Elitism, Restaurant Critics, Bigwigs and You

I have had a growing case of chapped ass as I watch shows like Top Chef.  It all came to a head today on Top Chef Masters, as I watched the chefs manage a fast casual place.  The thing they seem most concerned about is the judges.  How fast they get their food, and that it is the best food served that day.

The schmucks who simply go to work, make a few bucks an hour, and come in to plunk down money representing an hour or two of their life?  Well, they come second.  No one on this or the other shows seem to see this as what it it- telling the viewers that when they go to a restaurant, they don't matter.  That all that is important to these people is that the judges are happy so the chefs can advance.  Doing what is right for the people who sit in the dining room?  Not that big of deal.

Sadly, this is not so far from the truth, despite what owners of businesses espouse- the most important person in the business is the one who pays for it.

In the many years I spent in restaurants, the bigshots came second.  If there was a problem in a restaurant they visited, they pitched in to help fix it for the guest, then later dissected the cause and solutions.

Donors demand a say in University actions

I read this on Bloomberg, a great news source. While it is outside the mission of Exechobo, it is a thought provoking piece that deserves to be spread and discussed. 

I was attracted to the story because of the lead. I am an Ayn Rand fan. I am also critical of the ivory towers that Universities exemplify. And I am a college football fan. It all ties together in a real life plot of intrigue and ego, as you follow the money. 

Bloomberg News, sent from my iPhone.

Schools Find Ayn Rand Can't Be Shrugged as Donors Build Courses

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- John Allison, former chairman of bank holding company BB&T Corp., admires author Ayn Rand so much that he devised a strategy to spread her laissez-faire principles on U.S. campuses. Allison, working through the BB&T Charitable Foundation, gives schools grants of as much as $2 million if they agree to create a course on capitalism and make Rand's masterwork, "Atlas Shrugged," required reading.

Allison's crusade to counter what he considers the anti- capitalist orthodoxy at universities has produced results -- and controversy. Some 60 schools, including at least four campuses of the University of North Carolina, began teaching Rand's book after getting the foundation money. Faculty at several schools that have accepted Allison's terms are protesting, saying donors shouldn't have the power to set the curriculum to pursue their political agendas, Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its June issue.

"We have sought out professors who wanted to teach these ideas," says Allison, now a professor at Wake Forest University's business school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. "It's really a battle of ideas. If the ideas that made America great aren't heard, then their influence will be destroyed."

Allison, 62, is one of a number of wealthy philanthropists who are making bold demands on schools as a condition of giving, says Jack Siegel, a lawyer whose Chicago-based Charity Governance Consulting LLC works with colleges and nonprofit groups.

Seeking to leave their imprint on everything from the direction of scientific research to the performance of sports teams, these benefactors are stirring conflicts when their causes don't fit with the priorities of administrators and faculty.

Strings Attached

The strings attached to the gifts present university presidents with tough choices: While schools suffering from diminished endowments and government funding cuts following the recession need the money, administrators are sometimes forced to reject the offers to avoid a dust-up on campus.

"I have known some gifts in which the university just could not agree to the terms," Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee says. "If there are too many strings attached, you have done yourself a disservice. If someone gave me $100 million to start a school of massage at Ohio State University, I'd have to say, 'Sorry, it's just not in our strategic plan.'"

Donors as far back as John Harvard, the first benefactor of what was renamed Harvard College after his death in 1638, have gotten their names enshrined on buildings in a quest for immortality. "They're building a tombstone," Siegel says.

Henry Kravis, the billionaire co-founder of KKR & Co., pledged $100 million last year to fund an expansion of Columbia University's business school. The new lecture hall at his alma mater will be called the Henry R. Kravis Building.

UConn Football

Many donors today insist on more than a marquee. Robert Burton, who runs his own investment firm in Greenwich, Connecticut, said he gave more than $7 million to the University of Connecticut with the understanding that he would have a say in the football program. In January, he asked for his gift back, saying the school hired a football coach without consulting him first. A month later, the university announced that it and Burton had reconciled their differences.

"Donors want something back, and in many cases they want a say-so in what's happening," Siegel says. "When their money isn't used the way they want it to, they are unhappy."

In one of the more ambitious demands made by a donor, hedge-fund manager Jim Simons tried to use his pledge to change tuition practices within the entire State University of New York system. In July, Simons's pledge of $150 million to SUNY's Stony Brook campus seemed like a life buoy thrown to a drowning institution.

