Al Dente

I was tired of being clammy.

Prepping them is easy. If you're a Louisiana boy, you've picked a crab before right? So you should be familiar with crab anatomy. All you have to do is cut or rip out their lungs (aka dead man's fingers). To get to the lungs just lift up either side of the carapace to reveal the innards. You should also cut off their "face" so to speak-- the antennae and eyes can be kind of tough.

I dig Furmano's too. Pretty good stuff. I'll see try to swing by Literi's this weekend to take stock of their offerings. As I said before, I'd be happy to get a bottle of tomatoes and a can of wine for the event.

If you get into some kind of trouble for posting inappropriately, you could be temporarily given hagfish status. Mmmmm, slime.

I think it's very difficult to find a good soft shell crab. Too often you end up with a greasy flabby uninspiring mess. The last time I remember having a good one was at Cafe Marianna in north Old Town about 3 or 4 years ago. It was deep fried in a light batter and the crab itself was nice and meaty.

Thanks-- I've put in inquiries.

Just who do I have to... ahem, I mean how many posts till I reach the exalted "Grouper" status?

That would be Roger Miller.

To keep it simple, we could do the Marcella Hazan method: Basically, you take a 28-oz. can of tomatoes, squeeze or cut the tomatoes into chunks, and simmer them with half an onion (peeled but not chopped) and 5 T of butter for 45 minutes.

Man, that would be the shiznit, but I don't think we could do it early enough. This would probably be around 7pm or so. Plus it's kinda far for these outta towners to find their way. Uncle Clem and Aunt Bea might get too confused in the big city. Edited to retain my street cred.

I'm getting hitched in a couple of months and we're having difficulty deciding on a good venue for our rehearsal dinner. It will be on a Friday night and it includes about 50 people. We have a proposal from the hotel where most guests will be staying, but I think it will less than memorable-- you know, the dried out chicken cordon bleu or sirloin tips with mushroom sauce-gunk variety of meal. We'd rather have good honest simple food rather than mass produced chain hotel fare. We're hoping to keep this under $50/head all in (perhaps well under) and serve beer and wine only. The guests will be staying right near the Friendship Heights metro stop, so it could be in that area, or somewhere easily metro accessible on the red line. Dupont, Woodley, or Cleveland Park would work. I'd like to keep it casual and fun. Also, we have a kind offer from a friend in Bethesda to use his house for this shindig, so we've considered having it catered or just ordering a bunch of food from a good carry out place. Moby Dick's has been discussed as an option for a pile of kabobs and so forth. Are there any brilliant ideas out there?

That website has a link to all the restaurants in Del Ray. You will all be jealous, but I managed to secure a much coveted reservation for tomorrow night at the 7-Eleven.

I'm interested. I'd be happy to pick up a few varieties of canned sauce at A. Litteri's (and wine of course). I could probably also get my hands on a hand cranked pasta maker if we need it-- depending on your pasta production capabilities.

Bar MenuBummer about the service. I've been wanting to drop in for some time now. Perhaps a trip to the bar would be the ticket.

I'm putting as much thought into my review of Cantler's as they put into the food: Raw oysters= edible with extra grit Fried oysters= hockey puck with soft oyster center Smoked blue fish= not bad Soft shell clams= gag Soft shell crabs= more like "soft shell crab shells" Steamed shrimp= appeared to be dredged up from oil spill Scallops= lame, really lame Jumbo crabs= $80/dozen Service= well meaning Disappointing.

Saw Leaf Herb: Thai name is Pak Chee Fa RangAlso notice the link for a thai herb which provides natural breast enhancement! This herb which is sometimes called foreign coriander, culantro and saw tooth herb Note to Rocks-- Observe proper use of line return spacing above!

(from my recent comments on Mouthfulsfood) I now have a much more solidly positive opinion on Poste. The service was attentive-- a little salesey, but not overly so. Standout dishes: Steamed mussels in a delicious broth of saffron, chilis, lotsa ginger, and cilantro. This was the best Asian-inspired mussels dish I've ever had. It has such distinct crisp flavors and the mussels were plump and fresh. Beef Bourguignon-- the beef itself was as tender and succelent as could be, but the star of the plate are the vegetables. Small carrots and turnips (I think?), green beans, potatoes, with some fennel fronds and other vegetables are all cooked perfectly for this dish. The veggies are available as a side dish as well, so there is no excuse not to try it. My fellow diners were all quite pleased with the ricotta ravioli of which I had a small taste, and a coffee roasted duck breast over risotto with mango and scallions. I only got to try the terrific risotto. Chef was kind enough to send out a few of the Hog Island oysters that were slightly cooked on the halfshell in some sort of cream sauce with chervil and American caviar. And after our coffees and desserts, we were each given a tall shotglass containing a mini root beer float! That added a good chuckle to the end of the evening. I imagine this menu with be replaced soon with more springy offerings, so get there soon. Some apps and drinks at the bar may be in order in the near future, "on a whim"!

Tease...

When did you have it? I ask because I've heard from two independent sources that it ain't what it used to be. I haven't had one in about 3 or 4 months, so I'm wondering if they're right. The two possible heretics in question have used words like "dry", "tough", "less flavorful" and "smaller". Both have said that everything but the beef itself is the same as it used to be. I may need to go and investigate.

I've played poker with dogs (who do you think created the famous painting?), but never really dined with them. However, I once accompanied a friend and her dog to a canine happy hour at the Holiday Inn on King St in Old Town. It was fun until the dogs got all liquored up and started humping your leg.

It's getting worse. This may require more draconian measures.

Good man. Eat through the pain! Poor sandwich engineering is a real pet peeve of mine. There is a deli of sorts called Little Home in Silver Spring and it happens to be the closest place for lunch where I work. They bake some excellent bread, but they can't make a freakin sandwich. They have tuna melts, but no grill, so it's just toasted bread. On top of that, when you order a hot sandwich, they wrap it tightly in cling wrap so when I get back to my desk two minutes later the bread is soggy from condensation. Also, name your sandwiches! I don't care if you just number them-- call them whatever you want. But give me a starting point when I order. I don't like having to specify every single item I want in my lunch. I'd rather say, give me an "xyz" and hold the mayo.

I'm doing my best to herd cats and get a bunch of friends and family together for my brother's birthday on Saturday. Someone in the group suggested Cantlers. I've always wanted to go, but I envisioned a hot day in August crackin crabs and drinkin beer. Would you go at this time of the year? Anything to recommend? Any pitfalls to avoid?

Unfortunately I won't be able to attend due to impending senility. I would happily send the chaps and Fat Albert shirt along if someone else would like to wear them.

I'll be first in line when it opens. I've found few thrills, on Capitol Hill...