mtbwustl's Profile
One dinner, one person: what would you recommend?
Thank you so much! I love the idea of sitting at the bar at Coquette or a similar experience. I'll check out menus at all these places. Thanks!!!
One dinner, one person: what would you recommend?
I will be in NOLA for 12 hours on Thursday. I get to have dinner out by myself, otherwise other meals are provided for me. I also plan to get a few sandwiches from Cochon Butcher to go, so not there. I need to be seated by 6, in a cab to the airport by 8, so Green Goddess seems like a bad idea. I'd be particularly interested in places that have opened in the last year, as I went to many of the traditional standbys in September. Thanks so much!
Porchetta help!
I made the BA porchetta for Christmas Day, followed the recipe pretty exactly. I cooked to an internal temp of 142 and had no dryness issues at all. I used an 8# belly and 4# loin for 5 people. We ate maybe 1/3 of the whole thing, and the sandwiches the next day were magnificent. The only problem we had was the smoking with the initial high heat roast. Oh well...worth it.
Meals to prepare for new parents
I have three friends who will all have their first babies within a month of each other. I want to be able to bring them meals that are easy to heat, freezable, healthy and delicious. One is a vegetarian, one is a pescatarian. In a perfect world, I could make and freeze x3 several meals to take to each new parent's house. What would you suggest?
Best Supermarket In USA: your nominations
I miss the produce in SoCal so much. While I wouldn't give up Central Market for anything, I would happily give up Whole Foods for a Trader Joes AND a good farmers market. We have neither here.
Best Supermarket In USA: your nominations
Personally, I don't think WF is that great of a store. At the WFs in my region (TX) the produce is often only ok, the meats and seafoods aren't great, the selection is underwhelming. I don't go there often, even though it's the grocer nearest to my home. I'll drive 15 minutes out of my way to go to Central Market, where the fresh foods are fresh, the selection is enormous and the prices are reasonable.
Best Supermarket In USA: your nominations
This is the best grocery store ever anywhere. I was hating on everything about Dallas until a friend took me to CM. They get like half of my income, but everything is so good, fresh and delectable. I've not seen a store this good anywhere else.
Catered Thanksgiving challenge -- who makes the best...
This year I am thankful that it's just me and my husband for the holidays. While we usually go out for Thanksgiving (as I'm incapable of making Thanksgiving for fewer than 20 people), a New York Times article about the best pies in the city inspired this query:
If you were to pick up each course of a traditional Thanksgiving meal, who would provide each dish? So who would make the best turkey? The best pies? The best sides? I have no problem either spending the money or the time gathering all these items. I'm curious if this method of Thanksgiving is possible and a better choice than going out. Thoughts? I know that I can get everything from Central Market or Eatzi's, but that takes the fun out of this culinary scavenger hunt.
Delicious, but neither fried nor crazy expensive, Dallas seafood options
I would be so happy to have a fryathon. But since I once made a habit of that weekly instead of annually, I won't be having anything from my favorite food group for a while. If that should ever happen again, I'll take your advice and do it at Big Shucks.
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Big Shucks
103 S Coit Rd, Richardson, TX 75080
Chef's tasting menu help
I requested a tasting menu on my Open Table reservation. We spent about $130 for 2. It was a delight.
Chef's tasting menu help
I'm the person who wrote about the $130 tasting for 2 at Salum. They didn't have one published, nor were they offering it. I made a special request on my Open Table reservation, and they offered it to us when we were seated. We had no idea what they were going to bring us or charge us. We had a really nice sampling of the entire menu, and this remains one of my very favorite meals I've had in Dallas. Give them a call and see what they say.
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Salum Restaurant
4152 Cole Ave Ste 103, Dallas, TX 75204
Delicious, but neither fried nor crazy expensive, Dallas seafood options
I try to avoid most, if not all, chains. But I'll ask -- does RL offer something yummy and healthy that could get me to change my mind?
Delicious, but neither fried nor crazy expensive, Dallas seafood options
All of these recs are great...thank you!
