143 replies to this topic

[Tim Carman]

Hi all;

First-time caller, long-time listener. I thought some of you might be interested in the City Paper's debut Food Issue, which hit the streets today. The online version has some pros (better picture reproduction) and some cons (a chefs map that's missing text). For the full experience, check out the printed version.

Also, check out Anne Marson's excellent cover story on certified food managers.

The no-duh moment of my first DR.com post: Feedback welcome.

-Tim

[porcupine]

No 'no-duh' here! Welcome, and props for fully disclosing your identity.

[mdt]

The interview with Wabeck was entertaining.

[jm chen]

Pretty cool. Particularly enjoyed the article on authentic and "authentic" dining options.

Jeff Tunks' name is misspelled on the main page, though it's correct in the article.

Welcome, Tim.

[Tim Carman]

I just learned, to my great shock, that one of the chefs/cooks listed on our Continental Shift map, Betty Ayele, was killed yesterday while sitting in her car at an intersection in Alexandria. Read more.

[Jacques Gastreaux]

I just learned, to my great shock, that one of the chefs/cooks listed on our Continental Shift map, Betty Ayele, was killed yesterday while sitting in her car at an intersection in Alexandria. Read more.

Are you sure it is the same person:

Ayele, whose jobs included selling homes for Weichert Realtors and answering phones at Alexandria Yellow Cab,

According to court documents, Ayele was accused in November 2000 of conspiring to distribute cocaine and carrying a firearm. She was found guilty four years later, not long after her testimony led to the convictions of members of Murder Inc., and was sentenced to probation.

While out on bond on the drug and firearm charges, Ayele was arrested in July 2003 in Alexandria after she allegedly threw hot coffee at her mother. She was acquitted of the domestic assault and battery charge a few weeks later.

[Tim Carman]

Are you sure it is the same person:

Regrettably yes.

[Jacques Gastreaux]

Regrettably yes.

Shit. I read that article in the morning paper, I had no clue she was in the restaurant business. The cops think it was a hit.

[Cook&Bottlewasher]

Regrettably yes.

We in Del Ray,are very saddened for her. Thank you so much,Tim for keeping us informed.

[Tim Carman]

Here's a small update on the Ohio, which we posted late yesterday on the City Paper blog.

[Tweaked]

I ate at the Ohio a couple months ago, a late hungover breakfast, totally divey, paper plates, plastic knives and forks, breakfast cooked on a griddle in front of you. A greasy spoon in all the best ways. The posted wine list included bottles of 40s. I loved every minute of it.

The lady in charge, I'm assuming it was Ayele, said her sister owned the building and had put it on the market for sale. Honestly the place needs to be gutted and refurbished, but it really is a great spot for a diner.

[cheezepowder]

Tim Carman's Young & Hungry in the City Paper this week had some interesting news items. Greggory Hill is going to start offering takeout pretzel sandwiches during lunch at David Greggory. I wonder if the trend, like the old Galileo grill, will catch on to other places. Also, I thought it was interesting that the Sette Osteria's pizza oven being broken made such a difference in total sales. The first item is about the Quarry House, but I've never been.

[mdt]

Tim Carman's Young & Hungry in the City Paper this week had some interesting news items. Greggory Hill is going to start offering takeout pretzel sandwiches during lunch at David Greggory. I wonder if the trend, like the old Galileo grill, will catch on to other places. Also, I thought it was interesting that the Sette Osteria's pizza oven being broken made such a difference in total sales. The first item is about the Quarry House, but I've never been.

I think Kolumbia does some take-out item(s?) for lunch. That true? If so, they need to get the word out.

[ferment everything]

I think Kolumbia does some take-out item(s?) for lunch. That true? If so, they need to get the word out.

I know they have a $9 bar lunch special, but I wasn't aware of any take-out options...anybody know for sure?

[ol_ironstomach]

Carman and gang strike again. Brilliant: the City Paper's Google-Proof Dining Quiz!

[Capital Icebox]

My attempt to address Burros' opening salvo. Please play along.

(ETA: The idea that there are only "a few" DC chefs worthy of NYC status) is almost as annoying as your recent article that implied that Northern VA is populated with die-hard Republicans, despite copious amounts of demographic evidence to the contrary:

"...So why, then, is Andy Shallal thinking about calling his new Busboys and Poets outlet in this Arlington neighborhood the same name as the original lefty mecca in Shaw? B&P, after all is named in honor of [Langston] Hughes.

