Megabus was everything I thought it would be and more, and I would use it a helluva lot more if it were around me. Seventeen bucks from Hartford to Boston is a pretty solid deal, the wifi was good, and there were outlets. What more does a man need? I was a little pissed at the old white dude sleeping in my seat and lying about it, but I just sat somewhere else.
I have an exquisite hotel view:
I hope I am not charged extra for that. Walked around for a little bit, and I managed to find a place to eat other than fucking Dunkin Donuts (christ you people in New England and these fucking donut shops), ordered some chowder and fish and chips, and everything on my plate was off-white and bland and tasted similarly. No wonder you people are drunk all the time.
Also, who the fuck serves gourmet ketchup? There is Heinz, and there is shit. Choose accordingly.
I need a nap before I get cranky.
Jim Bales
Welcome to Boston, John!
Eljai
That is the best TripAdvisor review ever!
Cain
Hey we folks in portland have Portland Ketchup Company and the ketchup is outstanding,
?eric
you should some of us take you for an adult beverage while you are in town…..
Fester Addams
Right. We can’t have you getting cranky or anything.
Spanky
Hey, are you near Copley Square? I think I had that room about 30 years ago. The ambiance was definitely improved by the frat boys loudly roaming the halls after the bars closed. Only had to be there the one night, thanks be to FSM.
Oatler.
You people, eating ketchup.
Barbara
You are in Boston, not Hartford. Nothing else should matter to you. I so wanted to like Hartford because I spent so much time there for work, but after 5:00 pm there is just not much to love.
ruemara
Ketchup? Commercial? Ick. They are all trash. Make your own. Infinitely better, like homemade mayo.
schrodingers_cat
I don’t get the ketchup hate. Heinz is abominable try Hunt’s or if you can lay your hands on it, Maggie’s. I find the yellow mustard paste, which smells of vinegar not that appetizing.
Roger Moore
opiejeanne
@?eric: That would be nice.
Yarrow
Megabus switched the bus to a crappy one when a relative of my used them. She sat at the loading area and watched the awesome Megabus with the comfy seats and wifi head off to another location. Her bus pulled in and it was an old Greyhound type bus. She said the seats were passable but no wifi. Fortunately it was a relatively short trip. Cheap price so hard to complain too much, but did seem like a bait and switch.
Fester Addams
Oh yea, speaking of cranky is the Durgin-Park restaurant still there?
rikyrah
Yeah, another Megabus convert!!
opiejeanne
@Roger Moore: You were saying?
Never mind. I can see it now. It was just an empty box at first.
Spanky
Well, I’ll be curious to know what other details will come about this:
schrodingers_cat
Go to Chinatown. I am sure Boston has more eating out venues than Your Town, WV. Dunking has good coffee.
CB in Natick
Try Legal Seafood. It’s not cheap but the fish is good. You could also check out Zagat’s guide for good restaurants. If you’re willing to spend a little bit, I’d try out Oleana in Cambridge, just across the river from Boston. Also check out the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial on Boston Common. It’s a bronze relief sculpture honoring Boston’s all black 54th Regiment in the Civil War. It still retains its power after all these years. I would tell you to walk around the Common and the Public Garden but its March and the weather sucks. A walk up Newbury Street gives you a look at trendy Boston just a block over from where the Marathon bombing took place.
schrodingers_cat
@Roger Moore: Seconded. I use ketchup as a base in the hot and sweet dipping sauce I make.
Matt Smith
If naps were the solution to cranky, I’d be a much nicer person.
rikyrah
For TaMara (HFG) [don’t know if you saw this last night]
@TaMara (HFG):
Megabus is a Cheap bus. The earlier you buy the tickets, cheaper it is. I’m in the Midwest, and like I said before, my sister could routinely get round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Chicago for $20-25. Takes planning, but if you know when you are traveling, you can get a great deal. The Minneapolis-Chicago bus is usually a double decker. My sister loves sitting upstairs on it. They don’t go everywhere. They have expanded in the Midwest in the last 18 months.
Doesn’t have the reach of Greyhound, but if you want to travel on their established routes, compare prices.
If bus trips don’t bother you, try Megabus.
My other sister wants to go to Memphis. So, I’m staking out the website every other day, for her days. They haven’t started taking bookings for it…but, she doesn’t want to spend anymore than $15 round trip..LOL
she can take long bus trips. I can’t.
rikyrah
Cole, look up on the Food Network for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. They’ve got some good looking places in Boston.
raven
@opiejeanne: Yea, especially since he doesn’t drink.
schrodingers_cat
@Matt Smith: So would boss kitteh, who routinely slashes me because he can.
Mnemosyne
@raven:
Bill inGlendaleCA doesn’t drink, either, but he still shows up to GTGs and watches the rest of us drink adult beverages while he drinks iced tea.
germy
I lived in Boston about forty years ago and I remember a tavern called “Frankenstein’s” that served foot-long hotdogs for a dollar.
specialed5000
A guy arrives in Boston craving seafood. On the way to his hotel he asks the cab driver what’s the best place to get scrod.
The driver replies “I’ve been asked that question a thousand times but never before in the plupural subjunctive case”.
germy
Saw this on another blog:
https://clarissasblog.com/2017/03/29/join-the-identity-game/
opiejeanne
@raven: I originally said that in that post, but thought better of fighting John’s fights for him and chickened out, thinking of what John might say to me about it.
Cacti
Ketchup is the lowest of the condiment family.
Fine to put on things…if you’re a child under age 10 with still developing taste buds.
The Moar You Know
John, take you and your ladyfriend out to the West Coast and get some food that is other colors other than off-white.
I know. Mind blown, right? Food comes in colors!
Brachiator
@Roger Moore:
Why bother? Ketchup is OK on fries, but otherwise has no reason for existing. In California, ketchup has rightfully been displaced by salsa.
Cole’s Boston trip sounds like … fun.
AdamK
I’d keep an eye on that alley if I were you. It’s all set up for a supervillain/superhero fight.
germy
@rikyrah: I took a greyhound bus once from Florida to New York. By the end of the trip I was ready to kill myself.
Thoroughly Pizzled
Massholes are disgusting. Boston is disgusting. The MoFA is nice, though.
schrodingers_cat
@germy: For India the other is Pakistan.
LongHairedWeirdo
You could always play out an old joke. Hop in a cab, and ask where you can get scrod.
The canonical response is. “yeah, you Hahvahd boys, always using the pluperfect.”
(Scrod is a type of fish. If you can’t figure out the bit about the pluperfect, you’re either too young to explain it to, or didn’t listen well in English class.)
Mnemosyne
So, travel story here at work:
My boss is going to Japan. We were under the impression that the company she’s dealing with in Japan was going to book her hotel room, but then suddenly on Friday they expected us to book it barely a week before her trip.
So I go online and there is NOTHING in Tokyo — total sea of “sold out” — except for a suite at a super fancy place that’s $1,600 PER NIGHT. And she’s staying for six nights.
The Japanese company has confirmed that they’re going to pay for it since it was their fuckup, but I still have to get special permission from the Giant Evil Corporation for her to stay there because it’s against policy.
Cacti
@germy:
The other for India is obviously Pakistan.
nanapplepie
WTF?!?! Ketchup with fish & chips? Malt vinegar baby!!!!
germy
@schrodingers_cat: I check the reader comments just now and saw that. One of them quoted an Indian saying “If you don’t like the government, move to Pakistan!”
?eric
@raven: i forgot about that…my bad…..
The Moar You Know
@rikyrah: He’s been to my town…and picked literally, and I mean literally, the worst eatery in the entire town.
He seems like a likable enough guy, the show is entertaining, but I wouldn’t eat at anyplace he recommends. He obviously picks personalities and good TV over actual good food.
Major Major Major Major
@Brachiator:
None of this is true.
hovercraft
@The Moar You Know:
I want to know what the hell kind of fish and chips are off white? They should be golden brown and crisp, no?
My one trip to Boston years ago was vastly improved by the excellent food, so give them another chance. Oh and fish and chips should be accompanied by malt vinegar, not ketchup!
Yarrow
@Mnemosyne: What in the world is going on in Tokyo that every hotel is booked? That’s weird.
raven
@?eric: Honest mistake, I’m sure it wasn’t the first or last time. It happens to me all the time.
schrodingers_cat
@germy: India does not get along with any of its neighboring countries. Nepal was the exception but Modi’s govt fucked that up also.
Elmo
There is an Italian restaurant in the North End (but I repeat myself) that has seven or eight TV screens playing classic mobster movies on an endless loop. Godfather, Goodfellas, Casino, the works. Great food too.
Cacti
@Yarrow:
Cherry blossom season?
rikyrah
@The Moar You Know:
One I remember from Boston was a burger place that put mac and cheese on a burger. Looked like heart attack on a plate, but dammit, if i ever get back to Boston, I’m going..LOL
Genine
They have time travel in Boston?
hovercraft
@germy:
For China it is Japan, US, Russia and India are geopolitical foes, but true hate and distrust is reserved for Japan.
aimai
Oh for god’s sake–there is terrific vietnamese food in the Tremont Street Area (formerly known as chinatown) as well as great dim sum. If we can load him into a truck we can take him to Sarma which has fantastic middle eastern Meze, albeit at a high price. If he wants MEAT we could take him to the waltham meat eaters joint whose name escapes me. There’s food. Just don’t order chowder from a tourist trap. The good chowder (like the bad) is all on the Cape.
Chris
Silence, fool. Dunkin Donuts is awesome.
Mnemosyne
@Yarrow:
No idea. But there’s nothing quite like the panic of scrolling down a list of 500 hotels the week before your boss gets on a plane and seeing “sold out,” “sold out,” “sold out.”
There were hotels in Yokohama, but that’s 20 miles away from where her meetings are.
opiejeanne
@Major Major Major Major: Yeah, I was trying to imagine salsa on French fries. I skip the ketchup and just salt them a little, if they are unseasoned.
