Past Seasons Talk: The Stew Room

[Lillybee]

That's news to me, Lilybee.   I think I'll look around out here on the Left Coast and see whether I can find it.  Did you meant that the wine was bad (as in good) or really  bad?

 

I think I fell in love with Gregory all over again last night.  He is such a straight shooter, and if I'm not mistaken, Tom seems crazy about him.  Out in Fenway, when the judges were commenting on Greg's dish, Tom seemed to give him a smile that he reserves only for the people he likes best.  Greg out-cooked everyone last night, plus he let it be known that he has a past that he's not particularly proud of.  He stays a mile away from arguments and seems like a great guy.  Right now, I think he's my favorite. 

 

I like James a lot and feel sorry for him, but he didn't do well last night, and I don't think he can win.  I wish he could afford to go to the CIA, where he'd really learn so much more than the little school he attended taught him.

 

 

The wine was really, really bad. To me it tasted like a cheap Chardonnay.

[Snarklepuss]

I don't get how there isn't a word about Last Chance Kitchen this season.  Not even a peep about doing away with it?  That makes me suspicious that perhaps they have something else up their sleeve that they're not sharing with the audience.  The first season of Last Chance Kitchen didn't they not publicize it at first?  I forget.  It looks to me like they've replaced LCK with this "sudden death" thing, which so far I am not liking at all.  What a dumb premise, IMO.  What if the other chef doesn't do their best just to save the person?  I wouldn't assume that every chef wants to eliminate every other and if they don't risk going home then there's no risk in saving them.  Sometimes chef-testants figure they would do better to have the person still in the competition if they think they can beat them later on.  I have seen this voiced on "MasterChef" before, so why not on Top Chef too?  Also, there have been showmances and other friendships that might affect this as well.

 

And this Aaron guy is shaping up to be this season's asshole.  Oh no, not another Howie season, please!

[Snarklepuss]

Has Last Chance Kitchen been chopped? Thought that there would have been something about it by now if it was still around, even if just to say it's coming when there's a few more cheftestants. I guess I'm surprised if it's gone, but I suppose it's also not a cheap or labor light endeavor and if the views aren't there it's not worth it.

 

I don't know if LCK's value was only in the views it generated although they may think that.  I think it also helped the show itself be more interesting.  It made me want to stick it out to see who came back, and just hearing about it on promos made things more interesting.  Also, knowing that everyone who was eliminated had another chance was more appealing to me.  Doing away with it seems like a negative, especially when what they've replaced it with is so lame and saves assholes like Aaron.  Epic fail!

[Julia]

It still made more sense than whatever the hell that was on Duels. The only thing I got out of that was that someone at Bravo doesn't think America has seen enough of Casey, which, wow, beg to differ.

[turbogirlnyc]

I don't know if LCK's value was only in the views it generated although they may think that.  I think it also helped the show itself be more interesting.  It made me want to stick it out to see who came back, and just hearing about it on promos made things more interesting.  Also, knowing that everyone who was eliminated had another chance was more appealing to me.  Doing away with it seems like a negative, especially when what they've replaced it with is so lame and saves assholes like Aaron.  Epic fail!

 

I never watched LCK because the Bravo website is an absolute nightmare as it is.

[Lura]

I hated LCK!  It seemed like a game within a game and was totally unnecessary.  I don't mean this as being unkind, but it seemed like the real contestants were working hard, duking it out, and the losers were cooking like crazy to get back in.  Just when the show had very few contestants left, in walked the winning loser.  If a contestant is eliminated (even one I love), he or she should be out of the running, IMO.  Since they haven't said anything this season about LCK, I hope they've dropped it from the show!

Edited November 6, 2014 by Lura

[Lillybee]

I bit the bullet and rewatched all of season2. There are a few things that I noticed.  Josie only made it to episode 5 when she was eliminated. So, why was she invited to other seasons.

[cooksdelight]

I bit the bullet and rewatched all of season2. There are a few things that I noticed.  Josie only made it to episode 5 when she was eliminated. So, why was she invited to other seasons.

