If reducing your carbon footprint by eating more organic and local food has popped up on a resolution list, here’s a way to usher in the new year in a more sustainable, but still delicious way. Gruet champagnes are made next door in New Mexico outside of Albuquerque by
A correspondent writes:What is this nonsense that when someone dies and he has done you dirt, you suddenly are expected to pretend to be sad not to have to deal with him? It’s pure hypocrisy, and particularly annoying that it’s held up as some sort of virtue. Certainly we feel
I am sad to report that a close friend of Ric Williamson called to say that the chairman of the Texas Transportation Commission and the person who envisioned, created, and defended the Trans-Texas Corridor, died overnight of a major heart attack. The friend has been in touch with the family.This
This is the sort of things one does at the end of the year. Readers are invited to submit their own lists, or partial lists, in the comments. I’m sure they will need no encouragement to criticize mine. Happy New Year to all.1. Speaker Tom Craddick rules that House members
Here’s the word: Pfannekuchen. Well, actually, three words: Munchener Apfel Pfannekuchen. German apple puffed pancakes. They reach their apex at the Mangnolia Pancake Haus in San Antonio. Dark and toasty brown, these monsters spill off the plate. They’re not fluffy, like American pancakes; they remind me more
So says the New York Times in an article on how the housing slump has affected normally fast-growing states. California may hold at 53 seats, probably the first time since the Gold Rush that the state hasn’t gained in representation. Florida’s growth has slowed–only 35,000 arrivals om 2007, one-fifth
APPLE MEETS GINGER.GOLDEN CRESCENT ENFOLDS THEM.CAN’T TALK WITH MOUTH FULL.Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, Austin
I have been a holdout against the prevailing belief that Tom Craddick does not have the votes to be reelected as speaker and can’t get them. The outcome of the special election in District 97 has caused me to change my mind. Craddick has himself become an issue, and that
Note to Readers: Please note that I have updated my response to the first of a series of six criticisms, below, that Allen Fletcher made of Corbin Van Arsdale’s voting record.Senator Patrick has thrown his support to Allen Fletcher, who is challenging incumbent Corbin Van Arsdale in the Republican primary
The RPT’s statement relies on an article in today’s Midland Reporter Telegram that Smith recruited Midland City Councilman Bill Dingus to run against Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick. The article was erroneous. The Reporter-Telegram will run a retraction. The retraction and all communications between Smith and the newspaper can be
House Republican caucus chair Frank Corte has called out his Democratic counterpart, Jim Dunnam, for the statement Dunnam issued in reaction to attorney general Greg Abbott’s ruling on issues concerning the powers and immunities of the Speaker of the House. Here is Dunnam’s statement of December 14:“No one should be
This e-mail from the Fort Worth Star Telegram’s Bud Kennedy contains his cogent analysis of the Barrett-Shelton race. It is great fun to pontificate from Austin, but every once in a while it is nice to hear from people who actually know something.Hi Paul,I see many comments about Dan Barrett’s
“When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” Or in this case, take your spoon over to the new Yogo Berry on South Congress. Fans of tangy frozen yogurt of the cult Pinkberry (now highlighted in the AMEX Plum ads) will understand the allure of this no-fat
This is breaking news: Check it out on Evan Smith’s blog, State of Mine.
The victory by Dan Barrett in the District 97 runoff is astonishing. This is a solid Republican district. Barrett went into the runoff with a 1,558 vote lead over Mark Shelton. The other five Republicans had amassed 7,886 votes between them. If both candidates held onto their votes from the
A lot has been happening, and I haven’t blogged about any of it: Barrett’s amazing win, Abbott’s opinion, the crazy State Board of Education. The reason is that I have been writing a feature story on a tight pre-Christmas deadline for the February issue. I turned it in last night.
Here’s to the really thin, crusty pizza like the one with (yum) tomato, pecorino cheese, spinach, mozzarella, truffle oil and a soft-cooked egg at Sagra. This is the cool little trattoria and enoteca that opened up in Mars’ old location at 1610 San Antonio, in Austin (512-535-5988). It’s pretty
Tom Craddick was in El Paso recently, and apparently he found a challenger for Pat Haggerty. Two sources, one R, one D, say that Dee Margo, who lost a Senate race to Eliot Shapleigh, will take on Haggerty. (Margo told me earlier in the fall that he would not run.)