Delicious, but neither fried nor crazy expensive, Dallas seafood options
So I'm trying to give up meat and switch to mostly seafood. This isn't too hard as I cook most of our meals, but I'm wondering what restaurants Chowhounds go to when they want not-fried and not-expensive seafood. We've really enjoyed Dive and Rex's recently, but I'd love some other suggestions. Any thoughts?
high cholesterol
Without going into detail, my numbers are all in great shape from any perspective. I gave up grains about 3 weeks ago when I decided to really clean up my eating (see fried chicken bender mentioned above). So I'm eating mostly what you describe. I worry about my fruit and veggie intake as the winter approaches, but we'll deal with that later.
high cholesterol
When I was diagnosed w/ high cholesterol, GP immediately put me on drugs. Admittedly, my numbers were atrocious -- triglycerides so high that they couldn't be measured. And there is a history of high cholesterol and heart disease in my family. So I started taking a statin and something for my triglycerides. My dear friend, a nutritionist, suggested that I try a cholesterol lowering diet of lots of Omega 3, whole grains, more fiber and minimal sugars or fats. After 6 months of both diet and pills, my numbers improved to "better than optimal" in every way. My meds were cut in half. Another 6 months later, numbers were still stellar, so I talked my GP into taking me off the meds and letting me do this through diet only. While my numbers weren't as great, they were still in the "better than optimal" range. I've been off the meds for a full year now, and I've been following the diet fairly well. (If you check my other posts, you'll see a 4 meal fried chicken bender recently.) Blood work from this week shows "better than optimal" again. Diet and exercise can take care of cholesterol, and I'm glad to not have to take meds that could destroy my liver.
Alternative to Vitamix blender
I'm a big fan of my Breville blenders. I'm a former owner of a Vitamix that somehow disappeared when we moved, and I just couldn't justify spending that kind of money again. The Breville was less expensive, but comparable to the Vitamix.
Amazing dinner at Salum
Yep, total steal. And the meal was far better than at other Dallas hot spots where we've spent twice that.
Amazing dinner at Salum
Thanks! I wanted to do this place justice, as the meal was extraordinary. I should try lunch there, too.
STL trip report (Pi, Salt, Bixby's, Sasha's)
As a STL native who left about 10 years ago, my trips home are usually filled with nostalgic meals, old favorites that are less about food and more about memories. This time, I decided to eat at only places I've not tried before. All in all, a great strategy. The overarching theme for me is that STL has great food at unusually reasonable prices. STL's always been a good food town, but it's really impressed me these last few visits.
I had lunch w/ friends at Pi (Loop location). Knowing that Salt would be extravagant later, I tried to go w/ lighter choices. Had the K2 salad (greens, beats, goat cheese, pine nuts w/ house vinaigrette) and shared the small, thin crust Lincoln Park pizza. Perfect lunch. The veggies on the pizza (tomatoes and zucchini) were fresh and aggressively seasoned. The cheese, not too heavy. The crust was crisp and added to the flavor of the pie while playing a supporting role. Wonderful salad. Again, fresh veggies, well balanced, light on the cheese as I requested. I'll try the deep dish pie next visit. I can see why the President likes this place so much!
Dinner at Salt with 5 others, an outstanding meal with a surprisingly low price point. Such a lovely room, and I'd never been inside despite living in the West End. We started w/ the hallowed duck fat fries. As someone who hadn't eaten fried food for a few weeks (detoxing from a long trip to NOLA), these fries were everything I'd hope they would be -- crispy, thin, dark, salty, flavorful. Totally lives up to the hype. After that, I had the roasted mussels. Not the best I've ever had, not the worst. The chorizo was the best part of that dish. Several friends had the pork belly. Damn. Just delectable. My entree, the duck fat fried chicken, won the best meal of the night. This hangs with some of the best fried chicken I've had anywhere, and that's saying something as I recently did a fried chicken tour of New Orleans. Crispy, flavorful, juicy, hot -- everything fried chicken should be. And the sides of mashed potatoes and pickled watermelon ride were equally outstanding. For dessert, we had the cookies and cream (choc cream brulee, white choc sauce w/ a little cookie), the rustic apple tart w/ cinnamon ice cream, and a cheese plate. Fantastic meal, and I'd go again anytime. The price was great as well -- 3 courses, tons to drink for about $300 including tip.
