rant: fine dining

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jim
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Re: rant: fine dining

Post by jim »

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Last edited by jim on July 28 16, 6:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

AWvsCBsteeeerike3
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Re: rant: fine dining

Post by AWvsCBsteeeerike3 »

Damn, haltz, that's pretty similar to the way the chef, Aaron whalen, I worked for would prepare it. And, yes. It was amazing.

Jim maybe you should stick to the steaks. I don't know the rules anymore, but I wouldn't ever order fish that's on special unless it was free and even then definitely not if it was tilapia.

jim
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Re: rant: fine dining

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Last edited by jim on July 28 16, 6:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Freed Roger
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Re: rant: fine dining

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A good cut of steak doesn't need a bunch of marinating and encrusting. The challenge for cooks is making a lesser cut of steak taste great.


On that note - I always though flank steak was a lesser cut. It's what you make beef jerky with typically. But it seems pretty costly at the store.

planet planet
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Re: rant: fine dining

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Do most people agree they can make better steaks at home than in a restaurant? I mean, I love the steaks we make at home, but they're pretty awesome if you get them from a great steak restaurant!

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Re: rant: fine dining

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planet puma wrote:Do most people agree they can make better steaks at home than in a restaurant? I mean, I love the steaks we make at home, but they're pretty awesome if you get them from a great steak restaurant!
Usually I don't order steaks at restaurants, thinking I can do that at home -and it is one of the more costly items on the menu. However, I don't recall regretting ordering steak when out.

At restaurant, with their equipment - they probably can cook a steak at proper temp. At home or on our bbq grill, it can be a bit of guesswork.

A non-fine dining place in Keokuk IA - the Hawkeye, has great steaks.
Last edited by Freed Roger on January 6 13, 6:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

AWvsCBsteeeerike3
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Re: rant: fine dining

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I think a lot of people underestimate what steakhouses are able to do that the average Joe can't do w their kroger steak and weber grill. That said a kroger steak and weber grill is awesome. Bit...dry aging and longer marinading times just aren't going to happen at home. And, you're likely gonna get a better piece of meat at a storehouse.

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IMADreamer
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Re: rant: fine dining

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My butcher does marinating and prep on steak he sells so you just walk in tell him how many you want go home and cook it. It's the best steak I've ever had. Of course he sells them unprepped as well but why would I when it's barely more expensive.

As for fine dining, well I'm the guy that thinks Kraft singles are a splurge item so as you can imagine I don't do much of that. I stick to places like on that Dinners and Drives show with Guy what's his face. I like mom and pop greasy spoon type stuff.

jim
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Re: rant: fine dining

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I have a friend who was a chef and is in the food industry and he says the average Joe just can't buy the same quality meat. So yeah ill order a steak. Place up here in Chicago called Gibson's that is $$$ but goooooood. No menu. The bring out a tray of meat and ask you which one you want. Now that's a menu I understand!

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haltz
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Re: rant: fine dining

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jim wrote:Is there a dictionary available that I could buy to translate this stuff next time I go to a restaurant? That would be very helpful.
As a server in a nice restaurant, it's literally my job to explain things to you and help you make your decision. It bugs me when people order things that they don't understand what it is, and that's one of the only times customers end up really not liking something.
Demi-glace? Half frozen? I mean the hell does that mean?
You speak French. Glace = glaze. It is veal stock and brown sauce (espagnole) of varying quality depending on if they actually take the time and expense to make it all in house. Prosciutto is salt-cured ham. Pancetta is salt-cured bacon. They are the traditional Italian preparations of preserving the thigh and belly of a pig before the advent of refrigeration. In the US, especially bacon, it is often smoked. Flat iron steak is the labrum, to put it in baseball terms, and it is a little tougher than some other parts of the cow, but there is a lot marbling and it has some nice flavor. If you marinate it well, cook it and slice it properly, it is delicious.
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From the cow's shoulder (chuck) to down around its belly and up to its ass (round) come a lot of cuts that have great flavor but are a little tougher like brisket, flat iron, hanger (bistro steak), skirt (fajitas), flank (london broil), some are best prepared marinated and cooked quickly medium rare, and some are best prepared smoked or braised or some long process. But it's not like the easy stuff in the middle like a porterhouse or a ribeye that just needs salt/pepper and heat.

No matter what the cut of grilled steak, even if it's high-quality, I like aggressive seasoning and rubs. I recently rubbed some really nice porterhouse steaks with a simple rub of brown sugar, coffee and salt and pepper and they were great. It helps to get a nice crust on the steak without overcooking it.

And also, if you eat a lean piece of meat it needs some fatty sauce. A red wine and butter reduction or a hollandaise is classic on a beef tenderloin. I had a bison tenderloin filet during a tasting dinner at Prime 1000. It was incredibly lean, but then you poured garlic-herb roasted bone marrow over the top and it was one of my favorite things I've eaten in a long time.
AWvsCBsteeeerike3 wrote:Damn, haltz, that's pretty similar to the way the chef, Aaron whalen, I worked for would prepare it. And, yes. It was amazing.
I think he was recently the chef at The Stable in Benton Park. I used to go there all the time when I lived close by and it was still open. I miss that place.
Last edited by haltz on January 7 13, 12:42 am, edited 1 time in total.

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