baczkowski

The cafe obviously seems more accessible. Do you ever just pop in to Palena cafe, or do you always have to make reservations? Can you really only expect a table for 2 or 4 in the cafe? pax, Brian

But what am I going to spend??? It affects whether I go solo, in couple, with friends, or family in toe. Price does matter!!! Otherwise, we'll never be able to afford to cross your path again, Mark.

Not that a decently updated web site would be of any use here, but what can you expect to drop on appetizers, entrees, drinks, etc. at Palena (average per item, not total bill)? Reading through the thread I answered my other question (no lunch, not even on Saturday). Palena has been my "next great restaurant" choice for several months now but I just don't feel informed enough about prices or current offerings to make any such plans. Part of the issue might be the constantly changing menu mentioned in the worst web site thread, but I'd like to know more. Pax, Brian

I tried it, too, with mixed results. First, I'm generally a breast guy, so cooking with dark thigh meat was an experiment in itself (my wife would only nibble on the finished product b/c of the psychological difficulty). I actually included some breast meat to compare taste and texture. The sherry certainly enhanced the flavor of the thigh meat much better than the breast meat, but the sliminess of the thigh meat was hard to get over texture-wise. Unlike johnb, I used unsalted and unroasted cashews in my recipe and they actually added a sweatness that I appreciated and the cucumber was an interesting (in a decent way) addition mainly for texture and freshness. But like JohnB, I had no sauce, and my range is a crappy electric glass top that I can't wait to leave behind, so I'm not sure temperature was the culprit. I just don't think there were enough wet ingredients to have a residual sauce, but everything certainly was wet (or was that greasy?). I'm inclined not to try it again, not because of flavor but mainly for health reasons. The recipe says each serving has 569 calories (I assume without rice) and 35 grams of fat! Most of that I think is from the cashews b/c only 7 grams is saturated fat. Not sure those numbers are worth the ok-ness of my results. It was fun and easy to try though. Pax, Brian

Are you telling me that I have stumbled on the first known-to-man miscommunication between husband and wife? Her words this morning, "My eyes just glaze over when he starts talking about his meat." I refused to pounce on the obvious jokes.

Looks like johnb was right: there was some miscommunication somehow. But to eliminate the miscommunication, the guy at Hemp's dug into his butchering manual and photocopied the directions for butchering the cap of the ribeye so everyone was on the same page. I scanned it, saved it to a Word doc to make it one file and uploaded it to server space I have access to since it's over 5 MB. Feel free to download it at http://ths.fcps.org/teachers/baczkowski/Calotte.doc (might want to right-click and save target as). The price for the cap of the ribeye at Hemp's is actually $8.95 or $9.95 lb. They're still willing to dry age it as long as you want. Hope this adds to people's options. Pax, Brian

I'm hoping Xcanuck is right and emailed my colleague back. I copied JohnB's response plus an earlier post that provided even more detail than what I told her we were asking for, just so she can print it out and show it to her husband to eliminate any confusion. I think there's a real possibility that the "lack of demand" explanation holds credibility. If you read Malawry's post on Egullet about Hemp's, she recounts how she asked them if they sell hanger steaks. They had 50 b/c no one asks for them! Might be similar circumstances. And I don't think it's b/c she's giving me a deal, either, b/c I told her I intended to post her response here. I'll let you know what I find out. Pax, Brian

We've gone to two of our three nights of classes at our Isabella's cooking classes. We were expecting to learn tapas, since that's what the menu is at Isabella's, but we've mostly learned entrees that you could serve in smaller portions if you wanted. What we have learned does not appear on their regular menu and, to me, seems to be an outlet for the chef to try out Italian recipes since he hopes to convince his bosses to open one. On disappointment is that most dishes wouldn't work well if you prepared ahead and served reheated at a party (that was our motivation). The classes are set up so you learn three different dishes each night. The first night's recipes were much better than our second one. Again, it's not hands-on, unfortunately. But it's still fun and social to eat decent food and drink pitchers of sangria Monday nights. $80 per person for the three nights. The recipes will be the same for the full calendar year; he changes every year for people who want to repeat the classes. I think you get what you pay for. My wife got me a gift certificate for Le Academie de Cuisine and the per person price is twice Isabella's, but you get hands on experience and (I hope) more classically trained chefs. I'll let you know in a few months after I take my Le Academie class. But we're both glad we've done the Isabella's classes because we 1) Eat good food, 2) Learn something new, and 3) Spend time with each other. But I think you can learn more elsewhere. Pax, Brian