Cacti
@germy:
The other for Brazil is Argentina.
Elmo
Oh oh oh and you MUST go to the Black Rose tavern! My boss and I were there a few weeks ago, and we were the last ones out the door at closing. Live Irish music every night.
There may have been dancing. There was DEFINITELY singing.
Chris
@germy:
The Italians.
Major Major Major Major
@aimai: I dunno, dim-sum tends to be offwhite.
Byron King
You might have done those in the wrong order.
Bard the Grim
Nobody says you have to like chowder or fish and chips, but do NOT diss our donuts.
Yarrow
@Mnemosyne: That’s crazy. Well, at least she’ll have a nice room!
germy
@Mnemosyne: I thought Tokyo had a surplus of tiny little closet-sized hotel rooms for travelers. No amenities, just a place to sleep, because everything one needs is in the city.
the Conster, la Citoyenne
Wait what? You’re in Boston? How did I miss that? I’m right downtown and can meet up – I’ll take you out for drinks. You want good fish go to the Barking Crab.
karen marie
Why didn’t you saunter over to the North End for some real food? Stay away from the Union Oyster House. They shuck their oysters on Monday, then serve shitty dried out oysters all week. Modern Pastry is a must-visit for fresh torrone, Mike’s Pastry for cannolis!
Mnemosyne
@hovercraft:
There are a lot of countries in Asia and the Pacific that hate and distrust Japan for very good reasons.
TaMara (HFG)
@rikyrah: I did see – you all make it sound so nice, but I have bus nightmares from travelling from Boston to Middleboro – that was just awful – loved it when the train started that route (all the way down to the Cape). So I guess I’m just a train gal.
And Cole needs to stop dissing my adopted hometown, or there will be words. ;-)
pamelabrown53
Hey John. Your building shaft “view” reminds me of a trip to NYC where we stayed at the InterContinental Hotel. The room was postage stamp sized and a pot of coffee: outrageous. Then again I stayed at the InterContinental in Budapest, slipped the front desk guy a $100 bill and got a view of the Chain Bridge.
Totally, a Heinz consumer. In fact, next month when we travel to Chicago, I’m prepared to not eat any of their famed hotdogs (no big sacrifice) because every Chicago food article I’ve read said you’ll be treated abominably if you order ketchup on your hotdog. As one who despises mustard, that’s a deal breaker. Surprised that level of anti-ketchup coercion could take root in the mid-west!
Brachiator
@Major Major Major Major: RE: Why bother? Ketchup is OK on fries, but otherwise has no reason for existing. In California, ketchup has rightfully been displaced by salsa.
It is true in my corner of the universe. Your mileage may vary.
Donald Trump loves ketchup on well-done steak. Reason enough, right here, to ban it.
Also, a good steak should never be cooked well-done.
different-church-lady
@CB in Natick: skip Legal, go to Atlantic Fish Company on Boylston
TaMara (HFG)
@karen marie: This
rikyrah
The White House’s Nunes Gambit Failed
by Martin Longman March 29, 2017 12:30 PM
I never agree with David French of the National Review, but his call for Rep. Devin Nunes to step down as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee is spot-on. He isn’t trying to convince me, however. He’s trying to convince Republican voters and lawmakers. As a result, I don’t know if he’ll be convincing with his appeals to common sense, but he might get somewhere with his effort to put the shoe on the other foot:
This argument still has to overcome the “it’s-okay-if-you’re-a-Republican” (IOKIYR) disposition of so many conservatives. There’s a definite tolerance for win-at-all-costs ethical calculations on the right that is simply not as powerful on the left. There’s also an unwillingness to facilitate anything that might lead to a premature end to the Trumpian experiment, although that feeling is not strong in Congress compared to the far-removed counties that gave Trump his Electoral College victory.
karen marie
@schrodingers_cat: Speaking of India … John Cole, if you like Indian food, India Quality restaurant in Kenmore Square is the thing dreams are made of. Their beef curry is so good! Sadly, they won’t give me their recipe to console me in my exile to godforsaken Arizona.
Major Major Major Major
@Brachiator: right, but I live in California and see people using ketchup way more than salsa-instead-of-ketchup.
rikyrah
How The Extremism Of The Freedom Caucus Could Open A Chasm In The GOP
by Nancy LeTourneau March 29, 2017 11:22 AM
Regular readers here might know that I don’t tend to go for hyperbole. But dating back to the Obama years, I have tended to refer to the House Freedom Caucus and their allies in the Republican Study Committee as the “lunatic caucus.” They are the ones who drove John Boehner crazy when he was Speaker and eventually engineered his ouster. That is in no way a suggestion of sympathy for Boehner, but simply a recognition of the deep fissures that developed among House Republicans.
With the failure of the bill to repeal Obamacare, it appears as though more Republicans are starting to catch on to the idea that the lunatic caucus is a problem for them. Jonathan Swan reported that “President Trump feels burned by the ultra conservative House Freedom Caucus and is ready to deal with Democrats” while Mike Allen says that “Top officials at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue tell me they don’t see how they can change the House Republican math that killed health reform.” Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH), current chairman of the NRCC, recently said, “I think we need to start negotiating with Democrats instead of the Freedom Caucus. They don’t know how to get to yes.”
There seems to be a pretty big shift underway. Especially following the 2010 midterms when Republicans gained control of the House, the lunatic caucus was valuable to them as a means to enforce obstruction of Obama’s agenda. But at least some in the GOP seem ready to jettison them now.
While it’s probably not true that the House Freedom Caucus contributed all of the potential “no” votes for Obamacare repeal (moderates seem to have produced just as many), the entire effort to alter the bill in order to get it through the House was focused on meeting their demands. In other words, Republicans played this one to please the lunatics and came up short. Now they’re questioning whether or not to repeat that fatal flaw. That is what’s driving them to consider working with Democrats. Take a look at what Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) said about any future attempts to tackle health care: “It’s clear it needs to be done on a bipartisan basis.”
What is interesting to note about this is that getting to the place where Republicans talk about working on a bipartisan basis is something that was never possible during Obama’s tenure. It’s not – as some in the media continue to claim – because he didn’t try. A lot of liberals were mad at him specifically because he tried so hard. But pretty much throughout his two terms, Republican obstructionism held.
Cacti
@Mnemosyne:
Perhaps the only point of agreement between North and South Korea is that they both hate Japan.
Aleta
The ketchup is for the burnt steak.
You need to find some goldfish sandwiches. (That was spell check for good fish. New laptop, so like a neo-luddite I think sp check is funny.)
Anyway, somehow find the good fish places. (They’re not the fancy expensive ones, or the chains, just the ones with the freshest frozen haddock.) Not pollock. No flour or thickener in the chowder. That’s what blandifies it.
Ideally the place should have steam coming out when the door opens, and the people inside should have chapped red faces.
If it fishcakes and beans are on the breakfast menu, likely OK.
opiejeanne
@pamelabrown53: What’s with the disdain for ketchup (or catsup) on hot dogs? That’s where it belongs, as well as sometimes on burgers.
It’s what we used so our kids would eat fish sticks back when you could get non-disgusting fish sticks.
Mnemosyne
@germy:
Not for six nights in a row, they don’t. Plus my boss would kill me. And I wouldn’t make her do that anyway.
debit
You guys. I did not bring lunch today AND I biked 12 miles in. I’m hungry. Either magically deliver unto me all this awesome food or stop talking about it before I gnaw off my own fingers.
Major Major Major Major
@Cacti: it’s silly really, what’s a couple centuries of brutal imperial striving between friends?
p.a.
Do they have a Whitey Bulger Trail yet? opps, just gave away my million $ idea?
The Moar You Know
@opiejeanne: local SoCal Mexican food dish – carne asada fries.
Fries
Carne asada
Guacamole (everything here comes with guac or avocado, even pizza if you like it and you will like it!)
Salsa fresca
refrieds if it’s a cheaper joint
sour cream
salsa of your choice
Thank the god of your choice that you’ve lived to eat this. Salsa on fries is the bomb.
Chris
@schrodingers_cat:
Which is kind of concerning, given that two of those countries have nukes.
opiejeanne
@Brachiator: None of that is the fault of the food. None of it.
Nixon liked ketchup on cottage cheese. Still not the fault of the food.
Where do you go that they serve salsa with fries? I love good salsa but I don’t put anything but salt on my fries, if they need it.
different-church-lady
Sweet Cheeks
Toro
Flour for sandwiches or pastry
South Street Diner for greasy spoon and rude service
Peale
Cannoli is what you have in Boston. Best Cannoli in the country as far as I’m concerned. And the best place to get it is Mike’s. Skip the Duncan Donuts.
hovercraft
Um, America, I think we have a problem:
This is just wow, but for once it’s not FLOR-I-DAH
In reasoned response to single hobo armed with an icecream, Fresno Police deploy 50 cars, K9, 2 choppers, 2 ambulances, fire truck, robot, SWAT team, another SWAT team, crisis negotiating team, and destroyed some guy’s home the hobo was hiding in
Yarrow
@Major Major Major Major: @Brachiator: Salsa has overtaken ketchup as the top tomato-based condiment in the US. Of course this means that the brown hordes are taking over ‘Murka. I think both salsa and ketchup have their places. Sometimes you can substitute one for another and sometimes it doesn’t really work.
schrodingers_cat
@Chris: India is more prickly and cranky rather than belligerent. Its always has good ties with Iran and Russia, though.
Doug!
Sums up Boston perfectly
MomSense
@ruemara:
Definitely make your own and add sriracha. I swear Heinz is food coloring and corn syrup.
John, go to a seafood place and get yourself some pan seared scallops or tuna. Better yet go get some sushi. My favorite Peruvian place closed otherwise I’d suggest you go there for ceviche and other delights.
bystander
@different-church-lady: Yes, definitely skip Legal. They rubberfy every piece of fish they can.
