Bahamian Beers

During my stay in the Bahamas, I tried to imbibe as much as I could on the local brews.

Kalik - Best of the bunch. Clearly more enjoyable than a Corona.
I could taste a good balance of barley and hops. Pretty well crafted.










Strong Back Stout - Did not enjoy because of high metallic aftertaste.
The metallic aftertaste is pretty nasty.
Not much malt flavor either, even for being an extremely dark coffee color stout.
I suspect the malts are overly roasted here. Not impressive at all.







Sand's - OK beer. But would not order again.
I'd rather order a Kalik over this any day.
No need to sip on a Heineken knock-off.

Poop Deck Restaurant

The Poop Deck - Not Recommended

If your #1 objective in the Bahamas is to dine well, this should deter you from ever coming down to the islands. The Poop Deck was recommended by 4 out of 5 people we asked, including the hotels and local bus/taxi drivers. I specifically asked for a restaurant that caters to well-to-do locals on the island.
So even being considered THE restaurant to go to, it still has plenty to work on before I will consider it a professionally run establishment.

The service is terrible, ingredients are poor quality, and presentation is mediocre.

We had a 4 top Friday night and to kick off the debacle, the water for the table wasn't filled until 10 minutes after being seated. To follow, the waiter didn't know what was the special of the day, nor did he know what was sold out. ( I place most of the blame on the owners and managers of the place. They really need to up their game if they want to sustain their business with today's economy.) We had to wait for him to come back and forth each time we had a question. Irritating to say the least.

Below are pictures of our dishes.
Overall, the snapper dish (upper left) was the only palatable dish at the restaurant.

Nassau, Bahamas

Nassau is the capital of the Bahamas. It is an archipelago of over 700 islands.
A highly Christian country, there really isn't much hedonistic behavior to be seen or done anywhere...
But non the less, it is a great place to escape from the hustle and bustle of the big city and to just sit on the beach, open a good book and soak up the sun.

When asking around the island, there are 2 must does when visiting Nassau.
Go visit the Atlantis (if you aren't already staying there), and go on the Powerboat day tour. You island hop around some beautiful uninhabited islands absorbing all the nature one can take in.

As for the Atlantis... let me start by saying it is probably the best thing that happened to the Bahamas. It's was once known as Club Med, but then bought out and turned into what one would call the Bellagio of the Caribbean.
It is spectacular!
The building is by far the coolest and most up to date structure on the island. With the largest casino in the Bahamas, the best restaurants on the island, and a pretty big aquarium.

Dining in the Bahamas is a whole different story.
I can deal with being overly charged at the resort or the restaurants in hotels. I'll gladly pay the premium for the convenience of having good food on premise. But the problem is, the food isn't good. I can't stress how bad the food is on this f'n island.

For 2 people, we ordered 2 hamburgers, and 2 ice teas at the pool side cafe at the Sheraton Resorts and was charged $80. Later in the night, I dined at their Italian restaurant on premise and was charged over $100 for 2 entrees and a salad. This kept going on and on through out my 3 day stay.

So in conclusion, this may be the best place on earth to go on vacation during the cold winter months, and stick to your diet. Even if you tried, there's nothing for you the cheat and stuff your face with.

Bread For Dudes

I love food... really love it. As a former restaurant cook I have been known to go to great lengths to make a snack or simple meal; my best friend still refers to my "grating sweet potatoes" incident as code for overdoing it. But every now and again there comes along a recipe or technique that is so simple I can't let it go. Last night I needed something to go with a veggie chili that I had whipped up after work. Potatoes didn't seem to fit; rice gets lost in chili; and pasta and chili are only good in Cincinnati. I had found THIS recipe for beer bread a while ago and copied it to my dashboard (thanks Macbook!). OK dudes, get this: mix 4 ingredients in a bowl, add a 12oz. beer and pop in the oven... Shazzam!!! Hot tasty beer bread with very little work!

