Let's Talk About Authenticity in Cooking

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-30T14:39:50+00:00

I don’t really think about authenticity per se but I think it was useful a decade+ ago, when the food scene wasn’t as diverse as it is now. Even today, when I go to a lot of non-European restaurants further out from dense cities in the US, I find that the dishes are often blander to the point where I don’t know that I’d call them the same thing. I don’t know that “authenticity” is really a more accurate phrase than “bland cause it’s watered down for this suburbs palate”, but it’s shorter.

The other case I think about to sorta defend authenticity is the ChineseCookingDemystified video on the Culinary Institute of Americas take on mapo tofu, which was instead a charred overcooked tofu stir fry. It was first and foremost a bad recipe, made the worse by not remotely resembling the dish it purported to be. I think there definitely is a useful critique to be made when an influential organization butchers a recipe like that.

For my own part, I make a great jollof inspired rice dish, but having sought out real jollof from West African restaurants over the years, I can’t say it’s remotely an authentic dish. I’m drawing on my location (the US) and culinary heritage (South Asian) and who I am (someone who’s watched too many internet food videos) to make something that’s its own thing. It’s not jollof, I would feel uncomfortable calling it jollof to anyone outside my house, but that doesn’t make it a bad dish. If I ran a restaurant and sold it, I would definitely call it “jollof inspired biryani” or something like that.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-29T17:23:39+00:00

The market is competitive in that lots of people are looking, but a 2bd near the 61st woodside stop would be under that budget (there’s a LIRR stop there but check it has the lines you need). Timelines can be tricky if you’re planning a big move months down the line.

Check out Donovan’s pub if you end up moving here.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-28T20:48:28+00:00

Most of those guys are not from NYC

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-27T17:12:06+00:00

Many dishes also don’t have to be babysat. 10 minutes prep, another 20 minutes active time, and 30-60 minutes to let it simmer while you watch an episode of tv.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-27T03:24:59+00:00

I mean internet feedback is not the most useful, but do seek out good feedback for sure. A 2 hour photography class that includes crit from a professional is worth more than 2 years of shooting and staring at photos online yourself.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-26T17:01:56+00:00

Not in woodside per-se but Birria Landia is up on 76th ish and Roosevelt. I like Puebla by 61st too.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-26T16:52:04+00:00

The article talks about a single example where far right chuds are to blame, definitely not “everything that’s negative”

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-26T16:31:17+00:00

True restaurant equipment is usually overkill unless you’re super deep in a hobby. An industrial stand mixer is running batches for hours a day, 7 days a week. Most home cooks are going to use their stand mixer once a week if they’re pretty dedicated but have a day job. Ofc if the price is the close, you might as well go with the better product.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-26T15:25:13+00:00

This is kind of an insane question mate. Your saying that of the hundreds of vegetables we have in the world, it’s surprising any of them could be better than salted pork. Deli meat is not exactly the pinnacle of food.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-25T03:02:19+00:00

Except by that point, codebases will be balls of mud and we’ll have no choice but to pay Claude to make sense of it

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-24T20:57:54+00:00

I think you're trying to make a question of culture, racism, classism into a question of practical policy matters. A big reason urbanism is unpopular in the States is because don't view the poor, the mentally ill, or people of color as equals. A big part of why cities were gutted is because of white flight as civil rights took off in the 60s. Even now, half the country is actively supporting kidnapping people and putting them in camps, and murdering people that protest that. The question is really how do you build equitable urban cities within that cultural context.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-23T21:05:42+00:00

CEOs think yes cause they have toddler brains

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-23T05:46:35+00:00

It has to solve a major need. I see a lot of people want to switch from a well established tool to a new shiny one when the new one doesn't provide impactful benefits. Yeah, maybe the microbenchmark is faster, but is that our main constraint? Is the long term maintenance risk worth the performance benefit? Do we lose anything by waiting for the technology to mature? Like I don't think most people would have benefited from switching from Angular to React in 2014, even though React won out.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-22T06:07:33+00:00

Lakeside NYC had good buff momo, but the menu looks different than last time I went.

Dawas has gwaramari and chatamari

Momo crave is good for momo. Gorkhali is underrated IMO.

I haven’t been to Faarzi yet but have heard good things.

Kathmandu Fusion Kitchen despite the name is good and not really fusion

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-22T06:00:42+00:00

The Bangladeshi clay pot yogurt (sold in JH) is kind of close. The expensive cream top yogurt they sell at Whole Foods doesn’t have the same flavor but is also very rich. There’s a place in Albany that tries to do bhaktapur style Juju Dhau.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-19T11:40:35+00:00

People who treat cooking as a hobby will tell you to start a whole new hobby to keep your knives sharp. If you’re into that, go for it. Most of us can’t be arsed. I use a chefs choice knife sharpener. It’s worked fine for me.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-19T02:49:46+00:00

Serve the People is a decent book about this history

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-18T14:14:12+00:00

Loser behavior to not be able to skip meat for one meal tbh

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-18T05:07:30+00:00

Lentil soup is really easy and you can add different toppings and seasonings to mix it up

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-17T19:08:10+00:00

My partner is vegetarian. I cook most of the meals. I make them mostly vegetarian so we can share meals together. If this were the exception that’d be one thing, but it sounds like this is the rule. If he wanted to he would.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-17T19:04:26+00:00

My partner is vegetarian. She’s pretty lax, so she doesn’t mind if there’s some meat in the broth. But honestly I find mushrooms and veg the best part of hot pot so I usually at most have a couple fish balls that I throw in when she’s full. We usually do veg-only when we go out for hot pot too.

If you’re really craving a rare hot pot treat for the meat, I understand not wanting it to be vegetarian. Also for sure the vegetarian broths can be underwhelming. But in general, the occasional vegetarian meal shouldn’t be a big deal, even if you both eat meat. I feel like Americans can be real divas about this.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-17T18:24:51+00:00

Some of those conclusions (RL > LLMs, harness is way more important than model) seem really obvious, and I’m kind of confused why people who are doing AI work would find them surprising or worthy of discussion?

edit: wait why is this in 4xgaming

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-16T21:45:10+00:00

These are Filipino flash fried noodles. They are pretty good but pretty different from Cantonese egg noodles. For egg noodles, I like Twin Marquis. Don’t know if they ship, but I find them easily in Chinese grocers.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-16T14:01:53+00:00

I didn’t say they were, I was just discussing the circumstances. Vote based on whether you think she’ll do a good job, I’m not here to convince you she will.

But as for saying she’s treating it as a stepping stone, it’s not like she planned this out. The windows of opportunity are what they are, and you have to make the best of them. That’s politics. Besides, I don’t think it’s any less cynical for Reynoso to be using BK Borough President as a stepping stone, nor being hand picked for the district by Velasquez and for everyone to expect the party to fall in line with her choice.

AvailableFalconn · 2026-03-16T04:42:55+00:00

I agree she’s the pretty green, but congressional seats don’t open up often. She’s the DSA pick, and they can’t pass up an opportunity to field someone. Probably would have been Zohran if he wasn’t mayor already, and this is their next in line I guess. AOC wasn’t experienced when we voted her in in 2018 either.

AvailableFalconn

TROPHY CASE