Boston has the mediocre restaurants in the western world. My theory is that Boston is overrun with 20-something trustafarians, would be venture capitalists and digital people with palates that are far less developed than their wallets. Hence, mediocre, overpriced restaurants at every turn. Sorry I spent 10 years there from 1997 to 1998, and never had a decent meal there that I didn’t prepare myself.
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
It depends on the use. Nobody puts salsa on French fries or hamburgers (unless it’s supposed to be a salsa burger). But people put salsa on their eggs out here when they would have put on ketchup 20 years ago.
p.a.
@opiejeanne:
You are dead to me.
rikyrah
@pamelabrown53:
Tis true.
We’ll put an entire salad on top of a hot dog…but, NO Ketchup….LOL
Julie
De-lurking because this is Camden’s libel.
Major Major Major Major
@Yarrow: now that’s what I call a series of factual statements.
MomSense
@bystander:
You just have to know where to go.
different-church-lady
@Peale: Dunkin. DunKIN.
Certified Mutant Enemy
@ruemara:
If homemade mayo is too much trouble, you can try Extra Heavy Duty Mayonnaise.
hovercraft
@Mnemosyne:
Totally, Japan was the Germany of Asia up until WWII. They’ve earned every bit of the distrust, and Abe and his ilk have done nothing to ally that fear and distrust. They are like the people in the South who live for the day when the South Rises Again.
p.a.
@Peale: the Scots have a donut franchise?
opiejeanne
@Major Major Major Major: I was just in California (we spend about 3 months a year there) and have never been served fries with salsa. I’m trying to imagine the type of place that might do that, other than an upscale restaurant that is trying too hard, or a very confused greasy spoon.
Aleta
@Peale:
Providence RI
randy khan
@Mnemosyne:
From my one trip to Tokyo, $1,600 a night doesn’t sound quite as incredible as it would in, oh, Chicago. I seem to remember that my room (granted, at somewhere nice, although it was chosen because it was the preferred hotel of the people I was visiting) was like $800/night.
Mnemosyne
@pamelabrown53:
It is true that you will be treated with disdain if you ask for ketchup on your Chicago dog. Some people say that’s how Carol Moseley-Brown lost her last election (though it was probably because of the corruption allegations). However, if you order it plain and then add your ketchup off to the side, people will politely pretend not to notice.
But a true Chicago dog has chopped tomatoes, relish, sport peppers, and a pickle spear on top, so don’t knock it until you try it.
different-church-lady
@bystander: This is true, but oddly we’re rich in celebrity chefs, and if you hit one of their places it’s great, and not always unaffordable, sice they tend to include down-market options in their empires.
I hardly ever dine out anymore because of exactly what you said. One really needs to ferret out the pearls amoungst the seaweed.
p.a.
@Aleta: Cole wouldn’t come here for Netroots Nation, he won’t come for the cannoli.
opiejeanne
@Aleta:
I was imagining those little orange crackers between two slices of Wonder Bread. Maybe with some mayo.
ruemara
@nanapplepie: He’s from WV. SMH.
@Mnemosyne: Holy. Crap.
danielx
So, you’re not cranky already? Coulda fooled me.
Major Major Major Major
You know what’s tasty? Currywurst.
@ruemara: yeah, it’s very funny. “What is it with you people and one of the things you’re famous for? And how come your food is terrible when I pick a random place and then eat it wrong??”
A Ghost to Most
@Doug!:
You forgot mouthy cheatriot fans
WereBear
Hey, doughnuts are part of our Colonial heritage, I’ll have you know!
Plus, it’s usually a good place to get coffee.
Brachiator
@opiejeanne:
Yuck to both ketchup and cottage cheese.
There’s a local food truck that alternates “homemade” chips and fries for lunch. People will often have a side of salsa with the fries instead of using ketchup.
The other day someone mentioned that they had fries with mayo in France, and most people agreed that ranch dressing works with fries. Again, not a lot of love for ketchup.
On the other hand, some of the people at the food truck, mainly Latinos, really love ketchup on corn dogs instead of mustard, as God intended.
different-church-lady
@bystander: Also, a LOT has changed since the 90s. 15 years ago it was impossible to get a well mixed drink in this town. Today you can’t whirl a cat without hitting a good craft cocktail joint.
pamelabrown53
@opiejeanne: #81.
Hah! I agree with every word. Even the fish stick part. As a Catholic reared child, my culinary challenged mother served us fish sticks w/ketchup for dipping on more Fridays than I care to recall However to this day, I can’t stand to look at macaroni and cheese (no matter how “gourmet”) without a sense of revulsion. Not the same for fish sticks accompanied with ketchup!
I must be a Midwestern peasant’s peasant at heart.
Certified Mutant Enemy
@Aleta:
The ketchup is for the burnt steak.
I’ve heard that’s how Trump likes his steak…
Ruviana
@opiejeanne: I was thinking of real goldfish and wondering how many you’d need for a regular-sized sandwich.
different-church-lady
@A Ghost to Most: Oh, don’t worry, we’ll remind you ourselves.
Aleta
@opiejeanne: A new fish sandwich is born!
One of the best fish sandwiches I ever had was deep fried salmon. It was local salmon frozen there, which probably made a difference.
hovercraft
@Peale:
Nah-uh! Arthur Avenue, The Bronx, Gino’s, for starters, we can go borough by borough if you like!
different-church-lady
LUCKY’S LOUNGE! Retro vibe, best burgers, Sinatra Sundays!
Franklin Cafe – never been myself, but many assocites and visitors rave.
opiejeanne
@The Moar You Know: I’ve never seen that at a Mexican restaurant in SoCal, and I’m a native (currently exiled to the PNW).
When we lived in Anaheim one of our go-to for Mexican was Super Mex in Fullerton but there are several in places like Huntington Beach and Long Beach. Family-owned local chain. They used to make their own tamales and served them with a salsa verde that on some days would burn your lips off, depending on the mood of whoever mixed it up that morning. Delicious and worth the burn.
p.a.
Cole goes to Boston, eats at Red Lobster*, then badmouths Boston food!
*just kidding, don’t know his itinerary.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@germy:
Pakastan You know, the people the Indians have had seven wars with since independace.
Aleta
@Major Major Major Major:
And such small portions.
schrodingers_cat
Best seafood I have eaten was in Goa. Fresh fish, dusted with rice flour spiced with cayenne and turmeric and then fried crisp. No need for any condiments except for a squeeze of lime. Plus clam xacuti with rice and miles of sandy beaches and a cold Kingfisher beer. Heaven on earth.
ET
John you need to do more traveling so you can do more tourist posts. This one was awesome
Immanentize
@Peale: Oh, now you gone and done it —
Mike’s is a friggin’ tourist stop (like most of the North End these days). When I see people carrying Mike’s boxes, I laugh inside. Modern is actually much better, the cannoli filling isn’t a sickly sweet paste like Mike’s And, it is a Medford original — where real Italian people live and get their cannoli. Also, too, Arthur’s is one of the only cannoli shops that now uses homemade shells. Both Mike’s and Modern’s are machine made.
Immanentize
@Doug!: Boiled dinner isn’t boiled for nothing!
schrodingers_cat
@Enhanced Voting Techniques: Seven? 1947 and 1965 over Kashmir, 1971 Bangladesh War, Kargil in the late 90s.
FlyingToaster
@karen marie: Or HsingHsing in Chinatown for Chinese Pastries.
I fear that JC went downstairs to the hotel restaurant [shudder].
Seriously, John, we have good food around here; tell us the district you’re staying in [back bay, seaport, fenway, etc.] and we locals will direct you to better food. And not Dunks, even if it is the closest restaurant to everywhere (closest to my house, 3rd closest to school where I’m at right now).
different-church-lady
@p.a.: I was curious, so I looked it up; turns out the nearest Red Lobster is in Conneticut..
Immanentize
@Aleta: Or my Assistant’s grandmother…. I do love some of the bakeries in R.I.
Certified Mutant Enemy
@schrodingers_cat:
Similar fare was had by me in Kochi…
Enhanced Voting Techniques
Someone from Appalachia is complaning about the food in another region. Go figure.
Steve Finlay
On the few occasions when I visited Boston, I learned that no matter where I was going, I had to cross the river to get there.
Brachiator
@Major Major Major Major:
Obviously ketchup is still in use, but salsa dethroned it in terms of condiment sales some time ago, according to some sources. I wonder if some of this was fake news or incomplete reporting. For example, from the Atlantic.
schrodingers_cat
@Certified Mutant Enemy: Kerala is good for seafood too. Unfortunately, I have never been there myself.
Miss Bianca
@rikyrah:
Damn straight and as it should be…oh, now I am really jonesing for a Chicago-style dog…
pamelabrown53
@The Moar You Know: #86.
Okay. I grew up in the midwest and lived for over 12 years in El Paso.. I make a mean pico de gallo. While you may state your preference, you’re not entitled to state it as fact. Even if we get our fever dream of a taco truck on every corner, I say if the taco truck serves fries then offer ketchup: no shaming allowed!
P.S. Were you by any chance an early Wilmer supporter?
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: Or Diet Coke, breakfast of champions.
The Moar You Know
@opiejeanne: You’ve been robbed of your birthright. I doubt it’s a San Diego-only thing.
Sold. I’d like my last meal to be some good tamales, if that can be arranged.
Immanentize
@pamelabrown53: Fish Sticks, Macaroni and Cheese, Spaghetti with meatless sauce. Rotate.
My Friday Catholic Youth Dinners
opiejeanne
@Yarrow: Yes, I’ve seen this. A friend was served salsa on his eggs back in the 70s because that’s how Espiau’s served them.
I agree with MajorX4.
different-church-lady
@Steve Finlay: It’s not so bad now that we have bridges.
Woodrowfan
Hot dogs. Nathans with brown mustard.
hovercraft
This guy’s got jokes!
