Random Food Questions Thread - Page 228

Douglas is right, generally speaking.

(Maybe why you're asking?) but this question gets asked a lot in fitness circles where people are trying to be very accurate about calories.
After years of fussing the numbers for those reasons, I've found that a roughly 25% loss from raw to cooked is pretty accurate with beef, pork and chicken.

I have a question for the foodies out there. Let me preface this by saying I like good food, appreciate the art that it is, but I in no way consider myself a "foodie", or have much interest in cooking myself. I just want to know whether it is me that is being obtuse, or this girl being a bitch, or both.

So, yesterday I was at my local cafe and to my delight this one particular "barista" was working who (just to give you some backup) claims that I am the embodiment of everything that is wrong with society today, (read: she's a huge hipster and I wear a suit and work for a corporation). Anyway, she was saying that there is this new Ethiopian sandwich shop that opened that everybody must go to. It is the best sandwich around, so new and interesting amidst all of the New York restaurants and yadda yadda yadda. She also said that they will not under any circumstances allow any modifcations to their sandwich menu. I responded with that it sounds like a bunch of bullshit. She went on about how the chef has curated specific things together to taste a certain way and he doesn't have to change it if he doesn't want to. If you don't like it than leave.

Ok, now I would usually agree with this, if I am say dining at 11 Madison Park, Daniel, Per Se, but a fucking sandwich shop? That is utterly pretentious. If I don't like raw tomatoes and I know this, I have to pick them out and wing them. This dick won't just omit them for me because it is a part of the collection of flavors. I say if you want to woo people with your culinary skills, then do that at L'Ecole and cook for other chef's, or Cook at Daniel, where that type of appreciation for curation exists. Let me be the judge at the $6 sandwich shop whether I find tomatoes appaling or not, let me decide whether I want to experience your art, you tight T-shirt wearing fuck. Sounds like bad business to me.

Thoughts?

P.S. I happened to offend a chef who was waiting on line for coffee as well. I asked her where she is a chef. A pastry chef at a bakery. She was a bitch too.

I agree- Alinea caters to people who don't eat pork or drink alcohol for fucks sake.

But then again, it is an Ethiopian sandwich, maybe there's nothing to omit?

soupnazi.jpg

i would imagine that the flavor combination excuse was total bullshit and they just found customizations to be super annoying and unnecessary when they already get good business ( kind of like successful cash only places)

otoh at the prices you pay and the level of service you get at EMP i would imagine customizations to be required

there are no substitutions at emp because your menu is created as part of a "dialogue."

if there are no substitutions, isn't that a "monologue"?

not necessarily. think of it like going to see a play. the actors can talk to one another, but pretty much you're supposed to sit there and shut up.

no b/c it's tailored to your tastes (technically.) hopefully it's obvious that i'm making fun of the ridiculousness of the restaurant's pr, since it's quite obvious that they aren't really adjusting things extensively based on communication at the table.

It sounds like public masturbation to me. The image, not the food.

i was agreeing with you. it's just that if they're the only ones talking, it's obviously not a conversation. and it can't really be tailored to your tastes if they don't want to know what your tastes are. personally, in a restaurant of this level, i don't have a problem with it being a monologue. i don't go to concerts to shout out requests either ("Free Bird!"). but that they announce it in such a way is kind of douche-y.

How many Ethiopians does it take to get a nice, meaty sandwich?

I can say for certain that per se does not agree with this. If you don't like an ingredient, speak up and they will be happy, ecstatic even, to find a way to modify the dish to your liking.

EMP sucks. There is no dialogue. Aside from the risotto with shaved white truffles (which was heavenly and pretty much nobody could fuck up) and the raw langoustine marinated in grape juice (which was fucking disgusting), I don't remember a single dish my wife and I had at EMP. For $600 something out to be memorable. I remember every course I've been served at TFL and per se.

I wouldn't say EMP even comes close to sucking. Yeah, Per Se is better, but EMP is still very very close. They're not really the same type of restaurant. Per Se perfects classic French style cooking while including some modern elements, while EMP is totally modern with French undertones. Both have their positives and negatives. EMP has a better (and more affordable) drink list and one of the most talented bartenders in the city. They also experiment a lot more. Per Se/TFL haven't changed much in the past few years, so obviously they can keep the food as close to perfect as possible. EMP is very experimental which means there are definitely some misses, but the best courses there could be better than the best at Per Se. I also prefer the staff at EMP. Most are genuinely friendly people who can have an interesting conversation. They also do listen to preferences and allergies. Obviously if you don't tell them in advance they can't cook things that take time, but they brought out entirely different courses when the person I was with told them he couldn't eat shellfish.