Ericandblueboy

Never even heard of Barker Black. I've heard of Psycho Bunny... http://www.psycho-bunny.com/servlet/StoreFront

That's because you have to, otherwise your wife will kick your ass

When the restaurant has a dress code and you don't follow it, as Mrs. B points out above, that is disrespecting others. So you talk out of both sides of your mouth?

I'm definitely bummed that I can't make this....going around the beltway around 6 is INSANE!!

It isn't wrong but it is disregarding the policy of the restaurant (I assume there is a written dress code in this case). Thinking you are above the law or rules makes you the snob, not those who obey the rules "exclusionary" as asserted by another poster. As for people browbeating wait staff, it has nothing to do with how they dress - if there is a correlation, it's a tenuous one at best. Disobeying the law and the rules will directly lead to the collapse of civilization - see Iraq. Wearing suitable attire has no such direct causal effect as far as I can tell.

Really? So there's no problem with the table next to you farting and belching eh? I'm with Waitman on this one.

I was at Volt this weekend. My wife was sitting next to me. When I wasn't looking down at the food, I wasn't starting at my wife either. I was observing the kitchen and other people in the room and there were plenty of people observing us as we sat at Table 21. Plus, we both enjoy people watching. We're bad people.

There is no official dress code for the opera so you see a wide variety of get-ups. But once the opera starts, the lights are dimmed and your focus is on the stage. So what people wear to the theatre does not bother me.

This discussion is about having a dress code. Yes, I am concerned about my appearance and I am concerned about the appearance of others. If that's not the case, Hollywood stars would all look like Kathy Bates and not Megan Fox. Is this where you jump in and call me shallow? Maybe you are better than me deep down inside but I really couldn't care less as long as you follow the dress code.

No one has explained to me why he/she would intentionally flout a restaurant's dress code. If a restaurant does try to enforce its dress code, do you get miffed?

The establishment is in the business of selling food and making money. I'm there to eat. An eyesore does bother me because I'm eating.

If the restaurant says business casual, why do you flout their rules? Where do you draw the line? What if someone walks in to a restaurant with nothing but speedos? What if that person is hirsute like an ape and has big swelling acne to boot on his back?

If you have an employer and such employer has a business casual policy, would you wear jeans to work? I didn't (at least not regularly, I wore sweats or jeans to work on snow days). But people do flout restaurant dress codes on a regular basis. Why? I don't like the hassle of wearing suits everyday and I'm glad we're business casual except when we have client meetings but I'm not uncomfortable wearing my suits. In fact, perfectly tailored suits are much more flattering to my middle aged body than the size small Polos that I bought when I was a little slimmer.

It's up to the restaurants to enforce their dress codes. My wife recently had her torn ACL repaired, as a result she can't wear heels. So she asked me if she could wear flip flops to Volt and I told her no (she wore less cute flats instead). Of course we see all kinds of ratty get-up at Volt and my wife just about kicked my ass. When we were at Komi, there were people walking in with shorts but they were turned away (not sure if it's because they don't have reservation or were turned away as a result of their attire).

#15 Rabbit, Parsnip Puree, Ramp Jus - Again, the rabbit was great but what to do with the green sauce (didn't know what it was but I didn't really like it....that's right, I dipped my finger into the sauce and then I sucked my finger...not behavior normally exhibited at fine dining restaurants for sure) #16 Pork Belly with Orange Zest #17 Aged Sirloin over Moreals and Ramps, Yukon Puree, and pane of Garlic - two dishes before this I had consulted with chef to see what else was coming out because I was full and didn't want to waste any food. We were told these should not be skipped and that certainly was true in my wife's case. She ate more or less both servings of the sirloin (yet I'm the one who looks 3 months preggo after the meal). My impression is that the chef played it safer with the protein (all were perfected cooked and seasoned). There is no lack of creativity with the accompaniments though. #18 Cheese Course - Midnight Moon with ruby beet sorbet #19 Strawberry Ice Cream, Chocolate Ice Cream, Cocoa Powder, and I really don't know what the white stuff is (it's not plastic explosives) #20 I call this White on White on White but it's really lavender with coconut powder and coconut ice cream (or something like that) #21 Mint Ice Cream with the chocolate version of what I don't don't know it is. If Komi is Greek, Teatro Goldoni is Italian, then this is American. My only complaint was the drive home...

