fuzzy510

So long as I had enough notice to ensure I could get off work, I'd be interested.

Anybody have an idea of when "soon" is?

I've heard September 15th, but that's secondhand knowledge at best.

$10 for $20 today at Bobby's Crabcakes over at Groupon.

Until this spring, there was one in Columbia Heights. And isn't there one on Rhode Island Ave NE still?

Yup, and it's been there for at least a year.

Actually, some of us can remain objective. Sorry if that hasn't been your experience.

But plenty of people can't, and as soon as you start taking comps, the line between those who are and are not objective becomes so blurred that it's pretty much impossible to tell who's what.

With the horrors of this season's Top Chef, and the vociferous vapidity of Masterchef, The Next Food Network Star has, for all the crap the Food Network gets from "real foodies," been a real breath of fresh air with interesting and supportive cheftestants, entertaining challenges, and impressive cooking.

Any watchability I got from NFNS was negated by the constant crying that went on. Every week, it seemed that somebody would be crying because they did well, or crying because they didn't, or crying because they didn't know if they could do it anymore, or crying because that one woman wouldn't stand up for our dish, and dammit now I just don't trust her anymore! Absurd to the point of unwatchable.

Maybe it got better this season, but when the only thing I care to watch on Food Network anymore as it stands is Good Eats, and THAT can be readily found online, why make a point to search out another show you're already very down on?

Making a border line inappropriate comment to a customer is not egregious enough offense to get fired for, just as making fun of a customer is not appropriate behavior for a waiter. The waiter mentioned in yesterday's Sietsema's chat needs to be reminded of that. American waiters are perhaps the most overworked and underpaid waiters in the world, but with some notable exceptions most of them certainly are not the most professional waiters in the world.

The PS 7 manager's actions were hasty and perhaps self serving, who knows, restaurant got a lot of free publicity. The restaurant also lost several employees that they spent time to train. If I recall correctly, the fired waitresses were offered their jobs back, but chose not to return, (which may be a reflection on the management). I don't want anyone fired from their jobs, but my heart went to a person who went out for a meal, did what he was supposed to do - eat, but was repeatedly turned into butt of a joke by a waiter obviously oblivious that he was making the complainer uncomfortable.

Pax!

Skipper

So why not, if you know the name of the server, call them out for it? Maybe the manager is overzealous and fires the guy, but I highly, HIGHLY doubt that anybody loses their job over it. Meanwhile, the most that ever happens by just saying that it happened at the restaurant is that the servers are all lectured en masse before shifts, nobody cares, and everybody gets pissed because they're all being talked down to because of the actions of one person.

Meanwhile, if you say that John Doe was your server and did something wrong, management can work with that server to make sure it never happens again.

I can appreciate the thought of not wanting to specifically get somebody in trouble, but that's not your call - if it's egregious enough that management doesn't think they should be working there, then they shouldn't be working there. And at the end of the day, denying information about what made your experience poor is not constructive at all - at that point, whether you're intending to or not, you're just bitching for the sake of bitching. Think about it this way - if your steak came out well done when you ordered it medium rare, the only way that you're going to get a medium rare steak is by saying that it came out overcooked, not just simply saying "This steak isn't good." Nobody can correct a problem if they don't know what the problem is.

To the restaurants: does it matter or is it just annoying when someone has to modify a reservation a few times due to changes in plans, but the end result is still showing up?

I'm actually curious about this too, since someone I know (who is totally not me, why would you think that?) has had issues with constantly changing times or party size in short periods because of problems nailing down specifics of their meal plans.

I have been put on to work Wednesday night, so by necessity, I have to change to a "maybe." I am trying very hard to change my schedule, however.

EDIT: I got my shift covered. Never mind, I'm back in.

I liked when Alex tried to blame his poor performance on something Tom told him and got smacked down. What amazed me even more is that Alex presented his dish as having veal cheeks, when it was veal shanks. He even told Tom in the kitchen that the store didn't have veal cheeks so he got shanks. Then he presented his dish to the tasters and judges as being veal cheeks. Tom seemed oblivious and even in his comments made some remark about how if you make "beef cheeks," you should prepare them well. This is the second week in a row that Tom heard or was told something in the kitchen relevant to the judging and then seemed not to be aware of it at the judges' table.

I'm glad to see I wasn't the only person who picked up on that.

As far as Tom's ignorance, he claimed last week that he wasn't in the kitchen when the pea puree flap went down, and nobody mentioned it while he was there. This week, I can completely believe that he didn't remember the one minute detail in between the chefs' prep time and when they were serving.

As bad of a chef as Stephen seems sometimes, dare I say that it seemed like the judges disliked Alex's dish more, and I would have preferred to see Alex go than Stephen because the latter is a more entertaining personality.

Boring. While last season was so good, I knew this season would not compare, but to fall to this level? Meh.