Had brunch the next morning at Bixby's in the History Museum. This was a real treat. Three of us needed to be at Wash U's campus in the afternoon, so we went to the nearest place for brunch. What a lucky choice! The buffet, not something I'd usually choose, was fresh, interesting, manageable, and well-tended. The serving dishes were small and frequently replaced with new platters, ensuring the food was fresh. The first table featured salads, smoked fish and cheese. The salads were especially nice. The middle table featured desserts and pastries, and the best biscuits and gravy I've had outside my grandmother's house. The hot selections included flank steak, breakfast meats, chimmichuri chicken and veggie lasagna. Personally, I preferred the salad and dessert tables, but my friends raved about the hot selections. AND, you get to order off of a menu of hot items made to order, included in the price. My friends loved the eggs benedict, while my waffle was good. I would have been very happy sticking to just the buffet items. Again, the price was very reasonable -- only $22/person. Such a great setting as well. The room overlooks Forest Park, which was stunning w/ changing leafs.
Last meal was a leisurely graze over several hours at Sasha's, a wine bar in DeMun, where several friends rotated in and out. What a lovely neighborhood and place to spend a glorious fall afternoon. We sat outside and had beers with a constant flow of munchie foods. The crab, avocado, asparagus salad was so good that we ordered it twice. (It was so good that i just recreated it for my lunch in Dallas today.) A cheese platter was welcome, and we all enjoyed the prosciutto and parm plate too. Over the course of time, we tried three crepes -- the veggie, the prosciutto and fontina, and the nutella w/ banana. All were excellent.
As I headed to the airport, I picked up a bag of Dad's Oatmeal Cookies, which served as my dinner. It was also the only bite I'd had in STL before this trip. Upon leaving, I didn't regret missing my familiar haunts and really appreciated trying so much new this time. I'm looking forward to my next trip home when I'll continue to try the latest STL has to offer.
Last three days in New Orleans -- long report
I barely went to the convention center, instead holding meetings at Butcher when possible. The crowds at Butcher were worse from 11:30-2 and all day Saturday. Regardless, still worth waiting for.
Last three days in New Orleans -- long report
Nope, but I did pair it w/ a half consumed and warm stale beer.
Last three days in New Orleans -- long report
Lucky Dog is a chain of dirty water dog carts found in the Quarter, best eaten late at night/early in the morning as a way to soak up the fruit punch/grain alcohol concoctions. I doubt that sober it's a great hot dog. But at 2 am, after reliving some of my favorite college mistakes, a Lucky Dog is the only thing that will do.
Last three days in New Orleans -- long report
On Fried Chicken Day, I had forkfuls of food from others' plates instead of full meals for myself. So not quite as horrifying as it sounds. But yes, it was over the top. Company trip, yes!
Last three days in New Orleans -- long report
The conference continued...
Friday (In Which I Buy Chef Link a New Vacation Home):
Breakfast -- Cochon Butcher. Went to ask a question about taking their product on a plane, left w/ an open face sandwich of toasted bread and pate, and a little container of pickles.
Lunch – Cochon again. We shared the crab crab, hush puppies, fried alligator, and fried rabbit livers. The also kindly brought me pickles from Cochon Butcher. My entrée was the Louisiana cochon with turnips and cracklins. So many wonderful textures and porky goodness. We had the peanut brittle brownie ice cream sandwich and peach ice cream for dessert. That brownie sandwich delight was worth the calories.
Cocktails – Cochon Butcher. These folks know me by name at this point. Had drinks, charcuterie plate and cheese plate. Just perfect. Superb cocktails, great food, good vibe, wonderful afternoon.
Dinner – Meson 923. This was the only meal I didn’t plan, and I’m so glad I tried this place. The food was light, creative, and a nice change. Still full from the previous three meals, I had only an app of ricotta gnudi. With crab, bacon and strawberries, this meal was refreshing and well-balanced. My friend’s duck tortellini in duck consommé soup was intensely flavorful. She raved about it so much that our waiter brought the table another bowl to share. No charge!
Saturday:
Breakfast – Café du Monde. Early morning business meeting with two colleagues. Lovely when we first arrived, claustrophobic by the time we left.
