Food: July 2007 Archives

French megachef Daniel Boulud has agreed to settle a federal lawsuit that alleges he discriminated against nonwhite employees at his restaurant Daniel, according to an article in today's Times.

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Call it yum cha, dim sum or just plain good. But if you plan on eating it in Manhattan after say 1 p.m. or hate crowds, call it off all together.

We're still working all the meat out of our system from Saturday's Gothamist-Serious Eats/AHT QBQ BBQ II, but we hope that those of you who made it had a good time. Thankfully, the forecasted rain held off as we served about 150 pounds of beef (600 burgers) during the event. A special thanks to Harry Hawk, the staff at Water Taxi Beach and some assistants from Gothamist, Serious Eats and A Hamburger Today, Six Apart, and for everyone who came out for the event. Apologies for the early line and beer flow issues.

We're still working all the meat out of our system from Saturday's Gothamist-Serious Eats/AHT QBQ BBQ II, but we hope that those of you who made it had a good time. Thankfully, the forecasted rain held off as we served about 150 pounds of beef (600 burgers) during the event. A special thanks to Harry Hawk, the staff at Water Taxi Beach and some assistants from Gothamist, Serious Eats and A Hamburger Today, Six Apart, and for everyone who came out for the event. Apologies for the early line and beer flow issues.

It’s not to say that Rioja wines have ever gone away, but they never seem to be top of mind. We’re willing to take partial responsibility for this (no more than 34%). Perhaps we may have pigeon-holed the region to uncomplicated, cherry-vanilla red wines. It wasn’t done maliciously, but all the wines we’ve had only perpetuated this perception. We didn’t think badly of them, but they didn’t keep us wanting more. That’s the dangerous thing about perceptions, though, they’re slightly biased and don’t always capture the full view.

It’s not to say that Rioja wines have ever gone away, but they never seem to be top of mind. We’re willing to take partial responsibility for this (no more than 34%). Perhaps we may have pigeon-holed the region to uncomplicated, cherry-vanilla red wines. It wasn’t done maliciously, but all the wines we’ve had only perpetuated this perception. We didn’t think badly of them, but they didn’t keep us wanting more. That’s the dangerous thing about perceptions, though, they’re slightly biased and don’t always capture the full view.

Food writing has changed a lot in the last few years. Its focus has shifted to an almost philosophical arena where any recipe can be dissected for the broader, global meaning of its constituent ingredients. The source of every carrot or celery stalk we eat is inexorably combined with issues of nutrition and environmental sustainability. It’s the Omnivore’s Dilemma effect - people are suddenly grappling with the repercussions of a country that runs on 200 million acres of corn, wheat, soy, and rice. Within the restaurant industry, and for the foreseeable future, it’s far less expensive to source and cook mass-produced vegetables and meat from immense, industrialized farms. This not only comes with a huge environmental cost, but consequently buries the flavors of food.

We just wanted to give you one final reminder about tomorrow's Gothamist-Serious Eats/AHT QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach. The event starts at 5 pm and it's rain or shine. If it does rain, don't worry, we'll already be stationed in the covered area of Water Taxi Beach (pictured above). Those of you who attended last year may remember that there was stormy weather last year too.

We just wanted to give you one final reminder about tomorrow's Gothamist-Serious Eats/AHT QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach. The event starts at 5 pm and it's rain or shine. If it does rain, don't worry, we'll already be stationed in the covered area of Water Taxi Beach (pictured above). Those of you who attended last year may remember that there was stormy weather last year too.

Every morning, Bobby Fish parks his busted up maroon Dodge van at the edge of a Hess Express parking lot on West 207th Street. He unloads his signs and opens his Coors Light umbrella. “Bobby Fish,” the signs proclaim, “El Rey Del Ceviche.” People call him the King- it's not just his own posterboard. The King pulls a few lawn chairs out of his van and sets them on the sidewalk. Behind him, a Harlem River breezes makes plastic bags fly through the air or snag on the barbed wire coil running the perimeter of the nearby subway yards fence. Finally, Bobby Fish sets up a folding table and cutting board; he readies his cooler near the tailgate for a day’s work. Amidst all the Tupperwared fresh neon juices carted around in bicycle baskets, kids with $1 Poland Spring waters running into traffic at stoplights, and the spiral-peeled oranges in ziploc bags claptrap is Bobby Fish with the most improbable summer street food of all: the King’s cooler is filled with clams. El Rey Del Ceviche is one of the very last raw bar street vendors in New York- $1 a piece for iced, medium sized cherrystone clams on the half shell. With minimal condiments (hot sauce, lime), a few bushels, and a perpetual smile, he manages to stay busy all day.

