Rhone1998

Just came across and read through this thread, which is of great interest to me as I've been doing the low carb thing since last Spring.  So far, knock on wood, it's been a great success from a weight control perspective and I'm going to try to stick with it.

One concept that I've found really important that I don't see mentioned here is that of "net carbs" -- take the grams of total carbs and subtract the grams of fiber and you have the grams of net carbs.  I'm not even going to attempt the science behind it but apparently this is the number that matters (in many cases at least), since fiber isn't digested.  That's why many vegetables that are high in carbs and fiber are actually ok for many low carb diets.  

The toughest thing for me on a low carb diet is finding good substitutes for *crunchy* textures if you can believe it.  Haven't found those low carb crackers yet.  So yes, you'll find yourself making sandwiches substituting cucumbers for bread, but that gets pretty unsatisfying pretty fast.

Recently I've been making a lot of creamed vegetable soups which are low (net) carb and really satisfying - two most recent examples being creamed cauliflower, and broccoli and cheddar soups.   Looking forward to reading more recipes here, but if you google keto recipes you'll find lots of stuff out there.

3 hours ago, ktmoomau said:

Well, I am back from Singapore and my jet-lag haze is beginning to lift and I was awake enough to buy groceries this weekend!  I also broke out my instantpot for first use, which was cooking meatballs and tomato sauce from frozen, as I didn't have the space in my fridge to defrost after buying groceries (I may have gone a little overboard, but such is life not in my kitchen for over 20 some days) and I just wanted to see how it would really do.  It worked better than I thought it would, my sauce was a little watery, so I threw it into saute mode and let it reduce.  I have seen online that I could have thrown the noodles in too, but that seemed sacrilege and pushing my luck for it's first use.  Goals for the new year include more cooking, baking and dinner parties (that requires me to get my house all picked up and Christmas decorations away which is slowly happening).

I have also been experimenting with my new Instant Pot over the past few days...also my first experience ever with a pressure cooker.  About a half dozen uses in and one lesson I'm learning is that (in pressure cooking mode)  you need a lot less liquid than you would if you were cooking a dish in, say, a covered dutch over, just because there's no (or very little) evaporation.

To my taste, most sugar substitutes hit you with sweetness followed by a terribly unpleasant aftertaste. How does this one do in that regard?

Across the three takeout meals I've had from Sabydee I've found a lot of dishes to be hit or miss.  Some are really good, though.  Probably my favorite so far has been a crispy pork belly dish served with some sort of bitter greens or bok-choy like vegetable.  Can't remember what it was called but the contrast of crispy, sweet pork and the bitter vegetables was great.  I have no idea if this is traditional Lao in any way (and can't recall seeing anything similar at Thip Khao) but regardless, tasty, tasty dish. 

1 hour ago, curls said:

What kind of cookware did you use? If it wasn't stainless steel or enamel coated cast iron, it is possible that the pot reacted with the lemon juice (and the wine -- depending how acidic it is).

That’s interesting, I hadn’t thought about the cookware at all. But it was actually an enamel coated cast iron pot...

After steaming my 30 or so littlenecks in what started out as a beautifully golden, bubbly mixture of (mostly) butter, plus white wine, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and chile flakes for a few minutes, lifting the lid reveals a pot full of clams sitting in a now sickly grey liquid.  Everything tastes great, and there's no grit, but that color...anything I can do about that?

We had an absolutely fantastic meal at Bresca on 14th St last night, which started at the bar.  If I'm not mistaken there were single spots available at the (pretty small...10 seat?) bar the whole time we were there from 5:15 to 7:15, and if that's the case on a Friday night I'm sure it would be on a Sunday night as well. Food was really, really good...will do a write-up soon.

There's a worryingly vague sign outside the door that just says they're temporarily closed. No reopen date listed. I hope this isn't the end for them. 

 They do not serve alcohol in the front area. I will second KeithA's feelings toward the chicken. I have been coming here every few days for lunch for my quarter dark and it's been consistently good. 

On 6/5/2017 at 0:09 PM, eatruneat said:

I've had my eye on this place since it first opened, especially when I pass it nearing the end of my long runs, but being without a car and generally trying to avoid Georgetown, I hadn't stopped in for a visit until this past weekend. After an afternoon of kayaking on the Potomac, @MichaelBDC walked up to Stachowski's and grabbed a 4 meat grinder and some potato salad for dinner. A few hours later, I inhaled my half of the sandwich though I did start just focusing on the meat and insides with about 10% of the sandwich remaining. @MichaelBDC ate a little over half of his portion and wrapped up the rest for later. We deemed it a GREAT sandwich and compared it to the 9th St. Italian Sandwich from Taylor Gourmet. For the same price, the sandwich at Stachowski's is not only leaps and bounds better, but also larger. Taylor Gourmet is only a few blocks away from my apartment but Stachowski's may be worth the trip to Georgetown.

I wonder what percentage of their sandwiches are consumed by one person in one seating...

But anyway, I wanted to call out something different -- the way Stachowski's keeps/displays their whole chickens.  They are basically air drying in a refrigerated case, which gives them such a leg up on any plastic wrapped chicken you can find in terms of getting that crispy golden skin when you roast it. A lot of recipes call for drying your chicken and airing it out in the refrigerator overnight, but the Stachowski bird I roasted tonight was good to go from the moment I brought it home.  Excellent stuff.

Hard to believe no one has posted about Oohs and Ahhs in 7 years...but anyway, based on signage I saw driving today, it looks like they either just opened or are about to open a second location right by the Walmart on Georgia Ave.

