jayandstacey

Tom and Ray’s, originally opened in 1960, has re-opened in Damascus after a 3 year hiatus.  

New location, same folks:

"Tom & Ray's Family Restaurant Reopens in Damascus" by Sam Merrill on mymcmedia.org

And more about Batik:

they are mostly dumplings with some bibimbop (sp?) and other Asian-fusion dishes.  There's a nice mix of adventure and safety on the menu.

Some favorites:

- the sweet green iced tea- not sure why but I drink about a gallon each time I go

- if it's nice out, ask to sit on the second level balcony.  You can watch the traffic go thru the circle and the people walk by from above.

-  We usually order different kinds of dumplings then share tapas style.  

- I've always liked their bulgogi.  

Enjoy!

On 6/21/2017 at 5:11 PM, ktmoomau said:

Any updates for 2016?  I find I will be in that area tomorrow night.  Tell me about Batik, it came up on my google search and looks like something my Mom might like, she loves dumplings.

Welp, 

I moved out of Gaithersburg about 3 years ago.  I do get back occasionally and make a point to go to Batik.  Still love it.  It won't overwhelm you; it's simple and low key (wear shorts or whatever).  

As for the rest:

Roys Place: closed in a trajedy eclipsed only by the Capital's recent loss of Nate Schmidt.  

Growlers:  closed permanently late last week.  Then came back on Saturday, talked of new ownership and plans and mentioned being open that night.  Then Sunday morning announced they were closed.  Go figure?!?

Vasilis:  moved a block away to a bigger locale.  Presumed successful.

Pasha:  I thought I heard it was closing, but looks like it's going strong.  Get the bastillas 100/100 times.

Le Palais:  don't know.

the chains I mention are pretty well known.  

Safe travels and good eats!

1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

This merits a *very* slow, thorough reading. The best satire strikes close to the bone, but what makes this so hilarious (not "laugh-out-loud" hilarious, but "brilliant" hilarious) is that there's just enough poetry in these words to make them parodies of poetry itself, not necessarily pretentious criticism - I loved it.

There's a bit of weird eroticism in the performance between the eager young clammier and the stuffy critic.   You can listen easily here:

https://www.prairiehome.org/shows/54603

Just beneath the whole-show audio link it says "view all audio clips" - click that, the skit is the third from the bottom of the dropdown list, entitled the "Bertrand Falstaff Heine script."  Someone smarter than me might be able to embed it here.  

And yes, they said "view all audio clips".

From the radio show "A Prairie Home Companion" a funny parody of pompous and wordy restaurant reviewers....

This was performed live Saturday night in Seattle, WA.   Both characters pronounced Puget Sound as pue-JAYE. 

I could use a clammelier. 

https://www.prairiehome.org/story/2017/01/07/bertrand-falstaff-heine-january-7-2017

Quote

(RESTAURANT, BAR SOUNDS, LIGHT CONVERSATION)

 

CT (CHRISTIAN): Hello, and welcome to the Cup & Clam. Do you have a reservation?

 

TR (BERTRAND): Yes, my name is Bertrand Falstaff Heine. I called ahead, I'm a critic--to be more specific, a wine critic--a former wine critic. I was fired, a politically-motivated firing, it's not worth mentioning. I'm in town for the weekend, indulging in the coffee and seafood at some of Seattle's most exclusive establishments.

 

CT: Ah, yes, Mr. Heine. My name is Christian. I'll be your ".clammelier " tonight, guiding you through this evening's coffee and clam selections. Table for one?

 

BFH: Yes...my companions seem to have abandoned me this evening. 

 

CT: "One can be instructed in society, but one is inspired only in solitude." Goethe, sir. Will this do? (SFX TABLE)

 

BFH: Ah. Yes. The venerable Goethe. Of course. Well chosen. I think I'll start with a coffee. The Cup & Clam enjoys a reputation as a steaming jewel in Seattle's dark, liquid crown. 

 

CT: Why, thank you, sir. Appreciation from a Midwest luminary such as yourself is always gratifying. Tonight's offering is a unique blend of Brazilian Santos and Jamaican Blue Mountain Arabica varieties. We roast the beans one at a time over a mesquite grill. The taste is like coming to your senses amid the embers of a newly burned chaparral forest. The gourmet chocolate bars you carried have melted into the warm earth. In your pocket, you find a matchbook, missing a single match. Fear takes hold and you begin to run. Your footsteps raise clouds of nutmeg and cinnamon, enveloping you in a fragrant layer of incriminating spice. 

