flip6577

I bought a dwarf kaffir lime tree a few years ago. The tree didn't grow a bit for the entire first year in a soutwest facing window in the Chicago area. Two years ago we relocated to the southeastern CT coast and placed the tree in a large window directly facing south. In the past two years the tree has tripled in size and now has at least 20 flower buds on it. It is planted it in a 12" terra cotta pot to wick away extra moisture and watered once a week.

I have both the pin and the utensil set from this line and their quality match up with whatever you could get at W&S or SLT. Fortunately, here outside of Chicago the manufacturer of these items, as well as Batali's line, holds a tent sale every summer where you can get these for at least half off retail on most occasions Flip

Hmm.. Where to start? My Aunt: Insisted on bringing an appetizer to Christmas last year. Proudly, she proclaimed, "I learned this from my new favorite TV chef, Sandra Lee." Needless to say I don't want to know what she feeds her kids on a daily basis. A few years ago she managed to turn a wonderful bone-in rib roast into meat you wouldn't feed to your dogs. My Sister: She was afraid of pasta boiling over. Her solution: put 1lb box of pasta into 1qt of boiling water, lower the heat, cover and cook for 25 minutes. A few times she even managed to burn the pasta before it turned to paste. My Mom: With my father and I being adventurous and fairly accomplished cooks, decided to spice up her meatloaf which isn't so good to begin with. She added a few tablespoons of red pepper flakes and waited for a look of approval. It would have been okay, but she didn't add any of the usual seasonings including salt. Her homade spaghetti sauce is as follows: 1-2lb ground turkey, 2 lg cans of tomato sauce, 2 packets of lawry's spaghetti sauce mix. My Brother: Last year, one month before leaving for the Marine Corps he asked me how to turn the grill on. Before grilling, ahem, destroying, that steak he had only made pasta, frozen pizza, microwave meals, and salads. An ex-girlfriend once served me under cooked cabbage rolls which were baked in Campbell's Tomato soup. That should do it for now. Flip

In July my boss came to me and announced that an offer had been made for the sale of the business. Although, we are in a different industry than food service it was comforting that he chose to disclose this information to me. Six weeks after he made the announcement the closing took place. During those weeks my former boss was able to get assurances that I would be transferred over to the new owners. (I am the only employee of this organization) However, if you do decide to announce the sale of the restaurant to your employees I would do some things differently than my former boss. First make a time where the new owners can meet with your staff and introduce themselves. Second, make sure any employees who are up for reviews and subsequent raises receive them before the changeover, or that the buyers are aware and respectful of the situation in the eyes of your employees. With open communication the transistion should go smoothly. In fact, the employees may even look forward to the ability to grow inside a new organization. On a side note: This did not happen in my case. Today I turned in my 2 weeks notice and am looking forward to my new opportunity in a MUCH LARGER company. Flip

Are these new to your area? I recall seeing them at WC's here in the Chicago area for years. Flip

As a former "bottomless pit" myself during my growth spurt (7 inches in 3 months) my mother filled the fridge with all sorts of goodies. First leftovers were known to disappear during the wee hours of the night ( the dishes vanished too, but I eventually returned them on request). Then items like cottage cheese and canned peaches, were a favorite after school snack. I could not eat enough pasta, mostly tossed with a bottled salad dressing of some sort. During that time my mother should have purchased stock in the makers of Minute Rice, I would go through Sam's size box every week. Most importantly my mother was on a health kick then and we had no overly sugared snacks around. Except for my spoiled little brothers marshmallow laden cereals, but I was never a fan of breakfast anyway. Flip

reading this makes me laugh. In my family my sister was the bookworm and I was the cook. Once, she was making a roast chicken for dinner. (she was jealous and wanted to show her lack of skill off) When she got to the part about washing the chicken I witnessed her rub each bird down with Dawn dish soap. Needless to say I LMAO, then proceeded to look in the phonebook for takeout suggestions for mom and dad. The truly funny part is that she is a registered Dietician/Nutritionist with her sanitation certificate at a fairly prestigous hospital. Flip

I know some of you might be jealous to learn that there is a Usinger's retail shop not too far from my house. YEAH CHICAGOLAND Although I do appreciate the products offered by Usinger's, I just found out that my favorite sausage company, Bobak's, just opened a store/restaurant a mere 5 minutes from my front door. YUM!!! Flip ps: I know that the Usinger's place is a franchise, so maybe one of you guys could open one in your neck of the woods.

