Time to dress up and play "I have my own food television show!" If you've ever thought you had it in you, now's the time. Epicurious.com is hosting a contest for the best video on holiday food and entertaining. Submit your entry by January 2, 2008 and have a chance to win prizes including Michael Chiarello cookware and Epicurious.com editors' favorite cookbooks. And if you're quick about it, the first 25 people to submit videos......

Looking for some of the best coffee in the city? Ed Levine has a few suggestions, including some of our favorites, like Joe, the Art of Coffee and the Mud Spot. The Omnivore's Dilemma's Michael Pollan puts in his two cents about recent activity surrounding the Farm Bill, "However many worthwhile programs get tacked onto the farm bill to buy off its critics, they won’t bring meaningful reform to the American food system until the......

Ed Levine waxes poetic about the genius that is 'ino's truffled egg toast and provides the recipe so that you can have it for brunch even if you are too lazy to leave the house (provided, of course, that you hit the grocery store first). Watch it on video if you need some extra guidance. [Serious Eats; RealMealsTV] Is David Chang opening a Momofuku outpost in Vegas, or not? Does he think that NYC is......

It's Michelin madness! While we gave you the overall rundown yesterday, we wanted to follow up a bit. We noted the loss of a star at Tom Colicchio's Craft. Bruni ponders this change: "Craft’s demotion is more attention-getting. Has it really gone downhill? I hear mixed reports from regulars, and while my most recent meal there, perhaps a year ago, wasn’t as memorable as a meal I had eaten there about two years before that,......

Saturday night’s Vendy Awards ended in victory for “Dosa Man” Thiru Kumar, the all-vegan, South Indian crêpe vendor of Washington Square South who had previously taken the runner-up title for the last two years. At the awards ceremony capping off a 5 hour eat-a-thon, Kumar was presented with the silver “Vendy” trophy by last year’s winner Samiul Haque Noor, from Sammy’s Halal. All 5 of this year’s nominees competed for attendees’ votes with their food......

Where does one find the best falafel in New York? The Girl Who Ate Everything declares, and Ed Levine agrees, that it might just be at Taim. We'd definitely put it near the top of our list, as we do love Rainbow Falafel quite a bit as well. This year's pickle festival was apparently a huge success, with pickles and lines galore. The trick to making your food last longer is proper storage. Yes, if......

Need to lose a few pounds? Try some pickles -- Drew Nieporent swears by them: "You should slice them the long way, so they last longer. I have lost 50 pounds in 100 days." [NY Daily News] Is your favorite chip on the list of those tested by the Times this week? Kettle Chips are the overall chip champ, but Ed Levine laments the omission of Cape Cod Dark Russets. [NYT; Serious Eats] In case......

In case you missed it, earlier this week, Rebecca Charles, owner of Pearl Oyster Bar, filed an intellectual property suit against former sous-chef Ed McFarland, alleging that he had stolen recipes and design ideas when he opened his new restaurant, Ed's Lobster Bar. Here's what has gone down since then. Ed held a press conference. Grub Street describes Ed's response: “I am deeply saddened to learn that Rebecca Charles has brought an action against me,”......

The story: a man walks into a clam bar and orders a plate of fried clams, and the confusion begins. “Fried clams” can refer either to squiggly strips a la HoJo’s (RIP), or clam bellies. Otherwise known as Ipswich clams, bellies refer to the shucked ball-and-chain shaped whole bivalve, minus the clam’s soft shell. In its fried form, Ipswich clams are harder to find. Regardless, there are few restaurants that serve fried clams in either......

Restaurants vs. Bloggers -- the smackdown. Shouts go out to New York locals NYCNosh, Ed Levine, and the Amateur Gourmet. [The Food Section] We adore lambrusco -- now Vino and I Trulli are carrying a rare line of lambruscos fermented in the bottle, champagne-style. [Grub Street] Morandi -- now serving breakfast. [Eater] Why are there only two restaurants on Roosevelt Island? Could it be the work of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation? [NYCNosh] The Smoke......

Down at the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party Sunday it sure seemed that everybody was having a grand ole' time. It seemed bigger than ever, with people spilled into every nook and cranny of the park, filed into a long row of picnic tables on Madison, and splayed out on to the sidewalk everywhere else. Our group was made of up veterans of the previous four events, had the lay of the land and......

As we mentioned earlier this week, the vendors who set up shop at the Red Hook ballfields may be at risk for losing their permit. According to the New York Times, the vendors have operated for years under a series of temporary use permits, but now they will have to place a formal bid with the city in order to remain in the space. But the vendors are not guaranteed to win this bid, so......

We got ourselves a note in the inbox from the folks who run the Big Apple BBQ to let us know that Bubba FastPasses are currently on sale from now till May 25 for the June 9 & 10 event. Gothamist was all over this event last year; look for more great coverage and photos coming up soon. This year should provide a bit of a pre-show glimpse of what local pitmaster Robbie Richter has......

Maybe it was just the red carpet, but most of the people we spoke to seemed particularly excited about the new digs for the James Beard Foundation Awards, black-tie affair held last night at Avery Fisher Hall to honor some of the country's best chefs, restaurateurs, and culinary professionals. Susan Ungaro, the President of JBF, noted that originally, James Beard had moved to New York to become an opera singer, but had to earn......

Looks like Rick's Ramps have made it into the Union Square Greenmarket, the frenzy commences...now. We raised some of our own in few EV community gardens, are hoping to harvest in a bit and use as an herb as opposed to the pile of it recently consumed as a veg accompaniment on the Duck dish at Telepan. Nina Lalli goes on a Sunset Park taco tour. Great photos here, we especially love the race track......

