GBoi

Yes absolutely. Shanghai is an amazing city and has enough expats that it’s easy enough to live there even if you don’t speak Mandarin or Shanghainese. Make sure you get repatriation as part of your package.

He used to peform at the Nob Hill as a regular dancer. I saw him there once a couple years back. Not sure what he looks like now but back then he looked pretty close to the SC pic above.

Los Angeles or NYC. Honolulu and Seattle next tier down. SF is decent. Everyone else is below that.

I find the prix fixe at Jean-George is an excellent value. Although probably just outside of being considered moderately priced, for the experience, it’s one of the best values I know of in NY. It makes for a memorable experience and well worth the difference in price compared to Nougatine (the more casual restaurant attached to JG).

This may go down as one of the best advertising stunts in history. Before AW’s video recording 99.99% of people never heard of him. Now 98.98% of people have never heard of him. I can see airlines using this little episode as a training tool for flight attendants in what activities NOT to engage in....especially United Airlines:

 

Instructor: This is not what the company slogan “Fly the friendly skies of United” means.

 

My small attempt at humor aside, Mr. Wolf is a jerk and to be avoided.

What does his have to do with United? This was on a Delta flight with a Delta flight attendant?

Shouldn’t it be “Keep Climbing” doesn’t mean climb on top of any dick you see?

But always thyme for a dilldo.

That’s some Sage advice

Mandarin is the predominant dialect, although not the official language. And I believe Cantonese is an offshoot of Mandarin, whereas Mandarin isn't an offshoot of Cantonese

Actually Cantonese and Mandarin are both offshoots of Middle Chinese. Neither of them are derived from the other. The Yue dialects tend to sound closer to the proto language, for example closing consonants in syllables, as well as preserving some words that were used in older dialects that are not present in modern spoken mandarin. This is primarily due to mass migration after dynastic changes as evidenced by Cantonese people referring to themselves more often as “people of Tang” vs modern Mandarin “middle country people” (although some sense of nationality comes into play e.g. huaren vs zhongguoren)

You didn't like Fairytale Lounge? I've never been disappointed there. Ripped young lean muscle guys of every flavor pulling you into the sex area.

 

I can't stand Monster. So crowded in the tiny spot with ugly people.

I think you got Fairytale and Monster mixed up. Fairytale is the tiny bar in a 20x20 space.

and everyone acts on them...thats a fact. blacks act on them, asians act on them and so forth. i have a good friend half black and half russian. he told me the story that his grandmother on his fathers black side of the family when he announced he was dating a white woman, would not allow her into the house. when she became pregnant with my friend the grandmother would not allow her black son into the house. he had to stay at the screen door to visit his father. no racism? oh...its totally ok when its against white people. get over your bigoted attitude.

Who said that it’s okay to be racist against white people?

Seriously how often do you see someone post “no blacks or “no Asians” versus “no whites”. How are blanket statements like that NOT racist?

White privilege is no where more prevalent than in the gay community.

Fresh wasabi is amazing. It has sweetness and real complexity of flavor. The pasty green stuff at lower end sushi places is usually reconstituted colored horseradish/mustard powder.

I’ve done it as a component for Momofuku pork belly buns. A LOT of fat renders out when cooked under sous vide, but also makes them extremely tender and moist.

Tons of places to recommend depending on what you feel like having and your budget:

Tacos at La Taqueria

Small plates at State Bird Provisions

Best dim sum in the US at Dragon Beaux

Excellent Thai at Lers Ros

Malbec and morcilla at Lolinda’s

Sushi omakase at Ju-ni (no tempura, no teriyaki, just you and a sushi chef at a counter)

(Oops just read you’re looking for lunch recs but if you have a free dinner slot, the ones that aren’t open for lunch are great)

Met him, had a nice time, he’s real. Good kisser

You can pre-order lobster thermidor for your meal if you fly first class on Royal Thai. Plus they serve Krug

My company’s cafeteria served tournedos Rossini in honor of Paul Bocuse’s passing earlier this year.

Is he a total top? Unclear from his ad..

He’s vers

Every now and then, when the discussion goes around escorts in London, Gabriel Cross's name pops up. As if there is a fixation in this forum on him. So going against the forum's public opinion, I don't find him at all attractive. He is extremely short and not particularly good looking.

