As the Queen starts making her own Windsor wine, the industry enjoys a record year

✒ It's been a tremendous year for English wine with our vineyards producing an amazing 4m bottles, a record. And it turns out that the Queen is going to start making her own wine at Windsor, though you won't be able to buy it for three years and will, of course, have to wear a ridiculous hat while drinking it.

I popped along to English wine's annual show this week and tried as many as I could without falling down. The days when a French vigneron could say to me "yurr English wine, eet tastes of rain" are long gone, and some of the sparklers are now quite exceptional – far better than champagnes selling at the same £20-24 mark. In fact, some, such as Camel Valley, Ridgeview and Nyetimber, strike me as being just as good as the premium brands from famous names being sold to footballers and rock stars for more than £100 in shops and at even sillier prices in clubs and restaurants.

It's a matter of prestige. People still feel that for really special occasions, the wine must have the word "champagne" on the label. Soon, however, I'm sure people will say: "We're laying this aside for our daughter's engagement; it's from Cornwall…"

✒ I really enjoyed the royal wedding. I know most people didn't – the viewing figures were comfortably less than half the population – but I saw no point in leaving the country as some did. You could always keep the telly switched off.

But here are the seven worst things about it, aspects of the event that were actually quite annoying:

• Tony Blair and Gordon Brown not being invited. Whether Blair "cashed in" on Princess Diana's death (he didn't), or because Cherie refused to curtsey, or because Blair's memoirs said too much about his dealings with the royals, the snub was to all of us and to democracy. And it gave what should have been a national celebration a nasty, class-bound, party political tinge.

• Beatrice's fascinator, or "repulser" as it should have been called. As if Medusa had gone to Nicky Clarke.

• The fly-past. A miserable six planes! A real, eardrum-rattling, fly-past would have looked like an RAF raid on Schwenningen.

• Prince Harry's speech. Obviously we only have press reports, but a proper, traditional best man's speech would have been packed with disgusting jokes and filthy allusions to the groom's previous girlfriends. That is Prince Harry's role in life and he let us all down.

• John Rutter's specially composed anthem. Sounded like Coldplay.

• Elton John's hissy fit when he asked to be moved to a more prominent seat. Calm down, dear, as we say these days.

• The kiss. Call that a kiss? A bit of tongue, please, Will.

✒ Why does the BBC insist on calling the soldiers and police employed by various tyrants in the Middle East and north Africa "security forces"? For example: "In Syria, security forces are said to have killed up to 60 demonstrators…" Security is the last thing these people provide. The Beeb wouldn't say: "A bomb planted by IRA freedom fighters has caused at least 10 deaths…" Just say, "government troops".

✒ I've been watching some of the host of new cop shows on TV. (The BBC says it has scrubbed Zen because it wants more women detectives. Well, many of the women I know think that Rufus Sewell is quite all right to be going to on with. You might as well say: "Men aren't interested in watching Scarlett Johansson. They want to see burly chaps pouting on TV…")

The new crop of women detectives are real people, damaged and with problems. If they get on well with their male deputies, then they have a terrible relationship with their male superiors. As my colleagues in the Guardian have pointed out, the more realistic the cops, the more fanciful and improbable the murders. And the cliches remain the same, whether in Vera, Lewis or Case Sensitive.

Here are some more recent ones I've spotted: the first murder is usually the weirdest and is unexplained at the end. Any group of children having a boisterous outing will always stumble on a body. All mobile phone calls come at the worst possible moment. When the sidekick searches for a crucial clue on the internet, he invariably finds it immediately, usually with a cry of "bingo, boss!"

✒ Labels and notices, continued: Suzan Carter bought a pack of "whole almonds" from Sainsbury's: "allergy advice – contains nuts". David Voas also went to Sainsbury's, for a steak. The label gives instructions for cooking rare: "2 ½ to 4 minutes each side… Always check that the product is cooked throughout, and no pink colour remains." Thanks, paranoid lawyers!

Les Herbert bought some fish in his local posh supermarket, the one that pushes up house prices by just existing: "plaice fillets in a bespoke Waitrose crumb". A bespoke crumb? Sounds like a very annoying tailor's assistant in Jermyn Street.

Vic McLellan photographed a sign mounted on a fence by a stream near his home: "Kew Angling Society. Strictly No Fishing."

A reader who requested anonymity to spare his wife encloses a leaflet for the Estring brand vaginal ring, used to replace oestrogen for post-menopausal women: "The Estring vaginal ring is not recommended for use in children," it says. Into what bizarre mind could that warning have wandered?

Linda Paramor bought some limnanthes seeds for her garden. "Handy tip," it says on the packet, "plant carefully as they can be evasive." I love the idea of the flowers coyly hiding when anyone tries to admire them.

I didn't love the leaflet that came with Dick Tuckey's penicillin prescription: "Unwanted side effects can include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and black hairy tongue." No, please!

✒ David Scott startled me with a tale of a merciful guard on, of all services, Virgin. He was on a London to Manchester train sitting near two Norwegian tourists. One of them said he had lost his ticket and the ticket inspector let him off! "I won't tell you which train it was," David says, "because he would be sacked."

The Italian has seen enough big games and dealt with enough demanding owners not to be fazed by Sunday's showdown

A man as well balanced as Carlo Ancelotti has no business being a football manager. Certainly not in England's Premier League, where managers are expected to argue among themselves and snipe at referees as a matter of routine.

Not Ancelotti. Even approaching a weekend such as this, when he takes his Chelsea squad to Old Trafford on Sunday knowing that a win would put them level with Sir Alex Ferguson's team at the top of the table, nothing shakes his equilibrium or disrupts his air of knowing geniality as he wanders in from the Surrey sunshine after a training session to ponder on the problem of Wayne Rooney or to praise the match referee, Howard Webb. Not even the knowledge that his destiny is under discussion in two countries.

His team, fresh from winning the Double, started the new season with a rush. But the winter months saw a six-point lead transformed into a deficit of 15 points to Manchester United, the new leaders. And until the west London side climbed out of their mid-season slump, putting together 11 wins in their past 14 matches, the man who arrived in England two summers ago appeared to be heading for the exit.

Had Chelsea's season continued to disintegrate, the turning points would have seemed obvious. The first was the abrupt and unexplained dismissal in November of Ray Wilkins, Ancelotti's No2, an old friend of whom he said: "We wouldn't have won a thing without him." The second was the appearance in January of Fernando Torres, a £50m striker whose arrival forced Ancelotti to modify his preferred formation and who took 10 games to score his first goal.

The whims of powerful men, however, are nothing new to Ancelotti, whether they be Gianni Agnelli, Silvio Berlusconi or Roman Abramovich, and from his present vantage point he can argue that the real turning points were quite different.

"Manchester United against Arsenal last Sunday, and our win against Tottenham," he said. "If Arsenal hadn't won, it would be a different atmosphere around our game against United." Another one, he said, had come last month at the Hawthorns, just after their Champions League elimination, when West Brom scored first but Chelsea fought back to win.

On Friday he received the manager of the month award – "for April," he emphasised, implying that the fates should not be tempted. But no one knows whether a second league title, or even a near-miss, combined with a second consecutive failure to progress beyond the last eight of the Champions League, would be enough to persuade Abramovich to allow him another year at Stamford Bridge.

"It's not the moment to speak about my future," he said. "I would like to stay, but I am very quiet and calm. At the end of the season, the club will take the decision. If they decide to change the manager there is no problem. I've tried to do my best. If they consider my job good, I will stay. If they don't, they can change."

The unexpected turnaround of the past couple of months will have done his claims little harm. "Nobody thought we would be able to fight for the title," he said. "We were talking about qualifying for the Champions League. Fifteen points behind United was too much of a gap, but we closed it because we did really well for two months. Last year we built up a very good relationship with the players, and this atmosphere helped us to maintain good control of our confidence."

He has a perfect record – three wins out of three – against Ferguson in league matches and last year, after the victory at Old Trafford that took Chelsea to the brink of the title, he and Wilkins went into Ferguson's office for a glass of wine, only to find the United manager preoccupied by the racing on television. That match represented United's last defeat at home.

"I know," Ancelotti said. "Thirty matches, only one draw. Obviously they are the favourites as they have three points more. If they win, they will win the title. If we are able to win, then goal difference becomes important, and we have very difficult games against Newcastle and Everton, so nothing would be decided. But it would be important to be at the top of the table, after such a long time."

He spoke of the threat of Rooney and of Ryan Giggs, whose passes destroyed Chelsea in the two Champions League ties last month. But mostly that of Rooney. "He is a key player for them. It's difficult to stop him. His position is not so easy to control – he moves a lot, he comes back and works for the team. Obviously we have to do something. We never put one player against him, because it means changing our philosophy too much and we want to play our football. But it will be important to stay compact and keep our midfielders' and defenders' lines very close."

There has been one definite change of policy during the season. At Abramovich's behest, and with the forthcoming rules on financial fairness in mind, a group of young players – Daniel Sturridge, Gaël Kakuta, Jeffrey Bruma, Patrick van Aanholt and Josh McEachran – were among the substitutes during the first half of the season but have not been seen in the side in recent weeks.

"When we decided at the start of the season to use more players from the academy, it was a good decision," Ancelotti said. "We began really well, we were top and some of them played, although not many games. But when we had a difficult moment it was not easy to give them that responsibility. So we gave some the chance to go out on loan in January. We will decide at the end of the season if they come back or not."

Whether or not he will be around to influence those decisions, Ancelotti is intent on making the best of the last weeks of his very mixed second season. "Our bad moment was too long, I think. We could have done better. But now destiny has helped us to fight for the title again. We are excited and very happy. The season has not gone, as everyone suggested. This team is still alive."

Yesterday I climbed a ladder up to the rooftop of Nopa restaurant to visit its brand new baby bee hives. Owner Jeff Hanak has been working with Terry Oxford and Brian Linke of Urban Bee SF to cultivate a two-hive community for three weeks now. Weather permitting, its honey will surface on the food and cocktail menus below the roof as soon as June. The idea of freshly harvested honey on a menu is romantic and all, but these urban hives are really all about the bees.

As Häagen-Dazs nation-wide Help the Honey Bees campaign will tell you, bees are in grave danger of extinction. According to Oxford and Linke, pesticides and lack of agricultural diversity in the countryside are the main offenders. In contrast, San Francisco boasts relatively pesticide-free "perfectly neglected," diversified foliage—Eden, as far as bees are concerned. So Oxford and Linke are looking for like-minded restaurants to help them cultivate healthy colonies around town. Deliciously complex, partially crystallized San Francisco honey is the happy byproduct, salable enough to fund the cost of labor and maintenance.

So who else is hiding a treasure trove of bees around town? Bi-Rite Market was one of the first food-related businesses to bring in hives three years ago. They now have two hives maintained in concert with City Bees (one of SF's most highly regarded urban bee colony cultivators since 1998). Bi-Rite sells its honey exclusively at its 18th Street location. Marshall's Farm—who's had a large bee community at the CIA Greystone for 15 years now—put four hives in at the Fairmont Hotel about 11 months ago. Owner Helene Marshall—also a master with bee puns, just listen to the Marshall's Farms voice mail recording—says they're basically right on top of the Tonga Room and you can look down on them from the right vantage in the Farimont's lobby. Just ask the concierge for help. Marshall's Farm started selling honey to nice restaurants nine years ago. The now-defunct Postrio was their first account. Now they maintain about 80 different bee communities across the Bay Area, including six beloved hives for Thomas Keller at The French Laundry in Yountville.

Here in San Francisco, Flour + Water is putting in hives of its own on May 14th and hosting a bee-centric art exhibit to go along with it. After the Laurel Court,  Quince and Cotogna chef-owner Michael Tusk was next to the restaurants-with-hives game with six rooftop hives. Here's the funny story of how he got started. Mission Beach Cafe now has four, Farm:Table has two and Blue Bottle had three installed a few weeks ago at its headquarters in Oakland. "We look for like-minded businesses to partner with," says Oxford. "We're so lucky to have such, amazing, ethically minded restaurateurs around here."

Oxford is now hard at work designing labels for her first retail batch of honey coming to market soon. In the meantime look for Urban Bee's very complex, lavender- and anise-laced product at Quince and Cotogna, a more floral taste at Nopa, and a light, golden yellow, flowery one at Farm:Table. You see, just like wine, bee byproducts have terrior; so honey cultivated in the Castro will taste quite different from Nob Hill's nectar. And it's still too soon to tell how the honey at Mission Beach Cafe and Nopa will taste, but Oxford says their 15,000 starter bees are very hard working.  So what does this mean for the honey? "It'll probably be a little more on the floral side." 

From Bristol to Brighton the festival season is in full swing

With the fabulously eclectic Mayfest kicking off in Bristol yesterday, Norfolk and Norwich starting today and the Brighton festival and Brighton fringe beginning tomorrow, the festival season is in full swing. The month will round off with Pulse in Ipswich. I'm particularly looking forward to Hilary Westlake's Dining With Alice and Graeae's The Iron Man at N&N; and will be heading to the Basement in Brighton for 5x5. There's also another chance to see Hydrocracker's The New World Order, five short Pinter plays played out in Brighton Town Hall that were a hit at the 2007 festival. I'm going to dip a toe in the Brighton fringe, too, with Billy Bud Sailor, a story of obsession and revenge performed in a bathroom.

There's plenty else happening down south. This year's Chichester festival begins with a rare revival of the lusciously scored musical She Loves Me and there is much to look forward to, including Trevor Nunn's revival of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Max Stafford-Clark revisiting Caryl Churchill's Top Girls and Jonathan Kent directing Sweeney Todd. At the Nuffield in Southampton, Sandi Toksvig considers the pressures on soldiers involved in military occupation in Bully Boy, which stars Anthony Andrews. The Globe's As You Like It heads out on a nationwide tour from the City Museum Gardens in Portsmouth. You've still got time to catch the superb Comedy of Errors at the Northcott in Exeter. Pants on Fire's irreverent Ovid's Metamorphoses is at the Drum in Plymouth until Saturday and then heads to Salisbury Arts Centre on Wednesday as part of an ongoing tour. The lives of those serving in Afghanistan is considered in Josh's Monsters which is out on tour and then heading to Pulse later in the month.

Let's head straight to Scotland where Mike Bartlett's viciously funny Love, Love, Love is at the Citizens in Glasgow. Good to hear that Headlong are reviving Bartlett's Earthquakes in London which will go out on tour in the autumn. The Mayfesto season of political work is underway at Glasgow's Tron and this week the main draw should be David Harrower's Slow Air about an estranged brother and sister. David Greig's Dunsinane, first seen at Hampstead theatre, is revived by National Theatre Scotland at Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum from next Friday. This week's A Play, a Pie and a Pint lunchtime theatre at Oran Mor is Andrew Dallmeyer's Thank God for John Muir about the aftermath of an industrial accident. There is some fantastic work for children in the Imaginate festival which takes over the Traverse and other Edinburgh venues from Monday.

In the north of England, John Ford's extraordinary tragedy of obsession and incest 'Tis Pity She's a Whore is revived at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds. At York Theatre Royal there's a revival of Arthur Miller's witch-hunt play, The Crucible. A Walk-On Part – The Fall of New Labour at Live in Newcastle is a dramatisation of Chris Mullins's diaries. Terry Hands directs Taming of the Shrew at Theatr Clwyd in Mold, and the popular 60s drama Spring and Port Wine is at the New Vic, Newcastle under Lyme. David Morrissey is in Macbeth in Liverpool. The Price plays Hull Truck, while David Lodge's Secret Thoughts opens at the Octagon in Bolton. An early Ibsen play, previously unperformed in this country, The League of Youth, opens at Nottingham Playhouse, while in Stratford-upon-Avon at the RSC Dominic Hill directs 1632 satire, The City Madam, and Patrick Stewart and Rupert Goold are previewing The Merchant of Venice. For something rather more contemporary, try Reckless Sleepers who are reviving one of their most celebrated shows, Schrodinger, at the Curve in Leicester. At the Royal and Derngate in Northampton, Hamlet the Musical should raise a smile. In Corby at the new Cube, Thickskin's Blackout is an adrenaline-fuelled examination of a young life gone wrong.

Heading into London, the excellent revival of Journey's End is at the Theatre Royal in Windsor. The big opening this week is Imelda Staunton and Penelope Wilton in Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance at the Almeida. I'm looking forward to Naomi Wallace's And I and Silence, a tale of segregation in the US southern states that premieres at the Finborough and the Simon Stephens-translated Jon Fosse play I Am the Wind at the Young Vic. At the same venue this week, you can also see Talawa's Flipping the Script project that features Walking to Obama about the pre-civil rights era in the US, and book your Michael Sheen Hamlet seats. The Edinburgh 2010 hit, Reykjavik, a multi-sensory exploration of memory, heads out on a UK tour from the Albany on Tuesday. The plays in Convictions at Soho have been written by ex-offenders, and Soho also plays host to Theatre Uncut this Sunday, which provides another opportunity to see the plays that premiered at Southwark Playhouse last month. The London Bubble's Blackbirds in Southwark Park from Monday tells the stories of Londoners who lived through the blitz and sounds pretty special.

Hong Kong investment group Guoco has announced a £585m cash offer for bingo and casino operator Rank, but it does not want the bid to succeed.

Under takeover rules Guoco had to make the offer after buying an 11.6% stake in Rank from Malaysian casino group Genting when it came up for sale. The deal took Guoco's shareholding to 40.8%, above the 29.9% threshold where it had to make a bid. But the offer will not be raised and is expected to be open for only 21 days. Guoco's aim is to keep Rank's listing and a spokesman said: "Guoco remains very supportive of the company and its management team. This is not a hostile move."

Guoco first invested in Rank in 2007 at 80p a share. Rank shares closed up 1.9p at 148.8p ahead of the release of the Guoco announcement.

Overall the market managed an unlikely revival after an early fall. Better than expected US employment figures helped offset another volatile day for commodity prices, especially oil, gold and silver. The non-farm payrolls for April showed that an additional 244,000 jobs were created, much higher than the 185,000 expected by analysts. So having fallen as low as 5871, the FTSE 100 finished 56.79 points higher at 5976.77, helped by a rise of nearly 170 points on Wall Street by the time London closed.

Royal Bank of Scotland rose 2.26p to 42.74p, the best performer in the leading index after its first quarter figure showed an increase in core profits, while results from insurer Admiral were also well received, and it added 35p to £16.97.

Meanwhile ITV, which has been a weak market of late on concerns about a downturn in advertising spending, recovered 3.5p to 75.6p after analysts at JP Morgan said the fall had been overdone. They said:

We believe ITV's current share price has already factored in the worse than expected second quarter, having slipped by 7.6% over the last month. The release of first quarter revenues [next week] may be an opportunity to buy the stock as we believe the worse than expected second quarter revenues for European free TV are not the sign of a structural change in the advertising recovery, but a blip.

SABMiller added 37.5p to 2247.5p as Citigroup said it was unlikely the brewer would bid for Australian group Foster's, as has been suggested. Citi analyst Adam Spielmen said:

There has been lots of speculation that SAB may buy Foster's. From May 20, Foster's will be a pure play brewer, without wine exposure. But we don't think that either SAB or anyone else is likely to bid, unless Foster's price falls materially first. The returns would not stack up ...and this looks a bad time to buy, with the Australian dollar trading at a 20-50% premium to historical averages.

With oil up on the day but still well below its recent peak, Royal Dutch Shell A shares fell 11.5p to £22.24. But falling fuel prices benefited transport companies, with International Airlines Group up 8.1p to 254.1p, additionally helped by better than expected quarterly figures. Easyjet climbed 12.2p to 355.1p and even Flybe, hit hard by a profit warning this week, recovered 1.5p to 174p. Cruise specialist Carnival added 50p to £26 and Tui Travel ended 2.9p ahead at 244.8p.

Among the mid-caps Rentokil Initial rose 3.2p to 94.25p despite its struggling parcels business City Link continuing to hold back progress. The company said overall first quarter revenues rose 0.7%, but City Link fell by 13.4%. Its poor performance was expected to continue in the second quarter before seeing an improvement later in the year.

Cable & Wireless Worldwide added 2.91p to 49.74p on talk of possible predatory interest from the likes of Vodafone, down 1.65p at 167.6p, or AT&T.; Micro Focus International climbed 8.8p to 372.8p ahead of a trading update next week, with investors awaiting bid developments. Bain Capital is thought to be one party interested in the software group.

Elsewhere investors in Helphire, the accident claim specialist, faced a bit of a car crash. The company's shares lost nearly two-thirds of their value after its second profit warning in less than a year and news of an accounting problem.

The company, which supplies vehicles to motorists involved in accidents while their own cars are replaced, said its profits for the year would be significantly below expectations. Total claims in the UK fell by 8% in 2010 and Helphire believed this trend had continued into the first quarter. It said high petrol prices had led to fewer car journeys and therefore fewer accidents, as well as shorter hire periods as vehicles were repaired more quickly.

As if that were not bad enough, it has discovered it may have overstated the amount owed by its insurance company debtors by around £25m. It has called in KPMG to investigate what happened and exactly how big the problem is. It has also told its bankers, but said the problem does not affect the settlement of claims or its cash position.

But investors do not like "accounting problems" and Helphire's shares plunged 7.84p to 4.91p. Danielle James at Shore Capital issued a sell note, saying:

With consensus estimates currently forecasting adjusted pretax profit for the group of £12.3m for 2011, the write off of this [£25m] debt would cause...a material loss for the period. Ignoring the accounting impact, the error, to us raises serious questions over Helphire's revenue recognition policies, the integrity of operating systems and the quality of oversight being exercised by the management team.

Victoria Oil and Gas jumped 1.06p to 5.6p after the exploration group was granted a licence by the Cameroon government allowing it to develop the Logbaba gas field. Analysts at Fox-Davies Capital said:

It has been a frustrating long wait for the award of the exploitation licence, but it is finally in hand and the company can now proceed with the construction of the gas pipeline. The management have previously indicated that it will take approximately five months from the receipt of the licence to first gas; therefore, gas sales should commence in the fourth quarter.

