PhilD's Profile
First of Many Paris Threads for Upcoming Trip
Re reservations: some are a few days, some a few weeks, some months. Most are pretty standard without the "60 days in advance on the day" type rule. A lot do close for August so this limits the window. My advice is to start early , lots will speak English, so it isn't the ordeal it is made out to be. A concierge is easiest as they are in the same time zone.
October Grand Birthday dinner in Paris
How about Epicure at Le Bristol, It is a 3 star, it has a grand room and I believe they have a set lunch at €130 (needs checking). Few if any reports on the board despite it being one of the newer 3 stars in Paris in one of Paris's top hotels.
London restaurant rec to celebrate engagement?
Manin's advice is really sound, the one thing I would add is to try and choose a place that will be there for the future so you can revisit. I know that is easier said than done but it is nice to celebrate the odd anniversary in the pace you celebrated your engagement. So maybe a grand hotel like the Savoy, or old place like Rules, or a dynastic pace like Gavroche? Newer places like, or named chefs in hotels may not last so head to these for day two celebrations rather than the day itself.
I hate to be this unimaginative, but post-research, pre-trip, might you celebrate or lampoon our choices?
Do you really mean unshucked i.e the oysters were not opened? Or had they not separated them from the shell.....surely you had a fork for this? Re the escargot, as it was a seafood platter are you certain these were overcooked snails rather than bulots (i.e. whelks) which are a bit more chewy than an escargot? The Choucroute is also a very traditional brasserie dish and I wonder if your server recommended it because of that I.e. your other choices went with the tradition of a brasserie. I don't think you can get Choucroute is small portions and I am not certain you can up-sell it as it I usually on the cheaper end of the menu.
But overall I agree about Bofinger - not the best place - the seating issue is common - you need to be persistent to get a seat under the Dome - it also isn't a bar really set up for drinking ( I tried) so I understand why they seated you.
Sydney - birthday dinner spots, mid-range
Not certain it is easy to find "formal and stuffy, stiff service" in Sydney - even the top places have an Ausse style. All three are semi casual, but still destination restaurants, Felix is a faux Parisian brasserie but does it as well as Baltazar in NYC. Pendolino may at first seem to be in a odd location but it works, and Fix is buzzy. So all intimate and fun in their own ways.
Petch Sayam - Leytonstone - London
Klyeoh - I think you will find the "renowned" Thai places in London are Isaan but the vast majority of suburban Thais and the more mainstream ones in Central London are more generic with dishes from across the country - Larbs, pad thai's, green, red and jungle curry, and rendangs make up the core of their menus.
Single diner in Sydney
I always found Adelaide to be a foodie heaven with good well priced food. Hopefully, you have tuned into the local scene with the smaller, newer places getting the buzz.
Two, bar seating places are Rockpool (very high end) andRockpool Bar & Grill, the first let's you book the bar, the second you just squeeze in. Sake in the Rocks also has good bar seating. The Cafe Sopra restaurants have bar seating (various locations) and they do good food in a very casual atmosphere. If you want great Thai places like Longrain, Chaat Thai and Spice I am, will be OK solo although you can't book.
Most other places with bars don't serve at the bar so you need to book a table. Breakfast and lunch are casual, lots of great breakfast options in suburbs like Surry Hills. Potts Point, or up on Oxford Strret near Woolhara (good trendy shops and a clothes market on Saturday). Pyrmont and Darling Harbour have one or two OK spots but it would be better to get out and about to other suburbs.
Sydney - birthday dinner spots, mid-range
Fix, Felix, Pendolino - book early for all.
I'm no longer recommending Le Cinq for lunch (review)
PH in Paris also had the Foie macarons in the past - that said he does move "the collection" forward each season so maybe no longer in fashion.
Septime v Saturne
Albion is ALC, I know what you mean about the no reservation bit, that said after a big lunch I tend not to want to be pinned down, so we tend to wander the streets. Starting at Verjus you could wander down Petit Champs past a nice range of wine bars to Frenchie and see how the evening progresses. I actually think Albion is a bit out of the way esp after a good lunch.
Septime v Saturne
My take on Saturne is it definitely has a modern French vibe, what is on the plate has nordic leanings. Yes, they do wine by the glass, we couldn't (wouldn't) finish the challenging white and I think I then went onto wine by the glass. From memory the sommelier was very engaging and happy to offer tastes.
I quite liked Albion, but when we went before Christmas it was still a work in progress. I really hope it develops and Parigi's experience was a once off. Matt Ong's cooking can be very good. Hayden is a great FOH and a good guide to interesting wine. An alternative is Frenchie Wine Bar - good interesting plates that are quite light.