 

Because she'd bring the bitch factor. And her annoying laugh. I knew when I saw her on the Seattle season with CJ and Stefan they were all brought back just to stir the pot.

[Lillybee]

The thing is that on season 2, she really wasn't a bitch just over confident. If they wanted a bitch, they should have bought back Elia.

I hated that she accused Marcel of cheating in front of the judges and the only example she could come up with is that Marcel moved one of her pots.

[Julia]

Betty. Betty and those two streghe from Texas were like escaped Hell's Kitchen contestants.

[Lura]

If Top  Chef wants real bitch contestants, it needs to recruit Penny Davidi from a few seasons back on Next Food Network Star.  Penny, allegedly from Beverly Hills, would  have Aaron running for the door and Keriann begging for mercy.  She would put the fear of the Lord into those judges, and Richard Blais would have twice the ticks!  Never, in the history of witches, have I ever endured such an irritating contestant!  When she was finally eliminated, I think the country rose, stood as one, and rejoiced: Ding-dong, the witch is dead!!!

 

ETA: I just googled Penny Davidi.  She's now the chef at Lisa  Vanderpump's Pump Lounge in West Hollywood!  Wonders never cease.

Edited November 4, 2014 by Lura

[cooksdelight]

If Top  Chef wants real bitch contestants, it needs to recruit Penny Davidi from a few seasons back on Next Food Network Star.  Penny, allegedly from Beverly Hills, would  have Aaron running for the door and Keriann begging for mercy.  She would put the fear of the Lord into those judges, and Richard Blais would have twice the ticks!  Never, in the history of witches, have I ever endured such an irritating contestant!  When she was finally eliminated, I think the country rose, stood as one, and rejoiced: Ding-dong, the witch is dead!!!

Add Lauren van der Pool to the list. :)

[Lura]

The only Lauren I remember is the one from a few seasons back on TC.  She hid behind a table to get out of work!  Is that the same Lauren?  I don't think I ever knew her last name.  My impression of her was that she always seemed to have her nose in the air in an aloof, pseudo-sophisticated manner. I think she was trying to be Kim Novak.  She was strange.

Edited November 4, 2014 by Lura

[cooksdelight]

No, this Lauren was on Chopped. Claimed to be private chef to the Williams tennis sisters, and a personal consultant to Michelle Obama. Kept going on and on about how healthy her food was. She got dumped after the entree round, and when the judges were telling her she was chopped, she said "May I speak?" and then went on to talk about how her competitor's food wasn't as good as hers. Really an asshat. She came back not long after for a redemption episode (even though the redemption episodes are usually reserved for those who lost in the final round) and did the same exact mouthy thing when eliminated after the first round.

http://afterthelevels.com/food-networks-worst-chopped-loser/

[Julia]

IETA: I just googled Penny Davidi.  She's now the chef at Lisa  Vanderpump's Pump Lounge in West Hollywood!  Wonders never cease.

Isn't that place the setting for her heavily scripted reality show? Go figure they picked a litigious wannabe sex kitten as a chef, although I doubt Penny gets her talons dirty cooking

[Lura]

Thanks for the link, cooksdelight.  Fortunately, I missed that Lauren.

 

I've decided that Keriann is Aaron's enabler.  Aaron came on the show just looking for an adversary, and the first time that Keriann opened her mouth, he thought, "Eureka!  I've found her!"  He has an automatic, magical button he presses, and -- voila! -- it opens her mouth!  If she had any sense at all (which she hasn't), she'd shoot him a look and say nothing.  That would ruin his fun.  Instead, her ego is such and her hunger for the camera is such that she cannot, will not, keep quiet!   

 

Oh, and did you notice Keriann on this last show?  She was having a terrible time trying to rub her lips together.  She'd run out of motor oil, or whatever it is she soaks them in, and she couldn't even make them slide together.  She and her grease cannot be separated!

Edited November 4, 2014 by Lura

[bailey]

Apparently Last Chance Kitchen is coming.

