Vie

August 15 Goodbye They say all good things must come to an end.  With that, I'm leaving WDBJ and the news business.  I've accepted a position as the community relations coordinator for Roanoke City Schools.  There are several reasons why I'm switching...

The fact that chef Paul Virant and I share the same monogram shouldn't confuse anybody, although years back the chef sent me a letter he received from some luckless job applicant who, instead of writing "Paul Virant" in the salutation, used my name...

Depending on your perspective, this year's Super Bowl is an intriguing battle between two fascinating opponents, or a who-cares clash between an annoying East Coast team and a slightly less-annoying East Coast team (I'll leave it to you to decide which is...

Covering only 2.62 square miles, Western Springs is small in size but has many things commuters want from a bedroom community. Streets canopied by old trees. A busy downtown within walking distance of every house. A diverse housing stock. Plenty of...

Hungry for a change of pace? Eat, drink and indulge your need to escape during a foodie weekend, a tasty trend sweeping the hotel industry. You can compare flights of wine, learn how to make sushi or whip up a classic French dessert. Then retreat to...

It’s not incongruous to pair "good" with "indulgence." Not when you’re talking about the bloody mary at Perennial Virant: fresh, light, spiced nice, pickled vegetables garnishing. Do it with the most healthful ingredients. Beautifully...

KOHLER, Wis. — If the words "company town" bring to mind mean-spirited, penny-pinching bosses bereft of benevolence, then it's unfair to use that term to describe Kohler. Regardless of the label, though, this is clearly a town that the Kohler family...

Drive along the Berlin Turnpike, and you're inundated with a plethora of fast-food and franchise dining options. But tucked in between are a few restaurants that stand on their own, and the newest addition in that comfortable home-style category is...

There are lots of good reasons parents avoid taking their kids to nice restaurants, including tight budgets, cranky behavior (all around) and a lack of healthy kids meal options.  There’s not much restaurateurs can do about the first two issues, but...

15-second review: No-frills menu verging on ambition ... thrown-together and ragtag, somehow works ... favorites include chicken liver pate, duck leg confit, burger. 5-minute review: Come year's end, I'll review 150 pages of restaurant notes...

Next week Vie, chef Paul Virant's Michelin-starred restaurant in Western Springs, will offer a three-course menu for $35 as part of a weeklong promotion by Yelp. A wine pairing will be available for an extra $15. What's on the menu? Crispy parisienne...

The youth of sister cities Laguna Beach and Menton, France, cemented relations this week. The Laguna Beach Sister Cities Assn. entertained students from Menton and their two chaperones with dinners at local restaurants, field trips, some free time to...