Food trucks and Street Meat website/map
JFores - you make good points. I wonder if the authorities stance over food hygene laws could be similar to what I would euphemistically call "the Rochdale effect" where the authorities ignore a problem because they are paranoid about accusations of racism.
In the UK street food has a really dodgy reputation because it has a long history of being really dodgy i.e. greasy mystery meat burgers, baked potatos with 100 toppings, and german sausage stalls. It I only very recently that the new carts and food stalls at markets have emerged. I know this may be heresay but but I even think the food at places like Bourgh Market is massively overrated (and expensive)...to me a real example of emperors new clothes syndrome.
Is it really that much more expensive to a cafe or restaurant in Brixton Market or take over a underused pub kitchen (The Heron) than fit out a mobile kitchen in a truck or caravan? It clearly doesn't get the same attention (or PR).
And a late reply to Chowsue - yes I am pretty familiar with street food across Asia as I live here. And yes I am equally cynical about much of it. Some is very good, but equally some can benefit from serving from more traditional cafes or restaurants. An example, a street Pho is great but nothing like a really deep intense Pho made by a cafe owner who cooks his stock for 12 hours and nurtures the pot from day to day, week to week. I find it interesting that visitors to town (Hong Kong) will rave about the cheap street food but my local colleagues will be far more choosy, they may recognise a few stand-out places but generally prefer more standard restaurants and cafes. The same in India, my colleagues there really turn their noses up at the street stallls and tend to either bring food from home or go to their favoured cafes for lunch.....they thinks I am mad when I ask to be taken to them...!
A few street food heroes who where in the vanguard of the new generation of street foid in London are now housed in bricks and mortar restaurants. Why is this....?
Paris restaurant near Palais Congres for large group
If it is closer to Place Vendome I suggest Maceo - very good private rooms and a short walk from your hotel. The problem with a lot of places is tht they won't be geared up to serve 30 at once, which will exclude a lot of places (if you want smooth meal), Maceo does do parties so should be capable.
Comments Welcome on My Hong Kong Restaurant Selections
THW at the station probably won't have a long queue for a table in the afternoon.
Sunday Night in Paris, including a Vegetarian
I would generally avoid vegetarian restaurants in Paris. I often thought that was because the are less vegetarians per capita. However, I wonder if the real reason is a lot of restaurants deliver very good vegtable dishes as part of their normal menu. Even CLJ the hardcore meat bistro does some wonderful vegtable of cheese soups. Thus it can be quite easy to select non-meat dishes from and good place - that said I dare not speculate about the source of the stock for sauces and soups...!
Paris restaurant near Palais Congres for large group
The Auberge Dab is across the roundabout from the Palais. It is perfectly good for a meal in the area and to the best of my knowledge has private rooms upstairs. I used to stay at Le Meridien frequently and ate there a few times. Not the best of Paris but given the constraints it will work as it ticks most of the boxes. You may even be able to book the terrace which would be atmospheric.
Comments Welcome on My Hong Kong Restaurant Selections
My comments:
I agree with Charles regarding Tim Ho Wan why take-out? Better to eat in if the queue isn't too bad. That said it is good for its price not really the bet in HK. Happy Vally races has food but it isa long evening and if you are not being catered then eat before you go.
I will be ruder than Ian about Jumbo....been once never again....despite the all you can eat buffett and all you can drink champagne....if you want that type of thing lots better. TBLS is great and my best meal in HK - but it is a very tricky reservation that you need to plan for - you need to ring X days in advance on the day.
Heritage hotel is very new andi have yet to read a review, dinner at Yan To Heen will be good - the light show is meh.
Tea at the peninsula is not great. Better to head up to the Ritz Carlton for the view - and you can book rather than queue. Have not been to Busy Suzie so can't help.
Maxims is fun but don't go for the food. Rainbow is OK but the journey is better than the destination.
Having trouble fFinding cookware without Teflon or aluminum
John Lewis usually stocks decent steel at reasonable price points. Some do have aluminium sandwich bases but this is firmly sandwiched in the core between the steel so doesn't come into contact with the food so is quite safe if concerned about such things. Most saucepans will have copper or aluminium sandwiched in the base to even out the heat distribution as cheap steel on it own can be prone to hotspots thus good pure steel can be expensive.
Where to buy a wok & Asian cooking staples in Paris
Agree with the need to shop around for ingredients as the supplies are often inconsistent from shop to shop and Tang (like a lot of Asian supermarkets) won't have the best woks etc. But if you are just starting a steel wok from a supermarket that you season well is a good cheap entry point. Once Juile gets the bug then maybe good to expand the utensils and quality of utensils. That said in my experience woks are one of the few pieces of kitchen equipment where the cheapest can be as good if not better than expensive ones. Light is often better thn heavy as it is easier to move it around the stove.
