Zyggyz Grill

Food—Indian, with a few Middle Eastern items in the mix
Drink—Fountain sodas, iced tea, mango lassi
Location—Heart of campus
Average prices—$5 to $8
Atmosphere best for—The student crowd, takeout
Service—Friendly, helpful, usually quick
Patio seating—No
Vegetarian-friendly—Yes

Have you been to this newish fast-food Indian joint on Green Street? You'll find it in the Skylight Court building on the northwest corner of Green and Fifth (in the space formerly occupied by the Basil Thai Café). Zyggyz Grill (a.k.a. "the hippest Indian joint in town") opened on Super Bowl Sunday, so it's been a going concern for about three months now.

What? You didn't even know the place existed? Let me clue you in. Jay and his staff serve Indian food with a bit of a twist. Their signature item is the Zyggyz roll—kind of an Indian burrito.The roll consists chicken, beef, lamb, paneer (cubes of mild, white cheese), or a potato mixture, plus grilled veggies, wrapped in a made-from-scratch paratha (a tortilla-like flatbread).The rolls are very tasty; I've tried the lamb, paneer, and potato rolls and enjoyed them. The lamb was tender, and the paneer and potato varieties were nicely flavored. For $4.90, this is a fairly filling snack that can't be beat.

There are also combo plates: You can choose two dishes (beef roganjosh, chicken tikka masala, dal makhani, and vegetable korma are the options), and you get a big pile of rice on the side (a paratha is $2.00 extra).I've had two different combo plates, so I've tasted all four dishes. For my money, they're the weakest offerings on the menu. For this kind of meal, take yourself down the street to the Bombay Indian Grill.

My favorite menu item is the pav bhaji. You may remember that I made this dish for a recent Novel Food event; I'd never had it before I whipped it up on that occasion, and I couldn't understand why I hadn't. It's simply delicious. The Zyggyz menu characterizes the dish as "veggie sloppy joes," and I guess that's fair enough.Mixed veggies are mashed in a tomatoey sauce containing a special masala (spice mixture), then the whole shootin' match is topped with chopped red onions and fresh cilantro and is served with a lemon wedge, which you must squeeze over as it brings the whole dish together. The veggie mixture is served with three enormous rolls (basically dinner rolls), and I'm telling you, for $4.65 it's the best deal in town whether or not you're a vegetarian.

Another fave of mine is the falafel sandwich. Again, the cooks at Zyggyz put their own spin on this standard Middle-Eastern fare. They fry the falafel balls, then chop them up and mix them with chopped cucumber, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and sauce and stuff it all into a pita. Kind of a falafel-salad sandwich.I was afraid that the mixture might be soggy, but I found it to be crisp, light, and delicious. Be forewarned that you might find it spicy; it was too much for my lunch companion on one occasion, but to me it was only mildly so.Also available is a falafel platter: hummus, four falafels, and pita triangles are artfully arranged on a plate and topped with tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. At $4.90, both the sandwich and the "platter" are fabulous values.

Speaking of which, you can also order a Zyggyz value meal, consisting of either one of the burrito-like rolls, fries, and a beverage; falafel, hummus or fries and a beverage; or a combo plate, paratha, and beverage. Value meals are priced at $7.95.

The atmosphere inside Zyggyz is difficult to describe. Murals depicting jungle and beach scenes cover the walls, thatched-roof-look canopies hang overhead, and several flat-screen TVs play Indian music videos. On most of my visits, the music was so loud I wanted to kill myself, but for the younger set it may be just the ticket. Don't get me wrong; I appreciate Indian music, and the videos are fun. It's the volume that doesn't do it for me.

This is fast food, so you go up to the counter to order. Sometimes you also pick up at the counter, and other times they'll bring your food to your table. Or you can phone in your order and pick it up for takeout. And if you don't feel like leaving home, Zyggyz offers free delivery. Note that the place is open until 2:00 a.m. Monday through Wednesday and until 4:00 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. An extremely ambitious schedule, seeing as how they open at 11:00 a.m.

In sum: The don't-miss items here are the Zyggyz rolls, the falafel sandwich, and, most especially, the pav bhaji—all of which are $5.00 or less. You'll find the complete menu on their Web site (but note that the price of the pav bhaji has risen from $4.25, as listed there, to $4.65).

Zyggyz Grill
Skylight Court building, corner of Green and Fifth Streets
217-607-1160
Hours: Monday through Wednesday, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
Thursday through Saturday, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m.
Sunday, 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m.

