Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

mmm ... i'm decidedly not a fan of mr. chodorow, and don't pretend to understand his motivation in undertaking this project.

i will say, however, that i'm glad he's doing it. i am a restaurant owner; have been in the biz since i was a kid. when the chod says that "The restaurant business is one of the most difficult businesses in the world", i've gotta speak up. it really is extraordinarily difficult; hard to hear from such a puffed-up egomaniac as himself, but true, nonetheless.

restaurant criticism in NYC is about the great gaping maw of the publicity machine, and operates on roughly the same dynamic as that of the "popular" high school clique.

who's hot? who's got the best press agent? who can charge so much money that they can make their customers feel that they're the kings of the world?

so much utter bullshit - i've had employees of the local rags tell me, to my face, that they wouldn't have time to eat, could i just give them a quick rundown on what the restaurant was about. it's incredibly galling, to work so hard, to use all of one's experience and energy to deal with this really tough business, only to find that the bullshit artists who call themselves "restaurant critics" are barely willing to get out of bed to submit their worthless drivel to their editors. and no, i am not making this up.

i can't even continue writing this post, as i'm becoming apoplectic at the very thought of it.

as for Mr. K's observation that "When you read reviews from regular diners, you often get a true picture of what your dining experience will turn out to be" - well, yes and no. the explosion of the blogosphere has allowed any number of entitled, spoiled persons to spew all sort of vitriol at any target that might suit their particular ill-temper du jour.

good god people, i'm FEEDING you! i can say that the feedback that i get from my customers, is, in the main,heart-warmingly positive, even effusive. however, now and again i'll read something so nasty, so out of left-field, and so unwarranted that i just want to cry.

sure, it's my problem that i'm thinskinned: NYC's not an easy place.

enough of me for now. if i compose myself i'll write more later - but for now i have to make a cake and a pie. gee whiz.

oh, and BTW, i'm an unabashed fangirl of your big kahuna.

potato pierogen and mushroom/kraut pierogen, boiled, not fried, slathered in butter and sour cream, covered with onion sauteed/steamed to translucency (at least 1/2 of the entire weight of the dish in onion), black pepper, and fleur de sel. to die - and, of course, one would die if one did that all the time, but, just once in a while ...

oh, and i agree with meowises, "such great entries ..."

just reading what ya'll have written makes me feel warm and happy.

viva the kitchen!

bobblehead removal list:
ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner, and her name is sandra lee. oh, dear god, please make it stop. what's next, sandra? an quick and EZ method for a weekday supper using road-kill (it's right there, you don't even have to go to the supermarket!) slathered in cheez-whiz (just pop that jar open and pour) and topped with durkee fried onion rings? sandra lee, when vaudeville becomes burlesque.

bobblehead #2 -RR. please, fellow posters, don't take offense at my language, as i only wish to share with you that, when she pops up on the television, i reflexively yell "STFU, and go away". i don't say "die, already" - i just think it..

other than those two, i just let it ride.

i enjoy and respect alton brown, rick bayless, jamie oliver. these three gentlemen are enthusiastic and informative.

ah, whatever. for a good view of where we're all going to end up as the dumbing down of america continues apace, rent "idiocracy". it''ll make you laugh, it might make you cry, but i promise you that RR is not in it.

thanks to lia for the link to the bourdain post - he said it all.

R.I.P. Julia Child, you sweet, dignified, wonderful woman.

frozen custard.

from the union picnic restaurant in brooklyn, NY, brunch menu -

"When you wake up in the morning, Pooh," said Piglet at last, "what's the first thing you say to yourself?"

"What's for breakfast?" said Pooh. "What do you say, Piglet?"

"I say, I wonder what's going to happen exciting today?" said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. "It's the same thing," he said.

—A.A. Milne . The House at Pooh Corner