jschyun

Actually, I'd rather read skchai than me, but yeah, i think I'd rather read me than Jonathan Gold because at least I won't deliberately make up crap. Unfortunately, I have an editor who believes in the Jonathan Gold style and so he puts in all sorts of stuff in my work that is technically wrong (but very entertaining). I love the guy, and he writes better than me, but goddamn. The thing that handicaps me is that I can only contribute my experience, what I see on television, and read in the magazines, while skchai can go on about the history behind something as simple as chiachiangmyun (see the hawaii forum for this thread). Too bad he doesn't live in L.A. Next time I'm on the Big Island I'll definitely be looking him up. --oops instead of Big Island pls substitute Oahu.

I would have thought that you would enjoy hate mail, but what do I know? As for swallowing JG bullshit over the years, I think I normally ignore all the flowery bullcrap (okay, this occasion was too much for me) and go straight to whether or not the food was any good. I think you can tell if a writer really liked a place or not, unless he's a really good liar. Side note: Joe Blowe's MIL was spot on with Mission 261, JG's dim sum darling. From now on, if there's a new dim sum place, I'm going straight to Joe Blowe, who (I hope) will, in turn, go straight to his MIL. --If I had written that piece, I would frame my hate mail, but that's just me. I admit it. mongo_jones, you were right.

No, no, that's not what I'm talking about. JG is not saying that Koreans are translating the dish at all, but translating the concept of the dish. bad choice of words on my part. As I understand it, he is saying that he thinks Koreans have the idea that pho is a variant on a Korean dish, seolleongtang, which is a false statement. I know he phrased it as an opinion, but frankly, he makes it sound like he knows what he's talking about, yet this is utter bullshit. Also, I'm starting to question if he even knows how to eat Korean food. I mean, how is it that a guy who grew up in Koreatown doesn't know how to season his soup? He only needs to watch everyone else in the restaurant doing it to know he's being stupid when he sips on some unseasoned broth. What a dumbass. mongo, this kind of crap flies because most of the readership only care about the sex ads in the back.

In this week's LA Weekly, I just read this: "I’ve always suspected that Koreans conceive of pho as a jazzier version of sullongtang, a soothing, unseasoned broth so bone-intensive that it is practically incandescent in its whiteness. It is an aesthetic, admittedly, but not necessarily one I share." Just for the record, I don't know any Koreans, living in Korea or in L.A. that think that pho is a jazzed up version of sulleongtang. To me this sounds like he thinks Koreans are so stupid, they can't conceive of understanding the concept of pho without translating it into something Korean. Yeah, I'm not a big fan of Koreatown pho, but I also know that nobody thinks it is a "jazzier version of" sullongtang, which is a totally Korean dish. Also, sulleongtang is not an unseasoned broth, it's a long cooked beef broth, with some shin bones thrown in to add gelatine to get that thick, unctous lusciousness. You season it at the table, with some sea salt and chopped scallions. Therefore, if it's unseasoned, that's your own damn fault. I normally like JG's articles, and i'm not really that picky or interested in details, but I just couldn't let this one go. Here's the article.

Bill to ban sale of foie gras approved.

LA Times Food Section -- May 5, 2004 To view the articles below, register a username with www.latimes.com. Registration is free. There is a separate Calendar section with more food articles. However, you have to pay a fee for them. Lots of recipes today: Susan LaTempa writes about the life and times of wealthy Mexican expats with impeccable taste in food. Recipe for spicy pepitas (pumpkin seed) dip included It's spring and Regina Schrambling writes about the cult of baby vegetables and fruits. Recipe included for roast poussin with spring garlic-herb stuffing Recipe: Baby artichoke and pea shoot salad with favas and pecorino Romano Recipe: Chive-glazed baby carrots Recipe: Roast poussin with spring garlic-herb stuffing Corie Brown writes about the 05 Zagat results. and how certain restaurants were, in a sense, stuffing the ballot box. Corie Brown checks out "The Working Parents Cookbook". Included are the recipes for flourless chocolate cake and Poopsies creamy corn cakes, and chicken kebabs. Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Cake adapted from "The Working Parents' Cookbook" Recipe: Poopsie's Creamy Corn Cakes Recipe: Chicken kebabs marinated in yogurt and spices Barbara Hansen gets the recipe for Golden Cauliflower from Samer Elias of Sam's by the Beach in Santa Monica Canyon. Jean T. Barrett writes about the the new status liquor: tequila. David Shaw complains about the California Senate's ruling against the sale of fois gras produced by force fed ducks. Buy some cute dishes for Mother's Day from Pomp.

As per usual, I am a sucker at any mention of dim sum, so of course I'm in, barring unforeseen schedule changes. I still have to give 888 Seafood at least 2 more tries. You know the black cod dumplings at Mission 261 are actually pretty good, in fact I would say excellent. I forget the geography, but if you were so inclined I would go along with you, if you wanted to make a short dim sum run to M261 just for those. There were some other good stuff there, but nothing particularly unique that I can remember, except for those egg custard bunnies, which don't taste particularly interesting but sure look cool. One of these days, I'm going to get the foie gras wontons at Sea Harbour. Maybe I can pick some up while waiting at 888 and we can try them. If the wait's long, perhaps we could go to the mexican place next door and get a snack.

