Subject: Lou Jane

• Eggs, Bacon, Nicotine!

    I know some of you will find this difficult to believe, but three decades ago, when I first started working in restaurants, I learned how to mix up pancake batter from a grizzled old cook who smoked cigarettes while he was cooking. One time, a bit of ash from his Pall Mall fell into the batter and he shrugged, "Oh well, it adds a little kick to the flavor." I had just started smokingat the time and thought, "What the hell, maybe he's right." Flash forward to a very different place and tim

  December 10, 2008

• Market Conditions

  May 29, 2003

• Suburban Bawl

  July 3, 2003

• Barbarians at the Plate

  With its new outpost up north, Genghis Khan continues its conquering crusade.

  October 28, 2004

• Going in Reverse

  April 12, 2007

• Hoa Cookin'

  David Du brings some real Vietnam cooking to Burlington Street.

  March 22, 2007

• A Foreign Affair

  February 8, 2007

• Strike Two

  January 25, 2007

• A Real Spread

  January 11, 2007

• Cock and Bull Story

  December 7, 2006

• Sí, Boss

  At El Patron, Arturo Cabral is finally master of his own universe.

  November 30, 2006

• Little House on the Paris

  November 16, 2006

• Fun House Food

  May 18, 2006

• Passage to India

  Swagat spices up Zona Rosa.

  May 26, 2005

• Access Bollywood

  April 20, 2006

• Stone Cold Sober

  Granite City is a brewery and a geriatric drunkfest.

  March 30, 2006

• Southern Comfort

  March 2, 2006

• Reality Bites

  January 26, 2006

• Don Survivor

  December 15, 2005

• Bird on a Wire

  November 24, 2005

• A Fruitful Endeavor

  Thelma Oliver's Mango Room juices up downtown.

  June 30, 2005

• He's a Contender

  Gamal Hamza takes his own shot at running a restaurant in an unsteady location.

  June 9, 2005

• Their Casa es Su Casa

  Lisa and Bernardino Lara make a homey little Mexican restaurant and market in a JoCo strip mall.

  May 19, 2005

• Jimmy's Buffett-eria

  One thing is sure at Cheeseburger in Paradise -- you're in no danger of wasting away.

  February 17, 2005

• Agave Blues

  February 10, 2005

• East of Eden

  The critic has a mild conversion in the basement of Unity Temple.

  September 30, 2004

• On the Sauce

  Like all women who truly understand pleasure, Lidia's holds up well.

  September 2, 2004

• Second Honeymoon

  Jim Marks proves himself a worthy suitor for Paulo & Bill.

  June 24, 2004

• Columbian Gold

  With CC's City Broiler, Scott Cleeton has exported a real winner.

  June 17, 2004

• Cha Cha Vivace

  The River Market's newest hot spot lives up to its name.

  June 10, 2004

• The Bolognese and the Beautiful

  Altizio’s needs more drama in the dining room.

  June 3, 2004

• Case Closed

  Fenton's Bar & Grill leaves few traces of excitement.

  May 20, 2004

• The Italian Job

  The Newly restored Garozzo's is as hot as ever.

  March 25, 2004

• We'll Take Manhattan

  Café New Yorker proves Johnson County has a taste for eccentricity.

  February 19, 2004

• Fatale Attraction

  Bar Natasha flies high.

  February 12, 2004

• Eat, Drink and be Merry

  At Bistro 303, everyone has a gay old time.

  December 11, 2003

• Chop Phooey

  The Yoshiko Japanese Steakhouse fails to amuse.

  November 20, 2003

• Bright Spot

  The Red Star Tavern may be slightly dull in the kitchen, but sparks fly in the dining room.

  November 6, 2003

• Soul Survivor

  The soul of Southern cuisine hits sweet notes in the jazz district's Peach Tree Restaurant.

  March 20, 2003

• North by Northwest

  A dimly lit and sexy restaurant offers both pizza and martinis to Northland sophisticates.

  March 13, 2003

• A Shining Metropolis

  A star-studded Westport classic makes a comeback.

  January 16, 2003

• Urban Legend

  Talk is cheap, but the expensive City Tavern earns its hype.

  October 24, 2002

• Pizza Power

  Old Chicago gives its "talent" the authority to serve.

  July 25, 2002

• Her Royal Empire

  Ann Liberda makes her third Thai Place into a palace.

  July 4, 2002

• Party Melt

  Despite its cheesy concept, the Melting Pot cooks up a good time.

  March 14, 2002

• Horse Sense

  Loula’s jockeys for a bit of star power in Lee’s Summit.

  October 4, 2001

• Roadside Attraction

  A visit to The Bamboo Hut is a roadside reverie.

  May 31, 2001

• Trulli, Madly, Deeply

  Il Trullo demonstrates why everyone should fall in love with an Italian.

  May 10, 2001