Ploafmaster General

(image via Adam Currell on Flickr)


Tonight Valerie wanted to try something new for dinner, so we skipped our usual haunts and drove to Dot's Back Inn on MacArthur Ave., in the Bellevue area.

This place typifies the neighborhood hangout restaurant with its low roar of patrons, low lighting, and low prices for food. The requisite tin ceiling so prevalent in Richmond eateries was there, too, along with a well chosen and balanced selection of kitschy decorations. Since Dot's seemed to be a "regular place" I decided to try some "regular food": the steak and cheese sub plus an extra fifty cents to eat fries instead of potato chips.

I was well rewarded.

The steak was indeed steak - sirloin pounded thin and tender with real cheese melted over it on a lightly toasted sub roll. It was one of the tastiest steak sandwiches I've eaten in ages. And the fries! They were a fine surprise. These were no sticks-o-starch. No, these were thin slices of potato cut in half before deep frying. Crispy, tasty, and clearly made today. I finished off my dining with a slice of homemade (from a nearby bakery, I'm guessing) chocolate pie. Capital!

This is just the sort of restaurant that makes me happy to live and eat in Richmond.

Okay, I admit it...I indulged a bit much last night, but I had to experiment with what seemed to be an extremely luxurious entree idea.

So I took one lobe of a hanger steak I'd purchased from the butcher, and after salting and peppering, wrapped the whole thing in slices of Prosciutto di Parma (sliced so thin you could see through them - no joke!). I rendered the fat from some chopped pancetta and then cooked the wrapped beef in it - rolling occasionally on high heat before transferring the whole thing to the oven to finish.

WOW, this thing was packed with flavor. In retrospect, I could've done without the salt (or at least much less) on the beef considering how salty prosciutto is, but over all it was one of the tastiest cuts of meat I'd consumed in a long time. The meat was done just right - medium rare - and cut cross-wise like I cut pork tenderloin, it was far more tender than many reference sources indicate.

I'll be purchasing this cut on a regular basis, I think, though certainly not for such an opulent preparation as last night.

Your food is still too expensive for what you get, compared to your competitors. You're still an also-ran that hit the over-sized burrito chain restaurant scene a little late. You still have little to distinguish yourself in a market fast becoming crowded by both national chains and regional operators. You still look as stupid as Chipotle when you charge for tortilla chips - something every cheap and fast Mexican restaurant gives away with free refills (though I'm sure you laugh at that with every paying customer).

But, Qdoba, you won my heart last night with your Ancho Chile BBQ burrito with shredded pork. That sauce, with it's slow building heat and tangy sweetness, made the whole thing. I would've eaten my computer mouse covered with that stuff. It certainly helped that the pork was flavorful as well.

It also helps that I found a $5-off coupon in my work mailbox this morning for your West Broad St. location. Lunch is officially covered.

You really have to enjoy one to understand my rapturous tone, but a warm, buttered egg bagel is one of the sublime pleasures of eating.

An egg bagel is rather simple in concept: a plain bagel dough with egg added where it would otherwise be absent. But the flavor is rich, the color near unnaturally yellow, and when said bagel comes from The Bagel Oven in Red Bank, New Jersey, the baked ring of bread is dense, chewy, and covered in a barely crispy skin just thick enough to balance the texture.

I enjoy the occasional bagel from Panera or Einstein's, but munching on that glorious "o" of dough this weekend reminded me just how bagels outside of the North East try - and utterly fail - to be what bagels ought to be.

Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman have concocted a set of awards they call The Golden Clogs, described hilariously by Anthony Bourdain on Eater. My clear favorite category (though not necessarily nominees)?

THE ALTON
For being on Food Network and yet, somehow managing to Not Suck

Be sure to read the follow-up interview with Bourdain as well.

Shortly after Valerie arrived home yesterday evening around 6, she started relaying information from one of her co-workers about a butcher shop in Richmond. My ears instantly perked up - you see, I'd been looking for an honest-to-goodness full service butcher shop for years, and I gave up some time ago. But now I pressed Valerie rapidly for the name, if she could recall it. "Butcher...B-b-b-Belmont? Butcher of Belmont?"

I rushed up the stairs and searched for "butcher" and "belmont" on Google and found a link to the Belmont Butchery. Seeing they were open until 7pm on week nights, I raced downstairs and told Valerie to put her shoes back on.

We were taking a fast ride to the butcher shop.

