It's no secret that we love the succulent Texas 'cue on offer at Hill Country. Like many folks we also love the rockin' live music, but sometimes we're just not in the mood for beef, or more likely there are some noncarnivores joining us who are more interested in music than meat. All of which make us very glad that seafood house Black Pearl lies directly across the street from Hill Country. As you've no......

- Is New York going to go the way of LA with posted letter grades for restaurant health inspections? - If you are getting your Seder meal planning underway, feel free to ping the experts over the NY Times with any questions you may have. Click here to email them a question or send it direct to diningqa [at] gmail.com. Funny how the Times even knows Gmail has great spam protection. - Sometimes not eating......

- The great Chowhound uprising of 2007 seems like it will turn a corner; management promptly replies with fixes, explanations and small concessions. Give CNET some respect; they really do have to manage a loyal crowd who loves the site. - Jennifer Leuzzi cracks some clarification news about our next Inn over by what used to be everyone’s favorite how-do-I-find-it-street, Little West 12th. - Over on Grub Street Daniel Maurer highlights a good looking new......

- Momofuku Ssam Bar makes shakes up their menu -- the late-night selection is available earlier and Ssams later. - The Village Voice's Seistema visits the Smoke Joint and likes it "right out of the starting gate." [via Eating for Brooklyn] - The Black Pearl has been reborn in Chelsea -- long live lobster rolls! - Congrats to the winners of this year's food blog awards; a big shout out to Smitten Kitchen, Slashfood, and......

A fixture in Vegas for more than 14 years, the Double Down Saloon is now firmly in the East Village, too. The outpost on Avenue A has been open for about two months and, we'll be honest, this week wasn't our first visit- when you have a negotiable day job and a new bar offers a 12 noon to 7pm happy hour, you get acquainted quickly. Especially when the house beer, the Double Down, is......

A Gothamist reader tipped us off and Florence Fabricant confirmed that Black Pearl, the New England style clam and lobster shack in the back of the East Village bar, Julep has closed. We will mourn quietly and head back to Pearl Oyster Bar. New York Metro rounds up places to find deviled eggs, but somehow managed to leave off Blue Smoke. We didn't even know we liked deviled eggs until we tried these, light and......

Sometimes one just isn’t enough. This can be true when it comes to lobster rolls at the Black Pearl, cashiers at Duane Reade and that tasty little chocolate that they leave on your pillow in hotels (especially if it’s a Toblerone). When it comes to wine there is also something to be said about having more than one grape variety. Blends, or wines that are a blend of different grape varieties, can be some......

The New York Times reports that the newest addition to the Rosa Mexicano empire is scheduled to open this Saturday. Fingers crossed -- it's always good to have another location for our passionfruit margarita and fresh guacamole fix. Also open: Cookshop, from the folks who brought you Five Points, (yes, we know about all the damn hype); 156 Tenth Avenue (20th Street), (212) 924-4440. Also "Loft, a lounge and restaurant mixing Asian and Mediterranean, 505......

- Paris Commune, the West Village eatery that moved into new space at 99 Bank Street last year, is celebrating its anniversary by opening the Rouge Wine Bar. Quaff wines from France, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and Chile while you wait for a table upstairs, or finish off your night by sipping on a glass of cognac while you gaze at the original fresco covering two walls. Look closely and you might see Marc......

In case you missed it yesterday, be sure to check out New York Magazine's Cheap Eats issue. It's right up our alley; we're always looking for ways to save money so that we can, you guessed it, eat more food. Their Cheap List includes Gothamist favorites Bellavitae, Tia Pol, and the Waverly at IFC, plus places that are high on our list of newcomers, like La Esquina and Vintage New York's Wine Bar. We may......

We adore Pearl Oyster Bar. The raw bar, the fried oysters, and of course, the lobster roll. Several weeks ago, when we first heard of Black Pearl, a clam-shack-style window tucked into the back of the East Village bar Julep, we were intrigued. When we read the New York Times review, we knew we had to go immediately, if not sooner. The review described the lobster rolls as "the real deal. Top-loading hot dog buns......

Between a trip out to Fire Island this weekend, and New York Metro's wrap-up of new fish shacks, Gothamist is ready for summer. While our all-time favorite is Pearl Oyster Bar, we're eager to try the newbies -- Black Pearl, in the East Village, and Bar Minnow in Park Slope. We've already had a sample of the fish shack at BLT Fish, and while we only got a tiny taste of the raw bar and......