Maybe I missed something but I humbly ask "What are you talking about?" Robert Kirk/Bob Kirk? Is that supposed to mean somethiing?

Have you ever gotten a review pulled Elizabeth?

No, I have the opposite problem. I think my reviews have a shorter shelf life than my editors do, given how fast things change in the restaurant business. EL

The odd thing about the article was that the writer "resigned" from a "free-lance" position with the Courant. Seems "odd" to me that anyone would have to "resign" from a job that wasn't on-going in the first place.

The article seems pertinent as a reminder for you to be on top of your game at all times. Especially considering the lame misrepresentation of the ribeye that was being eaten at a nearby table - then to insist that it "must" be a ribeye because the author went to culinary school.

Seems to me that there's too much lame writing in food reviews being passed off as "journalism."

I don't get the Robert Kirk thing. Is that supposed to mean something? I could understand your strange comment if he was James T. Kirk or Ben Dover or ... Are you doing shots of Batter Blaster straight from the can?

OK, I see I've confused everyone. I was suggesting he made up the name. Maybe I better do a little self-editing if it isn't clear. EL

from now on use "posse"...can mean ONE other person, can mean more than one.
Also, the "restauranteur" at the Outback she was reviewing prob lied about the rib-eye anyway because of the bad review.
I hope the next reviewer mentions the servers' flair, so THEY won't get the boot for being inaccurate

Ms. Large beware. Exactly where in the restaurant would your photo be posted, if the Sun ran your photo?

Was the restaurant the Courant critic panned an advertiser? Or potential advertiser? It's a legitimate quesiton. There seems to be a tendency by some publications to skirt the thin line between critical integrity and ad revenue. Baltimore Magazine, for example, never met a restaurant it didn't like (with the obligatory caveat in each review that one dish wasn't quite up to the rest of the rave.) City Paper has cut back its restaurant reviews, alternating Richard Gorelick's refreshing candor with "Eat Me," a series of mostly boring articles on obscure food facts. At least we've got the Baltimore Sun which continues to maintain its reviewers' indepenendce, enabling EL et al to give us a real taste of where they've dined. And where we might want to, as well.

I saw a cute pic of a restaurant critic attached to her review (I have forgotten which online paper it was). She had disguised her visage by hiding behind a large glass of red wine a la Wilson on "Home Improvement." I wonder what EL would use to disguise herself should a picture be added to her reviews?

EL, I read the AFJ's Food Critic's Guidelines. Are you a card carrying member? Does The Sun have any food review specific guidelines? It seems that you follow the ethics, to fact checking, to anonymity things. It makes for credible reviews.

I am a member of AFJ (Asociation of Food Journalists). The Sun has strict ethics guidelines for reporters, but not food specific ones.

This can't go without noting: in that same Courant article, one sentence reads: " the reviewer...referred to "companions" when only one guest accompanied her...and the price of appetizers were wrong." The next sentence admits, "The Courant has published hundreds of articles in the past with errors..."
I'll say. The PRICE of appetizers WERE wrong? Seems like they need a John McIntyre at their copy desk, not a new food critic.

FINALLY!!!!
DIM SUM ARRIVES IN BALTIMORE

We can hardly believe that dimsum--and world class dimsum at that!--has finally come to our area.

We are posting because no one seems to know about this place and therefore we fear our little jewel in it's hard-to-find location in Ellicott City will disappear.

The dimsum is hand-made, fabulously fresh with tons of variety.

Go Sunday for brunch--and tell everyone you know.

And Ms. Large...please consider a review in the print edition so more people will learn about this bonafide, delicious dimsum in a city that by my lights has NO authentic Chinese.

Asian Court
9180 Baltimore National Pike
Ellicott City, MD 21042
410.461.8388
http://www.asiancourt.net/
Open 7 days
Chinese – from all regions

Cheers,
Mary Claude

Oh no she di'int!

Shill Alert!
Shill Alert!

Release the hounds!

oh cinnamon girl, nice to see you here. I've done enough flack killing this week. So you don't think this was a spontaneous outburst from a real customer? Why the hell would they stick it in this old and inappropriate post? It must be easy to get a PR job these days. It doesn't seem like these people are very clever.

This is pathetic and transparent. They even used the boilerplate format for a press release. Lame lame lame.

"Mary Claude" sounds like an incomplete sentence.

On the other hand, their dim sum is hand-made. Don't you just hate going to those places where robots make the dim sum? And it is fabulously fresh, which is a category apparently better than fresh. I had no idea. Fabulous!

A place that is circling the drain does not typically have fabuously fresh food. Only a place that was fabulously busy tends to have freshly made food like dim sum. I guess fabulously unwanted, fabulously left over, and fabulously stale don't have the same cachet.

EL, could you be a doll and get right on that print edition review? That would be great.

I guess since there is NO authentic Chinese in the area, this place is like the Jack's Bistro of Chinese food.

Note to PR person, if you refer people to a web site whose only content is the announcement of their grand opening nine months ago, it doesn't get you points. It makes me think the place is lame. Fabulously stale web site doesn't lead me to think fabulously fresh food.

Here's the problem Mary Claude. This reeks of desperation. What you are telling us is that this is a very unpopular place. Given that it is the only authentic Chinese or dim sum in the area, that is a bit shocking. People must REALLY hate the food there.

Yes he di'id.

I've seen "y'all'd" and "di'int" in the last two days. I'm starting to feel right at home.

Oh, Ms Claude, Ms Claude. If you were a regular here you would know that the Asian Court opening (delayed, btw) was covered by several comments by EL. I have a number of dim sum comments buried in the mists of the blog. As I recall I commented on Asian Court after my first visit. I've had dim sum there several times on week days. Solid C+, B-. I still like what's on offer in Wheaton, better, but that is a long drive.

Now, don't feel too bad for being savaged for your post. You've made the same mistake other PR types make when they post here: they treat us like we are idiots. For example, 'The dim sum is hand-made.' Duh, that's one of the biggest problems with dim sum. They are a very labour intensive food.

If you want to see how to post PR here, go find the posts for Morton's. They are not done in PR-speak. The information is conveyed simply and very low keyed.