Politics & Policy
January 20, 2013
White Elephant
The most formidable candidate in the race for Houston’s next mayor may be the outgoing chief himself.
Columns
Sports
January 20, 2013
Miner Threat
Why would a mere mortal want to step into the outsized shoes of UTEP's Don Haskins, the only Texas college basketball coach ever to win a national championship? To win another NCAA titleand Billy Gillispie thinks he can.
Politics & Policy
January 20, 2013
Risky Business
State representative Allen Fletcher is the chairman of a House subcommittee on white-collar crime. So how did his very own company get tangled up in a white-collar-crime investigation?
Letter From Fort Worth
January 20, 2013
Bishop Takes Castle
Fort Worth clergyman Jack Iker’s battle with the Episcopal Church has become an all-out war. And the stakes couldn’t be higher.
News & Politics
January 20, 2013
The Convert
After a sudden pang of conscience, former Bryan Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson became a pro-life activist and a star on the conservative talk show circuit. But is she telling the truth?
Music
January 20, 2013
Some Things Never Change: Doug Deep
He’s a little bit country, rock and roll, and everything in between. That’s why Doug Sahm is still going strong.
Books
January 20, 2013
Nation State
Does anyone outside of Texas care about Texas history? H. W. Brands hopes so, and he's not the only one.
Politics & Policy
January 20, 2013
Fix the Roof
A case for the parks.
Books
January 20, 2013
Ghost Writer
It took me half my life to figure out that most of what I thought I knew about J. Frank Dobie was wrong.
News & Politics
January 20, 2013
Newspaper Days
Once upon a time, Molly Ivins was just a kid from River Oaks with an internship at the Houston Chronicle. Her time there set her on the path to becoming the most famous firebrand in Texas.
Politics & Policy
January 20, 2013
Weed All About It
The case for legalizing marijuana (and no, I haven’t been smoking something).
Travel & Outdoors
January 20, 2013
Habeas Corpus
The rap on Corpus Christi is that there’s no there there—but a case can be made that it’s a great weekend destination.
Travel & Outdoors
January 20, 2013
Steam Spirit
If you’re heading to New Orleans and you’ve got five days to spare, don’t fly or drive. Take a trip fit for a king—aboard the Delta Queen .
Letter From Galveston
January 20, 2013
No Man’s Island
A year has passed since Hurricane Ike slammed into Galveston, but my hometown is still reeling from a storm without end.
The Culture
January 20, 2013
Going For the Jiggler
Explaining the enduring appeal of Jell-O can be as challenging as, well, nailing it to a tree.
Music
January 20, 2013
The Cult of Keen
It took two decades of shows at honky-tonks filled with frat-boy fans and Aggie admirers, but singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen has his first major-label record deal.
Cartwright's Texas
January 20, 2013
30
Blackie Sherrod probably hates the word "retired," but that's what he is nowand newspaper readers across Texas are the poorer for it.
Sports
January 20, 2013
Game Over
Sure, sure, the newspaper business is dying, and this is bad for freedom, accountability, and democracy itself. But worst of all is what’s happened to sportswriting.
Behind the Lines
January 20, 2013
Twin Piques
Fake IDs and real issues.
News & Politics
January 20, 2013
Access Denied
Why the closing of a footbridge to Mexico is bad for Candelaria.
Prudence Mackintosh
January 20, 2013
Generation Exit
My grandsons aren’t Texans … yet.
