The Critic

Pay Up!: Village Voice Suing Yelp Over "Best Of" Use

By Zachary Fagenson Thu., Nov. 1 2012 at 8:09 AM
Categories: The Critic

YelpLogo.jpg
Courtroom throwdown-a-comin.

Village Voice Media Holdings (now Voice Media Group), which owns New Times Broward/Palm Beach, is suing Yelp in Arizona federal court over its use of "Best Of" in at least 10 cities. The firm is seeking to stop  the social networking, user review and local search website and app from using the term, which is trademarked.

Village Voice runs annual "Best Of' lists, highlighting everything from restaurants to car repair shops to salons, in all of its publications, from Los Angeles, to Houston to Miami. The company is claiming "Yelp has irreparably damaged the valuable reputation and goodwill of VVMH and its 'Best Of' marks."

Voice is demanding Yelp pay any profits it earned using the phrase and any other costs Voice incurs filing the lawsuit.

Yelp representatives did not immediately reply to requests for comment.



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Food Fun

Jack Daniels Chicken: An Accidental Discovery and, Also, a Near-Death Experience

By Brandon K. Thorp Fri., Dec. 9 2011 at 7:07 AM
Categories: Food Fun, Look What I Found, Musings, The Critic
j daniels.jpg
Do not let this guy near an open flame.
​To the neophyte cook, is there any object more suspect, more chock-full of dangers unknown, than a thick, raw chicken breast?

An experienced chef doesn't worry about chicken. But to me, on a particular evening last summer, as a neophyte cook fresh off my first rice cooker and utterly lacking in stovetop experience, two thick, raw chicken breasts represented nothing so much as a gamble on mine and my boyfriend's lives. A person less inclined to panic would consult Google. I just slathered the things with butter, cranked up the gas, and tossed 'em on the stove.

Sputter! Hiss! The air was full of molten butter spitlets, and in seconds the outer skins of the damned breasts were charred. I thought: My god, are they cooked already? I waded into the butter-crazy danger zone around the stove, sliced open one of the breasts -- using a knife which immediately entered quarantine in the sink, because you can never be too careful; you don't want to re-use one of these soiled things, because even a successfully burnt bird could thereby be retainted with dread salmonella -- and, no, the insides were completely raw. And there was a lot of inside to these breasts. They were more than three inches thick. It was clear that long before the inner breasts were safe to eat, the outsides would be inedible and carbonized.

I did what any reasonable young adult would do in that situation. I called mommy.

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chicken breast, Jack Daniels, salmonella
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The Critic

My Broward/Palm Beach Restaurant Wish List

By John Linn Mon., Nov. 29 2010 at 10:38 AM
Categories: The Critic
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Key on the wish list: Artisanal foods like the pizza at Pizzeria Oceano.
​After Tuesday, I'll no longer be the Restaurant Critic here at New Times. But you can bet I'll still be eating out at plenty of restaurants around South Florida.

Just like any other consumer, I get excited by the prospect of new restaurants and where the scene here might be headed. Sometimes, that direction gets me down. But at other times, I see glimmers of hope that make me look forward to what else these two counties might offer in the future.

So, before I go, a parting wish list of what I'd like to see more of in the restaurant scene.

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The Critic

Brew Masters Puts Craft Beer in the Spotlight

By John Linn Mon., Nov. 22 2010 at 10:10 AM
Categories: The Critic
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Sam Calagione hosts Discovery Channel's new show about craft beer, Brew Masters.
​All I have to say is, boy, am I thirsty.

Update: Apparently I wasn't the only one who thought the Blue Moon commercials were ridiculous.

Brew Masters, a new television show starring Dogfish Head Beer owner Sam Calagione, debuted last night on Discovery Channel. And it was everything I hoped it would be and more. The first episode was a huge success. It was both fun to watch and informative, opening a portal into the inner workings of a world-class craft brewery in both the day-to-day operations and the process of developing a new beer from start to finish.

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Bitches Brew, Brew Masters, Craft Beer, Discovery Channel, Dogfish Head, Sam Calagione
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The Critic

South Park Riffs on Food Network with "Creme Fraiche"

By John Linn Thu., Nov. 18 2010 at 2:01 PM
Categories: The Critic
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South Park's rendition of Food Network star Guy Fieri.
​I used to never miss an episode of the Comedy Central show South Park. It's skewering of pop-culture fads and personalities is unmatched, even if it often devolves into shock-value programming in the process. But last night's episode, titled "Creme Fraiche," might just be the best episode of South Park in years. Well, for foodies, that is.

