Sports - - Page 5

by Russell Warnick

The World Cup of Food

Image Courtesy of Nestor Cerami

We couldn’t let soccer’s 2010 FIFA World Cup go by without throwing in our two cents — which as you might expect, has less to do with our feet than with our mouths. So while serious sports fans spend this week debating which squads got the crap draw and which teams are most likely to make the second round, foodies can put all that aside and take a look at our 2010 World Cup Food and Drink Rankings, in which we’ve ranked the 32 participating nations from worst to best, based not on soccer skills but on the appeal of each country’s most iconic dish.

For the record, I offer no apologies for the dishes or the order in which they are ranked—I had many discussions with my international friends when researching these and they have disagreed with me on many—for that, you can leave your opinions in the comments.

#32. Australia – Vegemite on Toast

Usually when there is a petition on Facebook in support of something, you know it’s a desperate plea, and Vegemite on Toast is no exception. This isn’t one of those love-it-or-hate-it kind of foods, this is simply a hate it kind of food. Yes, there are nearly 111,000 facebook users on the record as supporting it, but I’m pretty sure that’s roughly the population of Australia, right? Let’s hope for their sake that the Aussie lads find something better to chow on before their matches in South Africa.

#31. Ivory Coast – Kedjenou

Factoid: the current coach of the Ivory Coast team is former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson. I’m sure old Sven has some tricks up his sleeves planned for the field, but you’ve got to admire the Ivory Coast’s cooking tricks, too. Kedjenou, like many other West African dishes, starts with some tough old chickens and basically cooks the shit out of them ’til they’re edible. It may not be the quickest way to make a meal taste good, but it sure as hell beats Vegemite.

#30. Slovenia – Buckwheat

I task you with something — Google “Slovenia” and “food.” Whatever the result is it’ll surely include buckwheat. Buckwheat, buckwheat and more buckwheat. Could you be any more boring, Slovenian cooks? If you must have a Slovenian soccer dish, I sifted through the ES archives and stumbled upon this tasty dish, vegetarian too — Wilted Greens with Buckwheat Noodles (and an egg).

The Best Super Bowl Ad CBS May or May Not Air

As you may have guessed, the above ad is not selling potato chips.

But given the food-centric nature of Super Bowl advertising, and that fact that this particular ad has CBS execs waffling back and worth, we’ve deemed it worthy of coverage on ES. The ad, for gay dating site ManCrunch, has been submitted for one of the Super Bowl’s $2.8 million, 30-second time slots, but CBS has not yet officially approved or rejected it. According to So Good, ManCrunch believes CBS is purposely putting off a decision until the last minute, unsure whether they’d rather piss off gay rights groups or my-family-is-more-valuable-than-yours types.

Stirring the controversy further, Fox News reports that CBS is trying to dodge the issue altogether by telling ManCrunch that all Super Bowl ads are already sold out. But wait — at the same time, CBS has reportedly told Pop Tarts (the breakfast pastry, not another gay dating site) that Super Bowl slots are still available! And all this after CBS has already approved an anti-abortion ad, preemptively negating their own “we just don’t want to get too political” defense. It’s all a little surprising given the Super Bowl’s long, successful history of selling food and beer products via (fake) lesbian action.

Care to place any bets? Will CBS air it?

in Politics / TV 2 comments

by gansie

Team Fake Celebrity

It really pains me to give this any press. But it’s so gross I just have to exploit. Plus, it’s not the first time we’ve dissed Super Bowl coverage and mocked Kendra Wilkinson‘s food associations.

Courtesy of Three-O and 5W Public Relations, here are Kim Kardashian (Reggie Bush/Saints) and Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett’s (Hank Baskett/Colts) Super Bowl drinks of choice. Puke.

Team Kendra

3 oz. Three-O Citrus Vodka
1/2 oz. Blue Curaçao
1 oz. lemonade

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with a cherry.

