the week that was and is - march 18th 2009

I hope everyone has recovered, if that's how you roll, from St. Patty's day;

• As reported by my fellow local bloggers, Liane Faulder, one of Edmonton's food writers, has started a blog. Great addition, as I'm usually left wanting more every Wednesday.

• We have another late night food option on Whyte with Origin India now its fare via a take-out window right on the street. While I wouldn't consider it a healthy option, it will be a nice change for those who normally only get pizza or a donair. I'm curious to see how the demand is.

• If you are a "foodie", it might be worth trying to convince your friends to head to Vegas for spring break instead of the typical coastal beach fronts. Looks like the food, even at the buffets, is really improving. I'll have to make it down there one day.

• Would you eat pizza made by vending machine? Check out what those crazy Italians are making. Not only pizza, but whole restaurants made up entirely by vending machines. So much for complaining about the poor customer service :)

• Anthony Bourdain was venturing around Vietnam this past week. I've never been, but for some reason it has always occupied a soft spot in my heart which made me enjoy this episode even more.

• Speaking of Mr. Bourdain, he was recently interviewed about food based television shows. I think it's hard to be critical when you are celebrity chef because the knife can swing your way on any given day, but his responses are good. Check out his disappointment with this brutal Kwanzaa Cake.

• Did anyone see the new Food Network Canada show, Ultimate Recipe Showdown. It's hosted by Guy Fieri and Mark Summers, it sounds like Mark is no longer co-hosting, and has 9 home chefs battling for the prize. I'm not sold yet, as I don't like shows that create forced drama by adding 5-10 seconds of 'anticipation'.

• John Mayer recently twittered on his love for a certain flavor of Campbell's soup only to have his agent asked by the media if he is being sponsored. He isn't, but it shows how fast the media is jumping on to this twitter mayhem.

• So not having any time to prep some St. Patty's Day goodies, I brought a tray of Turkish Delights in - pistachios are green right :) Oddly I was surprised in some way to find out that nobody had ever had one before. So the question is, have you?