Stone

What's the decor going to be? Retro diner? Warehouse chic?

I think it's the oil they use in the "oil & vinegar" they squirt onto the subs. It has a plastic taste. I think it's soybean oil, but that's just a guess. I find that Blimpies is the only major chain sandwich that I enjoy. And that's probably cause of nostalgia.

A grilled cheese recipe book? I can imagine: Recipe 1: Two slices of white bread, two slices of american cheese, butter. Recipe 2: Two slices of white bread, two slices of swiss cheese, butter. Recipe 3: Two slices of whole wheat bread, two slices of american cheese, butter. Recipe 4: Two slices of whole wheat bread, two slices of swiss cheese, butter. Recipe 5: Two slices of white bread, two slices of amercian cheese, two slices of bacon, butter. Recipe 6: Two slices of white bread, two slices of swiss cheese, two slices of bacon, butter. . . . Recipe 50: Two slices of brioche (recipe on page __), one dollop of hollandaise (recipe on page __), two slcies of cave-aged Cabrales (sources listed in index), three rounds of slow-braised Elysian fields pork belly (recipe on page __), two slices of organically grown heirloom tomato. (I'm just teasing. )

Bastard.

The pork belly I've had a French-ish places (i.e., French Laundry, Gary Danko) were excellent. But instead of thin slices of fat (with maybe a shred of meat), they were larger slices or "bricks" with a nice combination of the two textures. I guess that proves that French cooking is superior to Chinese.

I had some braised pork dish at 54th & 2nd the other day. The menu should really warn whether the dish has pork meat or pork belly. Bascially, this was braised slices of fat. I know some people rave about this stuff, but I don't get it. I wasn't a off-putting as I thought, but I didn't find it enjoyable to eat. The flavor was excellent. If it was slices of meat, it would have been a wonderful dish. Fried dumplings were small and disappointing.

Thanks for reminding me. I think so. I'm pretty sure. There were little guys in there that looked like sichuan peppercorns and had a bit of the numbing effect. Not nearly as strong as the ones I had at 50th street. Maybe these were old?

I wasn't hungry last night, but decided to order in from GS. I didn't have a menu so I just asked for kung pao chicken and singapore mai fun, which I figured they had. The kung pao was excellent. Lot's of tender chicken, crisp waterchestnuts, celery, etc. It came with a bunch of toasted chilis, but wasn't particularly hot. I'll have to ask next time. The noodles were a bit over-cooked, but otherwise very good.

Anyone know whether Whole Foods in Union Square will stock crickets? I mean, all joking aside, where would one go for a pound of crickets and a 1/4 of fresh maggots?

Brewers try this every few years. It doesn't seem to last long.

Long ago I dated a woman whose grandmother lived on 86th around the corner from Barney Greengrass. We weren't allowed to eat there because Barney didn't close the restaurant on the day of his wife's funeral. So I've never been.

I was about 5'7" until 13 or so. I was 6'2" by the time I was 16.

I hear that Ernies and their big bowls has finally bid adeiu.

What memories. Back in 1990, I worked for a short time at 11th and T. (I think.) The U street subway was still just a dream and the road was completely ripped up. The only business activity were street vendors selling t-shirts of Marion Barry shouting "The Got-Damned Bitch Set Me Up" (aaahh, remember the fun days in the murder capital of the country) and Ben's Chilli Bowl. Glad to know it's survived the urban renaisance.

Having only had one steak at Berns, it was a great cut, not expertly cooked. Why is it that steakhouses can be so good at one cut, but not the other? Isn't S&W cutting its double-cut strip from the same side of beef that it cuts a filet, etc.?

Anyone know where it will be?

Vics Chaat House in Berkeley is the most famous place. Very good from the few times I've been there. It started in an empty space next to a small Indian grocer. Soon, the Chaat House became the draw. People here will give you the info. Other than that, I didn't find much by way of Indian food in SF proper. Most of the popular places are "Americanized" versions that probably wont offer or live up to what you're looking for. Some are quite good though, but not authentic or chaat. If you want to experiment, there are places in the Tenderloin, such as Shalimar (?). There's a small chaat house on Valencia at 16th, and although I lived a two blocks away, I never ate there. (No reason, just never got around to it.) The popular place in the Mission is the Indo-Pak Curry house on 16th. Basically, it has piles of cooked meat and vats of different "sauces". But to be honest, the "sauces" are all pretty much the same. It is cheap though. Otherwise, SF proper really doesn't have an Indian neighborhood. Down on the Peninsula (and yes, the Peninsula is not peninsula, but don't tell them that), there's supposedly a larger Indian/Pakisatni/Afghan/etc. community with a much better selection of non-standard fare.

I recall reading somewhere the proper ratio of sugar/water/bottle for 12 oz bottles. If you could find this, you could, for example, dissolve 1/8 cup sugar in 2 quarts water and add 1 t to each bottle. Or whatever the ratio is.