When we're in the mood for chocolate indulgence, we like to head over to The Chocolate Room in Park Slope.

Sunday’s Times reported on the progress of an unusual marine biology project/art installation taking place in the East River: the Electric Oyster Experiment, designed to speed up the reintroduction of oysters to local waters with the help of solar electricity, and sculpture provided by Brooklyn-based artist Mara Haseltine. Here’s the premise: electrified, submerged helical sculptures provided by Haseltine spur the production of limestone rock, shown through research to be a protective environment for wayward oysters that might otherwise have a hard time surviving. The project started at the beginning of the month; the Times reports there are currently 700 oysters growing in College Point. The folks behind the Electric Oyster Experiment have set a short-term target of 2,000 oysters; at some point in the future, the oysters will be harvested and used to seed other tidal areas around the city.

It's burger time! This weekend is the second annual Gothamist-Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach. Your votes determined the burgers on the menu: the onion burger, the butter burger (pictured), and the pimento cheese burger. Six Apart will be sponsoring the event with a keg of Orlio and Gothamist/Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today will also be supplying an additional keg of beer. Tickets, which get you three burgers, are $13.50 and are available online. Don't forget to bring ID -- they're serious. There will be a tent covering seating areas for the event, which is rain or shine.

When meat maven Josh Ozersky, aka Mr. Cutlets, talks bacon, many a New York City carnivore listens. And Gothamist is no exception.

We're interested in quick one-pot meals this summer, when all we want to do is go play outside (at least when the thunderstorms aren't passing through). They're simple, delicious, and make for excellent leftovers to bring in to work for lunch for the next few days.

Gothamist finally made the trip to Queens to drink and dine at Danny Brown Wine Bar & Kitchen, a stylish spot that looks more SoHo than Forest Hills. Some of you may recall that this eatery located across the street from Councilwoman Melinda Katz's office caught the attention of Daniel Boulud back in May. The French megachef was steamed that Danny Brown, the chef-owner, uses almost the same lowercase "db" on its signage as Boulud's db bistro moderne.

This week in the Times, Bruni Bruni visits Top Chef winner Harold Dieterle’s Perilla. Finds it “earnest, endearing, and just a bit of a snooze,” and awards the restaurant one star. Sees more of Deiterle and partner Alicia Noscenzo’s past at The Harrison in the restaurant (friendly service, cozy atmosphere, reasonable prices) than in his past on Top Chef. But he finds some “primness” at Perilla, along with “scattered errors of judgement.” Doesn’t much like the desserts, either.

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Picnick, the new Will Goldfarb double kiosk project at the Battery, is starting to shape up for its projected Labor Day weekend opening. Director of operations will be Kevin Pomplun, most recently chef at the Hotel on Rivington restaurant Thor.

Roosevelt Avenue in the high 50s is better known for its Irish bars, particularly Donovan's Pub and its legendary cheeseburger, than it is for Filipino fare. That's not to say that Woodside doesn't have any Filipino restaurants, it's just that most of them are confined to Little Manila, a strip of Roosevelt between 69th and 71st streets. Now all that's changed thanks to Engeline's Restaurant & Bakeshop, which opened just down the block from Donovan's this spring.

Roosevelt Avenue in the high 50s is better known for its Irish bars, particularly Donovan's Pub and its legendary cheeseburger, than it is for Filipino fare. That's not to say that Woodside doesn't have any Filipino restaurants, it's just that most of them are confined to Little Manila, a strip of Roosevelt between 69th and 71st streets. Now all that's changed thanks to Engeline's Restaurant & Bakeshop, which opened just down the block from Donovan's this spring.

For all of you that were waiting to find out which burgers would be served at Saturday's Gothamist-Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach, the burger menu has been finalized. The winning burgers, as determined by voters, were: the onion burger, the butter burger, and the pimento cheese burger.

