I am so tempted to get that last wine…

QOTD: I had the squab at Downey’s in Santa Barbara with a bottle of the 2004 Lafond, Lafond Vineyard pinot noir (Santa Rita Hills). It was cooked to perfection and that bottle is just plain awesome. However, the best part of the meal is that it was with my beautiful g/f.

P.S. She is the curly haired blond girl that interviewed you a month ago. 🙂

Gary, I am in graduate school at the University of Florida but my father lives in Manhattan. So, I had the opportunity to take my girlfriend to New York for the first time and we ate at an incredible restaurant called “Campagnola,” I’m sure you’ve heard of it. Almost all of the servers are from Italy and speak it flu ently and that added to the gorgeous, opulent, ambience that is Campagnola. Anyway, we started off with a couple glasses of Sangiovese at the bar. Then, for our appetizers we had Prosciutto di Parma e Melone and Gamberi Fantasia (shrimp sauteed with artichokes and mushrooms). Then for entrees I had the Veal Scallopine Alla Sorrentina topped with eggplant, prosciutto, tomato and white wine and my girlfriend ordered Zuppa di Pesce alla Livornese (Italian bouillabaisse with lobster). We both shared our meals so that we could get a little taste of the other’s food and it was absolutely amazing. It took us back to Italy. A nice bottle of wine from piemonte accompanied our dinner. An Italian dinner would not be complete without sambuca and espresso at the end. I have to say that the mini grand piano and the timeless wooden bar that was the center of the restaurant made us feel at home and reminiscent of old black-and-white mafia movies. If you have never been there, I suggest saving up some money for a spectacular dinner and a warm milieu.
=

Gary, I am in graduate school at the University of Florida but my father lives in Manhattan. So, I had the opportunity to take my girlfriend to New York for the first time and we ate at an incredible restaurant called “Campagnola,” I’m sure you’ve heard of it. Almost all of the servers are from Italy and speak it flu ently and that added to the gorgeous, opulent, ambience that is Campagnola. Anyway, we started off with a couple glasses of Sangiovese at the bar. Then, for our appetizers we had Prosciutto di Parma e Melone and Gamberi Fantasia (shrimp sauteed with artichokes and mushrooms). Then for entrees I had the Veal Scallopine Alla Sorrentina topped with eggplant, prosciutto, tomato and white wine and my girlfriend ordered Zuppa di Pesce alla Livornese (Italian bouillabaisse with lobster). We both shared our meals so that we could get a little taste of the other’s food and it was absolutely amazing. It took us back to Italy. A nice bottle of wine from piemonte accompanied our dinner. An Italian dinner would not be complete without sambuca and espresso at the end. I have to say that the mini grand piano and the timeless wooden bar that was the center of the restaurant made us feel at home and reminiscent of old black-and-white mafia movies. If you have never been there, I suggest saving up some money for a spectacular dinner and a warm milieu.
=

The best meal I’ve ever had (in recent memory) started off with an Acai Energy shake from Juice Generation which I brought to one of the better Indian places on the Upper West Side, bang for buck. $7 for a generous helping of Nine Veggie Curry. I chased that all down with a pint of Old Speckled Hen as I watched Green Bay fall to Dallas this past Thursday. The Nine Veggie Curry also pairs well with the Rivendell Reisling.

Just started watching your show yesterday. Good times. Keep up the good work.

Cheers,
Daniel

PS – The perfect blend of Paul McCartney and Jay-Z? I recommend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grey_Album

Wow, that’s crazy, i’ve always lusted after trying A Masseto. Great episode today but I have to think there was something wrong with that Solanera. I’ve had that wine at least five times and my notes are completely different from yours. There was nothing spanish about it but it pretty much tasted like a $50 california blend to me. QOTD: Greatest meal has to be when my fiance and I were in Philadelphia as high school students on vacation. We decided to go way over our heads and go to this restaurant pompeii. We ended up spending more money than we make in a week on dinner. But this is the greatest meal i’ve ever had ( a 20 0z porterhouse with a red wine demi glaze served on a bed of seasonal veggies) but this is when my love for wine started. The wine list was six pages long and we ended up deciding on the 1997 Monsanto chianti reserva. Although we were only 18, we had the most wonderful night talking over this delicious bottle. Even though the quality at this estate has lagged a little bit, it’s still my favorite because it always reminds me of this night.

Hey Gary,
My wife Elena and I had a great time meeting you this weekend. Best meal would have to be a few years ago when we celebrated my boss’s 60th birthday. He is a huge wine collector, and we had a wonderful food and wine pairing with some gems from his cellar at Uncle Yu’s in San Ramon, CA. Best pairing of the night was honey glazed walnut prawns with a Double Magnum of 1997 Sonoma Cutrer Founders Reserve Chard. What made it the best meal, was a combination of the wine, food and wonderful friends.

