Start taking notes; here is a blizzard of news.

As everyone knows (I think), Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl has left City Pages and starts in a few weeks at Minnesota Monthly. According to an online minnpost.com piece by David Brauer, “success comes in phases, but right now, interesting monthly journalism appears on the ascendency.” Brauer points to the rash of new hires at local monthlies, and the Brian Lambert hire over here at mspmag.com. Grumdahl's new responsibilities aren't clearly defined, but in the article, it says she will be doing "60/40 — 60 percent for the magazine, doing all their restaurant coverage, plus a handful of features and cover pages. The other 40 percent of her time will be spent blogging and editing Minnesota Monthly's Real Foods magazine.”

I exchanged an e-mail with Dara yesterday, and she is thrilled to be moving on to greener pastures. This is all great news for local food freaks. Better writers in bigger jobs breeds more competition, which creates more of a market for local and regional food news, food writing, books, restaurants, and so on. The halo effect of all this stuff really works. Everyone wins here.

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After much rumor-mill grinding that was pumping out news to the contrary, Grant Achatz is cancer free! Fantastic news on many levels. I am still of the opinion that Alinea is one of the most important restaurants in the country, and Grant is also a wonderful human being, and the grace and dignity with which he dealt with his cancer is a testament to that. Check out these links for more from Frank Bruni and from the Tribune.

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You know that I think turducken is cool, and unless you have tasted a well-made version, you shouldn’t practice contempt prior to investigation. But how about a forty-eight-bird turducken made from twelve different species?

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OK food editors, this story is an interesting idea, but the Wall Street Journal piece comparing Batali's and Keller's menu calorie counts to McDonald's is specious in the extreme. Why? Because Batali's and Keller's calories don't come from high fructose corn syrup and aren’t compacted into a six-ounce item on a dollar menu. Thoughts, kids?

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Emeril is done shooting Emeril Live, and there was a great piece on the Food Network written up in The New York Times. Here’s the skinny that you didn’t read: After years and years of making dozens of shows a season, stars, such as Emeril and Mario, get tired of slogging through life carrying five jobs. Networks want to change compensation packages to share in the brands they helped create and deservedly so. Things change, and in Emeril’s case, he did not want to share his outside revenue with FN. He did not need the continuing TV exposure as much as he needed some sleep.

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Check out the foie gras chitchat inspired by our buddy Tony Bourdain. I am pro-foie in case anyone gives a crap.

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As my pal Berit likes to say, “Food nerd alert!" Here’s a graphic novel about food.

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The Year in Food at chow.com is always a good list, and, of course, I am insisting you click on the media section in the middle of the page after you click here. 

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For those of you who don’t know David Lebovitz, you should. He is the former Chez Panisse pastry chef who lives in Paris and writes some phenomenal books. He has his annual five food terms that should be left behind in 2007 and never brought back.

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You all know I have a problem with the Zagat guides. Like most of these types of polls, who is actually voting is the core issue. I just was asked to be a judge for the San Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants poll, and the requirements were stringent—you actually have to have dined in the places you vote for.

I just read this on line, and I can't wait to check it out. "We always wondered why Zagat has a monopoly on restaurant surveys. The same thought seems to have occurred to Steve Plotnicki, the man behind the blog Opinionated About Dining. Don't be fooled by OAD's resemblance to the rest of the blogger-with-a-digital-camera food sites. It hosts a very big and very vigorous private forum, whose members will be the backbone of a new book on the top 100 restaurants in America and Europe this March. The OAD members are deep-pocketed diners who eat all over the city, so the book’s core of opinions will be strong. "

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For years, we have been trying to convince local food producers to create roving food carts in a our Cities since we have no street culture thanks to the Skyways, the winters, the burbs, and so on. We applaud Carrie Summer for diving into the deep end of the pool, and to inspire other restaurateurs to get wet also, check this out. And this one, also. Hmm . . .  David Pasternack doing fish and chips? I love it.