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October 2007
Your A-List: Best Ice Cream
How do you keep cool in the hot Central Texas heat? Ice cream, naturally. Even when it’s chilly outside, there’s something to the comfort food that just seems to warm your spirits.
And when it comes to the tasty frozen treat, there’s one name that stands out among the rest here in Austin. With 73 percent of the vote, Amy’s Ice Creams is the winner of the Your A-List poll for favorite ice cream in Austin.
Amy’s started out as a partnership between Amy Miller (now Simmons) and her partner Scott Shaw, who launched the original shop on Guadalupe Street on the backs of some creative vision and a hot check. More than 20 years later, with Shaw having moved on to pursue other interests, Amy’s is dominating the Austin ice cream scene with 10 stores, and a few more in Houston and San Antonio.
What makes Amy’s so awesome? Well, beyond the 14 percent butterfat, it’s probably the creative spirit and joy of ice cream that is so pervasive in each of the Amy’s location. The stores have a unique history of asking applicants to express their creativity on paper bags when applying for jobs.
Simmons wants her employees to be as creative as the business itself, which has made a name for itself thanks in part to its community involvement, kitschy decor and, not the least, the trademark photo booths. The old-timey black-and-white photo booths in the stores allow friends, couples and families to save their memories on celluloid, ice creamy smiles and all.
Amy’s Ice Cream [site]
Multiple locations
Others receiving votes:
- Marble Slab, 7 percent
- Ben & Jerry’s, 5 percent
- Baskin Robbins, 5 percent
- Dairy Queen, 4 percent
- Cold Stone, 3 percent
- Maggie Moo’s, 2 percent
- Carvel, <1 percent
- Kaleidoscoops, <1 percent
Write-ins:
- Austin Scoops
- Culver’s
- HEB’s 1905 Vanilla
- Paciugo
- Teo’s
A personal aside: I pretty much stick to gelato these days (Pagiugo, Teo’s), but when I want ice cream, I head to Ben & Jerry’s on West Fifth Street. You can’t beat the flavors or consistency, and the profits go to Lifeworks.
Permalink | | Categories: Your A-List
Your A-List: Best Outdoor Event
Austinites are known as an active lot, in love with the outdoors and the fresh air. That would help explain why we have such an abundance of outdoor events each year, some of which are relatively new — Keep Austin Weird Festival — and some — Eeyore’s Birthday — that seem to have been around since the Colorado River first flowed into town.
Of all the myriad events held each year in our fair town, however, the Austin American-Statesman’s Capitol 10K leads the way. With 30 percent of the vote, beating the Trail of Lights to the tape by a nose, the Cap 10K is the winner of the Your A-List poll for best outdoor event.
The largest 10K in Texas, the Cap 10K is an annual rite of spring in Austin. In the true spirit of our residents’ commitment to fitness and “weirdness,” the fun run attracts all levels of runners, from the costumed silly folk to the shaved-leg, steely eyed-staring folks for whom Runners’ World is scripture.
The 10K allows for various levels of competition, so everyone feels welcome, and with the spirit of camaraderie that permeates the event, everyone’s a winner.
Others receiving votes:
- Trail of Lights/Zilker tree, 26 percent
- Eeyore’s Birthday, 12 percent
- Old Pecan Street Festival, 11 percent
- Zilker Kite Festival, 6 percent
- Fourth of July fireworks at Zilker, 4 percent
- Keep Austin Weird Festival, 3 percent
- Republic of Texas biker rally, 3 percent
- Movies in the Park, 2 percent
- Gay Pride Festival, 2 percent
- Zilker Garden Festival, <1 percent
- Cinco de Mayo Festival, <1 percent
Write-ins:
- First Night Austin
- Texas Book Festival
A personal aside: For family and adult fun, as well as a total arts immersion, it’s hard to beat First Night Austin.
Permalink | | Categories: Your A-List
Interview: Padma Lakshmi
Padma Lakshmi:I’m not. If I was, I think my cookbook would have reflected that. I’ve just hunted and gathered these recipes where and when I could.
Were there some recipes you felt bad about having to leave out?
You always have to do a bit of pruning in a cookbook, and you have to see where it’s redundant. And you think, “OK, maybe I don’t need that many recipes with succotash, or whatever it is.” (Laughs) It’s kind of a process. I always keep recipes in the back of my head, and then I revisit them. There are a couple of recipes in this book that actually did not make it to the first book, and I’m pretty glad that they finally found their voice after all these years.
What would you tell a novice chef who is scared or overwhelmed by the prospect of trying to make simple, yet delicious meals at home?
I would say, start with a dish in the book that you’re familiar with, that maybe just has a couple of different ingredients and that you’re used to — like the crab cakes or the chicken soup or even the macaroni and cheese or fried chicken. These are all recipes that are really classic in the American repertoire, except they have one or two ingredients that make them new again and a little more ethnically different. So in a way you get those flavors, but you’re not shocking your audience of diners with something completely weird, like a rack of bison, that they’ve never had. (Laughs)
It seems your book, as much as it is you sharing recipes, is about sharing your love of food and promoting the idea that food can play a role in the narrative of our lives instead of simply providing nutrition.
You just said it so beautifully. It really is part of the narrative of our lives, and food is so emotional and it’s so much about coming together with your loved ones. This was a very personal book for me, so it’s by no means everyone’s idea of the “100 Greatest Hits,” you know? It certainly is my list of how I’m eating now and how the people around me are eating in most urban environments — be that New York or Los Angeles or Austin. If you think about the way you’ve eaten in the last week, you’ve probably had a variety of cultures on your plate, and that’s what I wanted to do. We all have those flavors that we’re attracted to when we go out. What I wanted to do was bring them into the home.
How has working on “Top Chef” expanded your palate or curiosity in the kitchen?
It’s expanded my palette considerably. I was actually quite nervous that people might be a little thrown off by all the ingredients (in the book). The only thing I wish I had done — I do it indirectly, like you’ll see a label in a still life shot of a place where you can get all of the spices and ingredients in the book, and I also talk about it in my head notes — I wish I had just put like a laundry list of shopping venues and Internet sites. But I think being on “Top Chef,” my palette has grown even more adventurous, so I don’t know what the next book is going to look like. All of these recipes were pretty much done before I started “Top Chef.” Now, I love bison, it turns out. I love elk. This little girl from India who started out as a vegetarian is now a full omnivorous glutton.
Well, you’ll enjoy Austin, then, especially if you get a chance to try some elk backstrap out at Hudson’s on the Bend. Speaking of Texas, Tre (Wilcox) seemed like a strong candidate on “Top Chef” but got the ax a little bit earlier than one would have expected. Is it hard saying goodbye to contestants?
It’s the most difficult part of my job, but it is an inherent component of the game. One thing we know for sure is that there will only be one chef left standing at the end of the show. Sometimes it’s unfortunate, you know. I go through every day watching these people slave over these hot stoves, have little sleep and work their tails off. And I have great empathy for them. I’m the only one on the show who tastes every single thing that’s prepared, from quick fire to elimination. And so, in a way, I’m getting the song of each of these people’s lives. José Andrés talks about a recipe being a box of memories, olfactory memories that trigger all these responses in you from your past, from where you’ve been, from what you’ve loved along the way. So I get very attached and feel a certain possessiveness toward these chefs, and Tre, especially. I think he’s a stellar chef.
Will this be your first time in Austin, and what do you expect?
I’d love to ask you about the weather, because I don’t know what to wear. I’ve been to Texas a couple of times. Never been to Austin. I know it is one of the grooviest places in the region — very cultural, great art scene — so I’m really excited to come.
Permalink | | Categories: Interview
‘The Bachelor’ recap: Episode six
Sure, when it’s just you in the spotlight, you can hide your neuroses, bad grooming or unfortunate strands of any DNA you might possess. You might be so adept with trickery that you could fool an unsuspecting Bachelor and a few million folks watching on TV, but all your nasty backstory and the jumbled mess of psychological trauma that makes you who you are will come oozing out when you take that sweet boy whom you met on TV back home to meet the folks. Have fun, Brad.
Tonight’s episode promises an emotionally charged roller coaster, as Brad visits Jenni’s dance troupe, er, family, in Kansas. Then it’s off to California to be scared to death by Sheena’s mom; down to Georgia for a Big Fat Greek Freakout with DeAnna’s family; and finally some good old-fashioned class warfare in D.C. with Bettina’s hard-to-please family. I bet pouring shots for 21-year-olds is looking pretty good right about now to ol’ Brad. I predict Bettina’s plea for romance is vetoed tonight, for what it’s worth. Veto. Get it? She lives in Washington, D.C., and a veto is… Forget it. I hate everything.
Brad arrives in Wichita to discover that Jenni apparently grew up in and lives in a theater. Jenni takes him inside and, despite a bunch of talk about how “embarrassed” she is, does an awkward dance routine; so awkward, in fact, that the editors, who make the whole “get-to-know-me-by-watching-me-dance” travesty televisable, actually used post-production to pipe in music over her dance. After Jenni’s Sparkle Motion routine, Brad actually expresses some second thoughts about being able to do the long-distance thing if Jenni stays in Phoenix to dance her way into the Western Conference Finals. More awkward word salad between the two, who seem like they just met at a speed-dating night sans alcohol, and they’re off to her house. Scratch that; off to her mom’s hair salon. That looks like it’s in a house. Kansas!
Brad is immediately attacked by rascally ol’ Grandma, who has on some kind of “world’s craziest Grandma” T-shirt that looks like it was purchased at a gas station connected to a Cracker Barrel, in 1987. Despite cantankerous Granny, Brad remains ever the polite gentleman, to the point where I think he is actually beginning to grow on my girlfriend. (Note to self: Tami is never allowed on Sixth Street again.) Grandma keeps pounding away on the “don’t give me no guff, boy” bit. We get it; you’re not nice. Moving on. Mom gives Brad the third degree while almost rubbing the hair off of his scalp, followed by Jenni’s dad having a good ol’ boy heart-to-heart over a few beers (Editors pipe in banjo music. Genius.), wherein he asks Brad if he has goals. The polite Brad begins to enumerate them, but is cut off by Dad, who says something to the effect of, “Ah, hell boy, I don’t care what they are. I just wanna know you got some.” Read: I just wanna make sure you ain’t no drunk who’s gonna beat on my little girl. The highest standards.