Trump Needs to Reinvent Himself a la Bill Clinton
After the 1994 wipeout, Bubba ate some humble pie, admitted error, remade himself, and became a success. That’s Trump’s template—if he can follow it.
When the Republican health care bill collapsed last week, I thought it might be a blessing in disguise. The other two likely options―having it pass the House only to die a slower death in the Senate, or passing a bad bill, only to see premiums increase and fewer people be covered―would have been worse.
Besides, Bill Clinton showed that you could overcome a clumsy start to a presidency. True, his bad start (“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” “Travelgate,” Hillarycare, etc.) cost Democrats brutally in the 1994 mid-terms, but Clinton eventually adapted and overcame. He changed.
Clinton was better suited (temperament-wise) to play the moderate New Democrat than he was the liberal revolutionary—and so he was uniquely prepared to offer the public that for which they were clamoring.
Clinton, it turned out, had saved his authentic brand identity for his “Plan B.” The same could be true of Donald Trump. A reinvention could mean moving to the center—which also happens to align with embracing his core political instincts.
Trump theoretically could re-seize control of his more populist agenda (“Let Trump Be Trump!”) and turn things around, but this would require a tacit admission that he might have made a mistake. The question is whether Trump is capable of this sort of self-awareness……….
Complicating matters is the notion that Trump could take a page from the Bill Clinton playbook and “triangulate” seems increasingly unlikely. Even if Trump attempts to woo Democrats in good faith, their incentives now almost completely favor obstruction.
For one thing, Trump looks wounded. Why would anyone, especially a Democrat, want to throw him a lifeline? For another, Trump’s rhetoric and behavior have infuriated the Democratic base, who now want to do to him what (they believe) Republicans did to Barack Obama………
Perhaps the most dangerous form of obstructionism may occur on April 28, when funding for the government is set to run out. There is hope that cooler heads will prevail, but a similar dynamic—conservatives refusing to support increasing the limit and Democrats refusing to come to Trump’s rescue (unless he accedes to their demands when it comes to things like funding a border wall)—could make this a very high-stakes showdown.
The irony is that Trump has worked harder than almost any politician in recent memory to cultivate a tough image of a man you would not want to cross. Yet he now finds himself in a weakened position. Other presidents have overcome bigger challenges, so it’s still a possibility……
__________________
WTF, why the hell should democrats throw him a rope? If anything they should throw him an anvil and let him sink and hopefully take his enablers with him.
Chris
@germy:
So uh, about that whole game – who’s the U.S’s Other?
maurinsky
@Barbara:
Too true, although it is getting slightly better.
How long are you there, Cole? Will there be a get together? I will actually be performing in Somerville (just outside of Boston) this Saturday with my women’s a cappella group!
Immanentize
@different-church-lady: THIS! LUCKY’s!!!! I love that place. My wife used to work for Thompson Rueters down the street, so a lot of time (mis)spent there..
And if you got the scratch — Sportellos across the street
Betty Cracker
@ruemara: Hmmm, I’ve never made homemade ketchup, though I do make a simple tomato jam when the mister’s garden onslaught overwhelms me (wonderful on bagels with cream cheese). Can you recommend a good recipe?
p.a.
@different-church-lady:
… it figures! Outside of some pizza places, what food rep does Connecticut have? Several years ago couple of Boston sports radio jocks (Felger & Mazz) had a running gag about throwing Connecticut out of New England. Worth considering.
different-church-lady
@hovercraft: The biggest difference is that Clinton gave an honest shit.
Roger Moore
@opiejeanne:
It’s actually pretty good, at least with some kinds of fries and salsa. It works well with big thick fries, like home fries or chips, and a chunky, tomato-heavy cooked salsa. Not so well with skinny fries and pico de gallo.
ruemara
@Certified Mutant Enemy: Homemade mayo is no trouble and I reject your thing from a jar.
aimai
@bystander: I think its because the cost of opening a restaurant is so high that you have to make it back with huge turnover. If you want a really great meal in a small, intimate, setting you have to head farther out. If you want some good ethnic food its there. But all the executive style or famous chef restaurants are either enormously overpriced (Barbara Lynch for great food) or very standard, awful, food with a kind of focus on a theme and expensive drinks. Espalier, for example, that used to be tiny and fantastic got itself blown up all out of proportion to what is worth having in order to make more money. Ditto for every other restaurant I’ve been to in Boston. We pretty much never bother–the good things are all in JP or Cambridge or Somerville.
different-church-lady
@p.a.: I’d happily throw Felger and Mazz out of New England
JanieM
@different-church-lady: Except only half the Longfellow for years to come…. ;-)
I took a class once when I happened to spend the whole summer in Cambridge instead of my usual one week a month. There was a woman in the class who had just moved to Cambridge from Seattle. She tried to locate where everything was by which side of that winding river it was on. It made me dizzy. Not that you can make compass directions useful either….
The Moar You Know
@pamelabrown53: Dear God, no. Quite the opposite. And I beg a thousand pardons for anything I’ve said or done that would leave that impression.
Cermet
@hovercraft: Sorry, but the Europeans are high on their list and Russia is just after Japan for the Chinese; American is on their friends list – you listen far too much to the military-industrial complex. The Chinese have never forgotten that we didn’t occupy them like the Europeans, but provided teachers and built their finest university; then, of course, we helped them defeat Japan.
opiejeanne
@Brachiator: Ketchup on own dogs??? An abomination!
bystander
@A Ghost to Most: Don’t get me started on the level of insanity associated with Boston sports fans.
opiejeanne
@Ruviana: Hhahaha! EWWWWW!!! Lol.
different-church-lady
@aimai: Real estate is stupidly expensive and the city proper is slowly becoming a rich interloper’s playground. Don’t even get me started on the Seaport — nothing but a soulless, vapid, money-sucking machine.
Certified Mutant Enemy
@ruemara:
But it’s Extra Heavy Duty!
Cermet
@Aleta: Providence, RI is just Boston’s outer beltway region … lol.
Major Major Major Major
@hovercraft:
Because the media still hasn’t figured out that you shouldn’t enable abusers.
schrodingers_cat
@hovercraft: These media whores are even more sickening than the sainted T voters they so like to cover.
efgoldman
@Fester Addams:
You’re kidding, right? It’s even in the Mass Effect dystopian future.
JMG
I don’t know where John’s hotel is, but if he’s downtown, Jacob Wirth’s is a spot he might like. Good German food, not too expensive, big enough so he’ll almost surely get a table. Ate there last night myself.
PJ
@rikyrah: Megabus is the worst bus I have ever ridden on (and this counts trips in the Third World). It left over an hour late (apparently no one at Megabus noticed that the bus driver never showed up), and then stopped for another hour in the middle of the trip (just because), no wifi, bathroom was filthy. Eventually, I got a refund, but it was the worst.
different-church-lady
@JMG: I think Washington ate there.
Immanentize
@JanieM:
I used to live near Porter Square in Cambridge and went to school at Northeastern. The MIT Bridge was a four lane bridge then and they actually allowed busses on it — The #1 Bus went from Harvard Square to Dudley in Roxbury. Rode it most days until they closed that bridge due to structural problems. That was the early 1980’s…. I never expect anything will be fixed.
PS Fun fact for those who care — The MIT Bridge is the famous bridge measured in Smoots.
Aleta
@hovercraft:
My first thought, an excuse to train the hotshots on the sparkly equipment from the military’s urban warfare surplus store.
? Martin
@The Moar You Know:
I think it might be. I’ve never seen it. In fact, the only mexican place I can think of that even serves fries is Wahoos off of the kids menu. (their fries are surprisingly good, btw)
Death Panel Truck
Yup. Hunt’s is nasty af.
pamelabrown53
@rikyrah: #99.
The weirdest thing to me, rikyrah, is how a Midwestern city, granted it’s a world class city, could impose an anti-kethup ethic where we pleebs love our ketchup!
West of the Rockies (been a while)
@opiejeanne:
What the devil happened to fish sticks anyway? I recall a time when breaded fish sticks and VandeKamps stuff was rather tasty. Now they’re gelatinous, gummy gobs.
opiejeanne
@Aleta: We sat next to a couple doing that routine in a crowded Chinese restaurant once, and they were serious. I know that the joke was based on something in Real Life.
We were sitting so close that we could hear everything they said. It was tiny tables against a banquette seat along one wall, chairs on the other, and only room for your legs to squeeze past as long as your thighs weren’t too big.
p.a.
@PJ: A friend took a Grayhound from RI to Montana, years ago. Said it was the worst experience of her life.
Major Major Major Major
@pamelabrown53: snobbery isn’t just a coastal thing.
Immanentize
@PJ: Spoken by a person who must never have taken the Fung Wah bus…..
hovercraft
? Martin
CA has done us all a solid:
That right to privacy is also the foundation on which we have the following rights:
California is not like the rest of the country.
different-church-lady
@Immanentize: The “Chicken Run”
maurinsky
As for food in Boston, I love Casa Romero, which is on an alley somewhere in the vicinity of Newbury Street. Mexican, high quality.
If you want Italian, I highly recommend Carlo’s Cucina Italiana in Allston. Great service, not only the usual Italian restaurant choices; amazing coffee/espresso/cappuccino.
I am a native New Englander, and I hate Dunkin Donuts coffee. And donuts. I don’t know what’s good around Boston for coffee and donuts, but if you’re passing through CT on your way home, there is a place called Neil’s in Wallingford CT that is fucking amazing.
Aleta
@Cermet: Different mob = different cooking style (theory)
Kay Eye
@CB in Natick: absolutely Oleana. One of the best experiences I’ve had. Lots of sharing/tasting plates.
Plus the subway caught fire the next day and we had to evacuate. A satisfying city experience all around.
opiejeanne
@Miss Bianca: I had them leave off the peppers because I can’t always deal. It was delicious.
p.a.
