Mike Mozart has some ideas on how to put the trick into tonight's Halloween treats.

I hesitate to poke at this hornet's nest, but what the hell. We need the site visitors. A couple of weeks ago, Waiter Rant (a must read, if you never have) posted a letter, ostensibly from a U.S. waiter to the prime minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, bitching about [...]

Deb Gottesman sounds like a sensitive soul. She requests that I not pick on her, if somehow I find her submission not up to snuff for our Shill for Your Favorite Restaurant feature. Gosh, I feel like I need an anger management course. No worries, Deb. Everything is cool. Thanks for the submission. (Also, don't [...]

Tim and Nina Zagat, the couple behind the wildly successful Zagat guides, argued yesterday in the Wall Street Journal that the restaurant biz will survive the economic downtown (can we call it a recession yet?). Their argument was forcefully made, based on historical data, tax laws, and social trends. But they overlooked one important factor: [...]

I made this salad in September when my local farmers market was overflowing with tomatoes. I know I should be thinking of squashes and pears and mushrooms and game and apples, but I really miss my tomatoes. Already.

The local food boards are starting to light up over a rumor that Bread & Chocolate (and maybe Ben & Jerry's) on Capitol Hill will be closing. I've tried call B&C several times, but the lines are busy, busy, busy! Calls to B&J are rolling straight into voicemail.
More as we know it.
In the meantime, let's [...]

The prevailing wisdom goes something like this: If you want the best barbecue the area has to offer, you must drive down to Southern Maryland. Two weeks ago, the wife, some friends, and I did just that, taking two separate vehicles to Bear Creek Open Pit BBQ in Callaway, which is just a few miles [...]

This Food Network segment on how to make candy corn brought back some fond childhood memories. I always ate my corn from the top down, one colorful segment at a time. It was a psychological tactic more than anything. I wanted to extend my eating pleasure for as long as possible. Frankly, I still employ [...]

Erin Connealy from Mt. Pleasant was the first to respond to our Shill for Your Favorite Restaurant feature. Erin's obviously a teacher's pet, because she followed directions perfectly, even if she needs to learn how to spell "their." Her PR pitches are unedited.

Food & Wine magazine (hey, no hard feelings for not hiring me!) has a creepy slide show on its home page breaking down the world's seven scariest dishes. I have to admit, it's the best food-oriented Halloween feature I've seen so far this year. (Aside to F&W editors: So you're liking my tone now, aren't [...]

Does anyone really think dressing up as a taco or a banana or a PEZ dispenser is a good idea for a Halloween costume? Halloween is all about creativity–and free candy. C'mon, folks. Use your imagination. Going as a piece of meat is just a bad idea on all fronts. Going as a walking product [...]

So the City Paper may be part of a bankrupt chain and we may be guilty of a bankrupt form of alternative journalism, but we can still sell burgers, dammit!
The "Free Burger Day" coupon in this week's issue has generated a long line of freeloaders today looking to cash in at Z-Burger, the Tenleytown joint [...]

I've heard people don't trust publicists. Weird thing, I know. But people don't even seem to trust the people, either, given that they still invest a ton of time reading, absorbing, and responding to professional food critics (for which I'm eternally grateful, believe me) instead of trusting the opinions of all those bloggers out there [...]

After all the kooky fad diets that have had Americans first swearing off meat, then consuming nothing but, it's interesting to read that city governments are coming back around to good, old-fashioned calorie counting. At least if you're a major restaurant chain.
Here are the nut grafs from the New York Times' piece this morning in [...]

Okay, the millionaire multi-media toque doesn't personally need help your help, but Courtney Balestier, associate editor at Everyday With Rachael Ray magazine, does. She called me to find out what D.C. bars (she'll accept restaurant bars but really wants bar bars) still serve free snacks along with their beer, wine, and distilled spirits. I have [...]