Back inside, Dad proposes a toast … to Jenni making the Phoenix Suns dance squad. Unfortunately they cut out the singing telegram from Shawn Marion that heralded the news. But I bet the DVD will have it. But, seriously, what the hell is going on? Her dad breaks the news to her? What, is he her agent? Brad seems a little crestfallen by the news, while Jenni has images dancing in her head. Images of herself. Dancing. Brad says he understands it is her dream and she needs to follow it, and concedes that if it’s actually true love, it’ll work out. Yeah, and it probably won’t be on TV, Brad. I like you; I’m just sayin’. Meanwhile, Jenni spins herself to the point of exhaustion in the middle of the living room foaming at the mouth as she calculates how 41 Suns’ home games dancing in front of a bunch of rich season ticket holders and sweaty athletes is, like, so much more exposure than eight crummy episodes of some ol’ stupid TV show and just keeps screaming, “I’m pretty. I wanna dance, dance, dance, dance…” Or something.
After departing oxygen-tank Granny, an oxygen tank that seemingly delivers vitriol directly into her lungs, Brad jets off to California, where he meets Sheena’s parents. Her mom looks like an extra from “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” and her dad looks like he’s spent a lot of time trying to figure out how much of his 1990s tech-boom money he’d have to give up if he filed for divorce. The family goes on a boat ride on some nasty-looking river, and Sheena’s mom takes the opportunity to talk crazy astrological mumbojumbo to Brad while Sheena’s dad sends a text message to his lawyer and asks him to set up an offshore savings account. Following the kooky river ride, it’s back to the house, where Sheena’s mom enters the Crazy Mom Hall of Fame by telling Brad that she feels as if they are already a family, knows her little girl is “the one,” and is ready to plan the wedding because they are “ready to commit.” The phrase is “be committed,” Mom. Wow. “Whether she’s your one or somebody else’s one, she’s the one,” she tells a fully nonplussed Brad. She then chases three Oxycontin with a half carafe of Zinfandel and heads up to sleep in her hyperbaric chamber with Bubbles the monkey. Brad and Sheena retreat to the hot tub for some lips-on-side-of-face action. Forced chemistry, feel the excitement.
Having narrowly escaped the death-grip of his would-be future mother-in-law (in bizarro world), Brad heads to the one-blinking-yellow-light town of Canton, Ga., to see DeAnna (whom, if you’re not keeping score at home, I don’t like). Talk about a good time to fire up the banjo music. Ned Beatty picks him up at the Greyhound station in an old 4x4 and they set off for a canoe trip. Not really. Brad goes to DeAnna’s house, meets her dad, sister, brother and stepmom and then has a nice man-to-man chat with DeAnna’s dad. DeAnna tells the camera that it is the first time she’s ever brought a guy home and felt 100 percent proud. Or remembered his name. Banjo, banjo, banjo, all I wanna do is dance, daddy. Sorry, I got confused. Speaking of being drunk, DeAnna’s Greek grandpa comes over with some moonshine Ouzo, and everyone gets wasted and re-enacts that overrated romantic comedy from a few years ago, minus the phony Greek accents and the fat kid from that boy man band. All pretty boring stuff; the only thing I took from it is some reinforced feelings about how DeAnna is weird and scary and manipulative.
Finally, Brad heads to our nation’s capital for some quality time with Bettina’s family, a group he hopes will be full of laughs and just a lot of fun. Yea, about as fun as passing a kidney stone. Poor ol’ self-made Brad is immediately treated to the Spanish Inquisition masquerading as a cocktail party. Bettina’s professor father, who looks like he sits on the board of several banks, plays squash at a private club near Capitol Hill and basically personifies D.C.’s moniker of “Hollywood for Ugly People,” immediately asks Brad where he went to college. The words “Texas” and “State” did not seem to do much for Pops, who admits as much off camera.
Dad adjourns to the pool with Bettina and asks her what she could see in this scruffy boy from Texas. He does the whole rational checklist, weighing pros and cons, and basically treats her like a 14-year-old who’s trying to decide whether she wants to quit cello lessons. Maybe the ol’ dating-the-bartender bit is just an act of rebellion against Daddy, even though she says his opinion is gold to her. Or maybe the first divorce was, considering Clarence Goodmoney (or whatever his name is) tells the camera that Bettina never could or will do better than her first husband. While the condescension toward Bettina is taking place, Brad is dealing with a much more sweat-inducing situation, as Bettina’s monied “new mom” and her haggard-looking, alcoholic “real mom” treat Brad like he’s Lawrence of Rome. (For those who don’t get the reference, that’s not a good thing.)
Needing a respite from the heat, Brad takes Bettina over to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial and admits that his feelings had been very hurt, and that while he may not be educated, he’s smart enough to know that it’s not all right to judge people. Aw, yeah, that’s what I’m talking about, Brad. Bettina tries to remove the knife from his back but only twists it in deeper. Good thing she’s hot, at least in his eyes.
Back in Malibu, it’s rose time. Get ready to pack your bags, Bettina. Rose for DeAnna; rose for Jenni, and one for Bettina. Bettina?! Well, I’ll be. Maybe the self-made man in Brad just wants to prove her family wrong (don’t fight that battle, buddy) and show that he is worthy of her love, despite lacking a college education and slinging booze to kids in Austin. Or, maybe she just looks really good in a bathing suit. Or maybe he remembered Sheena’s mom and how she lost her mind in about 45 seconds. Either way I don’t care. I mean, I didn’t think much of Sheena to begin with, and feel the only reason she hung around the past two weeks was because Brad’s twin liked her a few weeks ago, but I was just shocked to see Brad bounce back from being truly hurt and offended by Bettina’s awful, classist family. I guess the lesson to be learned here is that you don’t challenge an oilfield wildcatter.
Sheena, naturally, cries and tells Brad how great he is, and I think he even tears up. For some reason he didn’t realize it would be difficult sending girls with crazy dreams of fairy-tale love home each week. Go figure. As Sheena is hauled off in the limo to go back to her life, I am left only with confusion as to what fantasies and sick myths are being forced into young women’s heads that make them believe they are going to find idealized romantic love at 24 and live happily ever after. On TV. It’s gonna be OK, Sheena, you’re young and kinda cute. Go to business school; you’ll meet plenty of boys there. And I’m sure your mother will love them.
Next week it’s a 3-on-1 overnight date in Cabo. I bet Jenni dances.
“The Bachelor” recaps archive.
For those keeping score at home, or even if you have no idea what I’m talking about, the following is my quick guide to the cuts and carry-overs, an unofficial scorecard if you will.
Still in the running - in order of most likely to win
DeAnna - The maniuplative country girl from AlaGeorgia seems intent to take out the other women, maybe literally.
Jenni - The Melissa Rivers-Sarah Silverman hybrid had been the front-runner from day one but her opportunism may be getting in the way.
Bettina - She divorced her father’s dream son-in-law and her family aparently thinks Brad is low rent. Not sure how she stuck around. Oh, yea, she’s blonde and hot.
Episode 6 cut
Sheena - A lack of discernible personality, blind devotion and desperation seem to have kept this one in the running.
Episode 5 cuts
Hillary - Maybe the craziest woman in the history of the show
Kristy - Maybe the most boring woman to ever make it this far on ‘The Bachelor’
Episode 4 cuts
McCarten - After starting fights in her final episode, she realized the show was actually a competition.
Jade - The sweet boutique employee from Nashville got TKO’d by the malicious DeAnna.
Stefania - The self-confessed daddy’s girl almost killed the Bachelor with boredom.
Episode 3 cuts
Sarah - The bar manager from Illinois was completely thrown off by the twin twist.
Lindsey - The model from Michigan with a brutal accent left in a tearstorm determined to find a husband.
Solisa - The Georgetown aesthetician’s party girl behavior belied her purported moral core.
Episode 2 cuts
Mallory - The nanny from Hawaii was too bland too handle.
Michele - The girl nicknamed Jersey Shore fell and hurt herself, but the sympathy ploy did not pay off.
Erin - The girl who recently suffered a broken face must now repair a broken heart.
Episode 1 cuts
I don’t remember any of these women, so I will just give their ABC-propagated bios:
Jessica, 27, a news anchor from Lady Lake, Fla.
Juli, 24, a law student from Chicago
Kim, 31, a Realtor from Woodbridge, Conn.
Susan, 35, a project analyst from St. Charles, Ill.
Tauni, 31, an ER nurse from St. Louis Park, Minn.
Melissa, 28, an event planner from Westchester, New York
Morgan, 24, a graduate student from Tempe, Ariz.
Natalie, 25, a law student from Duncanville, Texas
Rigina, 31, an account representative from San Diego
Lori, 33, a biology teacher from Annapolis, Md.
If you just can’t seem to get enough of “The Bachelor,” the following links should satiate your illogical obsession.
ABC’s official Bachelor message board | One Houston woman’s take at thebachelorrecaps.blogspot | Television Without Pity takes on “The Bachelor” | Reality Steve, who works in sports radio is funny and wordy, very wordy | Former contestant Kate Brockhouse even has a blog about the current season | Fans of Reality TV has a forum | TV Gasm’s recaps
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Today’s links
Interviews, movie reviews, 2,000-word recaps of “The Bachelor.” All that is fine and well, but every now and then, we just want links, right? They’ve become staples in our communication arsenal, often being the sole message in e-mails and instant messages among friends. With that in mind, I am going to start doing semi-regular (twice a week? three times a day? who knows?) posts that consist solely of links. Any clever or simple title options for posts are welcome in the comments section. But keep it clean, folks. (I’m looking at you, Team Zax Happy Hour. Oh, and you, TrueCraig.)
Without further ado, mass linkage (caveat: I promise that this featurette will get more entertaining and comprehensive as we go forward)…
- ESPN’s SportsGuy Bill Simmons’ latest Podcast features an NBA conversation with the eminently quotable Charles Barkley.
- A word against in-store snacking: Man arrested for eating jelly beans in store.
- Treated more like factory workers than artists, Hollywood screenwriters — currently threatening to strike — have never received much respect. Do they deserve it?
- Comedian Colbert reaches double digits as third-party candidate.
- What Hollywood is calling “the Judith Miller movie” is filming [in Memphis], but prepare yourselves: Some changes are being made to the story inspired by the outing of a CIA agent.
- Inside the mob plot to kill Rudy Giuliani.
- The best movies are the ones you probably won’t see.
Permalink | Comments (1) | Categories: Links
Your A-List: Best Place to Go When You’re Broke
Music and art may feed the soul, but to truly survive, a person’s gotta eat, and what better way to fill your belly than by doing it for free, and with really tasty treats? Now, we’re not encouraging you to loiter around Central Market and eat everything in sight while actual grocery shoppers are trying to sample something they may or may not purchase, but let’s face it, how many people actually buy what they taste? One in 50? So, what’s the harm, right? You obviously feel the same way. And with music out on the patio, you can really make a day of it. Pop in before the church crowd hits the store, sample some juices and fruits, then slowly make your way through all the food groups, as you sample salads, crackers, cheeses, spreads, grilled meats, sautéed fish, and chocolate. You’ll be so full by the end that payday will seem right around the corner.
