Sunday Dinner: Tyler Florence's Beef Brisket

Brisket is wonderful comfort food, isn't it? I had a nice specimen from Triple S Farm in the freezer, so on a recent Sunday, I rooted around for a new recipe to try out on it. When I found the Tyler Florence recipe, I knew I'd hit the jackpot, because I had all of the ingredients on hand, including homegrown fresh rosemary (I brought part of my plant indoors last year and it's holding its own in a pot on the kitchen windowsill).Florence has you serving the brisket with latkes (potato pancakes), but I went with mashed potatoes to which I added some horseradish. It was a mean Sunday dinner.

Tyler Florence's Beef Brisket
Recipe from the Food Network Web site

4 large garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, needles striped from the stem and chopped
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 (4 pound) beef brisket, first-cut
Coarsely ground black pepper
4 large carrots, cut in 3-inch chunks
3 celery stalks, cut in 3-inch chunks
4 large red onions, halved
2 cups dry red wine
1 (16-ounce) can whole tomatoes, hand-crushed
1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

On a cutting board, mash the garlic and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt together with the flat-side of a knife into a paste. Add the rosemary and continue to mash until incorporated. Put the garlic-rosemary paste in a small bowl and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil; stir to combine.

Season both sides of the brisket with a fair amount of kosher salt and ground black pepper. Place a large roasting pan or Dutch oven over medium-high flame and coat with the remaining olive oil. Put the brisket in the roasting pan and sear to form a nice brown crust on both sides. Lay the vegetables all around the brisket and pour the rosemary paste over the whole thing. Add the wine and tomatoes; toss in the parsley and bay leaves. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and transfer to the oven. (I didn't use the foil, I just used the Dutch oven's own cover.) Bake for about 3 to 4 hours, basting every 30 minutes with the pan juices, until the beef is fork tender.

Remove the brisket to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes. Scoop the vegetables out of the roasting pan and onto a platter, cover to keep warm. Pour out some of the excess fat, and put the roasting pan with the pan juices on the stove over medium-high heat. Boil and stir for 5 minutes until the sauce is reduced by half. (If you want a thicker sauce, mix 1 tablespoon of flour with 2 tablespoons of wine or water and blend into the gravy).

Slice the brisket across the grain (the muscle lines) at a slight diagonal.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
As you can see in the photo, we didn't manage to slice all of the brisket against the grain of the meat, which was too bad. Even so, it was delicious and tender. I did use flour to thicken the sauce at the end, and that worked out very well; the gravy was winey and rich and had good body. If you want to try Tyler's potato pancakes, his recipe looks very good.

And the Winner Is (2009 edition) . . .

The results of the third annual Oscar contest are in, and we have a winner! But first, here's a rundown of the correct answers:

Photo #1: Whipped cream pie
Movie: Milk

If you saw this movie, you know that Harvey Milk got a pie in the face several different times throughout. So that seemed like the obvious choice. We almost went with the chiles rellenos, beans, and rice that Milk's boyfriend Jack makes for dinner one evening, but you barely saw the meal, and we thought it might be too obscure.

Dan White: Society can't exist without the family.
Harvey Milk: We're not against that.
Dan White: Can two men reproduce?
Harvey Milk: No, but God knows we keep trying.

Photo #2: Caviar and shot of vodka
Movie: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Caviar and shots of vodka make their appearance a couple of times in this movie: First, when the Tilda Swinton character and Benjamin have one of their clandestine, middle-of-the-night meetings, and she introduces him to the combination, and then again when Benjamin takes the Cate Blanchett character to a meal at a swanky New York City hotel. We would've loved to present the caviar and vodka in the same kind of server shown twice in the movie, but we didn't have one lying around.

Benjamin Button: I was thinking how nothing lasts.
Daisy: Some things last.

Photo #3: A pile of roti
Movie: Slumdog Millionaire

We figured that any Indian dish would be a dead giveaway for this one, but a surprising number of you didn't get it. Maybe my photo doesn't do them justice, or maybe you weren't familiar enough with roti, the Indian flatbread, to put it together. In any case, roti appear in the scene where Jamal and his brother are on a train, and his brother hangs over the top of the train car to pull a freshly made roti out of one of the windows.

Jamal Malik: I knew you'd be watching.
Latika: I thought we would meet only in death.
Jamal Malik: This is our destiny.
Latika: Kiss me.

