Names: Porter’s City Tavern & Frazier’s Bistro
Location: Raleigh, North Carolina
Ratings: 4 and 4.5 stars, respectively

I wouldn’t say I was devoted to the husband and wife team behind Porter’s and Frazier’s… but numbers don’t lie. Apparently, I’ve been to Frazier’s twice in the last year, and to Porter’s at least three times more. That’s a lot of dining dollars, and once you’ve had the opportunity to visit one of these establishments, you’ll understand why I’ve continued to return in the face of so many other dining options.

Kevin and Stacy Jennings started Frazier’s in 1998, and it has perpetually been on the list of local foodie haunts. Following their success, they opened Porter’s practically next-door in 2003. They recently left the comforts of Hillsborough street for North Hills with their new upscale-Italian establishment, Vivace, which I will review at a later date. (more…)

Argyle Pinot Noir Willamette Valley (Oregon). Usually easy to find and always a delight to drink. Typically smooth with great fruit presence that pairs well with food or drinkable on its own. (If you’re in one of the 21 states that allows you to purchase wine directly from out-of-state wineries, buy the Willamette Valley Pinot for $20 a bottle.)

Saintsbury Pinot Noir Carneros Garnet (California). Typically creamier and spicier than the Argyle, the Saintsbury Garnets tend to be a “larger” wine but nicely balanced as well. Visit the Saintsbury Winery for more information.

There was a time when merlot was HOT! Everybody was drinking it. Then, practically overnight, vintners chasing the hype veered dramatically from the true nature of the varietal, creating watered-down, limp versions of arguably one of the world’s greatest grapes. Merlot has since taken a beating. After a one-two punch from the wine-snob community in the late 90s and early 00s, merlot was just getting to its feet when along came a bruiser named “Sideways” that gave it smack so hard, merlot’s mama felt it. Is merlot down for the count? I hosted a party recently with the intention of finding out…

Why so much vitriol for a grape that makes up some of the most expensive and sought-after wines in the world? I have steered away from merlot because many of the bottles I’ve sampled in my preferred $10-15 price range have been nearly devoid of personality. My hope was a bakers-dozen of merlots would reveal whether my choices have just been unlucky, or if merlot really is something to avoid. My party guests had instructions to bring a bottle of merlot, although some brought more than one. A couple of zingers were present in the collection, including one bottle from Napa that retailed at nearly $60, one bottle that retails for only $7, and one box wine disguised as a normal bottle (an empty in the recycling bin was cleaned thoroughly and filled with the box wine). (more…)

Having trouble figuring out what to have for dinner? Break the meal into three parts: meat, starch, vegetable.

Usually I have one of each on hand, either fresh or frozen. I keep several meats (e.g. chicken breasts, pork tenderloin, fish fillets, etc) in the freezer along with frozen veggies for just these types of instances.

For example, make the starch (e.g. couscous - cooks in 5 minutes!), saute a chicken breast, steam some frozen broccoli with a sliver of butter and salt and a tablespoon of H20 in a covered bowl in the microwave, and make a quick pan sauce out of the drippings from the chicken using broth or wine.

Place the chicken on the couscous, cover with the pan sauce, put the broccoli on the side, and voila - a quick, easy, vaguely-fancy weeknight meal that didn’t require a trip to the grocery store!

Medical science recommends one-to-two glasses of wine each day for heart health… ain’t science great? While I love high quality, expensive wines as much as the next foodie, I can’t responsibly drop $30+ on a bottle of “weeknight” wine. Instead, I seek out inexpensive but appealing wines that I can open whenever I feel like it, and not worry about obsessing over the nose, the pairing, or whether all of it will get consumed before it starts to loose its flavor in a day or two.

I’ve listed below five wines that are very good, even excellent, but at a cost structure that makes them amenable to opening on an ordinary night. Most wine stores will offer a discount on purchases of a case of wine, which is twelve identical bottles. Some grocery stores even offer discounts on purchases of six bottles. A reasonably priced wine can become downright cheap when purchased by the case and discounted by 5-20%. Even if you can’t readily find the wines I list below, I encourage you to randomly try some inexpensive wines and make note of those you particularly like. I find the best places for this experimentation are at local wine shops, as they usually offer free tastings on weekends. If I find a wine I like, I’ll buy a bottle, try it out, and if I like it enough, I might go back and buy a case to get a discount. That way, I can have them convenient to – ahem – “keep my heart healthy.” (more…)

Name: Spice Street
Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Rating: 2 and ½ stars

I really wanted to like Spice Street. Perhaps because it has such great ambiance; perhaps because it is one of Giorgios Bakatsias’s restaurants which are usually excellent; perhaps because I like cooking with a lot of spices and the name speaks to me. Regardless, I had high hopes and left disappointed. (more…)