Now, I am not one to claim that dance halls are fine dining establishments, but they are part of what makes a holiday ring true for this Texan. Somehow I always seem to make my way to a honky tonk over the holidays, even if
Suddenly there is a lot of chatter that the AG will issue his opinion on issues related to Speaker Craddick’s claim of absolute power before the end of the year. The chatterers seem to think that Abbott will pour Craddick out on the issue of whether the speaker is an
The CPPP article by Dick Lavine can be found here.Here is an excerpt from the introduction:Recently, some have proposed that Texas replace local school property taxes by increasing the rate of the state sales tax or expanding the sales tax to more goods and services. Such a tax
Let me just say the cover makes me salivate. The huge Akaushi ribeye with its perfect marbling just makes me want to throw the cover on the grill and sear it. However, that would cause more problems than I want and a possible trip to the ER.Now I like steak
When Rudy Giuliani appeared on Meet the Press last Sunday, host Tim Russert asked the former New York mayor if he favored a proposal to increase the fuel efficiency of automobiles. Here was their exchange:MR. RUSSERT: Congress–the House has passed an energy bill which would mandate 35 miles per gallon
Tre Wilcox–the personable guy who was on Top Chef last season–is leaving Abacus, in Dallas, at the end of the year. I tracked him down in the kitchen there; you could hear the pots and pans clanking around. He says he’s got more opportunities than he can shake
As a tepid Giuliani supporter–before the interview–I thought his appearance Sunday morning on Meet the Press rated somewhere between underwhelming and appalling. Tim Russert really hammered him on his political and business associations, and it was not a pretty sight to behold. Giuliani came across as the closest thing to
I don’t know how many readers look at readers’ comments to postings, so I’m going to republish a couple of comments concerning my post about the selection of Elsa Murano as the sole finalist for president of Texas A&M. As I said in that post, Aggie sources told me that
Good news and bad news out of College Station today. Elsa Murano is a good choice as the sole finalist for president. She was brought in by Bob Gates to be dean of the College of Agriculture and to shake up the “good ol’ boy” system in the College. And
Paul’s on the road and I’ve been sleeping in my office so we’re a little late in posting that the new president of A&M is indeed Dr. Elsa Murano, current vice chancellor and dean of agriculture and life sciences. Luckily, our readers were kind enough to inform us in the
Yikes! I worked all night on a post about the Phil King proposal to eliminate school property taxes and replace them with an expanded sales tax, and the blogger software, which is supposed to save automatically, didn’t save any of it except the headline. Trying again:King made this case in
I just checked the Bryan-College Station Eagle Web site, and there is no news about the presidential search committee following the first day of a two-day meeting of the Board of Regents. Doug Slack, chair of the presidential selection committee, was scheduled to meet with the regents in executive session.
Huckabee 21%Giuliani 18%Romney 12%Thompson 11%McCain 11%Paul 8%That Huckabee and Paul cumulatively have virtually the same degree of support as Giuliani and Romney tells you how schizophrenic the Republican Party is these days.
The D’s are optimistic that Dan Barrett can defeat Republican Mark Shelton in the December 18 runoff to serve the remainder of Anna Mowery’s unexpired term. I think that the optimism is unwarranted. Although Barrett led Shelton by 1,526 votes, he actually polled below expectations.In 2006, Mowery defeated Barrett by
Stratfor is a private intelligence service based in Washington and Austin. From time to time, a friend e-mails me their assessments, which invariably are well written and insightful. Here is Stratfor’s take on the astonishing turnaround in U.S. intelligence assessment of Iran’s nuclear weapons program:There are only two reasons the
It could have an effect in a Republican primary race for governor. First, it’s never good to get beat, and having to withdraw to avoid the embarrassment of a defeat is getting beat. Maybe that will be forgotten by March 2010, but the other problem is that one reason she
The daily Rasmussen presidential tracking poll shows that Huckabee has zoomed past Giuliani to lead the Republican field. On the eve of the Republican YouTube debate, this is how the GOP leaders stood:Giuliani 27%Romney 14%McCain 14%Huckabee 12%Thompson 10%The Huck’s performance in the debate turned the standings upside down.
The embattled A&M Board of Regents will meet this week, according to a posting on the Texas A&M System’s Web site. Presidential selection is on the agenda:The Board of Regents of The Texas A&M University System will meet Thursday and Friday, Dec. 6-7, in the board meeting room
Roll Call, a Capitol Hill newspaper, has breaking news:HUTCHISON TO DROP OUT OF RACESen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (Texas) begun telling her colleagues Tuesday morning that she will not run for Republican Conference chairman when the position comes up for a vote Thursday morning, according to sources. Her decision — which
In the “You Heard It Here First” department, I just want to say that fabulous Texas-raised Akaushi beef (see our cover story) is taking off. Chef Rebecca Rather is serving Akaushi sliders at her new restaurant in Fredericksburg, Rebecca’s Table. She reports the mini-burgers are selling like hotcakes.
Everybody in the serious news business wrings their hands over the blurring of the line between news and entertainment–I’ve been known to do it myself–but I loved the Republican YouTube Debate for exactly that reason. Blurring the line? Obliterated was more like it. For better or worse, that was America
A review of Vineyard Cuisine: Meals & Memories from Messina Hof.
Recipe from Eddie V’s Edgewater Grille, Austin.
Recipe from Eddie V’s Edgewater Grille, Austin.
Recipe from Strip House, Houston.
Recipe from Strip House, Houston.
Recipe from Perini Ranch Steakhouse, Buffalo Gap.
Recipe from Canary Cafe chef-owner Mansour Gorji.
Recipe from Randy Morgan Executive Chef, Dallas Fish Market.
The Round Rock author and former video game designer has just penned his ninth Star Wars serialization, Legacy of the Force: Fury.
What makes for a great steak? Is it grade, aging, type of feed, breed of cow? After personally visiting twenty steakhouses and trying more than fifty steaks for my portion of our December 2007 cover story, “Meat Your Maker,” I still couldn’t decide.Often the expensive ones were the best, but
What makes for a great steak? Is it grade, aging, type of feed, breed of cow? After personally visiting twenty steakhouses and trying more than fifty steaks for my portion of our December 2007 cover story, “Meat Your Maker,” I still couldn’t decide.Often the expensive ones were the best, but