Team Kardashian

1 1/2 oz Three-O Triple Shot Espresso
1 oz coconut rum
1/2 oz amaretto liqueur

Shake rum & amaretto with ice.
Strain into chocolate rimmed martini glass.
Shake vodka with ice & layer into martini glass.

in Celebs / Drinks 3 comments

by gansie

A Heartbreaking Taste of the Skyline

It was a sad day at the 80P and Gansie apartment on Saturday. Our lives were devoid of luck and wins, but thankfully, not of tequila shots and delicious dip.

First, Duke basketball lost a tight one to Georgia Tech. Then we had our friends Raj and Laura over for the Bengals game. The Cincinnati locals are huge fans and even brought over a special straight-from-Cinncy snack. The orange and black lost, though. And then. And then. The Eagles.

We should have left the apartment. Altered the mojo. But no, we kept in our same seats (although Raj did bring some outfit changes, switching gear depending on the flow) and watched the third losing game of the day.

However, I did learn the secret assemblage to a Midwestern treat. Which I’m sure tastes much better over not-missed field goal attempts. Sorry, Raj and Laura!

But as my friends’ Facebook messages say: 5 weeks until pitchers and catchers.

November Madness: Jalen Rose’s Fab Five Food Finds

Woo-hoo for November 9th! In case you don’t know, this week marks the tip-off of Endless Simmer’s favorite sport, drunk college food-off, er…NCAA college basketball season!

To make the occasion, we asked Jalen Rose, member of the University of Michigan’s legendary Fab Five team, to put on his restaurant critic hat and share a few of his favorite food finds from around the nation. The 13-year NBA veteran is now an ESPN/ABC studio analyst, and in his free time he can be found blogging, tweeting, Facebooking and YouTube-ing. Take it away, Jalen!

I wouldn’t consider myself a food critic, but during my years as a professional basketball player, I was lucky to travel the country and eat in many fine establishments. Below is a list of my Fab Five Foods and where you can find them. All of these dishes are original — I haven’t found another restaurant that prepares these items in the same way. If you get a chance to check them out, I hope you enjoy them as much as I do:

1. Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse (Chicago, IL) – Double Baked Potato… so good its bang is worth every buck – this is one big spud!

2. Philippe (Upper East Side New York, NY) – Maine Lobster Satay… lobster is my favorite dish and this is my favorite lobster on a stick… not only is the satay great, the peanut sauce is so good that you can almost drink it by itself!

Feed Us Back: Comments of the Week

Desperation, if nothing else, leads to creativity. After ML shared with us her oatmeal in a coffee pot creation, we’re particularly impressed with some of your culinary inspiration:

Jessica Joens:
When I was studying abroad in Russia my roommate and I were so desperate for spaghetti with red sauce we made spaghetti directly in our electric kettle, drained it using panty hose, then tossed it with cold tinned tomatoes. It was actually pretty good.

Summer:
Ramen noodles, cooked in a tin can over an open fire. If I’d only had some malt liquor, it would have been the ultimate hobo meal.

Apparently spiking malt liquor with OJ isn’t inventive enough, as Caleb points out:

Take a solid chug past the label and make up the difference with shitty vodka, add OJ per normal, and you have what some of us here call a Socrates. Pronounced Soh-Crayts.

A doctor’s in the house! Alex let’s us know that the Bleeding Heart (and all other organs, too) Cake from our Top 10 Favorite Halloween Cakes is anatomically correct:

omg the organs cake is so oddly realistic…

in Desserts / Holiday 0 comments

by gansie

Brass Monkey, That Phunky Phillie

I know what you’re thinking: Why is gansie’s friend Comack holding a Colt 45 bottle filled with an orange liquid — doesn’t Colt 45 look like piss?

Yes, my friends. I’ve recently learned a new way to both consume malt liquor and celebrate the Phillies. In case you weren’t aware, the 2008 World Fucking Champs are now facing the Dogers for the National League Championship Series. And there’s some drinkin’ to be had. Responsible drinking, of course. Responsible drinking in the form of vitamin C and a 40.

Brass Monkey
Unscrew the cap of the Colt 45. Pour out (into a cup—we don’t waste beer) until the curve of the bottle straightens into a column, basically where the label starts. Add orange juice. Chug. Go Phils.

in Drinks / Recipe 4 comments