Evel Knievel RIP

Evel Knievel is dead at age 69. Part of my childhood died along with him and, if you grew up in the 1970s, you probably know what I mean.

Last Call... for Submissions That Is

There's a ton of great stuff on tap for the upcoming, all-new THG #11: The Coffee Issue, which I hope to have pulled together and out before the end of 2007.

That said I'm making one last call for contributions. I'm especially looking for coffee-centric contributions including: coffee and coffeeshop reviews; recipes for coffee drinks, dishes to enjoy with coffee, or dishes that use coffee as an ingredient; tales of why you love or loathe coffee... you get the picture.

Don't like coffee? Don't want to write about coffee? That's okay, too. I'm always open to restaurant reviews, recipes, foodie gushing, travel diaries, tales of drunken debauchery, cool photos or whatever floats your boat.

Final, drop-deadline for contributions is Friday, December 7, 2007. Contributions should be no more than 750-1000 words for articles, 500 words for reviews.

If you have any questions, please e-mail me at editor@hungovergourmet.com.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork

Today's my 41st (gulp) birthday and while I had originally planned to make one of my favorite dishes – a nice roast chicken, sauteed brussels sprouts, brown rice – Chris said that she would pick up BBQ from Andy Nelson's on her way home from work. Considering it has been kind of a shitty week I wasn't about to say "no."

With the weather getting colder and making homemade pulled pork a time-consuming exercise, I've been looking for some ways to speed up or ease the process. Check out this recipe for Crock Pot Pulled Pork, which I'll definitely be trying as the NFL playoffs get closer.

Coffee Good. Starbucks Bad?

Going away this holiday season? Make sure you can still get an independent cup of coffee by punching your destination zip code into Delocator. It'll also help you find other indie-minded establishments wherever you're going.

Emeril Has Left the Building

I'll admit that when I first got The Food Network I really enjoyed watching Essence of Emeril, the non-audience one-man show that focused on cooking, not catchphrases, celeb guests and Doc Gibbs and his band. I even used to watch Emeril Live when it first premiered and found myself the envy of some fellow food lovers that couldn't see the show or had wives that wouldn't let them watch the show.

How times change. These days I'd rather watch Bobby Flay develop a secret recipe in his kitchen with the help of two assistants and a limitless budget so he can spring it on some diner owner or recipe contest winner.

Pretty soon I won't have to make that choice. Contract negotiations between Emeril Lagasse and the network he turned into a household name have broken down and production on Emeril Live will end on December 11. The network maintains that Lagasse will remain part of the family but wasn't that what they were saying around the time they booted Mario Batale out the door?

For more on this stay tuned to TVFoodFan.com which I'm sure will have all the baking, er, breaking news.

Farewell Thanksgiving

Finished up the last of our Thanksgiving leftovers this afternoon for lunch. You know what? If I'm gonna put on five pounds in five days that's the way to do it.

Of course, we have another ten pound bird in the freezer just waiting for the right opportunity.

I Just Want to Use "Monkey Meat" in a Headline

The tribal customs of West African immigrants have come under fire after a New York resident has been charged with "meat smuggling."

Three days later, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents were at Manneh's door, where she told them she ran a smoked fish importing business.

According to the agents, she initially denied ordering any bushmeat from Africa or ever eating it while in the United States.

But after she consented to a search, the agents came across a tiny, hairy arm hidden in her garage.

"Monkey," she explained, claiming the arm was sent to her out of the blue "as a gift from God in heaven."

Shopping for the Gourmet in Your Life: THG's Holiday Tip #1

Now that Thanksgiving is behind us it's time to turn our attention to the gift-giving season that's rapidly approaching. For the last couple years I've made suggestions of various stocking stuffers for your food- and drink-loving friends and family and this year is no exception.

Over the next few weeks I'll be sharing some great items that I've enjoyed (or am currently enjoying) as well as some stuff I'd love to try.

First up, though, is my recommendation for a great on-line gourmet goodies shop. Back in September I was desperately searching around to find Vosges gourmet chocolate bars for Chris's birthday. The company's own website was out of the most intriguing ones – like the Bacon Bar – and with the new addition to the family it wasn't as easy to parade all over town looking for a retailer that carried them.

