jaybee

OK OK you two, let's get back to Nobu. (Happy B'day Liza, btw. You did it up right). I've never been to Nobu (gasps heard from Plotnicki and others). Is it really a transcendant experience? If i go, is there a night that might be better than others (I wouldn't go on the weekend or Monday).? What would the best first Nobu dinner be? Shouldn't miss dishes? What to drink?

Wilfrid, I agree that I would hope people respect the needs of others and aren't so selfish and piggish as to make people wait needlessly. Just as I would hope the guy in the left lane would slow down to let me in when he sees I have to go around a stopped car in front of me. Experience is that most people, if given the chance will be courteous and considerate. That's not the point of StellaBella's post. She was impolitely and aggressively asked to leave. My point is the place has no right to do that, having "let" the table to them for the price of whatever they ordered. As a customer, the option to stay or leave is mine, not the proprietor's. Sure I wouldn't selfishly keep a table when I saw a pile-up at the door. But nor would I leave before I was ready or feel any obligation to hurry my meal on account of that, unless the place offered me a 15% discount for leaving within a certain time. That would be a good incentive and help turn tables.

Favorite gifts brought to us by dinner guests were: 1) box of good chocolate truffles that can be served with the coffee; 2) bottle or two of good champagne already chilled that can be served with the hors d'ourves; 3) a nice bunch of flowers (peonies and lilies in season) already arranged and in a vase; 4) a case of 1970 first growth Bordeaux (really!); 5) a beautiful old decanter for my collection; 6) several well-kept cigars (preferably Cuban). Least favorite: 1) something to eat that doesn't fit into the menu I've planned and that the guest expects will be served in his/her presence; 2) bottle of dreadful chilled bubbly.

When I was in third grade (eight years old) at PS 73 in the Bronx my teacher told me to leave an assembly to which I had paid 10¢ admission (I was acting rowdy). I refused to leave, saying that I paid 10¢ to be there and (therefore) she hadn't the authority to eject me. Money talked and I didn't walk. (Boy, there was hell to pay when we got back to HER classroom.) I think Cabrales has it pretty much right. So does Stellabella. What happened to her never happened to me. But, as StellaBella says, maybe it' s because I'm male, tall (and large) and "older." The restaurant owners have entered with the diner an unwrittten contract that their space is available to you as long as you have bought and paid for food. Unless a restaurant has a printed policy that politely asks diners to give up their table in a reasonable amount of time when they are finished eating (between x and y time), I believe they have no right to ask you to leave.

I'm with Lizziee on Greuze. Restaurant Greuze Our meal there about two years ago was one of the most memorable we've had. The simple roasted chicken with garlic was transcendant. I would go back to Tournous just to repeat that meal. The town is very nic and a nearby shop called "Deco Bistro" is wonderful. The owner has transformed an old foundery into a movie set of old bistro and brasserie furnishings and fittings, objects and antiques, all for sale. Greuze merits a detour in our book.

I don't know where you are located but I bought a very servicable bread knife at the shop a the Cullinary Institute in Hyde Park on a visit. I get a catalog called Professional Cutlery Direct that has just about every brand and grade of knife you'd want. They have a web site too. if I can find the URL I'll add it here. Here it is: http://www.cutlery.com/ Never mind. I looked again at their bread knife selection and it is pretty poor. The one I bought at the CIA is made by Dexter model 46910 I think it cost $20

I've been using ther Bodum Santos automatic since I got it for Christmas. When the proportions of coffee and water are right it makes very very good coffee. It has taken me lots of trial and error to find out the right proportions. I use more grounds than the 1 tbs per 6 oz. water, esp[ecially when I am making 6 or fewer cups. 8-10 cups, the ration is about 1.25 tbs per 6 oz. water. But this can vary with the particular beans and roast I'm using. It is not rocket science but it isn't automatic either.

