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Ericandblueboy

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  1. Ericandblueboy
    @Tom Sietsema fairly recently wrote about some new old school dishes at Convivial. So Steve and I went to check them out. We started with Quenelles Nantua (light crayfish dumpling, Cognac-cream sauce, dill, trout caviar). I've only had the pike quenelles at La Chaumiere before and was eager to try a different version. I have to say the textures are similar, i.e., light and fluffy. The dumpling (there's only 1) itself didn't have a ton of flavor, but the sauce is intense, like a lobster bisque. The crawfish were overcooked and not really worth eating. At the same time we had Pâté en Croûte (foie gras, duck breast, cured pork shoulder, veal sweetbread, Banyuls-pork reduction, pistachios, savory pie crust). These went very well with the freisee salad. For our entrees, we had to try the Pithiviers de Pigeon, with "layers of green cabbage, foie gras mousse and squab (young pigeon)...beneath a veneer of puff pastry." That dish is amazing - super tender squab and luxurious foie gras. Lastly we ate Cassoulet au Confit de Canard (confit duck leg, Toulouse Sausage, cured pork belly, garlic sausage, stewed Tarbais Beans). It was tasty but we couldn't finish it - too much protein. With wine, dinner was about $100/person before tax/tip. Well worth the money.
  2. Ericandblueboy
    Peter Prime leaves Cane due to "private family matter."
  3. Ericandblueboy
    Had brunch there today with the kids. The donut holes were dusted with sugar and cinnamon powder, 6 for $10. The fried calamari was nicely seasoned and crispy. The portion was just enough - not too much so you don't get full just eating them. The biscuits were topped with poached eggs and then gravy. The pizza is definitely not Neapolitan, but the crust is soft and pretty tasty.
  4. Ericandblueboy
    Not sure but it was awhile ago. For awhile, Roberto was running a cooking school out of his house via Zoom.
  5. Ericandblueboy
    Had dinner at Kinship last night with Steve. We ordered 5 dishes to share Started with an amazing potato crusted veal sweetbreads served with an onion and spinach sauce. The sweetbreads were very tender, as expected. The oniony sauce had just a hint of sweetness that worked beautifully with the sweetbreads. The second dish is the polenta and olive agnolotti served with artichokes. The artichoke and olive flavors dominated the dish. The third dish is the sauteed filet of corvina served on bed of cannelini beans. The texture of the fish was not flakey. Steve suggested the texture is the result of sous vide. Neither of us really enjoyed that texture. The fourth dish is the roasted pekin duck breast. Super tender and flavorful. I love duck, especially when executed perfectly. The final dish was the glazed beef short rib. Again, tender and flavorful. Another winner. Always wanted to try the roast chicken but got sidetracked as usual.
  6. Ericandblueboy
    So he would only eat scrapple in PA? That is weird. I guess scrapple is not green eggs and ham.
  7. Ericandblueboy
    Rehoboth and Bethany Years ago, there's a Mexican place on Route 1 call La Tolteca. They served the type of Mexican combinations I grew up eating in Atlanta. Now it's called La Tonalteca - they no longer have a 3 item combo like burrito, enchilada and taco. (La Tonalteca's been there for years, the name change or takeover happenede many years ago) We stopped in on the way there and it just didn't taste all that good. The fajita is a beef stir-fry as opposed to grilled steak that's sliced. Having not had a decent Italian sub for years (tried Italian Store, A Litteri, Di Pascuale's in Baltimore), I went Casapulla's. I had been to Al Casapulla's near Bethany and their Italian was terrific. Casapulla's in Rehoboth makes the sub the same way and it was delicious. Wanted to go to Henlopen Oyster for dinner but it had a 45 minute wait so we went to Salt Air. Salt Air is a distant second to Henlopen Oyster. Their "Bolognese" is just marinara with ground beef. Took the kids to Bethany on the following day. Had brunch at Bethany Blues BBQ. We ordered the special, chocolate Belgian waffle. A normal cold waffle came out and we had to ask for syrup. The menu says kids items comes with a side of fresh fruit. We didn't get it and we asked for it. The response is it doesn't come with fresh fruit. WTF - then fix your menu. The St. Louis ribs were edible. Lastly, we went to Confucious because the kids wanted dumplings. I find the place expensive and mediocre. 6 smallish dumplings for $11. $12 for 5 pieces of rubbery salt and pepper squid.
  8. Ericandblueboy
    Open now for indoor dining according to FB.
  9. Ericandblueboy
    Spending MLK Jr. weekend in Rehoboth. Anything new and exciting?
  10. Ericandblueboy
    Padaek is the renamed BGIII. It's the same owner. The mom did move to Thip Khao and the son took over Padaek, but I haven't seen any difference in quality or flavor. Unfortunately Steve and I found out they're take-out only for now.
  11. Ericandblueboy
    I’ve stayed at Boar’s Head. Ate at The Ivy Inn. Boar’s Head is a solid 3 star. The Ivy is very good. This was summer 2020.
