Kokomo, Strip Clubs, Candy, and Bacon!

Score one for the little guy: Ahh, Kokomo and strip clubs. It's like hamburgers and french fries. After a Howard County board denied a liquor license renewal based on inaccurate information and a few noisy remonstrators, the owner appealed and the system worked. Howard County overruled.

Mars Buys Wrigley: Biggest candy company in the world? Who still eats this stuff?

A Waste of Good Bacon: A suspicious package oozing liquid causes a bomb scare in a NY Congressman's office. Turns out it was a message about pork, and not the kind of pork-barrel spending that you want. Poor bacon!

Three Latest and Best

Junipero Rules! Our viral campaign is already working! As I arrived at Meridian for a cocktail, I found Simon and Nolan lingering after their delivery of Junipero. Chef Dan Dunville placed his order first thing yesterday -- and several folks asked for it, too. Good job, gin drinkers! Add Meridian to the list of bars offering this sweet nectar.

Bacon and...Bacon! Nothing says summer like sweet tomatoes and the big, honking BLT at The Distillery. Perfect on the upstairs deck at lunchtime. (Did I mention *bacon*?!)

Mt. Tam Triple Cream: It's no secret I'm a big fan of the cheeses from California's Cowgirl Creamery, but this one, this is special. Thick, salty, gooey -- it's everything you want a cheese to be. Drink it with a bottle of fine, dry champagne. (And find these hockey-puck sized cheeses at The Goose.)

Oldies but Goodies

I'm about a week behind The Dish and most of my readers in some of this news, but I'm working to get caught up. Here's what I know (which is probably what most of you know at this point.)

India Garden Announces Opening: Various sources are reporting India Garden's new downtown location will be open by the end of August. Look for them right next door to Barcelona Tapas on Delaware just north of Ohio. (No word on the fate of their former location. If the rumors I've heard are true, then their landlord may have his just desserts being stuck with it.)

3rd Botulism Case: Oh, I don't even know why I'm mentioning this, but in the endless recall of Castleberry's canned chili and chili sauce, there's been a third case reported in Indiana. Apparently, either people in Indiana are the only people eating this stuff or the only ones not listening to the recalls. (Yes, I know, there's so much to be said there, but I'm not typing what I *know* you all are thinking.)

We Loved Tom's Bacon: Tom Smith, long time chef de cuisine at Oakley's Bistro, has departed for points south (Branson, MO) and a corporate cheffing gig. Brian Guntz will be the new sous chef. So, long, Tom! We'll miss your bacon!

Three-Course Menu at Oakley's: Also, at Oakley's, look for the return of their popular three-course tasting menu for $29. They tried this last year and it was a big hit. Starting this month, they'll add a nightly three-course seasonal option changed monthly. It's a great way to try some new dishes and enjoy the bounty of summer and fall for a reasonable price.

Sawasdee Doubles in Size! The wall is opened up, the framing in, and Ty says the new addition will be open by the end of next week. In case you hadn't heard, Sawasdee was able to lease the space next door and will be more than doubling seating space since this place is *always* crowded.

Three Latest and Best

After last week's dine fest and this week's marathon dinner schedule (starting tonight), I've been going downscale! And what a treat it's been.

BLT at Bourbon Street Distillery: Yes, Monday is $1 beer night. But it's never a bad time to tackle the beast of a BLT. I've never seen so much bacon in my life. And that's a very good thing.

Ranchero Beans at Cabo Mexican Grill: I popped in last week for lunch at this new little downtown spot. If you're looking for a local version of Quoba with slightly tastier, housemade ingredients (like the salty, tangy guacamole or rich queso) and a slightly broader menu, then you're in luck. They feature burritos, tacos, and enchiladas, along with the usual chips and salsa off a walk-up counter menu. My favorite thing? The ranchero-style pinto beans. Delish! Their liquor license should arrive this fall and they'll have beer with their expanded outside seating.

Bing Cherries, Ingredent of the Week: Sure, they're usually only in season for a nanosecond, but I've been enjoying the heck out of this season's sweet red cherries. Most are so big you could almost swallow the pit by accident biting in. Where have I found this bounteous goodness? Believe it or not - Marsh. (I've heard due to the weather, it's been a tough summer for stone fruit. No cherries yet that I've seen at the farmer's market.) I've been eating them plain, in a cherry clafouti, in smoothies, and today, I'm making a soup. Oh, so good!

Hibernating and Reading the Internets

Brrrr. It's too cold to go out and eat! While you're at home making the last pot roast of the season, here are a few interesting items from around the food and wine world:

Mark Your Calendar for Midwest Cabernet Experience: Yes, my favorite wine event of the year is coming on Friday, May 4. Only there's one huge snag. In moving this enormous Cabernet tasting and sale to a Friday night, they've forgotten to look at *which* Friday night. Not only is it Kentucky Derby weekend, but it also conflicts with Indianapolis Opera's final event of the season, Timothy Noble singing Falstaff. I hate it when event planners do this to us! If you can attend, then get your tickets at Kahn's (usually $75). No grocery store wines at this event. Look for all collector cabs and better.

Duckhorn Looses their Wine Maker: Sure, the winery is for sale and according to Zinquisition, it's one of the worst kept secrets in the wine world. But more importantly, they've lost their wine maker, Mark Beringer. He's landed at Zinfandel Lane managing the operation for Rutherford Studios.

Don't Change a Thing: While I was a latecomer to wine mega-warehouse Sam's in Chicago (thank my wine enabler), I'm a convert now. So, news that they've sold raises some concern. The buyer? A private equity group for a stake of 80%. However, founder Sam Rosen's grandson will be in charge. The idea? Expand the concept with new stores throughout Illinois. Now that could be change I can live with. (From winecanine.com)

Forbes Names Top 10 Tastemakers: Via Michael Bauer at the SF Chron, here's the list from Forbes for their top 10 most influential chefs in the US. While there are some big names on the list (Keller, Puck, Batali) there are also a few names known by foodies (Colicchio and Goin) as well some young up-and-commers who die-hards will know from kitchens they've been in around the country such as Johnny Iuzzini, Daniel Boulud's long time pastry chef at Restaurant Boulud in NYC.

The chefs are:

Eric Ziebold of CityZen in Washington, D.C.
Dan Barber of Blue Hill in New York
Johnny Iuzzini, pastry chef of Jean-Georges in New York
Wolfgang Puck of Spago, et al., in Los Angeles
Tom Colicchio of Craft in New York
Joel Robuchon, who has L'Atelier in New York and Las Vegas
Grant Achatz of Alinea in Chicago
Mario Batali of Babbo, etc., in New York
Suzanne Goin of Lacques in Los Angeles
Thomas Keller of Per Se in New York and French Laundry in Yountville.

And last but not least, Food Porn: Two words, people: Bacon Popcorn. Via Slashfood.