VittlesVamp

What Wine Goes With Jello?

Yes, the Wall Street Journal's Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher finally answer that age-old question - and many more - in today's Tastings column.

BTW - The answer is American Reisling or a grassy Sauvignon Blanc.

Addendum: Wonder if Dorothy and John are familiar with Nigella Lawson's recipe for a Gin and Tonic gelatin mold. Have a strange feeling that they might approve.

Fowl Play

New York Magazine's Best Bet of the day suggests that all of us forgo turkey this year, and instead celebrate Thanksgiving by carving up a Turducken:

If you want to really impress your Thanksgiving guests, forget the turkey. I see a Turducken in your future. That is, a turkey that's stuffed with a duck that's stuffed with a chicken, with thin layers of dressing in between.It sounds weird but I gotta tell ya, we had one last year and it was deeeeee-lish.

Talk about birds of a feather sticking together! If you are intrigued enough to order one up, here's a link to Cajun Specialty Meat's Turducken section.

Top Tacos In Tempo

The New York Post features a special feature on the top taco spots in the five boroughs. Unfortunately, lots of foodies may miss it, since it is in the paper's Hispanic-oriented Tempo section which inexplicably isn't available on the regular NY Post Web site - but through an odd "Special Sections" link that allows you to see the stories in PDF format. Anyway, here are their picks:

Tops in tacos

By ANTHONY ANDRADE

TACO lovers, rejoice! With the recent influx of Mexican immigrants into the area, New Yorkers get to savor the most authentic of Mexican delicacies

T-Day

My Mom is coming into New York for Thanksgiving this year. And, although I usually adore cooking up a big ol' bird with all the trimmings, this time around we thought we'd let someone else do the cooking - specifically Thomas Beisl, an Austrian restaurant across from BAM, which is offering a $39.95 prix fixe five-course Thankgiving menu.

Gotta say it was tough finding restaurants that were open and serving on Thanksgiving, when I originally made my reservation search a couple of weeks ago. If only this "Open on Thankgiving" Manhattan User's Guide story had come out a bit earlier. Their primer would've come in quite handy.

Note to self: Save list for next year's search.

Jake's BBQ

I stand corrected - but with a caveat.

"Copyboy" recently admonished me for not including Jakes BBQ in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn in my "Vittles" wrap-up of barbecue spots in the Big Apple. And, so, I weaseled my way into Copyboy's family home in Carroll Gardens for a bit of schmoozing and a lot of BBQ delivered from Jake's.

We ordered the Baby Back and Short Ribs Combination for $18.95. Copyboy promised it would be enough with the sides it included. Boy, was he right.

The beef short ribs were huge, rich, meaty treats, slathered in a piquant, tomato-based barbecue sauce. Absolutely delectable. I could quickly understand how they were Copyboy's fave.

The baby back ribs were good and plentiful, but not quite as spot-on as the beef short ribs. Copyboy's ever-lovin' lady said that the baby backs were at the top of her list, appreciating how the meat falls off the bone. But, that was exactly the reason I was a tad disappointed in them.

For me, the measure of great BBQ pork ribs is that the meat is tender, but still holds its firm texture when you take a bite. The meat should come clean from the bone, but still retain its heft.

The folks at Chowhound seem to agree. But, that being said, they also think Jake's has some "damn fine meat."

And, here is what you've all really been waiting for - my caveat: Jake's BBQ is devoted to Kansas City style fare. An admirable contigent on the championship BBQ circuit.

If Copyboy had read more carefully, he would have noticed that my article pivoted off a recent trip to Austin, Texas. The column investigated whether it was possible to recreate the Texan culinary experience in NYC. So, if I had actually tried Jake's BBQ prior to writing the story, I still would have edited it out to focus on restaurants that offered more Texas-oriented or Southern-oriented 'cue. Besides, I had an 800-word limit. (Thank goodness, it isn't an 800-calorie limit!)

But to throw Copybody a bone - After digging into Jake's KC delights, I must admit that I am very happy that they deliver to my neighborhood. The food was downright delicious and the company more than amiable.

And, suddenly, visiting Kansas City doesn't sound like a half-bad idea.

Hey, Copboy - You wanna roadtrip?

You've Got Food!

According to Reuters, it looks like AOL is joining the ranks of of foodie fanatics, starting up a new service called AOL Food:

For a new service that starts on Monday, magazine publisher Time Inc. is forking over its file of recipes, cooking advice and kitchen tips to America Online, in a project executives call an "important step in our collaboration with Time Inc."