HMV slid 0.25p to 10p on worries about its current trading. Nick Bubb at Arden said:

Every morning we sit eagerly at our desks at 7am watching for an HMV trading update to pop up on the screen and…nothing has happened. But HMV will have to come clean eventually on how bad April was, and we discovered one clue in the Morrison's first quarter conference call, of all things, yesterday.

Asked about non-food trading, the [Morrison's] chief executive Dalton Phillips said that they're pleased to be much less involved in non-food than their rivals, so that they can "cherry-pick" and "have a bit of fun" and he quoted the example of how Morrison's had doubled their normal market share on the latest Harry Potter DVD release last month with a punchy £6 promotion…We recall HMV whining this time last year about predatory supermarket pricing on new chart releases and it doesn't sound like conditions have improved.

Okay, maybe you think the Bay Area is as green as green can be. But it's still got problems. That old futon? It's been rotting on the corner for two months. Every time it rains? Rivers of precious rainwater are running straight out into the bay. Transit infrastructure is antiquated, plenty of the city's energy is wasted, and a large percentage of the population has crazy high levels of cancer and respiratory problems. 

So we're bringing GOOD Design, our program where designers all over the country solve urban problems, back to San Francisco, and this time, we're partnering with a dozen student teams from the Academy of Art University's School of Graphic Design. Whether it's a new vision for urban land use, an agricultural epiphany for the region, or an old-fashioned neighborhood vs. neighborhood energy smackdown, students have tackled seemingly intractable problems that confront the 21st century Bay Area, and confronted them with gusto. Join us to hear their presentations, congratulate the students on their hard work in service of their city, and see more than a few surprising ideas for the future of San Francisco.

GOOD Design SF + AAU
Thursday, May 12
6:30 p.m. Doors open
7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Presentations moderated by GOOD's Alissa Walker
8:30 to 9:00 p.m. Wine reception

The HUB SoMa
925 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94103

Purchase tickets here.

GOOD Design pairs designers with city problems proposed by urban leaders, and showcases the solutions at lively public forums. Events have been held in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, at CEOs for Cities’ national conference, and in partnership with Art Center College of Design and Ringling College of Art and Design. To bring GOOD Design to your school or city, drop us a line at alissa[at]goodinc[dot]com

Welcome back to Better Know an MLS Player -- a new running feature where we pose a ridiculous series of questions to an MLS player in an effort to help you better know them. Last time, we started things off with Sporting KC striker Teal Bunbury, and now we bring you part two of our roughly 540-plus part series. So join us now as we better know LA Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez!

1. Starting off with a difficult question, what makes you awesome? (Note: If we find your answer boring, we will photoshop you into an image of awesomeness.)

Omar: That's a tough one... Probably my height.  There's a misconception that all Mexicans are really short.  Well, I'm Mexican and I'm 6' 5".  I also have an uncanny ability to make any normal social situation extremely awkward.  I kinda pride myself on that... even though I can't really avoid it!

[Ed. Note: We're ruling that answer not boring...and kind of sad.]

2. What's the best part about being a professional footballer in the U.S.?

Omar: It's a really exciting time to be in the league.  It's expanding and gaining more and more recognition every day.  A few years ago, the MLS wasn't what it is today.  I'm proud to say I play for the MLS, specifically The Galaxy!  Also, the day-to-day training schedule isn't too bad either... especially when you are living in Los Angeles!

3. You were on Giada De Laurentiis' Food Network show. You got to eat her food and breathe her air. Please explain every single reason why this was the greatest experience ever.

Omar: First and foremost, she's so awesome.  Sweet, down-to-earth and really friendly.  And of course, her cooking is incredible.  We had a Greek Feast: sweet and spicy meatballs, Greek pizza and lots of wine.  Can't go wrong with that.

4. Do you use "I was the 2009 MLS Rookie of the Year" as a pick-up line? If so, does it work? If not, what is your preferred method of seduction? (Follow up: Did you casually mention this fact to Giada?)

Omar: I've never used it as a pick-up line but I may add it to my repertoire now that you mention it.  Method of seduction?  Kill 'em with kindness.  As for Giada, I'm friends with her husband so I don't think he'd be too keen on me trying to hit on his wife...

5. At 6'5", you're just two inches shorter than Peter Crouch. Are you also an expert at doing the robot or does that extra two inches make the difference?

Omar: Have you seen my John Wall?!  That beats the robot any day.

6. You took Landon Donovan, Todd Dunivant and Mike Magee to a Boyz II Men concert not too long ago. Why did this happen?

Omar: I didn't actually take them.  We all surprised Landon for his birthday.

7. What has been your weirdest experience with MLS fans? (Note: If you don't have one that's particularly weird, feel free to use your imagination.)

Omar: I did an appearance at Best Buy not too long ago.  There was a female fan who told me that on her Bucket List - things she wanted to do before she died - was to ask me out on a date.  And naturally, I made the situation really, really awkward.

8. What's your favorite David Beckham story that we wouldn't necessarily know about? Has he bought you dinner yet?

Omar: The first time he had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich was a year ago!  And yes - he has taken us on a few team dinners.  Always a good time.

9. Pretend you're a journalist and make up a completely fictional transfer rumor.

Omar: Omar Gonzalez: Bought by FC Barcelona... as a Striker!

10. If you had supreme power, what's the first thing you would do to improve MLS?

Omar: MORE MONEY FOR ALL PLAYERS!

11. Cristiano Ronaldo: Untalented or extremely untalented?

Omar: He's not not talented.  (I can't hate on him...sorry.)

12. There's a lot of competition in central defense on the U.S. national team. Since playing well isn't always enough to get the recognized, if (and this is purely hypothetical) Bob Bradley were susceptible to bribes, what would you bribe him with to ensure a starting spot for yourself?

Omar: I'd be his butler, indefinitely!  You gotta do what you gotta do...

13. And finally, the Andrei Arshavin Q&A Tribute Question: From zinja -- "As a future engineer, I'm interested in this question: if I stand with my feet on the rails, put pantyhose on my head and throw the ends on the wires, will I be able to go as a tram?"

Omar: :)  Does a bear s*** in the woods?

So there you have it. Omar refuses to betray his friends by hitting on their hot TV chef wives, he does the John Wall, confirms that Davey Becks has bought his Galaxy teammates dinner (more than once!), wants more money for ALL MLS players, makes all situations incredibly awkward and knows how to handle a question from an Andrei Arshavin fan. Well done, Omar. And thank you.

Still want to know why the Galaxy boys took Landon Donovan to a Boyz II Men concert or just how Omar made that Best Buy situation so awkward? Well, ask him yourself. He's @Omar4Gonzalez on Twitter. You can also find the Galaxy @LAGalaxy. And watch Omar and his Boyz II Men loving teammates play the New York Red Bulls in a battle of the first place teams on Saturday night.

Photo: Omar's Twitter album

It was going to be difficult to compete with last week's Kim Jong Il-related episode no matter what 30 Rock put out for its fifth season finale.

Even so, "Respawn" still felt extremely flat as a way to end the year.

Jack's story line was the main culprit. The guy uses another guy to replace his absentee wife thing has been done well before, and to perfection with Doug and Arthur on King of Queens, so Jack treating Kenneth like Avery was both tiresome and a little weird. The pouring of wine, staring into Ken's eyes, and giving him earrings was just weird, and not funny.

While Jenna's plot also missed the mark, as most do with her boyfriend Paul, it still had its moments. Honestly how can it not be funny when a sheep and a giant wool mascot are sitting in on a boardroom meeting.

The Paul stuff continues the trend of just being more strange than funny. I get it. They do crazy stuff like walk each other like dogs. It just doesn't really work on a comedic level.

Unsurprisingly, the Tracy action was some of the best of the night. His interruption of Liz's perfect summer worked on multiple occasions, from yelling in his sleep to introducing himself as both "Tracy from work" and "the black guy from work."

But it was the scene with Liz in the courtroom that really kept the episode alive.  There is nothing like listening to Lemon recite every line from a courtroom movie scene that she could think of.  Add to that a judge actually named Judge Dredd, who has to yell "gavel, gavel, gavel!" because he doesn't have an actual gavel, and you have yourself multiple laughs.

It had its moments, but "Respawn" was not an extremely positive way to end this great bounce back season for 30 Rock.  What did you all think of the episode?

How did season five work for you? And are you excited for a sixth season? We leave you with some of our favorite quotes of the night, and don't forget to check out the 30 Rock quotes page for all the best one-liners.

Dr. Spaceman: Alright. Now that the popsicle's melted we've got ourselves a tongue depressor. | permalink

Frank: How's this for grown up? Last night for dinner, I put milk in my Apple Jacks. | permalink

Kenneth: It's an old Parcell family recipe, but I like to replace the Union soldier meat with boiled potatoes. | permalink

Paul: I hate to be the stereotypical man, but this is my home and I wanna wear this blouse. | permalink

Tracy: Hey guys. It's me Tracy, the black guy from work. | permalink

"There's no bad beer"

Though beer is a common subject of pub talk, the conversation. is mostly quantitative rather than qualitative—when, where, how much, and by whom, it was drunk, rather than about its goodness or badness. There are, however, drinkers who do care for the quality of their beer, and who will congregate at pubs whose landlords keep the beer in good condition (more about this later). And some will go out of their way to try a brew that is new to them, as this case shows;

The landlord here says he gets his beer from a small brewery in Derby Street. He doesn't care for large breweries, says "It's all done with chemicals". He likes, when possible, to let the barrel stand for a day or two before he taps it. Tells observer a story of how he once ordered a barrel of bitter, but no one asked for it until, six months later, a stranger called in and ordered a bitter. Landlord said that he had some, but it wasn't any good, it had been kept too long; but if he liked he would draw off a little and let him try it. The stranger said that it was wonderful—"like wine". This man took to calling in regularly for it, until the barrel was finished. It went soon, because he told his friends, and they came in for it too. In the end he said he was sorry that he had let them in on it. The moral of the story, according to the landlord, is that beer from the big breweries goes off in no time, and if it had been -----'s bitter it would have been absolutely undrinkable.

Serious drinkers will watch the pumps while their beer is being drawn, to see that it is pumped properly and that no stale liquor is being put into it—a habit that they say is common. We have observed on busy nights in some pubs a bucket half full of beer standing just inside the bar, beside the serving hatch; and the waiters empty the slops from their trays into it. Theoretically all the slops, and beer left in glasses should be collected and returned to the brewers. A landlord writes of this:

Re condition of beer. Well, this varies, some brewers send it badly conditioned, and it takes three or four hours in that case before ready for use. It takes beer weeks to go off unless something is wrong in the brewing, it is returned if not suitable and replaced, mind you. Brewers do not like a landlord to return anything and they expect him to have the intelligence to dispose of it (someway). Re glasses returns. That also should go back into the barrel and be returned to the brewers, but I question very much if this is done in most pubs.

Some pub-goers give this reason for preferring the "vault" to other rooms, because only in the "vault" can you watch your beer being drawn off. (But you can't know what slops have gone back into the barrel from last night.) About 15 years ago a new type of pump was introduced into one local pub; these pumps were out of sight of the customers and they disliked them; after a few months they were taken away and the old ones replaced.

For the great majority of drinkers, taste and quality of beer are not the major factors; were they so most of the big popular pubs in the town would have to go out of business. The general attitude is nicely summed up by the following correspondent:

There is, I think, many different brands of beer which so far I have not had the Pleasure of Tasting. Those I have, such as: Magee's, Walker's, Hamer's, Cunningham's, and one or two others, have all a nice Flavour, and I enjoy a glass of beer. The Price question I will not Dispute, because I do not Drink Excessively, so I don't favour any particular Beer, and so I always say: There's no Bad Beer, only sometimes Indifferent.

Most pub-goers simply drink the cheapest available beer, while a minority exists for whom quality is most important. This is in agreement with the findings of Basil Nicholson, author of the section on Drink in the London Survey (also republished separately by the Church of England Temperance Society). We cannot trace any other work in this field to which we might refer our conclusions.
"The Pub and the People" by Mass Observation, 1943 (reprinted 1987), pages 36 - 37.

The best of the action from the latest round of the 2011 County Championship. Updates though the day and click here for scores

11.51am: Notts 114-2
David Hopps writes: Nottinghamshire's ambitions stretch merely to batting all day in response to Yorkshire's 534-9. There is an alternative theory advanced by Andy Afford, editor of AOC magazine and Notts' spin bowling coach, that they could repeat
their miraculous victory at Headingley a fortnight ago - get level by lunchtime tomorrow, bowl out Yorkshire for 86 again and romp to victory in the last hour, at which point Yorkshire would formally announce that they would take no further part in the season. He was not being entirely serious.

This should provide ample opportunity to watch Ryan Sidebottom become red faced and a little waspish as he strives for a successful day against his old Notts colleagues. In the latest series of Shameless, there was an episode in which Frank Gallagher was hoping to find his nice alter ego. He was told that he didn't have one, but if he did he might have looked a little like Ryan Sidebottom.

Shameless is at its best when Paul Abbott, its creator, is centrally involved. Abbott's latest drama, Exile, ran over three successive nights over Bank Holiday. It was watchable stuff, but the BBC filming was clearly badly affected by the premature onset of winter, Oldham way, last November. Characters would walk into houses in golden sunshine then leave minutes later into snowdrifts. If Notts v Yorkshire has the same dodgy continuity then Yorkshire, 534-9 at start of play, could somehow find themselves 66-7 against by lunchtime.

There was a wonderful moment at stumps yesterday, as we were hanging around to interview Jonny Bairstow about his excellent double hundred (no, really, his comments are not worth passing on), and the umpire Steve O'Shaughnessy passed by. Sidebottom was with his wife and young child and O'Shaughnessy, who had turned down a ferocious lbw appeal from Sidebottom shortly before the close, gestured to the kiddie and ventured: "That puts life into perspective Ryan, it's not all about lbws."

From Sidebottom there was not a playful word to be had. He takes his profession seriously. It was missing, according to the replays, apparently.

Finally, apology time. When Bairstow hit that championship double hundred, it was suggested that only Essex's James Foster had achieved the feat among recent England wicketkeepers. Notts' coach Mick Newell gently pointed out this morning that this entirely overlooked Chris Read's 240 for Notts against Essex at Chelmsford in 2007. I have faithfully promised Newell that if Read gets another one today I will try to spot it.

11.46am: Vic Marks writes: Greetings. I seem to be at Edgbaston. It's the constant brrrrr of pneumatic drills that give it away. It's grey and chilly and noisy.

40 minutes into the day and the first wicket has just fallen. Croft caught at slip by Clarke off Woakes. The pitch, though not lethal, is not entirely trustworthy. Weather permitting there will be a result but I'm not sure who wins. At present with a lead of 202 and five wickets remaining I think I would prefer to be in Lancashire's shoes.

Hang on a minute. Woakes is now on a hatrick. Cross lbw first ball. Hatrick ball allowed to pass by Chapple. At present I might prefer to be in Warwickshire's shoes. Good game, cricket, when the draw is taken out of the equation (weather permitting)

11.29am: Mike Selvey writes: Even I, with a heart of stone when it comes to the fortunes of Yorkshire cricket ( I've served my time against them often enough to know about such things) felt a pang when I heard that young Jonny Bairstow had not only made his maiden first class hundred but went on to a double as well. It is , I guess, because we can see his dad in the features and the red hair. I bet he goes red in the face with the effort too.

Bluey was a terrific opponent, a quality keeper and combative batsman but beyond that a great enthusiast for the game of cricket. He took us for a brilliantly defiant hundred at Scarborough one year, albeit in a losing cause, loosening a few slates on the pavilion roof in the process. I remember too when, in Barbados, the England team, with no keeper available for a tour match ( I can't remember why exactly), called on Bluey, who was on the island entertaining, to the full, a tour group. Eventually he was located at the Mount Gay rum distillery. He still kept though.

There are problems at Edgbaston where Lancashire have a hold on Warwickshire. Apart from an unsatisfactory pitch, changed at the last minute because that which had been allocated was too dry, this started damp, pitted, and is now showing some erratic bounce. Of more concern though is the relaid outfield, which has not yet knitted properly with the square. Coming as it does right up to the stumps, it means that the bowlers back foot is kicking the turf out at the City end, leaving a large pot hole that needs constant attention. Apparently it takes 18 months to knit properly: this had been allowed 18 weeks. It is to be hoped that a solution is found by the time the Test match is played there, in front of the vast new stand, a solution will be found.

Now, a new feature: The County Blog Recipe Of The Day.
This from Nigel Slater's ' The Kitchen Diaries' and strictly speaking, the recipe for May 4, but appropriate given recent threads:

Chickpeas, with harissa, basil and ham
6 large tomatoes
a medium sized aubergine
olive oil -120ml
red wine vinegar-50ml
cumin seeds-1 teaspoon
chickpeas- 2 x 400g tins ( or soak your own, kingcrud)
large basil leaves- 12
Spanish ham or prosciutto -9 thin slices
For the dressing:
Harissa paste- 1 teaspoon
Olive oil- 60ml
Serves four
Set oven to 200 degreesC/ Gas 6

Cut tomatoes into six pieces each and put into roasting tin.
Discard aubergine stalk and slice flesh into four lengthways and then chunks, and then put into roasting tin with oil, vinegar, cumin, and generous grinding of black pepper and sea salt.
Roast for about an hour until aubergine is soft and golden brown, the tomatoes just caught at the edges and the whole is fragrant, juicy and sizzling.
Put tomatoes and aubergine into mixing bowl but leave juices behind in the tin. Mix the drained chickpeas with the tomatoes and aubergine.
Make the dressing by stirring harissa and olive oil into the roasting juices, then tip in with the vegetables.Leave a film of dressing in the tin. Leave the basil leaves whole and fold into the salad where they will wilt and soften.
Set roasting tin over a moderate heat, lay slices of ham in the dressing film and cook until they crisp slightly. Lift the ham out and lay slices on top of salad.
Serve it with crusty bread or as an accompaniment to grilled lamb, say.

Round 5 of the 2011 County Championship: Day three

Today's fixtures:

Division One
Sussex 438 v Hants 145-3 at Southampton
Yorkshire 534-9d v Notts 43-0 at Nottingham
Somerset 309 & 83-3 v Worcestershire 238 at Taunton
Lancashire 227 & 118-4 v Warwickshire 172 at Birmingham

Division Two
Gloucestershire 358 v Middlesex 296-4 at Bristol
Kent 280 v Northamptonshire 407-6 at Canterbury
Surrey 294 & 166-2 v Leicestershire 183 at The Oval

Your top team of writers today is: David Hopps at Trent Bridge; Vic Marks at Edgbaston; Barney Ronay at The Oval, and Mike Selvey in the Libero role.

Day Two match reports:
David Hopps writes: "Jonny Bairstow takes double century for Yorkshire off Nottinghamshire."

Vic Marks writes: "James Anderson gives Lancashire the edge over Warwickshire."

The new England set up

Poll: "Does England have too many cricket captains?"

Mike Selvey: "Success for Alastair Cook could put pressure on Andrew Strauss."

Andy Bull: "Andy Flower admits having three England captains is a gamble."

1981 revisited

A (short) review of "From the Ashes".

Your essential guide to the season

A preview of all the counties can be found here. You can find full fixture lists for the season here. And you can follow the action throughout the season here. There's also county cricket commentaries on BBC local radio here. County tables can be found here: Division One and Division Two.

Why not stick all these in your toolbar favourites?

You can also follow our cricket team here and on Twitter: David Hopps, Andy Wilson, Andy Bull and Steve Busfield.

Peggy Guggenheim: art collector, poor little rich girl and whisky faker

The socialite and art collector Peggy Guggenheim used to pour bottles of cheap blended whisky into premium bottles and, presumably, laugh down her sleeve at those sniffing and simpering over her drams.

How confident are you of your whisky tasting skills?

Is there any purpose to the pursuit of objectivity in whisky tasting (unless you work in the industry) or does it suck the joy out of a essentially subjective experience.

Is it possible to categorise a sip in words and is something lost or gained in that process?

Just fancy that; being invited round to Peggy's place and being offered something along the lines of a Dalmore Trinitus bottle, only to find that it contains Dalmore 13y, or even JW Black. Or perhaps not so extreme an example would be a Macallan 25y containing 12y. The possibilities are endless and I'm sure she had a little private giggle or two over this.

But could I tell the difference? Now, there's a good question and one which would depend upon the bottle and whisky being offered. Yes, I am very confident in my tasting skills, or at least my ability to assess a whisky rather than immediately identify it. This was not always the case. My personal whisky adventure started just over 30 years ago when I learned to appreciate the main two offerings at that time: Glenfiddich and Glenmorangie. In those days I tended to prefer the smoothness of Glenmorangie to the fire of Glenfiddich.

Obviously, over the last 30 years my palate has become far more experienced, perhaps mostly so in the last 4-5 years as I started to not only enjoy my drams, but also to study and evaluate what I was drinking.

So, do I see any purpose in my pursuit of objectivity? Well, I guess we are all quite vain and would like to think so, but I believe that if one is going to dedicate a significant portion of one's life to a hobby, then it really should be on the basis of knowing what one is talking about!

For me, evaluation of a whisky does not detract from any enjoyment of it. In fact, I find it increases my enjoyment as I search for hidden or less-pronounced flavours and nuances, only to be delighted when I find them, perhaps after allowing a whisky to breathe in the glass for what can be anything up to 30-45 minutes.

You ask if it's possible to categorise a sip in mere words? Is anything lost in doing so?

Well, having experienced many instances where long-lost memories of specific times and places are suddenly thrown into recollection just by nosing a certain whisky, I feel that in putting these recollections and experiences to paper, or website in my case, actively enhances the process and at the same time, hopefully gives my readers more insight into the dram(s) and a more interesting read too.

