RESTAURANTS TAKEN FOR GRANTED ??

quote:

Originally posted by Howard Baratz

quote:

Originally posted by Chumley

quote:

Originally posted by Howard Baratz

quote:

Originally posted by Chumley
And with a nod to Ort. Carlton, two progressive radio stations that I do NOT take for granted - WFUV in NY and WXPN in Philly!

Chumley,

Is Vin Scelsa still on WFUV? I remember him fondly from his stint on WNEW-FM.

Oh, please don't get me started! I grew up listening to WNEW-FM. Vin's show, "Idiot's Delight" is on WFUV every Saturday night and he is every bit as crazy as he used to be. I think the show is also archived on their website www.wfuv.org. You might want to pop over their as you could be enjoying it right now on your PC.

Food content - egregious ommission: Telly's Taverna in Astoria!

Chum:

Thanks so much for the heads up re: Idiot's Delight. I'll definitely check it out.

WNEW-FM was an incredible radio station in the pre-Clear Channel era when disc jockeys were able to express themselves through personally selected playlists. Man, I miss those days. Dave Herman, Pete Fornatale, Scott Muni, Rosko, Allison "The Night Bird" Steele all hold a special place in my memory.

By the way, in an obligatory food reference, I also love Telly's Taverna in Astoria.

Howard,

Pete Fornatele and Denis Elsas are on WFUV now along w/ Vin Scelsa, so you can still listen to their shows on the web. Last I heard, Rosko was an announcer on CBS. Allison Steele, alas, is no longer with us.

Telly's Taverna is still with us but the neighborhood is changing! There's a Starbucks around the corner now. Did you ever go to Uncle George's on 36th St. and B'way in Astoria? Completely different take on Greek food but every bit as authentic.

I very much appreciate this forum and hope we will discuss this concern from time to time to remind ourselves that what's precious must never be taken for granted.

I would love to know how many letters, emails, articles, and such I have sent folks over the years recommending a good place to eat. With almost a missionary zeal, I support and promote the surviving small eateries and new ones trying to get established. Friends and associates love having me do roadfood homework for them, and I duly drag them along every chance I get. Converts! I suspect there are quite a few here who do this.

When a beloved cafe or fried chicken shack closes its door for the last time, that is loss and there is grief to be felt. Such sadness is not only about losing a destination for something good to eat. It's about losing a piece of our country's heart and soul and one of the meaningful experiences that make it good to be alive.

This is an ongoing concern, and I suspect it has been since the advent of big box chains. I live in a fairly small place, where there actually is no McD's (yet) nearby, so a lot of the small places are safe for now. There are a lot of Tim Horton's, of course, which is an American-owned chain, even though everyone seems to think it's Canadian (because Tim Horton was a Canadian hockey player!).

Lunenburg has pretty high property taxes by Nova Scotia standards, therefore higher rents, so this is where businesses often teeter. Also, livelihood here is directly related to the tourism trade, so when the summer waves bye-bye, so does the bulk of income. And many places just close for the winter. The fear (and desire) locally is that local places close & 'come-from-aways' take over, with their uber-quaint replicas of local colour.

Anyway, in the summer & fall, I eat at Magnolia's (if I can get in!), the La Have Bakery, Mimi's, & the fish truck parked on Lincoln. All-year standbys include the Turkey Burger and the Knot pub (excellent fish & brewskis). Sometimes Julien's Bakery.

There are also markets where produce grown locally is sold, along with fresh butter, cheese, bread & meat. A lot of this is organic. Yesterday I went to Mahone Bay to get some food from the 'market', which in the winter is held inside an old school house. There were only 3 tables, but each of these tables had really great stuff on them!

cheers.

I think a lot of people don't realize (or don't care) that when you eat in a chain restaurant (any chain restaurant that is not locally owned), most of your spend leaves the community immediately. Sure, some chains "re-invest" in the community but this is like taking a dollar away from somebody and giving them back a dime.

Wherever I am, I try very hard to eat in locally-owned businesses. These are the kinds of institutions that sustain communities financially, culturally -- they are part of the fabric of the community. When did a Macaroni Grill ever become part of the fabric of a community?

Speaking of Taken For Granted, we went to May's Restaurant in Frederick (on 355 near the 70/270 cut-off and FSK mall) this Saturday and had a very pleasant crab-cake lunch. The cakes were quite respectable, the onion rings and sweet potato fries were fresh, hot, and crispy if a little sparse, and coleslaw was decent enough if a bit heavy on the mayo. It has a nice Roadfood atmosphere with an attractive bar surrounded by high-back bar chairs (SO pointed out that indicates this is a place where people are meant to hang out for a while), a nice relaxed local-folks feel, and interesting place-mats! We will definitely go back, and it certainly would be a good place to happen into if passing through and trying to avoid the growing mass of chain places which surround it on all sides

We need to keep our neighbors in mind when falling to pressure of "The Chain" restaurants. Good cooking neighbors are the best neighbors.

quote:

Originally posted by EliseT

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by clothier

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by i95
[green]

Well, from Bush's speech, it sounded like he was ready to start strip mining! Something along the lines of "...there are many natural resources that could possible be utilized for making fuel..."

