Sea Student
Bryan Caswell, the chef-owner of Reef, in Houston, has your backyard summer picnic all figured out.
July 2010 Issue
Features
The Outsider
In the post-Washington game, former attorney general Alberto Gonzales has fared worse than any other member of the Bush administration. Why?
The Ups and Downs and Ups of the National Car of Texas
When GM declared bankruptcy last year and moved all production of large SUVs to a single plant in Arlington, it looked like the end was near for the Suburban and its brethren. Instead, they came roaring back to life.
If you’ve never read or seen Lonesome Dove . . .
The opening scenes of Lonesome Dove take place at the Hat Creek Cattle Company, a small ranch in Lonesome Dove, Texas, just north of the Rio Grande. Hat Creek is operated by two old Texas Rangers, the taciturn Woodrow Call and the talkative Augustus “Gus” McCrae. Among their hands are
A Tale Of Two Endings
– 1 –Gus and Call’s friendship may be at the heart of Lonesome Dove, but the book’s ending points in another direction. When Call returns to Lonesome Dove after burying Gus, he encounters the town’s barber, Dillard Brawley. “What happened to the saloon?” Call asks, having noticed that the local
Columns
Oil and Water
The spill in the Gulf is just the latest in a string of catastrophic regulatory failures that prove how incompetent government is. And how important it is.
Skip Hollandsworth
Leave It To Bea
One woman’s unlikely crusade to help poor kids succeed—and what Texas can learn from her example.
Rick Bass
Wild at Heart
My mother trained me to be a naturalist in our suburban backyard, one bird call at a time.
The Texanist: How Do I Approach My Brother-in-law About the Way He Treats Wait Staff?
Rude diners, fraudulent Texans, anniversary presents, and the problem with mail-order steaks.
Reporter
Tour de Lance
In Tour de Lance, Bicycling magazine editor-at-large Bill Strickland uses Lance Armstrong’s return to the Tour de France after a three-year retirement as an opportunity to accompany him through nine grueling months of training and the race itself to take stock of a world-class athlete in a period
Curtis “Trey” Roark, Bingo Caller
Roark, who grew up in Houston, has been calling games at the Bingo Barn in Bryan for two years. He will graduate in December from Texas A&M University with a degree in political science.
Welcome to Utopia (Notes from a Small Town)
Entertainment Weekly staffer Karen Valby visited Utopia (population 241) in 2006 for an article about American backwaters relatively untouched by popular culture. Intrigued, she returned to research her first book, Welcome to Utopia (Notes from a Small Town), a deftly executed look at the stereotype of a one-horse
Justin Cronin
The 47-year-old Rice University professor has taken a hard left turn in his writing career, following up his acclaimed literary novel The Summer Guest (2004) with the just-published The Passage, volume one of a near-future sci-fi trilogy populated by violent vampires (not the dreamy romantics we’ve seen of late) and
Paul Wall
The 29-year-old rapper has had phenomenal success with his own recordings and in collaboration with Chamillionaire, Mike Jones, and others. He has recently become president of the Texas chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences—the people who give out the Grammys—and is releasing his fifth album, Heart
Letters in the Deep
It’s a neat trick, creating something both slavishly retro and distinctly modern. Dan Auerbach manages just that with his blues-based rock duo, the Black Keys. While he stays true to the essence of the music, he’s not hesitant to scoff at tradition. In the producer’s chair for the third album
Historic Downtown McKinney
Snap up vintage finds, fancy footwear, and sweet treats as you stroll around this tree-lined square.
Object Lesson
Heloise’s Pantry
Poncé Kiah Marchelle Heloise Cruse Evans, the domestic diva better known as Heloise, has dished household advice since taking over her mother’s syndicated newspaper column, Hints From Heloise, in 1977. Millions seek out the 59-year-old hintologist’s tips on everything from removing perspiration stains and making crispy pie crusts (both
How to Windsurf
The Laguna Madre, near Corpus Christi’s Padre Island National Seashore, is known as one of the nation’s best windsurfing sites because of its shallow waters and consistent breeze. It’s also a perfect spot for beginners, says Angela Hurley, an instructor for Worldwinds, a local windsurf shop. “With good instruction, the
Street Songs of Love
How do you like your Alejandro Escovedo? One of the reasons this talented Austin rocker has never escaped critical-favorite status is that he’s an encyclopedia of musical genres; it’s hard for fans to reconcile his confessional, string-laden ballads with his riff-heavy punk. Yet those two styles have always been
Ten
Too many jazz pianists have surrendered to the unyielding bulk of the instrument, relying on standards with flourished chording, tranquilly delivered. They fashion themselves heirs to greats like Bill Evans but sometimes end up closer to Liberace. It takes real gumption to push that hunk of wood and wire around.
