bbqboy

Why would you include Seattle? It seems Portland is more on the verge of creating a style unique to the city's sensibilities.

That model applies much more in the East/old Midwest than the rest of the country.

LOL! I hope Chef GAG was a typo ← true!

well, now you've hit on what I'm interested in, for I live in the Rogue Valley of Oregon. The small town of Ashland, pop. 20,000, has about 100 food establishments at any given time, owing mainly to Shakespeare attendees and their desire for a nice meal. We have our legendary HIgh end place, New Sammy's, which draws folks from around the world, but isn't known by many right down the street. (You got it right Chef GAG). Folks plan their summer vacation around the plays they'll see and the places they'll eat. Is it a restaurant town? The side effect is that this intense # of places has generated an attendant food culture, with folks now being attracted to our area because of the food opportunities. The Dagoba guys, for instance, moved here from soCal. We are getting new grapeheads all the time, mostly Bay Area refugees.. Amy's Kitchen just built a plant and has contracted with local growers for product. The Rogue Creamery guys came to open a wine bar, and bought a cheese plant instead. So that's the jist of my interest, because I'm not sure it's about size, but intensity and hands on foodlove.

Is the food evolving? Are there unique dishes that say "Detroit" to the rest of the world? Is there a food community, or just a whole bunch o' places to eat?

What IS a Restaurant City (or town)? Is it based on a known set of criteria or is it "just a feeling"? Population? Income? White Collar and Creative Communities? Direct Relation to the Food Industry? Tourism? Incoming migration(of any stripe)? A sense of self(regional identity)? What inspires folks to move somewhere BECAUSE of the food? If there aren't critics is the contention that there can be no positive Eating/food scene? I don't have the answers, but I'd be interested to know other's opinions.

Novak's Hungarian Restaurant in Albany is a couple of stoplights off I 5, and has nifty pastries, + breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. 6:30am to 9:00pm

Are we talkin' skirt or car?

They've got four different types of burnt ends: Beef, Pork, Ham and even Kobe beef burt ends, which sell for $59.95 for two pounds. ← UE: In the Old days at AB's, you were welcome to reach through the window and pick up all the "End Meat" that had been Sliced off and deemed too rough for sandwiches.. Since you were also welcome to all the pickles, sauce, and bread you wanted, it was easy to construct your next day's lunch for free. Eventually they caught on to the idea that folks would pay for'em. Now it has mutated to what the catalog describes. Other places always charged, I think. Snead's always had great burnt ends too, as I recall.

couldn't hurt, I guess. ← Isn't this the time to plug your "Media Roundup", Judy? All the news that's fit to print. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=77453

nice, i got back from italy a few weeks ago, i was at the slowfood/terra madre convention. next to that was the salone de gusto, a huge "gourmet" food show, featuring more cured pork products than you could possibly imagine, among countless other things: cheeses, fruits, sweets, spirits, wines, beers, etc. etc. if we ever meet in person, i will bring some of the literature that i brought back. i'm sure that you and most of the other people that are on egullet would like it...alot... ← Hey TC, did you meet the Rogue Cheese Guys while there?

Back to the original question: Are "critical" reviews necessary to a vibrant dining scene? Can't something good exist under the Radar? Might they not in fact harm creativity?

If you drew a list of Border Cities: Galveston/Houston Texarkana Tulsa Kansas City St Louis Louisville Cincinatti Charleston, W. Va. Baltimore/DC As said before, It seems you gotta' have Corn, Pork, Greens, and Tomatoes to be Part of the South. This line roughly follows that.

I'd agree. It's more a border city, but the Southern influence is present for sure. About halfway across the Plains is the real transition from Eastern to Western, where Cowboy Hats and Boots are not uncommon, again, from Canada to Mexico. To me, KC Q is an Amalgam of The Southern Q Tradition(Hickory Pit) with More peppers, spices, and Beef courtesy of the Trails to the SW.

