116 Main St., Colchester, 878-6440

If nothing else, I thought it would be funny: brunch at the dive bar. But amid the tanned faces emerging from the door labeled "outback," perhaps after a game of horseshoes, and already-tipsy bodies bent over the bar, the Spanked Puppy Pub surprised me with good-humored service, a creative menu and well-prepared grub.

Sure, our entertaining, motherly server admitted that the sausage patties we ordered were "whatever the supplier brought us," but this was an Experience with a capital 'E.' Sort of a redneck theme restaurant if you will, but with better food.

The cuisine may have exceeded the bounds of its theme, but prices did not. Eggs Benedict with tangy Hollandaise sauce, ideally soft-centered poached eggs and, get this, pepper-crusted filet mignon, rang up at $10.95.

There was plenty of beef, meltingly tender and enrobed in an alluring jacket of spice. A dining companion compared the dish to the quality of the creative specials at Sneakers Bistro in Winooski, with a notably lower price point.

The awning of the Route 7 Liquor & Deli in Shelburne advertises, in red block letters, "PIZZA * SUBS* PASTA." It does not read, however, "LOBSTER ROLLS." Should it?

This was the question before me after my food-writing colleague, Alice Levitt, mentioned that this unassuming roadside stop has a lobster roll that some people swear by. I decided to check it out.

I've rarely met a shellfish I didn't like; however, lobster falls to the bottom of my list. Every Christmas, I watch my entire family fall silent as they crack open and devour bright-red, sloppy lobster tails served over plates of pasta, one of the seven fish courses we eat every year. Ambivalent about lobster, I usually stick to smelts and shrimp.

However, the idea of a transcendent lobster roll in landlocked Vermont? I could be down with that. And so in I wandered, studiously ignoring shelves of wine to locate a back counter that resembles a cross between a deli and a greasy spoon — despite the nearby case of fresh fish and the whoosh of water through the lobster tanks. I tried not to look over, lest I locked beady little eyes with a crustacean as I placed my order.

21 East Street, Northfield, 485-4857

I don't often head to Northfield for dinner. It's too far from Montpelier to do a dinner-and-a-show evening. When dining in Northfield, dinner is the destination. That's why it took me almost a year after it opened to visit Irish pub the Knotty Shamrock.

Clearly, I was in the minority. I arrived last Saturday just before 8 p.m. to find the only available table was little more than a varnished plank of wood toward the back of the restaurant. Even the bar, with its inlaid four-leaf clovers, was packed.

400 Pine Street, Burlington, 863-3968

For as long as I've worked at Seven Days, I've known the nearby Cheese Outlet/Fresh Market for one thing. It's the site of the best cookies on Earth. I'm not exaggerating.

Ideally balanced between chewy and crunchy, with nary a hint of cakiness, some bizarre alchemy ensures that the chocolate chips remain slightly melty long after the cookie has cooled. The desserts are also sizable enough that I can usually only eat a third at a time. Unless, that is, I get it right out of the oven. Then the slightly salty cookies simply prove too irresistible not to inhale all at once, my ensuing loginess be damned.

Given my over-the-top devotion, it's strange that I'd never gotten lunch at the spot that's just a few minute's walk from my desk.

The prepared-food case offers a glut of options, but luckily Seven Days calendar editor Carolyn Fox was there to help me choose. We brought a veritable buffet back to the office at a  cost of $25 and change.

We started with still-hot macaroni and cheese. A crunchy, light, breadcrumb-covered crust yielded to a creamy, mild cheese sauce speckled with pepper. Even though I tend to prefer sharper cheeses, it was difficult to discern this from the one I make at home. And I didn't have to cook or clean up!

Behind my house is a rhubarb patch in its prime, with floppy deep-green leaves and stalks the color of bubblegum. I'm not much of a baker, so rhubarb crisps and crumbles and clafoutis won't appear in my kitchen anytime soon. I am, however, an enthusiastic drinker, and rhubarb can lend a racy tang and vegetal pucker to cocktails, as well as a bouncy, rose-colored hue.

Adding bits of rhubarb stalk to your drink won't do much of anything — a rhubarb simple syrup is the key to liquifying its charms. Boiling sliced rhubarb with sugar and water for about 15 minutes renders a rosy-pink syrup that smells like lemon candy, as well as a mush of rhubarb pulp that's delicious spooned over vanilla ice cream or yogurt (yum).

225 Interstate Corporate Center, Williston, 288-1110

It was a busy eight days for my stomach. After the last three indulgent meals of Vermont Restaurant Week — an elegant dinner at the Kitchen Table Bistro, spicy Asian specialities at ¡Duino! (Duende) and the best French cuisine I've ever eaten in Vermont, at 3 Squares Café in Vergennes — I took Saturday off and ate Uncle Sam's cereal. But there were still Restaurant Week participants I wanted to get to, even if their special menus were no longer available. On Sunday, I headed to one, Texas Roadhouse in Williston.

Before you jump on me about evil corporations, let me remind you that this franchise is locally owned and actively supports local charities. I participated in a rib-eating contest there two years ago to benefit the DREAM Program, a Winooski-based mentoring charity.

All good things come to an end, at least temporarily. One night of Restaurant Week gluttony remains — two, if you count the restaurants extending their menus through tomorrow  — and lunch's last hurrah is (sniff) today.

So I had to jam in one last lunch special: the tangy tower of meat, cheese and spicy veggies called the Spicy Spring Sandwich. As I type, this bundle of fire ($7.99) is taking its last breaths at City Market's sandwich counter; like a carriage turning into a pumpkin, it goes poof! when the sun sets tonight.

My photo doesn't do it justice, but the sandwich's chutzpah starts with two slices of toasted sourdough bread slathered in a spicy relish of mayo and minced green and red peppers. Layers of salami and Provolone follow, along with tomatoes, lettuce and banana peppers that crunch and burst and fall all around the wrapper as you eat.

To quote wine parlance, the finish is long and piquant. Sadly, though, it won't outlast Restaurant Week. But maybe they'll keep that spicy relish behind the counter.

Each week, Grazing highlights tasty, sometimes under-the-radar dishes and drinks that reflect the season. If you know of a local edible (or libation) worth making a fuss over, let me know: corin@sevendaysvt.com.

1160 Williston Rd., South Burlington, 862-1211

As everyone well acquainted with me knows, I have a bit of a Chicken Charlie's problem. Without a regular dose of its crisp, salty-skinned rotisserie chicken, I simply go into withdrawal.

Eager to prevent the shakes and shivers, I hightailed it over to Charlie's Rotisserie & Grill — as the place is officially called — for Vermont Restaurant Week on Saturday night. I was greeted by the chickens at right, all dressed up with IDs for the occasion. A white board on the bar outlined the options for the promotion. At lunch, diners can get any wrap, side and dessert for $10. For a $15 dinner, I had three courses that left plenty of leftovers.