm with docsconz on the benefits of trying something I might not order as well as chance to learn more about the chef's style in a restaurant far from home. To answer the question Robyn asked, the greater the number of courses, the more apt I am to relegate one to a learning experience. I'm well past 40 and even 50, and I am still developing new tastes. I am learning to appreciate new things every year. The reward of a new taste is at least as great as that of having a dish I know I already love. Jonathan Day's point about dishes "where there is no possible "full" version of a particular dish," returns to my reference to kaiseki. The long tasting menu doesn't preclude the existence of traditional service, it brings something new to the table and should be relished for the chance to delight the diner in a different way. I believe it's more than a trick. It's easier to remember something you've done over and over, than something you've done once. That would argue that you should have large course with many bites if the memory of the taste is the most important aspect of a meal. Some great dishes are not suitable to small portions and some small bites, as exquisite as they might be, are not suited to traditional main course size dishes. I see both of these as arguments for the need for both styles of meal. The Japanese seem to appreciate the ability to eat in different ways, kaiseki seems to be the one that gets great respect, though it's never meant to be physically satisfying in the way that a steak might satisfy. I see no reason either than one restaurant might choose to serve nothing but a many coursed tasting menu while another offers only an a la carte menu. Others should be free to offer choices. It's only important for the diner to chose the restaurant that suits his needs. If we are assuming one style of dining, tasting menu or a la carte, to be the definitively better one, can we also assume that the cuisine of one country is better than that of another? If we diss the tasting menu in favor of the larger portioned a la carte menu, can we diss the haute cuisine menu in favor of barbecue? If the goal is to have "a whole or entire principal product such as a chicken, rabbit, duck, lobster or fish," the cuisine of Spain is to be much preferred to that of France as the former traditionally slaughters lambs at the age where on may eat one whole. How large an animal must one be able to be served? Would one accept a whole anchovy. These rules are silly. They may have guided Chapel wonderfully, but it's up to every great chef to set his own rules.

To answer Mongo, at most of the Indian restaurants in NYC in which I've eaten, the food is brought in serving bowls and each diner gets his own empty plate. Usually the diners at a table agree on the selection of dishes that together make up an interesting meal. I can't say that this has always been the case, but it's the norm. It's definitely the norm in Chinese restaurants, but of course, I always see people at other tables who order one dish and don't wish to share it, or what others order. There are also those very inexpensive places with "over rice" dishes that appeal largely to workmen at lunch. Those dishes are not meant to be shared. Certain noodle soup dishes are designed to be one person's lunch as well.

I agree, tête de veau and salad de museau are best left in the original French. It's just that made from beef seems just a bit less than full disclosure. On the whole, I'd suggest most Americans not ask for a translation until they've had the dish.

My copy of the Art of Eating finally arrived. I think it might help this thread to note, for the sake of those that don't subscribe to AoE, that Davis came to focus on "authenticity" after seeing a commercial in Las Vegas advertising "Italian food so authentic, you'll swear you were in New York." Davis then asks "What is is about New York restaurants that convinces so many people the food here is more authentic, and better, than the food served anywhere else?" I might choose to argue that such advertising might well hold sway with a large percentage of those who choose to visit Las Vegas in the first place, but maybe not with the rest of the world's population, but lets accept that it gave cause for Davis to consider authenticity as a factor in NY's restaurants. When he gets around to tackling the issue a page later, he says he believes there's a higher value placed on authenticity in New York, than elsewhere, including other great restaurant cities. I'd have a hard time arguing that point. On the whole, we do pride ourselves on having more authentic ethic foods, by which I tend to mean less dumbed down ethnic cooking, than most other cities. Davis cites as examples, Paris and Tokyo, he's not taking aim at the American heartland or what some might see as a soft target. He's picked two great food cities outside America. Both France and Japan have dominant food cultures and populations that have historically been rather xenophobic and chauvinist. Foreign foods in Paris and Tokyo have historically been tailored to meet the public taste. Did ethnic food in NYC escape this fate because of our strong ethnic communities, our own weak sense of local food, some innate ability to respect things for what they are or some other reason I haven't yet considered? Does it matter? The truth is that we not only allow a greater freedom of style, but we encourage and patronize those restaurants that foster it. Great for New Yorkers, I think. This is the background from which we can discuss Davis' authenticity as being tied "to a particular place or culture." To argue that the creative cuisine of our best chefs is also authentic and that it's authentic to the chef's own spirit of cooking is fine, but to a great extent it's arguing about the definition of "authentic" rather then anything else. We all have to be careful not to argue that an elephant is an animal with a long trunk as opposed to being an animal with very thick ankles. We can all successfully make our points and go round in circles as many internet discussion do. I'd allow Davis' concept of authenticity to stand. It's a popular one that serves well enough. I'd argue that that the same weaknesses or strengths that allow us to accept and demand foreign foods that are "authentic," allow us to do the same with the foods from chefs with strong personal philosophies and individual creativity. New Yorker's don't particularly like watered down food, or at least there are enough of us in NY to support interesting food that's authentic to a time, a place, or a chef. One might argue that NY didn't welcome Ducasse very well with AD/NY, and I might argue that his style of three star Michelin experience in France is not all that French, but I can't argue that in some way, AD/NY didn't bring something to NY that we didn't have and that came from somewhere else. If nothing else, the luxury of dining at your table for the whole night is not authentically a New York experience and as experiences go, it's not a matter of style over substance, but one of style and substance. At the haute cuisine level, it's hard to separate the food from the meal and Ducasse has probably raised the bar in terms of dining in New York.

Salade de Museau is a local specialty that is made from beef. It has pickles and has been marinated in a vinaigrette. Made from beef, of course, but that's like the English menu I saw in Spain where tripe was translated as a kind of Spanish pork meat. Museau is muzzle, or snout.