Fruitcakes are very polarizing. Either you love them or you hate them. My husband has always enjoyed this much-maligned holiday treat, so I make it a habit to get him a small one from Walmart at Christmastime ( Read more... )

First Bites are typically written after one or two visits.

__________________________________At the heart of Thai cooking there is a complex, vivid and contemporary amalgamation of flavors that is also comforting and homey. Dishes here at Boonma speak to the lush, tropical sun-baked beaches and fragrant infusions typical of that part of the world ( Read more... )

First Bites are done after one or two visits.


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First, thanks to everybody for their sweet feedback here. Keep in mind, as you read the next piece, I now live in a rinky-dink little country town, currently without a critic. We all know how my last crash and burn went with the Raleigh paper. Of course they have the esteemed Greg Cox (current critic) and Andrea Weigl (contributes regularly to ( Read more... )

Second trip to Lotus Leaf today. The service this time was less than stellar (forgotten cutlery and teas, featured appetizer arrived late and temp was spotty). A few highlights:

* Plain Congee (a thick, homogeneous rice porridge) made memorable by delicate filigree-like croutons of golden youtiao* Darryl's Pla Sam Rod (fried grouper ( Read more... )

Forgot to post this last weekWhenever I go into a casual seafood restaurant, a good barometer for the meal seems to be the coleslaw and tartar sauce. It sounds like a simple thing, but if the kitchen took time making both of those, then it is usually indicative of a good meal ahead. At Skipper's, I wasn't disappointed. Not only was attention ( Read more... )

We enjoyed lunch on the patio at the Lotus Leaf Cafe this afternoon. They specialize in Vietnamese with a French influence but the menu encompasses Thai, Singaporean, Maylasian and Hong Kong fare. We began our meal with Gỏi Cuốn (Fresh Summer Rolls with Peanut Sauce, $5). The glassine rice paper had steamed shrimp, bits of chicken, matchsticks ( Read more... )