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Steve R.

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  1. Steve R.
    The above post reminded me that I never updated my posts on this thread. After our 2015 Jan stay, we've returned to the same Indian Shores rental each of the next 2 years & have stayed for 10-12 weeks each year. And we're booked in again starting the weekend after N.Year thru at least mid-March 2018. So, since we generally don't cook, we pretty much have gotten to know the area's restaurants & bars (& a lot of locals). I'm not going to create a directory of the many many places we've been to from Clearwater south to St Pete, from Tampa west to the Gulf beach - anyone wanting to know info. Is welcome to ask & I'll do my best. And, if anyone's in the area Jan-March... well, dining company is always welcomed. However, here's a short list of places we return to regularly for good food: Salt Rock Grill, especially since we discovered that they have a 2nd bar outdoors in the back where the full menu or just drinks is served. I'm addicted to their sweet/sour covered fish collar app. By the way, the owners also have a similar restaurant under the C'water Bridge that's decent as well. Heilman's Beachcomber in C'water Beach. Old Florida dining, including a live pianist every night. Classy rooms, non fussy dining. I love their skillet fried chicken dinner, my wife loves the lobster tails. We bring guests there regularly & were, ourselves, brought there by Bklyn neighbors, one of whom who has been going since he was a child growing up on his folks' orange grove. E&E Stakeout, especially since their Wed wine deals can't be beat when had with their steaks or prime rib. Crabby Bill's on Gulf Blvd in Indian Rocks Beach. Still owned by the original family (the others aren't) & still a dive bar, a shack, an informal restaurant &/or an outdoor eating place with live music (depending on which area you chose). I am addicted to their "Chicago Oysters" - fresh large oysters baked with garlic, Old Bay and melted cheese on top. I've also been known to put away orders of pulled pig nachos, which are huge, cheap & tasty. we also had some nice home cooked meals at a small mom/pop Italian place that opened up last year and may not last long enough to still be there when we return in Jan '18. Called Ristaurante Firenze, its way better than it's no frills looks or absurdly cheap prices would suggest. Think real chicken liver crostini or c.liver w/pasta or trippa florentina done right, alongside fresh ravioli w/daily fillings. Enough for now.
  2. Steve R.
    I'd also suggest toririchard.com
  3. Steve R.
    My father married & had children late so, although I am "only" 65 (& the older sibling), he was born in 1910. It was only after I was 30 or so that I appreciated having a father whose frame of reference & stories had to do with a time way before any of my friends' parents. Unlike even the oldest of them, he was an adult (over 18) during the Great Depression & certainly not a young Army recruit in WW II. Made quite an impression on me, now that I reflect on it.
  4. Steve R.
    Just thought I'd put another of my 2cents in & summarize a current case that's a pretty clear illustration, in my opinion, of the difference between ACA's expanded "coverage eligibility" and its potential "use value" to individuals. The article if anyone wants it - "Pizza Waitress Mowed Down by Cyclist Is out of Work and Drowning in Debt" by Gwynne Hogan on dnainfo.com Summary of case: -Paulie Gee waitress, on day off, gets knocked unconscious by a bicyclist speeding down the street. He admits (to the police) he blew past a stop sign and stays to help her. He is of limited means & carries no insurance. Police didn't even arrest him & she's gotten legal advice that suing him would be a waste of time/resources. -waitress is taken to Bellevue and currently has over $10,000 in medical bills and over $2500 in lost wages. Follow up treatment bills are still coming. She had no health insurance. -Paulie Gee's has fewer than 50 employees and offers no employer sponsored coverage. Paul G. himself is helping her by holding her job for her and assisting in disability filings, etc. Also working with her on a crowdfunding plea (which currently has raised several thousand & may well be her "savior" on this). -victim says that she went to NYS's exchange (probably one of the most progressive in the country & containing more options than most) last year to get health insurance, but the "best" option would have been to take a policy that would've cost her $400/month and carried a $7,000 deductible. She decided against it (says that she really couldn't afford it) & took her chances. Even if she signed on, she would've spent about $5,000 in monthly premiums to date and another $7000 in deductible. Roughly the same situation as without... and that's if everything was covered by the plan. Bottom line: for folks like her, being eligible for a plan and taking the best one offered would not have been of significant help. Under a single payer system ("Medicare for all"), she doesn't have any of these problems. I'm only doing this to underscore why more is needed (certainly not less, as in various proposals) & why some folks (who I generally agree with) should stop touting "# of persons covered" stats as equal to good affordable care.
