It took about 20 bottles of wine and more than a little time, but that's how Cobblestone Bakery & Bistro's staff decided which cupcakes to pair with which wines. "We just sat down the other day; we went through 20 bottles of wine," bakery manager Kate McNamara said. "We went with what tasted good." The pairings aren't an official part of the menu. The wine is always available since the shop began offering it about a month ago, while the cupcake varieties change a bit from day to day. McNamara herself is new to Cobblestone. A Sandwich High School graduate, McNamara owns Pheobe's Cupcakes in …

This week I wanted to do something breakfast related. So, being the creative giant that I am, I turned all of my brain power on conceiving an item that would not only leave my taste buds thanking me, but Merriam-Webster thanking me for the dictionary sales that would come from the great number of words I would have to use to describe the dish.  And then I thought of pigs-in-a-blanket. Shortly after that I thought about how Buster, my beagle, looks ridiculous when he sneezes. Before long, my ADD-addled mind forgot all of my original criteria, and I went ahead with pigs-in-a-blanket.    There …

The stars were aligned for this showdown. On my way back from the first of the three places I checked out, I got behind a car in traffic with a license plate that seemed to be a correspondence from the heavens. I’ve included a pic of that car that I safely took with my camera-phone while driving. Have a look at that license plate.  So then my friend Debi made these homemade mini-pizzas for our board-gaming group the other evening. To add some spice to my life, I unsafely took a picture of those while stationary.   So with that in mind, I checked out three pies from places I’ve recently seen …

What amazing weather we’ve just had this week! Talk about your Indian summers, right? I once went to school with a girl whose parents emigrated from India, and upon arriving in America they took American names.   She ended up being called Summer. One of the first things I ever spoke with her about was ice cream. She said American ice cream just tasted like original immigration documents - not the Xeroxes they were mailed from our State Department, which were why her father couldn’t start his job and she got removed from school for six weeks while it all got sorted out. This was the Clinton …

After a few weeks away from the burger scene, I decided to plunge headlong back in to the arena and bring you the second installment of signature burgers. While this review will stand on its own, it is better as the second part of the series. Do yourself a favor and go back and read the first signature burger chowdown.  I’ll wait.   Unlike I did at these restaurants. It may have been due to the times of day I was eating, but these three burgers each were the fastest I’ve had served to me. Maybe these guys all read the first part, and practiced up to get ready for me. Despite the speed of …

Nothing may be more American than apple pie, but nothing is more in America’s dietary wheelhouse than the drive-thru (or drive-through if you’re a grammar curmudgeon). So I conducted a bit of an experiment. It was not an experiment of Super Size Me proportions — more of a survey. I went to three restaurants and asked them what they sold the most. (Yes, I was THAT guy.) McDonald's (the one on Yorkville's North Side) McDonald’s was, for years, the king of the drive-up. So it only makes sense that they are now king of the drive-thru. It’s the only way to serve billions and billions. Whether that…

Let me say up front: This is far and away the most challenging Chowdown Showdown I’ve done so far. Chimichangas sounded good to me this week. While each venue visited served a very filling, delicious meal, I frankly find it hard to sit here now and compare and contrast them. Now chimichangas, if you’re not familiar, are essentially burritos (only, sort of limited as to what goes inside) deep-fried. Not breaded and deep fried, but after the tortilla has been loaded up with deliciousness, it’s dropped in the fryer for just a quick bit.   Each restaurant accomplished a delicate, flakey crust. …

Pre-season football is on TV, the sun heads for the hills by 8:30, and my time-between-mowings of the lawn has expanded from 6 to nearly 9. Summer is nearing its conclusion, and I’m ready to cash in on my remarkably toned beach-body and start piling on some warming layer. But a plain, regular cheeseburger isn’t going to satisfy me. As luck would have it, just about every food venue in town has an eponymous burger. If you own a food establishment and you name a dish after said food establishment, I figure that means you’re proud of your dish and you want me to eat it and remember you for it. …

Classically, I have little attachment and received small enjoyment from Chinese food. I remember Plano’s Far East Restaurant had a very salty cheeseburger when I was a little guy. Before taking a wife, I’d once dated a girl who loved her some crab rangoon. It wasn’t long until I got into crab rangoon.    I eventually realized that child-me had predisposed adultified-me to be cautious with Asian food, even though everything I’d ever tried – I’d enjoyed.   So we’re really going to go crazy this week and take advantage of the fact that Yorkville now boasts three non-sushi  Asian-cuisine outlets…

This week I’ve been watching an old series from HBO called Rome. It’s about Julius Caesar, his rise to power and his downfall. The show not only transports me to a different time but a different place. I’ve been speaking in an English accent (which is apparently how Romans spoke), milling my own grains, and saying “What in Zeus’ name!”   One day my millstone wasn’t spinning and it occurred to me I have to write this column. In keeping with my Roman theme, I chose to review an Italian dish that didn’t exist until hundreds of years past the fall of the empire, fettuccine alfredo. Spaghetti …