Silvercreek Helps Fill Empty Bowls at Fundraiser Tonight

This rainy, cool day is fine soup weather, isn't it? And that works out perfectly for tonight's Empty Bowls fundraiser at Silvercreek restaurant in Urbana. Listen to what a great idea this is: Local artists create beautiful ceramic bowls and donate them to the cause. Silvercreek donates the soup. You and I go to Silvercreek between 5 and 7 p.m. tonight, donate $10, eat soup and bread, and choose one of the 200 handmade bowls to take home.

Silvercreek, the C-U Potter's Club, Parkland College students, and professional potters are teaming up to take part in this international project to fight hunger. Events like this one are being held in various cities the United States, and the money they raise will be donated—100 percent of it—to local hunger-fighting organizations.

In our case, all of the proceeds from tonight's benefit at Silvercreek will be donated to the Wesley Church & Foundation's Evening Food Pantry. The food pantry distributes items to families who need it on the third Thursday of each month—a time near the end of the month when, often, people's paychecks are spent and they're in need of supplemental meals. Patrons at the pantry get to choose their own food from the wide variety that the Wesley volunteers make available, including baked goods and fresh produce.

Here's a great little video that the Empty Bowls project in Rochester, New York, made to showcase their event last year:

If you can, head over to Silvercreek tonight, Tuesday, April 28, between 5 and 7 p.m. The SC chef is preparing a hearty stew and a warming vegetable soup, along with bread sticks, and they'll be serving in the lovely greenhouse. The soup will warm not only your body but also your spirit, as you'll know you're supporting the many volunteers at the Wesley food pantry who work to ensure that people experiencing hard times can eat as well.

Classic Events Catering Does It Up Right for AAA Show

What a big week in Champaign. We're all a-flutter chez CT. Ebertfest starts tonight (are you going on down to Yasgur's farm?), and the Artists Against AIDS show, put on in support of the Greater Community AIDS Project, opens to the public Friday night.

There are still a few tickets left for the art show's private opening tomorrow evening—call Mike at 217-351-2437 to get yours. A ticket for this gala will set you back $50; if you spring for one, you'll be among the first to see the wide variety of offerings from local artists—everything from paintings and photos to clothing and jewelry—and you'll be able to quaff sparkling wine (or sparkling water, if you prefer) and indulge in the fabulous buffet put on by Bob Rowe of Classic Events Catering.

Here's what will be on the buffet tables at Thursday night's reception:

• Thai veggie spring rolls
• Shrimp with bourbon-spiked cocktail sauce
• Nori rolls with smoked salmon and roasted asparagus
• Imported cheeses
• Carved three-pepper and smoked sea salt-crusted tenderloin of beef with horseradish sauce
• Strawberries dipped in assorted chocolates
• And much more!

Last year, the Cake Artist wowed everyone with her scrumptious petits fours as well.Bob reports that there will also be "an elegant buffet" at the free Friday night reception. Red and white wine and more sparkling water will be served. And, um, there'll be some art for sale, too.Clearly, the next five days will be good ones to hang around in downtown Champaign. Watch movies, listen to music, buy art, eat food, drink beverages, watch people, and enjoy the beautifully warm weather.

Weeknight Takeout: Strawberry Fields Deli

Although this local natural-foods mart closed its café a while back, they're still offering salads and other prepared foods prepackaged and ready to go. (And they do still have a small number of tables, so you can eat there if you feel like it).

Yesterday I picked up a container of red-lentil and spinach salad and it was fabulous ($2.66 for just under a half-pound). That salad, in fact, was one of the items that yours truly introduced when she worked at the Fields deli in the 1990s. So I happen to have the recipe it was based on, which I'll reprint here in case you want to make it at home.For the deli version I substituted the more cost-effective feta for chèvre (fresh, soft goat cheese). Back then there was no Prairie Fruits Farm, so we didn't have the access to lovely locally produced chèvre that we do now. Fields sells PFF chèvre, by the way, so if you do make this salad at home, you can pick up the cheese there (if you didn't make it out to the farm over the weekend!).

I highly recommend the book this recipe comes from, by the way. It has lots of great recipes in it. I made the Cauliflower and Potato Curry with Coconut Milk and Lime Juice at the Red Herring restaurant a few times and it was a big hit. And how good does the Quesadilla with Brie and Mango sound? You could use PFF's Little Bloom on the Prairie or one of their other soft-ripened cheeses for the Brie.

But, ahem, back to the lentil salad.

