Foodies Unite!

[Ruckus]

Thanks for the info Lucy.

Jon T.  - Have you had the royal reds that you guys are so fortunate to have access to?  Man they were amazing! So when I got the pile of them (my understanding is that they are typically boiled and not steamed), I ripped off the head, sucked it down, then for whatever reason took a bite of the entire shrimp.  The shell was not too tough at all and I loved the crunch.  I mean we all need calcium right?  Because it was edible in my mind, I became concerned whether that was how I was supposed to eat it or not so I asked the server who told me I was supposed to shell them.  Oh well, a couple of cuts on the esophagus never killed anyone.

Thanks for the intel Jane.  I will for sure hit it up if I'm up your way. :)

[Jon T.]

Thanks for the info Lucy.

Jon T.  - Have you had the royal reds that you guys are so fortunate to have access to?  Man they were amazing! So when I got the pile of them (my understanding is that they are typically boiled and not steamed), I ripped off the head, sucked it down, then for whatever reason took a bite of the entire shrimp.  The shell was not too tough at all and I loved the crunch.  I mean we all need calcium right?  Because it was edible in my mind, I became concerned whether that was how I was supposed to eat it or not so I asked the server who told me I was supposed to shell them.  Oh well, a couple of cuts on the esophagus never killed anyone.

Thanks for the intel Jane.  I will for sure hit it up if I'm up your way. :)

;D That's priceless! I know what you mean about the crunch.  I've never eaten a boiled shell raw, but like I said, when I get fried shrimp, I always eat a few of the tails.  You just have to chew em real good.   I feel sure I have had royal reds but they don't stick out to me.  I will definitely seek them out next time I pick some up.  Is the boiled and not steamed thing specific to reds?  I pick up gulf shrimp from our market all of the time and I usually have them steam them there unless we are doing a big boil or something.  I also usually order them headless considering you pay by the pound.  I'll have to order the reds heads on next time.

[Ruckus]

Thanks for the info Lucy.

Jon T.  - Have you had the royal reds that you guys are so fortunate to have access to?  Man they were amazing! So when I got the pile of them (my understanding is that they are typically boiled and not steamed), I ripped off the head, sucked it down, then for whatever reason took a bite of the entire shrimp.  The shell was not too tough at all and I loved the crunch.  I mean we all need calcium right?  Because it was edible in my mind, I became concerned whether that was how I was supposed to eat it or not so I asked the server who told me I was supposed to shell them.  Oh well, a couple of cuts on the esophagus never killed anyone.

Thanks for the intel Jane.  I will for sure hit it up if I'm up your way. :)

;D That's priceless! I know what you mean about the crunch.  I've never eaten a boiled shell raw, but like I said, when I get fried shrimp, I always eat a few of the tails.  You just have to chew em real good.   I feel sure I have had royal reds but they don't stick out to me.  I will definitely seek them out next time I pick some up.  Is the boiled and not steamed thing specific to reds?  I pick up gulf shrimp from our market all of the time and I usually have them steam them there unless we are doing a big boil or something.  I also usually order them headless considering you pay by the pound.  I'll have to order the reds heads on next time.

Something to do with shrinkage I guess as far as boiling. ;)  As I was reading, they are saltier than normal so don't really need any additional seasoning and cook in less than half the time of normal shrimp.  As with any other shrimp, they better be cooked just right and the ones I had were perfect.  Mmmm, I can still taste them in my mind.  Getting nostalgic.  Must stop.  It's like the perfect woman who I know I'll never see again.. :'( :'( :'(

[Jon T.]

I will try to get some Royal Reds this week, maybe tomorrow.

Today I smoked a couple of racks of ribs. Also, made some fresh collard greens and some cole slaw with cabbage and onion right from the garden!

[darkglow]

I will try to get some Royal Reds this week, maybe tomorrow.

Today I smoked a couple of racks of ribs. Also, made some fresh collard greens and some cole slaw with cabbage and onion right from the garden!

wednesday i'm graduating my first group of students to teach since moving down here.. and tomorrow i'm having a picnic with them to celebrate.. just threw on the dry rub to 3 HUGE rib racks.. but i think i wanna cook my 3 month old pup instead...


just gotta give these hickory wood blocks some time to soak while i make up my mind... hmmmm

[darkglow]

by the way.. those shrimp shells from those royal reds were not that bad.. i bit the proverbial bullet with Ruckus at Mikee's

[kydiddle]

I will try to get some Royal Reds this week, maybe tomorrow.

Today I smoked a couple of racks of ribs. Also, made some fresh collard greens and some cole slaw with cabbage and onion right from the garden!

wednesday i'm graduating my first group of students to teach since moving down here.. and tomorrow i'm having a picnic with them to celebrate.. just threw on the dry rub to 3 HUGE rib racks.. but i think i wanna cook my 3 month old pup instead...


just gotta give these hickory wood blocks some time to soak while i make up my mind... hmmmm

What? No BBQ frisbee?

[Ruckus]

Just finished reading Bourdain's Medium Raw.  Per usual, I thought it was excellent.  He still didn't pull any punches but it sure is a different perspective when writing from the position he railed so vehemently against in Kitchen Confidential.  Damn hypocrite! ;)
Still yet to eat at a David Chang restaurant.  Jealous of Brooke

[Jon T.]

Alright Ruckus, had the royal reds and they were as advertised.  Can't believe I've never had these before.  I always see them being advertised on the sign at Joe Patti's (our seafood market).  Also very surprised with the similarity to lobster. 