Like all fairs, upon your arrival to the Kendall County Fairgrounds you'll be immediately greeted by scents. The Kendall County Fair delivers smells galore. Primarily grilling but also livestock.    Some of that grilling is coming from the Kendall County Pork Producers. For $3.50, the first thing I treated myself to was a pork-burger with cheese. Ooh, was that tasty. The meat was tender and delicious. Think of a mild brat burger. For the same price, I also checked out a well-done hamburger made the proper way, with beef. Very tender and delicious meat. Though my burger was pre-made and served…

I’m probably the easiest guy in the world to please at breakfast. If it’s warm and ready for me to eat, then I’m pretty much satisfied with whatever you offer me. But if you really wanted to make me happy, there for darn sure best be some biscuits and gravy made available. You see I’ve had many good breakfast foods over the years, but B-and-G and I have a long and beautiful history together. When I was a little guy, it was a big deal for our family to go out maybe every other Saturday and have breakfast at Plano’s cultural hub: Treber’s Restaurant.  Treber was the man. As I recall, it was …

What’s more American than onions cut in to rings, breaded, and then deep fried? Okay, there’s probably a few things. But nothing says America to me like good ol’ deep-fried foods.  Sometimes I’ll turn up at a restaurant and find myself disappointed by the lack of deep-fried options. Or I’ll find that the options they have are only shallow-fried. I want to taste the last 10 years of deep-fried foods when I order my side dish. I’m a simple man. I enjoy simple pleasures.  Luckily for me, onion rings are fairly common. I thought it’d be nice to put outlets of a similar ilk up against each other…

Silver Dollars specializes in temptation. Their Web site URL is eatbetterpancakes.com. They have turtle pancakes (chocolate chips, pecans and caramel sauce), berry sour pancakes (fresh strawberry compote and sour cream) and key lime pie cakes (pancakes layered with pie filling and topped with graham cracker and whipped cream). Reading through those, it comes as no surprise that their menu declares: "One bite ... happy. Two bites ... addicted. Empty plate ... need more pancakes!" But when the craving for truly decadent pancakes hits, when one is truly addicted, is Silver Dollars the best place…

If coffee is like my favorite coworker (the frequent companion who helps me get through the day), chai latte is my college friend. Our meetings are more rare, but it only takes me a few seconds to remember everything I love. The warm spiciness. The caffeine.  The delicious smell. With the first day of spring hinting at a time when hot chai lattes must be swapped for iced chai lattes, I accepted a Chowdown Showdown challenge to find the best chai latte in Yorkville. Panera First stop: Panera. There, the clerk asked me if I wanted skim or 2 percent milk (skim, please) and a dash of cinnamon on …

Often, the madness of mornings leads to skipping basics such as a shower or the most essential meal of the day. But there are quick ways to still have a delicious start. Nothing beats a coffee or hot chocolate and a classic Long John donut early in the morning on a cold winter day. (Maybe you're like me and cannot consume a meal, including breakfast, without soda).I visited a few Yorkville locations to see what stores have the best tasting Long John donuts for busy people looking for an early morning goodness or an afternoon delight. What I found was surprising.Dunkin Donuts, 1604 North …

Anything called the "Chocolate Tower" demands a challenge, right? Especially when it comes stabbed with a knife so it can be carved up among three or four people. That's how this week's Chowdown Showdown started. I was idly glancing at Stonefire's dessert menu with two members of the Yorkville Patch Moms Council and - on the spot - decided it was time for a dessert Chowdown Showdown. And chowdown I did. Stonefire Restaurant We got the Chocolate Tower, which the menu bills as a "huge slice of layered fudge cake, served slightly warm." The presentation was excellent, but the cake itself was a …

I have to be in a certain mood to enjoy a Reuben. It's large enough that I need an appetite that a burger or pasta won't quite satisfy. I need to be in the mood to sit and actively digest food (and hopefully good conversation and/or television) after eating this grilled sandwich with corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, and dressing. That mood hit last week, so I accepted a Chowdown Showdown challenge to consume three of these monstrous sandwiches in close proximity. How else was I going to discover who offers the best Reuben in Yorkville? Sunfields Restaurant First, I hit up Sunfields, …

My first idea was chocolate shakes. Yes, I was going review chocolate shakes in the dead middle of winter. Though after a bizarre, inquisitive look from a waitress the first time I ordered one, accompanied by three feet of snow to shovel from my driveway, I decided a warm coffee house and some extra energy should be the topic of this week’s Chowdown Showdown. In search of this energy, and a place to write, I set out for a café that offered everything I needed: coffee, food and access to the ever-necessary Internet. Dunkin Donuts, 1604 N. Bridge St. While they claim that America runs on them, …

For this segment of Chowdown Showdown, I decided to go beyond breakfast basics and search for the best eggs benedict in Yorkville. I do enjoy a good stack of pancakes, but let’s be honest – there are oh-so-many ways to mess up Hollandaise sauce. I took the risk pre-coffee and checked out three local diners on three separate mornings. Southern Belle’s Pancake House and Restaurant, 58 E. Schoolhouse Road. I started with Southern Belle’s, because it’s in the same shopping center as my gym, Anytime Fitness of Yorkville. (Yes, I laughed too when I realized a gym is essentially next to a pancake …