Antonio Burrell

You are correct, it ain't pretty. I, have been on both sides. I have worked at places that care more about their food and customer service than wether they are perceived as new or hip or whatnot. And I have worked at places that courted bloggers and encouraged yelp reviews and what not. I can't lie, when dealing with some of these things it makes me feel sleazy inside, like I've sold a part of me that I can't get back. I don't approve of buying people's vote so to speak and when I've been at places that try to force their way into peoples conscience and manipulate customer opinion, especially future customer opinion, through social media it has saddened me. My happiest times have been at places who have established themselves as great places solely through hard work, dedication, not hype. Not fake charm.

Perhaps I am naive. I actually yearn for the times when you opened a restaurant, dedicated yourself to it's entire being, worked hard and then the public noticed because you had pushed for what you envisioned. I miss places that didn't live in fear that one misstep could end their survival.

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/doc/csr/3462400807.html

My wife found this while looking for some work. It may not say directly that it is for restaurant reviews, but trust me, there are people who do this with their friends, I've just never seen such a blatant attempt to rook the system. It's sad...

Looks like I will be able to make it, kids and my wonderful wife in tow. Guess I'll bring some fried chicken with me if that's ok with everyone. See you guys there :-)

Sometimes you sit back and you begin to reflect: what's been good, what's been bad and what's toed the line. In that time of reflection you begin to see new goals, new dreams on the horizon, new ways to grow all the while remembering the past.

Remembering the very first service and the rush that came with feeding the first of many people.

Remembering the cast of characters that were my first crew. Some came, some went, some came back again but they were always my 'guy's'.

Remembering the first review, first complaint, first broken piece of equipment.

Remembering breaking in two GM's, four assistant managers and two bar managers.

And now, a new chef. After three years, I will be leaving Masa 14 and looking for that next set of goals and promises to be fullfilled. Adios Masa buenos suerte!

Barbara, we do have your reservation, so you are set to go.

Here are some other answers to help you guys out:

1. We have set the pdr aside for the event and it will be set with five, four tops.

2. you are more than welcome to meet up at the bar and enjoy cocktails before hand, happy hour runs from five till seven.

3. I am looking forward to this more than you guys know.

4. this isn't a corporate thing at all, just me wanting to take up a challenge given to me by a member of dr.com.

here is the menu as it stands right now. There may be some last minute changes but barring any catastrophes, here it is. There will be a minimal amount of cream, cheese and butter used and eggs of course, but there will be no other animal (or fish) products used.

I'm looking for someone with a passion for cooking, discovering new flavors and learning new techniques. I am not looking for a prima donna, know it all, full of themselves person who won't listen to constructive criticism. Must be a team player. Must believe in the fundemantals of customer service, the main caveat being that we want the customer to be happy.

So if you have a passing ability to speak spanish, can kick some ass and take names on the line, like having a generally good time will still working your ass off, you are the kind of person I wanna speak to. You must be able to prioritze responsibilities that include all the usual sous chef type stuff: inventory tracking, labor management, orders blah blah.

If any of that sounds like you, please email me at aburrell@richardsandoval.com or pm me here.

-don't call the restaurant, it'll just show that you are an amatuer. email me, I'll contact you.

When I first read this thread, it interested me in the sense that I agree with Don to a certain degree, as do others in the industry I'm sure. It interested me because there is a actually a difference between the two. One who has been local, has been become integrated into the local culinary community.

The other? I believe I have documented my own contempt, whether deserved or not, in another topic. He has done the opposite. He has created some hard feelings with his own comments.

What I wasn't prepared for is some of the negativity folks have directed at eachother. I remember when the tone of post were less aggressive on a whole. And I'm not talking about Don's passionate ode of appreciation to all who toil in this business, working hard to change the perception of dc as a boring French and steakhouse mecca that it was when I arrived in 1999. Chef's like Jeff Buben, Jeff Tunks, Todd Gray and Jose Andres sending waves of young talented chef out to run their own kitchens, to train the next generation. That is something I think Don should be commended for realizing that that isn't always recognized enough.

I know I seem to be tossing stones it seems, and perhaps I am. I certainly have not been very diplomatic in the past. Perhaps I am becoming mre genteel as I grow older. Perhaps my meds are working better ;-). But I respect Don and his opinion and his defense of the dc culinary scene. A scene that he has worked so hard to promote; promoted at his own cost.

Some people get opportunities and make the most of them. Some get the opportunities and pass or stumble. I think what is important is the integrity of what you do and how you present yourself. No one wants to feel like success others obtain comes because the competition is subpar. Tact is a lost virtue.

What I do have intrest in is what the feelings are on grand expansion plans, within such a small period of time. Feeling and discussions on publics worries of product dilution, fear of over extension, these things I like reading. That's the good reading

Anyone else wanna have sex with Paris Hilton?

They are using Richards madres' recipe for molenegro, which we also use at Masa and El Centro, and yes it is extremely complex, having 32 different ingredients.

Imma put a big homemade sticker on my door that says "mentioned on occasion on DonRockwell dot com" :-)

Let the man have a night off! He's old!

