janethepain's Profile
Elk, Boar, Kangaroo and Antelope Seven Spring Food and Wine
Funny, I've always wondered the point of Kobe/Wagyu burgers. Ground beef, esp for burgers, is always mixed with fat or fatty cuts anyway - what's the point of using an already well-marbled (and expensive!) piece of meat? Especially if you're going to grind it all up.
What an interesting-sounding restaurant. Wonder how the sushi is.
Recette - Charming, Delicious, Excellent All-Around
oo, you had two of the dishes I'd want to order (the spaghetti and the duck breast). Question: do you get to choose which dishes you want for the chef's tasting menu, or does the chef pick from the regular menu? Doesn't give a specific menu on the website. MIght make a trip there this weekend, thanks!
Short List Tokyo Recommendations
Yes, that was it - the way I customized it, I thought it was delicious ;)
I also went to the Uoshin in Shibuya - tried a lot of things, though their English menu was very limited, and they seemed to start running out of sushi! I asked about a bunch of different pieces, and they were out of/didn't have any of them.
Short List Tokyo Recommendations
Thank you all! Our trip is over, and I made it to just a few of these places.
I can read Japanese but not Chinese/kanji, and can speak just a little bit, so the main problem we had was FINDING the places. Even if/when we found them, we may not have been aware - my research is in romaaji while the signs may be in kanji! Oh well, we did the best we could.
Where we went:
Tokyo:
Gyuubei for cheap yakiniku
Sushi Daiwa at Tsukiji - we sat in front of the oldest chef, he was very friendly and joking. The grilled shrimp head was great, hubby LOVED the salmon roe for the first time in his life.
Tokyo Station by Ippudo for ramen
couple ramen places, including the one where you eat at a desk-style setting - can't remember the names offhand and don't have my research with me.
Gaaden (?) for tsukemen
Kyoto:
Giro Giro for modern kaiseki (great!)
Kyoto ramen station (got tsukemen and a ramen there, awesome)
oyako donburi at a suuuuper old-school place - Toriyasu
Short List Tokyo Recommendations
Thank you again! I have looked up every one of those places - Hirosaku looks hard to find, I hope we make it.
Thank you so much for your help.
Your Favorite Yakiniku in Tokyo for Wagyu, Kobe, Matsusaka, Horumon, etc?
THanks SO much for the good advice - I love offal and can't wait to try this place.
Your Favorite Yakiniku in Tokyo for Wagyu, Kobe, Matsusaka, Horumon, etc?
Ahh, perfect. Thanks!
Your Favorite Yakiniku in Tokyo for Wagyu, Kobe, Matsusaka, Horumon, etc?
How easy is it to order different cuts if you can't read much of the menu? My Japanese has largely been forgotten :(
Very disapointing lunch @ Del Posto
I get the sense they instituted the prix-fixe lunch because they feel obligated to. It shows in the service we got (no wine list offered, had to chase waiter down to ask for one - what, you don't want more money??). Food was fine, but I can't remember what we had, so nothing terribly memorable.
With the recent price hike, I wouldn't bother, personally.
Short List Tokyo Recommendations
Thanks! It's just insane (and depressing) to read about all these amazing-sounding places that get booked six months in advance.
Re: tsukemen place listed above - must have read the wrong part of the translation. Can someone tell which restaurant belongs to this page? http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1312/A131204/13111737/
Short List Tokyo Recommendations
Tokyo hounds, konnichiwa from NYC hound!
Last-minute vacation to Tokyo for 4-5 days. Have been doing research on this board, but am getting overwhelmed with the choices, prices and language barrier. I've been to Tokyo once before, but had friends take me around, which was amazing; this time, not as lucky. That said, please throw your short-list suggestions at me! Given high prices (esp. with yen strength vs USD) and impossible-sounding reservations, am not even attempting the top-tier restaurants like Ryugin, Sawada, etc.
sushi: of course I've heard of Sushi Dai/Daiwa, but are there better choices at this price level, quality-wise? I'm not terribly keen on waiting on line with a bunch of tourists unless it's something I can't find elsewhere. From this informative thread (http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/824180), it sounds like Uoshin might fit the bill. Looking for sushi that's as good or even better at a similar price point, will be eating TONS of it.