Bourdain takes the food network to task yet again, this time for its Food Network Awards that aired last night. In his post on Ruhlman, he shows sympathy for the poor pimped out Food Network talent and the comments are well on their way to the century mark.We could hardly believe it when we read it over the weekend, but the FDA's “point man on E. coli” does not believe prewashed and bagged leafy greens......

- While browsing this NYT article about pulperías in Galicia, Spain we are reminded about how good the octopus is at the initially-jeopardized E.U. was when we went Friday. Come to think of it, the Baked Rigatoni with Milk-Braised Berkshire Pork, the Fried Smelts and the meatballs were darn tasty as well. - Any occasion to talk about Bill Telepan's food is something to take advantage of. Here is a short interview with the Upper......

Much has been written about Death & Company since they came on the East Village scene a few months back. As you likely know by now, high-end cocktail people take their craft quite seriously and Phil, the head bartender here is no exception. Made with an array of well-selected spirits, juices, alternative liquid sweeteners and homemade bitters, each cocktail strives for a chilly, complex, and balanced flavor profile. Many of the drinks offered are not......

- Florentine specialty gundi gets the Sunday treatment in the Daily News from Irene Sax. April Bloomfield speaks about the “fluffy little bites of love”, Iacopo Falai calls them a “woman's dish”, and Mark Ladner’s recipe from Del Posto is included. Hit DiPalo’s to find the sheep’s milk that is essential for a winning dish at home. - Apparently Paper Magazine is moving/has moved to K-Town, and have decided to celebrated with a nice round-up......

If you're serious about eating, you should check out the latest addition to the food blog/community scene, Serious Eats. The brainchild of Ed Levine, of Ed Levine Eats and author of New York Eats, the site bills itself as "the first website for serious eaters" with the goal in mind "to provide the best, most satisfying food- and drink-related experience on the internet." Ed is joined by other illustrious food bloggers, including Adam Kuban of......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a hazmat condition in L.E.S., a "car vs. house" in Queens, and a suspicious package on 34th and 7th. Rose Mattus, the co-creator of Haagen-Dazs, died this week at age 90: "Around 1960, while sitting on their couch in the Bronx, Mr. and Mrs. Mattus fabricated the foreign-sounding name. It was Mr. Mattus’s idea to include a map of Denmark on the carton and to put an umlaut over......

- With T-day approaching, Ed Levine digs deep on pies. At this moment the first 8 posts on the front page are pie related. - More in themed blogging, Slashfood was all about nuts yesterday. Any true fagales fan should head over and check it out. - With all the food Gothamist eats, lately steps have been taken to slim down and that means also understanding how food items eaten measure up. This site here......

Let’s start with some birth announcements. - Savoy is set to get its first offspring early next winter (think March/April). We can’t share too much on the location since the deal is still not done, but expect it to be east of the current location. Look for the menu to be in the vein of the approachable, sandwich/salad/mezze lunch program that followed the Savoy's renovation a couple of years ago. Entrée plates will be more......

- Ed Levine wonders aloud if there is such a thing as a "cheap 4 star" eating experience, and then tells us about his, at the Del Posto Enoteca. - The fight is on over the right to use the Guss' Pickles name. - The Clinton Hill Blog checks out the Smoke Joint, a new BBQ place in Fort Greene, and declares happily, "Smoke Joint does it right." - Savory New York has recently added......

- In case you somehow missed it here, on Eater, on Grub Street, or on A Hamburger Today, BLT Burger is now in its soft opening, with their official opening scheduled for Tuesday. - Remember Mad Libs? Food Candy has brought them back to life in the form of restaurant reviews, making it easy for anyone to jot down a few thoughts about recent dining experiences. - Ed Levine gorges at the Donut Plant, leaves......

- Last week Ed Levine took a swipe at the Zagat designation of Telepan as Top Newcomer, alleging that is received some localized favoritism. Tim replied in the comments, and now Ed takes a staring role as the big man with a mea culpa. - Eater has put together some nice links on the Spain 10 event from this past Saturday. - Alex Ureña was up at the Spain 10 event, and for no other......

-- Nothing says love like an illegal wedding at the Metropolitan Museum. -- The Brooke Astor saga is over-- her son agreed to give up guardianship, in exchange for keeping the cash he diverted from the estate. -- 50,000 people sent Katie Couric suggestions on a sign-off line. Our submission: "Suck on that, America!" -- Is Pirro really tough on pedophiles? She let 93% of the ones she caught plead out to probation. --......

- Ed Levine has a short round up of the Il Buco annual pig roast; looks like it should be on the calendar next year. - Check out this podcast from The Gilded Fork Culinary Podcast Network, they have William Grimes discussing the topic of restaurant vernacular. Sample topic - use of the word entrée and the difference in the meaning here and across the pond. - The rise, battle, takedown, and hibernation of E.U.......

- Chowhound takes a nostalgic bent, going back in time for a glimpse of Chinatown past. - Slice with the info about a pizza making class by the talent behind Sullivan Street bakery. What they make is not what most people associate with New York pizza, but it is damn tasty – especially the celery root version. - A profile in The Nation of an organic harvest. [via Megnut] - Check out part two of......

- It's Chang-mania! Read and hear all about Momofuku's David Chang at Off the Broiler and The Villager. Then go get one of his Ssäm. - Ed Levine has found the ice cream sandwich of his dreams at Jaques Torres. - Midtown Lunch explains the mystery of Oms/B (picture, right), beginning with an explanation of what the hell the name means. - Food Notebook reviews fifteen of the hottest food podcasts (great for the commute).......