#8 Liquid Nitrogen Gazpacho with Cumin Foam - like a gazpacho sorbet #9 Bibb Salad - lettuce granitee, dehyrated bacon, blue cheese mousse, and [wine dressing in capsule (?)] Things up to this point were pretty wild, not as wild as Minibar but not too far from it. It reminded me of Alinea - certainly creative and on the cutting edge but well conceived. #10 Halibut - with crab meat and asparagus in risotto. This is the first main course. The fish was beautifully seared and well seasoned but I did not like the vanilla flavored sauce. There were small chunks of crab meat and asparagus in the risotto which was cooked al dente. I could see the crab and the asparagus but I could not taste them. #11 Stripe Bass with Artichoke Heart - the fish had the skin on which imparted some fishiness which offended my wife (she doesn't eat chicken skin either ) #12 Onion Soup - with clear noodles, frozen foie gras powder and celery leaves - this just didn't do much for me, the noodles were flavorless, everything was serve at room temperature so it was a bit odd #13 Tempura Sweetbread - there was some veal jus, some calamata olive puree, some other spices. I loved the tempura itself and I mostly ate it with the veal jus (and pureed olives were also quite nice). I was frankly confused by the myriad of options that could accompany a small morsel of sweetbread. #14 Goat Sausage with Broccolini - tastes like sausage but looks like a filet....wonders never cease

We went to try out Volt's 21 course tasting yesterday. Here are the courses in order: #1 Chocolate Cake - sweet and strong, not my cup o' tea but so my wife happily sucked down two glasses #2 Chips & Dip - in this case, dyhydrated prosciutto is dipped in potato foam (betcha can't eat just one!, but there aren't more than 2 per person ) #3 Peas and Carrots - with lavender air, the peas are not solid but pea soup in capsules #4 Ruby Beet Macaron - filled with cream of foie gras, very nice! #5 Sweet Corn Ice Cream with Shad Roe - the shad roe was quite fishy as expected which did not seem to go well with the ice cream, but that's just our personal opinion #6 Chicharron with Cotton Candy and Curry Salt - it's a pork rind stick but oh so good. #7 Yellowfin Tuna Avocado Wasabi Roe Soy Foam - this tastes like a piece of tuna sashimi after dipping it into soy sauce mixed with wasabi - pretty amazing stuff.

Who's the bug eyed host (I know her name, but who is she)?

Got a whole pie with pepperoni, sausage, onions, and garlic. I only ate 3 slices and the rest of the pizza is sitting in my car (I've left the sunroof open and the windows cracked, all in the hopes that when I go home after work, the car won't smell too strong). I think the pizza is pretty good, as good as Church St. Pizza. They use small pepperoni (I prefer big slices of pepperoni that gets crunchy during the baking process). I personally like Flippin more than Pietanza.

I enjoy watching the show although I don't think they really need another Food TV personality. I think people tune in to watch the disaster much like Hell's Kitchen. Hollywoodreporter.com

EGA is now open. Still doing buffet for lunch fo $12. The selection is skimpier. Not as many panchan dishes on the buffet, about as many hot dishes as before, and only miso soup (use to have the spicy beef soup in addition to miso). The sushi selection is also smaller. On my only trip, they had shrimp tempura on the buffet - unfortunately they were barely warm and the tempura sauce was definitely cold. They have seafood pancake now whereas the old joint only served scallion pancake. Unfortunately a soda is $2.50. I did not fully scout out the place but I did not see any cook at your table BBQ setup.

Not a big fan of desserts so I went with 4 appetizers last night (which ended up costing $56) while my wife ordered the prix fixe. In my ideal world, every meal would consist of at least 4 savory courses, which meant I starved all day in order to indulge at dinner. The red snapper bisque was interesting. Thinly sliced raw red snapper was placed in the bowl and the the bisque (tastes like lobster bisque) was poured over the fish and thus cooking it. I really liked the fish and I wish there was a little more of it. My wife's pea soup with smoked bacon served cold was well received by her. My second course was the duck egg and leg salad. I shared this with my wife but then I regretted it because I loved the dish. My third and fourth courses consisted of softshell crab and squid ink pasta with crab meat. I'm gonna say I was not a big fan of their softshell crab which was served over a bed of greens. The greens got wilted (as described on the menu) and the softshell got soggy. As for the pasta, I probably could eat a double portion as an entree (in my ideal world, there'd be sea urchin in the pasta as well). My one bite of my wife's rare big eye tuna was fabulous. She tells me the sushi rice and seaweed salad were also fabulous. I did not order dessert thinking we would stop by Moorenko on our way home. My wife tell's me Moorenko is no longer there!

that's what I'm talkin' 'bout!

I would very much prefer them cooked in the shell so that you have to get your fingers dirty eating. Crabs taste better with effort, I think. I also like bitter gourd (the green warty-looking stuff also used in Chinse cooking?). I'll see about rounding some folks up for this feast - worst case scenario I drag my unsuspecting wife and mother-in-law (guaranteed to never have thought about eating curry crab in shell). I guess I'll just e-mail you with respect to a time and date with plenty of advance notice?

Chef Seth, can I persuade you to prepare a crab masala with a whole dungeness crab (or perhaps you can suggest another crab if dungeness isn't the best tasting iin your opinion)? I can go to either Spice Xing or Passage to India. While I'm at it, I might as well ask if you'll prepare a chili crab. Anyone else interested? Maybe we can organize a crab tasting outing if chef Seth agrees to prepare the crab(s).