After much looking around I finally discovered The Meadow, a Portland-based gourmet shop specializing in salt, chocolate and wine that also had an on-line store. I had some questions about the bars and the response I got was friendly and informative. I ordered the items and they were shipped quickly and well-packed, arriving in plenty of time for gift giving.

The website is informative without being pretentious and prices are in line with what you'll pay elsewhere on the web.

Our Thanksgiving Bird

Here's a shot of our Thanksgiving turkey, fresh out of the oven and resting before being carved using this great method from the NY Times website. It's pretty close to what I've done in previous years, but I had not used their method for carving the breast. Definitely made life a bit easier and the large hunks of breast meat seemed well-received.

You'd Need a Lot of Corn Meal...

One of my favorite ways to prepare catfish is the Oven-Fried recipe from Cooking Light. I just wonder how much corn meal you'd need for this 8-foot giant catfish caught in the waters of Cambodia.

1/2 cup light beer
1/2 cup hot sauce
4 (6-ounce) farm-raised catfish fillets
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray

Combine first 3 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal and marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes. Remove fish from bag; pat dry with paper towels. Discard marinade.

Preheat oven to 450°. Combine cornmeal, cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge fish in cornmeal mixture.

Lightly coat fish with cooking spray. Place fish on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, and bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Happy T-Day

Quick Happy Thanksgiving wishes to all our readers. I planned to get up early this morning and crank out a post or two but last night I got into the Smoking Loon Cabernet and the Ravenswood Zinfandel which went nicely with the underrated FLIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and some episodes from the BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES VOLUME 1 box set.

So I'm copping out with today's post. The turkey needs to be in the oven by noon and I still need to tidy up the house and check out something for a client. Might be a bonus post later but it all depends on how many plates of sleepy I have.

Cheers!

Phila. Foodie Pairs Wine with Turkey

I often miss Pennsylvania, the state where I went to college, saw many bands and movies, and lived off-and-on for about ten years. Great cities, great food, cool clubs... there are many things to recommend about places like Philly, Doylestown and Pittsburgh.

But one thing I don't miss about PA is its draconian liquor control laws. When I was living there, you had to purchase beer by the case and that was at an authorized beer distributor which usually wasn't open on Sundays. (I hear through the grapevine that some distribs are allowed to be open on Sundays now.) In places like Philly, corner markets were allowed to sell singles and six-packs but your choices there were usually limited to the Buds, Millers, Old Germans, and Knickerbockers of the world. You get the picture.

Want wine or liquor? That required yet another stop, this time at one of the lovely state-run liquor stores (colorlessly known as State Stores). Brightly lit and usually staffed by less-than-helpful employees, it's no wonder many PA residents openly flaunt the laws and drive to New Jersey to shop at specialty liquor stores where the sky's the limit. (I should know. While living in Doylestown it wasn't uncommon for me to drive over to Stockton to visit Phillips' Fine Wines.)

There was one thing I did enjoy about PA's Liquor Control Board, though. They would crank out wine and liquor marketing materials like they were going out of style. Just about every trip (and we're talking about a time in my life when said trips occurred two or three times a week) resulted in some new magazine, handout or chart that would heighten and/or simplify my booze purchases.

In fact, I still have a folder somewhere stuffed with the PLCB's monthly magazine (which always featured drink and appetizer recipes) and charts telling me what wine I should pair with my White Castle hamburgers.

I'm glad to see the PLCB is still at it. Phila. Foodie recently posted this year's version of the chart – luckily, it appears they're not simply recycling past charts – and just in the nick of time. I'm just about ready for Thanksgiving but I haven't had time to make a wine run. In addition to the handy dandy chart (which confirmed my plan to get some Zinfandel), Phila. Foodie added their own picks for specific bottles, most priced under $20.

No Shit... Taiwan's Toilet Bowl-Themed Eateries

Rarely am I speechless, but this clip of diners at a Taiwan-based restaurant called 'Modern Toilet' might have succeeded. According to Reuters this but one of a dozen such "eateries" in the area.

Give That Bird a Brew!

My parents weren't drinkers so I was well into my 20s before I recall having booze with my Thanksgiving dinner. Now I can't picture settling down to a big plate of sleepy without a nice porter or a glass, okay bottle, of red wine.

But beer isn't just for drinking this holiday season. Beer Advocate has posted a bunch of recipes featuring beer that you might want to give a try.

And here's another beer-based recipe that has been floating around my recipe collection for ages...