Texas splits several ways, but the Southeast part of the State is tied more to the South than the West. Plains States as a whole, from Canada to Mexico, share their own Food Heritage also. Tobacco has always been grown around Kansas City too, by the way. And there's a Whiskey Distillery, McCormicks. How can you get more Southern than that?

I have relatives buried at Arrow Rock, so I'm Qualified by birth, I guess. Missouri is very Southern, especially areas below the Missouri River(Loosely-the Ozarks) which were settled by Families moving West from the Appalachians. Our Family recipes are very "Southern". The Mississippi figures prominently in Missouri's Food lineage too , as it is the direct route from New Orleans to St. Louis. Henry Perry, the BBQ King of KC, worked on Riverboats before settling down on the west side of the State, bringing Tennessee knowledge with him. Kansas & Missouri are still fighting the Civil War 140 years later. Maybe we should draw a Fried Pickle/Grits line.

No Dagoba in Sight?

See, that's exactly why I WOULD go to Mr. C's. I guess I do seek out the odd. We're talkin' Nebraska, where Odd is a way of life. You can eat a steak at a chain anywhere. We're back to Mr. Trillin's Revolving French Restaurant rule.

Fred Meyer has been a staple in the NW for many years. Kroger bought them a few years ago in order to gain their expertise in these Mixed Stores. It should be quite a bit more enjoyable than a WallyMart. It's a joy to have one stop shopping, & buy some cheese, some potting soil, and a DVD at the same checkout. http://www.fredmeyer.com/homepage/index.htm My guess is they won't rebadge the stores in different areas of the Country, but they're essentially the same stores.

Johnny's or Mr. C's. I happen to like the idea of Spaghetti as a side which is an Omaha Steakhouse Tradition. Mr. C's Sauce tastes like it has Anise in it. Quite nice in a traditional way.

Hi David, this is a local (Southern Oregon) Wine Club that serves as a clearinghouse for NW wines. http://www.pacificwineclub.com/ According to this: http://www.pacificwineclub.com/legal-notice.htm Indiana will allow 3rd party sales, if you know someone who holds a liquor license. "States that do not permit shipping to your home will allow PWC to ship to a licensed consignee such as a restaurant, bar, or bottle shop that holds a license to sell or serve wine. If you want to do this, simply fax or mail us a copy of the establishment’s Wine (Beer or Liquor) license with the shipping address noted. There is no additional bottle or sales tax or import fee to the consignee as the sale is to you." ....Or you can use an address in Illinois. Joiei, every year (especially in the holiday season) Federal Agents watch all the liquor stores near State Line in KC, and bust numerous folks for transporting Liquor accross State Lines. (Our Next Door Neighbor got popped one Christmas!) I think you're safe if not at a "watch spot", but technically it's a crime.

Here's our local(for the PNW) "Natural" Beef, Painted Hills, from rural Oregon. Kind of a combo technique. http://www.natural-beef.com/

Man Ronnie, I grew up with those red chairs in the bakery. Did he raid my mom's basement?

We're not railin' against you, Judy. Jayhawkers are just passionate. Didn't I see that somewhere?

That is sort of what I meant about the people growing the food connecting to the food they're growing. It's a proud thing in Oregon to serve locally grown products. It's cool to dig in the dirt. This story is from a couple of years ago. http://www.herskansas.com/stories/062004/n...overstory.shtml I had friends who loved her hot dogs. I wonder how she's doin'. MarketStreetE, I know what you mean. I have ancestors buried at Arrow Rock, and yet my Grandparents were born in Lecompton and Montecello Township.... and my wife's from Omaha. The story We learned in (Ks)schools about KS. and KC, and the Opening of the West, is that the Merchants dropped off at the trailhead, making rapacious sums off the dreamers headed West, hence the great Wealth and Culture of KC,The Metropolis of the Plains, and eastern Ks. ~~~~~~~~~~ Add: I had forgotten that on these boards Oklahoma is Southeast, Nebraska, Colorado and the Dakotas are Western, and Kansas is linked to Missouri in the Heartland. The real region is Canada to Mexico, The Rockies to the Mississippi, in my mind. A plains state thing.