“The suburbs are becoming heavily populated with people that have come from the city,” says Shallal. “They choose to live in the suburbs, and yet they still want some of the amenities that the city has to offer. So we’re sort of bringing in a little bit of the city feel.”

Besides, Shallal says, not every neighborhood in Virginia bleeds red. His evidence? One of his employees told him the ZIP code where he’s opening shop in late June “has the highest concentration of gays and lesbians in Virginia,” says Shallal..."

[MeMc]

It's almost as annoying as your recent article that implied that Northern VA is populated with die-hard Republicans, despite copious amounts of demographic evidence to the contrary:

"...So why, then, is Andy Shallal thinking about calling his new Busboys and Poets outlet in this Arlington neighborhood the same name as the original lefty mecca in Shaw? B&P, after all is named in honor of [Langston] Hughes.

“The suburbs are becoming heavily populated with people that have come from the city,” says Shallal. “They choose to live in the suburbs, and yet they still want some of the amenities that the city has to offer. So we’re sort of bringing in a little bit of the city feel.”

Besides, Shallal says, not every neighborhood in Virginia bleeds red. His evidence? One of his employees told him the ZIP code where he’s opening shop in late June “has the highest concentration of gays and lesbians in Virginia,” says Shallal..."

I thought it was interesting. Thanks for pointing it out, Tim. More New York is the center of the universe from the Times, unfortunately. . .

[Pat]

City Paper has a special pullout food section in the current issue (Jemal on the cover). I enjoyed reading several of the articles on restaurant practices.

[Tim Carman]

I figure you know this already, but I wanted to make sure that I don't take credit for work that I have nothing to do with. The Food Issue (which focuses on service) includes some fine journalism by Anne Marson, Kim Gooden, and John Stubbs. If you haven't seen it already, you can now find it online.

City Paper has a special pullout food section in the current issue (Jemal on the cover). I enjoyed reading several of the articles on restaurant practices.

[Pat]

I figure you know this already, but I wanted to make sure that I don't take credit for work that I have nothing to do with. The Food Issue (which focuses on service) includes some fine journalism by Anne Marson, Kim Gooden, and John Stubbs. If you haven't seen it already, you can now find it online.

I should have noted that you were only one of the authors. I posted about it here instead of creating a new thread just for that insert.

I'm glad to know it's online. Thanks for the link. I couldn't find it when I looked before.

[TinDC]

Thanks for the link because I sadly am having a hard time finding a City Paper lately. I used to pick it up at either the Glover Park or Tenleytown Whole Foods but they no longer receive them.

[Tim Carman]

This Bosnian take-out place is really worth a taste if you're in the neighborhood. Or even if you're not.

[Capital Icebox]

This Bosnian take-out place is really worth a taste if you're in the neighborhood. Or even if you're not.

Really enjoyed this piece, having had the Bosnian Burger only days before and still dealing with the onion breath when the article appeared a few days later. The article manages to blend the political and epicurean in a wonderful way.

This week Carman takes on Michel's Lobster Burger, concluding it is cheaper (and much easier) to get it at Central than to make it at home. (But why an entire article on the Lobster Burger with no mention of the fact that they are frozen?)

The piece brings up an interesting question about celebrity chef cookbooks: After attempting the lobster burger according to the recipe in Richard's book (laboring for hours and spending $35 per burger), he talks to Richard who tells him he buys pre-shucked lobster meat and uses scallops as well, two notable omissions from his cookbook. It reminded me of reading the recipe for pommes frites in Keller's Bouchon cookbook (an arduous task similar to that of the lobster burger, involving a soaking of several hours and two trips to the fryer) and then learning that at the actual Bouchon he uses frozen french fries (allegedly from Sysco). I'm all for shortcuts, so if you are going to use them at your restaurant why can't I use them at home? Would I be disappointed to pull open to a (hypothetical) recipe for Michael Landrum's crab bisque and not find instructions for steaming and picking my own Maryland blue crabs, but to just up a can of Phillips instead? Nope -- if it works for me at Ray's, it works for me at home.

It strikes me as a little dishonest, or if that is too strong, misleading. Chefs like Keller and Richard aren't supposed to use shortcuts, even though it may be a necessity of their business, so for their cookbooks they come up with how they would make a dish if they had all the time in the world. I long for the chef cookbook that tells me how they actually cook in their restaurants and at home, something kinda like this.

