Min Ghung

I always forget about Min Ghung in Glastonbury as a dining option and that’s why I’m an idiot.

Min Ghung is relaxed, laid back and funky. They’re hidden in a strip mall and it takes a bit to find them, but it’s worth it. The service is impeccable and there’s a lovely backyard dotted with lanterns that’s great for a cigarette and cocktail break.

They have some of the best sushi in the area and eating there always reminds me of the scene in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) when the kids lick the flavored wallpaper and Willy exclaims, “The Snozzberries taste like snozzberries!” At Min Ghung–the maguro tastes like maguro! The hamachi tastes like hamachi (which, in particular, is indiscernible in most sushi joints about town).

Elissa Altman Responds to Scary Bunnies

We’ve heard from Elissa Altman! Please check the comment section of Food Fights and Starry Bites to read her comment and leave responses.

Frozen Pickles: Kosher or Not?

I am a huge pickle junkie. I love the salty vinegary brine, I love the crisp texture, and I even drink pickle juice when I need a fix.

So, why am I so hesitant about ordering a box of frozen pickles? I guess the obvious answer is that they sound disgusting.

Pickle Sickles, are popsicles made from fresh-squeezed pickles as well as the brine. The NYT reports:

The pickle pops are shipped unfrozen and should be put in the freezer overnight. To eat, cut a slit in the top and suck out the juice.

And they’re for kids! According to an article in the Washington Post,

In January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the sale of Pickle Sickles in schools. Because, wouldn’t you know it, Pickle Sickles are a health food. The frozen pickle pops, advertised as “a healthy alternative to sugary frozen pops,” are fat-free and contain less than one gram of sugar. A Pickle Sickle has only three calories. The pickle pop promoters tout other health benefits. They quote an Arizona State University study showing that vinegar, such as that used in pickling, combats insulin spikes after a high-carb meal — useful information for diabetics. They also claim that pickling spices fight bacteria.

They come in jalapeño flavor too. Is it just me, or does their Hot Pepper Pickle Javier resemble the “Señor Slant” mascot that the long gone CT Slant Magazine tried to adopt for about a month until they realized how stupid it was? I can’t find a picture to compare, I surprisingly recycled all my back issues.

Food Fights and Starry Bites

The Hartford Courant Reader’s Rep, Karen Hunter, used last Sunday’s column to further clarify the Elissa Altman/Prime Seafood and Steak Restaurant controversy. As earlier noted, the Courant parted ways with freelance food critic Altman after an investigation into her negative review of Prime in Torrington.

Spurred by reader’s complaints that the Courant was pandering to advertising dollars and not sticking by Altman such as, “As it appears to have been settled, the truth is fuzzy and appears less important than simply pleasing the offended restaurant,” Hunter responds:

Nothing is ever simple, however. As with any news story, editors take questions about accuracy and fairness seriously, regardless of the source of those questions. The facts on which an opinion is based have to be unimpeachable and verifiable, from the first paragraph down to expense reports.

Naedine Hazell, assistant managing editor for features and business, would only say, “There were standards that we thought were explicit but apparently were not.”

The Courant also gave Altman a chance to address claims that she misrepresented her number of dining companions, commented on food she didn’t order, and to defend the amount of food she actually tried.

Old news, I suppose. Case closed. The one thing that I liked about the article was that it stated that going forward, the Courant would expect critics to adhere strictly to the Association of Food Journalist guidelines for food reviews.

It’s a good read, especially with regards to how many times a critic should eat at an establishment before writing about it (at least twice, preferably visiting on both a weekday and weekend); how long to wait to review a newly opened restaurant (a month, or else note that it’s a first impression and be descriptive, not critical); and what the 4-Star Rating System really means.

I’ve been interested in the star system ever since I spoke to Michael Gannon, the former “Fork on the Left” food critic for the Courant’s now defunct Northeast Magazine section, about it a few years ago. Gannon was a very strict disciple of the guidelines. Ruth Reichl’s “Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Live of a Critic in Disguise” is great read too if you’re interested.

As far as I know, the Courant hasn’t given out stars since they discontinued Northeast. The Hartford Advocate uses a star system to rate restaurants, although more than a few reviews that I’ve read on their site indicates that they visit only once and usually for lunch. There is no explanation as to how they award their stars. I really think they need to explain their rating system, especially since the public most likely looks at all “stars” the same and once a restaurant is branded, it has to live with it.

Courant Corrects Altman for Not Heeding Prime Directive

Here’s an update from the Courant on the matter of their food critic, Elissa Altman, who wrote an incendiary review of Prime Seafood and Steak in Torrington which was featured in an earlier Scary Bunnies post, Hartford Courant Critics Criticized.

The paper reviewed Prime’s claims that Altman was dining with one other companion (she mentions “companions” in her review), tried only a few dishes (and not the rib eye that she commented on), an alleged phone conversation with their reservation person, misquoting of prices and general embellishment of details about the restaurant.

