Spring Break Food Fun: Rooftop & Patio Openers

Posted by Geoff Nelowet / Friday, March 30th, 2012

Kick off spring and enjoy the breeze and booze at these open air venues.

alex saberi/Shutterstock

Rooftop: April 1, Arlington Rooftop Bar & Grill, Arlington

Grand Opening Special: Beer reps will be handing out swag on April 4 and 5.

Patio: April 14, Clare and Don’s Beach Shack, Falls Church

Kick-Off Celebration: Live band with full bar featuring Dos Equis, the summer beer, on tap.

Patio: Memorial Day Weekend, John’s Place, Fairfax

Grand Opening Special: Rolling Thunder with drink specials.

Patio: April 6, Westover Beer Garden, Arlington

Kick-Off Celebration: Live acoustic music with Long Trail Brewing Co. tasting and tap takeover.

Rooftop: March 8, Whitlows on Wilson Bar & Grill, Arlington

Cindi Wilson/Shutterstock

Grand Opening Special: Kickoff party in May, potentially Memorial Day weekend, with drink specials and possible pig roast.

Patio: Early May, O’Faolain’s, Sterling

Kick-Off Celebration: June 2, live music, cookout and specialty cocktails.

Hangover Helper

Posted by Warren Rojas / Friday, May 6th, 2011

Austin food blogger/cookbook author/veteran reveler Hilah Johnson feels your post-Cinco de Mayo pain. And her tried-and-true prescription for a speedy recovery includes:

(Video: Hilah Cooking)

Simón!

–Warren

The Rise of Comfort Foods in Recession Era Googling

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, March 10th, 2009

Photo Credit: beketchai

With the recession taking a hit on the nation’s disposable income, restaurants have taken to inventing “tax relief dinners” and “economic stimulus dinners” to lure customers back through their doors.

So, what’s on the menu?

Comfort foods, naturally. Plenty of feel-good foods, like fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, chicken pot pie and s’mores.

It looks like restaurants have been picking the right recession menus because the 2008 Google Zeitgeist (a glimpse at “the spirit of the times” through breakdown of the year’s Google searches) finds a distinct upsurge in people seeking comfort foods.

Here are the Top 10 Most Googled Comfort Foods in 2008. For fun, we’ve linked each search term to its “I’m Feeling Lucky” destination

1. 1.  ice cream
2. 2.  chili
3. 3.  spaghetti
4. 4.  meatloaf
5. 5.  fried chicken
6. 6.  chicken soup
7. 7.  apple pie
8. 8.  pot pie
9. 9.  potato salad
10. 10.  macaroni and cheese

11. For some reason, Google doesn’t count “booze” as comfort food. However, they did include a list of the year’s most popular cocktail searches because there’s been an apparent increase in people looking to mix their own cocktails.

    Makes sense to us. Why pay for a round at the bar when you can drink twice as much for less cash, right?

12. Here are the Top 10 Most Googled Cocktails in 2008, along with their “I Feel Lucky” links (when searching “[name of drink] recipe”).

13. 1. martini
14. 2.  mojito
15. 3.  margarita
16. 4.  manhattan
17. 5.  cosmopolitan
18. 6.  sangria
19. 7.  bellini
20. 8.  mai tai
21. 9.  white russian
22. 10.  bloody mary

What are some of your favorite comfort foods and cocktails?

– Christina Lee