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Skillet Doux

The spot for learning about minced garlic and Schwa (but not about the South Beach Diet).

Monday Aug 21, 2006.     By Jessica Herman

Who's Who Feed

While Dominic Armato has only been at his blog Skillet Doux for about six months, he's heard no shortage of appreciative feedback from fellow foodies in the area (especially since his blog was featured a few weeks ago in the Tribune as an example of "food porn").

With no formal training in cooking or food criticism, Armato attributes his love of food to his home (where low- and high-brow food are treated with equal respect) and his previous business-related travels around the world, when, as the "de facto restaurant coordinator," he led his companions everywhere from Don George's in New York to Alain Ducasse's Louis XV in Monaco. In addition to offering his readers' recipes and tips to the best spots for beef in town, Skillet Doux offers Armato the opportunity to relive his most memorable meals.

What's the gist of your blog?
It's a collection of anything I find interesting food-related, whether that be restaurants or recipes or whatever. Whatever I'm currently obsessing about food-wise. And if anybody else finds it interesting that's great.

If I read your blog today, gimme one thing I'd learn.
You would not learn about the latest diet or what food is going to kill you in 10 years, but you would learn that mincing garlic and pressing garlic does create different flavors. Also you would learn that the two-month wait for reservations at Schwa is entirely worth it.

My computer is surrounded by...
Other computers, a massive stack of Diet Pepsi cans and generally an unholy mess.

How do you pay the bills?
[We have] a little family business, a small packaging business, and I do assorted tasks for said company.

When you aren't loving blogging, you're loving BLANK in Chicago.
Well, the restaurants obviously, but that goes without saying. These days I don't get out much aside form the restaurants. It's astounding to me. I'm loving finally getting to know my own backyard. So much of my food experiences I had were while traveling...so I am making a concerted effort to learn more about my own city and get out when I'm at home.

Name a local blogger extraordinaire.
I don't read any blogs [except for a few video game and electronics blogs]. I feel like I'm the only person that doesn't.

Jessica Herman likes peeking into other folks' lives, which sure helps when she's grilling hip Chicago bloggers. If you'd like to shower a little love on a local blogger whose antics and anecdotes are your favorite flavor of procrastination, shoot her an email.