I'll probably be banned from E-Gullet for letting on that these items are available in my fridge, but my favorite grilled cheese came out of necessity. 2 slices Wonder bread 2 slices Kraft Deluxe American Cheese, 1 slice cotto salami, and here's the kicker, MIRACLE WHIP. Slather one side of each slice of bread with Miracle whip sandwich salami with cheese. Fry on low heat until golden brown, and serve with a claussen's kosher pickle. When I say born out of necessity I mean there was nothing else in the fridge

In the restaurants I've worked in the 'take-out' person sometimes worked harder than most of the servers. For instance, the servers were deligated to a certain section of the restaurant, 3-5 tables. The take-out person has no control over the number of orders that they are assembling. When a diner would sit down to eat the kitchen expeditor would place the dishes on the trays, and a food-runner would deliver it to the table. For all togo orders the food would be boxed by the cooks and just placed on a table for the togo person to group up and bag. In both circumstances I thought that the togo server did more work than the sit down servers. Flip

I am ashamed to admit that I find the HH Stroganoff to be quite tasty. However much doctoring is required. First I Saute onions with the beef. Then add a can of mushrooms. Finally I toss the "Sour Cream Topping" and opt for a small container of the real stuff. Now that I have disgusted most of you with my love of HH, I must say that all varieties of Tuna Helper are vile. Flip

I must add canned tuna. I don't get it. To me, this stuff tastes awful no matter how you prepare it. OTOH, fresh tuna is sublime. Flip

Great blog! It's nice to hear about our sweet home Chicago. btw I'm guessing, but was the accident was on Thorndale? The one I got stuck behind was. Flip

This thread reminds me of a tour I took not so long ago at the Goose Island Brewry. The tour started at a set of taps with each of their beers. We were encouraged to try whichever one we wanted and could return to the taps at any time during the tour to try another. Needless to say some of the members of my group went back one (make that 2 or 3) times to many. Gosh I love free beer!!!! Flip

Come Back Inn on Lake Street in Melrose Park, Char broiled burgers IIRC. So it is still there? It's been thirty-ish years since I lived in Chicago (I was there for law school) but some food memories persist. I wasn't even a burger fan then, (nor am I now), but the burgers at Come Back Inn were especially good. Has anyone here been there in recent years who can report on what they're like now? Still there. Drove past it a few days ago and it appeared to be open. Had lunch there about a year ago but did not have a burger so I can't report on that. Unfortunately, according to the bunch in another forum, the beloved Come Back Inn is closed. Fond memories of the giant moose above the fireplace and the peanut shells on the floor remain. I've heard rumors that it was for sale. Flip

Since I had not yet found the world of egullet I wasn't around when this thread began. However the timing seems right for my corndog craving last year. I went to every hot dog joint / gyros stand in the area and couldn't find one. Finally I bought a box at the local grocer and indulged. Personally, my strange craving is for the jalepeno cheeseburgers from White Castle. On a normal day these would repulse me, but when the mood hits I'll go and by a case of 30 and eat until my gut bursts. Also, lately I have been craving cream cheese with Pickapeppa Sauce. I haven't had it since I moved to Chicago from Houston(17 years ago), but I really want some. Anyone know where I can get my hands on Pickapeppa sauce? Flip

On hot and sticky days I crave a salad, referred to in my youth as a Chinese Ceasar. First I start by soaking rice stick noodles in hot water until they are soft. Then run under cold water and chop these and toss with a chopped head of romaine lettuce. I sometimes add grilled chicken or shrimp. The dressing is fairly simple: Veg. Oil, Rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, salt, sugar, black pepper and ginger (ground ginger does make a reasonable sub). Then I toss the salad and enjoy the refreshment. Flip

Let's try to cover all the bases here: cliche, fad, and classic. I would imagine a filet of salmon roasted on a cedar plank, topped with a mango salsa, and served with grilled asparagus topped with a hollandaise foam. OTOH, this entire meal would be a cliche, NO?

Only if its cold out of the fridge and served with a glass of OJ on a napkin

In my hell the act of eating wouldn't be sooooo bad, but the rest of the day would be. Entree: White Castle Sliders Drink: Choice of Pepto Bismol or Phillips Milk Of Magnesia Dessert: Chocolate flavored EX-Lax chews. I can see the line to the restrooms forming now.

As a former training manager for a small chain of large restaurants I can vouch that "the question" is not part of the training material. Instead servers are trained to immediately return with a guests change, or announce that they will be right back with change. The latter being statement not a question. If the opposite is happening it is due to two things. First and most likely is that the server is just plain lazy. (No offense to any current servers, but I was one myself and asked this question when I just wanted to get away) Second, if managment allows this practice without reprimand the problem can and will increase exponentially. Just my 2cents Flip