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Yeah, the old class warfare thing.

I suppose it makes no difference to the dining experience if the tables are formica instead of linened, if plastic forks are used inmstead of silve, and if the wine is decanted into a milk jug.

A "fine dining experience" consists of a thousand little details, and the decorm and dress of the others in the restaurant are not insignificant among them.

mocking something doesn't mean it's not real. Class warfare still exists and this thread is a pretty good example of it. 99% y'all.

Comparing what a restaurant decides to put in place for the experience of their customers (which can and does include an explicit dress code) vs what people choose to wear in the absence of one isn't apples to apples. This entire conversation has been about customers judging customers about things that don't matter. If the restaurant doesn't feel like a patron fits their mission, it's their determination whether or not to serve that person. It's not the snob at the next table over who doesn't think someones jeans are designer enough to fit their definition of smart casual.

I must tell you: "they're dying art forms and the view that they're just for the rich is a driving force behind it."

Wow. Just wow. I've stood breathless in opera houses as recently as several days ago, feeling indeed fortunate to experience them. On my bucket list is watching the opera in the 2000 year old amphitheatre in Verona-which we will do in late August. Your believing this is a "dying art form" is just a remarkable statement.

We have different values. And I drove a cab through college and for a number of years after... In fact my father was a cab driver after WWII and my mother was a waitress. Yet I enjoy the opera.

Of course my mother liked the Nashville opera...the Grand Old Opry.

It's not a belief, it's a fact. The attendance is down across the board. The average age of it's attendees is increasing year after year and unless younger people start embracing it, it will be dead. This is why generation o exists, and quite honestly the class issue is part of it.

Sorry, but I don't agree with your analogies. You put on suit to the interview to impress/show respect for the interviewee. You put on a suit for court to show respect for the judge. You dress up for church to show respect for God, or the pastor. Who is disrespected if you don't dress up at a restaurant? Do you think the chef cares? The other diners?

I got called out by another patron once for wearing jeans to a play at the Kennedy Center. She said it showed a lack of respect to the performers. I told her I had been an actor for most of my life, and all the performers care about is that the people watching the play are comfortable. That's how I feel about restaurants as well.

this pretty much sums it up for me.

In regards to the theater, opera, National Symphony, etc. I'm pretty sure they're just happy to have people attending and couldn't care less how people are dressed. They're dying art forms and the view that they're just for the rich is a driving force behind it. And the one of the reasons it is viewed that way was because of the perceived dress code and using it to create class divisions.

I had a response that I deleted. It occurs to me that if a t shirt, shorts and flip flops on K street in a restaurant with entrees in the $30's isn't a consideration there is nothing that I can say that might be appropriate. We simply have different values. It is best for me to say no more.

The point of my question is that it's a fair and reasonable thing to be offended by the behavior of others that impact you. Their choice in clothes however doesn't. Actions should carry far more weight than wardrobe.

Yes, it is a matter. At ....... almost ten years ago a group of eight people were seated next to us. Three of the men had t shirts, shorts and either flip flops or sneakers. They were also noisy. There are all kinds of description of casual from smart to dressy, etc. Then, there is for lack of a better description: beach casual. It might work in Ocean City or even Santa Monica-it might even be the norm but is inappropriate in a restaurant on K street where dinner can run $100 or more a person.

I asked the host on duty if there was a dress code when we left noting how several were dressed at the table next to us. He said something like they resisted enforcing anything since so many tourists visited them.

That was ten years ago. I have not been back to this restaurant.

Anyway, that's me.

Was your issue what others were wearing or their behavior? If they hadn't been noisy would you have felt the same way?

Next month we're staying at the Sheraton on the other side of I-35, less than a half-mile from Franklin. Is it possible to walk down East 11th, or is the freeway overpass not pedestrian-friendly? And by what time are they typically "sold out" on Fridays and Saturdays?

you should be able to walk there no problem. I think the sell out mosts days by 1230, but there's no way of knowing that you'll get anything until you get in line. I do know that people start lining up at around 1000-1030.

Heading to Austin this Thursday for a long weekend with a pretty big group (12 guys). Staying at a house on the lake and looking for any recommendations for:

-Sports bar to watch the Caps game on Saturday

-BBQ that I can pick up and bring back to the house

-Potentially portable breakfast items / coffee (to bring back to the house as well)

I will have a car, so anything out by the lake or downtown Austin (understanding its about 20 miles round trip) is fine.