Not to change the subject, but all the talk of calotte got me thinking about Hemp's Meats in Jefferson of Frederick County. The longest lines at the Great Frederick Fair are always for Hemp's meats, and a Hemp happens to work at my school. I told her about the interest of folks in this cut and asked if she would research it to be published on this board. This is her response: "I asked my husband about the meat you were asking about. They do carry the cut of beef and they call it the "cap of the ribroast/ribeye". All of our beefs are aged 3 to 4 weeks and we can age that cut longer if you like. All of our beefs are grade choice or higher and are all grain fed from our own farms. We use all beef animals. Not dairy animals. No antibiotics or growth hormones are used. Gary said if it's the cut of meat he's thinking about it's about $3.00 to $3.50/lb. Hope this helps. Let me know if you need to know anything else. Have a great weekend." Intriguing stuff, huh? Here's the web site: http://www.hempsmeats.com/ I searched DR and found that Malawry had posted about Hemp's as well as on Egullet in case people wanted more info on Hemp's. Curious, if I asked her to bring me some (she'll bring it to school), how much longer should I ask her to age it than the 3-4 weeks? Pax, Brian

Few months ago we stopped in for a drink trying to wait out the Verizon Center crowd. We knew nothing about the place but as soon as we walked in it felt way too cool for me and my Penn State sweatshirt. Funky, trendy vibe. Some people in tuxes and gowns, others in hip pre-club clothes. Drinks are crazy expensive (am I remembering $15 for a mojito?). Despite good reviews from Siestema, the entree prices looked too much for what I thought I would get. Pax, Brian

Here, here! A big reason we didn't go to Palena for my wife's birthday is b/c the menu is from 2003! I couldn't tell her what to expect, so we happily tried Corduroy instead. It also didn't help that I tried emailing someone at the restaurant for an overview of the menu and never received a reply. Pax, Brian

I second this week's Lettres de Mon Moulin regarding Max's. Last week for lunch I ate a half schwarma (topped with all 9000 toppings they offer) and a rich matzo ball soup while also finding room for some of my wife's faux-Reuben and blissfully didn't eat again the rest of the day. I was satisfied. And that sandwich's meat was the best I think I've ever had. Thank you Dean for expanding our world! Maybe most of Mont. Co's good eats are under $15! Pax, Brian

OK, this place deserves all the cred it's built up on this board. We (wife, in-laws, and myself) went for my wife's birthday on this cold, federal holiday, Monday and had wonderful meals despite every reason possible for a subpar experience. I tasted all four dishes and my crispy fluke was excellent but a clear fourth behind the other three that could swashbuckle for top honor: the scallops, beef cheeks, and the special tenderloin. My father-in-law called it "the best meal [he's] eaten in a long time" and started brainstorming which friends he wanted to bring there to impress. With the in-law meal junket ending for a while and our bank accounts greatly drained, I reflected during my long drive back to Frederick on the comparably priced places ($50-$60 per person with food and drinks) we've been in the last six months--Corduroy, Rasika, RTC, Frederick's Tasting Room, David Craig's, Firefly, Fogo de Chao--and Corduroy clearly wins for best food (in fact, I'd rate our meals in the order listed). The fact that it's even priced in the same area as most of these places is startling. Go. You won't be disappointed. Pax, Brian

We stopped in for a quick bite before an early movie yesterday for the first time since RTC's opening weekend and found exactly what xcanuck describes above. Sitting at the bar this time helped us discover the chewable crack they call nuts that everyone deservedly raves about and sampled the wonderfully crunchy and chewy rosemary bread that wasn't there last time we made it in. Looking over the menu, however, I was disappointed by the appetizer deletions since that was our intention last night. I was heartbroken to see that my beloved Peach Charlotte disappeared with the original pastry chef. Price ranges for the appetizers also have trended up, but I could never believe that the starting point was originally $3 for excellent cooking anyway. It's so pathetic that I had a slight panging for the "Days of Yore"--all of 6 months ago! But in all reality, that's unfair to the restaurant for me not to expect such changes to happen. Xcanuck is exactly right on RTC's evolution: less appetizers, more entrees, and--most importantly--still great cooking, but also slightly more expensive prices, no salad included with entrees, and different desserts (which we didn't try). The important thing is that we enjoyed what we did eat last night, enjoyed the service, and enjoyed that RTC is improving life in Silver Spring. We'll be back, and hopefully sooner this time. On a side note, my wife was jazzed about the sign for the opening of the Birchmere next door to RTC. Anyone know other details about its opening and whether they plan to have the same/similar acts to who play in Virginia? Pax, Brian

