meg944's Profile
New "authentic" Mexican restaurant in Albany?
Tl; dr - just a move and re-branding of Pancho’s. Which is to say, entirely in-authentic.
Dinner for 60 in Montreal in Spetember
I am arranging a dinner for 60 in Montreal at the end of September. We have enough foodies and almost enough budget to be biased toward somewhere interesting (e.g., APDC).
Anyone have a recontamination for a suitable place? Upscale, ideally with a Québécoise spin on the food.
Thanks!
-m
Fleur Royale - the prettiest cocktail we've ever made
Yes, the bottle that we got says "Pages' Parfait Amour Creme de Violette." I'd be curious to try the other variations (though not curious enough to lay out the cash!)
This was an example of our latest project, to ocme up with cocktails for some of our more obscure spirits. Next up, that Farigoule lavender and the whiskey/maple/pecan thing. (Not in thesame glass, though!)
Fleur Royale - the prettiest cocktail we've ever made
1/2 oz. Parfait Amour creme de violette
1/4 oz. St. Germain elderflower liqueur
sparkling wine
edible flowers (optional)
Pour liqueurs into a champagne glass and top with sparkling wine and an edible flower. We used nasturtiums as the orange contrasted beautifully with the indigo of the drink.
Options:
As with a Kir, this would probably be both tasty and pretty made with still white wine - then we'll just call it a Fleur.
It also tasted quite good (spicier, less floral) when we substituted Vya extra dry Vermouth for the St. Germain. Last night we were in full end-of-summer mode, but this version may be more appealing in the fall.
This would likely be very pretty in a martini glass. When the light shines through the drink it's really spectacular.
TOP NY Capital Region-Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga, Troy
Yes, Jack and I are going for our final tasting menu this weekend. I am sad, though this will be better for them w/ their young children. They have a chance to run a destination chateau in the Languedoc.
TOP NY Capital Region-Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga, Troy
Yes, I believe they are closed - that was a sad story. The owner was stabbed to death by her grandson.
Phoenicians, Albany (Lebanese cuisine)
Haven't been but have heard only good things - thanks for the report, fdr!
capital q smokehouse
. Finally made it in to Capital Q Smokehouse for lunch today. ( http://www.eatmypork.com ) This is basically a take-away joint, though they do have a small amount of counter seating and a couple of picnic tables. We were really pleased – the guy behind the counter immediately suggested that we sample all three of their pulled pork options (one is more traditional, one is vinegar-based w/ ketchup, the last, and my choice, was vinegar-based w/ mustard.) He also offered to let us sample any sides we wanted. I got a pulled pork plate w/ corn bread w/ maple butter, potato salad (they let you sub either this or macaroni salad for the usual coleslaw,) and mashed sweet potatoes with maple. I also had a bite of friends’ baked beans, hush puppies, mac and cheese. Everything is made in-house, including the pickles you get on the side or in your sandwich, and from what I understand, it is primarily more of a North Carolina-style barbecue. I found the pulled pork w/ mustard to have just enough bite and nice levels of smoke – my friends preferred the most traditional sauce. With drinks we spent ~$10 each, and except for the pleasure of trying many things, I would be inclined to recommend sharing a plate amongst two people. I had to take at least half of my food home. Both of the counter people were really nice, and the guy came out and chatted w/ us while we were eating at the picnic table. We even got to meet the owner’s dog. They also have smoked chicken, beef, and quite a large number of sides – now I am wondering why I didn’t go for some Hoppin’ John! Though I’m not in this area much, I’ll keep it in mind for inexpensive, tasty, friendly barbecue.
TOP NY Capital Region-Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga, Troy
Actually, this "best of" is done by the Metroland staff - they also have a "reader's poll" that comes out at another time. (They used to combine the two, but they are both such popular issues, I think they decided to combine them to maximize ad revenue.) I usually get some new insights from both, but the reader's poll is less reliable, in my experience.
vegetarian-friendly, near Mart Plaza
I was looking for vegetarian-friendly places in the area of our hotel or reasonably easy to reach from the hotel and had no luck - perhaps because of my limited knowledge of landmarks other than our hotel. Sorry I wasn't more clear. And I hear you on the non-vegetarian restaurant thing, but I have actually been burned by that several times. Casual ethnic lunch places, sure, but upscale places are often less vegetarian-friendly than I'd like - I don't want my sister to have one pasta dish to "choose" from. My family still tells the story, to my horror, of the tapas place in Philly where we once took everyone. I remembered it as having a lot of options, but it turned out nearly everything had meat. I wanted to leave when I saw the menu, but they were afraid we'd be out of luck elsewhere. So, my sister's family wound up splitting several orders of the couple of things they could eat while the rest of us had a guilty feast. So, I am doubtless being over-zealous, but with some cause.
Anyway, we made reservations for our special dinner on Saturday at the Green Zebra, which looks great, and have noted the others. Unfortunately Frontera is not open on Sunday or Monday, or I might have had to push the vegetarian envelope.