Photo #4: Soft-boiled egg and black coffee
Movie: The Reader

At the beginning of this movie, Michael, the character played by Ralph Fiennes, gets breakfast ready for a woman we see only once. They've spent the night together, and the situation in the morning is awkward (for him, anyway), as it's clear he doesn't want to make any future plans and bascially just wants her to leave. The scene is meant to show that Michael can't let anyone get close to him, and the starkness of the kitchen, and the egg and coffee in their sterile, white cups underline the fact.

Michael: I'm not frightened. I'm not frightened of anything. The more I suffer, the more I love. Danger will only increase my love. It will sharpen it, forgive its vice. I will be the only angel you need. You will leave life even more beautiful than you ended it. Heaven will take you back and look at you and say: Only one thing can make a soul complete and that thing is love.

Photo #5: Fish and chips
Movie: Frost/Nixon

This was another food that appeared very early on in the movie. When Frost in still in Australia doing his show, he sees footage about the Nixon resignation on a TV monitor, and the wheels start to turn in his mind. He goes to eat in the commissary with his producer, and when they're in the cafeteria line, you see the fried fish, and then the producer says, "I'll have the fish and chips."

David Frost: I've had an idea for an interview: Richard Nixon.
John Birt: You're a talk-show host. I spent yesterday watching you interview the Bee Gees.
David Frost: Weren't they terrific?

May I have the envelope, please?

Erica Miske, of Savoy, IL, you correctly guessed the food that appeared in each of the movies, and we drew your name from among the names of others who had also made five correct matches! We'll be in touch with you to arrange your prize: a $50 gift certificate to the restaurant or other food establishment of your choice. Congratulations on your win!

For the record, we had 46 contestants, and 21 of them got all five answers correct.

Thanks so much to everyone who entered the contest. You all made it so much fun! If you didn't win this time—there's always next year, so be thinking food when you watch this year's movies. Now, go and enjoy the show.

Black Dog Smoke and Ale House Serves Up BBQ on Broadway

Broadway Avenue in Urbana, that is. Located in the little building that housed Tod & John's bar for 30 years, the Black Dog opened for business this week. Doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside, glowy burnt-orange walls and lots of wood make for a warm, inviting place to enjoy the food that is now the main attraction at the tavern.And what food! Owners Mike Cochran and Pedro Heller, of Esquire Lounge and Philo Tap fame, have invested in an enormous wood-fired smoker and wood-fired grill and rotisserie, and they're smoking beef brisket, pork shoulder, ribs, chicken, and more 24 hours a day for your eating pleasure (you'll smell the wonderful aroma as you approach the door). Take a look at this puppy:The bottom portion holds the wood that creates the smoke, and convection in the top portion circulates the smoke so that the meat on the many racks cooks evenly. Mike told this reporter that it takes about 10 hours to smoke a brisket.And in the closet-sized kitchen just off the bar area sits a wood-fired grill and rotisserie. Yowza. This is doing BBQ right!

When we visited, we started with the Santa Fe Smoked Chicken Soup ($2.50 cup/$4.00 bowl). Man, was it ever good. Thick, and piping hot, the made-from-scratch soup was filled with deliciously smoky shredded chicken, white beans, and veggies. A real stand out. And you could definitely make a meal out of a bowl of this stuff.Next, we sampled a BBQ brisket sandwich (topped with a bit of red-cabbage slaw and homemade barbecue sauce, in a nod to the way they do BBQ sandwiches in North Carolina) for me and the Black Dog Burger for Keith. You have your choice of potato salad, pit beans, French fries, or sweet potato fries on the side (the non-BBQ sandwiches also come with a side of your choice).The brisket was melt-in-your-mouth tender with a fabulous flavor and some charred bits. The bun was slightly toasted. It was heavenly (although the meat could have been a titch warmer). I had sweet potato fries with my sandwich, and those, sadly, were not very good—limp and soggy. However, it was only the tavern's second day in business, and they were absolutely slammed at lunch time, so I don't fault them for the soggy sweet potatoes. I think I just got a bad batch, because we heard other patrons raving about them.Keith's regular (hand-cut) French fries, on the other hand, were perfectly cooked—crispy and hot. His burger was very tasty, too. The onion on it had been smoked, and the dusky flavor really came through. That, combined with the pepper Jack cheese and the hot/sweet BBQ sauce, made for some great eatin'. Our only quibble was that the burger was a tad overcooked and so not as juicy as we would have liked. But that was a small quibble.If a sandwich isn't enough for you, you can order a platter of BBQ. Platters come with two sides (see above; after 5 p.m. a smoked potato and smoked sweet potato are also available, as are spare ribs). Don't want beef or pork? Then check out the BBQ catfish or chicken.

