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Cannellini, garlic, fresh greens and a little pancetta and olive oil sautéed together all served with some fresh bread. I will have to make it sometime this week!

fresh basil pesto on rotini. i want some right now!

I have made a decision: New Orleans!

The offer from veggieout as well as great suggestions from other users made it tough. When it came down to it, NO provided everything I wanted in this trip and I got a great price. To me, it is such a unique place that also offers great food options.

I definately see myself taking an awesome west coat swing in the future (start in Seattle or Vancouver and eat my way south on the the Pacific Coast -Portland, San Fran, LA, San Diego, etc.). That will have to wait until time and money is a less of an issue. I also want to make my way to NYC, Boston, Miami, Santa Fe, Phoenix, Vegas, Charleston, Memphis, Philly, and many other places in the future.

Thank you to everyone that provided help. I defintately plan on seeking your help when I am planning this trip in the next week or so!

Goodness. Now I just keep adding to my list of places I must go. I feel like I could pick any of these and have a great time. I will have to do some price analysis and mull this over for a little bit. Thanks for the help!

The McD's experience was not used as some barometer to measure my NYC food experience, it was meant to emphasize how lame food-wise my previous NYC trip was. I definitely want to go back some day. I started this post to find out about places I might be overlooking so that I have plenty of places to choose from when I decide. I am really liking the suggestions so far!

This book is excellent; a massive (544 pages!) encyclopedia of all things meat. Definitely check it out.

gumbo

low n' slow smoked meat
intense flavor explosion
the wait was worthwhile

My dear sister calling me to ask a question about an ingredient in a recipe:
What is prepared mustard?
Me: Well... it's in the condiment aisle. By the ketchup. Usually comes in a yellow bottle.
Sister: I hope they carry it in Wal-Mart!

Me: I just had a great meal at the best Indian restaurant. You should try it sometime.
Friend: Gross! I hate Indian food.
Me: Have you ever eaten it?
Friend: No, some guys at work told me it sucked and smelled bad.
Me: *silenty shakes head in disgust*

Overheard at work:
"I like my steaks cooked beyond well done. I like them charred. Sometimes when I am at a restaurant I will tell them to cook it twice."

While working in the wine section of a grocery store:
Customer: I need some wine for making chicken marsala.
Me: OK, here are the Marsala wines.
Customer: Wow! They make wines just for making chicken marsala?
Me, not in the mood to explain: Well... it is a pretty popular dish.

Working in wine section of same store I had countless people ask me for the "cooking wine." Grrrr.

beef pot roast

My mom is great at cooking quick things on a tight budget. That's not really an issue anymore, but she still shops and cooks that way. There are certain ingredients she uses regularly that cause me to just shake my head and sigh. Many recipes include a can of Cambell's Cream of Something soup. She uses bouillon cubes all the time.... bleh. The one that really gets me is the can of Veg-All. Is it really that had to chop up some fresh veggies? That being said, most things she makes aren't bad.

Happy holidays everyone. I just started a new job and don't have much vacation tiem built up. Thus, I am working today and have nothing to do. Expect a high number of comments from me today.