[mdt]

Really enjoyed this piece, having had the Bosnian Burger only days before and still dealing with the onion breath when the article appeared a few days later. The article manages to blend the political and epicurean in a wonderful way.

This week Carman takes on Michel's Lobster Burger, concluding it is cheaper (and much easier) to get it at Central than to make it at home. (But why an entire article on the Lobster Burger with no mention of the fact that they are frozen?)

The piece brings up an interesting question about celebrity chef cookbooks: After attempting the lobster burger according to the recipe in Richard's book (laboring for hours and spending $35 per burger), he talks to Richard who tells him he buys pre-shucked lobster meat and uses scallops as well, two notable omissions from his cookbook. It reminded me of reading the recipe for pommes frites in Keller's Bouchon cookbook (an arduous task similar to that of the lobster burger, involving a soaking of several hours and two trips to the fryer) and then learning that at the actual Bouchon he uses frozen french fries (allegedly from Sysco). I'm all for shortcuts, so if you are going to use them at your restaurant why can't I use them at home? Would I be disappointed to pull open to a (hypothetical) recipe for Michael Landrum's crab bisque and not find instructions for steaming and picking my own Maryland blue crabs, but to just up a can of Phillips instead? Nope -- if it works for me at Ray's, it works for me at home.

It strikes me as a little dishonest, or if that is too strong, misleading. Chefs like Keller and Richard aren't supposed to use shortcuts, even though it may be a necessity of their business, so for their cookbooks they come up with how they would make a dish if they had all the time in the world. I long for the chef cookbook that tells me how they actually cook in their restaurants and at home, something kinda like this.

I wonder if the recipe originated from Citronelle where the number sold was far under what they probably do at Central and therefore had the time and staff to make things from scratch. The changes may have been made to deal with the increased volume. I always thought that the pureed scallops were in the recipe as it was in the Post many moons ago and lead to the revelation that I am not allergic to scallops. The cookbook was done before Central opened too IIRC.

[Mark Slater]

The price of Maine lobster has doubled ove the past month.

[Capital Icebox]

I wonder if the recipe originated from Citronelle where the number sold was far under what they probably do at Central and therefore had the time and staff to make things from scratch. The changes may have been made to deal with the increased volume. I always thought that the pureed scallops were in the recipe as it was in the Post many moons ago and lead to the revelation that I am not allergic to scallops. The cookbook was done before Central opened too IIRC.

Well, the Lobster Burger was assembled and frozen ahead of time during the Citronelle days, I don't know if using prepared lobster meat took place then or not. But I think you could argue that there are simplifications and shortcuts used in restaurant kitchens (there are a few examples in Heat about Batali's Babbo cookbook) that do not show up in their cookbooks.

[MeMc]

The price of Maine lobster has doubled ove the past month.

Is there still a lobster shortage from April?

[Poivrot Farci]

The price of Maine lobster has doubled ove the past month.

Fresh, live lobsters or ammoniated dead ones from the bottom of the tank? Gimpy “Culls” (with one or both missing claws) cost a dollar or two less per lb.

[Tim Carman]

Hi y'all;

Check it out. We're starting this new feature with the Eats section online. It won't be a chat per se, like Tom's and Todd's, but it will be a regular weekly feature where we hunt down answers to the toughest questions you can pose. Please join us--and pass around the link. The more questions, the better.

This is the first of many changes you'll see to the Eats online section over the summer. As always, let me know what you think.

-Tim

[Heather]

"Ask Tim" has the potential to be a much better read than Sietsema's chat - I hope he gets a good response this feature. Hint hint.

[Tim Carman]

As part of our ongoing changes at Eats Central, we've started doing Podcasts. (Let out your collective groan now.)

You can find them on iTunes under--what else?--Young & Hungry. Or you can just click on the Y&H columns on the City Paper web site that include Podcasts. So far those would include:

Ann Cashion discussing her taqueria. (The download is right under the picture.)

I discuss my adventures in strawberry picking.

[cheezepowder]

Here's the first Ask Tim question/answer on how to get a chef to "swing by" your table, with answers from Frank Ruta and Jeff Black. (click).

[Heather]

Thanks Tim!

[Tim Carman]

Heather, I'm glad the answer proved satisfying. Truth is, the more I talked to chefs about pickling/canning, the more I heard about others who do the same. I figure those four chefs are only the tip of the iceberg.