[Ruckus]

Alright Ruckus, had the royal reds and they were as advertised.  Can't believe I've never had these before.  I always see them being advertised on the sign at Joe Patti's (our seafood market).  Also very surprised with the similarity to lobster. 

'
Hope they were good Jon!  I didn't mean to overhype them but I loved them that much.

[Jon T.]

'
Hope they were good Jon!  I didn't mean to overhype them but I loved them that much.

They were great!  Nice change from the gulf shrimp I normally get.  One big difference that I noticed over the weekend -  I actually preferred them chilled.  Most of the time, I prefer boiled shrimp hot, but as much as I enjoyed these when we first ate them, I liked them even more as I ate them over the course of the weekend.  Of course that could be from absorbing more of the flavors over the weekend???  Regardless, they were great.   Here is a link to my excellent seafood market, Joe Patti's.  You can have them shipped to your door!  Great prices on the royal reds $1.99 a lb!  Shipping is what will get you, though.  Still, something to keep in mind for a special occasion. 
http://www.joepattis.com/Joe-Pattis-Seafood-Company-Welcome.cfm

[mjk73]

So far on this trip I think I've gained about 10 lbs. offf. no time to run, but too many times to eat!

Reading Terminal Market in Philly

DC- I freakin hate Guy Fieri from DDD, but I love the show. I appreciate what he is doing (or trying to do) for small, funky, LOCAL places like Tortilla Cafe. If you can make it to Eastern Market, try it. The Tamala was damn delicous and the pupusas were heavenly.

http://tortillacafe.com/

We also eat at Spike Mendelsohn's place Good Stuff Eatery. The Blazin' Barn burger and the Village Fries were fab (fries, thyme, Rosemary, and Sea Salt). Wife got the Prez Obama burger and loved it.

We are tracking some of the gourmet food trucks via Twitter and expect to hit a couple before we leave on Saturday. Dammit, I need to get in a couple runs to burn this off.

[Ruckus]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Here are some pics I took from my trip.

Schweinhaxe at Fruh am Hof in Cologne, Germany - Pig knuckle and potatoes


Bratwurst


Sauerbraten with Knodl



From a beautiful Northern Italian restaurant in Luxembourg.  My brother is friends with the chef and there is no menu there.  You just say how hungry you are and there you go.

Fish, scallop, shrimp


Ravioli with truffle cream and a tad more truffle


Pasta, parmegiano reggiano, veal meatballs


Veal chops with aged balsamic, arugula, parmegiano reggiano and a tad more truffle




Forgot to take a picture of the rabbit which was incredible.  All the proteins were source right nearby in the Luxembourg countryside.

Finally Kamo in Brussels a tiny authentic Japanese joint that seats 24 and just earned its first Michelin star last year.

[mjk73]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Yeah, with the kids with us, any of Garces' places were not going to happen. I wish I had discovered the Reading Market the first night. In DC we actually went back to Spike's place a second time and actually got to meet him. Very nice and charming guy.

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Yeah, with the kids with us, any of Garces' places were not going to happen. I wish I had discovered the Reading Market the first night. In DC we actually went back to Spike's place a second time and actually got to meet him. Very nice and charming guy.

A burger from Village Whiskey is worthy of a special trip to Philly. Lots of great burgers all over this town now (Royal Tavern, Good Dog, 500 degrees)

[Ruckus]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Yeah, with the kids with us, any of Garces' places were not going to happen. I wish I had discovered the Reading Market the first night. In DC we actually went back to Spike's place a second time and actually got to meet him. Very nice and charming guy.

A burger from Village Whiskey is worthy of a special trip to Philly. Lots of great burgers all over this town now (Royal Tavern, Good Dog, 500 degrees)

Thanks for the heads up Fly.  Always good to hear the local recs.

Wiz or Prov?  with or w/o?

[YouAre_GivenToFly]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Yeah, with the kids with us, any of Garces' places were not going to happen. I wish I had discovered the Reading Market the first night. In DC we actually went back to Spike's place a second time and actually got to meet him. Very nice and charming guy.

A burger from Village Whiskey is worthy of a special trip to Philly. Lots of great burgers all over this town now (Royal Tavern, Good Dog, 500 degrees)

Thanks for the heads up Fly.  Always good to hear the local recs.

Wiz or Prov?  with or w/o?

Always with. Cheese depends on if I'm drunk (whiz) or not (prov).

[kydiddle]

Can we have an MMJ group food trip to a city and just eat and eat and eat? 

Nice pictures, Ruckus...looks like you had a great time!

[mjk73]

Glad you had some good eats Mike.  I too have had a great time at Reading Market in Philly.  Too bad you couldn't make to Chef Garces' whiskey and burger bar in Philly.

Yeah, with the kids with us, any of Garces' places were not going to happen. I wish I had discovered the Reading Market the first night. In DC we actually went back to Spike's place a second time and actually got to meet him. Very nice and charming guy.

A burger from Village Whiskey is worthy of a special trip to Philly. Lots of great burgers all over this town now (Royal Tavern, Good Dog, 500 degrees)

Thanks for the heads up Fly.  Always good to hear the local recs.

Wiz or Prov?  with or w/o?

Always with. Cheese depends on if I'm drunk (whiz) or not (prov).

Always wit.....and the whiz. I found it better then prov. Just my personal taste.

[Crispy]

From the Onion:

Philly Cheesesteak Either Perfect or Disgusting   
 
Whiz wit for me, no question.