Lentil Salad with Spinach, Chevre, and Curry Tarragon Dressing
From The Best 125 Meatless Main Dishes, by Mindy Toomay and Susann Geiskopf-Hadler

Head note from the book: This salad delivers great protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Best of all, it is utterly delicious!

Yield: 8 servings

The dressing
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dried tarragon
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

The lentils
1 1/2 cups dried lentils
5 cups water
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/8 teaspoon dried red chili flakes
Scant pinch salt
4 ounces fresh chèvre

The salad
1 bunch fresh spinach (about 3/4 pound)
1/4 cup red onion, minced
1/2 pound cherry tomatoes, quartered
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Whisk together the dressing ingredients and set aside so their flavors can blend. Sort the lentils, discarding any small pebbles you may find, and rinse them. Put in a pot with 5 cups water, garlic, chili flakes, and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and gently simmer until barely tender, about 30 minutes. Cool the lentils in cold water, drain very well, and put them in a large, shallow serving bowl.

Cut the soft chèvre into cubes and drop them onto the lentils. Using clean hands, rub the lentils with the chevre until they are all coated and the chèvre has all been used.

Wash the spinach, discard the stems, and tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces. Add to the bowl along with the onion, tomatoes, and dressing. Grind on some pepper and toss to combine everything well. Serve immediately.

This salad is best served at room temperature, as this is when the flavor of the chèvre will be most delicious.If you're busy and you don't feel like cooking (and that's been me this week), head over to Strawberry Fields and pick up some tasty lentil salad. Add one of Fields' seeded baguettes and you've got yourself a quick lunch or dinner. (Of course, they don't make this particular salad every day, so call to see what's available: 217-239-0921).

Mini-Farmers' Market, Breakfast on the Farm This Saturday

I'm updating my post of a couple of weeks ago as a reminder that Leslie and Wes of Prairie Fruits Farm, just north of Urbana on Old Lincoln Avenue, are hosting another pre-farmers'-market sale of produce, cheeses, and more this Saturday.

Tomorrow, April 18, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon, you can visit the farm and pick up a variety of fresh, local goods. Here's what will be available.

From Prairie Fruits Farm:

• goat's and sheep's milk cheeses, including
• rich, creamy chèvre (plain, cracked black peppercorn, and herbs de Provence),
• Ewe Bloom (a soft-ripened sheep's milk cheese),
• Huckleberry's Blue (goat's milk blue cheese), and
• Moonglo (washed-rind goat's milk tomme).
• ramps (wild leeks)

From Blue Moon Farm:

• spinach
• Swiss chard
  
• lettuce
• green onions
  

From Tomahanous Farm:

• shiitake mushrooms
• fresh herbs (lovage, chives, mint, oregano)
• organic whole wheat pastry and bread flours
• pastured chicken eggs
• hand-crafted goat-milk soap
  

From Stewart's Artisan Breads:

• Sourdough breads: craisin-pecan, potato, cinnamon swirl, rye, honey wheat, olive-rosemary, whole-wheat multigrain, raisin w/cinnamon swirl, walnut-fig, and tomato
• Bagels: plain, sesame, poppyseed, cinnamon-raisin, honey wheat, salt, and egg
  
• Bagel bites: plain, blueberry, craisin
• Biscotti
• Granola and granola bars

From Seven Sisters Farm:

• hand-spun natural yarns

And, as if all that weren't enough, Alisa DeMarco, chef extraordinaire, will be cooking up breakfast! That's right—you can get something to eat while you're out there soaking up the springtime vibes on the farm and playing with the baby goats.

Here's what's on the menu this week:

• Triple S Farm Bacon and Prairie Fruits Farm Cheese and Herb Strada
• Spence Farm Ramp, Blue Moon Farm Spinach, and Prairie Fruits Farm Cheese Strada
• Prairie Fruits Farm Peach and Cheese Streusel Coffee Cake
• Jarrell Family Farm Plum Streusel Coffee Cake
• Peach and Yogurt Lassi
• Fair Trade Coffee
• Goat Milk Spiced Hot Chocolate

And here's the latest news from Leslie and Wes of Prairie Fruits Farm:

Spring is finally here. The goats went out to the pasture for the first time since last fall. Being creatures of habit, loathsome to change yet in serious need of a barn break out, they immediately barged out of the barn and headed for the outdoors. As soon as the first few does’ feet touched mud, they did a complete about face and headed back for the barn. We turned them around, coaxed them with a little grain and eventually, they discovered the lush green grass of the pasture awaiting them. In a few days, if the weather stays as beautiful as it is today, it will be hard to get them to come back into the barn. Such is the mindset of the goats at Prairie Fruits Farm.