Sandwiches and platters are served just the way I've seen it done at roadside BBQ joints in the south: on a personal-sized tray covered with paper. I loved that little touch. I also loved the old-timey, diner-type glasses that the home-brewed iced tea came in.This kind of attention to detail really enhances the dining experience; the care that obviously went into the planning of the place, along with the very reasonable prices (we had two beverages, two cups of soup, and two sandwich plates, and our bill was $20), sends a message that the owners aim to create a truly special atmosphere that's affordable to the greatest number of people possible. That said, if you're a vegetarian—well, this really isn't your place. You can get a grilled cheese, fries, and a salad, and that's about it.In talking with Mike, I discovered that he's going to be working with Stan of Triple S Farm (the local farm where Keith and I get our meat). On maybe a once-a-week basis, the Black Dog will offer smoked meats from Triple S Farm as specials. I was thrilled to learn of the owners' interest in supporting a local producer. And speaking of small producers, at the Black Dog they'll also offer ales from breweries in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan.Before I wind this up, I must share one last item. This graphic on the back wall shows you where the restrooms are located (name of the place is Black Dog, get it?).And on the restroom doors, "Oscar" invites you into the men's room, while "Lola" signals the women's.

Be forewarned that at lunchtime—that is, the 12:00 to 1:00 hour, the place will probably be packed (there were people waiting for tables/seats at the bar to open up during that hour when we were there). If you can manage it, I recommend going early, say 11:00 to 11:30, or late, 12:45 to 1:00 p.m. or thereafter.

Take yourself over to the Black Dog and get you some barbecue, y'all. This pint-sized smokehouse is the real deal, and I highly recommend it. Thanks to Mike and Pedro for all their efforts; I wish them many years of success.

UPDATE 2/27/09: We went in for lunch on Saturday the 21st before picking up our meat from Stan in the Lincoln Square parking lot. We found that the menu had changed a bit, so I wanted to fill you in.

There are several new additions: smoked chicken wings (6 wings with celery and smoked blue cheese dip, to die for, $4.95), a smoked chorizo sausage sandwich (yum), and a smoked chicken breast sandwich. Look for other new menu items in the coming weeks as well.

Another thing that has changed is that the BD chef extraordinaire will be whipping up a different soup daily; the Santa Fe smoked chicken soup we had on our first visit will certainly be in the rotation, though. On my visit today (Feb. 23), I ordered the soup du jour, which was a pork stew with potatoes, green chilis, and corn. It was as tastebud-alteringly good as last week's chicken soup.

I had reported in an earlier update that the BD no longer had grilled cheese on the menu, but IT'S BACK! A friend ordered it last night and reported that it was yummy.

One final food note: Don't miss the pit beans (baked beans). Great Northerns in a smoky "gravy" with pieces of pork . . . . I'll let you imagine the rest. Now, if they could just get rid of the styrofoam cups they serve some of the sides in . . . I imagine that will come in time.

The Black Dog Smoke and Ale House
201 North Broadway Avenue
Urbana, IL
217-344-9334
Open Monday through Saturday at 11 a.m. Closed on Sundays.

Curried Squash and Red Lentil Soup

I'd had a curvaceous little butternut squash on the kitchen windowsill since the last farmers' market in December, and I'd been pondering what I wanted to do with it. I could have made squash in green curry again, but I wanted something a bit different. Maybe the curried cauliflower soup at Carmon's had me going; when I ran across this recipe on Epicurious and realized I had all of the ingredients for it on hand, I decided my squash would meet its fate in a soup.

So, here's another curry-flavored concoction for you. I adapted the recipe slightly, adding a sprinkling of garam masala toward the end of the cooking time, increasing the amount of lemon juice, and stirring in fresh cilantro and a little butter.

Curried Lentil and Butternut Squash Soup
Slightly adapted from a recipe on Epicurious

For the soup:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 pound butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced peeled ginger
1 tablespoon curry powder (preferably Madras)
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 cup red lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 quarts water
2 teaspoons garam masala
Juice of 1 or 2 lemons, to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

For the cilantro oil:
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat oil with butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat until foam subsides, then cook squash, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon salt, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

Stir in curry powder and red pepper and cook, stirring frequently, 2 minutes.