 

I understand that for American standards he may be a good choice, but in the London market, there are far better options. One you may wish to consider is https://www.sleepyboy.com/uk/london/escort/blonddorian

I usually don’t comment on other people’s tastes but YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING

EWWWWWWWW

Got a massage from Ryan today at Spa 27. He’s adorable. Was it the best massage I’ve ever had? No. Did I enjoy myself? Very much so.

Chris had an appointment already otherwise I might have taken him. He’s stunning.

Mougins and St-Raphael/Frejus are quite lovely in the area. And of course Antibes!

Did you talk with him about the no-show, no-cancellation?

Only obliquely

TLDR: you just never know if they will show up

Something about this generation...

I didn’t have the problem with CJ ghosting me but I totally empathize with those to whom this has occurred. Just this past weekend I set aside an afternoon to meet a new person who I’ve always admired and who has recently started advertising. Scheduled three days beforehand and said I would confirm day of. Very friendly correspondence. The big day comes and I text in the morning to confirm. No word. An hour before another text. Nothing. I can see he’s logging in and out of his ad on RM. Later that evening I say I’d love to reschedule for the next day. He finally responds and we confirm a time. He shows up and I have a great time.

Second or third guy this year that I’ve given a second chance and have had a good time. Still seeing them when I get a chance.

Technically correct! Danger zone >40° and <140° And, my recommendation of extended time at 120° could put you there.

 

But, the risk to whole muscle meats such as beef (steak etc.) are infinitely safer, especially if you know where and how your beef is sourced. I routinely sous vide 2 1/2”-3” prime New York and bone-in ribeyes at 120° for 2 hours, then place on hot bbq grill 3-4 minutes with some flipping to get grill marks and Maillard effect. Served finished temperature at 130° So rare to medium rare. NEVER over 140°.

 

The whole muscle meat concept is why I also will eat steak tartare if I know the chef/restaurant and can identify the beef as freshly ground to each order preparation.

 

You’d be surprised how many large steakhouses do the same.

I think all the bacteriology charts show that generally anything over 129F is safe indefinitely (assuming minimal amount of time internally at temp). I usually do 131F just in case my reading is wrong or there are temperature gradients.

Anything under that is potentially dangerous, but a short cook (less than a couple hours) should be ok, especially if you are comfortable with your source material; 3-5 hours at 120F for a skirt steak is risky IMO.

Also if your beef is blade tenderized, that would be another reason against cooking under 129F

Marinating doesn't really do anything for tenderizing, generally. For a marinade to actually tenderize, it would have to be so acidic that it would dissolve the connective tissues....and the meat.

 

Skirt steak can be a little tricky sometimes because of the grain of the meat and whether it's "inside" or "outside" skirt. One is tougher than the other, which might be why you had better luck with them in the past. There's a sneaky trick you can do when cutting the meat, though, depending on what you're doing with it....

 

...cut it thinly against the grain. You might have to cut it into a couple of pieces and then slice it. Doing so makes sure there aren't any long muscle fibers or big pieces of connective tissue in any bite.

 

To your original question regarding sous vide...I don't know that I would do that with something like skirt steak unless you're going to sear it afterward. I've not tried it myself, fur 134 (medium-rare) is an awful low temperature if you're trying to tenderize meat.

There’s lots of material out there about the interplay of time and temperature. Check out seriouseats or chefsteps. Basically as long as you are above 130F, you are out of the bacteria danger zone IF you hold the INTERNAL temp of the meat long enough at that temperature. Then time is the main factor in the tenderness you are looking for as the connective tissue relaxes. At 134F for a long enough time, the transformation of any tough cut of meat is remarkable.

Yes you do want to sear it to get the appropriate Maillard flavors.

I don’t marinade before Sous vide so I’m unsure how that would affect timing.

120f for 3-5 hours is not out of the danger zone and would not be recommended.

They will become more tender but tough cuts take a long time. For example, I do short ribs for 72 hours at 134F for an insanely tender (but not mushy) texture.

United 787's have a larger "handicapped" restroom on them up in first class. Still wouldn't call it wheelchair accessible.

The UA 777-300s also have that same large lavatory. Easily twice as big (maybe more) than the 747 or 777-200 ones

The AA 737-MAX toilets are TINY. Barely shoulder width.

Lot of fun, great line up. Didn’t like how everyone was crowded around the kitchen island and blocking the door to the lap dance area.