From Lynn Andriani, Publishers Weekly: Last week’s issue of PW listed our editors’ picks for the best books of the year. Five out of the 100 were books about food: Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller (Artisan); Born Round: The Secret History of a Full-time Eater by Frank Bruni (Penguin Press); Gourmet Today: More than 1000 All-New Recipes for the Contemporary Kitchen, edited by Ruth Reichl (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt); Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy: A Feast of 175 Regional Recipes by Lidia Matticchio Bastianichand Tanya Bastianich Manuali (Knopf); and Momofuku by David Chang and Peter Meehan (Clarkson Potter). While we’re the first to agree those books deserve props, here are 10 more (plus 10 honorable mentions) from this year that also warrant attention.

Best "meat isn’t everything" cookbook
Almost Meatless: Recipes That Are Better for Your Health and the Planet by Joy Manning Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond (Ten Speed)

Manning and Desmond want to help Americans compose meals that are both tasty and filling without having a slab of meat as the overbearing star ingredient. They do an admirable job, with a burger recipe wherein black beans and bulgur are mashed together with a minimum of ground beef to make a patty that is full-size, fully delicious and less meaty; a recipe for gyros using a small amount of lamb amped up with tzatziki sauce and fava beans fragrant with lemon, garlic and fresh herbs; and other great dishes.

Honorable mention: Hudson Valley Mediterranean: The Gigi Good Food Cookbook by Laura Pensiero (Morrow) 

Best "what do you mean, less meat?" book
Lobel's Meat Bible: All You Need to Know about Meat and Poultry from America's Master Butchers by Stanley Lobel, Evan Lobel, Mark Lobel and David Lobel (Chronicle)

Lead us into temptation, indeed. The Lobels magnificently explain the difference between shell steak and tenderloin, hanger steak and skirt steak; lay out the proper way make steak tartare, beef jerky and carbonade of beef in Belgian beer; and give recipes for Alsatian pork-and-potato casserole, Kansas City–style baby back ribs and more. 

Honorable mention: Morton's The Cookbook: 100 Steakhouse Recipes for Every Kitchen by Klaus Fritsch with Tylor Field III and Mary Goodbody (Clarkson Potter) 

Best book for cooks who don’t already own a Greek cookbook
How to Roast a Lamb: New Greek Classic Cooking by Michael Psilakis and Barbara Kafka (Little, Brown)

Psilakis, chef and owner of New York City's Kefi and Anthos, honors Greek cuisine in this nostalgic and charming book. More than a collection of recipes, it’ a celebration of Greek culture and its extraordinary effect on the author. Each section begins with a personal story demonstrating how Psilakis’s love of food was ingrained in him, followed by wonderful recipes.

Honorable mention: Vefa’s Kitchen by Vefa Alexiadou (Phaidon)

Best virtual trip to the Big Easy
My New Orleans: The Cookbook by John Besh (Andrews McMeel)

Besh’s book is a charming tribute to the roots and rituals surrounding such iconic dishes as crawfish and rice, muffaletta sandwiches, café au lait and beignets, fried chicken, po’boys and even snow cones (they were invented at Hansen’s in 1939). It’s also a beautiful compendium of artful photos of foods like crumbly lavender madeleines with thick Louisiana citrus pots de crème.

Honorable mention: DamGoodSweet: Desserts to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth, New Orleans Style by David Guas and Raquel Pelzel (Taunton) 

Best book about a not-so-obvious cuisine
The New Portuguese Table: Exciting Flavors from Europe's Western Coast by David Leite and Nuno Correia (Clarkson Potter)

Whatever your stance on salt cod, Leite, a three-time James Beard–award winner and proprietor of LeitesCulinaria.com, has a recipe for it you’ll like. In this gorgeous book, he highlights ingredients and techniques that define Portuguese cooking today. Stone soup enlivened with spicy chouriço sausage; simple-yet-elegant duck breasts sauced with white port and black olives; a dip made with anchovies, green olives, cilantro, and whole milk are just some of the other gems here.