@hovercraft: Republicans blame… anything and everything except Republican ideology…
cain
@Cacti: You will pay for your….lack of.. vision. [/emperor]
efgoldman
@karen marie:
Distant cousins of mrs efg
efgoldman
@different-church-lady:
Skip them both, and go the No Name on Fish Pier.
Immanentize
@efgoldman:
I salute Mrs. efg’s genetic pool!
Gin & Tonic
@Immanentize: Even funner fact: the guy they measured the bridge with went on to be head of the International Standards Organization. True story.
Raven
@Mnemosyne: and that has what to do with the post I responded to? That’s right , nothing.
cain
@schrodingers_cat:
Is it? Seems to me it is China that is the most threatening of its neighbor. Pakistan is barely competitive in regards to economy and resources. Sure, they got nuclear weapons and what not, but they are weighted down by corruption, terrorism, and conflict. China is relatively conflict free, and has plenty of time for mucking around in other people’s spheres of influence.
japa21
@pamelabrown53: Chicago has good taste, that’s why. There are certain things ketchup is good for, hot dogs is not one of them.
The Moar You Know
@? Martin: Seriously? Jeez, the rest of the state needs to get up to speed.
On second thought, I guess I’m not that shocked. The years I lived in the Bay Area, well…their Mexican food largely sucks. Some parts of San Jose and Redwood City were OK. L.A. area Mexican is quite good but it is not from the same tradition as San Diego’s.
Gin & Tonic
@efgoldman: Is that still there?
None of it matters, though. Cole won’t eat at any place we recommend, but will eat crap at some dump so he can whine about it.
PJ
@Immanentize: I have taken other “Chinatown” (i.e., operated by actual Chinese people) buses and had no problems, but Fung Wah was notorious.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
I know. She’d better be sleeping on spun gold sheets for that price.
cain
@hovercraft: For China it is Japan, US, Russia and India are geopolitical foes, but true hate and distrust is reserved for Japan.
After seeing some documentaries and a movie (The Flowers War), I totally get why they are still angry. Nothing like seeing dead eyed soldiers raping and killing your people. Some things are hard to forget and the sacking of Nanjing was something I could not even watch…
opiejeanne
@The Moar You Know: I wondered if you were talking about San Diego just from your description of the food.
No, my birthright was my mother’s midwestern fear of garlic and Italian or other “foreign food”. She made “spaghetti” using big round noodles that they used to call “American” doused in slightly flavored tomato sauce. They weren’t what we think of as pasta. She got over this fear of garlic by the time I was about 16, but I had never tasted pastrami until then, when a friend at the HS gave me a bite of her sandwich that she had bought at the cafeteria. I had never imagined such a divine food.
Since then I have become a devotee of the stinking bulbs.
I grow tomatillos here, just outside Seattle, and I make a killer salsa verde.
schrodingers_cat
@cain: Be that as it may, Indians (politicians, regular peeps) are far more obsessed with Pak than China.
TomatoQueen
@hovercraft:
@p.a.: Lucibello’s, New Haven, everything handmade and luscious since 1929.http://lucibellospastry.com/
Ceci
Delurked to second aimai’s recommendation – Sarma in East Somerville. Expensive but exceptionally good.
North End is overrated, IMO. The only places I’d recommend there are The Daily Catch and Pomodoro. Re Italian pastry: definitely Modern Pastry and not Mike’s!
Tavern Road in the Seaport District is good too.
I’m biased b/c I live in Somerville, but my favorite Irish pubs are The Druid in Inman Square (Cambridge) and The Burren in Davis Square (Somerville)
Immanentize
@Gin & Tonic: That is an excellent end to that story…. Victim of Prank? or Destiny?
opiejeanne
@Immanentize: We were Methodists. My dad grumped if Mom forgot it was Friday when she served fish sticks which was the only way he liked fish until my BIL shipped me a huge salmon from Alaska and I stuffed and baked it. Sounds terrible but is delicious. Rarely any leftovers even with the foodies I serve it to.
Major Major Major Major
@The Moar You Know: It took a hot minute but I figured out where to get good Mexican in San Francisco after a while.
Immanentize
@different-church-lady: @PJ:
Well, it wasn’t expensive, but there was no guarantee the bus (or you) would make it to NYC…
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
Fun fact: Chicago has a Coast Guard station because a Great Lake can be almost as dangerous as the actual ocean.
Marcelo
@Cain: I will say that Portland ketchup is something else.
Immanentize
@Mnemosyne: Anyone ever hear of the Edmund Fitzgerald?
Aleta
I had some takeout tamales at a house in Roslindale — don’t know where from, but somewhere nearby, and the best I’ve had since years ago in NM.
Major Major Major Major
@Mnemosyne: Makes sense.
Barbara
@aimai: This is true in nearly every major market for any restaurant that has more than five tables. It’s true in D.C., San Francisco, New York and Chicago. A chef with an interesting idea can’t really go it alone in any of those places and needs major backing, and along with that comes the need to tamp down interesting but untested ideas and upsell various kinds of items. IMO, it also leads to a kind of sameness between restaurants. There are exceptions, of course, but this is the reality in most of these markets. Whereas, in cities one or two steps down, like Richmond, VA or Pittsburgh, PA, or further out than you would normally drive on a week day evening, you can run into some really fun and different restaurants.
JanieM
@Mnemosyne:
This isn’t particularly special. There are lots of Coast Guard stations around the Great Lakes, as @Immanentize implies. The town on Lake Erie where I great up had a population of about 24,000 but was a major port with its own CG station.
ETA: Major port meaning esp. iron ore heading to Pittsburgh and steel coming back. That’s all gone now, of course.
zhena gogolia
@p.a.:
I think Fairfield County would like to have a word with you.
gvg
@hovercraft: The police are a problem often but I can’t find that story anywhere else except a few that got it from there. I’d like some verification. That story plays perfectly to my prejudices, its too good to be true?
Certified Mutant Enemy
@Mnemosyne:
Fun fact: Chicago has a Coast Guard station because a Great Lake can be almost as dangerous as the actual ocean.
Actually, probably more dangerous than the Ocean and most large cities on the Great Lakes have a Coast Guard station (the Great Lakes command center is in Cleveland).
zhena gogolia
@TomatoQueen:
I used to live about 10 paces from it. Not good for the waistline.
Shfooliadel!
Keith P.
From the photo, it looks like you’re in Philadelphia. Specifically, the alley behind Paddy’s Pub.
Julie
@West of the Rockies (been a while): The battered halibut at Trader Joe’s is what we use for “fish sticks” for our kid and they are much better than the average. They also work nicely in fish tacos for the grown-ups.
pamelabrown53
@The Moar You Know: @The Moar You Know: #165.
Basically, snarking.. Didn’t mean to accuse or offend.
Roger Moore
@Chris:
We don’t have just one. For most minorities, the Other is whites. For whites, it depends on where you are. In the Southwest, the Other is Mexico. In the South, it’s Yankees. I’m less sure about the rest of the country.
Omnes Omnibus
@JanieM: @Certified Mutant Enemy: FWIW I don’t think that she was intending to imply that Chicago was the only Great Lakes city with a Coast Guard presence.
Gravenstone
@The Moar You Know: You are familiar with the name of the show, right? Diners, Drive-ins and Dives? It’s not as if they advertise their fare as being in the Michelin star universe of establishments.
Miss Bianca
@hovercraft: OMG, I couldn’t even bear to click on your link. Dare I ask, “who is this deluded loser”?
Certified Mutant Enemy
@Omnes Omnibus:
But it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone else. FWIW, the Coast Guard has a presence in St. Louis…
Julie
@Marcelo: Seconded. Though I have a slight preference for Camden’s because it’s spicier.
Gravenstone
@germy:
Sleeping in a pod doesn’t quite strike me as appropriate for an executive from a major global corporation. YMMV
Pogonip
@opiejeanne: KETCHUP on HOT DOGS? You blaspheme!
Try Gorton’s fish sticks if they are sold in your area. The fish is minced, of course, but still tastes pretty good. Any modern product that only has 4 ingrddients, all of them real, should be appreciated.
Peale
@germy: For India it would be Pakistan and vice versa. Nothing else comes close.
Barbara
@Gravenstone: Fieri owns a restaurant in New York City, which found itself on the wrong end of an epically bad review. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/dining/reviews/restaurant-review-guys-american-kitchen-bar-in-times-square.html
Mnemosyne
@Raven:
Whatever, Mr. Crankypants. Bill knew what I was saying.
Miss Bianca
@opiejeanne: They are very hot, but damn, I love those peppers!
hovercraft
@TomatoQueen:
Hey bring it on!
You want old, I got old,
Venerio’s opened in 1894 http://venierosnewyork.com/history/
Too good for the stinking internets,
Egidio Pastry Shop
622 East 187th Street
Bronx, NY 10458
(718) 295-6077
This Bronx institution is so beloved, it doesn’t need a website. Instead, people simply know to come to Egidio’s for all their cannoli needs, wants, and desires. It does, however, have a Facebook page
The 15 Best Places for Cannoli in New York City
I’m biased, but as one of the reviewers said, you’d have to do an eat off, to be sure, and who has the time to fly* around the country tasting cannoli’s ;- ).
Given the mixed reviews in this thread, no Megabus for me!
NYC’s 5 Best Cannoli Shops
Barbara
@Miss Bianca: Probably the same guy who kept hoping his parents would get back together long after it was clear that they were utterly incompatible. For a kid to want his parents to be together is totally understandable, but adults writing articles like this one really need to grow up and look reality in the eye.
Peale
@Mnemosyne: [email protected]Yarrow: It’s high sakura time.
Mnemosyne
@JanieM:
I was making a joke off M^4’s joke about “coastal elites.”
Aleta
@opiejeanne: My earlier childhood was in Iowa. I thought there were two kinds of fish, tuna and fish sticks. (At my father’s in Ontario there was also a species called fishing.)
