hillvalley

Lobster rolls

Oh, those were good. Especially after midnight.

Friday night I am going out to dinner at a Mediterranean restaurant. Since it's Passover I'm limited to what I can eat and pita bread is at the top of the list. Hummus, babaganoush, etc. though are perfect. We're going to be a big group celebrating a birthday and I'm the only Jew so I don't want to make things difficult for the hostess. Obviously I'm not going to walk in with a big ole' box of edible cardboard, but is it wrong to walk in with some discreetly tucked away in my bag?

Where's Nadya when you need her?

Stick with things you watch get shucked or steamed. I get my oysters and clams from the little stand in right corner if you are facing the water. Their other cooked stuff is good too. I'd avoid shrimp unless you see that they are freshly steamed. The two times I've attempted them (from two different stands) they were over steamed and had no flavor. If it's nice out be prepared for crowds and sitting where ever you can to eat. It it's oysters he wants I'm pretty sure Senarts (I think that's the name), the new oyster bar on 8th, has opened.

There is no absolute right answer here because it depends on the venue and situation and, although many of you don't want to admit it, age. When dining at Citizen or backroom of Palena it's completely inappropriate but when dining at Radius, who not? It goes along with what you wear-I wouldn't walk in to Citizen or Palena in jeans and a t-shirt and when I have walked into Radius gussied up they all notice. It's about respecting the surroundings. The exception to the Citizen/Palena rule for me is if it involves something important from a family member/close friend. A relative is currently going through some health stuff and I check her texts whenever they arrive, including during staff meetings I'm leading. (As a side note, I run meetings for a living and if I need to check my cell during the meetings I apologize up front to the parents and other professionals at the table. No one else has ever done the same.) If I were a parent texts from my children would trump any social rule, Citizen or not. A quick text can be read and sent discreetly under the table and everyone involved is reassured. It's one of the reasons phones come with the vibrator setting. (I'll let Waitman and Rocks wax poetically about the other reasons.) What drives me crazy is when people sit down and automatically put their phone on the table. If we are dining together then why do you need to know who else is calling (excluding exceptions noted above)? I have a friend who routinely does this and it has effected our relationship. What about listening to a mp3 player or reading an electronic device when dining alone or at a bar?

This thread makes me sad and wistful for donuts come and gone......

You name the time and I'll be there

Sorry Zora, but I seriously don't like dates whether they are freshly picked off a tree or the dried version we get around here. You're making assumptions and well, you now what happens when you assume. (And I don't think you're making an ass of me ) It doesn't get fresher than standing next to the tree and picking the date (which weren't majool) yourself. Didn't do it for me. Of course, I don't believe that people don't like natto until they have had expertly prepared natto, so what do I know? You eat your dates, I'll eat my natto and we'll both be happy. And Don, find me a date that is worthy and we'll talk

Very disappointing lobster roll yesterday at Eastern Market. I got it Maine style. The meat was watery and a little fishy, kind of like the weather we were having. Definitely not worth the $15 I shelled out.

I had the pleasure of dining for the soft opening last night and enjoyed every moment. It should be noted that the only time I was lucky enough to experience Chef's cooking was at Maestro was for a full "blow out" meal where the chef cooked off menu for us. The meal was a disappointment and even my benefactor for the evening felt bad that my one Maestro experience did not live up to the hype. Finally, last night I understood what the hype is about. Note that menu listed above is much smaller than what is offered. None of the dishes I had last night are listed above so my descriptions are based on memory and may not be exact. I don't think there were many dishes over the $30 pp and most pasta dishes were in the mid-teens. Appetizers were in the $10-15 range and vegetable sides were around $7. I began with a cocktail from Jeff Faile, previously of Palena. Jeff asked what I was in the mood for and concocted something fabulous. He is clearly having fun in his new home and his staff never missed a beat. There are a number of Italian and classic cocktails but Jeff is also creating drinks at the behest of his patrons. My first course was bruschetta (I think) of roasted tomatoes and cod. The tomatoes were wonderful, full of flavor, but over powered the cod a bit. I also had what could only be described as the best Italian quesadilla I've ever had. I know there is an Italian name for it but I have no clue what it is. In between a special Italian bread were mozzarella, arugula and prosciutto. Yes, you could make this at home but it won't be as good. From there I had the single best razor clam dish I have ever had. The clams were cut into bite sized pieces and I think marinated as you would ceviche. Again, I'm sure there is an Italian name for how it was prepared but I have no clue. All I know is that each bite of clam revealed buttery, succulent, creamy bites. This dish will bring me back sooner rather than later. My final course was pasta: spaghetti with crab, uni, and chillies. The spaghetti was cooked to a perfect al dente and while the chillies brought more heat than I would have liked, the crab and especially uni were a perfect balance. For a soft opening the staff never missed a beat. Service was great and I saw no early opening nerves among the staff. When the patio opens this will be one of the best places in the city to sit outside and enjoy excellent food and drinks.

