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Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
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Serious Cocktails: Ladies Night
That's Williamsburg Brooklyn, not VA. FYI
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What's A 'Real' Brooklyn Restaurant?
I, for one think...ooops I fell asleep.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
This is a comments section. A comments section.
Serious Cocktails: Ladies Night
That's Williamsburg Brooklyn, not VA. FYI
Serious Cocktails: Ladies Night
Stephanie Schneider's list at Huckleberry in Williamsburg is fantastic: http://huckleberrybar.com/
Deal of the Day: Craft Pop-Up Restaurant
Nice in concept, but most of the small plates are, really, really, small--amuse bouche small. The relatively bigger pizzas and pate pots are passable, but not Craft-level food and not as good as you can get for less at a good pizza place or french bistro. The service is brusque, bordering on hateful, and you still leave paying way more than you'd expect. Total failure. Sorry.
Handicapping 'Top Chef' Season 5 Finale
FABIO will return to take it!
'Time Out New York' Taking Votes for Best New Pizzeria
A fresh pie takes no more that 7 minutes to cook. At the tediously slow rate they serve customers, they could serve pies that have been around for less than an hour, at least. In most slice joints, you have a chance of getting a fresh pie; here, the fresh ones go to the back racks for quick reheating hours later, wtf?
Fast-Food Yogurt Parfaits
I really like when the granola mixes with the yogurt and soggifies a little.
'Time Out New York' Taking Votes for Best New Pizzeria
Artichoke sucks so bad. Hasn't anyone noticed the dozen pre-cooked pies on racks in the back? Total bullshit!
Any good health food or vegetarian restaurants in Manhattan?
Tien Garden on Allen Street
Cheap dinner recommendations in Cobble Hill
Zaytoons is good. The combo mezze plate with warm pita and a side of falafel was more than enough for two, and only $8.50. The lentil soup and their pitzas are nice too.
What to do with all this Miso?
Carrot-miso-ginger salad dressing-- similar to what you get at a Japanese resto free with your sushi meal:
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/carrot-miso-and-ginger-salad-dressing
My birthday is saturday. Thoughts on where to eat, please?
Please do not go to General Greene for your birthday--service can be terrible. The place is fine, but not worth risking on a special occasion. If you love the food and ambiance at Marlow, then Chestnut or Market Table (or little Owl) would be comparable, with the Owl approaching Marlow in Hipness quotient.
Happy bday.
Shake Shack's December Custard Calendar
WTF IS A YULE in this context?
My Girlfriend wants Balthazar but I can't afford it!
Upstairs at Bouley is awesome food at your price point: http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/upstairs-at-bouley/menus/main.html
They do not take reservations, however.
Thoughts on Babbo?
My thought on Babbo is that it is a very good idea to dine there. Since you have four people, you would be able to share quite a few items without spending on the tasting menu. If you choose to go this route, the table can order wines by the quartino for each course, creating your own pairing series.
If the price of the tasting menu doesn't make you flinch, definitely go for it (I prefer the traditional one over the pasta--not a fan of that doughbelly feeling). And most certainly do the pairings; the wine service is as thoughtful and well-executed as the food, in my experience.
Where to get good meats in Murray Hill area
I haven't bought anything from it, but Les Halles has that butcher shop in front. I would imagine you could get some nice cuts there.
Upper East Side eats?
Also, I agree with deva on the Pio Pio rec: its a good place to share a delicious mess of chicken and sides. Would be a bit of a walk from Park & 86th, however.
Upper East Side eats?
There's pretty good Greek food and a friendly atmosphere at Ithaka on 86th and 2nd (old friends and Retsina go hand in hand!):
http://www.menupages.com/restaurantdetails.asp?areaid=0&restaurantid=121&neighborhoodid=0&cuisineid=29
And if you go you'll be just across the street from one of the best little bakeries, Two Little Red Hens, for dessert: http://www.twolittleredhens.com/
The bakery close at eight, so you might want to pick up from there first.
Best New York Steak From Non-Steakhouses?
Yes, Diner, for the best.
