Last Friday, I was sitting at my desk trying to answer a deeply important question: Where should I eat dinner? As usual, I had a long list of restaurants on my to-do list, and I was going through them online, seeing which had reservations and examining all the menus. I must admit, my budget was feeling a little bit tight, so I was paying particular attention to price - I was looking for an inexpensive evening. To my great irritation, I found that a surprising number of online menus had no prices at all! more ›

Check out this beautiful cheese plate, one of many reasons that Rootstock was one of our favorite new bars last year. That is every cheese the Humboldt Park wine bar carries on its menu. You've got the Minnesota Big Woods Blue at the bottom left, a sheep's milk cheese with a light, grassy note. Directly above that is Alpine, a cow's milk cheese from New York state with hardness like Parmesan, but a rich complex flavor. Next to the Alpine is another New York state cow's milk cheese with a washed rind and fruity complexion called Hudson Red. more ›

• Who is the chef behind the blog Butcher's Grip? Don't look at us to out him/her, especially since, for followers of snout-to-tail, it's isn't as though the chef is completely anonymous. [via Grub Street Chicago]
• Late night secret congee menus at Me Dee Café in Ravenswood. [The Food Chain]
• Delightful Pastries' second location is now open in Old town. [Drive-Thru]

Last week we attended a preview of the new menu items at Wiener and Still Champion (802 Dempster, Evanston, 847-869-0100). Many of the new additions are former off-menu items owner Gus Paschalis would serve to frequent customers; the country fried gyros were one such item. But nothing prepared us for the phallic monstrosity pictured above. more ›

Michael Kornick has released the menu for his upcoming burger bar concept with David Morton, DMK Burger Bar (2954 N. Sheffield, 773-360-8686): more ›

• Bail was set at $1 million for the cab driver accused of sexually assaulting a passenger.
• University of Illinois Chancellor Richard Herman spoke briefly today on ending the admissions process at the school that gives favor to certain "connected" students.
• The FBI is now investigating a suspicious package found this morning at Riverside Plaza.

It's turning out to be a picture perfect autumn morning, don't you think? Here are some events over the next seven days to tie you over while we fill our flask with some Bulleit bourbon. more ›

We had the pleasure of eating that plate of spätzle (sometimes spelled as spaetzle) you see to the left while in Switzerland recently, alongside a nice pork cutlet. So what is spätzle? more ›

You'll find tripe on the menu at Italian, Greek, Asian, and Mexican restaurants, along with others. So what exactly is this commonly used ingredient? more ›