The pandemic is really messing with the pots and pans of the restaurant industry as owners and chefs adjust to the new reality of shut-ins, take-outs, and partial openings.

If you're up in northeast Texas heading one way or the other on Interstate-20 and feel your tummy growling in the Tyler vicinity, you should really consider stopping in at the Brisket Love about mile off the pavement near Lindale.

In a fit of cabin fever (and fearing the lack of public restrooms during a longer trip), the bride and I cruised (and strolled a wee bit) downtown in search of COVID-inspired murals and graffiti.

I don't advise surfing into Hawaiian Bros uninformed like I did because, after opening up the admirably biodegradable divided clamshell of chow, my first thought was: What in Sam Hill is this?

Like many locales across the world, the culinary scene in Iceland has changed a lot over the past 20 years. Back in 2005, there were good choices, but they were few. Today, Iceland is crawling with inventive, locavore food as well as local beers and liqueurs. SNAPS, however, has been highly rated from the get-go, and deservedly so: it's a required stop for our visits.

Thanks to that Angel of Brisket named Aaron Franklin, this town is lousy with great BBQ. And given that BBQ is one of the four major food groups in Texas (along with chicken fried steak, tacos, and tequila), that's a damn good thing.

Let's see: mountains, cool air, rainwater beer, pizza, and green chile. Could this be heaven?

Everything was prepared to perfection, the red fish elucidating groans of pleasure from the bride, the Reuben-loving brother-in-law loving his Reuben, and me savoring my savory pork-n-grits.

Located in Soho, Sadelle's serves up fresh bagels and brunch with a French-cafe-quaint vibe.

Whelp, hasn't it been an interesting coupla months?