Central Market [site]
4001 North Lamar [map]
4477 South Lamar [map]
Others receiving votes…
Sample grazing at Whole Foods: 21 percent
Blanton Museum of Art on Thursdays: 12 percent
Music Mondays/Weird Wednesdays/Terror Thursdays at the Alamo: 9 percent
In-stores at Waterloo: 8 percent
Austin Public Library: 6 percent
In-stores at Cheapo: 3 percent
Opening receptions at area art galleries: 3 percent
$1 Tuesdays at Austin Museum of Art: 3 percent
Readings at BookPeople: 2 percent
Tuesday improv jams at the Hideout: 2 percent
Live in the Plaza music series at Austin City Hall: 1 percent
LBJ Library and Museum: 1 percent
Yoga and fitness classes at Ruta Maya: <1 percent
Continental Gallery: <1 percent
Permalink | | Categories: Your A-List
Your A-List: Best Place to Karaoke
Whether you are celebrating a birthday, getting to know your co-workers in a more casual/awkward environment or just have a burning, deep-down inside to sing Journey, Madonna or Billy Joel while you sip rail booze, the Japanese import of karaoke has no peer.
In addition to allowing you a stage on which to glorify/humiliate yourself, Common Interest also offers major events on the big screen, including college and pro football. And because karaoke without a healthy amount of booze is like Hall without Oates, Common Interest offers a variety of weekly specials, including Tecate Tuesday, Whiskey Wednesday and Thirsty Thursday.
At Common Interest, everyone’s a star. Don’t stop believin’, Austin.
Common Interest [site]
8440 Burnet Road [map]
Others receiving votes …
DK Sushi: 18 percent
Baby A’s: 17 percent
Austin Karaoke: 14 percent
Beerland: 9 percent
New Seoul Karaoke Studio: 3 percent
Karaoke Apocalypse gigs: 2 percent
Write-ins: La Palapa and The Water Tank.
Permalink | | Categories: Your A-List
Anthony Bourdain: Rock star chef
Foodies and fans came together Saturday night at the Paramount Theatre in celebration of storytelling, gastronomy and, well, celebrity itself, it seems. The recipient of the packed house’s unbridled enthusiasm and devotion was best-selling author, chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain.
Following a brief introduction, the 6-foot-4-inch salt-and-pepper-haired chef strode to the center of the stage to catcalls, whistles, thunderous applause and a sprinkling of standing ovations. If you didn’t know any better, you might have thought Bono or Barack Obama had just entered the room. Bourdain’s celebrity had fans in such a frenzy, the entire evening featured fans screaming out questions, suggestions and proposals for after-show drinks. I got the feeling many of these folks had never left the house before, or simply were not accustomed to being around someone with serious charm and a sharp tongue.
Even the blustery, yet generally modest, Bourdain seemed a bit taken aback by the reception, asking, “How did this happen?” Bourdain remembered back to his childhood and confessed that when he announced to his parents that he wanted to be a chef, their initial response was akin to hearing he wanted to go into a career in arson. Just look at me now, ma.
Following a failed attempt to get the New York Press to publish a story he had written, a little bit of swagger and luck left Bourdain with a piece in the New Yorker, and the next thing he knew, his small one-off article written ostensibly for his friends in the restaurant industry had led to a book deal (2000’s best-selling “Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly”) and “A Cook’s Tour,” a television show on the Food Network. Bourdain maintains a healthy sense of humility and of the absurd when telling his story.
“I was the guy who cooked your lunch, and more often than not, your dinner” Bourdain said of his pre-fame days spent sweating, cussing and cooking in the kitchens of Manhattan. “My intention was to write something to entertain my friends in the restaurant business. I didn’t think anyone west of 10th Avenue. would read it.” The lanky chef who recently entered his fifties seems to find fortune at every turn, whether he planned it or not. “Not giving a [expletive] has been a very successful business model for me.”
Well, people west of 10th Avenue did read it. And ever since, the foul-mouthed hedonist has been on a mission to spread the gospel of the gastronome. He parlayed his original show on the Food Network to his current cable hit “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.” With greater success in media, Bourdain found himself being pulled further from his beloved kitchen at Brasserie Les Halles and into a greater spotlight. He described this transition using monikers that take pot shots at other celeb chefs. First, he says, he suffered “Bobby Flay syndrome,” which finds a chef spending more time in the front of the restaurant talking to press than in the kitchen. This eventually gives way to “Rocco DiSpirito syndrome,” wherein the chef is never in the restaurant.
Zing.
But despite his grandstanding and gratuitous use of cuss words, it is obvious that what you see is what you get with Bourdain. The man is not one to pull punches when talking on any subject, especially his fellow celebrity chefs, and he was up to the challenge at the Paramount, as he took to task a host of television’s most famous chefs, from Flay to Wolfgang Puck, Rachael Ray and Giada De Laurentiis. Bourdain seems almost ashamed by the level of celebrity chefs have reached in past decade, but he feels if there is a silver lining to making media darlings out of these folks, himself included, it is that he gets to share his love of food and hopefully teach people how to appreciate its place in our lives.
Beyond ripping into celeb chefs, Bourdain focused on how to eat; how to be a good guest; why vegetarians are rude; and how great dishes are a conversation between chef and guest and how a meal is “the end product of cultural history.” Bourdain’s appearance Saturday night was much like his television show and his various writings: sharp, calloused, affable, clever and inspired. If, indeed, as Bourdain proclaims, a chef is in the pleasure business, the brash New Yorker definitely held up his end of the bargain.
It just seemed so odd to see so many raving fans, unable to control the overestimated sense of their relationship with a man many yelled at by first name.
Then again, Garrison Keillor has a stalker.
To read more of Bourdain’s contempt for other celebrity chefs, check out a blog post he did on Michael Ruhlman’s blog in February of this year.
Permalink | | Categories: Food
‘The Bachelor’ recaps: Episode #5
The number of contestants has dwindled from 25 to 6, and after tonight, there will be the Final Four, with each remaining woman getting to take the Bachelor home to meet the family. Tonight, in an effort to decide which two won’t make it to the semifinals, Bachelor Brad will go through a grueling elimination process that involves a bikini party and slip-and-slide. Poor guy. He’ll also go on two solo fairytale dates that will most likely raise the women’s expectations to ridiculous-to-maintain levels, and we are told that we can expect some serious, serious drama. Like, the most dramatic meltdown ever. Now that’s saying something. Someone get Dr. Phil on the phone for Hillary because I think she will be going home in a hail of tears, and she will be joined by Kristy, who will just be going home, blandly. The way she does everything.
On the first individual date, Brad and Bettina take a gondola ride and slowly attempt to grow closer. Very slowly. Although Bettina says she keeps falling “more and more in love” with Brad, I am having a little bit of trouble buying it, not just because their chemistry seems almost nonexistent but because they’ve never kissed! I may not be old-fashioned, but shouldn’t you have at least kissed someone before you are ready to profess such deep love? Bettina talks with shame about being divorced, and Brad tells her that he wants to hug her. Then they take turns giving each other quick pecks on the cheek as they pass under a bridge. Snooze town. The most passionless romance ever.
Following the one-on-one with Bettina, Jenni, Hillary, Kristy and DeAnna get to party with Brad at his Malibu mansion. Surprisingly, we learn that Kristy is not a “pool person.” Go figure, not a comedy person, not an open person, not a fun person, not a passionate person. Maybe she’s a robot. The most boring robot ever. Meanwhile, Hillary lets forth a profanity-laced litany of things she would like to do to Brad (sexy things) and vice versa, followed immediately with a clip of her telling Brad how she wants him to meet her family because he reminds her of her dad. Awkward. I cease to be amazed by the genius and ruthlessness of this show’s editors. Brad sees the warning signs increasing with Hillary, so in a rare move, he actually pulls her aside and flat out gives her the “I think we’re better as friends” speech. Naturally, Hillary hears none of it and walks away thinking that he just made a proclamation of their uniqe chemistry. She’s gonna need one of those special white jackets with the really long sleeves by the time this one ends.
On the second one-on-one date, Brad and Sheena go out on their “Pretty Woman” date. I never noticed how grating this girl’s voice was until this date. She is working the 23-year-old Lisa Simpson voice something fierce. When Brad takes her to a mansion full of beautiful gowns from which she can select one for the date, she says that “the last thing in the world I expected to see was six dresses.” Really? You’re on a reality dating show and the last things you expected to see were dresses? Not 36 single-holed brown buttons, or a 1/2 cup of head lice, or a dancing bear with a chicken mascot head, or the entire cast of “High School Musical” doing the limbo, or your first boyfriend dressed as Raskolnikov reading a poem in Russian to you about how extraordinary your connection with Brad is? Curious.
Brad then bestows Sheena with $15,000 Chopard diamond earrings, you know, just to keep it real, as the kids say. The couple has a dinner with the main course being a confusing word salad tossed by the two of them, followed by poolside dancing to a string quartet at ABC’s Love Factory. The date ends with one of the more realistic and honest kisses so far on the show, followed by Sheena telling the camera that she is the “luckiest girl in the world.” Yeah, run home to that house full of concubines and then get back to me, Sheena.
Once back at concubine palace, the other girls look on with eye-popping envy at Sheena’s bling, and Bettina pouts and says that her date was “so boring” in comparison. Jenni, naturally, latches on to this statement and grills Bettina about how she is not there for the right reason, etc. Boring. Bettina says she was just joking; maybe she needs to go back to that comedy class.
With the rose ceremony approaching, the women scramble to shore up their positions, leading to a poem from Sheena in which she rhymes “moles on arm” with “charm.” Yikes. Pablo Neruda is spinning in his grave. Meanwhile, mean ol’ manipulative DeAnna gets her first kiss with Brad while Jenni and Bettina battle it out. In the saddest and most foreboding scene, Brad once again expresses to Hillary (more or less, and who can blame him for doing a little soft shoe here, she is starting to get that real crazy look in here eyes?) that he thinks they are best off as friends. And, once again, she hears none of it, instead using it as an opportunity to talk about how being best friends is so great and how that can so easily dovetail into being a great married couple and having children together. At this point, anyone who has ever tried unsuccessfully to break up with someone is slowly nodding/shaking their head and covering their eyes.