My biggest food revelation from a recent trip to Asheville was a cup of coffee.  More specifically, a cold brew from Penny Cup Coffee in the River Arts District made from a blend that included 25% beans aged in bourbon barrels.  The concept was totally new to me and the taste blew me away...It was smooth, and had just enough of the taste and smell of bourbon to make me feel somewhat guilty walking down the street drinking it.  I wound up buying two pounds of the blend from them and have been happily making this myself for the last few weeks.   But I guess I'm just not in the know because just after we returned I saw this tweet from Tim Carmen that Swings Coffee in DC is doing the same thing (and apparently isn't even the first to do so).  I guess I'm just late to the party on this one but count me as a fan.

The food in Asheville was generally excellent.  Tried two bbq places and based on just one visit to each place but trying a variety of things, I'd say Moe's Original beats 12 Bones by a mile.  I'm still dreaming of those ribs...I don't know if these were the two best bbq places in the area but they were what some locals recommended.  

Three other places I'd happily return to include:

• Curate for tapas - with the exception of dry lamb skewers, everything was top notch, especially the seafood.  We particularly loved the roasted clams with pea puree, and the head-on shrimp.
• Chai Pani - casual but super fresh tasting Indian street food.
• The Bull and Beggar - They call it European inspired Appalachian food, which I have no idea what that means, but whatever it was it was good.  Pretty simple dishes, but good flavors and solid preparations.  We enjoyed the charred octopus, pork rinds, a fish prepared with green garlic sauce, and some excellent cheeses for dessert.

9 hours ago, Rieux said:

If you ever get grocery delivery from FreshDirect, this seltzer is spectacular.  

Also, on that note, FreshDirect is great.  

The link just takes me to a generic Fresh Direct page. What's the name of the seltzer?

On 7/22/2017 at 10:10 PM, dinoue said:

Announced today on their Facebook page that they will be closing July 31. Went there for dinner as this is our son's favorite restaurant, along with Urban Butcher. We're basically right in between the two, but this has always been the more economical of the two with slightly lower prices, and no alcohol served to add to the bill. Going to be missed.

So bummed by this news.  With the caveat that my comparison set is basically Red Apron and Stachowski's, I think that SS&B has offered the best charcuterie in the city for several years now.  Really sad to see them go.

1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

Not doubting you; just seeking clarification - please expand: Your post implies pictures of white-(male?)-only public-protection personnel, and has one heck of a strong implication - it's not impossible that the pictures are the work of one individual who hasn't been scrutinized, or even noticed.

As a (possible) parallel, the wine critic, Robert Parker, was so deluged that he unwittingly let some of his associates abuse his trust. I don't think much of Parker's palate, or writing ability, but I don't think he's a crook, either - never have. On a much smaller scale, I have also let people do things for me (without supervision) who ended up biting me in the ass because I was too trusting. (If any of you are reading this: please don't conflate "eternal optimism" with "stupidity.")

All I'm saying is: Don't assume an entire entity is evil because of one transgression that *might* have been by a rogue individual. That said ... I had absolutely no knowledge of this before reading your post.

All I'm saying is I walked the perimeter of the Rockville location today while I was waiting for my food and after I finished.  The restaurant is decorated with pictures, mostly of military situations and military personnel.  Dozens and dozens of pictures, probably hundreds.  And looking at those pictures, you would never guess, as I just learned Googling it, that "Racial and ethnic minority groups made up 40% of Defense Department active-duty military..." The pictures are nearly all of white soldiers (and Marines, Airmen...).  I can't comment on the idea of the person responsible being rogue in some way, I'm just saying that's how someone chose to decorate this restaurant. And even if you don't attribute anything nefarious to it, something just felt really off about it to me.

According to their website, Mission BBQ does what it does "for the love of our soldiers, firefighters, police officers, first responders—all our loved ones in service."  I applaud their mission. I just wish it was easier to believe, based on the pictures they display on the walls of their Rockville location, that they are interested in honoring non-white soldiers, firefighters, police officers, and first responders as well.  

I just tried this place for the first time on Friday, going there at 1pm intending to sit down for lunch but finding every table occupied opted for take-out instead.  We enjoyed everything we ordered...very different flavors from the typical north Indian dishes you find in places around here.

18 hours ago, silentbob said:

Thanks to all for the helpful advice and insights!  I think Little Serow will be our first option and if it looks like we've arrived too late for the first seating, then walking across the street to Sushi Taro should be easy enough.  And as things turned out, I grabbed a reservation at The Red Hen for dinner before a show next month.  As Michael Scott would say, that's win-win-win.

 You know what was interesting, the line for sushi taro was much longer than ours for Little Serow. Don't they take reservations? 

There's a little Bangladeshi grocery store in Arlington called Asia Halal Supermarket (5171 Lee Highway) that carries it.  703-533-0606.

We went to Little Serow this past Friday night and were maybe 10th in line when we got there at 5.  We probably could have arrived 10 minutes later or so and safely gotten into the first seating.  I'm sure it's even easier on a weeknight…not the scene it once was (though the meal was superb). 

Thans, everyone.  Our (very small) freezer seems to always be packed, so I think one of the self-contained models with a compressor is for us.  The Lebovitz book looks great, too. 

Any recent purchases people have loved lately?  I want to get an ice cream maker for the summer!

11 hours ago, pras said:

I was once invited to a client's Christmas party here.  He was a native of Hong Kong.  It was a multi-course meal that was very memorable, both because of good company, and good food.  

What decade was this?

We got our U-line undercounter wine cooler from Watershed Appliance.  They seem to specialize in floor models and refurbished units and offer a pretty hefty discount off new in box if you want to go that way.  Our unit has only been in place for a few weeks so can't comment on its longevity obviously, but we were happy with their customer service and shipping.

Just came across this supposedly self-sharpening knife block from Calphalon.  Seems like a cool idea, but wondering if anyone has any experience with either their knives or this technology?