I received a pretty little press kit this morning from the folks at Memorable Entertaining, a new Web site. It was a gold box wrapped in a purple ribbon which contained an invitation to visit the site.

Also inside the box was a package of two cookies and a tiny plastic baggie containing a strange green and pink ball. Was it animal, vegetable or mineral? It appeared to be vegetable.

My apologies to Memorable Entertaining (I will check the site, I promise), but it was this little ball that really drew my attention.

I found, after reading the attached pamphlet, that it is a Numi flowering tea. If you steep the little tea ball in hot water, it gradually unfolds into a beautiful underwater flower. I guess it wouldn’t have the same effect if you tried to steep it in anything other than a clear glass teapot, though.

Still, these flowering teas are so lovely that it might just be worth it to buy a glass teapot and a collection of these teas for the tea-lover on your gift list. What a wonderful birthday or Christmas gift that would be.

Not only is it soothing to sit down with a hot mug of tea when you’re chilly or tired, but now your private tea party can be soothing to the eyes, as well. Or better yet, invite some friends over, open a box of butter cookies, arrange a few truffles on a plate and catch up while your tea blooms in front of you.

Check out the Numi Web site to watch a tea ball flower before your eyes. You can also find flavors and ordering information there. Looks like a box of 18 tea balls can be had for only around $26.

Photo source: Worldpantry.com

Just the other day, I was telling my friend that I miss the good old days when you knew whether or not you’d won something as soon as you twisted the lid off a product.

When my grandfather owned his country store in Goshen, I used to pop the top off Coke bottles and find out if I’d won a free Coke or something just by looking under the top.

These days, all you get is something like LJK9BF7V. Maybe that means I won a brand new Corvette, but I’m too lazy to go online or call or do whatever it is I’m supposed to do to decipher the code.

Now I’m starting to sound a lot like my co-worker, Kevin Kittredge. Maybe I should give him this topic for his next “Grrrrrr!” column.

There is a point to all this whining, though — I just got the coolest e-mail from the folks over at Duke’s mayonnaise. This summer, they’re having an “Under the lid” promotion. All you have to do is remove the safety seal and look under the lid to find out if you’ve instantly won $100 in free groceries or a free 32-ounce jar of Duke’s mayo.

The cash would be awesome, but I would be tickled pink to just win a free jar of Duke’s. Lots of Southern cooks swear by Duke’s mayonnaise and wouldn’t use any other brand (I’m betting that Edna Lewis did NOT use Hellman’s). So while we’re all planning our macaroni salad, potato salad, deviled eggs and other mayonnaisey dishes for Fourth of July cookouts, maybe we should sneak a peek under that lid!

Photo source: www.dukesmayo.com

Alexander Farm Road in Dublin will be the site of the newest addition to the Fatz Cafe restaurant chain, according to a press release.
Fatz Cafe is a Southeastern restaurant chain with locations in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia. It looks like this will be the first Fatz for Virginia.
My sister, who lives in Spartanburg, South Carolina, is a fan of the restaurant. It has a casual atmosphere and serves American-style appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches, entrees and desserts.
The press release also says Fatz is home to the “World Famous Calabash Chicken.”
I’ve never had the chicken, but here’s how it was described in a review in The Macon (Ga.) Telegraph:

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