[Lura]

Bad news, IMO.  I was hoping they'd done away with it this season.  Obviously, Tom enjoys it.  It just makes no sense to me to tell someone to "pack their knives and go," then show them leaving, and then have them back again, competing in another kitchen.  They could change what Padma says, to  "Please pack your knives and go to Last Chance Kitchen."
.







 

[Julia]

It makes sense if Bravo wants to cross-promote their other shows and they know nobody's watching their commercials. LCK is probably the strongest driver to their website, and they can show you ads for all kind of things (including "Tacky Rich Ladies of [Location]" and "Parents You're Likely to Disapprove Of") that I'm going to guess get a lot less demographically attractive viewers  - to advertisers - than Top Chef does once they get you there.

Edited November 5, 2014 by Julia

[eleanorofaquitaine]

The Pilgrims had their own sins to answer for. Many historians make note -- as do many Wampanoag today -- of the Pirlgrims robbing Native American graves to gain tools, bows, utensils and stores of corn and beans. (The addition of that fact would've given an interesting twist to the challenge -- corn was so precious, they were willing to desecrate graves to gain it - it's such a profound way to illustrate that food isn't just a well-fed man's amusement.) Anyway -- all to say, history is shaped by which source you validate. 

 

I think that the reality is that the history of the Plymouth colony (and the Massachusetts Bay colony, which was - as noted - a separate colony) is complicated and the idea that EITHER the Pilgrims or the Wampanoags were the Big, Bad aggressors is probably not accurate.  I'd recommend Nathaniel Philbrick's Mayflower for a pretty even-handed read of the situation. The slaughter that took place during King Phillip's War (a generation after the establishment of the original Plymouth colony) was pretty equal opportunity, and from that perspective, we could say that the Wampanoags had "their own sins to answer for."  The reality, IMO, is that I don't like to judge either groups by modern standards because, almost four centuries laters, we are only just observers to dynamics we can't fully understand.

 

As such, and bringing it back to Top Chef, I think that the show handled it in the best way possible, recognizing that both colonists and Wampanoags were important to the celebration of the First Thanksgiving and celebrating the heritage of both groups.

[JES004]

As such, and bringing it back to Top Chef, I think that the show handled it in the best way possible, recognizing that both colonists and Wampanoags were important to the celebration of the First Thanksgiving and celebrating the heritage of both groups.

 

 

Second (or maybe third) Thanksgiving.  The first held by English Speaking Settlers was in Virginia. In fact, they had a decree stating that a day of thanksgiving would be held annually. The Pilgrims were 'Johnny Come Lately's'.  

Edited November 23, 2014 by JES004

[Lura]

Second (or maybe third) Thanksgiving.  The first held by English Speaking Settlers was in Virginia. In fact, they had a decree stating that a day of thanksgiving would be held annually. The Pilgrims were 'Johnny Come Lately's'.

 

Really?  Do you mean to tell me that my 6th grade history books were wrong?  :)  "Top Chef" was wrong?

I'm not doubting you, but I'd be interested in knowing where you got this info.

 

[eleanorofaquitaine]

Second (or maybe third) Thanksgiving.  The first held by English Speaking Settlers was in Virginia. In fact, they had a decree stating that a day of thanksgiving would be held annually. The Pilgrims were 'Johnny Come Lately's'.  

 

Yes, of course, it isn't as if a harvest festival was some sort of new concept.  But a). the Plymouth colony was in continuous existence from its founding in 1620 to the present day (which Jamestown wasn't) and it was a different kind of colony because it had more families than the Jamestown colony and b). it is the Pilgrim Thanksgiving that is generally thought of as the "First Thanksgiving" culturally for the American colonists, even if it wasn't the actual first Thanksgiving.  I am well aware of the history of colonization and that there were multiple Thanksgiving celebrations in various colonies, but it isn't Virginia that people think about or discuss when they recall the significance of the "First Thanksgiving."

[Snarklepuss]

 

The Pilgrims had their own sins to answer for. Many historians make note -- as do many Wampanoag today -- of the Pirlgrims robbing Native American graves to gain tools, bows, utensils and stores of corn and beans. (The addition of that fact would've given an interesting twist to the challenge -- corn was so precious, they were willing to desecrate graves to gain it - it's such a profound way to illustrate that food isn't just a well-fed man's amusement.) Anyway -- all to say, history is shaped by which source you validate.