Tuition Law

SUNY was facing $210 million in budget reductions. Before writing the check, Simons, 73, the founder of Renaissance Technologies LLC, demanded that the state legislature pass a law allowing the 64 SUNY campuses to set their own tuition for the purpose of reducing their dependence on state aid. The legislature rejected the proposal in August.

So the fund manager, who had donated $60 million to Stony Brook in 2008 for the Simons Center for Geometry and Physics building, has yet to fulfill his latest pledge. Simons declined a request for an interview through a spokesman.

Schools coping with strained budgets are under pressure to boost their fundraising, giving private donors more leverage in making demands. After peaking at $31.6 billion in 2008, total gifts decreased the next year before rising a half percent to $28 billion in 2010, according to the Council for Aid to Education.

Declining Endowments

While the average endowment of 865 U.S. colleges increased 8.4 percent last year to $408 million, that's down from 2008's average of $484 million, according to a survey by the National Association of College and University Business Officers and Commonfund Institute.

Drexel University spent years wooing Bennett LeBow, chairman of cigarette maker Vector Group Ltd., to get $45 million to construct a new building to house the LeBow College of Business. He gave Drexel $10 million in 1999 in a naming rights deal, but he demanded that the institution improve its position in business school rankings before he donated more.

"He is a businessman and looks at metrics and objective measures of performance," says George Tsetsekos, dean of the business school.

Tsetsekos says he flew from Philadelphia to LeBow's office in Miami several times to try to convince the Drexel alum to make the gift. The dean also sent his best students to meet with LeBow and show him that the school was attracting higher-caliber pupils as its ranking improved.

'Off My Back'

LeBow, at a ceremony in November announcing his $45 million gift, credited Tsetsekos's persistence. "I just want him off my back," LeBow, 73, said. "I wish I had enough Kleenex for all the tears I've been hearing from him in the past years."

A C$35 million ($36 million) gift from the family foundation of billionaire Peter Munk has been met with as much scorn as appreciation at the University of Toronto. The money from Munk, chairman of Toronto-based Barrick Gold Corp., was used to help create the Munk School of Global Affairs.

Paul Hamel, a professor of medicine, and John Valleau, an emeritus chemistry professor, attacked the university's agreement to accept the donation in a 7,361-word essay published in February in an online campus magazine. Students also staged protests outside the university's governing council meetings.

Barrick's Mines

In the funding deal, the Munk foundation will release the final C$15 million at its own discretion and only if the university meets 23 requirements laid out in a 26-page memorandum of agreement. The professors claim that the structure of the agreement will make scholars at the Munk school reluctant to criticize Barrick, the world's largest miner of precious metals.

Amnesty International and CorpWatch have alleged that Barrick's operations have caused pollution and violated the human rights of workers in Papua New Guinea and Australia. In Tanzania, security guards at Barrick's mines have allegedly shot and killed villagers who scavenge for small pieces of gold. Barrick has publicly denied that it's responsible for these alleged violations.

"Anti-mining activists frequently make wide-ranging accusations against Barrick, often relying on information that is just plain wrong," spokesman Andy Lloyd says. "The company is fully committed to responsible environmental stewardship and upholding human rights."

Front Entrance

The essay also lashes out at the demands attached to Munk's gift. Among the 23 requirements, the university must stage an opening celebration for the Munk school and hire a media tracking service to evaluate its branding strategy.

The professors were especially incensed at the rule that said lower-level staff will not be allowed to use the front entrance of the building, which they say violates the social norms of a public university.

"The main entrance of the school, remodeled at considerable public expense, is to be restricted to 'senior staff' (defined how?), while everyone else, including their assistants and students and even their less-senior faculty colleagues, are to walk around to a back door!" the professors wrote.

President David Naylor posted a spirited defense of the Munk agreement on the university's website. "Personal attacks such as those we have seen on Peter Munk are a deplorable affront to the values of rational and respectful discourse that are supposed to characterize a university," Naylor said.

Veterinary School

The university also said that critics misinterpreted the requirement about the building's front entrance, saying everyone was free to use it. Barrick declined to make Munk available for comment.

Madeleine Pickens, the wife of energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens, used the power of her donation to try to change how the veterinary school at Oklahoma State University treats animals. She had given $5 million to the university, joining her husband who had donated or pledged $525 million to build a football stadium and for scholarships and faculty chairs at his alma mater.