Being Texan
January 20, 2013
Jailhouse Flock
What is ex–football star Bill Glass’s plan for reforming hardened prison inmates? God is in the details.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Greco-Roman Salad and Cannellini Bean Capriata
Even without fancy dressing, this showy Mediterranean-style salad makes a spectacle of itself. Chef Timothy Keating of the Omni Houston Hotel’s La Rèserve restaurant (4 Riverway), created the “intense” salad, as he calls it, for a fundraiser last year on a Hollywood soundstage, where he was “elbow-deep in roasted vegetables,
Sarah Bird
January 20, 2013
Sibling Ribaldry
Developing my twisted sense of humor was a family affair.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Wild Mushroom and Leek Tart and Herb Salad With Red Wine Vinaigrette
Start your New Year’s Day dinner with ruffles and flourishes—specifically this flaky, frilly tart of filo leaves containing an earthy mix of exotic mushrooms and leeks, from the elegant Conservatory at Dallas’ Hotel Crescent Court.Says executive chef Jim Mills: “Our customers are always surprised by this dish. They tell me,
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bread
Former San Antonio paralegal Debra Auden is a law unto herself when it comes to baking—she learned by trial and very little error. Three years ago, she made her first loaf of Italian peasant bread. It turned out so well that she started selling bread to friends before opening a
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: 1015 Stuffed Onion
The lowly onion gets glamour lessons from Davasha Stalarow, the executive chef at Houston’s new 8.0 restaurant (3745 Greenbriar, Houston). The Dallas-based 8.0 has long prided itself on being a bastion of home cooking away from home, specializing in healthful food to nourish both body and soul.The Houston outpost keeps
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Mick Vann’s Tamale-Stuffed Game Hens
At Austin’s Majestic Diner, co-owner and chef Mick Vann gives the royal treatment to even the simplest entrée. Vann has been cooking for twenty years (the last seven at Clarksville Cafe in Austin), and he still has a knack for the unexpected: whole leaves of spinach in spanakopita and a
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Shrimp and Herbed Goat Cheese Crostini
Tempt summer-singed appetites with this breezy Mediterranean combo: a sensational salad and crisp crostini topped with shrimp and goat cheese from Dallas’ Sambuca (2618 Elm). Executive chef Willem De Froy says contrast is the key: “You pile the peppers, which are sweet, on top of the crostini with goat cheese,
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Picnic Special
This alfresco feast from Eureka!, a Dallas restaurant and gourmet-to-go emporium (4011 Villanova), can turn a backyard cookout or tailgate picnic into a classy occasion. A grilled chicken breast marinated in lemon and garlic provides this custom menu’s mainstay, with assistance from an emphatic tomato-basil sauce touched with Parmesan. A
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Chile Relleno En Nogada
“A chile relleno doesn’t have to be heavy,” says Arnaldo Richards, the owner of Pico’s in Houston (1427 Lomitas, near Kirby and Southwest Freeway). That’s why he has composed a luscious vegetarian version of Mexico’s traditional pork-stuffed pepper. He eschews the usual egg batter and deep frying in favor of
Anne Dingus
January 20, 2013
Mentionables
From bullet bras to panties emblazoned with the Lone Star flag, a brief history of women’s underwear in Texas.
Texas History
January 20, 2013
Making Up Is Hard to Do
How the cosmetically challenged among us manage to save face.
Where I'm From
January 20, 2013
Lynn Wyatt
I had no clue about the amount of magic Texas held. Texas had a persona all its own, and I was proud to be a little smidgen part of it.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Key Lime Pie
El Paso’s clubby San Francisco Grill (127A Pioneer Plaza) is a cool downtown retreat from the big-city clamor, and its menu offerings are a far cry from the picante specialties of other local eateries.The Grill’s Key lime pie, a towering drift of sweetly tangy citrus in a nutty toasted crust,
Food & Drink
January 20, 2013
Sorry, Mom
Even your mother can’t top Rex Hale’s light-as-a-cloud shortcake.
