Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

I just got back from Corton. The website asks guests to refrain from using flash photography and cell phones. I accept that gladly. You quote Drew here as saying,

"No, we're not going to stop people from taking photos," Nieporent said. "We'd just like people to be considerate of the other people in the restaurant.""

So why, when I entered, was I told that no photography was permitted. I asked nicely and was told, "no". The host asked the chef and reiterated that it was not permissible. I explained that I would not use a flash. I explained that I would not use the photos online nor for any commercial purposes. Still, my request was refused. I feel lied to based on the website only saying that "flash photography" was not permitted and also the quote here from Drew. So Drew, why is this?

The food at Corton was good but, just like Momofuku Ko, I won't be back. I see no reason to reward restaurants who don't consider my desire for a permanent memory, valid. They can make any policies they like but I still get to chose where I dine. I also chose to deal with people who advertise honestly. Drew said that, "we're not going to stop people" but that is just what they did. That to me is deceptive.

In the interest of full disclosure, the host did comp a round of drinks for us because of this. Still, it, (please, please, pardon the pun, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Lettuce? Whaddya, crazy? Why? It adds nothing. Maybe some arugula (strong flavor) under the burger if you need a built-in salad, but plain old lettuce would just disappear.

But tomato in the grilled cheeses sounds good. Gotta have tomato on a cheeseburger.

I'm thinking maybe blue and swiss/Gruyère/Comté for the cheeses (one each), if not all extra-sharp cheddar. If using jalapeño cheddar (or better yet, habanero cheddar), only in one sammy, plain cheddar on the other. Otherwise the chiles will overwhelm everything else.

Bacon only if using cheddar. And not too much. Still have to taste the burger. Balance is important.

I finally popped my White Manna cherry:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/klg19/3965799933/sizes/l/

DAMN. That is a good, good burger.

I am surprised that only @Divadog mentioned banana pudding - my, my, how well I remember my first taste in South Carolina - would love a real recipe - up here in Canada one can get banana cream pie, but it cannot touch southern banana pudding.

Also, hush puppies, not the mass produced ones, but the lovely crispy, fluffy ones produced in small restaurants - bliss.

Frogmore stew or Brunswick stew - I have seen it called both, but I have reproduced it in Canada to rave reviews - I had to buy my Old Bay seasoning stateside, though I believe if you shop around in specialty stores you can find it now.

Deep fried okra, biscuits, shrimp & grits - need I go on - our vacations in the South necessitate a great deal of restraint.

I have mentioned before how lucky people in the South are, to have both sweet and non sweet ice tea available at almost every restaurant you enter. There is absolutely nothing nicer than to walk in from the torpid heat and humidity and have a large, cold glass of tea!

@ralaw: Yes, it is a "bad word". But in the RAE has 3 definitions.
http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltObtenerHtml?origen=RAE&LEMA=pinche&SUPIND=0&CAREXT=10000&NEDIC=No

I really hate pickles on a chicken sandwich period, no matter who makes it! I always pick them off!

pierogies are not good at veselka.

I attended Oakland High School in Oakland California in the late '50's. The lunches in the school cafateria were not really that bad. In particular I liked the hamburgers, they had a very distinct taste, a taste that I have not found in any hamburger I have eaten since. Something was added to the hamburger meat during preparation to give it the distinct taste, I suspect that it was a condiment but to this day I have been unable to recreate the taste. I have been looking for information on a cookbook that the Alameda County public schools may have been using at the time, perhaps it would have the recipe for the hamburgers.

"You can get a better egg sandwich at any corner deli."

If you live somewhere that HAS corner delis. Our only breakfast options are a bad McD, Chick Fil A (gag), or Hardees. So we are VERRRRRY happy to have Starbucks' breakfast sandwiches!!!!!!!!!!

this thread deserves its own page perma marked, in-n-out kills!!!!

I have a vegetable collection that is older. They used to have these things called jars and you could put things in them and it would make them last for a long time. If only we could recreate this somehow without the jars. That would be amazing.

I love Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria and now even more since they joined my favorite website in the world for food delivery from restaurants http://los-angeles.eat24hours.com/pizza
Size Matters!!

You can find ALL the information about fish and seafood at:

www.EatFish.com

GREAT SITE!!!