 

BFH: [slightly shaken] I must say, Christian, for a clammelier, that was beautifully put. 

 

CT: I do apologize if I wasn't describing it very well, sir. In the face of beauty, words often dance just beyond the reach of the tongue's fingers.

 

BFH: Astonishing. I expressed much the same lament in my review of the ineffable 2006 Chateau de Chien Napa Valley Sauvignon: "Passion picks the mind's pockets even as it throws wide the prison gates of the mouth." Whatever your momentary shortcomings, rest assured I recognize your sentiments as midwives to the soft pink infant of truth.

 

CT: Your own words, sir... I find myself ill-prepared for the comfort they impart. They fall upon my chapped emotions like a healing balm, a soothing, mentholated ointment of courage.

 

BFH: [quiet, shaken] Yes. You've spoken of coffee. What of the clams? What of the clams, Christian?

 

CT: Yes, sir. From the rocky coasts of the Puget Sound we present our King County Clam Carpaccio. Feathery slices of native butter clams, locally sourced, excavated upon your assent from their beds of wave-rounded, twice-filtered silica and coral sand. Each plate arrives littered with dill needles, calling to mind a beach on Christmas morning, a muted tableau revealed by the tide as it slips out, leaving the wet stones to...

 

BFH and CT: [at the same time]...to observe their silent holiday.

 

CT: Just so, sir.

 

BFH: [full of emotion] I...I want to ask about the carpaccio slices. You used the word "feathery"...

 

CT: Did I? I misspoke. An unworthy description. As transparent as a child's tantrum, each slice is a clear pane of clam-tinted glass, a window into a world where "might have been" is, and always shall be, hinting at the passions that clamor within each of us, and ringing out in sounds as clear as the air itself, singing out for anyone, anyone!... Who is listening? Oh, who is listening?! I am! I listen! I AM HERE!

 

[pause, BFH weeps]

 

CT: [gently] You appear to be weeping, sir. Have I said something wrong?

 

BFH: [hoarse] No, Christian. Not that. I fear I must leave without dinner. I must walk in the darkness, gaze out upon the Sound and perhaps calm the turbulent sea within my own heart. I should think on my life, my choices, the indiscretions of my wasted youth. You've honored me with your stewardship and your eloquence, Christian. Perhaps I'll return tomorrow, when I've gathered my thoughts.

 

CT: Of course, sir. It's been a most genuine and unexpected privilege to serve. But please, sir, bear in mind that if you do return tomorrow, our specials will have changed.

 

BFH: [calm and warm] I hope so, Christian. I do hope so. Goodnight to you.

 

On 12/20/2016 at 5:55 PM, DanielK said:

How do you make a *whole* suckling pig smaller?

With a knife?

(did I win?)

On 8/29/2016 at 10:51 PM, The Hersch said:

I was around during his hits, and remember "Hold What You Got" and several other records from when they were getting play on top-40 radio, but I didn't really start paying close attention to soul music until about 1970, when Memphis soul lay dying. Always late to the party, the story of my life. It's funny, and probably true, what you say about the R-rated, adult-party-record compartmentalizing of the material he was given to record, especially in light of the fact that he was among the most thoroughly church-gospel inflected of all the Memphis soul singers of his era. But I really haven't studied Joe Tex's career in sufficient depth to answer your question.

Here's a very churchy hit from 1965, "The Love You Save (May Be Your Own)":

On the other hand, and more in line with what you suggest, his last single to chart in the U.S. was the 1977 release "Ain't Gonna Bump No More (with No Big Fat Woman)", but I certainly wasn't following his career at that point

Good stuff - yeah, I know his "Show Me" and "Skinny Legs and All" and both are arguably suggestive or more novelty than average.  But...then again...R&B was kind of like that then.  From Joe Turner to James Brown - at least some of this was kept in the basement away from mom and dad. 

Were you around during his hits or following his career? 

I ask only because I was not.  I knew of him only by the late 70s, when he was kind of a footnote.   The hits he had seemed to pigeonhole the guy into a kind of R rated, adult party record mode - which probably paid the bills but (maybe?) kept him from greater things (somewhat like Clarence Carter).   At least, that's the sense I got from afar.  Am I right?  Too bad - he seemed, talent-wise, like a one-man Sam and Dave. 

On ‎8‎/‎23‎/‎2016 at 0:29 PM, DonRocks said:

How is the Cheshire Crab? I have a friend in Baltimore from Dallas, and he wants the best crabs Baltimore (preferably inside the beltway) has to offer, and he's going tonight! 

