This Week in Food Blogs: Wasted Water and the Battlesong of Christie Rafanan

Katharine Shilcutt June 27, 2012 6:00AM

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Houston Chronicle: If you're wondering whether or not the Eatsie Boys will have beer from their own 8th Wonder Brewery when their Montrose cafe opens later this year, wonder no more: The answer is a firm no, thanks to bizarre and outdated TABC laws. Ronnie Crocker tackles the messy task of explaining why over at the Chronicle.

Steph Stradley: Fellow Chron writer Steph Stradley -- who normally blogs about the Houston Texans -- tackled a task of her own this week. Stradley created her own list of Houston's 100 Best Restaurants, a challenge inspired by Alison Cook's recent list.

CultureMap: Voluntary water rationing in restaurants has been popular in places like Austin for years, but it's just catching on here. Marene Gustin reports on the move by Mimi Del Grande -- wife of Robert -- to limit wasted table water at the restaurants in the large Schiller-Del Grande Restaurant Group.

Eater Houston: In other restaurant group news, Charles Clark -- chef/owner of Houston powerhouse trifecta Ibiza, Brasserie 19 and Coppa -- recently addressed news of his DWI arrest after first denying the incident to Eater Houston.

Zester Daily: Writing for Zester Daily, Robb Walsh asks a very Texan question in wondering why more fine-dining restaurants don't amp up the heat in their dishes, even as more upscale restaurants are influenced by such spice-saturated cuisines as Korean and Indian.

Weapons Grade: In defense of the often underappreciated servers who go unrecognized in restaurants where the chefs are the stars, Justin Vann pens a "battlesong" to Oxheart's one-and-only server, Christie Rafanan:

I have been trying write about my experiences at Oxheart unsuccessfully for months now. This is because I don't ever feel like I can do it justice. The experience is mind altering. Earth shattering. Life changing. I have written and deleted over 20 pages. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to fully articulate it. There is one thing I can say though: Christie Rafanan deserves more recognition.

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