I was surprised at how good and simple this was. More than that, I work in the beer business, and, I know, the variations are endless. Different beers will add a myriad of flavors. I figure anything dry can go in here as well: raisins, nuts, spices, cheeses, olives, grains, and different flours just to name a few.

This is a no-brainer; dudes like bread, dudes like beer... go get out your loaf pans.

An Ode to the Great Peeler Dealer

By Michael Wilson NY Times February 3, 2009

Joe Ades demonstrating the use of his $5 vegetable peeler outside the Union Square Greenmarket. Mr. Ades, known for his memorable sales pitches in his English accent, died on Sunday at 75.

"Grab on here," Joe Ades instructed me a couple of years ago in front of a small crowd in Union Square, "and pull it toward you."

What the heck, I had nowhere else to be. I grasped the little vegetable peeler and dragged it across the carrot in his outstretched hand, and presto, a perfect little orange sliver curled off. My other hand darted into my pocket like it was part of the routine, pulling out a $5 bill.

"I'll take one," I said, thinking, just wait until the wife sees this.

I brought the new peeler home and faced her skepticism with my own demonstration. I peeled the carrot all right, but not with anything near the flair of Mr. Ades, the Englishman and street salesman with the silver tongue:

You can use it right-handed, left-handed, or like a politician, underhanded.

They're made in Switzerland; they're not made in China.

Buy five for $20. You've got friends, haven't you?

Later, I'd see Mr. Ades once a week in Downtown Brooklyn. I introduced myself and told him I wanted to write about him, and he smiled and gave me a photocopy of an exhaustive profile Vanity Fair had written about him in 2006. My heart sank. There was no way to advance the rags-to-relative-riches life story the magazine had published.

I asked if he still enjoyed Champagne at the Pierre, and he said not as much as in his younger years.

We used his peeler all the time at home for salads. It really works.

On warm days, I'd bring my sandwich to where he was stationed and listen to his spiel:

You can't sell the same thing for 15 years in this town if it doesn't work.

Only one? You've got no friends, like me.

My wife hadn't met him, so one morning I called her and held the phone toward Mr. Ades while he was selling peelers in front of about a dozen people. He saw me and stopped cold, pointing his finger. "Who's on the other end of that phone?" he demanded.

I stammered, "My wife."

He smiled and said, "As long as it's not my wife," and jumped right back into his pitch:

They don't make cheap things in Switzerland. You can't buy toothpicks there for $5.

This is the best $5 you'll ever spend.

I bought two peelers that time, for gifts. I thought that someday, I'd persuade Mr. Ades (pronounced AH-dess) to record the outgoing message on my voice mail, in that great English accent, but I never got the nerve to ask him.

He died on Sunday at 75. New York lost one of those greats from its cast, for whom there is no understudy. But there is some small comfort in knowing that now you can get a good salad in heaven.

Anthony Bourdain is Following Me

I am a huge fan. In fact, for the limited TV I watch, this is my favorite show. I feel stalkerish and now have a “connection” with him. Like a groupie. This guy is getting more and more popular, but I’ve been a fan before people knew who he was. Last year, I was in a small city in China called Dengfeng so I can visit the Shaolin Temple the following day, and who appears on my little transistor radio version of a TV in my room? Mr. Bourdain. Nobody look… he’s mine! I discovered him!! I even read the guy’s books. But now, I think he’s following me. Recently, his shows are taking place at locations very near and dear to me. A couple weeks ago, his show was in Washington, D.C. Tonight? Chicago. After the Chicago show, they replayed his time in Mexico. Tony, if you’re reading this, call next time. Stop the mind games.

