glenn

I'm fairly certain that the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requires that caffeine be listed. Sorry, I don't have the patience to look through the entire act. I would think if nothing's listed on the can/bottle, there is no caffeine. Or you could just try drinking a six pack before bedtime and see if you can fall asleep.

I wonder how many restaurants even know who their frequent diners are. If one is not assertive and does not make a point of engaging staff members in conversation, then there is a good chance of remaining anonymous. Most places do not have a computerized reservation system (and might not utilize it properly if they do). Additionally, in an industry where staff turnover is very high, it is likely that the manager, waiter or hostess that got to know you might not be there when you return.

I'm stuck at work for another hour, so I'm out. A big welcome to Andy and hi to everyone else.

Is it 7 PM tonite? [[this thread is getting a little confusing with the friggin' new yawkers butting in [and why is this discussion in the ny board?!.]] I'm hoping to make it, but it's very iffy; I've got the whole Clampett clan in at the beet and they won't leave me be!

one that has zagat commercials.

is this gonna be shown on a real tv station?

tommy will be the one playing spoons.

Sort of appropos is a small article in today's Times Dining section Still Absorbent After Most Towels Quit., though it's obviously not meant to be used for bacon fat. Pause. After checking the manufacturer's website, this product was apparently designed for boats! I guess that's what they call strategic marketing.

Is this it? How do you like it?

I should've asked earlier, am I fooling myself by thinking that cooking bacon to a crisp in a microwave is not unhealthy? Not that I'm about to stop. Tomorrow I do the newspaper experiment, thanks for the tip.

I found that the problem with using 1 or 2 towels during cooking allowed the bacon to cook in the fat more and I ended up with greasier bacon than if I had used more towels. Patting the bacon down afterwards was too late, the fat was already absorbed into the bacon. Am I being obssessive about this? [don't answer!] [[re viva vs. bounty -- but the results on the tv commercial showed bounty as the clear winner!]] Regardless, I'm happy to see I'm not the only person that nukes bacon.

Where do I find really really thick disposable paper towels? Unless someone knows a better way to do this.... I cook bacon in the microwave. I put 7 double-ply paper towels on top and bottom of the bacon and sandwich it in between 2 plates and nooook it for 3 to 4.5 minutes depending on the bacon's thickness. The point of this is to get rid of as much fat as possible. I know, I know, what a waste, the taste leaves something to be desired, but it's ok (especially using gourmet brands) and healthy, or healthier than the alternative. But I spend almost as much on paper towels as I do on the bacon!

Don't know if this has been discussed before, if so, please point the way. Does each county/town control the number of liquor licenses, who they're given to and the fee? What are the procedures to get a license, generally speaking? What role does the state play?

[excert from an upcoming novel, tm gs] Time for a little reflection. A dedicated reader (uh, aren’t you all?) asked my opinion about the single largest factor that can be attributed to the beet’s upcoming demise. How did the beet go from being in the limelight for a millisecond to losing thousands of bucks every week? [well, it always lost thousands of bucks every week, even in its short-lived popular days.] I started to open my mouth, then had to stop and think. Jeez, that is such a tough question! There’s a bazillion little to medium to big things I can cite, and I think I have cited most of them in the past 5 months [gulp]. All those factors basically boil down to the Clampetts coming to the Big Apple with a fistful of dollars, paranoid schizophrenia, greed, egos to rival Donald Trump and complete ignorance of the restaurant industry. But that can apply to most restaurant failures, no? Think glenn, think. Ah, light bulb…. I confidently answered, “lack of identity.” The beet strives to be everything to everyone….. an upscale eatery, a lounge, affordable comfort food, a neighborhood joint but aspiring to be a destination spot as well as a place for the tourists to flock. Yeah, this must be it, and for the moment I’ll leave this is as the BIG FACTOR. In trying to please everyone, the beet pleases no one except perhaps the hookers and derelicts. The wine markup is a minimum of 3 times cost. While this is traditional in New York, in these economic times, the savvy restaurants have lowered the markup by almost 50%. Neighborhood people don’t eat or drink at the beet because, among other factors, the beet is by far the most expensive restaurant/bar in the area. No one else serves glasses of wine for $14+, and let’s not forget the $26 prime rib. Destination spot? Laughable? For the money and quality, you can find a better deal at thousands of other places. So we end up getting a mix of a cheap B&T crowd and the area winos and hooker types. The B’s have failed miserably in their attempts to give the more modestly priced café its own identity. Maybe that’s because if people want a hamburger, they’re gonna go eat at the institution next door. The beet had IT once. In its brief popular days, all 10 of them, it was a trendy lounge with reasonably priced good food. But they wanted more, greedy bastids.

