•We're always in the mood for Belgian waffles! [MP: Chicago]
•Oh man: curry chips are awesome. [MP: Philadelphia]
•This tea egg with caviar is real pretty. [MP: San Francisco]
•We sure would like to try some swamp cabbage! [MP: South Florida]

Diner's Agenda wouldn't mind not having the flu anymore.

Friday, February 29
•So, apparently, today is, in addition to leap day, Sadie Hawkins Day, a day where girls are supposed to ask boys out. In celebration, UpStairs on the Square is holding a Sadie Hawkins Day dinner, complete with aphrodisical menu and free champagne. Tickets, which cost $75, may be reserved by calling (617) 864-1933. [UpStairs on the Square]
•Meanwhile, over at 75 Chestnut, Leap Day is a time to celebrate Audrey Hepburn. There will be special Audrey-themed cocktails and a raffle of a pearl necklace. The fun starts at 5pm, so be there! [75 Chestnut]

Saturday, March 1
•Verrill Farm out in Concord is offering a very nice deal: a pancake breakfast complete with pancakes, maple syrup, sausages, and bacon for only $6! Breakfast runs from 9am-12pm and no reservations are necessary. [Verrill Farm]
•Rialto will be offering a cooking class from 11am-2pm focusing on the cuisine of Italy's Alto Adige region. As always, class includes a sit down lunch. Call (617) 661-5050 to save your spot. [Rialto]

Rizelli Cafe
gets a B-. Brookline
goes Hungarian!

Something Savory's
Chef Levins loves Cuban food
and tilapia.

We've been sort of obsessed in our love/hate relationship with new raw food restaurant Grezzo, but until now, the only pictures we've seen have been those on its official website. We're very excited then to have stumbled upon the below shot of the restaurant's ravioli filled with "nut cheese." Dare we say they look really good? We're particularly smitten with the topping of edible flowers.

Grezzo [MenuPages]
Grezzo [Official Site]

[Photo: Flickr: alison.jane]

Angela's Cafe
has authentic Mexican
that's so craveable.

303 Cafe
brings some hip to East Boston.
Food could be better.

Style meets substance
at Banq. Still working out kinks,
but it shows promise.

Welcome to The Buzz, a feature where we look at what the Internet is saying about brand new restaurants. It's too early for a review, but when has that ever stopped anyone?

People have been getting excited about Banq for some time now. Banq comes to us from the owners of Mantra and, like Matra, it combines French techniques with Indian flavors. Expectations have been high, so let's see how the actual experience is shaking out, shall we?

The Good: Chowhound luminary and Phoenix reviewer MC Slim JB very much enjoyed his visit to Banq: "Prices are better than I expected for a fancy South End place. ... The dining room is very attractive, soaring ceilings, pretty hardwoods, well-spaced booths. ... The wine list is a nice surprise, not overloaded with $100+ bottles. ... The food is mostly very good, few outright misses. ... Overall, a pleasant surprise so far." Kate of local blog The Dish also loved her visit to Banq: "WOW! Everything was spectacular! The cod was crispy on the outside and perfectly seared, and the lotus root was a delightful new side dish for my taste buds, while the generous portion of short rib was rich and sinful, eaten sans a knife of course. ... The entrees are under $26, the portion size is liberal, and the drink menu is unique and fun. Another very welcome addition to Boston's South End, a neighborhood that's simply bursting with flavor."

The Bad: Views on Banq's dessert menus are decidedly more mixed. 'hounder kron reports: "Went out on a limb and ordered the "banq tasting" dessert. Bad idea. This "tasting" included wasabi ice cream, blue cheese ice cream, a pineapple spring roll (?) and some sort of berry-sushi (um, no). Awful. Thought it had potential (well, at least we thought the ice creams had potential), but realized it is something probably best served at some mediocre new american-asian-fusion restaurant that's trying to be hip. We think Banq should take it off the menu asap." Yelper Dan O. concurred: "For dessert, we ordered the sampler, and it was a little disappointing. The bleu cheese ice cream was my favorite on the plate...the bleu cheese flavor doesn't hit you until the end. The wasabi ice cream was a little too weird. The pineapple spring roll was unimpressive, and the chocoalte sushi was disgusting."

Banq [MenuPages]
Banq [Official Site]
Banq - News/Comments/Reviews? [Chowhound]
You Can banQ on It [The Dish]
Banq [Yelp]

Two stars for Z Square:
new location has better
menu and free bread.

At Tashi Dalek
Tibetan comes to Brookline
complete with momos!

Spicy Tiger's Tears
at Myers + Chang are light
with a nice texture.

The sea-urchin linguine with breadcrumbs and scallions pictured below is from La Morra. Somehow, it didn't quite make the cut for our sea urchin roundup, but looking at this picture, we're pretty sure that was a misstep on our part. We should probably go try it, though. Just for, you know, research purposes. God, our job is hard.