Honorable mention: Save the Deli: In Search of Perfect Pastrami, Crusty Rye, and the Heart of Jewish Delicatessen by David Sax (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) 

Best "quick, homemade bread!" book
Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day by Peter Reinhart (Ten Speed)

Here is master bread baker Reinhart's answer to the artisan bread-in-no-time revolution. His 50 recipes for bread, bagels, pizza and pastry really are foolproof. He also shares shaping tricks, oven techniques and ways to make great bread without expensive bakery tools.

Honorable mention: My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method by Jim Lahey with Rick Flaste (Norton) 

Best handy reference
Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking by Michael Ruhlman (Scribner)

Ruhlman explains that when you know a culinary ratio, it's like instantly knowing a thousand recipes. For instance, when making cookies, all you need to know is 1-2-3 (1 part sugar, 2 parts fat, and 3 parts flour). Biscuit dough is 3-1-2 (3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid). Vinaigrette: 3-1 (3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar). The truth shall set you free!

Honorable mention: Notes on Cooking: A Short Guide to an Essential Craft by Lauren Braun Costello and Russell Reich (RCR Creative Press) 

Best reason to get flour all over the kitchen
Rose’s Heavenly Cakes by Rose Levy Beranbaum (Wiley)

From towering creations for weddings and other special events to baby cakes for bite-size indulgence, from the simplest apple upside-down cake and yellow butter cupcakes to the elegant rose-shaped genoise and the stunning holiday pinecone cake, Beranbaum goes into great detail yet still manages to keep her guidelines friendly, accessible and unintimidating.

Honorable mention: All Cakes Considered: A Year's Worth of Weekly Recipes Tested, Tasted, and Approved by the Staff of NPR's All Things Considered by Melissa Gray (Chronicle) 

Best very useful cookbook
Salt to Taste: The Key to Confident, Delicious Cooking by Marco Canora with Catherine Young (Rodale)

Like Ruhlman in Ratio, chef Canora is of the mind that confident cooking is a result of mastering a select handful of straightforward recipes. Once you have them down, then you can experiment and improvise based on season and palate. It’s a terrific approach, and Canora lays it out with 100 smart recipes for green bean and potato salad, chicken liver crostini and other simple, delicious dishes.

Honorable mention: New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel (Wiley)

Best elevation of a classic cuisine
Stir: Mixing It Up in the Italian Tradition by Barbara Lynch (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

James Beard Award-winning Lynch, chef-owner of Boston’s famed No. 9 Park and several other notable restaurants, offers a gorgeous, mouth-watering book that includes recipes for such treats as prune-stuffed gnocchi with foie gras sauce and pan-fried cod with chorizo and clam ragout.

Honorable mention: Pintxos: Small Plates in the Basque Tradition by Gerald Hirigoyen with Lisa Weiss (Ten Speed) 

Publishers Weekly

From Chuck Sudo of Playboy: Late nights at diners are undiluted shots of Americana. Set among heaping mounds of starch, bottomless cups of coffee and enough polished chrome to mark a Golden Age, the best diners evoke nostalgia for years gone by. Wherever there‚s a last call, late-night diners serve as salvation for those who aren't quite ready to go home. And while late-night diners are consistent, regardless of where they're located and right down to waitresses who call all their customers, "Hon," there are a few establishments that are a cut above the rest. Whether it be a signature sandwich like the Diner Grill's "Slinger" in Chicago, or an authentic ambiance such as the one found in Mickey's Dining Car Cafe in Minnesota, these standout late-night nosh spots have something that gives them a character all their own. We sifted through the many qualified contenders and picked 10 that truly embody the American late-night experience. 

The Top 10 Late-Night Diners:

1. 11th Street Diner, Wilkes-Barre, PA
   
2. The Dining Car & Market, Philadelphia
   
3. Majestic Diner, Atlanta
   
4. Prince's Hot Chicken Shack, Nashville
   
5. Mickey's Dining Car Cafe, St. Paul
   
6. Clover Grill, New Orleans
   
7. Orphan Andy's, San Francisco
   
8. The Original Pantry Cafe, Los Angeles
   
9. Diner Grill, Chicago
   
10. Big Nick's, New York

See Story on Playboy

If you’re looking for one of the “South’s best diners,” look no further than Kings Highway.

Strawn’s Eat Shop, 125 Kings Highway, Shreveport, earned that distinction in Southern Living’s November issue.