In fact I recently addressed this subject with another whisky blogger as we looked specifically at how closely connected the olfactory sense is with memory. This alone is a subject on which I could endlessly pontificate and elaborate to the complete boredom of all, but worry not as I will refrain from doing so here, other than to say don't be surprised the next time you see me compare something like a magnificent Port Ellen to a childhood day out in Scarborough some 40+ years ago.

"Is there any purpose to the pursuit of objectivity in whisky tasting (unless you work in the industry) or does it suck the joy out of a essentially subjective experience." Uh...what about people who actually find joy in the pursuit of objectivity? Not being in the industry, I'd think it would be the opposite, that is, having to be objective for your job is more likely to suck the joy out of "subjective" tasting than tasting for what's basically a hobby.

I enjoy tasting (or at least trying to taste) objectively and find that what I've learned from doing so makes those times when I'm just sipping a whisky for no reason other than to enjoy it even better. As for my tasting skills, am I confident that I can sit down with a glass and pick out the flavors and nuances that reflect the process and make it enjoyable or not? Yes. For me, that's part of what makes the experience, subjective or objective, enjoyable.

Am I confident that I can take a blind sip and know exactly when, where, and how a whisky was made and whether or not a rivet was loose in the still that fateful Thursday, making the feints taste smartly of heirloom cantaloupes rotting in the Chilean sun? No, and that doesn't bother me one bit. If after years and years, I drink enough whisky to be able to conjure that knowledge out of thin air, then I'll know for damn sure I've wasted too much time drinking and learning about whisky.

I think it is possible to categorize and describe a sip of whisky, we do it whether we want to or not. Our brains subconsciously want to break down and compartmentalize experiences and sensations so we can understand them better. That some of us take this categorizing and describing one step further with whisky and do so in tasting notebooks and on free blogging platforms perhaps makes us better appreciators of the stuff. On some level, though, I do think a little something is lost when whisky is dissected in this way because that pure, initial experience can get lost. The first time I tried Laphroaig 10, I really had no information on the stuff other than it came from an island called "Iss-lay".

That first glass was a revelation, but it was also the last time that I had that raw reaction, that I experienced it that way. From that point on, I'd categorized it as challenging, pungent, smokey, etc., and thought about it that way every time after. In the end, though, the positives outweigh the negatives in terms of categorizing and describing each sip, doing so helps create a common language about this stuff we love which in turn helps share it with others.

I think perhaps this question needs to be split into its component questions.

1. How confident are you of your whisky tasting skills?

In the last 4 years I have tried pretty much every brand of single malt Scotch, as well as many blends, single cask editions, grain whiskies, square barreled whiskies, 50 year old whiskies, 70 year old whiskies and 90 percent abv new spirit (plus many more crazy things I can't remember). Whisky from Japan, New Zealand, Wales, USA, Ireland, Sweden, India, Czech Republic, England. I have been very lucky!

Does that make me think I am confident in tasting whisky? In some ways, yes. I can recognise area styles (Islay or Kentucky for instance). I can normally make quite educated guesses in blind tastings and I know what I like, so I can recognise what for me is a good whisky and what for me is a bad whisky. I understand some of the science behind why certain flavours appear. Whether it is the type of oak, length of distillation, shape of still, consistency of wash, type of yeast, type of barley or the many other variables which contribute to this fantastic spirit.

But then I think about the blind tastings. I make educated guesses, but I consistently get it wrong. I may get the region right, or I may be able to justify why I made the guess that I did, but I cannot state that I have a world class, Usain Bolt/Messi/Muhammed Ali level palate (these guys being world class in their sport, rather than having amazing palates. Although I wouldn't put it past Messi!) I think because I enjoy fine wine, whisky, beef and the many other pleasures of life (a spicy curry and a beer for instance) that I am slowly eroding my palate. Because I taste so much, I am constantly training my palate, but to truly develop the palate and maintain a sensitive palate, you have to water down the whisky and spit out. These are two things I rarely do.

Also Women naturally have a better palate, so if there was a palate Olympics, their natural advantage would shine through.

2. Objectivity and subjectivity in our business

I think this is where it gets complicated and it depends on the purpose of the whisky tasting. If the tastings purpose is to judge the liquid for a competition, then the aim is to make the tasting as objective as possible. I am always more of a fan of the idea that the judges would be told a region, since this gives them some sort of yardstick to judge the whisky against. Why taste a Glenfarlclas alongside Islays? They are almost completely different drinks. Competition tastings should be blind, with minimal information (e.g region) and the judges should be as neutral as possible.

As competitions should be fair, objectivity is key. When it comes to blogs, I think it becomes a little more complicated. We are in an opinion business. We get wrapped up the history of the distillery. We tell a story of our day and at the end of it, there are some tasting notes. We have a philosophical outlook, so objectivity can become slightly skewed. The key for Lucas and I, is that we try and remain as objective as possible. We try to separate our emotions and feelings towards a distillery, its history, philosophy and people from the liquid itself. It is hard to do.

The questions I ask myself as I write tasting notes on a dram: Is it any good? Would I buy it in a bar? Would I buy a bottle? Is it the best thing I have tasted from this distillery and does it represent their house style well? How does it sit with other whisky's from that region?

To get to the crux of the matter, I think constant blind tastings, with scores out of 100 would drain the pleasure out of blogging for me and make my blog dreadfully boring. I enjoy learning about the history of a distillery and meeting the people who run it. I enjoy hearing about the philosophy of a distillery. The tasting notes are, for me, just a handy way of keeping notes of the whisky's I have tasted along the way. I think that since I try so many, it is important for me to write down tasting notes and opinion, otherwise I would never remember! I hope anyone that reads them is encouraged to try the whisky and make their own minds up, even if I have said that the whisky is not to my taste. If they read the tasting notes and like the sound of it, they should try it regardless of whether I liked it or not. I read other peoples tasting notes to get an indication of things to try, but I always try to make my own mind up over whether I like the whisky or not.

How confident am I in my whisky tasting skills? An interesting question. I know that I can blindly taste a whisky, tell you what I'm smelling and tasting as well as how I feel about mouthfeel, balance--basically the whole experience. This is quite possibly the most objective way of whisky tasting.

Take the blindfold off and things can and do change.

Preconceived notions with regards to brand, color, age, cask, ABV, chill and non-chill filtration, caramel coloring are all formidable opponents when it comes to a completely objective, unbiased review. These are tough to get past and to help do so, I've actually started tasting a minimum of two whiskies at time and I review them blindly to help in being as objective as possible.

There's another element here as well, especially when it comes to whisky reviewers like ourselves. And that is how the sample given can affect the opinion... Or to put it another way: some people who give samples and some people who read reviews of whiskies that were written up from a sample (a sample given to a reviewer by the distillery or brand representative) might expect the overall review to be tainted or have a more positive spin on it than the whisky should actually have. I wrote a piece on this particular concern a while back (it can be read here). My simple answer to this concern -- I've done a good job pissing some people off by not giving the shining review they were expecting. Oh well...

When it comes to the delivery of my review I feel my personality needs to shine through here so I'll take all of the information I've gathered in the reviewing process and deliver it with my patented "JSMWS feel".

I particularly like the following definition of 'subjective'.... the wording of it: "Subjective is a statement that has been colored by the character of the speaker or writer. It often has a basis in reality, but reflects the perspective through with the speaker views reality. It cannot be verified using concrete facts and figures." (Here's a link to the quote's source.)

My approach is to base my reviews on the facts, being as objective as humanly possible: first a blind review, then a gathering of all the information on the whisky, then delivery of the information to the readers of my blog through my view of reality; my writing style.

Lastly, you asked, "Is it possible to categorize a sip in words and is something lost or gained in that process?" One can never taste or experience whisky vicariously through another person's review. I hope that my reviews do help people not only choose a whisky because of the flavors and experience I describe but also the suggestions I give as where, when and how to enjoy said whisky. The 'loss' for people is in not going out to try new things. The 'gain' is to know, or at least pay heed the suggestion, when and how to enjoy new things (whisky).

Yes, a reminder that sometimes life (and all things in it) can be taken too seriously. Since this post is on a Japanese blog, I guess this is a good time to take a step back and look at the bigger picture given the events there and how even basic things like a roof over your head can’t be taken for granted.

I recently had a discussion at a tasting regarding tasting notes. Someone started off by asking what they are and why people write them. I then veered off into various recollections of some people who can’t try a whisky without writing a note about them. I suppose it’s a form of collecting (or OCD, perhaps) whereby not writing a note would be detrimental to the growth of that collection but also the knowledge. And a note can be a valuable memory tool at a later date.

I tend to only write notes when I’m at a tasting, writing a review or in the mood to. Fairly often I don’t bother as I simply want to enjoy the drink in front of me. I still find myself nosing it out of habit (and have caught myself nosing tea and even a glass of water) but I don’t have that urge that some do to record every detail of everything drunk.

I think that tasting notes are a great way to express what you thought of a particular drink but as has been discussed elsewhere at length this is one person’s opinion and naunces and shouldn’t be taken as a definitive guide. We all need to try for ourselves and make our own minds up. It is certainly better than a mark out of 100, which to me is meaningless.

This all leads me to conclude that indeed we can lose sight of the fact that this is only an alcoholic drink to be consumed for pleasure.

Again, let’s try to remember that there are more important things in life and my thoughts are with Japan and its people at this time.

I am quite humble when it comes to my whisky tasting skills, I tend to remind myself of that when participating in "blind" tastings, or "blind " whisky swaps. Will I be able to pinpoint all of my favourite drams when they are given to me blind folded? Probably some, but I would not claim to be able to guess all of them. It would be very embarrassing to mistake an Ardbeg 10 for a Laphroaoig 10 (though I am quite sure that would not happen).

I am fairly "new" to the whisky tasting business, but not a newbie. I've been sampling malts for the past few years, as opposed to the decades some have spent. Researchers have shown that the amount of pleasure you get from sipping an expensive and highly respected malt or wine (say a Port Ellen), is greater than the same amount had you been told it was "only" a young Islay 'mystery dram'. So, I say that what makes us happier and makes us enjoy our dramming sessions more is what's good for us.

There is no such thing as a completely "objective" experience, since we are always affected by the past, our conceptions (or misconceptions), and a bias towards some drams. But this just goes without saying and is a fact of life.

I do hope when I am tasting a new dram, knowing what it is, I allow myself only to be only a wee bit affected by my past experiences/things I've heard about it/how other bloggers or whisky industry 'experts' rated it and what they thought of it. Am I completely innocent? Probably not, but my blog is not a scientific endeavour to rate whisky. It is a means to document my journey through this wonderful world of Whisky.

I am having a ball, and I hope my readers are enjoying the ride, and then experiencing the whiskies for themselves.

An interesting question – let’s deal with the tasting skills first. If you can’t trust your own whisky tasting skills then who will? More importantly, if you don’t trust your ‘skills’ (sorry, having a Napoleon Dynamite moment now …), then who is going to take any serious note of what you tell them face-to-face or write in your blog? The aroma and flavour notes that each of us will find in a certain whisky will vary according to our individual tastes, although the basic characteristics will/should come through. This can be seen by selecting a whisky and then reading all of the reviews that you can find online of that whisky, not just on the blogs of the Whisky Round Table members but on the multitude of other whisky or spirit-related blogs that exist.

The beauty of tasting a whisky (or a wine or any other spirit for that matter …) is that there are no right or wrong answers. This is something that we try and encourage, especially with our ‘beginner’ readership and it helps to break down some of the perceived (and real) snobbery and intimidation that surround the subject. The reality is that once you get to a certain knowledge level about whisky, then it becomes second nature to analyse (and over-analyse!) whatever you may be drinking, be it in a day-to-day drinking scenario or a formal tasting scenario. You cannot help it and it is the same if you get to a certain level of expertise in any subject, be it within your job or a hobby – eg. can a film or restaurant critic ever just watch a movie or eat a meal without analysing what they are doing? Do they ever just enjoy a film or meal or the experience for what it is?

Is it possible to categorise a sip of whisky in words? Maybe … but the key is the objectivity of the description. People want to listen and read our opinions and hundreds do everyday from all over the world. This is one of the primary reasons why they read all of our whisky blogs – readers want to find information and get reassurance about something that they are planning to buy or try. Equally, we get comments from readers who use tasting notes on blogs as a tool to try and build up their own tastes, words and experiences of drinking whisky so as to educate themselves and gain confidence.

Ultimately, if you strip away elements such as writing style and a blogger’s personal tastes, most readers want a sip of whisky characterised into words and to know what characteristics to look out for or what style of whisky to expect. This is the same as us reading movie or restaurant reviews to find out what the storyline is or what the quality of the food is like.

After a brief hiatus, Kidaround, an edgy local mom's magazine, will start publishing again this summer under new leadership.

Founder Barb Hennelly is passing the reins to columnist Kara Turner – who plans to expand the print magazine created by moms for moms.

Hennelly put out the magazine solo for five years. She recruited moms like herself to contribute stories and photos and do copy editing and bookkeeping.

As publisher, editor and chief graphic designer, she handled all the logistics to put issues together. She also sold ads and managed the business end of the magazine.

The 39-year-old mother of four stopped publishing after the November/December 2010 issue when she found herself stretched too thin. The venture also wasn't making as much money as she'd hoped.

Turner was disappointed when she heard the news. Writing the "Mind if I Ask?" column had helped her uncover another part of herself and allowed her to connect with other Sacramento moms.

"I was really crushed. I just felt like it was the perfect fit for me," said Turner, 40.

She had worked as a real estate agent in Southern California before marrying and starting a family. The column was a way to find out what was going on in other moms’ lives. One column focused on the sense of self moms can easily lose after devoting so much time and energy to caring for their families.

"You're giving to your husband, you're giving to your child – and you're living at Fairytale Town in your yoga pants," she said. "I did that for three years. I knew the ducks there. I knew the roosters. I ate the popcorn."

She contacted Hennelly. The women met and discussed forming a new partnership that would allow the magazine to keep going.

Turner now plans to take over publishing Kidaround with Hennelly serving as her mentor for the next year. Turner's first issue, the “Inspiration Issue,” will be distributed July 1.

The "Fairytale Issue," covering October, November and December, will be distributed Oct. 1. The magazine will resume its bi-monthly schedule in January.

The focus of the parenting lifestyle magazine won't change. Regular columns and departments such as "Lovable" (products people love) and "Hit the Sac" (where to do fun things) will continue. "Meet Mom," which profiled a local mother, will become "Meet the Family."

However, Turner will expand Kidaround from 24 to 32 pages. That will allow her to increase the cover story from four to six pages and add other departments.

Turner recruited stylist Mary Gonsalves Kinney, co-founder of the fashion styling company Sister|Brother, to help plan cover stories, which are fashion-focused features using local people as models. Kinney will also style the models in clothes and accessories from local stores.

Turner is adding departments that focus on the home, cooking and art projects for kids. She's working with local chefs to contribute family friendly recipes for the new cooking department, "What's Cooking." New mom Shannon Seitz will also write a funny yet real column called "Baby Talk."

Another big change: Turner will use a consistent editorial calendar to let readers, contributors and advertisers know what's coming. One issue will focus on parks and recreation, while another will highlight marriage and blended families.

Hennelly's youngest child is going into kindergarten this fall. Hennelly will soon start a full-time gig as a graphic artist at the local design firm Fuel Creative Group.

Without a background in magazines or publishing, Turner realizes she'll have a steep learning curve. Her column is on hold. She and Hennelly are still figuring out how Hennelly will continue to leave her mark on the magazine. She may be a contributing editor, make introductions in the community and do graphic design for the magazine in her free time – multitasking like all moms, they said.

Turner, who has a 7-year-old daughter, said she sees publishing the magazine as a great opportunity to unleash her creative side – a gift from one mom to another. The deal came together at a local wine bar where they met earlier this year.

"When I was driving there, I was so nervous. I felt like something was happening that was bigger than both of us. This magazine isn't really about Barb or I. It's about the moms and the kids," Turner said. "I just knew that somehow, it had to come back."

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press. Follow her on Twitter @SuzanneHurt. 

1) Savings and spending

Never mind this conjecture about $4 a litre petrol. Try sipping on a $8 latte instead and see what kind of bitter aftertaste that leaves. How well prepared are you for that heart stopping shocker?

Okay, it's a crude calculation but here's the underlining equation inputs. Benchmark ICE arabica futures have more than doubled in the past nine months to 34-year highs. How long before that filters through to the price board?

Call it the triple C factor: Climate Change and China. Poor harvests are affecting high-grade arabic beans and China's growing middle class has acquired a taste for and is getting hooked on the bean. Brazilians, Indians and Indonesians are also embracing the coffee culture in growing numbers. Coffee handlers also have been hit hard with margins up 150 % in the six months to October 2010, increasing the cost of hedging coffee purchases in the futures market.

Time to give up the bean? Perish the thought. I'd sooner give up my car, wine and my left kidney before I forfeit my favourite addiction.

At the risk of depressing yourself, you can read more on the brewing storm in this Reuter's article.

2) Credit and Debt

I had two separate cases of consumer rage this week. One, when I found out the CEO of the financial institution where I bank earns an eye popping NZ$6 million a year.

It was a few days after I got stung NZ$25 by Westpac on an international draft for C$135 so the news didn't sit so well with me -- even if George Frazis comes from humble roots. It's a bit steep for a fancy paper cheque that requires a simple currency exchange calculation also bent in favour of the bank.

My second WTF moment was when a telephone operator at Telecom threatened to send the credit sharks after me for being a few weeks late on my phone bill. Now I could understand if I was regularly late but in more than four and a years with Telecom, I have not once defaulted or been late on a payment. Just so happened I got busy this month. I spat the dummy and let her have it.

How about instead Telecom offer me a nice juicy rebate for all the faithful years of paying on time and also a big fat apology to the public for gouging them on mobile phone prices? In the name of consumer justice when is this country going to introduce a positive credit rating system that rewards faithful and prompt payers with meaningful merits or cash rebates that give us a reason to stay loyal when the 12 month contractual handcuffs come off?

When I have a free moment, I'll be hanging up on Telecom -- and cutting the cord.

3) Real Estate

Landlords avert your eyes, this one's for renters of which I am one. A rare bit of happy news for us saps this week. Apart from two bedrooms flats in Auckland. April rents softened across the board in all main centers.

To read more on real estate market shifts see Bernard Hickey's article here.

Time for a rent renegotiation perchance? 

4) Death and taxes

A lot of speculation lately about whether Government will take the axe to KiwiSaver during next month's budget announcement.

What's going to go? The $1,000 kick-starts, $20 a week member tax credits or options on first-time home withdrawals?

Another possibility, and one you're not likely to have heard about is the removal of the current tax exemption on employer's contributions.

At present, KiwiSavers enjoy the full benefit of the 2% top up to their retirement fund from the boss. Not something you probably spent much time thinking about but it's a bonus.

So how bad is the tax bite if Government helps itself to that as well? Take an average salary of NZ$50,000. Government taxing the employer contribution would effectively mean you'll end up paying an additional NZ$320 a year in taxes, reducing your take home pay. Whereas if Government revoked member tax credits you'll end with NZ$1,043 less in a year in investable retirement savings money -- a blatant broken promise.

Hard to say which way they'll go, but if Government wants the continued buy-in of Kiwis, they're best taking their axe to another tree to give this one a proper chance to grow. Mind you, one way or another we'll still pay. Government's cumulative contributions to KiwiSaver are more than NZ$3.3 billion to date.

KiwiSaver at a glance (March 2011):

5) Books and Film

Sticking with the coffee theme, beanaholics and readers will undoubtedly relish the latest from the Philosophy For Everyone Series "Coffee: Grounds for Debate."

This series of essays looks at the long standing love affair between coffee and philosophy. Editors Scott F Parker and Michael W Austin say the pair share an undeniably close and highly evocative relationship.

"The appropriate analogy is that coffee and philosophy go together like foreplay and sex. You can have one without the other, but the latter is better with the former and the former often leads to the latter.''

I was sold immediately on the book on the strength of this brilliant review by Guardian Weekly's Stuart Jeffries who questions whether one of coffee's downsides is impotence. Coffee a marriage wrecker? And to think I thought it was a salve.

Apparently one of the pernicious side-effects of the bean is that is steal's a man's libido and worse yet turns the otherwise sharp witted philosophy's sperm into over-caffeinated, turbo-boosted projectiles that fail to hit the target despite enhanced.

Whaddya reckon gentlemen? Any truth to this deflating aspect of coffee? Or maybe that's question better directed at  the opposite sex. Gals, your thoughts? Is coffee a relationship killer?

Non-caffeinated, non-financial, just a totally irrelevant but visually stunning tour of our planet captured by BBC.

Full screen viewing recommended.

