When Nicole Van Camp was 15 years old, she decided to become a vegetarian based on the grounds of animal cruelty. But she lived in highly carnivorous Carrollton. Unless she wanted to starve, she had to learn to cook. She quickly fell in love with her new life-sustaining hobby. And…
Yesterday the farming trade publication Farm Futures carried a story on the potential rise in beef prices after the recent uproar over pink slime, or LFTB (lean finely textured beef). CattleFax, a beef industry research group, estimates the pink slime news cycle “is costing the U.S. beef industry $15 to…
Today is National Alcohol Screening Day, a day on which almost 1,000 community-based organizations, colleges and military installations will offer free, anonymous screenings to help people determine whether or not they have a drinking problem. The website HowDoYouScore.org is sponsored by another site called “Mental Health Screening,” which, according to…
In 1997, Rocky and Celeste Tassione traded in their urban lives for greener pastures north of Stephenville to grow organic, specialty greens through hydroponic gardening in one lone greenhouse. Their goal was to gather enough business through sales to restaurants to make a living of it. At first, it was…
Chef Nicole’s Secret Supper Clubs are held on Saturday nights at a spot called My Private Chef in Deep Ellum, at the corner Elm and Malcolm X. During the week, Holly Muller uses this place to prepare meals for her private chef business. But on Saturday nights, Chef Nicole Van…
Last week, checking out the scene on the west side of the big fancy new bridge, I noticed a sign on a yellow building one block south of Singelton (400 Bedford) that reads “Coming Soon: Babb Brothers Barbeque & Blues.” The first sign of life in the Trinity Grove development…
This week, the guys at Deep Ellum Brewing Company have been hard at work transforming their backyard into a beer garden. And on Saturday they’ll celebrate their new digs (at 2821 St. Louis St.) with an open house, tour, “general merriment” and a concert with Fish Fry Bingo. For grub,…
Oddfellows restaurant and Dallas Odd Fellows Lodge #44 are hosting an Odd County Fair on Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. at 7th and Madison streets in the Bishop Arts District. The aim of the fair is to raise money for the Sunset High School marching band to make the…
As pink slime walks in shame to the doghouse this week, another important movement that transcends many aspects of the beef and processed-food industries met a milestone. Just Label It, a campaign initiated by Organic Voices, whose aim is to require labels on genetically modified foods, gathered one million signatures…
Victor Tango chef Greg Bussey is a chef’s chef. By that, I mean so many other cooks in Dallas mention Bussey’s tables as one of their favorites to dine at. After meeting the soft-spoken, quick-to-smile chef, it’s easy to understand why. After attending the California Culinary Academy, Bussey spent some…
Deep Ellum Urban Gardens (DUG) is a community-funded garden aimed at providing a little green thumb relief and, eventually, fresh veggies to residents and restaurants around Deep Ellum. Last year they worked hard to raise funds to turn a sedate patch of grass at Canton and Good Latimer into something…
Back in 2010, students at Paul Quinn College, Dallas’ only historically black college, tilled up their football field to create an urban garden in a food desert. Since that time, the “We Over Me Farm” has cultivated over two thousand pounds of corn, squash, greens, tomatoes and other produce for…
Last week, Food & Wine magazine listed what it considers the 25 best burgers in the nation. The nation, okay? So, I’m thinking cattle-speckled Texas has got to be on their fancy list, based on the odds of landmass alone. Plus, there are some pretty solid chefs in the southwest…
Oh, pink slime, where did it all go wrong? Your name alone is gross, your photo induces a gag reflex and, unfortunately, the image has been seared into our brains (for now, anyway). And now grocery stores — including Walmart, where just about everything goes there — are banishing you…
If you happen to be in the area Skillman and Northwest Highway, you may notice a bunch of hoopla over at a new CiCi’s Pizza. This newest member of the chain is celebrating their grand opening, throwing a party with balloons, face painting — the usual crap kids love –…
I love bakers. Not because they smell like brown sugar and cinnamon. Or even because they make superhero birthday cakes. Nope. I love bakers because they’re scrappy. Back in June, the state enacted the Cottage Food Law, allowing home bakers to sell their goods under a few guidelines. Within that…
Yesterday Robert Wilonsky over at the Dallas Morning News (that feels like putting a shoe on the wrong foot) reported on a fast-tracked code issue aimed at easing restrictions on Dallas microbreweries. As it stands now, these small independent brewers are relegated to “heavy industrial” zones and in order to…
The James Beard Foundation on Monday announced its finalists for its highly coveted culinary awards, and included in the category for Best Chef in the Southwest was Bruno Davaillon of Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek. Originally from Loire Valley in France, Davaillon joined the Mansion in 2009 after a globetrotting…
Originally from Akron, Ohio, Patrick Stark, chef at Sundown at Granada, enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America fresh out of high school at 17 years of age, partially because he just wanted the get the hell outta town. He’s worked throughout the United States, a few spots in Europe…
Recently I found myself at the register of a Pinkberry with a pretty swirl of coconut frozen yogurt topped off with a load of sticker shock. “It’s just one small,” I said upon seeing the price, gesturing behind me that I was alone and wondering how many swirls she just…
As we’ve mentioned before, the White Rock Local Market is a great place to buy local produce from local farmers, which might sound locally redundant but unfortunately it isn’t always. This community-inspired market is held the second and fourth Saturdays at the Green Spot, at 702 North Buckner Blvd. This…
With St. Patty’s Day behind us and spring break in the books, summer is just around the corner, which means it’s time to get serious about our curvy figures. One of the worst offenders to the best of all diet plans is alcohol. Not only for the calories within each…
