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Day 3: We drive to Mekong Delta and eat at Lan Que. First course is spring rolls fried but the rice shell is a mesh, dont know how they made it but they were awesome, followed with an eel dish spicy with mushrooms, very tender. Next are a small bird, not sure what kind, strong taste and texture comes alive (saved:>) with a dipping sauce of crushed pepper and lime, following that we have a fish that lookes like it came from the bottom of the river (the Mekong feels a bit like the Amazon, the town is a cool backwater place, the people so friendly, just 30 years ago the US was spraying napalm here), it was sweet but strong textured. Than comes the snake, sauted with a bitter green, shallots, peanuts, this dish is eaten with a thin flat bread, like an Indian bread, cooked with spices in it, you dip it in the mixture and eat, its supposed to be good for your body, last dish is snake bone broth soup with cilantro and shallots. Could not do the turtle which is another special of the restaurant. Interesting meal. Dinner we needed some pro-flow veggie food, so we went to a local tourist hot-spot called Lemongrass. It was more Thai/Chinese but the food was clean and what we needed.
- Skinny 7-31-2002 12:29 pm [link] [9 comments]

Day 1/ Saigon-Ho Chi Minh City: Dinner at Temple Club was a great start, fab mixed drinks that went wonderful with the food, the two highlights were Linda's choise's, mustard green spring rolls followed by fried fish (covered in peanuts and sauted scallion) with lettuce, basil, cilantro, mint and noodles, which you rolled up in the lettuce with fish sauce....

Day 2/ Saigon-Ho Chi Minh City: Market (a great explosion of color and aroma, small but very cool) for breakfast after dragon fruit at the hotel, beef noodle soup, and it was all it was supposed to be. Lunch: Angkor Encore, the city's only Cambodian restaurant, two dishes shined, fish soup in a light coconut curry, w/ noodles, basil, bean sprouts, not heavy. Fish baked in banana leaf covered in a curry like paste on a bed of a bitter-ish green. Dinner: we were thinking Vietnamese House but I had a bad vibe so we went to the bar and had a drink and watched the food, didnt look special, so we went back to the Temple Club for more fab drinks, what a beautiful room, we went upstairs for BBQ but it was now to late, some basic Japanese food on the way home filled the hole.

- Skinny 7-31-2002 12:24 pm [link] [add a comment]

There was a lot of good eating and some serious cooking in Montana, but the top local dishes were the simplest ones: elk burgers supplied by Charles (red meat, duh), and fresh morel mushrooms collected by Jeff. We heard that it was a good year for morels, especially where there had been fires. You don't even have to shoot the 'shrooms, but it's serious hunting nonetheless. This week's New Yorker has a piece on the phenomenon.
- alex 7-24-2002 6:55 pm [link] [add a comment]

In the 80's my friend Donald Alberti and I were know to eat two dinners, one at his art studio where i helped him move big paintings, then after at Manhattan Bistro right before they closed.....both Donald and I are overweight today......last night I went to Barbetta at 6:00 to drink old Barolo and eat a slightly tired meal and when this bizz meeting was done I went home to load up on wine to take to a 10:00 dinner with one of my best customers at Great NY Noodle Town (a very famous and tasty joint but not as good as GSI when they rock, I fear GSI exspecially the 24St location are streaching thin, they just opened a 3rd spot)......

I miss those days with Donald but I do have a lot to show for it!!!!!

- Skinny 7-24-2002 6:38 pm [link] [3 comments]

i often had designs (without any design) on a few choice corners on spring st in what is now considered nolita. recently, cafe lebowitz opened on one such corner, which owing to its name, i was sure would be a failure. guess i was no less clueless than usual.

meanwhile, aka and alias get another plug from new york mag.
- dave 7-23-2002 7:05 am [link] [3 comments]

linda and i are about to embark on what we hope will be our wildest culinary trip--two weeks in Vietnam--Hue seems to be one of the eating hot spots, was a capital city for 100's of years--it was near flattened by the Tet offensive in 1968.....below is from one site I found

Being an ancient capital city, Hue has inherited a treasure of unique traditional heritage of a capital city, gastromony is one of the heritage. Hue food ranges from royal dishes to popular dishes for common people. Hue food have been well-known for a long time, in particular dishes made in Hue style. Those dishes are of Vietnamese style, but have their own flavor of a region of special culture.

