Wine & Spirits

• “Two buck chuck” the latest wine rage

Restaurant Events

• Roy's Fall Creek Wine Dinner

Openings

• Suzi's China Grill at Bee Caves Opens
• Sushi Bar Silhouette opens downtown at site of former Pango's
• Freda's Seafood Grille Reopens for Lunch from 11AM-2PM
• McCormick & Schmick's Opens at 401 Congres

• News Archives

“Two buck chuck” the latest wine rage

Most things that sound too good to be true usually are. But in this case, there’s an exception. We’re talking about the wines of Charles Shaw, better known as “Two Buck Chuck”.

That’s right, in the Trader Joe’s stores in California, the exceptional table wines of Charles Shaw sell for $1.99. That’s what I used to pay for a bottle of crappy Cold Duck back in 1975 when I was in grad school and didn’t know any better.

And in the delicious irony category, in blind tastings across the country, Two Buck Chuck has thumped wines that are in the $50-$60 range. Go figure huh?

So how can Shaw sell wines this cheaply. Apparently, he was able to buy a massive amount of the huge surplus of wine grapes that occurred after massive overplanting in the 1990’s. The rest, as they say, is sheer wine-making and entrepreneurial skill. One Shaw beat an Australian Shiraz bearing the name of a popular golfer [and a $35 price tag], the cases started flying off the shelves at Trader Joe’s.

So what’s the problem for Texans? There is no Trader Joe store in the Lone Star state. The closest store is in Arizona. After that Nevada. Oh, and by the way, because of transportation costs, the price of Charles Shaw in Ohio is a whopping $3.99 a bottle! Talk about price gouging!

03/08

Suzi's China Grill at Bee Caves Opens

Suzi Yi, the indomitable and mercurial proprieter or Suzi's China Kitchen on S. Lamar and Suzi's China Grill on Shoal Creek at Anderson, has opened Suzi's China Grill on Bee Caves at 2745 Bee Caves Road in the new Mila Vista shopping center. (Just west of Mopac.)

Had dinner there the day after they opened and with the exception of a piece of maguro that was a bit past its prime (and I must say the chef warned me), everything was excellent. Particularly enjoyed the Won Ton Soup and the Szchuan Noodles (a variation of the traditional Tan Tan noodles that one sees in San Francisco's Chinatown). Also the Vegetarian Dumplings and the California Rolls were quite good.

The Sushi bar is open for lunch as well as dinner. Phone is 347-7077. And surprise, surprise, I'll bet you see the lovely Suzi there when you go.

03/16

Sushi Bar Silhouette opens downtown at site of former Pango's

New sushi bar downtown called Silhouette is open at 718 Congress, across from The Paramount. This is the site of the former Pango's. We hear they are not even going to allow customers to bring cameras in (just kidding).

03/11

Freda's Seafood Grille Reopens for Lunch from 11AM-2PM

Freda's Seafood Grille, at 10903 Pecan Park just off 183 and 620 has reopened for lunch after closing to retool the menu and go through some staff training.

I tried some of the menu items several weeks ago like the stuffed shrimp and the fried oysters and they were very tasty. The seafood gumbo was also a delight. And don't forget the Bourbon pasta! Go check it out. Phone:506-8700

03/08

McCormick & Schmick's Opens at 401 Congress

The Seafood emporium McCormick & Schmick has opened on 401 Congress in the new Frost Bank Building.. This is a restaurant where fish and shellfish are flown in daily. The menus are printed each day depending on availability of product. There are no freezers for the fish. Everything is fresh.

McCormick&Schmick's is open daily. Call 236-9600 for reservations.

03/05

Roy's Fall Creek Wine Dinner

On March 24th, 2004, enjoy an elegant evening of fine wine and exceptional food at Roy's Fall Creek Wine Dinner featuring Executive Chef/Partner Bill Treviño and winemaker Chad Auler from Fall Creek Vineyards. This unique dinner will consist of four courses, each paired with Texas wines from Fall Creek Vineyards for $65 per person, plus tax and gratuity...

03/22