Procter & Gamble: They Giveth And They Taketh Away. Or Maybe They Just Can’t Stocketh The Shelves.

I can’t find Gain laundry detergent or dryer sheets at Target. Or Rite Aid. Or the grocery store. I’ve been looking for two weeks, and haven’t actually seen ANY Gain product–in any format or scent–stocked at those locations. I’m so desperate that I’d buy powdered Gain in that Tropical flavor… IF ONLY I COULD FIND IT.

As I (almost disbelievingly) emptied my economy-size container of super-concentrated Gain for High-Efficiency Washing Machines last weekend, I worried that maybe they were making some changes to the franchise, and cut distribution while they rebranded or reformulated.

But no, this can’t be. Gain is poised to become another billion-dollar brand for P&G. Typical for the category, it has many fiercely loyal fans. YOU DON’T FUCK WITH LAUNDRY DETERGENTS LIGHTLY. So, P&G, why can’t I find your Gain at major retail chains in the largest DMA in the United States? In retaliation, I am thinking about making Seventh Generation my first choice laundry detergent. If I cannot find Gain on my next occasion to buy, consider it a done deal.

If I Blog Obsessively About Food, Maybe Ruth Reichl Will Adopt Me

I took my parents to Craft tonight for dinner.  I wanted to go somewhere interesting, but didn’t plan far enough in advance to get a reservation at wd-50 or Babbo, my first picks.  I’d been itching to try Craftsteak, but decided to book a table for Craft instead, anticipating that maybe Mom might be in the mood for something other than three courses of beef.

We arrived a little early, which gave us time to enjoy the restaurant while it was still quiet, and sample drinks from the bar.  The parents tried actual cocktails, but I dove into the wine immediately, starting with the only Riesling on the “by glass” menu.*  While Craft does have a decent wine list, and their extensive bottle collection is essentially on display in the coolers that border the dining room, the selection of wines you can order by the glass is rather abbreviated.

For dinner, Dad ordered the Crispy Fresh Bacon & Apple as an appetizer, a 28-Day Dry-Aged Sirloin as an entree, and Duck Confit & Onion Risotto as a side dish.  Both Mom and I ordered the tasting menu, which was served family-style (ahem, “Craft style”), in what seemed to be very small portions.  (By the end of the meal, as we labored through two dessert courses, we appreciated that the portions were actually quite reasonable.)  However, when Dad’s deep-fried bacon was brought to the table, we were all stunned to see five massive towers of crispy pork meat.  It was a LOT of bacon, by any measure, and especially after you saw the nominal amount of food that constituted two servings of the Tasting Menu.  Word of warning to other Craft-goers: the family-style portions are not consistent, and in a bizarre reversal, it seems like the richest food comes in the largest quantities, while the salads and vegetable dishes are quite small.  Tom Colicchio loves some animal fat.