Everybody's wonderin' how high the moon
But the moon never wonders how low we are
Do you know what they have on the moon?
They raise potatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes and potatoes
Potatoes the size of the Hollywood Bowl!
And how do they peel them?
They peel them with a bulldozer!
Just imagine the nice big bowl of potato salad!

(Ort...??? Name that artist!)


Elise,
You've stumped me. Please supply information! I can't wait to know!!
But do you - or does anyone out there - remember "Everyone's Gone To The Moon" by Jonathan King?
Arms That Can Only Lift A Spoon (Not), Ort. Carlton in Spoon-Fed Athens, GA.
P. S. That potato salad sounds good about now....

quote:

Originally posted by Grampy

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by clothier

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by i95
[green]

Alice Kramden?


Grampy,
Again, you have out-Ort.ed me! Bless your soul!
Rerunningly, Ort. in 30601-land.

quote:

Originally posted by Ort. Carlton.

quote:

Originally posted by Grampy

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by clothier

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<div style="border: 1px #999999 solid; background-color: #DCDCDC; padding: 4px;">Originally posted by i95
[green]

Alice Kramden?


Grampy,
Again, you have out-Ort.ed me! Bless your soul!
Rerunningly, Ort. in 30601-land.



There was no one like the Great One. Oh, to be on that Martini Train of his.

With smiles, I bid thee sweet dreams. Perhaps I shall lapse into one of my favorite old cartoons: Dancing on the Moon

This is as good a place as any to begin to put my 2 cents in.
Please! Please! Please support your "local" restaurants.
If you get to my town of Fort Wayne, please try any of the "Casa" restaurants. This is a small local chain. Great italian food with the "BEST" salad on the planet, the Casaburo salad. Take it from a non-salad eater, one of my "last" meals would be a large Casaburo salad and an order of their Garlic Cheese Bread.
Also stop by the Covington Bar and Grill. A small bar and grill in a strip mall on the southwest part of town. Get an bowl of their french onion soup. It is delicious! Speaking of onions, their onion rings are "to die for".

Hey Rhoades,
Speaking of Frederick, MD, have you ever been to the burger place downtown called Wags? Those are the best burgers I have ever had! I used to live in Frederick and I would try a lot of the local restaurants, usually on my lunch hour. We also used to frequent the Province on Market Street, but they changed ownership or something and I hear they're not as good as they used to be. They used to have the best quiche EVER. The slices were huge and the chef was awesome. But yeah, Wags. Ya gotta try Wags if you haven't already.



C

quote:

Originally posted by Bushie

I make a point to not only eat at locally-owned restaurants, but also to shop at locally-owned businesses whenever possible.

With all the great local restaurants in my area, I'd be a fool to pass them up. But I also just like supporting local businesses. I've always been that way, but I've been more "aware" of it the last few years.

I agree with you. Same here in Mt Pleasant, SC on the SC coast. Not only do my friends and I actively support our locally owned restaurants, we also insist on locally caught seafood. Imports hurt our economy. My list includes:
The Wreck, of course
Oriental Garden-best sushi ever, no lie
The Mustard Seed
Billy's Back Home (grits grits grits!)

SUe

Originally posted by Chumley

Boy, there are so many places that I love that would cause me pain if they closed.

Philly:

Lenny's Hot Dogs, Feasterville

The very first restaurant I can remember eating at was Lenny's Hot
Dogs on Castor Avenue, circa 1964. Being a toddler, I can't vouch for the quality of the food, what really stuck in my mind was the psychedelic combination of pastel light globes suspended from the ceiling, and the murals. The walls and ceiling were black or dark purple, and had paintings of anthropomorphic hot dogs covering them. Think hot dogs with faces, like Robert Crumb would have drawn them.
Does anybody else who grew up in Philly remember this location?

On a sadder note, I went to an A&W after voting today to get a pair of Chicago dogs and found they took them off the menu. It's either a naked dog or Coney Island style. I guess I'll have to get some Vienna hot dogs and make my own, if I can find the poppy seed buns. I recently unearthed a jar of Dave's Insanity Demented Dills of dubious antiquity in the back of my top shelf that I'm planning to break open when I do. If it's from the store I think I bought it in,
it has to be at least eight years old.

Pray for me.

TPP

Alas, poor Scarlet has not returned to this thread in days. I fear the pickles have done her (him) in.