I may be getting old lol but I still have it!!

Eh?

we do two different meat, usually pork and beef. I don't want to do beef anymore so I'm sliding the fried chicken in there instead. think of it as commonwealth sunday roast, but better cause I get to cook what I want ;-)

So....we've been doing this Lechon Asado Sunday's thing at Masa now for about 4 weeks. It's an family style sunday supper centered around a roasted pig, four changing latin asian sides, three salsas, tortillas and a dessert. It is $25 per person and can be ordered individually. Here's the cool news.....psstsss.....(super hushed voice) we are serving fried chicken as part of the meal. That is all.

I am 70% sure I won't be making it now... boo

How cute we are at DonRockewell.com, when we get our hackles up! And who better to wield those hackles against than some foreigner who has the temerity to let drop what we all fear to be true -- that Washington is no New York, Chicago or San Francisco when it comes to dining?

I am not offended that he is some foreigner who said what we may fear to be true....We aren't NYC, San Fran or LA or Chicago when it comes to the depth of restaurants, I do believe, however, that our great restaurants are good enough to contend with any restaurant from any American city. What offends me is the way he portrays himself as one of many chefs who came from other big cities to help elevate the food scene here in DC. I have lived here since 1999. I have seen the way the food scene has grown first hand, while working, nay slaving, in the kitchens of Jeffery Buben and Todd Gray. I've seen the hard work that was being done before, on the front lines by Roberto Donna, Kaz and Robert Weidermier. My contention has always been that too much credit is being given to people who have come from NYC, San Fran, LA to open their restaurants for helping establish DC as an "it" town. I contend that they are just reaping what others had sown before them.

As for never having to address Chef Mendelsohn face to face, I see him at events, after parties etc and even in those situations he seems to feel he is better than those around him; oozing arrogance and condesention doen't do much to endear you to your fellow chefs. If he ever confronts me about my opinions offered here or on any other venue, I will respond the same, Fuck off you no talent hack......And all of the chefs I know feel the same way.

Fuck this guy

Pretty sure I'm going to come by, maybe with the boys, maybe alone, maybe plus 1-3. I am not frying chicken, I refuse to ;-) Instead I am going to make curry pan, a japanese hot pocket of sorts, and roast pork buns. Yipee!! something different.

Masa 14 and El Centro Taqueria D.F. are looking for passionate, hard working people for the following positions: Assistant GM, Service Manager, and three sous chefs. email me directly at antonio@masa14.com/ Thanks

A little note on the blackboard at B'z suggests that the Black Angus all-beef hot dog is the best you will ever eat. It certainly was true for me, the moreso because I got it as a Hawg Dog - with pulled pork - and peach habanero sauce. Yow. Yum. So good that I'm thinking of either delaying the departure time of an upcoming road trip, or backtracking an hour, just to get lunch at B'z. 'Cause I can' think of a better way to start a road trip than with pulled pork barbeque on an all-beef hot dog.

how's the slaw? Cause if I could get a dog covered in pulled pork and topped with slaw, I might just die right there of happiness!

Sable fish is likethat. A certain portion of it just gets watery when cooked. Don't know why. I have had the experience with one fish of of a group from the same catch, the same boat etc.

from what I understand it has to do with lactic acid buildup in the flesh as the fish dies. some fish have more than others depending on their struggle. the problem is, is that you can't tell good from bad until you cook the fish. i suggest that if you ever have that problem again, call the place you bought the fish from and if they are reputable, they should replace it or refund you the money.

When my kids used to do summer rec in fairfax I remember there being a Tippy's Tacos out there. I liked it because it reminded me of Taco John's but better. The food had/has a homie feel to it and it wasn't fast fast food. I liked the beans quite a bit and the enchiladas were good too.

Anyone know if South Street Steaks is under new ownership or something. Had to walk out at lunch and got a cheesesteak.

I suspected this was not going to be wonderful when I ordered and it was up before I even returned one quick email. I even said, "This can't be mine, I just ordered" - They said "It is Yours"/

The meat was dry and flavorless - apparently totaly precooked and just heated up for a minute and thrown on a roll. This is really a shame, they used to be very good.

I was in to the Bethesda location in August and I was talking with the owner. He was looking at selling it because his wife was ill and he was going back to care for her. IIRC he wound up selling it to a Korean family.

New at Masa: We started a $35 per person all you can drink/eat prix fixe menu at brunch. Come in eat all the little bites you want, drink till you recover from your hangover and start a new one! Also we will have new menu items starting on the 25th of October, that's Monday for those of you keeping track. That's all.

As horrible as that sounds, it's not exactly a fair demonstration. There should be a few other test cases alongside it -- a made at home burger and fries. Maybe something that spoils quickly (chicken?) and maybe something like a salad. Just to see how each of them fares to see how gross each one gets.

I thought about that too as I looked at the slides. If you leave something like that out at room tempeture, with constant lighting on it it will simply dehydrate, which it seems to have done. If there isnt any moisture in the meat or bread or fries then bactieria and mold can't grow. No doubt there are a lot of preservatives in fast food, but it seems fairly straight forward.