Still, I can't not watch.

This is pretty much exactly how I feel right now.

For those who couldn't make it, there are photos of the event (and, more importantly, the food that was offered) here.

Dinner tonight at the Jerk Pit. Think Negril, but more expensive, and not as good*. Most everything was lacking in favor, which might as well be a crime when we're talking about jerk chicken, and was extremely fatty to boot. My beef patty tasted off, but my chicken patty was OK. Disheartening, though: the crusts on the two were very different in color, texture, and how they were assembled into the patty, leading me to believe that one or both was bought premade. Not a shock, but I was hoping for better.

* - Note: the management realizes that these two comparisons essentially mean that the Jerk Pit is nothing like Negril, and deeply regrets the craptastic analogy.

For those in the Silver Spring/Takoma Park/Wheaton/Bethesda area...any interest in a quick post-work drink or two at Sidebar? We'll have The Spawn in tow so I don't think we're going to stay TOO long but long enough for a couple of delicious cocktails.

Assuming you mean for Friday, I might join you all - I could use a break from packing.

First off, I'm glad that I accidentally got there early last night - I ended up at the front gates an hour before they opened, and my friend and I were in the first 25 or so folks to get into the ballpark, meaning that I was also one of the first people to get served.

Why is that important (besides the obvious)? The line for food went from the stand on the 3rd base side all the way around to the foul pole on the 1st base side, and never really thinned out much beyond that. Hearing people at the front of the line, they said they had been in line for an hour and a half for food. I had planned on going back in the line later for dessert items, but I just don't have the patience to wait that long for any sort of food item, especially when you start thinking that they'll possibly either stop serving or run out by the time you get up front.

Speaking of the food, DanielK said it best - if you went expecting elite restaurant cuisine, you were disappointed (and, frankly, way unreasonable with your expectations). If you were looking for a gourmet riff on ballpark food, you were happy.

Of what I had:

-The shrimp ceviche with gazpacho "Dippin Dots" was really clever, and had good flavor. Probably the best example on the menu of Bryan being playful with the blend of gourmet and ballpark.

-The tuna "nicoise" had good flavor, but as noted, the tuna itself was way overcooked. It was served in a plastic sushi-style container, and I suspect steaming in the box had more than a little to do with this.

-I liked the lamb hot dog fine, but I was more of a fan of the condiment (chow chow, I believe?) on top than the hot dog itself.

-My friend wanted to do the soft-shell crab sandwich, which I tried despite not liking soft shell crab. This didn't do anything to change my mind, but I'm not sure anybody could.

-The pulled pork sandwich was my winner of the night. Pretty much exactly what I want out of such a sandwich (minus the boring purchased bun, but only a lunatic would bake bread for this kind of event).

Apparently Bryan was on the local news saying that he'd like to run a concession stand again one night. Can I buy my tickets now?

Oh, and because I'm a man of my word:

EDIT: And I'm apparently a bit slow.

I recommend it to people all the time but they hardly ever go. Is it the location, the name.? People always tell me that they think it will be stodgy food, but it is quite the opposite. Tony Conte is very inventive.

Actually, now that you mention it, I DO have to keep reminding myself that the place isn't stuck in dark ages based on the name alone. It sounds like the name of a place where all the politicians hung out 50 years ago.

No reports yet?

I'll elaborate more a little later, but I have a feeling that I had a significantly better time than most did tonight.

Count me in with pairings.

I was surprised to see a lunch deal at Sushi Ko in Chevy Chase this week. It runs 7 days a week, not just weekdays. $20.10 gets you three courses. First is a choice of miso soup, seaweed salad, and another option I can't remember. Second is salmon ceviche or shrimp tempura. Third is four pieces of sushi and one maki or chicken teriyaki. The seaweed salad was a surprisingly substantial amount; the ceviche has four slices of carpaccio thickness with salmon roe. A surprisingly good deal, given that small plates can cost as much as $12 here. And of course, the overall quality was quite good, making this a steal with respect to a sushi restaurant, especially now that Sushi Taro has upgraded itself.

I would assume that this deal would be unofficially part of Bethesda-Chevy Chase's Restaurant Week instead of an ongoing deal.

Today at Groupon: $15 for $30 at Veritas.

Did it live up to this statement made on their website?

"The Carolina Kitchen is the most amazing and popular southern cuisine restaurant chain in the nation."

I actually ended up working later than I had hoped the night we were supposed to go, so I didn't end up going. With that said, I think we both know the answer to that question.

Apparently Michael Costa of Pazo in Baltimore has been named as Mike Isabella's successor.

Flavored mayos, specifically sriracha mayo.

To be fair, though, what's more overdone than sriracha mayo are people thinking that they're incredibly special for having sriracha mayo as an topping or condiment.

(and no, this isn't a swipe at anybody in particular)