  5. Steve R.
    Warning - thread drift ahead. Did I ever mention that, 30 or so years ago, I saw Mick Jagger completely nude while I was standing only 3-4 feet away? Okay, so it was a gym locker room & we both were playing squash (separately). And, as I've repeatedly told my wife and every other person whom I've related this event to, "no, I didn't look". Never saw Dylan (my feeble attempt to get back to topic).
  6. Steve R.
    Last question first: When I say "progressive", I'm pretty much sticking to a definition that sees progress as something that helps the overall human condition. Of course, that's subjective and things like Prohibition were seen as progressive, then rejected as not helping. Basically, I'd like to think that "progressive" means that individuals' access to the things they need to survive &/or improve their daily lives increase. In that sense, even partially fixing a very broken system (like health care) and making it less broken, even temporarily, is progressive. Other questions: #1: the Affordable Care Act increased the # of people who were covered for Health Care (more about this later). More importantly, it increased peoples' ability to get coverage for their Pre-existing Conditions, for their Mental Health needs and for other concerns. This alone was progressive, in that the Emergency Room ceased being the primary caregiver for a lot of people. Not only is this good for the recipients of care, who now have a "plan" and someplace to use other than the ER, but I'd argue that it was/is progressive for taxpaying society as a whole. For example, without a plan that enables a person to go to a caregiver for a specific issue -- a caregiver who can work on the specific issue directly -- using the ER means that all the general workups required in an "emergency" room come into play (batteries of unrelated tests, for example) & are then billed to the taxpayer one way or another (Medicaid is government funded, indigent use is paid for by State/Local assistance to the ER or raising costs on their other services). So, for someone with Mental Health needs (for example), instead of being "covered" to go directly to a Mental Health outpatient clinic and be seen, the ER visit becomes 10x the cost (well actually much more) and doesn't necessarily provide anything of value to the recipient except a referral to an outpatient clinic & some emergency meds. #2: shifting the burden of paying for these folks to the Insurance Companies who would offer the plans is what was totally unsustainable. Insurance Companies are in business, as are any other businesses, to make profit. Totally understandable. Income from those paying premiums has to exceed bills for services being reimbursed + overhead (including salaries) to make a profit. Trying to force these businesses to accept all these new folks who are known to be in need of services without offsetting it by dramatically increasing the # of folks who will pay premiums but hardly use services, is unsustainable and the companies will (& did) opt out where their income from those paying premiums did not cover all the services being billed for by the needy. It didn't happen at first because the Federal Govt. added $$ to the pot for several years to "get it going". #3: becomes obvious if you accept my argument above. As Insurance Companies opt out, a single payer "Medicare for all" approach becomes the long term successor to the current situation. Medicare has nothing to do with your employer (if you have one), but is a Govt run or sponsored program that, well, here's a link to a better explanation than I can give: http://www.pnhp.org/facts/what-is-single-payer The above is, obviously, just how I see it and there are arguments advanced by those who want to take away benefits from sectors of the population, from those who want to tinker with the current Insurance Company based system to make it somewhat better or retard its regression, etc... Clearly, its a complicated issue & it doesn't help that the current ACA supporters don't seem to want to talk about the difference between being "covered" by a plan and being able to use it (deductibles, choice of doctors, availability of services in certain areas -- these are just some of the barriers to usage). Many who signed up & are in the stats used to show that more people are now covered can't afford to go see their assigned physician & get help. But that's for another discussion. God, I've gone on long enough.