The article listed five diners across the South it considered top draws. All included photos and a featured recipe.

The article said, in part: “Owner Buddy Gauthier’s must-stop spot is known for its colorful murals (such as George Washington eating Strawn’s pie and a Roman coliseum) and its decadent icebox pies (strawberry is our flat-out favorite).”

Other diners in the top five: Bel-Lock Diner, Baltimore, Md; Mama Dip’s Kitchen, Chapel Hill, N.C.; Arnold’s Country Kitchen, Nashville, Tenn.; and Celebration Restaurant, Dallas.

Also in the November issue: “Autumn on Caddo Lake,” lauded as “one of East Texas’ best fall getaways.”

From EATER.COM: Last week, the Association of Food Journalists descended upon New Orleans for some navel-gazing at its annual conference, and over the weekend, the group announced 42 winners at its awards competition. This year, the San Francisco Chronicle reclaimed top food section honors in the Best Newspaper Coverage (Circulation 215,001 and Over) category, topping the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune.

The individual awards were led by Jonathan Kauffman of the Seattle Weekly, who beat out Tom Sietsema (Washington Post) and Bill Addison (Dallas Morning News) in the Best Newspaper Restaurant Criticism category. Elsewhere, Kim Honey of Toronto Star won Best Newspaper Food Feature for her piece "Incredible Edibles." All winners received a whopping $300 prize for their weekend enjoyment. The complete list of winners follows:

From New York magazine's Grub Street: "On the heels of its Michelin star, SHO Shaun Hergatt now gets another accolade: It's one of four New York restaurants to make John Mariani's annual "Best New Restaurants" list in Esquire. The others - Corton, Marea, and Locanda Verde - aren't surprising. On the list of "Another 15 Places Not To Miss" are Vermilion, Apiary, Aureole, and Minetta Tavern. ...

The complete list, via the press release, is below.

    RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR:
    The Bazaar, Los Angeles

    CHEF OF THE YEAR:
    Barton Seaver of Blue Ridge, Washington, D.C.

    THE INAUGURAL ESQUIRE RESTAURANT HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES:
    Alfred Portale
    Danny Meyer

    THE BEST NEW RESTAURANTS OF 2009 (sorted geographically):
    Atlanta, GA
    Pacci Ristorante
    Paces 88

    Austin, TX
    Perla's Seafood and Oyster Bar

    Bedford, NY
    The Bedford Post Inn

    Cleveland, OH
    L'Albatros Brasserie & Bar

    Las Vegas, NV
    Society Café Encore

    Los Angeles, CA –
    Rivera

    Miami, FL
    Area 31
    Sra. Martinez

    Naples, FL
    Sea Salt

    New York, NY
    Corton
    Locanda Verde
    Marea
    SHO Shaun Hergatt

    Paradise Valley, AZ
    Prado

    Richmond, VA
    Lemaire

    San Francisco, CA
    Nopalito

    Washington, D.C
    Blue Ridge

    Yountville, CA
    Bottega

    ANOTHER FIFTEEN PLACES NOT TO MISS
    Ajax Tavern, Aspen
    Apiary, New York
    Aureole, New York
    The Bristol, Chicago
    8100 Mountainside Bar and Grill, Avon, CO
    Il Casale, Belmont, MA
    Minetta Tavern, New York
    Passionfish, Reston, VA
    Province, Chicago
    The Publican, Chicago
    Rambla, New Orleans
    RH, Los Angeles
    Sepia, Chicago
    Vermilion, New York
    West Side Tavern, Los Angeles

    FOUR BREAKOUT CHEFS TO WATCH:
    David Katz, Meme, Philadelphia, PA
    Chris Lusk, Cafe Adelaide, New Orleans, LA
    Victoria Ann Moore, The Lazy Goat, Greenville, SC
    Raymond Mohan, Onda, New York, NY - "One of the most creative South American chefs - via Guyana - working in the U.S. right now."

    HOSTESS OF THE YEAR:
    Kaitlin Yelle, Meat Market, Miami, FL 

Fosselman's, Los Angeles

From the Guardian: From cake, steak and tapas, to oysters, chicken and burgers, Killian Fox roamed the world to find the 50 best things to eat and the best places to eat them in, with a little help from professionals like Raymond Blanc, Michel Roux, Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray

1. Best place to eat: Oysters.
Strangfor Lough, Northern Ireland  Richard Corrigan reckons Strangford Lough oysters are the world’s best. 

