thunderbug84's Profile
Amsterdam info
Hello! I'm a chowhounder from Boston on my honeymoon and we have made our way to Amsterdam. I am hoping that people could give us some helpful basic food info. For example, when do people usually eat lunch and dinner here? are there any food traditions here? (ie- afternoon tea, afternoon beer, etc). I know that it is basic, but it will be really helpful for our short stay!
Also, we are staying in a flat right by the weesperplein metro station. I haven't found many food recs for this area. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Lastly, my husband and I have two loves. First, cheese! I am a cheesemonger and id love to sample some good borenkaas Gouda. Any cheese shop recommendations? Second, fish. Pickled, cured, salted... Doesn't matter. We'd love to sample some local staples as well as bring home some canned goods.
This post turned out longer than expected! Any info will be much appreciated. Thank you!!
Konpeito in the Boston area?
A good friend of mine brought some green tea Konpeito back from Japan and it was so beautiful! It was very elegant looking (I know that some Konpeito can have crazy neon colors, but this was a really nice matte sage green) and I'd love to find some like that in the Boston area for wedding cupcakes. My first thought was that Ebisuya might have some in Medford square? Does anyone know or have any other ideas? Thank you!
New Pizza/sandwich place
I agree! I just ate there the other night and the pizza is fantastic. I chose my own toppings and had pepperoni, onion and hot peppers. The crust is fantastic and the toppings were great too. Also, the service is fantastic. I'm so happy to have such a great little pizza joint in my neighborhood!
Pressure Cooker Cookbook
I recently got a pressure cooker and I'm thrilled to use it, but it feels a little daunting. To get me started, I'd love to have some great reference material so I dont blow anything up. Can anyone recommend a great cookbook that focuses on pressure cooking? Not only do I want great "how to" information, but great recipes is a must as well! Thank you!
Which pressure cooker is better?
Fagor Duo Pressure Cooker, 8 Qt. or Fagor Futuro 6-Qt. Stovetop Pressure Cooker?
I've never owned a pressure cooker before and I think I've narrowed it down to these two. I'll mostly use it for dried beans and meats. I'd also love to use a lower pressure setting for fish and veggies.
Any info on either of these would be great! Thanks!
Farmer's markets in January?
I will be flying to San Francisco in January and I'm interested in some of the area's farmer's markets. I'm less interested in fresh fruits and veggies and more interested in regionally-produced products like jams, honey, candies, cookies, canned products, etc. I'd really love some suggestions on where to go! I'm willing to travel to Berkeley, San Rafael, etc. Thank you!
Need a fun restaurant near Chelsea/Hell's Kitchen
thew, we are looking for something unique and delicious. We'd be happy with really authentic thai, modern mexican or locally-focused American cuisine to name a few. If you were eating in the area we mentioned, where would you go? We can't break the bank (we'd rather not eat anywhere too formal anyways), but we aren't on a super tight budget. I'd hate to narrow down my focus too much because then we might be missing something amazing!
Need a fun restaurant near Chelsea/Hell's Kitchen
I'm meeting an overworked friend for dinner in New York and I'm excited to treat her to a great night out. We are both very, very adventurous eaters and the food is our top priority. I'm staying at a hotel on West 40th between 8th and 9th. We don't want to stray too far from the hotel.
A side challenge... we are eating out this Monday night, so I know that leaves a lot of options out.
Thanks!
Best Indian lunch in Portland?
I'm visiting from Boston and the friend that I'm staying with said that she now loves Indian food. We are looking for a great lunch tomorrow before a long drive. I've never had Indian in Portland before so I have no idea how it compares to Boston. If Indian food in general is just not up to snuff in Portland, we are happy to eat something else. Thanks!!
Help Improve A Foodie's Guide to Boston's Sights and Restaurants
You should really mention the Liberty Hotel. I just went for the first time and the interior is incredible. They obviously care about maintaining the history of the building (it used to be a prison) and there are many areas with historical plaques and information. Scampo is the restaurant there and while its nothing innovative, the food is very good.
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Scampo
215 Charles Street, Boston, MA 02114
Ebisuya Japanese Market in Medford
I just went to Ebisuya for the first time and it was fantastic! It had everything that I would have gotten at H-Mart, but without the mega-store craziness. The only trouble I had was navigating the soy sauce isle. I don't know much about soy sauce and the more descriptive signs were only in Japanese. I ended up buying one that was wrapped in white paper with a little string around the top. I think it is organic. I tried it at home and it is super, super salty. Its definitely interesting and I'm going to play around with it a bit, but I'd like to try some others as well. Does anyone have any suggestions for a really good soy sauce to buy there? Also, any additional insight about soy sauce and what to look for, etc would be much appreciated!
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H-Mart
3 Old Concord Rd, Burlington, MA 01803
Where to buy Koshihikari rice in the Boston area?
Does anyone know if I can find Koshihikari rice in the Boston area? I'm going to check H Mart on Saturday, but I'm not holding my breath...
