Chef Stefano Frigerio braces himself when he puts rabbit on the menu at Mio. It's only a matter of time before someone complains.

My weekly call to a favorite Chinese takeout place for delivery, usually on a night I'm particularly tired, hungry and a little cranky (a combination I call "hangry"), comes at a price. And I'm not talking about the typical $18 or $19 bill.

It's hot, and I'm weary. I want coffee, but not hot coffee.

Come Tuesday, the Two Fat Ladies will push their pudgy fingers into pork pies once again.

Thanks to all who sent entries for the Food section's second annual Top Tomato contest. Recipes are being tested and judged; winning recipes will appear in the Aug. 13 edition. Prizes include this year's version of the coveted Top Tomato apron, cooking lessons and gift certificates to area kitchen...

· WINE AND GRILL FUSION: Domaso Trattoria Moderna holds a wine and grilled-food pairing. $45 plus tax. Credit card reservations required. 4-6 p.m. Domasoteca, 1121 N. 19th St., Arlington. 703-894-5104 or e-mail Christianna Sargent at christianna.sargent@domasoteca.com .

On paper, the new business is known as Butcher Burgers. But owner Michael Landrum asked his fans whether they'd be offended by the name he preferred: Ray's Hell-Burger. The answer was a decisive no, so the informal title stuck.

Although this mom-and-pop place has been around for three years, Washington's fiercest food bloggers only recently put it on the map, so to speak. What has them waxing rhapsodic are the specialties you won't find on the restaurant's paper takeout menu of westernized Chinese fare.

SURF'S (COMING) UP: An isolated tropical beach. Guys cooking freshly caught fish on a simple grill. Those are the images David Scribner hopes to bring to life early next month when the veteran Washington chef opens Surfside (2444 Wisconsin Ave. NW) in Glover Park.

NEW ORLEANS The sixth annual Tales of the Cocktail, held here last weekend, was a mix of academic conference, trade show and, as one bar owner called it, "Star Trek convention for cocktail geeks."

Too hot to think? We know the feeling. These are the days when the perfect meal means something that requires little or no planning. That includes the wine selection. So we'll make it easy for you: Depending on your mood -- laid back, adventurous or indulgent -- you can pop the cork on one or more...

According to the Food and Drug Administration, a bacterium common in rice makes it particularly important that, once cooked, the rice be consumed or refrigerated within two hours and used within three days.

FOOD FIGHT: After a mere seven months in the kitchen at Mio (1110 Vermont Ave. NW), Stefano Frigerio said Friday he's leaving the modern American restaurant following disagreements about service and operations with managing partner Manuel Iguina.