Thanks, all!
TOP NY Capital Region-Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga, Troy
You can easily travel to Saratoga, Troy, or Schenectady in ~15 minutes, and Albany takes just a bit longer, so I would consider that. But right in Clifton Park, Tai Pan isn't bad at all, especially for dim sum. Also, Shalimar just opened a branch there, I understand - that is basic but tasty Indian.
vegetarian-friendly, near Mart Plaza
Hi – my sisters and I are coming out to Chicago for a girls’ weekend at the end of this month at staying at the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza. This is the first time we have ever done this (sans parents, husband, kids) as we live all over the country. One of my sisters is vegetarian, so I would like to get some recommendations for places that are vegetarian-friendly. I did a quick search but didn't find anything. Ideally it wouldn’t be more than a $10 cab ride away from the hotel (though for something really amazing or on the Brown line, which is near our hotel, there could be some leeway.) And while casual is fine for most lunches, dinners, I’d like to do something a bit more upscale for our Saturday night dinner. (Sadly, it won’t be Charlie Trotter’s, though I know they have a vegetarian tasting menu.) Also, I’d love to find a nice place nearby to have a glass of wine or cocktail and perhaps a small bite. I really appreciate the help – I can’t tell you how many times Chowhound folks have saved my bacon while I’m traveling.
Need Recipe for Brownie Batter Ice Cream!
I actually developed mine because a friend told me he had done just that. I never use a mix to make brownies as the recipe is so simple and good, so this was actually easier for me (as I had everything on-hand) and, I hope, tastier. But I bet both are delicious and indulgent. (A bit too much so for me, I’ll admit – I made this up for my husband.)
Best (Funniest? Wittiest?) Food Quotes
Re: bad coffee, Ani DiFranco had a line I always liked: "The coffee was just water dressed in brown."
Primavera, Ludlow
My husband and I had a really enjoyable dinner at Primavera in Ludlow on Thursday. This isn't a fine dining destination but the food is tasty and inexpensive, and the young servers were almost shockingly sweet and helpful. For instance, we ordered an appetizer of flaming chourica sausage, which actually arrived in a pig-shaped flaming dish. My husband happened to be in the bathroom when it came out and I mentioned that he was going to be sorry he missed the spectacle, so one kept an eye on it so it wouldn't get too burnt while one went to keep watch and hurry him down the hall. Later he said he wished he had thought to take a picture of it w/ his cell phone but we had already blown out the flame - a nearby server overheard and then offered to light it again (we didn't.) As I write this I realize that this might come off badly elsewhere, but the mood was friendly and light-hearted and we were completely charmed by them.
The meals all come with a free cup of soup - that night's was vegetable, which we thought would be blah but turned out to be rich and creamy. A note to any vegetarians, there is no way this was a vegetarian stock. We then had the sausage (nicely spiced and crisp - the flaming is actually a nice touch, flavor-wise) and some cod cakes. I found the cod cakes a bit disappointingly bland, and we ordered a carafe of wine after seeing a bunch of what looked like a table of regulars drinking it - that turned out to be not such a good idea. They have a limited but inexpensive and mostly Portuguese wine list, and I would try something else next time.
Our entrees were a stew of monkfish with some shrimp and mussels over rice (rice cooked in the dish plus an extra plate of rice) and a daily special of tripe, sausage and white beans (and possibly some other vegetables.) Both came in dutch ovens and were huge portions. Were it not for the fun of trying more tastes, there would be every reason to split one between the two of us in the future. The flavors were rich and complex - I was hard-pressed not to overeat because it was all so tasty.
Total bill - something like $55 plus tip.
Incidentally, they are doing some construction to expand.
Need Recipe for Brownie Batter Ice Cream!
Just made this up last night....
brownie batter ice cream -
Brownie batter
---------------------------------
3/4 cup melted butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 t. vanilla
3 eggs
3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. good quality cocoa powder
Ice Cream Mix
------------------------------
1 1/2 c. cream
1 1/2 c. milk
1 bar of minced good quality chocolate (we used green and black 70%)
mix together the brownie batter ingredients, add the milk and cream, and freeze as directed in an ice cream maker. At the last stage, add minced chocolate bits. You can eat as is or freeze a couple of hours for firmer ice cream.
Brownie batter ice cream - the ultra-indulgent remix
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Double the brownie batch ingredients, divide in half, and reserve one half for making ice cream. In the other half, add 1/2 t. baking powder, and a pinch of salt, beat well. Add 1/2 c. chopped chocolate (or good chocolate chips)
Mix the ice cream ingredients w/ cream and milk and chill.
Oil an 8" square pan and spread the brownie batter. Bake at 350 degrees for at least 1/2 hour (until brownie begins to pull away from the edges.) Cool and cut - you probably want 1/3 for the ice cream and 2/3 for snacking or sundaes. Obviously the ice cream bits must be wee; the rest, less so. Make up the ice cream, and just before it is done, add the brownie bits and chopped chocolate. Eat, or freeze and eat, and then fall over with happiness.
