Bacon and Bleu Cheese Burger, Dutch’s, Fort Worth Photograph by Matthew Rainwaters, from Texasmonthly.com

Well, it’s happened again.

Pat Sharpe, Texas Monthly’s food editor and restaurant critic, penned another story nominated for a National Magazine Award by the American Society of Magazine Editors. Her story in the August 2009 issue of Texas Monthly, The 50 Best Burgers in Texas was nominated in the leisure category. If you read it, you know why some consider it to be the authoritative guide on the topic (though truth be told,  she and I quibble about some of the picks).

Awards are announced on April 22. According to the ASME, more than 300 magazines participated in the National Magazine Awards this year, submitting 1,758 entries.

After becoming pleasantly full at the restaurant Park recently, I found myself searching for the perfect after-dinner beverage.  Perusing Park’s dessert menu, I noticed Drambuie offered as a digestif.  Drambuie’s name is rooted in the Gaelic phrase an dram buidheach, which translates to “the drink that satisfies.”

Sold!

A blend of Scotch whiskeys flavored with heather honey and Scottish herbs, it proved to be the perfect choice.  Served neat, the rich honey flavor and texture offered a not-too-sweet close to a great meal and a pleasant alcoholic kick.  If you mix Drambuie with Scotch then serve it on the rocks, it becomes the classic Rusty Nail, which was fantastically popular with the 1960’s swinging set.

Sipping it on the patio at Park, I enjoyed it neat, teamed with a cup of coffee and chef Mark Cassel’s warm, fresh cinnamon-sugar doughnuts. Mmmm. What a smooth, cuddly finish to a relaxing evening.

Besides, Drambuie is made with heather honey!  How could a girl named Heather possibly resist?

Green is certified by the Court of Master Sommeliers as a Sommelier. She is a member of the wine and spirits team at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse in Dallas and writes about wine and spirits for EscapeHatchDallas.com.

It’s unbelievable how much the times have changed. Sponsorships and attendance are down, as is Tiger’s rep. But you might not want to pass up this opportunity to go to the major Major of the year–there’s a good chance Tiger will be among the field of competitors.

The hottest tickets in golf are yours for a price less than scalpers used to get for a one-day pass less than a decade ago.

Costco, of all places, has a 3 night, 4 day package that includes lodging, transfers, and tickets for two to the Masters Golf Tournament on Thursday/Friday or Saturday/Sunday rounds. The Masters, of course, takes place at Augusta National Golf Club April 7-12.

Here are the details:

Experience first hand as the world’s greatest golfers compete for the coveted “Green Jacket” at the legendary Augusta National Golf Club. This is a one of a kind opportunity for golf aficionados to attend an event that is unparalleled in golf.  With a rich sense of history and good old southern charm there are few events that can match the allure of The Masters Golf Championship.

Your Masters package comes complete with deluxe accomodations at the Hilton Columbia Hotel in Columbia, SC. Ideally located in the historic district of Columbia with over 40 bars and restaurants within walking distance.

Sport Events, LLC is proud to offer The Lodge on Magnolia. The Lodge on Magnolia is Augusta’s premier hospitality center located only a short iron shot from the main entrance to Augusta National G.C.; we bring you a hospitality experience like no other. The expansive facility (approx. 14,000 sq. ft.) features private rooms for groups of various sizes or a large common area to share this exquisite setting. The Lodge will set the tone for guests to relax and revive during their tournament experience. The classic lodge backdrop will allow guests to further enjoy this well-deserved experience.

For inquiries regarding the Masters Package for two, please email events@sportevents.com and call toll free (888) 699-4040. Customer service hours are 9 am EST to 8 pm EST.

Premium Masters Package for Two includes:
Four days and three nights deluxe accommodations at the Hilton Columbia, South Carolina
Thursday-Friday rounds: Check-in on April 7, 2010 and check-out on April 10, 2010
Saturday-Sunday rounds: Check-in on April 9, 2010 and check-out April 12, 2010
Two tickets to the Masters, you can choose to go to rounds 1 and 2 on Thursday and Friday, or rounds 3 and 4 on Saturday and Sunday
A welcome package including a detailed itinerary and instructions on event details will be delivered 7-10 days after placing your order
Tickets will be delivered in person upon your arrival at the “Lodge on Magnolia”
Hotel to golf course is 71 miles, approximately 80 minute drive
Round-trip air conditioned shuttle – hotel to course runs 4 times a day, includes snacks
The “Lodge on Magnolia” includes:
Daily full breakfast buffet
Daily full lunch buffet
Daily cocktail hour featuring hot and cold hors d’oeurves
Full premium bar
Plasma screen televisions televising live coverage of the Masters
Daily pairing sheets and a variety of daily newspapers and publications for the latest tournament highlights
Wireless internet throughout the facility as well as computer stations for guest access
Personalized concierge staff to assist you throughout your Masters experience
Terms and Conditions:
No returns
Airfare or travel to Augusta is not included in the package price
Airport Transfer to and from hotel not included
The Purchaser and guest are responsible for any expenses not listed herein, including but not limited to , payment of all taxes on the Package, and for any other expenses related to the acceptance and use of the Package not specifically stated above