Where should he go for fresh, Maryland blue crabs, if price is not an object? It can be a total dive, or it can be upscale - he wants the real product.

I recommended Schultz's in Essex and Cheshire in Pasadena, but those are total guesses at this point - it has been a L-O-N-G time since I've had Maryland Blue Crabs in the Baltimore area - too long for me to feel comfortable recommending anything to him.

Sorry, was away on business travel and didn't see this.

I can't say definitively yeah or nay on Cheshire Crab.   I don't recall it being a standout out good or bad; though I may have reviewed it here.   I only recall my 12' mini cooper parked under a hulking 24' boat.  Pretty odd feeling!  

On ‎8‎/‎8‎/‎2016 at 8:21 PM, Rhone1998 said:

The idea of "$250 of travel" assumes the cost of travel is fixed, but it isn't.  That trip to Orlando that the Chase site markets at $250 might be $275 on Expedia and $225 on American Airlines' site, right?  So I don't know if you can measure the value of $XX of travel without comparison shopping, if I'm thinking about it correctly.

Check out The Points Guy's blog.  He's got a ton of good advice on how to get the best redemption from these things.

Yeah, that was always the case too.   You got $400 in points value for using (say) the American Express travel service.   But that $400 in points might have only cost $250 on Expedia, which was the cash value anyway. 

In effect, the programs create a new currency and "value" is relative within the currency and those participating.   But they know the arbitrage game and know that not everyone will bother to do an actual apples-to-apples comparison. 

BUT - through all this, if we pay off our cards in a way that doesn't cost any interest, and have no annual fee, then in fact it is merchants that are funding our points.  Right?  So it's all funny money anyway.   So... I play my skee-ball, get my tickets and go get my army men and crazy pencil erasers.   

On ‎8‎/‎8‎/‎2016 at 7:12 PM, DonRocks said:

I have a fairly ample number of points on my Chase Quicken Visa (I crossed out Quicken because Chase has discontinued their relationship with them). Now that I'm thinking about it, it's actually the blue Chase "Freedom" Visa, which was substituted for the silver Chase "Quicken" Visa sometime earlier this year.

Anyway, up until about a year ago, you could get a discount for air travel, e.g., you could redeem 25,000 points for $400 of travel (as opposed to getting $250 in cash).

However, Chase unceremoniously changed the redemption rules, and now 25,000 points only gets you $250 of travel (as well as the option to get $250 in cash). You have to buy the travel through their own agents, so I don't think there are any discounts or transferable points.

My question is the obvious one: Is there any reason *not* to take cash?

If the answer is "no," then why do these credit cards offer *so many* different types of rewards, when the customers aren't getting any discounts for selecting them? Long-term agreements which they must honor?

From what I see, it makes absolutely no sense not to take the cash, so what reasons are there, if any?

Thanks a bunch in advance.

$250 worth of travel might be, on a good day, worth more than $250 in the market.   But even then, avoiding cash is still only a convenience.

For instance, let's say there's an offer for a $250 round trip ticket to Indonesia. 

a ) that offer might only be for points holders.   In which case it would make sense.

b ) but even if was an offer for cash or points, you could just cash your points directly to the travel instead of the interim step through cash - during which time (the cash out to the purchase) the offer might expire. 

Yes, the automatic "baked in" advantage of points ($400 vs $250) is gone.    They have the right to pull the plug on you, and they did.   There seems to be a trend toward the squeezing of points programs.  The strategy seems to (continue to) be to change programs every now and again, gaining the advantage of being the new customer and getting the come-on offers.   That, or avoid them altogether and just be sure you've got the card with the best rates and terms. 

Hoffman's Ice Cream and Deli, Westminster, since 1947

Baugher's Restaurant, Westminster, since 1948  (there's also a thread on this somewhere here)

Maggie's, Westminster, sign says "established 1903" yet they tout offering excellent service for over 40 years.   So maybe they closed for a while or just changed owners, not sure. 

7 hours ago, DonRocks said:

If so, what is it? For so long, Washington, DC has tried to come up with a city specialty - why don't they go to some of their old-time, family-owned restaurants (what few there are left), and see what they served fifty years ago? They've come up with "Mumbo Sauce," and Gingersnap Gravy has proven that it doesn't need to be anything fancy.

