Good Eats
All Around Town Anntony’s Caribbean, 400 S. Tryon St., 704-339-0303; 2001 E. 7th St., 704-342-0749. All locations have different owners. A hint of the tropics; rotisserie chicken with Jamaican jerk sauce, ribs, Paradise Island fish special, curries, and Caribbean styled greens. $$ Azteca, 116 Woodlawn Rd., 704-525-5110; 9709 Independence Blvd., 704-814-9877; 1863 W. Franklin Blvd.…
Ruby Palace Bistro
The Good China Authentic cuisine in Matthews BY TRICIA CHILDRESS When Wenda Chen bought the Ruby Palace in Matthews he added the word Bistro and thought everyone would know the place had changed from a buffet style Chinese spot to a restaurant. Not everyone has caught on, and that was three years ago. In 2000…
Oh, Brothers!
It’s always dusk in a Houston Brothers song, and that, as the recently defrocked Martha Stewart might say, is a good thing. The laid-back harmonies of brothers Matt and Justin Faircloth (nee Houston) always seem to be comprised of equal parts resignation and rejoicing, and the mid-tempo shuffle of the songs works perfectly whether one’s…
Jazz in Review
Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra featuring Lew Tabackin Hiroshima: Rising From The Abyss True Life Jazz Toshiko Akiyoshi, who began her career as a jazz pianist in post-war Japan, found inspiration for her latest work during a visit to the Hiroshima Memorial Museum. Among the horrific post-bomb photographs, Akiyoshi found one of a woman with “eyes…
Music Menu
WEDNESDAY 6.11 Henry Rollins — Hank and band are in town along with Keith Morris, yet another ex-Black Flag vocalist, to do a big ol’ two-hour set of Black Flag tunes. Rollins has promised in print to lay the hammer down on this show, with a minimum of stage patter and other nonsense. The whole…
Soundboard
Wednesday, Jun. 11 Amos’ Southend Reckless Kelly w/ Gigi Dover & Eric Lovell Buckhead Saloon Meet Mary Ann Cajun Queen 7th Street Gator Band Connolly’s On Fifth Rich acoustic Double Door Inn Jabberwocky w/ Cool King Chris & Lady Blue Fairwinds Coffee Co., Cornelius Lena Mars Fat City Verbena Graduate, Gastonia Acoustic Jam w/ Clee…
See & Do
june11 WEDNESDAY Henry Rollins and band will be at Tremont Music Hall tonight, playing mostly Black Flag songs. Along with poetry-spoutin’ Hank will be Keith Morris, the original singer with the seminal punk rock act. All proceeds will go to the defense fund for the West Memphis Three, a trio of young men who were…
American Idol
Audiences might think they’ve seen it all before in Hollywood Homicide (opening this Friday), a rather generic buddy movie about mismatched detective partners who must overcome one heck of a comedically contrived generation gap on their way to nabbing some bad guys. That the young, free-spirited whippersnapper is played by Josh Hartnett (Pearl Harbor), 25,…
Karma Cleanser
Dear Karma Cleanser: I’m trying to be a better person despite my feelings about people. How do I stop being such a mean, cruel, heartless, hateful, distrustful bitch? The only two people I trust or am nice to are God and my mother, much to the dismay of everyone else. And I only talk to…
The Unusual Suspects: Intacto, Spider
INTACTO ***1/2 DIRECTED BY Juan Carlos Fresnadillo STARS Max Von Sydow, Leonardo Sbaraglia SPIDER *** DIRECTED BY David Cronenberg STARS Ralph Fiennes, Miranda Richardson Producers who foster burgeoning young talent don’t receive much ink, so let’s hear it for Spain’s Fernando Bovaira, the man who, among other achievements, helped writer-director Alejandro Amenabar bring both Abre…
Stargazer
For All Signs Mars, the ancient god of war, enters the sign of Pisces this week for an unusually long sojourn. Normally Mars remains in one sign for seven weeks, but it will remain in the sign of the Fish until mid-December because it makes a retrograde loop during August and September. Peaceful, self-effacing Pisces…
Film Clips
NEW RELEASES 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS Never rising much above the level of a mediocrity, the 2001 sleeper smash The Fast and the Furious at least had two things going for it: the magnetic presence of co-star Vin Diesel and plenty of spectacular stunt work involving car races, car chases and car crashes. But with…
Give that candidate a beer
“You’re from where?” “Creative Loafing,” I said. “Creative huh?” “Loafing!” The pleasant young volunteer was just doing her job — keeping riff-raff like me out of Presidential hopeful John Edwards’ 50th birthday celebration — and I suppose my mumbling (and thrift-store wardrobe) wasn’t helping matters. She wrote down my name, and then right behind it:…
The Art of War
September 11 is about firemen. And policemen, rescue workers, heroic bystanders and the passengers on United Airlines Flight 93.Gulf War II is about soldiers. And protesters, politicians, liberated Iraqis and Pvt. Jessica Lynch, who resisted capture and was rescued in what was initially described as a “daring raid” on an Iraqi hospital. These two national…
