What kind of shitty hostess am I? We invite people over for dinner at our house and then they bring the main dish. Because our friends Andy and Jennifer worked so hard to make this incredible "blog worthy" dinner for us, I must sing their praises. Andy too follows the good book of Steve Raichlen in all matters grill-related, and this tandoori chicken is no exception. I learned the red which we generally associate with the dish often comes from food coloring; it's definitely not a naturally occurring result of the spices in the recipe. Plus the spicy coriander walnut sauce kicked ass. Anyone who uses Raichlen's books should take note: the sauce and lamb make a fantastic pair, too. I also used it to spice up steamed carrots a couple nights later.
But even if I felt guilty, I admit it's pretty sweet to not to sweat the big stuff and just take care of the wines, soup, dessert, cleaning up, and miscellaneous tidbits.
Is it just me, or does anyone else find it both strange and cool that designers of take-out containers seem to be inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright?
My onion rings from Birds came packaged in a Styrofoam (boo) box that reminded me of the iconic Coonley Playhouse art glass window designs. I'm sure the great man would be, um, honored to see his influence manifested in such humble of places. Damn, I just met E.L. Wright; I should've asked him.
Wright gear is merchandised up the yin yang, but this I haven't seen in any gift shops yet. 
And on a sassier and more annoying note, what's up with this sample of "group of global style setters [for whom] ordering ros is a sign of being in the know"? These enology enthusiasts are clutching glasses of must-serve-super-chilled wine by the bowl as if they're about to shatter the stemware into 1,000 pieces.
At the risk of sounding like an asshole snobby anti-snob who maintains a strong love/hate relationship with the Sunday Styles section (ahem), I ask: was the wine served to them frozen? Or do they like bringing it to room temp? I wonder what Kermit Lynch makes of the young and beautiful sophisticates downing the wonderful Domaine Tempier Bandol he distributes. Eh, business is business I suppose. And I better drink my bottle of 2004 sooner-ish than later, trend or no trend.

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DATE: 08/14/2006 05:54:40 PM
They're probably the kind of global sophisticates that throw their vino back so quickly the heat from their hands doesn't change the temperature by a single degree.
Bit I'll say this: I don't like my ross served that cold -- a few degrees above fridge temp is my ideal. Maybe if I looked like those guys -- Joey Ramone's & Chrissie Hynde's love children -- I would.
Posted by: meg | February 07, 2008 at 03:05 PM
It's so nice to have you do all of the research for us. It makes our decision making so much easier!! Thanks.
Posted by: MBT Online | July 15, 2011 at 03:15 AM
They also understand the importance of lighting, an element that seems to be disregarded at many of the places we eat and drink in Spain. Everyone looks good in the diffused incandescent light -- gotta love that. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of the evening's meal.
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