Swiss Beer Soup
The Hungover Gourmet loves cheese... almost as much as he loves beer! So, what better mix of wintertime faves than a semi-authentic German soup with massive stick-to-your-ribs flavor?

3 tbsp. butter
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup toasted French bread cubes
2 bottles good dark beer (we always enjoy a Yuengling Porter)
3 cups low salt chicken broth
1 tbsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
2 cups Swiss cheese, shredded
1 tsp. hot Hungarian paprika

Open one of the bottles of beer and take a drink. In your medium soup kettle heat the butter until hot but not burning. Add onion and cook over medium high heat until soft. Drink some more beer. Add garlic, bread cubes, beer and chicken stock. Bring to a boil while you preheat the broiler and finish off that first beer. Stir in the parsley and cook for an additional five minutes (if using fresh parsley use 2 tbsp. and only cook for 2 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in black pepper. Ladle into bowls and top with cheese...dust with hot paprika. Place under broiler until cheese is hot, bubbly and brown. Serves 4-6.

Farewell to a Flea Market Favorite

I don't do as many yard sales and flea markets as I used to. Spending two weeks clearing out the house my parents lived in for 40+ years saw to that. But when I did spend countless hours pouring over crates of 25¢ records and shelves of musty books (10¢ for paperbacks, 25¢ for hardbacks) there were certain things you were almost assured of seeing at each stop.

In the world of records it was 'Whipped Cream & Other Delights' by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass. I don't know if this record sold so many copies because of its erotically-charged cover (a voluptuous model covered in, what else?, whipped cream) or a hit song, but it seemed like everybody – my parents excluded – had a copy. Sorry, my folks were busy cornering the market on Mitch Miller records (I still have a soft spot for 'em) and those Ed Sullivan Broadway show LPs. According to a chronology on this website Alpert sold 13.7 million copies in a 12-month period.

We would always laugh and say it wasn't a true flea market trip until you stumbled upon a copy of this 60s classic of LP design, sometimes finding multiple copies at each and every stop along our route. In fact, the image is so iconic that artists from comedian Pat Cooper to Soul Asylum re-visited the concept for their own records. (For more on 'Whipped Cream' knock-offs check out this blog post.)

On the book side, though, the clear winner was Peg Bracken and 'The I Hate to Cook Book.' Bracken, a Portland copywriter, wrote her best-selling (3 million copies) book back in 1960 and far from telling housewives and amateur cooks to slave away with obscure ingredients and confusing methods she encouraged the use of canned items and the wonders of covering your mistakes with mushroom soup. Think Sandra Lee for the pre-Beatle era.

I saw so many copies of this book over the years that I could spot one on a shelf or in a bin from 30 paces. While most of my cookbooks remain in storage, I'm pretty sure I have two or three copies of Bracken's classic tome thanks to my habit of buying bulk lots over the years.

Sadly, I just found out this morning that Bracken died back in late October. The author solicited friends for recipes and pulled the whole 'I Hate' project together, but found difficulty in securing a publisher for the manuscript. Apparently, publishers regarded cooking as highly serious business and felt women wouldn't take kindly to the flip attitude Bracken brought to the kitchen.

The success of the book led to follow-ups like 'The I Hate to Housekeep Book' (which I've also spotted, though not as frequently as her kitchen classic) and made Bracken an authority of kitchen resourcefulness.

I can't say that I've ever consulted one of her books or made a recipe from its pages, but seeing Bracken's best-seller in a cold thrift store was like running in to an old friend.

Hamburger Bliss

Sorry folks. Got a screaming baby on my hands so we're keeping this one short. Jeffrey Steingarten may be an annoying, pompous judge on Iron Chef but he's also an excellent food writer for Vogue. Unfortunately, Vogue doesn't put his pieces on-line so here's a link to a Yahoo food blog with the Steingarten scoop.

It's My Time to Shine

It should come as no surprise that when the holidays arrive – not to mention the excess drinking that goes hand-in-hand with family gatherings, holiday parties and work shindigs – it's The Hungover Gourmet's time to shine.

These days, though, I'm much more wizened expert than out-of-control participant and frequently find myself chatting with radio show hosts about how best to soften or avoid the dreaded morning after hangover.

Wired's How-To Wiki also has a short feature about how to "manage" your holiday hangover.