For those who like their creature comforts – or simply snooping around other people's homes – budget travel blogger Dixe Wills recommends 10 London B&Bs; where you can stay like a local

Forty Winks

In an ideal world, the term "hidden gem" would be reserved exclusively for gems as wonderful and as hidden as this one. Owned by David Carter, an interior designer with an international reputation, this four-storey Queen Anne townhouse is tucked away unnoticed on the busy Mile End Road. Beautiful enough to look at from the outside, the real joy starts as soon as you open the front door. A panelled hallway leads to rooms decked out with such exquisite taste and filled with so many beautiful objets d'art you'll feel like you're in one of the countless glamorous photoshoots that have taken place there. Take a camera and prepare to be dazzled.
• 109 Mile End Road E1, + 44 (0)20-7790 0259, 40winks.org, doubles from £95

The Garden B&B;

Slip out into the eponymous garden here and you're in for a surprise, for this is a prize-winning labour of love that has found its way into glossy magazines and on to television programmes worldwide. Split into four separate areas to suit all horticultural tastes, guests can take breakfast among the blooms on sunny mornings. The decor of the house itself, a Victorian villa tucked away in a quiet conservation area, reflects the owners' extensive experiences abroad. The two top-floor rooms – a double and a twin – are spacious and airy but you'll still have to suppress the urge to grab a duvet and sleep out in the garden.
• Killieser Avenue SW2, +44 (0)20-8671 4196, thegardenbedandbreakfast.com, doubles £98

Arlington Ave

There are two bedrooms in this gorgeously appointed Georgian townhouse in the quiet backstreets of Islington. Stay in either and the owners claim the only sound you'll hear is birdsong – not bad for a des res just a short hop from the centre of town. The interiors – a happy blending of ancient and modern styles – reflect the unimpeachable taste of the owners. Clutter is out but comfy homeliness is definitely in. The trendy cafés and independent shops of Upper Street are a short stroll away, and there's a small but abundant back garden to relax in once you're back. And no, the prices are not a misprint.
• Arlington Avenue N1, + 44 (0)7711 265183, arlingtonavenue.co.uk, doubles from £50, singles from £40

6 Oakfield Street

Imagine the untrammelled leafy streets of Chelsea. Now imagine how untrammelled and leafy the streets of an area within that called Little Chelsea must look. That's Oakfield Street – it's no surprise to learn that Sir Thomas More's lush estate was just next door. Number 6 is a mid-Victorian terraced house close to the bistros and restaurants of Hollywood Road and a few minutes from both the King's Road and the trendy "Beach" district. Inside, check out the beautiful mural and the collection of Egyptian prints. There's also a roof terrace, perfect for taking in some rays or watching the stars come out at night. Oh, and a cat called Kippa.
• 6 Oakfield Street SW10, +44 (0)20-7352 2970, athomeinnchelsea.com, doubles £90

The White House B&B;

There's a reason why this B&B; is called The White House and it has nothing to do with a fondness for 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Yep, if your style is icy cool or clean 'n' fresh, this is the place to be. The Fulham home of an interior designer, the rooms are sleek, elegant and modern with a plant or painting adding a splash of colour to each blank canvas. The Thames is a pleasant stroll through residential streets in one direction with Fulham Broadway tube in the other. Come the evening, there's a range of restaurants to choose from less than a minute away.
• 41 Rosaline Road SW6, +44 (0)20-7385 8005, whitehouselondonbandb.com, doubles £90 (minimum stay three nights)

108 Streathbourne Road

Balham, famously mocked as The Gateway to the South, is actually home to a surprising number of desirable tree-lined streets, Streathbourne Road being one of them. Number 108 is a marvellous red brick Victorian pile built in the days when homes aspired to be castles and very nearly achieved their dreams. Thankfully, inside there's not a hint of Victorian stuffiness or chintz. Rather the owners have gone for a comfortable home-from-home feel, an effect increased by the fact that you can dine here, too. And if you fancy getting out and about in the evening, Balham High Road – just around the corner – is a haven for trendy restaurants.
• 108 Streathbourne Road SW17, +44 (0)20-8767 6931, sawdays.co.uk, doubles from £90

Number 42

We all know that this is definitely, absolutely and unquestionably the year that an Englishman (oh, all right, a Scot) will win Wimbledon. When he does, nearby Number 42 will make an excellent base for your celebrations. Built in the 1930s, the house is large enough to contain not only a double bedroom and a super king suite but a family room complete with its own balcony overlooking the garden. And what a garden. 160-foot long, it contains an "African Savannah Hut'", an air raid shelter (now a wine cellar), and backs on to Kendor Rose Gardens, so success won't be the only sweet thing in the air.
• 42 Daybrook Road SW19, +44 (0)20-8543 8709, bedandbreakfast-wimbledon.com, doubles from £80

26 Hillgate Place

Notting Hill may not be quite as airbrushed as the eponymous film made it look, but it's still a pretty chichi kinda place. And there's nowhere better to get you into a West Eight state of mind than this 1840s townhouse. One bedroom has a flawlessly tasteful Caribbean theme and a huge bathroom boasting a claw-foot cast iron bath and tiffany lighting. The other is furnished throughout with Indian antiques and textiles from all over the globe. There's a Dutch breakfast on offer in the morning, a roof terrace should you wish to work on your tan, and a bijou courtyard filled with shady palms if not.
• 26 Hillgate Place W8, +44 (0)20-7727 7717, 26hillgateplace.co.uk, doubles from £80

52 Becmead Avenue

The perfect hideaway for those inclined to pronounce Streatham as St Reatham. This large Edwardian house has bright high-ceilinged bedrooms with original tiled fireplaces and a hall inspired by William Morris' Arts and Crafts movement. Guests can enjoy breakfast around an oak farmhouse table or on the patio if the weather permits. There are bus services from the end of the road, should your horizons stretch beyond Streatham. The owners themselves are very well travelled, a fact reflected in the Italianate library and the exotic prints and maps that adorn the walls. And those who crave a dash of olde England can book the room with the four-poster bed.
• 52 Becmead Avenue SW16, +44 (0)7752 473861, 52becmeadavenue.co.uk, doubles from £80

A Nice Little B&B;

Not many people can claim to make strides in the world of post-modern nomenclature while also providing a funky place to get your head down. The owners of Blackheath's A Nice Little B&B; manage just that though. "Your bedroom is lovely," they further proclaim. And they're right, assuming you love spacious rooms with a simple fresh modern look (laced with a soupçon of Habitat). A hearty breakfast taken in the courtyard garden of a sunny morning will set you up for a pleasantly idle mooch around the little independent shops of Blackheath Village or a ramble through Greenwich Park to take in the Observatory, naval museum and deer park.
• 1a Heathway SE3, +44 (0)7958 419510, nicelittlebandb.co.uk, doubles from £75

• Dixe Wills is a travel writer for the Guardian, specialising in green and budget travel. Read his blog, Busorama

Guardian travel writer Rachel Dixon on the best places to sample everything from kayaking and bird-watching to parkour

Outdoor films at Somerset House

You can enjoy London's magnificent buildings without necessarily going indoors. One of the most magnificent is Somerset House, a neoclassical edifice on the Strand. Its lovely courtyard is a London hotspot in summer for open-air gigs and films, and in winter for ice-skating. The ice rink is hugely atmospheric, with carols, an enormous Christmas tree and a cafe serving mulled wine and cider. The eclectic programme of summer films is even better. Turn up early to make the most of the sunshine and DJs; take a lavish picnic – part of the fun is trying to outdo everyone else. You'll need something warm for later – a sleeping bag is perfect – and be prepared for a numb backside: there are no chairs.
• Strand WC2, +44 (0)20-77845 4600, somersethouse.org.uk

Bandstand busking in Northampton Square

Lots of London's open spaces still sport charming bandstands, but they are sadly under-used. Or they were until 2008, when Thomas Muirhead and Ian Sutherland had the bright idea of hosting acoustic gigs in them. Now regular gigs are held from May to October in around 20 bandstands across the city, but most frequently in scruffy Northampton Square, Islington, the home of City University. Past buskers include Mercury-nominated Ed Harcourt and Wild Beasts, and the fantastic Frightened Rabbit. Subscribe to the mailing list to find out where, when and who will be performing.
• Northampton Square EC1, bandstandbusking.com

Opera in Holland Park

If the thought of opera conjures up intimidating people, places and prices, you obviously haven't heard of Opera Holland Park. OHP is an opera company staging performances in the west London park every summer, under a spectacular canopy with seating for 1,000 people. (OK, it's not strictly outdoors as it has a roof, but it's open at the sides and has picnic decks and terraces.) The opera itself isn't dumbed down in the slightest, with tickets from £46.50-£63.50, plus 1,200 free tickets for under-18s and subsidised tickets for over-60s. The atmosphere is informal and there are subtitles and online synopses. Holland Park itself has large areas of woodland and a beautiful Japanese garden.
• Holland Park Theatre W8, 0300 999 1000, operahollandpark.com

Bird-watching in Barnes

The London Wetland Centre is the best place to go bird-watching in the capital, from wetland birds and wildfowl to migrating species such as ospreys. Every day there is a free guided tour at 11am and 2pm, and you can join the wardens for feeding time at 3pm. A real highlight is the imaginative programme of events: early opening to hear the dawn chorus, late opening for guided bat walks, wildlife photography courses, encounters with the small mammals and amphibians that also live at the centre … Combine your visit with a trip to another west London attraction, Kew Gardens, for a full day immersed in nature.
• Queen Elizabeth's Walk SW13, +44 (0)20-8409 4400, wwt.org.uk/visit-us/london

Pitch and putt in Alexandra Palace

Alexandra Palace might not have the biggest golf course in London, but the 10-hole pitch and putt certainly has the best views of the London skyline. After a round, picnic on produce from the Sunday farmers' market while looking for St Pauls, the BT Tower, the London Eye, the Gherkin and Canary Wharf. The grounds of the "People's Palace" also contain a boating lake, rose garden and deer enclosure, and there are regular alfresco events, including a spectacular fireworks display on Bonfire Night.
• Alexandra Palace Way N22, +44 (0)1245 257682, pitchnputt.co.uk, open daily mid-May to mid-October, £1-£5, season tickets available

Swimming at Brockwell Lido

London's surviving lidos all have their charms, but this grade II art deco gem in south London takes some beating. Built in 1937, Brockwell Lido was restored to its former glory in 2007 and now has a great poolside cafe, which opens for breakfast and turns into a bar and restaurant in the evening. The Olympic-sized pool is open from April to October, with swimming starting at £2.70. Adjacent Brockwell Park is Brixton's biggest green space. If you prefer "wild swimming", Hampstead Ponds in north London is your best bet.
• Dulwich Road SE24, +44 (0)20-7274 3088, fusion-lifestyle.com, open Mon-Fri 6.30am-10pm, Sat 7.30am-9.30pm, Sun 7.30am-9pm

Rollerblading in Battersea Park

Battersea Park is a fascinating place, with views of the Thames, an art gallery by the lake, and a children's zoo. Instead of exploring on foot or by bike, try eight wheels instead: there is a free group skate every dry Saturday at 10.30am, starting at the Japanese Peace Pagoda. There are no hills or traffic so it's suitable for children and beginners. The Easy Peasy Skate, as it's known, is a good way to practise for more challenging city skating, such as the Sunday stroll and Friday night skate, weekly marshalled events through central London.
• Starts from Japanese Peace Pagoda SW11

Kayaking at West Reservoir Centre

Green Lanes is an unlovely stretch of traffic-choked road in north-east London leading up to Enfield. But it does have some great Turkish restaurants. And, more surprisingly, it has a little patch of watery heaven. West Reservoir is a relatively unknown watersports centre. Visitors can sign up for a sailing or kayaking course, or try a free kayak session with the Castle Canoe Club on Tuesday evenings (excluding winter) and Sunday mornings. If you're prepared to get wet, you can join in with a rollicking game of canoe polo. Lovely Clissold Park is a five-minute walk away, and Abney Park, London's enchanting nonconformist cemetery, is a little farther on.
• Green Lanes N4, +44 (0)20-8442 8116, gll.org, open daily 9am-5pm.

Power kiting in Richmond Park

London's largest royal park is the place to go for some serious sporting activity, from horse-riding to fishing. One of the most interesting offerings is power-kiting, where you sit in a buggy, stand on a landboard or wear a pair of inline skates and are pulled along by a kite. Kitevibe offers all kinds of lessons, including taster sessions for beginners, and even snow kiting when the weather allows – think sledging for grownups. If extreme sports aren't your thing, stroll among the 650 red and fallow deer that still graze the park, much as they did centuries ago (careful not to get too close).
• Opposite Robin Hood Gate, Kingstone Vale SW15, Mar-Aug; rugby fields by Roehampton Gate, Priory Lane TW10, Sep-Feb, +44 (0)20-7870 7700 or +44 (0)7866 430979

Parkour in Westminster

The world's largest parkour park, Leap (London Experience of Art du depacement and Parkour), is opening in London this summer. Parkour, the art of negotiating urban obstacles using only your body, is practised informally around the South Bank in London, but the new park will be the UK's first managed venue. The 700 sq m site will be packed with walls, railing, platforms … everything you need to hone your skills. Beginners can join coached sessions, while members will have free rein. Leap will also host top-class events, where you can watch the experts.
• Academy Sports Centre, 255 Harrow Road W2, +44 (0)20-7121 0600, parkourgenerations.com

• Rachel Dixon is a travel writer for the Guardian

New York Magazine writer Mike Vilansky selects his favourite bars in Manhattan, from Wall Street banker hangouts to dim-lit East Village hideaways

Bedlam

This mixed-crowd East Village newbie offers a gay singles scene, welcome for their straight friends of both genders, and a surplus of taxidermy animals. Aiming at a spooky-yet-sexy feel, the cavernous bar, with book-themed wallpapers, includes a giant moose head, warthog, black bear, and stuffed birds among its decorative flourishes. To ease your nerves, try the Lily Bart, a cucumber vodka and lambic concoction named for the Edith Wharton character, or go with a $6 beer. On busy nights, be prepared to literally rub elbows: the space is tight, with local DJs urging patrons off the velvet red couches.
• 40 Avenue C, bedlamnyc.com

Don Hill's

On a quiet west Soho block, Don Hill's has provided decades of parties for fashionable young things. Only a few feet from the waterfront, pansexual (and sometimes underage) partygoers converse over cigarettes outside, and get sweaty to eclectic pop songs on the small dance floor. It has seen several incarnations: the late Don Hill opened up shop in 1991, attracting Greenwich Village skaters and scenesters like a young Chloë Sevigny. In the early noughties it was arguably the defining hipster hang-out, earning international attention and internet mockery. Today, former Beatrice Inn owners Paul Sevigny and Nur Khan keep the place semi-seedy, throwing porn stills up on the walls, serving mixed drinks (under $10) in plastic cups, and, in their own words, "keeping bathroom sex alive". Or at least trying to.
• 511 Greenwich Street, donhills.com

Le Bain

The top floor of the Standard hotel is something of a glamour theme park. André Saraiva's Le Bain, one half of the floor, even comes equipped with a mini indoor swimming pool; it's what a country kid dreams up when they think of New York City. Brooklyn-based New Yorkers and low-key visitors might find the space over-the-top. Tan seventies-style couches, dark floors, celebrity patrons like Madonna, and an expensive drink menu are all present at the sizable space. (Well, Madonna's presence isn't guaranteed.) But Le Bain's romance-ready, 360 degree views of Manhattan and New Jersey – particularly lovely from its 2,200 sq ft terrace or from its floor-to-ceiling windows – are unbeatable.
• The Standard, 444 West 13th St, standardhotels.com

The Big Bar

This East Village staple, established in 1990, has a deliberately misleading moniker. It's a tiny watering hole with the feel of a cheap, old New York apartment, lit by a few red bulbs. The spot hasn't changed much since it opened: blues plays at a low volume and the few mint green booths fill with friends who are looking for a place to converse and sip a single beer on tap. Stay late enough, and the boite can have a decidedly David Lynch-like feel – disarmingly small, green and red, and stuck in the 90s – but the friendly female bartender is far less harrowing than a Lynch character.
• 75 East 7th St

The Lobby Bar at the Ace Hotel

An unlikely spot for an aggressively hip bar, the Lobby Bar is perhaps Midtown's chicest drink option, and the best place to wait for maids to ready your room. Operated by popular restaurateurs April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman, taxidermy raccoons and big leather seats are scattered throughout the spacious room (which also serves as the actual hotel lobby), and the place quickly fills up with sophisticated, foreign hotel guests and generally deep-pocketed Manhattanites alike. Together, they all sip local beers in the dim light, surrounded by plush pillows, green lanterns, and scattered old books. A smaller, less cluttered space downstairs is reserved for performances and private parties.
• 20 West 29th St, acehotel.com

The Jane Ballroom

The door at this spacious, old-fashioned bar and ballroom is notoriously tight, but the scene inside – a mix of hip celebrities, young travellers, and party-hunting locals – is sometimes worth the challenge. Located in a surprisingly reasonably-priced hotel (sometimes described as a youth hostel), the boite looks like a glamorous, cruise ship ballroom after decades of wear and tear, equipped with an enormous fireplace, leather couches, an indoor balcony, and towering window velvet drapes. The parties range from decidedly quiet evenings to debaucherous concert after-parties. Wines by the glass come for $12 at the darkwood bar, which is hidden from the rest of the ballroom in case you need a breather from flirting and dancing.
• 13 Jane Street, thejanenyc.com

The Oak Room

This iconic Upper East Side hang-out dates back to the turn of the century, hosting greats like Dorothy Parker for lunch and drinks before going cabaret in 1938. Jazz singers, literary heavyweights, and the international jet set have all continued to frequent the space throughout the decades, and today's crowd – and aesthetic – is surprisingly similar today to the earlier incarnations. The bright chandeliers, ornate detailing, and manly wooden walls are still intact, as is the piano and small table lamps. Waiters still wear tuxes and serve double martinis, and the party rarely gets rowdy.
• 10 Central Park South, oakroomny.com

The Dove Parlour

A candle-lit, bordello-like first date spot, the bar is known for its red velvet wallpaper, Victorian ceiling mold, and artsy local patrons. Young imbibers drink champagne cocktails, the dastardly $11 rum tea (white rum, honey, fresh citrus juices), or wines by the glass. Antique couches and a fireplace filled with candles keep the space casually romantic, and it never gets too loud. Burgeoning couples can pay attention to one another at a booth in the back, or singles can meet and greet one another at the bar.
• 228 Thompson Street, thedoveparlour.com

The Bowery Ballroom

Considered one of the best music clubs in the city since it opened in 1998, the Bowery Ballroom offers a relatively intimate performance space with excellent acoustics and a fully-stocked bar in the back. The main ballroom gets packed with concert-ready (usually sweaty) fans, though those just looking to hang out tend to check out the shows, too. The crowds cosy up against one another near the stage during rock shows, but tables on the balcony or booths on the lower level cater to those paying less attention to the music. Bands are known to hang out with the showgoers after performances.
• 6 Delancey Street, boweryballroom.com

Bar Seven Five at Andaz Wall Street Hotel

A modern looking but quiet bar, at a low-key but quirky (and bright green) hotel, Bar Seven Five offers only a few tables, and they fill up with neighbourhood residents, post-work Wall Street types, and foreign hotel guests. Despite the angular furniture and futuristic feel, classic drinks like gin martinis are served table side, and the space offers a muted sex appeal, with its glowing, lightwood walls, rows of lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling, and bankers sending over glasses of white wine to attractive strangers.
• 75 Wall St, andaz.com

• Mike Vilensky is a New York-based writer for New York Magazine

It's impossible to imagine a London without pubs. Matt Brown, editor of Londonist, selects 10 of the capital's finest drinking establishments, from the historic to the eccentric

The Mayflower

The Thames Path has no shortage of decent stop-offs, and this Rotherhithe mainstay packs in the history like no other. A pub has stood on the site since time immemorial, and certainly, when the Pilgrim Fathers set sail in their own Mayflower from a nearby mooring in 1620. The current building is 18th century, and looks every inch the traditional English pub with oak beams and wooden panelling. A fine (if pricey) dining room can be found upstairs, with impressive views of the Thames. Oh, and those standing on the outside decking at high tide: you may get wet.
• 117 Rotherhithe Street SE16, +44 (0)20-7237 4088

Zeitgeist London

A German gastropub, with German beers, German football and German staff. Quite a gamble in the back streets of Lambeth, yet Zeitgeist does a fine job of attracting locals and non-locals of every nationality. The selection is unrivalled, with 16 German beers on draught and 32 bottled. The kitchen serves well-portioned Teutonic favourites such as schnitzel, currywurst and schweinebraten. Things can still get "interesting" during Anglo-German sporting fixtures, but this convivial venue is a true wunder-bar.
• 49-51 Black Prince Road SE11, +44 (0)20-7840 0426, zeitgeist-london.com

Sir Richard Steele

Named after the co-founder of The Spectator, who lived on the site, this pub is more eccentric than Toad of Toad Hall's mad uncle. Random signs, stuffed animals and sundry knick-knacks cover every scrap of surface space, including the ceiling. The Steele perches on the well-to-do lower slopes of Hampstead, yet draws a surprisingly diverse crowd. This is very much an ale-drinker's pub, with four beers on tap, but fans of inexpensive Thai cuisine will also be cheered. Regular comedy, music and quiz nights fill the spacious upper bar. The pub is in the process of changing hands, and some locals fear the unique character may change. Visit now to be sure of catching this local treasure.
• 97 Haverstock Hill NW3, +44 (0)20-7483 1261

Greenwich Union

Wander away from the many tourist pubs in Greenwich and you might just chance upon the Union. Well stocked with beers from the nearby Meantime Brewery, this relaxed, narrow bar is popular with a young ale-drinking crowd. Chocolate and raspberry beers add a sense of fun, as does the playful British menu, with home-made pork pie and fish-fingers for dipping. Free Wi-Fi (a rarity in these parts) makes it a haven for home-workers and freelancers. On warm summer days, there are few finer places to bask than the pub's charming beer garden.
• 56 Royal Hill SE10, +44 (0)20-8692 6258, greenwichunion.com

The Earl Ferrers

Streatham (or St Reatham, as aspirational locals increasingly have it) is a surprising "off-guidebook" place to find a decent drink, and The Earl Ferrers is among London's finest "local" pubs. Real ale is well represented, though wine lovers will have much to savour. In fact, the diminutive Ferrers gets everything right, from friendly service to well-chosen music. It even manages to squeeze a pool table into a side alcove. A varied programme of events, including a fiendish quiz and regular book club, raise this treasure of a pub to near perfection.
• 22 Ellora Road SW16, +44 (0)20-8835 8333, earlferrers.co.uk

06 St Chad's Place

King's Cross is in the middle of a cultural revolution. The former red-light district has changed beyond recognition as smart bars and restaurants move in. 06 St Chad's Place is a prime example, tucked away down a dingy cobbled alley that, 10 years ago, you wouldn't have touched with someone else's bargepole. The bar space is magnificent: a Victorian warehouse reworked in a distinctly Scandinavian style, with huge train-themed murals nodding to the site's rail heritage. Three centuries ago, Londoners flocked to the site to sup from the health-giving St Chad's Well. Today, it's populated by suits and office workers.