"If I were to die tomorrow, I'd walk to Strangford, get a couple of bottles of really cold Chablis, and eat as many Strangford Lough oysters as I could. Then I'd die very happily indeed. There are very few places you can get Strangford Lough oysters now. Last time, we bought some from a company called Cuan and went to a beautiful local pub and opened them ourselves. The speed of the tidal movement, and the huge nutrient richness of the water, is what makes them so good. The only accompaniment you need is lemon juice and black pepper: you'd never ever use vinegar and shallots or Tabasco."

Cuan Oysters, Sketrick Island, Killinchy, Newtownards, County Down, Northern Ireland, 02897 541461, www.cuanoysters.com

2. Best place to eat: Aubergines
Ta Kioupa, Athens

"The aubergines were slow- baked for six hours, brought to the table whole, and skinned in front of us. They took out the flesh, crisscrossed the aubergines with two knives, and then added whipped cream with hazelnuts, lemon, sweet pepper, oil, feta cheese, salt and pepper. Incredible."

Dinokratous & An, Polemou 22, Kolonaki, 11521 Athens, 0030 210 7400150, www.takioupia.com

3. Best place to eat: Hamburgers
Little Owl, New York

There are many fine hamburgers in New York, even the most mediocre of which would put its British counterparts to shame. But the best is the bacon cheeseburger at a small Greenwich Village bistro called Little Owl. "This sandwich is so copiously juicy, so rich with precious bodily fluids," says Josh Ozersky, author of The Hamburger: A History, "that it practically haemorrhages onto the plate. But the meat, which is a signature blend from New York's virtuoso hamburger maker Pat La Frieda, is perfectly paired with a bun of uniquely moist and yielding character. It's by far the best cheeseburger in this or any other city."

90 Bedford St, New York, 001 212 741 4695, www.thelittleowlnyc.com

4. Best place to eat: Zabaglione
La Cinzianelle

The best place in the world to eat zabaglione, according to Giorgio Locatelli, is at his uncle's restaurant, La Cinzianell, in Corgeno, northern Italy. "As the sun goes down behind Monte Rosa and it starts getting a bit chilly, the thing I enjoy most is the zabaglione prepared by my cousin Maurizio…"

Via Lago, 26 Corgeno, 0039 0 331 946 337

5. Best place to eat: Pho
Pho 24, Vietnam  Vietnam’s signature dish Pho at 'Pho 24' in Hanoi, Vietnam. 

Pho, a noodle soup with thin slices of meat (usually beef but sometimes chicken), is Vietnam's signature dish, and the issue of who makes it best is as tangled as white rice noodles in tasty broth. The Hanoi streets throw up a lot of persuasive contenders, such as the shack at 172 Ton Duc Thang Street. However, the sleek chain restaurant Pho 24, with branches around the country and across Asia, produces Vietnam's most reliably good pho. The meat is of a consistently high quality – a rarity in Vietnam – and the stock impresses even the hardest-to-please critics.

5 Nguyen Thiep Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (and other locations). 0084 88226278, www.pho24.com.vn

7. Best place to eat: Macaroons
Laduree, Paris

The original M Ladurée opened his bakery on the rue Royale in 1862. In 1930 his grandson invented the double-decker macaroon – two shells of the meringue-like pastry held together by creamy ganache filling. Ladurée has produced the definitive macaroons ever since. In recent years the company has opened shops around the world, but the original is by far the best.

16 rue Royale, 75008 Paris, 0033 01 42 60 21 79, www.laduree.fr

8. Best place to eat: Roast Chicken
L'Ami Louis, Paris

This Paris fixture, open since 1924, is the ultimate French bistro. Heads of state (Clinton, Gorbachev) and cultural giants (Welles, Hemingway) have come here to feast on sumptuous roast chicken, served whole with matchstick pommes frites and a simple green salad. It's touristy and expensive and the decor is a bit clichéd, but such details become trivial once the chicken (which inspired Simon Hopkinson to write his much-loved Roast Chicken and Other Stories) turns up at the table.