Located on Belmont Avenue between Ellwood and Floyd, Belmont Butchery greeted me with its fresh meat case and its smaller charcuterie case. Therein were contained every conceivable cut of beef, pork, lamb, etc. Homemade sausages and pancetta, duck confit, lardo...this was foodie heaven.

Proprietress (she prefers "proprietrix") Tanya Cauthen (formerly a rather serious chef) was more than happy to answer any and all questions, and to share her reasons for getting into the business. Here is a butcher with whom I can build a rapport, asking for advice on good cuts, cooking methods, and other recommendations.

I purchased a rather gorgeous flat iron steak for tonight's dinner and returned this morning for a spot of pancetta (for spaghetti alla carbonara). I couldn't help myself, though - I also bought a single link of their fresh made garlic sausage which I decided to eat for lunch today. This was the best piece of sausage I have eaten in my entire life. Seriously. I can't wait to see how the steak tastes this evening.

You can keep your candy store - I feel like a kid in the butcher shop.

Hostess still makes their tasty fruit pies, but I was nostalgia-stricken for the now unavailable (at least around here) pudding pies when I came across this cheesy old commercial:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qza8TeOvGQw&rel=1&w=425&h=355]

My personal favorite were the chocolate variety, but since they were covered in that layer of industrial grade chocolate frosting, the vanilla pies were tasty, too.

The A.V. Club has an excellent and lengthy interview with Anthony Bourdain, candid and acerbic as ever. Well worth the read.
(via kottke)

When, after turning their noses at our fatuous Iraqi endeavor, the French lost favor with much of the American public I rolled my eyes as far back into my head as humanly possible. We had folks changing French fries to "freedom fries," imbeciles pouring out good French wine, and intelligent people with a none-the-less shallow memory of American history claiming massive French debt because "we saved their butts in WWII." Heaven forbid that a sovereign government disagree with the U-S-of-A.

Thank goodness most of this lunacy abated.

There remains, unfortunately, a fairly pervasive negative attitude towards France to this day in America. Whether it is the fashion, the food snobbery, the socialist domestic tendencies, or their frequently differing stances on the world stage, our populace carries a bias against French cultural elements which I cannot abide. I love red Bordeaux wine. I treasure those French-perfected cooking practices which serve me in the kitchen. I owe much to French film-making pioneers who advanced the art to tremendous effect. I'm anticipating my March trip to Paris as greatly as any vacation I've ever taken.

It was with whole-hearted fist-pounding agreement, then, that I read the latest post by Michael Ruhlman on his blog. He responds to a Publisher's Weekly review of his book, The Elements of Cooking, wherein he's criticized for his apparent Francophilia. Ruhlman claims that such acknowledgment of cooking's French roots is a strength, not a weakness. Right on, Mr. Ruhlman. Here's hoping I find your book under the tree wrapped in shiny paper on Christmas morning.

I think it would be worth your while to check out photos tagged with "bento" on Flickr. There's some lame stuff, but many of the items are very cleverly presented - from the molding of food into characters, to the gorgeous use of knife skills.

The photo above comes from the user Sakurako Kitsa who seems quite adept at crafting a wide range of edible artwork.

While David Lebovitz is perhaps best known for his pastry, books, and work at Chez Panisse, but he also takes some fantastic photographs of food (and a few other things) - much of which he's concocted himself. The picture of Pistachio Gelato below makes my mouth water.

I first read about the difference in taste between corn-fed and grass-fed beef in a Slate article last year, and I was interested. Now, for reasons I'll elaborate on in a week or so, I'm looking to get the meat I cook from naturally-raised sources. This means grass fed cows, so I'm trying to find places in and around Richmond where I can procure the product I seek, and Eatwild.com seems to be an excellent starting point with a thorough by-state directory of pasture-based farms for chicken, cows, pigs, et al.

I'm unabashedly a huge fan of Alton Brown, chef and hero to nerdy would-be cooks the world over. I watch Good Eats almost any time its on, and I feel that as Thanksgiving approaches, it's worth mentioning his episode about deep-fried turkey. He put together detailed instructions and a blueprint that you can download from his website (it's a PDF, just so you know), but I've also included a clip below that shows the Turkey Derrick in action:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9mq29BaLLk&rel=1&w=425&h=355]

Tonight my Bible study group met for dinner with the hosting couple making the main dish and everybody else contributing another meal component. There were beverages, bread, a cheese plate, and appetizers.

I volunteered to make dessert, and that dessert was a chocolate tart using a recipe from Tyler Florence via the Food Network website.

