Reviews - - Page 3

by Miss K

Good Enough to Put Your Name On

Once, last year when I was pregnant, my husband and I had Chipotle for dinner. He ate his whole burrito. I ate half of mine. I put mine in a container in the fridge with a note that said, “Do not eat this burrito. If you eat it, you will be stealing your baby’s food.”

In the same vein, my friend Colleen is one of the most generous people I know. She lives in community at a Catholic farm in West Virginia, where she, her husband and a handful of other year-rounders play host to hundreds of volunteers every year. She is a master at cooking food for a crowd. And, sometimes, she puts her name on her food.

So, what is it about certain foods that turn normally mild-mannered women into petulant 3-year-olds, yelling, “Mine!” while clinging to a beloved box of truffles? Well, it’s not a character flaw. It is simply a sense that certain foods and beverages deserve special treatment and savoring. I don’t want my husband scarfing my burrito at 11pm when he could just as easily make a peanut butter sandwich. Similarly, volunteer coming across some tangerine Spritzers in the fridge would probably not recognize that they were imported from the nearest Trader Joe’s, which is four hours away. Which brings me to the tea.

by BS

ES Taste Test: Do Foodies Know Whiskies?

As y’all know, us ES-ers are always happy to talk your ear off about where our sushi is sourced and the difference between green garlic and garlic scapes. Fine, we’re food snobs. But for some reason, we’ve never been great at the whole alcohol snob thing. We just generally prefer our whiskey in car bomb form. So when the fine folks at Jameson asked ES to taste test their four different varieties of high-end whiskeys, we saw it as a chance to answer the question: can low-end foodies like us taste the difference between a good whiskey and a great one?

So we assembled a not-very-esteemed panel of amateurs and blind taste tested Jameson’s four selections of increasingly expensive whiskey (sorry, no Crystal Jameson), seeing if we could tell which ones were more expensive, and whether we actually liked the more expensive ones better. Here’s what Jameson says, and what we say:

in Drinks 0 comments

by BS

ES Taste Tests the New Crystal Guinness

Following the massive popularity of our recent 100 Ways to Cook with Guinness post, the brass in Dublin decided Endless Simmer should be among the first “early influencers” invited to try their new product, Crystal Guinness, set to be released in the U.K. and Ireland on June 1 and in the U.S. later this summer.

The brew is Guinness’ first attempt at a spinoff product in more than three decades, and was conceptualized in response to declining Guinness sales throughout Ireland. While Guinness remains the most popular beverage sold in the motherland, it has recently lost considerable market share to Bulmers Irish Cider, which has enjoyed phenomenal success over the past five years, particularly during the summertime. Irish countryside pubs are still reliably stocked by old lads who wouldn’t dare order anything but the classic black stuff, but in more cosmopolitan Dublin, younger drinkers have gone crazy for Bulmers’ sharp, fruity taste and light, drinkable body.

Enter Crystal Guinness:

in Drinks 15 comments

by forkitude

Come Hither, Sweet Vosges Truffle

I am kind of a chocolate freak.
I think a truffle a day keeps the doctor away.
Because truffles are more delicious than apples.
Life is not like a bowl of apples, it is like a box of chocolates.
You really never quite know what you’re going to get.

As is the case from exotic chocolate maker Vosges, which produces things like bacon chocolate, oyster infused cream truffles, and enchanted mushroom chocolate ba rs.

The Vosges Luxe Sweet Coquette Truffle Collection is more of an experience than a box of chocolates. My sampling included instructions on how to eat them:

be present, see, touch, smell, snap, taste, linger and ponder your next move.

Okay, I like it. I rarely follow instructions, but these seemed to be well thought out and cover most of the senses. In fact, I’m gonna have to tell you about each one of these babies:

Kumamoto Truffle: kumamoto oysters, champagne, 36% cocoa butter white chocolate, pearl dust.

Oysters and chocolate? Don’t ask questions, just do it. Beyond the creamy, dreamy white chocolate goodness, the taste inspired visions of the sea. Not the sea as in a ferry to Ellis Island, but the sea as in that Cialis commercial where the couple is relaxing in clawfoot bath tubs overlooking the ocean. There is a hint of oyster cream that will probably make your lady rip her clothes off.

in Holiday 2 comments

by gansie

An Ode to a Clear Kitchen

It’s hard for me to say anything but “NO” when I see this gadget. How could there be anything more unnecessary than a banana slicer?

We pack our lives with things and stuff. And things and stuff. And things and stuff. The kitchen is the recipient of many of our purchases, from the crucial cast iron pot to the you’ll-use-it-once Dough-Nu-Matic Automatic Dougnut Machine. I scroll through friends’ wedding registries knowing the happy couple will never use half the knives in their over-priced set. And of course that famed waffle maker will never leave its box. Maybe for their first anniversary, a cute breakfast-in-bed, but then it will lead a lonely life in the corner of a dark closet.

And then there’s this fucking thing. This Bananza. Calling to our desire for a quick fix. For an easy way out. This device won’t help you eat more bananas. It won’t help you lose weight. You’ll realize this device isn’t any easier than using a knife. This device will clog up your drawer just like the avocado slicer and pitter. This device will remind you that stuff is just stuff. And more stuff doesn’t create anything but a mess.

And no, my lovely boyfriend, this doesn’t mean I won’t come home from my trip to Seattle without more items to fill the kitchen. I just bought apple smoked fleur de seul, in fact. But I thought writing this ode to a clear kitchen might ease the pain of new friends coming back with me.

in Uncategorized 14 comments

by forkitude

Beka, You Had Me At Heavy Stainless Steel

Crêpes will always be one of my everlasting French food memories. I had been addicted to stopping at the Strasbourg Marché de Noël after school to get a crêpe filled with Nutella and some vin chaud. To be sure, it’s quite difficult to avoid the Christmas market as it has taken over the entire city of Strasbourg in November and December since the year 1570 with miles of gifts, drinks, and gosh darn delicious food. Um, French women don’t get fat, right?

Despite stuffing crêpes, eclairs, croissants, chocolates, and cream sauces into my face (stopping just short of bathing in butter), I somehow returned home to America from my studies abroad lighter than when I had left. Think about that for a moment.

Given all of the crêpe gorging studying that I had done in France, I thought I would be as qualified as anyone to review a crêpe pan.

in Uncategorized 8 comments

by gansie

The Dice is Dead

Fresh, diced tomato on a crusty, olive-oil-brushed toasted bread tastes great. Add in some basil, onion and garlic and we enjoy a classic appetizer: tomato bruschetta.

But don’t lie. The tomatoes fall off with every crunchy bite. This becomes messy. And wholly unenjoyable.

Enter the slice. Imagine instead of chunks, there are slices. It’s easier to eat. The bite more complete.

And forget the tomato. Cork, a neighborhood wine bar in DC, realized the slice could work with an avocado. Actually, it doesn’t just work, it kicks ass.

I was introduced to this simple and pleasantly pleasing appetizer at a recent press event. Thin avocado slices, topped with ground pistachio, toasted pistachio oil, and French sea salt combine for a rich, salty and satisfying prelude. Could it be more simple? More delicious? Could this make a more perfect union?

in Restaurants 4 comments

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