The verdict:

The reviewer stands by both descriptions and her portrayal of her overall dining experience.

Going forward, the reviewer, a free-lancer, and The Courant agree that the reviewer will no longer write for the newspaper.

The newspaper will strive to honor its commitment to informative and accurate restaurant reviews that help diners make the best choices based on a broad sampling of the food.

You can track more comments on the story on the Courant’s reader representative blog.

Hartford Courant Critics Criticized

Is Roger Catlin, Hartford Courant TV critic, going to take the buy-out package he was offered? A lot of people don’t like him, but I love his crankiness. He’s like the weird uncle who sits in your grandmother’s living room all afternoon, watching television and screaming about how the world is going to hell in a hand basket. You know, my kind of guy.

Why was food critic Elissa Altman’s review of Prime in Torrington pulled from the Hartford Courant website (view the cache here) or even allowed to go up in the first place? This is her second run-in with the residents of Torrington, blasting another restaurant, The Venetian, in an earlier column. Was she fired, as Bob Zemmel from Oxford, CT, asserts in the comment section:

As of yesterday Elissa Altman no longer works for the Courant as a restaurant reviewer or in any other capacity. So please use your own judgement and ignore the review,- for whatever poor attempt at journalism that it was.

I originally noticed this on the Chowhound website, where the discussion is now at 28 posts and raging from everything to claims that all of Altman’s reviews were pulled from the Courant site to discussions about how much food critics get paid.

When are they going to hand Greg Morago his walking papers? Hopefully they’ll give him ample time to clean out the tubs of snacking butter he probably has stashed under his desk.

Come and Get It

Restaurant news for the Hartford area:

● Plan B finally opens its doors on Park Road in West Hartford to area meat lovers.

We remain skeptical about the enjoyment levels of being able to watch the meat being ground into bits before consuming it, however. They should have gone all out and just let us choose our own cow.

● The people from Simmer in Canton have opened up a new branch in West Hartford in the old Azul locale on LaSalle Road. Upscale comfort food, apparently. We met one of the bartenders last week who told us that they have a Kobe Beef hotdog on the menu, which we’re still trying to wrap our little minds around.

● Finally –Ethiopian food in Hartford. We snagged this pic a few days before Abyssinian Ethiopian & Eritrean Cuisine officially announced it was open for business by placing a lit Budweiser Select and a twinkly neon “open” sign in its window. It’s located on Farmington Avenue in between Monte Alban and Tisane.

No word on the food–but if they’re serving Budweiser Select, you know it’s got to be classy.

● Feng Asian Bistro on Asylum Street just opened this week, although the Hartford Courant already swarmed all over it last week.

● One sad note: despite today’s Courant article, Global Gourmet in the G. Fox building is no longer open for lunch. Catering services only from here on out.

Escar-Gone

This really breaks our snail-loving little hearts.

The area’s only immediate French restaurant Pastis is closing this Saturday.

“Owner James Varano, who also owns Black-eyed Sally’s and co-owns Pig’s Eye Pub (both on Asylum Street), said he’s closing Pastis Saturday. Varano, however, is hardly quitting Hartford. He said he is signing a new lease for the space, at the corner of Ann and Allyn streets, and plans to open a casual, fish house-style restaurant in late September.”

It Takes a Monorail

Despite enjoying the nice weather and watching a few hundred people march down Main Street to the Capitol to rally for immigration rights (sorry, no pix), we haven’t done a whole lot today. But:

● Indie DJ’s and Webster Underground darlings, Shag Frenzy, have a new blog!

● A new service called Waiter Wheels delivers food from restaurants that otherwise couldn’t be bothered, although it only seems to go to downtown and West Hartford at this point. What? West End or Asylum Hill too scary for you?

● Maybe all it takes to get the party started around here is a monorail.

Reading the author’s description of his city of inspiration–Kiel, Germany–makes us suspect that the dude really just visited Euro Disney and had to come up with something to write about in time to make deadline. Although, scrapping the Front Street plans and turning Hartford into a Eurotrash Mecca of the Future sounds way more fun.

“Maybe 30 years from now, with some smart public policy, Europeans will visit here and go home saying, ‘Those people in Connecticut know how to make a city work.’”

Monorail ! Monorail ! Monorail ! …yeah, we saw that episode of The Simpsons too.

The Hand that Feeds

We’ve been excited at the prospect of a new Ethiopian restaurant in Hartford ever since this awning went up on Farmington Avenue, two doors east of Tisane, a few weeks ago.

The jolly man that works at Monte Alban told us that it’s being put together by the same owners of Venice Pizza (also under construction in the same strip of shops) and that the two restaurants might share a joined space–but we have no idea if that’s true or not. And he may have been just sidetracking us from our request for less onions in the salsa, we’re not sure.

We’re just looking forward to some spongy bread and one more place to eat with our hands in public.