Congratulations to Curbside Cupcake. The mobile cupcake truck won the inaugural Curby award at the first annual Curbside Cook-off held last Thursday and Friday.

Owners Samuel Whitfield and Kristi Cunningham were among the 20 food vendors that participated in the two-day event that drew in an estimated 18,500 people. Red Hook Lobster Truck came in second place, followed by BBQ Banditos in third, District Taco in fourth, and Pleasant Pops in fifth.

Attention Ardeo and Bardeo fans: Ashok Bajaj’s Cleveland Park restaurant and wine bar will close on Nov. 1 for a makeover.  Bajaj plans to merge the two operations into one and is calling the renovated space Ardeo + Bardeo. For those of you in need of some home décor, dining or lounge furniture, or light fixtures, you’re in luck. According to this link spotted by a PoP reader, items from Ardeo and Bardeo will be sold in an online auction.

The kitchen team for Ba Bay, the new Vietnamese restaurant opening on Capitol Hill this winter, looks to be shaping up nicely. Owner Khoa Nguyen has brought on former Sonoma chef Nick Sharpe to head the kitchen, reports Tim Carman. The two met while working together at Vidalia. Sharpe’s restaurant history also includes Maestro in Tyson’s Corner, Fiamma in New York City, and Mio in D.C. In addition to Sharpe, Nguyen has also hired Sara Siegal as sous chef and pastry chef.  Seigal worked as the pastry chef at Vidalia, as well as on the line at Mario Batali’s Babbo in New York. Read more.

Jose Andres Catering with Ridgewells is operating the cafe at Arena Stage in the new Mead Center for American Theater, reports Missy Frederick. The cafe, now called Next Stage by Jose Andres, opens Oct. 23 and will offer a menu that changes based on the shows that are being performed at the theater. The first menu, inspired by Oklahoma! and every tongue confess, features items such as wild turkey meatballs and Oklahoma succotash. The cafe will be open two and half hours before the show, but will be closed after the shows, according to the Southwest Quadrant blog.

Polo India Club in Dupont Circle is now Dalchinni. New management recently took over the restaurant at 1736 Connecticut Ave, NW, says PoP. The place has been completely remodeled and features authentic Indian cuisine.  One thing that remains: Karma Kitchen, a pay-it-forward brunch that’s hosted every Sunday. Founder Nipun Mehta started Karma Kitchen three years ago in Berkeley, Calif., and later decided to launch a D.C. branch. The volunteer-driven project aims to inspire generosity and thoughtfulness. There are no prices on the menu and no bill at the end of the meal. The meal has been paid for by the person before them, and in return, diners are asked to continue the circle of giving and make a contribution so that people after them can experience the same generosity.

Coming up...

Exciting news for country fans: Country singer Toby Keith's I love This Bar & Grill is set to open a Washington-area location at Stonebridge in spring 2012, reports Frederick. The restaurant and music venue will occupy 20,000 square feet and feature live music entertainment.

Loeb’s Deli is moving to a new location, says PoP. Formerly at 832 15th St. NW, the family-run New York-style deli will be opening at 1712 I St. NW in November. The deli celebrated its 50th anniversary in May of last year and features items such as corned beef and pastrami sandwiches and matzo ball soup.

Food Truck News

Most of the food trucks in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region operate in the District.  A handful, such as Rebel Heroes, District Taco, and Solar Crepes do business around Arlington.  But we haven’t really heard of many that operate in Maryland... until recently. Chef Dikel, a food truck that serves Malian cuisine, has been spotted rolling around the streets of downtown Silver Spring. TBD’s Elahe Izadi and The Straight Line blog report spotting the truck at a gas station on the corner of Colesville Road and Georgia Avenue last week. Could this be the beginning of Maryland's food truck boom?

Other food truck news:
• NPR: Food trucks taking sidewalks by storm
• Food Safety News: LA Food Trucks may soon have letter grades

Looking for a food truck today?

In other restaurant news...

• Metrocurean: A Veggie-Centric Chat With Jean-Georges
• Y&H: Advice for the new Brickskeller’s owners
• Westover Beer Garden working on permits
• Y&H: Last hours of Rogue States and What others are saying
• Lyon Hall answers the call when loyal customer pops the question

Write-ups and reviews from TBD’s Community Network

• Metrocurean: J&G’s Butternut Squash Soup
• Dining in DC: Bibiana’s new budget friendly lunch menu
• Mango & Tomato: How many seeds are in a pomegranate?
• Arugula Files: Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer

Plan Ahead - This week’s food and drink events

• Oct. 14 -- Raise the Roof Courtney’s House at Mie N Yu
• Oct. 14-21 -- Week of Bacon returns to Restaurant 3
• Oct. 15 -- Organic wine tasting at Windows Cafe

Sweet Deals

• Free White Castle sliders
• Metrocurean’s Le Cruset one-pot giveaway
• Get 10 percent off tickets to the Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining Show (Dining in DC)
• $10 off first online delivery order with GrubHub (Dining in DC)