Time Inc.'s editors of Southern Progress magazines including Cooking Light, Real Simple, Southern Living, Health, Sunset, Coastal Living and cookbook publisher Oxmoor House worked with online provider AOL to build cooking-related features into the service. More titles are to be added in coming months.

The new area, called AOL Food, which involved over 100 employees from both units, marks another ambitious gesture toward thawing the ice between Time's New York publishing professionals and AOL's Dulles, Virginia New Media mavens.

Move over bonuses, the executive washroom key, prime parking spots and other popular work perks. Looks like food is the now the top pick in the dangerous world of corporate diplomacy.

My Dinner With Arnold

In the hope that the future Governor of California has more on his mind than party planning, the San Francisco Chronicle has put together a virtual inaugural dinner that pays homage to Arnold Schwarzenegger's Austrian heritage.

Isn't A Crown Supposed To Be Worn On The Head?

Just saw this on Gary Regan's Ardent Spirts Newsletter and had to share - in living color:

Caption: One of our readers, who will remain nameless (Carol), recently sent us a picture, taken in Las Vegas, of her son (Graham) "wearing" a strategically placed bottle of Crown Royal whiskey. Very nice, too, Graham. And you'd sipped only a third of the bottle? (God knows what he got up to later . . . )

Amazon Targets Foodies

Looks like Amazon is getting into the gourmet food business:

Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN) today launched its new Gourmet Food store (www.amazon.com/gourmetfood) -- a single destination offering the widest, deepest and tastiest selection of gourmet food online. Amazon.com has teamed with large national merchants, like Dean & DeLuca and Omaha Steaks, as well as smaller merchants like Alaska Smokehouse and Dave's Gourmet, who will offer their selection in the Gourmet Food store. The new store includes tens of thousands of products, from 700 different types of cheese to the hottest sauces in the world to fresh lobster at your door less than 24 hours from when it was in the ocean.

As an introductory offer, shoppers will receive a $10 promotional certificate toward a future Amazon.com purchase with a purchase of $50 or more in the Gourmet Food, Sporting Goods or Apparel stores. For more details, visit www.amazon.com/gourmetfood.

Some of there offerings are definitely out of my price range, but don't think anyone can quibble with their "gourmet" status. And, it certainly looks like they have a wide selection from purveyors ranging from Starbucks and Harry & David to Joseph Schmidt and D'Artagnan.

All sounds good - except for one puzzling thing: How the heck can they have a Top Sellers section, if they only launched this morning?

(Thanks to Ryan for the lowdown on the launch.)

Grey Lady Goes To The Dogs

OK. I'm taking back my earlier posting about the New York Times' Dining In/Dining Out section unduly being left out in the cold by the Association of Food Journalists awards.

On the cover of the section today:

AT LUNCH WITH COOPER GILLESPIE
He's an Author. Now Serve Him a Dog's Dinner.

By ALEX WITCHEL

Cooper Gillespie is not much of a host.

As we entered his Chelsea apartment, he jumped square in the middle of the cozy-looking couch, leaving me to settle for an upright chair. Then he took off to get himself a drink. I could hear him in the next room, slurping wildly, a terrible thirst sublimely quenched with equal parts delirium, glee and that certain je ne sais quoi that makes New York water taste even better when drunk directly from the toilet.

"He considers the couch his bed," Susan Orlean said, by way of apology, as he leaped back on it, splaying himself across its length. No apologies necessary. Cooper Gillespie is a 2-year-old Welsh springer spaniel, full of what his owner calls "high adolescent spirits" that seemed even higher than usual.

This week, the dog becomes an author when "Throw Me a Bone: 50 Healthy, Canine-Tested Recipes for Snacks, Meals, and Treats," by Cooper Gillespie (Simon & Schuster) reaches stores...

And, I thought Jayson Blair was a travesty. But, this puts me over the edge! This screams Sunday Style section fluff. No way does this type of pet pandering piece belong in a food section. Do I have to actually say it?: a food section for humans!

Now, don't get me wrong. I adore dogs. I'm particularly fond of my next door neighbors' gorgeous Maltese named Freda. And, I'm falling in love with the newest addition to my friends Celeste and Tom's home - Dixie the wonder dog.

But, I'll say it again - an article about dog food does not belong in the Dining In/Dining Out section. So, to conclude this little diatribe: The NYT food editors are barking up the wrong tree. (Bad pun intentional. The Times' food editors don't deserve better today - funfilled feature on cupcakes not withstanding.)