That's "tolerate". After eating a meal I've prepared for them, my friends often say "you should open a restaurant." Aside from the fact that I would not want to destroy my love for cooking by doing it for a living, I could not deal with the assholes that I know populate the business (as they do much of life). Twenty years in the ad agency business I could barely contain my disdain for clients who acted like pricks. The stories Basil Dog tells of the way some customers behave, I would have trouble keeping from dumping the table on their laps and throwing them out the door. Can you just shrug it off and say as long as they pay the bill I'll take the money and ignore them? I couldn't possibly. Preparing and serving food for someone is such an intimate act, I only do it for people I really like. How do you deal with the anger you must feel when confronted by this element?

Rachel likes marrow?

Bourdain mentions BGs for nova eggs and onions. A unique classic. I agree with Bourdain "The gold standard for egg dishes." Fat Guy gives the place a real thumbs down. I eat there at least three times a month. I'd cry if the place closed. The chicken soup with matzo balls is great, their corned beef sandwich is delicious, chopped liver is excellent, nova, sable and sturgeon are usually excellent quality, the cheese blintzes are very good, orange juice is always fresh, creamy borscht is also classic. Only the white fish, in my experience, is variable. Just avoid the place on Saturday and Sunday brunch-time, it is a zoo. What's your take on BGs? So what gives, Fat Guy?

If I go more than a month without a portion, I have withdrawl symptoms.

Insert tongue far into orifice. Move it slowly about from side to side until you feel the soft stuff inside. Then pressing your lips around the edges, suck vigorously. Who needs a spoon?

Michael Jordan's Steakhouse in grand Central ofer a roasted marrow bone with toast. As I recall it was one large bone with a goodly amount of marrow for an appetizer.

We enjoy Les Halles very much. It is the closest we feel to being in Paris. Was the place (food, decor) modeled after any specific French or Parisian bistro? What is the single best selling item on the carte?

The Forum Vampire strikes again.

Some years ago, I attended a vendemia festival in Jerez at a large bodega and grower. My glass was constantly refilled with chilled fino, a new drinking experience for me at the time. It seemed that I could drink endless amounts and not keel over, and every mouthful was refreshing. On returning to the US, I was astonished at how hard it was to find good fino. I was told that was because it had to be fresh and would not take shipping and stocking too well. It now seems to be making an appearance. If the fino shipped here is as good as the stuff I was served in Jerez, it will quickly become a favorite in our house.

All kidding aside, I think this is a cool idea.

OK Plotman, how 'bout we taste vertically and then go horizontal?

Yum! Thanks for that Terrie. Great idea, great post.

Any takers? Sounds great.

The original Bouley's was one of my favorite NY restaurants and never disappointed. It set the standard for many dishes for me. David had the passion and committment to make every dish work and the place hummed with great service. It sounds as he has lost his passion or his committment and is just mailing it in, as they say in jazz and the NBA. Too bad. Maybe his various misadventures and punctured dreams (Russian Tea Room) set him back, and he doesn't care as much any more. I wonder if anyone who knows him can say? With these recent reports, I probably won't go to find out.

You sound like Martha Stewart. C'mon, be more specific.

If the someone you most wanted to impress was coming to dinner, what would you cook? This could include a starter, main and dessert or a single dish. In other words, what is your knock-out meal or dish? If this has been covered already, just click me to the thread. Oh, mine are a risoto with lobster and oyster mushrooms as starter, followed by whole red snapper baked Spanish-style in salt and a tarte tatin for dessert.

Whilst biting down on a very hard pretzel whilst strapped in the seat of a 747 whilst flying to GB for some veddy important business meetings with high level executives of my agency's clients, I succeeded in cracking the right upper front incisor right across diagonally, leaving me with a Dracula like smile (I vant to drink your bloooody mary dear client). It didn"t hurt but it made me look like a refugee from Green Acres and very self consious to boot. (I was in GB long enough to learn what whilst means, but I also learned, somewhat embarrasngly, that being caught short there doesn't mean not having enough beer for the guests). I was there for two weeks and then came back to bond with my dentist.