32 rue du Vertbois, 3e, 3rd arrondissement, Paris, 0033 1 48 87 77 48

9. Best place to drink: Milkshakes
Fosselman's, Los Angeles

The ingredients for the perfect milkshake are extremely good ice cream mixed with just the right amount of milk, and a classic American setting. The award-laden Fosselman's, in the LA suburb of Alhambra, has been offering both since 1924. The milkshakes, made with home-made ice cream, taste like you'd expect milkshakes to taste in the movies. Make a beeline for the double-chocolate malt.

1824 W Main Street, Alhambra, Los Angeles, 001 626 282 6533, www.fosselmans.com

10. Best place to eat: Texas barbecue
Snow's, Texas

The title of best BBQ joint in Texas is hotly contested in a state where the consumption of charred meats is as serious as religion. Texas Monthly magazine does the definitive annual poll. Most recently, the magazine awarded the title to Snow's, a rank outsider that has been trading a mere five years. Run by a former rodeo clown and an elderly lady named Tootsie, the restaurant only opens on Saturday mornings and consists of a small number of tables around a smoking pit.

516 Main Street, Lexington, Texas, 001 979 773 4640 (Saturday only), www.snowsbbq.com

See the rest of the top 50...

From Chicago.GrubStreet.com: Bon Appétit has announced the 2009 recipients of Bon Appétit Awards, a somewhat nebulous honor for "people, companies, and products setting new standards of culinary excellence in food, drinks, travel, and design." This year's winners range from chefs like Momofuku Milk Bar's Christina Tosi (honored for "bringing the fun back to dessert") to food purveyors like Rancho Gordo founder Steve Sando (cited for his commitment to rare and heritage beans). OpenTable gets a nod for its iPhone app and Kogi truck founders Caroline Shin-Manguera, Mark Manguera, and Roy Choi are applauded for being "grassroots guerilla restaurateurs. Check out the full list below — it's an eclectic one for sure...

• Daniel Boulud, for the inspired idea of going downtown with DBGB Kitchen and Bar.
  
  
• OpenTable (Jeffrey Jordan, CEO), for perfecting reservations on the go with the OpenTable iPhone app.
  
  
• Steve Sando of Rancho Gordo, for his commitment to the preservation of rare and heirloom beans.
  
  
• Jeremy Fox at Ubuntu, for creating innovative, inspired vegetarian food.
  
  
• The Beehive Oven from Al Fresco Imports (Fiona Hughes, president), for making it easy to bring wood-fired pizza into our own backyards.
  
  
• Caroline Shin-Manguera, Mark Manguera, and Roy Choi of the Kogi truck, for being true innovators as grassroots guerrilla restaurateurs.
  
  
• St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur (Robert Cooper, creator), for giving innovative artisanal "flower power" to the home bar.
  
  
• Christina Tosi of Momofuku Bakery & Milk Bar, for bringing the fun back to dessert through inspired and innovative recipes.
  
  
• Ace Hotel Group (Alex Calderwood), for making travel budget-friendly, eco-friendly, and stylish.
  
  
• Tracey Ryder and Carole Topalian of Edible Communities Publications, for the pioneering Edible magazines that empower local cooks, farmers, and restaurateurs to create sustainable culinary communities.

Go here to read the full descriptions: http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/baawards/2009/10/baa_2009?currentPage=1

 

From Yahoo! Health By David Zinczenko, with Matt Goulding of Men's Health: Somewhere between the brick ovens of Italy and the delivery cars of America something went horribly wrong. The traditional pizza, made with just bread, cheese and tomatoes, is now tricked out with inflated crusts, four-cheese toppings, and a surplus of pepperoni, all of which contribute to its quadrupled caloric count. And man, do we love it. With 69,000 pizza joints scattered across the U.S., it's no wonder that each man, woman and child devours an average of 46 slices a year. That's the equivalent of 23 pounds of pie!

Any way you slice it, we're taking in a lot more fat than our slimmer friends in Italy, where only 9 percent of the population is obese compared to our 34 percent . Their secret: Thin crust, half the formaggio, and extra vegetables. That's why we've included Best and Worst pizzas in our new book: Eat This, Not That! The Best (& Worst!) Foods in America! The following 7 problematic pies are pulled straight from the book: Avoid them at all costs, and see how, with the help of the Eat This, Not That! series, you can lose 10 pounds or more of belly fat--while still eating all of your favorite foods!