In February 2009, Madeleine criticized the veterinary school in an interview with the university newspaper. She said students, as part of their training, were performing multiple surgeries on the same research dogs before killing them. "That's barbaric," she said in the article, and insisted that the school stop the practice of putting animals to death.

"I found out some things I knew weren't right, and I felt very comfortable bringing the issue up," Madeleine Pickens says in an interview. "People have a voice but animals don't, so you have to speak up."

'Right Quick'

Hours after the article appeared, the university issued a statement, saying it was already working on ways to keep animals alive and to return them to shelters after the student training. Two months later, on her website, Madeleine Pickens commended the university for changing the practices at the vet school.

"She had some concern about the methods they were using at the school," Boone Pickens says. "She spoke up, and they got with her right quick."

Inge Reichenbach, vice president of development at Yale University, says schools have been changing their approach to fundraising to better handle the demands of donors. She says they have evolved away from accepting almost any gift, no matter the purpose, to steering benefactors toward the school's priorities.

Stanford

"What we have learned is you have to address issues in how you implement the gift and what the objectives are, both of the donor and the university, before you accept the gift," Reichenbach says. "We take quite a bit of time to address these things so in 10 years it doesn't become a problem."

Stanford University near Palo Alto, California, tries to eliminate the possibility of conflicts with donors by surveying its professors. Before the school launched a $4.3 billion, five- year fundraising campaign in 2006, it asked the entire faculty and its academic departments to compile wish lists of needed projects.

The university encourages donors partly by giving them a menu of projects such as naming-rights gifts to choose from. For $25 million, a benefactor's name will be placed on a renovation of the Encina Commons, located behind one of the original collections of sandstone buildings built by railroad tycoon Leland Stanford. A $250,000 donation can support a fund for needy students.

Exxon Donation

Benefactors rarely deviate from the university's preferred projects, says Martin Shell, Stanford's vice president for development. "We want to make sure we understand what the donor has agreed to and what we've agreed on, to make sure there's a meeting of minds so there's no confusion down the road," Shell says.

Stanford's tightly scripted fundraising program didn't prevent a blowup with Hollywood producer Stephen Bing. After Bing pledged $2.5 million for an undisclosed purpose, he learned that Exxon Mobil Corp. was running advertisements touting its earlier promise to donate up to $100 million to Stanford to support climate change and energy research.

Bing, who backs environmental causes, demanded that Stanford prevent Exxon from using the school's good name in its marketing to promote itself as a green company. A group of alumni rallied to Bing's cause and lobbied the school's board of trustees to vote their shares in support of a 2007 Exxon shareholder resolution calling on the oil giant to reduce its contributions to global warming.

But that wasn't enough for Bing, who rescinded his donation in 2007 because Stanford refused to end its relationship with Exxon. Bing declined to comment.

Ayn Rand

Allison, who promotes Ayn Rand's writings, will likely generate more conflicts on campuses as he seeks to expand his foundation's gifts to 200 schools nationwide. In 2006, Meredith College in Raleigh, North Carolina, gave up a seven-year, $420,000 grant from the BB&T foundation after some faculty bristled at the president's decision to accept the money on the condition that the school teach "Atlas Shrugged."

After Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina, accepted a 10-year, $500,000 grant from Allison's foundation, Richard Zweigenhaft, a professor of psychology, protested the decision in an article for Academe, a magazine published by the American Association of University Professors. He said the appropriate faculty committees weren't consulted before the school decided to take the money.

"This deal with BB&T was simply an egregious case of the college administration deciding to sell a chunk of the curriculum," Zweigenhaft says.

As private donors gain more power on campuses, it's just the kind of shift away from state control that Rand would applaud.

To contact the reporters on this story: Seth Lubove in Los Angeles at slubove@bloomberg.net Oliver Staley in New York at ostaley@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Laura Colby in New York at lcolby@bloomberg.net

Find out more about Bloomberg for iPhone: http://m.bloomberg.com/iphone/

Torrisi- best sandwich on earth.

My review of Torrisi didn't get finished. I've been too busy wiping the drool from my face.

It is known by some as "THE Sandwich".  IT does define the genre.  And the sides of vege are even better!  How do they make turkey taste that good?  How do they make pork so good you can't get it without determination?  How is it that I only ate there twice?