And here’s the link.

After 14 years as a sommelier at Dee Lincoln’s flagship Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse in Dallas, Brian Soloway tendered his resignation and accepted a similar position at Nick & Sam’s steakhouse. The affable Soloway was one of the bright stars at Del Frisco’s, which I reviewed two years ago for the Dallas Morning News

“The business was fine.” Soloway says. “The honest truth is, it was the stairs.”

Soloway says he has had persistent problems with his knee, which haven’t resolved despite recent arthroscopic surgery. Nick & Sam’s dining room is all on a a single level.

Soloway assumed the role of sommelier at Nick & Sam’s Sunday, March 7.

Dee Lincoln was traveling and unavailable for comment.

Chef Casey Thompson, whose 411 includes Shinsei restaurant in Dallas and Top Chef on Bravo tv, is taking the reigns of a new range next month in Fort Worth.

The new restaurant is called Brownstone, and it’s set to open “sometime in April,” according to Sam Sameni, Brownstone’s operating partner. In addition to Brownstone, Sameni’s Sameni Entertainment Group owns Wish Ultralounge and the nightclub Joyce Champagne Lounge, both in Dallas.

Thompson says on her blog that Brownstone will feature “local, artisan and fresh ingredients.”  Brownstone is located at 840 Currie Street, in the new West 7th mixed-use development, which looks eerily like Legacy Park in Plano.

According to Sameni, neither the menu nor the opening date have been finalized.

The We7 development also features Dallas staples Bailey’s Prime Plus, Tillman’s Roadhouse, Fireside Pies, Patrizio and Patrizio.

Sameni Entertainment Group provides hospitality/nightlife consulting, strategic planning and marketing, and, according to the company, currently serves 22 clients whose combined sales in 2009 topped $56 million.

Good food. Weird logo.

Nick Badovinus, the chef and co-owner of runaway-hit Neighborhood Services restaurant, says he’ll open Neighborhood Services Bar and Grill at the southeast corner of Preston Road and Royal Lane in May.

“We can’t make the place on Lovers (Lane) any bigger, so we have to grow outside” of the existing location, Badovinus told EscapeHatchDallas last week.

The opening of NS Bar and Grill will follow  on the heels of the debut of Neighbornood Services Tavern, Badovinus’ second solo venture since leaving Consilient Restaurants, where he co-created Hibiscus, The Porch, and Fireside Pies, among others. Badovinus said Neighborhood Services Tavern is slated to open “in a couple of weeks” at 2405 North Henderson AVenue, next to Capital Pub, and will be a slightly less expensive version of the original Neighborhood Services. It’ll still be small, holding just 82 seats, and open for dinner only. (I have more to say about NS Tavern in the April issue of Modern Luxury Magazine.)

Neighborhood Services Bar and Grill, on the other hand, will be open for both lunch and dinner. The interior will be casual–it’s a bar and grill, Badovinus emphasizes–so he’s designing all the tables to be at bar height, and the chairs are all 42 inches tall.  Most of the favorites from the original NS will be on the menu, including fried asparagus spears and the best-selling item, the Wedge salad. As with NS Tavern, Badovinus said the menu for NS Bar and Grill has been “reimagined to hit a lower price point” than at NS on Lovers Lane.

Sommelier Brandan Kelley will oversee the beverage program at all three locations.

At the beginning of March, the next chapter in my life as a cookbook author took a big leap forward, as photography began on what I hope will be a pretty wonderful book. In December, chef and restaurateur Louis Lambert and I signed a contract with Ten Speed Press to produce the cookbook Big Ranch, Big City, which the publisher plans to have in stores in the fall of 2011.

Even though the ink has been dry for a couple of months, I’m reticent to talk about a book until you can see that it’s underway. When our photographer and friend Ralph Lauer began shooting the photographs, I could really feel this big project taking flight.

