Thanks for all of the good suggestions. Any reason not to consider Sable for dinner? The menu looks pretty good.

Staying on E. Wacker Dr. on Friday night. Need a dinner recommendation for middle-aged male foodie and two almost-20 college students. Upper limit of $150 or so, including my martini (my martini is a must), but we need not hit the limit, and can also exceed it by a bit! The girls are pretty adventuresome, but fond of steak and other quality proteins. No pasta palaces, please. Walking distance preferred, but none of us are shy about a bit of a walking trek

My late teens daughter and I will be in Pueblo, CO on a Monday night in August. Looking for a nice places with good steaks, but an exceptional burger or great sandwich selection will also work. Cost not an issue, but the choice must make a good martini and have a decent wine by the glass selection. Preference for a choice near a reasonable but clean and safe hotel.

Thanks.

My late teens daughter and I will be in Mt. Rushmore and Sioux Falls, SD, one night each, on a Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, in August. Looking for nice places with good steaks, but an exceptional burger or great sandwich selection will also work. Cost not an issue, but the choice must make a good martini and have a decent wine by the glass selection. Preference for a choice near a reasonable but clean and safe hotel.

Thanks.

I'll be in Omaha and Oklahoma City for one night each--a Monday and a Tuesday, respectively--in August, by myself, traveling by car through the Midwest. I like reasonably plain food, i.e., no fancy French sauces or Chef driven fancy plates. Fish or steak are good choices, but an exceptional burger or great sandwich selection will also work. Cost not an issue, but the choice must make a good martini and have a decent wine by the glass selection. Preference for a choice near a reasonable but clean and safe hotel.

Thanks.

That sandwich place by Bookman's bookstore --name, please, someone?-- is also good.

Beyond Bread!

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Beyond Bread
6260 E Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85712

We're doing a Sunday afternoon party for a charitable organization we're involved with. As part of the spread, we want a chocolate board with, maybe, two or three chunks of chocolate, with knives for hacking off pieces.We'll probably have 60 or so people, other desserts and plenty of hors d'oeuvres. Maybe we need two or three half kilo or kilo-sized pieces of chocolate. Nothing too fancy (read: expensive), but decent, i.e., better than Hershey's. Any ideas? I did some on line looking and didn't get far, and I'd like to avoid spending much, if anything, for shipping to Tucson.

TIA

Not even a close call: The best ones I've ever had, anywhere are the rings at Peohe's. Nothing else worth eating there, but the rings with a Martini or a Sauvignon Blanc are Heaven on Earth.

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Peohe's
1201 1st St, Coronado, CA 92118

My mom brought over a bottle of wine for a Christmas brunch, and said she thought it was probably pretty good. 1995 Opus One. I tried to give it back four times, and she insisted that we enjoy it.

Six of us--five drinkers, with the other couples pretty expert with wine--will be eating and drinking next Saturday. I'm cooking. The Opus will only go so far, of course. I was leaning toward short ribs, as they can't be overcooked and are stress free at the last minute. Other suggestions, as to main course, other courses and other wines.

There is, in an old video store at the southeast corner, in the Safeway shopping center. Excellent food and reasonable prices.

My wife and I had dinner this evening at The Abbey, Jax "sister." I made a reservation at 4 p.m.--the day before Thanksgiving, for the same evening--and my choices were 6 (or earlier) or 7:45 (or later). Busy place.

We were seated promptly, but in the bar area. Noisier, probably, than the dining area, although the place is one big room. Very loud! (The group next to us was especially loud. Imagine how I felt as we left and my wife greeted the guy in the group of five or six. My wife's hairdresser, who she saw earlier in the day. I guess I bought his dinner!)

Service was excellent. Prompt, without seeming hurried. Clear pride in place, a characteristic I noted with the staff at Jax as well. Nothing sells better for me than informed servers who think their restaurant is special, as long as it is. Borth Jax and The Abbey are!

Great pumpernickel bread with white raisins was served with cocktails. Very tasty. We shared a side of great hush puppies ($6) to start. Flavorful, and not loaded with salt like most hush puppies I've eaten. My wife had the fish of the day ($21, I think), which was seared scallops with an escarole salad and other stuff. Very fine scallops, as good as any I've eaten. I had the mussels and rock shrimp with chorizo and fries ($14). Very nice, although the mussels were small and nothing special. The combination was good, but I wish The Abbey used green lip mussels.

All in all, for $63 (with one martini, tax and tip) we had an excellent meal. In and out in an hour, and very loud, but we'll be back. I definitely want to try the burger.

I'll be passing through Flagstaff, alone, on a Sunday at around 1:30-2:00. I wanted to try Diablo Burger, but it's closed on Sunday. Other suggestions? Nothing fancy, but good food is a requirement. TIA.

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Diablo Burger
120 N Leroux St Ste 112, Flagstaff, AZ 86001

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Any recommendations for octopus? We'll be downtown, with no car, and I crave some grilled octopus, nicely charred. No place too fancy, but no taco trucks or takeout, either.

Thanks for all of the wonderful suggestions. I'm leaning toward Django, mostly because of the seafood selection.

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Django Restaurant
210 10th Street, Des Moines, IA 50309

I will be in Des Moines, alone, on a Wednesday night in a few weeks. I'm staying at The Suites of 800 Locust. No car, I don't know Des Moines and I don't mind walking. (I assume it'll be cold in early November, so not too much walking in the evening.)

I like Italian, Asian and American. Money is not a big issue. Good food is important, as is a place where a solo can be comfortable. (I will be at 801 Steak & Chop House the following night, so a heavy meal is not important or desired.) A good sports bar, pizzeria or other casual place is fine, as long as the food is good.