Unfortunately, I didn’t properly watch the D.C. show since I was busy, but I did get the gist of it. I’ve been to most of those places, and the places I didn’t go to, I’ve been to either a similar place, other places by the same chef. On this post, I talk about D.C.’s charm to food residing in the international cuisines in & around the city, and these are some of the places he went to. He visited a Peruvian place (wish I got the name) and an Ethiopian place. You see these places everywhere. Depending on where you are, there could be 5 Peruvian chicken places within a single block, like in Arlington, VA. And Ethiopian. Well, here’s a fun fact – besides Ethiopia, there are more Ethiopians on earth in the D.C. area. So umm yeah, when I go to a gas station, and they are selling injera, the “bread” from there used to pick up the food, you know there’s a large community here. (Here’s a review of a place Porthos and I went to.) He also went to Mini Bar, which is chef’ed by José Andres, who also has Jaleo and Zatinya, which I’ve been to. There’s also Café Atlantico that he chefs up. (Here’s my Jaleo review.) There was also Ben’s Chili Bowl, which is a staple for D.C. that has been around forever that prides itself in half-smokes and hot dogs. (Don’t worry, Chicago and NYC, they have NOTHING on you.) So I was quite happy to see that he’s following… I mean we went to the same (types of) places.

Now the Chicago show. The disappointing part was when he was on the Mancow Radio Show, since I don’t like that show, but I understand that he has to since it’s the most popular radio show in Chi Town. Mancow is a Howard Stern rip-off, though he says he never listened to him. After the show, Tony and Mancow went to have sandwiches, where Mancow tells him that Tony introduced him to his new favorite sandwich in his own city. And that is something that I had to agree with Mancow on. Watching the Chicago show made me realize how out of touch I am to that city now. I do know the staples, but I don’t know these new places he spoke of. I took notes. I am armed for my next visit. But he did try the hot dog and did say, on camera, to the world – Chicago has the best hot dogs.

And he’s a New Yorker.

By the way, text BOURDAIN to 47201 for updates. =]

Fight Food: UFC 94

After eating a pretty subpar meatball sandwich at the local pizzeria, I wanted to show the fight dudes what a good meatball sandwich should be - moist, tender, and flavorful. The problem with a lotta meatballs made stateside is that they're mostly meat which makes the meatball tough and not tender. Mr Batali believes this was because Italy was a relatively poor country using bread to extend the meatball yielding a more tender product. But because the Italians stateside could afford to use more meat, the meatballs here are generally tougher. Any who, great card and tasty, huge f'n man sandwich...

Meatball Sandwich
I like cooking the meatballs in the oven since it almost has a souffle effect and makes the meatball uber tender. Finishing them off the in the sauce makes a sick meat sauce (great with pasta or just to dip bread in). I ommited onions since I don't like raw onions in my meatballs. Instead, I added caramelized onions in the sandwich adding that hint of sweetness that makes you want to eat a lot more.

Ingredients (all are guesses, since I never measure)
4 Portuguese Rolls (ciabatta would be nice too)
Ground pork/beef combo (about 3/4 pound per person)
Toasted Pine Nuts (in a dry pan for 1 minute)
Cubed white bread soaked in milk (about 1/3 the amount of meat)
4 eggs
3 cups of finely chopped parsley
2 cups parmiggiano reggiano
Fresh mozzarella thinly shredded
2 cloves garlic minced
Caramelized Onions (thinly sliced sweet onions, cooked over low heat in olive oil for 20 mins)
Salt and Pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Tomato Sauce (using 98 oz can of San Marzano Tomatoes) + reserve tomato juice