A moment of silence, please.

quote:

Originally posted by JimInKy

I very much appreciate this forum and hope we will discuss this concern from time to time to remind ourselves that what's precious must never be taken for granted.

I would love to know how many letters, emails, articles, and such I have sent folks over the years recommending a good place to eat. With almost a missionary zeal, I support and promote the surviving small eateries and new ones trying to get established. Friends and associates love having me do roadfood homework for them, and I duly drag them along every chance I get. Converts! I suspect there are quite a few here who do this.

When a beloved cafe or fried chicken shack closes its door for the last time, that is loss and there is grief to be felt. Such sadness is not only about losing a destination for something good to eat. It's about losing a piece of our country's heart and soul and one of the meaningful experiences that make it good to be alive.

I love the sentiment expressed here. I had a little BBQ place near my house hadn't been open all that long and I said I was going to try it out one day. I kept putting it off and when I finally got around to checking it out I discovered it had already closed. I felt bad and guilty for not going to a local establishment.

Perhaps,the lure of 'Mom N' Pop'places,which I frequent almost exclusively,have another dimension beyond a good meal. These places,sadly now,hark back to our younger years and give comfort of a kind you don't find in 'chains'......case in point.
Today,I took my daughter to the 'Subworld' lunch and breakfast place here in Tampa, I eat there about 2-3 times weekly. We are always greeted by the entire staff(all 3 of them) with smiles,etc. we sit down and the waitress says "no menu for you guys,your breakfast is already on the grill"...they know we love all their food and are not being overly this or that. The cook/owner comes over and tells me why the Red Sox won't win anymore,etc...........try to find a similiar experience at IHOP or Perkins. these are wonderful moments and thats what roadfood should be about,times shared among good folks.

quote:

Originally posted by garykg6

Perhaps,the lure of 'Mom N' Pop'places,which I frequent almost exclusively,have another dimension beyond a good meal. These places,sadly now,hark back to our younger years and give comfort of a kind you don't find in 'chains'......case in point.
Today,I took my daughter to the 'Subworld' lunch and breakfast place here in Tampa, I eat there about 2-3 times weekly. We are always greeted by the entire staff(all 3 of them) with smiles,etc. we sit down and the waitress says "no menu for you guys,your breakfast is already on the grill"...they know we love all their food and are not being overly this or that. The cook/owner comes over and tells me why the Red Sox won't win anymore,etc...........try to find a similiar experience at IHOP or Perkins. these are wonderful moments and thats what roadfood should be about,times shared among good folks.

Excellent summation Gary. My son and I had a place like that we always went into for hotdogs when he was a kid. . . the waitress always brought us our drink as we came in the door and knew exactly what we were going to have (2 cokes, 2 w/ everything, 2 w/ ketchup and a large plate of fries).
Now-a-days it's the same with my wife and I when we walk into our local sushi place. Our drinks are on the table/bar when we walk in because they know we are always on-time for our reservations. . . like you said "wonderful moments [and memories] . . . among good folk." Almost mythic in a human life.

i95


...I have my favorite, repeatedly-visited Road Food finds including Annapolis' Chick & Ruth's Delly on Main Street...

 
  
 
From today's Baltimore Sun blog, Dining-at-Large:
 
Man v. Food visits Annapolis today

I just got word that the Travel Channel show Man v. Food is filming at Chick & Ruth's Delly in Annapolis today. The show revolves around the host, Adam Richman, taking on a challenge involving a region's food specialty.
 
I called and spoke to an owner, Beth Levitt. It was very noisy, so I may have missed some details but essentially this is what's happening: ... 
 

At 7:30 tonight Richman will be attempting to eat one of the deli's colossal sandwiches (one-and-a-half pounds) or burgers (one pound) and a colossal shake (which weighs six pounds). It costs $16.50, by the way.
 
He's competing against Heather Wright of Gambrills, who happened to wander in at the right time and loves the deli's shakes.
 
Levitt didn't know when the episode would air, but I looked on the Web site, and the only two possibilities are Oct. 21 (Washington) and Oct. 28 (Baltimore). The latter seems more likely. Conceivably the producers could feel that Baltimore and Annapolis are practically the same city.
 
If anyone goes tonight, please post details below.

