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This morning's review of Choga Korean Restaurant brings up what is, in my mind, a different sort of question about how stars are doled-out. To her credit, Lauren Chapin states at the onset that she has not eaten Korean food before. I guess that caveat lets the reader know to proceed at his or her own risk. I can almost overlook the description of some of the menu items as "funky" and she also was up-front in admitting that she stuck to a relatively safe path. My concern is that she somehow, with nothing to compare this restaurant to, assigned a 2-1/2 star rating, meaning that it will not appear in the "Star Recommends" listing. As there are lots of restaurants and only one reviewer, it's unlikely the restaurant will be revisited in the next year or two, so they've now lost the exposure of having people pick up the Preview section for the next 100 weeks or so and see them as a dining option. As far as I know, they are the only Korean restaurant in town so a visitor seeking that cuisine here would either assume we have no Korean food or be forced to look elsewhere. Once again, the text description of the meal sounds fine. I don't recall seeing any major flaws in quality, quantity, preparation. So why the relatively rough star treatment that banishes them from "the list" for the forseeable future?

KC Media Digest for week of December 14 - 20, 2006 The Kansas City Star Food Section In Eating for Life Jill Silva recommends decorating your holiday table with a festive, colorful salad. Lauren Chapin compares quince to a two-year-old. Janet Majure visits Teresa Armato, the Italian nonna everyone wishes they had this time of year in Come Into My Kitchen. She shares a recipe for pane di spagna. This week's Food Calendar can be found here. Preview Section Lauren Chapin makes her first foray into Korean cuisine at Choga. Good & Cheap finds her at some of the Hi Boy drive-ins in Independence. Cityscape Diners at JJ's will have a more pleasant view, thanks to a new Napa-themed mural covering the eyesore that is the the West Edge project. Joyce Smith reports that it was inspired by the owner's girlfriend and underwritten by JE Dunn Construction, the 'perpetrator'. The Pitch Charles Ferruzza approaches OP1906 (in the Overland Park Shearton) with the fear and trepidation born of a KC tradition of less-than-stellar hotel food. And, in My Big Fat Mouth, he bids farewell to northland fixture Illiki. The Lawrence Journal World Terry Rombeck offers some gift ideas in the form of food of the month clubs. Susan Krumm takes a slightly more practical approach with a list of helpful kitchen gadgets. Spaces Magazine I haven't been including this publication because their reviews aren't available online. I do notice now that you can at least view recipes from local chefs and former restaurateur, author of food myseteries and gal-about-town, Lou Jane Temple, will be writing for them in upcoming issues. Present Magazine The December issue also features a bit on Brits and some wine advice. <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some area media outlets, which do not 'go to press' before we do, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>

I immediately thought of the flavored ammo (there was another thread about it on here a month or so ago) when I read "wild game injector."

Welcome to the not-so-wonderful world of competition cooking. To paraphrase: there's a broken heart for every pilot light on Broadway.

OK, I made some of this today. Since I'm not a veteran dessert cook, I followed the recipe to the letter with one exception: I didn't realize my candy thermometer didn't work (it's only about 50 years old and hasn't been used for 25 . . . who knew?). So I had to guess at the temp; apart from that, I went strictly by the book. Oh, except I put more bacon in it. It's really not bad, considering. I wish it were thinner (I think that was a function of being either too hot or not hot enough when I took it off of the heat) and I wish I hadn't put in more bacon than called for (it's enough - really - trust me). All in all, I rather like it. I think I'll give it another go after I've procured a reliable thermometer and dial-back the bacon a tad. I DID use the dreaded, world-threatening corn syrup (no fatalities as yet) and chopped pecans. I'm thinking cashews might be good as well, now that I've tried it.

I was thinking there's a chocolatier in Belmont Shore (adjacent to Long Beach) but looking on the web it's not leaping out at me by name, anyway. I did notice on their website under 'events' they have a chocolate festival in February, so you might contact them and ask. I was trying to remember the name of the place in Seal Beach and stumbled onto this website covering all of the OC. We spend a lot of time in Surfside so I see a lot of places but not being an afficionado, I rarely stop in them. If some of the locals don't chime in I can ping the friends we stay with - surely one of them will confess to having a sweet tooth.