 

Any crimes committed by the Pilgrims in the early years were ones of survival or misunderstanding, that was my entire point.  From a native American perspective, a story was told of Pilgrims hiring themselves out to work for the natives in exchange for things they needed.  These were very hard times for them and in the mindset of survival some individual Pilgrims could not cope with this situation and engaged in stealing to get things they needed for survival.  The natives had a very different idea of justice and put to death what they saw as an expendable person for such crimes (an elderly man), not necessarily the person who committed them.  So they thought they were doing the settlers a favor and being lenient on them.  Of course this was not the Pilgrim's idea of justice and so this lead to resentment and misunderstanding.  Sure, crimes were committed by the settlers, but it was as a result of this resentment and misunderstanding combined with attempting to survive, not some wholesale dominance and slaughter by the settlers towards the natives as some comments were suggesting.  No doubt these things happened later on, but to blame the Thanksgiving Pilgrims for this is to me a misunderstanding of history. 

 

The Pilgrims had the Indians agree to a treaty - I think the Pilgrims just didn't want any trouble from a group that mistrusted them.  They were trying to keep peace with them despite all the mistrust on both sides.  They just wanted to survive, basically.  Granted, the Pilgrims saw the Indians basically as savages, but from the opposite point of view, the natives saw the Pilgrims as intruders and many of them just wanted to find ways to get rid of them, at times by spreading lies about murders, etc. to sway opinion against them.  This stuff is from native American accounts, BTW.  Upon hearing such a lie, Standish went to meet with them which only lead to further unfortunate violence.  My point being is that if you listen to the Indian accounts it's obvious that there is some accountability for the misunderstandings on both sites.  Individuals do extreme things in extreme circumstances and for the settlers these were extreme circumstances.  Not to make excuses for anyone, but it was complicated on both sides in those early days.

 

Getting back to the show and Thanksgiving - If the modern Wampanaug were not on board with the way the Thanksgiving was portrayed on the show, would they have engaged in it?  So in some way that shows me that at least some of them are on board with Thanksgiving.  It might mean different things to them pro and con from an idealistic POV, but it still is a significant and of historical value to them to want to commemorate it on TV.

[hendersonrocks]

Granted, the Pilgrims saw the Indians basically as savages, but from the opposite point of view, the natives saw the Pilgrims as intruders and many of them just wanted to find ways to get rid of them...

 

 

Which, from my point of view, seems entirely fair. Because the Pilgrims--regardless of how positively or not positively one's perspective on them may be, whether descended from them or not--actually *did* intrude on their land.

 

I don't really want to get into a massive debate about the intent of people hundreds of years ago, because it seems clear that's a debate rife with emotions and politics (funny! just like immigration today!) and this is Top Chef.

[RealityGal]

I get all of that, and he does try to be entertaining, but I never thought he was a very good  TC judge. His opinion carries a lot of weight, but I did not think he did a good job of explaining what was good or bad about a dish-since we can't taste it, we need them to lead us through what is good and bad. In TC Regular and particularly in Duels, he made statements, but did not explain well. He also seemed to be good at leering at Gail, not that there is anything wrong with that!

I thought Emeril was very effective last year and I am disappointed that he is not back in Boston.

 

 

The old man leer is not to be missed or underestimated!  Old men do not give a fuck, I guess they figure they only have a limited amount of time left, they might as well stare at women as much as they can.

 

Or the infamous butterscotch scallops?

Or Richard's stupid banana scallops that we saw x amount of times?

 

I remember those....blerf

[eleanorofaquitaine]

Which, from my point of view, seems entirely fair. Because the Pilgrims--regardless of how positively or not positively one's perspective on them may be, whether descended from them or not--actually *did* intrude on their land.

 

I don't really want to get into a massive debate about the intent of people hundreds of years ago, because it seems clear that's a debate rife with emotions and politics (funny! just like immigration today!) and this is Top Chef.