Lunch – Cochon Butcher. By now, friends know that they are likely to find me here and I’m starting to smell like smoked meat. Went with 2 friends who hadn’t been here yet so we shared 3 sandwiches (bacon melt, roasted turkey, and the Gambino) and sides (brussels sprouts, corn and bean salad, mac and cheese). Such a damn fine sandwich place. All were perfect.
Dinner – Clancy’s. Small group of old friends, wonderful space, great food. Wonderful night. Started with the oysters with brie. Good, but perhaps too rich. The angel hair pasta with tomatoes and crabmeat was great, a nice change. My dessert was my favorite of the trip – a butterscotch pudding topped w/ caramel sauce. Perfect texture, intense yet balanced flavors.
Sunday:
2 am – Lucky Dog!!!!!!
To go – Cochon Butcher. Picked up sausages and pates for my husband. Picked up several bottles of the sweet potato habanero hot sauce as gifts, t-shirt for my husband, and the Abita mustard. The guys there comped me a hot sauce and bacon praline, and then we did a shot together.
For the airplane – Mother’s. Jambalaya and debris soaked biscuit. Everyone around me was jealous.
I'm going on a detox now, but it was all worth it! Thanks, New Orleans, for such a wonderful time. Looking forward to returning in a few weeks.
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Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130
Cochon Butcher
930 Tchoupitoulas, New Orleans, LA 70130
First three days in New Orleans -- long report
I just spent 6 amazing days at a conference in New Orleans. Great meals with wonderful friends in a delightful city -- thanks NOLA! On to the food...
Tuesday:
Late lunch -- Cochon Butcher. This was the first of my many visits to CB. Stayed at at Convention Center hotel, so I happily became a regular here. Buckstrap bacon melt w/ greens, pickled peppers and swiss served w chips and pickles. Holy crap. This was a game-changer of a sandwich. Perfect combo of flavors and textures. The chips are ideal w/ the perfect amount of salt. But those pickles...I'll be chasing those perfect pickles for the rest of my life. Also on the side, the Brussels sprouts marinated in vinegar, chili flakes and mint. So. Freaking. Good.
Dinner -- Mosca's. Friends and I rented a party bus and made the trek to Mosca's. We shared crab salad, 2 spaghetti bordelaise, several sausage w potatoes, couple of oysters Mosca, couple of chicken a la Grande, and a few shrimp Mosca. All of it was delightful, garlicy, and perfect for sharing among friends. Not the best food of the trip, but a fabulous NOLA experience in a neighborhood I’ve never explored.
Wednesday (aka, Fried Chicken Day):
Breakfast – Stanley! Had the vaunted bananas foster French toast with vanilla ice cream and a side of bacon. French toast was good, but a little too much w/ the custardy soft bread and rich vanilla ice cream. Gave the ice cream to my companion, which she promptly added to her coffee. The bacon was flaccid and uneaten.
Early lunch – Coop’s. I love everything about this place, but especially the fried chicken with rabbit jambalaya. This is my favorite fried chicken anywhere.
Later lunch – Willie Mae’s Scotch House. Delicious fried chicken, better than most anywhere, but the least of the three chickens I’d have on Wednesday. The line was a little much.
Dinner – Jacques-Imo’s. Group of 15, we had reservations and were seated immediately in the annex. We shared apps – alligator cheesecake, fried grits, fried green tomatoes, fried roast beef po boy, rabbit tenderloin, bbq shrimp. Three of us shared two entrees, the fried chicken and the Gozilla Meets Fried Green Tomatoes (a stack of FGT, fried soft shell crab, and crabmeat dressing). The three of us barely made a dent in the two meals. Both enormous, decadent and yummy.
Thursday:
Lunch – Cochon. First of two lunches here. The table shared the crab artichoke stuffed crab, shrimp with chow chow, and the oyster roast. I had the oyster and bacon sandwich w/ mac and cheese, greens, and marinate cucumbers for the table. That sandwich was insanely good, but not as mind blowing as the bacon sandwich next door. The cucumbers, on the other hand, were my favorite side. Such crisp, clear flavors that balanced the richness of the other dishes.