This week, Snickerdoodle, one of the first three does we purchased back in 2004, kidded with quadruplets. She had three bucks and a one gorgeous black beauty doe. All are doing fine. Our does continue to kid through the end of April and probably into early May. Kidding season is both wonderous and anxiety provoking. I will be happy when they have all kidded, and we know that all mothers and kids are healthy.

Traffic flow went very smoothly last week with our new system of multiple checkout stations and a single spot for ordering your breakfasts. We look forward to seeing you here this Saturday. This is the second-to-last Saturday that we will be hosting farm open house, farm breakfasts, and on-farm sales. Once the farmers’ market season starts on May 2nd, we will be putting our efforts into selling at the farmers’ markets here in Urbana and Chicago. So, if you've been putting off a visit to the farm, now is the time!

As always, thank you for your support and patronage.

You'll find directions to the farm on the PFF Web site. If you're in C-U, it couldn't be easier. Head north on Lincoln Avenue till it becomes Old Lincoln Avenue (you turn right onto Old Lincoln Avenue—look for the sign), continue to follow the winding Old Lincoln Avenue road till you see the farm on the right (the windmill will tip you off that you're at the right place).

Quick Bite: Ko-Fusion

Often I find that I have a little something I want to share with you—a news flash about a restaurant or an event, info about a tasty treat I ran across—but it's not really enough to flesh out a good-sized post. On the other hand, it's much more than I can possibly get into a tweet. Thus is the Quick Bite launched.

For my inaugural QB dispatch, I give you the New Zealand lobster tail roll at Ko-Fusion in downtown Champaign. I met two die-hard sushi aficionados there for lunch on Friday, and they practically had to roll me out of the place.The lobster tail roll included lobster, surimi crab, buttery avocado, citrusy mango, crunchy coconut, plum sauce, and toasted macadamia nuts. It was at least 10 slices of pure bliss for the special price of $13.95.

We also indulged in chirashi, wherein you receive a large bowl filled with sushi rice, veggies, tamago (Japanese omelet), and many pieces of a variety of sashimi (very fresh, very raw fish). The chef's choice for us that day included white tuna, red snapper, eel, octopus, and salmon. I'm sorry I didn't get a photo of the full bowl for you, but I dove into it before I could stop myself. This was where I had to stop.(Louis, our one remaining feline companion, thoroughly enjoyed his small portion of sashimi when I returned home.)

If you're in the mood for sushi, I highly recommend both the chirashi bowl (a splurge at $22.95 but so worth it) and the lobster roll. The roll is on the menu for a limited time (according to K-F's owner, for as long as the lobster is in season).

Novel Food: Spring 2009 Edition

This is my entry—and the roundup of other entries—for the spring edition of Novel Food, the literary-culinary event that Simona, of the food blog Briciole, and I started a couple of years ago. In Novel Food, bloggers find inspiration in books, plays, and other works of literature, and then they share the books and the meals they were inspired to make from them with the rest of us. Here's to reading and eating!

I was at our local used/rare book shop recently, and I found myself in the mysteries section. There was an old hardback book containing two novels by Patricia Cornwell; she writes the Kay Scarpetta mysteries. I'd heard that food is featured in the Scarpetta books, so, even though I wasn't at all sure I wanted to read about the exploits of a medical examiner (Dr. Scarpetta's line of work), I picked up the book.

Am I glad I did. I love these stories! When I started the first one, after a gruesome description of a murdered woman, I thought, do I really need this? But as I continued, the well-drawn and interesting characters, the flashes of humor, and the excellent writing drew me in.

In her first novel, Postmortem, Cornwell introduces us to Dr. Kay Scarpetta, one of the only chief medical examiners in the country. The setting is Richmond, Virginia—a city known for its high crime rate. Dr. Scarpetta is investigating a series of murders all apparently committed by the same person. Of course, there's a lot of trouble on the case, and Scarpetta herself comes under fire during the course of the investigation. She feels particularly vulnerable as a woman in a traditionally male position of authority.

After a really bad day, she contemplates how to proceed for the evening:

When all else fails, I cook.

Some people go out after a god-awful day and slam a tennis ball around or jog their joints to pieces on a fitness course. I had a friend in Coral Gables who would escape to the beach with her folding chair and burn off her stress with sun and a slightly pornographic romance she wouldn't have been caught dead reading in her professional world—she was a district court judge. Many of the cops I know wash away their miseries with beer at the FOP lounge.

