Stone

I would think that to make a veggie good enough to rival a hamburger, you'd have to destroy the "veggie" by adding cheese, sauce, etc. You might as well eat the burger. I just try to buy new and different kinds of veggies. I prepare most of them simply -- blanching, steaming, etc., with a little salt, evoo, butter or soy. But I'm strange enough to love brussel sprouts.

Render the fat. Schmear the fat on a piece of toast (any bread will do). Discard carcass.

Putting aside subjectivity/objectivity which has been beaten to death, Steve P -- do you consider yourself a snob? If so, do you consider it an insult? Notwithstanding my enjoyment of Bud, I consider myself somewhat of a beer snob. I don't think there's any reason to drink light beer. It's 30 fucking calories. Nor should any person drink "light ice" beer. If you don't like beer, drink water. I'm comfortable. Is snobbery a bad thing? Why assume that snobs judge other people? A snob may refuse to eat store bought salad dressing without looking down on those who do. Perhaps snobbery is beneficial. I chide my parents for eating strange things out of the freezer section at Costco. I try to convince them that they can make something themselves and it would be better. They have no time constraints. I think I'm helping them enjoy their food more. A more interesting topic was touched upon by spqr -- "Fuck the French." Someone should start a thread on that. LML -- would you be comfortable with the statement that anyone who thinks that Titanic is the best movie of all time is wrong? Or that anyone who thinks Leo is the best actor of all time is wrong?

Really? I did a search and didn't find one. Never mind.

My friend lives in NY and she used to drink out of bottles of Evian in her fridge. When I visit, I usually drank from the Evian bottles and filled them with tap water. Of course, she never knew the difference. When I lived in Boston I often heard reports of contaminated ground water. I understand using bottled water there. I think the water in St. Louis (and other places of course) tastes like it has a mild soap solution in it. I applaud the use of bottled water there. I've never heard of reports of bad water in SF or in NY, nor is there any foul taste to the water (generally, don't complain to me about your particular pipes). Yet people insist on bringing bottled water into my home. I think that whatever pittance of contaminants in the tap water can't reasonably be considered significant compared to what's inhaled and ingested by the body in everyday living. To me, it's on par with a person smoking a cigarette and complaining about pesticides on their food. Do people think that absent specific threats/bad taste, it's worth spending $1.75 on a glass of water in the home?

