JK Grence the Cosmic Jester's Profile
Dear god why can't I make mayo in my food processor?
As my usual method of making mayonnaise IS the food processor, I know damn well what I'm talking about. What, pray tell, does lecithin break down into when beaten too hard? I'd just *love* to find out.
Jaleo vs Julian Serrano
I haven't been to both, but when I ate at Julian Serrano I was very tempted to bring them one of those gigantic plastic daiquiri cups you see everyone carrying, and ask them to fill 'er up with gazpacho.
Acetate sheets for Momofuku Birthday Cake
It's listed in the "special equipment" in the sidebar next to each cake recipe. You need a 6-inch cake ring, and 2 strips of acetate, each 3"x20".
Where to get good coffee?
If I can theorize here... The cafe is quite close to the Paris's convention center. Their turnover on drip coffee there must be insane.
Where to get good coffee?
The best cup o' joe I've found anywhere is at Peppermill. It's the thick, rich kind of coffee that almost allows you to stand up the spoon in it. The food there is good solid old-school coffee shop fare, with quite generous portions.
THE NEGRONI
FYI, classical proportions of a Negroni is simply equal parts of everything. A splash of soda in a Negroni is tantamount to heresy.
Crystal Clear Ice Cubes
If my memory serves me correctly, makers of clear ice have a couple of tricks up their sleeve, including using cooled boiled water as others have mentioned. Chief among the big tricks is constant agitation to shake out those micro-bubbles that form and cloud the ice. A colleague of mine experimented with strapping ice cube trays to a *ahem* battery operated personal massager to create the desired effect on a home scale. He never divulged the results. I'm going to guess that if you want to do this more than once, you'll want either rechargeable batteries, a huge cache of regular batteries, or one of those industrial strength plug-in personal massagers.
Personally, I think that all this time worrying about micro-bubbles in the ice is time you could have spent drinking instead.
Can I substitute another liquor for Cointreau?
Honestly, most of what was my new darling is still sitting on the shelf. It's a BEAST to mix with due to its unique (read: assertive) flavor profile. It goes nicely in an Aviation.
Bill Johnsons Big Apple French Dressing
This may sound silly, but have you tried calling a location when it's slow (I'd say between 2 and 4 MST on a weekday) and asking them for the recipe? Tell them your situation, you just might be pleasantly surprised.
Looking for coupe glasses
It is on the Spirits board, so odds are good that a fine cocktail will end up in the glass.
If you find that a coupe glass does Champagne no favors, may I suggest simply consuming your bubbly before it has a chance to release all its bubbles?
i think i like old fashioned's now
The house Old-Fashioned at work:
Cut a swath of zest about half an inch wide from an orange.
Put it and a sugar cube into a double rocks glass.
Soak the sugar cube with a few dashes of the bitters of your choosing (We use Fee Brothers' Rhubarb Bitters)
Muddle the sugar and zest to release the orange oil in the zest.
Add a shot of whisky. Stir a little to dissolve the sugar.
Add ice cubes to fill the glass. Stir briefly so that the ice is fully marinated. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.
I think that muddling an orange slice is not wise; you end up muddling the bitter pith into the drink.
All bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon. Bourbon is American (usually from Kentucky), made from mostly corn, and aged in new, charred oak barrels.
You can certainly make an Old-Fashioned from some aged rum... I'll bet it would be pretty nice.
Oh, one of my fellow bartenders mentioned that Four Roses bourbon is worth seeking out. It's been made for decades, but after US discontinuation back in the 1950s, it's back on the market.
Short Leash Hot Dogs
Epic is very tasty, but I think thanks to the naan in place of a standard bun, Short Leash is the top dog.
4 Nights in Mesa - Good and Local
On the way down to Oregano's on Dobson (I think at Main) is Asian Cafe Express, which I've been hearing from all kinds of food folk is real-deal authentic Chinese, and is terrific quality to boot.
Dim Sum in Phoenix/Greater Phoenix Area
I'm quite fond of Phoenix Palace, as are a good number of my food-loving friends. Sunday is by far the best variety and quality; Saturday is a pretty distant second, and weekdays are quiet affairs that will scratch the itch if need be. Golden Buddha used to be tops, but went on Downhill Alert years ago and never recovered.