Punish the Person, Not the Whiskey

I stumbled upon this story last night and I'm surprised it hasn't gotten more play in the press. A raid earlier this month netted Tennessee officials 2,400 bottles of Jack Daniels whiskey, some as old as 100 years.

Because some of the bottles may not legally be sold in the state – including bottles designated for overseas sales or bottles with broken seals – there's a good chance the rare liquor could be, gulp, poured down the drain.

Due to the age of the items, it's not just the whiskey that's valuable. Some of the antique bottles would bring top dollar on the collector's market and investigators are looking into whether the bottles were being sold for their value, not the whiskey's.

As Kyle MacDonald (aka The Red Paper Clip Guy) says, "Punish the person, not the whiskey."

Would You Like Some Replacements with Your Burger?

Usually you go into a fast food joint and the most you'll get with your burger is some fries, a soft drink or maybe a cool toy. Starting this week Wendy's is trying to change all that by giving away free downloads on Rhapsody when you buy a medium- or large-sized combo meal. Plus, you get a chance to enter the “Combo Up to Download” sweepstakes for a chance to win a 50 song download bundle or a SanDisk Sansa e280R Rhapsody mp3 player.

Might I suggest using that free download code to listen to something from The Replacements? That way you can enjoy your Wendy's meal, listen to the 'Mats and read your copy of ALL OVER BUT THE SHOUTING: An Oral History of The Replacements all at the same time.

Sorry fellow Mac users. No Rhapsody player software for Mac or Linux so we're screwed. Again. And by the way, is it possible the "Tim Quirk" whose byline graces the Replacements bio linked to above is the same Tim Quirk who sings lead vocals for Too Much Joy?

Why Not Call it 'Butter and Cream'?

I don't subscribe to a lot of cooking magazines. In fact, up until recently 'Cooking Light' was the only one I read with any regularity, though I did check out the occasional issue of 'Gourmet' or 'Saveur'.

But we decided to sign up for a subscription to 'Food & Wine' after reading an issue somewhere along the way. We received our first issue yesterday and it couldn't be any further from the content you'd find in an issue of 'Cooking Light'.

Each of the first couple recipes I read required such ingredients as butter (and lots of it), cups of heavy cream, and thick sliced bacon. Granted, they'd probably be the best Creamy Potatoes with Bacon or Hot, Buttered Cauliflower Puree I'd ever have, but something tells me I won't be making a ton of recipes from these pages.

Airport Eating Tips for Holiday Travelers

If you're anything like me you hate the very thought of eating in an airport. Frankly, I'd rather do almost anything with my time than fly somewhere (my brother and I were just discussing the "subway of the skies" today), but there are occasions when it's just not feasible to drive to, say, Las Vegas. Or Seattle. If I end up in an airport and have to eat something I'll usually grab a Fig Newton and a Starbucks coffee and hope that'll hold me till I can get some real food in my stomach.

If you're traveling this holiday season and want to eat something other than a Big Mac or tempt the fates by having Taco Bell before you get on a plane, here are some tips from nutrition experts.

Though I do wonder about the guy who recommends filling an Altoids box with some loose almonds. Has this joker been through a security checkpoint recently?

Leg Check Profile Inspection

As seen while traveling up I-95 last weekend. Click for the full image.

Is It Appropriate...?

Is it appropriate to wear green to a funeral? That's what I'm pondering this AM as I get ready to put on my Jaws throwback and drive down to FedEx Field for today's Eagles/Redskins game. At least the sun's out, temps should be in the high 40s, and we'll be tailgating with some chicken, cold cuts, cool beverages, homemade potato salad, chips and dip.

Each game brings us closer and closer to the end of the McNabb Era (and Reid Era?) in Philly and a loss today could put a final, resounding nail in the coffin of the Eagles' season, dropping them to 3-6 and no wins through four division games. With a second half schedule that includes three "winnable games" (and I use that term loosely) at home against Miami, Seattle and Buffalo and four potential disasters against Dallas, Giants, Saints and (shudder) the Patriots on national TV, I fear the Eagle Faithful is in for a long, unpleasant remainder of the season.

What I've Been Listening To... Saturday Edition

I've been up since 5 AM working on a client project that I just wrapped. I have to admit that while I once resisted iTunes I'm now a full-time fan and love being able to just put the thing on shuffle and have it pick from the nearly 8000 songs I have loaded.

