Jennifer Reese from Slate Magazine prepares several different items (yogurt, jam, granola, among others), calculates the cost to make your own, then compares that with mass marketing and upscale brands. Tip: make your own yogurt. How cost-effective is it to make pantry staples from scratch?

Cha Ca La Vong’s fried fish is to Hanoi what La Tour D’Argent’s roasted goose is to Paris and Peter Luger’s T-Bone steak is to New York — it’s one of those things to put on your dining list to do at least once in this lifetime.

via Eating Venues in Hanoi’s Old Quarter – WSJ.com.

A new book, Bakewise, from Shirley Corriher, author of Cookwise: A Scientific Approach to Dessert | Popular Science.

Chris Raph is the new world’s fastest bartender, verified by the Guinness Book of World Records. He smashed the old record of 389 cocktails by making 662!

via Burnsville bartender shatters cocktail record .

The principle factors that affect the flavor of coffee are the water temperature, the “dose” of coffee ratio of coffee to water, the size of the grind and the time that the water is in contact with the beans.

via Manual brewing techniques give coffee lovers a better way to make a quality drink.