Let me provide a little back story before I continue. Since Friday was Valerie's birthday, I decided I wanted to surprise her by baking a cake. Her favorite cake is strawberry with strawberry frosting (I believe), and I didn't want to use a boxed mix or canned icing. Everything seemed to be going well until the layers started baking - and failed to rise. I think the baking powder had lost its leavening ability. You see, while I cook all the time I haven't done much baking - particularly with food that rises in the oven.

This made me a bit nervous about making pastry, and understandably - this was no simple recipe.

There are essentially two key components to the tart - the pastry crust and the filling. Each presented challenges of their own. The crust, for example, was easy to mix. It was complex to cook, however. After mixing it was chilled, rolled, pressed into the tart pan, trimmed, chilled again, blind baked (!!!), egg-washed, and baked a little more. The filling seemed to be a cross between a ganache and custard - bittersweet chocolate melting into hot cream and milk with the addition of some salt, sugar, and two eggs. Those eggs were the interesting part as I had to temper them before adding them to the rest of the hot liquid. You see, you don't want to add raw eggs to hot liquid or you get chocolate egg-drop soup. So I first had to add small portions of the chocolate mixture to the eggs while whisking until the eggs warmed up - and THEN I could pour it all into the whole.

Thankfully, the result was AMAZING. I garnished every slice with a fresh blackberry, and the dessert was a hit with everybody. Most importantly (to me), I enjoyed the pastry. The crust was butterific, the filling was seriously rich and delicious, and the last bite with the blackberry was exquisite.

I believe I'll be baking quite a bit more in the future :-)

Today is Valerie's 26th birthday (happy birthday again, babe!), so her mom came to town and took us out to dinner. My wife chose to eat at comfort. - a restaurant in Downtown Richmond, right on Broad Street.

And. It. Was. Awesome.

The atmosphere was everything I expect from a typical Richmond eatery from the tin ceiling to the artwork on the walls. The lighting was perfect for the time of day, and while the place filled up nicely during our meal it never felt crowded to me. Service was prompt and friendly, and the drinks came shortly after we ordered them. Bonus points for the Dominion Lager. Double bonus points for including corn bread in the bread basket. Mmmmmm...

My dinner was the pork tenderloin - lightly smoked and deliciously glazed. You pick two sides from an impressive list (or three for a little extra), and I selected scalloped potatoes as well as macaroni and cheese. What struck me was just how good such a classic American meal can taste when everything is made fresh. I typically pay careful attention to my main course (I cook a pretty mean pork tenderloin myself), my sides are often an afterthought - extra filler to complete the meal. I may put some more intentionality into my accompaniments from now on.

While it was by no means the best food I'd eaten in Richmond, tonight's was a dinner to remember. When a dining experience changes the way I think about preparing my own food at home, it's an experience not to be taken lightly.

I look forward to returning in the (hopefully near) future.

Today is my 26th birthday, and Valerie gifted me a 7.25 quart Round French Oven from Le Creuset.

I christened it tonight by cooking some thin-cut eye round steaks and a nice pan sauce.

I have to say that this is one of the finest pieces of cookware I've ever used. I already own a fine cast-iron skillet, but this pot's heating was perfectly even. The enamel coating was a fantastic cooking surface as well allowing for just enough sticking while the meat seared along with easy release of the fond when I deglazed (using some sweet Marsala wine).

Looks like I'll be braising some beef short ribs again very soon.

Here's a treat for the day, and make sure you read it right before you grab a bite to eat.

I guess that technically counts as a sarcastic warning :-)

I watch too much television. I admit it.

Now that I've got THAT out of the way...

I think I finally saw the first "reality competition" show that I enjoy - Food Network's The Next Iron Chef. I believe it airs on Sunday evenings, but I recorded it while I was out of town and finally got to watch it this evening. I know, I know...I'm biased. I love cooking, and I love the Food Network, and I watch pretty much any show with Alton Brown. But there are structural reasons why I feel this competition program fares better than the rest.

The first standout is the collection of contestants. It's rare to see so close a correlation between the entrants and their goal. Every competitor on this show is a real chef - most of whom own and operate at least one high-end restaurant. These are not simply athletic people trying to survive on a deserted island. These are not people who are simply pretty enough to be on camera. These are trained artisans trying to prove which is the best...trained artisan.

