The Well-Fed Bong

Today I ate elk. Yes I know, I should build up to it, write tales about majestic deer and redskin hunters, but basically that's what it was. I ate elk. It wasn't my intention to go elk-hunting. I was quite content at aiming for tasty slices of the domesticated bull and San Diego magazine gave me recommendations about steakhouses in downtown. At the top of the list was Greystone the Steakhouse so I landed up and sat at the bar in front of a fairly bustling dining room filled with suits and little black dresses. Rod the bartender gave me a choice between ribeye and elk, and of course my adventurous instincts took over. Elk sounded like a definite beenthere donethat - evoking eskimo hunts and igloo campfires and extreme survival in bitter conditions - so I jumped. It promised a crust of s and all kinds of other nice stuff. The elk steak turned out to be a mildly flavored meat; tender and juicy but more exotic that gourmet. Seems I was wrong about the eskimos too - this dee...

One of the favorite foods of my childhood was chhanar dalna - a uniquely Bengali way of making paneer (a kind of Indian ricotta, if you must know) with nt tastes of ginger and cinnamon. Making paneer at home (yes, there was a time in the far past when you had no choice) was fairly laborious and longwinded, so this wasn't made all that often - which, of course, made it all the more desireable. When I grew up, gained control of my own kitchen and discovered that paneer now came vacuum sealed at the local grocery - requiring only a credit card and some basic unwrapping technique - I decided to indulge. It was easier said than done, though. I cooked paneer often and made some nice (even great) stuff, but for some strange reason the real chhanar dalna thing continued to elude me. Paneer korma, no problem. Saag paneer, no problem. Paneer bhurji, no problem. Chhanar dalna...somehow it never tasted correct. Edible wasn't the issue here- once you learn the basics almost everything co...

There's plenty of tea in New York too, and you dont even have to climb over hills to get at it. Lets start with the cutest - Alice Tea Cup ; the name smells of baby showers and women sitting around knitting. That, in fact, is exactly what happens. This is the female equivalent of a steakhouse, the food equivalent of a chickflick, the last hideout for women in the age of sexual equality. Well, nearly. It's true that the place is full of cutesy stuff and upper westside women who knit, but it's also a serious tea place with plenty of excellent tea choices. And by tea, I mean the whole tea service thing - perfectly brewed tea in teapots, double filtered water, food, tea scones and some serious clotted cream. Sit down, let out a slow breath and relax while menus of tea choices and sandwiches appear on the rough, solid-looking bench before you. Real tea pots and cups too. Its subterranean location at 73rd Street is nearly impossible to find the place so peace and quiet are assu...

Everyone always thinks of mustard fish when Bengal comes to mind. Of course, Bengal has many kinds of fish and many uses for mustard oil (it controls dandruff too, did you know) but somehow the two are forever united in everyone's mind. When my friend landed up yesterday, that was on his mind too, so I complied. New York doesn't really have great mustard fish. Most restaurants dont want to risk the distinctive taste of the real thing, so they offer a lowest-common-denominator watered-down version; the generic fish curry with a token mustard seed floating on top. Madhur Jaffrey 's Dawat in New York claims it among its signature dishes but dont tell that to a Bengali. Most other Indian restaurants are too busy cooking tikka masala to try anything different. The tragedy is, many are owned or run by Bangladeshis who really can make the real thing. The problem; mustard fish at it's best is threateningly mustardy (some should steam through your sinuses like accidentally eat...

White tea, that's what is filling my insides as I type this blog. Yes I'm again at the Golden Gate Perk, partaking of free wireless along with one of ten odd types of tea they sell. And watching Leonard Nimoy being Spock on a silent television. First, about Golden Gate Perk . Ok I'm partial to this place because I helped paint the toilet here (as in, I gave useless advise to the people who were actually doing the painting), but I've been coming here long before that. Basically, it has great tea, and great value in tea. This is no teabag destination - here you get real leaf, teapot, hot water, the whole deal. Each pot makes two cups, but if you're shameless enough you can ask for hot water to make another round for free. And, there's table service if you're nice to the people behind the counter. You get herb and special teas too, including a rather nice ginger tea topped (Korean style, I'm told) with pine nuts. They even have coffee, but I've never ...

On this trip to London I decided that to be a true foodie I needed a few Michelin stars under my belt (quite literally I guess). After a bit of research, I found Pied-a-terre on Charlotte St in London - a respectable 2 michelin stars and not too many dollar signs on the rating. French food, of course, but in an obscure twist prepared by an Australian chef with a seafood allergy. And so I went after work one day, bright and early in the evening since I had no reservations. I need not have worried; I was the first person in and had the pick of tables, waiters and newspaper. I'd resolved to stick to the simple and within budget but when the menu card came filled with drooling descriptions, temptation took over. I ordered the whole deal, a seven-course degustation thingy. Then I sat down with the day's news and waited. A progression of very interestingly plated dishes followed. Pied-a-Terre is very modern; chocolate walls, thick square glass slabs as serving plates and small re...

I did, finally, go mexican - Taqueria Andale near the hotel. It is, like so many things American, a chain - leading to the usual touches of 'traditional' decor, slicked up homecooking look (down to handwritten menus), and all the staples on offer. The working fireplaces (there are two) and the outdoor seating was nice, though. The food (I had a fish burrito) was not bad. Character is too much expect in a fast food chain, but this was definitely tasty stuff; a nice tomato and chipotle sauce that had all kinds of smells and tastes leaping out of a slightly leathery burrito. Not quite the standard (or genuine local attitude) of La Taqueria in the Mission District, but satisfying enough if you want to avoid a bad meal. Of course, not to say the every chain is boring. Chipotle Grill , for instance, is as fastfoodchain as they come - it's even owned by McDonalds. However, there's something distinctly infectious about their burritos, enough even to brave the lines ...

The magic hour of dinner looms. I sit in all nicely tead up (early grey, if you must know) at my favorite cybercafe searching for where to eat. This cybercafe has some claim to a food blog too; Golden Gate Perk sits hidden in a corner of Bush and Kearny, serving free wireless and some great great tea. I think I'll go mexican. This is california, after all...

This is the opening of the blog, the slicing apart of red tape, the tearing asunder of curtains ... tan ta ra...