Polenta

There are a couple things I do to keep trying new stuff — talking to foodies and welcoming the Leite’s Culinaria test recipes — but mostly it’s just reading other people’s food blogs.

Today I happened on a Polenta Worship post on Amateur Gourmet that pretty much decided my Saturday: polenta lasagna by Alice Waters.

So I’m stealing AG’s photo here …

Go Blognation, go!

This incremental building of stories is what happens because of local bloggers, and I’m just happy to be a part of it.

It’s only a food item, but it has wide implications for citizen journalism.

W, WW

Nope, not the world wide web. Instead it is an unusual food confluence of interest to people who are a little obsessed with diet and nutrition.

It is a combination of Wegmans, best grocery in the East, and Weight Watchers, the most sensible organization concerned with weight loss.

What it is mostly, though is a moderately crazed woman named Dotti, who created …

Bye, Buddha

Just got back from Scranton, previewing The Office Convention (story in Friday’s P-N) and found things are happening on Second Street.

Not, however, the first Asian-Mediterranean-Fusion Diner, which apparently ain’t happening.

The glistering Buddha no longer graces the entryway of the hideous Tom Sawyer Diner, and the rumor is the chef walked. Next rumor: it’s going Tex-Mex. Workmen are working, more as it happens.

Across the street …

The happy of food

We have sort of started getting ready for Thanksgiving, which surpasses even my birthday as the absolute best holiday of the year. Megan and Nate bring the grandkids, my ex-wife comes over and this year Dee’s mom is coming from Indiana. I usually work Thanksgiving. Megan, Nate et al have Turkey Day with the Ryans on Thursday … so our festive meal is at our house on Saturday.

Not that you care about all that — but this post on Jew and The Carrot about the importance of food to happiness really got me.

It’s about vegetarianism and the Talmud, specifically this quote: “There is no simcha without meat and wine.”

Simcha is …

Anna Nother

Does your memory stretch back to the turn of the century? Do you recall Harrisburg’s nascent yuppie social networking group, the Harrisburg Young Professionals, publicly panting for a certain chain coffeeshop?

“Oh, please please please Mr. Starbucks Man, please plunk down your magic espresso machine and our downtown will be cool, and attract more people like us — sophisticated!”

Fast forward to October 2007 and …

Duke’s? WTF?

Every once in a while, the Food & Drink forum on PennLive has an interesting post — but it’s not possible to link to a post there, so I just copied this by ree716 about Duke’s:

“They have gone way downhill in the last few months. Our waitress, Brandy, should have been working at BK. She was absolutely the worst waitress we have ever had. But let me start at the beginning – 4 people at the hostess station, waiting on one customer. I’m ok to wait a few minutes. The hostess brings us to a dirty table outside. She cleans it off. Our waitress arrives about 5 minutes later and gives us menus, takes our drink order. We don’t see our drinks, she doesn’t come back to take our order.

Goodbye, Skewers

It was great while it lasted, a sweet and quiet room with good food and excellent soup. At first, Middle Eastern food on Second Street was a novelty, but after Skewers opened two more kebab places came along quickly.

Now Javid Mohmand is headed in a different direction.

“Skewers is going to go away,” he told me yesterday.

Javid isn’t closing the place because of the competition — he just wants to do Indian food, even though he’s Afghan. So he’s going to shut down, remodel, hire two chefs and reopen as …

Pimp my salad

Lately I’ve been salad-bingeing. Partly it’s a belly ploy — working on having less belly — but also it’s been fun cruising through the greens section at the grocery. So I’m making a salad for lunch every day.

We’ve been hitting Wegman’s on Friday nights for dinner and grocery shopping. I buy a couple Romaine heads, some frisee, radicchio and spinach, onions and creminis to go with the garden tomatoes we’re still getting from people at work.

On Sunday night …

Yes Yes, it’s No-No-Nonna’s!

Everyone from Jersey Mike to some dude called 717boy on PennLive is going off about the new Nonna’s in Midtown.

Here’s 717boy:

“Up to this point i never felt strongly enough about any place in particular to post about, but Nonna’s is a breath of fresh air not only in midtown …