Bite Me Baltimore: Ekiben

Hi there, Baltimore—and beyond! I’m Ivy Buchowski, and yes, I’ve officially taken over Minxeats for a little while. Kathy Patterson, aka Kat LaGue,, the brilliant mind behind the Good Scents cozy mysteries, was kind enough to let me hijack her blog so I can talk about one of my favorite things in the world: food. You might know me from the pages of her book Killer Sillage, poking around her fictional perfume shop, solving mysteries, and occasionally stirring up trouble. Here, though, it’s all about snacks, crumbs, and honest opinions (the sassier, the better). Whether it’s a pastry, a seafood delight, or a fried chicken that makes you weep with joy, I’ll be tasting, testing, and sometimes trash-talking with full disclosure. Welcome to my takeover. Grab a fork, sit tight, and let’s see what Baltimore has to offer.

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Hand me my megaphone, because I have something to say. One word: Ekiben. If you’ve been sleeping on this little slice of Fells Point/Hampden/South Baltimore foodie heaven, consider this your official wake-up call.

First off, the buns. Steamed to perfection, soft but not floppy, holding all the flavor without collapsing into a sad, soggy mess. And the fillings? Don’t even get me started. Spicy ancho chile pork that melts against your taste buds, fried chicken that’s crisped to golden glory, tofu for the herbivores among us…basically, they make everyone happy. Don't want a bun? Get it in a bowl with rice, instead. Less messy, just as delicious.

What I love most? The balance. Crunch, tenderness, spice, tang. Every bite has a story, and my mouth is the eager audience. Pro tip: get the tempura broccoli, with Chinese sausage. You won't regret it.

Pro tip: come hungry, bring a friend (or don’t, more for you), and pace yourself. One bun is good. Two? Ambitious. Three? Call me, and I'll help you eat.

So yeah. Ekiben. Go. Now. And don’t blame me when you can’t stop thinking about that tofu brah bun three hours later.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Something Brewing at Minxeats

Hey friends,

I’ve got a little secret to share. Starting soon, my very own food blog, Minxeats, is going to get a tiny bit… possessed. By a fictional character. Yes, you read that right.

Meet Ivy Buchowski, my sharp-tongued, pastry-obsessed cousin from my Good Scents cozy mystery series. Ivy’s about to take over Minxeats for a while, sharing her culinary adventures, Baltimore-style eats, and maybe a few scandalous opinions on the best sticky buns in town. Think of it as a blog takeover. She’ll be writing, I’ll be watching (mostly), and you’ll get to peek behind the scenes of my cozy mystery world… one delicious bite at a time.

Why am I doing this? Well, Ivy’s voice is too much fun to keep locked in the pages of my books, and what better way to celebrate her than with her own corner of the internet? Plus, it’ll give fans of Killer Sillage a taste of her quirky perspective before the next book drops.

So buckle up, folks. Minxeats is about to get a little sassier, a lot more foodie, and totally Ivy-approved. Watch this space. You’ll want to be here when the first post goes live.

—Kathy

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Book Review - Food Whore

We don't normally review fiction books here at Minxeats, but we made an exception for Food Whore: A Novel of Dining and Deceit. The author, Jessica Tom, is a food blogger and a former restaurant reviewer for the Yale Daily News magazine. Like Jessica, her novel's lead character, Tia Monroe, is also a Yalie and a foodie whose ultimate goal is to be a food writer.

At the start of the novel, we see that Tia is a new student in NYU's food studies graduate program and is hoping to get an internship with cookbook author, Helen Lansky. However, she first meets NY Times' restaurant critic, Michael Saltz, who alters the course of her young life.

The whole premise here is a bit outrageous and somewhat unbelievable, but this is fiction after all. It's possibly every young food writer's dream to be taken under the wing of the most powerful man in NY food, to be given a fabulous wardrobe of expensive designer clothing, and to see her words in print in the New York Times. Only Tia's not getting credit for them. In fact, she has to keep her whole gig with Saltz a secret from everyone: her long-time boyfriend, her family, her roommates, and the staff at Madison Park Tavern, her internship placement where she works as a lowly coat-check girl.

Once you get past the set-up of the premise, the book flows pretty nicely. It's well-paced, most of the secondary characters are believable, particularly hottie chef Pascal Fox and Tia's boyfriend Elliott, and actually ends up being a real page-turner. Tia Monroe is driven in her desire to be a food writer, and displays impressive erudition without being pompous. She's also highly likable, and as a reader, I wanted her to succeed.

The book's not perfect. Tia thinks too much. Some of the secondary characters, like her roomates, seem like filler. But the meat of the story is fun and well-paced. And props to Tom for writing sex scenes that are not tacky and actually a bit titillating. I look forward to her second novel.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



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