J&G Steakhouse Has Great Fish [Restaurant Review]

Posted on January 19, 2010 by Chris Zach

Cross-posted from Yelp.

J&G Steakhouse is a well-appointed restaurant in the W Hotel serving beautiful, flavor-filled dishes beyond just cuts of beef.

I sampled the offerings at J&G during Restaurant Week, helping bring the price down to a level as palatable as the food. Fortunately, the presence of RW didn’t seem to diminish the quality of food or level of service provided, a phenomenon that I’ve encountered at other establishments during this event. (Of course, this being my first visit to J&G, I draw this conclusion without a frame of reference.)

Atmosphere:

Small, star-like lights dot the ceiling, casting dim light that sets a mood without hiding the beauty of the food or one’s date. The tables down the center of the restaurant abut on one side large, sofa-like, mauve benches. So large, in fact, that when combined with the room’s high ceilings and tall windows, one feels though he has started to shrink. I was pleasantly reassured when my feet still were able to reach the floor.

J&G Steakhouse

J&G Steakhouse and its large sofa seating

Food:

The dishes enjoyed off the RW menu included, with comments appended:

First course:

Salmon tartare, ginger dressing, fresh radish (a better dish than any salmon sushi I’ve eaten)
Rice cracker crusted tuna, citrus-chili sauce (very nice tuna, although I’d prefer without the crust)

Main course:

Roasted golden tilefish, glazed mushrooms, poblano and dill (my first tilefish, I was impressed with the intense, seared crust obtained; a rich mix of mushrooms was more satisfying than the typical buttons)
Seared cod, scallion-chili sauce, basil and celery (had just a bite of this; firm and buttery)

Dessert:

Pot de crème, liquid caramel (heaven in a pot; my favorite desserts are, like this, simple in presentation but rich in flavor)
Green apple crisp, cinnamon ice cream (dining partner: “possibly the best crisp I’ve ever had.”)

My overall impression of the food is excellent. The ingredients are high quality; the dishes provide interesting flavor combinations that are balanced, not off the wall; the preparation is careful; the plating is attractive; and result is success.

Service:

Attentive. (Sometimes excessively so. I had to keep one eye on my half-eaten first course to prevent it from being whisked away while I was absorbed in conversation.)

Conclusion:

I recommend J&G for a fine dining experience that provides an upscale yet comfortable setting and that serves high-quality, attractive food without being haughty. I will certainly return. And I’ll try the steak.

For expert reviews, look here:  Washington Post Full Review by Tom Sietsema and Washington Post 2009 Fall Dining Guide.

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Blogged from my iPhone

Posted on January 18, 2010 by Chris Zach

I just downloaded the WordPress app for iPhone so of course I need to try it out. I don’t know how much I’ll want to blog on this little touchscreen keyboard, but it can’t cause me to post any LESS frequently, right?

Let’s see if photos work. Here’s an example.

One more kitchen gadget for the junk heap. As Alton Brown would say, this is an undeniable uni-tasker. It’s a martini machine. Why do you need a machine to make a martini? Well, because shaking a shaker is so much darned work.

Uni-tasking martini machine

Uni-tasking martini machine

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Behind the Scenes on Food Network

Posted on January 14, 2010 by Chris Zach

Back in the days when I had a TV, I was a big fan of the Food Network. What’s my favorite show? Good Eats! Thanks for asking. (I now own three of Alton Brown’s books after receiving Good Eats: The Early Years for Christmas.)

 

 

Good Eats

 

I never assumed that filming cooking shows was easy, but this article gives some idea of all the preparation that is required before filming can begin. And it turns out that the TV chefs have little people on their shoulders giving them cooking advice the whole time!

Excerpt:

One of the most surprising behind-the-scenes facts is the tiny earphone worn by many of the cooking show hosts. “Cooking on TV is a hard job,” Novatt says. “You need to really actually cook while listening to the culinary producer whispering in your ear telling you to smile and to move your hand because it's blocking the celery, all while you also have to pay attention to the studio director on the floor who is pointing to which camera you have to face.”

“What's great about the Food Network studio environment,” says Sunny Anderson, star of “Cooking for Real,” “is having a team where, if I miss an ingredient in the rush or forget how much time I have left, a gentle voice chimes in my ear to keep me on track.”

via Behind the scenes on Food Network – latimes.com.

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Pretty Power

Posted on January 11, 2010 by Chris Zach

Need power generation plants always exist as hulking industrial behemoths? Wind and solar power growth is already shifting the generation of electricity from an eyesore to a new and necessary component of our 21st century landscape.

Now a British architectural design firm is giving the more conventional combustion power plant a much-needed makeover. Of course, this plant doesn’t burn coal, but substitutes palm kernel shells instead.

Why not make these facilities good-looking and integrated into the environment? Sure, they lose their attraction as a movie setting for climactic clashes between humans and alien invaders, but they’re likely to endear much more good will with the surrounding community who views the plant out their kitchen windows.