I finally had a full meal at SF hot-spot, Zuni Cafe. I had a great time, but the food was too inconsistent for me to rave about the place. When I strolled up, there was some guy out front with blown-dry hair arrogantly pulling on a fat cigar. Oy. Then I had some trouble getting a drink the bar, although it was well staffed. But since I was already three glasses of scotch into the evening (Springbank, neat -- very nice), I didn't really care. Other than that slight wait at the bar, I can say that the service was probably the best part of the evening -- which goes a long way. They originally sat us at the wrong table and asked us to move. We didn't mind in the least, but they gave us a free round of drinks any (scotch number 5 for me -- thus, the details of this review will be hazy). The servers managed to be nice, friendly, funny and present without being overbearing or hovering. Terrific. We started with two dozen oysters. I'm starting to understand what the oyster stuff is all about. We had four types, half from the Atlantic and half from the Pacific. The only one I can remember is Miyagi. (Unfortunately they were out of the Bolinas area Sweetwater about which I'd read recently.) The oysters were fresh and plump and sweet. Nothing slick or oily about them. And one type of the Atlantic oysters burst forth with the aroma of a good ocean mist. Something I'd never experienced before, and now I'll start trying more oysters. Perhaps the fact that they were served with only lemon and a sweet vinegar -- no tobasco or horseradish -- helped me really taste the oysters. (I recall a bottle of wine arrived with the oyseters. It was white. I drank about 2 glasses.) The cheese plate was the biggest disappointment as I'd heard so much about it. There were five cheeses, the only one I recall by name was Cowgirl Creamery. It wouldn't be worth trying to remember, because the portions of each were so smallthat the four of us could barely share enough to get the cheese onto our tongues and into the taste buds. Not really enough for a swallow. The blue cheese arrived in a paper thin triangle covered completely in honey. Nice, but I would have liked to taste the cheese. The sweet dates were very good. We arrived at 9:30 and ordered the famed chicken for two (allow 50 minutes), hanger steak (or was it skirt?), halibut and a burger -- (they don't serve burgers until 10, so the waiter waited (how appropriate) to put in the order. The halibut was tasty, but overcooked. It was dry and reminded me slightly of canned salmon. The steak was also nothing special. It seemed to be nothing but well-grilled flank steak, not hanger, and didn't have the texture or flavor I expect from hanger steak. It was, however, served with a very interesting side, which I'm sure someone here can identify for me. It was day old bread stewed with fresh tomatoes and chopped fresh herbs. It looked like a reddish mashed potato. Although the presentation was not pleasant to my eye, the taste and texture was quite good. The tomato flavor was fresh and sweet with a slight bite to it. The bread managed to hold up well. The burger was good, but nothing great. I respectable portion, but not a great hulking burger that beasts like me appreciate. I realized that the best part of the flavor came more from being well-salted (enough to open the taste up, but not too much to offend), rather than from the beef. It was served on sliced focaccia, which I didn't mind at all, with sweet red onion, tomato and a nice slice of a blood red tomato. The chicken was easily the high-point of the meal. It deserves its reputation. A whole bird, but into 8 pieces and served simply. The meat was plump and juicy. It was lightly spiced which allowed the taste of the bird to dominate. The skin was outstanding. Golden in color and papery crisp, there was not a hint of grease or burnt areas. I'm pretty sure we skipped dessert.

So you consider it to bee too authentically chinese? Actually, since I grew up eating Chinese food in the NY suburbs, I don't really know enough to say what's authentic and what's not. I just know what I like. I agree with Toby that the Asian food in the Avenues is generally better than the stuff in town. I always welcome Slanted Door bashers into my heart. But to be fair, I need to give it another try someday.

I'm going to be in Bangkok for one night at the end of October. Where should I eat? Is the A&W still open?

Oh yeah. I bought a bottle of "Bagel Beer." I forgot it's in the fridge. That should be interesting.

If I recall correctly, someone started importing a beer from the Czech Republic called "Budweis", claiming, I think, to be the original. After a trademark battle with AB, I think AB purchased the brewery.

I've been to House of Nanking a few times, and I think it's got some very good food. Simple, straightforward, tasty. I had a soup there, It think it was a version of crabmeat and asparagus with chopped thai chillis, that was fantastic. Jason -- I generally prefer Chinese food for Jewish people over Chinese food for Chinese people. Perhaps therein lies the source of our schism. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Slanted Door is the most overrated restaurant in San Francisco. You can get the same or better food from almost any Vietnamese restaurant in the tenderloin without the arrogance and for a lot less money. You will have to give up the wine list, but you're eating Vietnamese food.

I thought Harpoon was brewed in DC (or thereabouts)? They have a great Winter Ale. It's made with pumpkin and a little clove/ginger/cinnamon. It's like drinking a piece of pumpkin pie. It has a great mouthfeel. Last night at dinner my friend asked for an ice cold Chimay. I almost plotzed. Being the snob that I am, I told him that he could not drink a Belgian ice cold -- he might as well eat his tuna well done. I tried to grab the bottle so I could craddle it lovingly under my armpit and raise the temperature a bit, but no go.

A while back, my favorite restaurant in Chinatown was the Ju Shiang House of Noodles on Doyers street. I took a friend there once, and while we were digging into plates piles high with delecate shrimps, tender beef and oodles of noodles, a family of six or so cockroaches scuttled by the wall next to us. We shrugged and ate on. Next year, 1986 if I recall correctly, about ten of us were down in lower Manhattan for the 4th of July celebration and the reopening of the Statue of Liberty. I thought another trip to the House of Noodles was called for, but alas, the damned health inspectors got there before we did. Just two days earlier, the place was padlocked by the Board. The fuckers.