At the rose ceremony, Jenni, DeAnna, Bettina and Sheena get roses. Kristy leaves unceremoniously and with the amount of fanfare she deserves (none), but Hillary, whose eyes immediately roll back into her head, will not go quietly into that good night. No, sir. She is stuffed in her dress, with tears streaming down her face and makeup that looks like it was put on with a shotgun, and I start to wonder whether ABC intentionally dressed her for this meltdown. She looks like one of those inflated clowns you can knock over and it just bounces right back up. And the analogy is apt. After breaking down in tears, she runs into the courtyard where she just completely breaks down and refuses to come to terms with how things could have ended this way. Brad had told her that he had this amazing connection with her. … How could this happen? … Why?!! The show ends with Brad telling her that he thought it best they end things now, before he or someone (or everyone) he loves ended up dead. Poor Hillary. Regardless of how genuinely psychotic she seems, she really did appear to suffer a broken heart. I just don’t get it. At all.
Next week, Brad will visit the remaining women’s families. What to expect: dancing with Jenni, boozing with DeAnna, a disturbing surgically-altered Sheena’s mom, and a real departure … someone (in this case Bettina’s family) taking issue with the Bachelor and calling him out for what they see as shortcomings. Cue ominous organ music.
For those keeping score at home, or even if you have no idea what I’m talking about, the following is my quick guide to the cuts and carry-overs, an unofficial scorecard if you will.
Episode 1 cuts
I don’t remember any of these women, so I will just give their ABC-propagated bios:
Jessica, 27, a news anchor from Lady Lake, Fla.
Juli, 24, a law student from Chicago
Kim, 31, a Realtor from Woodbridge, Conn.
Susan, 35, a project analyst from St. Charles, Ill.
Tauni, 31, an ER nurse from St. Louis Park, Minn.
Melissa, 28, an event planner from Westchester, New York
Morgan, 24, a graduate student from Tempe, Ariz.
Natalie, 25, a law student from Duncanville, Texas
Rigina, 31, an account representative from San Diego
Lori, 33, a biology teacher from Annapolis, Md.
Episode 2 cuts
Mallory - The nanny from Hawaii was too bland too handle.
Michele - The girl nicknamed Jersey Shore fell and hurt herself, but the sympathy ploy did not pay off.
Erin - The girl who recently suffered a broken face must now repair a broken heart.
Episode 3 cuts
Sarah - The bar manager from Illinois was completely thrown off by the twin twist.
Lindsey - The model from Michigan with a brutal accent left in a tearstorm determined to find a husband.
Solisa - The Georgetown aesthetician’s party girl behavior belied her purported moral core.
Episode 4 cuts
McCarten - After starting fights in her final episode, she realized the show was actually a competition.
Jade - The sweet boutique employee from Nashville got TKO’d by the malicious DeAnna.
Stefania - The self-confessed daddy’s girl almost killed the Bachelor with boredom.
Episode 5 cuts
Hillary - Maybe the craziest woman in the history of the show
Kristy - Maybe the most boring woman to ever make it this far on ‘The Bachelor’
Still in the running - in order of most likely to win
Jenni - The Melissa Rivers-Sarah Silverman hybrid has been the front-runner from day one but may need to temper her maniacal cackling.
DeAnna - The maniuplative country girl from AlaGeorgia seems intent to take out the other women, maybe literally.
Sheena - A lack of discernible personality, blind devotion and desperation seem to have kept this one in the running.
Bettina - The divorcee is fighting off the snide comments from others while slinging a bit of mud herself.
If you just can’t seem to get enough of “The Bachelor,” the following links should satiate your illogical obsession.
ABC’s official Bachelor message board | One Houston woman’s take at thebachelorrecaps.blogspot | Television Without Pity takes on “The Bachelor” | Reality Steve, who works in sports radio is funny and wordy, very wordy | Former contestant Kate Brockhouse even has a blog about the current season | Fans of Reality TV has a forum | TV Gasm’s recaps
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Review: ‘Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project’
Directed by John Landis (“Animal House,” “Coming to America”) who, as an 18 year-old gopher on the set of “Kelly’s Heroes” met Rickles for the first time, pays homage to the comic who broke ground with his acerbic wit and scathing treatment of minorities and concert goers.
Rickles, whose comedy career began after his dreams of being a serious actor fizzled out, came to prominence playing for wise guys and Frank Sinatra’s cadre of friends in night clubs in Florida. Never afraid to play the role of court jester, Rickles spared nobody with his personal attack, even the king. Despite his personal and decidedly non-politically-correct humor (decades before that term came into vogue), Rickles always got away with comedic murder due to the fact that he was genuinely funny.
As Chris Rock says in the film, “Being funny is like being a pretty girl — you get away with a lot of stuff.” And, boy, what Rickles got away with. The balding, portly comic considered nothing sacred, but opposed to our current climate, when so many stars take themselves so seriously (save the occasional George Clooney and a few notable others), it was considered a badge of honored to be publically skewered by Rickles during his show. “If you hadn’t been insulted by Rickles, you hadn’t made it,” writer-director Carl Reiner says in the documentary.
Eventually Rickles found himself as one of the showcase acts in the Las Vegas of old, when the Rat Pack and the Mafia ruled the roost. Strangely enough, several of the featured stars in the film actually talk about the halcyon days of Mob-controlled Vegas.
While Landis does a decent job of showing the back-story that led to Rickles’ life in comedy and portraying his touching relationship with his friends, notably Bob Newhart, staff, and his family, the movie works mostly to glorify a bygone era of comedy, when nothing was off-limits and people lived their lives with a little less vainglory than today, and to pay homage to a comedy outlaw still working rooms across the country today. Landis and his spartan crew were allowed access to film a couple of Rickles’ shows, heretofore never allowed, and spliced footage of his current act with talking heads who are legend in the cinema and comedy businesses. From Clint Eastwood and Martin Scorsese to Robin Williams and Dave Attell, stars of yesterday and today bent over backwards to praise and genuflect over the groundbreaking greatness that is Don Rickles.
Despite his best efforts, however, the film falls short in probing what inspired Rickles’ (once)-unique brand of humor. Like many clowns, Rickles humor and manic visceration belies a sadness in the man which is never fully revealed. Nonetheless, it is a touching, if safe, portrait of a man who changed the world for comics across the country, a man, who despite all of his bluster was, as one of his featured songs proclaims, like so many comics, simply looking to “trade you laughter for love.”
Producer Robert Engelman hung around after this, only the second public screening of the film, to discuss the project. He stated that more stars than could be accommodated wanted to participate in this film, which they intend to air on HBO and to release on DVD in December, just in time to buy as a Christmas gift for that sarcastic uncle or father you love so dearly. Despite proclaiming that Rickles “tells the truth through his comedy,” Engelman admitted that he felt Rickles, who had always longed to “be seen as a serious actor,” “greatest disappointment would be that he never really made it on film.” Maybe there, then, is the source of the sadness that fueled the humor.
Interview: Emile Hirsch journeys ‘Into the Wild’
In “Into the Wild,” which opens Friday in Austin, Emile Hirsch portrays Christopher McCandless, the young man immortalized in John Krakauer’s best-selling book of the same name. Disillusioned with materialism in the world, McCandless rid himself of most of his earthly possessions, and at 22, headed out on a journey of self-discovery. Though McCandless has been both praised for his rugged individualism and criticized for what some call a juvenile narcissism and carelessness, the movie directed by Sean Penn, which should get considerable attention come awards season, offers an honest, nonjudgmental portrayal of its protagonist as a gregarious if conflicted young man dedicated to living an authentic life. Indeed, “Into the Wild” is a stomach-punch of a movie, probably my favorite of the year to this point.
Hirsch visited Austin a few weeks ago, and we met at the Four Seasons to discuss his experience with making this poignant film. The young actor was both affable and thoughtful, at times affecting a measured rumination reminiscent of a young Johnny Depp or Sean Penn.
Sean Penn said he wanted you all along for the role, but what was the vetting process like with him and how he felt you out for the role?
You know, I think he wanted to get to know me. He called me up and said, ‘I was intrigued by your performance in “Lords of Dogtown.” ’ I go, ‘Wow, wow, wow, that’s Sean Penn on the other end of the line;’ then that’s the end of the conversation. And I thought that was the last I’d ever hear from him. And then he called me a week later and said, ‘Let’s go have lunch.’ We go have lunch, he brings up the book, I read it that night; I love it. I’m blown away by the concept of being able to do this film. It would be the dream come true for me to get a part like that and be able to work with someone of the caliber of Sean. But then he never brings it up again, even though we get together every three weeks for the next four months. He never really talks about the movie anymore. Occasionally he’ll say something, but not like, ‘You have the part,’ or even like, ‘I’m makin’ the movie.’ So I started to think, maybe he just, you know, thinks I’m cool or something. Of course, I figure out later that’s definitely not the case. Sean Penn does not think I am cool.
He was feelin’ me out as a person. Because he knew that whoever this cat was gonna be that he was gonna work with was gonna be a year of close contact, of editing, shooting, you’re gonna have to stare at this guy’s face. And if he didn’t like him, it was gonna be really hard for him. So I think he wanted to make sure that I had the right stuff for the part. You know, it was almost like they say about the astronauts, ‘Do you have the right stuff?’ He really needed to make sure that for all the different challenges the part was gonna have that he thought I could do it. And I gotta give him credit; you know, he believed in me more than I believed in me, at the time. I was completely gung-ho, completely committed in doing it, but he really was like, ‘I think you can do this.’
The project was obviously really important to Sean, as evidenced by that story, (and obviously very important for the McCandlesses) to get it right, to be true to Chris. Did you feel the pressure and at what point did you think, ‘I’m so invested in this that there is no pressure,’?
You know, Sean is great at making actors feel at ease. And I know maybe it wouldn’t seem like that because he’s got such a big public reputation as being very intense, but he really is a very sensitive guy, a very smart, caring guy. And he really puts actors immediately off their guard; they put their defenses down. They know that he’s on the same page with them. He’s very in tune with his actors. And I think they’re more relaxed and they don’t really feel the pressure that maybe another director with less experience would be, ‘OK, this is your big moment! Don’t [expletive] up!’
It was obviously a very physically and emotionally grueling shoot, can you speak to the different ways in which you prepared yourself physically and emotionally for this role, and the toll a roll like this takes on you both physically and emotionally?
The first thing I’ll answer to that question is that the toll that it takes on your body and emotions is that it pays you. It doesn’t take a toll on you. Physically and emotionally I was elated. You know, my spirit was soaring.
Almost like in an ascetic sense…
Yea, in a sense of awe and appreciation of the beauty of nature, and the experiences, and how grateful I was to be able to get a chance to work on the film, what good shape my body was in ‘cause I was running and hiking, and the fresh air. So, in that sense, there’s no toll. In terms of the physical sense of preparation, you know it was trying to learn as much as I could about Chris, reading journals, talking to his family — his parents Walt and Billy and his sister Carine — doing a lot of running in advance, a lot of weightlifting, a lot of endurance tests, just to make sure I was gonna be able to handle this level of physicality for eight months of straight shooting in some of the harshest conditions of climate. We were in the freezing cold in Alaska, and then one time we were shooting there and then flew straight down to Lake Mead and it was like 125 degrees, and it was like being on another planet.
