Food

Filler Up, a one-woman comedy about food and relationships, opens tonight at the Theatre Project in Baltimore. New Zealand actress Deb Filler, the daughter of bakers, says food is her passion. During the show, she bakes bread while ruminating on the meaning of food. What is Filler Up about? Filler Up is the story of one woman who tonight is baking ... a secret challah-bread recipe. And in the course of the audience meeting the central character, Deb - which happens to be my name - we also learn how Deb got fat, what it was like to be a fat child or think she was fat. ... She's got lots of conflict because food was totally encouraged and also discouraged.

M. Gettier, 505 South Broadway, (410) 732-1151. Open Mondays to Saturdays for dinner only. Major credit cards. No-smoking area: no. Wheelchair accessible: no. Prices: appetizers, $4.75- $6.25; entrees: $12.50-$17.50.I like a restaurant that smells of good food from the moment you enter. And that's certainly true of M. Gettier, the new French restaurant that opened in Fells Point where L'Auberge used to be.Situated between a liquor store and a drugstore on South Broadway, it's not where you expect to find a French restaurant; but when you walk in you feel a world away from the grimy street outside.

CHICAGO -- New York is a model of liberty, or perhaps anarchy, when it comes to political opinion, religion, clothing, body ornamentation, sexual proclivities and public etiquette. But even Gotham has its limits. The city government - which recently considered letting people officially designate themselves a gender different from the one indicated by their anatomy - has decided it cannot stand by as citizens exercise their choices about eating trans fat. Why not? Judging from the allegations, because it's the worst food additive since E. coli.

Newcomer Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant adds some balance to Harbor East, which has been dominated by high-end establishments. This is the third big opening, following Townhouse Kitchen and Bar and Ouzo Bay, on this stretch of Lancaster Street, where the border between Fells Point and Harbor East gets a little fuzzy. Gordon Biersch is an attractive option for visitors, families, office workers and just plain folks. It is arguably the most recognizable brand on the block.

WILL EVERY Annapolis storefront become a restaurant? The recent influx of restaurants, coffee shops, ice cream stores, carry outs and fast-food outlets is apparently giving other city merchants a scare. They are beginning to wonder if there is a future for retailers who sell goods that aren't edible.Much of the problem can be traced to the changing nature of the Annapolis consumer. In the past, city residents, state employees, legislators, lobbyists and an occasional tourist were the primary people spending money in local stores.

The qualifications to participate in the SHARE Baltimore program are not very strict."If you eat, you qualify," said Carole Rybicki, a coordinator for the international program, for which she is hoping to find at least one sponsor in Carroll County.SHARE is similar to a food cooperative, except that it is non-profit. It works on a simple premise: In exchange for $13 and two hours of volunteer work, a buyer is entitled to a box of top-quality meat and fresh produce worth at least $30.In Maryland, the program is operated by Catholic Charities and based in Baltimore.

Virginia Franklin may not be able to eat many of the foods she loves, but she can certainly write about them. A recipient of gastric bypass surgery, the South Carolina resident is the creator of the Accidental Gourmet, a food blog of recipes, cooking techniques and culinary musings. So while she spends hours gathering information and crafting words that will guide visitors to her blog through the heavenly delights of gastronomy, she does not indulge. "It's my creative palate," said Franklin, who is also writing a cookbook and is married to a chef.

Valu Food's Louis Denrich speaks large. "Our goal is to be No. 1" in Baltimore-area food sales, he said last week."It's not going to happen soon. But we think eventually we will get there. We think by the end of next year, we will be No. 2 in the market. I don't see anybody that's really growing fast -- except us."This is vintage material, as longtime Denrich watchers can vouch. The voluble Mr. Denrich has been uttering No. 1 ambitions for Valu Food since 1991.So far, Giant Food Inc. is in no danger of losing its 42-store, $1 billion, 29 percent grip on Baltimore's supermarket trade.

A man in his 40s was standing in the basement of an Essex house, his thin body in constant, involuntary motion because of a nervous system affliction, St. Vitus' dance.He took $26 worth of groceries from Mable Runge, thanked her and started to leave the Eastern Interfaith Outreach food pantry."Here, I'll throw in a Mother's Day cake," she said, reaching into a refrigerator and handing over the cake, temptingly bright with red and yellow icing.Mrs. Runge, at 82, is finding purpose in her life as volunteer director of the Outreach pantry, which is supported by 24 Essex-area churches and several community organizations.

Pavilion at the Walters, Walters Art Gallery, 600 N. Charles St., (410) 727-2233. Open Tuesdays to Sundays for lunch, Thursdays and Fridays for dinner, Sundays for brunch. AE, MC, V. No smoking. Prices: appetizers, $3.50-$5.50, entrees, $8.95-$16.95. ***Up until now I've felt that the Pavilion at the Walters was one of the city's most underrated restaurants -- at least for dinner. A high-profile site for elegant lunches, the Pavilion has always been empty when I've eaten there at night.Now, however, the museum's restaurant has gotten national recognition.