This piece in the Times is good background to what makes this place so special. And yes, if you are in the east, you should go to NYC. And have a meal there.

Cooking Up a Big Idea in Little Italy - NYTimes.com
Read it online: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/magazine/mag-01Torrisi-t.html?_r=1
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Frenchy's at Clearwater Beach

Located on the beach, this is what Florida means to me. Frenchy's Rockaway Grill is big and fun, and most important, the food is good and the beer is cold (well, I assume it is, I had water).

Frenchy's reputation is based on fresh fish, that they claim comes in everyday, on their own boats, and is never frozen. Editorial comment- the idea of never frozen seafood is a truism that is seldom challenged. But in fact, freezing is one part of handling a catch that cab impact the quality, but not as much as say, bleeding a fish, or proper cleaning. And more than with almost anything else, time is the enemy of quality fish. So freezing on board, at some point, is preferable to fresh when the boat is a long way out. Not usually the case in the gulf though. So we accept, Frenchy's approach is best.

We ordered the famous Grouper sandwich, and it is as good as they say. Nothing very exotic. Bread that is perfect because it is almost etherial in it's softness. Good tartar sauce, good tomato, good lettuce and a slice of cheese. The fish is the star, in a crispy breading that is not too thick, and fried to perfection so it is moist inside. This is a great fish sandwich.

We also had cole slaw, very good. And beef vegetable soup, full of vege, house made, delicious. And the also famous she crab soup. Creamy and so tasty it will create a new craving for you. Don't miss it.

When in Tampa, find a Frenchy's and eat there. Do it.

Is it worth it?

When eating in a restaurant, what is the key question, the raison d'être for the experience beyond fueling up? Is it one of the following?
- Worth the money?
- Worth the time, travel?
- Sates my hunger?
- Makes me think?
- Inspires my culinary interest?
- Inspires my professional business interest?
- Creates a center for a good time with others?

What else can a restaurant do to add value to eating?

Blue Hill at Stone Barns

Referred to as one of the most important restaurants in America, the name is worth mastering. Blue Hill at Stone Barns.



We had been saving for this event meal for weeks, planning it to be the kickoff event of our partnership's Anniversary Month. How appropriate to begin the celebration here in the the Hudson Valley. We intend to conclude the celebration in the Napa Valley.

Located on one of the estates of David Rockefeller, the restaurant is one feature of the farm. The purpose of the entity is to develop and educate the public and restaurant industry about sustainable agriculture. The farm is a showcase for the kind of forward thinking farming that takes agrarian heritage and adds science. A walk around the various pastures and barns is sure to make you think about where you meal comes from. This subject is very dear to us, as we harvest a large portion of our vittles from our land, the forests and waters of the northwest.

This is about the restaurant. We had our reservations, and dressed as requested, as most did. The main business comes from the city, just 28 miles south. Our trip took us into Stone Barns from the north, the fabled Hudson Valley. That beautiful drive really set a farm tone for the evening. We were early, and took a walk around the farm, entertaining ourselves and the cows. The sheep had just been sheered, and were not amused. The setting is magnificent.

We finally went inside, to the cozy bar. Here we sat by the fire, anticipating and talking. The cocktail menu caught my eye, and gave us a preview of the fare. The staff was occupied, and when they got to us, we ordered a drink. No hurry. I ordered a Beet It. Cava, beet infused vodka, house made bitters with a hint of marjoram. It was delicious. The wine list is brilliantly organized by primary characteristics, and is a bit pricey. One minor disagreement here- since the focus of Blue Hill is local sourcing and micro agriculture, wines should be featured that reflect the terroir. Nothing in food and wine pairing is more important in my opinion. This knowledge alone is what keeps France from slipping into barbarism.

After a pleasant wait, we were shown kindly to a table early. How nice. We had our minds made up, and ordered the 5 course Easter tasting. The policy at Blue Hill is to not spend a lot of time describing the food, in writing or before ordering. Very different, and effective to make one focus and trust. I liked it.

We were treated to an extensive amuse buche, with dried vegetable chips and an herb spritzer that was very fun and clever. This mini-course finished with a tiny beet burger- scrumptious!

Then we got into the menu. An Easter egg in a bed of micro-greens. The egg was of course fresh off the farm, and that matters, as we all know. It was perfectly cooked, the yolk soft and unctuous, creamy and not too runny. When it was mixed in the greens, with the basil and herb paste on the plate, it was fun. The greens were eye opening- each variety's flavor was distinct and balanced. It was served on a slate slab, which we thought too clever by half. We are certain we picked up a metallic flavor from the slate.

