Monday Morning Duke's Mixture

Even less food coverage in the Star: Or, well, good food coverage anyway. Susan Guyett, lately one of the only tipsters over there on openings, closings and general food happenings was let go in the recent round of layoffs.

Taste Open for Dinner: Everyone's abuzz about Taste Cafe and their new dinner service (tentatively called the unappetizing "Aftertaste.") This popular brunch/lunch cafe is a stand-out in the category. The question is whether chefs Marc and Diedre can bring in the bacon for dinner. (Heads up -- they're not open every night, just later in the week, but I couldn't find the info on the website.)

Liquefied Caramel Corn: My favorite blogger, Carol Blymire (of French Laundry at Home) is tackling the new Alinea cookbook, recipe by recipe in her newest blog, Alinea at Home. I have no doubt she'll make many of these dishes seem perfectly reasonable. At least, the caramel corn looks like a great idea to me. (She's good about noting how and where to find special ingredients and equipment in her write-ups.)