La Morra [MenuPages]
La Morra [Official Site]

[Photo: Flickr: winyang]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Oceanaire just might be worth the splurge. [Bostonist]
•Sigh. Remember when Au Bon Pain was just a really good bakery and didn't try to do too much? [The Beantown Bloggery]
•Airport restaurants need to chill. out. [Hot, Buttered, and Toasted]

[Photo: Flickr: imfedore]

Cantabridgia is reporting that famed Paris-based cooking school Le Cordon Bleu is set to open a location in Cambridge. The school, which will operate out of the the Athenaeum Press Building near Kendall Square will offer several programs, among them an associate's degree granting program in Culinary Arts and general education courses open to the public. It will also host an on-site restaurant, which we're especially excited about.

One of Le Cordon Bleu's most famous alumni is, of course, Julia Child, who was a longtime Cambridge resident. She attended the original Paris location while living in France in the late 1940s. Child often credited Le Cordon Bleu with teaching her to cook: a skill which she, of course, passed down to thousands of Americans. Who knows! Perhaps the next wildly influential food star will come out of the new Cambridge Le Cordon Bleu.

Sacre bleu! Le Cordon Bleu to open in Cambridge! [Cantabridgia]
Le Cordon Bleu Boston [Official Site]

Diner's Agenda has felt better.

Thursday, February 28
•Alibi is hosting an exciting clothing sale from 11am-8pm on Thursday and 11am-4pm on Friday, featuring clothes from shops like Stil and Grettaluxe for an astonishing 50-70% off. Won't someone think of the food smells on the clothing?!? [Alibi]
•The Blue Room is going crazy for their Le Piane wine dinner at 6:30. Courses will include a whole roasted lamb. A whole roasted lamb! Tickets, which cost $75 may be reserved online or by calling (617) 494-9304. [The Blue Room]
•Slow Food BU is holding an extraordinarily useful lecture at 7:30 in room 101 of the Kenmore Classroom Building on how to be able to eat sustainably on the cheap. Admission is a mere $5, so even cheapskates like us can afford it. Awesome! [Slow Food BU

Three stars for Grezzo:
it sure is "one of a kind"
and food is quite good.

Alissa Cohen
(of Grezzo, of course) loves raw
food so very much.

Roundup of cheap wines
is sweet music to our ears.
All under $15!

Steve's Firth of Fourth Ale
just misses the Scottish mark.
Too dry, needs more malt.

The below video depicts what is either a truly stunning feat of human achievement or a disgusting example of gluttony. We're going to go with "a little from column A, a little from column B." Behold as local blogger Andy visits the Fenway McDonald's and eats an entire Big Mac. In one bite.

Big Mac Challenge: Complete [Andy Eats]
Andy Eats: a Big Mac in ONE BITE [YouTube: igreczed]

Exciting updates abound in this edition of The Tuesday Report. Long-awaited restaurants are finally making progress, beloved favorites are opening second locations and the South End is getting a Spanish grocery store! Let's look at the details.

Openings
•Last week, we mentioned Estragon, the giant tapas restaurant set to open on Harrison Avenue this spring. Now, we've learned that Las Ventas, a Spanish food store, will be opening as a part of it. The store will carry "ver 100 Spanish products—olive oils, jamones, cured meats, cheeses, paella kits, cookbooks and more—as well as sell Spanish-style sandwiches and prepared foods to go." We can only hope it will be as awesome as New York City's Despana.
•This Craigslist post seeking staff for a new restaurant in Hyde Park is almost certainly for C.F. Donovan's, which Chowhounders have been gunning for for damn near a year. Will it actually open? Hopefully!
•Scampo, the Lydia Shire-helmed restaurant in the Liberty Hotel is now staffing for a March opening. Anticipation is very high on this one, so here's hoping for the best!
•Brookline favorite Super Fusion will be opening a second location in the old Sushi 21 space in Watertown. The location is expected to open in three to four months.

[Photo: Flickr: argyle1015]

We know, we know: it's guys night on American Idol and you've developed a bewildering crush on Jason Castro, dreads and all, and you're seriously considering just staying home and ordering a pizza. Pizza is great and we're feeling your Castro love (he just seems so happy!), but really, it's relatively warm out (albeit a bit rainy), so shouldn't you get out while you can? Boston is full of good shows tonight, so why not get a nice meal before checking one out?

