Mario Batali

Tasting the Unconventional: 10 of the Best Eccentric Ales

We recently had a handful of friends over to help christen our new home. And we decided since they were kind enough to come visit, the least we could do would be to use them as guinea pigs for a host of oddball beers sitting in our beer cellar -- from gluten-free strawberry beer to sours. While I'm ... More >>

Smitten and Barefoot: Our Top 5 Cookbooks for Christmas

I have a confession to make: I am a cookbook-aholic. I absolutely love reading and collecting cookbooks. Sometimes I like to sit in Barnes & Noble and read through all of the new cookbooks displayed in the food section of the store. I love the pictures, I love the author's story behind each recipe ... More >>

How To: Make a Hearty Bolognese Sauce

One of the best winter meals my mom makes is a Bolognese sauce over pasta. Warm, hearty pasta is always a delicious choice when the weather cools down. But when you add a creamy, meaty, cheesy sauce over the top, you're talking my language. November is here, so it is time to start enjoying deliciou ... More >>

Eater National's Talia Baiocchi Joins Wine Spectator Team

UPDATE AND CLARIFICATION: We received word from Talia Baiocchi that this post has caused some confusion. She is not leaving her position as wine editor at Eater National. She is picking up a weekly column for the Wine Spectator in addition to her current job with Eater. New York-based, twenty-some ... More >>

The Rest of the Best

Houston's top 10 pizzas.

The Rest of the Best: Houston's Top 10 Pizza

For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2012 Best of Houston® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, in which the winner had hefty competition from other Houston bars and restaurants. Earlier ... More >>

Lucky Peach: A Huge Helping of Irreverence with a Hint of Man-Ass

I just got my hands on Lucky Peach, David Chang of Momofuku's New York Times-bestselling food journal, which features essays, photography, full-color recipes, art, travelogues and rants in a meticulously designed format. There are currently five issues with the first issue out of print (it sold over ... More >>

What's Cooking on Pinterest? Blackberry Sticky Buns

One of my new favorite talk shows is The Chew. It's a morning talk show with co-hosts Mario Batali, Carla Hall, Clinton Kelly, Michael Symon and Daphne Oz. They talk about recipes, tips and tricks for hosting parties, how to dress, eat healthy and other lifestyle topics. Daphne Oz, author of The Dor ... More >>

12 Celebrity Chefs Who Have Cartoon Doppelgangers

We've already noted Emeril's uncanny resemblance to Grandpa Munster and determined that Eric Ripert and Mr. Jay may just be twins. Now we'll take a look at the celebrity chefs that have a different kind of doppelganger: Check out our list of 12 Celebrity Chefs Who Look Like Cartoons: 12. Alton Br ... More >>

Giving Head: What Wine for Head Cheese?

Of all the salacious nuggets that still thrill Babbo sycophants, the one that I regrettably can't erase from my memory is the tale of President Clinton and Mario Batali's testa, boiled pig's head. Evidently, in a celebration of the fratboy-sexist-misogynist mindset that drives the great brain (read ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Erin Smith of Plonk, on What It's Like to Be a Woman in a Professional Kitchen

Erin Smith Plonk Bistro 1214 West 43rd Street 713-290-1070 www.plonkbistro.com This is the second part of a three-part chef chat series. Read Part 1 here and Part 3 in this same space on Friday. Yesterday, we chatted with Erin Smith of Plonk about her stint at Thomas Keller's Per Se in NYC. Smit ... More >>

The 5 Most Common Risotto Mistakes

Risotto is one of the most difficult dishes to master. The first attempt is not perfect, unless you're Gordon Ramsay, of course, but these five common mistakes people make while cooking a risotto dish may help you become a master, or at least not screw up one completely. 5. Texture can make or brea ... More >>

An Enthusiastic Chef and An Enterprising Menu at Mezzanotte

When I was invited to attend a press dinner featuring new dishes developed by Alberto Baffoni, Mezzanotte's new chef, I was excited (a tasting menu of Italian food, who wouldn't be?) but had a few reservations. I had never visited Mezzanotte and therefore would be unable to comment accurately on whe ... More >>

A Roman Repast at Giacomo's Cibo e Vino

When I told my husband I wanted to go to the May Roman Feast at Giacomo's Cibo e Vino, he responded: "Will there be a vomitorium?"* "Good God, I hope not," I said. "Though its presence might actually suggest people were really enjoying the food." And they were. Light tones and merry laughter circ ... More >>

Tasting Notes: This Week in (Women's) Wine Blogs

Photo by Margaret Shugart, curator of a new blog, The Wine Roads of Texas.​The Wine Roads of Texas: "If you've never seen the communities that run across that vast stretch of road," writes Margaret Shugart, author of a new blog called The Wine Roads of Texas, "you are missing one of the most u ... More >>

The Rest of the Best: Houston's Top 10 Pizza Places

No.​For the next 20 weeks, we'll be rounding up the runners-up to our 2011 Best of Houston® winners. In many categories, picking each year's winner is no easy task. We'll be spotlighting 20 of those categories, in which the winner had hefty competition from other Houston bars and restaurants. ... More >>

Of Rattlesnakes and Quinceañeras: Top Chef: Texas

It turns out that wearing orange Crocs does not, in fact, give you Mario Batali's superpowers.​This is the time at which I should point out that I don't have a DVR and in fact only recently got cable (which is awesome and, whoa, so many episodes of House Hunters!). That means that each week at ... More >>

