​I thought bacon was among the fattiest savory breakfast items aside from Hollandaise until I moved south, where dishes-to-clog-an-artery- in-one-sitting is a running competition.

I was reminded of this when I went to the Floridian for breakfast with my very lean, citified friend from Washington, D.C. There, we'd eat pho and call it a meal.

At the diner, he ponied up for the biggest plate. "Do I know you?" I asked when he ordered the chicken fried steak with extra gravy.

"Why wouldn't I order it?" he asked. We were hungover. I tasted it. It was the cure.

That said, I don't understand chicken fried steak: It's a kitchen-sink dish. Why stop with batter and gravy? Why not splurge with chocolate, lard, and duck fat while you're at it?

Floridian's fatty breakfast beats just about any that I've seen in Florida so far: two eggs, bacon, a biscuit, chicken fried steak, and grits, with a layer of American cheese. It was a spectacle. And that grayish gravy is nearly congealed.

Fat for breakfast may not be healthy, but it's memorable. What's your favorite fatty breakfast, and where can we find it? Tell us in the comments.

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​Back in the dark ages, before it was one of the most profitable restaurants in the country, Washington, D.C.'s Old Ebbitt Grill ended up in a restaurant's nightmare, having sickened several patrons with bad oysters. The result was a shutdown of the oyster bar and total revamp by a then-newly hired Tom Meyer.

Fast-forward more than a decade, with Meyer now president of Clyde's Restaurant Group and an oyster program that's one of the most ambitious in the country. With dozens of varieties sold daily, the restaurant ensures superfresh product that's safer than those just about anywhere. Not only do they taste bivalves from every shipment but the restaurant lab-tests for bacteria daily in each shipment. It's an incredibly laborious process.

One oyster they refuse to sell raw? Anything from the Gulf, including Apalachicolas from Florida. If they're served at all, they're fried.

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​"I'm not eating that disgusting bottom feeder," said my friend, who happens to be a marine biologist. As a part of my Florida adventures of eating like regular people, I joined friends at Heart Rock Sushi, where fish is so inexpensive, it's surreal. They steered the ordering, during which I learned that sushi with scientists makes eating fish a guilt-laden affair.

Parsing the menu didn't prevent the table from ordering the biggest assortment of fish, presented without intended irony on a sushi boat. Among the sashimi, nigiri, and rolls were a selection of disturbing and often delicious bites that you'd see on just about any sushi menu. Would we eat them again anytime soon? Our findings after the jump.

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​I walked past a coworker eating a beautiful spinach salad and asked her where she got it. I should have known:Fresh Market. Today, of course, was opening day.

She thought it was pricey, as do many who have never been to a Fresh Market. But more than the all-organic stuff at Whole Foods? I was curious. I decided to price check, a comparison on some basic goods. I steered clear of meats and fish, however, since sourcing makes such a difference in price.

After the jump, some surprising comparisons.


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​Last week, we told you about the Food List Challenge, the Facebook app of 100 dishes and drinks to prove you're a foodnik. So far, 335,345 people have tried it, including former food critic for the Washington Post Phyllis Richman (97) and former New Times critic Gail Shepherd (85).

Some of the items are ridiculous, but there are plenty of stumpers, since few people are acing the list. Last week, we found alligator at Shuck N Dive, absinthe at Sweetwater's Bar, and biscuits with gravy at Georgia Pig. After the jump, the next round for the challenge.

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​Tomorrow at 9 a.m. is the opening of the Fort Lauderdale Fresh Market, an occasion marked by the breaking of a wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano. From the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, this cow's-milk cheese goes through a number of processes as it's shaped, branded, brined, and aged for a year before sale. Learn more at the opening, then pick some up for yourself should you choose, for $15.99 a pound, $5 off the store price.

The Fresh Market on Federal Highway is a 22,800-square-foot store that offers 30 types of breads, 14 pies a day, a range of meats and cheeses, and 400 organic items. If the selection remains as stocked as today's walk-through, it's decadent.

Looking for other reasons to try the Fresh Market? More after the jump.

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​I've liked The Food List Challenge app on Facebook that lists 100 dishes and drinks to prove you're a foodnik. So far, 335,345 people have tried it, including former food critic for the Washington Post, Phyllis Richman (97) and former New Times critic Gail Shepherd (85).

Some of the items are ridiculous; who hasn't had bagel and lox? But there are plenty of stumpers, since relatively few people are acing the list.

For several rounds of blog posts, we'll find places to try items on the list. After the jump, the first ten.

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​Have you seen these peppers in bushes outside? The tiny tepin or chiltepin is the only wild chili native to the U.S. and is believed to be the oldest and hottest species of wild pepper.

I first saw it in Tarpon River at a friend's house, a spindly shrub my friend had fenced off for protection. When he bought his house, Tom knew the peppers when he saw them, since his father grew them in his childhood home near Sarasota. "What are you doing with this poor bush?" I asked him. "It looks like it's too late for this one." I was wrong.

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Bold Organics via Facebook

Gluten- and dairy-free pizzas? We're in.

​The biggest pain for gluten- and lactose-intolerant people is trying to find quick food. Imagine the scenario -- you're on your way home from work. Exhausted from a long day, you're looking for something to just heat up. You head over to the frozen food section and figure the only thing you can get that's quick and easy is a bag of frozen peas. 

Well, that's about to change. Bold Organics has come out with a line of pizzas that contain no gluten, milk, lactose, casein, whey, egg, peanuts, or tree nuts. That about covers most food allergy bases. The pizzas also contain no GMOs, preservatives, nitrites, nitrates, or
trans fats.

Bold Organics' pizzas come in four choices -- two vegan and two with real meat -- and retail for $6.99 to $10.99. The meat pizzas, by the way, are still made with soy cheese (catering to those lactose-intolerant carnivores out there).


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​Forget New Years resolutions. Let's talk about lard.

Lard makes things delicious. If you're already using butter, Crisco, or an oil with transfat, lard is better for you. At 40% saturated fat and 45% monounsaturated fat, it's a lower percentage of "bad" fat and a higher percentage of "good" fat than butter (which is 60% saturated, 23% monounsaturated).

Lard is rendered from pork. And while you'd think it would make your food taste piggy, the rendering process separates cooking fat from solid fat, which results in a neutral to slightly nutty flavor. The best reason to use it is for texture.

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