  12. Ericandblueboy
    I was supposed to fly to Milan next Tuesday for a few days in Turin, Milan and Venice. Today I was supposed to have my solar panels installed. They came right on time but apparently the townhouse is higher than expected (they sent a site assessor months ago). So the ladders weren't high/secure enough. If the solar panels aren't installed this year, I don't get the tax credits until 2023. So I canceled my trip to Italy to have my solar panels installed next week. This is the 2nd trip this year I had to cancel (first was wiped of by the hurricane that knocked out New Orleans).
  13. Ericandblueboy
    Now you're paraphrasing Huey Lewis.
  14. Ericandblueboy
    What night is Tuscan Steak Night?
  15. Ericandblueboy
    This is immensely helpful. I have no desire to eat Japanese food while listening to dance music.
  16. Ericandblueboy
    I would not spend $26 on 4 shu mais. I went to Vinh Kee this weekend, I think their shu mais are now $6 for 4. I didn't get them either (not because they're not good, I just prefer their shark-finless shark-fin dumplings, 3 for $5). ETA - I guess they tried to justify the cost because of the microscopic amount of foie? Just saw the menu description in Bart's menu photo. Steve and I went to Queen's English earlier this summer - didn't write it up as we didn't think that meal was anything special.
  17. Ericandblueboy
    Purchaser will buy subject to existing leases. Landlords generally have no right to unilaterally terminate a lease. Presumably Nakazawa will stick around, maybe even have an entrance from inside the hotel.
  18. Ericandblueboy
    I think Tim Ma is very over-rated. He’s like a local celebrity chef except none of his restaurants ever last.
  19. Ericandblueboy
    Why not be safe and book the chef’s omakase at Sushi Taro? Nakazawa is even better but you probably don’t want to patronize a place in the Trump hotel.
  20. Ericandblueboy
    On Wednesday, I went to Zuppardi's. Ordered a fresh clam (they also make canned clam) pizza, half with mozz and half w/o. I can taste the brininess of the fresh clam juice, the crust is slightly crunchy on the bottom but soft on top. The mozz is light, so there's not much difference on both sides. I think this is the best clam pizza. Modern Apizza is slightly behind. On Friday, I went to Frank Pepe in Hartford. It's not clear if the clams are fresh or not - they tasted very chewy. The crust is very crispy. No cheese - no option to have cheese as far as I know. I can't say I enjoyed it at all. I also went to the Mystic Aquarium (small but they have Beluga whales), Mystic Seaport Museum (recreated fishing village that's pretty interesting), walked the entire Cliff Walk in Newport (ate at White Horse Tavern - food's so so), and visited the Wadsworth in Hartford.
  21. Ericandblueboy
    Steve and I went to check out the $75 5 course tasting menu last night. I would say the portions are quite generous and many dishes were quite salty, but overall well worth the money. Bisque Homard - classic bisque of Atlantic lobster with cognac & cream. Delicious but definitely quite salty. Boudin Blanc a la Périgourdine - Guinea Hen, foie gras, black truffle, butternut squash mousseline. A very smooth sausage - I couldn't tell that it had Guinea Hen, foie gras or black truffle. Flétan en Croute de Poireaux - slow-cooked leek-crusted Halibut, in a sauce Chablis. I loved the leeks, and I thought the fish was fine but Steve complained that the fish wasn't flakey. Yes the fish wasn't flakey so texturally it wasn't perfect. Canard Muscovy en Deux Façons -roasted breast of Muscovy duck, crispy duck leg 'cigarillo', braised turnips, griotte-Armagnac gastrique. The cigarillo (looks like tiny springs rolls) were very salty but the duck breast was nicely cooked (medium rare). I didn't finish the dish because I was getting full. Nougat Glacé - frozen parfait of white chocolate, caramelized pistachio, candied orange zest.
  22. Ericandblueboy
    Going on a clam pizza tasting next week. Will hit up Zuppardi's and Frank Pepe. Any recs for food in Mystic CT, Newport RI, or Nowalk CT?
  23. Ericandblueboy
    I'm on the 5th season of Downton Abbey. Didn't realize people drop dead almost at the rate of Game of Thrones. Love this shit.
  24. Ericandblueboy
    So do you tip when you pick up your car? I use to only tip when I pick up my car. When I was in college (30 years ago) and worked as a valet, I was generally tipped when people picked up their cars.
  25. Ericandblueboy
    1) No clue. I can't remember the last time I ate at a restaurant actually bearing a person's name. Izakaya Seki is named after the chef - the only one I recall. 2) I would never order anything that sticks out like a sore thumb, in fact, I'd avoid that restaurant altogether. 3) Never occurred to me to ask random people about food suggestions. Most people aren't foodies and will give shit recco. 4) You probably end up at a chain restaurant. 5) But that doesn't mean it'll appeal to you.
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