Also, a shout out to all those who have left pretty detailed notes above...they're extremely helpful.

This should help: http://www.fedmanwalking.com/content/archives He just completed a series of in town BBQ reviews. I really liked Stiles Switch, it's open later than JMeullers and Franklin and doesn't sell out like those do.

for breakfast:http://pablitosbakery.com/ Their tamales are great, so are their breakfast tacos. They also have donuts, churro's and a wide assortment of mexican baked goods. The people who work there are also amazingly nice and helpful.

has anyone been lately? How does it compare to the RJ days (the last time I was there)?

Has anyone gotten a doberge from here?

You're right (how do other websites handle this problem?)

using this: http://www.stopforumspam.com/ it should help cut down significantly on the total number of bots that get through.

That's very doable - can you handle it on your end? Problem is, if they don't complete the validation process correctly (or honestly), I'd need to delete the posts manually and it becomes sort-of ugly looking, especially if people reply to their posts. We could try it for awhile and see how it goes, but I think it might be asking for trouble.

Do you think that allowing Visitors to post in the Help Needed forum obviates this need?

you're going to want to moderate everything and then choose what gets posted or not, otherwise you'll be overrun by posts from bots if you allow them to post while waiting to validate.

trader joes had some good ones

So we should be content with dry chewy and flavorless brisket, chalking it up to how hard it is to run a modern day BBQ restaurant?

www.onlysouthernpeoplecouldpossiblknowgoodbbqandonlytheiropinionmatters.com

Or

www.dontblametherestaurantblametheprocess.com

??

considering other places in the country can do it, I don't see how you can blame anything on how hard it is to run anything. Some people execute well, some don't. By the sounds of it, Pork Barrel does not.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2011/12/gifts-modernist-cuisine-cook-slideshow.html#show-202665

I use this method and it's been flawless and ridiculously easy. http://www.colorkitten.com/2011/03/yum_yum_yogurt.html

The first sentence simply isn't true in all cases. I believe Dean shared his personal experiences and stated that a significant portion of the coupon users did a "blow-out" meal at his restaurant. I usually spend at least twice the face amount of these certificates - partly because these certificates aren't priced to cover an entire meal. $60 for dinner doesn't buy 2 apps, 2 entrees, and 2 desserts at any half decent recent. The $80 certificate sold by Sushi Taro doesn't even cover half of 2 surf 'n turf kaiseki (priced at $110 per person). Sure there are cheap bastards out there who are trying to reap the maximum benefit but even at 1/4 of face value, a restaurant is probably breaking even. I don't doubt some restaurants cut corners but that's not been my personal experience and I've used the certificates at Bra. Beck, Kushi, Againn, Malaysia Kopitiam, among others. So if a restaurant with a reputation for quality is offering discounts, I'm more than happy to take advantage of them.

it may not be true in all cases, but I'd suspect it's probably most cases. Springfield Butcher's yelp page (http://www.yelp.com/biz/springfield-butcher-springfield) is a great example of this. They noticed that most people came in to spend just the amount that was listed on the groupon, so they put up a sign about it. I definitely think most people that buy coupons are doing it for a bargain, not to stretch their dining dollar.

Watched the No Reservations New Orleans/Cajun Country episode...the boucherie segment looked truly amazing...perhaps one of the best (and primal) segments ever filmed for No Reservations.

I would love to attend such an event...anyone know how to get invited to one?

There are public ones, some of the towns will do then as part of larger festivals. I know Eunice does them as part of their Mardi Gras.

I got an Auman temp controller, but I haven't hooked it up yet. That's what I like about the WSM, it can hold temp for a long time, w/out adding extra coals. The easiest meat for me is pork shoulder, throw it on, cook it as long as you can, then pull & add some NC vinegar BBQ sauce-pretty hard to screw it up. It seems to me that there's more of a 'sweet spot' for brisket, not too long (dry) & not too short (tough). I have made pretty good chili, out of leftover brisket that I wasn't real happy with-I just didn't grow up eating brisket, so I don't feel that I'm a good judge. Your burnt ends look scrumptious....