I've had my french press for a week or so now. It's pretty good. I find the coffee to be smoother, with less sharpness to it. I'm using a spice grinder (no settings), and although I'm grinding pretty fine, I don't have any trouble pushing down the plunger. It was a bit harder getting the right coffee/water ratio. With my drip machine, I found that heaping the beans in the grinder made enough for a full "10 cup" pot of coffee. I'm using a little less for my 32 oz FP, and it tastes pretty good. This weekend I'm going to do a side-by-side comparison with the FP with my old drip (if it can perc out one last brew). All the bean talk is freaking me out. I usually buy a pound or two at a time and throw it in a zip-lock bag in the freezer. I don't drink a lot at home, so I keep it for at least a month. I guess I need to buy less, more often.

The Supreme Court long ago recognized that all American citizens have a fundamental right to travel and move from state to state.

Leftovers? What are leftovers?

There's a difference between having a strong dislike for foods that other people eat and thinking that the people who eat them are low-class trailer trash.

Perhaps splitting them exposed too much surface area unprotected by casing, thereby allowing too much juice to seep forth. Maybe after splitting, you should sear the exposed meat to lock in the juices. ( )

I recall some threads about good wine values at Trader Joes and Costco, but I haven't been able to find them. Anyone?

It's too late to play that "man of the masses" crap.

I think you all need to be decanted. (I'm just teasing. Excuse me while I open a bottle of Bud in my belly button.) Beer is properly opened using eye-sockets. Wimp. I find that the rapid expansion of gas from the bottle mixes quickly with the volatile acids naturally forming in the belly button and then is pulled back into the bottle by the brief vacuum caused by the removal of said bottle from said button. The resulting aeration of the beverage during the period whence it is raised to the moistened lips produces a cloying texture of ambient bouquets that are pleasantly garnied about the nostrils and tendrils. Opening a bottle in the eye is a cheap parlor trick often displayed among the fraternitazi to impress the uncouth vulgar women drinking Zima. And may I say, comrade, that your presence on this thread has been remarkably bourgeoisie. Watch your back, I believe someone may be lurking with a hammer.

I lunched at Henry's Hunan today. It wasn't great. The hot & sour soup just wasn't hot and sour enough. It looked great, had terrific texture and a good supply tofu, fungus, shoots, scallions. Just needed a bit more oomph. The fried rock cod fillets were pretty good. A tad heavy on the breading, but the fish was otherwise light and tasty. The fillets came with a spicy coating of hot bean sauce, copious garlic and ginger, and scallions. The Henry's Special -- little shrimps, scallops and chicken in mixed veggies -- came in the same sauce as the fish. (Odd.) It was a littie much. And the fish and the special both glowed an eerie red color.

I think you all need to be decanted. (I'm just teasing. Excuse me while I open a bottle of Bud in my belly button.)

I agree that Erichs is probably the best in SF proper. It's just not great. A little too fusion. (Is zuchhini a tradiational veggie in Chinese cooking? I don't think so, but it's all over SF chinese food.) Although possibly the best sizzling rice soup I've had. Clean subtley flavored broth, ample quantities of fresh, sweet shrimp and scallops (the chicken is usually dry) and fresh, crisp veggies (yes, an SF chinese restaurant that serves crisp veggies). I also like Yank Sing, but others with much more dim sum experience tell me that it's not authentic. Considering that almost every SF person I've talked to lists the same 4 or 5 restaurants (Erichs, Elizas (which is all flash and no substance), House of Nanking, Yank Sing and Ton Kiang), and in my humble opinion none of these is great, I'd say the city needs some Chinese food help. Pardon if I repeat myself, but Shen Hua in Berkeley is fantastic.

I forgot. The chocolate meringue cookies. Bite sized clouds of happiness.