Now you're getting me started :-). I can't think of ANY direct charges the city incurs as a result of sidewalk cafes. The only indirect costs I can think of are the result of the friggin' bureaucracy they've insidiously managed to assemble. You mentioned sanitation charges --- commercial establishments pay for their own cartage. I think the buidling department's philosophy is summed up by the fact they've got a large line item in their budget for fines to establishments operating an outdoor cafe without a license (because they couldn't afford it, or whatever). [as per our expediter, a reliable source.] And I said it before, but it bears repeating. It's EXTREMELY unfair to charge all of NYC south of something like 96th St. the same rate. The hooker traffic we get doesn't exactly compare to the pedestrian traffic on Columbus Ave. (though that also brings in customers :-). Good point about the visibility though. Sort of an intangible benefit. Whenever it's nice and we get people sitting outside, it makes our place looks more inviting.

Considering it takes about 1 year to get an outdoor cafe license, forget this summer. In addition to the costs involved of simply applying for the license (primarily fees to an expediter) and the incredible hoops the city makes restaurants jump through to get a license, I wonder if the owners you refer to are aware of the new fee structure. I forget the formula (I think it's based on square feet, number of tables and number of chairs), but our renewal fee for this year was just over $20k for 18 tables and 48 chairs. Last year it was $6000. Your neighborhood is in the same zone as mine, the beet packing district, as far as fees go (highly unfair). I think we'll be lucky if we break even considering the wash out the spring has been.

Ok. I was only looking at his original post.

Elyse, a couple of points. Thereuare did not indicate that several 4-tops were opening up. He stated there was only 1, which was empty. Picky glenn. As far as being regulars, this part was not really clarified. Did the hostess realize he was a regular? Which brings to question, how does a restaurant know if someone's a regular? Other than computerized reservation systems like Opentable, I would imagine (and I'm guessing) that most restaurants rely on memory. Perhaps this is a subject for another thread. I used to go to a local restaurant frequently, but unless one of the regular waiters or regular manager was there, they'd never know I was a regular, not to mention a magnanimously generous tipper. And with staff turnover being what it is in restaurants, it makes it more difficult to be remembered.

forget it.

I don't think it's black and white. It depends on circumstances. On a busy night, generally speaking there's no way in hell I would seat a deuce at a 4 top. That also depends on the makeup of the restaurant (the percentage of large tables) and what kind of traffic it gets. For example, consideration would be given if it was more of a family restaurant and they got a high percentage of 2+ parties. There are so many factors to take into consideration that it's impossible to generalize. But if you got an airhead model type or Rosie as hostess, throw that all out the window.

top 5... call me - blondie don't hang up - orlons no answer - juliana hatfield w/ the plotz on harp telephone song - laurie andersen call on me - 4 tops

Katie, while your logic may be unimpeachable, what you are doing is using your own rationale instead of following the statutes. I do not disagree with your system as I have previously stated I do more or less the same thing, but you should understand that this "system" is not in accordance with the statutes. It would be different if you entered into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement such as the Tipped Employee Participation Agreement (TEPA) with the IRS which allows you and the IRS to determine an appropriate tip rate. There are 3 such IRS agreements available and it takes a lot of the burden off the employer while also being fair to the employee. The only provision other than entering into a voluntary agreement to arbitrarily allocate tips is if the tips are less than 8% of the gross receipts. You can then allocate tips based on the gross receipt method (or hours worked or good faith). For more info, see the IRS site.

It's fine to protect the establishment as long as you understand that what you are doing is not entirely kopastetic. Take for example a server who works at your establishment for only 1 shift and the law of averages doesn't apply, and he/she only gets 10% in tips. That person has a right to go back to you and demand you remedy your reporting. Having said all that, I also prepare the payroll and do virtually the same thing as you. :))

That's against IRS code in the US, though I know it's common practice at some joints. If I were a tipped employee and my employer declared tips for me that I did not earn, I would have them undeclare it, or pay me the tips.

Sorry, sorry, sorry, I gotta bail, something last second came up. Have fun everyone.