Fancy-schmancy biomass plant

Fancy-schmancy biomass plant

Excerpt:

Heatherwick Studio has just released its design for a biomass station on the banks of the River Tees in British town Stockton-on-Tees, for British company BEI.

The facility is expected to pump out 49 MWe–enough to power 50,000 homes. Those homes are expected to see their per capita carbon footprint cut by as much as 80%, since the electricity will be generated simply by biomass generators that will burn palm kernel shells, rather than coal.

Thomas Heatherwick, Heatherwick Studio’s founder, has a genius for offbeat architecture, made with experimental techniques–for example, he designed a colony of houses with tinfoil and a bridge that curls up like a snail.

This time, the building has been conceived as less of a power station, and more of a local attraction and amenity. The building’s skin will literally be green, made up of exterior panels planted with local grasses. Inside, in addition to offices and the biomass factory, there will be a visitor’s center.

via Heatherwick Turns Biomass Into a Thing of Beauty | Design & Innovation | Fast Company.

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Tostadas with Mango Pomegranate Guacamole, Black Beans, Cotija, and Cabbage Slaw

Posted on January 7, 2010 by Chris Zach

I had my heart set on attending the DC food bloggers’ potluck this evening, but the Iowa Hawkeyes’ victory in the Orange Bowl kept me out of the kitchen last night, and by the time I could pull a dish together today it was too late. Nonetheless, I think the selected dish turned out well and a couple friends helped me enjoy it for dinner.

The dish is tostadas with mango pomegranate guacamole, black beans, cotija, and cabbage slaw. Here’s a photo:

Tostada deliciosa

I was able to pick up all the ingredients at Lily’s Mexican Market in Columbia, MD near the office. It’s a wonderful little Mexican grocery with a kitchen in the back, and I’m always the only gringo there. They make fresh tortillas every day, and they also have a meat counter (carniceria), produce, and baked goods (panaderia).

As you’d guess, the guacamole is complimented with fresh mango and pomegranate seeds. Next comes cilantro-lime black beans, followed by crumbly, salty, irresistible cotija chese. The cabbage slaw (ensalada de repollo in Spanish, translates to cabbage salad) is in a cilantro/lime/garlic/chipotle dressing with radish. This was all layered on either crispy tostadas or tender tortillas made the same day. Me gusta.

Recipes:

Mango Pomegranate Guacamole
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/350568

4 ripe avocados (2 pounds total) 
1 cup finely chopped white onion
2 fresh serrano chiles, finely chopped (2 tablespoons), including seeds
1/4 cup fresh lime juice, or to taste
3/4 cup pomegranate seeds (from 1 pomegranate)
3/4 cup diced peeled mango 
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Accompaniment: plantain chips
Garnish: lime wedges

Halve, pit, and peel avocados. Coarsely mash in a bowl. Stir in onion, chiles, 1/4 cup lime juice, and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, then fold in pomegranate seeds, mango, and cilantro. Season with salt and additional lime juice.

Cooks’ note: 
Guacamole can be made 4 hours ahead and chilled, its surface covered with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Bring to room temperature and stir before serving.

Gourmet
November 2008
by Lillian Chou

Mexican Cabbage Slaw (Ensalada de Repollo)

1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ancho chili paste or adobo sauce (from a can of chipotles in adobo)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 cup oil
2 cups finely shredded green or red cabbage
1 bunch radishes (about 6), julienned
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt

Whisk the garlic, chili paste, lime juice, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in oil to make a dressing. Add the cabbage, radish, and cilantro and toss.

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Lessons from an Engineered Restaurant Menu

Posted on January 4, 2010 by Chris Zach

New York Magazine published a piece providing some insight into the marketing – one might even say “gastro-econo-engineering” – that goes into well-planned restaurant menus today. The information is pulled from the book Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value (and How to Take Advantage of It) by author William Poundstone.

The terminology Poundstone uses seems roughly analogous to that employed by other businesses in portfolio planning, the BCG Growth-Share Matrix.

From the New York article:

Puzzles, anchors, stars, and plowhorses; those are a few of the terms consultants now use when assembling a menu (which is as much an advertisement as anything else). “A star is a popular, high-profit item-in other words, an item for which customers are willing to pay a good deal more than it costs to make,” Poundstone explains. “A puzzle is high-profit but unpopular; a plowhorse is the opposite, popular yet unprofitable. Consultants try to turn puzzles into stars, nudge customers away from plowhorses, and convince everyone that the prices on the menu are more reasonable than they look.”

Instead of puzzles, anchors, stars, and plowhorses charted based on popularity and profit margin, the BCG matrix uses stars, cash cows, dogs, and question marks organized by market growth rate and relative market share. So, the tools are similar in their mechanism but analyze slightly different marketing situations.

While a cash cow sounds like an expensive filet mignon, I can see why Poundstone wouldn’t want to label any restaurant dish with “dog”. These are both simple but powerful tools that can be used in strategic planning exercises to illuminate options for improving future profitability.

Another indispensible but deliciously simple strategy tool? SWOT.

Via Tyler Cowen’s Ethnic Dining Guide via Marginal Revolution via New York Magazine.

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