Okay, here's the address to that place in l.a. we go to. If you find a better source, let us know. Honestly, I haven't checked out the bookstores, I only go to the ones that my family goes to because I'm a lazy bastard. Springwater Book Imports Inc. (샘터서림) 3003 W. Olympic Bl #105 Los Angeles, CA 90006 (213) 380-8787

As for the food, I only got three things (quail on greens app, a light spring lettuce salad, and the paparadelle with liberty duck). Also, I think my impressions might be a little unfair because I had just eaten a pretty damn good meal at Boulevard the night before. The quail was nicely roasted (not bloody, not dry), but it sat on a bed of spinach that had a vinegary flavor that, perhaps had I not had a really nice quail app on cubed potatoes in cream sauce in Boulevard the day before, I would have loved. Quince's was still damn good, I just didn't eat as much of the spinach as I probably would have otherwise. Also the salad was also vinegary, though I spied my favorite lettuces, (Forellenschluss, some red lettuce, what looked like oakleaf) and some mache in there, which I love. The paparadelle with liberty duck was really salty. Being Korean, I kept thinking how well the duck would go with some fresh rice. However, the paparadelle were ethereal swaths of noodle that were heaven to eat. I ate the noodles first and then worked on the duck shreds. The service at Quince was really the standout feature for me. I told Robert the waiter/protein researcher that I was in the mood for gelato after looking at the dessert menu which has no gelato, and he shrugged and said "I totally understand. When I'm in the mood for gelato, nothing else will really satisfy me". He gave me the check and I gave him a huge tip. For dessert I had nociola/white mint chip/tahitian vanilla gelato at gelateria naia in berkeley. This place is very busy, so I might not choose it for a first date (I personally would go to KISS Seafood or maybe one of the places in the Mission for that) but I might go again with some friends.

Personally, I see it as being very much like learning a new language. You can read from the book, do all the exercises, even do practice conversations in class and with the teacher. But it's still difficult to be fluent unless you actually start speaking with some native speakers. And it really helps to be in a country where that language is spoken, so you can be immersed in the language, the people, etc. That is not to say that cooking in a cuisine style, without having tried authentic examples, won't produce interesting results. But then you don't know what you're making, really. Batali is right. A recipe can only get you so far. As for that article, I have to admit, I prefer straight, simple food articles where the author tells about his experiences and nothing more. If the person is actually knowledgeable about what the hell he is talking about, all the better. But yeah, padding your articles with secondhand bullshit is not a good way to go.

I agree that the service at Quince is very good, or at least it was yesterday when I went there for dinner. I had this guy Robert who happens to have a masters in biochemistry from Stanford and is currently doing research on proteins, and waits tables on the side. You know you're in San Francisco when... --thanks Squeat!

In my parasitology class i did a paper on anasakiasis and to my surprise my general findings were that it is a relatively benign disease. Even if you did eat fish with the worms and eggs, the likelihood of it getting bad enough to warrant surgery is extremely rare. The usual symptoms are stomach upset but that usually goes away by itself. The incidence of anasakid worm presence far outstrips the incidence of anasakiasis, which suggests that they're not terribly aggressive, or aggressive enough to really be a problem. I don't think you should scare yourself with this particular disease. After my paper, I felt better about eating sashimi, though the threat of disease hadn't bothered me much even before that. There are other, more realistic things to worry about, like heart disease...

This is exactly what bro said. Hmm, looks like little bro could teach big sis a thing or two. He said something about mixing crab and rice and something else in the crab shell (I'm saying this from memory--bad memory) and somehow he got this glorious pottage, the memory of which produced on his face a look of pure satisfaction.

Anyhow, I think vietnamese in OC generally surpasses what you can get in L.A. Just my opinion. Speaking of which, Che Cali just opened a place on Brookhurst, off I think McFadden? I know it's near Margo, because that one place that used to be Green Papaya has yet again changed hands. Che Cali has a deal on Banh Mi, 3 for $3 on those big crusty rolls, not the baguettes. I like them more than Lee's Sandwiches, because the bread is softer, though I still like Lee's. --there's a chinese place in Santa Monica, J.R. Seafood, near the pier, where you used to be able to get dinner for half off if you ordered during the hours of 5-6 I think, their version of happy hour. I actually liked the food there, this is really strange, considering the location.

By the way, you don't have to go to Hawaii to experience chik naengmyun. there are plenty of places on the mainland (i'm thinking Los Angeles) where you can have it. In fact, there are restaurants devoted exclusively to naengmyun, just like skchai's Yuchun Restaurant, though I have had chik naengmyun at a barbecue place. I don't know that it's worth it to make it at home. for approximately $7-$10 you can get it at the restaurant with all the fixin's. I like the idea of slushy broth as opposed to ice cubes. I think I've seen that here as well. Now, that's progress. My father once entertained me with stories about the hard times, during the war, when they used to go up to the mountain and dig up chik roots to make a sort of survival gruel. I don't know if he actually did it, or that he was relating stories he had heard. But kudzu is apparently nutritious, even to other plants. The world record holder for the largest tomato plant ever, Charles Wilbur, fertilized his tomato plants with kudzu compost.