7. WORST SEAFOOD PIZZA
Red Lobster Lobster Pizza
720 calories
30 g fat (13 g saturated)
1,390 mg sodium
69 g carbs

It's a cool concept (certainly more appetizing than your grandfather's old anchovies habit), but it makes for a heavy meal that's stuffed with more sodium than you should eat in one sitting. Fare from the sea is one of the best ways to go, but sprinkled over a bed of starchy dough and fatty cheese and you've got a different story altogether. Billed as a starter, this Lobster Pizza is the only pizza on Red Lobster's menu. Luckily it shares space with one of the world's greatest appetizers--shrimp cocktail--and the chain restaurant is among the healthiest chain restaurants in the land, so you'll have no problem finding better options. 

6. WORST VEGGIE PIZZA
Papa John's Pan Crust Garden Fresh Pizza (2 slices)
740 calories
38 g fat (12 g saturated)
1,320 mg sodium
78 g carbs

Just because it's topped with veggies doesn't make it healthy. The real problem here isn't the toppings, though; it's the excessively thick, greasy pan crust that sinks this veggie-strewn ship. Two slices of this garden fresh pie will set you back the caloric equivalent of 7 ½ Rice Krispies Treats, and it'll stuff your belly with as much salt as you'll find in nearly 4 large orders of McDonald's French Fries. Save over 300 calories by switching to a larger pie (14") with a thinner crust. Just another example of why crust is king when trying to find a healthy pie.

5. WORST STUFFED PIZZA
Sbarro Stuffed Pepperoni Pizza
960 calories
(Sbarro doesn't offer other nutritional information)

Sbarro's individual pizza slices are oversized to begin with, but throw in the stuffed factor and you're looking at this single worst slice of pizza in America--the equivalent of almost 4 pepperoni slices from Pizza Hut. A rule of thumb for ordering pizza in general (and it's especially applicable at Sbarro) is to always choose the thinnest crust possible, and to always avoid any "stuffed" options, which indicate at least double the toppings. Downsize this massive wedge for a Fresh Tomato Pizza--and be sure to limit yourself to just one.

4. WORST PIZZA LUNCH COMBO
Romano's Macaroni Grill Sicilian Mio Pizza and Insalata Blu
1,010 calories
58 g fat (22 g saturated)
2,755 mg sodium
71 g carbs

Consuming over half your daily calories at lunch is asking for energy trouble in the afternoon (not to mention difficulties with your belt buckle). Macaroni Grill boasts about their perfect sized lunch combos as if super-sized individual pizzas and high-calorie "side" salads are a good thing. Even more disturbing is the fact that recent research found that people tend to underestimate portion sizes when their meals have more variety in them, so you're bound to eat more when you have more pieces to your meal. All the more reason to skip the Mac Grill combo meals and choose a simpler lunch, instead. (But beware: Healthy doesn't come easy at this restaurant, especially with pasta. Canneloni or Pasta Pomodoro are the only two bowls with less than 1,000 calories.)

3. WORST CALZONE
Pizza Hut Meaty P'Zone Pizza
1,480 calories
66 g fat (30 g saturated, 2 g trans)
3,680 mg sodium
152 g carbs

The word "calzone" alone should spell trouble, but this Pizza Hut Meaty P'Zone takes bad pizza pockets to a completely different level. The worst part is that Pizza Hut brags about their massive P'Zone like it's something to be proud of: The website reads "Over 1 LB of pizza goodness." Why is it over a pound? Because it's a regular-sized 12" pizza folded over onto itself and stuffed with meat and cheese. There's nothing impressive about eating an entire pizza by yourself.

2. WORST PIZZA APPETIZER
Uno Chicago Grill Pizza Skins
2,400 calories
155 g fat (45 g saturated)
3,600 mg sodium
195 g carbs

How are pizza skins different from an actual pizza? Well, they're not--they just come topped with crumbly processed bacon bits and a big fat dollop of sour cream. The only reason this monstrous dish didn't make it to our number one worst pizza spot is because it's supposed to be an appetizer, which means that some of the damage is mitigated by the fact that multiple people are digging in (or should be, at least). But even if you're traveling with a party of 5, it makes no sense to order what's essentially a family-sized pizza before your meal. To put it in perspective, a medium 12" pepperoni pizza from Pizza Hut only racks up 1,840 calories. That's nearly 600 fewer calories than you'll find in this one appetizer! Disgusting.