KC Media Digest for week of December 6 - 12, 2006 The Kansas City Star Food Section Eating for Life proposes following the proverbial thin French woman's credo of "just three bites" during the holidays. Anne Brockhoff reviews several books sure to help us get into the holiday spirits. Say "cheese" and Gail Borelli guarantees your holiday guests will be smiling. Food Calendar for the coming week can be viewed here. Preview Section Lauren Chapin visits the new home of Piropos at Briarcliff Village. And, in Good & Cheap, introduces Martini Corner newcomer, The Drop Bar & Bistro. Todd Schulte, the man formerly behind some really fine soups at Joe D's, has started a business doing what he does best. If you live in the right zip code and order ahead, he will deliver a selected fresh, tasty soup to your door Thursday through Saturday. Cityscape Joyce Smith reports on the latest attempt to breathe life into the former Canyon Cafe space on The Plaza. Local brewery partners and sports radio team-up to bring the second 810 Zone to the metro. Elsewhere A vegan chef in Parkville is making dairy-free cheese underground with her new company, PlayFood. The Pitch Charles Ferruzza and his posse saddle-up and head out [to Village] west to see what's rustlin' at the Saddle Ranch Chop House. Some new Sunday brunch ideas are a welcome offering in My Big Fat Mouth. The Lawrence Journal World Some working mothers in Lawrence are saving about 50% with their do-it-yourself "second kitchen" model, patterned after the franchise. Not the worst idea I've heard lately. And this was picked up from AP - I don't generally include wire-fed articles - but, if you or Santa are in the market, you might benefit from these features to consider when buying a new stove. Present Magazine The December issue offers, among other items of interest, a feature on Panache (chocolatiers). Tastebud Magazine I'm happy to report that the little tabloid that could has a December issue available on newstands (but no new online content). KCUR 89.3 FM Join Walt Bodine tomorrow at 10 a.m. as he welcomes back The Food Critics. Click here, then click Listen Live. And I would be remiss if I didn't bid farewell and best of luck to Walt's long-time producer and friend, Martha Julian, who announced her departure from the show last week. Martha, you'll be missed! <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some area media outlets, which do not 'go to press' before we do, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>

But it was nice to see Rafael Lunetta again - I don't think I've seen him on TV since he and Josiah Citrin were still partners and did a loopy, tequila-fueled turn on Ready-Set-Cook! I was glad to see he's still surfing.

What he said.

You, of course, have the more cultured Napa chickens - naturally they enjoy an evening passegiata and no interest in anything scatalogical. I would expect no less.

I find it amusing that this seems like such a foreign concept. I am hardly ancient, yet I remember a time when fresh fish and seafood wasn't available in the midwest. Do I want to go back to that time? Sometimes I think I would like to - it made travel much more special. True, I cannot remember life without bananas and citrus fruits, but I believe we were eating far more seasonally and what we were eating came from nearer here, because the vast network of subsidized farming, trucking and shipping was not yet developed. Why is it so hard to imagine living this way again? If the objection is (as I suspect) being lectured-to by the 'lunatic fringe', then I suggest turning the other cheek. If you really, truly believe that year-round everything coming from everywhere is better than seasonal eating . . . that's a different story and I urge you to not throw the proverbial baby out with the bath water. Eating parsnips, rutabaga and the like isn't so bad and it makes you really appreciate the spring stuff when it arrives (and, subsequently, the summer and again the fall).

Some of the economies of scale in the industrial food system are propped up by subsidies; this number does not appear at the bottom of your grocery receipt but you are nonetheless paying for it. Another factor is diversification versus centralization. This summer's spinach situation was unfortunate and, while the same kind of thing can happen in a more localized system, it affects fewer people/markets, is faster and easier to trace to the source and doesn't result in the destruction of the vast amount of crop as it did in the Salinas Valley. Not to take away from any of the points above. Just think there are multiple factors to be considered and these two are important IMHO. Edited to remove a superfluous word.

You underestimate me, jgm, I actually did try that ("you know, like the molten chocolate cake at XYZ") but they saw right through it. I did get the last laugh, though, having the 'good' part after they went to bed. Don't get mad, get even.

Hey, wait a minute . . . aren't you the one who is teaching someone else how to cook? Yikes! I made banana bread last week (cheap, overripe bananas at the store made me forget temporarily that I don't bake). I filled the loaf pan and a muffin-crown pan with the remainder and everything seemed to go well. I removed the muffin crowns first, of course, since they don't have to bake nearly as long. When I finally took the bread out and turned it out onto a cooling rack, the top fell off and molten-hot liquid batter came oozing out. I guess I filled the loaf pan too full. I have to say, though, I scooped the hot gooey middle out and ate it and it was really good. Then I put the top back on and finished baking it the next morning and that was OK, too. So I wonder if I could duplicate it again if I tried, because it was kinda more enjoyable than just plain banana bread.

Yes, you're fortunate . . . the only thing I can walk to is my refrigerator (or, perhaps, a neighbor's house). What temperature was the thermometer registering when you dug it out of the snow? The friends are safely back in Chicago and, yes, they will return soon. They come here 3 times in about 6 weeks around the holidaze and then they disappear for another 10-11 months. I'm going to be dreaming about that Thermador for a while. Who knows . . . if they're open for lunch and putting token tomatoes on sandwiches to please the burger crowd, maybe they'll be offering delivery soon, eh John?

I'm glad you fared better with the weather. I tried to take the Chicago friend there but realized early-on that it was going to be a dicey proposition with planes, trains and automobiles trying to make connections during the first arctic blast in the midwest. Unfortunately (for ALL of us) I was forced to cook. The good news was that we were safe and able to relax and enjoy some wines from our 'cellar'; the bad news - I was really psyched for checking out the new menu and didn't get to. I'm sure I'll be able to rationalize a visit soon, though. 'Tis the season.

I was waiting for Tim to reply with more specific info but, as he has not, I will at least say that last week he confirmed they were still looking at a January opening (whether it's the 1st or the 31st, I do not know).