• 6 St Chad's Place WC1, +44 (0)20-7278 3355, 6stchadsplace.com

The Palm Tree

Despite the exotic name, this Mile End stalwart can only be described as a "proper East End boozer". It has stood in proud isolation ever since its neighbours were demolished by enemy action in the blitz. Time also stands still within. The furnishings are of another age – golden brown wallpaper, red velvet curtains and that increasingly rare pub feature, a carpet. The clientele are an odd mix of young students and garrulous old locals. If you want a taste of the East End from the 50s (and, really, it could be the 1850s or 1950s), you won't find better.
• Haverfield Road E3, +44 (0)20-8980 2918

Princess Louise

Anyone seeking a taste of Victorian London should summon the nearest hansom cab to Holborn, which has an abundance of 19th-century drinking dens. The Louise is the jewel in the crown – a temple of etched glass, bar lamps and wooden panels. A recent refit has somehow made the place feel even more authentic, with drinkers partitioned off into their own private spaces. The beer is cheap, too, this being a Sam Smith's pub. There's no typical Louise drinker; the central location draws in adventurous tourists from the British Museum, office workers and legal eagles from the nearby lawyers' district. Gentlemen should be sure to check out the period urinals, which have listed status.
• 208-209 High Holborn WC1, +44 20-7405 8816

The Heights

This place looks like a thousand other hotel bars up and down the country … until you take into account its location: reached via a half-hidden lift in the lobby of St George's hotel. Perched 15 floors above Oxford Circus, the bar offers some of the best views of central London through its "wall of windows". It's also next door to the BBC's Broadcasting House, so you're almost guaranteed to see a minor celebrity or two. With a lick of paint and a fresher look, this could be a bustling venue, beloved of tourist guides. Let's hope it never happens.
• St George's Hotel W1, +44 (0)20-7580 0111, saintgeorgeshotel.com

The Faltering Fullback

Hidden away in the back streets of Stroud Green in Finsbury Park, the ivy-covered Faltering Fullback is four pubs in one. The front bar is a welcoming if bustling horseshoe-shaped affair, well stocked with draught and bottled beers. A curious assortment of objects – guitars, scarves, aeroplanes – hangs from the ceiling. The back bar continues the theme, in a more relaxed way. You'd be forgiven for thinking the pub stopped there, but that's not the half of it. Double doors lead through into a surprise third space, where the mood is more raucous and focused around a pool table. A further set of doors leads out into London's most unusual beer garden. A bewildering series of stairs, gangways and terraces is reminiscent of the Ewok village from Return of the Jedi.
• 19 Perth Road N4, +44 (0)20-7272 5834, falteringfullback.com

Those of you who love and defend Gwyneth, who don't understand why people keep picking on Gwyneth like ALL THE TIME, why, why, why? you may want to skip this post. Move along now, fans! Nothing to see here! This one's for the rest of us.

Okay, are they gone? Good. This one's for those of us with jobs and children but no hired help and no money for a fishmonger who delivers. This is for those of us who don't have time/money/paid staff to whip up roasted red peppers with anchovies, escarole salad, and pasta with duck ragout for an intimate dinner with your celebrity friends.

I'd like to introduce you to the Anti-Gwyneth: Ines de la Fressange, French lady, former model, and the daughter of a Marquess. You hate her already, right? But don't! Sure, she's another hopelessly wealthy, effortlessly stylish woman, but I think you're going to like her idea of a fun, low-maintenance dinner party.

Ines has a new book out called Parisian Chic. It's mostly about clothes and shopping but there is a little chapter on throwing a dinner party. Hers is a bit fancier than hot dogs and potato chips -- I mean, she is French and all. But it still sounds do-able for working moms. I love her philosophy.

People come to your home to spend time with you, not to savor a gourmet meal -- leave that to the professionals.

2 hours before the party starts: Buy a chicken on your way home from work. Shuffle through the living room filled with "newspapers and children's stuff."

90 minutes: Put the chicken in a pot with whatever you can find. Ines suggests "curry, coriander, thyme," and a "generous slosh of olive oil." Stir it, put it in the oven, pick up the living room a little, and take a bath.

1 hour: Cover the table with a dark-colored tablecloth and black plastic plates. Have your children decorate the table with whatever their creative little minds come up with.

30 minutes: No fancy cocktails. Just set out some wine bottles, plus water and juice for the non-drinkers.

They're here: Serve your friends sesame bread sticks, cherry tomatoes, and baby veggies piled into glasses. And now my favorite part: "Keep your guests hungry! The longer they wait, the more they'll tell you how delicious everything is."

1 1/2 hours later: Start cooking some basmati rice.

After 2 hours: Now serve the chicken with rice.

After 3 hours: Serve some ice cream.

Et voila! I guess Ines doesn't have small children over very often, because this isn't going to work for kids. But still, her dinner party game plan is such a reality check: just do the bare minimum you have to without stressing yourself out.

As with fashion and decor, when it comes to entertaining, less is more. Don't overdo it and the atmosphere will be more relaxed. That gives you time to come out of the kitchen and enjoy entertaining.

I think I've just found my new favorite domestic goddess.

Image via Amazon

Local food blogger Alexander Lobrano reveals the best places in Paris to taste bistro classics like coq au vin and tarte tatin

Josephine "Chez Dumonet"

For a delicious sepia-toned experience of pre-war Paris, this beautiful art-nouveau bistro on a chic street in Saint Germain is worth the wound to your wallet. The fact is that old-fashioned bistro cooking in Paris has become almost as expensive as it is rare – thank France's 35-hour working week for making slow cooking so pricey. But if you're craving old-school dishes like morel mushrooms stuffed with foie gras, truffles and country ham; millefeuille of boned pigeon; and bœuf bourguignon, you won't do better than this 1880 vintage dining room. Note that many dishes are served in half portions, the boeuf bourguignon is so ample it feeds two, and the reasonably priced house Bordeaux is what all the regulars drink.
• 117 rue du Cherche Midi, 6th, +33 1 4548 5240. Métro: Duroc or Sèvres-Babylone. Open Mon-Fri lunch and dinner. Average à la carte €50

A la Biche au Bois

It's miraculous that this really good traditional French bistro hasn't become a major tourist destination, a reprieve explained by its location in a workaday part of Paris near the Gare de Lyon that's impervious to trends and also by its ardent crowd of exigent regulars. Many of those gents with giggle-inducing matching ties and socks come here daily at noon, and they'd know in a flash if the kitchen stopped making its superb frites from freshly peeled and cut potatoes or the cheeses on offer were pasteurised. So no one makes a big deal about the very good and reasonably priced food here, because they see it as a French birthright. In season, this is the place to go wild for game, and otherwise they serve oeufs mayonnaise, coq au vin, boeuf bourguignon, and other great Gallic monument-type dishes.
• 45 avenue Ledru-Rollin, 12th, +33 1 4343 3438. Métro: Gare de Lyon. Open Tues-Sat lunch and dinner, Mon dinner only. Average à la carte €35

Le Baratin

For anyone craving a taste of la vie bohème in Paris as much as a really good meal, Argentine-born Raquel Carena's funky bistro in the rough-and-tumble Belleville quarter is the perfect choice. During the past 20 years, rising property prices have driven most working artists and creative types over the périphérique (the Paris ring road) into the suburbs or into the provinces, but ethnically eclectic and bracingly scruffy Belleville still has an edge. The self-taught Carena moved to Paris some 25 years ago, and her cooking is a delicious hybrid of the kitchens of France, South America, North Africa, Spain and other countries, as shown by dishes like tuna tartare with pitted black cherries, and ox cheeks braised with citrus fruit, carrots, onion and red wine. Her slightly gruff husband runs the mostly organic and biodynamic wine list, and this crowded little dining room is where many of the great chefs of Paris head on their nights off, Joel Robuchon, Yannick Alléno and Jean-François Piège among them.
• 3 rue Jouye-Rouve, 20th, +33 1 4349 3970. Métro: Belleville or Pyrénées. Open Tues-Fri lunch and dinner, Sat dinner only. Average €40

Les Bistronomes

Now over 20 years old, the New Bistro movement in France – which started in the early-1990s recession, when ambitious young chefs opened bistros instead of formal restaurants – has added a whole new generation of bistros to the culinary landscape of Paris, and they just keep getting better. A perfect example is the recently opened Les Bistronomes, a pretty restaurant with a beamed ceiling and oatmeal-and-taupe striped wallpaper next to the Palais Royal. Like so many New Bistro chefs, Cyril Aveline earned haute cuisine credentials – he was most recently sous-chef at the three-star Le Bristol – before going out on his own, and this pedigree is reflected in the impeccable technique and clever use of the occasional luxury product that make his bistro food so good. At a recent lunch, a rustic starter of foie gras and duck breast-studded pate en croute was more than worthy of Michelin accolades, as was his chicken with a supreme sauce and basmati rice. Courteous, well-organised service and an affordable but interesting wine list are other winning attributes of this excellent bistro.
• 34 rue de Richelieu, 1st, + 33 1 4260 5966, lesbistronomes.fr. Métro: Pyramides. Open Tues-Fri lunch and dinner, Sat dinner only. Set lunch €26 two courses, €35 three courses, average à la carte €50

Le Bistrot Paul Bert

With the sort of old-fashioned film noir Paris bistros the world craves becoming scarce as hen's teeth, restaurateur Bertrand Aboyneau deserves a fancy French chest fob for creating a new old-fashioned bistro 14 years ago. In 1997, the back-of-beyond Bastille neighbourhood was beginning to gather some serious gastronomic credentials as a herd of trendy young types in search of cheap flats and atmosphere charged into the quarter. With its delicious trad Gallic grub, retro atmosphere – created by old enamel adverts and cracked tile floors – and excellent wine list, this place became the roaring hit it still is today. So expect a happy, noisy international crowd and great grub like terrine de campagne, marinated herring, steak tartare, and veal chops.
• 18 rue Paul-Bert, 11th, +33 1 4372 2401. Métro: Faidherbe-Chaligny. Open Tues-Sat lunch and dinner. Average €40

Christophe

Hidden away in the Latin Quarter, young chef Christophe Philippe's simply decorated bistro with poppy-coloured walls and bare wooden tables is a find for two reasons – his modern French bistro cooking is delicious, and he's open for both lunch and dinner on Saturday and Sunday, when most Paris bistros are closed. Philippe, who's originally from Menton, on the Riviera, brings a southern touch to the traditional bistro register, using the lemons his Mum occasionally sends him to make a superb citrus millefeuille, and he also sources his menu from some of the best suppliers in Paris, including butcher Hugo Desnoyer. Don't-miss dishes include his escargots in Provençale butter, steak with potato puree, and unctuous chocolate mousse.
• 8 rue Descartes, 5th, +33 1 4326 7249. Métro: Maubert-Mutualité or Cardinal Lemoine. Open Fri-Tues lunch and dinner. Average €45

Frenchie

The news that chef Gregory Marchand is expanding his tiny bistro in Le Sentier, Paris's old garment district, into a twin space opposite the original address in the small pedestrian lane where it's located has Paris abuzz, which tells you a lot about the impact the place has had since it opened in 2009. Originally from Nantes, Marchand cooked at Jamie Oliver's Fifteen in London and Danny Meyer's Gramercy Tavern in New York before returning to Paris to open his own place. The atmosphere at his tiny exposed-brick space with factory lamps and a minuscule kitchen nods at his Anglo-American experience as much as his brief market-driven menus do. Marchand, who picked up the nickname "Frenchie" in London, says his stints abroad "unleashed" his gastronomic imagination, but he still displays the deeply disciplined skills of a classically trained French chef. Think hip Gallic comfort food like cream of mushroom soup with a poached egg and grilled bacon, ox cheeks with swede, and white chocolate pannacotta with raspberries.
• 5 rue du Nil, 2nd, +33 1 4039 9619, frenchie-restaurant.com. Métro: Bonne Nouvelle or Réamur Sebastapol. Open Mon-Fri dinner only. Average à la carte €40

Le Pantruche

A perfect example of the excellent neighbourhood bistros that remain the bedrock of Paris's credentials as a gastronomic mecca, this new place in the trendy 9th arrondissement also offers excellent value. Talented chef Franck Baranger worked in the kitchens of Christian Constant (Les Cocottes, Le Violon d'Ingres) and three-star chef Eric Frechon at the Hotel Bristol before deciding to set up shop in bohemian "So-Pi" (South of Pigalle). Large aluminium suspension lamps over the bar are about as much decor as this place has, but service is friendly and Baranger's contemporary French cooking is precise, often delicate and delicious, as seen in starters like his succulent terrine de foie gras or coddled egg on a bed of creamed baby leeks and main courses such as a rib chop of free-range pork with potato puree or cod with tandoori spices on a bed of lemon-spiked braised cabbage.
• 3 rue Victor Massé, 9th, + 33 1 4878 5560, lepantruche.com. Métro: Pigalle or Saint-Georges. Open Mon-Fri lunch and dinner. Set lunch €17, set dinner €32, average à la carte €35

La Régalade Saint-Honoré

When young chef Yves Camdeborde opened the original La Regalade in a remote 14th arrondissement location in 1992, no one saw a revolution coming, but this lusty bistro completely reset the pendulum on Paris bistro cooking. Today it's owned by talented chef Bruno Doucet, and a few months ago he launched a much more convenient Right Bank branch that's been a roaring hit. The 1950s-vintage dining room, a former cafe, doesn't offer much by way of eye candy, but you come for the food. Doucet changes his menu often but dishes like chicken-broth-and coconut-milk soup with grilled shrimp and spaghettini, free-range pork belly by Basque producer Eric Ospital on a bed of lentils, and cod steak on a bed of wilted spinach with chopped hard-boiled egg and tomato and tiny croutons in a light vinaigrette show off his talent. And the €33 prix-fixe menu makes this place is one of the best buys in Paris right now.
• 123 rue Saint-Honoré, 1st, +33 1 4221 9240. Métro: Louvre-Rivoli. Open Mon-Fri lunch and dinner

Chez Georges

Yes, it's expensive, and yes, at least half of the dining room will be speaking a language other than French – usually various colonial permutations of English – but this is only because the entire English-speaking world comes to Paris on an enthralled mission to eat the great bistro dishes so lovingly described by writers like Elizabeth David and Julia Child. The hard fact of the matter is that this sort of cooking is harder and harder to find in Paris. So tune out the prattle from New Jersey and Melbourne and enjoy such brilliant old-fashioned bistro dishes as celeriac rémoulade, grilled turbot with béarnaise sauce, duck breast with cèpe mushrooms, cassoulet, and pot-au-feu (beef and marrow bones simmered with root vegetables). And for proof that a recent change of ownership at this 1964-vintage address hasn't changed the place a jot, order the tarte tatin with ivory-coloured crème fraîche for dessert.
• 1 rue du Mail, 2nd arrondissement, +33 1 4260 0711. Métro: Bourse. Open Mon-Fri lunch and dinner. Average €60

• Prices are per person excluding wine. Alexander Lobrano is the author of Hungry for Paris

You'll find some of the world's very best restaurants Paris. Food writer Alexander Lobrano selects the best of the best, with a galaxy of Michelin stars between them

Le Meurice

Anyone wanting a grand-slam experience of Gallic gastronomic grandeur won't do better than the glamorous dining room at the Hotel Meurice in the heart of the city. Though it was redecorated by Philippe Starck several years ago, it's good French bones survived intact – mosaic floor, crystal chandeliers, heavy damask curtains at the windows overlooking the Tuileries Gardens across the street – and the magnificent space is animated by old-school but friendly service that's as precise as a minuette. Chef Yannick Alléno bagged a third Michelin star in 2007, and his brilliantly inventive cooking is based on a deep knowledge of classical Escoffier vintage culinary technique. In addition to such recent creations as crispy green ravioli with a fricassee of snails and wild garlic, a starter, and spit-roasted red-wine marinated pigeon with red cabbage and apple juice, Alléno has become a dedicated locavore by occasionally featuring rare produce from the Ile de France – cabbage from Pontoise, honey from hives on the roof of Paris's Opéra Garnier – on his regularly evolving menu.
• 228 rue de Rivoli, 1st, + 33 1 44 58 10 10, lemeurice.com. Métro: Tuileries. Open for lunch and dinner from Mon-Fri. Average €200. Jackets compulsory at dinner

L'Astrance

Despite the vertiginous prices of Paris haute cuisine, a meal at one of these nec plus ultra tables is an investment that just can't disappoint, and snagging a sought-after table at chef Pascal Barbot's three-star restaurant on a cobbled side street in the 16th arrondissement is well worth persistence. The smallest and most casual table at the top of the Parisian food chain, this high-ceilinged dining room with mirrored walls, widely spaced tables and friendly service offers a decidedly 21st-century take on French haute cuisine. Barbot, who trained with Alain Passard and once served as chef to the admiral of the French Pacific fleet, loves vegetables, fruit and fresh herbs, and his style is brilliantly witty and deeply imaginative, as seen in signature dishes such as his galette of finely sliced button mushrooms and verjus marinated foie gras dressed with hazelnut oil, or turbot with baby spinach and sea urchins, both of which are part of his regularly changing tasting menus.
• 4 rue Beethoven, 16th, +33 1 40 50 84 40. Métro: Passy. Open for lunch and dinner Tues–Fri. Average lunch €80, average dinner €200

Huitrerie Regis

Tucked away in the heart of Saint Germain des Pres, this snug shop-front table with a white facade and interior is the best place in Paris for a fix of impeccably fresh oysters, which are delivered directly from France's Marennes-Oléron region on the Atlantic coast. Depending upon availability, prawns, clams and sea urchins can also be added to your plateau de fruits de mer, which will be served with bread and butter. A nice selection of mostly Loire valley white wines complements the bivalve-centric menu, and a convivial atmosphere is created by the jovial oyster shuckers and many local regulars.
• 3 rue de Montfaucon, 6th, +33 1 44 41 10 07, huitrerieregis.com. Métro: Mabillon or Saint Germain des Pres. Open Tues–Sun for lunch and dinner. Average €35. No reservations

Macéo

Run by Englishman Mark Williamson – whose Willi's Wine Bar around the corner is a favourite local bolthole for Parisian oenophiles – this handsome restaurant with oxblood walls, wedding cake mouldings and parquet floors overlooks the Palais Royal in the heart of Paris. Chef Thierry Bourbonnais not only includes many vegetable dishes on his menu – making this a good choice for vegetarians – but features regularly changing tasting menus themed around a single vegetable, such as asparagus or tomatoes. Dishes like scallops marinated in sea weed oil on a bed of quinoa and wild sea bass with baby carrots and mange toute on a bed of cumin-scented bulghur show off his cosmopolitan style. Excellent wine list.
• 15 rue des Petits-Champs, 1st, +33 1 42 97 53 85, maceorestaurant.com. Métro: Pyramides or Palais Royal. Open for lunch and dinner Mon-Fri, Sat dinner only. Closed Sun. Prix-fixe menus €33 (vegetarian), €38 and €48; average à la carte €60

Spring

Ever since Chicago-born chef Daniel Rose moved from the 9th arrondissement to a renovated 17th-century house in Les Halles in July 2010, he's been playing to a packed house with his inventive cuisine du marche menu. This talented American shows off just how cosmopolitan the city's culinary talent pool has become, and Parisians have been swooning over dishes such as Basque country trout with avocado and coriander flowers and grilled New Caledonian prawns on a bed of shaved baby fennel. There's also Buvette (wine bar) in the basement, with a selection of charcuterie, cheese and several plats du jour; and with reservations tough to land for a table upstairs, it's a good bet for anyone who wants to taste Rose's wares without going through the reservation wringer.
• 6 rue Bailleul, 1st, + 33 1 45 96 05 72, springparis.fr. Métro: Louvre-Rivoli. Restaurant open for dinner Tues-Sat, lunch Wed-Fri; Buvette open for dinner Tues-Sat. Restaurant average €150; Buvette average €50

Les Tablettes

Signalling a revival of the serious, dressed-up restaurant in Paris (which had lost out as a vehicle for young chefs going out on their own in favour of the bistro) chef Jean-Louis Nomicos's new table in the swanky 16th arrondissement has a dramatic modern basket-weave interior by French interior designer Anne-Cécile Comar and a dog's leg banquette upholstered in apricot velvet. Nomicos, who most recently cooked at long-running society restaurant Lasserre, trained with Alain Ducasse and is originally from Marseille – which explains the produce-centric nature of his excellent contemporary French cooking and its Provencal accent with a starter such as squid and artichokes barigoule (cooked with white wine, lemon and herbs) and veal sweetbreads with a confetti of lemon pulp offering good examples of his style.
• 16 avenue Bugeaud, 16th,+33 1 56 28 16 16, lestablettesjeanlouisnomicos.com. Métro: Victor Hugo. Open daily for lunch and dinner. Lunch menu €58; tasting menus €80, €120 and €150; à la carte €90

Le Stella

Since most of Paris's storied brasseries are now owned by corporate chains and serve wiltingly mediocre food, it's a pleasure to head to one of the last remaining independent ones in a quiet corner of the silk-stocking 16th arrondissement for a fine feed of such well-prepared French classics as onion soup, escargots, sole meunière, steak tartare, roast lamb and other Gallic standards. The people-watching here might be subtitled "the discreet charm of the bourgeoisie", service is efficient and this place has what the French call du gueule, or real character.
• 133, avenue Victor Hugo, 16th, +33 1 56 90 56 00. Métro: Victor Hugo. Open daily for lunch and dinner. Average €45