According to incomplete statistics, at present, Hue has more than 600 dishes (of which, over 300 non- vegetarian dishes; 125 vegetarian dishes; 120 dishes of ‘Che’ (sweet soup), soup, cakes, jam; 60 types of pickles; salted fish and shrimp, all kinds of sauce). Most of Hue dishes are very simple, but they are sophisticatedly and specially made, which makes them become special dishes.

One of the main principles in Hue cuisine is that food is seasonally typical. Geographically, Hue owns plains, rivers, sea, lagoon, mountains, Hue food diversifies and is always available in every season. The fact that Hue food is seasonally typical means that the dishes can be changed all year round and brings good appetite and diversified menu for Hue people.

In addition to the big restaurants with their own specialities, Hue city is famous for common dishes, namely “com hen” (mussel rice), ‘beo’ cake, ‘nam’ cake, ‘loc’ cake, rice cake, Hue beef noodles, etc.

- Tourists can find “com hen”, at Ms Teo’s food-shop at Pham Hong Thai Street, or 2 Truong Dinh Street, and some similar ones along Truong Dinh Street. However, the most delicious mussel rice is at Hen Islet. Each bowl of mussel rice costs VND 2,000 at most.

- As for Hue beef noodle, the best beef noodle is in the early mornings. Otherwise, tourists can enjoy this kind of dish at shops along the Cong Market, or shops of Ms My, Ms Loi, Ms Let, Ms Mai (the crossroad of Han Thuyen and Dinh Tien Hoang streets), on Ong Ich Khiem street (crossing Le Huan street).

- “Banh Khoai” (Rice pancake) can be found at Lac Thien Restaurant, 6 Dinh Tien Hoang Street or at Ms Ton’s on Chi Lang Street.

- Several small restaurants where tourists can find the most delicious ‘beo’, ‘nam’, ‘loc’ cakes are Mrs. Do’s at 9 Nguyen Binh Khiem street, Tel: 527203; or Mrs. Cu’s on Nguyen Hue street (near the An Dinh Palace), Tel: 821692; No. 1’s on Pham Ngu Lao street; Huong Hue at 76B Nguyen Sinh Cung street, Tel: 822707.

- Mrs. Nhon’s small restaurant at 29 Le Duan street, Tel: 523853.

- Banian Tree Restaurant on Hung Vuong street, at the crossroad of Ba Trieu and Hung Vuong streets.

- For ‘uot’ cake (a kind of steamed thin rice pancake) and grilled meat noodle, tourists can enjoin these dishes at Huyen Anh Restaurant, 207 Nguyen Phuc Nguyen street, Tel: 826655

- Skinny 7-21-2002 6:05 pm [link] [1 comment]

Nice to see all this press on Brooklyn eats due to the release of a Brooklyn Zagat, as with all Zagats take the reviews with a grain of salt. This restaurant i have walked by for 10 years is one of the top rated, its been open since 1958. The wine list blows, the food is good, but rated the same as Lupa and more than Al Di La and Locanda--NO WAY--anyone wanting to taste 15-20 Brooklyn restuarants and all the fresh beer you can drink join us at the Brooklyn Brewery this Saturday.
- Skinny 7-19-2002 5:47 pm [
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At Jewel Bako they serve live octopi!!!!

Octo-wussy By Jecinta Noble

Always check it's dead. Like these are
Always check your food is dead before you tuck in.
A man from South Korea probably wished he hadn't eaten a live octopus that ended up killing him.
The 62-year-old Seoul resident liked eating live octopi for some strange reason - perhaps he had a death wish.
The diner covered the squirming dish in vinegar and red pepper paste, but it still continued to struggle.
Thinking it was on his last few legs, he stuffed the octopus into his mouth.
But this little blighter was a fighter who decided to use its tentacles to push himself off the man's teeth, dive down his throat and spread itself out.
The man quickly began to choke prompting his wife to come to his aid.
"I slapped him on the back, but it didn't work," she told The Korea Herald.
Clearly.The emergency services managed to pull the octopus from the man's throat, finding it still alive.
But the diner was dead.
Never mess with a feisty hor's d'oeuvre