•The Boston Symphony Orchestra hosts German violinist Isabelle Faust for a night of Mozart, Berg, and Brahms at 8pm. Prepare for this evening of high culture by getting your fix of rowdiness at Betty's. A big bowl of Shanghai wheat noodles will hold you through every last concerto.
•If you're in the mood for something a little more countrified, head to The Cantab Lounge for their 8pm Bluegrass Pickin' Party, but not before stopping into Rendezvous for a luxurious dinner. Grilled sardines with fennel and cherry tomato vinaigrette pair surprisingly well with pickin'.
•Get your indie rock fix at Harper's Ferry, which hosts New York band the French Kicks at 8pm. Beforehand, stop by New Trend Eatery for stellar Cantonese fare: don't miss the BBQ roast duck.
•We are a giant theatre nerd, but frequently, the over-intellectualized productions at the American Repertory Theatre leave us cold. We do, however, very much want to see their current production of Julius Caesar for one reason: Jim True-Frost, also known as Roland Pryzbylewski on the best television show of all time, The Wire, plays Brutus. Before you feast on his awesomeness, dine on a frisee salad and crispy seared duckling at UpStairs on the Square. Mmm...artsy.

Lately, we've been very much interested in investigating how many user reviews certain restaurants have on MenuPages. See, in the Platonic ideal of the Menuniverse, you could look at the user-submitted reviews for every restaurant to help you make an educated guess about where to go for dinner. Unfortunately, that's not really the current situation. While we'd love to have reviews up for every restaurant, today we're most concerned about a paradox: many of our most popular restaurants have very reviews. Below, a list of restaurants whose menus receive the most views per day and yet, have under five reviews to their names. Won't you help them out?

•Amsterdam Cafe
•Bar Lola
•Beehive
•Border Cafe
•Burtons Grill
•Central Kitchen
•Flames Restaurant II
•Kotobukiya
•Maggiano's
•Neptune Oyster
•The Pour House
•Radius
•Top of the Hub

"Help! I'm Trapped In..." is a semi-regular feature where we tell you how to make the most of being stuck in areas that are (fairly or not) regarded as culinary wastelands. You're welcome.

Government Center is really something of a mystery. Unquestionably, it is one of the neighborhoods most important for Boston's functioning, but it's also tremendously ugly (City Hall, we're looking at you) and full of very little good food. If you work in Government Center, however, there's no need to give up the hope of eating great lunches! All it takes is being a teensy bit flexible on what, exactly, constitutes Government Center. Below, a week's worth of lunches for the discerning bureaucrat.

Monday: J Pace & Son is downtown's leading lunch spot for a reason: the sandwiches are generously sized, delicious, and cheap. Many people don't realize that J. Pace's pasta is also good: try the gnocchi marinara.

Tuesday: People are always going on about Wednesday being Hump Day, but to our mind, Tuesday is much longer and more difficult to slog through. Reward yourself for making it this far by having a nice sit down lunch at Wagamama. After a repast of duck gyoza and chili beef ramen, you'll feel relaxed and ready to face the rest of the (seemingly endless) day.

Wednesday: Everyone knows that Grotto is a great spot for a romantic dinner, but the big secret is that their lunch is a very good value. Their excellent pastas go for a mere $11-16: we recommend the cavatelli with ground sausage, ricotta, fresh peas, mushrooms, cream and pancetta.

Thursday: After two Italian-style lunches earlier this week, it's time to give France its due, don't you think? Visit Kingston Station for an elegant meal: maybe the seared tuna Niçoise salad and the rather good steak frites? Yes, that sounds just about right.

Friday: You've been a good worker bee all week, so it's time to reward yourself with something decadent and wildly unhealthy. May we recommend a trip to Beard Papa? The impossibly airy cream puffs are as close to perfection as anything downtown and regardless of what your nutritionist may tell you, it's totally a valid lunch. Totally.

J Pace & Son [MenuPages]
Wagamama [Official Site]
Grotto [MenuPages]
Kingston Station [Official Site]
Beard Papa [Official Site]

[Photo: Wikipedia]

Even though we've definitely hit the point in winter when we're counting down the minutes until ramps reappear, signaling the beginning of the growing season, we're not immune to the charms of wintry vegetables. Case in point? Leeks. We adore this pleasantly punchy cousin of the onion and in the depths of winter, want to eat it as much as humanly possible. To assist you in your quest for leek-age (haha), we've compiled a list of five of the Hub's best leek dishes.

•Aujourd 'hui combines two of our obsessions with their dish of sea scallops served with truffled potato puree, melted leeks, and lobster sauce. It's a perfect treat for a chilly night.
•At Petsi Pies, leeks are paired with bacon and Swiss cheese and served in a deliciously gooey tart.
•Leeks vinaigrette is, of course, the quintessential leek dish. Petit Robert Bistro makes an excellent version, topped with grilled duck magret. It's pretty much all you could want from a lunch: tart and rich at the same time, not to mention hearty as all get out.
•At The Squealing Pig, braised leeks top a pizza, along with fried sage leaves, goat cheese, and puree of toasted squash. It doesn't look like much, but it tastes absolutely delicious.
•Stella makes comfort food decadent with their basil roasted chicken, served with potato leek ragout (a nice play on the standard potato leek soup) and crispy pancetta. Assembling a fork so you can taste each at the same time is one of the Boston dining scene's great pleasures.

