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Mustard, Mayo, and sometimes cheddar cheese

ribeye!

Ribeye!

Ribeye!

I beg to differ about only steaming really fresh fish.

First of all, about the first premise, why would should anyone even consider eating fish that is not fresh. Only relegating old fish to the fryer is a VERY bad idea.

Frying fish that is less than prime is a BAD restaurant trick that gets posted as a fish special to get RID of fish.

Whatever fish (or seafood for that matter) you eat should be fresh. Period.

The author sounds like she is fairly Cantonese biased. There are all kinds of cooking methods and preparations. Steamed, baked, roasted, pan fried, grilled, salt baked, smoked, etc.

No matter the preparation, only fresh fish should be used.

I think the author has a good point to steam fresh fish, but that isn't the only preparation around.

Btw, fresh flounder (or other flatfish) filleted, seasoned with sea salt, and very quickly deep fried is fantastic. Be sure to crisp fry the bones shatter-crisp for a real treat.

This dish can be easily found in many Asian countries including China and Japan.

Daily Dozen Donuts at Pike Place Market in Seattle

dana123 - whoa!

first, tipping has nothing to do with how much money you make. why should someone of means feel they should automatically tip for crappy service?

the author should have just brought a piece of bacon and be done with it, and he would have gotten a tip.

by offering a small gesture, at very little cost to the restaurant at that, the customer is much more willing to come back. the restaurant business is a service industry. it is very simple, you make the customer happy, they come back. it isn't called hospitality for nothing.

you must be joking! just because cold hearted employers can't face up to an employee and let someone know they are fired in person doesn't mean it is acceptable. telling someone they are fired by text message is NOT ok.

i would hate to be your employee and endure your cold A** heart and get fired by you!

give me a break!

Yogurt, cheese, pickled items.
Eggs can stay wholesome for 4-5 weeks if properly stored.
Home dry-aged beef, 1-2 weeks in the fridge.

Wow you guys are generous! I follow the three second rule.

Trust me, if you have eaten in enough restaurants in your life, you have eaten plenty of food that has been challenged by being dropped, no matter how long it was on the floor.

Yes, I think it depends on what falls. A crispy piece of fried chicken will pick up a bit less than spaghetti with sauce for instance.

Saveur magazine hands down

Depending on how hard you used the oil, you don't have to throw it away. High temperature is probably the hardest on oil. Frying fish usually results in oil that is a bit fishy in which case frying potatoes helps absorb some of the smell. Flour coated ingredients usually results in a lot of sludge, and that will hasten the break down of the oil.

You can usually strain the oil pretty easily with a fine mesh strainer with a coffee filter or paper towels. Do this twice if you need to. Air will oxidize oil faster than most people realize. I usually use a funnel and store the oil in the empty oil container and keep the lid on it.

You can reuse this oil if it does not smell rancid, you didn't cook too much stuff in it in the first place, and you didn't use too much heat. A lot of smoke, at a relatively low tempurature means the oil is not useable anymore. The more you use an oil, the lower the smoke point. You can raise the smoke point a bit by adding more fresh oil.

Just refrigerating oil alone whether used or fresh won't harm it. Some oils may become cloudy, but that does not mean it is bad, just that it is coagulating. I actually think it will keep longer because it will slow down the oxidization and breakdown from the natural acids in oil, especially pomace olive oil.

Pomace or pure olive oil is extracted using either heat, pressure and/or chemicals to get that last bit of oil out of the olives then filtered. This is a lower grade oil than extra virgin with a higher acid content which will break the oil down much faster, and can result in a bitter taste if over used. However this oil can be used quite successfully for deep frying, just that it won't last long and the smoke point is much lower than other cooking oils.

When cooking oil smokes, it is an indication that it is breaking down, and volitilizing. Extra virgin and other semi-refined oils smoke a lot (butter does too, unless clarified) when heated too hot.

Extra virgin olive oil really should not be used for general purpose deep frying because it has a low smoke point and will break down very fast.
Peanut oil and grapeseed oil have the highest smoke points, at about 400 farenheit, and are very good for deep frying. Canola, corn and cottonseed oil is good for general purpose frying but remember the smoke point for these oils ranges from 340-370 farenheit.

Good luck.

The tipping system in the United States is getting out of hand. 15% for "service"? In NYC, a lot of places expect 20% now. WTF?

I currently live in Shanghai, and having traveled quite a bit in Asia, I think the tipping system is great here! Read my typing - NO TIPPING EXPECTED NOR NEEDED! yeah!

However, a lot of places want to cater to expatriates because they think they are more willing to spend money, and encourage tipping for completely subpar service. Pretty attrocious if you ask me.

Note: tipping is still not required in these places, and the tips go to the restaurant, not the staff.

No need to tip in Australia. You can round up by leaving the last bit of change if you like, but unless you are in a Haute Cuisine restaurant, tipping is not expected nor needed. The higher relative prices on the menu (compared to what I am used to in the US) includes the extra amount they pay the staff - ie, a living wage. This was sticker shock to me, but you get used to it eventually.

Restaurants in Austral-asia are just like retail anywhere else. The price is posted, you order what you like, you pay your bill after you eat. No suprises or dirty looks from undertrained waitstaff who can't find a better paying job.

Note again: Americans, please follow the local customs and only tip if that is truly the local custom. I know it is a hard habit to break, but please, when in a foreign country, "do as the Romans when in Rome", not America, again, only tip if it is the local custom. Most employees in Asian restaurants think Americans are bloody fools. And yes, I am American.