Quick Bites

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Sep 10, 2009 3:20PM

Rick Bayless hard at work on XOCO's official opening Tuesday. Photo by our esteemed founding editor, Rachelle Bowden.

Sad news for Soul Food fans this morning: Helen Maybell Anglin, who founded South Side staple Soul Queen, passed away yesterday at the age of 80. Take a pilgrimage to 90th and Stony Island this weekend in Ms. Anglin's honor. [Sun-Times]

Here's some other news from the past week.

• The Sun-Times takes an in-depth look into the world of rare and expensive teas. [Sun-Times]
• First Lady Michelle Obama is supporting a permit to establish a White House Farmers Market. Spare the "Leftcagoist" taunts: they're unimaginative [WTOP, via DCist]
• Carrie Becker shows you how to enjoy some good eating on a line cook's salary [Enjoy Illinois blog]
• A new online tool called Direct2Food is designed to make it easier for Chicago-area residents to locate food assistance programs. [The Stew]
• Bridget Houlihan and Tammy Green want to take you to brunch. [Chicago Bites]
• A new website called Specials Agent will help you locate daily restaurant specials by type of food, drink, city or neighborhood. [Inbox]
• The Fifty/50 is offering a $100 gift certificate to the thief who stole their May 1970 copy of Playboy out of the Wicker Park nightclub's bathroom last weekend. Maybe the culprit likes to rub one out reading a William F. Buckley interview. [Inbox]
• The Holiday Inn Mart Plaza Hotel became the city's first LEED Certified Hotel in the city. [Inbox]
• Finally, I went to XOCO Tuesday after work, which was probably the best time to do so because everyone else was at the Oprahpocalypse. While a full review will be pending after more visits, I can assuredly say that the head cheese and tongue torta is all that. If Bayless is offering offal on a menu, it's kind of a no-brainer to order.