Dinner – Brigtsen’s. One of my favorites in the city, and this meal did not disappoint. Went straight to the duck. My god, that’s the best duck ever, anywhere. Stuck my fork in all the other dishes on the table, and each was spectacular. My only letdown was the bread pudding…I should have asked about raisins. All the other desserts were excellent.
The next three days in New Orleans coming soon!
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Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130
Mosca's Restaurant
Hwy-90 W, Westwego, LA 70094
Brigtsen's Restaurant
723 Dante St, New Orleans, LA 70118
Jacques-Imo's Cafe
8324 Oak St, New Orleans, LA 70118
Cochon Butcher
930 Tchoupitoulas, New Orleans, LA 70130
Amazing dinner at Salum
My husband and I like to go all out for our anniversary dinners. This year, we chose to celebrate at Salum, and we were not disappointed. I made my reservation on Open Table, and requested a tasting menu by the chef if possible. I forgot about this request until our server asked if we were still interested in doing a tasting. Absolutely! With so many appealing options on the menu, we happily put ourselves in their hands. Five courses later, we were thrilled with our decision
First course -- tempura fried pequillo pepper stuffed w/ crawfish in a cream sauce. So so good. The tempura batter was light and lacy but held its integrity even in the cream sauce. The pepper was sweet, the crawfish was rich and buttery. The sauce was so good that my husband used the delicious olive bread to enjoy every drop of the sauce.
Second -- baby arugula, prosciutto, tuscan melon on a birds nest w/ champagne vinaigrette. Wow! The first bite of this salad had such impact with so many assertive flavors working together. The dressing was fantastic, playing perfectly against the peppery bite of the greens. While classic and straight-forward, this was my favorite dish of the night. It was perfect.
Third -- grilled swordfish over tabbouleh topped w/ heirloom tomatoes. Simple, flavorful, perfectly cooked, dressed lightly with olive oil. I loved this dish because it was so light but with an interesting play of textures.
Fourth -- grilled beef tenderloin w/ roasted fingerling potatoes and purple dijon mustard. Each component was perfectly prepared, but the sauce was again the star. The beef was both fork-tender and flavorful.
Fifth -- layered devils food cake w/ milk chocolate and nutella icing. Great chocolate cake, perfect w/ a well-made cup of coffee.
We loved everything about Salum, but we were most impressed w/ the quality of service. WOW! Informative, unobtrusive, great wine suggestions. Some of the best service of any restaurant we've tried in Dallas.
Having tried most of the top end Dallas restaurants, I'd put Salum up there with Craft and Abacus. I enjoyed it more than Fearings or Stephen Pyles. Our fantastic meal, with 5 courses and drinks, came to only $130 before tip -- a steal for what we got! That's less than the per person cost of some of our other anniversary meals. I'm in love with this place and can't wait to go back.
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Salum Restaurant
4152 Cole Ave # 103, Dallas, TX 75204
recs near Occidental College
Thanks, everyone, for your generous advice. I had fewer free meals during my conference, but I really enjoyed the places near Oxy and in Pasadena that we did try. We ate twice at Auntie Em's, and both breakfast and lunch were excellent. I had the roasted chicken sandwich and my friend had the steak salad for lunch. Both were great -- excellent ingredients treated well. We took cupcakes and other treats from the bakery for our meeting at Oxy, and all were extremely appreciated. Breakfast the next day featured stellar biscuits and gravy (the best I've had outside the South) and some delightfully spicy duck-bacon sausage. We arrived at off-times, so we didn't have to wait for a table.
We had two delicious meals at The York., a pub near campus. The beer selection was impressive, and we all enjoyed our meals quite a bit too. The fish and chips, the spicy garbanzo beans, the hot wings and the salads were all superb.
One quick fish taco run at Senor Fish and one gross burger at Tommy's rounded out our meals in Eagle Rock. I really enjoyed the neighborhood and our gracious hosts at Occidental College.
recs near Occidental College
I'll be spending the next few days at the beautiful Occidental College campus and would love some restaurant recs. We'll have a car, but would prefer to not drive if possible. Anything in the neighborhood that's especially good?