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Alton Brown, Comedy Central, Creme Fraiche, Food Network, Giada De Laurentiis, Guy Fieri, Paula Deen, South Park
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The Critic

A Heartfelt Goodbye

By John Linn Mon., Nov. 15 2010 at 10:02 AM
Categories: The Critic

I thought pretty hard for the past few weeks about what to write as my farewell blog post on Clean Plate Charlie. I've been writing for this thing for more than two years now and working at New Times for four. And at the end of this month, I'll be hitting the road (literally), leaving the paper behind for a cross-country road trip and whatever life may bring afterward.
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The Critic

Prost! More German Eateries to Eat and Drink at!

By John Linn Thu., Oct. 14 2010 at 9:41 AM
Categories: The Critic
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This hideous little bugger is on display at Lake Worth's Little Munich.
​
My review this week covered four German restaurants in and around Fort Lauderdale where you can celebrate Oktoberfest. But there are plenty more places that I didn't cover, and some of those are worth mentioning too.

Bierbrunnen Pub: Amid the sightseeing, tattoo/piercing shops, clubs, and touristy bars littering A1A, one bar lies hidden from view, concealed for the rest of us homegrown Lauderdalites who want a place on the beach we can still call home, a place that doesn't look like mini-Mardi Gras hour.

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Bierbrunnen Pub, Edelweiss Bakery, German Bread Haus, International House of Schnitzel, Little Munich
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The Critic

The Devil's in the Eggs

By John Linn Mon., Oct. 11 2010 at 11:59 AM
Categories: The Critic
racksdeviledegg.jpg
​
One retro foodstuff that seems to be making a comeback is deviled eggs. Typically the sort of fodder you'd find at 1950s-themed cocktail parties, these bite-sized snacks are making their way onto menus all over South Florida.

I get the phenomenon, I do. Deviled eggs -- nostalgic though they may be -- taste great with booze. You don't need silverware to eat one. You just pop it in your mouth and follow that up with a swig from your beer. Or more appropriately, a martini.

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Deviled Eggs, Michelle Bernstein at The Omphoy, Racks Downtown Eatery, The Office, trends
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The Critic

Is the New Times Best Of Curse Legit?

By John Linn Mon., Oct. 4 2010 at 10:15 AM
Categories: Openings/Closings, The Critic
Thumbnail image for bestof2010cover.jpg
The real question is what happened to this model? I hope she's OK.
​Videogame fans are well familiar with the Madden Curse, the malady that befalls the cover athletes of EA Sports' hit football game, Madden NFL. Each year, the athletes that appear on the cover of Madden fall victim to injuries, career slumps, or just poor play. Just look at the facts: Shaun Alexander, Vince Young, Brett Favre, Ray Lewis, Daunte Culpepper, Marshall Faulk. All of them suffered injuries or poor years after their appearance on the Madden cover.

There's been talk of a similar scenario befalling winners of New Times Best Of awards. The Best Of Curse, as it's called, would apparently shutter restaurants or businesses that receive awards in our annual Best Of Broward Palm Beach issue. Some say it's as real as the Madden Curse. But is it? 

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Art's BBQ, Best Of, Coral Springs, Curse, Madden
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The Critic

What's the Difference Between Shoulder, Picnic, and Boston Butt?

By John Linn Thu., Sep. 30 2010 at 3:53 PM
Categories: The Critic
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​My editor is a die-hard barbecue fan. But even he was curious about the picture on the right, part of the slideshow from our review of East Coast BBQ, online this week. He asked me why this piece of pork shoulder, used by the restaurant to make pulled/chopped pork, contained so much of the leg bone in it. 

First, a primer: Slow smoked, barbecue pork typically uses meat from the shoulder area of the hog. The reason is simple: The shoulder contains all sorts of different muscle groups held together by gobs of connective tissue. Connective tissue, as we know, is pretty tough stuff. But cook it low and slow, and it just melts away, basting the meat with all sorts of savory juices.  

Trouble is, there are actually a few different types of shoulder cuts. 
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barbecue, Boston butt, butcher, East Coast BBQ, picnic ham, pork shoulder
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