Adventurous Tastes

I Heart Pork

2012-02-14T20:43:00.000-05:00

A Valentine's message from the Saskatchewan Pork Industry!

Restaurant Review: Alma Cocina

2012-02-13T21:35:00.002-05:00

Since two of my favorite neighborhood restaurants, La Tavola and El Taco, are both in the Fifth Group stable, I sit up and pay attention when they open something new. So I was thrilled when they invited us in for a media preview dinner shortly after opening. Despite a tough location - the old Il Molino space in a downtown office building (191 Peachtree Tower) - Alma Cocina lived up to my fairly

News Roundup Gets Baked

2012-02-09T19:41:00.003-05:00

Food & Wine released its list of nominees for "The People's Best New Pastry Chef." Miller Union's own pastry chef, Pamela Moxley, made the list of nominees from the East region. Head on over to Food & Wine's website to cast your vote. Edit: How could I have missed Empire State South's Cynthia Wong, who also made the list?! Now you've got a real decision to make! Is Chipotle the Apple of fast

Georgia Says "Ciao" to Olive Oil

2012-02-08T22:12:00.003-05:00

Valdosta or Val d'Aosta? When I learned recently that Valdosta, Georgia, is named for Italy's beautiful Val d'Aosta, I had to assume that Valdosta's founders had never been to northern Italy. Val d'Aosta is a spectacular Alpine valley, full of picturesque villages framed by dramatic, snow-capped peaks. Valdosta, Georgia, is known for high school football and signifying that you're almost to

Atlanta Chef's Expo - Feb. 19

2012-02-07T17:25:00.000-05:00

A mere 24 hours before I celebrate the day of my birth, you can start celebrating early at the inaugural Atlanta Chef's Expo benefiting the Atlanta branch of the recently controversial Susan G. Komen for the cure. According to event founders Alisha Nesbitt and Cheryl Hasting, “It is our goal to create an affordable, family-friendly environment for event goers to enjoy some of the city’s finest

Super Bowl Sunday Eats

2012-02-02T20:51:00.001-05:00

Commercial Madonna Football-lovers rejoice, Sunday brings the match up of the hunky Tom Brady and the boring Manning brother (what? I never claimed to actually like football!). Since clearly I'm not there for the sports, it's all about the snacks. Here's a roundup of some of the tastiest Super Bowl eats ideas from around the web: Photo credit: Moi Cody Dips Jalapeno Popper Dip Buffalo Chicken

Valentine's Day Fifth Group Style

2012-02-01T21:57:00.000-05:00

Can you hear that? It's the sound of hearts aflutter, roses blooming and wallets opening. That's right V-day is right around the corner and tables are filling up fast. Want to wow your honey? Book now to avoid last minute heart ache or a romantic dinner at Waffle House. Or just use our trick and eat out the weekend before to avoid all the steep prix fixing! But if you want the real deal February

Is Pinterest the Greatest Social Media Cookbook Ever?

2012-01-31T21:35:00.000-05:00

Pinterest is one of the Internet's hottest sites. If you've already joined, your daily inbox has probably filled with notifications of new Pinterest followers, re-pins and likes. There are plenty of reasons to share the random gems unearthed during your daily web surfing. Not only can your friends (and perfect strangers) see what interests you, you can see what your friends are finding online

Mourad: New Moroccan takes Atlanta

2012-01-30T19:51:00.001-05:00

Chef Mourad Lahlou, chef/owner of Michelin-starred San Francisco restaurant, Aziza, and the previous winner Iron Chef American has been a bit of a moment. His new cookbook Mourad: New Moroccan has garnered oodles of praise with a the nice little write up in the NY Times, and Bon Appetit named his it one of the year's best cookbooks. Not a bad year! Woodfire's Chef Kevin Gillespie and Chef

Food Entrepreneurs: NaturAlmond Almond Butter

2012-01-23T21:43:00.002-05:00

NaturAlmond Almond Butter is the brainchild of Atlanta entrepreneur Jaime Foster, who couldn't find a store-bought substitute for the nutritious and tasty almond butter that her grandfather used to make. Using only almonds and sea salt, Jaime set out to re-create her grandfather's finely-honed recipe. Jaime was kind enough to give us a sneak-peek of her creation. I'd not tasted almond butter

Travel Dining Itineraries: San Francisco Edition

2012-01-23T18:41:00.001-05:00

My little brother has the travel bug just like me, so he was kind enough to offer up the second installment of Travel Dining Itineraries from his recent trip to San Francisco: House of Prime Rib - Nob Hill - Traditional steakhouse featuring several decadent sides such as Yorkshire pudding in addition to, you guessed it, prime rib served in a variety of cuts to suit your appetite. Swan Oyster

These are a few of my favorite things...

2012-01-19T20:19:00.000-05:00

You know you're having a bad day when finding out that your favorite lunch special has sold out (at 12:45 no less!) makes you cry. Yep, I am so totally crankypants that there was weeping and no small amount of swearing after that little lunchtime disappointment (never fear, I did not do either in public). So I figure I need some cheering up. Here is a list of things that make me happy. Bibimbap

Living Social's New Foodie Experiences Launches in Atlanta

2012-01-18T20:53:00.001-05:00

There are no shortage of daily deals these days. Who can be bothered to wade through a sea of seaweed wraps and oil changes to find that occasional gem? Now at least you can have easy access to unique culinary experiences (and no I don't mean half off a sandwich). You surely know LivingSocial. Now meet their newly launching Gourmet, which provides members with access to high-end, exclusive food

Ron Eyester's Beatles Themed James Beard Preview Dinner at Rosebud - Jan. 24.