Mnemosyne
@Gravenstone:
My boss is a pretty minor executive in the scheme of things. Still, she probably wouldn’t be allowed to stay in that kind of place for security reasons even if she wanted to.
hovercraft
@gvg:
Did a Fresno County sheriff’s SWAT standoff destroy a couple’s home?
Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article138511453.html#storylink=cpy
I also found a link from RT about the story, but given they are Putin’s mouthpiece, I’m ignoring that.
Who knows if it’s real?
mai naem mobile
I use ketchup once in a while (usually on fries which I don’t eat a whole lot) but when I do at home, I add lemon juice and a lot of cayenne papper. Hot ketchup. It’s good.
hovercraft
@Miss Bianca:
Matt Lewis is a senior columnist at The Daily Beast, a CNN political commentator, and the author of Too Dumb to Fail: How the GOP Betrayed the Reagan Revolution to Win Elections (And How It Can Reclaim Its Conservative Roots).
jl
A lovely view for Philadelphia… oh wait, it’s Boston. I guess if Cole squints, he can pretend he has a picturesque view of the narrow byways of Beacon Hill. Looks a little Federalist.
trollhattan
@hovercraft:
Holy crap. OTOH, it’s Fresno and nothing that happens there surprises me. (Only place I’ve had to give a shopping cart deposit to take one out of the store.) FWIW Devin Nunes’s district skirts but does not include Fresno.
Major Major Major Major
@hovercraft: I like how the number one item under his “highlights & awards” section is
Starfuckers are so depressing.
Quinerly
Anyone else listening to/watching Sen Burr and Warner’s presser?
Seth Owen
@JMG: One of the oldest, if not the oldest, restaurant in town, as I recall.
jl
@hovercraft:
” WTF, why the hell should democrats throw him a rope? If anything they should throw him an anvil and let him sink and hopefully take his enablers with him. ”
Democrats can and should throw Trump a rope that is connected to good policy, and protecting the PPACA should have high priority. Looks like the Democrats are preparing to do just that. And from reading TPM blog’s report on Price’s testimony today, probability nearly one that Trump will turn them down. Look’s like Trump is going to try a controlled descent of PPACA into the ground, and plans to blame the inadequate black man. Won’t work at all, but Trump and the vas majority of the GOP are very stupid.A hand full of slightly more moderate less insane that usual House GOPers tried to explain it to them, but looks like they won’t listen.
hovercraft
@? Martin:
Villager has a sad!
Seth Owen
@hovercraft: It’s reported by a reputable newspaper with a link to the actual lawsuit. It’s real.
“Who knows if it’s real” just plays into the “fake news” cynicism.
trollhattan
@Barbara: That review is a treasure for the ages. Dorothy Parker might have written it half a century earlier.
I can’t hate on local boy Fieri too hard since he’s solid on digging up gems in the rough (I can walk to a place he once reviewed) but I sure has hell don’t have any need to eat at one of his restaurants.
trollhattan
@hovercraft:
Terry Moran should take a gander at AgGag laws then get back to us. Anyway, California law prohibits recording others without their knowledge.
Miss Bianca
@hovercraft: “Too Dumb to Fail” sounds like it ought to be the title of his autobiography!
jl
@hovercraft: Fresno was the city that bought it’s own mni-tank for drug raids and riot control. I think they had to retire it after public outrage. The local police managed to direct it only into houses of innocent people where it threatened sleeping kids. Really an amazing feat, when you think about it.
But, Fresno county is heading towards bluish-purple politically. Don’t blame the poor souls who are stuck with the bizarre and dysfunctional city government.
For local CA people here, a query: Fresno, the Oakland of the San Joaquin Valley? Debate.
Major Major Major Major
@hovercraft:
That… isn’t how any of this works. Wow.
schrodingers_cat
@jl:
How many undesirables are you willing to sacrifice for that bargain? A few hundred Muslims, some DACA kids..
Farthestnorth
Isabella Gardner Museum is unique and fun. Highly recommend, if you’re into that sort of thing
geg6
@schrodingers_cat:
Hunt’s catsup (which tells you all you need to know about it) is so inferior to Heinz ketchup that they don’t even belong on the same planet. And I don’t even like ketchup.
jl
@schrodingers_cat: I don’t understand why an offer of a bargain to sustain PPACA (that will almost certainly be turned down) has to involve helping Trump with his attack on civil liberties. I haven’t heard any respectable Democrat discuss that bargain.
If Trump is such a crappy politician that he can’t work with Dems on things they agree on, while allowing Dems to fight him on what they disagree on, then Trump will just go down in flames faster. And Trump is that crappy a politician.
Edit: And weak minded Dem defectors who are going to defect will defect anyway. That is what they do.
Major Major Major Major
@jl: I certainly don’t trust Trump to execute even good legislation that he likes well.
schrodingers_cat
@jl: Why would you trust him?
@geg6: I like Hunt’s made with sugar. I don’t like Heinz. I know its hip to diss, ketchup. Whatever.
ETA: I like ketchup with fries and any snack made with potatoes, like samosa, if tamarind and or mint chutney is not available.
germy
@trollhattan:
She was fired after writing a theater review that panned Billie Burke. Apparently, the actress’s husband was a friend of Parker’s boss.
EBT
Dunkin Donuts isn’t a doughnut shop, it’s where pastry and coffee go to die.
hovercraft
@Major Major Major Major:
Terry Moran got his big break working at Court TV, covering the OJ trail if memory serves, he’s supposed to be a legal expert.
germy
@hovercraft:
Paul W.
I don’t get the Northeast’s obsession with Dunkin either. All I care about is good coffee, which they DON’UT carry. I think that pun works…
Bess
@Yarrow: There are lots of vacancies. Some hotels rated ‘very good’ on Booking for less than $150. One rated ‘fabulous’ for under $200.
hovercraft
@Seth Owen:
Sorry, don’t know anything about the paper or Fresno for that matter. I saw a funny/ scary story and I linked to it. I assumed it was real, but hey there are hoax’s all the time. Not being cynical, I tend to believe, but as I said, the fact that RT was one of the few links I could find made me doubt myself.
trollhattan
@jl:
For starters, I like Oakland and go there voluntarily. Fresno is a place to go through when headed south on Route 99. It basically exists to make Stockton feel better about itself.
germy
jl
Here, I found this interesting video of Democratic Party strategy planning session, where they try to find their true destiny.
Monty Python – Vocational Guidance Counsellor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h-wVe9a6rQ
Major Major Major Major
@hovercraft: How is secretly taping a private conversation ‘speech’?
grumpy realist
@Yarrow: It isn’t Golden Week yet (and that works the other way around–everyone leaves Tokyo.)
Miss Bianca
@germy: this kind of shit just makes me crazy. It’s like the rag that got started here in my home town after a bunch of the local paleo-reactionaries got steamed about the editor of the regular newspaper writing an editorial that made fun of the ammosexuals who insisted on open-carrying during the 4th of july parade. They talk about “conservative news”. No, mofos – there’s no such actual thing as “conservative news”. Fox “News” notwithstanding.
geg6
@Brachiator:
The only other reason to have ketchup is for barbeque sauce. And I prefer that for fries anyway.
grumpy realist
John, if you get a chance and want GREAT Chinese food, go to Mary Chung’s over in Cambridge. It’s at the intersection where Kendall comes down at meets Mass. Ave. Go for the Suan La Chow Show and the Dun-dun noodles. Oh, and take cash.
trollhattan
@germy:
Funny! Did not know that. Can’t end without resurrecting her jab at Katharine Hepburn: “Come, let’s all go to see Miss Hepburn and hear her run the gamut of emotions from A to B!”
different-church-lady
@hovercraft:
Yes, you dumb motherfucker, the First Amendment says “You have blanket immunity from all other laws because you call yourself an investigative journalist.”
In the intelligence race against rocks, we are falling behind.
cain
@Mnemosyne:
I have lived in the shadow of chicago for over 25 years, and never once had a chicago dog or a chicago pizza. I guess I don’t really know what Chicago was ever famous for since we only went there to get Indian groceries in the early days, and then drinking when I was in college or hanging out at clubs. I suppose I should probably try chicago (dog,pizza).. but fuck em if they think I’m not going to put ketchup on it. :P
Major Major Major Major
@different-church-lady:
Which amendment covers sex boats?
West of the Rockies (been a while)
@Julie:
Thanks for the tip! I’ll give them a try.
Miss Bianca
@cain:
you put ketchup on your pizza?
different-church-lady
@grumpy realist: Make Way for Dumplings!
Major Major Major Major
@Miss Bianca: I guess it doesn’t have enough sweetened tomato paste already.
different-church-lady
@Major Major Major Major: All of them, Katie.
Bess
Kayak lists lots of nice hotels in Tokyo which have rooms available for six days starting Friday. A couple hundred bucks gets you an ‘Excellent’.
Link
Mnemosyne
@Bess:
Near the Miraikan museum? Or at least Toranomon Hills?
cain
@Marcelo:
Damn straight.. I usually give those out as presents to people.
Major Major Major Major
@Mnemosyne: For somebody complaining about “NOTHING in Tokyo” you’re suddenly quite picky!
cain
@schrodingers_cat:
That’s true. Given the tumultuous history between the two, not surprising.
cain
@Barbara:
I’ve had some ideas I wanted to pursue, and in Portland, thanks to the food cart stuff, one could start something interesting without too much startup funding. But you need incredible discipline. Discipline I do not have. :P
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
It’s not me that’s picky, it’s my corporate overlords. And Bess’s link didn’t work.
Davebo
301 comments to John’s non post! Can’t imagine why American productivity is not rising by 10% per year!
cain
@Julie: I haven’t tried Camden.. definitely should try it. Sometimes I put in Spicy aardvak.. Portland has the best condiments.
hovercraft
I guess word has gone out that attention must be diverted from Twitler and his minions.
