Gifted Gourmet

If there is a lot of "background noise", the kneeling down might just be an attempt to hear the customer's order more effectively ...

the research study

I have a feeling that the answer to your question is right in here: Waiter tip tricks ... article from Cornell ...

article from USA Today Think this, although not particularly newsworthy and certainly heavily discussed here on eGullet, has some value and interest for you? A nicely written article .. worth the time it takes to chew over the details ...

a thread with some discussion on Angus Barn Please read the comments by Kathleen Purvis on the page .. she is the knowledgeable Food Editor of the Charlotte Observer and gives one a good amount of details .... and, apparently the Sawdust Pie for dessert is worth trying as are the fantastic cheese spreads ... Enjoy yourself!

Great details on these places and their seafood, Thrak! Thank you! Can I quote you on your terminology "Oysterpalooza"??

Tasting menu at Blais in Atlanta Spring meal at Chez Panisse, Berkeley, California Labor Day tasting menu at Manresa, Los Gatos, California Dinner at Peninsula Grill in Charleston, SC Last week tasting menu at the Dining Room at the Ritz Carleton, Buckhead, Atlanta (and in between? lots of places who advertise "all you can eat" ... )

Debbie, first of all, welcome to the Southeast Forum of eGullet! We hope to see you posting about your food experiences here frequently! Perhaps a very good starting point for your Charlotte food questions might be found here in this thread by Phaelon ... Another excellent source is our own Kathleen Purvis, Food Editor of the Charlotte Observer website

definitely planning to check this one out! Thanks for the info, Bill H!

Wow! MaxH, I do appreciate your followup on this! Thanks!

Interesting! This is exactly what you said to do before Yom Kippur!

Has anyone eaten here since this thread began last summer? Read anything or heard anything of interest?

this looks really good! and so does this one! and this looks quite Italian!

different article on this topic ...

Apparently getting water into one's system in some form is good ... and salt ... source: iVillage.com

Great concept and, if it is successful, everyone derives the benefits! Thanks for mentioning this, Ari! This is why the DFM receives the praise it does ...

possible solutions from iVillage.com Very favorite hangover cures? Special surefire solutions you know work (for you)? Recipes? (as if anyone wants to actually prepare anything in this state!) Talk quietly and let me go back to sleep?

possible answer to your question may be somewhere here? but this appears to be more of the Fresh Market, Whole Foods, Earth Fare phenomenon ... all of which no doubt qualify as "boutique" ... and, if I understand you correctly, Varmint, the options are the extemes of the local farmers' market with the boutiques on the extreme other end?

You sound like my daughter who examined our towels when she was able to read and asked "Is our family name Drake?" the "backstory" to her comment ...

You ain't confessin' Brother Solomon.. you are braggin' .....

Thank you for this sentiment which so closely resembles my own! Well said indeed!!

Very pleased that you are enjoying it, sacre bleu (great name!!)