2012-01-12T21:33:00.000-05:00

Atlanta's own Angry Chef, Ron Eyester, of Rosebud and Family Dog will be cooking on February 16 at the James Beard House in NYC. I used to be a member of the Beard House back in my NYC days, and basically they offer amazing, intimate dinners with some of the nation's top chef on a regular basis. So this is an honor for Eyester and some good hype for Atlanta! Interested in experiencing it but

Travel Dining Itineraries: Pacific Northwest Edition

2012-01-10T21:46:00.000-05:00

I spend hours researching restaurants before I go on a vacation, heck, even a business trip. Then I tend to be shall we say negligent about writing about my travel dining experiences after the fact. Lest my hard work go completely unappreciated, I thought I'd start an occasional series in which I share with you the fruits of my labors. To get things started, if you're heading to Washington or

Holiday Leftovers

2012-01-09T20:35:00.006-05:00

The cellar at Castello Banfi Winery, near Montalcino, Italy With the Holiday season behind us, a few gripes to file under "first-world problems." First, leftovers. I don't have any gripe about leftovers - in fact, they are one of the best parts of any holiday meal. But sometimes throwing that turkey and stuffing in the microwave leaves a bit to be desired. One solution? Meatballs.

Where the 1% eats

2012-01-05T22:32:00.000-05:00

Interesting read from Grub Street. Makes me wonder where Atlanta's 1% eats. Clearly it's not at fancy places since Bacchanalia is about all we have left. My guess? Houston's! http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2012/01/one-percent-eating-habits-analysis.html

Healthy Recipe: Eggs in Purgatory

2012-01-03T23:10:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year! Like everyone else, I'm on a health(ier) kick right now. We had some leftover potatoes, so this hearty yet fairly healthy recipe for Eggs in Purgatory caught my eye. Weird name for a recipe, right? Uova in Purgatorio, the original Italian name, sounds less ominous but much harder to pronounce! This take on the Italian classic ditches most of the naughty carbs. Eggs in Purgatory

Atlanta New Year's Dining Options

2011-12-30T17:42:00.000-05:00

Ok, so you probably made your New Year's Eve plans weeks ago. But if you're a procrastinator, you're scrambling right about now to come up with a plan. If the number of press releases I'm still receiving about NYE dining options are any indication, there are seats still available. I for one have never wanted to venture out into the holiday fray since my New Year's 2008/2009 disaster at the now

Besha's Favorite Dishes of the Year

2011-12-28T10:08:00.000-05:00

Besha over at Omnivore published a list of the best 9 things she ate this year. Sad to say I've only had one of them - No. 246's porchetta sandwich, which I covered in my own fawning way. Really must try those sweetbreads and the egg on rice soon! Also clear that I'm not reading other food news enough as I completely missed the M. Wells dinner in October and I am one of the .004% who has been

News Roundup Wishes You a Merry Christmas

2011-12-22T22:58:00.007-05:00

The New York Times brought together a great collection of Christmas recipes--everything from Grouper to Gingerbread--with accompanying anecdotes, as told by NYT's dining writers. Worth a read even if you've already got a favorite, like mom's rum cake. Too full of egg nog to work in the kitchen? Creative Loafing's Cliff Bostock paid a visit to venerable Rhodes Bakery. Famous for its cheese

Hannukah Festivities and Dining

2011-12-20T21:48:00.001-05:00

Shalom, y'all. Eight crazy nights kickoff today...menorahs, latkas and dreidel, oh my! Read to get your baruch ata on? Here are some festive ideas... Ever wonder what Chanukah, Chanukkah, or Chanuka Hannukah is all about (other than multiple spellings)? Rock out and learn the story from Yeshiva's Maccabeats. Love these guys! John Kessler gets his Jew on by making latkas. Make your own

New Year's Eve Dining: Travel to Paris 1898 at Restaurant Eugene

2011-12-15T19:55:00.001-05:00

I just referenced yesterday the crazy cool thematic dining Achatz has going in Chicago. One of the earlier incarnations to his Chicago restaurant was Escoffier's Paris. We may have missed out on that, but now we can get a similar time traveling experience at Restaurant Eugene this New Year's Eve! NYE is that most stressful of holidays - so much pressure to have fun, right? Well I can't think of

News Roundup: December 13, 2012

2011-12-13T21:48:00.000-05:00

Just back from a day trip to Chicago, where instead of delicious deep dish pizza or high concept delights, I ate at Chi-town headquartered McDonald's...at the airport...after my flight was cancelled...for the second week business trip in a row. Not my idea of good eating! So on to more interesting news... I've long heard rumblings of discontent about Robert Parker's power in the wine biz. Now

Moroccan Takeover at Woodfire Grill

2011-12-08T22:46:00.000-05:00

Pastilla and tagine-cooked lamb probably aren’t the first things that come to mind with you think about Chef Kevin Gillespie’s Woodfire Grill, but for at least one night a select few will get to get to sample the incredibly delicious and distinctive cuisine of Morocco in celebration of Mourad Lahlou’s cookbook, Mourad: New Moroccan. The dinner will feature hors d'oeuvres followed by four