http://www.viewpoints.com/aboutme/piper994 Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:34:02 GMT Reviews by piper994 http://www.viewpoints.com/Tosca-Durham-NC-review-2ea8 <p>A friend and I tried Tosca on West Morgan Street in Durham.  We sat outside on the terrace, which was nice, but overall, our experience was not so good.  One of the dishes we ordered was a ravioli special with asparagus.  The other was a chicken spinach pasta dish of some sort.  Unfortunately, we couldn't actually find any asparagus in the special, and the chicken tasted vaguely fish-y.  When we got the bill, we were surprised to find that the ravioli dish was about $28... thankfully, we had a restaurant.com gift certificate for $25, so the total bill (tip included) was only about $35 (that included two entrees and one soda).  All-in-all, I didn't think the food was all that great, and certainly it was overpriced.  Waitstaff was alright, but nothing spectacular.  I won't be eating at Tosca again... if you're in the mood for it, I would recommend the Blue Corn Cafe on 9th street in Durham.  It's a sister restaurant of Tosca, and I enjoyed it much more.</p>... Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:34:02 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Tosca-Durham-NC-review-2ea8 piper994 1 http://www.viewpoints.com/KitchenAid-600-Professional-Series-review-89763 <p>I bought the KitchenAid Professional 600 series stand mixer from Amazon.com (they occasionally fall down into the $299-320 range), and I love it.  It has 10 speeds, a 575 watt motor, a 6 quart mixing bowl and comes with a dough hook, whisk, flat beater and pour shield, which is convenient for adding ingredients while avoiding splashes/flour clouds.  I also got mine while they were offering a rebate for a $40 gift card and a free cookbook, so I thought it was a good deal.  I'm pretty sure KitchenAid consistently offers some sort of rebate or extras, which is nice. </p>&#13; <p>I'm still getting used to how to scrape down the bowl properly, but that's the case with any stand mixer, I think.  Making bread was by far the biggest difference I noticed... super convenient not having to knead.</p>&#13; <p>I think there are maybe a few cons (minimal, at best):  the motor is a bit noisy, and I have noticed a bit of "whining".  I wasn't doing anything strenuous at the time, so I think it must naturally just be...</p>... Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:11:41 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/KitchenAid-600-Professional-Series-review-89763 piper994 4