- Skinny 7-15-2002 7:48 pm [link] [add a comment]

avoid Grand Sichuan Upper Eastside, yuk!!, i hear the dont have a good chef yet or family fueding......on a decadent note i go to Maison du Chocolate at 30 Rock Center once every few months, expensive, awesome hot chocolate (i prefer the darker version) and a treat will set you back over $10 but its worth it, no need to tip at the bar its like being in France (service compris)...
- Skinny 7-13-2002 6:35 pm [link] [3 comments]

we went to theo last night, new(ish) place in the UPS building on spring street between washington/greenwhich. although the food's pretty decent (albeit expensive and tiny-portioned), the interesting thing is the dessert list -- about 15 different things, each one costs 4 bucks and comes in an egg cup (it isn't really an egg cup but that's the size and sort of the shape) with various different things layered inside, like a little parfait. they put on the hard sell, we got 5 to split among a table of 4, the waiter acted like that was way too few...but they were pretty good! not worth the trip -- but maybe someone else will knock the idea off?
- big jimmy 7-12-2002 7:33 am [link] [add a comment]

Went to Jewel Bako last night and this place is expensive, wine list $50 to $1000+, $12 to $15 app's that you eat in two bites, I ate some wierd stuff, but the fish sushi (which i dont usually love) was amazing, best I have ever had (one Japanese Bass was like eating silk, cant stop thinking about it), the owner said that this is the best season to eat here, and toro tartare w/ avacado cream is an awesome dessert...
- Skinny 7-10-2002 5:04 pm [link] [1 comment]

went to Cap Cod and I have not as of yet had a great meal there (but have not tried hard), some nice fried clams but the fish is usually overcooked and when they try to do something special usually its pushed too far....well my mom (83 1/2 years old) decided that we would try two new spots....pea shoots are in :>) and both places had no idea how to cook them, but i needed the fiber, one place the fish was the freshest and was the best meal we have eaten on the Cape (The Cape Sea Grille, Harwichport), not special but good flavors, not overcooked too much, yummy desserts, the other place no need to return (Ocean House, Dennisport)...she said we could try some news places Labor Day weekend, thanks Gracie!!
- Skinny 7-08-2002 11:51 pm [link] [6 comments]

another fruit hero, his peaches have almost twice the sweetness of commercial peaches....organic too:>)
- Skinny 7-08-2002 9:33 pm [
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Thursday, September 26, 2002
The Mark
6 pm to 8 pm
$35

Amy Goldman is on a mission to save the heirloom melon. She grows about 100 varieties of ancient gourd in her garden in Rhinebeck, NY, and with her new book, Melons for the Passionate Grower, she's spreading the word about these long-forgoten delicacies, and their seed. Join us for a tasting of the snake melon, Queen Anne's pocket melon, and Prescott Fond Blanc as well as Bouvet Brut Champagne, Taittinger Cuvee Prestige Rose, Michele Chiarlo Nivole Moscato. Members of the AIWF will leave with a complimentary copy of Amy Goldman' book, "Melons for the Passionate Grower."
- Skinny 7-08-2002 9:23 pm [link] [add a comment]

went to Lupa again, triple pasta pre 7:00 movie dinner at the bar, awesome again



- Skinny 7-04-2002 2:12 pm [link] [add a comment]

I guess there really was attitude at Smith.
Bad attitude.
The Post dishes the demise.
(Clipped as a comment, to avoid transient, ad-heavy site.)

- alex 7-03-2002 8:14 pm [link] [1 comment]

fat-guy.com
- Skinny 7-03-2002 12:29 am [
link] [1 ref] [add a comment]

from NYMag (sounds good)
Fresh
When Eric Tevrow lured Martin Burge from the chef de cuisine post at Gotham Bar & Grill to sign on at Fresh, his elegant new seafood restaurant, Tevrow sweetened the deal with something even better than prime Tribeca real estate: first dibs on the daily Eastern-seaboard catch, courtesy of Early Morning Seafood, Tevrow's wholesale purveyor to star chefs like Alain Ducasse and Gray Kunz. Burge makes the most of his inside sources with rillettes of gaspy cod and finnan haddie, Ipswich fried clams, "Kobe beef" of bluefin toro, and an array of whimsically named "prime cuts," like baby-back halibut ribs steamed in kelp. Fellow Gotham alum Joseph Murphy dishes up seasonal desserts like wild-strawberry shortcake and warm blueberry financier.
105 Reade Street
212-406-1900
Cuisine: Seafood - Skinny 7-03-2002 12:23 am [link] [11 comments]