A random grocery store in Asheville, North Carolina.

They were out of hot chocolate by the 5th inning. And there were the usual First Day delays at all the stands. It took the guy sitting next to me 50 minutes to get a hot dog and beer. Getting cotton candy isn't as much fun now that you can get it any time at the hot dog place on 8th. I heard a rumor that they were putting in a system where you put in your own order and then give the cashier a number or something to pay.

If one person who didn't know about this clicks and donates money doesn't that make it important? Just because some knew about the auction that started two weeks ago does not mean it's still not important.

Okra chips yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Start kissing her ass now.

To the southern gentleman and his wife who bought me a scotch while allowing me to change some of their beliefs on inner city teenage pregnancy. It's amazing what can happen when you choose the correct chair by the fire.

Does anyone know of a store (not the Internet) where I can pick up molecular gastronomy stuff like agar in quantities for the home kitchen? We've mastered gummies and are ready to move on.

Does anyone know if there were fiddlehead ferns at market today and if they will be available on Thursday or next week?

No apologizing here.... Dear Servers, I am in your establishment to enjoy the aroma of the food you are serving not to be overwhelmed by your perfume or cologne. I don't care if it's good stuff or crap from the drugstore, I should not smell you coming and going. Your odor should not come before the hard work the BOH has put in to my dinner. Signed, Don't want to smell you

Since no one bothered to answer my own questions I will since I discovered a few things not already mentioned..... Canales' Angus sirloin makes a great tartare but will only grind it for you if you purchase large amounts, 2lb or more. Their grinder only works for large amounts so the pound I wanted wasn't enough. Speaking of which, a lb. makes 4 generous appetizer sized portions. On to the grinding...I can't physically chop that amount meat fine enough so I wasn't sure what I was going to do. I ended up laughing in the face of Bourdain and bowing to the gods of Joy of Cooking and used the Cuisinart to grind the meat. It worked perfectly. I won't bother asking a butcher in the future. Couldn't find quail eggs so stuck with chicken but next time I plan on using a chicken in the recipe and serve with quail on top. Didn't bother using a recipe but we consulted Joy of Cooking, Bittman and Bourdain. I used good anchovies, capers, dijon, Worcestershire, cornishon and shiso leaves. The addition of shiso was excellent. I molded using a cookie cutter shaped like DC and it worked brilliantly. Converted two tartare virgins and pleased the one palate I worried about enough that she ate the rest for breakfast this morning. Like everyone else said, it's intimidating until you've made it and everyone is fine the next day; then it's absurdly easy.

Making it for the first time tomorrow night. Anything I should know? I'm going to have the butcher grind it for me and instead of egg youlks I'm thinking of using quail eggs. Suggestions?

When this place opened Mr. Rocks took me to dinner and gave it a year before it closed. How could a Polish restaurant stay open at the corner of Upsher and Georgia, and that was before Petworth began it's slow gentrification? Five years later I guess he was wrong We started with Bulgarian Feta Scrolls which were good but didn't have enough feta for my liking, but I like a lot of cheese, the Latkes which could have come out of one of my great great ancestor's kitchen and the Drunken Gravlax which was a little disappointing-there were only three pieces. I didn't taste my friend's main, which was a special of the night, but he devoured it. My bacon, onion, potato & twarog perogies were great. Just enough of each member of the filling so that nothing overpowered the other. They would be perfect on a cold, winter day. The highlight of the meal, interestingly enough, was dessert. He had a slice of the almond cake which he swooned over. The beet cake was just as good. It was a small loaf, made in house and served warm, that was just sweet enough for a dessert but not cloyingly so. Another highlight of the meal, which was interesting, was that our waitress, who was Asian, also cooked in the kitchen. Getting to have a real conversation with the woman who made your food added a special dimension to our evening.

Why is Tiffany still there? I don't get how she has made it so far?

Dear Lyon Hall, I would like to visit your establishment but your website does not give your hours. If it does then they are hard to find. Might want to fix that. Signed, Someone who isn't dining with you today because they don't know the hours.