1) Preheat oven to 375 F and add a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
2) Combine the white bread (squeeze the milk out before you use), pine nuts, meat, eggs, garlic, parsley, parmmigiano-reggiano, and pinch salt/pepper in a large bowl. Mix well and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3) Now this is an important step. Make one mini meatball and fry in a pan over medium heat with olive oil and taste. If it needs more flavor, add more salt and pepper (maybe parmiggiano too). If it's a tad to tough, add a bit more bread. The meatball can actually stand up to a lot of salt and pepper.
3) Form meatballs to the size of your liking (bigger will yield a juicier meatball). Place on the baking sheet and close the oven...you should hear it sizzle right away when the meatball hits the pan.
4) Add tomato sauce to a pot over high heat. Add some tomato juice to loosen up the sauce a little bit - enough to come half way up the meatballs. Once the sauce starts boiling, change to simmer keeping the pot uncovered.
5) After 10 minutes check on the meatballs. You want to see the meatball brown on the bottom. The top should just be slightly set. I think mine was finished in about 15 minutes.
6) Once meatballs are ready, add them (and the meatball juice) into the sauce. Simmer for 10-15 minutes covered.
7) Place a good helping of caramelized onions, meatballs, and extra sauce in the roll. Top with mozzarella and place back in the oven. After 2-3 minutes, remove from the oven (you just want the mozzarella fully melted). Top with extra virgin olive oil and parsley. Buono appetito...btw - cold meatballs topped with caramelized onions are the best thing to eat the next morning.

Super Bowl 2009

Went over a buddy's place for Super Bowl 2009 and as usual we made and ate some tasty food. Oh ya, the game was phenomenal as well - the NFL really does have a great product. The last couple of Super Bowls were entertaining and very competitive games.

Below is what we had:
1) Quesadilla - Camembert, Apples, and Caramelized Onions (sweet, tart, gooey thing going on)
2) Quesadilla - Assorted Mexican Cheeses and Zucchini (I've had squash blossoms in a quesadilla in Mexico, so figured why not zucchini slices...worked out pretty well)
3) Sausage, Peppers, and Mozzarella Sandwiches (great job Coyle - this was a juicy, flavorful dude sandwich)
4) Assorted Italian Pastries (hazelnut and chocolate cookie was off the chzain good)
5) Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Topping (addicting as f)

The Greatest Snack Food Stadium Ever Built

Chu-bacca passed this miracularous diorama of food to us from the gang at holy taco. It is glorious and makes complete sense. The only thing I would add is some chicken wing cheerleaders because what's a game without the cheerleaders?

Peking Duck House - Review

Intro
Peking Duck House - Recommended
28 Mott St, New York 10013
At Pell St
Phone: (212) 227-1810

Porthos was craving some duck, so we metup some friends at the Peking Duck House in Chinatown. Great times hanging out, although the duck really wasn't that great there. Overall, I give the restaurant a 76/100

My Menu
1) Duck Soup **
2) Steamed Dumpling *
3) BBQ Beef App
4) Spring Roll
5) Peking Duck *
6) Fried Prawns w. Chili Sauce *
7) Crispy String Beans w. Minced Pork **
8) Fried Banana ---

Rating System
--- What the F - in a bad way * Good ** Great *** What the F – in a good way

Dish Comments
1) Great way to start the meal. Great broth that really screams of duck. No duck meat inside but topped with nice soft tofu and spinach.
2) Your average chinese pork dumpling. Not great, but it was still tasty - relatively juicy and flavorful.
3) Tasted like uber dry beef jerky with caked on chinese 5 spice. Definitely not worth eating.
4) Your average spring roll - oily, crispy and average veggie filling.
5) The main event - peking duck. To eat, you fill this tortilla looking thing (aka lotus pancakes), get some crispy duck, top with julienned scallions and cucumbers, and top with sweet hoison sauce. It was decent here, but I've had this a lot and I'm pretty sure there's gotta be better places in the tri-state area. I think I'd like juicier and more flavorful duck, which we didn't get here. Usually, they serve the skin and meat separately, but here they cut the meat up and leave the skin on - no big complaint from me.
6) Pretty fun dish - but not authentic. Basically a deep fried shrimp (still juicy) and topped with a sweet chili sauce. Pretty fun and I may have actually liked this more than the duck.
7) Another fun dish. Crispy string beans topped with flavorful minced pork.
8) Definitely a what the f in a bad way dish. Banana was floured up and deep fried, but not drained at all so you got a buttload of oil in the mouth. Not a fun dessert to eat.

