The 2009 Best Of Menu

Food Essay | Written by Nathan Mattise

This was the first year of Diners Without Frosted Tips, so like every other blog on the ‘net, it’s time to commemorate things with our year-end list.

Diner food is (and hopefully always will be) the central focus of this site  and our first year-end list is no exception.  Presenting the best of what we’ve eaten in 2009.

The only rules:

A) The meal has to be eaten at a diner/breakfast place.

B)  This list is acknowledged as limited and subjective due to a regional limitation on the diners/meals I’ve been able to experience and the subjective criteria through which the “value” of a meal is judged.

C)  The meal has to have been eaten in 2009 but the review/article does not necessarily need to have been written/published yet (thus ensuring this is a true best of list since I’m not totally caught up on my reviews/essays).

Without any further delay, the Diners Without Frosted Tips’ 2009 Best Of Menu…

Michelin Stars, Paula Dean’s pole, 2009 cookbooks and an online restaurant review survey.

Food Links | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

• One of the most read New Yorker articles this month? Take a look behind the scenes with the folks who go undercover to determine the Michelin Star ratings.

• For other food-related items from well-respected magazines, take a look at this interesting McSweeney’s take on Paula Deen.

• When perusing all the various Best of 2009 lists, I’m glad to see that Best Cookbooks is its own entity. (This local 94-year-old did not get any listings despite the impressive productivity).

• Finally, if you enjoy anything on this blog, chances are you’ve looked at food reviews online at some point in your life. Share that experience with a needy grad student in this online restaurant review survey (being done for my Applied Research in Content Management Systems class).

Diners Without Frosted Tips featured on USA Today’s Pop Candy

Food Links and Essay | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

…well, a list I wrote inspired by this blog was on Pop Candy. Click on to read my Top 5 Pop Culture Diners (and they’re not the five you’d expect… it’s a Meg Ryan-free list).

Grilling tips, Trader Joe’s, text etiquette and National Chain Restaurant survey results

Food Links | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

• ESPN’s Bill Simmons recently prepped folks for the outdoor grilling season by podcasting with Adam Perry Lang. The grill savant talked about over/under rated meats and tips for the weekend warrior.
  

• I discovered Trader Joe’s first during a summer in Albuquerque, N.M. but this weekend I heard of an NYC location. That makes this fansite even more valuable.

• Didn’t this go without saying? Etiquette folks say texting during meals is a no-no.

• Finally, in a survey of National Chain Restaurats, the No. 1 place for a quick refreshment… Starbucks. They also had top 10 finishes in overall experience and healthy options.  (Wendy’s pops up all-over this thing too).

‘Cuse culinary news

Food Links | Compiled by Nathan Mattise

• The granddaddy of all Syracuse restaurants, Dinosaur BBQ, is in the national limelight as a finalist in Good Morning America’s Best BBQ competition.

• One more taste of national news – who knew one of the 100 Best U.S. Chinese Take Out Restaurants was in Manlius?

• Clark’s Ale House got notoriety on a much smaller scale last week – syracuse.com reader poll winner for best local bar.

• Finally, no matter where you’re located, who can say no to a free Twix (or other Mars chocolates) on a Friday?