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Banco

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About Banco

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    leviathan
  • Birthday 06/12/1963

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  1. Banco

    Christopher Kimball's Milk Street

    Banco replied to Tweaked's topic in News and Media

    Come now, you make him sound like another Guy Fieri. He's not really that bad, though speaking of skin, he certainly seems to have got under yours.
  2. Banco

    Christopher Kimball's Milk Street

    Banco replied to Tweaked's topic in News and Media

    The recipe does not say to remove the skin before poaching, but that one may choose to do so afterwards.
  3. Banco

    Christopher Kimball's Milk Street

    Banco replied to Tweaked's topic in News and Media

    I received a charter issue last week and read it cover to cover. I found it helpful, well-written, and fascinating. Many of the topics were familiar to me but still useful and fun to read for their concise summation of best practices, e.g., seasoning woks and skillets, poaching chicken. Other articles, such as those about salads and avocados, and scrambled eggs, gave me some new insights. If you're a Dunlop or Ottolenghi disciple you'll be familiar with a lot of these things already, at least as far as this issue is concerned, but it is very well executed and geared to making otherwise "ethnic" techniques regular parts of your overall repertoire. Cook's and its various incarnations always struck me as solidly grounded but fusty and parochial. If I wanted to make Yankee Pot Roast or apple pie it would have been the first place I would turn. I never turned to it. I think Milk Street can be a very helpful tool for the avid and internationally minded home cook and I'm eager to see if it can deliver on the promise of the charter issue. ATK's suit against it I think reflects the genuine threat Milk Street presents to their rather stodgy concept.
  4. gibmrm started following Banco
  5. Banco
    Had lunch there yesterday at the bar. I think it's only the second time I've been there since it opened. The mixed green salad with wood-grilled chicken was excellent: greens nice and fresh and varied, and judiciously dressed with a sherry vinaigrette. The chicken breast was done to perfection with a pleasant wood-fired smokiness. Drinks were expertly made. This definitely seems to be the go-to place in TP.
  6. Banco
    I have eaten here several times since it opened, and except for a few service quirks, it has never disappointed. Everything is so good and tempting, I tend to overindulge. Today for lunch I had fatty tuna/scallion maki and nigiri of amberjack, red snapper, sweet shrimp, and medium fatty tuna. The excellent miso soup felt especially warm and nourishing on a day like this. It's not hard to try all of the few decent sushi joints in this town, and I think I have done so. Sushi Capitol must be among the top five. I hope they thrive and keep on thriving, because none of the other good sushi places are anywhere near the Hill.
  7. Banco
    I ate at the bar on Saturday and was told by the very capable bartender that they had been open 4 days. The place was full, and I was lucky to get a seat at the bar just as someone was leaving.They are working out kinks in both food and service. I had the rockfish. It received the standard sear-and-roast treatment and was served over peas and julienned carrots in a ginger/sesame pan reduction with chanterelles. It arrived after a long wait. The fish was overdone; the vegetables had lost their spunk; the chanterelles were not fresh but reconstituted and chewy. All the ideas were good if not very original, and If this dish had been more carefully and cleanly executed it would have been a good entree for $18. A side of grilled asparagus was served over an olive tapenade that overpowered the vegetable. Again, they haven't been open long so I expect things will get better. Since I live a block away I certainly intend to give it at least a few more tries. Everyone seemed to be really making an effort on a slammed Saturday evening. The problem with this locale is that it must be either a destination restaurant that attracts based on the brilliance of its cuisine alone, or a neighborhood place where people can drop in with their kids for some inexpensive bistro fare. I don't see how anything in between these extremes (like an upscale gastro-pub) could succeed in the long-term given everything else available on H Street and Barracks Row. That might be the explanation for the haunted-house character of the places that have been there before. I hope Lincoln Park Kitchen can find the right profile for success.
  8. Banco

    Ireland

    Banco replied to Ericandblueboy's topic in The Intrepid Traveler

    Actually, I didn't even have one when I was there!
  9. Banco
    And Don, you've seen this, right?
  10. Banco
    "Spectre of the Gun" was one of the diamonds amid the third season rough, and offers Doohan at his best in the following exchange with Spock: Scotty: (to Spock) It's to kill the pain (he knocks back a shot of whiskey) Spock: But this is painless. Scotty (suppressing a belch) You should have told me sooner, Mr. Spock!
  11. Banco
    We got back from Ireland last Saturday and the cupboards were bare, so I walked to Beuchert's for the first time in what must be close to a year. They seem to have really upped their game. The drinks are perfect as usual, but the food seems to have become more refined. I had the Rockfish Pat describes above it it was truly excellent in every way and at a far higher standard than what I had seen there before. Beuchert's has one of the best open wine lists around, too, but it ain't cheap.
  12. Banco
    I just came across this and wanted to share here. I'm reading his memoir, "The Apprentice" now and am gaining a renewed appreciation for this master. Click.
  13. Banco
    Well, there we are. But wow, what an overreaction. Good kitchens need sovereign palates.
  14. Banco
    I was shocked to read this from Sietsema in today's Post, complaining of oversalted food at Agua 301. When I was there last week practically everything was underseasoned and undersalted, to the point of outright blandness. The one exception was perhaps the barbacoa flautas, which were a delicious and crispy appetizer. But everything else, including the guac and the salsa, needed salt and more assertive seasoning. It was a shame, because otherwise the dishes were well made and nicely presented (if rather skimpy for their price). I wasn't drinking that evening, but I heard from those who were in our rather large group that the drinks were well made and strong. The service was excellent. I wonder if the restaurant heard about Sietsema's criticism before it appeared, and overcompensated.
  15. Banco
    I worked at a Wendy's in high school, so my relationship with this chain is burdened with... Well, you know.
  16. Banco
    "Wendy's Hot and Juicy" was the original slogan.
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