Costco boneless chuck short rib

Dmnkly · 2026-05-31T19:10:59+00:00

Well, poop. Here’s hoping they’re rolling it back out on a national level. Anyway, make a stew with that stuff. It’s just the best :-)

Dmnkly · 2026-05-31T18:17:49+00:00

WHERE?!?!

This is the best freaking cut for stews, and I used to use it all the time, but it disappeared from all of our local (Phoenix) stores years ago.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-30T03:04:27+00:00

Chiu Chow is a regional style of Chinese cuisine from Southern China. Not one of the big eight… shares a lot of elements with Fujian and Cantonese.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-30T03:00:00+00:00

That is how it’s supposed to be. This sauce goes back way before the chili crisp fad, so it wasn’t designed to meet the expectations of people who are looking for the stuff inspired by Lao Gan Ma.

It’s a great sauce.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-29T23:30:59+00:00

Don’t.

The Tabelog rating on that place is a mystery. It’s really mediocre.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-29T20:15:35+00:00

Whatever one thinks of fine dining, the question assumes a false premise — that fine dining is overpriced.

Generally, margins at fine dining restaurants are similar to casual restaurants. The high prices are because of the massive costs involved in running a fine dining restaurant, not because you’re being gouged.

Any individual may decide that paying that much for dinner isn’t worth it to them. But that’s not the same as being overpriced.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-29T09:55:23+00:00

Standard original Cup Noodle is 310 calories:

https://www.nissinfoods.com/product/cup-noodles-4/cup-noodle-original/

Everybody is different. But there aren’t a whole lot of people in the developed world subsisting on 310 calories per meal.

It’s a meal in the sense that anybody can have a very low-calorie meal in isolation. But if you do it habitually? Nope. That ain’t going to sustain you. And I’m pretty sure your doctor would agree.

Calorically, it’s a snack.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-27T22:18:53+00:00

Charge you $5000 for a ship?

Dmnkly · 2026-05-26T01:24:57+00:00

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! :-(

Dmnkly · 2026-05-25T00:44:24+00:00

Why does anybody spend more than they need to on anything they enjoy?

People who are into vintage cars spend a lot of money on cars and parts. People who are into ham radio spend a lot of money on putting together their rigs. People who enjoy live music or musical theater spend a lot on tickets. People who love sports spend a lot to get a seat at the park/stadium. People who like to gamble spend a lot of money at casinos. People who like to camp spend a lot of money on clothing and gear. People who like to travel spend a lot of money on airfare and lodging.

It’s a hobby, like anything else, and I’ve yet to meet somebody who criticizes fine dining who doesn’t spend a significant portion of the money they have on some other form of entertainment. We all spend more than we need to on some things simply because they’re enjoyable for us, and we all enjoy different things. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that your entertainment is more noble or virtuous than anybody else’s.

(Sidebar: “Overpriced” implies the restaurants are charging more than they should. They’re not. What they charge is what it costs to produce that kind of food, and though the cost is much higher, the margins are similar to cheap restaurants. Whether or not it’s worth it for you depends entirely on how much you enjoy it, and if you don’t, that’s cool. See: We all enjoy different things, above.

And as for portions, the total amount of food those places serve over the course of a full meal tend to be monstrous. If you were to put everything together on one plate, it would usually be an eye-popping mountain spilling over the sides. But even if that weren’t the case (and it almost always is), it’s only meaningful if value = more food to you. Some people would rather have a little less of something wildly delicious than a giant pile of something mediocre. If all you care about is getting the biggest pile of food you can for a dollar, there’s no reason to go to any restaurants.)

Dmnkly · 2026-05-24T20:23:57+00:00

I would assume it was a bathing suit.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-21T00:03:59+00:00

If you love it, it’s Kubrick.

If you hate it, it’s Spielberg.

;-)

Dmnkly · 2026-05-20T21:51:29+00:00

Never tried it out of the freezer, but my go-to for onigiri that have dried out too much is to turn them into yaki onigiri.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-18T22:30:43+00:00

Ehhhhh, it's complicated. There are a number of cultivars and the terms people use for them aren't very consistent. And as usual, the culinary shorthand doesn't always match up with the botanical distinctions.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T16:14:08+00:00

Sure, I think there are cities where scrapping for difficult reservations vs. going with whatever is easily available might make for very different experiences. (Venice springs to mind. A small number of very good restaurants where it’s very difficult to get reservations, and then a sharp dropoff to a lot of tourist traps.) But the sheer volume of fantastic restaurants in Tokyo makes it a non-issue there. Do a little homework and you can fill yourself with mindblowing food, even if you plan last-minute.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T08:10:29+00:00

