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10.27 PET COSTUME PARTY FREE Dee’s Doggie Den will host its eighth annual Halloween Pet Costume Party, 7:30-9:30 p.m., featuring food, spirits and games like Disco Doggie Dancing. Costumes are required for pets and encouraged for humans. 6444 E. Mockingbird. deesdoggieden.com.

10.29-10.30 GHOST TALES $5 The Dallas Storytelling Guild will gather at 7 p.m. to share ghost stories at the Bath House Cultural Center, 521 E. Lawther. dallasstorytelling.org.

10.31 SWISS AVENUE HALLOWEEN FREE

On Halloween night, trick-or-treaters will gather along historic Swiss Avenue where residents hand out goodies and display extravagant decorations.

Mark your calendars for the 9th Annual St. Thomas Aquinas Mothers’ Association OCTOBER MARKET

Saturday October 9, 2010 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

St. Thomas Aquinas North Campus (Lower School) 6255 E. Mockingbird Lane (Mockingbird @ Alderson)

The October Market is a one-of-a-kind shopping experience featuring items such as jewelry, home accessories, baby gifts, personalized items, clothing, food and so much more. Admission www.octobermarket.com

Fifth Quarter

W HETHER THE y sco RE d Whether they scored the winning touchdown or got their butts kicked, every team deserves a treat after the big game. Lovers Pizza & Pasta accommodates the winners and losers with its community atmosphere. “We like family together,” owner Benini Zeqiri says. “That’s what people like about us.” That, and the authentic Italian food. The recipes originated from Zeqiri’s uncle who owned a restaurant in Venice some 30 years ago. He moved to New York City, eventually made his way to Dallas and opened Brothers Pizza. Zeqiri tried his hand at the business with the first Lovers Pizza & Pasta location at Lovers and the Tollway — hence the name. The Casa Linda storefront opened in 2005 followed by another at Mockingbird and Abrams. The menu includes homemade salads, pastas, seafood, sandwiches and, of course, gourmet pizza. The white pizza combines freshly made Alfredo sauce with mozzarella cheese, steamed broccoli, red peppers, mushrooms and spinach. But it really comes down to two key ingredients, Zeqiri says. “For pizza, the No. 1 things are cheese and sauce.”

—EMILY TOMAN

Lov ER s P I zz A & PAs TA

Mock IngbIR d & AbRAM s 214.823.2262

LovER s PI zz ERIA.coM

Pictured: White pizza

ANOTHER BROKEN EGG $FB

Come enjoy yourselves at Another Broken Egg Cafe, the premier breakfast brunch, and lunch cafe in East Dallas. Crabcakes on homemade crostini bread await, enjoy the finest benedicts in all of Dallas. We recently partnered with the Humane Society to offer all cage free eggs from local Dallas farmers. Come try our new location in the Old Town shopping center. Locally owned and operated by Michael Obrien and Chris Harwood. 1152 N Buckner Blvd (across from Doctors Hospital) 214.954.7182.

ASIAN MINT $$ODFBWB Our Highland Park location, The Mint, offers an array of Asianfused cuisine, specializing in Bangkok style dishes. We feature farm fresh ingredients, beautifully presented, coupled with a chic atmosphere and friendly service. Happy Hour is 5pm-6:30pm Mon.-Fri.

all beers and house wines are $3; $2 off appetizers, soups & salads. 4246 Oak Lawn Ave. 214.219.6469. The Asian Mint, along with its fused and sushi menus, also offers one of the best dessert bars in Dallas. 11617 N. Central Expwy. 214.363.6655. www.themintdallas.com

BACK COUNTRY BBQ $WB Over 30 years of Texas-style BBQ. Family dining – 8 different meats, variety of homemade vegetables. Complete catering & custom cooking. Beer, wine, margaritas. 6940 Greenville Ave. 214.696.6940.

CHUBBY’S $ When looking for a restaurant to have breakfast, lunch or dinner, we all want a place that serves up variety, hearty helpings and even bigger portions of friendliness. The Touris family has developed a recipe that delivers all of the above at a good price. With four locations in the Metroplex, Chubby’s Family Restaurant provides a rustic setting with down home cooking. Catering available. Locations: 11331 E. NW Hwy. 214-348-6065 and 7474 S. Cockrell Hill Rd. 972-298-1270.

TILLMAN’S ROADHOUSE $$ODWB

Tillman’s is a place for really good food, drinks, and music in a fun, casual, come-as-you-are environment. An update on the classic Texas roadhouse with regional menu favorites, familiar tunes and no-one is a stranger hospitality — all energized with a modern take. A combination of both rustic and lush in everything from the menu to the décor make Tillman’s a good-time anytime destination. Bishop Arts District 324 W. 7th St. 214.942.0988. www.tillmansroadhouse.com

Our Hail to the Cheese festival is your chance to sample and save on over five hundred cheeses.

Mingle with cheese makers who share secrets on stuffing, topping, dipping and melting. From sampling stations to pairing advice, Central Market’s Hail to the Cheese will earn your vote in every department.

SPANN RECOVERY RED ($15) CALFORNIA >

Red blends — red wines made with more than one grape often misunderstood in the United States. them as somehow inferior to varietal wines one grape — because they need more than one grape because the quality of the first grape isn’t very good.

In fact, nothing is further from the truth. Some of the world’s greatest wines are red blends, like French Bordeauxs and Rhones and some of the best Napa Valley cabernet sauvignons. And many California wines that say they are varietals may well have more than one grape in them. That’s because federal law allows producers to include up to 25 percent of another grape or grapes without changing the name of the wine or saying so on the label. Which means that your $12 bottle of pinot noir may be only 75 percent pinot, and one-quarter something else (often syrah).

So, as the weather turns cooler, give red blends another look. You’ll be surprised at what you find, as these wines demonstrate. All of these wines are available at Central Market: This wine is made with four grapes, including one that is white. Look for lots of fresh red fruit, low alcohol, and the quality and value that Peirano is known for. Serve this with hamburgers or any other end-of-theseason backyard cookout.

red Bordeaux can cost thousands of bottle, which means value is often in short supply. Fortunately, the Goudichaud (made of merlot and cabernet) offers a good look at how dark and complex red Bordeaux can be. This is a wine for those who like to pair wine with cheese.

Betsy and Peter Spann are former Casa Linda residents who moved to Sonoma to make wine, where they focus on blends. The Recovery Red has six grapes, tastes of red berries. It’s a beef wine, but not especially heavy.

—JEFF

DALLAS

5750 E. LOVERS LANE | 214-234-7000

PLANO 320 COIT ROAD | 469-241-8300

JEFF SIEGEL’S WEEKLY WINEREVIEWS appear every Wednesday on the Advocate Back Talk blog, lakewood.advocatemag.com/blog.

READ MORE ONLINE. Visit our website at lakewood.advocatemag.com to read more on blended wines from the wine guy, and get New Orleans-style red beans recipe.