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Banco

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  1. Banco
    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
    The recipe does not say to remove the skin before poaching, but that one may choose to do so afterwards.
  3. Banco
    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. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. Banco
    Actually, I didn't even have one when I was there!
  8. Banco
    And Don, you've seen this, right?
  9. 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!
  10. 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.
  11. 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.
  12. Banco
    Well, there we are. But wow, what an overreaction. Good kitchens need sovereign palates.
  13. 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.
  14. Banco
    I worked at a Wendy's in high school, so my relationship with this chain is burdened with... Well, you know.
  15. Banco
    "Wendy's Hot and Juicy" was the original slogan.
  16. Banco
    Wendy's isn't a possessive, it's a contraction.
  17. Banco
    I picked one up at Schneider's a couple weeks ago, not sure if they're still there, but they do carry them.
  18. Banco
    The '75 Gruaud-Larose was surprisingly robust. The cork broke on removal and had a vein that had been saturated, but it was in good shape otherwise and I was able to remove it without much fuss. Depot was far less than I had expected, and in the decanter the wine looked good and clear. Color had that beautiful mahogany-orange edge of mature Bordeaux that I've often read about but seldom experienced. Nose resinous, phenolic, pitchy, with turpentine notes but all in a pleasant way; also leather, pepper. Fruit almost completely withdrawn behind these overtones, but present. Surprisingly heady, even peppery for such a geezer. On the palate almost Burgundian in softness, but with a tannic backbone that reminded me why '75 was notorious for this quality. After nearly forty years still meaty and well-structured, but with tannins now soft and supple. It opened up beautifully in the glass, revealing the layers of meaning that make us return to wine and bloviate about it as I am doing here. Finish long and complex. A wiry old fart with some spunk left in him, i.e., a wine to live up to.
  19. Banco
    Robuchon, in his eponymous cookbook, has a very good recipe for BB that I made just a few weeks ago. It was the best one I've ever made, including Julia's. I haven't tried Emeril's, but it sounds great. Especially for an ingredient-driven approach like Robuchon's, having a deep, concentrated stock is essential. I use Madeleine Kamman's technique for veal stock, which, by the time I'm done with it, is an unctuous, chocolate-colored, gelatinous essence verging on a glace. No bones involved except for what's already in the veal breast used in the recipe. There's no way I'd even consider making a stock-braised beef dish without already having this on hand--too much work at one time otherwise. Such a good stock reduces the need for flour to achieve the proper body, and is required for giving the pearl onions and the entire dish their proper color. As for sides, I think parsleyed noodles can't be beat. Potatoes in whatever form just make everything too heavy IMO.
  20. Banco
    I'm doing Roseda farms filet mignons wrapped in matignon and prosciutto, eggplant puree, a potato galette, and shaved Brussels sprouts sauteed with mirepoix and pancetta. But that's for tonight. God knows what I'll be doing in 2014; given climate change, probably BBQ and gin and tonics. We really don't have any traditional Christmas dinner dishes, except for Raclette (or fondue) on Christmas eve.
  21. Banco
    I've always liked that part of the Medoc, plus my son shares the name, so it's become a bit of a tradition here at Christmastime to serve a bottle of it with dinner. Thanks for your advice!
  22. Banco
    I wasn't aware of the flashlight trick. It checks out, doesn't look maderized at all. Of course I'll decant it. Yes, I got it at Schneider's I wanted a St. Julien second growth or better and this is the only one they had--shelves were stripped pretty bare on the 24th.
  23. Banco
    Serving this with dinner tonight: 1975 Gruaud-Larose. A big, tannic year, so it should not be too far over the hill and could be quite nice--if it was stored well. The cork does look a bit soft, so I'm feeling somewhat anxious about it
  24. Banco
    Joe, have you thought about Japan? I don't mean the big cities and their flashy restaurants, but the spas in the country, with their kaiseki cuisine. A colleague of mine told me of a wedding party he attended that took place on a barge in a river with a ramp sloping down into the water. For the wedding feast they caught fish that jumped onto the ramp and promptly transformed them into sushi. I know that's in my bucket. Opera at the Arena di Verona is per force miked and generally mediocre, unless you simply want the spectacle of the arena. There are so many other beautiful towns in Italy that are not quite as overrun and offer better performances. But you probably know them already in some form. Bologna has a beautiful baroque opera house and attracts a fine coterie of performers for a generally discriminating audience. It is an intimate venue for aficionados and thus the very antithesis of Verona. And of course the cuisine is legendary. One could say the same about Parma, home of a famous conservatory. Then, less related to music, there's Gubbio, Urbino, other villages perchés. But I really wouldn't waste bucket space on Verona., esp. as you've been there already. Whatever you choose I wish you all the best for what will no doubt be a fabulous trip, and best wishes for Christmas and the New Year!
  25. Banco
    I think we arrived at 6:15 and they had plenty of open tables, even at the kitchen-view bar, though it filled up quickly thereafter.
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