For all of you that were waiting to find out which burgers would be served at Saturday's Gothamist-Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach, the burger menu has been finalized. The winning burgers, as determined by voters, were: the onion burger, the butter burger, and the pimento cheese burger.

If you've lived in New York for any period of time, you know that the food here is incredible -- the variety, the quantity, and the quality. You'll also know that you don't have to pawn off your valuables to taste all that the city has to offer. This week's New York Magazine celebrates the city's cheap eats. Rob and Robin provide an extensive list of their picks, including some of our favorites: Bocca Lupo, Flatbush Farm, Go!Go! Curry, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, and Peri Ela (just tried it for the first time last weekend), among many others.

“this is GOTHAMist. can't you cite a good NYC brew to spotlight?... how dare you, gothamist!!!”

“this is GOTHAMist. can't you cite a good NYC brew to spotlight?... how dare you, gothamist!!!”

What's worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week?

Omido: Designed by Avroko (who did Public, among others), this high-end sushi restaurant brings a bit of luxury to midtown West with touches like foie gras and gold leaf among the raw fish. 1695 Broadway at 53rd Street, 212-247-8110.

Omido: Designed by Avroko (who did Public, among others), this high-end sushi restaurant brings a bit of luxury to midtown West with touches like foie gras and gold leaf among the raw fish. 1695 Broadway at 53rd Street, 212-247-8110.

A basket of country bread and baguette slices come to the table in a basket on a wooden cutting board. To one side of the bread is a shallow ramekin of homey duck rillette, made with shredded leg confit and duck fat. A few squares of butter, cornichons, and a dish of tiny pickled onions complement the breadbasket.

If you have yet to vote what burger should be on the menu at next weekend's Gothamist-Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach, today is your last chance. Since we announced the event on Monday, the leading vote getter is the onion burger, followed by the butter burger and the pimento burger. Only the top three vote-getters will make the menu for the July 28th event. Also up for contention are the Motz burger, the guber burger, the nut burger, and the hammmburger. For descriptions of each burger, check out our previous post. There will also be a keg of Orlio Common Ale provided by Six Apart.

If you have yet to vote what burger should be on the menu at next weekend's Gothamist-Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ at Water Taxi Beach, today is your last chance. Since we announced the event on Monday, the leading vote getter is the onion burger, followed by the butter burger and the pimento burger. Only the top three vote-getters will make the menu for the July 28th event. Also up for contention are the Motz burger, the guber burger, the nut burger, and the hammmburger. For descriptions of each burger, check out our previous post. There will also be a keg of Orlio Common Ale provided by Six Apart.

At La Maison du Couscous, we never get away with ordering the first menu item we choose. Everything on the menu is available, of course, and in the back Fatima is ready to throw together whatever sweet, meltingly rich food we want. Still, the manager/waiter, in a burst of excited conversation, always insists that he knows best.

At La Maison du Couscous, we never get away with ordering the first menu item we choose. Everything on the menu is available, of course, and in the back Fatima is ready to throw together whatever sweet, meltingly rich food we want. Still, the manager/waiter, in a burst of excited conversation, always insists that he knows best.

July 19: Summer Wine Tasting

July 19: Summer Wine Tasting

We're just going to get this out of the way: Justin Timberlake is bringing deep-fried pickle-sicles back. The modern day song and dance man has gone and opened his very own restaurant called Southern Hospitality (at 1460 2nd Ave and 76th St). It opened last night to a crowd of A-listers people you may have heard of, hankering for some barbecue. Amongst the items offered are deviled eggs, pulled pork, mac-n-cheese, fried catfish, and yes...the aforementioned pickle treat (we hope JT took his indigestion pills last night).

This started out as an attempt at making Fesenjan, an intense Afghani and Persian concoction of chicken in a thick pomegranate walnut sauce. We got a bit carried away with it, though, and with the replacement of chicken stock and pomegranate molasses for mere pomegranate juice and a big splash of Shaoxing (Chinese rice wine) later, this really became a creation of its own.

