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Finely chopped parsley and a drizzle of white truffle oil will do the trick.

The best whale you get in Iceland is sold in the supermarket. It's marinated and thinly sliced and you pop it on the grill for like 2 minutes each side and you've got yourself a nice meal. Tastes like beef but with more complex flavour, like Robyn noted before, a little gamey. Also, try whale carpaccio, it's brilliant if it's done just right.

I love this list, and, with the exception of # 23, I am heartily in agreement. When I am eating out, which is not all that often these days, I want the experience to be as good as it possibly can be. And, aside from the food, the etiquette (or lack thereof) of my server is what most affects that experience.

I'd love to see a similar list for the chef, considering some of the things we know go on in the kitchen. It matters as much as what goes on in public.

Add some fried sliced garlic and Pimentón de La Vera Dulce (smoked sweet Spanish paprika) and you're there.

sometimes i do a small dice of raw potatoes S & P and fry till golden in a wrought iron pan, remove from pan and carmalize LOTS of onions (as suggested already). Toss the whole thing together and brown up a little more. I think they're just awesome like this. Sometimes if i have a quantity of baked potatoes left over, i'll slice these up and do the same. I never cook the onions from a raw state in with the potatoes, they just come out soggy and not carmalized and everything sticks to the pan. +1 @ CJ McD on not stirring till the first layer (bottom) is good and golden.

Thank you folks, you've given me some good ideas I hadn't thought of.

Forgot to add-
Caramelize some additional onions in a seperate pan and stir into the potatoes near the finish.

I too, usually start with raw potatoes, cubed and rinsed well. I melt butter over medium high heat, add a splash of oil or bacon grease in a cast iron skillet and add the potatoes. I sprinkle with seasoned salt, onion powder and cover the skillet so they steam while the bottom surface browns. I do not stir or toss them until the first layer is browned. As potatoes become tender, I remove the cover and fry over medium heat, allowing them to cook through while slowly browning. I taste for seasoning, adding more seasoned salt and herbs if needed. I add onion part way through the cooking process if I want it in the dish.

Key for me is to get a nice, crispy brown surface, well seasoned, but allowing the potato flavor to shine through.

"Well, my general ratio of potato to onion is about 2/1 - about one onion for every two potatoes. I'd start off with that. And I start with raw potatoes - and add the onion when they're not quite half done, so the onion flavor cooks into the potato. So I'd start with rethinking the amount of onion. I like the idea of chorizo, myself"

I'm going to try your more onion idea and oh...I forgot to say that I add the bacon bits back in right before the dish is done..

Any time I make fried potatoes I base them on this recipe:
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2008/11/paprika-spiked-potatoes-home-fries-poached-egg-recipe.html
I usually coat the potatoes in a more than healthy amount of paprika, salt, pepper, dried rosemary, and chili flakes.
I know everyone hates on dried oregano, but that plus garlic powder might be delicious.

My desire to order apps and drinks has less to do with a restaurant's bottom line as it has to do with the comfort of those of us who are waiting. I'm not "assuming" anything. If a DINNER reservation was made it stands to reason that at least one entree per diner will be ordered. This does not include salads, a la carte sides and additional cocktails. I state again with certainty that if I were ever refused seating because one member of my party was delayed, I'd go somewhere else. I'm extremely punctual to the point of OCD. If I'm on time with most of my party, I damn well better be seated or I'm happy to spend my money somewhere else. It's wise to make the customer happy under ideal circumstances but in this down economy it makes even more sense.

Sometimes the word "assume" is the most suitable to use in a particular sentence. The cutesy Felix Unger reference has become passe.

It depends if I am making pumpkin pie or pumpkin custard pie. There is a difference. One is a baked mashed pumpkin and the other is a pumpkin custard which is the one I really love. I use a can of evaporated milk or regular whole milk in a pumpkin pie and milk, cream and additional eggs in pumpkin custard. I never use condensed milk in pumpkin pie.

Don't have a recipe for this but I seriously love pumpkin cheesecake -- it's a thick layer of pumpkin pie filling on top of a layer of NY style cheesecake. It's amazing!