What I enjoy the most, however, is the relevance so far of the challenges. No attempts by business students to sell crap out of an Airstream trailer. The first episode consisted of two main events. The first was a test of speedy food prep skills. Chefs had to race between an ingredient station and food prep tables earning points for the quick filleting of fish, frenching of a rack of lamb, and extracting coconut water. Such an activity is straight out of Iron Chef (or a real kitchen for that matter) and practical preparation for competitive cooking. The second challenge was a test of creativity; entrants developed their own recipes for two desserts - one traditional and one with a savory ingredient (squid, tripe, or beef anyone?). Once again, this test was 100% relevant to the goal of the contest. Competitors on Iron Chef are forced to develop recipes on the fly all the time, and quite often from unconventional components like ground beef or sea urchin.

You may not like Iron Chef or cooking, but it's quite refreshing for me to see a show in this genre which actually seems to prepare it's contestants for their prize. Give it a shot if you like cooking shows - it's quite entertaining.

Oh yeah, and pardon my excessive use of alliteration in this post - it's hard to think of synonyms for "chef" and "competition" while I'm watching TV :-)

The Sneeze made my day with the long-overdue return of "Steve Don't Eat It."

While Valerie slumbers upstairs a bit earlier than usual, I feel like it's safe to write about our anniversary dinner.

I've eaten at Cabo's Corner Bistro before; once when I was a college freshman with my Dad and brothers, and again for Valerie and my wedding rehearsal dinner three years ago. I remember clearly enjoying the food both times, and tonight was no exception.

We were treated to a complimentary appetizer for our anniversary (they asked if it was a special occasion when I made the reservation), and I don't mean simply nice bread or grilled portobello mushrooms, either. Our dish was seared ostrich loin, sliced thin and served chilled over a small bed of sprouts with three sauces artfully spread on the plate. Let me tell you, ostrich is one of my favorite new meats. The chef expertly seasoned the cut, and there was a distinct pastrami-like characteristic that set off my taste buds.

Valerie's entrée was Chilean sea bass with Parmesan gnocchi (nyo-kee), wilted spinach, and diced tomatoes all in a fresh lemon sauce. The gnocchi were the perfect texture - pillowy soft on the pallet without falling apart, but not gummy at all. The bass was tender and delicious as well.

My dinner was the beef tenderloin special - cooked almost rare with demi-glace, roasted young carrots and cauliflower, and garlic mashed potatoes. My steak was juicy, perfectly seared, and intense beefy flavor. The mashed potatoes were my preferred consistency - creamy with some discernable pieces of the tuber. Also worth noting were the portions for both of our meals. There was just the right amount - enough to satisfy, but nowhere near the heaping modern American meal sizes.

For dessert Valerie chose the frozen chocolate mousse topped with toasted pistachios. The plate was decorated with a thick strawberry sauce, and garnished with fresh strawberries and tiny Champagne grapes (probably pinot noir). My confection was vanilla bean crème brulée with a veritable fruit basket on top: fresh raspberries, golden delicious apple slices, blackberries, strawberries, and some Champagne grapes of my own. Both treats were amazing.

Certainly a dinner like this doesn't happen often, but for those special occasions such as Valentine's Day and our anniversaries, a meal such as tonight's is well worth it. Having dined at Cabo's now thrice, I'm still impressed. This is one of the finest restaurants in the city of Richmond boasting an incredibly creative chef.

I'm shocked I didn't write about DeLuca Gelato on 9/16 when I first visited.

Tonight Valerie and I had dessert at this fantastic gelateria for the second time. I can tell you, having eaten the real deal in Italy, that these folks really know what they're doing. It's the first authentic Italian ice cream I've eaten in Virginia, and completely obliterates the little competition put up by Gelati Celesti.

One of the best parts of DeLuca is that they have a huge selection of sorbetto as well as gelato. For those of you unfamiliar, sorbetto is like a non-dairy gelato, or sorbet. This gelateria had some of my favorite flavors from Italy as well, like frutti di bosco (mixed berries), fragola (strawberry), and limone (I sure hope you can guess that one). They also have plenty of flavors I've never tasted such as cocco (coconut), lampone (raspberry), and mirtillo (blueberry). And that's just the sorbetto! I've also tasted the nocciola (hazelnut), cannolo (like cannoli filling, with shell pieces!), and the tartufo al bacio which tastes just like Perugina's Baci candy.

It's obvious from tasting the various flavors that real craftsmanship goes into the preparation of the gelato. I could taste the hint of nutmeg in the cannolo, and Valerie's menta (mint chocolate chip) clearly contained high quality mint oil.

