New menu at Tarpy's, Carmel aims at a Top 10, and In N Out dog food.

Old rabble rouser/food writer Ray Napolitano once wrote he saw a menu so loaded with tasty options he wanted to roll it up and eat it.

That qualifies here.

Tarpy’s Roadhouse (647-1444) launches a fun new wave of seasonal menu items Tuesday, Oct. 11.

Eaters can anticipate big flavors and plenty of accompanying creativity from Exec Chef Todd Fisher.

Some doozies include popcorn prawns with crispy okra and harissa jam; a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with bread-and-butter pickles, slaw, green goddess aioli and chili watermelon; prime Angus sirloin with gorgonzola spinach, smoked bone marrow butter and cognac-black pepper demi; and a 12-hour Wagyu brisket with espresso dry rub, longhorn sauce, potato salad and slaw.

The new items coincide with a redone cocktail approach I spotlighted in August via the piece "Impressive new spirits program launching at Tarpy's Roadhouse."

Napolitano is still ornery as ever.

He and I had a delicious Esteban hora feliz loaded with deals on wine-by-the-glass, bacon-wrapped dates and deviled eggs. (There's a reason it's often voted Best Happy Hour by Weekly readers.)

He ripped restauranteurs. He ripped me. He ripped himself.

It was awesome.

We ran into Tarpy's owner Tony Tollner as it happened, along with one of his lieutenants, Montrio Bistro manager Kathy Solley.

Her reaction to seeing Napolitano, who lives in northeastern Canada taking care of his aging father, was similar to mine when he accosted me at Melville Tavern (given some of his articulate trash talking):

"Oh. My. God."

More food news nubs appear here:

• At In N Out, savvy dog-lovers can order a meat patty with no salt for furry friends eating on the patio.

• Carmel-by-the-Sea has been selected as one of Coastal Living magazine’s Top 10 Happiest Seaside Towns in America for 2017. Each year, its editors select 10 coastal towns in the U.S, unranked, and encourage the public to vote for the #1 spot. People can vote online until Oct. 17. The winning town will be featured in the May 2017 20th Anniversary issue of Coastal Living. Monterey was on the list in 2015.

• The outdoor gear gods at Patagonia want to bring their Earth-first manufacturing philosophy to craft brewing, adding the first beer to its Patagonia Provisions lineup: Long Root Ale. Look for a report from the Great American Beer Festival in this week's print edition.

• Hellam's Tobacco Shop (373-2816) on Alvarado will close through Thanksgiving to (hopefully) wrap its remodel, which includes a new lounge.

• The Original Stonie’s in Northridge Mall now does Mexican-style eloté ($3.50)—to go with the XL baked potatoes and deep-fried Twinkies and such.

• Life hack: Ask for the ginger garlic fried rice at Jim's Chinese Restaurant (394-5117) at 1584 Del Monte in Seaside.

• Epsilon Fine Greek (655-8108) has a new owner in Christopher Hix. Stay tuned on what it means for the downtown Monterey spot.

• Lucia Restaurant & Bar (658-3595) at Bernardus does a Champagne brunch with live music Saturdays and Sundays and goodies like roasted king salmon salad and a brunch burger with bacon and fried egg.

• River Road Wine Trail Group has thrown down a “Roving River Road Wine Tasting Pass” ($45) that allows for a tasting flight at each of RR's eight wineries over the course of a year. Look for our annual Food + Drink magazine, out next week, for maps of the area's wine trails.

• Brad Briske, formerly of la Balena and il Grillo in Carmel, is zeroing in on opening his new concept Home in Santa Cruz this month.

• Speaking of Santa Cruz, the fixed-price dining odyssey that is Santa Cruz Restaurant Week runs through Oct. 19.