Add lentils and water and simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, 25 to 40 minutes. Stir in garam masala, lemon juice, chopped cilantro, and butter, and season with salt and pepper. Let simmer gently while you prepare the cilantro oil.

Purée chopped cilantro, oil, and salt in a blender or small food processor.

Serve the soup drizzled with cilantro oil. Basmati rice and/or roti are nice on the side, or you can serve the soup over the rice in bowls.

Note: In this recipe I used ready-made curry powder and garam masala, both of which I procured at Annapoorna Store.

This soup will improve your eyesight, what with the double dose of beta-carotene-rich veggies (the squash and the carrots). And of course it's got lots of fiber in it (the lentils and the veggies). The ginger, spices, and herbs will improve your digestion and warm you up. Best of all, eating it will make you feel just generally happy to be alive, and isn't that what good food is all about?

Great Impasta Back in Business in Urbana

Isn't it wonderful to see the return of the old Impasta himself?

After pleasing diners for 25 years in downtown Champaign (first in the small space now occupied by Sushi Kame, then just east of that location in a much larger building), The Great Impasta closed its doors at the end of 2008. But just six weeks later—they're back!

We visited early (and I mean early—I'm talking 5 p.m.) on Saturday night and managed to slip in with no wait. If you'd arrived about 20 minutes later, you wouldn't have been so lucky. From that point until the time we left, there were quite a few people waiting to have a very special Valentine's Day dinner.The menu is much the same as it was before, you'll probably be happy to know. Why fix what ain't broke? You can once again enjoy the now-classic soups, salads, pastas, entrees, and sandwiches Impasta is famous for.The new space, while much smaller than the last location, retains the elegant feel. Black "leather" half-round booths line the south side of the main dining area, original paintings are suspended on sea-green walls, and swirled-glass sconces and hanging lamps lend an air of warmth and sophistication to the interior.We started with an antipasto, and it was very nice. Not too big, just right for a few nibbles: prosciutto, salami, roasted red peppers, and olives were drizzled with olive oil and herbs.

Then we moved onto grilled chicken Parmesan, for Keith, and conchiglie (shells) with a Gorgonzola-broccoli sauce for me. The pasta with broccoli sauce, as it's known at the GI, is one of my favorites. For years, at the old, tiny location, I would order nothing but. They used to serve this sauce with linguine, but I always requested fusilli or rotini instead, so that the creamy sauce would have more curves and crevices to cling to. So I was happy to see that they're now offering the sauce with shells—same idea.

I also tried a side order of grilled fennel, a new item and one of my favorite things to eat. It was lovely. The small portion of fennel had a great charred flavor and was tender-crisp.

Keith's grilled chicken Parmesan was excellent. The chicken was juicy and, like the fennel, had a delicious smoky flavor. It was topped with fresh mozzarella and was served on a nest of spaghetti with marinara. I probably took more than my fair share of bites of K's meal—you know, just so that I could be accurate in my reporting.

After an initial lag time (absolutely to be expected on night #3), our server arrived and once she did, service was perfect. And at the end of our meal, when I indicated that I wanted to take the remainder of my pasta home, she removed my bowl from the table and returned with the leftovers boxed up and ready to go. I was very happy to see that the GI is still offering this kind of service, especially because we'd recently been at another local restaurant where we had to box up our own leftovers—a real pet peeve of mine when it happens in a "fine-dining" establishment.As of today, The Great Impasta is serving lunch and dinner six days a week. I was excited to see a note on the menu that starting in May, they'll also be serving breakfast on Saturday mornings, to take advantage of the Market at the Square crowd (if you haven't been there, the farmers' market is held in the southeast parking lot at Lincoln Square, just a stone's throw from the restaurant). The GI has never done breakfast before, and I can't wait to see what they cook up. Not only that, they'll be selling their freshly made pastas and bread at the market as well.

Hearty congratulations to owner Harold Allston and the staff, and welcome back to The Great Impasta! I couldn't get hold of a new phone number for the restaurant, but you'll find them just behind the Federal courthouse on the east side of Lincoln Square.

The Great Impasta
Lincoln Square Village
Urbana, IL
Hours: Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Closed on Sundays.