Aujourd 'hui [Official Site]
Petsi Pies [Official Site]
Petit Robert Bistro [Official Site]
The Squealing Pig [MenuPages]
Stella [Official Site]

[Photo: Flickr: shaggyblog]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•$12.95 just does not seem like enough money to buy a Kobe burger. [Boston Food & Whine]
•You might not guess at first, but apparently, the chicken is the thing at UBurger. [Bostonist]
•The idea of eating every meal at a steakhouse doesn't sound too bad! [Martin's Musings]

[Photo: Flickr: wemcg]

Michael Schlow of Radius has taken the top honors at the Burger Bash at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. We've never gotten a chance to try Radius' burger (mostly because we can't quite wrap our head around a $17 hamburger), but according to Chowhound, "Schlow's whole shtick (Schtick?) is to cook everything at a low temp, so I think they brown both sides, then shove it in a low oven for 20 minutes, so it just gently rises to the temperature you order. Comes out unbelievably juicy, and you kinda trust the med-rare meat. Served on a toasted bun with just four things: the meat, some melted Cheddar (the aged stuff, so it separates nice and greasy), a huge mound of frizzled onions (think a greasier, slightly softer version of that French's casserole topping), and a creamy horseradish sauce."

It sure sounds delicious, and god knows, any burger that triumphs over Shake Shack and Burger Joint must be pretty stellar, but we have to wonder: is Radius' burger really as good as those at Bartley's Burger Cottage? Tips are, as always, appreciated.

Radius [MenuPages]
Radius [Official Site]
Burger Bash [2008 Food Network South Beach Food & Wine Festival]
Radius Burger Wins Top Honors [Chowhound]

Diner's Agenda cannot believe last night's Wire.

Monday, February 25
•Sicilian food and wine guru Fabrizia Lanza comes to Rialto tonight for a four course wine dinner highlighting the region's cuisine. The fun starts at 6:30, and seats, which cost $100, may be reserved by calling (617) 661-5050. [Rialto]

Tuesday, February 26
•If the press releases we receive every day are to be believed, Boston just can't get enough of Spanish wine dinners. There's another one at Tasca at 7pm. $49 gets you five courses with wine pairings, including a delightful sounding herb crusted lamb chop over a white bean and duck casoulet. Call (617) 730-8002 to save your spot. [Tasca]
•Hey, service industry readers! Sel De La Terre is hosting a leap year party/service industry celebration from 11pm-2am. There will be food and drink aplenty, as well as live music. The best part? It's all free. [Sel De La Terre]
•We don't know if you've heard, but Starbucks nationwide will be closed from 5:30pm-8:30pm. We are of the mind that the world will not end (hint: you can patronize neighborhood coffee shops!), but Dunkin' Donuts apparently feels slightly differently. In order to capitalize on the Starbucks spillover, they'll be offering 99 cent lattes and cappucinos from 1pm-10pm. Hot. [Dunkin' Donuts]

Welcome to The Buzz, a feature where we look at what the Internet is saying about brand new restaurants. It's too early for a review, but when has that ever stopped anyone?

Persephone offers many reasons to get excited. Part of the new multi-use development The Achilles Project, the restaurant is helmed by the justly acclaimed Michael Leviton of Newton's Lumiere and showcases local and seasonal foods, with an emphasis on sustainability and eco-consciousness. These are all worthy goals, but how's the food? Let's check out the early reports, shall we?

The Good: The venerable Pam of Cave Cibum stopped by and loved her meal. She writes on Chowhound: "Food is delicious. Like Lumiere, there is a focus on local, organic, sustanable product, although it's not a selling point of the menu. The Lucki 7 Farms Pork Ribs from the bar menu were awesome, delicately cooked with a slightly spicy hoison sauce. The Crispy Gulf Shrimp, from the "Small" section of the menu, were crispy and light - some people might be turned off, though, by the full shell on the shrimp, but they were thin enough to eat the whole thing. The Braised Veal Shoulder, from the "Extra Large" section, was so tender. I'm not a veal fan, but I would order that to share. Overall, good food and drinks at not outrageous prices."

The Bad: Interestingly, most of the commentary on both Chowhound and Yelp comes from people who haven't yet tried out the restaurant. Chowhounders, in particular, seemed resistant to Persephone pre-opening and it was derided as the sort of place that would probably offer $15 pomegranate martinis. These worries, however, have probably subsided as the restaurant is offering a drink awesomely titled "The Obligatory Chowhound $15 Pomegranate Martini" for a mere $9. Currently, the only mildly worrying comment from someone who's actually been to the restaurant comes from 'hound Fort Point who writes "We have been twice and had a sampling of dishes, all of which were very good, but for some reason we have not warmed up to the spot yet."