How The Simpsons Makes Foodies Look Like Smug, Elitist Schmucks

There must be a kitchen sink that we can get to do a cameo too, guys...​I didn't want to watch the latest episode of The Simpsons, the one in which Marge inexplicably becomes a food blogger. Yes, the foodie backlash has officially begun. I haven't wanted to watch an episode of The Simpsons in ... More >>

5 Food Celebrities We'd Rather See Naked Than Anthony Bourdain (and 5 We Wouldn't)

Stars and hearts over the naughty bits, so this is almost 100 percent safe for work. Almost.​In case you hadn't heard -- especially since the man himself Tweeted the pic -- a nude photo of Anthony Bourdain surfaced yesterday, taken 12 years prior while on vacation. To quote Bourdain on the pho ... More >>

Sammy's Wild Game Grill: Imitation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery

Photos by Troy FieldsAt Sammy's, you can eat your dogs inside or on the patio -- or even grab them from a drive-thru to-go.​In this week's cafe review of Sammy's Wild Game Grill, the new wild game hot dog-and-hamburger spot off Washington, we examine the idea that all artists borrow -- and the ... More >>

The Best and Worst Celebrity Endorsements

What is she... Is she literally pouring herself a glass of wine?​A few weeks back, I saw a Tweet from my friend Melissa, who found herself alternately captivated and horrified by what she'd come across in her local Kroger. It was a sign advertising a line of Pinot Grigio from Ramona Singer (ab ... More >>

Favorite Three: Pizza Places

Photo by Kevin ShalinSimone on Sunset's Smoked Duck Pizza​Picking a favorite pizza place is a hot-button topic. Let's see which places showed up on our lists. John Kiely 1. Dolce Vita Pizzeria & Enoteca 2. Russo's Coal-Fired New York Pizzeria 3. Pizza Hut John's Take: The worst pizza I've ... More >>

Pegging Plonk

A neighborhood wine bar that's hard to categorize

Recap: Episode 6 of The Next Iron Chef

​On the previous episode of The Next Iron Chef, Maneet Chauhan was finally put out of her misery. Nice lady, interesting choices, but just not consistent enough to get the job done. We also learned that in this episode that two of the final five would be getting the ax. If I have to guess rig ... More >>

Top 5 Food Network Chef-Inspired Halloween Costumes

You can be Mario Batali in just a few easy steps.​Halloween is upon us, yet again. And every year, Halloween costumes get either sluttier or blatantly, intentionally lamer. (Witness our sister blog, Art Attack, for more ideas on how to achieve the latter.) So what does a food-loving, non-slut ... More >>

Openings & Closings

No more ceviche at the Midtown outpost of Lemon Tree.​A reader alerted us via Twitter to the fact that the Lemon Tree (207 West Gray) had closed its doors sometime in the past week. We went by to check it out and it is, indeed, closed. A call to Lemon Tree's original location on Whittington re ... More >>

Silent Auction To Benefit Gulf Fishermen: Foodie Goodies For Sale

​Even if you aren't attending the upcoming Ceviche Throwdown, you can still help with the Houston Chowhounds' goal of raising $15,000 to support local Gulf fishermen in the wake of the BP oil spill and ensuing environmental disaster. An online silent auction, organized by head 'Hound Jenny Wan ... More >>

Tips from Rick Bayless - with Beer!

​We recently headed over to Sam's Club to pick up some provisions. After our customary Polish Hot Dog Combo for $1.50 plus tax, we headed over to the beer aisle. This place always has a limited beer selection, with a few standards like the 24-pack of Corona 7-ounce bottles or the Shiner Fami ... More >>

Robb Walsh's 100 Favorite Houston Dishes #33 The Picnic Platter at the Grove

​Over the course of the next few months, I'm counting down 100 of my favorite Houston dishes. I chose some because they are such quintessential Houston creations, others for their cultural or historical significance, and others because they are just so damn tasty. Share your own nominations in ... More >>

Molto Barrio Beet Green and Potato Soup

​The garden squad was thinning the beet patch at the Last Organic Outpost's Emile Street Garden over in the Fifth Ward the other day. The beets were tiny on the thinned out plants, but the greens were great. I ended up with a bag full. Beet greens sautéed with garlic taste fine, but you get t ... More >>

Top 11 Houston Restaurant Openings of the Decade

Since I started my job as restaurant critic of the Houston Press in May of 2000, I've had a chance to observe the Houston restaurant scene for just about the entire decade. Our fine dining scene has evolved in the last ten years, and so have our ethnic cuisines. Houston became the birthplace of some ... More >>

The Pizza and Ranch Dressing Rebellion

The Official Punk Rock Book of Lists

A new book compiles punk's greatest hits and biggest dicks

Antica Osteria

Rice Spaghetti

Las Fabulosas Taco Trucks

To sample the best tacos in the city, you have to order in Spanglish and eat standing up in the parking lot

The Crudo at Bice

A new excuse to go to the Galleria and play dress-up

How Sweet It Is

Marco Wiles is knocking them dead with his new casual pizzeria in Montrose

Dancing Delicacies

Saffron's delicacy pie -- made with lamb livers, sweetbreads and mountain oysters -- is divine

Best Italian Restaurant

The In-Tycer

National honors go to the chef at Aries

Best Overall Restaurant

Da Marco