I know. I should have gone to the grocery store earlier this week, but I just couldn’t get there. So this morning, there I was, circling the parking lot at the Loch Raven Towson store looking for a place to park along with dozens of other procrastinators. Not a good sign.

Another bad omen: There were no carts to be found near the store. Bracing myself, I entered the mayhem. I was still shocked. Whole shelves, bins, display cases were empty of products. Did everyone really need bagged lettuce, all manner of cheese, frozen pizzas, and store-made coffeecakes? I didn’t dare go near the toilet-paper aisle.

My list wasn’t extensive (cat litter—thank you, Miss Kitty—and ingredients to make a balsamic chicken dish with pepper-spiked polenta. I’m guilty of snow cooking, too), but the lines to the checkout were at least 10 deep at each register. And that’s where the fun began as people cajoled for a better spot, bemoaned their purchases, and became fast friends in the shopping-cart melee.

There was one woman who blamed her husband for making her come to the store for just salsa and chips. We commiserated knowingly. (A kind person let her move up in line.) There was a guy who became a standup comedian. (“When I came in here, I didn’t need a shave.”) And there was another gent who worried about going through the self-checkout for the first time. We supported him.

Somehow, we all got through it. One thing is certain, though. There is going to be a lot of cooking and snacking going on as Mother Nature whips up her own brew outside. Be safe. Eat well.

After opening in February 2008 to much fanfare, CakeLove in Canton served its last sweet treats on Sunday (Jan. 31), the Baltimore Business Journal reported today.

The cake company’s website confirms the closure, though it gives no reason why. CakeLove has several other stores in Virginia, Washington, and the Maryland DC burbs. The cupcakes certainly had their naysayers, but it's still sad to see another Baltimore shop go out of business.

In a quick turnaround, Pazza Luna closed Sunday and reopens tomorrow (Feb. 2) with new owners Christa and Davide Rossi. Chef Davide, a native of Milan, Italy, is introducing a new menu but will honor Restaurant Week (which runs through Feb. 7) reservations with the promised selections, he said on the phone this afternoon.

The acquisition happened fast, the chef said. He was on a beach in Key West, FL, last week when he got a call that the Locust Point restaurant was available. The couple, who also own a seasonal restaurant, Ports of Italy, in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, decided to take advantage of the offer.

According to Ports of Italy’s website, Christa, who grew up in Baltimore, and Davide met while he was a pasta chef at Baltimore’s Sotto Sopra and she worked in the front of the house. They then lived and worked in Milan before returning to the United States in 2004 to open Ports of Italy.

There, the chef creates “authentic Northern Italian dishes with an innovative twist, featuring fresh handmade pasta and risotto which changes daily,” the website says.

For now, Pazza Luna will be open from 5-10 p.m. Tues.-Sun. Davide says he plans to eventually be open for lunch and dinner seven days a week.

Maryland cheftestants Jesse Sandlin, Bryan Voltaggio, and Jill Snyder will be preparing dishes at the National Aquarium’s next “Fresh Thoughts: A Sustainable Seafood Dining Series.” Tickets go on sale Feb. 8.

The lineup: Jesse (pictured, though her hair color may be different now), March 23; Bryan, May 18; and Jill, June 22. For more details, check out the March issue of Baltimore magazine.

B&O American Brasserie is offering a pair of free tickets to see an advance screening on Feb. 9 of the movie Valentine’s Day . Here’s the deal: Eat at the restaurant on Feb. 7 or 8 and receive the passes (limit two tickets per person per table) with the purchase of dessert. It's probably a good idea to make reservations.

The restaurant, under the helm of chef E. Michael Reidt, has also introduced some new additions to the menu. On the dinner menu, you’ll find entrees like arctic char, sweet potato gnocchi, rosemary-skewered scallops, and adobo braised pork shank.

In case you haven’t seen the TV commercials for Valentine’s Day, the movie features an all-star ensemble cast, including Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Patrick Dempsey, Julia Roberts, and Ashton Kutcher (pictured with Jennifer Garner, also in the film), and involves couples and singles in L.A. grappling with romance over the course of one Valentine’s Day. Sounds like a date movie to me.

Photo: courtesy imbd.com

I received an e-mail today about the Boccaccio auction from Tom Iacoboni, who keeps tabs on Little Italy happenings. The once popular restaurant on the corner of Eastern Avenue and Exeter Street shut down after owner Giovanni Rigato died in August ’08. It’s been closed ever since.

Now, the restaurant—lock, stock, and barrel—will be auctioned on Feb. 17 with A.J. Billig & Co. handling the proceedings. The auctioneer’s prose on its website is very persuasive: “Boccaccio Restaurant has been a Baltimore institution for over 17 years featuring Baltimore's finest northern Italian cuisine. ...The property is situated in the heart of Baltimore's most exciting and vibrant redevelopment community.” It goes on to say the building is in the Harbor East area.