The fish course was flawed, in our personal view. It was a delicious piece of trout filet, grilled on the skin, then the meat separated and served. The flavor of the cooking was delicate and complimented the the trout, but it was very little more cooked than raw. Not a pleasing texture, and one that in my view detracts from the enjoyment. It is too soft and mushy to be pleasing. What saved the dish was the Mayer Lemon sauce, which, if you must use lemon on fish, and this one needed it, was an inventive and appropriate way. The shittake mushrooms and ramps (of course at this time of year), were very complimentary. Another new idea- fish and mushrooms, which is perfect for our home range.

Next came a parsnip steak. Yes. A nice size, well cooked parsnip root. With a sweet maple-bacon sauce that was yet another revelation. We are planting the damn things as a result of this dish. I hope we can cook it as well!

The course we faced with trepidation came next, lamb! Mrs. Exechobo has been traumatized by lamb, and avoids it stringently. She knew this was her moment to face fear, the time she could count on having the best lamb possible to see if she could overcome lambaphobia. The lamb was served two ways, a piece of belly and a loin. The loin was perfectly cooked, and seasoned with salt and pepper to perfection as well. The sauce was rich, deep and balanced. The belly? A bit tough and fatty, alit seemed to yearn for more time on the fire. The carrots were impossibly sweet. And the Cardinal Spinach was what we had mistaken for chard in the greenhouse on the farm. It was tasty.

Desert was a bit odd. On top a foam of Blue Hill milk, from the farm. It was grassy and good, as real milk is. It topped what I can only recall as a mini mess of things chocolate and coffee. Icy and liquidy and mousy. Filling, abundant and not all that great. We were surprised to learn the cookie bit was gingerbread, as it had no characteristics of gingerbread.

Overall, one of the minor things that impressed us was the perfect cooking of the vege. Not too done, not too undone. More important though was the way the meal came together as an event centered on the farm, with simply conceived cooked to modern culinary perfection, and a twist of imagination to make them more interesting. This is great American cuisine.

I recently wrote about my rationale for eating out. Dining at Blue Hill is worth it:

- Worth the money? YES

- Worth the time, travel? YES

- Sates my hunger? Well, yes

- Makes me think? YES

- Inspires my culinary interest? YES

- Inspires my professional business interest? Not so much

- Creates a center for a good time with others? oh YES

The list for a reservation is quite full, so plan ahead, but by all means, do as we did and plan a trip around this gem. Try to get there in the day and bring some gumboots to tour the barns and pastures. There is a cafe to refresh you. Make it a day celebrating the gifts of agriculture.


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Mollie's in Stroudsburg PA

Just off the Appalachian Trail, near the Delaware Water
Gap is Stroudsburg, nestled in the Poconos. One of the restaurants on Main is Mollie's. It claims to serve the best breakfast in the Poconos.





We ordered a western omelet, dubbed a Famous Three Egg Far Western Omelet. Okay. I can't argue that it had eggs, probably three. They were yellow. Not fluffy, not nicely cooked in butter, not tasty. Inside, the peppers and onions were cut in pieces too large to eat without a knife to cut them up, misshapen and inconsistent pieces, chopped in a thick slicer. Too big to cook, they were a bit soft on the outside and rawish throughout. Not revolting, just thoughtless and lazy. The ham was sandwich slices, probably right out of the package, just salty and rubbery, tasteless. Served with frozen fries and toast that was half buttered and warm but not crisp.





So that's it. A lazy, lousy omelet. Best in the Poconos. Service was provided. Decor was too. That's about all I can say without getting pissy about paying $12 for a $5 experience.

My verdict? Well, if this is the best breakfast, Subway is the best sandwich. Just get an Egg McMuffin if you are passing through.


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Cranking

This blog post is making the rounds, deservedly. Reading it will touch you and make you think about various aspects of your life. Good writing lives on blogs.  

Cranking

The Brooks Review

This is the first thing you should read this weekend and the last thing you should read before Monday. This is Merlin Mann and the written word at its best.
Merlin, if you are reading, thank you.
∞

Sent with Reeder

David Burke's Townhouse Eatin' Fine in Manhattan

In the East 50's there are some nice townhouses.  And a few nice places to eat.  David Burke has one, his Townhouse.  It is in a townhouse, so that makes sense for the neighborhood.  The reputation is powerful.  It is cuisine art.  Not so wild and scientific as Wily Dufresne.  But more recognizable and mainstream.