 

It's not really "fair" in the sense that native tribes had a very different view of land than the European colonists, in that they didn't see the land as "theirs" as much as they had a more communal view of land. 

 

Claiming that the dynamic between the colonists and the native tribes is like immigration today is judging the experience of people (both sides) who were very much not like us by today's politics.  There's a reason why the expression "the past is a foreign country" exists - because the reality is that we tend to flatten our understanding of the past into heroes and villains, and the reality is often a lot more complex.

 

ETA: Reality Gal, I am also not a huge fan of Puck, in large part because I think he takes a lot of undue satisfaction in humiliating chefs whose dishes he doesn't like.  He did that, I think, on Food Network Star, where he went into the kitchen to show a chef how to cook a dish, and it was clear she was extremely humiliated by the whole thing.

Edited November 24, 2014 by eleanorofaquitaine

[hendersonrocks]

Claiming that the dynamic between the colonists and the native tribes is like immigration today is judging the experience of people (both sides) who were very much not like us by today's politics.  There's a reason why the expression "the past is a foreign country" exists - because the reality is that we tend to flatten our understanding of the past into heroes and villains, and the reality is often a lot more complex.

 

That there is nuance and complexity in history that seems to be lost in this discussion of a Top effing Chef episode was my point. (And the immigration comment was a joke, particularly given the events of last week. Just for the record.)

[eleanorofaquitaine]

Thanks for explaining that was your point, it wasn't clear IMO from your comment. 

[Lura]

Every time I look at that picture from Richard, Padma, Tom and Gail, it gets funnier!  Those children are so adorable that I want to take them home with me -- and "Richard" is perfect!  LOL  The photo is so creative and looks like it took a lot of work.  I'm so glad you found it and posted it, cooksdelight.

Edited November 26, 2014 by Lura

[JES004]

but it isn't Virginia that people think about or discuss when they recall the significance of the "First Thanksgiving."

 

I do.  However, what I was questioning is the use of the term 'First' Thanksgiving, when it obviously was not, regardless of whether or not the colony lasted.  Even the one in Virginia wasn't the first, only the first by English settlers.

 

Lura - just google Thanksgiving in Virginia.

 

From Wikipedia

The first documented thanksgiving services in territory currently belonging to the United States were conducted by Spaniards in the 16th century.[9][10] Thanksgiving services were routine in what was to become the Commonwealth of Virginia as early as 1607,[11] with the first permanent settlement of Jamestown, Virginia holding a thanksgiving in 1610.[9] In 1619, 38 English settlers arrived at Berkeley Hundred. The group's charter required "that the day of our ships arrival at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God."[12] Three years later, after the Indian massacre of 1622, the Berkeley Hundred site and other outlying locations were abandoned.

 

[eleanorofaquitaine]

I do.  However, what I was questioning is the use of the term 'First' Thanksgiving, when it obviously was not, regardless of whether or not the colony lasted.  Even the one in Virginia wasn't the first, only the first by English settlers.

 

 

Well, okay, but I will remind you that the episode of Top Chef that prompted this whole discussion was entitled "First Thanksgiving" and took place at Plymouth, Massachusetts, not in Virginia.  The "First Thanksgiving" that is considered culturally significant to American traditions is the one that took place among the Pilgrims in Plymouth and the Native American tribes in New England.  Whether or not it was the actual first harvest festival to take place in the North American continent is, IMO, beside the point.

[JES004]

Well, okay, but I will remind you that the episode of Top Chef that prompted this whole discussion was entitled "First Thanksgiving" and took place at Plymouth, Massachusetts, not in Virginia.  The "First Thanksgiving" that is considered culturally significant to American traditions is the one that took place among the Pilgrims in Plymouth and the Native American tribes in New England.  Whether or not it was the actual first harvest festival to take place in the North American continent is, IMO, beside the point.

 

Agreed that the title was 'First Thanksgiving', but I believe it was something written in the actual post that caught my attention.  Anyway, the only reason that the Massachusetts one is culturally significant is that it is the one taught in schools, and the holiday itself was pushed for by Sarah Josepha Hale from New England to be a National holiday based on the one already celebrated in New England. 