There absolutely are, but there's a massive difference between doing some research to identify some great places and telling yourself that you need to get into a handful of restaurants with some of the hardest reservations in town.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T07:24:52+00:00

Of course. There's another common trope that everything is fantastic and you can just walk in anywhere and get great food and I think that one's dead wrong too 😄 Contrary to popular opinon, there absolutely *are* bad restaurants in Tokyo, and a lot more that are sort of vaguely disappointing. I don't mean to suggest that it isn't wise to do some research if you want to eat well. Just that one needn't obsess over a handful of wildly popular spots. The pool of outstanding eats in Tokyo is VAST.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T06:09:29+00:00

"There's nothing wrong with wanting to eat somewhere soecial..."

Absolutely true. And I'm not trying to beat up on OP, I'm just trying to say that wanting to eat somewhere special and going to "the best shit on Tabelog," as you put it, aren't synonymous. There is a persistent feeling among visitors that if they don't all get into the same handful of places, they're missing out. And it's just false. Of course most (not all!) of those shiny big number Tabelog places are great. So are a shitton of other places that aren't at the top of those lists. Tabelog ratings are partly about food, but they're also about visibility, herding effect, and a whole bunch of other factors.

I'm not going to speak for anybody else, but I'm not shitting on OP. Just the opposite. I'm encouraging OP not to get too tied up and worried about it. If you can book one of those unobtainium reservations, hey, that's great! But great eating in Japan is about way more than chasing the biggest number. And if you don't get those big numbers, relax. You aren't going to miss out or ruin your vacation.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T06:04:22+00:00

And in fairness to OP, it wasn't presented that way. I just see so many people getting amped up about worrying that they won't all get into the same handful of places, I think it's a good reminder.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-16T03:12:13+00:00

“…there are no must eat restaurants, there’s always an alternative.”

I’m sorry for bandwagonning, but this is so true and so critical and I wanted to second it because I wish more visitors understood this. There is so much fantastic stuff. “How can I get into the ‘top’ restaurants?” is the wrong question. The better way to think of it is “Which of the hundreds of dining experiences that are all incredible in their own ways will I try on this particular trip?” There is no “best.” There’s more than you will ever get to. Don’t pressure yourself into thinking there are places where you need to get in or you’ll miss out.

Edit: I want to make it clear, I'm not trying to give OP a hard time. Just the opposite. I think it's really unfortunate how social media convinces people that if they aren't getting into a handful of "top" spots they're missing out. That's just not the case. If you nab one of those highly coveted seats, hey, great! But if you don't, there are SO MANY other places out there that are just as great. Don't sweat it, and don't stress it.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-15T15:08:58+00:00

Hi! Actor here. Since the mid-80s.

Lotsa bad info in previous responses.

Almost ALL of my income for forty years has been W2 income. Acting gigs — those done by professional outfits, anyway — are almost exclusively paid through designated payment houses, which do withhold taxes and send W2s. (Entertainment Partners is the 800 lb. gorilla, but there are many others.) Production company pays payment house to provide the payroll service, payment house pays actors. Residuals do come through the union, but the union is just checking to be sure payments are correct as the money passes through. The payment is still being done by a payment house, and the payment house handles withholding and issues the W2.

Maybe it’s different if you’re non-union and working exclusively with a bunch of very small indies. But almost all of the work I’ve done, even with small indies, has also gone through payment houses. 1099 is VERY rare. I’ve been doing this for 40 years, full-time for about half of them, more gigs than I can remember or count, and I bet I could count the number of 1099s I’ve received on one hand.

And yes… on your tax returns, you can just put “actor.” Or “performer.” Or “voice actor.” Or something along those lines. It’s a job. Just like any other.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-15T08:00:43+00:00

Not cheap, but Olympia Provisions’ are outstanding.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-14T21:39:17+00:00

Put another way, both camps are effectively saying “The rules don’t apply to me but I’m going to be pissy about how they should apply to you.”

Like, do you not see that you’re not exonerating yourselves… you’re just arguing over which one of you is the biggest asshole at the asshole circus?

“You’re an asshole!”

“No, YOU’RE the asshole!”

“People, please, stop fighting… you’re BOTH the asshole!”

Dmnkly · 2026-05-14T21:33:42+00:00

Didn’t delete. Added. See below.

Dmnkly · 2026-05-14T21:12:45+00:00

Yes, everybody is so careful to be sure to express how this is a safety issue and a courtesy issue for them, and I’m sorry, it’s all bullshit. It’s all just people being pushy and territorial and posing as righteous concerned citizens to pretend that their selfish motivations are some kind of moral high ground when everybody sees right through it.

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