The Decor: Persephone shares its space with trendy clothing boutique Achilles, so the space's layout has been of some general interest. According to Fort Point, it's "one continuous space; there are no dividers between the store and the restaurant. However, at least at night the clothing is enclosed in see through modern containers and there is not a lot of it so it does necssarily feel like two different venues. The store is in the front so you walk through it to get to the restaurant."

Persephone [MenuPages]
Persephone [Official Site]
Persephone - Where Is It [Chowhound]
Pomegranates for Persephone [Cave Cibum]
Achilles Project [Yelp]

The fascinating thing about sea urchins is that it's hard to think of an animal that is so highly prized as a culinary delicacy, yet has such a small edible portion of its body. Sea urchins are not tiny creatures, but the only part we eat is the roe*. Sea urchin tastes incredibly rich and complex: the very definition of umami. Sea urchin dishes across the country are generally pretty pricy and Boston is no exception. The following four dishes may not be cheap, but they sure are tasty.

•Clio wins our award for "Most Decadent Use of Sea Urchin" for their sea urchin and lobster cassoulet, which comes with parsnips, crispy shallots, and candied lemon. We can't think of much we'd rather eat on a cold winter's night.
•At Neptune Oyster, the sea urchin is served raw and accompanied by fried chickpeas, grilled eggplant, cucumber, mint, and a vinaigrette, for an absolutely insane flavor profile.
•O Ya serves their sea urchin as sashimi alongside shima aji (yellowjack). It's topped with a ceviche vinaigrette and some cilantro, ssupertasters beware!
•The Japanese name for sea urchin is, of course, uni, so it's not surprising that Uni has an excellent sea urchin dish on its menu. The roe is served with ginger gelee and purple rice. Delicious and pretty!

*: This is, in fact, a misnomer: while the edible part of the sea urchin is commonly referred to as the roe, it's actually the animal's gonads on which we chow down.

Clio [Official Site]
Neptune Oyster [Official Site]
O Ya [MenuPages]
Uni [MenuPages]

[Photo: Wikipedia]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Despite the restaurant's name, Fall River's Ugly American is quite lovely! [New England Bites]
•Dunkin' Donuts' controversial supermarket coffee is actually pretty good! [Slashfood]
•Mmmmmmmm is for marrow. [On Common Ground]

[Photo: Flickr: wallyg]

•Hee hee hee. Tunnel of Fudge cake. [MP: Chicago]
•We don't know what these people are complaining about: they got their "Suck my d**k f**k face" comped! [MP: Philadelphia]
•We have never seen a video that cries out for a Freudian interpretation so much as this one, which follows a girl deathly afraid of pickles. [MP: San Francisco]
•There might be poo on the lemon in your water. Just, you know, FYI. [MP: South Florida]

Diner's Agenda is wondering when that global warming is going to hit Boston.

Friday, February 22
•North Enders rejoice! Prezza has free gnocchi bolognese and Barolo for all customers from 5pm-7pm. The catch, of course, is that you have to get to Prezza to eat it, but that's less of a problem if you live in the area. [Prezza]
•If you're based in Waltham, head to the Sam Adams beer dinner at Gordon's Fine Wine & Culinary Center. $50 gets you a four course dinner. The fun starts at 7pm and reservations may be made online. [Gordon's]

Saturday, February 23
•If you're the sort of person who enjoys this type of thing, you should know that there will be a free tasting at the Best Cellars in Brookline of vegan wine and "sheese", which is, apparently, a soy-based vegan "fake cheese." Sheesh. Anyways, it's free and it's happening from 2pm-5pm. [Boston Vegan Association]

Ouch, Kingston Station:
Bostro (Boston bistro) gets
a C+...not great.

Hands-free Fasika
brings Ethiopian food
to Somervillians.

New England foodstuffs
are subject of a new book.
Mmm, apple cobbler.

Exchange's owner
thinks Malden is new Davis.
Hahahahaha!

With all due respect to the bar and restaurant parties that we mentioned yesterday, our favorite way to celebrate Oscar night has always been to have a party of our own. Oscar parties are more fun than dinner parties, since you can make up drinking games (we personally will be doing a shot every time someone gets cut off by the orchestra) and less stress than non-event-based parties, because everyone leaves by midnight. While you obviously want to prepare a feast for you guests, the Oscars are not a great time for a sit-down dinner. We prefer to lay out some bread, cheese, and cold cuts, a few finger food appetizers, and some desserts that can be eaten standing up. Below, a few suggestions:

Appetizers: The key to a successful Oscar party is to serve foods that can be prepared a day in advance so you can spend the day of the party making your home and yourself look gorgeous. We love these bagel chips with ricotta, chive puree, and prosciutto, although we actually prefer them with goat cheese taking the ricotta's place. They take minutes to prepare and can easily be wrapped and stored in the fridge until its time to eat. A friend of ours recently brought pissaladiere to a party and we can't get its savory taste out of our mind. We recommend making twice as much as you think you'll need. Trust us when we tell you that it will all get eaten.