Rubes, certainly not, but how do you know who to listen to if you're not a member of the community? No matter how critical a reader you are, first encounters are hard to interpret, especially in this virtual world without body language or knowledge of personal connections, who can help you by saying, "Don't listen to that Brian guy. He's an ass." Knowledge is socially constructed and constantly negotiated in both the real and virtual worlds. How can anyone, whether normally considered part of the arrogant Elect or a humble and better-informed part of the the Proletariat, readily filter out the crap from the truth if their connection to the converstation is merely tangential? Pax, Brian

I personally thought Kliman's words were insightful and accurate, especially his noting the reality that all information on the Internet is automatically published like authoritative knowledge regardless of veracity. We love the Internet because anyone can be published, but we should read with cynicism for the same reason. I can see, though, why some here might take offense to being described as ones who don't "read all that carefully." Most DR posters and lurkers are certainly motivated to read carefully, and more importantly, also happen to be surprisingly well-informed on their subjects compared to many discussion boards (ever read a college sports recruiting board? Every high school band geek and work-avoiding accountant seems to be an expert on why some four-star running back in Arkansas is destined to go to Penn State). While we're all drawn here by the general comity (unless you're discussing Rachel Ray) that happens to also surround a common interest, some people are real experts while others (like me) are here to learn. Active members and lurkers eventually figure out who's who, which might be the type of "care" that Kliman is hoping people exercised more of. But what if you're not an active member? How do you separate my comments from those by ol_ironstomach and mdt? See that Googlebot member constantly listed at the bottom of this board's front page? He doesn't rate our posts. When curious people simply Google a DC restaurant's name, they link to this forum without knowing what it is. Because Google doesn't think for them (yet), they'll have their perceptions colored by anonymous posters whom they don't know and maybe shouldn't trust. This probably goes beyond Kliman's remarks, but an interesting idea to consider when trying to assess the effect of this group. Maybe these ideas resonated with me so strongly (that I continue to babble) because my job takes Kliman's fears to a frightening extreme: Every day I work with kids who are supposedly so tech-savvy but the real story is how frighteningly information illiterate they are. Sure, they can smack the CTRL-F keys and Copy-Paste with the ease that most of us use while turning a book's page, but reading that information? Synthesizing that information? Evaluating that information? Puh-lease! It's my to help them manage these tasks, but I can't say I feel very successful often (I love the gasps from the third of kids who don't get the joke at http://malepregnancy.comwithout explanation). I hope most adults trying to decide between Clyde's and Corduroy function at a higher cognitive level than my MySpace-obsessed teenagers, but maybe Kliman's right and they don't deserve such credit. OK, nobody cares this much so I'll finally stop pax, Brian