The bar is narrow and and cool.  We walked right past to the dining room, we meant business.  Ordering was not easy.  The menu is delightful everywhere you look.  Service is good, informal, friendly and helpful.  This is a place you feel comfortable, but be prepared to drop a bundle.  And they can mix a drink too.  I had a Manhattan, naturally.

The best part of the night was the rabbit.  We love the bunny, and at David Burke's Townhouse they know how to prepare it.  This well conceived trio had three tastes, each better than the other, culminating in a great rabbit confit.

When in Manhattan, and looking for a place to have a special meal, I would advise you to consider this place.  

Morimoto- Ronin of Excellence

The samurai chef stands above the culinary world like a giant.  No one messes with the man who takes culinary excellence personally, and has unmatched knife skills.

We finally ate at Morimoto in Chelsea. One problem. We waited too long.

Service- efficient and professional. Dishes whisked away when empty and replaced within seconds. Informal, informed, incomparable.

Have you had a California roll? We thought we had too. Now we know. So sorry we will never enjoy one again till we return. Sake? I thought it harsh. Morimoto' favorite food sake is amazingly smooth, clean and refreshing. Pricey, and worth it.

We had fish, his strong suit, though most people opt for waigu beef. The fish was prepared beautifully and with a lot of thought about subtlety. One issue, we found the halibut slightly over cooked. We are very particular about this, as Mrs Exechobo is one of the finest fish cooks in the Northwest.

The decor is perfect- sound antenuation is built into the look of being inside a giant clam shell. Clever and functional. All is cream, concrete and glass, and modern. A gigantic 24"X24" hewn timber is incorporated, as is appropriate in a Japanese temple. The restrooms incorporate the famous super-toilets the Japanese favor.

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Patsy's- Old School Uptown Dining

Back in the day, Sinatra owned Manhattan.  Some think this was the best of times, when celebrities were rare, and no one messed with 'em.  I don't know about that, but I do know they have been serving celebrities at Patsy's since 1944.  They make a brand out of it.  Located near the Lincoln Center, it is a great location for eating before the theater.  Sinatra, son of Hoboken, pronounced it his favorite place in Manhattan.  

I was familiar with the legend of Patsy's, having cited it to my team when developing concepts.  I hoped we would build something lasting, with hands-on involvement.  I should have visited first.  

The store front and decor are spot on- every touch-point is in alignment with what you want it to be, a 50s-60s kinda joint The Chairman would like.  We were looking forward to a decent old-school Italian res sauce meal.

So the web site is a good one, lotsa content, and well constructed.  Nice work being current.  No reservations though, so a phone call is called for, and when well.  When we arrived, and the hostess was revealed to be the old Nana, we understood.  She was pleasant and welcoming.  I thought: "Hmmm, the reviewers who said it was like a family establishment were right, and this will be fun!"  Then we met the Maitre d'.  We were then disabused of our erroneous thinking.  

We were told that our coats would now be surrendered.  NO COATS IN THE DINING ROOM!  I reluctantly did.  For the only time in Manhattan.  Nervously, I fingered my sweater, would I have to strip it off too?  Was the Maitre d' angling for a job with TSA?  My wife had on a light suit coat that they wanted to take too.  She clutched it, and before she could scream, I spoke up; "She is naked underneath! Do you want her naked in the dining room?!"   On the way to our table upstairs, I couldn't help but notice that many chairs had coats over the back of them.  Hmmmm.

When we sat, we were agitated and uncomfortable.  Maybe it is like going to a family member's home.  Like a crazy old aunt's.  We considered leaving, but the menu does look good.  We ordered some basic red sauce stuff.  The pasta was perfect.  Really good.  The sauce was exactly as it should be, delicious and unctuous.  

The price, by the way, is honestly advertised as being high.  Yes, high indeed, but if the service were not condescending, haughty, belittling, and aggravating, it would be OK.

So the upshot?  Find another place to eat Italian.  And if you want to look at celebrity photos as you eat, go to Katz' Deli.  The abusive service is expected and welcome there.  