Desserts: There is little we love more in this word than a nice whoopie pie and while the name would have been more Oscar-clever a few years ago, the pies are still delicious. Keep with the handheld theme by making black and white ice cream sandwiches: ice cream! Between two cookies! DIPPED IN WHITE CHOCOLATE! Truly, the mind boggles.

Bagel Chips with Ricotta, Chive Puree, and Prosciutto [Food & Wine]
Pissaladiere [Epicurious]
Whoopie Pies [Epicurious]
Black and White Ice Cream Sandwiches [Epicurious]

Da Vinci: two stars.
Food and service are quite good
but the space is weird.

At Hana Sushi,
the decor is so pretty
and the fish rock too.

Shabu shabu time
in Allston! Dipping food is
both fun and tasty.

Chiapan cuisine
comes to Cambridge at Ole.
It sounds delicious!

We're going to be completely honest with you: we have seen less Academy Award nominated films this year than ever before. The only best picture nominee we saw was Juno, which confirmed our suspicion that we like the idea of Diablo Cody more than her writing itself and was, at any rate, only the second best comedy about accidental pregnancy that came out in 2007. The fact that we never even considered seeing No Country For Old Men or There Will Be Blood, however, has not stopped us from wanting to watch the Oscars socially. Tomorrow morning, we'll discuss throwing an Oscar party at home, but for the less domestically-inclined, here are four local Oscar soirees.

•UpStairs on the Square always throws a great party. Their Oscar night fête starts at 5pm and will feature themed eats and drinks, a predicting contest, and prizes for the most glamourous outfits of the night.
•Club Cafe will be rocking the Oscars starting at 6pm with dancing, prizes (including a travel voucher worth $250!), and, thank god, "Joan Rivers" on the red carpet. Awesome.
•Lir will play host to awesome interactive celebrity gossip site Fafarazzi's Oscar bash at 6pm. There will be free food and prizes aplenty.
•Women's networking society GlamBoston will be holding their Oscar bash at Cafeteria at 7pm. We suggest getting dressed to the nines for this one.

UpStairs on the Square [Official Site]
Club Cafe [Official Site]
Lir Irish Pub & Restaurant [Official Site]
Cafeteria [Official Site]

[Props to MP: Chicago's Adam P. for the clever titles for both our Oscar posts.]

At Boston Public,
split personality works.
My, is it pricy!

Mmm, Danny's Diner
is not the fastest, but the
pancakes are worth it.

Ox meat and tripe app
at Sichuan Garden will
warm up your cold heart.

"Help! I'm Trapped In..." is a semi-regular feature where we tell you how to make the most of being stuck in areas that are (fairly or not) regarded as culinary wastelands. You're welcome.

Longwood Medical and Academic Area is something of a mystery to us, even after having spent no small amount of time there (we put in our three years at Latin School and spent a collegiate summer subletting on Tetlow Street). The area has no shortage of captive visitors (five hospitals and ten colleges) and yet, so very few decent places to eat. Sure the food court is fine for a few weeks, but sooner or later, you're going to want a sit down meal, even if it has to be a quick one. As always, we have you covered. Behold, a week's worth of lunching in Longwood. Why not try one of the suggestions out today?

Monday: Head to the brand new Cafe Italia for a hearty lunch to get your week started off right. After a lunch of spaghetti amatriciana, you'll be ready to face the week with your wallet a mere $8.95 lighter.

Tuesday: Stroll to the Fens for a fine meal from Brown Sugar Cafe or, if you can't quite spare the time, use their very speedy delivery service. You could order the excellent Pad Thai or you could be fun and adventurous and try the duck curry. Your choice.

Wednesday: Get over midweek madness with a serene meal at the Gardner Cafe, nestled in the Gardner Museum's gorgeous courtyard. Virtuously order the simple salad and cheese...so you can then indulge in their white chocolate bread pudding for dessert. Hey, Wednesdays are rough, you know?

Thursday: Sometimes, you just need a pizza in the middle of your workday. When that craving strikes, your best bet in Longwood is the Bertucci's in the Children's Hospital. Order a full-size Margherita and it can be dinner as well!

Friday: The buzz on The Savant Project is crazy, but fortunately, the restaurant lives up to the hype. Treat yourself to a cheddar-stuffed burger with truffled polenta logs and manchego aioli. It's a pretty good way to kick off your weekend.