My wife and I ended up wandering around Historic Ellicott City last night and stopped in front of a wine bar to ask a woman for a restaurant recommendation. Our only direction was that we didn't want something as fancy as Jordan's. She pointed up a side street and authoritatively said, "Tiber River Tavern. Good food all around and entrees that start at $9." We're glad we asked because we had a surprisingly good meal at the bar. When we walked up to the restaurant, we were shocked to see a menu with entree prices that started at $24 and stretched into the $30 range. Confused, we still wandered inside and noticed that there was a dining room in front and a bar to the right. We veered right. The bar was busy with people drinking pints and eating food, with only a handful killing time waiting for a seat in the dining room. We scored seats at the bar and found two menus, one for the expensive dining room and one apparantly for the bar that resembled the prices the woman mentioned. For those curious, when I looked for a web site this morning (http://www.tiberrivertavern.com/), the cheaper menu was listed under their lunch menu. My wife ordered the Sandtrap Filet, which was two petit filets on top of two English muffins with a Bernaisse sauce that she got on the side. The filets were surpisingly well-marbled and the English muffins seemed to be cooked on griddle to soak in some of the juicy grease. $14 and Wonderful. And there was no reason to mess it up with the accompanying bean sprouts on the side. No reason to kid yourself that it's diet food. I ordered the Black and Blue sandwich, which was a thin beef tenderloin on a (too) large rustic bun topped with melted blue cheese, horseradish, and carmelized onions. Again, $14, juicy and wonderful (once I bit around the non-meat areas of the bun). As my wife described it, the food was "restaurant quality bar food"--IN HOWARD COUNTY! Quite a pleasant surprise for our wanderings. If we were in the area, we'd definitely go back for lunch or dinner, and, IMHO, no need to double your bill by walking straight into the main restaurant. (By the way, if you've been before, the bartender told a regular that they just revamped the main dining room's menu)

Before Christmas, my wife mentioned that she wanted to have a tapas party before she destroyed my cheesy-ass DR screenname and moved to Mont. Co., so I got us both cooking lessons at Frederick's Spanish tapas restaurant Isabella's. Though Zaytinya and Pazo are noticeably better Tapas places, Isabella's is decent, inviting, smoke-free, and walkable from our house. Last night we had a wonderful first of three nights entailing drinking pitchers of sangria, standing around the kitchen stove, and shoveling food into our faces. Since liability issues prevent the classes from being participatory, we watched Chef James cook three dishes that aren't on the menu but reflect his background in and desire to open an Italian restaurant. Of the three dishes, the following recipe was by far the best (ahhh, the amazing power of butter and bacon fat). It was actually the best dish I've ever had at Isabella's. It seems pretty easy to make, too, so I thought I'd post (after I got the chef's permission). 1 1/2 lbs. shrimp shelled and deveined; tails on 10 slices of smoked bacon--chopped 5 pepperoncini Pinch of red pepper flakes 1/2 cup fresh basil--chopped 2 large tomatoes--diced 1/2 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup cold butter 5 cloves minced garlic Salt Preseason shrimp with salt. Cook bacon until crispy. Add shrimp, garlic, and pepperoncini and saute for one minute. Deglaze with white wine and tomatoes and reduce by half. Sprinkle pepper flakes. Turn off the stove and add butter. Swirl in butter as it melts. Finish with basil and season with salt. Serves 4 I'll share anything worthwhile from next week's class, too. Pax, Brian

Charleston is on another level, but if you can't find those extra friends to contribute, Pazo is both good and fun. Pax, Brian

Not food related but your post reminded me of telling my table at the Gerard dinner my Vidalia story. Two years ago we went to Vidalia for my future wife's birthday. For the last two weeks I was trying to get my future father-in-law alone--out of Alison's earshot--so I could ask him for permission to marry his daughter. I was running out of time because in five days we were headed to San Francisco for a conference and the spot of my secret proposal: Alison's best friend, who lives in San Francisco, and I had conspired to plan a romantic proposal involving the Japanese Tea Garden of Golden Gate Park, a room at the Ritz Carleton, and dinner at Masa's. The opportunity to isolate her dad seemed to present itself during our dinner at Vidalia when my future mother-in-law said she had a virus or spyware on her computer that she couldn't get rid of. I suggested a couple things I might be able to try and offered to come over the house the next day to solve their computer issue and my proposal problem. But dad gives me the Heisman! "No, no, I 'll try to fix it first," he demurs. Damn pride. So I'm running out of time and options as I struggle to eat my oyster appetizer when her dad excuses himself to the bathroom. Yeah, I was that desperate. And so ensues the wierdest take on the old-fashioned custom of getting your future father-in-law's permission to marry his daughter. I follow him into the bathroom, fake pee, "finish" before him, and started washing my hands. No sooner had he finished zipping did I say, "I know this is an odd time and place to ask this but......Your daughter makes me the happiest I've ever been and I want to spend the rest of my life with her. Next week I've planned to surprise Alison by proposing, but first I would like to ask for your permission." Shaking off the water from his hands into the sink, he looks up dazed and replies, "You're right, this IS a wierd place." He grabs a towel, dries his hand, and then reaches for mine, and says, "I'd be proud to have you as a son. Welcome to the family." We walked back to the table smiling with his hand on my shoulder. We sat down and Alison was telling her mom a story. Her dad couldn't stop smiling as he looked at her. For seemingly no reason to her in the middle of the story, he reaches out, grabs her hand, and pats it twice as he gazed with pride at his grown daughter. Alison just laughed and said, "OK," and continued her story. That prideful look and tender touch between a father and daughter made that moment the most precious secret I've ever kept.