Here you will find the collection of digests for a number of media which are located in the Southeastern states. This week's Southeast Forum Digest includes, in alphabetical order, by city . . . the overall theme is, of course, festive food and party preparations for the coming New Year's celebrations! The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has the winners listed for the Annual Golden Whisk Awards .. which are given to the best recipes from the AJC for the year 2004: Here they are: • All-American Meatloaf • Day-Before Blueberry French Toast • Lettuce Wraps With Moo Shu Pork • Onion Soufflé Dip • Twice-Grilled Stuffed Zucchini • Espresso Martini • World's Best, Easiest (and Prettiest) Brownies • Dark Chocolate Ganache • Steve's Beans • Frozen Pistachio Cheesecake There are archived Golden Whisk Awards from the AJC from as long ago as 1999... Atlanta Creative Loafing has some terrific stories which are, appropriate, for the conclusion of 2004: * Alive in '05 Bye bye Blais and Commune; hello Quinones Room and Shout BY BILL ADDISON * My, aren't we trendy? The fads that fashion Atlanta's dining scene BY CLIFF BOSTOCK * Get lucky this New Year's Day BY KIM O'DONNEL * Jive talkin' Ponce's Java Jive serves up breakfast with a smile BY FLORENCE BYRD * A wish for shish fulfilled Sub & Shish Kabob's setting belies its astute eats BY CYNTHIA WONG The Charleston Post & Courier has a number of stories worthy of your reading time: * Health & wealth: In Britain, the arrival of a tall, dark-haired, handsome man bearing gifts as the first visitor of the New Year is considered very good luck. * Savory or sweet waffles celebrate new year * Oranges, chiles add zest to shrimp stir-fry This bright-tasting stir-fry takes next to no time to prepare and cook * Spicy chicken soup low-fat but warming comfort food * Bed-and-breakfast owners serve elegant morning meals Gayle Johnson is queen of the quick, elegant breakfast -- * Easy ham steaks succulent New Year's Day tradition Call us superstitious Southerners, but we always serve pork, black-eyed peas and greens on New Year's Day. The Charlotte Observer offers us: Cocktails to impress this is an article with a number of excellent ideas from a NY bartender, Nick Mautone, author of the new book "Raising The Bar: Better Drinks, Better Entertaining" ... read on ... Charlotte Creative Loafing this week: * We Are What We Ate Charlotte's year in food ..... by tricia childress * Good For What Ails You Cures from the kitchen by linda vespa If your workplace is anything like the offices of Creative Loafing, there's a lot of sniffling, sneezing, and hacking (not the computer type) going on. With the colder weather and hectic holiday schedules come the inevitable colds,... * Get lucky this New Year's Day by kim o'donnel Even this gal, born and raised north of the Mason-Dixon Line, knows that Hoppin' John rules ... Memphis Commercial Appeal has a variety of seasonal articles for the New Year ... * Attacking 2005 with some goals (best article this week! I love her ideas!!) * Dinner at home? Get the corkscrew * Finger foods Forget the plates. This New Year's Eve, let's give a big thumbs up to finger food. * Balsamic vinegar adds rich taste * Newly revised culinary classic still charming Its official title is "On Food and Cooking," but it has been years since I've heard anyone refer to it that way. Everyone just calls it "McGee." * May New Year be free of carb-free foods The Nashville Tennessean has these pieces: More FOOD * Festive, not frenzied Lovely article on tapas follows! * Pucker up for pudding * Winter wunder-wurst * Haute chocolate * Melting pot The Orlando Sentinel this week:Gourmet salts and more add spice to 2005 An excellent article from Food Editor Heather McPherson! The Raleigh News & Observer brings readers several new items which I enjoyed reading: * Color your omelet white -- no yolk Some of us take no delight in egg yolks. We don't like dipping the edge of our toast in the runny spot of an egg sunny side up. * The Wine List Each week, a Triangle wine shop recommends wines in three price ranges: under $10, $10 to $20 and more than $20. * Discover new sparklers There were five glasses of champagne in front of each of us, each unmarked. * My year of living deliciously Most people do it this time of year: Look back at what we accomplished ... A beautiful article which made me laugh and cry simultaneously! I want to take these last few hours of 2004 to wish you a Happy New Year for 2005 ... to thank you for your interest in this Southeast Forum and for your support and encouragement! Your PM's show that many of us who live in this region of the country have a wide variety of interests in our local food "scenes" ... The growing contingent of posters from Florida recently makes me positively giddy with delight! There will be more coverage of the Miami and Orlando areas as the interest grows ... Please let me know where you are located for even more focused coverage of the media there ... An excellent example is the addition to this SE Digest: article from the St. Petersburg Times New Year's noshes The new year demands our attention. By JANET K. KEELER Beautifully done and the photos of the recipes for appetizers beckon one to taste ...Happy 2005! Stay tuned for more Digesting ...

I doubt that Forbes ever even got to Atlanta back in 1988 but I lived here then and I can tell you in one word: Barbecue ... It was very big then before we got the 1996 Olympics .. after that though? Tres chic and verrrry cosmopolitan ...

What a cool story! Thanks for offering us the occasion to laugh with you ...