Cafe Italia [MenuPages]
Brown Sugar Cafe [Official Site]
Gardner Cafe [MenuPages]
Bertucci's Brick Oven Pizzeria [Official Site]
The Savant Project [Official Site]

[Photo: Joseph Barillari]

Today's Globe featured a really fascinating article about the current state of bay scallop fishery in Nantucket (summary: it's been declining, but this year, it's great!). It's definitely worthwhile reading, but the major takeaway for us was wanting to eat scallops right now. Below, five of our scallop-crazed city's best dishes featuring the delectable mollusk.

•Truth be told, most of the seafood-based restaurants in Chinatown make excellent scallop dishes. Our vote for the best, however, comes from the inimitable Peach Farm. Their sizzling scallops with black pepper are exactly as spicy as the name implies, so you'd better get a Tsingtao with which to wash it down.
•Franklin Cafe makes a play on oysters Rockefeller with their scallop version with spinach, lemon, and watercress. Given the natural creaminess of scallops, it's even more decadent than the original. Nice.
•The brand new Vee Vee focuses on seafood, so it's only natural that they should pay tribute to the scallop. Their shrimp and scallop fritters are served with chipotle aioli.
•In addition to scallops, we're thoroughly obsessed with leeks right now, so Lineage's dish of day boat scallops with leeks and sweet shrimp with a blood-orange reduction sounds pretty great.
•Let's face it: no one does spicy like East Coast Grill & Raw Bar. Their seared extra-large shrimp and New Bedford scallops are served with deliciously piquant sides of ginger-garlic noodles and sesame-chile spinach.

Peach Farm Restaurant [MenuPages]
Franklin Cafe [Official Site]
Vee Vee [Official Site]
Lineage [MenuPages]
East Coast Grill & Raw Bar [Official Site]

[Photo: bbally]

Blogston Proper is your thrice-weekly roundup of Hub-related food writing from all over the Internet. We read the blogs so you don't have to. But you should anyway, just to be nice.

•Need to eat soft food? Try Himalayan Bistro! [Boston Food & Whine]
•Craving coal-oven pizza? Make your way to Angela's in Saugus! [Slice]
•Want a good meal but don't want to leave Somerville? Hit up Highland Kitchen! [drinkboston]

[Photo: Flickr: daisuke.k]

Full disclosure: we're really good at trivia. How good? Our boyfriend won't watch Jeopardy with us because it's "not fair." Most of our college friends won't play Trivial Pursuit with us unless they're on our team for the very same reason. What can we say? We were a weird little kid who liked to read the encyclopedia and we retain facts incredibly well. If you're also a trivia fiend, why not hit up one of the below events tonight? All have cash prizes and plenty of beer.

•The Jeanie Johnston is one of our very favorite neighborhood bars. Their Wednesday triva nights offer prizes up to $30. Best of all, appetizers are half price from 5pm-6pm. Go ahead! Sneak out of work early! We won't tell.
•The Druid claims that its Wednesday Pub Quiz is "whip-smart." Even if you don't quite manage a win, the unspeakably good shepherd's pie and a pint or five of Guinness are an excellent consolation prize.
•Atwood's Tavern promises to "release your inner Jeopardy champion." You know what will probably help with that endeavor? Trying out some of their excellent beer list...we're partial to the Ipswich Oatmeal Stout ourself. You'll be a genius by the second pint.

Jeanie Johnston Pub [Official Site]
Druid Restaurant [Official Site]
Atwood's Tavern [Official Site]

[Photo: Carling (we are not mature enough to handle the name of the town)]

Diner's Agenda is ready for lunch.

Wednesday, February 20
•In the middle of a long and dreary February, what could be better than a taste of the sun-dappled Mediterranean? Head to Vlora at 7pm for a wine social featuring seven international wines, including some available exclusively at Vlora, and a selection of Mediterranean appetizers. Tickets, which cost $40, may be reserved by calling (617) 638-9699. [Vlora]

Thursday, February 21
•The 7pm Brunello v. Vino Nobile wine tasting at Tomasso Trattoria is geared toward "wine novices and experts alike", so its perfect for you, the wine snob, and your vino-ignorant date (or vice versa!). $30 gets you up to nine wines to taste, as well as some Italian delicacies to further enrich the palate. Call (508) 481-8484 to save your spot. [Tomasso Trattoria]

Vegan sweets are great.
From ice cream to carrot cake,
dairy-free is fine!

Caffeine! Alcohol!
Together at last, thank God!
Buzz buzz buzz, puke puke!

Learn about red wine.
There are many different kinds
so look at the list!

Sometimes we get a little obsessed with watching instructional cooking videos on YouTube (don't judge!). While poking around recently, we came upon this gem, which teaches users how to fry Cheerios. Yeah, you read that right.

Is it so wrong that this actually sounds sort of good? We hope not.