The long awaited second location of Grey Dog's Coffee is now open for business. The University Place branch is serving the same fantastic coffee (and iced coffee), and full menu as the West Village original. Stop by and wish them well on their first day and be sure to check out the whimsical dog photos inside -- we had to restrain ourselves from running off and adopting a puppy, iced coffee in hand.

(718) 230-0221

Incase anyone was wondering just how many Starbucks there actually are in Manhattan, the answer is 171. For some inexplicable reason (perhaps to become the next big viral video star), New Yorker Mark Malkoff decided to hit them all up in just one day.

The folks at Lobstergram sent us one to try a while back. And what is a Lobstergram, you might ask? It's a package containing two live lobsters and all the basic acoutrements you'll need to cook and eat them -- you supply the pot (there's even an option to get the pot sent along as well). The box arrived one night when we got home from work, and we recruited a friend to help us with the process.

Yesterday we mentioned London designer Anya Hindmarch's I'm Not A Plastic Bag was finally arriving at Whole Foods today. The canvas tote was made popular by a combination of things including celebrity and unavailability. Hindmarch told the NY Times “To create awareness you have to create scarcity by producing a limited edition. I hate the idea of making the environment trendy, but you need to make it cool and then it becomes a habit.”

This week Bruni goes to P*ong, the dessert/savory restaurant brought to us by pastry chef Pichet Ong (formerly of Perry Street and Spice Market), awards the restaurant one star. Finds the restaurant "tantalizing, often irritating," and says it challenges one's ideas of what should be sweet and what should be savory. But the desserts are the restaurant's strenth, says Bruni, and also it's too crowded and the service is not good enough to make staying for a longer meal worth while. He likes the special cocktails, though.

Photo courtesy of Daily Candy.

We are sad to hear that Pier I Cafe at Riverside Park South (around 70th Street, underneath the West Side Highway) was closed by the Department of Health. A reader visited the cafe on Sunday, only to find "a note saying they're probably closed for the season because the city said the bathrooms they had weren't good enough." The cafe had an open kitchen and bar, and the bathrooms were built in a temporary building, kind of a step-up from porta-potties.

Your overstuffed kitchen drawer of take-out menus is minuscule compared to the menus Daniel Rayas collected over a four month period. Newsday has a fantastic profile of the Texan grandfather who moved to New York City to help care for his newborn granddaughter and found a flexible part-time job that has taken him all over the city. Looking to make some money to pay for room and board, Rayas responded to an ad on Craigslist offering cash for collected menus. It was placed by online eatery guide Allmenus.com, and they put him to work immediately, offering $2 per menu collected.

Submitted for your consideration: menu choice #93 at Carluccio’s Italian Hero Shop in Bensonhurst, the Joey Fatone: “This hero is really N SYNC”- Bologna, pepperoni, yellow American cheese & mustard. $8.00

Located on a stretch of Metropolitan Avenue in Forest Hills better known for antique stores and Eddie's Sweet Shop, a turn-of-the-century soda fountain, is Ran, a small storefront that offers some of the best sushi in Queens. Gothamist isn't sure if the name comes from the Kurosawa flick whose title has been translated to mean chaos or wretchedness, but there's nothing wretched or chaotic here. It's all about impeccably fresh fish expertly prepared. Last week, we sampled some sushi and some hot food from this seven-month old spot.

After the success of our Gothamist-A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ last year (that's quality before quantity), we've decided to team up with Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today for another burger event at Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City. At last year's event, Chef Harry Hawk served up four regional burgers from around the nation. This year, you get to choose what burgers are served, with the top three vote-getters across Gothamist, Serious Eats, and A Hamburger Today making the menu.

After the success of our Gothamist-A Hamburger Today QBQ BBQ last year (that's quality before quantity), we've decided to team up with Serious Eats/A Hamburger Today for another burger event at Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City. At last year's event, Chef Harry Hawk served up four regional burgers from around the nation. This year, you get to choose what burgers are served, with the top three vote-getters across Gothamist, Serious Eats, and A Hamburger Today making the menu.

NY Mag reports that the bull costs $10,000 a year to insure, which might be why their ultra-premium margaritas cost $51. While it may take a couple of those margaritas to get on the bull, we wonder if they check how sober a person is before riding.