Didn't know it had opened. I'll try it soon. I think it's in the St. Mark's mall, with Quiznos and Supercuts. Feh.

the ribs tasted very good, and they were very meaty. I just thought they were too neatly trimmed (you know how at Applebys, Bennigans, etc., every piece of food is trimmed perfectly uniform?) and not as meaty as I remember. Another odd thing about them is that although they certainly tasted like they were smoked, they didn't look smoked or rubbed. Smoked ribs come out pretty black and are still covered with rub. These were pretty clean. Odd.

Another mediocre meal at Blue Smoke. The food here is so trimmed, polished and proper, it looks like the fake plastic stuff used in add campaigns. I started with the fried green tomatos. Three sliced in a corn-meal batter. Not very big, not much flavor. Served with dollops of a red/chili sauce that, again, needed more oomph. My friend ordered a half-slab of St. Louis style ribs. She was served about 7 ribs, in a manicured "slab". The edges were even all around, the surface was even, the color was even. It sat, small and lonely, in the middle of a clean white plate. The whole thing was about 6-7 inches (and remember, guys round up). I think it was $14.95 -- way overpriced for the amount of food. As for flavor, will give it a thumbs up. Much smokier than the ribs I had back in February. But they were smaller, and not nearly as meaty. I had the fried chicken. I wish I'd gone to Popeyes. It didn't have much of a batter/crust. I guess this was a regional thing. It seemed to have been dipped in cornmeal and then fried. The pieces were an ok size, but certainly not plump. The breast was moist. Not a great amount of flavor. On the side was a decent portion of mashed, with so-so gravy poured into a perfectly shaped well. The biscuit was the high-point. We had a side of mac & cheese that was over-poweringly rich. Tasted like they used an extra packet of Kraft cheese powder. The place was packed.

Someone told me that Pepsi Clear tasted just like Pepsi.

I don't know that New Yorkers want or appreciate a 4 hour meal. And I find it hard to believe that New Yorkers care that outside the door to Per Se is a door to V. Outside the door to most restaraunts in New York are piles of garbage waiting for the morning pick up.

I had a terrific meal last night at Bern's in Tampa. This is old-school dining. The restaurant is in an unassuming part of town that appears to be undergoing some gentrification (but what do I know, I'm just a tourist). Inside is a dark, heavily wooded room, replete with red velvet chairs and gilded statuettes on the walls. I at at the long bar, and it seems that everyone was a regular. Almost every person who walked in said hello to a patron and was bought a drink. The bartender, Kenny, was a centerpiece of activity, gossip and knowledge. It was a great experience. The menu was quite large -- the steaks did not appear until page 17. Berns sells their cuts by thickness, offering suggestions for what thickness would feed what number of people. The next page offers a detailed "doneness" chart, explaining how the varying thicknesses will affect crust and pinkness. It was quite a tome. The wine list was extensive, but I can't really speak to quality or price. They did, however, have a large selection of wines by the glass for $10 and under. I decided on a 1 1/4" Delmonico (ribeye), medium rare. For about $44, this comes with soup, salad, veggies, potato and wonderful fried onions. Also, since I'm working hard on the heart-attack, I ordered a foie gras appetizer. Berns offers two styles, savory and sweet. When I saw that sweet came with pineapple, I chose savory. The foie was excellent. A thick slice, seared (could have been better), served atop a small bed of oyster mushroom and toast, surrounded by a bold red-wine reduction. The foie was wonderfully creamy and flavorful. The bowl of onion soup wasn't big but was very good. The broth was full of sweet onion flavor and not heavily reliant on salt. The onions on the bottom were chopped instead of sliced, but this made it easier to eat. It was topped with a slice of bread and gruyere that could have been crisped a bit more. On the side were a few slices of toast, gently sprinkled with parmesan. The salad was a nice salad, the only part worth mentioning was the blue cheese. (But really, how many salads are worth mentioning?) Instead of a thick, creamy, mayonaise dressing with bits of cheese, this was the real stuff. Tangy from a copious amount of cheese and buttermilk. Really good. The entree had the only two flaws of the evening. First, the steak. Although the piece of meat was beautiful, there wasn't enough char for me, and it was a bit overcooked. Definitiely a medium steak, and not medium rare. Interesting note, Berns trims off the "tail" of the ribeye (whatever that is), and replaces it with a slice of tenderloin. This offered a suprisingly noticeable and enjoyable difference in taste and texture. Other than being a bit overcooked, the meat was tender and delicious. Second flaw was the wine -- a glass of Stags Leap cab that was served cold. I'm no wine afficionado, but the glass and the wine was quite chilled. Sitting at the bar I met a great couple who own a Spanish place in town, La Septima Cafe. Ron is a big smoker, and we had a great conversation about pork, brisket and ribs. He also touted Berns practice of not using heavy smoke when cooking their steaks. Unlike other steakhouses in town, Berns' steaks do not come out tasting of oak. Also, Bern believed that steak should taste like steak and, until his death last year, the restaurant did not serve any sauces on the meat. (They now boast 14.) Ron and his wife ordered the ceaser salad -- excellently prepared at the bar by Kenny, and two huge lobsters. It was a terrific night. Now, I'm actually looking forward to my next business trip to this land of strip malls.

The worlds first Hooters is in Clearwater. I'm going to Berns for dinner tonight if she wants to join me.