Credit skchai for that namul definition. I would normally have just said "prepared vegetable side dishes" or something like that. *shrug* i'm just a lowly programmer with precious few language skillz. --the namul(s) I was thinking of are not necessarily salty. the preparation of doragi (uh bellflower root?) means a long soak in a salt bath (get out the bitterness) so maybe that makes it somewhat salty. I love any preparation of doragi.

Hmm, I thought I already responded to this thread, but I guess not. I have never seen bibimbap flavoring. I tried googling for that flavoring thing but couldn't find it. torakris, would you be so kind as to provide a link? Now I'm curious. At church, bibimbap is what they mostly fed us, and the only flavoring I ever saw was kochujang and sesame oil. I also ate a ton of bibimbap when I was a vegetarian. The only way I know how to make it, is to use white rice (you can use any old rice cooker for this) and then throw a bunch of premade namul (uh translation is cool vegetable salads?), maybe some meat, and then take a dollop of kochujang and some sesame oil and put on top. If you are doing dol sot (stone crock) bibimbap, then you could also crack an egg on top and quick as a bunny mix it into everything while the stone bowl is still hot enough to cook the egg. the thing i like about the zojirushi rice cooker, or at least the one I had, was that there was a timer function, so you could make rice in the morning, and then time it so that the rice is perfectly made and ready to eat, right when you get home. There was also porridge functions on that machine that I never used. Now I use a no-name Korean rice cooker I bought in L.A. that makes exactly the same excellent rice that the zojirushi one did. No timer, but I don't care. I think it was $50 as opposed to $150. I agree with torakris that you should get around a 5 cup machine if you have 1-2 pple, and 10 cup if you have a decent sized family. --edit For anything with sweet rice, I think my mom uses a pressure cooker instead of the rice cooker. My friend makes a killer black (wild) rice that has black, sweet and brown rices all mixed in, and I...don't know what she uses, will get back to youm, hopefully i will remember.

I only know of that one Korean owned joint on the pier, to be honest, but all my friends and family go there. Not fancy, not the type of place where you sip wine and eat langoustine pasta, as the ocean laps the sand below your table. So for claire797's purposes, this may not be the best place, esp if there's money to burn. But if you have hungry people who like Korean style sashimi (hwe) and soju, this place is pretty decent. I wouldn't say it's the most fabulous sashimi ever, but I like it for casual dining with friends. For some reason, we never get crab, don't ask me why because i love crab. My brother gets crab and loves it. Inexpensive. As a child, I used to crack crab at a restaurant on the pier that had a deck jutting right over the water. It's gone now. Without that Korean place, I probably wouldn't even go to Redondo these days.

I hate to say this, but I didn't really like the food at Toppers much. What I found notable about Toppers the one time I went there, was the view from the women's bathroom. If I remember correctly (it's been a couple years) the ceiling to floor window in the bathroom extends to the end stall and you can watch people sunbathing, and it's possible that someone else is watching you do your thing.

i use canned lychees and jackfruit, canned coconut milk, and maybe some fresh mango or whatever else looks good, to make a California version of that icy coconut drink, halo-halo. i forget the thai name for the same dish.

I also have been upstairs, not downstairs and since i'm also a casual kind of gal (well, for the most part) i really like it. the last time I went there was a couple years ago, but I had an excellent warm goat cheese salad that stands out in my mind. I think we spent about $60-$70 for 2 pple, but then it's been a while. I thought that was about half the downstairs rate but I'm probably wrong.

I was going to comment on this after I could get to the bookstore, but still can't seem to remember the name. So, this is just to mention that on I think Olympic there is a bookstore that my family likes. I haven't been there myself in a while. Good selection, plus if you become a member (it's free) you get pretty nice discounts. I'm still trying to find out the name and will get back to you. Also, since you are into gardening, there is a nursery, english name is Evergreen Nursery (8592 Garden Grove Blvd Garden Grove, 714-537-8877), but it's in Orange County. It's on Garden Grove Blvd. off magnolia. They have a pretty complete selection of Hungnong veggie seeds for $1.50 a packet, less than what you would pay in korea at current exchange rates. Lettuce, spring onions, altari radish, regular radish, napa cabbage, peppers, squash, chamae melon, korean style watermelon (ice box), you know, the basics. I don't recall seeing anything better in L.A. but if you do, pls let me know.

Another title for this thread could be "Less is more" I'm a sucker for mini pastries. My local bakery has them so I like to buy one of everything. I agree with the people above that said it lets them taste some of everything, which is nice. The bakery I patronize is pricey, so you bet I am paying through the nose for this service. I do it willingly, in fact, eagerly! Maybe another cash flow item for FlourPower?

Unusual NY cuisines? What about a place that serves Navajo fry bread?

That bloomin' onion is the lazy man's onion ring. Less crunch, messy to eat. That said, the food is passable at Outback, just not spectacular. But for the money, i think I like it better than Ruth's Chris or Morton's, actually. I've had poorly cooked steak at Ruths Chris (only once but at $35 a steak, not good)