Mrs. Betty Butterworth?
She’s so stalwart in her syrupfullness, isn’t she? Her hands folded across that ample belly and that staid collar … even the yellow cap looks like a prim little hat.
Well, if you can guess her first name — something the Pinnacle Foods Company hasn’t revealed in her 40 years — you can win $500 and a year’s supply of her. Is it Betty? Bambi? Belle? Babette? Maybe it’s Sue.
You’ve got until July 17th to guess the first name of this chubby pop cultural icon who has appeared in everything from movies and TV to Kanye West’s rap lyrics.
Entering is easy. Just submit your guess along with an explanation of 100 words or less as to why you think your first name guess is correct. You can also send your entry to: “Guess Mrs. Butterworth’s First Name” Contest, c/o BHG PR, 546 Valley Rd., Upper Montclair, New Jersey, 07043.
All entries must be received by July 17, 2009. No purchase is required to win. May the syrup be with you.
Bottled water to be banned by Congress?
A story sent to me by KYW Newsradio in Philadelphia says the fate of bottled water may be in the hands of Congress, as Washington looks at the safety of the plastics used in the bottling industry and decides whether or not it should be regulated, much like our tap water. Well, duh.
Some plastics carry carcinogens that don’t affect us in the short term and recycling some of these plastics make them even more harmful. Of course, the bottled water industry has responded with all kinds of solutions — bottles that contain less plastic being tops on the list. I guess what irks me is that the obvious reason for us to stop drinking bottled water is that it’s a horrible choice for the environment, not just our health. Tons of waste is produced, not to mention the costs involved in shipping all those bottles around the world.
One way to help is to stop ordering bottled water at restaurants. Many restaurants are implementing the use of filtration systems for tap water to entice …
Atlanta rules Top Chef Season 6
It’s confirmed! As reported on Foodie Buddha and here on Table Talk yesterday and Monday, three Atlanta chefs will appear on Season 6 of Bravo’s hit foodie fave, Top Chef.
Hector Santiago (pictured), chef-owner of Pura Vida in Poncey/Hi, is one of my favorite Atlanta chefs, offering the city a taste of some of its only real tapas while giving a nod to molecular gastronomy at the same time. Foam must be this chef’s middle name, and he can fry up a mean, beautiful mess of calabaza squash rings (I went into withdrawal when he took them off the menu a few years back). Love is deep: I chose Pura Vida for the Fall Dining Guide’s very first restaurant of the year, back in 2005. Of the three chefs from Atlanta, he’s got the most experience and the chops to pull this off.
Kevin Gillespie filled big chef’s clogs when Woodfire Grill’s chef and founder, Michael Tuohy, left for California last year. Kevin isn’t yet 30, and is clearly one of the smartest, most dedicated and talented chefs …
Georgia peaches are here!
If you’ve stopped by your favorite farmer’s market, Kroger, Publix or Whole Foods, you may have noticed that one of summer’s greatest assets has arrived on produce shelves: Georgia peaches.
I shopped on Monday and have already eaten all but one of the half-dozen peaches I bought. This year’s crop offers big, full-sized peaches with lots of juicy flesh.
And if you don’t eat all of them out of hand, you may want to make one of summer’s other greatest assets with them: Ice cream.
I make ice cream with a simple, classic custard sauce called creme Anglaise — this sauce is one of the first things a pastry chef learns to make because it is the basis of so many other desserts, from ice cream to Bavarian cream. Once the sauce is made, I add peaches (or other fruit and ingredients, depending on what flavor I’m craving). The sauce keeps for a week if covered tightly in the refrigerator.
One way to add even more flavor to your ice cream is to roast the peaches prior to adding them to the …
Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria opens
Bob Amick and Concentrics Hospitality make due on his promise to downtown, opening yet another restaurant — this one a coal-burning pizzeria — in the Luckie Marietta District, called Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria.
The restaurant opened quietly on June 29, according to a press release.
Why coal? It burns hot. 1,000-degrees hot. New York City is full of coal-burning pizzerias: the ovens are what get credit for that city’s chewy, yet light, crusts. Not a favorite of environmentalists, to be sure, though emissions are limited from something as small as an oven.
Longtime Concentrics’ chef Nick Oltarsh will wear the oven mitts, serving house specialties such as the classic Margherita, a bianca pizza with ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, garlic confit and fresh basil and “Max’s Meaty,” loaded with pepperoni, sausage, meatballs and ham.