1. WORST PIZZA IN AMERICA
Uno Chicago Grill Chicago Classic Deep Dish Individual Pizza
2,310 calories
165 g fat (54 g saturated)
4,920 mg sodium
120 g carbs

This individual pizza has been named Worst Pizza in America three years in a row now, but Uno Chicago Grill doesn't seem to care--all they've done to minimize the epic impact of this monstrous meal is to change the nutrition labels on their website to reflect the calories "per serving," instead of the total calories per dish as a whole. What's revealing about that slight of hand is that it shows that Uno knowingly sells an individual pizza that actually has three servings' worth of calories, fat, sodium, and carbs. This one individual pizza has more calories than you should eat in a day and more than two days' worth of sodium. (That's as much salt as you'll find in 27 small bags of Frito Lays Potato Chips!) The only way to go at Uno is to steer away from the infamous deep dish Chicago-style pizzas and opt for a flatbread pie instead.

HALL OF FAME
THE BEST PIZZAS IN AMERICA

Next time you're hankering for a pie, grab a slice from one of these premium pizzas.

BEST VEGGIE PIZZA
Pizza Hut 12" Fit and Delicious Diced Red Tomato, Mushroom and Jalapeno (2 slices)
300 calories
16 g fat (7 g saturated)
1,220 mg sodium
46 g carbs

BEST HAWAIIAN PIZZA
Domino's Thin Crust Ham and Pineapple Pizza (2 slices)
294 calories
14 g fat (5 g saturated)
790 mg sodium
30 g carbs

BEST INDIVIDUAL PIZZA
Chuck E. Cheese Individual Cheese
540 calories
19 g fat (8 g saturated)
1,255 mg sodium
69 g carbs

BEST MEAT-LOVER'S PIZZA
Pizza Hut Meat Lover's 12" Pan Pizza (1 slice)
330 calories
18 g fat (7 g saturated, 0 g trans)
820 mg sodium
27 g carbs

Full Article on Yahoo! Health

By SF Weekly's Meredith Brody: Bar food is designed to keep you thirsty as you toss 'em back. Fatty, often crunchy, and above all salty, bar food is so popular there's even a new L.A. gastropub simply called Bar Food. We've culled the nine best from across the country, from classics (nachos and buffalo wings, so common they're now in lowercase) to trendy takes on Brit pub grub (devils on horseback, Scotch eggs).

9. Buffalo Wings
Anchor Bay
Buffalo, New York

There are a number of creation myths for buffalo wings, the ur-bar-food combo of fried wings coated in hot sauce, served with carrot and celery sticks and blue cheese dressing. We go with the one that places their origins in Teressa Bellissimo's Anchor Bay bar kitchen late on Friday night in 1964. Since then, millions upon millions of wings have been fried to feed hungry drinkers busy getting fried themselves.

8. Irish Nachos
B.D. Riley's Irish Pub
Austin, Texas

It's no surprise that great nachos can be had in Austin, but somewhat more surprising that the location is an Irish pub. Riley's recently added an Irish option to its very popular traditional nachos: thick-cut Irish chips (aka French fries) stand in for the tortilla chips, heaped with black beans, Jack and cheddar cheeses, diced tomatoes, jalapeños, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa. (Grilled chicken or beef are optional.)

​7. Office Burger
Father's Office
Santa Monica, California

You famously cannot have it your way at Father's Office. The renowned Office burger, a dry-aged sirloin patty on a soft French roll, comes with caramelized onions, applewood bacon compote, arugula, and Gruyere and Maytag blue cheeses. There's no holding the cheese, no raw onion, and don't even think of asking for ketchup for those cute fries that come in a miniature shopping cart.