The first time I went to Tokyo, we ate three times at Sushi Tsune at Shibuya 109 since it was SUCH a good deal for fresh fish. I'm guessing it doesn't hold very highly on CH, so enlighten me as to others, please.
tonkotsu ramen : Warito
tsukemen: Shinkoiwa (according to Tabelog, which is all wonky after using Google Translate)
soba: Where to go? Once had great soba at a subway station (!) - don't remember name.
Tsukiji eats: of course will be seeing the Tsukiji market. I always wondered if the sushi places wree more of a tourist attraction - would a fishmonger be interested in eating sushi much? - and I get the feeling there could be better eats there that are non-sushi. Kitsuneya?
yakiniku: Jojoen and Jumbo chains
horumon: Saiseisakaba in Shinjuku? Birdland seems mentioned a lot.
donburi: ??
I'm sure I'm missing some other must-eats, but these are foremost on my mind. Thank you in advance for your help!
Any word on Masak?
Any recent reports? Menu looks interesting, but obv won't be that great if the flavors are toned down.
Torrisi and Parm - once you get past the 'hype' they're still pretty darn good.
After our visit, I can see why...
Wedding Reception for 150 in Manhattan . . . Suggestions Desperately needed
You sound very similar to us! I wanted outdoor space or a very airy element as well. We got married at the Liberty Warehouse, which was perfect because it has a great outdoor space (a pier!), amazing views, a cool industrial vibe, and a polished warehouse reception space. In-house catering is great (we had oysters on the half shell passed around!) because it's the same company as River Cafe.
Try warehouse spaces if you don't mind having to hire your own catering, etc. Also, if you pare your guest list to 150, you know not all of them will attend, right?
Torrisi and Parm - once you get past the 'hype' they're still pretty darn good.
Another yay for a great review. Coincidentally, I was reading your blog for tips on our recent trip to Ohio! Glad you enjoy NY so much.
Wedding Reception for 150 in Manhattan . . . Suggestions Desperately needed
What exactly are you looking for in a wedding venue? There are a number of big event spaces that you didn't mention. Only hotels or restaurants?
I went through this last year, on a moderate budget with a party of ~ 125 people. Food quality was important, though we did check out a few places based on price alone. Since we found that all-in-one places were cheaper (meaning on-site catering, etc.), we only looked at those. Aside from the ones already listed, we looked at the following places last year:
Yale Club (food is supposedly good, and it's actually quite reasonably priced)
Bridgewaters
24 Fifth
W Union Sq
Riverside Church (based on price)
3 West Club
and a few others in Brooklyn.
Places I've been to for weddings or other events:
Essex House
Central Park Boathouse
Manhattan Penthouse (wow, atrocious food)
Chelsea Piers
Trader Joe's Yea/Nay Thread - 2nd quarter 2012
Anyone "try" those potted herbs? I examined a few, and the tag lists all these different kinds of herbs, but I could only distinguish three growing in the pot. How would they squeeze in all those different herbs in one small pot?
Pulqueria early review -- So far so good (longish)
Sounds like it'd be hard to get into now with all of the crowds! I went a few months ago, but must have gotten there on the early side. I wonder if any places in Queens offer pulque?
Haha, no we never did make it to 15 East! But of course when we (eventually) do, we will make sure to get bar seats.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Thank you! I wish I had more meals to eat in Cleveland proper (outside Cleveland, all dining choices were made by MIL), but I will definitely reference this thread in the future. It's already a mega-guide to Cleveland, and I'm sure it's helpful to many.
Fresh fish in Jackson Heights?
Did you check the back? Farther back in the store, next to the counter, they have a bar of fresh fish and some shellfish.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Ahh, thanks for that! I've even heard of Kampuchea, guess I didn't remember it.
Next time, I'd love to try Crop and Greenhouse Tavern. I've looked at the menus of a lot of the recommended places but they seemed too ordinary for a special trip (for example, Lola's menu doesn't excite me at all, and the reports of it being overrated don't help). I didn't realize MIL lived so far from the actual city :(
Pulqueria early review -- So far so good (longish)
Chef from la Superior? No wonder everything is microscopically tiny AND overpriced.