Overall Restaurant Experience (76/100)

• Food 7.5/10 – Duck is decent, but really not worth trekking out for. The other entrees actually seemed more fun to me.
  
• Service 6.0/10 – Same as most Chinese restaurants, which means pretty shitty. Took a while to get someone to take our order. When our order was taken, the food took a while to get out.
  
• Atmosphere 7.0/10 – Looks almost Japanese in decor with the lighting and walls. Very clean place for Chinatown, but nothing that special. Music is hilarious - like all love songs from the 80's and 90's. The crowd didn't have too many Chinese there - which is usually a bad sign for a Chinese restaurant. Place was mainly packed with large groups of 6+. We got there at 6:30pm on a Thursday and was seated at 7pm with no reservations...with some prodding and reminding on our part.
  
• Price 9.0/10 – A pretty good bargain. 4 people - $26.50 a head for everything above (1 whole duck, soup, 3 apps, 2 entrees, and shitty banana). Definitely worth the price and everyone was relatively full afterwards.
  

Closing Comments
Not necessarily sure I would go back here, but if I was invited I would. Definitely need to find me a better joint for Peking duck.

Kanoyama

Kanoyama - Recommended
175 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10003
(212) 777-5266

Right on the border of Highly Recommended and Recommended.
I will definitely go back again. I foresee in the near future.

Kanoyama is run by Chef Nobu. Not the same guy that owns Matsuhisa and the Nobu chains, but rather this pretty humble looking foods craftsman.
He loves what he does and does it day in and day out.
Nobu runs the place with his wife and they command and orchestrate a busy little eatery in the East Village.
While many restaurants are hurting for business these days, they are still rolling full steam ahead almost every day.

Kanoyama is known for their sushi, but the a la carte dishes from the kitchen are not to be missed either.

I'm a stickler for enjoying sushi at the counter, with the chef right in front of you. The interactions between the patron and the chef is such a critical element of enjoying great sushi.
But unfortunately, our group of 4 was a bit too big to fit at the counter so we dined at a table.

We were celebrating a co-worker's birthday and the guys at Kanoyama were above and beyond to accommodate and make our celebration that much more enjoyable.
Great service guys!

Here's a list of goodies we enjoyed that night.

Apps
- Uni & Ikura on Raw Oyster - The Ocean x3 **
- Age Tofu - Tremendous yet pleasant soy bean flavor **
- Rock Shrimp Tempura **
- Mirugai Sashimi (the Basil Ponzu sauce is a mistake)
- Sui Gyoza
- Hamachi Kama *
Sushi
- Chu Toro **
- Shima Aji *
- Tai
- Tasmanian Trout
- Uni *
- Amaebi *
- Anago (shira yaki) ***
- Anago (tare) **
- Maguro Shiso Maki *

and to finish, they served Miso soup.
The Miso Soup was quite average. Was expecting a fish broth based miso soup, or heavy in clams, like what you would usually get at a traditional sushi joint.
This, sad to say, was just your average miso soup with wakame and tofu.

Habu Sake

I didn't know this drink existed but my neighbors came over the other day and through our conversations, they brought this to my attention and by chance had a bottle to show me.

Habu sake is apparently from Okinawa. It's actually a Rum (made from Okinawa's famous Pure Sugar Cane) but the kicker is there's a venomous snake in the bottle.
The Habu snake is extremely toxic and it's actually lowered into the bottle of rum while still alive and when it sufficates to death, it releases it's neuro toxins into the bottle.
People who have drunk the libation have been found on the floor of the bar in a fetal position for hours. A clear sign the poison is working.
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

I'll pass and stick to appreciating the bottle on the shelf where it belongs.

