There were some punishing stretches over the three months past, where latkes from a box or a Snickers bar purchased from some convenience store were standout dishes.Plenty of suffering to go around: popcorn shrimp, candy corn, cranberry sauce from a can…At least I was favored by some decent wines and…
The other day Jesse “Hophead” Hughey said something about the role of those special edition $150 beers–something along the lines of “they generate publicity and motivate interest in beer.”True enough. Basketball needed Michael Jordan and golf Tiger Woods…well, until recently. Indeed, every market needs its characters who draw attention to…
We all–well, most of us, anyway–like to group certain traits or people into easy shorthand definitions.For example, the French become “surrender monkeys,” southerners are all “rednecks” and Eagles fans are…um, that’s unprintable. As the guys from Monty Python once pointed out, the only group we don’t slap a some prejudicial…
The ‘Boys travel to the city sometimes visited by George W. Bush on Sunday evening. A final “fact” about the politically incorrect…Every year, Redskins owner Dan Snyder cheers for the Grinch to keep all the who hash and roast beast and “make Cindy Lou Who starve to death.”**Source: None–he just…
No one relishes disaster.Take that back. No one relishes disaster in their own community. While wary of competition, restaurant owners also know that a popular venue opening nearby helps drive traffic, and traffic means potential profit.Yet sometimes man’s reach exceeds his grasp–a line which we stole from a greeting card…
We started off thinking about innovators, but…well, sometimes innovation comes in the form of foams, deconstruction or other overwrought foods and we didn’t really want to dwell on the subject.But there are always people who shake things, either by nudging us just a little or grabbing the city for a…
The ‘Boys travel to the town Marion Barry built on Sunday evening. Another “fact” about the interns…As a toddler, Redskins defensive end Andre Carter wandered away from his family’s farmhouse and was lost for several years. Raised by cows, he still chews a cud and responds to “prodding.”**Source: We’re almost…
Diners generally care more about the chef than the restaurant owner. After all, you visit Nana for Anthony Bombaci’s brilliant touch rather than for decisions made in some distant Hilton boardroom.Yet the best restaurateurs shape the local scene in more ways than we imagine. They turn worn out buildings into…
Best is a matter of degrees, whether you’re talking about the top chefs over the course of months or years.Certainly this city’s kitchens are staffed with more than competent sorts: Brian Luscher, Jean-Marie Cadot, Marc Cassel, Joel Harloff, Graham Dodds…we could go on and on. So in defining our picks,…
Once Izmir captured all but two points in a stunning performance earlier this year, the Knockers leader board became a race of also-rans…or also-also-rans in this particular three month span.It was, without question, the most lackluster quarter in the storied history of How ‘Bout Them Knockers. Qdoba managed to squeak…
The ‘Boys travel to the den of evil on Sunday evening. A “fact” about the feathered set…Redskins flanker Santana Moss has never been weaned.**Source: Someone who overhead a woman he thought was Moss’ mother speaking about sagging…
Yes, we’re really giving prizes this time.For the quality and–more importantly–quantity of comments that made their way into the non-winners list this year, the following readers have earned some top-notch (the phrase is relative) prizes. We have a collection of cookbooks published this year, as well as a few other…
And now we look ahead…Maybe you want to get back to an old favorite you’ve ignored for awhile. Perhaps you want to try everything on Samar’s menu. Could be you’d prefer to say ‘forget it’ and spend more time cooking at home.We, of course, plan to drink more. It’s our…
This is our final working Friday of the year. The decade, too, I guess.Yep–taking the 25th and 1st off. The 24th and 31st, too. We’re gonna lounge around at home, drink quite a bit and pass out on that futon we hope to buy at Target if we managed to…
You’re sitting in a place and time thinking it could never get more interesting.Recall, for example, the start-up dating service for good-looking people only. Can’t remember the name, but they evaluated your photo and decided whether or not you could join. The idea seems mean-spirited, but in the mid-00s–with the…
You leave any era with some regret. It can’t be helped, really, for there are moments that pass and places that disappear. The vibe inside Sense when it first opened, before crowds moved elsewhere, that brief period of silliness when places from Paris Vendome to Nana began serving Kobe burgers,…
The ‘Boys travel to the Mighty Mississip on Saturday night. Next week we take another look at Washington. For today, a final “fact” about Leveetown and it’s team…Because he is allergic to nutria, Saints running back Reggie Bush dines on faux nutria at team meals. Although it’s smaller and less…
In thinking–and please understand that term in the spirit in which it’s intended–through the past many years, we began to realize that life in the 2000s was a lot of fun…assuming you weren’t, say, in the military, a friend of Bernie Madoff, an employee of an American company, or a…
Every year and every era is subject to fads that seem to pop up out of nowhere and–eventually–fizzle into memory. In the 80s, for instance, there was a short-lived Ethiopian food craze.This is true in every aspect of life (some of us remember 1977 as the year of tube socks)–and…
The ‘Boys travel to the bayou on Saturday night. Another “fact” about the Dolphin wannabes…Saints offensive lineman Jon Stinchcomb consumes up to 30,000 calories per day. As a result, his man-boobs are so spectacular he has 48 pounds of Mardi Gras beads in his collection–from last year alone.**Source: A krewe…
A friend tells me that when she dined at Samar, the waiter was forced to reach around and serve wine from the wrong side—an act for which he apologized in advance. For those who aren’t quite sure what I’m talking about, in formal settings waitstaff are supposed to approach each…
Each week, Pairing Off attempts to find just the right bottle of wine to go with ordinary food.Yes, it’s the season when newspapers, magazines and blogs come up with as many ways as possible to mention eggnog, wassail and fruitcake.Can’t be helped, really. This is the only time of year…