Note - this recipe does call for uncooked eggs. If you don't trust your eggs, or are pregnant or ill, it's best to avoid that.
Note - You could probably flavor this with mint or peanut butter or raspberry or marzipan, etc. and have it be wonderful. This is just stage 1 flavor - have fun!
Rude guests bringing wine - should I have served it?
My very thoughts, albeit expressed much more eloquently!
Cella Bistro - Review
Thanks, FDR! I was sick for awhile and Jack has been teaching a class in the evenings, so we haven’t had the energy to try any new places of late. We have been back to Creo and NWBB and had good experiences (and had a mediocre experience at Aperitivo, sadly,) but I really want to go to Dale Miller and am also intrigued by the remake of the Glen Sanders’ restaurant, Angelo’s Tavolo. I’ve never had pasta w/ sea urchin before.
BTW, I expect you are right – they probably want to avoid people coming in, having two glasses of wine (or maybe two glasses of water!) splitting an entrée and not ordering anything else. I can completely understand under those sorts of circumstances. We often swap plates but it’s not about saving money or even my rather wee appetite – we both just like to have a chance to try more things. Thus I think we’ll never tire of the small plates phenomenon.
lunch in Manitou Springs, CO
Sorry I never got back to you! Thanks for the suggestions. We wound doing both - we had a lovely "girls' lunch" at Adam's and then a family dinner at the Loop a day or two later. Both were good. I especially loved Adam's, just because it had so much interesting stuff on the menu, and I bought a bunch of their famous tea as well. Thanks so much for the suggestions!
restaurant holding your leftovers?
We went for manicures and pedicures - it actually was less than two hours but I told the place two hours to be safe. I love your idea of having the nail tech feed them to me though - too funny! Now that would definitely gone above and beyond the call of duty!
restaurant holding your leftovers?
If it makes any difference, I actually had an extra $5 already in my hand to cover the extra work involved in holding them – I completely recognized it as a favor to me, though I didn't think sticking them in a cooler for two hours on a quiet afternoon would be THAT much of an imposition. I was just surprised to hear that it would be against the law.
Cella Bistro - Review
I am curious about the charge – if you each got an app and then one person got a salad and one a traditional entrée, it seems strange to charge you for sharing w/ one another. Of course, if you requested that the dishes be divided and plated for two, that is different.
Jack and I often “swap” plates halfway through, so we can try more things and because he can eat much more than me. I wouldn’t expect to be charged in that scenario, as there is no additional work for the staff.
restaurant holding your leftovers?
Thanks, all.
FYI, I asked my local restaurant blog about the issue - so far there's no indication that it would be illegal, and it's interesting to see the various responses.
http://blog.timesunion.com/tablehopping/6741/illegal-for-restaurant-to-store-doggy-bag/
This particular scenario is not something that has come up very often in the past, but it actually is pretty common for me to have some of my appetizer or other early course wrapped up for me so I can try more dishes. This is especially true with tasting menus - even with the smaller portions it is simply too much for me. Occasionally restaurants will pack the food up and then leave it on the table but most places take it away and then bring everything back out at the end of the meal – I am not sure why this scenario would be so different, as the amount of time it would be stored would probably be close to the same. But this will definitely make me think twice before requesting such a thing in the future. I actually quite enjoy leftovers, as a rule (obviously many dishes don’t reheat well) and I don’t have much of an appetite, so I have a tendency to over-order.
I have had my leftovers lost by the staff perhaps once or twice over the years. It was a small disappointment but no big deal. That, or worry over the hygiene of the staff, doesn’t bother me. If I trust them to make and serve my food in the first place, I don’t worry about how they will deal w/ my leftovers. I actually find it just slightly off-putting when they bring containers out to the table for me to fill, though I know it is obviously a matter of house policy.
restaurant holding your leftovers?
Just to clarify, I wasn’t looking to come back, take a table and eat more of the dish! It was already packaged up. It was too warm to safely leave them in the car for a couple of hours.
restaurant holding your leftovers?
I am curious about something. I went out with a girlfriend on Saturday for a spa visit. We went to a restaurant first and had a leisurely lunch, then walked over to the spa next door. We ordered too much food and were too busy talking, so we ate less than half the food on the table. Most of it wouldn't keep well, but I asked the waitress if it would be possible for them to hold my leftover lobster ravioli dish for me for two hours while I was next door getting my nails done. She refused and said they weren't legally allowed to do that because I had already purchased the food. Now, this isn't something that comes up often (one of the few times when our cool NY weather 9 months of the year comes in handy) but I know that I have asked at restaurants a few times in the past (usually when going somewhere before a movie or play) and never encountered a problem. Anyone hear of this before? I am curious whether my expectations were too high or not. It certainly broke my heart a little to have them throw more than half a plate of lobster ravioli in the garbage.
First Dates ...
I know you meant it negatively, but I would hate to think that loving food would keep my guy from loving (cough) other things in the most delightfully pervy way. :)