Also: The Balth for au poivre and Landmarc for the hangar
Help Me Please a Room Full of Men ...
slow cook a pork shoulder carnitas-style for amazing pork tacos. serve with homemade tortillas and fixins.
Stumptown
I'm drinking the Organic French Roast at home right now: Most complex, bright and creamy coffee I've ever brewed.
What's A 'Real' Brooklyn Restaurant?
A "real" Brooklyn restaurant is one which has catered to, and served born & raised Brooklyners (or Queens, LI, SI, or NJ) without airs or pretense since its inception. These new places in Park Slope, W'burg, etc. seem extremely pretentious with inflated senses of self-importance. And frankly, Cuozzo is right: Those gentrified precincts of Brooklyn, full of yuppies & hipsters who were raised far from 718, have nothing in common with Marine Park, Flatlands, Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, East New York, Brownsville, etc., etc., etc. It's in these neighborhoods you'll find "real" Brooklyners and restaurants. Nothing about these new joints say Brooklyn to me; at least not the Brooklyn I know.
What's A 'Real' Brooklyn Restaurant?
Well, there's enough room for both. I'm an immigrant living in one of those yuppie-scum neighborhoods and I visit both the quirky Vietnamese sandwich counters and Marlow & Sons.....there's an occasion for everything. I'm glad that both can coexist side by side.
Best Coffee in Manhattan
Sorry, this isn't a "best" but...
I really like Kaffe 1668 - it's been consistent when I go there before work. In the interests of economy, I bought a coffeemaker for my office, and have been using Gorilla's Poco Fundo (sp?) beans to make drip coffee.
It's been good enough that I don't need to add milk or sugar. Also, Abraco and Cafe Grumpy lived up to their reputations.
Agreed that the Mudtruck is not very good. Also, 9th Street didn't stand out to me, but I ordered something involving milk, which didn't really allow for evaluating the espresso alone.
Best Coffee in Manhattan
I have a roundup of the best coffee in Manhattan in the works. Be on the lookout in the next couple weeks.
By the way, am I the only one who doesn't think Abraco is god-like?
Best Coffee in Manhattan
Zibetto feels more like an espresso place than a drip coffee place to me. Abraco has good coffee but it's very strong, and I think the espresso is better. Stumptown's coffee is a bit too mellow for my preference, but it tastes great. Joe the Art of Coffee is good but not memorable for whatever reason. The Mud Truck doesn't even place. Eh. I think my absolute favorite would have to be either 9th Street Espresso or Jack's Stir Brewed.
Best Coffee in Manhattan
Abraco in the East Village - hands down. The iced cappuccino is a must.
MOST favorite cookbook in collection
Hands down, my favorite cookbook of all time is Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. It is brilliant, completely useful in everyday life and with one single exeption (the pear cake thing) every thing I've made from it has come out great. And I've made almost everything in it over the years. It is what I give new brides. It is what I give the young people I know who are starting out on their own.
MOST favorite cookbook in collection
If you're conserving "real estate" in your home, here are a few suggestions...
Martha Stewart's Cooking School
I'd also get books of your favorite ethnicities. They round out a cookbook collection nicely.
Bottom line - get books you'll USE. I love baking bread and have several books on the subject but if you're not interested in baking bread, skip it. I like Italian baking as well and have books by Nick Malgeri on the subject. (Baking w/Julia is an "all around" baking book it has a little bit of everything from some of the brilliant minds in baking.)
You might visit a library and/or bookstore and thumb through some to get an idea if you'll like them. Don't forget to visit USED book sites. Some things strike readers as "out of my league" so they bail and sell the book with nary a splat of olive oil on it. I beefed up my cookbook collection via used book sites.
Happy shopping!
MOST favorite cookbook in collection
Kenny Shopsin's Eat Me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin, hands down. Really changed how I think about cooking.
MOST favorite cookbook in collection
I would have to say Professional Cooking...the massive amount of info in it is amazing! lots of step by step pictires and detail instructions. Although you have to know some professional terminology to use it. Measurements both in metric and u.s.