(AP photo/Chris Gardner)

<message edited by i95 on Mon, 08/31/09 7:09 AM>

i95


I had an observation today (in addition to my daily one which is that sometimes I feel that I'm the only one that thinks we need to make it back to the moon as soon as possible) and that was:

"Do we take our own, local, hometown Road Food -- or
potential Road Food -- spots for granted ?"
For example, my business (as an international man of mystery, of course) takes me frequently to both Annapolis, Maryland as well as Richmond, Virginia. At both of these locales, I have my favorite, repeatedly-visited Road Food finds including Annapolis' Chick & Ruth's Delly on Main Street and Richmond's 74-year-old Sally Bell's Kitchen on West Grace Street. In fact, today, I stopped by Sally Bell's to pick-up my string-tied box lunch of homemade chicken salad on a homemade roll, cheese biscuit topped with a pecan, homemade potato salad topped with a sweet pickle, a scrumptious deviled egg and an "upside-down," yellow batter cupcake with all but its original top covered in chocolate frosting. Each item, as always, was hand-wrapped in wax paper by the kindest of ladies each of whom I believe have been there for most of Sally Bell's seven-plus decades of culinary service to the south. Tomorrow, I'll be at Chick & Ruth's. It's never a big deal.

Yet, truth-be-told, as much as I frequent these establishments I've never given thought to what would happen if they disappeared. Worse yet, a recent search revealed that neither of these local haunts has ever been mentioned on this bastion site of American restaurants.

What about where you live? Are your favorite BBQ, sandwich or bacon & eggs joints overlooked? Would you / do you recommend these places to others? Are any of them hanging-by-a-thread.

This is not a roll-up-you-sleeves call to action for some historical and or gastronomical gain, I just felt a little guilty for insufficiently basking in the Road Food places I do call home.

Annapolis' Chick & Ruth's Delly is a fun place.  I lived and worked in Annapolis area most of the past 30 years.  Breakfast is an awesome meal there.  Also in the morning, everything stops and ALL that are present begin the day with the pledge to the flag!  Anyone going to Annapolis should stop in and enjot an landmark eating place!
 
Conrad

I'm very serious about the local roadfood of the Inland Empire. Just ask Mr. & Mrs. Chips.

My favorites around here run the business gambit from healthy to cutting back to on the ropes to rumors of closing the doors. All I can do is promote the hell out of them and spend my (somewhat limited) dining out money with them and hope for the best.

I must admit I try and save roadfood favorites for travel treats. I can not daily support my fave choices because there are so many locally, and because my scale would break within a month. I do recommend all my favorites and there are many. From fave hotdog stand to fave overpriced steak.

i95

At both of these locales, I have my favorite, repeatedly-visited Road Food finds including Annapolis' Chick & Ruth's Delly on Main Street...

 
 

Speaking of ol' Chick & Ruth's, has had anyone

yet tried their NEW crabcakes (see here)?

 

 
They're priding themselves on a half-pound, all lump cake for $ 12.99. I was there yesterday and confirmed that such is: (a) domestic crabmeat [versus Asian, South American, etc.]; (b) and that these are not the highly similar cakes served at G&M, Timbuktu, etc. In fact, Chick & Ruth's owner said that they are made on the spot after only receiving said lump crabmeat then forming crabcakes at the delly's Main Street location in Annapolis.
 
Has anyone yet had 'em?

Due to some unfortunate family obligations, I will be in the Baltimore area this weekend.  Maybe a trip over to Chick & Ruth's to try that new crabcake (and other things) is exactly what is needed.  Thanks i95 for the timely info!

I know that if our beloved Monument Cafe here in Georgetown, Tx ever went under we would all be dismayed. That said, I would gladly attend the grand closing of any Famous Dave's anywhere.

One of these days I will have to take a day off and go to Sally Bell's. Them not being open on the weekend makes it tough, especially since I live half-way to Charlottesville.

NascarDad


One of these days I will have to take a day off and go to Sally Bell's.

 

 

Hey, NascarDad, only because your "location" reminded me of such, have you ever eaten in your own neck-of-the-woods' Sunset Grill in nearby Manakin-Sabot, Virginia? I posted about such here as I enjoyed a very pleasant dinner there this winter. I'm curious as to whether you've also been.

i95

i95

At both of these locales, I have my favorite, repeatedly-visited Road Food finds including Annapolis' Chick & Ruth's Delly on Main Street...

Speaking of ol' Chick & Ruth's, has had anyone

yet tried their NEW crabcakes (see )?

 

 
They're priding themselves on a half-pound, all lump cake for $ 12.99. I was there yesterday and confirmed that such is: (a) domestic crabmeat [versus Asian, South American, etc.]; (b) and that these are not the highly similar cakes served at G&M, Timbuktu, etc. In fact, Chick & Ruth's owner said that they are made on the spot after only receiving said lump crabmeat then forming crabcakes at the delly's Main Street location in Annapolis.

Has anyone yet had 'em?

Dungeness Lump Crab meat on the Oregon Coast last summer was $32 a lb, your Crab cake looks like a bargain.
PNWC

Indeed I have been to the Sunset Grill.  I even considered going to hear the Trogone Band tonight. 
 
Very enjoyable place and a good burger and good drinks and god service. I have been trying to get back there but just haven't had the chance.  :)
 
I haven't had a chance to try any of their seafood offerings yet.