Carmon's Curried Cauliflower Soup

It's time, once again, to reveal the culinary secrets of one of our local chefs. Paul R. of Champaign requested the recipe for this soup, a mainstay at Carmon's. Paul told me that "no matter what else I'm getting, I always add on at least a cup. I'd probably order it as a side even if I were getting a bowl of another soup." You can't get a heartier endorsement than that!

The soup had a subtle curry flavor and a delicate consistency (it was not super thick, which I liked). If you don't feel like making it at home, it's available daily at the restaurant ($4/cup, $6/bowl).

Carmon’s Curried Cauliflower Soup

Serves 6 to 8 (8-ounce portions)

3 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 ¼ tablespoons curry powder
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
1 head cauliflower, in small florets
Bouquet garni: parsley, bay leaves, and 2 celery stalks tied together
8 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
½ ounce crème fraîche or sour cream
Fresh parsley for garnish

Melt butter in a pot; when it starts to foam, add the onions and the curry powder. Stir to coat the onions with butter and curry and cook for about 2 minutes Add the apples. Then add the cauliflower, bouquet garni, stock, and spices. Cook 30 to 40 minutes or until cauliflower is soft, stirring occasionally.

Remove bouquet garni and puree the soup in a blender or food processor. Adjust seasoning.

Heat serving bowls or cups, fill with soup, and top with crème fraîche or sour cream and parsley.I must tell you that while I was there "researching" the soup one day at lunchtime, I also ordered the daily special: a buckwheat crêpe filled with beef stroganoff and topped with fried eggs ($10).

When I first had the buckwheat crêpes at Carmon's, I wasn't thrilled with them; I was used to a different style, the non-buckwheat-flour type. In addition, the filling I had in another crêpe here was not as successful as the stroganoff. This crêpe was delicious, and it was filled with rich, creamy, winey, tender pieces of beef. The earthy flavor of the buckwheat pancake complimented the stroganoff well, as did the fried eggs. And—you can add stuff to any crêpe, but I won't tell you that I ordered this one with French fries inside and cheddar cheese on top, because you might think me a glutton.Many thanks to Kerry and Mike at Carmon's for so graciously sharing the recipe for their curried cauliflower soup. And Paul, if you make it, let us know how it turns out.

Remember: If you'd like the recipe for a favorite dish from a local restaurant, e-mail your request to champaigntaste AT gmail DOT com, and I'll do my best to get it for you. For those of you who've already sent in requests, be assured that I'm working on them, and you'll see the next one soon.

Xinh Xinh Cafe Now Open in Urbana

Food—Mainly Vietnamese
Drink specials—Boba tea, avocado shake, fruit smoothie
Location—Near downtown Urbana, in strip mall next to Schnucks
Average prices—Appetizers: $4; sandwiches: $4.25; pho noodle soups: $7
Service—Knowledgeable and helpful; can be slow at times
Vegetarian friendly—No, but see below for mention of a few options

It took Shai, the owner, quite a while to open this small, cozy cafe, but he finally got there a little over two weeks ago. His menu is straightforward: he offers 8 different types of appetizers (including charbroiled beef skewers and roast pork spring rolls); 14 types of banh mi sandwiches (BBQ pork, pate, beef, and grilled chicken, to name just a few, served on a baguette with mayo, pickled daikon and carrots, cucumber, onions, cilantro, and jalapenos); and 6 kinds of pho (a beef-broth and rice noodle soup).

I've visited several times now, and I'll show you some of the items I sampled. First off, I had a bowl of pho (pronounced like "fuh"). The flavor I chose is called pho tai, which means the beef-noodle soup also has thinly sliced pieces of steak in it. Alongside your bowl of pho you'll receive a plate filled with fresh basil, long coriander, green onions, bean sprouts, cilantro, jalapeno peppers, and lime wedges, which you add to the soup as desired. On that visit I also tried a small sample of an appetizer called nataing. If you eat meat, you must go and order this right away. It's ground pork cooked with coconut milk, garlic, peanuts, and chili peppers and served with crispy rice and shrimp chips and baguette. Take chip or bread, scoop some of the pork mixture onto it, and go directly to heaven. See the whole peppers in there? Yep, there were a lot of those. But it's not just about the peppers; the flavors of the coconut milk and garlic are front and center, too. Just delicious.On another occasion I tried a grilled pork banh mi. The pork was tender and nicely charred, the baguette, while not the best I've ever had, got the job done, and then there were lots of vegetables, too. Overall, I enjoyed the sandwich, and, at $3.95, the price was simply unbeatable.The house special egg rolls were crispy and hot, if a bit greasy. Filled with shrimp, pork, and seasoned vegetables, and served with a variety of sauces, they're a great snack or starter, and again, at $3.95 for four rolls, a true value.If you like rice-paper-wrapped spring rolls, you're in for a special treat here. The roast pork rolls have a layer of crunchy, fried wonton skins inside, along with lettuce, carrot, daikon, and mint, and they're served with a thick, sweet sauce.The marinated, charbroiled beef skewers were tasty as well. They came with a papaya salad and fish sauce for dipping.For the vegetarians out there, you have only two options: vegetable egg rolls and a fried-tofu-and-veggie banh mi sandwich. I've been meaning to try the veggie banh mi, but I haven't as of this writing. If you find that you like it, then Xinh Xinh may become a destination for your non-meat-eating self. You may also like to go in for a boba tea (this is a beverage made with sweet, chewy tapioca "pearls," and it comes in many flavors, including cafe latte, almond, spiced chai, and mango) or a fruit smoothie.