What a great show!!! well let’s see
QOTD: SWORDFISH AT A 4 STAR RESTAURANT IN MEXICO CITY WITH 2 OF MY BEST FRIENDS!!!!!!

great show gary! oh god please let me win tomorrow’s and wednesday’s contest!!!! (and yes gary, im talking to you)

Come on big money bottle, Come on big money bottle! QOTD – probably a grilled salmon dish at a local restaurant here in Norcal.

Come on big money bottle, Come on big money bottle! QOTD – probably a grilled salmon dish at a local restaurant here in Norcal.

QOTD for the Masetto: Dinner at La Siriola at Hotel Ciasa Solares in San Cassiano, Italy (the Dolomite Alps). It was a 3 plus hour affair. Just me and my wife. Treated to what seemed like an endless stream of beautiful courses coupled with spot on wine pairings. An unforgettable evening. Some of the dishes we had – suckling pig neck carpaccio, stuffed grilled calamari, risotto with baby octopus, fresh salad of wild alpine flowers.

Give me the Masetto.

QOTD:
Osso Bucco with the Spaghetti GOP from DiGiulio Bros in Baton Rouge.

My mothers meat pie she makes if for me every year for my birthday! Great show today!

My mothers meat pie she makes if for me every year for my birthday! Great show today!

Love your show, stumbled upon it tonight looking for some wine info. Learned a lot! Thank you!
As for the best meal ever, it would have to be in Venice Italy, 7 years ago, in this quaint
resturant with an amazing 9 course meal…lunch, that seriously lasted 4 hours. A different
wine with each course, and the most delicious seafood ever. Forever planted firmly in my
memory banks. Fun Show, Thank you, Tina I.

Love your show, stumbled upon it tonight looking for some wine info. Learned a lot! Thank you!
As for the best meal ever, it would have to be in Venice Italy, 7 years ago, in this quaint
resturant with an amazing 9 course meal…lunch, that seriously lasted 4 hours. A different
wine with each course, and the most delicious seafood ever. Forever planted firmly in my
memory banks. Fun Show, Thank you, Tina I.

As a poor grad student in NYC, an equally poor friend and I went to Tavern on the Green during dine-out NY in Winter 2002/2003. A tourist hotspot. Nonetheless, we justified it that night, and the lamb shank with tomatoes and chick peas remains one of the high points of my so-called foodie experience. I’ve eaten many more expensive meals since, taking clients to over-the-top restaurants in my new home metropolis. However, the weekday night at Tavern on the Green with an old friend during dine-out NY still beats them all.

The best meal I have ever had was a chicken and cheese quesadilla at Cheddars restaurant after being rescued from inside of a cave about 5 years back. I went looking around in this cave with a friend of mine, got lost, and had to wait around 8 hours for the county High Angle Rescue Team to come in and find us. After my parents found out we were okay, I was hungry, so we went to dinner. That quesadilla was AMAZING. Also, don’t go into caves unless you know what you’re doing:)

Gary, just watched your show for the first time, and I gotta tell you it was quite refreshing. Keep up the great work, I’ll be checking in regularly.

Oh, before I forget, just wanted to also let you know that you forgot to rinse the wine glass with the Castano Solanera 2004 before sampling it. Although I’m not a fan of the Castano Solanera 2004, it still might have affected your score on it.

Really are getting me excited about a few of the Soutwest French wines I have in my collection. I will have to get more.

QOTD: Best meal ever was at La Giostra in Florence on my honeymoon. The Parmigiano Reggiano they served was unbelievable & I had the goat for my entree & it was so good I almost got my vegetarian wife to try some. We drank a great bottle of Chianti with dinner (don’t worry, Gary, it wasn’t Ruffino).

P.S. How ’bout them Patriots!!!

QOTD: The best meal: Every Christmas we have a rib roast, medium rare, with a rosemary/salt rub along with with roasted garlic mashed spuds. Love! Favorite meal of the year.

QOTD: hmmm, i would have to say – anytime at grammas! gotta love the home cooking!

QOTD: Sorry to be so unoriginal, but French Laundry, Chef’s Tasting Menu, June 4, 2000. AB’s 28th birthday. Thanks to Liz and Julia for being there and being so awesome.

Best meal … that would have to be my parent’s Thanksgiving dinner, circa 1994.

QOTD: Sorry to be so unoriginal, but French Laundry, Chef’s Tasting Menu, June 4, 2000. AB’s 28th birthday. Thanks to Liz and Julia for being there and being so awesome.

Best meal … that would have to be my parent’s Thanksgiving dinner, circa 1994.