Fried Cheerios [YouTube: LukalsntLuka]

After two rather slow weeks in terms of major restaurant news, we have a slew of openings and changes (and no closings!) this week. We're just going to jump right into it, because there's a lot to report.

Openings
•Wellesley fine dining standby Blue Ginger is coming up on its ten year anniversary and to celebrate, it's getting renovated and expanded. The restaurant has acquired the space next door and plans to use it for a lounge which will showcase Ming's Bings, Chef Ming Tsai's take on Asian street food. We are unspeakably excited about this development.
•Chowhound reports that Harrison Ave is set to get even more bustling with the spring opening of Estragon, a giant tapas restaurant set to come later this spring. We were going to make an unspeakably pretentious Waiting for Godot joke here, but it turns out that "estragon" is also the French word for "tarragon." Although: it's a little strange for a tapas place to have a French name, no?
•The BU Free Press reports that Kenmore Square burger hotspot UBurger is opening a second location on Commonwealth Ave near BU's West Campus, neatly filling the space (both literally and figuratively) recently departed by Grille Zone.
•Speaking of expansion, rumor has it that Somerville's Redbones is planning a second location near Fenway Park. This would be tremendous good news for those who love both baseball and barbecue. A call to Redbones confirmed that while nothing is set in stone, they're definitely looking into opening in the area.
•The Fenway area is also set to get another fast food spot when Framingham wing and music emporium The Chicken Bone (beloved by Ming Tsai...this post is coming full circle!) opens a second branch. Note to the unemployed: they're hiring!
•It's unclear whether Sofra, the Ana Sortun/Maura Kilpatrick Middle Eastern bakery and cafe will be located in Cambridge or Watertown. It is, however, clear that people (including us) are getting pretty excited.

Changes
•The rumors are true...well, sort of. There's been a very big staff shakeup at The Biltmore with owner Rebecca Roth, chef Seth Morrison, and bartender Sean McKeown all departing. A call to the restaurant revealed that there are still a few staff members left over and it will not be permanently closing.

[Photo: Flickr: falconn67]

Earlier today, we highlighted those Hub restaurants with ten or more reviews. We're very happy for those restaurants, but we were sorry for those fourteen restaurants that just missed the cut. Won't you go to the pages for these restaurants and leave your thoughts? We'll keep adding to the Hall of Fame as the reviews roll in.

Restaurants With Nine Reviews: So Very Close!
•Chow Thai Cafe
•Giacomo's Ristorante
•Grain & Salt
•La Creperie
•Lineage
•Silvertone Bar & Grill
•Wagamama

Restaurants With Eight Reviews: Almost There!
•Al Capone
•Asahi
•Island Hopper
•Oishii
•Spice & Rice
•Vlora
•Zen

Welcome to The Buzz, a feature where we look at what the Internet is saying about brand new restaurants. It's too early for a review, but when has that ever stopped anyone?

We must confess to somewhat ambivalent feelings about Grezzo, the new raw vegan restaurant in the North End, operated by raw food expert Alissa Cohen. On the one hand, we find raw foodism suspect: while there are certainly uncooked foods we love (guacamole and sushi both come immediately to mind), we feel that basing your diet exclusively around the fact that raw foods are healthier misses the point that food is about more than simple nutrition (not to mention the fact that cooked foods are perfectly healthy in their own right). On the other hand, Grezzo is something entirely new for the Boston dining scene and, even if we don't necessarily agree with the philosophy behind its food, the dishes are fascinating. At any rate, most of the buzz seems to be pretty promising.

The Good: Grezzo's target audience (that is to say, raw foodists and vegans) is definitely responding well. In a post on the Gone Raw message boards, user jackiev writes: "I made it to Grezzo last night for Valentine’s Day and let me tell you…it was DELISH!! Alissa Cohen herself actually served us our salads…I thought I was going to pee my pants!! Although I don’t think my tummy can handle eating there everyday, I’m definitely going to be a faithful customer." Chowhounder Bob Dobalina concurs: "If you are a raw food vegan, this place is clearly the pinnacle, the Olympus of your philosophy. Go here now. ... If you are a vegetarian, vegan or raw food acolyte, RUN don't walk to this place. It is the best vegan food I have ever had " This is not terribly surprising. Grezzo is, after all, the first raw food restaurant in Boston and one of the city's few vegan eateries. More surprising is Grezzo's popularity with those not necessarily identifying as vegans or raw foodists. 'Hound enhF94 writes "parsnip soup for me! Maybe I'll double starters and also have the endive salad. This meat eater is excited!" The food has won wide praise, especially the vine-ripened tomato soup and the "cheesecake."

The Bad: There are plenty of gripes about the space itself. Bob Dobalina writes "It is a nicely decorated place, pleasing earth tones, some highlights of color, but the room is very narrow ... and so the tables are rather packed in and servers h