  7. Steve R.
    Just as an aside, I'd add that this really isn't a partisan two-sided issue of whether its a good plan that needs some tweaking or a bad one that needs to be repealed. As someone who spent a career in health care & can be well... let's say, opinionated... and an ardent Obama supporter, to boot.... I think that the current system needed/needs more than a "tune-up" or a "few minor repairs". To me, it moved care availability forward & was/is significant, progressive & easily supported, but it is completely unsustainable and I don't think it was meant to be (or can be tweaked to be) a long term solution. It set the stage for what should have been another major change - to single payer, non-job related insurance but, as is the case with government policy, that ain't on the table any longer (unfortunately, in my opinion). Rock, meet hard place.
  8. Steve R.
    Interesting. The original Bdway production was one of the few shows that my wife (an ex-Broadway Stage Manager) actually hated. I didn't go with her to see it (a friend did) and her after the show remark was "if they had her go down that damn staircase posturing one more time, I was going to scream... we get it!" She will absolutely not reconsider her resolve not to see this new version. So... was there an overused staircase?
  9. Steve R.
    Very nice hire. I've been curious as to why Ewing hadn't yet gotten a Head Coach job (College or NBA), although he seems to have been successful on staff in several places. Now, let's see what he's got. I've always rooted for him.
  10. Steve R.
    Staunton Went to Zynodoa several nights ago, as our last stop before home from Florida was Staunton, Va. We loved the town, we loved the restaurant. Lots of food, all made very well with mostly local ingredients & high skill. We were going to order the app. of cornbread w/grape jelly while we were at the bar drinking (a very good local Reisling) but the couple next to us got one and it was huge and would've destroyed any chance of eating a large dinner. When seated (in a front booth, not the back tables), we had a great waiter and ate too much. I had fried catfish bites with thin onion rings that was excellent. My wife had the pork belly app (yep, an app.) which was large enough that I had to help and was glad to do so - excellent). My dinner entree was blackened catfish (I didn't feel at all silly ordering catfish and catfish - no, not at all) & this was very nice. She had beef tips which, again, could not be finished, this time even with my help. A sweet corn dessert was great and we didn't eat again till Brooklyn. Highly recommended.
  11. Steve R.
    Notes on our 3 nights in Asheville last week: -The Heywood Park Hotel is excellent. Perfect location, very friendly, extremely large rooms & parking/breakfast included. Highly recommended. -The Biltmore is a great way to spend the day. Yes, the basic admission is $65/person, the Guided Tour (better than headphones) is another $19 and the Upstairs/Downstairs tour was $19 more. That's a lot but you get a lot and the place is worth seeing. Comes with a nice long drive thru the estate, including gardens (where the tulips were in bloom) and a winery where the tastings were free (even though they purchase grapes from various places throughout Sonoma & Napa, with only maybe 20% local grapes). -Went to Rhubarb on Sunday eve for their communal dinner, where we sat at one of three designated tables for 8 & met both local & other "passing thru" diners. The food was excellent & Chef Fleer came out to speak with all of us about the concept of sharing a dinner table & his cooking for this type of event. It was all excellent -- genuine & well executed. The bar area (where we spent a 1/2 hour before dinner) was a mixture of cocktails, local beers (both on tap & in bottles) & good wines by the glass & the restaurant proper (the communal tables were in a middle room) was full of diners both at tables and at a chef's counter watching the kitchen cook. If we ever get back to Asheville, I wouldn't hesitate returning here. Everything was both homey & professionally done, including the room itself. -Buxton Hall was ehh. I've decided that E.Carolina whole pig bbq is not my thing and the "mop" of it I got was just ok. The fried chicken was better, my wife's St.Louis style â…“ rack of ribs was better (good bbq sauce slathered on) & all the sides were good as well. However, in my opinion, nothing to dislike, not much special either. Especially since its a line operation and everything is easily made in advance and just plated with scoops by the open kitchen. I'll stick with Franklin BBQ. -Then we went to Nightbell. The chef was busy preparing for the re-opening of Curate, which had been closed while being renovated into twice its original size, so she was not in the house. Doesn't seem to me that she needed to be, as the kitchen couldn't have been more spot on. Now, anyone who knows me understands that this is not my type of place. Its an