As of last week, service was sometimes slow, because Shai (the owner) had yet to hire waitpeople. However, the pho, being basically ready-made, comes out quickly (the rich broth is made in advance, so that when ordered, it only needs to be ladled into a bowl, whatever meat you desire added to it, and the garnishes put onto a side dish). So, if you order a bowl of pho, it will come to you fast and likely before any appetizers you may have ordered.

There are also daily specials; friends had the grilled short ribs (served with rice and pickled vegetables) on one of my visits, and the meat was flavorful and succulent (I stole a bite or two). The pickled vegetables, while crunchy and a good foil for the rich meat, had a very subtle flavor; I would have liked a bit more spiciness and punch.The long, narrow interior of the cafe is charmingly decorated and cozy, the food is fresh and homemade, and Shai is very helpful and friendly and will answer any of your questions about the various dishes if you're not familiar. How lucky we are to have another Vietnamese restaurant in town. Next time I go, I'm trying an avocado shake come hell or high water.

Oh, and Shai's got Xinh Xinh on Twitter, so if you're into that, you may want to follow him to check for updates about daily specials and such. For instance, on Wednesdays he runs a "pho happy hour," with all bowls of pho going for $5, and many times on Saturdays he does a special vegetarian pho.

Xinh Xinh Cafe
114 North Vine Street
Urbana, IL
217-337-7600
Open Monday through Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; closed on Sundays


P.S. A big thank-you to the many people who wrote to tell me Xinh Xinh was open. I very much appreciate the tip-offs!

Oscar Contest 2009

Announcing the third annual CT Oscar contest! This year's Academy Awards show airs live on Sunday, February 22, and our contest runs during the two weeks leading up to it. We here at CT would be thrilled if you played along.

If you'd like to check out the two previous events we've run, here are links to the 2007 CT Oscar contest and the 2008 contest.

Here's how to play: This post contains photos showing food and drink that appeared in the five movies nominated for Best Picture by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Your mission is to match each photo with the movie it represents.

And the nominees for Best Picture are . . .

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Frost/Nixon
• Milk
• The Reader
• Slumdog Millionaire

Which food/drink goes with which movie? Take a look at the following photos and see if you know.

Photo #1:

Photo #2:

Photo #3:

Photo #4:

Photo #5:

If you'd like to enter the contest—and we hope you will—please E-MAIL US YOUR GUESSES, DON'T LEAVE THEM IN THE COMMENTS. (E-mail to champaigntaste AT gmail DOT com.) You're very welcome to leave other notes in the comments section of this post; I just want to keep the guesses private, for obvious reasons.

On Oscar night, I'll blindfold Keith or he'll blindfold me (ooh, la la) and we'll draw a winner's name from among the names of the people who correctly matched all five foods and/or drinks with the movies they appeared in.

We must receive your guesses by February 22 at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Central Standard Time. We plan to announce the results and the winner by 6:00 p.m. Then you can relax and enjoy the insane extravaganza that is the Academy Awards show.

What's the payoff, you ask? If we pick your name out of the hat, you'll receive a $50 gift certificate to the food establishment of your choice. If you're in the C-U area, we're hoping you'll choose a local restaurant or other foodie business. If you win and you're not local, you'll receive a $50 gift certificate to either a foodie spot in your area or online.