In a wholly unrelated matter: For those of you who have a favorite in the food court at Union Station--or maybe just a sentimental attachment to a place--you might want to rally around them. Wingmaster's Grill has been booted after 18 years at Union Station. It may not be the last one. Learn more here.

-Tim

[Spiral Stairs]

I'm eating chicken tikka masala from Aditi in the Union Station food court right now. Please don't take my Aditi! (Which, fortunately, is not singled out in the article as in jeapardy.)

I'm surprised to learn of the financial woes of the food court businesses. I work next door to Union Station, and the food court is absolutely mobbed over the lunch hour, thanks in large part to tour groups and in smaller but still significant part to the proximity of the SEC and other large government offices.

[Waitman]

This bums me out to no end.

Best wings in the city; hard-working couple forced out by avaricious developers.

[cheezepowder]

Tim - any word yet on whether/how the Young & Hungry column is going to be affected by the sale of the City Paper?

[Tim Carman]

I don't know yet, Cheezepowder, how the sale will affect Y&H. Our editor, Erik Wemple, has told us that budget cuts are coming. They will be sizable--sizable enough, perhaps, to merit editorial layoffs. Erik has told us that he will fight to keep his staff, but I think we all realize that will be impossible given the size of the cuts.

I will keep plugging along until that time--and I hope it never comes, because I love this gig--that they tell me to pack up my cookbooks and go home.

Thanks for asking.

-Tim

[DonRocks]

Keep plugging, Tim - you're doing amazing work.

[cheezepowder]

Thanks for the response, Tim. I hope that time doesn't come also. I really like the Young and Hungry column and the other food features at the City Paper.

[Tim Carman]

You know, I understand that part of the role of a community like donrockwell.com is to play the watchdog of the watchdog media. While I'm very grateful that Cheezepowder and Rocks read and enjoy Y&H and our other food features--two down and the rest of the city to go!--I trust that you will tell me, whether here or at the City Paper, when I have ventured far off-course. Both sides are worth hearing--though, clearly, compliments are easier to stomach.

Oh, yes, I take story tips, too.

As always, feel free to contact me at tcarman@washingtoncitypaper.com.

-Tim

P.S. Hey, I reached clam status!

[TedE]

From this week's rant against the ubiquity of high-falutin' food in the press:

High-end restaurants still hog all the goddamn attention, even from bloggers and message boards that are supposed to free us from the tyranny of the mainstream media and their focus on the obvious.

I see Tim's point but think it's a bit extreme. On these here boards I see la majority of topics on neighborhood joints, street carts, hole-in-the-wall ethnic, etc. Threads about the big players get lots of traffic, but I don't see them necessarily dominating the conversation on a whole. It's usually because what is being discussed is truly sublime (e.g. Maestro) or controversial (e.g. Bebo).

Ultimately, sites like this are about passion. The things that stir passions are typically those things that we hold most dear, whether in the emotional, historical, or even financial sense. I see all types on boards like this: those that defend/condemn variations on their favorite comfort food (see: lively discussions on pizza, BBQ), those that defend/condemn food "authenticity" (a tricky thing to define, but easy to argue about), and those that revel in the high end of the dining spectrum and maybe want to relive that $200-a-head meal, an experience that they may not ever have again (or have had dozens of times before and just want to rub it in ).

Tim's article could have been about anything that sparks passion in people. Do those that inhabit car forums endlessly debate the merits of the upcoming 2008 Kia line up? No, the liveliest discussions are probably about the latest from Maranello or a lovingly restored '66 GTO, something a majority of people that read them won't ever experience.

Gatherings of enthusiasts seldom get mired down in discussion of the ordinary. I disagree that the extraordinary denotes exclusivity. Of course there will always be elitist a-holes out there to tell you different, but they are best ignored.

[Waitman]

I tend to agree with most of what Tim wrote, especially points one and two.

I recall calling Zatynia overrated and getting a PM from someone saying that the menu was such that it would, in fact, be brilliant, if Jose Andres was in the kitchen. But he ain't. And, come to think of it, when was the last time one of his many restaurants knocked someone's socks off? And, as much as I enjoyed my last visit to Komi, some of the "courses" are indeed parodies of the modern dining experience.