Trey Gowdy: Schiff Should Recuse Since He Was For Hillary
Asked on Fox News if Rep. Nunes should step down from the Intel committee because of his bizarre actions, Gowdy claimed that Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the committee, should recuse himself because he supported Hillary Clinton for president.
Napolitano Returns To Fox News, Stands By Charge British Surveilled Trump
In his first appearance on the network since he disappeared from Fox News’ airwaves more than a week ago, legal analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano stuck by his claim that the British intelligence service GCHQ surveilled Donald Trump during the 2016 campaign at the request of former President Barack Obama.
“Yes I do” stand by the story, Napolitano told Fox News’ Bill Hemmer on Wednesday. “And the sources stand by it.”
“The American public needs to know more about this rather than less, because a lot of the government surveillance authorities will expire in the fall and there will be a great debate about how much authority we want the government to have to surveil us,” he continued. “And the more the American public knows about this, the more informed their and Congress’s decisions will be.”
And why the need for distractions you ask? Maybe this:
Donald Trump’s Approval Rating Continues To Nosedive
President Donald Trump’s approval rating continued to drop Wednesday in Gallup’s daily presidential poll.
According to the polling company, 35 percent of respondents approved of Trump’s performance in office, down from the 36 percent approval published on Monday and Tuesday. Fifty-nine percent of respondents disapproved of his performance, beating the previous high of 57 percent on March 18.
Trump’s net approval is now at negative 24 percent, down from record of negative 21 percent set on March 18.
Way to go, this winning is just not getting old. I guess he was right!!
Shana
@rikyrah: Just took Megabus up to NYC from DC last weekend. $29 including the $1 for a reserved seat. Nice.
geg6
@cain:
Chicago dogs are pretty damn good (though I prefer an Italian beef sammie myself). But Chicago pizza is an absolute abomination. Horrible stuff. Just horrible.
ruemara
@Certified Mutant Enemy: If it isn’t ginger wasabi or lime chipotle, no.
Mnemosyne
@cain:
Seriously? Geez, even my vegetarian Indian friends in the ‘burbs had Gino’s East at least once in their lives. You clearly had a deprived childhood while you were there.
geg6
Forget that town, Cole. Come back home and head into the ‘Burgh for the best burgers in America at Burgatory, where they only serve Heinz with the fries.
cain
@Miss Bianca:
Doesn’t everyone? Not enough sauce. :-) Just kidding, no.. I do put other things that you heathens would probably object to. ;)
hovercraft
@germy: @Miss Bianca:
Unfortunately it’s what the Koch’s and other like them have invested millions into for the last couple of decades, they seeded the ranks of “journalism ” with these moles and they are awful. Just look at Jonathan Karl another useless piece of shit. Come to think of it it’s every profession, just look at the W Justice Department and all those Liberty University alumni who infested it.
Shana
@The Moar You Know: OMG you have to go the the NYTimes site (I know, I know, but stick with me for a minute) and read the review of Guy Fieri’s restaurant in NYC. It’s one of those literal LOL experiences. Trust me on this.
cain
@geg6:
You should try this pizza we had in our home town called Garcia’s Flying Tomato Pizza.. a truly unique pizza that you will ever found. It tastes like nothing like a regular pizza and has that chicago deep dish style but the crust is just off. Still used to eat it though, cuz student.
Barbara
@Shana: Shana, I linked to that review above: @Barbara:
cain
@Mnemosyne:
I was more of a Noble Roman’s pizza guy at the time.. and wasn’t interested in the other types or even heard about other pizza types. I wasn’t much of a foodie back then. I only learned about the different pizza’s when my tastes matured…so yeah, I was deprived. But most of my life was when I was below the age of 25, and you know who has any matured tastes at that age anyways?
hovercraft
Former Christie Aide Bridget Kelly Sentenced To 18 Months In Bridgegate Plot
A second former aide to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in a political revenge plot involving traffic jams at the country’s busiest bridge.
Bridget Kelly was sentenced Wednesday, shortly after co-defendant Bill Baroni was handed a two-year prison sentence.
Kelly and Baroni were convicted in November over lane closures near the busy George Washington Bridge linking New Jersey and New York.
A prosecution witness who pleaded guilty testified the plot was to punish a mayor who didn’t endorse the Republican governor. Fort Lee suffered four days of gridlock in September 2013.
Kelly was Christie’s deputy chief of staff. She was the author of the infamous email, “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” that surfaced during the investigation.
germy
@hovercraft:
It’s a long game. These moles are now on TV every night, influencing voters with their reporting. I didn’t know about Moran’s training until I saw it just now on wikipedia. Someone should compile a list of reporters who need to be taken with a grain of salt. (although I suspect it’d be a discouragingly long list)
ruemara
I’ll try to dig up my condiment article, Betty. It’s been awhile since I’ve been in the mental space to do the level of cooking & recipe work I did when I was food writing.
I will say, re-reading my article files was eye opening. I wasn’t bad. Which makes my boss describing me as having “poor grammar & spelling” when I’ve never written for her, even more galling. /petty
Bess
@Mnemosyne:
Go to Booking. Put in Tokyo and the dates. That will give you a list of hotels.
In the upper right of the page you’ll see a “Comparison View” map icon. Click on it. That will open a map for the area that shows the hotels (and subway routes). Hotels which have vacancies have an icon with a white center (as opposed to brown = booked).
Find the area where she wants to be and zoom in a bit so that all hotels are displayed.
There are some affordable (< $200 per night) places available but I'd move fast. Most show only one or two rooms left.
geg6
@cain:
I am a firm thin crust pizza fan. I will make exceptions for really excellent Sicilian-style pizza (square slices) but it has to be really, really excellent and the crust should be thicker than, say, New York-style but thinner than Chicago-style. And if it’s not baked in a wood fire oven, it’s not worth eating. ;-)
I am very picky about my pizza. No pizza should be in a deep dish or have a very thick crust. It just shouldn’t. My high school boyfriend’s parents were from Italy and they ruined a lot of pizza for me.
Mnemosyne
@geg6:
There are a lot of ways for Chicago-style pizza to be done horribly wrong, but if you’ve been to Gino’s East and you still hate it, then the problem isn’t the pizza. ?
ETA: Also, Chicago-style deep-dish pizza should NOT have a thick crust. It’s thin-crust pizza turned inside out. Thick crust pizza =/= Chicago-style pizza.
Barbara
@cain: Include me in the group that doesn’t like Chicago style pizza. Once upon a time I happened to be in Positano, Italy on Good Friday in which it took us hours to get to our hotel because Italians still close local roads even if they are main roads for Good Friday processions. We raced over to the closest restaurant per advice of hotel and got there just in time to order pizza — pizza the likes of which I have never tasted before or since. It was so good it has become my platonic ideal of pizza, and it had a THIN crust and was not loaded with cheese. Stateside, the best pizza I have had within my memory is at Delfina’s Pizza in San Francisco.
Mnemosyne
@Bess:
That’s the problem I was having yesterday — places would say they had one room left that was gone by the time I clicked on it. Plus I have to book through the Corporate Overlord’s site unless I get a special exception ahead of time.
germy
@hovercraft:
D58826
@hovercraft: While I don’t like Gov. Christie and trhink that he belongs in an enjoining cell, if that isn’t going to happen then at least this announcement from Trump is something I can support
On this issue at least I think it is about someone else and not Chris Christie. And if he rehabs his reputation while doing some good, so be it
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/chris-christie-donald-trump-opioid-crisis_us_58dbbb08e4b01ca7b428b045?
Bess
With Booking, take advantage of the places with free cancellation when dealing with a ‘second party’. That allows you to lock down a place while the decider decides.
And check back from time to time to see if new options appear as others cancel.
Example: APA Hotel Shinagawa Sengakuji Eki-Mae. Rated “Very Good”. $791 for six nights. Free cancellation until midnight tonight.
Barbara
@D58826: I would feel a smidgen worse for her if she had made any effort to avoid scapegoat status by cooperating with prosecutors. Instead, she rolled the dice and from what I can tell, lied through her teeth on the stand. If you don’t want to be a scapegoat you have to tell prosecutors what the other conspirators were up to. Her plan, evidently, is that they should all skate, which duh, the prosecutors don’t agree with.
Stephen Finlay
Who is “the other”? Tom Lehrer was right then, and he’s still right. In the last line, he even tells us who “the other” is for the US. The only problem is that long after he sang the song — they won.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRLON3ddZIw
Mnemosyne
@Bess:
A place with a communal bath may be a little too … adventurous for my boss. ?
geg6
@Mnemosyne:
That’s the exact place where I ate that abomination. Well, not ate exactly. Forced few bites down so as not to be rude is more like it.
Sorry, but once you’ve eaten pizza made by an actual Italian, you won’t touch the crap most American pizza places put out. High school boyfriend’s mom, from Italy, made the best pizza I’ve ever eaten. And it wasn’t a dish full of goop and a ton of crust. It was thin, with fresh ingredients like crushed tomatoes, basil and garlic from her garden and rounds of the fresh mozzarella she made herself. She also had her own wood-fired pizza oven. My mouth is watering just remembering forty years later.
hovercraft
After Defeats, Conservative Kansas Republicans Move To Prevent Democrats From Presenting Bills
By Chris Reeves
Tuesday Mar 28, 2017 · 2:02 PM EST
Hey, we get it. Conservative Republicans aren’t having a good time in the state house. Coalitions of moderate Republicans and Democratic party members have introduced and run with legislation on things like Medicaid Expansion, public rights, Due process for teachers and more. So, what can you do to stop all of this reasonable-ness?
http://www.hutchnews.com/...
Rep. Patsy Terrell, D-Hutchinson, has yet to carry a bill, and the odds don’t favor that happening this year. This month, the office of Speaker of the House Ron Ryckman, R-Olathe, instructed committee chairmen not to have Democrats on their committee carry a bill, according to House Minority Leader Jim Ward, D-Wichita.
“The Speaker’s throwing a temper tantrum,” Ward said.
