Barbara | Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 6:31AM 
I have been reading and hearing about Franny’s since it opened. Every time I read a rave review I think, damn! I must get my ass over there and see what all the fuss is about.
Amanda | Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 12:59AM 
So, it's Sunday, you're hungover, you don't want to move, and you're trying to decide which place in the nabe has the best General Tso's. Or maybe you're wondering if there's a restaurant in existence anywhere that is capable of bringing you a burger and fries that isn't soggy and terrible from the time it's spent hanging out in its styrofoam home.
BAM!: FIPS Food Throwdowns! A monthly series where we order the same exact thing from two different Park Slope restaurants, get it delivered, and evaluate which was better. It's a culinary smackdown...a triumph of the delivery will. I know your lazy asses are so ready for this shit.
So this is how it's going to work. The places will be judged by certain criteria:
Ordering ease: Ever had to spend 15 minutes on the phone just trying to order a fucking chips and guacamole only to find out they have a $30 minimum and don't take American Express? Yeah, thanks, Los Pollitos II. We appreciate it when a place makes it simple.
Delivery time: Anything under 15 minutes is a miracle. Anything over 45 minutes, I'm grabbing my torch and pitchfork.
Price: Because you should never spend $40 on takeout unless it's 4AM, you're drunk, and you decide that you and your two friends need 5 large pizzas.
How'd it hold up?: Soggy fries, leaking miso soups, cold pizza—even though I know my food is being slung over some guy's shoulder and transported on a bike, I'd like it to not look like it was.
Taste: Obviously.
Bonus: Extra sauces? Plastic containers that you can use again for lunch? Score.
I know all you foodies out there will inevitably hate the two places I pick. I get it. But I have to pick just two places to face each other in a head-to-head [mortal] combat. Feel free to suggest which places YOU think are the best for each featured food/dish—FIPS Food Throwdowns are just a random slice-of-pizza life sampling.
Here goes:
FIPS Food Throwdowns: The Guacamole Edition
Barrio vs. Rancho Alegre
Review, eats, throwdowns Erica | Friday, January 29, 2010 at 7:57AM From FIPS reader Bloomie:
"I'm a bit disappointed that I had to learn about the new Almondine Bakery in the Slope all by myself [ed. note: hangs head in shame]. They have homemade, cheese stuffed pretzels and what just may be the best hot chocolate I've ever had. I kinda want to keep the secret of it to myself, but I love FIPS enough that I think the secret should be shared."
Hold the fucking phone: cheese stuffed pretzels!? Like soft pretzels!? OMGZ! If that's the case, than I owe Bloomie and everyone else in Park Slob a huge apology for not posting this shit sooner.
The reviews on Yelp thus far are fairly epic and they have another location in Dumbo. WHOA, and they offer "room service" delivery to your house on Sunday only.
So, who's been to Almondine?
eats Amanda | Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:02AM 
What do all of these things have in common?: Celine Dion, Chris Benoit (RIP), Leonard Cohen, Steven Cojocaru, Corey Hart, Caroline Rhea, and Dick Pound, the former president of the World Anti-Doping Agency.
Yep, all these mofos come from Montreal.
Sounds like a big list of LAME, if you ask me.
But Corner Burger has decided that another Montreal export is the wave of the future—they're serving NINE different types of Poutine, as well as four Americanized ones for babies who get freaked out by the idea of squeaky cheese curds.
Essentially, Poutine is a pile of artery-clogging goodness; french fries covered in gravy and topped with fresh cheese curds. Many people refer to it as a dish that looks like vomit on a plate, and it's obviously not the most healthy thing in the world to eat—but maybe you could just close your eyes and accept that you've given up your New Year's Resolution to lose weight by now anyway.
Meredith | Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 12:21AM 
A potential breakthrough the in FIPS Case of the Missing Mail (COTMM trademarked, bitches). This shit was spotted at L&B Spumoni Gardens on 86th Street in South Brooklyn on Saturday: a USPS mail carrier grabbing a square slice...or five.
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