The knife, the bathtub, the butcher and the corpse

We know how much chefs love their knives — “It’s hurt me, I’ve hurt it, and we’re still together,” joked Kyle Fitzgerald in last week’s Chef and Tell interview — but Heiko K, a slasher chef in Germany, took butchery to a whole new level when he dismembered a man…

Happy fortieth birthday to My Brother’s Bar

On January 12, 1970, Jim and Angelo Karagas opened my My Brother’s Bar, which forty years later is still one of this town’s best watering holes, despite having never had a sign out front. When the brothers bought the building at 2376 15th Street, it had already been a bar…

Puerto Vallarta Mexican Restaurant picks up and crawls…north

Puerto Vallarta, the coastal Mexican joint that occupied a corner lot at 75 South Federal Boulevard for as long there’s been shrimp in the sea (okay, that’s a slight exaggeration) is now bordered up with blond wood. But if that’s where you migrated to get your mariscos, don’t heave: The…

Culinary calendar for the week ahead: Raw food and Females on Fire

There’s a lot going on in the local culinary world this week, from raw food to Females on fire, bourbon to beer. Here’s a taste of what’s ahead: Monday, January 11: Stephanie Tourles, author of Raw Energy: 124 Raw Food Recipes for Energy Bars, Smoothies and Other Snacks to Supercharge…

Guess where I’m eating?

New menu. New chef. And one amazing new dish. Which not-so-new restaurant is off to a great start in 2010? Special bonus: Every Friday, anyone who gave the first correct answer to any of the week’s Where am I drinking/eating posts will be entered in a pool — and we’ll…

Top five most notable bacon novelties

In this here ‘Merica, we can never just cherish a food. It has to become a preoccupation — an “anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better” obsession. We always have to take it one step further, and we don’t give a damn about integrity or redneckery. Case in point: bacon. The Goddess of Pork. The sublime…

What’s the difference between pot and parsley?

Blackberries and beets are on the list. So are horseradish, hops and horehound. Even wasabi, wormwood and watermelon are eligible to receive money under the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crops Block Grant Program. But marijuana? Sorry, says agriculture spokeswoman Christi Lightcap, “it would not fall under this specialty crops…

Tonight: Mixologist Monday at TAG

We love it when restaurants try new things — like TAG’s Mixologist Monday, which will feature special guest bartender Michael Martenson of Ron Zacapa Rum (plus TAG bar manager Mike Henderson). Anytime between 5 and 10 p.m. tonight, the ‘tenders will take you through an array of tasty cocktails: French…

Today: Get healthy at the Quaker Oatmeal Festival

This weekend brings the return of Lafayette’s Quaker Oatmeal Festival, complete with an oatmeal breakfast, a certified 5K run/walk, a health fair, an oatmeal baking contest and the inaugural Oatmeal Creation Challenge; events run from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. today. Spoon up all the details at www.lafayettecolorado.com/oatmealfestival.html. For information…

Randy Layman leaving Avenue Grill for Jonesy’s

First, Ryan Layman left Avenue Grill and moved across the street to Steuben’s. Now comes word that after seven years at Avenue Grill, Randy Layman — Ryan’s twin brother — is heading to Jonesy’s EatBar to become bar manager there. Randy poured out his ‘tending philosophy to Nancy Levine for…

Strange Sauce: The week in national food news

Michelle Obama appeared on Iron Chef America and challenged contestants to use ingredients from the White House vegetable garden. Mario Batali, known for his hideous orange Crocs, dubbed Michelle’s dress “Obamatali Orange.” Although we prefer him plump, George Costanza has agreed to be the new face of Jenny Craig. A…

New Belgium pours money into saving the Poudre

The Cache la Poudre River runs through downtown Fort Collins and right past the parking lot of the New Belgium Brewing Company — and the company plans to keep it that way. Last month, New Belgium gave a $40,000 grant to the Waterkeeper Alliance — a worldwide network of 192…

Guess where I’m eating?

It’s Christmas all year long in the Land of Enchantment, which is where I’ve spent the week in euphoria, thanks, in part to the breakfast burritos at this Santa Fe institution. Where did I get my red and green chile rush? Special bonus: Anyone who gives the first correct answer…

Free food! For Kids! At Chipotle! Every Sunday through January!

As part of its ongoing menu-expansion test in Colorado, all area Chipotle Mexican Grill locations will be giving away free kid’s meals on the remaining Sundays in January — January 10, 17, 24 and 31 — when parents fork over the dough for a burrito, burrito bowl or full-size salad…

Sugar High: Olivea

If your New Year’s resolutions have you off the sugar, this post isn’t for you. If, however, you’ve instead vowed to be more mindful of the quality of your indulgences and are keeping your palate readied for only the most mind-blowing of desserts, then by all means: read on…

In the kitchen with Kyle Fitzgerald of the Old Blinking Light

Kyle Fitzgerald, exec chef of the Old Blinking Light and the mouthpiece in this week’s Chef and Tell interview, has a thing for chiles, which isn’t surprising since his restaurant turns out plates from the Southwest. For this super-easy jelly recipe, Fitzgerald fires up the heat with fresh jalapenos. “This…

Sheehan: Things I’m gonna miss…

Time is growing short. Less than a week before I turn my back on the 303 and make for the 206 (which sounds weird just to say), and everywhere I turn, I’m seeing things I’m going to miss. It’s no longer just the big things that are getting to me,…