American foods tapas-style small plates place where every dish comes with a long explanation of every ingredient (quite a few in each dish) and every process (quite a few in each dish) used. Clearly a very ingredient and labor intensive method which, in several other places I've been to, have not resulted in a better tasting dish. Well, Ginny likes this kind of place so there we were. And as grumpy as I'd like to be about it, each dish was excellent, with flavors/ingredients contributing to a coherent whole -- very enjoyable. Even the explanations were done without the solemn, officiousness found elsewhere -- friendly, sincere and interested in what we'd like. So, bottom line is that I still don't understand why any chef/kitchen would choose to spend 10x the time on creating these dishes but, since they were damn good & the price point was very, very good (we left full without spending $100pp all in), I won't complain and will recommend it. Not a place I'd run back to, but Ginny won't have to push much if she wants to return. -Also made it to Sante, a nice wine bar in downtown & Skybar, a great little bar on several levels of what were probably fire escapes & overlook the setting sun & the open expanse of the area. And took a "hop on/hop off" trolley (something we never do elsewhere), where the driver was entertaining, informative and, well, did the driving. And did I mention the Thomas Wolfe Museum and House Tour. Not my favorite author and not my favorite tour, but nice enough. We really liked the vibe in Asheville and will probably make sure we return next year on our way down to or back from Florida. Quite a few other places looked good and the city is fun. Reminds me of my '60s "Woodstock Nation" roots.
  12. Steve R.
    Thanks again to all. Moving right along, we've booked into the Haywood Park Hotel for 3 nights (3/26,27&28) and now have dinner res. at Rhubarb for their Sun dinner 3/26 & at Nightbell for Tues 3/28. Think that we'll leave Mon open for now, although I get the feeling that we may wind up at Buxton Hall so I can see what Eastern NC whole hog BBQ is all about. Or maybe Table or The Admiral or White Duck Taco Shop or.... At any rate, the Eating Asheville High Rollers Tour is only Thurs-Sat so that's out, although it'd probably be out anyway given how much we'll be eating on our own. Maybe a non-culinary walking tour of the city and a good country hike will keep me from gaining 10 pounds on this ride home to NYC from Florida. Then again, probably not. Thanks again for all the input. And if any of you are around during our days there and want to get a drink...
  13. Steve R.
    Thanks again.
  14. Steve R.
    Thanks...much appreciated. I'd heard about Rhubarb & it's now on our short list. Looking forward to seeing Asheville, as I've heard great things. By the way, any thoughts on the Haywood Park Hotel? Thanks again.
  15. Steve R.
    Lots of good info. here (& in other posts). Looks like we're gonna be in Asheville for 3 nights later this month. Any new or updated info. would be appreciated. Definitely will try to get into Curate &/or Nightbell and maybe Tupelo Honey. Thanks.
  16. Steve R.
    I am absolutely overjoyed about how this is shaping up. I'd love to see Federer & Venus win, but I'll be more than ok if Nadal gets in & wins &/or if Serena makes history. Hopefully, this has been a turning point for CoCo V., as I'd love to see her keep up this level of play & make a mark.
  17. Steve R.
    Another year, another trek down 95. Three nights on the road last week, staying one day ahead of the lousy weather. First night we ate at a very good place in Richmond, Va. called Acacia. Recommended by a long time virtual acquaintance from eGullet who lives in Richmond, this was a place that'd be on our regular rotation if it was anywhere near us. Nice concise wine list too. The 2nd night was in Florence, SC, chosen because we love Florence, Italy & we do things that way. In Florence, I found Tubb's, located in a converted gas station. It's a very informal place that does fish/seafood very well & is loaded with locals. A great road stop. Our 3rd meal was in St Augustine, Fl., where our friends who live there recommended a newish place (8mos.?) called Preserved. It was located in a beautiful old house, converted nicely to a restaurant. Midpriced, not pretentious & serving excellent upscale food. Highly recommended. As a side note, both Acacia & Preserved hit all the now trendy locally sourced, every ingredient listed, notes required to compete for the business of self declared "foodies". I'm always concerned that these type of menus, listing dishes with multiple ingredients, will result in overwrought food by chefs who think that throwing together various "interesting" things is, of itself, going to result in "innovative" cuisine. It hardly, if ever, does & I generally come away annoyed. Not the case in either of these places. Ingredients are well thought out to create well integrated tasty dishes. Nice.