Justice Dept. Slaps Own Wrist
Department of Justice Inspector General Glenn Fine released a nearly 200-page report June 2 that found a “pattern of physical and verbal abuse” against many of the 762 mostly Middle Eastern foreigners detained after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. According to the report, detainees remained in custody for an average of 80 days without being…
Up S**t Creek
If nearly five million gallons of raw sewage spewed from a manhole 150 feet from their back porch, it stands to reason that most people would want to know about it. But Charlotte Mecklenburg Utilities (CMU) didn’t bother to warn the residents of Lansbury Court that 4.75 million gallons of sewage — nearly four times…
Belles All Around
Scientists have never explained how some people can resist going into insulin shock when exposed to Meredith Wilson’s The Music Man as many as three times in 18 months. Blithely ignoring the fact that River City, Iowa, had been fleeced in the winter of 2002 at Ovens Auditorium and again last fall on national TV,…
False Patriots
Think of it as shooting yourself in the foot, just on a much grander scale. In the final analysis, no two terrorists did more to harm their respective causes in the last decade than Timothy McVeigh and bombing suspect Eric Rudolph. It’s domestic terrorism’s greatest untold story, one that doesn’t mesh well with the media’s…
Primo Primitive
The work of Uruguayan artist Cecilia Mattos, currently on exhibit throughout June at the Blue Pony Gallery in NoDa, is primitively surreal: a mix of papier mache and drab-colored sculptures painted in oil (drab in the sense of intensity, not visual impact) that capture scenes of life in her native country.Born in Montevideo, Mattos spent…
Drugs R Us
It hasn’t taken me long to grow bored of the state budget crunch. Once you get used to hearing the word “crunch” on the news, a budget crunch simply doesn’t make for interesting drama. Government officials having affairs or making loopy decisions — now that’s drama. This year I’m voting only for people who seem…
A One-Man Civil War
Forty years after John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the American fascination with him remains powerful. Look no further than the extensive publicity and debate over historian Robert Dallek’s new biography of our 35th president, whose blend of idealism and deceit still stir strong opinion.The latest round of controversy began when Dallek, six months before his book’s…
Letters
Lies Are Lies In a word, hilarious. After reading “Weapons of Mass Stupidity” (June 4), I am really not sure if Hal Crowther’s “frothing at the mouth” diatribe against the Fox News Channel was satirical or not. Mr. Crowther, please go back about 10 years and look at the pass that Bill Clinton was given…
Arts Agenda
indicates critics’ picks. Classical Music Artsong & Innovative Portraits The premiere of new musical works in collaboration with visual portraits. Styles ranging from jazz, classical and ethnic. Presented by Composers Charlotte with performances on piano, Chinese violin, guitar and voice. Sat., June 14, 7:30 p.m. $10; $8 for students. Dana Auditorium, Queens University. 704-372-5008. Charlotte…
The Blotter
Midday Heat: Electronic door locks couldn’t stop an east Charlotte crook determined to cool off with some cold ones. A convenience store attendant activated the store’s locks in an attempt to prevent the thief, who had been banned from the store, from entering. But the man pried open the doors, snatched two 12-packs of beer,…
Atta Grill
“You have to try the soups here,” the customer behind me gushed. “They’re the best in town.” The employee behind the order counter vigorously agreed, adding, “All of our soups are made from scratch.”A small bowl of she-crab soup clearly convinced me that Black Oak Grille is a true find in the university area. Black…
News of the Weird
Shoulder holster: May marked the debut of Minnesota’s gun-carry law, which critics complain is much easier on handgun-possession than even Texas’ law. Licensees may carry guns openly in any parking lot in the state (except federal facilities), including school parking lots (although possession of a knife in a school parking lot is still a felony).…
Stop the Summer Sweat
When the brow starts a’glistening and the outdoors becomes a giant sauna, we all seek respite from our sticky selves. Time to pull out a chilled, damp, white wine bottle and roll it across the skin. Pop the cork, or twist the cap, and pour a tall, cool glass or just drink straight from the…
Black Oak Grille
Atta Grill Simple, delicious, affordable food BY TRICIA CHILDRESS “You have to try the soups here,” the customer behind me gushed. “They’re the best in town.” The employee behind the order counter vigorously agreed, adding, “All of our soups are made from scratch.”A small bowl of she-crab soup clearly convinced me that Black Oak Grille…
