TommyJay's Profile
Find Me This Restaurant, Please.
re: "intimate"
Imagine Coppa off-hours - not packed as I've usually seen it. I'd like to be able to talk to my date but I don't need the place to be over-the-top with candles and waiters that make me smell corks.
I haven't been to Toro. Is there a time to go for dinner on Monday or Tuesday night where it isn't PACKED?
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Toro
1704 Washington St, Boston, MA 02118
Coppa
253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118
Find Me This Restaurant, Please.
Dinner Monday or Tuesday night.
Intimate but fun. Delicious but unpretentious. Something very New York. Preferably in the South End. Some place that welcomes jeans, a polo shirt, and sneakers.
The Butcher Shop? I was thinking Coppa but that can get busy and very not-intimate, very quickly. Alas, Ginger Park is closed.
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Coppa
253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118
Need to eat dinner NOW. Can you meet the challenge?
Maybe . . . still waiting for more submissions. You get points for locale since I'm literally staring at the place right now from our school!
Also, maybe Meyers and Chang?
Need to eat dinner NOW. Can you meet the challenge?
Here's the challenge:
Need a great dinner recommendation for three not-so-rich grad students NOW. We leave in half an hour so reservations are not so good.
Location: Near Theater District, including close South End restaurants.
Price: Not upscale/pricey but also not McDonalds.
Atmosphere: Cool, hip crowd. No dress code. We're in jeans.
Bonus point if the place is asian-influenced but not a requirement.
Go!
Coffee Shop in South End
What a weird place. Is this a Cafe for people shopping for furniture, or do they welcome customers who have no interest in furniture? The only thing worse that being pressured to buy food is being pressured to buy a futon.
Coffee Shop in South End
I will be in town in a few few weeks and need a first-date, Coffee Shop recommendation in the South End but not too far from a T-stop. Some place with an outdoor patio would be nice. Also, some place that will not make us feel uncomfortable if we don't order food and just stick with beverages.
Foie Gras
Gristly bits meant of a pate - this sounds exactly like what I had. How disappointing. Is it out of place to ask prior to ordering, "Is the Foie Gras A-quality or B-quality?"
Foie Gras
Could someone describe the taste of foie gras for me? I had it for the first time a few nights ago at Coppa and was less than impressed. I'm not quick to blame Coppa as I have no idea what it SHOULD taste like.
To me, it tasted like steak with a lot of ups and downs, finishing off with a livery aftertaste. I thought it would be tender and very rich - almost overpowering. It wasn't.
Dare I say, overcooked?
Any Reviews of Puritan Beef at Haymarket
Thanks itaunas (and thanks cpingenot). I sort of made this my butcher of choice but was unsure how they stacked up regarding price, quality, and availability of less popular cuts of meat (rabbit, pig head, boar, etc.)
NEW ENGLAND PRODUCE CENTER (Chelsea)
That's an amazing tip, Almansa. I assume all produce is shipped to NEPC and all Boston-area supermarkets pay the prices listed on the usda site? Is there an equivalent for meats? I'd like to know where the meat I get likely comes from.
Any Reviews of Puritan Beef at Haymarket
What are you talking about? Are you making a joke?
Baja style fish taco?
The Cottage in Welleseley is supposed to have great fish tacos - at least according to Phantom Gourmet. I believe the owners are Californians. Post a review if you go.
Momofuku's Pig Head Torchon
Has anyone tried the Pig Head Torchon - either cooking it themselves from the Momofuku Cookbook or at one of Chang's restaurants?
It ended up tasting very gamy and the fatty texture was a turn off. A shame since everything else I have cooked from the book tasted delicious.
Any Reviews of Puritan Beef at Haymarket
Yes, they weren't very helpful. Mostly just provided as an answer to people looking for various cuts of meat, i.e. "Try Puritan Beef!"
Any Reviews of Puritan Beef at Haymarket
Any reviews of the butcher shop (Puritan Beef) at Haymarket?
Butchers with Wild Boar
Wow! Can you provide a few more details, i.e. was it frozen? How many pounds? How did you cook it? Was it similar in taste to pork shoulder?
Butchers with Wild Boar
Any butcher shops that can get wild boar? Is this an incredibly expensive item?
I'd hunt it myself but guided hunts are quite expensive.
To Eat or Not To Eat, That is My Question
I apologize. Let me rephrase:
I was suddenly served raw monkey brain (which may or may not be bizarre depending upon one's culture and a myriad of other factors too lengthy to list here) in a "passage way almost always filled with people, entrepreneurship, and things quintessentially Vietnamese."
To Eat or Not To Eat, That is My Question
The problem with giving specific examples is that it defeats the whole purpose of my question. If I'm in a back alley of Saigon and am suddenly served raw monkey brain (which has happened), finding a computer, logging onto the internet, posting on Chowhound, and awaiting replies is not practical. Just wondered if there were a set of general rules of things to avoid (i.e. brains?) or a field guide that covers most bizarre foods.
To Eat or Not To Eat, That is My Question
Is there any source (book, person, website, etc.) that will provide me a general overview of what I can and cannot eat? - or the precautions I have to take when eating certain foods?
I'm a big fan of eating bizarre cuts of meat and overlooked delicacies. Everything from bone marrow to raw monkey brain to dogs, rats, and lizards. But I am always worried about certain risks associated with particular food of which I am unaware.
Pig's Head - Remove the eyes?
I'm cooking half a pig's head in an oven tray for 3 hours at 350 degrees (Fergus Henderson style). Do I need to remove the eyes prior?
I have a feeling they will rupture and ruin the stock.
Pig Marrow
I've had roasted bone marrow from beef and veal . . . I have never heard of people eating pig bone marrow. Unsafe?
Books on Food
Can you recommend some non-recipe based books that focus on history, science, and processing of food? Think Alton Brown, but perhaps with a bit more history and a bit more of a storytelling element.
Also, I'm good at following directions but I'd like to know WHY I am doing some of the things called for in the recipe, i.e. why must I leave the pork shoulder in the fridge overnight prior to putting it in the oven for six hours? Why do so many recipes call for a 350 degree oven rather than 340 or 360?
Befriending the Butcher
A few weeks ago at a Haymarket Butcher Shop, I watched as a gentleman requested marrow bones. The staff fulfilled the request with no hesitation, pulling a bone from the back room, stripping, then cutting it.
I made the same request. The response was, "I don't know if we can do that. You'll have to ask the owner."
More envious than angry, I post here looking for tips on getting to know your butcher on a first name basis and having him fulfill odd requests (I'm always in the market for odd cuts, i.e. offal, pig's head, spleen, marrow bones, etc.). What's the secret? Spending large amounts of money on a regular basis? Or, is there a butcher that is naturally friendly and accommodating?