The trick is to not buy just the flat. Most of the ones that are in grocery stores are pre trimmed and don't have enough fat to render down on a long cook. Once it gets to 190 internal probe it periodically. When it goes in and out easily, it's done. Wrap it in foil and park it in an ice chest for an hour or 2 to rest. Then slice it up. If you're going to do burnt ends, separate the flat from the point, wrap the flap and chop up the point. Season the point, put it in a pan and put it back on the pit for a couple of hours. The pics were from before that second cook. Now they're a lot darker and crunchy.

That's a serious looking smoker/grill-does it use charcoal or wood? I think I see some probes, do you use an electronic monitor?

I have a Weber Smoky Mt (22.5) & a Weber kettle, as well as gas CampChef stoves & an electric smoker, but I've yet to master the art of using more than one at a time, fortunately, the WSM holds a lot of meat. Your brisket looks great, I think that's the most difficult meat to get right...Uty

I can burn both, but I only really use charcoal to get it starting. About a year ago I bought a cord of hickory/cherry/apple so I've been trying to get through it and doing a decent job at it.

yeah. I have a Maverick ET-732. It's not perfect but it does the job. When you say electronic monitor, you mean a fan controlled by a computer? If so, no. They work really well for UDS and WSM style but not offsets like I have. I have to feed the beast about every hour or so.

Brisket for me is the easiest/most consistent. I think it's just a matter of getting the technique down, paying attention the meat and for the most part ignore the thermometer.

Yesterday I did a big cook for some friends and decided to do a little more for some co workers.

I cook on this:

It's a custom made pit by Gator Pits out of Houston.

I did 2 chickens, a pork shoulder and 2 briskets.

[

One of the briskets I took the flat and turned it into burnt ends.

start to finish about 19 hours but completely worth it.

We go to Lafayette next week and I forgot about this thread; result was I stated another one that I should not have.

Question: Cafe Des Amis in Breaux Bridge? Cafe Vermilionville in Lafayette? The Old Tyme Market for shrimp and/or oyster Po oys in Lafayette: has anyone been?

olde tyme is great, so is juliens.

if you're going to be near new iberia, you need to check out victor's cafeteria.

Last batch I got were from Harris Teeter. I recently sent an email to Wegmans asking them to carry them. They said that there wasn't enough requests to carry them, but like all things, if more people ask then they'll carry it.

Maybe I need to read the piece again, but my takeaway wasn't so much that the goal was to enable your child to discern between the various Roqueforts (Matt still does not tolerate anything more than a speck of strong blue cheese, and he recently compared Indian pickles to drain cleaner). I don't think this level of discernment is any more important than blind-tasting wine (it's a nice parlor trick, but at the end of the day, that's about all it is). Maybe a pork chop with fresh mashed potatoes and broccoli (purée) to start with? It's sure a lot more balanced than bagels for breakfast, PB&J for lunch, and mac-and-cheese for dinner. As an aside, does anyone in the entire world like Scotch the first time they try it?

I don't think it is either. But I do think the point is that kids should be exposed to a wide variety of food and that it's the responsibility of the parents to make sure that they are.

When I was in high school, I was asked if I eat to live or live to eat. Being a punk at the time, I said I live to eat, which statement was received with some rolling of the eyes. Now that I'm an adult, I realized that I do live to eat. But the fact that i eat more weird shit doesn't make me better. The fact that your child is a less picky eater also doesn't make her or you any better. Having a wide palate is not a talent.

it kinda does, since for the most part picky eaters are usually eating garbage. chicken nuggets and mac and cheese several meals a week. sure it's easier than trying to fight the battles of getting kids to eat a varied diet, but it also means that you let the terrorists win.

Has anyone actually received terrible service because they don't drink? My wife almost never drinks, and I almost never order a whole bottle of wine, and I've never noticed a drop-off in service. On the other hand, we over-order food on a regular basis. But economic theory (i.e., self interest) suggests that waiters should spend more time catering to big spenders. At the end of the day, they rather earn 20% of $10x instead of 20% of $x. I understand why lower spenders want the same level of service but that's not going to happen in reality. You get better service in first class, you get better service at a Bentley dealer, and you're likely to get better service at a restaurant if you order lots of food and drink. I guess I don't doubt people getting the shaft when they don't order lots of food/drink but I can understand why.

we don't drink and I've never had a problem. In fact most of the time we both drink water.