As you may have heard, July is American Beer Month, and we’re in full celebration mode here at Gothamist. Not that we really need a reason to throw back all sorts of delicious, nationally crafted microbrews but the occasion serves as a handy reminder to try something new and explore what’s out there. So exploring we have done.

As you may have heard, July is American Beer Month, and we’re in full celebration mode here at Gothamist. Not that we really need a reason to throw back all sorts of delicious, nationally crafted microbrews but the occasion serves as a handy reminder to try something new and explore what’s out there. So exploring we have done.

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week?

After many false starts, Trader Joe's announced this week that the grocery store chain would be finally arriving in Brooklyn. The news was heralded by Brooklyn Beep Marty Markowitz, who was decked out in one of the store's highly visible Hawaiian print shirts and leading a steel drum band at Court St. and Atlantic Ave. The Brooklyn Paper reports that while the grocer will soon move into the landmark Independence Savings Bank building at Court and Atlantic, Brooklynites will be required to trek to Manhattan if they want their "Two-Buck Chuck" wine.

After many false starts, Trader Joe's announced this week that the grocery store chain would be finally arriving in Brooklyn. The news was heralded by Brooklyn Beep Marty Markowitz, who was decked out in one of the store's highly visible Hawaiian print shirts and leading a steel drum band at Court St. and Atlantic Ave. The Brooklyn Paper reports that while the grocer will soon move into the landmark Independence Savings Bank building at Court and Atlantic, Brooklynites will be required to trek to Manhattan if they want their "Two-Buck Chuck" wine.

Sidecar: This new Park Slope spot is run by a former Blue Ribbon chef, features a contemporary American menu and is designed to be reminiscent of an old railroad dining car. The cocktail menu consists of classics like the gin fizz, interspersed with originals like "Dr. Tucker's 59," Plymouth gin with lemon and ginger. For now, however, the cocktails are only on the menu, not in the glasses -- they're still awaiting a liquor license, so feel free to BYO. 560 Fifth Avenue, between 15th and 16th Streets 718-369-0077.

Sidecar: This new Park Slope spot is run by a former Blue Ribbon chef, features a contemporary American menu and is designed to be reminiscent of an old railroad dining car. The cocktail menu consists of classics like the gin fizz, interspersed with originals like "Dr. Tucker's 59," Plymouth gin with lemon and ginger. For now, however, the cocktails are only on the menu, not in the glasses -- they're still awaiting a liquor license, so feel free to BYO. 560 Fifth Avenue, between 15th and 16th Streets 718-369-0077.

At the Ethnic Market highlights international specialty foods and ingredients that you're very unlikely to find at your local Gristedes

At the Ethnic Market highlights international specialty foods and ingredients that you're very unlikely to find at your local Gristedes

To be honest, we've been to Palo Santo several times over the past year. We even took our mother there for her birthday. It's a gorgeous setting, with all the beauty of urban decay and none of the dirt. The talented chef, Jacques Gautier, made those tables of found wood and assorted interesting objects himself. The very cobblestones built into the restaurant's striking exterior were salvaged from nearby 5th Avenue, where they had been unearthed and then tossed aside by Con Ed.

If you've never played petanque, head on down to Smith Street for North America's largest petanque tournament -- the two block stretch betweeen Bergen and Pacific will be shut down and covered with sand just for the occasion. While your'e watching the action, enjoy special cocktails from Ricard and other drink specials ($5-6), nibble on grilled merguez and chicken sandwiches ($5) and groove to Jazz band Blue Orchid will provide the entertainment throughout the day. 11:30am - 8pm, free admission, sponsored by Bar Tabac, Robin des Bois, Ricard and the South Brooklyn Local Development Corporation. 128 Smith Street at Dean Street, 718-923-0918.

Better known for the pinkish Vitamin Water flavor based on it, fresh dragon fruit is currently available at Chinatown produce markets. Because dragon fruit (pitaya plant) pollination occurs only at night, when its huge white flowers bloom, fruit is harvested just a few times a year. Production is notoriously tricky, sometimes requiring a little human-dragon fruit “husbandry.” And while buying food that was jetted at least a few thousand miles to be sold out of a crate on the streets of New York is sort of the antithesis of eating locally, growing one’s own dragon fruit at home is an epic, but still entirely possible, task (see green-shaded area here). Each fruit contains about one thousand seeds that can be used for home-growing experiments. So for the sake of New York needing more crazy fruit pioneers, let’s talk dragon fruit for a minute.