There’s one scene where you’re walking up from Lake Mead, and I think you’ve just woken up from camping, and you’re walking through waves of heat, and it reminded me of when I went camping there once and we’d wake up at six in the morning and it would already be 100 degrees.
Yea! It’s so hot! One of the guys on the crew, he got heat stroke and was vomiting…he had to quit the film. It was very hard. A lot of guys were shooting with had to quit out, they just couldn’t handle it.
At 22, you basically, in a sense, get to go on this journey that Chris went on at the same age. You’ve been acting for pretty much half your life at this point, (Hirsch falls over in mock terror), sorry to put it in perspective for you like that. But I would imagine you don’t get eight months to go camping, to go on this incredible experience and this voyage of self-discovery of that length. Was there a way in which vicariously you got to kind of have the rite-of-passage experience by doing this movie, and how great and odd is that that a piece of art, or your work, can allow you to have this ability to have this kind of personal journey?
You know, that’s one of the things that I love about the opportunity I have with acting. You get to step into all these different shoes and walk on all these different paths. I don’t know if I would ever have kayaked rapids on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, if I hadn’t played a character who’d done it. Or if I would have hiked up sides of mountains in Alaska; I don’t know if I ever would have done that stuff. I feel so lucky to have done that, and, also…nothing else, I forgot what I was gonna say…(trails off into laughter and mock pontification)
Is there a way in which being in Chris’s shoes, understanding his story, going through the experience, affected the way you understand or search for the truth yourself.
Yea, you know, I really agree with the philosophy Chris read. Like, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, I don’t know if you’re gonna print this part, but anybody should just pick up Walden and read it and just take from it what they will. Some of the ideas about living a life worth living, and the value you place on money…it’s not that money’s bad, but do you put it in the proper perspective? Do you let it run you to the point where you’re not truly happy, you’re just a machine?
There’s a part in the movie where Chris is overwhelmed with “things, things, things…all these things,” and the materialism of the world is driving him mad. Being from Hollywood, being surrounded by one of the most materialistic places on earth, not that similar ideas weren’t in you already, but how do you get that place where you could relate to that way of thinking? How do you detach from your everyday experiences in Hollywood to the point where you can relate to where he’s coming from?
Being from Hollywood is what actually fueled me to feel that way.
It’s kind of a way to give the finger back to Hollywood’s culture, in a sense…
Oh yea…you know, when you’re surrounded by these rich, stupid, shallow people — not all of them, but some of them — you start to really see what it’s doing to them. So, (in the movie) when I say, ‘Things, things, things,’ I mean that stuff.
You can tell. It’s a great opportunity for a 22-year-old to be able to go out and exorcise yourself of these demons that surround you or are inside you to some degree.
Mmmm, hmmm…
So how do you go from being on this intense eight-month shoot in the wilderness and desert, I mean, that’s gotta take some decompressing, and next thing you know you’re in Berlin, locked up in a green room shooting ‘Speed Racer’ (Hirsch’s next film)? What a trip.
It was very crazy. But that was part of the appeal of it in a certain sense. You go from being on the side of a beautiful mountain in the fresh air every day to not shooting one scene outdoors on ‘Speed Racer,’ all on green screen. It was great. You know what I liked about it was the diversity of the experience, the extremity of the differences. (laughs) It couldn’t have been any crazier, in terms of just, ‘This is totally different.’ It was like being in a sauna for eight months and then being thrown into an ice bath and then having the hatch shut over me.
I’ve stayed at resorts where they have the sauna or steam room and then just outside of it a freezing rectangular pool, and you’re supposed to go directly from the sauna into the cold…
I love that. There’s one of those at the hotel we were staying in in Berlin (during ‘Speed Racer’ shoot), and I would do that almost every day. I would go into the sauna and then I would just go straight into the ice bath and just chill out in the ice bath. I love that.
It’s an amazing contrast. I mean, it’s cliche, but you appreciate and are invigorated and feel the difference in the heat and the cold when you contrast them in such a way, and you come to better appreciate them both.
Yea. They both had their advantages and then the things that were harder about them. But, after ‘Into the Wild,’ I’d been outside so much, that the idea of shooting a movie on a green screen was strangely foreign to me. Like that was almost wild at the time. And the idea of being an actor and working with this very advanced technology was kind of new and exciting.
When you decompress and go back to your normal life, do you find yourself changed by the movie in that you feel a sense to push yourself more or to search more? Has it affected you in that way?
You know, I don’t wanna be like presumptuous and say that now I’m this seeking prophet, wise old man. The answer to that is no. I’m the same cat I was, but I feel like I got some fresh perspectives on life that I wouldn’t have been exposed to otherwise. I feel like I am a stronger person now than I was before ‘Into the Wild.’
The movie executes voice-over so effectively in telling the back-story of Chris, along with the flashbacks of course, but there’s something so fascinating with a role like this in that, usually as an actor, you have other actors to play off of to get emotional cues, to help you be in a place that helps you access what you’re supposed to be feeling. In this movie, so much of what you’re going through emotionally is based on what we see in flashbacks and hear from voiceover. Where do you go inside to conjure feelings and reactions that allow you to show the affect of something that we’re only being told about?
That’s a great question. I don’t know. Acting to me is like magic. Actors are like magicians. I have all my magic tricks, all my weird bits of magic. I could show you the trick, and then explain it afterwards…how I flipped the card, how I kept it under my hand the whole time, how when you weren’t looking I was touching your elbow…I could tell you all this. And for a second you’d have the epiphany of the knowledge and think, ‘Oh, it was right under my nose the whole time.’ But afterwards, you’d walk away with a feeling of disappointment. And I’m not gonna let you be disappointed. Sorry. (laughs)
I’ll forgive you. When you’re in the mountains, in the bus, in these isolated situations, there’s such a look of excitement, terror, fear and hopefulness and confusion. How do you relate to that experience? I doubt you’ve been out alone in Alaska…it’s such a weird emotion to conjure…
Well, all that stuff falls into place when you really commit to the role. That’s the closest I could really tell you, is you have to commit to the role. And once you commit to the role, that stuff starts to come to you, it starts to fall into place, it starts to shift. Things come into focus.
Hal Holbrook gives, you both give performances that I think will be nominated for Academy Awards, and Holbrook’s is only 10 minutes maybe…there was something so organic about the relationship between you two and Holbrook’s relationship to that character, I know you can’t speak for him, but talk about working with him and how real that felt. It just felt so real and palpable; did you feel that when you were doing the scenes?
I did feel that when we were doing the scenes. Everything felt so full of emotion and authenticity. And those are words that are easy to throw around when you do scenes, but it really did feel that way. He brings 82 years of experience to the table. There are scenes in the film where you can’t play those scenes unless you’re 82 years old. You can’t bring that kind of experience and knowledge and wisdom and depth, you know; that’s 82 years deep. And on top of that, he just is a loving, wonderful man. He really is. He’s a great human being. I really enjoyed working with him and getting to know him and being around him, I just had a great time with him.
There’s a real honesty and vulnerability about his work and yours and the cinematography, everything, that just permeates the film. To the point, there’s a scene where you’re sitting on a rock talking to the Rainey character, and he delivers a line, something like, “You just gotta do it, bro,” and if you looked at those words on paper, you’d think, ‘Man, that’s so contrived, how do you deliver that line without seeming like a cliche hippie.’ It was fairly early in the movie, but when he spoke that line, I was completely sold that there was nothing that seemed forced about any of it. Who is that guy and was that like working with him?
Brian Dierker, who plays Rainey, is not an actor. He was my rapid guide instructor on the Grand Canyon. We’d been trying to cast Rainey for a while, Sean had, and I’d been throwing names around of actors I liked, and every day it was like the running joke: ‘So and so?’ ‘No.’ ‘So and so?’ ‘No.’
To Sean?
Yea. And one day we’re sitting on the banks of the Colorado River, and I look at Bryan Dierker and I go, ‘Hey, Sean, what about Bryan for Rainey? He’s so perfect.’ (goes into spot-on Sean Penn impersonation) Sean puts down his cigarette, looks over at Bryan and goes, ‘No.’ then looks back down, then takes a pause and slowly looks back up and kinda squints his eyes and goes, ‘You know, I’m gonna read him.’ And then he read him and we worked with him a bit and he just was the guy, he was perfect.
What do you take from this role to the next role, to the next day of your life?
You know, you take your experience. You take the things you’ve learned; you try to. You know, it’s weird. I’m in a weird position right now where people are asking me a lot of questions about where do you take it, and the wisdom and the profound kinda questions associated with the film. I wanna answer them genuinely, but at the same time, I don’t want to pontificate. Because at the end of the day, I’m just a 22-year-old, I’m not some old wise man. You know what I mean? I’m just some young cat who woulda graduated college last year.
Well, it’s a great graduation ceremony. I guess the answer is, you just keep doing it.
I’m gonna try and keep making films, I’m gonna do what I can to help.
It’s just not that self-conscious of a thing, I guess…
You wanna be a good person; you wanna have a good life. That’s one of the few things I felt walkin’ away from the movie is I wanna have a good life. It’s like you walk away from an experience where you meet so many people and you’re on the road so much, and you really go, “You know, I want the world to be a better place.”
Cool. Thanks, man.
Thank you.
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Your A-List: Best Sushi
The precious yet modern Austin bungalow restaurant, designed by architects Michael Hsu and Joel Mozersky, came to life in 2003 and at the time was a welcome two-star addition to the growing sushi scene. Over the past four years, Cole’s creation has become a paragon of creativity and quality in the Austin restaurant scene, drawing rave reviews from critics and diners alike.
Cole’s relationship with Japanese food began in the inglorious position of dishwasher at Kyoto more than 15 years ago. From there he began to slowly climb the sushi ranks in Austin, from the sushi bar at Kyoto, to Musashino, where he rose to second-in-command, and eventually to being co-owner, with partner Daryl Kunik, of Uchi.
Click below to continue reading.
The jewel on South Lamar prides itself on not only the freshest of ingredients, but also on top notch service, a forward-thinking approach to flavor components and decadent presentation. Needlefish displayed as a sort of flying dragon complemented with a citrus vinaigrette presented in an oyster shell on a bed of salt in a wooden bowl is just one example of the fanciful culinary delights you may find at Uchi. In addition to classic fish preparation and flavors, Cole and his crackerjack staff, who have a say in initial menu suggestions, also like to throw in a taste of the local, as evidenced in Uchi’s madai sashimi of black snapper with ruby red grapefruit.
With its commitment to flavor, presentation and service, Uchi has raised the bar not just for sushi restaurants, but for all restaurants in Central Texas.