The book’s subtitle, “Modern recipes from the Lambert’s bunkhouse and urban kitchens,” gives you a better understanding of the book’s intent. Big Ranch, Big City brings together Lambert’s life as a ranch kid from West Texas (his family owns seven ranches out there, with some dating back seven generations) and his classical training at the Culinary Institute of Americ in New York.

Before returning to Texas Lambert worked for Wolfgang Puck at Postrio; in Dallas he worked at Café Pacific, and he’s worked at the Reata locations in Alpine and Fort Worth. Since then, Lambert has owned a number of restaurants in Austin and Fort Worth.

Today you can taste his cooking at Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, at two Jo’s Hot Coffee establishments in Austin, at Lambert’s Steaks Seafood Whiskey in Fort Worth and at Dutch’s Hamburgers, also in Fort Worth. In the cookbook, we’re focusing primarily on the food at the two Lambert’s locations, which Lambert calls “Elevated Ranch Cuisine.” It’s fine cooking blended with the comfort foods Lambert grew up on.

Fans of Lambert’s restaurants will tell you that his cooking is sensational, full of extraordinary flavor and texture. It’s pleasing to look at, too. Combine good food with the welcoming aesthetic you find at his restaurants, then add the dramatic visual touches that Ralph is capturing in West Texas — ranch scenery that unfolds clear across the Big Bend region of Texas — and we aim to have a cookbook that you’ll enjoy both reading and cooking from.

We’ll include roughly 40 food photos in the book; the rest will be scenic images from the Texas badlands. The photos on this page are from our photoshoot a couple of Sundays ago. We were at Lambert’s in Fort Worth, shooting biscuits and our pecan-smoked salmon.

It’s just the first taste of something that promises much more.

June Naylor is State Fare Editor of EscapeHatchDallas.

This was the Sfuzzi in Vegas. The Addison store was much nicer.

It’s baaaack.

Remember Sfuzzi, the Cal-Ital chain of upscale eateries that began in Addison then grew to 20 locations across the U.S. by the mid-1990s before being shuttered? Sfuzzi co-founder Robert Colombo and his team (Villa-o, Trece) are re-launching the concept next month. The new Sfuzzi will be located east of the old Arcodoro-Pomodoro location, at Ruth Street and McKinney Avenue.

According to a Villa-O manager with intimate knowledge of the project, the new Sfuzzi will evoke the same Cal-Ital vibe as the old Sfuzzi, targeting a younger, hipper crowd than Vill-O. Sfuzzi will have a large outdoor patio to attract a lively bar scene, and stay open late. The menu focuses on pizzas and pastas.

According to the same source, Rubin Mendoza, formerly of the Mansion on Turtle Creek and Trece, and currently chef de cuisine at Villa-O, will head Sfuzzi’s kitchen.

But that’s not all.

Villa-O is expanding north. Though negotiations aren’t finalized, EscapeHatchDallas has learned that Villa-O is wrapping plans to bring the organocentric Italian eatery to the Galleria, with the old Sushi Samba space the rumored digs.

Here’s Barton O’Brien at Savor Dallas’ International Wine Tasting Sunday night.

O’Brien is the owner of O’Brien Estate Winery. He’s holding a bottle of his 2006 Seduction, a Gold Medal winner in the Dallas Morning News Wine Competition, which we profiled here. The fruit in this Meritage is big and bold, in true Napa style, with lots of solid structure and age-worthy acidity.

But check out the bottle. It’s wrapped in see-through silk. Why?

“Because anything in a negligee is fun to undress,” O’Brien told us.

Brilliant, right?

Nice wine. Even better package.

Take a quick trip to Italy Thursday, March 11, as the Côtes du Coeur Society presents a Sardinian Dinner at Urban Crust in Plano from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm.

Three famous Sardinian chefs—Chef Salvatore Gisellu, Chef Francesco Farris, and Chef Francesco Secchi—will cook up the distinctive cuisine of Sardinia.

Urban Crust is located in historic downtown Plano at 1006 East 15th Street. The Cotes du Coeur member price for the Sardinian Dinner is $30, and the non-member price is $40. You must reserve your seat by Wednesday, March 10. To purchase tickets, click on this link or contact shelby.twichell@heart.org.

The Côtes du Coeur Society supports the American Heart Association and is dedicated to exploring fine wines and delicious foods prepared by top chefs in private venues and leading restaurants.

Each year, the Society hosts a gala fine wine auction and celebrity chef dinner supporting the AHA.