Most of us appreciate padding in one form or another. Hockey players like it in their shin guards. Flat-chested women who can’t afford surgery look for it in bras. Victims of carpal tunnel syndrome depend on it to cushion sore wrists and elbows. I find padding most important on my…
In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of … a small world: Although he’d initially been hired by Dennis Max as the executive chef of Max’s Place in Bal Harbour Shops, Mark’s Place and Mark’s in the Grove alumnus Doug Riess never made it as far…
I’ll admit it right from the start: New York is a great restaurant town. How could it not be? The place is huge, with zillions of eateries of every type. Out of the zillion, just by virtue of the odds, trillions are bound to be good. Billions are very good…
Read Related New Times Stories:
The Beef on Tainted Bovine – 3/15/01
If you’ve been wondering where the next “Lincoln Road” is going to develop, get your minds off the beaches (South and North) and head to the shores. Miami Shores, that is. Zoning has been approved and renovations scheduled for NE Second Avenue, the center of the village. New construction will…
In Texas 1222 cattle were quarantined this past January after accidentally being fed the puréed carcasses of other cattle. In Vermont the United States Department of Agriculture seized 355 sheep imported from Belgium that were suspected of carrying prion disease. In Queens, New York, assemblywoman Margaret M. Markey is proposing…
In the Survivor II episode “Suspicion,” contestants were asked to eat all manner of unsavory (according to the Western palate, anyway) foodstuffs for the so-called immunity challenge. Most, amid a few grimaces, were successful at downing their portions of bugs, worms, or cow stomachs. Only Kimmi refused to eat what…
The ghost of Mayya continues to haunt us: The defunct restaurant recently was touted in Nation’s Restaurant News’ special “50 Cities that Sizzle” issue as one of many in Miami that have celebrity owners (Billy Bean). The same paragraph included info about other star-crossed — er, star-owned — joints such…
On the walls of the weathered office at Green Cay Produce, ecologist Barry Commoner’s “Informal Laws of Ecology” have been transcribed in calligraphy and framed. The document, the first line of which states in true Zen fashion, “Everything is connected to everything else,” is one of only a few elements…
The appointment had been arranged by the public-relations people, and my instructions were clear. I was to appear at JoAnna’s in the Grove, the three-month-old sister location of gourmet grocery and bakery JoAnna’s Marketplace in South Miami, at 6:00 a.m. The front door would be open, and somebody would be…
Yeah, it’s nice to pay tribute to the ones you love. But instead of spending 25 bucks on some mediocre faux-French chocolates this Valentine’s Day, consider taking that cash and sending it to India. Not because there are children starving there (though there are), but because earthquake relief is going…
I can’t think of anything less romantic than getting pregnant in a restaurant bathroom. So I suppose I can cross Boris Becker off my list of potential valentines, though the love child that resulted from his restroom tryst no doubt will be glad to thank Cupid’s, er, arrow in the…
Thanks to the mad cow disease outbreak, restaurants in France have stopped serving beef, and there are reports that incinerators in England can’t keep up with the disposal of infected animals. Not the best climate to open a steak house, eh? Still, Jeffrey Chodorow of China Grill Management debuted Tuscan…
Call me Ishmael if you must. But don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m after a big white whale. This quest is about white tuna. White tuna is the most recent specialty item to hit sushi bars. Shibui in Miami began carrying it less than a year ago. Sushi Hana…
If a recent story stemming from Orlando is any indication, Americans love buffets now more than ever. Two weeks ago, during a Sunday buffet brunch at the 4th Fighter Group restaurant, a three-alarm fire broke out. But despite the smoke like steamed milk from a cappuccino machine pouring into the…
If I’ve learned anything living in Miami, it’s that objecting to policy is pretty useless. No matter how strong the demonstration against whatever — a proposal, an issue, a politician — chances are the powers that be will ignore it. Protesters, however, do stand a better chance if they’re well…
A couple of years ago travel writer Mac Seligman sent a letter in which he wrote about how when you travel, what you expect — or are led to expect — is never what you get. To that end he’d prepared a list of “travelese,” a compendium of terms that…
The good news is that Oliver Saucy and Darrel Broek are not putting Café Maxx and East City Bistro up for sale, despite rumors to the contrary. The better news is that the duo finally has found a site for East City Grill, their successful Fort Lauderdale venture that was…
On Chowbaby, a relatively new Website, an article titled “Fascination with Fusion” details the gastronomic community’s love affair with fusion cuisine. Author Kelly Tokarski writes, “Fusion is trendy. Fusion is tasty. Fusion is today.” Girl, I got news for you: Fusion is tired. Fusion is torturous. Fusion is so yesterday,…
The differences are glaring. As coruscating as the neon undercarriage of an El Dorado cruising Ocean Drive. As in-your-face as the high beam of a rotating spotlight outside a Washington Avenue nightclub. As shiny as a supermodel’s nose, awaiting powder. Last year, when the whole world looked forward to partying…
Sad but true, happy hour has never really secured a foothold here in Miami. Sure, a couple of restaurants like Monty’s and Hardaway’s Firehouse Four have managed to draw a steady after-work crowd almost every night of the week. But serious attempts to institute happy hour have been sporadic and…
The west side of South Beach once again has proved nonlucrative: Jonathan Eismann’s Westside Diner has closed. Eismann’s product was the second attempt to make something of this spot, following Johnny V’s Kitchen, run by Astor Place chef Johnny Vinczencz. “It was very disappointing, because it was a real labor…