Here's what was offered up lately:

• Peek-A-Boo – Devo
• The Brotherhood of AlWazah – Radio Birdman
• Vagabond Dog – Naked Raygun (who knew there was a new DVD out?)
  
• Drag On – Luxury Pushers
  
• Heroin Geek – Ultraviolet Eye
• Metal on Metal – Kraftwerk
• Tiny Dancer – Elton John
• Modern Love – David Bowie
• Give Up – Gaunt
• Step into the Light – Afghan Whigs

Recent Downloads:

• Challengers – New Pornographers
• Living with the Living – Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
• Countdown – Pulp

I downloaded the first two discs because they're getting a lot of acclaim as being among the best albums (do we still call them that?) of the year. I like about half of the last New Pornographers release, but I really liked that half so I'm willing to give this new one a go. I know I've heard a Ted Leo song here and there on a compilation but I didn't have any albums until now.

As for Pulp, Edgar Wright closed his radio guest spot with them the other day but the MP3 of the show cut off before the song started. Plus, eMusic gave it a write up in their best of indie pop article (or something like that, again, I've been up since 5 and I'm too lazy to go look). I only got the first disc of the set but if it's any good I'll pick up the other next month.

Rachel Ray vs. Tony Bourdain

Rachel Ray was on my old stomping grounds this week while Anthony Bourdain was just a short hop, skip and a jump down 95 in DC. I saw neither of their appearances but TV Food Fan led me to the following:

Here's a recap of Ray's visit to the Moorestown Mall, where I bought many awful outfits at Chess King store and read snippets of Mack Bolan novels in their bookstore.

Bourdain, meanwhile, was at the Smithsonian talking about his new book and dissing celebrity chefs. He also provided his hangover cure which, while partially illegal, I present here for the sake of reportage:

Roll a really good joint and huff that before you get out of bed. Then have a cold Coca-Cola. Then have something like cold Kung Pao chicken or some very spicy leftovers. The trilogy of opulence.

Louis Tackles the McRib

Friend of THG Louis Fowler is at it again. A couple weeks ago he beat us to the (several year old) punch by trying the KFC Leftover, er, Famous Bowl. Now he's back and tackling the mighty McRib. I'm not sure whether to end this by saying "God bless him" or "pray for his soul."

Eggheads, NASA Working to Prevent "Red Wine Headache"?

I have certainly had a red wine hangover but this article on the Wired web site talks about the "red wine headache" like it's something everybody has...

The effects are all too familiar: a fancy dinner, some fine wine and then, a few hours later, a racing heart and a pounding headache. But a device developed by University of California, Berkeley, researchers could help avoid the dreaded "red wine headache."

Chemists working with NASA-funded technology designed to find life on Mars have created a device they say can easily detect chemicals that many scientists believe can turn wine and other beloved indulgences into ingredients for agony.

Personally, I'm far more familiar with the "cheap white wine" headache, which I seem to get every time I drink a bottle of white wine that costs less than $10 a bottle. And I know that The Hungover Gourmet circa 1988 would have killed for something that would dull the headache caused by mixing boxed white wine and Mountain Dew. Over ice.

Vote in 2007 Weblog Awards, Support THG Pals

The 2007 Weblog Awards are up and while it would be wrong of me to tell you who to vote for, is it wrong for me to tell you who I voted for? And to strongly encourage you to do the same? Nah.

I only voted in two categories because, as far as I know, those are the only categories where I have a rooting interest. In the category of Best Literature Blog be sure to strongly consider our good friends at Bookgasm. Editor Rod Lott is an old friend from the world of zines and his entertainment and pop culture mag Hitch is (was?) one of the best. Plus, THG and ER contributor Louis Fowler writes a regular column for the site.

Over on the food side of things, Rachel from Food Maven also does a recipe blog called Coconut & Lime. The ranks of Baltimore food bloggers seems to be growing all the time and it'd be great to see one of our own hoist the top prize.

I think voting ends this Thursday, November 8, 2007 so be sure to get over and be counted. You can vote once every 24 hours from your computer.

Betty Crocker's Warm Delights

Admittedly, "Betty Crocker's Warm Delights" sounds like something that would be nominated for an award at the next Adult Video News banquet. When, in reality, they're like having an Easy Bake Oven without going to all the trouble of actually buying one.