Thoumieux

Previously head chef at the glamorous Les Ambassadeurs at the Hotel de Crillon, chef Jean-Francois Piège went out on his own two years ago when he rebooted Thoumieux, a long-running Left Bank brasserie known for its cassoulet and huge resident cat. While the new menu and slick Manhattan supper club décor at this address created a lot of buzz, this gastronomically witty young chef's talent was never really on display here until he opened an intimate first-floor restaurant with a Las Vegas, rat-pack decor by Parisian interior designer India Mahdavi at the same address last autumn. A veteran of several Alain Ducasse kitchens, the very shrewd Piège understood that the traditional French restaurant experience needed tweaking – people go out now to have a good time, eschew formatted formality, and don't always want the three-step performance of starter, main and pudding. So here you can order a single dish, maybe a delicious riff on paella comprised of lobster, langoustines, squid, baby clams and cockles in a saffron-spiked shellfish fumet, and still get a suite of hors d'oeuvres to start, a cheese course and dessert. Not surprisingly, this restaurant just won two Michelin stars in one fell swoop.
• 79 rue Saint Dominique, 7th, +33 1 47 05 79 00, thoumieux.fr. Métro: La Tour Maubourg. Open daily for dinner only. Average €75

Yam'Tcha

After training with chef Pascal Barbot at the three-star L'Astrance, young Burgundy-born cook Adeline Grattard – one of the still rare female chefs in Paris – did a stint in Hong Kong during which she fell in love with Asian produce and cooking techniques and met her husband Chiwah, who works as the tea steward (as an alternative to wine, you can be served a different tea with every course of your meal here). At their small charming restaurant near Les Halles, with a beamed ceiling and ancient stone walls, Grattard's tasting menus change according to her daily shop, but dishes such as grilled scallops on a bed of bean sprouts in bright green wild-garlic sauce and a superb dessert of homemade ginger ice-cream with avocado slices and passion fruit deliciously display the finely honed culinary technique and imagination that won her a Michelin star.
• 4 rue Sauval, 1st, +33 1 40 26 08 07. Métro: Louvre-Rivoli. Open for lunch and dinner Wed-Sat, Sun dinner only. Prix-fixe menus €50 and €85

Ze Kitchen Galerie

Styled like the neighbouring art galleries on this Saint Germain des Pres side street, this loft-like white space with parquet floors is furnished with steel tables and chairs and decorated with contemporary art. Chef William Ledeuil's popular restaurant offers an intriguing experience of contemporary French cooking. Ledeuil, who trained with Guy Savoy, is fascinated by Asia and makes imaginative use of oriental herbs and ingredients in original dishes like Sardinian malloreddus pasta with a pesto of Thai herbs, parmesan cream and green olive condiment, or grilled monkfish with an aubergine marmelade and Thai-seasoned sauce vierge.
• 4 rue des Grands-Augustins, 6th, +33 1 44 32 00 32, zekitchengalerie.fr. Métro: Odeon. Open for lunch and dinner Mon-Sat. Average €55

Average prices are per person without wine

• Alexander Lobrano is the author of the Paris food website hungryforparis.squarespace.com

Like a lot of people, I'm not quite sure what Cinco de Mayo commemorates, but I'll celebrate it today nonetheless. And I'll do so happily because I love guacamole and margaritas. But the poor margarita. Besides maybe the daiquiri, no other cocktail has been transformed into such a déclassé imitation of what it originally was. (You don't see frozen-Manhattan machines, after all.) Ordering a margarita is often less about getting a drink and more about signaling to your companions that you intend for shit to get crazy. But it's a drink with history — respectable history. (It was invented, probably around 1940, in either Dallas or Tijuana — the exact origins are fuzzy, probably because the inventors were drinking margaritas.) That's the rub: Can a drink that is usually made in large batches and dispensed out of a soft-serve ice-cream machine still also maintain its place in the classic-cocktail canon?

To answer that question, I went to some of New York's most lauded cocktail bars: Clover Club, Pegu Club, Little Branch, and Death & Co. For comparison's sake, I also visited one outlier: El Sombrero on the Lower East Side, the sort of place where the margaritas are ordered according to which size cup you'd like.

When I told my companions about my plan to order margaritas at some of New York’s most revered and non-raucous cocktail bars, they considered it briefly, and then all basically said, "How sad for you."

“Why sad?” I asked.

“I hate margaritas,” one of them replied. “There’s no subtlety. It’s all blehhhhhh," she said, making a noise like a college kid throwing up. (I doubt similar complaints have been lobbed against, say, negronis.) Everyone had a margarita story, and indeed, in every one of them, shit had gotten crazy. “I just remember losing my pants,” someone said.

The other thing about ordering a margarita in a bar like Little Branch is that the bar is cool. But a margarita? "It calls your coolness into question," said the friend who had made the throw-up sounds.

Our waiter at Little Branch wore a fedora and suspenders; he looked ready to both shoot dice in the corner as well as sing about it. Without prompting, he pointed at the menu and said, “I’d recommend the Bar-Tender’s Choice. Just tell me what spirit you're interested in, and maybe what direction you’d like to take it, and our bartender will make something just for you.”

“Sounds great, but I think I’ll have a margarita,” I said. I might have been projecting, but I felt his disappointment. He just offered me a fine custom-made drink, and I threw tequila back in his face. This man was a pro, however, and he didn’t flinch.

“Salt?”

“Please.”

Essentially, all four bars reacted the same way. I projected my shame onto them; they asked me whether I wanted salt.

All of the margaritas were prepared almost exactly the same: nice blanco tequila, lime, and Cointreau. Beyond the similar recipes, the drinks even all looked the same: a rocks glass, cocktail straw, wedge of lime, salt on the rim. Pegu Club's version varied slightly; there was a lime disk floating in the glass rather than a wedge straddling the rim.

True, there was little that was unexpected in this presentation, which took away some of the fun. When I ordered a martini at Clover Club later, they served it with that nice beaker of extra martini on the side, kept cold in a tiny bowl of crushed ice. (Delightful.) Even at Chili’s, I remember being brought out a blue cocktail shaker with a little extra margarita inside. (Also delightful.)

“Do many people order margaritas here?” I asked the bartender at the Pegu Club after taking my first few sips of the margarita he made me.

“Yes, definitely,” he said without a trace of pity or suspicion. “It’s very popular.”

“It’s a totally respectable drink,” the waitress at Death & Co. told me. In fact, in talking with the bartenders, it’s clear that the margarita itself is not the problem. (Also clear: It's not at all embarrassing to order one in a serious cocktail bar.) Like most things in good-old late capitalism, it’s crappy ingredients and mass production that have ruined the idea of it: “I see nothing wrong with even the frozen margarita," Little Branch's Matt Clark said. "Where it’s gone wrong is that they make them in huge batches and let them sit all day in a spinning machine.”

And yet, it does feel a little weird to order a margarita at Little Branch, mostly because it’s hard to imagine a character from Guys and Dolls drinking one. Similarly with the Pegu Club and the Clover Club. These bars have styles — old Shanghai and old New York, respectively — into which their drinks fit, and fair or not, the margarita doesn’t really fit.

Maybe it's for that reason that the margaritas I had at El Sombrero were so wonderful. They did not taste as good as the drinks at the four other bars, but a short glass of slushy limey alcohol just felt right in the Mexican restaurant. The owner and his family were watching the Mets game when my friend and I sat down. Without really asking, we were dispensed two margaritas. They cost $5 each, and, while we drank them, we turned on our stools and watched the end of the Mets game, too.

Matthew Latkiewicz works for the Internet; he writes and podcasts about drinking and other subjects at You Will Not Believe. His work has appeared in McSweeney's, Wired, time.com, boing boing and Gastronomica. Tragically, his wife-like girlfriend is allergic to wine.

Read more posts by Matthew Latkiewicz

Filed Under: booze you can use, cinco de mayo, clover club, death & co., el sombrero, little branch, margaritas, nightlife, pegu club

Something exciting happened in lower Manhattan today. No, not the president’s visit. Rather, Nixtamal, the Corona restaurant and tortilleria that supplies tortillas made from freshly ground corn to the likes of Fonda Nolita and La Esquina, has opened its first Manhattan outpost. Remember the four vacant food kiosks at Municipal Plaza, near 1 Centre Street? Their landlord, Aegina Angeliades, tells us she’s filled one of them (the former home of Choza) with Nixtamal, and it’s now serving tacos, tamales, tortas, and more from 11 a.m. onward (they’ll soon be delivering, and they’re also going after a beer and wine license for outdoor drinking). The menu is below. And Nixtamalito (as the stand calls itself) isn’t the only newcomer to Municipal Plaza.

Site of Plaza Food Court (right) and Light Bites/Center Melt (left)Photo: Daniel Maurer

Angeliades (whose family has overseen the kiosks for over a decade) says she got interest from everyone from Red Hook Lobster Pound to La Crepe Parisienne to Slice The Perfect Food, but ultimately she decided to go with an operator who was involved with the stands back when they were called the Plaza Food Court. That operator has brought back the name Plaza Food Court and is serving an extensive diner-style menu of breakfast items (omelettes, pancakes, French toast, even hot grits with butter), baked goods, grilled cheeses, burgers, hot sandwiches, deli sandwiches, wraps, panini, soups, salads, burritos, and quesadillas.

Next to the Plaza Food Court kiosk, a few new vendors will open in the next week: Center Melts, operated by one Derek Markovic, will be a grilled-cheese stand that allows you to pick from Balthazar breads and local cheeses (there’s no stopping the grilled-cheese trend!). One variety will consist of sweet cinnamon or chocolate bread with cream-cheese filling. That’ll share a kiosk with Mud Coffee as well as with Light Bites, a gluten-free concept selling muffins, brownies, quiches, pita pizzas, cupcakes, waffles, and create-your-own parfaits made from Greek yogurt. And next to that kiosk, first-timer Danny Che will operate a custom-built cart selling a version of Hawaiian shaved ice. Oh, yes.

The kiosk next to Nixtamalito is still looking for a tenant, by the way. “We’re currently talking to Sullivan Street Bakery to fill the last available spot,” says Angeliades. “We’re looking for a perfect match and union that will add to the overall harmony and success of the food court — ideally it's a vendor interested in selling breakfast and lunch items, and perhaps someone looking for an express/satellite store to expand into, distribute out of, or make their first appearance in Manhattan.”

Nixtamalito menu
Guacamole with chips and salas $6
Nachos (with beans, Oaxaca cheese, tomato, avocado, cream) $7
Elote (grilled corn dipped in cream, cheese and chili) $3.50

Ensaladas (avocado, cactus) - $5
Sopas (pozole, tortilla) - $5
Vuelva la Vida (seafood cocktail) $12

Tamales - $3.50 each
Verdes with pork
Chipotle with pork and chicken (spicy)
Pollo with red salsa
Mole with chicken
Rajas (tomatoes, chiles, cheese)

Tacos (per taco)
Chicken - $2.50
Pork - $2.50
Steak - $2.50
Fish - $2.75
Barbacoa (Lamb) - $2.75
Carnitas or al Pastor (Pork) - $2.50
Nopale with Oaxaca cheese - $2.50
Bean & avocado - $2

Platos Especiales
Tostada with chicken, steak, or veggie - $4
Chicken enchiladas in mole - $8
Enchiladas verdes with chicken or pork - $8

Tortas - $7
Chicken
Steak
Pork
Bean/cheese

Quesadilla with cheese and/or beans - $2.50
Quesadilla with shrimp - $3

Also available fresh corn tortillas at $3/lb

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: openings, center melts, municipal plaza, nixtamal, nixtamalito, sullivan street bakery, tortilleria nixtamal

Officially called Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, this small constitutional monarchy is nestled between France, Belgium and Germany. Luxembourg’s population of just over a half million reflects diverse cultural influences. German, French and Luxembourgish (which has similarities with both French and German dialects are the country’s official languages. Luxembourg is one of the founding members of the European Union. The capital city (and also the largest), Luxembourg, is home to several institutions and agencies of the European Union.

Passports & Visas

Passports are required to enter and leave Luxembourg. Visas are not required for US citizens for visits of less than 90 days. For longer visits, contact the nearest embassy.

Obtaining a US passport
The US Government Website is where to start.

Visa information
contact: The Consulate General of the Duchy of Luxembourg in New York

American Offices
Provides consular assistance to U.S. citizens
Luxembourg Embassy in the US

Luxembourg Tourist Information

Culture and History
Luxembourg in a Nutshell

Currency in Luxembourg
As part of the European Union, Luxembourg’s currency is the Euro (available in seven notes and eight coins). ATMS are available throughout Luxembourg, especially in more urban areas, and most machines accept debit cards bearing the Cirrus logo. Before you leave, be sure to call your local bank to find out if you can use your card in Luxembourg and if a special international PIN number is required to retrieve cash. All major credit cards are generally accepted for purchases made in Luxembourg. Banks in Luxembourg are typically open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with an hour off for lunch, and most are closed on weekends.

Driving in Luxembourg
For information on laws, speed limits and safety, see Driving in Luxembourg

Electricity in Luxembourg
Luxembourg operates on 220 volts electricity (as opposed to the United States, which uses 110 volts). Outlets take the continental two-round-pin plug (standard throughout Europe).

Emergency Numbers in Luxembourg
Medical emergency: 112
Fire: 44 22 44
Police: 113

Etiquette in Luxembourg
Meeting People: When meeting someone for the first time or upon arrival to a business meeting or social event, shake hands with everyone (men, women and children). Also shake hands when leaving. Good friends often kiss cheeks, one on each side (similar to France).

Body Language: Luxembourgers are friendly but personal space is to be respected. Do not put your hands in your pockets. Don’t chew gum in public.

Dining: Punctuality is essential for most social occasions except evening dinners, for which you should plan to arrive 15 minutes later than what is stated on the invitation. When finished eating, place your knife and fork side by side on the plate. To quietly signify that you are not finished or that you would like more food, cross your knife and fork in the middle of your plate. It is considered impolite to leave food on one’s plate.

Gifts: When invited to someone’s home, always bring a gift — bouquets of flowers (not chrysanthemums), good bottles of liqueur, or chocolates — to the hostess.

In General: Remain aware of Luxembourg’s individuality. Do not compare or lump the Luxembourgers together with the French, Belgians, or Germans.

Public Hours in Luxembourg
The majority of post offices in Luxembourg are open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with an hour off for lunch. Certain places have extended hours. Banks in Luxembourg are typically open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with an hour off for lunch, and most are closed on weekends.

Safety in Luxembourg
The crime rate in Luxembourg is moderate as compared to other European countries. Travelers should take precautions against petty theft while in Luxembourg, especially in public areas where pickpockets tend to lurk. Luxembourg has many public parks that are safe during the daylight hours, though low-level drug vending has increased in some of the city parks. Tourists should avoid these parks after dark.

Time Zone
Luxembourg is six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time in the United States. The country is in the Central European Time zone, which is one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time. During Daylight Saving Time, Luxembourg is two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.

Tipping in Luxembourg 
A service charge of 15% is added to your food bill at a restaurant.  An additional tip isn’t required, but many people add a Euro or two for good service.

Taxi drivers typically receive a 10% tip; bellhops and doormen, €1.25-€2.50; movie ushers, coat & washroom attendants, €.50-€1.50.

Weather in Luxembourg
With a moderate climate, Luxembourg is a great destination any time of year. However, be prepared for a bit of rain. Traditionally, “in-season” has been defined as anytime from mid-April to mid-October. Peak season is July and August.

Main Sights In Luxembourg

History buffs and sightseers will enjoy Wenzel Walk, which takes you through Luxembourg’s oldest quarters (a UNESCO World Heritage site). Among other sights, you’ll see the Bock Promontory, Castle Bridge (built in 1735 from red sandstone), and the Church of St. Ulric (the city’s oldest church).

Created by Luxembourg-born Edward J. Steichen, “The Family of Man” is a permanent exhibition at the Castle of Clervaux with more than 500 black & white photos by 273 photographs from 68 countries. The theme of this powerful imagery is love and faith. Before its arrival to the Castle, the photos were on display at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art.

A visit to Mullerthal , the little Switzerland of Luxembourg is a real treat

Wine aficionados will enjoy the Grevenmacher Wine and Grape Festival in mid-September.

Schueberfouer is a traveling fun fair that visits the country every year for 3 weeks in the summer.

Getting Around Luxembourg

Luxembourg is home to excellent road, rail and air transportation facilities and services.

Air
Most major international carriers fly to Luxembourg’s airport (Findel International Airport – LUX) is 5km (3.5 miles) northeast of the city (journey time – 20 minutes). To/from the airport: Coaches and buses run regular services to the city. Taxis are also available (it takes approx.10 minutes to get to the city). A new passenger terminal at Luxembourg Airport opened recently.

Boats and Ferries
Car ferries run between the UK and Calais (from which you can drive to Luxembourg. From Calais, the quickest route is to take the highway to Brussels via Lille (A25, then head south through Namur along the E411 to Luxembourg). In total, the journey from London (including the ferry crossing) takes approximately eight hours.

Rail Passes
Benelux Tourrail will get you through Belgium, Luxembourg and The Netherlands. This pass allows for unlimited travel for any five days within a one-month period throughout the year.

InterRail is for European residents only, and offers unlimited first- or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries. Discounts are available for travelers under 26 years of age, and children’s tickets are reduced by about 50%. Available from Rail Europe.

Eurailpass is available to non-European residents (the passes cannot be sold to residents of Europe, Turkey, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia or the Russian Federation) and is good for unlimited first-class train travel in 17 European countries. Depending on the type of pass, it is valid for 15 days, 21 days, one month, two months or three months. The Eurailpass Saver ticket offers discounts for two or more people traveling together. The Eurailpass Youth ticket is available to those aged under 26 and offers unlimited second-class train travel. The Eurailpass Flexi allows either 10 or 15 travel days within a two-month period. The Eurail Selectpass is valid in three, four or five bordering countries and allows five, six, eight or 10 travel days (or 15 for five countries) in a two-month period. The Eurail Regional Pass allows four to ten travel days in a two-month period in one of nine regions (usually two or more countries). Children receive a 50% discount. All of the above is available from The Eurail Group (website: www.eurail.com).

There are plans to introduce trams in the capital city of Luxembourg and light-rail lines in nearby areas within the next few years.

Car Rental in Luxembourg
Several major car rental companies have stations at Findel International Airport. Car rental prices can be high,but fuel prices are lower than in most other EU countries. As is the case in any EU country, you’ll need a valid passport, driving license & international credit card to rent a car in Luxembourg. The road network has been significantly expanded and improved in recent years. There are now 147 km of motorways connecting the capital (Luxembourg) to adjacent countries.

Taxis
Taxis are quite expensive in Luxembourg. The standard fare is 0.80 Euros per km, but expect to pay a 10 percent surcharge at night, and a 25 percent surcharge on Sundays. Asking a taxi to wait for you will cost EUR0.21 per minute.
Taxis can be booked by telephone or hailed from a stand outside public buildings such as train stations.

Health

Personal Medications
No permit is required to carry medication in your luggage. However, you should pack your medication in its original containers and/or have your doctor’s prescription with you. Customs officials will have to be satisfied that you are not importing more than would be necessary for your personal use, taking into account the drug type and length of stay (for no more than three months).

Lodging in Luxembourg

Luxembourg offers every type of lodging from couch-surfing, to hostels and agritourism , to 5-Star resorts. Check here to find a hotel that will meet your needs.

Public Holidays in Luxembourg

New Year’s Day 1 January
Carnival February
Good Friday
Easter Monday
May Day 1 May
Ascension Day
Whit Monday 1st Monday in June
National Day 23 June
Assumption Day 15 August
Luxembourg City Fete 31 August
All Saints Day 1 November
All Souls Day 2 November
Christmas Day 25 December
St. Stephen’s Day 26 December

Telephones in Luxembourg

Public phone booths are conveniently located in Luxembourg. Coin-operated phones are quickly being replaced with ones that accept only credit cards and telecards, available at most newsstands, post offices, and major train stations.

Dialing Procedures
When calling Luxembourg from abroad, dial the local international access code, then 352 for the country code, followed by the number. When calling Luxembourg from the United States, the international access code is 011. Please note that there are no area codes in Luxembourg. However, phone numbers range from five to nine digits.

Useful Country Codes
USA and Canada 1
UK 44

Returning to the US

Customs,VAT & Duty Free
When you return to the U.S., you’ll need to declare everything you are bringing back that you did not take with you. If you are traveling by air or sea, you may be asked to fill out a Customs Declaration Form provided by the airline or cruise ship. Keep your sales slips. Try to pack the things you’ll need to declare separately. Read the signs in the Customs area; they contain helpful information about how to clear Customs.
For complete information on Customs, look at the U.S. Government Customs Website

Value Added Tax (VAT or IVA) Refund Information
If you are a U.S. or Canadian resident, you may qualify for a personal exemption which allows you to bring goods of a certain value into the country without paying customs duties, excise taxes, or Value Added Tax. You can be reimbursed for the VAT you pay on large purchases throughout your trip. Save your receipts from large purchases and be sure to visit the VAT office at the airport for refund forms and information.

Duty-Free Items
U.S. and Canadian citizens may bring goods into or from France and the rest of the European Union up to a certain value before having to pay custom duties, excise taxes, or VAT (Value-Added Tax). You should keep the following in mind:

U.S. and Canadian citizens aged 15 and over and traveling by air or sea may bring articles totaling 430 Euros (approx.$545) into France duty and tax-free. Land and inland waterway travelers can bring duty-free goods worth 300 Euros (approx. $380) in their personal luggage

Individuals over 17 may also purchase and import certain duty-free items from France up to a certain limit. This includes tobacco and alcoholic beverages, motor fuel, and medications. Fragrances, coffee, and tea may now be imported into the EU with no restriction on amounts, as long as the value does not exceed the monetary limits listed above. Limits for other items are (be sure to check and make sure these limits are still the same before you leave):

Cigarettes: 200 units
Cigarillos: 100 units (max. 3 grams each)
Cigars: 50 units
Still wines: 4 liters
Beer: 16 liters
Spirits over 22 degrees volume: 1 liter
Fortified wines, 22 degrees volume or less: 2 liters
Medications: Varies according to traveler’s health requirements
Motor fuel: Quantities equal to that found in a normal full fuel tank, or in an emergency can, not exceeding 10 liters.