So, what are you waiting for? Rack your brain to try and remember the food and drink that appeared in the Oscar-nominated movies, or start seeing movies ASAP and think FOOD. To get you in the mood, here's the classic clip from All About Eve, nominated for a whopping 14 Academy Awards in 1950 and winner of Best Picture that year.

Remember: E-MAIL US YOUR GUESSES, DON'T LEAVE THEM IN THE COMMENTS. (E-mail guesses to champaigntaste AT gmail DOT com by February 22 at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Central Standard Time. Please use "Oscar contest" as the e-mail's subject line.)

Good luck, and we hope to hear from you soon!

Need a Valentine's Day Gift? Check Art Mart

All a-flutter because you're not sure what to get that certain someone for V Day? Got a few ideas for you. First off, check out the cute aprons I spied at the Art Mart this week. Fun colors and old-timey patterns make these aprons extra special. Prices run from about $20 to $30.

Of course, nothing beats my Dinner and a Movie apron, but I'd love to have one of these as a backup. Maybe the one with the red bows on the pockets and the stand-mixer print.And while you're there, don't forget the chocolates. The big day is coming up in just over a week; you may want to put in an order ahead of time so your box is ready to pick up (while that's certainly not a requirement—I've had good luck filling a box the day before—it may be better to be safe than sorry).The Art Mart also has lots of other great gifts you can give to the foodie in your life (or use to make the perfect V-Day–themed meal). Cookbooks, specialty kitchen utensils, coffeemakers, heart-shaped baking dishes, unusual and hard-to-find imported and domestic foods and spices—you name it, you can get it here, wrap it up, and make your paramour's eyes bug out when s/he sees it.

Art Mart Foods
Lincoln Square Village
Urbana, IL
217-344-7979

Food Poetry 6: "The Time Between Ordering and Eating"

As you may know, I occasionally republish food-related poems on CT, because poetry can satisfy our hunger for many things; among them beauty, a sense of order and meaning in the world, time in which to reflect. It can stop our minds for a moment; it can make us feel understood.

In this edition of Food Poetry, I'm going out on a limb and sharing a small story that, while actually prose, struck me as poem-like. It's by author and Champaign-Urbana resident Kevin Fanning. You can find links to Kevin's other works, both print and online, on his Web site.

The Time Between Ordering and Eating

We were in a diner near St. Marks, waiting for our food to arrive. The restaurant was set below street level, and I was looking up through the windows at the legs of the people passing by.

"Jesus," she said. "Look at that."

"What?"

"Look at that couple over there," she said, using the slightest head tilt to indicate two people at a booth across the aisle from us.

I looked first toward the kitchen, then back to where the bathrooms are, then slowly let my eyes pass over the couple as I turned back to face forward. It was a man and a woman, about our age, sitting quietly and sunken deep into their booth. They looked tired, bored, and sad: normal, for people in a quiet diner on a rainy day.

"I don't get it," I said. "What?"

"They're not even talking. They've been sitting there since before we came in, and they haven't said one word to each other."

"So?"

She looked down at the table and shook her head in disagreement. "I can't imagine sitting at a restaurant with someone and not talking. How could you not have anything to talk about?"

It seemed to me that there could be lots of reasons why they weren't talking. Maybe she had just broken up with him. He was thinking about the long list of reasons she'd given him, and slowly seeing that she had made the right decision, for both of them. Maybe he was about to leave on a year-long trip to another country. They were each thinking of the other, alone in a quiet apartment somewhere far away, and there was no way to express the sadness and longing they were both already beginning to feel. Maybe they had just come from their best friend's funeral. They'd been driving since 4:30 in the morning to get there in time. They'd spend hours hugging and sobbing with friends they hadn't seen or talked to in years, until suddenly they've realized how hungry they were, how they couldn't remember the last time they'd eaten. They were sitting here now, in a daze, knowing they wouldn't remember any of this later. Maybe they don't need to talk. He can tell how much she needs him just by the way she runs her finger along the cuff of his shirt. He can tell her not to worry, remind her that everything will be alright, just by the way he shifts his body towards hers.

But I didn't say any of this to her. I decided to just let her go on disapproving of them. We'd been growing apart for a while, and I knew whatever I said would only make it worse.

–Kevin Fanning, from Monkeybicycle. Reprinted by permission.

Have a food-related poem or prose piece you'd like to share? Leave a note or a link in the comments. If you'd like to peruse the other editions of Food Poetry, go to my companion blog, More CT, and scroll down to the "Miscellaneous Treats and Special Events" section.