Uchi [site]
801 S. Lamar Blvd. [map]
916.4808
For more reviews and information about Uchi, check a few of American-Statesman food critic Dale Rice’s pieces (from which some of the information in this post was culled) on Uchi.
05.24.07: Cole’s Uchi remains as creative as ever
08.24.06: Exquisite flavor, artistry make 5 stars align
05.30.05: Uchi chef is cream of crop
10.23.03: Uchi: Where flavorful, imaginative sushi is on a roll
Others receiving votes: Musashino (19 percent), Sushi Sake (8 percent), Kenichi (7 percent), Kyoto (6 percent), Midori (4 percent), Korea House (4 percent), DK Sushi (4 percent), Umi (4 percent), Maiko (3 percent), Ichiban (3 percent), Maru (3 percent), Zen (2 percent).
Write-ins: Banzai, Beluga, Chon Som, Fujiyama, Ka-Prow, Koreana, Mikado, Odaku, Origami, Peony, Shogun, Sushi Japon, Teriyaki Grill, Tomo.
A personal aside: If you’re buying, I’ll take Uchi, but if it’s coming out of my paycheck, then we’re headed to Musashino, where the fish is just as fresh, the ambience less decadent and the price more reasonable.
Image by Andrew Loehman/ FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
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‘The Bachelor’ recap: Episode 4
Tonight on “The Bachelor,” we can expect some catfighting on a two-on-one date, a romantic helicopter ride and some painful improv comedy on a group date that promises to be an epic beating and terribly unfunny. Oh, and there will be tears; of course there will be tears (we’re looking at you, Hillary) — the connections are becoming very strong, or so we’ll be led to believe. And seeecrets, there will be seeecrets.
And, just to prove that I have been paying (minimal) attention, I predict Jade, McCarten and Stephy all hit the road tonight. I could be wrong. In fact, I hope I am, because heaven forbid I become a reliable prognosticator of “The Bachelor” rose ceremony.
Prince Charming comes sweeping down on the contestants’ compound to take Jenni on a tour of the Los Angeles skyline for the first date. Not surprisingly, the rest of the girls are mad jealous, led by the incomparable Hillary, who is saddened to the point of extreme irrationality as she seethes at the fact that Jenni and Brad have a stronger sexual chemistry than she and the Bachelor. Back in “reality,” Jenni and Brad arrive on a rooftop helipad where they soon learn that they have so much in common, like how this is the first time either of them has ever landed on a roof in a helicopter for a date. Love stories like this don’t come along often. Somebody call Oprah.
Brad and Jenni spend the next hour or so talking about how much they like each other and how much they have wanted to be alone, because, like, they both like each other so much, and how neat is this date? It’s either the first or millionth meta-date in Bachelor history; I really couldn’t tell ya. But how is Jenni expected to eat and have normal dinner conversation with that rose looming so large in the background? The answer: She can’t. Jenni’s obsession with the rose (and her wide-eyed guffawing) eventually make Brad proffer the rose. She accepts, naturally, and I begin to wonder if it is only about the rose for this Jenni girl. I think she doesn’t even care about the guy; it’s all about the rose. Get. The. Rose. Creepy.
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While the two lovebirds make eyes at 500 feet, the other women have started breaking out the claws back at home, with DeAnna and McCarten being the biggest instigators. A feud between the lipstick-on-a-pig redneck from AlaGeorgia, DeAnna, and Jade bubbles to the surface just in time for the ladies to find out that there will be one group date and then a two-on-one date with Jade, DeAnna and Brad. Meow.
For the only group date, Brad takes six of the remaining nine women to Comedy Sportz in Los Angeles where they are expected to get in touch with their funny side. Yeah, funny like a heart attack. The level one improv class posing as a date features Hillary manically trying to outshine all the other women while Kristy struggles with her confidence and has trouble with the games on stage. She eventually breaks down in tears. Kristy tells Brad she is just so nervous because she wants him to know how fun she is … by crying during a comedy workshop. Maybe it’s just reverse psychology. I don’t understand. From what I know of it, improvisation is mostly about committing to choices, and here the only thing to which Kristy commits is being pathetic. Nice choice, lady. At the end of the group date, Bettina gets the rose from Brad, while Hillary does her best Linda Blair impersonation in the background.
How’d you like to go on a date with a boy for whom you swoon and some bitty you hate? Oh, and as an added bonus, either you or the other gal will be sent packing on national television while the other gloats? Such is the fate for DeAnna and Jade, the show’s sworn enemies to this point. Brad takes the two women to a house in Marina Del Rey for a romantic dinner, or as romantic as a third-wheel-date can be. DeAnna goes into hyper-competitive mode as she fights for Brad’s heart. When Womack tells the women he wants to find a wife (duh) and proceeds to ask them questions, DeAnna attempts to heighten at every turn. Jade tells Brad she knows the value of hard work, having started working as a 16 year-old. Oh yeah, DeAnna, interrupts, well, I started working at 14. Oh, snap. And if that wasn’t enough, DeAnna, who seems like a washed-up Southern-fried pageant girl, makes sure Jade can never get the upper hand. I did not get an exact transcription, but the verbal sparring went something along the lines of…
Jade: “I worked for everything I got.”
DeAanna: “Well, I used to have to fight the dogs at night for scraps iffin’ I wanted to eat.”
Jade: “Well, my childhood was anything but perfect…”
DeAnna: “Oh yea? I had to take care of my alcoholic daddy, while my momma, who had leukemia, burned me with matches until I cooked dinner for my eight brothers and sisters, the whole time bein’ pregnant with Uncle Randy’s baby.”
And so on.
Needless to say, DeAnna plays Mike Tyson to Jade’s Michael Spinks, and gets the rose and some one-on-one smoochin’ time in the hot tub at the end of her date. Just like she and her cousin used to do.
Back at the house, the women play pajama party while acting like they all know best the true meaning of love. Poor Bettina, she’s really up against it once she admits to the pack of wolves that she’s been married. Word of advice, Bettina: Giving fellow contestants ammunition on “The Bachelor” is like giving Tom Brady five downs, or teaching my dad how to use text messaging. (Read: Dangerous and unnecessary.)
As always, the women get one last chance to make their case to the Bachelor before the rose ceremony. Mean ol’ nasty McCarten tries to show a soft side, which comes off as completely unbelievable. She confesses that she “doesn’t want to compete for someone; sharing someone is not OK.” Um, you might have wanted to access that part of your brain before applying for a reality dating game show. She goes on to bemoan that the process is “so hard!” No, McCarten, raising two kids as a single parent is hard; training to be an astronaut is hard; reading James Joyce is hard. This is just stupid.
At the end, Sheena, Kristy, Bettina and Hillary get a rose. That means Stephy, McCarten and Jade went home tonight and my prediction was right. Good Lord, I can’t decide if I should be proud or take a body shot of hemlock off of Solisa’s cleavage.
Oh, and by the way, Hillary completely freaks out next week and Bettina throws herself at Brad’s feet.
Care.
For those keeping score at home, or even if you have no idea what I’m talking about, the following is my quick guide to the cuts and carry-overs, an unofficial scorecard if you will.
Episode 1 cuts
I don’t remember any of these women, so I will just give their ABC-propagated bios:
Jessica, 27, a news anchor from Lady Lake, Fla.
Juli, 24, a law student from Chicago, Ill.
Kim, 31, a realtor from Woodbridge, Conn.
Susan, 35, a project analyst from St. Charles, Ill.
Tauni, 31, an ER nurse from St. Louis Park, Minn.
Melissa, 28, an event planner from Westchester, New York
Morgan, 24, a graduate student from Tempe, Ariz.
Natalie, 25, a law student from Duncanville, Texas.
Rigina, 31, an account representative from San Diego, Cali.
Lori, 33, a biology teacher from Annapolis, Maryland
Episode 2 cuts
Mallory - The nanny from Hawaii was too bland too handle.
Michele - The girl nicknamed Jersey Shore fell and hurt herself, but the sympathy ploy did not pay off.
Erin - The girl who recently suffered a broken face must now repair a broken heart.
Episode 3 cuts
Sarah - The bar manager from Illinois was completely thrown off by the twin twist.
Lindsey - The model from Michigan with a brutal accent left in a tearstorm determined to find a husband.
Solisa - The Georgetown aesthetician’s party girl behavior belied her purported moral core.
Episode 4 cuts
McCarten - After starting fights in her final episode, she realized the show was actually a competition.
Jade - The sweet boutique employee from Nashville got TKO’d by the malicious DeAnna.
Stefania - The self-confessed daddy’s girl almost killed the Bachelor with boredom.
Still in the running - in order of most likely to win
Jenni - The Melissa Rivers-Sarah Silverman hybrid has been the front-runner from day one but may need to temper her maniacal cackling.
DeAnna - The maniuplative country girl from AlaGeorgia seems intent to take out the other women, maybe literally.
Bettina - The divorcee is fighting off the snide comments from others while slinging a bit of mud herself.
Kristy - Sweet, boring and constantly trying to ‘come out of her shell,’ the Bachelor seems worried she may be too refined for him.
Sheena - A lack of discernible personality, blind devotion and desperation seem to have kept this one in the running.
Hillary - If she doesn’t have a complete nervous breakdown within the next two episodes, i will eat my hat.
If you just can’t seem to get enough of “The Bachelor,” the following links should satiate your illogical obsession.
ABC’s official Bachelor message board | One Houston woman’s take at thebachelorrecaps.blogspot | Television Without Pity takes on “The Bachelor” | Reality Steve, who works in sports radio is funny and wordy, very wordy | Former contestant Kate Brockhouse even has a blog about the current season | Fans of Reality TV has a forum | TV Gasm’s recaps
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Your A-List: Best Sandwich Shop
The relative newcomer to the Austin sandwich scene was started by Jeff Sinelli, former CEO of Genghis Grill, who decided he was sick and tired of the old guard in sandwich making. The sandwich shops, easily recognizable by their bright yellow colors and futuristic and modern design, started springing up all over Austin over the past couple of years, and now, with eight locations and one at the airport, it seems you can’t swing a french loaf without hitting a shop near you.
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The franchised shops offer over 50 different sandwich varieties, and allow you to mix and match fresh ingredients from their extensive menu to dress your sandwich. To complement the fresh-baked sandwiches, Which Wich? also offers hand-dipped milkshakes and freshly made chips, the perfect side to any handheld lunch. If you have never been to Which Wich? before, you will undoubtedly note the scaled-back ordering process and low cost of the sandwiches. You simply grab a paper bag, fill out with red Sharpie what you want with your sandwich and hand it to a clerk, who then zips it across the line. All the basic sandwiches are offered at one low cost, as well. Different? Sure, but that was the idea Which Wich? founder Sinelli had almost 10 years ago. And, judging by your votes, his tactics have seemed to paid off.
