Bread is a staple comfort food—in part because there are so many delicious variations, like banana bread and zucchini bread. Plus, even the novice baker can impress friends with a soft, spongey bread.

I hear the same things whenever I tell somebody I make sourdough bread: I could never do that. It's too many steps. I used to say the same thing, having never been much of a baker and always more of a ...

Bites on Parade Cove and Saga are the latest spots to be seduced by the hushed seriousness of the tasting menu — and the latest to be stymied by the worn-out format.