As for the food boards? I think he has a point. DR (as with eG and others) tends to generate clusterfucks around certain restaurants and shove others to the back. What percentage of posts go to the top 15 or 20 restaurants -- in a region with hundreds? I'll kiss a little ass here and say that I would love it if more people would follow Don's example and both try and write about a broad variety of places, and we all took a moratorium on posting about Bebo, Ray's, Dino [Michael, Dean, I love you guys, but...] and the various new cafes.

(Maybe I'll take my own advice and colaborate with Mrs. B on a note about Queen Makeda)

[monavano]

You know, this is why I like Todd K.'s chog a bit better than Tom S.'s chat. Todd seems to love hole in the wall places and he tends to write about them more. I've written in to him about my favorite little Thai place and he posts it with as much enthusiasm as he would a post about Hook. I love the little local spots. It's where, by definition, I spend most of my dining money. I love me my Eve and all, but Eamonn's is where I frequent!

[Waitman]

You know, this is why I like Todd K.'s chog a bit better than Tom S.'s chat. Todd seems to love hole in the wall places and he tends to write about them more. I've written in to him about my favorite little Thai place and he posts it with as much enthusiasm as he would a post about Hook. I love the little local spots. It's where, by definition, I spend most of my dining money. I love me my Eve and all, but Eamonn's is where I frequent!

Of course Carmen takes a direct shot at Eamonn's, you know.

[monavano]

Of course Carmen takes a direct shot at Eamonn's, you know.

Well, it was just to say that I tend to dine where the beautiful and rich....aren't. Damn I need some fried fish.

[Mark Slater]

What percentage of posts go to the top 15 or 20 restaurants -- in a region with hundreds?

According to Restaurant News, DC is third or fourth in the country with over 11,000 restaurants in the area.

[synaesthesia]

Well also consider the fact that at some of the top restaurants, the menus change frequently and with the seasons. But if you go to a place that maintains the same small menu all year round, it's less easy to be able to make new comments or provide any new insight. So naturally those places will float to the bottom. For instance, a place like Oohhs and Aahhs. Unless they bring up a new menu item, is someone really going to say went and had their chicken, it was great. After a while it is beating the same drum.

A lot of us frequent a few of the same small places all the time and not every visit is worth mentioning. So for people outside of MSM, I don't believe the requirements are the same.

[Capital Icebox]

As far as we are concerned, go take a look at our front page for the restaurants and dining section and tell me if you really think high-end restaurants "hog" all our attention. Right now I see many ethnic and smaller restaurants represented, more of them than the high-end places. Given that this is the most popular dining discussion group in the area, I think the point that the top places take up all of our attention is invalid. I remember how our collective imagination was blown away by the 'scallion roasted fish' at TemptAsian, for instance, or the crispy squid with basil at Thai Square.

I also think you can find plenty of blogs that share a similar passion as we do for looking beyond the priciest places, like Tyler Cowen's ethnic dining guide. Moreover, the Washingtonian does an excellent job of focusing on the smaller and ethnic gems the area has to offer, devoting two issues a year ('Cheap Eats' and 'Dirt Cheap Eats') to the subject.

And who can walk away from a meal at Komi hungry? I had the same tasting menu without wine pairings, it lasted three hours and I was completely stuffed by the end. The nice thing about Komi's tasting menu is that it runs around fifteen courses, some very little bites like the olive, which are fun. In a normal 3-course environment you couldn't get away with that. And when you eat there, Johnny Monis is in the kitchen cooking, which is more than I can say (and I have said) for other local high-end establishments.

I agree that overall too much attention goes to the high-end restaurants, especially from the city's foremost critic, Sietsema. (His reviews tend too much towards the high-profile, high-end places. But his annual dining guide includes many good cheaper finds, I think.) Then again, I seem to recall some of Tim's recent columns on Bebo, Michel Richard, and Hook. How do you reconcile those columns with today's, I wonder?

[Tim Carman]

Capitol Icebox raises a valid point about devoting column space to high-profile chefs, and the fact is, I don't reconcile it. As I tried to acknowledge in the column, I'm part of the problem, too. My column all too often caters to the buzz-worthy. The only way I sleep at night is knowing that I also give over full columns to places like Nava Thai, Great Wall, Wingmaster's, Abay Market, Cosmopolitan Bakery and Carry-Out, Texas Ribs and BBQ, Bob's 88 Shabu Shabu, the Ohio Restaurant (which it was still open), College Perk, and Sweet Mango Cafe. Not short blurbs, but full columns.