mizery

Sounds like McCain's people vetted this licorice.

Apricot. Anything apricot.

Good items, TG.

I didn't know Gilbert's had closed. Boo hoo. Are they open or planning to open elsewhere?

You know this is the first week in a long time that Kim Pirce has not posted news on the Dmn's EATS blog of just what the Spiceman would be selling on the weekend. Do you think she saw the pic you are using and got scared off? It scares me a bit and I remember Tom from a way, way back.

Complaining is a perk of growing old, Twisted. I made nice way too long.

Ms. Ery takes exception to your "old-lady antique" shops. First, Plano has more -- or as many --arty-crafty "antiques" places that those that actually sell vintage items. Second, unless these places have only one antique in common -- perhaps various parts of one old lady divided among them? -- they should be called antiques (note plural) shops.

As for garage shopping in Plano. It's fine, if your idea of an antique is something that hails between the late 70s and 2000.

However, Ms. Ery is heartened that the food scene is looking up. If she weren't an antique herself (and therefore endanged in Plano), she might be tempted to move to one of those trendy town houses in old downtown.

She does like the idea that if she wants to visit one of these new places, she can take DART from East Dallas (where the vintage shopping is second only to Oak Cliff.)

Ace Mart sounds like a great lead. Thanks Tereese.

What kind of calendar are these people operating under? They are going Christmas mint befor Halloween and Thanksgiving pumpkin? And wouldn't mint be good for Derby Day in May as well?

How about cherry for President's Day and apple pie spices for the Fourth?

However, it is nice that these people are doing something extra for the lacto-intolerant.

I've heard that to protect his anonymity, a must for restaurant reviewers, Mariani visited Fearing's disguised as a Park Cities matron. Can anyone verify?

Does B.F.F. stand for "best favorite friend?" Are we being a little redundant?

Ferret smerit. Weasel is the dish.

Great review, Scott.

Kirk: Back to you: Nice comment.

Nice post.

Hope everyone has seen the nice mention Teresa got on the Dallas Morning News' EATS blog.

The blog also has a good discussion going on Esquire rating for Dean Fearing's.

Really fine-sounding places. I like the idea of Don Panza's particularly -- especially if they have a chimichurri sauce.

Makes it sound as if Oak Cliff is the place to be. Does your friend and blogger Twisted still have an apartment available there?

Bill: I just did a quick google. Routh Street opened in 1983.

Scott: If it will help in your search, I think recipe Claiborne used with his article was for yellow bell pepper soup.

Billusa: You are right that Miller is considered one of the first Southwestern chefs. Perhaps I should have described the gang of five as the Texas chefs credited with pioneering Southwestern.

I believe Routh Street Cafe opened much earlier than 1988, probably early '80s. I'd have to check,

Teresa: Re your visit to Fearing's. Did you try the signature rib-eye, or see it going to a table near you? Shades of the cowboy rib-eye at Star Canyon!

Scott: The 5th star I was talking about was from The News. You could argue that from the day it opened, under the auspices of New York's 21 Club, the Mansion was a hit and would have been popular with Dallasites no matter what the kitchen served.

As for Dean carrying it for 20 years, sadly it has always been my impression that The Mansion carried him. He is a good chef and perhaps the most congenial one in Dallas. To meet him is to like him. But he far from the best chef in town and it was mainly by Rosewood's clout that he has been considered so. At some point, the Mansion stars have been lowered by every local rating publication, including Texas Monthly. I think I was the first to slash them, and the reaction was prety intense. I had a lunch with Rosewood top honchos, at their insistence, that was not unlike you might imagine it would be to dine with Karl Rove or Dick Cheney after criticing Bush.

I often think Dean might have done better, more creative things if he hadn't been shielded by Rosewood. His initial fame, after all, didn't come from the Mansion. It came from a New York Times story by Craig Claibourne about his food at a restaurant owned by Tom Agnew, who like Avner was also a bad boy of the restaurant scene but one that had great influence.

Sorry this is so long. I get riled up on this subject, probably because I see Avner as a regular guy who made it despite the machine. In his first Mansion cookbook, Dean wrote Avner completely out as one of the founders of Southwestern cuisine, reducing the "gang of five" to the "gang of four." Of the other three founders, Robert Del Grande, Ann Lindsay Greer and Stephan Pyles, only Pyles was big enough to defend Avner's place.

Why are there so many Avner naysayers? Yes, perhaps he is not always accurate as to his history, but do you think the powers behind other Dallas chefs are either? I've never seen anyone dumping on Dean Fearing for the promotion of the Mansion's tortilla soup, which was introduced there by Avner, who also earned the hotel its first five-star rating. Mostly the press seems to follow the big guy's PR blitz's. For example, see Texas Monthly's slavish review of Fearing's, which claims he put the Mansion on the map. And Patricia Sharpe should know better.