Which Wich? [site]
Multiple locations
Others receiving votes: Thundercloud (18 percent), Texadelphia (6 percent), Jimmy John’s (6 percent), Schlotzsky’s (6 percent), Hog Island Deli (5 percent), Kitchen Door (4 percent), New World Deli (3 percent), Azul (2 percent), Texas French Bread (2 percent), Upper Crust Bakery (2 percent), PK Grocery (2 percent), Sweetish Hill (2 percent), Cissi’s Market (<1 percent), Texas Picnic Co. (<1 percent).
Write-ins: Avenue B Grocery, Bella Donna Subs, Chantilly Bakery, Clarksville Fresh Plus, Delaware Subs, Firehouse Subs, Foodheads, Grape Vine Market, Hoody’s, Jason’s Deli, Jersey Mike’s, Kevin’s Cookies and Deli, Little Deli, Portabla, The Sandwich Joint, Subway, Whip In, Whole Foods
A personal aside: I eat more sandwiches than anyone I know. Always have. So this is a tough call for me. Therefore, I will break down just a few of my favorites: The Vietnamese pork sandiwch from Tam Deli; the chicken salad from Portabla; the tuna sandwich from Cissi’s; shawarma from Phoenicia Bakery; hot pastrami from Foodheads; anything my heart desires from Whole Foods; the apricot chicken salad from Central Market South; the reuben from New World Deli; the braesola from PK Grocery; the veggie sandwich at Azul. The list goes on and on.
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Your A-List: Best Running Trail
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Whether you are an avid runner or a casual loafer, it is hard to beat the beauty of the trail that rests in the heart of town. Easily accessible from various points, the trail offers an idyllic retreat from the surrounding metropolitan environment, and with a host of primitive trails off the main arteries, it offers a chance for people to scurry off into more rugged terrain, literally off the beaten path.
Others receiving votes: Barton Creek Greenbelt (6 percent), Pease Park (3 percent), Enchanted Rock State Nature Area (1 percent), Bastrop State Park (1 percent), Palo Duro Canyon State Park (1 percent), Walnut Creek Park (<1 percent), Lake Georgetown (<1 percent), McKinney Falls State Park (<1 percent), McKinney Roughs (<1 percent), Pedernales Falls State Park (<1 percent), St. Edward’s Park (<1 percent), Guadalupe Mountains National Park (<1 percent), Inks Lake State Park (<1 percent), Buescher State Park (<1 percent), Bluff Creek Ranch (<1 percent), Rocky Hill Ranch (<1 percent).
(Image by Ralph Barrera/AMERICAN-STATESMAN)
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Ghostland Observatory to play Conan O’Brien
Today, I had lunch with Aaron Behrens, who told me the band is “extremely pumped” to get the opportunity to share their music with an even larger audience. With two records under their belt and a growing fanbase that extends from Seattle and London and beyond, Ghostland, whose ACL Fest set drew rave reviews from critics, is excited to release their latest album early in 2008, many tracks of which the band is now playing in its myriad live shows across the country.
The gig on O’Brien’s show will be Ghostland’s first national television appearance, although the band has already done a taping for “Austin City Limits”, which will be released on DVD in the coming months and air in December. You can expect to hear the duo’s radio/internet hit “Sad, Sad City” on Tuesday night.
Ghostland Observatory is scheduled to appear Oct. 16 on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.” The show airs at 11:35 p.m. on NBC.
Check out our photo gallery of Ghostland Observatory
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‘The Bachelor’ recap: Episode three
Tonight on “The Bachelor” we should be prepared for Hillary going waterworks; Bettina nervously admitting she’d been married; a circus (as always); a twin-twist; and Solisa doing her best stripper impersonation. And hopefully the Cowboys and Yankees losing on the same night. Sounds like good times.
The first group date, fittingly, takes place at a circus. The girls get to go out onto the floor of the arena and practice walking tight-ropes and balancing on balls. They end up looking like the thousands of drunk women Womack has had to watch stumble out of the Chuggin’ Monkey over the years. Hopefully he didn’t suffer from any severe flashbacks.
Jenni and Brad are both astounded at the depth of their connection and both confess to not having words to describe their feelings. I think I’m gonna get these two a thesaurus as their wedding present. Jenni, not afraid to take things extremely fast, asks Brad if he’d be OK doing the long distance thing for a year, as she really wants to commit to the Phoenix Suns dance squad for the 2007 season. Obviously, she thinks this is finally gonna be the year for Steve Nash and the boys. I realize she wants to let him know of her level of interest, but that seems a bit much. Not to be outdone, Stefi does some emotional dry-heaving when she talks about how she wants her husband to be just like her daddy, cause she respects him so much. If this is how she acts with every boy she’s known for a week, it is no wonder she has not had a date in 5 years. Word must have gotten out.
For the first group date, Womack ushers the contestants into a luxury suite at the circus. From the ladies’ responses to the streamers and amenities in the luxury box, you would have thought they had just been told that a basket of kittens had just been elected president of their sorority. The ladies and Brad then go down to celebrate in theater of the absurd, replete with ringmaster and clowns, as they are brought out under the big top to a crowd that is more than likely a little stunned. I can’t imagine how those conversations with children and their parents at the circus must have gone. “Mommy, who is that man in a suit, and why does he have six women with vacant stares following him like puppies?” They could have at least eased the shock by bringing all seven of them out in one tiny car. Near the end of the circus, Brad gives Stefi a rose for being honest and emotionally available. Nice move, but I think his kindness may eventually bite him in the butt. To be continued, let’s just say.
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Following the circus, Hillary gets the one-on-one date with Brad, in which they plan to jet off to San Francisco for a private dinner and some ice cream sundae-making at the Ghirardelli factory. Just like any first date. Much to the dismay of the other girls, Hillary also receives $1 million of rented jewels. I don’t know if the oven had been left on or what, but the rest of the women temporarily lose their minds and act like the jewelry is an engagement gift from Brad. I assume they’ve never seen the show before. Apparently he chose Hillary because she always makes him laugh. Never one to bow to stereotypes, apparently, Hillary quickly flips the tables on Brad once they arrive at dinner in San Francisco and starts the waterworks after confessing to him that even if she gets sent home, she is so happy to realize that there are good men in the world and true love really does exist. I mean, we are talking severe emotional problems here, folks. Once again, though, Brad cuts through the thick scent of Eau de Desperation which Hillary is wearing so thickly and shows pity for the emotional basketcase and gives her a rose. He really does seem to be a nice guy, but I am worried. The longer he keeps from sending any of these fantasizing women home, the harder the earthquake will be when that second shoe inevitably falls for them. Let’s just remember later that I called this.
After his return from dramaville with Hillary, Brad goes out on a sailing date with the remaining women. Let’s just rapid-fire through this thing: He finds a connection with Kristy; Solisa shakes her butt for Brad with a lap dance, about which she says, “It is the only thing I know how to do.”
A quick aside regarding Solisa. It was recently brought to my attention that she actually auditioned, and made the first cut, for American Idol back in 2002. Call me jaded, but auditioning for two of America’s top reality shows in a five-year period certainly seems like a desperate grab for her 15 minutes of fame. Maybe if she doesn’t win this one, she can apply for “Age of Love” in a few years. Finally, Sheena almost gets arrested for wreckless operation of a small watercraft. Bettina confuses the hell out of Brad by admitting she has been divorced. Someone gets a rose. Everyone else hates her. I love how the producers constantly have Brad handing out roses in front of all the other women. Thet jealousy, insecurity and hate is palpable.
For the final bit of (allegedly) compelling television, Brad’s identical twin Chad is brought in to test the women. Brad apparently wants to make sure the women are falling for him and not just someone who looks like him, or, probably more likely, jumping at the chance to stay on a TV show for as long as possible. Not much comes out of this. A few of the girls never uncover that Chad is not Brad, while some realize it immediately. Nothing too revelatory, to be honest. Kinda seems like a weird “Days of Our Lives” episode. Sure, some of them should know right away that Chad is not Brad, but I don’t really care one way or another and I need to wrap this thing up.
The rose ceremony follows the twin chicanery. Brad says goodbye to Sarah, one of the few completely thrown off by the twin twist; Lindsey leaves and says she will not sit there and cry about something that wasn’t there. She then walks off crying and returns to cry on camera and delivers a weird soliloquy about how hard she has looked for a man, and how she wants to be married and have kids. Even the snarkiest of bloggers has to feel for this kind of emotional distress. Last, but certainly not least, Solisa departs, saying that she got booted even though she “wears her special parts on the outside.” Indeed. Well, Solisa, there’s always the chance of finding reality fame on “The Real Housewives of Williamson County” in a few years.
In happier news, the Yankees lost. Sadly, the same can not be said for the Cowboys.
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Your A-List: Best Pizza
The story of Mangia pizza dates back more than 30 years, to when eventual owner Jeff Sayers spent six weeks in OSHA training in Chicago. Sayers’ time in the Windy City eating amazing deep-dish pies planted a seed in his head, and he decided that Austin needed its own pizza joint that served pizzas in the classic Chicago style.
After developing ideas for his new business, Sayers returned to Chicago in 1985 to learn the ropes firsthand. After three years, with newfound knowledge under his belt, Sayers returned to Austin, and, as they say, the rest is history.
Mangia opened for business at 1610 San Antonio St. in November 1988. The signature Godzilla, for which the store is widely known, was inspired by the epic tattoo of then-neighbor Jim ‘Prince’ Hughes, owner of Atomic City. The Mangia owners felt that the massive, mythic creature was the perfect symbol for their famous overstuffed pizza, once known as the ‘Zilla and now known as the Mangia Mia, according to co-owner Mark Negro.
In January of 1992, Mangia moved to its location on Anderson and has since opened four more locations, including its most visible on Guadalupe Street, and a spot in Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Negro says that each restaurant relies heavily on a business clientele during lunch hours, with students accounting for the bulk of dinner customers at the Guadalupe location and families frequenting the other locations at night.
Although the restaurants have added greatly to their menus over the past 15 years, the place will always be known for its deep, stuffed pizzas, which can often take newcomers by surprise.
Watching individuals or families work their way through the task of finishing a Mangia pie is a fun part of the dining experience. But most plates go back empty.
Negro, a former Hilton hotels executive who joined the Mangia team in 1998, says the secret to Mangia’s success and staying power is the quality ingredients used in their products.
“The key is, we use great ingredients, and we don’t sacrifice quality. It all starts with the basics, and we use premium products,” Negro told me.
Mangia execs admit that they give careful consideration to expansion but acknowledge that the heart and soul of the restaurant is in Austin.