Of course, the neighborhood has been called Little Italy for decades. But this isn’t the first time someone has wanted to associate with Baltimore’s glitzy neighborhood. The chic, new Milan advertises as being on the “edge of Harbor East and Little Italy.”

Yet, a block away Café Gia and Tapabar firmly claim Little Italy as their home. I guess someone is going to have to make a decision soon about what to call that stretch of Eastern Avenue.

Also, while the Boccaccio footprint with its spacious building, liquor license, and rare downtown parking lot seems like a perfect restaurant spot, the auctioneer also assures potential buyers that the “property is suitable for numerous alternative uses including offices and retail.”

What would you like to see there?

James and Austin Carpenter, the husband-wife owners of Swirl Wine in Timonium, send out a weekly e-mail about their free Friday wine tastings. This week, they also talked about a recent visit to Joe Squared, which I thought was great. They agreed to let me share their experience:

"The other night, after we closed the shop, we went to our favorite place for pizza, a place downtown called Joe Squared. They have a coal-fired oven that makes heavenly, thin-crust, delicate pizza, with fresh toppings in a cool, hipster, artsy ambiance. We saddled up at the bar, ordered a Hawaiian pizza and got something to wet our whistle.

There was a lot of activity up front, where they usually have bands play, as a DJ was setting up his elaborate equipment and people were starting to gather. It seemed that we stumbled across an underground break-dance party that was just about to begin. Crazy-retro!

Austin and I had a perfect angle to view all the action from our seats at the dimly lit bar. A circle of eclectic people formed by the DJ, and when I say eclectic, I really mean it. There was a guy with his face painted like a skull (Austin wanted to stick around to see his dance, cause you know, a guy with his face painted has got to be good). We devoured our pizza as the dancers would take their turn, one by one, in the center of the circle to maneuver and thrust their bodies to the high tempo beats.

After watching this old style of dance, that we thought was extinct, but evidently is making a comeback, we thought we'd apply the same thought process to our tasting this week. You know the saying, what once was old, is now new, so let's revisit some oldies but goodies.”

So today (Jan. 22), James and Austin will be featuring Merlot at their wine tasting. As James said in the e-mail, “Let's bring it back, baby. Fall in love with Merlot all over again.”

I’ve been to the couple’s wine tastings, and they are so much fun. Stop by the store for the free sips and snacks between 4-7 p.m. Fridays. You’ll enjoy it.

But more on Joe Squared. In one of those Smalltimore moments, owner Joe Edwardsen called me this week. He said his new restaurant, Cuadrado, across from his pizza restaurant is still on track.

Joe hopes for a March opening. I was glad to get the update. I had blogged about Cuadrado last February. It will be a take on a Mexican barbeque place. The name is Spanish for “squared,” of course.

Next stop for Baltimore’s Duff Goldman (Charm City Cakes, Ace of Cakes) is on the Food Network’s Iron Chef at 10 p.m. Feb. 6. The baker goes against chef Michael Symon, owner of the well-regarded restaurants Lola and Lolita in his hometown Cleveland.

Duff will be put to the test with sweet and savory dishes. As the Food Network press release says, “Will he withstand the heat of Kitchen Stadium, or will he feel the singe of defeat to Iron Chef Symon?” Stay tuned.

In a not-so-positive ranking, New York Times writer Jon Caramanica recently called Ace of Cakes the worst reality show out of 348 on The Awl website. (You have to scroll to the bottom of the post to get his verdict on Ace of Cakes.) His fave: The Bachelorette (season 5). You be the judge.

BOP Pizza in Fells Point is donating 100 percent of its proceeds today (Jan. 21) to Haitian relief efforts. What a great opportunity to help out the disaster victims. The brick-oven pizza place on South Broadway is open till midnight.

An out-of-towner is looking for a place to take his wife for Châteaubriand. When I got the request, I was stumped. It’s a classic French recipe you don’t see on most Baltimore menus these days.

I did remember it was offered at Blue Hill Tavern in Brewers Hill. I didn’t order it when I was reviewing the restaurant, but now I’d like to go back and try it. It’s $52 for two people.

The beef dish used to be on the menu at Tersiguel’s in Ellicott City, but no more. The restaurant now offers viande du marché (featured meat of the day).

All is not lost. The kitchen will be happy to prepare Châteaubriand for guests, a manager told me by phone.

Diners just need to tell their server when they’re seated that they’d like the preparation. They don’t need to call in advance. It costs the same as two filet mignons, the manager said, which, according to Tersiguel’s online menu, is $77.50 for two.

I also located the dish—said to be named after a 19th century French statesman— at Cafe Normandie on Main Street in Annapolis. It's $71.95 for two.

While researching this, I had to brush up on my Châteaubriand speak. I found (thanks to Food Lover’s Companion) that the meat is usually taken from the center of the tenderloin and grilled or broiled and served with Béarnaise sauce and potatoes sautéed in butter.

Maybe it’s too rich, and pricey, for our economically-strained palates to be readily available. Has anyone had it elsewhere? Thanks on behalf of our visitor.