Duty and tax exemptions are strictly individual. You cannot apply them to a group. Items worth more than the maximum exempt amount will be subject to duties and taxes.

You can bring personal items such as guitars or bicycles to France and not be charged any taxes or fees as long as the items are clearly for personal use. You may not sell or dispose of these while in France. All personal items declared to customs upon entry into France must be transported back with you.

Related posts:

1. The Netherlands Tourist Information
2. Liechtenstein Tourist Information
3. Belgium Tourist Information

Yeast Water & Other Wee Beastie Bubbles (No Math)

There is a Chinese proverb, of which, I am very fond:

The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names.

      a  Highly Active Culture  of  Apple Yeast Water

Having no delusions of being wise, I often go ahead and refer to things, for which, I have never found a proper name. However, I do try to state the meaning that I think they may deserve.

*** Some terms and the meanings I place on them when I use them.

Yeast Water (YW)... a specific instance of:
A quantity of nearly total water, which contains an active culture of microscopic life forms that will consume various nutrients and release carbon dioxide while doing so.

Yeast Water, Yeast Water Levain (YWL)... in general, intended, or already mixed with a gluten type flour:
A culture started from any type of YW that is mixed with flour and used in the same way as Sourdough Levain or Commercial yeast.

AYW, RYW, PYW, CYW, GYW, etc.... abbreviations for what is used to maintain the YW culture, such as:
Apple YW, Raisin YW, Prune YW, Clementine YW, Grape YW, etc. Used where the 1st letter's meaning should be clear to anyone.

Dust, as in apple dust, raisin dust, etc....
The accumulation of particles on the bottom of a YW culture, resulting from small parts that the culture has reduced to separate "dust" parts.

Highly Active Culture... general usage.
A Yeast Water culture that shows large amounts of activity - CO2 creation - can be in the form of bubbles rising in the actual water of a YW jar, or in a levain, which would be judged exactly as one would judge a sourdough levain.

Strong YW... general usage
Only measurable by testing growth when mixed with at least a A-P flour level gluten. This would apply to most YW that is being stored in a fridge, although, if returned to room temperature, the indications of a Highly Active Culture may re-manifest themselves.

Wild Yeast... general usage:
Any of the countless species of eukaryotic micro-organisms (over 1,500 species currently described, according to Wikipedia [1]) excluding those used in Commercial Yeast and known as Baker's Yeast, as well as Brewer's Yeast - both of which are Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and have been used for thousands of years (See Wikipedia [1, 2] ) There is no earthly reason, that I can think of, which would justify your needing to remember any of those technical terms...

Wee Bonnie Beasties (WBBs)... my personal usage
Any of the Wild Yeast that I might find useful. Sorry, but as the writer, I do have some prerogatives.

*** General Thoughts about Sourdough and Yeast Water - as far as our usage here.

All I need to know, and therefore, all I care to touch upon here, is how do I understand the cultivation, care, and usage of Yeast Water (YW) to the extent that I get the levains that will aid me in making foods I bake, &or eat - I do eat banana levain without the baking step and occasionally drink some fermented beverages..

Think of these Wild Yeast, for a moment, as if they were humans. You can find different groups that like different music, or different foods, different climates, etc. There are different groups of Wild Yeast that like wheat, others rye, others apples, grapes, etc. I think you see the point. But, they all need a source of the foods that they can eat, or that their companions can convert into foods that they can eat, and in hard times, they will eat things that they would probably not prefer to eat.

Unlike humans, Wild Yeast and their companions don't normally have drilling equipment, and while they often can be transported by air currents, they do not have wings to pick and choose locations. So, if chance places them where there are the sugars, starches and whatever that is needed for these Wee Bonnie Beasties (WBBs) to survive and multiply, then there is a very good chance that they will do just that.

Those great survival places are, more often than not, on the outer surface of commonly grown food sources. The same ones that humans often like, and for the same reasons that the WBBs like them - they are good sources of sugars, starches, and flavors - and low sources of deadly compounds (the latter consideration does not necessarily apply to humans).

Now, let us consider where these few fanciful premises can take us:
1/ The world is full of concentrated sources of these WBBs.
2/ They are there for your finding and taking.
3/ With some trial and (perhaps,) error, you should be able provide a home and diet that will keep both you and your WBBs happy.
4/ They will rise your doughs, and uncomplaining will die so that you may bake your daily bread.
5/ It is not too likely that they will remain that happy, if you force them to change their ways.
6/ Your WBBs are happy and healthiest on their original diets, and if you shift the diet, there is a very good chance the new WBBs - that come in with the new food you provide - will take over and the originals will diminish, even disappear completely.

The last item - "6/" - means that Apple Yeast Water (AYW) can shifted into a sourdough (SD) and that SD into a banana levain (BL) and the BL into a sour-rye levain (SRL) and even converted back into an AYW... Assuming you had strange tastes in what you liked to spend your time doing.

*** The Skin Game...

None of this is new., and the methods of starting a sourdough culture are filled with examples of people using the facts - without necessarily connecting the dots. Nancy Silverton has pushed using grapes to start a sourdough culture [3]. Dan Lepard says to use raisins, currants, and whey. [4] In an hour you could no doubt find any number of other examples of "Helpers to get a sourdough started".

What most of these have in common is that they start a YW culture long enough to establish an environment to foster the growth of the WBBs found in wheat flour. In my first Apple YW culture [5] I used a ¼ tsp of potato YW to jump-start the apple YW fermentation.

You do not need to be a "health nut" to realize that the skins of most commercially sold fruit have been treated
with chemicals to kill "everything except humans" ( not sure about the "except' part of that statement ). So, if you feel you must start from scratch, and use the skins of your source item, and then I would say buy from a source of untreated fruits or vegetables. Once you have any Wild Yeast culture - Sourdough, or Yeast Water, you never need to use skins again, and there are other benefits, I find, to using only the pure flesh of the fruits. Although, I will admit the "garbage disposal" approach of skin, cores, and table scraps, etc. will work to create a YW culture.

*** Do Not Be Afraid to Experiment ...

If you do not try things, you will only have "book learning". I would think, that anyone, which only had book learning would be much the poorer for the lack of the real life complement . Book learning is great, but not to the exclusion of life's lessons.

*** Why Not Just Use a Sourdough Culture and Be Done With It?

Well, I don't know. Why do anything different? Why use Sourdough and not just commercial yeast? Perhaps to learn how to do new things, perhaps, of the increase the range of options that new methods might offer you. These types of decisions are personal choices - choices each of us have to make for ourselves.

For me, there is also the fact that the general absence of the "Sour", as in sourdough, is desired at times. The fragrance from various YW levains is a worthy addition to the palette that I can use to paint the flavor of a bread, and the colors of different YW can add visual appeal to the baked goods - bread, or any other items.

In addition, there are differences in how individual types of YW levains behave. Some people have observed much faster rises with raisin YW (RYW) in certain cases, I find differences in the temperature effects on AYW, as compared to SD levains.

I also find there is the greater ease in the maintenance requirements for my AYW than there is for my SD culture. I love SD, and would never knowingly give it up. However, SD gives me one family of flavors and crumb colors, YW gives me a wider range of everything. I also have had what I consider as great results using a mixture of SD and AYW to create a bread with superior flavor, tang, color, and moistness - all based on my taste, of course, not necessarily to your taste.

But, I am not using my time writing this to play salesman. I could care less if you use Yeast Water, but two things have brought me to try to write this: First, I find - perhaps well intended - postings that are full of statements based upon fantasies (at best), and information that is only creating more "Baker's Legends" and secondly, I find more and more of my personal time being spent answering the same questions over and over. While this is a time consuming task, to the extent that I can write down these answers in a referenceable posting, the less future time that will be spent on those same answers.

*** How Does One Start a Yeast Water culture...

Well that depends on several things, but in general:

1/ Choose the type of YW you want initially. I would suggest picking one that others have had good results at starting. For that, I would say try one of these three types: Grape, Raisin, or Apple, although, feel free to try anything that turns you on.

2/ You will need to start from scratch only if you have no source of existing Sourdough, or Yeast Water cultures. Since all you need to jump-start a culture is a very small amount of any existing culture, I am sure anyone you know that has a culture could give you a part of teaspoonful of their culture to get you started.

3/ Starting with, or without, a jump-start culture:

a/ Take a clean glass jar that has a lid. I find short squat a POOR choice, and jars taller than wide a BETTER choice.

b/ Fill about one fourth of the jar's height with your raisins, or crushed grapes, or your apple slices.

c/ Add water that is chemical free. Fill that jar about half full. I find having the fruit filling only half the volume of water is convenient for the following reasons. Raisins initially sink and as the YW starts developing, raisins will start to form bubbles and then rise, grapes tend to be a mixed bag as to floating initially, while apple slices float initially, but when really depleted they often become "waterlogged" sink to the bottom. In any case, having a section that is more or less a clear water area offers greater opportunity to notice changes that start to occur in your YW culture. This is even more true when it is a fully mature and active culture.

d/ If you wish, you can add a small amount (½ tsp.) of honey, or sugar, but it is not necessary with sweet fruit at first, but would be with vegetables.

e/ IF Jump-starting ONLY:

e-1/ Using an existing YW: add a teaspoon full of the active existing YW to your new starting YW jar,
e-2/ Using an existing SD: ½ teaspoon of SD to cup of water, stir to dissolve the SD in the water and wait for half hour to get some settlement in the mixture. Then, extract a teaspoon of the top portion of the water mixture and add it to your new starting YW jar.

f/ Place a lid on the jar, and leave the jar out of direct sunlight, at room temperature (RT), or up to about 82ºF (27.8º C)

g/ Once a day (more often will not hurt) remove the lid, and stir to release any CO2 and to add oxygen to the solution. Some people find a vigorous shaking of the jar helps. It may, I have never tried it.

h/ If after 4 or 5 days, you do not see bubbles starting to forming, raisins or grapes floating, add another sugar or honey treat. If after 7 days you see nothing, throw everything out and find a new source for your fruit purchases. Start over.

*** After the Bubbles Flow...

Once you have convincing evidence of the YW becoming active, you can make your first proofing test. After all, the only proof of a worthwhile leavening culture is in the rising of the dough. So make your first YWL (YW levain). I would do it something like this:

1/ Find a small glass container, something very much like a typical morning fruit juice glass, with close to vertical sides. The straighter the container's sides, the easier it is to judge how much the levain has risen.

2/ If you weigh the empty glass and record the weight for future reference, it might come in handy. Use your tap water to see about how much a quarter of a glass of water weighs. If it is about 40 to 50 ml (grams), or about 1½ ounces, that would seem a good enough amount. Empty the glass.

3/ Measure out something close to that weight in the YW from your culture (replace the same amount of water back into the culture) and also measure an equal weight of A-P flour. Combine the YW and flour in your "test beaker", mix the two ingredients and place a rubber band around the glass at the level of the mixture's top surface. Place it in a warm location where you can check for activity and place anything - like a piece of light cardboard on the top to cover the opening - to keep anything from falling in and to minimize evaporation from the mixture.

4/ check the level, as compared to the rubber band's location to see if it is rising. If it raises to a level equal to the twice as high as the rubber band in 4 or 5 hours you have a very active levain (and YW culture) if it has not risen at least half that much in 24 hours, then your culture is not ready to use yet. In between those extremes, you make your own judgment calls.

*** After Your Proof of Life on Mars...

Okay, you now are the proud owner of a Yeast Water culture. You have the information needed you make new types of YW, should you wish to. You should realize that the characteristics of your YW will take some time to know well, and that changing the way you feed it, or adding different types of materials into the culture will all change anything you have learned about it - just as switching the A-P flour in a White Sourdough levain to a diet of rye will make it radically different in its behavior, so to will switching from apples to prunes change the characteristics of your YW. Using certain fruits will make any YW worthless for use in bread making - these are a few: kiwi, pineapple, mango and papaya.
I strongly recommend you read the materials on TFL and elsewhere before making any changes in your culture's feeding and care. Here are a few places to start such readings [6, 7, 8, 9].

*** Apple Yeast Water (AYW)...

From here on, nearly everything is specifically meant to apply only to my AYW and SD cultures, although, I will touch on some of my observations that I made with other YW types. However, as I have said above, different YW types may have different characteristics, and often do.

So, for example, if you want specifics on RYW, search TFL on "teketeke" or "daisya". If you want info on AYW, search TFL on "hanseata" or on "RonRay" and if on a wider range, search TFL on "yeast water", &or the references listed at the end of this writing.

Of course, if you are looking for deep information on the nature of SD, search TFL of "Debra Wink", who knows more facts about sourdough WBBs than anyone I ever encountered.

*** Some Q & A that have been posed in the past...

= Q
...Now that I have my RYW proofed , should I just keep that and use it like I do my SD?
= A
...No, keep your yeast water away from flour, until you want to use it for baking...

= Q
...Okay, but why?
= A
...It appears that anything the grows and offers nutrients on its skin/surface/husk/etc. will attract wild yeasts, Labs, and who knows what else. different wee beasties will find different nutrient sources preferable to others. So, your raisin yeast water (RYW) will get competition from the beasties that love flour, and soon you will not have sweet RYW, but sourdough.

= Q
...You said you use 3 builds to make your YW levain. My SD works fine with one or two. Why use more.
= A
...I used the straight method on one of wao's YW breads and it took 16 hours to rise. With SD, generally, you've done refreshes and have a good feel for just how active the SD is. If, like many people, you keep YW in the fridge, until you want to use it; you have a very poor basis to know just how active it is. It is simple for me to take a small amount (10 to 20g) of highly active YW from my active culture and add it to an equal amount of A-P flour and in a few hours have proof positive of strong growth. Using that when it is between 60% to 80% risen and moving to Build #2 gives a strong growth and guarantees that the Build #3 will provide exactly what I planned for in rise times and volume of my breads. No 16 hour surprises anymore.

= Q
...Can I get a sour YW by keeping it in the fridge too long?
= A
...I can only tell you what I have experienced:
1/ If I start with my AYW & Flour, and use AYW (not tap Water) in all builds, I have never gotten a sour levain - even after a week in the fridge.

2/ If I start with my AYW & Flour, and use tap Water (not AYW) in all builds, I have never gotten a sour levain after 3-builds - even after a week in the fridge.
3/ If I start with my AYW & Flour, and use tap water (not AYW) in all builds, and then retain some of that levain to back slope a new series of builds (built on the old levain) I have started to get a sour by the 6th build. All 6 builds being built largely at 51ºF/10.6ºC in a wine bottle fridge.
In other words: One can convert an AYW Levain into a normal WSD by maintaining an initial YW Levain in the same manor as a sourdough culture is maintained. My guess is that the continuing refreshments of wild yeast in the flour, without any fresh YW allows the flour-loving wild yeast to take over the culture.
4/ If I start WSD (White Sourdough) Levain, and use my surplus AYW from the fridge, instead of tap water, in my builds, I can build a SD-AYW Levain that is both sour and has a beautiful fragrance and makes a sweeter, more moist loaf. It has become a favored method of mine.
5/ I have never found a condition where the sourness decreased with increased time - either in, or out of a fridge.
6/ THIS MAY BE of relevance... All of the above is with Apple Yeast Water and KAF A-P flour. Since we know that each type of flour is likely to have a different group of "favorite" wild yeast living off of it, all of these results might very well be different if the flour type changed. For instance, if you used Rye flour, I would not be at all surprised if you had different results. Thus, with your different formulae, you may well be creating different conditions than those that I have been dealing with.

= Q
...How do you know your AYW is slowing down, or needs food, and such?
= A
...I use the bubbles as a measure of the activity. A slow down, usually is for one of these reasons:
1/ The pressure got too high (because I tighten jar the lid too tight). If so, there will be swishing with foaming when the pressure is reduced by removing the lid.
2/ The water has gotten too alcoholic (I do not consider that "sour", but you might) and that water goes into the fridge to use in levain builds - other than the first build. If you cannot tell alcohol by smell, taste it.
3/ The WBBs want their sugar cube "fix" (I give one cube about every 4 to 7 days, and whenever I change water).
4/ The apple slices have little left to give. (depending upon the apple type, 8 to 10 days).
BTW I have 2 jars that have been maintained this way for at least five months, and never cooled, nor refrigerated.
5/ When the apple slices sink, you know the activity is very low. The slices float, when fresh, but as time passes they become more waterlogged, and need the bubbles to hold them up !!!
Now, I was talking about my AYW (apple yeast water in those points. But it should provide a background for any wild yeast culturing - with adjustments for the oddities by "beastie types"

Here is an image of the bubbles rising in my AYW culture. They are difficult to photograph, and often I need to use a magnifying glass to see them clearly. The streams of bubbles can be very small, fine, bubbles, but they start in the apple dust at the bottom and stream to the apple slices at the top. Of course, when a sugar cube is dropped in, it sinks into the apple dust at the bottom. So, there is a lot of sugars in the material at the bottom.

= Q
...What IS your favorite fruit water? Why is it your favorite?
= A
...Well, I would call it Yeast water, not fruit water - vegetables work well, too. When I was fairly new with YW experiments, I thought I liked Clementine YW best. But Apple YW was a close second choice.

Clementine lost out more for practical considerations: I crushed the sections and only added those parts and the juice. (I found the skins of citrus, if used in YW made tastes I distinctly dislike).

Of course, any source that is highly seasonal, is not a good choice for one's "standby" YW. Grapes, raisins, and Zante Currants are all reliable year round sources, as is/are potato flakes (instant potato). Some sources must be avoided, if it is bread you wish to use the YW in - such as the warning I posted elsewhere: "Certain fruits should not be used for yeast waters intended for leavening bread. They are those fruits (or vegetables) that contain Actinidain (or actinidin) kiwi, pineapple, mango and papaya. This protease enzyme breaks down protein. If you make a yeast water from these fruits, you can still use it as a meat tenderize, but NOT in your bread dough."

I discovered that prune juice worked well to make a YW, but turned out making a dense crumb that I didn't care for very much. It did make a bread that visually could pass for a very dark rye.

Which brings up the coloring agent aspect that YW can play. Clementine and apple give a very nice soft golden tint, as well as a nice fragrance.

For me, AYW won.

Before I give the final considerations, why apple won for me, let me shift to another consideration, and that is Starting vs. maintaining a Wild Yeast Culture.

In nature, it is the skins that usually hold the highest concentrations of wild yeast. The dusty film on the skins of grapes and blueberries are wild yeast. In the modern day world, fewer and fewer skins of fruit and vegetables that one buys in the market have not been treated in one way or another to kill or remove anything on the skins. So, it becomes a bit harder to start a YW from scratch, and potentially, much less healthy to add unwashed skins to the YW. Fortunately, the skins are not necessary in maintaining an established culture, nor are they necessary if you have any type culture existing.

Since, if you have any Wild Yeast Culture, you can start a different one by jump-starting the new one. Just as feeding a pure banana purée to SD can create a pure Banana levain, or feeding rye flour to SD can get a Sour Rye, likewise, adding a small amount of raisin YW (RYW) to a jar of skinned apple slices covered with water, will get you an AYW from a RYW in about 1, or 2 days.

Of course, if you once have an AYW culture, you have no need to ever use any skins. The WBBs will slowly build "apple dust" on the bottom of the jar's clear gold-tinted water in the middle area and floating apple slices on the top. The "apple dust" seems to be that greatest concentration of the wee beasties and while I maintain some always in the culture, it adds an extended moistness to a bread. I enjoy using the "discard" apple slices (when replaced by fresh ones in the culture) mixed with raisins, honey, brown sugar as a baked apple desert - much like my Banana levain gets used as a treat.

= Q
...How can you keep from dumping your apple dust when you change water, or use the AYW for levain?
= A
...I use a baster, just a common supermarket type, but the top squeeze bulb is smaller than most. Cleaning is not a problem, since it is only used for the AYW, and I fill a quart plastic container in the sink before using the baster to extract the AYW. As soon as the extraction is complete, I simple suck the baster full of clean water from the plastic pail, shake well and squirt it into the sink drain. Repeating that 3 or 4 times is all the cleaning required and the baster is allowed to drain/dry vertically in the rack at the sink's edge.

Surplus AYW is saved in tall jars that were once olive jars and kept in the fridge's door, and used it in Build #2s and #3s of levain builds. Thus, normally, this only requires me to need 10 to 20g of fresh AYW from the active culture's water - which is replaced at once with fresh water out of the same baster that had just extracted the used amount. That AYW, of course, is what I use to make the Build #1 of any new levain build.

There is no water loss from the active culture, except what I remove - as in the above use for new levain starts. Other than that, what gets removed is nearly all water when the water gets too high in alcohol, and that is what I use to form the fridge maintained surplus.

= Q
...So simple and it sounds like you really only have to attend to it once a week....or do you toss in a sugar cube sometime before you do what you have just done?
= A
...I enjoy watching the small streams of bubbles raising from the "apple dust" and racing up to the undersides of the floating apple slices. Several times a day, I generally pause to watch them for a second, or two. It is good to open the jar one or more times a day, and just mildly stir the apple slices - the parts exposed to the air are effected differently than those that are not. Stirring also ensures that the lid was not too tight - would not want too much pressure to build up in the jar.

Of course, to stir, is to shake off bits that become the "apple dust", as well as mixing the existing dust, thus, reducing the clarity of the AYW, so I generally do this as the last act of the day. This way the AYW has overnight to regain its clarity back before I see it in the morning.

I mentioned earlier, the signs of reduced activity in a culture, and when no other basis for the decline in activeness is found, I generally add a sugar cube. This addition, generally isn't more often than once, or twice a week, but that changes, depending on how active the culture is, and how fresh the apple slices are.

