A new bean makes the scene

For the first time, grower Eero Ruuttila has been offering fresh French flageolet beans to Boston-area chefs. He knew he was onto something when they admitted they'd never even seen them before. Until now, flageolets were only available dried. As manager of Nesenkeag Farm in Litchfield, N.H., Ruuttila is always looking for new produce. He was browsing through Johnny's Selected Seeds catalog and a photo of these pale lime green beans caught his eye. Though he planted them late, Mother Nature cooperated, and chefs at L'Espalier, Rialto, Craigie Street Bistrot, UpStairs on the Square, and Icarus have been getting them recently. Icarus's flageolets made their debut in a duck confit appetizer (above left). The beans are braised in duck stock with onion and cabbage, and served with a crispy duck leg in a circle of white wine and Dijon sauce. Chef Bill Flumerfelt says, "The advantage of fresh [beans] is that they cook quickly and have a creamy, not starchy, interior." Available until there's a frost in New Hampshire at Icarus, 3 Appleton St., 617-426-1790. - RACHEL TRAVERS

"The Food Snob's Dictionary," by David Kamp and Marion Rosenfeld, will amuse real snobs, amateur epicureans, and perhaps even the culinarily aloof. The authors explain that they wrote the pocket-size paperback ($12.95) "as both a defensive aid in dealing with such a person (the Food Snob) and as a primer for aspiring Snobs who wish to lord their knowledge over others." Slip it into your purse or overcoat before a night out. When a Food Snob asks you how you make your glace de viand, head for the restroom, reach for your manual, and return with an impressive answer, "with veal stock, never beef." Even the Food Snob may learn a few things, e.g. how to pronounce Ruth Reichl (Rye-shul), or that Doc is the nickname of John Willoughby, a former Bostonian and the executive editor at Gourmet. But where is Doc in the reference section of the book, or Mario, or Formaggio Kitchen, or Michael Pollan? Perhaps the authors are saving them for the second edition. Available at most bookstores. - JILL SANTOPIETRO

Many cooks leave egg poaching to the professionals because it's so hard to get right at home. That's why a simple pair of silicone cups from Greenfield-based Lamson & Goodnow HotSpot Silicone seems like such an ingenious invention. The EggShell poacher ($7), shaped to resemble a cracked egg with one half white and the other bright yellow, looks like a child's toy. And it's child's play to use. Coat the inside of a cup with oil, crack an egg into it, and place it in a pot of boiling water (the cup will float). Cover with a lid, wait four to six minutes, then slide a perfectly poached egg onto your plate. Eggs Benedict can't be far behind. Available at Institute of Contemporary Art Gift Shop, 100 Northern Ave., 617-478-3100; Kitchen Arts, 161 Newbury St., 617-266-8701; or go to lamsonsharp.com. - CLARA SILVERSTEIN

It smells great in the Grille Zone. Stale grease hangs in the air at most fast food restaurants, but at this quick service and take-out restaurant, it smells clean - even with a bank of full fryers. Could be because the Grille Zone is relatively new (it opened in June), but it could also be that the restaurant's small menu and eco-friendly focus help to keep things tidy. Limiting the menu to a handful of choices, including a veggie burger, a chicken sandwich, and a hamburger on a crusty Portuguese bun ($5.95), and finding local sources for some menu items was practical, says owner Ben Prentice. The restaurant's take-out containers and utensils are all biodegradable. So with plans to expand to up to 10 locations in the next five years, the Grille Zone is a fast-food chain that doesn't stink - in more ways than one. Grille Zone, 1022 Commonwealth Ave., 617-566-9663, grillezone .com. - LEIGH BELANGER