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I've actually enjoyed the Food section of late. I'd be surprised if the general public is disappointed, either, though I could see members here feeling frustrated that the Food section has become more Sunday Source than Gourmet magazine. I don't mind coming to environments like these to fill the niche desired by the advanced world of early adopters. IMHO, though, I've found the Food section better formatted, more informative of how national food trends materialize locally, visually catchy with more pictures and more color, and more compelling to read the whole articles. I've even torn out and saved a couple things to cook from the recipes, too. Maybe my satisfaction is subliminal recognition of improvement that has lead to an acceptance of mediocrity. But it's a quieting ignornace I appreciate after my opposition research (in, yes, the A section) swells my blood pressure and makes me want to smack that bad part out of George Will's hair. I say to the editor: Keep up the good work but, of course, continue striving to improve. Just my humble opinions... Pax, Brian

Obviously Omaha Steaks thinks that I should [can you predict the bad pun about to come?] BEEF up my fiction collection b/c they keep sending their junk mail to my high school library. Despite quickly surfing past their spots on QVC (I hold out for Cher's beauty creams) and passing an occassional storefront in outlet lands, I've never tasted any of their products. Is it worth $60 for a box-o'-meat? pax, Brian

Our hangover cure from Citronelle last weekend was pizza here and it was very good (better than Mia's), but I agree not as flavorful as 2 Amy's. Wanted some spice in my sausage but the roasted peppers were wonderfully sweet. Nice touches I appreciated were the freshly grated parmesan on the table and a team oriented service staff (who picked up the slack of our comparably delinquent original server). Pax, Brian

Forgive me if my typed words are slurred b/c I may suffer from aphasia as a result of my food and alcohol induced coma after dining at Citronelle Friday. Dinner was my wife’s Christmas present to me, and after maxing out that second mortgage, we did our patriotic duty to go into blissful debt to support the local economy. I won’t give a long, detailed review of the tasting menu food I ate because I’m too ignorant to say anything insightful about what I ate. It was delicious and decadent—'nuff said. The only meal I’ve ever had on par with my Citronelle experience was Masa’s in San Francisco the night I proposed to my wife. I would love to write a few pages about how wonderful Mark is. Gracious and convivial, Mark made these two young and splurging educators feel welcome without condescension or conceit. Thank you for the captivating table in front of the kitchen and the spot-on wine recommendation in our budget-friendly price range. Words of advice for those considering between the tasting menu and three courses…We tackled the tasting menu because we never figured we could afford it again until our non-existent kids graduate from grad school. When finally finished with our 8:30 reservation after 11, we were literally drunk on food (alright, so the alcohol helped, too). Michel Richard may describe his food as “light”, but it is certainly not light on fat (or, of course, flavor). My wife felt full after course three (she picked the day before to start Weight Watchers) and I was testing my stomach elasticity by course 5. We amazingly found room, but there is a lot of wisdom in mdt’s advice to consider the three courses. You can choose what you want, try 6 or more different things if your dining company orders differently, feel less bloated, and save yourself almost $150 once you tack on tax and tip. We don’t regret our choice, but our experiences may be informative to others debating the same decision. OK, time to go change-diving between the sofa cushions… Pax, Brian

Though it's frozen food, I actually eat the Lean Cuisine Chicken Tikka Masala quite often and I like it. Quick and tasty lunch. There's another one I get from Giant (I think it has "Ethnic" in the brand name; red box near the Amy's brand). The tough thing about Lean Cuisine's, though, is that their serving sizes are TOO small (Consumer Reports even confirmed this about a year or two ago) and you need to have something else in order to ward off hunger. I hope you all don't feel as though I'm "snooping," but I have to say how impressed I am with everyone's positivity, progress and supportive nature! Pax, Brian