From the story: Taylor Benson, a 19-yearold sophomore at Creighton University in Omaha, says many mouth noises, along with sniffling and gum chewing, make her chest tighten and her heart pound. She finds herself clenching her fists and glaring at the person making the sound.

Id like to start off this weeks Served column by recognizing area restaurateur Andy Reece, proprietor of 13 Bones in Greensboro, who sent over a couple racks of baby-back ribs with a great dry-rub bark and cooked so that they were falling off the bone. Jordan Green and I took them down wordlessly, but agreed afterwards that they were incredible. Ill be visiting for the full Chow treatment soon.

A word of warning: If you dont visit the restaurants you love, they may soon be gone. Remember that come holiday time when youre jonesing for one of Simple Kneads Christmas cookies..

As the summer wanes not fast enough for some, too fast for others we experience a lull in the Triad culinary scene, exacerbated this year by economic uncertainty brought on by shenanigans both fiscal and political..

Early on Tuesday I got the word that the beleaguered McPhersons Tavern here in Adams Farm is shutting its doors. This is a neighborhood in need of a bar, so look for something to come there soon.

Hunker down, folks, for the final stretch of obscene heat before well, probably before the next one hits, which should be some time in September..

As the YES! Weekly staff still ponders the significance of the lamb and pork belly sandwiches we had at Cochons Butcher Swine Bar in New Orleans Warehouse District, the Triad culinary scene continues apace.

Things are quiet in the Triad restaurant scene so quiet you can hear the vegetables withering under this searing midsummer heat. So quiet there are just a handful of events this week, most of which fall on Thursday.

The peaches are dropping here in the North Carolina Piedmont, and I strongly suggest you get your fill before theyre gone. And be reminded that tomatoes are next. Harpers Restaurant in Greensboro knows this, and has created Tomato Fest, running right now, with a menu that includes al manner of tomato dishes.

Its mission: To link consumers to local farm fresh foods, build local markets for farmers and food entrepreneurs, and grow healthy and prosperous communities. To find farms, farmers markets, restaurants, groceries and artisan food producers that carry the Piedmont Grown label, visit www.

It is with a heavy heart that I report the closing of Vintage 301 in Greensboros Southside neighborhood. It had been my familys favorite brunch place for years, and my wife and I often marveled at the beer selection, which included labels carried by no other place in town. It, along with Chef/ owner Ben Sullivan, will be missed, and we look forward to his next venture.

On Thursday, head out to Mayodan for the grand opening of the Pavilion at Autumn Creek Vineyards,.

And whiskey professor Bernie Lubbers will be expounding on the finer points of bourbon-making on Saturday and Sunday. Also, you know, games, rides, music and such..

Ive been saying this for years: It is not necessary to cook pork until its as tough as a catchers mitt, particularly a nice chop or piece of heirloom tenderloin. I finally get some backing from the USDA, which now says pork can be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees, 15 degrees cooler than previously suggested, allowing for a pale pink center.

And Greensboro hotelier and restaurateur Dennis Quaintance of Quaintance Weaver Restaurants and Hotels has been selected by the National Conference on Community and Justice of the Piedmont Triad as recipient of the 2011 Brotherhood/Sisterhood Citation.

If you like your Carolina strawberries and who doesnt? theres now an app for that. The NC Strawberry Association.

Big news comes from Winston-Salem as Breakfast of Course! opens for Sunday brunch. And over in Greensboro, MJs Steak and Seafood has opened in the location that formerly housed Sweet Basils.

Saturday sees the area farmers markets getting into the game. The Piedmont Triad Farmers Market.

The big news for the Triad restaurant scene in Served this week comes from Danville, Va., where the grand opening of a new Olive Garden.

Editors at Restaurant magazine, along with a cast of other industry insiders, get together each year and name the 50 best restaurants in the world. This year the honors went once again to Noma.