I was in the throes of indecision amongst all KC restos to take a Chicago guest . . . but the weather ultimately made our decision for us and we cooked chez nous. I always appreciate updated assistance/advise, though. I hope you'll keep it coming. Not to dis the local media, but I tend to favor advice on these boards vs the (IMHO) generic mainstream press.

Sounds to me like you've been eating cheesy corn again. Actually, in thinking of "the season" and this topic, at various times between now and the end of the year, turkey will be offered as a "loss leader" to get people into a store. There's nothing much simpler than roasting a turkey, it requires a few hours but little hands-on time and you can get SO MUCH meat off of it that can be used in countless ways, freeze it into one-meal size packets, turn the carcass into a stock . . . A sound investment, I think.

You should all be packed-off to the "home for obscure film references."

KC Media Digest for week of November 30-December 5, 2006 The Kansas City Star Food Section Jill Silva touts pumpkin in Eating for Life. Lauren Chapin profiles six local women who are making a splash in the wine business. Janet Majure and Neil Salkind offer some gift ideas for the kitchen gadget lover on your holiday list. Doug Frost suggests a lesser-known Pinot Noir. Here is this week's Food Calendar. Joyce Smith provides an update on Stroud's search for a new home in the southern region of the metro. Preview Section The newly renovated EBT Restaurant gets a tepid 2-1/2 stars from Lauren Chapin. The KC Originals offer gift certificates from $25 to $1000 for the diner on your list (or your local media digester ). The Pitch Charles Ferruzza y sus amigos visit El Patron, in the old Gia's space on SW Boulevard. And, in My Big Fat Mouth, they are off to the Royal China to sample the Korean buffet (yes, you read that right and no, I'm not finally losing it). Kansas City Magazine Our own G.E. Fellrath metes-out but 2 stars to The American Restaurant, a KC classic. Tastebud Magazine I was starting to think we had killed yet-another food periodical - I haven't seen a hard copy of tastebud in several months - but the website boasts of issues through November. The cover is somewhat eerily reminiscent of the final Fire & Knives, though . I wish 'em well and hope my inability to locate them is a personal shortcoming. The Lawrence Journal World For those aspiring to the 100-mile diet (or simply to eat good, fresh meat) take heart: Terry Rombeck tell us there will be a weekly meat market in Lawrence Wednesdays, 5-7pm, in the Local Burger parking lot (714 Vermont). Gwyn Mellinger offers another bit of holiday advice on kitchen gadgets. <><><><><> Media Digest Notes... Updates from some area media outlets, which do not 'go to press' before we do, will be edited into each week's post as they become available. Please do not reply on this thread. For discussion of any stories which are linked here, please feel free to start a new thread or contact the forum host or digester who will be happy to do it for you. <><><><><>

Be careful what you wish for. Actually, now that you've surfaced, I think I'll start a "lurking KC chefs" thread. So many people have projects in the works it might be worth its own topic. Not that anyone will actually 'spill' what they're up to.

Here i am, evidently i had an account this whole time......who knew? ← Glad you came out. I had forgotten I started this thread to be honest. As long as it's been we could have rivaled the Alinea pre-opening thread and really worked up some buzz by now The website is obviously a work in progress but damn that salad looks good and I don't generally start craving raw vegetables until 8:15! I have been vague about the concept, though, so this does provide some insight into that. Didn't realize the take-out emphasis and set-up but that's probably a great idea given the location and the growing popularity of grab-and-go - if it keeps one misguided soul out of Applebee's it will all be worthwhile. Keep us posted on what's going on now that you know you can.

I hadn't been to Houston in forever, so I really enjoyed last night's installment. I did notice the photography seemed more arty than some previous cities. All of the food looked good enough to send me to bed hungry (again) save for the waffles and wings - a combination that has always baffled me, although there is a chicken and waffle chain in Orange Co near you, if I'm not mistaken. Mai's food looked great. My office, until this summer, was within a mile of about 5 pho shops and I didn't realize how much I missed it until I watched you slurping away happily. I need to revisit the urban core! Looking forward to seeing you in your natural habitat next week (and having been forewarned, I'll try to make something for dinner that incorporates ajo so the sense that I'm missing out on something great might be lessened).

I just had a thought (it happens on occasion): your alma mater has an extension service that offers a lot of home economics, nutrition, health, consumer, family type programs. They appear to have some newsletters that might be useful (perhaps you could print ones of interest or, if she's inclined, most libraries offer free computer time). I just did a quick survey and, while it's kind of turkey-centric right now, there seem to be some good ideas there you (or she, or both) could use as a starting point for some of the 'lessons'. If you go to this page and scroll down a bit, there's a section outlining programs they offer to help with applying for food stamps, something called Family Nutrition Program, etc. There's a picture of the Sedgwick County facility on the site as well. I'd guess, from the size of it and number of programs, they have a certified kitchen where people can prepare quantities of things, put food by, etc. I've been wanting to do the Master Food Volunteer program for over a year but it's not designed for working stiffs, currently. They did mention they've had some interest in classes either on weekends, evenings or in a block of time (likely summer) when those who work might be able to arrange to attend.