What better way for DonRockwell.com to gain additional notoriety than to determine and crown DC's signature dish(es)?   The members here have the industry gravitas and independence that would likely make such a determination sticky.   And there are lots of examples where sponsorship of some 'flag' is sustaining for the business or organization (think Oscars, Hot Dog eating contests, Winston cup, etc)  Just an off-topic thought...

Kibby's Restaurant - Wilkens Ave, opened 1934

Sour Beef specialist near me:   http://www.harvestinneldersburg.com/

I'm not a big fan - meat swimming in sweet/sour sauce?  Meh... but maybe there's a refined version I haven't tried yet.

From DaveO's linked list, I've been to Kibby's a few times and they have an excellent shrimp salad sandwich, it is their specialty.   It looks like the kind of place that would serve sour beef, if sour beef places can be said to have a look.  So it makes sense to have it on the menu.    

1 hour ago, TedE said:

I thought it was an open secret that most crab houses use JO.  Old Bay is just too damn expensive, even in bulk.  I keep a paper towel handy just to wipe off the excess of either before cracking in.  I do find JO to be less assertive, so the over-spicing isn't as bothersome, but it does have a grittier texture.  A friend liked to remark "Sawdust is the secret ingredient!".

Yeah, and the JO website/blog touts Waterman's as a good place to get crabs...so  I'd give it a 99% confidence rating they're using JO.  But...I've been 99% sure before, only to turn out 100% wrong!

19 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

That's right, I forgot to even mention that it's a westward-facing dock, with views extending southerwardly (how's *that* word?) to infinity, so sunsets here are stunning.

Also, as long as I have peoples' attention, I first went to Schultz's Crab House in the 1980s, and have been back a couple of times. It's somewhat unique in that it's in the middle of a residential neighborhood - the last thing you'd expect to see - but there it is, and it was just fabulous the few times I went (but I haven't been in probably fifteen years). I think it should be considered for an "America's Classics" James Beard Award, but it won't be.

The Cheshire Crab is like that too - driving past houses, take a right at the small sign.   It is connected to a marina - last time I was there, I parked in the boat yard beneath two boats, one above the other on those giant racks, the ones that look like cubby holes but big enough for boats.   My Mini Cooper looked like it could be crushed at any second beneath the hulking hulls.  Have fun on your quest!

My wife and I were fortunate to have visited Saturday night - what a wonderful meal. 

As has been the case there for many years, you start the meal upstairs on the main level of the mansion, sitting on couches in a couple of rooms while hors d'oeuvres are brought around, cocktail-party style.   In reviews I've read, this seems to throw some folks off as it seems like the restaurant doesn't have a table ready for you.  But that's not the case and the 30 minutes or so is a nice 'wind down' from coming in from outside. 

The dining rooms are downstairs in a cellar-like setting, very cozy. 

We enjoyed the six course meal with a wine pairing for my wife.  Everything was delicious (OK, that's not enough of a description...I'll describe one dish...)

My wife ordered a vegetarian main, not on the menu, as created by the chef.   It was terrific - a mix of quinoa, bulgur, farro, and something else, each individually cooked, then some toasted and mixed with consommé.  It was served with another vegetable side and a bit of sauce that was made from a red wine and included tiny bits of onion cracker.   It was really, really good.

I can't wait to go back and to bring my kids who are middle / high school age.   I think it is important to occasionally bring them to places like this to show them how things *could* be - if they work hard, if they slow down, if they develop a taste for the finer things in life. 

On ‎7‎/‎31‎/‎2016 at 1:50 AM, DonRocks said:

I'm going to be looking for THE best crab house in early Summer 2017 - best view, best crabs, cost be damned. Shall I rule out Waterman's? Anyone else?

To answer my own question:  I'd love to see you do a weekly Olympics style approach - where you judge each place on the quality of the crabs (1-10), the atmosphere (1-10), service (1-10) etc.   Heck, turn it into something you do with some of your friends here on the site, where you all eat together, post your scores, toss out the lowest and highest, then post the results and standings each week here on the site. 

Like this: 

Watermans:   Averages:  8.6 - 7.9 - 9.1 - 9.4 - 7.8 - 8.7 = total score, 51.5 - currently in 3rd place

Then show how each judge scored Waterman's - and how the other (already visited) places scored in a summary ranking.   Like an olympic diving competition.   

Possible scoring categories: 

Drinks - Other Food - Crabs - Ambiance - Service - Location

Location is things like a water view, proximity to boats, distance from DC, the overall property.  Ambiance is the effort to make the place 'crabby' and comfortable, to include any music, decorations, lighting, etc.   Note that 1/2 of the categories are edible, the other not - IMHO, crabs are as much an experience, in a time and place with friends, as they are something to eat.    Maybe a 7th category for price, but...does that really matter?   