Tired of Atlanta’s pizza wars? Max’s offers coal-fired wings, too. Plus salads and pasta. Located next to sister Stats with exposed brick walls and a …
Saving the world one bag at a time
Remember that commercial where the grocery checker asks the guy paper or plastic? And the guy practically goes into overdrive trying to decide which is worse for the planet?
Well, reusable grocery bags have helped with that dilemma. But one bag no one seems to have considered is that flimsy little plastic thing you put your produce in — which unlike other plastic grocery bags, can’t be recycled.
Enter reusable grocery bags from 3B Bags: Fine-mesh bags that are machine washable, almost weightless, and see through (so the checker can see your produce). And affordable — $7.50 for a pack of three. According to the company’s website, the plastic nasties most of use “don’t biodegrade although they are photo-degradable. They break down into smaller toxic pieces that are harmful to both soil and water and can potentially end up in our food and water.” YUCK. Order from the website, and start saving the planet, one bag at a time.
Taste and tour Chesire Bridge Road
In the mood for fried chicken and Parker House rolls, then a shopping spree at Distinctive Vacuums and Appliances? Well, you’re in luck.
From July 21 - 23, many of the businesses and restaurants along the diverse path of Chesire Bridge Road will be participating in Taste & Tour of Chesire Bridge 2009. Through July 18, $10 will get you a day pass ($20 buys all three days and children under 7 are free) to tour samples, tastings and giveaways from Alfredo’s, the Colonnade, Woodfire Grill, Nino’s, Taverna Plaka, Return to Eden health foods, Ursula’s Cookign School and businesses such as Topaz Salon and Antiques and Beyond. Tickets will be sold online and at some of the participating businesses (call 404-876-6553 for more info). Proceeds go to Open Hand Atlanta.
How does it work? A trolley will run the gamut (excluding the glut, so don’t expect to stop off at 24K) with stops at three to four locations and within walking distance of participating businesses.
And speaking of Woodfire …
Studioplex hosts fresh market
Studioplex, the live-work community in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, will offer up fresh fruits and veggies again this summer each Saturday (through November) from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. in the complex on Auburn Avenue that also houses lovely Serpas.
Chef and former Decatur restaurateur Michele Niesen has been hired as market manager. Niesen retired from her restaurants in 2007 after a ten-year run and headed for the hills of North Georgia to farm. But she’s agreed to manage Studioplex’s Courtyard Market, coming to town once a week with goodies from her farm. She also plans to host cooking demos at the market, presenting various chefs, and ultimately provide fresh local produce, edible market goodies and artisan crafts.
Spaces for local growers, vendors and artists are still available at $25, or $75 for a month or a 5% commission. For more info contact Niesen at 404-428-6300 or at solfood@mindspring.com.
Fast food evolves
Ever really regret eating that double cheeseburger with large fries and a shake?
The three guys who came up with the concept of Florida-based Evos did. So they came up with the idea of fast food with half the fat. They developed the concept with a green attitude, offsetting the units’ — in Florida, Nevada, North Carolina, California and now Georgia — energy usage with renewable wind energy. They use guest materials made from recyclable materials, using soy-based, not petroleum-based, inks.
And they serve burgers, fries and shakes. Plus veggie burgers and wraps. Salads. Even a corn dog. And everything has half the fat. The fries are “airfries,” a patented process that uses dry heat (you know, like an oven?) instead of a fryolater to fix ‘em up. And milkshakes are made with organic milk, sugar and fruit.
I took my hubby to lunch last Thursday at the Prado location (another is at Viewpoint on Peachtree Street) to check things out. The “tour” given by the service staff is a bit …
‘Cue and Cru: BBQ tastes great with red, white or blue
Just when I thought I’d heard –- and tasted — it all, along comes a blast of something I never thought of. This time, it’s wine with barbecue. Bar-B-Q-Red has arrived. Biagio Cru and Estate Wines importers have developed a wine that will “stand up to any spice or flavor that a barbecue sauce throws at you—all at an affordable price,” according to Biagio Cru’s Ben Restivo.
‘Red’ is actually the second bottle in the “food and wine” collection — the first was “Rigatoni Red.” I’m voting for fried chicken Fume Blanc as the next installation.
In the mean time, here are some spots for ‘cue that you can celebrate at — and drink red, white or maybe even blue this weekend. And if you find yourself in Athens, check out these spots, recommended by my colleague and King of the Dawgs, Bill King.
The Hickory Pig Barbecue, 3605 Thompson Road, Gainesville, 770-503-5235 not rated
A full plate of some of the Hickory Pig’s low-and-slow roasted pork shoulder will have you drinking red, white, …
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