Fishy Math
There are a lot of things I’m unwilling to do.
I will not wait in a line to get into a bar. I will not ruin someone else’s meal or otherwise make a scene by sending back food at a restaurant. I will not eat sushi in Albany.
Last night I broke one of my cardinal rules. Since arriving to this fair region, I entirely abandoned a category of food that I had previously enjoyed for decades. There are a lot of reasons for this. To be fair, I don’t think it is because sushi in Albany is uniquely bad. Frankly, despite its prevalence, it’s unreasonable to expect there to be great sushi in a market that’s outside the top 50 Nielsen DMAs.
At some point, though, it comes down to numbers. I’ll show you.
Faces of Fussy
There are some things I take for granted. We don’t need to get into all of them. But sometimes I just assume you all have an innate understanding of what I’m doing here. After a recent email that I got from a long time reader and yesterday’s comment from Mr. Dave, I clearly need to explain something that I thought everybody already knew.
I take full responsibility for the confusion. We’ll get it all cleared up in a moment. But first, let’s go back and recall what Mr. Dave wrote:
I think you are putting some of your best content onto All over Albany, which is great. But I think you are going to get more people to read AoA as opposed to this blog. Is this out of a sense of Altruism?
First, I’m flattered. Second, no. It would be nice in the spirit of the holidays to think that I was doing something purely out of the goodness of my own heart. But my motives are entirely selfish, and I’m happy to lay them out.
Would you believe, I do it for the money?
More Tasty Vittles from Rolf’s
Rolf’s pork store is a regional treasure. It was a delight to write the piece on them that ran on All Over Albany yesterday. And spending time with Glen Eggelhoefer, the youngest son of the eponymous Rolf, was an amazing experience for someone obsessed with food.
Today I get to offer you a bit of the b-roll.
Not everything can fit into a feature post. Not everything makes sense to include. The AOA posts require a certain tone, which I enjoy. But here I can be a bit more casual. I can also let you in a bit behind the curtain. For example, in talking to Glen I did identify a bit of an ideological discrepancy. However, I think I’ve got a great idea to try and settle the issue. And at least in theory Glen’s on board.
Eating Seasonally: Entering Winter
Last month I wrote about Cooking out the Cold at All Over Albany.
You may want to give that a reread as it’s getting colder and colder outside. This may be too much information, but last night the dry skin on my knuckle started spontaneously to bleed, and I had been moisturizing all day. The day before I went to the Schenectady Greenmarket and noticed a dwindling number of produce vendors.
Next Saturday is the last winter date for the Delmar Farmers Market.
Despite the produce drying up I was able to buy some parsnips, kale and a winter squash at the market. The kale didn’t look its best. But the fussy little children wanted kale chips. Who was I to deprive them of their favorite vegetable treat?
Just because there isn’t a lot of fresh produce around doesn’t mean you get a pass from eating seasonally. In fact, now it’s more important than ever. Because you are going to be paying through the nose for fresh lettuces, and they aren’t going to be worth it.
For those in need of ideas, here are a few of the dishes we’re making besides beans:
Scones
It’s been a while since I dedicated a Sunday post to the topic of brunch foods. But it’s time to get back on track. Especially since I came to realize how precious little I have said about scones on the FLB. After writing almost every day for over two and a half years (oh my, that’s a lot of Fussy) it’s hard to believe there are any topics I haven’t covered.
The only mentions on the blog of this classic breakfast pastry are that Mrs. London’s has some perfect cream scones (and I don’t use that word lightly), that last year All Good Bakers was offering savory scones as part of their CSB, and that I prefer savory scones to sweeter breakfast treats.
But never have I spelled out what makes a well made scone so good. Never have I flown off the handle about how many scones are just simply awful. And I’ve never told the story about how Mrs. Fussy used to bake scones at a café on the Berkeley/Oakland border many years ago.
All this came flooding back after biting into an amazing scone from a local bakery.