I'll be honest, I'm not much of a dessert guy or sweet eater. In fact, I'm almost 41 years old and college educated yet I still had to look up whether "dessert" had one "s" or two. Sad. But I do like the occasional dessert, like a low-fat pudding or a huge hunk of tiarmasu from Vaccaro's in Baltimore.

When we first spotted Betty's Warm Delights on tv, though, I was immediately intrigued. How exactly was I going to bake this warm cake in my microwave? Luckily, Chris jumped at the chance to give them a try, too, so I grabbed a couple varieties – Molten Chocolate and Molten Caramel – and brought them home from the store.

Now, I've never actually used an Easy Bake Oven, but I'm guessing these things work on somewhat the same principle. You have a little microwaveable bowl, some cake mix and a packet of goo (chocolate or caramel). You add a few tablespoons of water to the mix and stir it up. Then you snip the end from a goo pack, squeeze it atop the batter and pop the whole thing in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds.

What comes out is something like a hot bowl of cake with some melted chocolate – or caramel – sitting atop it. The end result wasn't all that earth-shatteringly great, though the fact that they're only 150 calories per bowl makes them a somewhat fun, slightly interactive treat.

On our second go round with them, we upped the ante a bit. I got the bright idea that something cool is often good with something warm, so I made the bowls and topped them with a couple tablespoons of Fat Free Devil's Food Pudding. A few more calories but I'll be damned if they weren't a whole lot better.

I'm a Baaaaad Blogger

Should I consider my Nablopomo participation a failure because I only made it three days? Unfortunately, by the time we got home from my nephew's wedding yesterday we'd logged nine hours in the car in two days, six of those hours yesterday along the stressful stretches known as The Garden State Parkway and I-95.

We got home just in time to watch the Eagles mail it in against the Cowboys, eat a Wawa hoagie, and collapse. Meaning that the last thing on my mind was jumping on-line and blogging.

Ah well, I'll keep it going for the rest of the month and consider this minor hiccup one of the pitfalls of such an experiment.

Restaurant Roundup: Corner Stable & Bistro 14

Headed off to my nephew's wedding. In the meantime, here's a few quickie restaurant reviews to hold you over until I return.

Corner Stable
9942 York Road, Cockeysville, MD 410-666-8722
www.cornerstable.com

I live right down the road from The Corner Stable (situated on the corner of Church and York Roads) and have driven past it probably once a week for the past five years. But it wasn't until we were in need of a place to eat on a Sunday night that we decided to give the Stable a try.

Renowned for their Baby Back Ribs, it should come as no surprise that a place named The Corner Stable sports an almost overwhelming horse racing motif. Frankly, I never made the Maryland and horse racing connection much before I moved here, but now I understand.

I definitely wanted to try their house special ribs, but I've been jonesing for some good chicken – be it barbecue or fried – for months now. Luckily, the menu features a Ribs & Chicken dinner for $18.95 complete with a large barbecued breast of chicken (you can get it broasted, too) and a half rack of their famous ribs. Personally, I prefer the meatier ribs served up the street at Andy Nelson's but the ribs at The Corner Stable were definitely fall of the bone moist and tender. My biggest complaint about the place would be that my dinner came served on a large sheet of wax paper or something like it, stuffed into a plastic basket. This would be fine if I was having a burger or sandwich like my dinner companions, but trying to cut the chicken without coming away with forkfuls of paper proved difficult. Yuengling Lager on tap, good service, decent prices and the rest of our party raved about the burgers. I haven't been back yet but I'm happy to add The Corner Stable to our list of "go to" area eateries.



Bistro 14
9th & Bay in Bay Village, Beach Haven, NJ 609-492-6100

Located not far from my in-laws' place on LBI, Bistro 14 is another restaurant I've been past a hundred times without patronizing. During a recent visit to the island we got to try the restaurant, and I have to say that it was one of the most pleasantly surprising dining experiences I've had in some time.

I'm not sure why I was so pleasantly surprised, but it may have had something to do with what I perceived as a somewhat limited dinner menu. Don't get me wrong, I'm usually turned off by places whose menu takes up more than two pages, but Bistro 14's offerings seemed almost too limited for my liking. All I know is that if they do everything as well as the few things I had that night, I'll never be disappointed.