6. Gold Coast Sliders
Luxbar
Chicago

Upscale Luxbar's signature sliders come in many varieties. In addition to the regular mini-burger and filet mignon versions, you can get turkey sliders, Kobe sliders with caramelized onions or truffle butter and bacon, blackened tilapia sliders with tartar sauce, crab cake sliders with hot pink mayo, even buttermilk fried chicken sliders with bacon mayo and tomato.

5. Toasted Ravioli
Charlie Gitto's "On the Hill"
St. Louis, Missouri

You won't find toasted ravioli -- the meat-filled pasta pockets breaded and deep-fried, served with a side of marinara sauce for dipping -- almost anywhere but on the menus of St. Louis. Charlie Gitto's is one of several places that lay claim to inventing the dish in the 1940s, and the only one still in business.

See the full list: http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/2009/08/the_nine_best_bar_foods_in_the.php#more

 

The country's top chefs tell "Esquire" magazine readers about 21 take-out joints they're not ashamed to love, from a California burger chain to the taco shack down the street.

The Winner: In-N-Out Burger
"The hamburger is definitive, greasy but oddly clean-tasting at the same time and the sauce actually is 'special.' And the shake tastes the way shakes tasted back when I was a kid. It makes me tear up just thinkin' about it." — Alton Brown, host of Iron Chef America
Order: One hamburger "Animal Style" and a chocolate shake

Honorable Mentions:

Chipotle: "I love their big, fat burritos. Sometimes we'll have them as a fast Sunday night dinner." — Brian Bistrong, Braeburn, New York City
Order: Burrito with extra guacamole and sour cream

Ted's Hot Dogs: "They have a charcoal grill right next to the register where they grill the dogs. I go to Ted's every time I visit my relatives in Buffalo." — Alfred Portale, Gotham Bar and Grill, New York City and Gotham Steak, Miami
Order: Foot-long dog with chili or mustard and relish, fries, and a chocolate shake

From Sean McCusker of Playboy: America didn’t invent the sandwich—that honor purportedly goes to John Montague, the 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718-1792). But if we didn’t create this sublime, handheld delicacy we damn sure perfected it—from the decadent lobster roll to the gooey genius of the Philly cheesesteak. So, with an open mind and an empty gut, we went in search of the best sandwiches this country has to offer.

• Lobster Roll at Straight wharf Fish Store, Nantucket, MA
  
• Cuban at Hugo's Spanish Restaurant, Tampa
• Philly Cheesesteak at Pat's King of Steaks, Philadelphia
• Banh Mi at Saigon Sandwich, San Francisco
  
• Pastrami at Katz's, NYC
  
• St. Paul Sandwich at Wong's Inn, Maplewood, MO
  
• French Dip at Phillipe's, LA
• Sloppy Joe at Town Hall Deli, South Orange, NJ
  
• Shrimp Po' Boy at Guy's Po' Boys, New Orleans
  
• Italian Beef at Al's Italian Beef, Chicago

Read more about each at Playboy

If you want to save your cash and eat out too, you're in luck. Experts predict a sales decline at restaurants this year, so diners are in the driver's seat. "Today's dining deals are incredible," says Darren Tristano, executive vice president of Technomic, a food-service research and consulting firm based in Chicago.

Our recent survey of 70,403 subscribers who made 158,744 visits to 101 restaurant chains revealed good meals, good deals, and choices for every budget and taste. Readers gave 21 chains top marks for food, and five very different chains earned exceptional scores for value: Black-eyed Pea (home-style comfort food), Sonny's Real Pit BBQ, Azteca Mexican Restaurant, Cheddar's Casual Café (eclectic American), and First Watch (eggs, pancakes, and sandwiches).

At the other end of the spectrum, with lower marks across the board, were Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, Joe's Crab Shack, and Friendly's. 

A look at the top-rated chain restaurants in various categories as ranked by Consumer Reports:

• Traditional American: Houston's
• Barbecue: Sonny's Real Pit BBQ, Famous Dave's (tie)
• Italian: Biaggi's Ristorante Italiano
• Mexican: Abuelo's, On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina (tie)
• Steakhouses: The Capital Grille
• Pub Style or Grille: Cheddar's Casual Cafe
• Unique Dinner Houses: P.F. Chang's China Bistro, California Pizza Kitchen (tie)
• Family: First Watch
• Seafood: Bonefish Grill