Kiddie Chefs Should Go to Their Rooms

From onion blossoms to overhyped chefs, these things need to go away

(NEWSER) - Asked to name the decade's worst dining trends, chefs and other food experts couldn't shut up. There were too many (including "mache, water sommeliers, organ-meat entrees, unisex bathrooms, bacon tattoos on chefs, over-flaunted kitchen burns, chefs tables") for Christopher Borrelli to list them all, but he hits the top 10 in the Chicago Tribune:

• Fried onion blossoms: Too sweaty, too greasy, too little onion, and too much fried stuff.
• The $40 entree: When your neighborhood bistro has hit these heights, it's time to say enough is enough.

Pies in new 'stratosphere of respect'

(NEWSER) - In recent years, a new culture has developed around pizza: “It’s scrutinized and fetishized, with a Palin-esque power to polarize,” writes Frank Bruni in the New York Times. That means debates over oven types, varieties of flour, the virtues of buffalo mozzarella. The new “stratosphere of respect” for the pies is reflected in countless classy new restaurants that have sprung up all over New York. More»

Foodie bible looks beyond Paris

(NEWSER) - The prestigious French Michelin restaurant guide today named a German woman editor-in-chief, the Telegraph reports. German cuisine has a stereotype somewhere along the lines of overcooked sausage and sauerkraut, so the news that Juliane Caspar will become the world’s most powerful restaurant reviewer has been greeted with some shock in foodie circles. More»

Owners pry good reviews by serving up gratis meals

(NEWSER) - Eateries are ensuring good reviews by schmoozing food bloggers with free meals, the Wall Street Journal reports. While established critics pay their way and dine unnoticed, some even in disguise, bloggers are getting used to the royal treatment. "I think if I was picking up the tab I wouldn't enjoy it as much," admitted a law clerk who posted on Yelp. More»

These restaurants pair great food with excellent wines for the full dining experience.

(NEWSER) - Food & Wine magazine names its favorite new restaurant wine lists from around the country.

1. Catalan, Houston, TX
2. Addison, San Diego, CA
3. Perbacco, San Francisco, CA
4. Craftsteak, New York, NY
5. Osteria di Tramonto, Wheeling, IL