  18. Steve R.
    2 tennis courts. And Bern's only 10 minutes or so away.
  19. Steve R.
    Although I appreciate the sentiment you're expressing, I don't agree. I'd rather they feel it still necessary to hide, as their reading of the acceptability of their ideas -- whether they're correct or not -- may also lead to acts that they also feel would now be acceptable; acts that may cause greater pain than those done under cover of darkness & fear. Secondly, when these ideas are out there, more impressionable folks may grab on to them than if they were less publicly visible. Thirdly, although I know that durian exists & is even loved by some, I'd rather not see it on the table or have to smell it.
  20. Steve R.
    Well, without trying to start a definitional argument that no one ever wins and usually never ends, I'll just say that what I meant by "red sauce place" was Italian American food that is pretty different from what's served anywhere in Italy I've ever gone, may be of low or high ingredient quality but is more "home cooking" than culinary school fare & is more likely to have menu items that folks of our American parents' & grandparents' generations would recognize. So, meatballs with pasta as a main course or shrimp parmigiana with pasta & grated cheese would definitely be on the menu -- both served with red sauce/"gravy" .
  21. Steve R.
    The Filmore East had 3 price ranges: $3, $4 & $5 until they added $.50 to each. I sat in the very last row once, at a Frank Zappa concert (before the days of Flo & Eddie). The sound & sight lines were still great. Just as an aside, I should mention that there were many Dead concerts in the '70s & '80s where no 2 of the band were in sync or in the same key. The Joshua Light shows & soaring Garcia leads still made it all worthwhile.
  22. Steve R.
    Oh, there are many red sauce places that are good throughout NYC. I was just giving the ones I thought were best bang for the buck in the desired Theater District & adjacent areas that would be easy for the poster to get to. Parkside & Piccolo Angelo are my own favorite places to eat, with Monte's a nice choice as well. On the upper $$$ end there's still Il Mulino & the trendy Carbone (which is really good but, in my opinion, overkill). In my own Bklyn neighborhood there is Queen, Marco Polo, Red Rose & more.... other Bklyn neighborhoods have quite a few others, including New Corner & Tomasso's in the Dyker Hts area & Bamonte's in Williamsburg. In Queens, some folks still like Don Peppe (I never did). Don't make me keep listing.
  23. Steve R.
    Well, there was the 1969 outdoor concert on the lawn at Stony Brook where the Jefferson Airplane went thru their entire Volunteers album, trying to sing loud enough to be heard across Long Island Sound to where the New Haven trials were being held. I think you got the date of that Dead concert wrong -- what's the correct date? If you just transposed the year and it was '71, then I wasn't there -- I was at Stony Brook cutting classes. I never get tired of listening to versions of Dark Star. The Live album where they wind up singing Incredible String Band's "And We Wish You Good Night" is a classic. Actually, the ISB's original is great as well.
  24. Steve R.
    Becco is fun & I do like going once in awhile, especially if the daily pastas are interesting that day. However, it really isn't a solid red sauce joint. If/when you hit NYC again, maybe I can get you to Parkside in Queens, the very definition of an old skool red sauce place.
  25. Steve R.
    This is sad. One of those who I've loved listening to since the late '60s, but never got to see in person. And I agree that he's one of the artists (like Dylan) whose material should be listened to as done by others' voices as well as his own. And not just "Suzanne" by Judy Collins or "Bird on the Wire" by Tim Hardin. "Tower of Song -- the Songs of Leonard Cohen" has some very good moments (its a collection of songs by other famous artists) & I really like "Famous Blue Raincoat -- the Songs of Leonard Cohen" by Jennifer Warnes as well.
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