First up was an appetizer of Fried Calamari featuring lightly dusted rings of tender, hot squid. Calamari is one of those hit or miss appetizers for me... it can be really good, like this, or over-battered and fried to the point where all you taste is breading. This was top notch.

As for my entree, I followed my father-in-law's advice and went with the Mahi Mahi featuring one of their signature preparations – panfried with a creme fraiche & red onion crust. The cut was thick and perfect, the tasty crust providing just the right amount of texture alongside the firm, moist fish. Another pleasant surprise was their homemade fries, thin cut and perfectly seasoned with salt and garlic. It's pretty rare that I find myself commenting on the quality of a restaurant's fries, but both Chris and I were blown away by this perfectly seasoned accompaniment to our meal.

Which is More Awesome?

Regular readers of this blog, zine and website are well aware of my love for foodstuff gadgets and time-saving concoctions that make food fun. For your Friday I bring you a double dose of nifty new products that THG is simply dying to try.

First up is Bacon Salt. Yes, you read that right, Bacon Salt. Seems to me like we're going through a Bacon Renaissance these days, what with things like the Bacon Scarf and the wildly popular (and quite delicious) Bacon Chocolate Bar. But Bacon Salt raises the bar because you can use it on, well, pretty much anything that needs salt. I'm envisioning using my Bacon Salt on french fries, popcorn, chicken, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, soups, scrambled eggs, bacon and much, much more.

Not to be outdone, think about what you're having for breakfast this morning. Me, I'll probably have my usual weekday starter of 1/2 cup of Ezekial and a low-fat fruit yogurt or I might go really wild and have an Einstein Bros. pumpkin bagel. You know, really let my hair down. But wouldn't some pancakes sound good? Or some homemade waffles? Of course that sounds better than my fruity mix of woodland grit!

But making pancakes and/or waffles is a major hassle fraught with mixing bowls, flour or dry mix everywhere, spilt milk... not to mention the hazards of flipping pancakes onto your ceiling (as seen on that TV infomercial a few years back).

Naturally, you could get a Stainless Steel Batter Dispenser for accurate, consistently-sized pancakes and waffles, but you still have to mix the batter, put it in the dispenser, clean up, etc. Wouldn't it just be more fun to spray your batter from a can? Of course it would! And now you can, thanks to Batter Blaster, an organic, refrigerated pancake and waffle batter that's dispensed from a can.

Sadly, while I can obtain Bacon Salt from their online store, Batter Blaster is not found in stores near me. If anybody out there gets a chance to try this new and exciting way of dispensing pancake batter, please take photos, video and/or notes to share with us!

Who Will Play Julia Child?

I grew up watching the real Julia Child on PBS as well as Dan Akroyd as her accident-prone doppelganger on the old, funny Saturday Night Live. I guess it should come as no surprise that we'll soon be treated to a screen version of the iconic, influential celebrity chef, but ya might be surprised at who will be playing her.

Variety is reporting that Meryl Streep (!) will play Child in a film adaptation of the book "Julie & Julia" with Amy Adams as a mastercook wannabe.

Project centers on a frustrated temp secretary who embarks on a yearlong culinary quest to cook all 524 recipes in Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." She chronicles her trials and tribulations in a blog that catches on with the food crowd.

Nora Ephron, who is adapting the screenplay from Julie Powell's book "Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen," is attached to direct.

Welcome to Nablopomo, Day One

"So, what's a Nablopomo?" you're probably asking yourself. Well, it stands for National Blog Posting Month and that's what November is. The idea behind the movement is that you commit to posting something to your blog every day of the month. That's it. They don't have to be long posts, detailed posts, or funny posts. You just have to post.

I've never taken on the Nablopomo challenge before but I plan to do it on two fronts: both here at the Hungover Gourmet blog and over at The Exploitation Retrospect blog. Aside from this initial post I'll do my best not to share content. That'd sort of be cheating, wouldn't it?

Anyway, I decided to tackle this challenge because work is getting busier, the holidays are coming up, life is getting crazier and it'd be really easy to slack off and let less important things like the blog take a backseat. Plus, I look at writing as a muscle and if you don't exercise it every now and then it starts to go a little soft.

So that's that. Welcome to Nablopomo and I hope you enjoy the ride.

By the way, you can also click the little participant graphic at the top of the right hand column to be taken to the Nablopomo homepage where you can read more about the event and explore some of the other blogs that are participating.