Food and Drink
January 20, 2013
Cocina Confidential
What did I do when I wanted to indulge my weakness for cooking classes? I put San Miguel de Allende on the menu.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Warm Lobster Tacos
Tacos go uptown in the hands of Dean Fearing. All it takes is a little lobster, jalapeño-spiked cheese, fresh spinach, and Fearing’s snappy yellow-tomato salsa. A signature dish of Dallas’ Mansion on Turtle Creek (2821 Turtle Creek Boulevard), these tony tacos are featured in De Gustibus Presents the Great Cooks’
Food & Drink
January 20, 2013
Lily Buds, Tree Ears, and Fish Sauce
With just a nip of nuoc mam you’ll be on your way to the cooking frontier of Vietnamese food.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Tortilla-Wrapped Fish
Austin’s beau monde has had a serious crush on Jeffrey’s (1204 West Lynn, Austin) ever since the intimate, unpretentious restaurant opened in 1975. This standard-setting establishment takes a maverick approach to gourmet dining: Executive chef Raymond Tatum, a self-taught cook with a rebel streak, specializes in improvising provocative Southwestern fare
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Texas Creole Barbecued Shrimp, Texas Cornbread Pudding, and Jicama Salad
Some like it hot; Texans like it hotter. That’s why Carl Walker, the chef at Brennan’s in Houston (3300 Smith), branded his barbecued shrimp with black pepper and poblano chiles. Double-daring the Southwest palate, he paired the shrimp with his spicy version of a down-home favorite. “I wanted to make cornbread pudding
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Swordfish and Chipotle-Mango Sauce
Chef Oscar Mejia’s splashy tropical creations give a summer feel year-round to the menu at the Merchant Prince in Galveston. Located just off the soaring lobby of the beautifully restored 1879 Tremont House hotel (2300 Ship’s Mechanic Row), the intimate restaurant showcases Mejia’s idiosyncratic blend of Caribbean and Southwestern culinary
Food & Drink
January 20, 2013
I, Piscivore
How I learned what to do with the one that didn’t get away.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Soft-Shell Crabs with Moqueca Sauce
Resolutely international, Austin’s Clarksville (1205 N. Lamar) draws on a world of culinary influences, from the Far East to South America. A creation that melds the traditions of two continents is the irresistible fried soft-shell crabs in moqueca sauce. The dish originated in northeastern India as pokeka, a seafood stew.
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Sesame-Crusted Scallops
In 1980, when Armando Miranda took his first job in America as a line cook, he barely knew a muffin from a mousse. That has changed. In his peregrinations through prominent Houston restaurants, including the River Cafe, he taught himself to cook. Even today he’s a free spirit. “I don’t
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Seared Halibut
For more than a year, Houston’s cafe society has been holding its breath in anticipation of the scheduled September reopening of Tony’s (1801 Post Oak Boulevard). Not only has the interior been lavishly remodeled to suggest a restaurant on the Italian Riviera, but owner Tony Vallone and chef Mark Cox
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Scrambled Egg Whites With Smoked Salmon, and Roasted Potatoes With Onions
“Brunch isn’t just eggs Benedict anymore,” says Matthew Antonvich, chef-owner of Dallas’ Sipango (4513 Travis), as he whips up a batch of frothy scrambled egg whites studded with morsels of pink smoked salmon and handsomely accessorized with oven-roasted potatoes and caramelized onions. “Five years ago,” says Antonovich, “nobody would have
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Roasted Red Snapper on Risotto
Chef Hervé Glin is a big man. “I love to eat,” he says, wryly surveying his own bulk. He also likes to feed people, which he does at his clubby Cité Grill at 5860 Westheimer in Houston. His fondness for seafood and many of his culinary ideas come from his
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Masa-Battered Shrimp
A backpacking adventure after college led Michael Bomberg in a different direction. He never intended to make a living as a chef, but a trek through Western Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East gave him food for thought.Now Bomberg is guiding San Antonio’s Anaqua Grill (555 S. Alamo) through
Recipes
January 20, 2013
State Fare: Lemon Sole With Champagne Sauce
Thierry Burkle’s L’Etoile is a guiding light in French country cooking. The smart neighborhood brasserie succeeds because of a constellation of moderately priced, well-thought-out offerings, including this lemon sole.The mild fish is perfectly suited to a special-occasion dressing up. With a bread-crumb crust as a toasty counterpoint, the moist and