Food Gifts
Let’s talk about gifts. I’m going to take a shot in the dark and guess they’ve been on your mind recently. After all, it is the Christmas shopping season. I say that because presents weren’t historically a part of Chanukah. In the grand scheme of Jewish traditions it’s a fairly recent add-on. Sure, we’ll get presents for the kids. But the exciting parts about Chanukah for me are the potato latkes and the jelly donuts.
As far as I am concerned, gifts are always optional. Believe it or not, I learned of this opinion from none other than Miss Manners. I know, it’s very unexpected. But manners are a mystery to me. For example, it’s perfectly okay to eat asparagus with your fingers, even in front of the queen. However, one should never dip one’s fingers in a finger bowl, even if they are soiled.
Still, on the subject of presents, Miss Manners surely represents the minority opinion. People feel compelled to get gifts not only for their friends, loved ones and colleagues, but also for employees, caretakers, and ordinarily faceless service workers. Thank goodness for Starbucks gift cards, right?
I’m not going to touch that last part, but I do have some ideas on what to get food lovers.
Good Food Need Not Be Expensive
This is at the heart of what I believe. That is not to say it doesn’t make sense to pay for quality, it does. Nor am I ignoring the fact that organic foods cost more than their conventional counterparts, because they do. I’m also aware of the fact that many people in the U.S. go hungry and others can barely scrape together the pennies to buy a bag of chips.
So I can understand how some people view eating well as a luxury. But it’s not. Or at least, it shouldn’t be.
Chipotle is one good example of inexpensive good food, where for under ten dollars you can get a sizable meal that includes organic beans and sustainably raised meats. Incidentally, their new Niskayuna location reportedly opened yesterday. But All Good Bakers in Albany can be held up high too for its five dollar grilled cheese with a seasonal local side dish. As can places like the Jonesville Store.
The inverse also holds true. Cheap fast food need not be disgusting. People are all too willing to accept places like Arby’s for what they are. But at La Mexicana Grocery & Restaurant, you can get a wholesome taco for just two dollars. And while they aren’t made with sustainably raised meat, at least it’s real food.
Cooking for yourself is even less expensive, and I’m thrilled to have discovered the joys of buying wholesale from Adventure in Food Trading. But looking for sales can also be helpful.
Employee Education
Part of yesterday’s birthday festivities involved picking up the last minute essentials for the celebration. The cake was ordered, and simply needed to be collected from Crisan. But I needed some sparkling wine to go along with the smoked meats from Capital Q, and I really wanted to get a bottle of the Rare Pear from Harvest Spirits to sip with Mrs. Fussy after the kids had gone to bed.
The only thing I was concerned about was that last one. When I dropped into the distillery after the Tour de Donut, it was clear there wasn’t a ton of Rare Pear produced. So I wasn’t even sure any would still be available.
Early in the morning, I called Golden Harvest Farm and was told that Derek wasn’t there yet, but the aged pear brandy was still in stock. And the nice lady on the other end of the line reminded me there were actual liquor stores nearby where I could buy it without taking the long drive to the distillery. That was a novel thought. So I decided to give one of the stores a ring.
To protect the guilty, let’s change the store’s name, and call them Emperor Wine & Spirits.
Generally, I don’t bristle at customer service. I can deal with surly and sullen. If service is slow, I can wait if it means I’ll get adequate attention when my turn rolls around. I don’t need a smile, and I don’t need to know your name. You need not be attractive, well groomed or pressed. If you know your sh*t all is forgiven.
But yesterday’s call reminded me of a recent in-store interaction, and that’s a problem.
Coffee Gifts
Would you believe I’m a hard person to shop for? Me neither. But apparently, nobody knows what to get me.
Mrs. Fussy and I had a fun conversation a few weeks ago, where she asked me what I would like for my birthday present. I felt a little silly telling her what it was. Because really all I could think of was something pretty small. And I already have plenty of equipment around the house for brewing coffee, so adding another piece to the heap seemed excessive.
But that’s the point of gifts right? Giving somebody something they will enjoy, but might never buy themselves. Cash and gift cards are very generous, but they rarely create the same level of exhilaration and joy.
As fate would have it, my birthday is around the holidays. So hopefully those of you with a coffee lover on your list can take a few helpful tips from what I’m about to unleash.
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