 

[JES004]

Tonight's Top Chef is using Edgar Allen Poe as a native son.  While born in Boston, he was raised in Richmond, Virginia.  He later died in Baltimore, Maryland.  While he did spend some time in Philadelphia and New York, I am not sure how anyone can claim him for New England, let alone Boston.  I know this is nitpicking, but couldn't they find someone who was a true New Englander? I'm sure there are many that Top Chef could choose from.

[cooksdelight]

Here's a really interesting article that Virginia Willis shared with me.

http://m.blogher.com/top-food-blog-trends-2014-we-can-t-even

[mlp]

 

http://m.blogher.com...4-we-can-t-even

 

I really enjoyed what I was able to read of that.  Funny and clever.  But it showed up as a long narrow column down the left side of an otherwise white screen - with no scroll bar.  I had no way to read past the first paragraphs.  Rats.

[cooksdelight]

It might be your browser. In Safari, it shows up fine. In Chrome, it is just as you said....a long narrow thing on the left.

 

I'll see if I can try to copy/paste it in here, but you won't get the funny photos.

[McManda]

It was posted as a mobile link - if you take the m. out at the beginning of the URL it should show up just fine.

 

Or, click here!

Or here, if you don't like slideshows and would rather it be all on one (readable) page!

[cooksdelight]

Thank you!!! I couldn't figure out what I did wrong because on my big Mac it looks all squirrely.

[Julia]

I really enjoyed what I was able to read of that.  Funny and clever.  But it showed up as a long narrow column down the left side of an otherwise white screen - with no scroll bar.  I had no way to read past the first paragraphs.  Rats.

 

Try this. It might help.

[mlp]

Thank you all for your help.  The links worked.  I was actually laughing out loud while reading the blog and now I'm wondering if I can subscribe without opening myself up to a lot of spam.

[Wings]

It was posted as a mobile link - if you take the m. out at the beginning of the URL it should show up just fine.

 

Or, click here!

Or here, if you don't like slideshows and would rather it be all on one (readable) page!

 

 

Thanks, these worked.  

 

Very funny blog and I love, " Here's a hint: If your recipe title looks like it was created from a mad-lib recipe generator, don't. Just don't"

[Calamity Jane]

I was flipping through the channels and came across a Pepin pbs cooking show. It was great. I am not up to speed on famous chefs but Top Chef has introduced me to some. I thought his recipes would be hoity toity but I am going to make the sliced pork loin with the sauce he made one day this week. And I was half watching and folding clothes while my 7 month old grandgirl was unfolding them on the bed but is his wife Puerto Rican? (spelling is probably off) Because his daughter and granddaughter were on the show and they made a pork and beans dish that was puerto rican and I thought I heard him say it was his daughter's mother's recipe. I am going to try that one also. I think I like his recipes better than Besh's that I discovered from his show a couple weeks ago. Why didn't I know that pbs has all these chef shows? Probably because my cable company's guide sucks. I am seriously thinking of going old school and subscribing to TVGuide. Oh, no, I have turned into my father! Yeah, my growing up family is the basis for All in the Family.

 

And I was trying to find a potato recipe that used chicken stock, sliced potatoes and cream to bake in the oven and discovered this website:

http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/ham-cheese-chicory-rolls

 

I am going tomorrow to get the ingredients to make those potato rolls. Wish me luck. I have no idea what chicory/endive tastes like. 

 

And I live a sheltered life here in NC, food wise. I am starting to branch out and learn more cooking in my semi middle age. I am about 46 or 47. My forties seem to be taking forever and I have lost track and can't do the math in my head anymore. But I drove about an hour or so away to do a dry run at the airport so I will know where to go when I take my mother there next week for her trip. And I decided to galavant around Cary and discovered a Indian/Pakistan restaurant. Never had any before, remember, sheltered. It was delicious. They had a small buffet and I knew it was going to be spicy, hot. Well some of it was too hot for me, I love spicy but hate over bearing heat. I mean, everyone there was wiping there noses. But I tried everything and found a few favorites. Is butter chicken, with a red creamy sauce, something that can be made at home? Or should I leave it to the professionals? Also, there was not any dessert except for what the man next to me said was rice pudding. But it had tiny thin noodley things instead of rice and the pudding was white and sort of soupy. It was the best sweet thing I have ever ate. I have looked for a recipe but have come up with nothing. All of them have rice.