Burdock root, also known as gobo, tastes something like a nutty artichoke potato. The long, slender, flexible roots don't look like much, but they have a lot of flavor if you slice them thin and braise them to bring it out. Don't bother peeling off their thin skin, which is both tasty and good for you.

End your 7/11/07 with a free 7.11 oz Slurpee today! All day 7-Eleven has been handing out the free frozen drink in celebration of their birthday. A little nutritional fact about the drink: "Slurpees are mostly water ice and are heavily infused with air; there is less food energy in a Slurpee than in the same volume of a soda.They are also generally considered kosher 'parve', as well as halal." Here are some Slurpee tips and recipes. Just beware the dreaded brain freeze!

After a lot of speculation that the Brooklyn Trader Joe's may never happen, Racked reports that it...IS! The good news (for Brooklynites) was posted just moments ago:

While the residual mustard stains have barely dried from last week’s extremely popular Hot Dog Eating Contest at Nathan’s Famous, it seems like the realm of competitive eating in NY has reached an overdue “I’m full” saturation point. So it’s only in the interest of each borough having its own event that we bring you this next story- the 4th Annual Dumpling Eating Contest, taking place on Sunday August 5th as part of the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in Flushing. For all of those who watched Joey Chestnut eat 66 weenies last week and exclaimed, “Hell, I can do that,” here’s your chance: the Dumpling Eating Contest is accepting registrants until the end of the month. Dumplings used in the competition are of the chicken and vegetable variety; according to the contest’s poster, current records are “Man- 49 pcs., Woman- 33 pcs.” at the two minute mark. So, um, let’s go ladies! Sponsors for the contest include Chef One Dumplings and the Tai Pan Bakery in Flushing, whose Village Voice listing says features “innovations like “Special Taste Mixed Hot Dog.”

This week in the Times, Bruni doubles up on sushi restaurants, reviewing 15 East and Ushiwakamaru. 15 East gets two stars; Ushiwakamaru, one. 15 East “manages to stand out in a crowded marketplaces of Japanese restaurants that focus on uncooked seafood,” he says, partly with the cooked dishes, partly with the sushi and sashimi itself, partly with the “gracious service,” and partly with the outstanding wine and sake list. Whereas at Ushiwakamaru, “for every two pieces of flawless sushi or sashimi there will be one that doesn’t measure up.”

This week in the Times, Bruni doubles up on sushi restaurants, reviewing 15 East and Ushiwakamaru. 15 East gets two stars; Ushiwakamaru, one. 15 East “manages to stand out in a crowded marketplaces of Japanese restaurants that focus on uncooked seafood,” he says, partly with the cooked dishes, partly with the sushi and sashimi itself, partly with the “gracious service,” and partly with the outstanding wine and sake list. Whereas at Ushiwakamaru, “for every two pieces of flawless sushi or sashimi there will be one that doesn’t measure up.”

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Like many New Yorkers we're huge fans of the cornucopia of Central American and Mexican fare available at the Red Hook ballfields. But we're do you go when you don't feel like trekking to Red Hook? For us Elmhurst and Jackson Heights often fit the bill, particularly because of the specials at the nabe's taquerias.

Like many New Yorkers we're huge fans of the cornucopia of Central American and Mexican fare available at the Red Hook ballfields. But we're do you go when you don't feel like trekking to Red Hook? For us Elmhurst and Jackson Heights often fit the bill, particularly because of the specials at the nabe's taquerias.

Ah, summer in New York: hot-dog contests, fireworks, the beach, and, don't forget, a stolid steamy blanket of humidity that greets all who dare to step outside their freon fortresses. But summer in the city needn't be all about sweating through the wet-dog daze.

Ah, summer in New York: hot-dog contests, fireworks, the beach, and, don't forget, a stolid steamy blanket of humidity that greets all who dare to step outside their freon fortresses. But summer in the city needn't be all about sweating through the wet-dog daze.

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Here’s the breakdown:

A fact for you: the average American lives within ten miles of a craft brewery.