Friday, Feb. 18, 2005 | 8:28 a.m.
Le Creuset French cookware will introduce a full line of kiwi-colored products at the Chicago Housewares Show opening March 4. The products can be found in stores after the event.
Long before the advent of Teflon-lined or anodized cookware, Le Creuset red enameled cast-iron cookware was in the kitchen of every serious cook. Today, Le Creuset comes in every color imaginable.
It's still costly and it still distributes heat evenly throughout the pan.
And for browning and slow cooking it still can't be beat. My favorite color remains the original red, but I do like the kiwi.
Slanted Clam Tavern amusing and confusing: Slanted Clam Tavern at 3717 W. Sahara Ave. serves more than clams. This latest brainchild of Mark DiMartino is beach themed, friendly and lively. Once the home of the Ruvo family's historic Venetian Ristorante, the Slanted Clam Tavern is owned by the scion of another illustrious restaurant clan, the DiMartinos.
Owner Mark DiMartino digs seasoned properties as well as new concepts. He owns the longtime local favorite Tillerman seafood restaurant, the Tilted Kilt tavern at the Rio, whose kilt-clad servers are bonnie lassies, and the just-opened beach-themed sports bar and restaurant, the Slanted Clam.
Slanted Clam's signature dishes are a mix of Italian and American favorites with plenty of choices in between. There are wings and things, baked rigatoni with roasted vegetables served with garlic bread, Philly cheese steak sandwiches, fish and chips and shrimp and chips and po' boy seafood sandwiches.
Sloppy Clams, shaved deli meat sandwiches served on a sub roll, are served with Slanted Clams' signature cottage potatoes and cole slaw -- it's the slaw that makes it sloppy (no clams).
Plenty of pizzas are baked in the brick oven. Choose from the menu or build your own. A "dirty clam" dessert sounds confusing (no clams), but what could be bad about a dessert made with housemade doughnuts, dusted with powdered sugar and served with chocolate sauce?
Slanted Clam Tavern is open 24/7. Happy Hour from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. every Monday through Friday features 50-cent draft beers and well drinks. A graveyard dinner special -- linguini with red or white clam sauce and garlic bread for $2.99 -- is offered from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. Monday through Friday. Food is served at the bar or in the restaurant.
The Slanted Clam Tavern is operated by the Let's Eat Gaming Group. For more info, call 364-9657.
Smith & Wollensky celebrates Wine Week: Smith & Wollensky on the Strip will celebrate National Wine Week from March 7-11. During the lunchtime event as part of the festivities, each guest is offered 10 generous samples of wine poured by more than 50 vintners for $10 with the price of the lunch.
A percentage of the proceeds will benefit Citymeals-on-Wheels, a charitable organization devoted to delivering nutritious meals to homebound elderly.
Kevin Zraly, Smith & Wollensky's Vice President of Wine, has selected some outstanding American wines for this special week. For information about the wines to be poured each day, visit www.nationalwineweek.com or call 862-4100.
'Forbidden Vegas' dinner package: Recently debuted at the Westin Casuarina is "Forbidden Vegas," "a comedy revue that spoofs Las Vegas." The all-inclusive package includes the show and dinner at the Silver Peak Grill. The price per person is $66.90. Dinner includes a choice of soup or salad; a choice of entree -- grilled chicken or lobster ravioli or seared salmon. Dessert is molten lava chocolate cake with Haagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream.
Seating is available before or after the 8 p.m. performance. Tickets for the show without dinner cost $39.95 plus tax and fees. Tickets are available at the Westin Theater Box Office, Allstate Ticketing locations or at www.showtickets.com.
Bellagio bar chef Sean Bigley named Las Vegas finalist in Belvedere Bartender's Bash: Sean Bigley of the elegant Fontana Bar at Bellagio will shake his Pom Pom (the cocktail that won him a spot as a finalist) against bar chefs from New York, San Francisco, Florida, the United Kingdom and Virgin Gorda on Feb. 27 at the Belvedere Bartenders Bash, the official closing event of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami.
The bar chef concept was started in Las Vegas under the guidance of longtime mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim. Bigley has been a bar chef for 12 years and is excited about the Belvedere Bartender's Bash, noting that he feels he has a special edge in this competition.
"Anyone can pour a vodka and tonic, but I like to put a little bit of love into every one I pour."
Good luck Sean, we're rooting for you.
Short orders
"The Cocktails of the Ritz Paris": What a treasure is this delightful small volume of history and art. Written by Colin Peter Field, a major collector of cocktail books, and illustrated by Yoko Ueta, "The Cocktails of the Ritz Paris" (Simon & Schuster) is a gem. Filled with such trivia as the origin of amaretto and recipes for cocktails long forgotten, I couldn't put it down until the last page was read. I loved the chapter "Cocktails and the stories that belong to them," and the recipe for the world's first dry martini without alcohol.
Try to remember that the author is a Brit. The castor sugar called for in recipes is our superfine. In the grand scheme of things it shouldn't make much difference, but superfine sugar melts quicker and measures differently.
Is it 5 p.m. yet? I'm ready for a Ritz Pimm's.
Carnegie Deli making waves: The Las Vegas branch of New York's Carnegie Deli is not yet officially open at the Mirage, yet the staff is swamped with fressers who can't wait for the full menu to be completed. It won't be too long before the grand opening takes place, so have a piece of cheesecake or a blintz until the bosses say they're ready.
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