Traveling to Chile... what spices to bring back?
I will be traveling to Chile soon and I am a spice fanatic! Are there any specialties that I should look for?
Freezing cooked chicken
Is there anything wrong with freezing cooked chicken? How long will it last?
Need a place with great small plates, great cocktails and not too expensive btwn Grand Central and Greenwich Village
My sister is flying into New York Saturday evening so we would like to go to a place where we can just snack a little and have some good cocktails before we hit up some jazz. She will be coming into Grand Central and jazz will be in Greenwich Village so somewhere in that area would be perfect. Thanks!
Asian grocery store in Porter Exchange mall?
My favorite Asian grocery store in the Porter Exchange Mall closed awhile ago. Does anyone know if a new Asian grocery store took its place or is it still vacant? Thanks!
Canning onion marmalade
A lot of French onion marmalades (often called oignon confit) that I've seen use butter or oil to caramelize the onions. I'm happy to try other ideas though... I do really want to can them rather than freeze them because if the recipe turns out great, I'd love to send it to some family members for the holidays.
Canning onion marmalade
I'd like to make some onion marmalade using onions, vinegar, sugar, spices and butter. I'd love to can it, but I've never caned this style of preserve before. If I process it the same amount of time as regular jam, should I be okay? I am generally against giving myself and others botulism, so any advice is appreciated!
Local fresh cranberries?
Thanks! Thats definitely worth checking out. Although, if possible, I'd love to be able to get it straight from the farm where they are grown... any ideas?
Local fresh cranberries?
I'm trying to eat more local food and I'm trying to find some fresh cranberries. I know that New York and Maine produce a lot. Any suggestions on where I can find them closer to Boston? Thanks!
Smoked ham steak??
its definitely raw... I'm going to share it with my fiance, so it seems to be the right size for two. I like the lentil soup idea, I would just hate to over cook a nicer cut of meat. Is this a nicer cut?
Smoked ham steak??
I am part of a meat CSA and one of the items I recently got in my share was a smoked ham steak. Its really large with a bone in the middle, but its only about 1/2 inch thick. I don't cook a lot of ham as it is, but I've never cooked anything like this sucker. How should I prepare it? I'm eating it tomorrow... should I do anything to it tonight (ie -rub, marinade, etc)?
Uses for beef fat left over from making stock?
should I just store it in the freezer until use? how long will it last in the freezer?
Uses for beef fat left over from making stock?
I made some beef stock last night and I ended up with about 3 quarts. I checked the fridge this morning so that I could skim the fat off the top, but each one had thick discs of fat (about 1/2 inch thick). They actually keep their disc form very nicely so they would be easy to store. Should I store it for use? If so, what can I use it for?
Best coffee in Harvard or Central
So yes, my mom did end up going to Crema. It MADE her trip! She had some wonderful coffee with her bagel. While she was there, she recognized the laugh of the guys sitting next to her and she said "you guys must get this a lot, but you sound just like the Tappet brothers." They said "well, we do get that a lot... because we ARE the Tappet brothers." Anyways, she ended up spending almost 2 hours hanging out with the Car Talk guys having a blast. Thanks again for the recommendation!!
Best coffee in Harvard or Central
rlove, you hit the nail on the head. We are sleeping in!
I'm sending her to Crema... I never would have thought of that! Petsi Pies was also an awesome suggestion, but they open a little too late on saturdays. Thanks again!
Best coffee in Harvard or Central
My mom is staying with me and wants to wake up early tomorrow to get some really good coffee and a bagel and cream cheese. My fiance and I don't drink coffee so we are clueless. She is walking, so we need something between (or in) Harvard Square and Central Square. She prefers not to go to a chain, but if its the best option, then thats fine. Thanks!
Best foodie apps for IPhone?
I just got an IPhone and I'm excited to find some good foodie apps. The only one I have so far is Urban Spoon. I'd love others that would be useful in cooking (for example, something for converting measurements or an app that gives you good substitutes for an ingredient). Any suggestions?
Home-made chili powder
I have several pounds of hot peppers, a dehydrator and a coffee grinder. Is this as simple as I'm hoping or are there any tricks I should know? Thanks!
Help in Toulouse!!!
thanks for all of your responses... the post office didnt have what we needed (they said that to buy a box, they would also have to charge us the postage... the boxes weren't even big enough anyways), and somehow we managed to start quite a little fight between one of the workers and a customer (we think that the customer was mad that they were helping us and we couldnt speak French). We ended up going to a vegetable market and grabbing one of their empty boxes!!!
This was definitely a lesson learned! No one had heard of packing peanuts (we used newspaper) and finding a large box turned out to be quite the expedition!!
Regarding the restaurant, we actually were running out of Euros, so we went to Xavier cheese shop instead and got some incredible cheese. That plus a baguette and an apple was all we needed for a fantastic last dinner!!
Thanks again!