Web
The Briscoe Mystery
The late governor’s time in office is more memorable for what didn’t happen than for what did.
The Client
Mimi Swartz talks about researching stories, asking the right questions, and writing about former attorney general Alberto Gonzales, who may have put his loyalty to the president before his duty to the American people.
An A for Bea
Skip Hollandsworth talks about finding story ideas, getting people to open up, and interviewing Bea Salazar, who started an after-school program that helped hundreds of low-income Hispanic immigrant kids succeed.
I Want My SUV
Is the Suburban here to stay? S. C. Gwynne talks about mega SUVs, GM’s plant in Arlington, and hybrids.
Recipe
Grilled Oysters With Vietnamese-Style Dipping Sauce
Recipe from Bryan Caswell, owner of Reef, in Houston.
On the Beach
It’s time for grillin’ and chillin’—and we know just where to buy fresh seafood and have the perfect picnic on the sand.
Recipe
Spicy Shrimp With Sriracha Citrus Rémoulade
Recipe from Bryan Caswell, owner of Reef, in Houston.
The Filter: Dining
New and Noteworthy
Foreign & Domestic, Food & Drink, Austin, and Shockley Market, Corpus Christi
Web Exclusive
Third Coast State of Mind
When the surf’s good, Texas (yes, Texas) surfers drop what they’re doing and head for the water.
Recipe
Barramundi Over Tomato and Sweet Pepper Provençal Ragoût
Recipe from Chef John Sheely, Mockingbird Bistro, Houston
Books That Cook
Classic Southern Desserts
We can almost smell the aroma of warm sweet treats wafting from the pages of Classic Southern Desserts. Lemon Tea Bread, Spiced Caramel-Apple Pudding, Sand Dollar Cookies, Four-Layer Coconut Cake, Key Lime Pie—these timeless favorites and many, many more have been fine-tuned in the Southern Living test kitchens over the
Down Tobacco Road
A prayer for the beach. A prayer for courage. A prayer for the perfect crab cake.
Recipe
Midori Pina Punch
From mixologist Michael Malone, Edge Wine Bar, Boomba Night Club & Lounge, Galveston
Recipe
Midori Float
Frrom mixologist Michael Malone, Edge Wine Bar, Boomba Night Club & Lounge, Galveston
Recipe
Tomato-Fennel Soup With Fennel Confit, Vodka Gelle, and Olive Oil Crema
Recipe from Chef Josh Watkins, Carillon, Austin
Recipe
Pan-Seared Red Snapper and Summer Braised Short Ribs With Heirloom Tomatoes, Popcorn Purée, and Malt Vinegar Glaze
Recipe from Chef Josh Watkins, Carillon, Austin
Recipe
Tlayuda Traditiona
Recipe from La Gloria Ice House, San Antonio4 ounces Black Refried Beans (see recipe) 1 Tlayuda Shell (see recipe) or use chalupa shells if fresh masa is not available 3 ounces shredded Oaxaca cheese 2 ounces shredded lettuce 3 slices Roma tomatoes 3 slices fresh avocadoSpread black beans onto crispy
Web Exclusive
Facts of Life
When my sixth-grade “little sister” asked me some tough questions, I had some of my own: How do you talk to teenagers about sex?
Miscellany
Editor's Letter
Dove Story
A place is lucky if it gives birth to good writers and luckier still if it is able to hold on to them. Most places aren’t, maybe because good writing about home is usually not celebration; it involves ambivalence, love mixed with hate, pride mixed with dismay, hope mixed
Roar of the Crowd
We’ll Be Dammed
“Go With the Flow” was interesting and informative, but Charlie Llewellin’s description of the Devils River erred in stating that this is the one river in Texas that’s never been dammed [May 2010]. I am sure that many old-timers and not-so-old-timers in Del Rio and Southwest Texas
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