Articles for February 6th, 2009
SideDish Video: FrontBurner Edition
Kyle Kearbey and I have been very busy producing today’s video interview with Teiichi Sakurai, the owner and chef of Tei-An in the One Art’s Plaza. Enjoy.
Friday Afternoon Random Question: Is Zac Really Sick?
Definition of Ladies Day: Quality Not Quantity.
Zac, close your other eye. For the record, the posts produced by the strong feminine side of FrontBurner have, as of 3:36pm, captured 65 (strong) comments while the posts tossed up by the men have garnered only 20-ish wimpy replies. Oh, and we did this. Tra la. And this. Now for something completely different.
Friday Afternoon Random Question: Ladies Day
I thought it was Ladies Day on FB. What happened?
Casting Call, The Videogame Edition
It’s like a casting call clearinghouse up in herrre. This one is from SMU’s Guildhall, the program dedicated to videogame development education. Looks like some game makers are in search of the next Lara Croft:
Save the Date: Sous Vide Wine Dinner
Extra, extra read all about it: exclusive dining opportunity.
More Casting Calls For Theater Types And Others
My mention of the Dallas Opera’s open casting call yesterday (the one where they’re looking for eunuchs) opened up the flood gates of casting callers. (”Flood gates” might be an exaggeration: There was one other company who sent an email to a coworker who forwarded it to me.) The organizers of the Flamenco Festival are looking for musicians, actors, and dancers. Details are after the jump.
Bonus Brouhaha: Robert Rowling Resigns From University Investment Fund
A helpful FrontBurnervian passes along this news item: investment managers of the Permanent University Fund got $2 million in bonuses, even though the fund’s value fell 27 percent. Cue state senators airing their grievances. Chairman of the University of Texas Investment Management Company Robert Rowling explained that the bonusus were contract obligations. That explanation apparently did not suffice. After more grilling, Rowling “angrily resigned.”
Update: A similarly helpful FrontBurnervian notes Paul Burka’s account of the goings-on, which on its own might not merit “Update” status, but commenter “effigy2009″ makes it a must.
36 Hours in Dallas, Courtesy of NYT
The Sunday edition of The New York Times has some tips for folks visiting our fair city. It’s heavy on the Arts District, and, thankfully, there’s no mention of Ghostbar in the article. I love that they put the Rattlesnake Bar and JR’s in the same weekend.
Wes Anderson Talks Bottle Rocket
Fans of him and it will want to read this. Those who aren’t, move along.
Live on WRR: Bumped for a Bigwig
When an important man like CVB head Phillip Jones comes in, they ask a scrub like me to get the heck out of the way.
N9NE Closes: Is Dining in Victory Park Dead?
Mario Batali was in Dallas a few months ago. SideDish asked him if he planned to open a restaurant in Dallas. I don’t have the exact quote in front of me, but his message was clear. He said Dallas has a reputation for “spanking” out-of-town restaurants that open locations in Big D. He intimated that Dallas was a mean restaurant town and we didn’t like big dogs coming in from larger markets and doing business here.
I’m sure the folks at N9NE, Bice, Il Mulino, Nove, and countless others agree with him.
The downside of our bravado is that the whole Dallas dining scene gets a bad rap. Our super star chefs have a tough time winning national awards. Why? Because the judging panels are filled with folks from New York, L.A., and Las Vegas.
The death of N9NE brings up a lot of emotion. It hurts to see any restaurant fail, but N9NE, in particular, was doomed from the start. Rumors of its closing started the day it opened. I spent most of my time yesterday on the phone talking with restaurant folks. Most were saddened and scared by the high-profile loss. The comments below yesterday’s post on N9NE’s demise ranged from happy to helpful. One wrote:
The solution is so easy: beer. People want to drink and hang out down there. Screw these restaurants and stores. I don’t want a $60 steak dinner or a new pair of jeans before a Mavs game. I want beer. And lots of it. Put in bars. Fun bars. Sports bars. Casual bars.
That remark reminded me of this article that ran last spring in the Dallas Business Journal. Nobody deep in the corporate hills and woods will go on the record, but I understand that there are “perhaps five” less expensive, locally owned restaurants either under or readying for construction at the south end of Victory Park. Perhaps there will be plenty of beer, and bars, and cheeseburgers. And pedestrians. I see a little light. I just can’t tell if it’s Millers or Coors.
Jessica Simpson: Michigan Meltdown
Appears Tony Romo’s girl Jessica Simpson is really having some hard times lately. She really can’t catch a break. I’m not talking about her “weight gain,” which probably means she went from 99 pounds to 110. Seriously people. Apparently, J. Simp had some issues in Grand Rapids last night while opening for Rascal Flatts. Here it is (from Perez Hilton):
During her “hit” With You, she stopped singing during the middle of her song! Apparently she needed a sip of water, so her backup singers took over the lead vocals for a bit. After the song, she “seemed a little embarrassed and said it’s difficult to be on stage and be so vulnerable.”
During another song she began having issues with her ear monitors and seemed to have lost her place in several of her other songs. She also had to make her band start over again on one of them. And as for her [deleted] tune Come on Over, she even started to forget the lyrics!!!
The final blow came when she started crying during her final song. Perez says this is because Tony was supposed to meet her in Michigan but missed his flight. Murmur.
Re: Dallas Art Fair: Extraordinary!
Stacey and I were also at the Dallas Art Fair last night, and I agree with Wick on the extraordinary-ness of the event. I recognized a few locals (Nancy Dedman, John Reoch, Jeanne Marie Clossey) but the crowd seemed to be filled with mostly out-of-towners, and several Olsen twin lookalikes. There are exhibits from galleries in New York, San Francisco, Baltimore, Santa Fe, and more on display, but there are only five local galleries included (and that’s including Fort Worth). I’ve been told that the Fair is ultra-exclusive and they wanted to keep a certain aesthetic, but I can imagine there are a few galleries around town who aren’t happy they aren’t included. Anyway…
I really enjoyed the black and white photographs in the Peter Fetterman gallery (Santa Monica, CA) on the second floor, and Peter himself was very cool too. He tried to sell us on his book, Woman: A Celebration, and he said he would sign it so we could re-sell it on eBay for lots of cash. Tempting, but we didn’t do it.
On the first floor, the Scott Richards Contemporary Art booth was also a favorite of mine. It had a few racy Mel Ramos paintings that are definitely NSFW (naked ladies) and a trippy hand-painted works from Patrick Hughes that I liked. Also on the first floor, check out Artspace 111, a Fort Worth-based gallery with works from my friend J.C. Pace. There were so many great pieces. If you can afford to buy art and like modern and contemporary works, you shouldn’t miss this.
Phil Ritter Retires From TI
Just got a message via Facebook from Phil Ritter, saying he is retiring today after 20 years at Texas Instruments. I can’t say I’ve ever met him in person, but all my e-dealings and phone conversations with him have been great. He’s led the company’s public and community affairs department since 2001 and before that, he worked as a lawyer at TI. From most appearances, he seems to have kept the company out of a lot of hot water.
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