My wife and I had our wedding rehearsal dinner there - 17 years ago!   We've been back a few times since, both in and out of season.

The uniqueness is, as Don's pointed out, the setting.   The DC area has very few opportunities to enjoy a sunset over an expanse of water.  And here, the restaurant is on a kind of point of land, affording a number of different views toward different angles.   Even the views back toward land are interesting. 

The food, as best I recall, was always steamed crabs and fried most everything else.  I don't think they are looking for the culinary crowd.  But a nice view, huge deck, live music, sunsets and AYCE crabs - that's just fine.  Making specific complaints about their food would be like complaining about Natty Boh.  It kind of misses the point. 

Don, I look forward to the results of your quest.  You'll have to decide ahead of time - am I judging the crabs only?  The ambiance?   the service?   the experience? 

Lastly, it might be worth asking - Waterman's might use JO Spice, not Old Bay.   I prefer JO Spice, but too much of either is too much

6 hours ago, DonRocks said:

This was great!

dracisk asked what was funny about "The Big Lebowski," and I think this has that same type of humor.

Glad you liked it

Two interesting side notes about that film: First, it was a single shot.  Not typical.  Second, the filmmaker paid Springsteen for royalties ($7K) but they didn't include online use.  That would have cost about $50K.  The film won Sundance and he wanted to take it to SXSW...who demanded the online use rights be bought.  The guy couldn't afford it so he wrote an open online letter to Springsteen, pleading his case.  Springsteen then approved the online use without any more $.  So...now we get to see it!

The filmmaker, who's also the writer, is also the star. 

I just watched the Big Lebowski for the first time a few weeks ago.  Yeah, same kind of thing - the humor derives from the absurdity and our ability to step back and remind ourselves..."It's just a movie...just a movie..." and laugh on that basis and that basis alone. 

Kaufman didn't even give us that much rope.  Still doesn't.   

His humor was unique and unsettling.  It was often difficult and confusing to experience in the moment yet tolerable now - I suppose because now we know the ending.  

We don't see that kind of humor (is it really humor?) much anymore.   FWIW, I'll offer this short film as an example that it does still exist.   "Thunder Road" won the 2016 Sundance Music festival's "Short of the Year" chosen from over 8,700 entrants.   For me, it twists a person up the way Kaufman did, and like a good knuckleballer does.  Enjoy

"Thunder Road" on vimeo.com

Point Lookout has interesting paths for walking or biking, including boardwalks through marshes and over water.   They also have a lighthouse.  

I've had St. Mary's city on my to-do list.  I hear it is like a mini Williamsburg.   

1 hour ago, DaveO said:

Tx.  Haven't done research and haven't had any this season.  ....yet.  Many years they were better priced in SOMD and on the Eastern shore, though not necessarily Rehobeth to OC.  But then of course...whose gonna drive 50-100 miles to save $10/15 on crabs.  Not this idiot.

Last time we got a dozen (2weeks ago?), we split them 3 or 4 ways.  It's about the only way to eat them anymore, as more a rare appetizer delicacy than an eat-till-you-drop avalanche.

14 hours ago, DaveO said:

I've looked at a lot of the cbslocal.com pages on innumerable topics in a variety of cities.  On the "best" pages that referenced the different pages for our businesses, wherein I know very well who's been in or not, or who had inquired or not, we NEVER had a record referencing any of the authors.  NEVER.  I checked with a handful of businesses in the different "best" pages in some different cities.  None had a record that the author had visited. NONE.    Meanwhile the blurbs on EVERY article on every cbslocal.com "Best" page INVARIABLY reference something from the website.   Finally the entire onslaught of these pages  (thousands...maybe 10's of thousands) corresponded with a search result "change"...wherein all these cbslocal pages were highlighted for a period on google results.....AND the cbslocal pages had TONS of overwhelming google adsense ads!!!  TONS.

Coincidence or not???

Go to the writers bio's...or research them on the web.  Some writer will write a "best" article about hoagies, dance classes, first date bars, margaritas, bar food, spas with rubdowns, etc etc. etc.  Tell me.  Is that person an authority on all those diverse topics?  I doubt it.

There is more to the story....but I give no value to the authority of the cbslocal best pages.

I really, really wish I'd thought of the click bait business model.  Better still, I really, really, really wish I'd thought of the Google model that drives the click bait model.