“Austin’s been real good to us,” Negro said.
And you to them.
Mangia Pizza [site]
(Hours vary by location)
Others receiving votes: Austin’s Pizza (20 percent), Home Slice (14 percent), Saccone’s (7 percent), Conan’s (7 percent), East Side Pies (4 percent), South Austin Flying Pizza (3 percent), Rounders (3 percent), Salvation Pizza (2 percent), The Onion (2 percent), Whole Foods (1 percent), Cippolina (1 percent), Slices ‘n’ Ices (1 percent), The Parlour (1 percent), and Enoteca (1 percent).
Write-ins: Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar, Austin Pizza Garden, Baris, Brick Oven, Brooklyn Pie Co., Craig-O’s, Domino’s, Double Dave’s, Frank and Angie’s, It’s Italian, Lamp Post Pizza, Mandola’s, Mellow Mushroom, Milto’s, Papa Murphy’s, Pizza Nizza, Reale’s, Rockin’ Tomato Pizza, Rome’s, Rudino’s, Uno’s, Yaghi’s
A personal aside: For my money, there’s no beating Salvation Pizza. Co-owner Liz Mahoney, a former manager at Starlite, grew up in Connecticut and learned the pizza business first-hand from her parents, who run one of the state’s finest pizza joints. She brought that knowledge of how to make crunchy and delicious Napolitano-style pizza to 624 W. 34th St., and for that, I am very grateful.
Image taken from Mangiapizza.com.
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Your A-List: Best Hotel
With a main building constructed more than 120 years ago, the Driskill stands as an architectural beacon in the heart of downtown Austin, its opulent bars, banquet rooms and restaurant a luxurious oasis set in an urban environment.
From the collonaded lobby to the stained-glass dome ceiling, the Driskill is the epitome of old-school Texas charm and decadence. The elegant setting extends from the common areas to each of the rooms, which feature original art and ornate beds.
As for dining, it is hard to find much better than the Driskill Grill, and the more casual 1886 Cafe & Bakery, which play host to hotel guests and Austinites alike. And during one of any of our many festivals here in town, whether it be SXSW or the Austin Film Fest, it is highly likely you might be sharing bar space with an international celebrity as he or she sips on a martini in the cavernous yet comfortable bar.
Whether you want to get away for a weekend or just a couple of hours, it is obvious that the Driskill is at the top of your list for an urban retreat.
The Driskill Hotel [site]
604 Brazos St. [map]
Others receiving votes: Hotel San Jose (23 percent), InterContinental Stephen F. Austin (16 percent), Four Seasons (15 percent), Hyatt Lost Pines Resort (4 percent), Hilton Austin (4 percent), South Austin Motel (4 percent), Omni Austin Downtown (4 percent), Renaissance Austin (3 percent), Lakeway Resort & Spa (2 percent), Horseshoe Bay Resort Marriott (2 percent), and Sheraton Austin (<1 percent).
Write-ins: Austin Motel, Barton Creek Resort, Embassy Suites-South, Mansion at Judges’ Hill
A personal aside: Rarely am I lucky enough to actually stay in a hotel in Austin, but I often enjoy a meal, a drink or an event at many hotels in town. It’s hard to beat the Driskill Bar during Austin Film Festival, or a drink on the patio at the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin, or a cocktail by the pool at the Hotel San Jose in the evening. And the views and service at the Four Seasons are incomparable. So I’ll just mark this one down as a four-way tie on my personal scorecard.
Image taken from Driskillhotel.com.
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‘The Bachelor’ recap: Episode 2
“The Bachelor” recaps: Now with 18 percent more oblique references.
With the most exciting team in the AFC playing on Monday Night Football and only the seventh one-game playoff in MLB history both taking place on Monday night, if ever there was a time for me to invest in a DVR, it would be now. Alas, I will rely on my unparalleled flipping ability to get it all in. But if I accidentally call the Bachelor Jake Peavy or refer to one of the contestants as Brady, I hope you will all understand. My friends certainly won’t.
Tonight promises a race for the Bachelor’s heart and the sexiest Bachelor date ever. I find that a little hard to believe, and I’ve only seen one season. The first group date finds Womack taking a group of ladies to the Del Mar racetrack. What follows is a bunch of ridiculous vamping for the camera as the future ladies of the Red Hat Society cheer on horses that have already been bet for them. And not one, “Come on, Dover…come on, Dover….” Needless to say, boo.
Back at the mansion, into which the remaining 15 have moved, the next ‘date box’ shows up, greeted by more squealing and theatrics than a Backstreet Boys concert. The remaining ladies are informed that their group date will involve a trip to Malibu for some hot fun in the sun. Michelle gets pumped that the girls are going to get to show off their tans. But she gets a little too excited and goes Gus Frerotte, falling down a flight of stairs in preparation for the date. As the ambulance appears and the others look on in mock terror, it appears the girl from Jersey may be trying to take a page out of Salty Dog Bevin’s playbook from last season. Good luck with that, Jersey.
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Hillary meanwhile is doing her mathematical best, I imagine, at the track to convince Womack how much she likes him. On a scale of 1 to 10, she says, she’d give him an 11 1/2. Really, Hillary? If you’re gonna break the rule of the rating system, wouldn’t it have been smarter to tell him he was a 100? Or would that be too unbelievable, I guess? Eleven-and-a-half still seems plausible, right? Like you really, really mean it. And, since when did they start letting 7th graders on shows like this? Jade watches the Bachelor’s one-on-one date with binoculars and has already begun to perfect the Evil Eye.
As a bit of a departure from the norm, we have a celebrity (of sorts) cameo, as Shaun Phillips, linebacker for the 1-3 San Diego Chargers enters the suite. Maybe he was a runner-up for “The Bachelor” and they threw him a bone. Honestly, I have no idea. Apparently he was in the suite next door and just popped over. Even more surprisingly, McCarten seemed to recognize the second-alternate to the AFC Pro Bowl squad in 2006. Weird. Not as weird, five of the girls slipped him their phone numbers on his way out of the box. Maybe McCarten should stick to being a football groupie, and hope they have lower standards than Womack, because, in a two second departure form reality, she made a horrific attempt at a kiss when she got the Bachelor alone. It was as if she had no sense of timing or energy or chemistry and just decided she would force some intimacy on the dude when he least expected it. To his credit, Womack joked about the unsmooth move later and said that he hoped the next kiss was better. Oh, snap, someone call a slambulance for McCarten.
Womack ends up giving his “first impression rose” to DeAnna, who is busy doing her best to drive home the Georgia connection and prove she is a nice girl, if a little shy. Yawn. More Evil Eye from Jade and Alex Forrest from Hillary. I predict disconcerting and scary behavior from her.
Womack approaches the second group date a little concerned that the next group of girls will have much to live up to. Fear not, my friend. Seven twenty-somethings with hot bods in bikinis to the rescue. Tragedy narrowly averted.
Sheena admits what all the other girls are thinking when she says that although they are not happy Michele is hurt, it is one less person in the competition. Ah, you can always rely on reality television to bring out the best in people. Womack, who, when told of the injury initially seemed to have trouble remembering which one Michele was, heads out on the patio for some quick consolation. He tells her that he thinks she’s tough, and that’s sexy. Concussion worth it.
The second date devolves into body shots and tales of ‘craziest thing you’ve ever done’ rather quickly. Solisa, the girl from Georgetown (TX), confesses that she really wants Brad to see that she’s a free spirit. And that said free spirit rests in a body that sports a D-cup, apparently. She lays on a table and has the bartender from Austin do a body-shot off her. Thanks to some genius editing by the crack staff of “The Bachelor,” we then cut to her professing to Womack her love for Jesus and the fact that she is a woman of high moral standards. Brad seems a little skeptical (kudos, again, Brad) and then we cut to Solisa jumping out of a hottub and running topless into the ocean. Just like they teach in Sunday school.
During the date, Stephi tries to uncover whether Brad prefers shy or outgoing types. She hedges her bets by being quiet for part of the date and then, as the ying to that yang, offers the Bachelor a body-shot. Jenni spends some alone time with Womack and gets a kiss from him (then cackles like she just beat Chief in a game of one-on-one, but does not walk out of the date with the “first impression rose.” That goes to Sarah, whom Lindsey is quite certain must be fake. That’s pretty rich coming from a model.
With the two group dates in the books, it’s last-ditch-effort time for the women as they try to convince Brad they are worth keeping around. In a bit of extreme privacy invasion (I know, they are on T.V., how ironic) Jade and some of the girls have dug through Jenni’s bag and discovered she brought her modeling portfolio with her. This leads to amazing histrionics and ethical posturing by the women who feel Jenni is just on the show to further her career. Jade decides to talk to Brad because she “really wants him to know” that some girls may have ulterior motives. In fact, she wants him to know so badly, she doesn’t even explain about whom she is speaking. And the winner for Most Passive Aggressive goes to Jade. Meanwhile, the winner for first to shed tears goes to Phoenix Suns cheerleader Jenni, who has overheard the catty remarks about her and is shocked and in disbelief. Would she really have brought a portfolio on this show just to further her careeer, when she could just deal with getting her 15 minutes once the show airs? Possible things at play here: A) She is the dumbest cheerleader of all time. B) She is a victim of character assassination. C) Who cares? D) Not me.
Michele from Jersey is sitting wounded out on the veranda hoping to convince Brad that, although she did not get a date with him, and he might not even know her name, she is really a good girl and worth keeping around. Michele confesses that, despite being 30, she does not want kids right away (maybe in 9 months) and that she wants to use her time to travel. And pay off her student loans. What? That’s supposed to be attractive? I mean goals and fiscal responsibility are nice and all, but couldn’t she have told a better story. Poor girl really had her feet put to the fire. She basically has to give him her resume and life-story in about four uncomfortable minutes. It must have felt like her interview at Hooter’s.
In a very telling moment later, Mallory admits to Brad that her dream date would include him feeding her potatoes and fruit in bed for breakfast, followed by watercoloring and reading. Is she from the retirement colony part of Hawaii? Isn’t that called Florida? What am I missing here? Womack asks if her dream scenario involves work, and she blanches at the question like a 3-year-old who just tried buttermilk for the first time. Well, this ol’ Georgia boy really is a self-made boot-strapper, asking if work is involved in a dream date scenario. But, I gotta hand it to him, he seems to be doing a decent job of weeding out those who don’t meet his criteria.
Not surprisingly, Mallory and her idea of a septagenarian dream date, along with Michele and her broken — whatever she hurt…allegedly! — and Erin, the girl who recently suffered a broken face, all got sent packing. Poor Erin, she said that the show, er, journey had really restored her faith in relationships. Reality television, you can’t write this stuff.
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