Fornino- Lunching in Brooklyn is for the Strong

When in hip Brooklyn, pack a lunch.  Cause most places are closed in the daytime.  Brooklyn people are too hip for midday eating.  After three tries we found a place that was open, Fornino, proving that Brooklyn is magic.

The window says it is a good place for pizza.  I know pizza, making and selling it off and on for 40 years now.  I decide what is good.

When we went in, the place is like stepping into a storybook.  A book that contains all the details of a concept I worked on back in the day.  Oven featured as the center of the show.  Plain, cool, simple.

The menu is constructed in a really smart way- tracing pizza through three generations, from the early traditions, through the explosion of popularity in the US, to the art that Fornino considers theirs.  The Art and Science of Pizza.  I like that.

Great crust, and gorgeous toppings, cooked perfectly in their wood oven, in a cool place.  This is the deal in Brooklyn.  It is close to Serious Pie in Seattle, but this is the east coast.  If you are east of the Mississippi, this is worth a stop.

SweetLeaf coffee joint

 At the foot of the Pulaski Bridge in Brooklyn is a cool place that takes coffee serious.  Of the third wave places, this one is one of the more weird, less serious, and better quality.  These guys are serious about one thing, the bean.

 Oh, and next door is a tiny, improbable bakery that turns out some really good, basic baked goods, all day, almost to order.  Bring your taste buds and brain to Brooklyn and give em a some exercise at Sweetleaf.

Whatever you do, get your coffee to stay, in a ceramic cup so you can taste it.  And if you must, take it in the back room, the laptop room, and spin some of the vinyl they have.  Rich, one of the owners is a great, devoted guy, and this combines two of his passions.

Epitaphs

If you think about your legacy, just know that writing it in stone, like life, is transitory. Live it. Write it in the hearts and minds of Men.

Black Shack- Burgers

Burgers are a thing in NYC.  Black Shack is a one location competitor for Shake Shack, BRGR, Five Guys, Burger Heaven, and the rest.

But I like Black Shack best.  The burgers are good, and cooked right on a flat-top.  The fries are good too, and the price is nice.  Worth a stop if you are in Midtown.

Copper Chimney- Indian Food Community College

On Lexinton in the Thirties you find Indian food everywhere.  We like to sample here, educating ourselves on the world's most sophisticated cuisine. Our favorite spot here is Copper Chimney.

 We have eaten much of the menu, and it is all good.  The staff will explain things, and this is recommended, to be sure you order a meal with as little overlap as possible.  The deserts are particularly tasty.  Be sure to save room.

When in the area, make a special trip for this place, it is worth it.  Instructive, pleasant, good value, tasty and satisfying.

Fried food can hurt!

If you ask me that old question: "Suppose you could only eat one food, what would it be?" I always answer: "French fries!" there is no hesitation.

But lately fries have been subverted. Oh, they are still light, crispy sticks of golden goodness. The flavor continues to be the best culinary creation readily a available to the common man. But distorted gastronomical fashion now leads some places to use peanut oil. Five Guys, I mean you.

Perhaps they are unaware, but peanut allergy is now also all the rage. I was an early adopter, starting in 1954.

What this means is that 12 hours after eating peanut oil fries, I am doubled over in pain as my body attempts to eliminate what is poisoning it. Don't get me wrong, this is infinitely preferable to the anaphylactic results that come from eating part of a peanut.

But seriously, a warning would have been nice.  Or maybe all the peanuts all over the place was my warning?

Brooklyn Beer

In honor of a missing comrade, we hoisted a glass of Munchen bier on a rooftop in Brooklyn, overlooking Manhattan.  What a glorious afternoon to sample the high life in America's soul, NYC.

Schippers

Location. There is something to the addage. I was at 40th and 8th. I was hungry. I had a little time. I turned around and, BAM!



So I went in, expecting little. Had a hot dog. It was good. The menu is interesting. If you are standing in front of this place, and you are hungry, go in. It's that good.



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Taim Falafel

In the SOHO this tiny falafel stand puts most of the rest to shame.  We first learned of Taim watching Bobby Flay compete to make falafel as good.  As I recall, he failed, and no wonder.  Here falafel are small, tender nuggets, bursting with moist flavor.  In a sandwich they are loaded in with tasty humus, sauce, and slaw into the best pita I have had.

There are about 5 seats, so get yours to go.  It holds up well.  I had the spicy one, that has Harissa in the mix.  Perfect amount of heat.