We're all so wink, wink, nudge, nudge in the cool-kids club when we talk about bacon. I'm so cleverly packing my bacon wallet, sporting my bacon bandages, and wearing a bacon bikini; aren't I bad?! Isn't MST3K God Michael J. Nelson so shocking as he pledges to eat only bacon for a whole month? I just keep checking the time this Fresh Forkin' Friday on my bacon watch and wondering when I should stop using bacolicio.us so that even The Wall Street Journal can be dressed like this.

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moto-i has a few more spots left in its Sake 101 class this Saturday. It's an eight-hour seminar that will make you a sake insider. Imagine tasting more than twenty different sakes, discussing the differences between prefectures and technique with the only cats bold enough to open a sake brewhouse outside of Japan.

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It's the right time to pick up some cookery items. Cooks of Crocus Hill is having a mid-winter sale from February 11 to 16. Most stuff is 20 percent off at both the Edina and Grand Avenue locations.

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And hello, the biggest party of the year is happening on President's Day: it's the MSP Best of the Best Party at the Guthrie! Get your ticket, and we'll snack on food from top restaurants while we unveil our best restaurants from the March issue. I'll be there and ready to gossip about all things food- and chef-related. 

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Can you admit that you stopped drinking Merlot after watching Sideways? Or worse yet, did you just hide it from your friends? Well, you can come out of the cellar and enjoy Rudolph McClain's MERLOVE at The Ritz Theater on February 19. It's a wry documentary about the American wine philosophy and our silly, silly mental embargo on Merlot. Haskell's is throwing a pre-show tasting of, you got it, Merlot.

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If you're wondering what's going on in the minds of great chefs, check out Stuart Woodman's new blog Shefzilla. I particularly like his ideas on compromise and masterpieces.

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Has there ever been a more important time to get out and support local restaurants? I think not. And what if you could do all the benevolent eating you wanted with a very light effect on your wallet? The best of both worlds, my friends, can exist because of Restaurant Week! From March 1 to 6, simply select from forty restaurants, and choose the special RW menu, which gives you a two-course lunch for $10 to $20 or a three-course dinner for $15 to $30. Easy, peasy, no-budget squeezy. 

Look for a Monday post about all the Valentine's folderol you can handle.