Top 10 Awesome Nostalgic Foods We Want Back
I miss the S'mores cookies and Fudgies, the little Kraft chewy candies in a gold wrapper. Does anyone remember the cereal, Double-Dip Crunch? I was like a "frosted" Crispix. Mmmmm!!! Oh, and the Quacker "strawberry" snack/dessert bars that looked like Nutri-Grain but had a little "squiggle" of white "icing" on top. I'm hungry now.
Top 10 Awesome Nostalgic Foods We Want Back
This is hysterical - I have been trying to enlighten my fiance on the yumminess of Magic Middle cookies (apparently he was sheltered and never tried them) and he just doesn't get it. I guess if you never tried one, you wouldn't know what you were missing, but still. Also, LOVED Crystal Pepsi!!! Was it really only out for one year? That's surprising - I thought it was fairly popular in my little neck of the woods.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
Oh...just realized you already named it. Good luck!
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
How about naming your blog: "Phamtastic cooking"
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
The Electric Strawberry!
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
Thank you all for your suggestions! I decided using the synonym of famished and came up with (Ravenous Couple: Cooking up Life) to include my sig other as she will be posting too...I just made my first post on Com Tam Suon Bi Cha (Vietnamese Broken Rice with Pork Chops). Don't want to be accused of flagrantly pimping my blog, but for those interested in this classic Vietnamese dish, the link to the blog is in my profile.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
My goodness, what an insensitive, nasty and totally unnessessary way to be ushered into the "topics" area of SE or SE in general. Glad you stuck around! As you can see, not everyone is so anal. (oops, that might get ME censured!) As to your blog name question/request, how about "Pho Phusion"? "Phee, Phi, Pho, Pham"? That last one might be a bit hard to remember but phun nonetheless. Hmm..."Pho Phun"? Anyway, good luck and hope to hear from you again.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
I love the idea "Phamished", simple, easy to remember, to the point, not at all boring. BTW, I'm new too, cooking at ya from Portland Oregon, for what's it's worth, I didn't take your post as a pitch, but we left coasters tend to be rather laid back not to mention thrilled to be asked for our opinion on anything. Sounds like a fun read... keep me in the loop when you start it I am always looking for new food ideas in the kitchen, (but do so off this board apparently).
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
You go girl! (I think your a girl...) Can't wait to see the site and read some of your moms recipes. As far as names are concerned, isn't it a good idea to also have in the title the type of food? So when people google VN food your site will pop up? My only experience is with my dogs web site and I made sure to put in her breed name in the title so everytime the breed name pops up so does her site. Could be different with food blogs, don't anyone bite my head off...
I've been reading this site for a while now and this is the first time I have seen a "Keeper of the Rules" pop up. Seems to me there are lots of us out here that don't have that specific rule book. I look forward to seeing your site and I hope you will post a link on here when it's up and running. Good luck!
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
You could also go "Green Eggs and Pham." I'm feeling the Dr. Seuss vibe this morning.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
@kumasi46 - Absolutely. So welcome to SE and so sorry that your first post had to be about common sense politeness we all should have learned long ago. I am here to learn from and share with everyone, regardless if you have been posting for years, or if it is your first post! No on has to court me or comment a certain number of times before I will answer a topic question of theirs. Each and every one of us has something to bring to SE - that's what is so great about this community. So, there's no need to be nervous, with at least most of us here I think. Please, share away.
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
OK, now I'm nervous. First time poster, and not because I'm shy, but because I haven't had anything to say. I read lots of blogs/food sites, but hadn't realized, except for the no spamming, no commercial posting, that there was etiquette, except general politeness. If this is a community, shouldn't we be more welcoming?
Yet Another Food Blog: help me name it
@bananamonkey...I, too, hung out in the shadows of this site that I found last summer. I just contributed in March and was very timid about it. I enjoy gleaning and sharing and I think we might remember "The Golden Rule" before we type (my mom was a congregational Baptist-sorry). Welcome, @hppzz, good luck and maybe you will share more about yourself and your cooking here as well as your blog.
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I, for one think...ooops I fell asleep.