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DalTxHornFan

Burnt Ends
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Posts posted by DalTxHornFan

  1. I did Pappas Bros. Dallas Steakhouse for a business dinner/meeting this week.  That neighborhood still sucks.  That said, it was a great meal.  Solid cocktails and wine list. The stellar apps were crab cakes and foie gras.  Lobster bisque won the soup/salad round.  Everybody enjoyed the protein round -- perfectly cooked to order.  Desserts were all decadent and delicious.  It was a perfect high-end steakhouse experience and the table servers were cognizant that we were doing business and stayed out of our way.  But I can't overcome hating that location.  Al Biernat's is still the king of Dallas high-end steakhouses for me.  YMMV.

  2. 4 hours ago, DalTxHornFan said:

    The list doesn't suck.  My only thought is that the current iterations of Campisi's are a pale comparison to The Egyptian Room located on Lemmon Ave. when I first discovered/loved that place in the 70's and 80's. 

    Losing my mind.  Obviously, I meant to say Mockingbird Lane.  Right across the street from Dr. Pepper world HQ.  Foots Clements of Dr. Pepper was known to hang out there some.

  3. The list doesn't suck.  My only thought is that the current iterations of Campisi's are a pale comparison to The Egyptian Room located on Lemmon Ave. when I first discovered/loved that place in the 70's and 80's. 

  4. 4 minutes ago, Baboontyme said:

    Note for next year. Cordless reciprocating saw is the way to go to cut the backbone out of the bird for spatchcock. Took me all of 45 seconds on a 18 lb bird. 

    Note for next year.  Use kitchen shears to separate the turkey backbone. It will take less than 45 seconds and you won't have to wear a haz-mat suit or create what could be considered as a potential crime scene.

  5. 8 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

    $2-5 per day is the right answer (lean towards $5, if you can -- my challenge is thinking ahead to have a $5 bill handy, they aren't the most common denomination).  And it's important to do it each day, not just at the end of your stay -- the housekeeper working on the last day of your stay may not be the one who cleaned your room the previous 3 days.

    The refugee we work with has a housekeeping job.  Tips are HUGE for her.  Seriously, her regular income is fully budgeted and utilized (rent, food, etc.).  The extra cash she gets is lagniappe, and she gets to use it to buy a new dress, or something like that.  An extra $50 a week is huge.

    I was taught young, as a young business traveler traveling with a senior partner, try to plan ahead and bring bills so you can tip - the hotel courtesy van driver, the housekeeper, everyone who might be tippable.  At the end of the day, it's still usually $10-$20 max, and it makes a real difference.  And if you're a regular, and a regular tipper, you WILL get taken care of -- I had a hotel courtesy van driver who would check with the front desk to see when I'd be arriving so he could be the one to pick me up from the airport, and he happily took me wherever I wanted to go.

    You were taught well.

    • Like 1
  6. 7 minutes ago, Baboontyme said:

    Kosher Salt. Sugar. Water. Check out the Franklin vid. I've done juices, cloves, spices....not sure any of it really imparts. I think that stuff imparts during the post-brine, rub phase. 

     

     

    Garlic powder (or lots of crushed raw garlic) in addition to the above Kosher salt and sugar is a huge flavor addition.

  7. Cool your jets, boys.  Correlation is not causation.   For all we know, the Cowboys could have been having a lovely tea party (T-sips, ya' know?) with their new members out at some ranch looking at the stars.  Or they could have been paddling the shit out of them out under those stars.  None of that has anything to do with an individual deciding to drive home after the event in the middle of the night and falling asleep behind the wheel. 

    • Like 1
  8. 1 hour ago, Baboontyme said:

    Did some poking around. So in the book he advocates doing the entire bird skin-off? All I can find online is him doing an entire bird skin-on and talking about when he does breasts only he takes the skin off. 

    Franklin doesn't screw around with whole turkeys at his store -- breasts only.  I've seen that video of him doing a whole bird at home.  That said, I still think the things he says about removing skin on a breast are true about removing the skin from the whole bird, at least that's been my experience.  The slices from the bird look great and don't have that naked-under-the-skin appearance.  He's big on avoiding that "naked" look on cooked product -- he doesn't separate the point on brisket for that very reason.  With a good brine, I've never had any "dryness" issues on fully-skinned whole smoked turkeys.  It's all good once you smoke it!

  9. On 11/16/2018 at 9:37 AM, Baboontyme said:

    Re: wet brine - make sure you get the timing right! You want to leave AT LEAST 12 hours to dry your bird in the fridge after it comes out of the brine. I recommend rubbing with a mixture of baking powder and kosher salt before you put it in the fridge to help with the skin. 

    I've started following the Franklin Barbecue manifesto on turkeys.  I take the skin completely off before brining.  (I save the skin for gumbo stock that I'll later make with the carcass of the aforementioned bird.)  After brining, I add coarse salt and pepper all over the bird and let it dry overnight or so.  Then I smoke the bird until it gets that mahogany color all over.  Pretty finished product -- no "naked" bird just under the skin when you slice and serve it.

    • Like 1
  10. On 11/4/2018 at 8:35 PM, SimonBolivar said:

    The banana pudding was out of this world.

    This observation perfectly encapsulates an understanding of the cultural mecca known to some as Waco.

    • Like 1
    • Haha 1
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