It's no secret that we love the succulent Texas 'cue on offer at Hill Country. Like many folks we also love the rockin' live music, but sometimes we're just not in the mood for beef, or more likely there are some noncarnivores joining us who are more interested in music than meat. All of which make us very glad that seafood house Black Pearl lies directly across the street from Hill Country. more ›

- Is New York going to go the way of LA with posted letter grades for restaurant health inspections? more ›

- The great Chowhound uprising of 2007 seems like it will turn a corner; management promptly replies with fixes, explanations and small concessions. Give CNET some respect; they really do have to manage a loyal crowd who loves the site. more ›

- Ever wonder why the produce in Chinatown is so cheap? NPR lets us in on the secret. more ›

A fixture in Vegas for more than 14 years, the Double Down Saloon is now firmly in the East Village, too. The outpost on Avenue A has been open for about two months and, we'll be honest, this week wasn't our first visit- when you have a negotiable day job and a new bar offers a 12 noon to 7pm happy hour, you get acquainted quickly. Especially when the house beer, the Double Down, is a really lovely India Pale Ale (more agreeable we might agrue, than our own Brooklyn's version) and $3 all the time. more ›

A Gothamist reader tipped us off and Florence Fabricant confirmed that Black Pearl, the New England style clam and lobster shack in the back of the East Village bar, Julep has closed. We will mourn quietly and head back to Pearl Oyster Bar. more ›

Sometimes one just isn’t enough. This can be true when it comes to lobster rolls at the Black Pearl, cashiers at Duane Reade and that tasty little chocolate that they leave on your pillow in hotels (especially if it’s a Toblerone). When it comes to wine there is also something to be said about having more than one grape variety. Blends, or wines that are a blend of different grape varieties, can be some of the most interesting, complex and delicious wines out there. The different grapes, like a well-stocked spice rack, can add an extra layer of flavor and depth to the wine. Although blends have been around since the creation of wine, today winemakers are pushing the envelope, creating blends that are unique, unexpected and bursting with flavor. Here are a few of our favorite traditional and non-traditional blends. more ›

The New York Times reports that the newest addition to the Rosa Mexicano empire is scheduled to open this Saturday. Fingers crossed -- it's always good to have another location for our passionfruit margarita and fresh guacamole fix. Also open: Cookshop, from the folks who brought you Five Points, (yes, we know about all the damn hype); 156 Tenth Avenue (20th Street), (212) 924-4440. Also "Loft, a lounge and restaurant mixing Asian and Mediterranean, 505 Columbus Avenue (84th Street), (212) 362- 6440. Scarlatto, a Roman-style restaurant in the former Pierre au Tunnel space: 250 West 47th Street, (212) 730-4535." Florence adds that Black Pearl is opening in Park Slope at 833 Union Street: "[t]his is a new spot for seafood prepared by Frederico Duarte, who worked at Dos Caminos and Da Silvano." The name and early rumors make us think it's related to the East Village clam shack hidden in the back of Julep, but Dos Caminos and Da Silvano hardly make us think of lobster rolls. more ›

- Paris Commune, the West Village eatery that moved into new space at 99 Bank Street last year, is celebrating its anniversary by opening the Rouge Wine Bar. Quaff wines from France, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and Chile while you wait for a table upstairs, or finish off your night by sipping on a glass of cognac while you gaze at the original fresco covering two walls. Look closely and you might see Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld, and a certain editor of Vogue among the romantic couples, sulky gamines, and Paris Commune regulars worked into the mural. Rouge Wine Bar at Paris Commune, 99 Bank Street, the corner of Bank Street and Greenwich Street, 212-929-0509. more ›

In case you missed it yesterday, be sure to check out New York Magazine's Cheap Eats issue. It's right up our alley; we're always looking for ways to save money so that we can, you guessed it, eat more food. Their Cheap List includes Gothamist favorites Bellavitae, Tia Pol, and the Waverly at IFC, plus places that are high on our list of newcomers, like La Esquina and Vintage New York's Wine Bar. We may not agree with their take on Black Pearl's lobster roll, but we hope that next time they do a panel on barbecue or cheesesteaks, they count us in. more ›

We adore Pearl Oyster Bar. The raw bar, the fried oysters, and of course, the lobster roll. Several weeks ago, when we first heard of Black Pearl, a clam-shack-style window tucked into the back of the East Village bar Julep, we were intrigued. When we read the New York Times review, we knew we had to go immediately, if not sooner. The review described the lobster rolls as "the real deal. Top-loading hot dog buns are slathered with butter, crisped on the grill and filled with the meat from a Maine hard-shell eighth (a lobster weighing a pound and one-eighth) bound with as little mayonnaise as possible. No celery, no celery salt, no lettuce, no nothing." Now, lobster rolls, like most things culinary, are a matter of personal preference. Our ideal lobster roll has no mayo to speak of, just a drizzle of drawn butter, so we knew we had hit the jackpot. more ›

Between a trip out to Fire Island this weekend, and New York Metro's wrap-up of new fish shacks, Gothamist is ready for summer. While our all-time favorite is Pearl Oyster Bar, we're eager to try the newbies -- Black Pearl, in the East Village, and Bar Minnow in Park Slope. We've already had a sample of the fish shack at BLT Fish, and while we only got a tiny taste of the raw bar and a batch of fried oysters (pictured at left), we want to head back for another round soon. more ›