I've definitely found one of my new favorite places to eat in the greater Richmond area, even if it IS in the Gayton Crossing shopping center.

This is one of my favorite commercials this year:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxiSFE_LJmg&w=425&h=350]

Subway has made several TV spots in this vein, but this one is my favorite - maybe because it's one of the first, or perhaps because it heralds the inarguable end of cool for the phrase, "bodonkadonk butt."

While the ad campaign makes me laugh, the basic premise really bothers me. Subway essentially tries to lift itself above its burger-joint competitors on health food grounds. They've done this with their "Jared" campaign, and their "6 subs with 6 grams of fat or less" segments as well. Sure, Subway may have a number of menu items that are quite healthy. But just take a short glance over their nutrition guide to see that it's not all turkey and whole wheat with the chain.

That 6-inch chipotle steak and cheese has 31 grams of fat. You know what doesn't have 31 grams of fat? A McDonald's quarter-ponder with cheese. You don't have to spend too much time comparing each eatery's nutrition guides to see that they both have some unhealthy items, and they both have some slightly more healthy items.

I know this is advertising and I shouldn't be surprised, but I'm always bothered a little more by the particularly deceptive commercials. While the current campaign is hilarious, I can't help but feel a little ticked-off and lied to after each spot.

Sometimes I wish Anthony Bourdain was my uncle. Thanks to Kottke for the tip on this one, and be sure to click the menu to read the accompanying commentary from the hilariously cranky chef:

This morning I broke fast at one of my favorite Richmond locations - Can Can Brasserie.

Can Can is an authentic slice of French style and cuisine in the heart of Carytown, and I particularly enjoy heading over there on Saturday mornings before most of the stores are open. Parking close by is easier and the crowds haven't yet arrived. At this earlier time you simply walk up to the bar, place your order, choose a seat, and wait for your coffee and pastry. This morning I ordered a large cappuccino and a small brioche - twice - and a single espresso before I left.

Let me tell you...the coffee is the finest I've had in Richmond as far as espresso-based drinks are concerned. They still import their beans (whole, of course), but at least they're using LaVazza instead of Illy. Considering the smoother taste and richer crema, I think they're using a blend that has some Robusta mixed in. I personally prefer this, but I know there are some coffee snobs out there who insist on 100% Arabica :-)

It's also worth noting that the barista practices latte art, and it's quite well done, too. They seem to be fond of rosettas. Why is this worth noting? Richmond doesn't exactly have much of a coffee shop culture, so when I see this practice, I feel more confident that the barista has mastered the brewing enough to focus on presentation (you need good micro foam anyway). This means that my coffee isn't just pretty to look at, it's likely to taste better, too. And you know what? It tastes freakin' awesome.

The pastry is made fresh every day, and my brioche was buttery and delicate. They also bake their own bread every day, and you can sample several excellent varieties whenever you order lunch. Of course, lunch is the only other meal I've ever eaten at Can Can, and I admit I've only had one item on the lunch menu. But oh! what a fantastic selection. The croque monsieur is the classic French take on grilled ham and cheese, layered on delicious bread and covered with a rich bechemel sauce before popped in the broiler.

The dinner menu is a bit steeper which is what's kept me from further exploration of the menu, but someday (or Samedi?) I'll have to try one of their wine dinners which seem to include quite a bit for the money.

We'll see how Can Can fares after I've been to Paris, though I suspect it'll remain the closest thing to serious French cafe and dining life for 100 miles in any direction.

Yesterday I was speaking to my mom on the phone when she said, "Sorry if you hear me eating something - I'm eating a pear." I remarked that I hadn't eaten a fresh pear in several years, to which she said, "Oh, you should, they're in season now."

So when I went grocery shopping with Val last night, one of the first things I looked for was the pear basket in the produce section...and oh my, there were some ripe bartletts that smelled absolutely amazing. I bought three and brought them home.

Last night I sliced one up and ate it while watching Wine Library TV at the computer, and I tossed a second in with my lunch this morning. I have one more at home that's perhaps approaching over-ripe, but I'll be sautéing that one with some cinnamon and brown sugar which should take care of it quite nicely.

Seriously - go buy some pears while you can find them fresh at the grocery store. They'll likely be unripe because of how easily they can bruise in transport, so let them sit on the counter until they smell right and start to soften. You'll be left with something natural and tasty that makes a fine dessert on its own.