“After we passed Medicaid expansion, due process for teachers and overrode the governor’s veto (of a bill to raise income taxes), he made a dictate to the chair of the committees that no Democrat should carry a bill,” Ward said.
Concerned that Democratic party members were getting credit for.. well, anything, the speaker of the Kansas house moved to change the procedures so that no Democratic member on a committee could present a bill to the floor. Only the Republican leadership on that committee could do so.
In other words, while a Democratic member could present the legislation to committee, testify on it’s behalf, and promote the outcome, they in the end, could not be the one who could take a success in committee and bring it to the floor.
germy
Okay, all you Boston jackals can meet up with Cole. Details upstairs.
geg6
@geg6:
Just to give you an idea of how serious she was about authentic Italian food, she had her relatives ship her boxes of volcanic soil from San Marzano so she could mix it with the soil in her garden here to grow her tomatoes. Her tomatoes were the best tomatoes anywhere around.
Barbara
@geg6: When I was a kid, the best local pizza was known to be made by an Italian immigrant housewife in her own kitchen, and operated like a speakeasy. You would knock on the basement door and she would look you up and down and ask who sent you before you could order because she was not authorized by the health department.
Major Major Major Major
@geg6: well of course Chicago pizza isn’t Italian style pizza or whatever. I don’t know why people insist on treating it like it is. It’s like complaining that Hawaiian food isn’t sushi whenever it comes up.
Bess
@Mnemosyne:
The example I gave you has a private bathroom.
Barbara
@Major Major Major Major: Well, if you can’t eat pizza with your hands it isn’t really pizza (being derived from the same root word as pizzicato — something you pick up with your fingers). Deep dish pizza is more like lasagne without the noodles. I don’t much care for lasagne either.
laura
@CB in Natick: Legal Seafood is awesome, in Cambridge try the Red House or Clover Food Lab -the chickpea fritter haunts my dreams to this day.
Barbara
@Major Major Major Major: Chicago style pizza is more like lasagne without the noodles. I don’t care for lasagne either. Pizza, being derived from the same root word as pizzicato, is something you are supposed to be able to pick up with your hands.
danielx
@hovercraft:
Trump has put himself out on the end of a limb, and the only thing Dems should hand to him is a saw.
cain
@Barbara: I hear you there.. I heard their stuff is really good, and mostly good olive oil and not a lot of cheese or anything like that. Sometimes less is more!
D58826
@Barbara: yep
cain
@D58826:
Can he lead the obesity roundtable as well? ::snark::
The Moar You Know
@Shana: I saw that when it came out. Oddly, it’s why I started watching his show. I thought nothing could be as bad as the reviewer made it out to be. I changed my mind after only a couple of episodes. He makes good TV but oddly, for a guy who owns quite a few restaurants, knows nothing about good food or how it’s made.
You will not be shocked to learn that quite a few of his restaurant projects have gone bankrupt.
raven
@cain: You’re from C-U huh? I always thought Papa Del’s was better but I knew Ralph and Joe back in the day. The funny thing is that, when I moved to Athens, there was a Da Vinci’s run by friends of theirs from the Roger Park area of Chicago.
cain
Best pizza I ever had strangely was the one I made at home. But it took forever to make it, having to bake it like 3 times and what not. I would really like to know how the italians make it there. I don’t have a gift for baking, but I can do pizza crusts and bread.
rikyrah
@cain:
no deep dish?
No Gino’s, Giordano’s, Lou Malnati’s?
None of it?
rikyrah
@geg6:
I don’t understand you folks.
ruckus
@hovercraft:
They really are a bunch of petulant 3 yr olds in bigger bodies aren’t they?
raven
@cain: None of that shit holds a candle to a real Italian Beef. I think a Portillio’s is opening up there very soon, be good to see if it is the real deal. It hinges on the bread.
raven
ruckus
@cain:
I’ve had pizza in Italia and it wasn’t all that. Now the best I’ve ever had was from a small shop in the SF Valley. Family owned it was fabulous. Parents ran it for years, retired and the kids ran it for a bunch more. They closed a few years back and the world is far worse off. Did I mention the parents were Italian?
marduk
You’re in the world capital for good Fish & Chips, with probably 3 good options within a mile of any given spot within a 50 mile radius of downtown, and you manage to find a place that fucked it up? Jeez.
Just One More Canuck
This may be the ultimate abomination in pizza – one that will unite everyone in their hatred of it
http://metro.co.uk/2017/02/28/pea-and-mayonnaise-pizza-is-making-everyone-deeply-uncomfortable-6477828/
Peas and mayonnaise on a pizza? Where’s a meteor when you need one
Steeplejack (tablet)
@Mnemosyne:
Her link engulfed the Reply button. Fixed link.
Dirge
The JFK museum was surprisingly enjoyable.
I don’t know the entirety of the drug cocktail he was on, but goddamn it if he didn’t do a shit ton of stuff.
Otherwise: go on a Fallout 4 tour.
Steeplejack (tablet)
@hovercraft:
Fuckin’ A! Let’s keep going up the food chain to the great white whale himself.
efgoldman
@Gin & Tonic:
It was last June. I imagine they thrive for the lunch and early dinner crowd now that there are thousands of office drones added in the last ten years; they’re sort of tourist-trappy, too.
ETA: Plus the convention center is right up the street.
geg6
@Mnemosyne:
It’s the wrong way around. It’s a pan with a lot of goop in it. That is NOT pizza. It’s something, but it’s not pizza.
cain
@rikyrah: Nope.. in fact, I didn’t even know they existed. Even my circle of friends never talked about it. I lived in a bubble.
geg6
@Major Major Major Major:
They should call it something else, then. Because it’s not pizza. It’s a casserole with a crust. Totally gross and not something anyone who is Italian would eat. But to each their own.
cain
@raven:
I would be interested in trying it! :-) We have been getting a lot of Japanese restaurants straight from Japan coming here. Apparently, our water is the same pH as the water in Tokyo so ramen houses has started becoming popular here.
I would be interested in trying italian beef… I didn’t really get to try much when I was in New York some years ago.
geg6
@raven:
That sounds a lot like Sicilian style, which is very popular here.
geg6
@cain:
Italian beef in Chicago is the BEST!
cain
@ruckus:
It is interesting to see how people’s tastes run. I’m fairy open on food, I am not very picky on such things and enjoy food fairly context free.
raven
@cain: There used to be a place at 4th and Green called Abe’s Red Hots. I just went and looked a Google maps earth view and see that it’s all high rises there now. Damn, I haven’t been there for 6 or 7 years and it’s totally different. They are doing the same thing to Athens too.
An apartment above the Mandarin Wok has a window looking at Walgreens. I live there in 1971.
ruemara
To be frank, now that I make my own, it’s rare for me to go eat pizza. Of course, giving up carbs as a regular part of my diet helps with that too. I made a really good garlic & butter mushroom pizza a couple of months back. Simple and tasty. Still refining the beer cheese & fries one, but the last one I did was good. Y’all stop feuding. Even bad pizza is pretty good. Except with pineapple on it. That’s sick.
opiejeanne
@Pogonip: I live near Seattle. We don’t eat fish sticks any more because we can get excellent fish here, but thanks for the tip.
MoxieM
@Thoroughly Pizzled: That’s the MFA to those “in the know”. And I didn’t go insulting your city, did I? (Maybe you don’t live in one. Or, you live in some endless, faceless, suburban void.) Of course, having lived in a bunch of cities, I guess Boston is mine by default. Still, I generally don’t go around saying that kind of shit. It’s mark of someone who wants to be remembered as an asshole, as a local saying goes.
opiejeanne
@jl: That’s an insult to Oakland.
Barbara
@raven: Della Salas Pizza in Verona, PA makes exactly this style of pizza. Square, thin crust. I might be remembering it more fondly than it deserves because it was a staple of my teenage years.
@Just One More Canuck: My Brazilian au pairs insist that this is how many Brazilians eat pizza. I almost died when I saw them eat it this way, but I hate mayo all the way around.
Brachiator
@geg6:
Maybe tomatoes for BBQ sauce, but not ketchup.
Yep, good combo.
cain
@ruemara: Dammit, I like pineapple and jalepenos on mine :P
Brachiator
@geg6:
Pizza is more American than Italian when you get down to it. And that’s OK.
@cain:
A ramen place opened in Pasadena which prided itself on being very authentic and got some very good reviews from professional critics. Again, there has been a bit of a taste shift in the US and some people did not like it precisely because it was so authentic that it was not what they had become used to.
Growing up in Gardena, California, which had a sizable Japanese American community, I learned early on that the city had a great Chinese restaurant and that many of the Japanese Americans preferred that place to “authentic Japanese” places. Also it was a bit like, why go someplace to eat the stuff you have at home?
Just One More Canuck
@Barbara: Different strokes for different folks I guess, but oh my god
Vhh
@Mnemosyne: 20mi is nothing on a Japanese train.
J R in WV
@Major Major Major Major:
At my favorite steak sub place, they have bottles of malt vinegar out. I can get my grilled steak and veggies with extra grilled onions, twice fried steak fries without extra salt (they get salted before their first trip through the frier) and put a healthy dose of malt vinegar into the ketchup.
Grilled steak, onions, mushrooms, and green peppers, with provolone on top of the grilled steak, and a toasted loaf of sub bread. Lettuce, tomato and mayo on the bun.
6″, 9″, or foot long. They got in trouble for selling short subs to some crank, so now they’re all super-sized,
Bliss on a bun!!\
They also do chicken, turkey and ham, and have all the veges any sub shop does, as well as A-1 sauce and mashed and grilled baked potatoes. With anything on them. Bacon too. I don’t do that, love it but too many calories.
The Lodger
@cain: Michael’s on Sandy Blvd.
1srgengirl
@Immanentize: you forgot tuna noodle casserole with or without peas. Also cottage cheese on fried potatoes with lots of black pepper.