Thanks in advance.

Ra is a chain. Lots of action--it's in a very upscale mall--but mediocre sushi and drinks.

Bluefin is more focused on seafood. Coming from Boston you may find neither place up to snuff, but I've never had anything other than a first-class experience at Kingfisher. The staff is totally committed to making your meal enjoyable, the cocktail menu is great, wines are interesting and, all around, I think it's great. On sushi, I've never had a particularly great meal anywhere in Tucson.

If seafood is not critical, you might also consider Janos or The Grill at Hacienda del Sol. Both are expensive and more upscale than Kingfisher, and both offer very memorable dining experiences.

I like Kingfisher and Bluefin. Same owners. I prefer Kingfisher, although Bluefin is more focused on seafood.

J Bar is great, but not a traditional Mexican restaurant. More Southwestern, but really, really good. The menu is not super kid-friendly, although I suspect they'd make almost anything a kid might want, and their Happy Hour hot dog is great.

Blanco is decent, but it's not great Mexican food. (And it's probably three minutes from the hotel, not 10.) Rosa's is good, but very heavy and very traditional Sonoran. (Lots of cheese, etc.) El Charro is also at Kolb and Sunrise--probably closer--and it's also OK. As for Papagayo, I think it's filthy and won't even go in their for a cocktail.

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Blanco
Tucson, Tucson, AZ

Walking from the Hyatt you can go to Tin Fish, right next to Petco Park. Reasonable and very good.

Wonderful!

For next time, check out Blue Water, just a little north of Little Italy. Very casual: order at a counter, eat on a patio on paper/styrofoam, but every thing is very fresh and excellent. I also like Tin Fish, but the hours are a little spotty. It closes early and seems to not always be open.

July 1 through 15. I checked yesterday. Website is www.kingfishertucson.com.

Kingfisher has excellent food (and oysters), pretty reasonable prices, and the staff is friendly and gracious to all.

We made a reservation a few weeks ago, on line, for Friday at 1:15. Barely made it, in four hours, from downtown San Diego.

From arrival to departure, the staff was pleasant, friendly and well-informed. No attitude at all!

First stops were the restrooms. Clean, and they have really cool hand dryers. Made me want to wash my hands again and again.

We ordered the baby lettuces with gorgonzola, dates and red onions. Fine, with no real wow factor. The next table was eating Nancy's Chopped Salad. It looked wonderful, but was for bigger appetites, or a larger group.

My wife and I shared two pizzas, the squash blossom with burrata and the Napolitana (cherry tomatoes, olives, fried capers and anchovies, although the menu makes no mention of the tomatoes.) Both were excellent, with a very substantial yet very light crust.

We ate half of each pizza, less than I could have eaten. That left room for dessert, and we shared the butterscotch budino. Very, very good! The cappucino my wife had was good, although she prefers soymilk and had it made with nonfat cow's milk.

All in all, a fine experience. With one quartino of wine--I think that's a quarter of a bottle, or one large glass--and an Arnold Palmer we were in and out in a little more than one hour and spent $90.00, including tax and tip (but not including the $8.50 for parking.) Certainly not inexpensive, and as a pizza lover I'm still dealing with "just how good can pizza really be," but a decent value for a high-quality, big-name restaurant.

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Pizzeria Mozza
641 N. Highland Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Peohe's gets a bad rap for lots of good reasons, but their onion rings are best ever!

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Peohe's
1201 1st St, Coronado, CA 92118

Check out Basic Urban Kitchen + Bar. Great pizzas (really great), next to Petco Park and an easy walk from anywhere in the Gaslamp. Tin Fish, also next to Petco, serves good--not great, but good--fish, tacos and sandwiches. For more upscale, but not fancy, a cab ride to Cucina Urbana (get a reservation) is worthwhile. It's really not bad walk, and it'll be downhill coming home, but most people would say you need a cab. (My morning constitutional is downtown to Hillcrest and back, six miles, so I'm not the best guide on distances to walk.) Cafe Chloe is very popular on this board. Not my favorite, but fine and lots of people like it. Bareback Grill is an Aussie-themed bar with very loud music and "a cut above" bar food. Finally, there is Candelas for Mexican fine dining.

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Cafe Chloe
721 9th Ave, San Diego, CA 92101

Bareback Grill
4640 Mission Blvd, San Diego, CA 92109

Basic Urban Kitchen & Bar
, San Diego, CA 92101

The Tin Fish
2750 Dewey Rd, San Diego, CA 92106

We served Lucky Wishbone last night for 35 or so for a 4th of July party. Just the chicken from LW, along with my pork, tilapia and salads. My food got the raves, but it was the chicken that got eaten, and my stuff which is left over. (Must be the guilty pleasure thing, as everyone loves the chicken and the whole crowd--many of them here for decades--all claim they haven't been in years.) And what is up with the fries, which are as awful as everything else is good? For a really guilty pleasure--maybe my last day--I'd have Lucky Wishbone shrimp and chicken and the fries from Luke's. I think they're frozen crinkle cuts, but there are none better!

My wife, daughter and I will be in Phoenix Monday night for one night. The Wigwam has a wonderful price, it's a lovely hotel (and we'll be driving in from San Diego, so we'll get there more quickly.) Will we have eating options in that part of the valley? In Tucson we like Montana Avenue, Jack's, Vivace, etc. Don't want to spend more than $30 or so pp, without liquor/wine. There are other good hotel options in Scottsdale/North Phoenix, and I know lots of good restaurants there. Suggestions, so I can book the Wigwam, will be much appreciated.