Three of us from California went to grad school together at UNC-CH way back in '71, and we were DYING for Mexican food.  There was a place in town, but it was awful, and you couldn't buy the ingredients in the store there.  On a trip to DC, we found a Mexican restaurant that had great food and made us so happy.  The owner took pity on us and gave us a dozen tortillas to take home with us to the dorm.  I'm sure things have changed tremendously in the years since, but back then, there was not much variety in the local menu.  And we never learned to love grits. 

[cooksdelight]

Three of us from California went to grad school together at UNC-CH way back in '71, and we were DYING for Mexican food.  There was a place in town, but it was awful, and you couldn't buy the ingredients in the store there.  On a trip to DC, we found a Mexican restaurant that had great food and made us so happy.  The owner took pity on us and gave us a dozen tortillas to take home with us to the dorm.  I'm sure things have changed tremendously in the years since, but back then, there was not much variety in the local menu.  And we never learned to love grits. 

 

Chapel Hill has evolved and there are more restaurants with more variety. But I hear you. I went to ASU in Boone, and we had NOTHING there but fast food and a couple of old local places. And the dreaded cafeterias on campus. I was lucky that I got into a suite which had a living room and kitchen, and I was the only one of the 8 of us who could cook. I watched a lot of Julia Child and the Galloping Gourmet back then.

 

I was born and raised in the south and I never ate grits. My mom nor my grandmother never cooked them. We had oatmeal or Cream of Wheat.

[cooksdelight]

Cute exchange on Facebook between Katsuji and Dougie. But....was Doug on The Taste???

Doug Adams Wtf is a pickled carrot doing on that plate

1 hr · Like · 1

Katsuji Tanabe Doug Adams it's call texture it adds crunch... Thats why u didn't won The Taste #chiquito

36 mins · Like

Doug Adams It's called texture. Got it. When I think fried chicken and waffles I think carrots and beets......

24 mins · Like

Katsuji Tanabe Doug Adams I got you off the streets and this is how you payme? Remember when you were living under that bridge and doing sucky sucky fo 5dlls Mei Hua is my witness

[Lillybee]

Tell me, when the judges, or critics send the chefs off; do they get sent to the whine room or the wine room?

[Lura]

Heaven help me!  That exchange between Katsuji and Doug has me roaring with laughter!  It's pure Katsuji at his best and worst!

 

cooksdelight, if you went to school in Boone, you had some legendary scenery around you there.  I've never been there -- but my late MIL used to vacation up at Boone when FL got too hot in the summer.  She raved about how beautiful it was.

[cooksdelight]

Boone is indeed beautiful country. Grandfather Mountain was a favorite place of mine to spend a day, but I never had the guts to walk across the mile-high swinging bridge. The Highland Games were lots of fun. And I think it's the one place that has recorded snow in every month of the year at one time or another.

Watauga County was dry at the time, we'd have to go to Blowing Rock to drink beer. There was a club called The Library. We loved to tell our parents we spent Saturday night at the Library. And it was the truth! :)

[Lura]

cooksdelight, I've been to Asheville, but that's about it.  I'd love to see Boone sometime.  Asheville is full of wonderful restaurants.  I wish I could have brought home a sandwich I had for lunch there at a corner shop downtown.  I can replicate it, but I don't have the right homemade bread it was served on.  Sooo delicious!  Lots of excellent dinner places, too.

Edited January 2, 2015 by Lura

[cooksdelight]

I love Asheville as well, I'm about an hour and a half west. Tupelo Honey Cafe is THE spot to have a meal if you are ever back there. They also have restaurants in Chattanooga and Knoxville. I haven't been to Biltmore House in years but I really want to go in the spring when the millions of tulips and other flowers are in bloom.