National Treasure - the McRib Locator

Hoves passed along this hilarious, yet resourceful site locating all McD's that have the elusive McRib...

http://kleincast.com/maps/mcrib.php

Here's an excerpt from wikipedia about the McRib.
"The McRib consists of a boneless pork patty, barbecue sauce, onions and pickles served on a 6 inch (15.2 cm) roll. The patty is precooked, frozen and later reheated.

The sandwich test-marketed very well in Nebraska and other Midwestern markets and was added to the restaurant's permanent menu throughout the United States in 1981.

Officials at McDonald's, in a 1985 stockholder meeting, mentioned that The McRib was pulled because the McRib could not sustain international sales, as there were many countries in which pork is not regularly eaten. Germany was cited as an example, but the U.S. and certain Asia Pacific countries were not. The strategy announced at that time would be that the McRib would be brought back periodically as a "specialty" sandwich since it definitely increased sales during a promotional period before receding.

On November 1, 2005, McDonald's put out a press release stating that the McRib would be permanently removed from the menu following a "McRib Farewell Tour." This appears to have been a deceptive kickoff to a viral/stealth marketing campaign; mcrib.com, a site registered to McDonald's, featured a petition to "Save the McRib," which was facetiously sponsored by the "Boneless Pig Farmers Association of America." So in a two-angled campaign, McDonald's was simultaneously conducting a McRib farewell tour and sponsoring a petition to "Save the McRib" to create buzz. On October 16, 2006, the "McRib Farewell Tour II" site appeared, confirming the campaign was a marketing ploy. The petition to "Save the McRib" still existed as well as the "BPFAA" site."

Chinese New Year 2009

The parents came over for Chinese New Year and I decided to whip up a fun healthy light meal. Not necessarily a Chinese meal, but it was hella tasty. Big flavors and not disgustingly stuffed afterwards. Below is what we had...

Ligurian Style Chilean Sea Bass
Got the book Urban Italian for Xmas (killer book btw) and I've wanted to make this recipe for a while. I've seen this on the show Reservations Required when Carmellini was still at A Voce. Lots of little steps, but everything comes together beautifully. Poaching the sea bass yields an incredibly juicy, flaky fish and the clam broth imparts a great briney flavor to the buttery fish. The combo of the rich pesto, buttery potatoes, green beans, and crunchy bread crumbs puts this dish over the top. Get you're favorite bread out and get ready for some dipping, since the broth is out of control flavorful...

Ingredients (all are guesses, since I never measure)
1 cup Pesto (basic with parmiggiano reggiano)
1 pound Chilean Sea Bass
1/2 pound Fingerling Potatoes, scrubbed
1 pound Green Beans, trimmed and halved
1 ciabatta bread (for dipping and bread crumbs)
20 clams thoroughly washed
2 cups white wine
2 cloves thinly sliced garlic
2 tsp dried red pepper flake
Extra virgin olive oil
1 cup clam cuice
Sea Salt and pepper

1) Toss the potatoes in olive oil and salt/pepper. Put in a tray and roast in a 400F oven till creamy on the inside - I think 30 minutes, since these suckers are tiny. Check by using the knife method or just eat one and see. Remove and let it cool for 30 minutes. Cut into bite size pieces and set aside. A potato boiled is a potato spoiled - so roast or steam these suckers...the flavor is more intense that way.
2) Dice 1 cup of bread, toss with salt/pepper, olive oil and throw in the toaster oven in the toast setting. Should be crispy. Remove and set aside. Taste and re-season if necessary.
3) Get a pot of boiling salted water and blanch the green beans for 2-3 minutes (color should be bright green and still a bit crunchy). Remove and place in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Set aside.
4) Put a pan over high heat. Add olive oil, garlic, clams, red pepper flake and wine. No idea on the time here, but cover and keep on shaking the pan. As each clam opens up remove immediately - they all open up at different times so pay attention. The left over broth needs to be used.
5) In a pyrex container with high walls, add the chilean sea bass and season both sides with salt and pepper. Add the clam broth (being careful to not any grit at the bottom) and the clam juice - almost submerging the fish. Cover and put in a 375F degree oven. I think you could simmer it over the stove top too, but I went with the Carmellini's method and used the oven. Should be done in about 10-15 minutes. Flip the fish midway through and check.
6) Remove the fish and slice into 4 portions. Add the pesto to the pyrex container with the potatoes and the green beans. Leave in until potatoes and green beans warm up...
7) To serve, add fish in the center of a warmed plate (you can microwave it for 30s-1min to warm it up). Add the clams, potatoes, green beans, croutons, and extra sauce. I brought the extra pesto clam broth to the table for people to dip the bread into. Any leftover potato, bean broth mixture can be tossed with some pasta for a second meal. Buono appetito!