Dim Sum in Phoenix/Greater Phoenix Area
The dim sum at China Chan is basic, but decent. The main draw is that they do the dim sum sushi-style. You get a sheet when you sit down, mark off what you want, and then the staff cooks everything to order. This means everything comes out piping hot, a welcome change for anyone who's had lukewarm dishes near the end of a dim sum service time. The regular menu items are traditional Americanized Chinese glop to be generally avoided.
Places for College Kids to eat...
Go for green chile cheeseburgers at Greasewood Flat. They're not true New Mexico style GCCBs, just a cheeseburger with a piece of whole roasted green chile on top. Still, pretty good. Beautiful surroundings, especially at sunset. They have live country music Thursday through Sunday. It is technically a bar, but families go there all the time.
Classic cocktails and fine spirits used
Oh. That's not *requesting* an additional tip per se; it's just leaving the option open. For example, if you receive some sort of lagniappe, it's customary to tip on the amount that the check should have been, which requires the tip line on the credit card slip. On a standard visit like yours where the service charge is included, any additional gratuity is entirely at your discretion. If you did indeed double-tip, it's possible to speak with the restaurant and ask them to fix it so you only tip them once.
Classic cocktails and fine spirits used
I'm a little curious, what was the exact wording they used on the receipt? Outright requesting a tip is downright tacky, something I see as far below them.
baked chicken wings?
Not baking soda. Baking POWDER. Follow the recipe, this is one where you trust the science.
what kind of cherries does CPH use in their Manhatten
You're talking to someone who thinks gin is lovely in general, so my first thought would be to make all four...
My first inclination would be to reach for Tanqueray. It gets a fair amount of flak for being more forward with the juniper than a lot of gins, but I think a Last Word needs a gin with some backbone to go up against the very assertive flavors of maraschino and Chartreuse. I've made them with Hendricks and find it does quite well too. No experience with Beefeater 24, sadly. Nolet... it's a little too soft for my taste. Good gateway gin if someone is afraid of it. And it's stupidly expensive, something I'm almost always against.
what kind of cherries does CPH use in their Manhatten
Last Word. Equal parts gin, maraschino, green Chartreuse, and lime. Shake it like hell, serve straight up.
what kind of cherries does CPH use in their Manhatten
May I suggest asking Richie some time? I'd expect they use Luxardo.
You can also make your own, it's quite simple. Get your hands on some tart cherries (frozen is best, canned works in a pinch), cover in maraschino liqueur, and soak for a few days.
CA hounds seeking suggestions near hwys 17 & 101, also 10 & 17
If you're OK with cheap and cheerful, an excellent possibility is Chino Bandido, a few miles south of there on 19th Avenue and Greenway. I've never seen anything like the place. It's TOTALLY no frills quick service; order at the counter, and your food comes out in a foil to-go tray, with plastic forks and disposable chopsticks. They serve Mexican and Chinese food, together if you wish. We're talking egg foo yung quesadillas if you're so inclined. And dinner comes with a complimentary snickerdoodle.
Oh, let them know it's your first time there (although they usually figure it out quickly from the confused stare of people encountering the menu for the first time), they have samples of a bunch of the most popular dishes.
lillet rouge and the manhattan
It works pretty darn fine. I think it's even better done with Aperol in place of the Campari.
Open Table reservations for solo diner!
Probably someone didn't quite understand what was going on when programming the OT computer, and set all the 2-top slots for ONLY two people. YMMV=Your Mileage May Vary.
Sodastream seltzer not holding its fizz?
A somewhat clever tip: Once you've emptied a bottle, fill it with water and stick it right back in the fridge. That way, you always have chilled water ready to go any time you want to do some carbonated water.
Sodastream seltzer not holding its fizz?
For the "just making sure" department: Is your water fridge cold when you carbonate it? Cold water holds lots more carbonation than room temperature. Room temperature water may seem well carbonated at first, but goes flat in a hurry.
Red Booth Italian Reccomendation?
Bootlegger Bistro is a good choice. Also worth a look (at least when I went a couple years ago, can't see it changing much any time soon) is Carluccio's Tivoli Gardens. I just found out they moved from the Liberace-designed digs they inhabited for 20-some years, have yet to get word if the food and decor survived the move. I hope so, especially the unforgettable piano bar. The menu is a straightforward time warp of red-sauce Italian; nothing life-changing, but certainly nostalgic.
