Stone

I've had the tasting menu (lunch) at Aqua and it was great. I went to Fluer De Lys and wasn't overly impressed, but then again, I was distracted by the overbearing decoration and that free drinks (big problem is that I often go to top restaurants on someone else's tab). The only time I hear about Fifth Floor is on this site and when reading SF "best of" articles. I don't recall ever hearing of anyone going. La Folie is supposed to be excellent. I used to live nearby and took my coffee at the Boulangerie next door. The staff at La Folie were always milling about, and they're good people. From my 2 1/2 years of eavesdropping, Gary Danko is the place to go in SF. Ches Panisse in Berkely. French Laundry in America.

Perhaps this is already on here, but I suggested to Southern Girl that she compose a letter to the food critic at whatever the correct paper is in town, and send the draft to the Herbfarm. It might receive 1) no resopnse; 2) an acceptable compromise; 3) threats of litigation. Any thoughts?

Contact Ruby and go to small claims court. (I'm kinda serious on this. You've got a valid grip that they didn't explain the policy to you, and it would be interesting to see what they would do. By chance you are in California -- "17200".)

I've rarely had any other than Vueve, Moet, and, well, Ding - Ding -a -Ling (if you know what I mean). I usually find them too sweet.

If possible, I know less about champagne than I do other wines. Jason (and others who have done blind tastings) -- I'm curious about the blind taste test -- were you surprised by the results? That is, were you surprised at any of the champagnes you liked/didn't like? (I.e., I'd heard such good stuff about XXX, I'm surprised I thought it tasted like piss.) Were there any that you have generally liked in the past, but didn't like when tasting blind? (I.e., I've been buying and drinking YYY for years, but when I tasted it blind, I hated it. Or the opposite, I hated ZZZ when I had it last month, but today . . . )

(Please, no one tell my father.)

HA! Yet again, I must revise my response to the best things I've learned on egullet. (But it's Yom Kippur, no?)

Maybe this is a subject for a different thread, but I keep hearing people talk about tofu as being "high in protein". It's then served in salads or with vegetables. My understanding is that legumes like soy have little usuable protein (for humans that is) unless paired with rice. (A long time ago it was explained to me that humans need to ingest something like 22 amino acids in order to provide the building blocks necessary to make the proteins in our bodies, and that while certain non-meats will supply many (most?) of these amino acids, only meat or legume/rice combination will supply them all.) Discuss? Any smug scientific bastards out there with some good info?

And I guarantee that it's direct from the shtetle. Aunt Sue and Grandma personally walked it out of Poland.

Call me what you want. Just don't call me late for dinner.

I think all Belgian beers are riding the deserved popularity of the Belgian browns (which I think are possibly the best beers in the world). My friend proudly proclaims that his Stella is a Belgian, but I never thought Stella was much different from the other European lagers (of which I'm not a fan).

I typically limit my buffet experiences to Indian food. (I used to do Thai and Chinese, but they're almost always disappointing. Having so little in my life, a wasted meal is not worth the risk.) However, breakfast buffets in the South, with steaming hot biscuits, sausage gravy and real fat breakfast sausages are wonderful. Eggs do not offer enough fat or cholestorol and just take up space. They are easily avoided.

Speaking of easy -- some beans, salsa, and cheese (and fresh basil, mint or other herbs if available), rolled and popped into a hot oven for ten minutes. Also, a bamboo steamer is a great way to pre-heat the tortillas before using.

Coke and brisket? I'm not a big fan of the sweet/meat combo, but I think my family and friends would love this. Thanks for the idea.

Poisson en papillote -- but use pages from the week's reading.

I never noticed that bit about no "sexually oriented" posts. How'd that slip in there? Tyke, that's a bit of a short fuse you've got. Have you met Dr. Revenue?

I wonder if they've changed hands. Dakshin is next to Worldwide Plaza, which house my old law firm, a large advertising firm and a bunch of other companies. When I started there in the mid-90s, I went to Dakshin a number of times and was always very disappointed. I think that was the general opinion among my co-workers. I stopped going years ago. I think the buffet downstairs at Shaan, at 48th between 5th and 6th is much better. In fact, I think I'll eat there tomorrow.

Are German "White" beers different from "Wit" beers (Belgian, I think)?

Where in Westchester are you? There's a big beer store in Ardsley, Just off the Major Deegan/Saw Mill. I can't think of the name right now (which is embarassing because I grew up there, Bavarian something?), but it had a pretty good selection when I was there.

I have a copy of the 1927 "Cookbook for the United States Navy." However, because I rarely cook for over 100 people, or stock a destroyer for 30 days at sea (which, in 1927, could be done for about $1200), I haven't had much chance to use it. But it's still my favorite.

It's quite intresting to read this thread again now that I know the cast of characters better. Y'all may find this interesting -- I have a friend who used to work for a company in a certain valley North of San Francisco. They were wine "fixers". If a wine producer wasn't happy with a batch, the fixers would do their magic (filtration, additives, etc.) to alter the flavor, composition, mouth-feel, etc. and then send it back for bottling. The whole business is all very hush hush. I asked what vineyards he worked on, and, not surprisingly, he was sworn to secrecy. By the way, eight months or so on egullet, and I've developed a much better appreciation for wine, though I still can't seem to develop the pallet or patience that others devote to it. Cheers.

Don't worry, I'll be right over. I'll bring the potato chips and a copy of "The Blues Brothers." We'll get rid of all those nasty old bottles in no time.

On a hot summer day, there's little better than popping open an ice cold 16 oz can o' Bud. Belgians should be enjoyed a tad warmer.

Golden Eagle.

The desserts from street vendors in Northern Thailand (usually sweetened coconut milk confections) was some of the best food I had in Asia.