I've never been particularly athletic, and there wasn't a decent beach within reasonable driving distance. Getting drunk never solved anything. Cooking was an indulgence I didn't have time for most days, and though Italian cuisine isn't my only love, it has always been what I do best.

And so, she makes pizza. Dough from scratch, sauce from tomatoes she put up herself the summer before, Luganega sausage, vegetables, fresh mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses. It was a nice scene in the book that had me wishing I was smelling the garlicky aroma in my own kitchen.

I don't ever remember making pizza dough from scratch in the past, but clearly I had to do it for this edition of Novel Food. Instead of the Luganega sausage, I used ham we'd gotten from Triple S Farm. Having neglected to put up tomatoes last year, I made my sauce with the Muir Glen fire-roasted variety. I did include the vegetables and cheeses Dr. Scarpetta put on her pizza.Not a resounding success. The crust, which I'd been hoping would be chewy and tender, was too crisp on the bottom for our taste. Must fathom the secrets of the pizza stone, which we were using for the very first time. I wanted the Neopolitan-style crust, pliable enough after baking that you can fold your slices of pizza. This crust almost, but not quite did that. Furthermore, I topped the pizza with too much sauce and too many veggies and too much ham. It was a pretty tasty pizza, but my technique certainly needs some improvement. In any case, making it was a fun experiment.

Now take a look at what the other food bloggers who cooked from books did:

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Mia, of Kahliya-logue, a self-proclaimed "sweet tooth junky," took some lines from the Bible as her inspiration and made an all-natural-sugars, whole-wheat pastry dried-fruit strudel.

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Maryann, of Finding La Dolce Vita, was reminded of that classic children's tale Goodnight Moon by . . . a rutabaga! Check out Maryann's wonderful Constellation with Rutabaga (and the carrot-rutabaga mash with maple syrup is nothing to sneeze at, either!). I love real maple syrup and I must try this soon.

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Ruhama, of the blog Rumahama, shares the story of Princess Cimorene, who would rather live with dragons than at her castle. The book, Dealing with Dragons, sounds wonderfully imaginative and fun. The princess makes a mean cherries jublilee, which is how she works her way into one dragon's good graces (you see, he needs someone to make desserts for his dinner parties).

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Carolyn, who explores French cooking in 18th C Cuisine, used Homer's epic poem The Odyssey as the basis for her post. Since Circe served Odysseus barley bread and goat cheese with honey, Carolyn served the same to her Homer, with very positive results.

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The novel Pomegranate Soup, by Marsha Mehran, served as the basis for this entry. Chris, of the blog Mele Cotte, read the story of Iranian immigrants who open a Persian café in Dublin, and she was inspired to make butternut squash, sweet potato, and pomegranate soup in its honor.

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Charles Dickens' Great Expectations was the novel that Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook took as her inspiration. Susan made a "bride-cake" such as you have never seen: Austrian chocolate truffle cake (from a recipe on the Saveur Web site).

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Ashley, of Fresh Knot Fancy, took as her source The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. In honor of that novel Ashley whipped up a butternut squash risotto with a rich pine-nut sauce. According to the novel, time travel "causes one to be quite famished." Indeed.

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Sara, of Heaven on Earth, based her entry on Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte. Sara served up a ploughman's lunch of cheese, pickles, and bread, and she has an assistant help her uncover the mysteries of the perfect bowl of oatmeal.

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Simona, my partner in this event, made tartine, or cocktail sandwiches (a.k.a. canapes). Simona was inspired by the play Blythe Spirit, by Noel Coward, which she recently had the good fortune to see on stage.

Simona has the other half of the roundup of deliciously literary dishes on her blog, Briciole. Be sure to check out those entries as well.

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Thanks so much to everyone who joined us for this edition of Novel Food! Here's to continued good reading and good eating.

Sunday Dinner: Hungarian Goulash and Braised Cabbage

Keith's mother was Hungarian (to see a great photo of her as a young woman in her folk-dance costume, see my post on a dish called lecsò), but he doesn't remember her ever making goulash. The one time I remember ever eating the real thing was in a divey little restaurant in Vancouver that was filled with old Eastern European types (think newspapers, berets, mustaches, small cups of strong coffee, lots of smoke). We'd ducked in there to get out of the rain more than anything, but when our bowls of goulash arrived, we knew we'd stumbled into the right place. Tender beef, rich, thick gravy—man, was that good.

