EATS

This week, Restaurant Critic Bill Addison reviews Nam Hua Vietnamese Cuisine, a Garland spot that serves classics and adventurous specialties.

Kim Harwell reviews Five Guys Burgers and Fries, the Galleria eatery that serves thin-patty burgers, Kosher hot dogs and hand-cut fries. Kim also wrote a Table Talk column about new locations of Uncle Julio's, Genghis Grill and Chuy's.

Share your own review of these restaurants. Leave a comment below.

Photo of Nam Hua's seafood hot pot by Courtney Perry / DMN

Over on Metro, our colleague Eric Aasen has the goods on what kind of fried goodies you can expect at this year's State Fair of Texas (only 30 days away now!):

Who will be crowned this year's king or queen of fried fair goodness? Eight items are vying for Monday's fourth annual Big Tex Choice Awards, when the best new foods of the upcoming State Fair of Texas are judged. Just thinking about the new concoctions makes your mouth water and your arteries harden. The State Fair starts Sept. 26 and runs through Oct. 19.

See Eric's story for a complete list of all the Big Tex Choice Awards competitors.

PS: I was invited to help judge this contest, but couldn't because I will be in San Francisco reporting on Slow Food Nation. (All together now: Awwwwww!) But maybe next year... ?

If you think your kitchen is too small to be able to do any decent cooking in it, you need advice from chef Jennifer Schaertl (right).

Today's Taste section has a story about Jennifer and her projects for making "Gourmet Meals in Crappy Little Kitchens." From her website, crappylittlekitchens.com, there's a link to her cooking videos on YouTube, too. Check them out!

(Dallas Morning News photo by G.J. McCarthy)

The whole notion of labeling a store "ethnic" suggests only that it's not MY demographic, and I freely acknowledge that Tom Thumb or Albertson's are just as ethnic to others outside my group.

That said, the following incident reminds me that it's important to ask questions and watch your tongue when you're out of your ethnic element.

I was picking up some items for a quick dinner at Asia World Market in Plano, which I love, and here were two trays of perfectly sliced, stir-fry ready meat in the butcher's case. Signage identified one as pork. No label was over the other.

When I asked the butcher what the difference was between them, he said, "Lengua," as in one tray was pork and the other was lengua. Although he started to take the lengua out for me, I made sure that the pound I got was indeed pork for my stir-fry.