Luckily didn't eat here, but I guess I'm one of the few who actually liked the pulque. Kind of a mild, herbaceous/grassy flavored, cloudy white drink. I offered a taste to a few people, and I don't think anyone else liked it. But here it was a "steal" at $6 compared to the other drinks...
Pulqueria early review -- So far so good (longish)
I went a few months ago, and I THINK it was about $6 a glass? the mixed drink pulques are nearly double.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Again, I'd like to thank everyone for their recs. Unfortunately, I didn't get to try most of them due to limited time in Cleveland and existing reservations (all made by MIL, groan). But I'll certainly be back, and hope to hit up your recommendations.
Summary trip report:
Breakfast at Tip Top Inn (not sure where, Stow?): very interesting place. Ordered eggs with hash browns, biscuits, and sausage gravy. The eggs were definitely cooked in (a lot) of butter. Hash browns were plentiful with lots of browned bits, but some parts were soggy. Not a place I'd go back for sure, but lots of people watching.
Our one day in Cleveland.
West Side Market: pretty cool, not as big as I thought. Ate LOTS of free samples from Campbell's popcorn, very cool flavors. Also had a brat sausage sandwich from the place right near the corner entrance - eh, nothing noteworthy, pretty mild, actually. Saw a huge line for gyros, but there are lots of gyros in NY.
Great Lakes Brewery: stopped here for two rounds. I'm not a big beer drinker myself, so partook in the make-your-own bloody bar, which was cool. Very busy.
Cuisine du Cambodge: ate dinner here, BYOB. I don't think I've had Cambodian food before, but the flavors overlap with Thai and Vietnamese (saw some bo luc lac and pad thai on the menu, not sure if that kind of thing is actually served in Cambodia or they're just there to appease Westerners). Can't even tell you what I had, but I had asked the young waitress (HS-age daughter of owners) what she recommended for typical Cambodian food. It was a combo of beef, chicken, and pork in a sauce with green peppers and a giant serving of steamed rice.
So these were the original owners of Phnom Penh, who took a hiatus (leaving the restaurant to their partner), and then came back and broke off. The waitress was bubbly and we talked about Cambodian food, where there are lots of Cambodians in the US (California and Massachusetts, of all places), and spicing levels for non-Asian folks. I told her to come to NY where there would be a big audience for her mom's cooking - the restaurant was pretty empty, and I imagine the pad thai is the top seller there. If I lived in Ohio, I'd come back here and check out more of the menu.
Akron/outer areas:
Bricco: Ugh. Lots of points for a huge, varied, and ridiculously affordable wine list (we were there on a Sunday), but the food was blech. I ordered the duck breast of the day, which came with a corn "guacamole" (not sure why they call it that, it was basically a corn salad) on tortilla strips, which of course got soggy.
For a restaurant that has duck on its menu daily, they could stand to learn to cook it right. What I got looked like seared tuna - cooked on the outsides, but completely raw in the middle. I love rare and even raw meats, but this was ridiculous. It looked gray and raw when I got it, and tasted like it.
Hubs got a four cheese pizza. So basically a greasy circular bread with tons of cheese thrown on top. This is what I imagine frozen pizzas to taste like.
Person next to me got the daily special of cajun (?) cod baked in breading, told me it had absolutely no flavor.
Bistro on Main: At least this place doesn't seem to try so hard to be trendy and then fall miserably flat. I got a pear and hazelnut salad with chicken on top, which was fine. Hubs got a grilled cheese with rosemary fries, which was good. It was $5 burger day, so the joint was packed.
Cracker Barrel: haha, I actually liked this - standard, HUGE, breakfasts cooked properly.
Hartville Kitchen (part 2): got creamed chicken over biscuits and mashed potatoes, which I guess is comfort food. No flavor, just mush, which is what people like, I suppose. Biscuits weren't good though, which was surprising. I wouldn't order this again though, would probably stick to salad or sandwiches.