*** Some Concluding Thoughts...

Yeast Water is "just another leavening agent" It offers alternatives that can be used in baking leavened doughs. Potentially, every vegetable, or fruit could be used to create a Yeast Water, and each would have its own, often subtle, differences, but sometimes very marked effects on the baked goods. I strongly suggest you compare what you have known from your use of SD and commercial yeast to your new culture. Learn the differences, and how to use them. If you do not like what you find, shift to a different food source and ,thus, shift the type of YW you have, Do not assume they are all the same.

I hope to come back and offer links to more of the specific types of Yeast Water on TFL postings. But for now, I think this should help some of those interested in more information on the subject of Yeast Water Levains.

Enjoy, and do not let your buns get burned.

RonRay

NOTE: A PDF of this document can be found at Google Docs by using the link below:

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B_MScoZfDZkwZDFkMmY5NWQtMTA0MS00OGE2LTllNzQtMDFkMzM1Yjg5OWZl&hl=en

*** Footnotes...

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker%27s_yeast
3. http://www.food.com/recipe/nancy-silverton-s-grape-sourdough-starter-316306
4. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Handmade-Loaf-Dan-Lepard/dp/1845333896/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277986711&sr=1-2
5. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20460/banana-saga-%E9%95%B7%E7%AF%87%E6%95%85%E4%BA%8B#comment-143439
6. http://originalyeast.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html
7. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/6012/baking-natural-wild-yeast-water-not-sourdough
8. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20693/culturing-growing-and-baking-range-wild-yeasts
9. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20460/banana-saga-%E9%95%B7%E7%AF%87%E6%95%85%E4%BA%8B
10. http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/20693/culturing-growing-and-baking-range-wild-yeasts#comment-143857

We dish the dirt, it sucks it up

Not quite so well known for its vacuum cleaners as its kitchen appliances, Morphy Richards threw Pocket-lint a bit of a curve ball when the company sent over its top of the line Vorticity Plus Bagless Cylinder Vacuum Cleaner to test out. Fortunately, we’re always curious to see exactly what bits and bobs they’re putting in top kit of all sorts these days and, more importantly, Chez Lint also happens to be a very dusty place right now and in need of some serious Spring cleaning.

Out of the box the ?169.99 Vorticity Plus is nice and simple to set up. With snap together pieces reminiscent of those close up shots in action movies where ex-marines assemble their weaponry for the big fight, it’s almost quite fun were it not over all too quickly. Cylinder onto machine, hose into cylinder, handle into hose, telescopic arm onto handle and head into telescopic arm. Job done. Well, nearly. Naturally, a vacuum cleaner wouldn’t be a vacuum cleaner if it didn’t come with all those alternative attachments for the head that you’ll never use and Morphy Richards are kind enough to include a Mini-Floorhead (just like the big one but smaller), Brush (for upholstery) and a Crevice Tool (not for that crevice).

Now, the clever thing that MR has done here is recognise that most of these accessories get left in the box and stuffed up in the attic, so there’s a rather nice bit of design along the handle and tubing with little brackets where you can fit the alternative heads so that they stay on-device for when you need them. It’s an excellent idea but, sadly, the fact that we’ve still managed to lose them speaks volumes. Fire the thing up though and you’ll have very few complaints.

It’s wildly simple to use in - sorry Morphy Richards but we have to say it - Dyson-like style. Any buttons of relevance are colour coded orange and you’ll have down what each one does within a minute without so much as having to pick up the manual. A swift kick of the power pad on the cylinder and the 22 mini-cyclone system comes to life. The deal there is that instead of relying on just the one main hole on the underside of the head to do the work, the Vorticity Plus adds a system of mini-holes along the width. What that means in practice is that it does actually suck up the dirt and fluff of the whole area you’ve just passed over without having to go back and do it again. Given that vacuuming isn’t at the top of most people’s favourite activities list, that’s a very good thing.

The suction works well throughout use and the machine never seemed to drop bits back through the head and onto our clean floors. It hasn’t deteriorated from the day it arrived and nor does the fullness of the cylinder seem to affect performance either. Once it is jammed full of dust and fluff though, it’s nice and obvious to see with very clear fill levels to indicate when it’s time to unclip. Then comes the most satisfying moment of all when you hit the second button on the case - and make sure you’re over a bin bag when you do so - and the bottom opens up dropping all of the detritus where it needs to go without dumping any back on the floor. A quick shake and a bump seemed to remove just about all of it with too much of a problem.

Once you’re done with the work, tug on the flex and the plug whips back into the housing on the case with much the same action as you might expect on a window blind. Aside, running the filter under a tap once a month or so, that’s pretty much all there is to it and we were generally very pleased with the functionality and design of the unit from top to bottom.

The only really question for us was over the heaviness of the head. It’s not heavy at all. That might sound like a good thing, and it’s certainly not all bad, but what that tends to mean is that you have to lean into it a bit more to ensure that it stays on the ground all the time. Invariably, that results in bending over and pressing on the tube a bit more which doesn’t quite make for the seamless, open-windowed, glass of wine experience that most commercials would have us believe that vacuuming is. It’s not a major flaw and it’s not like it’s going to cause you spinal problems or to hate the machine any, but don’t be fooled into thinking that the Vorticity Plus means that doing your floors isn’t a chore. It’ll still require some elbow grease.

The final thing to mention is the price. It’s not cheap. You can pick up a lot of cylinder vacuums offering the same kind of size and pack away convenience for a lot less. In fact, Morphy Richards makes some itself. At the end of the day, spending ?169.99 on something like this is going to be around ?100 more than a lot people want to. Who wouldn’t rather spend the difference on a better TV? But after pushing round some old heaps that double your work time and break down more often, it would be hard to feel that the Vorticity Plus isn't money well spent.

Related links:

• Review - Philips AirFryer
• Review - Morphy Richards Accents Breadmaker

Tags: Home And Kitchen Vacuum cleaners Morphy Richards Morphy Richards Vorticity Plus

Morphy Richards Vorticity Plus bagless vacuum cleaner hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 05 May 2011 12:24:39 +0100

CHEERS outside the White House. Partylike atmosphere at Ground Zero. I myself let out a yelp when I heard bin Laden was dead. I couldn’t believe it.

Takes me back to a moment at our seder just a couple of weeks ago. Everybody knows the drill. When it comes to the 10 plagues, we put our finger into the full cup of wine and remove one drop of wine for each plague. Everybody knows the midrash that says why. Our joy cannot be full — symbolized by a full cup of wine — if human beings suffered.

The Egyptians suffered due to the 10 plagues.

The Egyptians were our enemies.

Still, we have sympathy.

If human beings suffered — even our enemies — we cannot be fully joyous.

Thus, the drops of removed wine.

Punchestown and Chester latest, today's best bets and the tipping competition in our daily horse racing blog

12.50pm Kauto Star plans confirmed

Chris Cook: Clive Smith reports that plans for Kauto Star remain as stated in the immediate aftermath of yesterday's race, in that he will be out in a field until 1 August and Paul Nicholls will then bring him back into training and see how he fares. Smith insists that he wants the horse to be looked after and he will need to be satisfied that it is a good idea to run him again.

"I want him to be remembered for the great things he's done, not for missing out like he did yesterday," Smith told me by phone just now. The owner acknowledges that Kauto Star is not, at the age of 11, as good as he was, but he is also open to the idea that the horse's flop here at Punchestown was caused by the gelding being at the end of a long season.

A wind operation for the horse has been mooted by some this morning but Smith says there are no such plans in place and feels the horse would need to have run better here in order to justify such a thing. But all discussions related to the horse's future now seem likely to be put on hold for three months at least.

Today's best bets at Punchestown, by Chris Cook

Paul Nicholls reports this morning that Kauto Star has returned to his stable at Ditcheat, Somerset, "safe and sound" and will be wound down over the next few days before being put out to grass for the summer. What happens after that is completely open but I get the strong impression that Nicholls believes the horse will still be able to do himself justice next season.

If it seemed he would run anything like he did yesterday, when he was pulled up for the first time in his career, clearly there would be no point in persisting with him but he is not the kind of horse to send out warning signals in his home work. "He's a hard horse to get a handle on because he always works nicely at home, he's always fresh and he's always well," Nicholls said after yesterday's race.

On that basis, the most likely outcome is that Kauto Star will be brought back after his summer break and trained for the James Nicholson Wine Chase at Down Royal in early November. Another flop would then lead to retirement, while victory would presumably lead to one last season.

At least we got to see Kauto in public four times this season. The exceptional Quevega is generally limited to a couple of runs per year, so jumps fans should tune in when she turns up for the World Series Hurdle at Punchestown today.

It is certainly hard to find weaknesses in a horse who hasn't been beaten since May 2009 and she was a comfortable winner of this race last year, beating Bensalem and Mourad. But she's just 4-5 this time and I find that untempting in a competitive race about a horse who is not supposed to take her racing well.

Voler La Vedette (5.30) seems more like it at 9-1 on Betfair. From the Colm Murphy yard that has already won two Grade Ones this week, she has three wins to her name around here.

She has her stamina to prove on this first try at three miles and it may be pretty testing today, with overnight rain having fallen on heavily watered ground. But her latest two wins over two and a half miles suggest she is suited by a bit further than the two miles over which she has done most of her racing and the bare form leaves her with little to find.

Rigour Back Bob, a slightly unlucky fifth behind Big Buck's at Cheltenham, is another each-way option at double-figure odds.

Captain Chris is odds-on to follow up his Arkle win in the Ryanair but the ground may have gone against him. I'd rather be on Realt Dubh at 5-2 but even more appealing is Saludos (6.40) at 17-2. Jessie Harrington's horse was giving Realt Dubh a race at Leopardstown over Christmas when falling at the last and can be excused his flop next time, as he burst a blood vessel and scoped poorly afterwards.

He has since confirmed his wellbeing by landing a Grade Two at Navan and will be one of the fresher runners today. If conditions do turn out to be testing, he should cope well.

Today's best bets at Chester, by Greg Wood

A small field goes to post for the Chester Vase today, but that is nothing new for this race, and it does not necessarily mean that it is short on quality. On the Roodee, they still remember the renewal in 1990 when Belmez, the subsequent King George winner, beat Quest For Fame, who took the Derby at Epsom a few weeks later, although that is also a reminder that is now 21 years since a Derby winner emerged from the Vase.

Slumber put down one of the season's first Epsom markers when he took the Investec Derby trial a few weeks ago and would contract significantly from his current ante-post odds of 40-1 if successful today. The one to be with, though, is Nathaniel(2.55), who contested one of the maidens of the season at Doncaster's Leger meeting last September, and is bred to relish every yard of this trip.

Lexi's Hero (4.35) will take some catching if he gets away smartly in the six-furlong handicap, and there does not appear to be anything inside him to match his early speed, while Thin Red Line (4.05) also deserves support to follow up last year's win in the 10-furlong handicap.

Tipping competition, day four

Stop the fight! Millreef already had a long lead before picking out Doctor Parkes (10-1) yesterday and there is no challenger in sight, as nobody picked out Follow The Plan in Kauto Star's race at Punchestown. Those of you who were on Roberto Goldback, the 20-1 shot who unseated when leading at the last, we feel your pain.

Today, we'd like your tips, please, for these races: 2.55 Chester, 4.35 Chester, 6.40 Punchestown.

This week's prize is a pair of Club enclosure tickets to York on Thursday 12th May, next week, when they will run the Dante Stakes, firmly established as the most reliable Derby trial. Those of you who don't win can buy tickets here.

As ever, our champion will be the tipster who returns the best profit to notional level stakes of £1 at starting price on our nominated races, of which there will be three each day up until Friday. Non-runners count as losers. If you have not yet joined in so far this week, you are welcome to do so today but you will start on -9.

For terms and conditions click here.

Good luck!

Standings after day three

millreef +29.83

Ellandback +7.50

TL127 +7.50

Sportingchad +6

paragoncup +5.25

zizkov123 +2.08

millario +2

Degs74 +2

MLJ78 +2

slackdad38 +1

sandiuk +0

Shrewdette +0

ToffeeDan1 -0.50

zzz62zzz -0.50

Harrytheactor -0.50

robmct -1.17

William36 -2.25

diegoisgod -2.50

kenty58 -2.50

sangfroid -2.50

chanleyman -2.50

wobblebobble -2.50

johnny909 -3.50

chiefhk -3.50

jaygee1 -3.50

MaxHardcore -3.50

melonk -3.50

Factormax -3.50

ElMatador1 -3.50

suckzinclee -3.50

sizingeurope -3.50

tom1977 -4.67

lordofthewest -5.50

DrKelso -5.50

23skidoo -5.50

BearRides -5.50

Tampabay -5.50

orso -5.50

ross89 -5.75

grantyno1 -5.75

mmmdanish -9

xwireman -9

Ormrod76 -9

Copshaw -9

scandalous -9

Mai11 -9

chris1623 -9

MauriceNL -9

lonewolfmcquaid -9

davidwlay -9

JahLion -9

Rivercity -9

snowy81 -9

socialwanderer -9

coma88 -9

Templegate -9

carl31 -9

TheVic -9

sajid78 -9

Mulldog -9

SepticPeg -9

Smidster -9

Toptrapper -9

moidadem -9

lmwhu69 -9

stee33 -9

bigsimon7 -9

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Tell us about yourself.
My name is Carson Converse. I’m from a small town in western Massachusetts but I’m currently living in Westchester County, New York. I studied sculpture and art history at Boston University, then, after serving coffee and schlepping furniture, I headed back to school for a masters in interior design from the New England School of Art and Design. I work full time as an interior designer and feel incredibly lucky because I am working on amazing projects with some wonderful and talented people. Even though I love architecture and interior design, I go crazy if I am not creating things with my hands.

Apart from creating, what do you do?
Eat, sleep, try to squeeze in a run. I could use more hours in a day.

What would be the title of your memoir? Why?
Maybe At Least We’ll Be Warm, which was my husband’s response when I switched my concentration from a fruitless job search to quilting. Worst case scenario, I would still have something tangible to show for my effort. I’m not afraid to take a risk if it involves doing something that I am passionate about. If you keep going it will eventually work itself out.

Where does your inspiration come from?
I’m always looking for ideas. I’m particularly drawn to fine art and architecture. Taking a road trip or seeing what other designers are doing is always inspiring. I also look at a lot of antique quilts, especially Amish quilts for ideas. I love tradition, and I often use very common quilt designs which have been made for years. I’ve always liked the cropped close up images better than the entire quilts, so I started playing with the scale and cropping to make them more modern.

What does handmade mean to you?
When something is handmade, the process and the craftsperson’s story becomes very important. For me this adds richness to an object in the same way that the history of an antique can add to its value.

Who has been most influential in your craft?
At the moment, it would be my husband, who was willing to live on a little less to give me time to create. I’m also really grateful to have had some really amazing professors who helped me learn to step back and critique my own work.

When did you know you were an artist/maker?
There was no aha moment. I was lucky enough to grow up in an environment surrounded by artists and craftspeople, so I was exposed to the creative process my whole life.

How would you describe your creative process?
Inspiration, beating my head against a wall, hopefully success. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and I drive myself crazy trying to get just the right outcome. Behind each successful design are several not so good ones. It can be very frustrating, but I know from experience that eventually it will come together. That moment when everything just works out is why I keep doing it.

If you could peek inside the studio of any artist, designer or craftsman (dead or alive), who would it be?
Alexander Calder. His work is so playful. It would be great to be surrounded by bits and pieces of his kinetic sculptures.

What handmade possession do you most cherish?
A table made by my dad. The top is a large chunk of a silver maple root. It’s a beautiful object that also happens to come from a tree that sparks warm memories from my childhood.

How do you get out of your creative ruts?
I just push through and trust that it will end. It usually also means exhaustion, a glass of wine and the appearance of a tornado going through my studio.

Where would you like to be in ten years?
I’d like to settle down a bit, have my own home with a shop. Not that I want to be in the same place in 10 years, but I am really happy with how things are going right now. After a roller coaster couple of years I am trying not to think too far ahead.

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Tips for Bringing Wine Home from a Trip is a post from: Chris Around The World: A Journalist's Travels on the Road

It never makes Minnesota Monthly's getaways list, but when the sun is high and the budget's low, a person could pass a lovely summer weekend right down on Nicollet Avenue in south Minneapolis. Check it out:

Grab a frosty coffee from Anodyne to enjoy while shopping the Kingfield Farmers Market. Don't forget to peek into Corner Table to see what Scott's cooking. Seek sage advice on DIY projects and a new propane tank from the weirdly worldly workers at Diamond Lake Hardware -- somehow even the high school kids there can tell you step-by-step how to dig fencepost footings or rebuild your flux capacitor. Try out ice cream cone cookies at the new Sunstreet Breads. Wander through Tangletown Gardens and imagine you are in the secret garden grotto at the Prince of Wale's summer castle. While there you can buy some crystallized wolf urine to scare the rabbits out of your pepper plants or just to mess with your neighbor's beagle. And then head next door, hand the children a role of nickels for vintage pinball and sit outside enjoying a custard with sprinkles at Liberty Custard. If you are lucky, the firefighters across the street will be washing their truck and will let you -- your kids, I mean -- climb on it.

But wait! This was my most-Saturdays plan for summer. Until Liberty announced it was closing and I became convinced it was the final nail in an apocalyptic winter that would never end. Liberty closed! Spring is a lie! It will be winter in Minnesota FOREVER!

Then, light. Hope. Deliverance. A note arrived from Dean Engelmann and Scott Endres, those clever gardeners at Tangletown. Perhaps we would be interested to know that they were preparing to open a restaurant. Right there in the old Liberty Custard space. A casual joint, serving food they grow themselves out in Plato, Minnesota. Masters at branding, they'll call it Wise Acre Eatery. Why yes, Dean and Scott, we at SGT would be interested in your delicious new idea.

Wise Acre Eatery teams the former University of Minnesota horticulture grads and gardening entrepreneurs (heretofore known as gardentrepreneurs) with chef Beth Fisher and wine and beer expert Caroline Glawe, Lucia's alumnae, to create a neighborhood gathering spot serving locally sourced food on the spot or to take home. It will be casual, and it has promised to like my children. It will still serve custard, but custard made with cream from a local dairy and sweetened with honey; in other words, I will be able to down all the custard I want and still feel like I am eating something good for me.

I talked to Dean about the new venture. I had seen cukes and eggplants in the Tangletown Gardens store when I was buying my wolf pee powder, and had heard that they'd started a CSA. I did not realize that it had grown to more than 300 members in just a couple of years. The 40 acres they grow on (they are adding another 17 acres this summer) accommodates both nursery plants and produce, with the height of the season in the greenhouses wrapping up just as the fieldwork hits its stride. It is an effective marriage of uses that allows Tangletown to keep the farm and its staff working productively for an extra long season. What I was most curious to hear about, though, was TG's plan to supply not only the produce, but beef, pork, and poultry to Wise Acre. The evolution of producing tulip bulbs to producing radishes was logical, but the leap from growing a head of lettuce to a herd of cattle? Were they sure about this?

For Dean and Scott, supporting both produce and pasture-raised animals is both the most economically and ecologically sound way to farm. The land is managed with animals and crops on a cyclical rotation, rebuilding the soil constantly. (Dean will loan you his research library on this issue; I would just point you to one of the ubiquitous Joel Salatin videos, because Salatin is so darn entertaining.) Dean says on a farm practicing multicropping, the return per acre "blows conventional farming out of the water." (Hear that, other hort grads? Tangletown Gardens is challenging you to an agricultural smackdown!) TG has been working with animals on the farm for several years. They started with two chickens, in part because Dean had such happy memories of picking eggs with his grandmother, and grew to selling eggs out of the store. Similarly, a few cattle made way for 40, and those 40 are making their way to Nicollet Avenue.

When Dean gets to talking about the animals, which include grass-fed Scottish Highland Beef, pasture-raised Large Black and Berkshire pork, and free range chicken, turkey, and duck, he gets giddy. What makes me giddy is that they have found a processor in Watertown who is working with them on seasonal recipes for brats, sausages, and hot dogs ... hot dogs that they hope will find their way inside a corn dog! Reader, if you are not the parent of a young child, you may not understand why this is the most important news you will hear this year. A corn dog made with 100 percent grass-fed beef is the Holy Grail of local food children's meals. The dream is alive my friends. And it lives in south Minneapolis.

Wise Acre is set to open in mid-May. The renovation of the building, once a filling station, is proceeding apace. In keeping with their devotion to responsible land stewardship, the owners have managed to salvage, recycle and repurpose just about everything they need, from the tabletops to kitchen equipment. Food scraps will make their way back to the farm for compost or to some very happy pigs.

Wise Acre Eatery (opening soon)5401 Nicollet Avenue South, Minneapolis612.822.4769wiseacreeatery.com

Laura Zimmermann has the best intentions and worst results growing food, but is a smashing success at eating. She lives with her family in south Minneapolis, within biking distance of Wise Acre Eatery. Laura is an editor at SGT.

Bin 36, one of our favorite spots, is hosting a particularly comprehensive set of New Year’s Eve parties, and reservations are still available. If you already have late evening plans, Bin 36 is offering a 4-course early meal, seating from 5:30-7 p.m., so you can grub up before you head out to your drinking and carousing. The early dinner is $55 per person, a good deal for a meal on New Year’s Eve.

On the other hand, if you are prepared to hunker down and stay for the night, reserve a seat between 9 and 11. The evening will begin with champagne cocktails, canapés and mingling, followed by a four course meal. Your meal will be accompanied by live music, dancing and a midnight toast (and party hats and horns, of course). To round out the evening, Bin 36 will be serving donuts and coffee for breakfast after the party. The whole event is $100 per person.

Offerings for the dinner include a buffalo strip steak with chanterelle mushrooms and a poached organic egg, boat scallops with a blood orange puree and selections from Bin 36’s excellent cheese menu. The price does not include wine pairings, so if you’re looking to drink more than champagne, bring a little extra.

Bin 36 is located at 339 N. Dearborn Street.