Masterchef Australia vs Masterchef US
But the UK one doesn't eliminate on the "catering" challenges it eliminates on the individual cooking. The Aus one eliminates on the back of the catering ones i.e the losing team from a challenge faces the elimination, and often that can be a non-cooking elimination.
Agree amateurs won't perform like professionals and TV environment is not a perfect way to judge. But remember they are all amateurs so all the in the same boat. Aus does allow more time for them to develop and the cynic in me woud say more time to place products in the cooking demos.
Have you read the SMH commentary - it I very good (spoiler alert it is the latest series): http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/masterchef/youve-never-cooked-pasta-are-you-yolking-20120518-1yu1h.html
Lameloise: Lunch vs Dinner
Jeremy - It is good to hear - I still remember enjoying a very good cheese cart with some of the local Chardy, so good we needed another half.
Da Tulip - I agree on the pink - but the terrace is a good place to escape it.
Chez L'Ami Jean Report from today!
Jego is the chef - I think he may find it a bit weird to get a gift from someone he doesn't know. Local customs don't always travel well.
Lunch and dinner in the 7th?
I believe you can still snack at the bar in Bellota-Bellota - they did a very good tasting plates to contrast the varieties.
Gaya is very good - especially if you sit at the bar, ask to sit downstairs not up.
Masterchef Australia vs Masterchef US
I think you underestimate the standard of lots of amateur cooks, I won't argue they are as strong as professional as they aren't but there are some pretty stellar cooks around.
Also wise to remember the different production values of both shows. I think the UK is a simpler format focussed on the cooking, but the Aus series is a "big brother" type drama with the journey being part of the set-up to hook the audience....will Kylie from Tooowoomba conquer her fear of potatoes to conquer the French fry challenge, or will Jason (with the cocky smirk) ace it again. In the Aus version the contestants are chosen as much for their personality and their faults as they are for their strengths. Without the faults there Wouk be nothing to cry about, there woul be no drama, Kylie would not be able to triumph over adversity by cooking chips.
Both shows are entertainment not really true competitions but I think the UK one still has cooking at its heart whilst the Aus one is more of a dram with a cooking theme.
Where to buy a wok & Asian cooking staples in Paris
Tang Freres is the13eme is the best spot. It is very big and well stocked so good for a one stop shop for ingredients and hardware like Wok's and Steamers. The shops around there may be better for fresh veggies etc but I would suggest getting started with Tang then branching out.
My advice on buying staples is to get a couple of good books and simply buy for each recipe, but buy things like light and dark soy, fish sauce, bean sauce etc in medium sizeed containers as they are staples. Do note that Chinese and Thai use quite different ingredients so you tend to build up different sets of base ingredients. And unless you plan to make your own coconut cream and milk (which is always best but labour intensive) from fresh coconut buy tins of cream and milk in bulk if you see them cheap. If cooking Thai do make your own pastes don't use commercial ones - it makes a real difference.
Verjus Review
There view doesn't surprise me, we ate in the wine bar and were underwhelmed. Similar observation to Plafield, small plates with small portions. Give the number of hounds who spoke highly of Hidden Kitchen I find it interesting there are so few reports of Verjus...?
Lameloise: Lunch vs Dinner
I thinks I was part of the debate, and on the negative side. It is good to hear it is improved, but on our visit 5+ years ago the food was just OK but the service was frosty. It will be good to hear more recent reports to see how it has evolved as that part of the region is great to stay in. We stayed at the Hotel Monrachet (in the village of the samename) near by and had a very decent lunch on their terrace, I hear reports their restaurant is now really good. Anyone been recently?
Masterchef Australia vs Masterchef US
I have only just seen S6 (2010) as BBC World is so bad (and no doubt they will repeat this for 12 months) and I thought the opposite. With MC Aus I felt I saw very little cooking skill through all the rounds a d the early rounds were quite simple and/or do structured it is tricky to assess ability to cook or ability to copy and follow instructions. In MC UK the skills demonstrated seem higher especially towards the end when they need to deliver multiple courses of their choice.
I do understand later series eliminated faster i.e before they always chose one of the three even if none could cook, in the new format if they are all bad they all go. Please correct me if wrong. It used to frustrate me when they put forward useless cooks to simply make up numbers.
Thank you, Chowhound
I have a few vegetarian friends here in HK who have decided Pork is a vegtable for similar reasons.
'Fresh' sushi in Sydney CBD
Your comment and links don't match. There is nothing in the report that says it was off or dangerous. They were fined for not keeping it refrigerated at the prescribed temperature, or possibly not being able to show an audit trail for the time it was not refrigerated.