I don't know what put me in the mood to make this dish; maybe it was the fact that I'd just purchased a copy of Jeff Smith's old The Frugal Gourmet On Our Immigrant Ancestors book, which has a section on Hungarians (the book's subtitle is great: "Recipes You Should Have Gotten from Your Grandmother"). In any case, that book didn't have a goulash recipe in it, but another of my cookbooks did, and it called for the exact cut and poundage of roast that I had ready to use. I compared that recipe with several others I found online and got a pretty good idea what I was going to do.I'll warn you that this dish, as presented in the recipe I used, cooks for . . . 6 to 7 hours. What, you say?! Are you nuts? Well, I was going to be home doing chores and such, anyway, so lifting the lid on the Dutch oven every so often over many hours to stir was really no hassle. And that's all the attention the thing requires. Once you sauté the onions and garlic and stir in the paprika, beef, and vegetables, it just cooks all on its own.

Linda Leaver's Hungarian Goulash
Slightly adapted from The Schwarzbein Principle Cookbook, by Diana Schwarzbein, Nancy Deville, and Evelyn Jacob

Makes 6 servings

1/3 to 1/2 cup bacon grease
1 1/2 large yellow onions, finely chopped
1 head garlic, cloves finely chopped
3-pound sirloin or rump roast, cubed
1/3 to 1/2 cup sweet Hungarian paprika
Ground black pepper, to taste (I used probably 2 teaspoons, maybe a tablespoon)
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 to 4 stalks of celery, chopped
28-ounce can diced tomatoes, with their juice
2 bay leaves
Salt to taste
Zest of 1 lemon

In a large Dutch oven, heat bacon grease (or olive oil, if you prefer) over medium-high heat. When grease or oil is hot, add onions and garlic and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add paprika, pepper, and beef cubes and stir well. Cover pot, turn the heat down, and simmer until juices form, about 1 hour.

Add carrots, celery, tomatoes, and bay leaves. Simmer, covered, 5 to 6 hours, stirring occasionally. Near the end of cooking, check the seasoning. Stir in salt to taste and the lemon zest.

Serve hot over brown or white rice, mashed potatoes, spaetzle, or noodles.

The braised cabbage recipe came from Tyler Florence on the Food Network Web site. I used regular green cabbage, not the Savoy type he calls for, and it was a thing of beauty. And I got to use a handful of the stalwart chives that pop up early every spring in my patio pot (and which are now covered with SNOW).

Beer Wars Movie Coming to Savoy Theater

For all you beer lovers out there, and especially if you're into beer made by small, independent producers ("craft" beers), there's an event coming up on Thursday, April 16 that you may want to take yourself to. On that night, at 7 p.m., the movie "Beer Wars" will be shown at the Savoy 16 multiplex. (Anyone else see irony there? Shouldn't it be showing at Boardman's Art Theatre?)

This is the promo for the event:

Beer Wars LIVE with Ben Stein, a one-night event taking you inside the boardrooms and back rooms of the American beer industry. The event will feature the exclusive never-before-seen documentary Beer Wars, followed by a riveting LIVE discussion led by Ben Stein with America’s leading independent brewers and experts taking you behind-the-scenes of their quest for the American Dream. Beer Wars will introduce you to the who’s who in beer while following the journey of small, independent brewers who are challenging the corporate giants. Visit BeerWarsMovie.com for more information.

This movie looks very interesting to me. Although I'm not a big beer drinker, I am a big supporter of small/local producers of pretty much everything (assuming that what they produce is good!), and a story about little guys going up against the biggies is always worth hearing about.

You can purchase a ticket online for the event at the Savoy on the Goodrich Theaters Web site. Tickets are $15, and if you buy online, you'll pay a fee of an extra dollar. Or, if you're nearby, just go to the Savoy and buy one. Either way, you'll want to do it in advance to ensure that you don't come up dry on the 16th. As of today, the Savoy manager reports that they still have lots of tickets left, but you never know.

And speaking of small beer producers, remember that the Black Dog Smoke and Ale House in Urbana serves made-in-the-Midwest beers (at the moment, Capital Brewery in Madison, Three Floyds out of Indiana, and Dark Horse from Michigan are available).

Of course, your local purveyor of fine liquors probably carries regional brews as well. This whole beer-movie thing got me going, so I picked up bottles of Bell's Two Hearted Ale (with a name like that, naturally I had to have it) and Schlafaly's Scotch Style Ale at my neighborhood Piccadilly store.