The Good, The Bad, and The Country

In the small world of country’s New Traditionalism, George Strait and Steve Earle still manage to be worlds apart.

by John Morthland

Good-bye, Kenny Rogers, Hello, Wagoneers

When it’s hot, it’s hot! And country music is hot tonight at your nearest dance hall, beer joint, or record store.

by Nick Tosches

The Fall of Country/The Rise of Country

As Nashville pandered to the lowest common denominator, Texans found a new audience hungry for old traditions.

by Joe Nick Patoski

One Brick Shy of a Load

Not your run-of-the-mill pickers and singers, these performers are determined to carve out new territory.

by Joe Nick Patoski

Worked to Death

The allure of Galveston Bay is not natural beauty but the determination of nature to survive ugliness.

by Stephen Harrigan

It’s the Way We’ve Always Done It, Sir

How the Pentagon really works, as told by a Texan who tried to make it work a little differently.

by Chase Untermeyer

Tempest in a Taco

Taco Cabana pioneered patio dining—a winning formula of Tex-Mex food and margaritas in the open air. When competitor Two Pesos introduced its look-alike layout, the lawsuits started to fly.

by Bill Crawford

Texas Primer: Football Hand Signals

From “Hook ‘em, Horns” to “Peck ‘em, Owls,” the Southwest Conference is football’s most hospitable habitat for hand jive.

by Paul Burka

Behind the Lines

To Preach or Teach?

by Gregory Curtis

Food

Nights of Wine and Roses

Thanks to adventurous chef Michel Bernard Platz, the flowers at Dallas’ L’Entrecôte are as likely to be on the menu as in a vase.

by Alison Cook

Books

The Old West, the New South

In Anything for Billy, Larry McMurtry trounces the Western myth; Frederick Barthelme, in Two Against One, casts a cold eye on a self-desdtructing marriage.

by Suzanne Winckler

Health

Medicine and Miracles

After learning that he had cancer, the author began a search for a cure that took him far beyond medical expertise.

by John Henry Faulk

Reporter

Texas Monthly Reporter

Corpus Christi learns to grow through adversity; Houston gives Percy Foreman a rousing send-off; Austin ponders the mystery of the misappearing shoes.

by Alison Cook

Roar of the Crowd

Battling a ferocious foe.

State Secrets

It’s beef against chicken in the war of weights.

by Patricia Kilday Hart

Specialty of the House

Culinary secrets revealed: You know that famous dish that your best friend always fixes? Well, we raided the kitchen and found the recipe.

Crawfish Etouffee

Peach Ice Cream

Watermelon Pickle

Vegetable Pie

Recipe from “Specialty of the House”

Orange Pancakes

Smoked and Grilled Shrimp

Clay-Pot Orange Duckling

Two-Tone Chili

Quick Cuisine: After the Hunt

A bird in the pan is worth two in the bush, especially when it’s quail.

by Ann Clark

Split Quail With Juniper Berries and Gin

Red Cabbage With Texas Goat Cheese and Chives

Warm Caramel Pears

A Grand Finale

Gingered Rice Pudding