Swenson's vs Skyway: had this taste test en route to airport. The double cheeseburger with all trimmings was really good at Skyway. Fries were a bit soggy and bad. Botched the experiment by getting just the regular cheeseburger at Swenson's. Hubs said they were basically identical, I preferred Skyway's double. Interesting fried mushrooms at Swenson's.
Lessons learned: seems like trendy or wannabe-fancy dining in Akron (don't know about Cleveland, though I harbor some suspicion) is a no-go, esp if you come from a city with killer dining. The best strategy might be to stick with the country cooking in Ohio. And pies. I ate a whole banana cream pie from Hartville kitchen by myself, not to mention the slices of pie from our two meals there.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Thanks for all suggestions! Quick trip report so far.
Lunch: Hartville Kitchen. What a scene. Huge portions of home cooking, though I just had a salad, so can't really comment. Great pies!! We shared a fresh strawberry pie, which was not too sweet and hit the spot. Great crust, almost like shortbread - my favorite part.
We took home a banana pie and ate half of it in one sitting. Very light banana cream (or is it custard? Not a pie expert) topped with even fluffier meringue. Would love to try some other flavors, may go back.
Dinner: Chowder House.
Ugh, where to begin. MIL made this reservation, but I was looking forward to it from another CH thread that recommended it as the "best cooking in Akron" at the moment. If that's the case, I'd stay home.
The much-lauded lobster bisque had no real lobster flavor (or any lobster bits for that matter, except for a fragment of one mushy claw), and worst of all, had the cream clumps that you get when you don't fully mix a condensed soup with the can of water. Wtf? And it came with half a thin slice of baguette. Are wheat prices that high these days?
My seafood pasta diablo was amateur hour - seriously. I am a relatively new home cook, and I make much better pastas. Upon seeing a STEAMING hot bowl, my worst fears were confirmed: overcooked pasta, rubbery shrimp. The mussels were absolutely tiny. At the bottom of the bowl, a pool of oil, not so much tomato sauce.
Took two bites of hubs' pulled pork from the Three Pigs dish. First bite: wow, this is salty. Second bite: oh god, there must have been a salt chunk. The bacon-wrapped pork was fine, slightly past where I would eat it.
MIL's cheesy mashed potatoes: so this is what people mean when they say "gluey." The special of the day, baked walleye, had no real seasoning.
Tomorrow night's dinner will be at Bricco (MIL reservation again).
Going to Cleveland today, hope the eating is better there.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Looked up Jeni's ice cream flavors, sounds AMAZING!!! I'd looooove to try the Magnolia Mochi flavor, among about a dozen others. Turns out I've tried the Ugandan Vanilla flavor before at home in NYC - someone had shipped some to my brother's office and he brought some home, we didn't know what Jeni's was.
Since we won't be near their locations, I'll see if we can score a pint at a retailer.
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Thanks! By "chow-ish" I definitely don't think of fine dining, necessarily - in fact, quite the opposite. I was thinking that the fine dining in OH may not be that different than in NY, so my preference is more unique offerings.
Haha, I've had Swenson's before as hubs and co. are all squarely in that camp.
Thanks for the recs, maybe we'll stop by Diamond Grille!
Costco Food Finds - 2nd Quarter 2012
The Kirkland brand green tea bags. Shockingly good. The tea itself is great, tastes almost like it's pure matcha powder (I actually empty the entire plastic bag into my cup to get all the great powder left over). Even the sachets/tea bags themselves are wonderful - a woven bag with the string coming off the middle of the bag and a paper tag designed to conveniently hook onto the lip of your cup.
Can't get enough of these. Made by Ito En, according to the package.
These were found in Northern Virginia (sorry, don't live there, so had to have relatives give me bagfuls of their own).
Uniquely Cleveland/Akron dining for visiting NYC hound?
Thanks for teh reply! Looks like we'll be going to WSM on Sat, hope it's not TOO packed. We're only going for the sights and the actual prepared foods.
So I stumbled upon Cuisine du Cambodge, which is apparently run by the original owners of Phnom Penh, but possibly in nicer digs and better food, hopefully. Since we don't have Cambodian food in NYC (crazy, i Know), I'm very curious to try it.
Will check out the other suggestions, thanks!