Roasted Beet Salad with Gorgozola
Another recipe from the book Urban Italian, but I tweaked it a bit adding sour apples, walnuts, and gorgonzola. Great refreshing salad with the agro dolce (sweet sour) thing. Sweet beets, cut by the red wine vinegar, with the creamy pungent gorgonzola, crisp sour apples, and crunchy walnuts gets you a combo of texture and flavors...

Ingredients (all are guesses, since I never measure)
1 granny smith apple
4 red beets, 4 yellow beats
2 shallots fine dice
High quality Gorgonzola (not the supermarket kind)
Red wine vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
Walnuts
Mixed Salad (preferably including arugula and chicory)
Sea Salt and pepper

1) Scrub each beet thoroughly and trim the two ends (you can either discard the beet leaves or thoroughly clean them and use them in the salad). Wrap each beet in aluminum foil with a pinch of salt and pepper. Covering each beet in it's own foil roasts them more evenly. Throw in a 400F oven and cook for an hour.
2) Once the beets are cool to the touch. Remove the skin, and cut into bite size pieces in a bowl. Add shallots, good douse of balsamic vinegar, good douse of olive oil, and salt/pepper. Let marinate for at least an hour and taste. Re-season if necessary. Beets are like sponges (did not know that before), so it soaks up a lot of flavor.
3) Toss salad in a tiny amout of red wine vinegar, a little oil, and salt/pepper. Remember - the leaves should not be drowning in dressing, just slightly coated.
4) Slice up some apples into match sticks.
5) To serve, add the salad greens to the center of the plate, scatter a couple of beets around with the apples, add some crushed walnuts, and cut up some tiny pieces of gorgonzola around the plate. Be generous with the gorgonzola too, since that really makes this dish sing!

Desserts
I didn't have time to do desserts, so I copped out and bought some. We had a mango panna cotta, brownie cheesecake, and pecan tart. Good times...

Total Recall

The list of establishments and products the FDA is listing is insanely long. 
Take a look at the site I've linked here and go down the list.  Better to know and avoid potential fatality. 

This list includes food products subject to recall in the United States since January 2009 related to peanut butter and peanut paste recalled by Peanut Corporation of America. This list will be updated as new information is received. This information is current as of the date indicated (as of Jan. 24, 2009 12:00pm). Once included, all food recalls will remain listed. If we learn that any information is not accurate, we will revise the list as soon as possible.

Buffalo Wing Shortage

Thanks to Hoves for the heads up...

Worst Foods in America by Men's Health

According to Men's Health... people who love junk food should pretty much go kill themselves. 
The list is quite humorous, and even trivial at times...
Like how the heck can you jam over 2600 calories in a ice cream shake?

