Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

@urbandecay and engill

I love both Sichuan Gourmet and Qingdao Garden but for different reasons and dishes. SG is where I go when I want a deeply complex and delicious ma po tofu, or whole fish with chile sauce. Qingdao on the other hand has wonderful (and pretty darn close to unique) veggie dumplings, and the aforementioned boiled fish filets. Yu Xiang eggplant is great at both places too, with a balance of flavors and complexity that put them in a different league from the usual chinese take out fare. I'm glad both are around!

It's definitely the nostalgia factor for me -- I grew up in NYC and was always excited as a kid when a visit to relatives in Queens would bring me near a White Castle. I try to eat there whenever I can (usually once every 3-5 years, so no chance of growing tired of it.) Odd that I can love both White Castle and the Craigie on Main burger... talk about cognitive dissonance!

speeds dog in Boston -- class of its own.

A twist on a banh mi -- something with pork, cilantro, spicy mayo, but with a 'wichcraft high-end twist...

Blue Ribbon BBQ in Arlington MA

pot de creme

something braised -- if I have to pick one -- short ribs braised in red wine.

long-braised chinese style pork roast

Blue Ribbon BBQ in Arlington MA (also West Newton MA). In addition to having excellent (for the Northeast) real BBQ (IMHO better than Redbones), you can't beat the Feedbag for 4 takeout combo for value and deliciousness.

I vote for Armando's, on Huron Ave in Cambridge. New York-style, old fashioned neighborhood joint that reminds me of the pizza places I grew up with on Staten Island. I love Emma's too, but a different kind of place...

Chile paste/hot sauce appears in most things I make, though I have so many varieties in my fridge that I'm not sure it really counts as one ingredient (sirracha, four brands of chinese chile paste of various heat intensity, jalapeno sauce, etc.)

I love to use fresh herbs, especially cilantro and dill, but invariably do not finish the bunch before it goes bad.

I'm obsessed with breakfast sandwiches, and thought the new DD egg white one was pretty good -- and only 6g of fat, plus some small amount of veggies to boot. My impression may have been tainted by the fact that I had a Panera egg souffle thing the day before; I checked when I got to the office, and that thing had 32g of fat; yeesh!

Tying back to the other home page thread, the egg sandwiches at flour bakery are awesome, and worth every calorie!