But my favorite goes to P.F. Chang's for their :

Worst Chinese Entrée of 2009

P.F. Chang's Tam's Noodles
1, 678 calories
93 g fat (17 g saturated fat)
You'd have to eat 42 Krispy Kreme Glazed Doughnut Holes to match the fat content in these noodles. LOL

The 20 Worst Foods in America 2009

Avoid these 20 industrial-strength calorie bombs this year

• 20. Worst Breakfast Sandwich of 2009
• 19. Worst Supermarket Meal of 2009
• 18. Worst "Healthy" Sandwich of 2009
• 17. Worst Kids' Meal of 2009
• 16. Worst Fast-Food Chicken Meal of 2009
• 15. Worst Salad of 2009
• 14. Worst Breakfast of 2009
• 13. Worst Fish Entrée of 2009
• 12. Worst Dessert of 2009
• 11. Worst Surf and Turf of 2009
• 10. Worst Chinese Entrée of 2009
• 9. Worst Mexican Entrée of 2009
• 8. Worst Burger of 2009
• 7. Worst Sandwich of 2009
• 6. Worst Chicken Entrée of 2009
• 5. Worst Ribs of 2009
• 4. Worst Pizza of 2009
• 3. Worst Starter of 2009
• 2. Worst Pasta of 2009
• 1. The Worst Food in America of 2009

Pomelo

Went to the Chinese grocery store in Flushing and saw a Pomelo - a fruit native to South-East Asia. Porthos talked about it before, so I figured why not give it a try. Basically, a huge grapefruit with less bitterness and a tad more sweetness. The fruit has a thick spongy rind and tough membranes. You basically break it apart and eat the flesh inside. Again, like a grapefruit, but with a much tougher membrane. Relatively tasty stuff, but not sure if I'd get it again...

East Manor - Review

Intro
East Manor - Recommended
4645 Kissena Blvd, Flushing, NY‎ 11355
Phone: 718-888-8998

Met up the cousins in Flushing for some dim sum. I haven't had dim sum in a long time, so this place definitely hit the spot. Good variety, solid quality, and no worries about waiting in crazy lines to get in. I'll steal Bourdain's phrase and call it the "terror-dome" of dim sum - a huge sprawling space that maybe seats 200+. Overall, I give the restaurant a 77/100.

Overall Restaurant Experience (77/100)

• Food 7.6/10 –We had my list of "dim sums greatest hits" - you know har gao, shumai, pai gwat, fung zhao - and everything was solid - tons of variety. Unfortunately, since the place is so huge, some of the food in the pushcarts get a tad cold. The best items were surprisingly the desserts...the dan tat was nice and creamy and there was this crispy bitter melon gelatinous ball filled with sesame paste - not bitter at all and the perfect amount of sweetness.
  
• Service 7.5/10 –Tons of pushcarts, so no worries about waiting a long time for your next bite. Plus they have sections where you can order food directly...things like turnip cake, dumplings, scallion pancakes etc. on la pancha. And some stewed items as well - very convenient.
  
• Atmosphere 7.5/10 – The "terror-dome" of dim sum joints. Got there at 11:30am on a Saturday - cousins already got a table, but there were plenty of seats. Huge place and I don't think you'd ever wait in line here. Plus, there's a parking lot which is a big plus and a huge Chinese grocery store nearby, so you can rock some dim sum and get your shopping done afterwords.
  
• Price 9.0/10 – $15 per person including tip and I was 100% stuffed. Can't beat that. As usual, when visiting any small dish joint, come with a lot of people and your ROI will be much better. We had 11 peeps and were all pretty stuffed.
  

Closing Comments
Solid dim sum place and better than most places in Chinatown. I judge dim sum by my favorite dim sum dish - shumai - and this was decent. However, for dim sum in the tri state area, I think 1&9 Seafood Restaurant is #1 and Oriental Garden is #2 to me.

Fight Food: UFC 93

Our buddy Pat hosted the last UFC event (terrible fights, but still great times) and he surprised us with a kick ars Reuben sandwich. Flavorful, tender corned beef simmered for 4 hours, topped with crunchy sauerkraut, thinly sliced gooey swiss cheese, in between some rye bread, and finished off in a pan with some butter till nice and crusty. Great stuff and I highly recommend it. So good, a corned beef dinner sounds in order soon...