Katie Nell

Very cool store... a little pricey at times, but still cool! And there's always Prydes!

Actually, I think my boyfriend has tableware lust more than I do! (And he's a fairly macho guy, which is even funnier!) "No, we should not spend $80 on a sushi plate set when we don't even eat sushi at home!"

Not a big fan of Jason's Deli, but I haven't tried the muffaletta sandwich, so next time I get dragged there... Planet Sub is very good... try the creamy club! I'm afraid Topeka beat them on the Spangles invasion! They are taking over the town... the first went up a little over a year ago, and then another, and then another... I think there's a plan for 5! (I had an egg sandwich there once in Wichita about 6 years ago, and the egg was not done, and I have not been back... can't deal!)

Oh, it wasn't ruined... don't feel bad! While the birthday dinner I made him another night was much better, it was still a good time... as I think I said in that thread... good company, good wine, yada yada, yada... I don't know if it's just that I'm not as informed as everyone else, but I'm not always aware that something is a chain until I go on a website or I actually go to the restaurant. I wasn't aware that M&S was a chain until I posted that first time about it, and the reservations had already been made, etc., etc. I guess I'm still learning! It's nice to know that ulterior epicure, Zeemanb, and joiei are somewhat normal too... I thought they only ate at 1924 Main, bluestem, etc.!!! Shocking! I, too, enjoy Macaroni Grill and Cheesecake Factory, although, I personally think their cheesecake is AWFUL! The food is all great, from what I've had, but terrible cheesecake! I also love Panera as I've mentioned before. I'm surprised that everyone likes Carraba's, b/c we had terrible food and service the time we were there... how does one mess up shrimp scampi?!? Let's see, what else? I think J. Alexander's is pretty good... that's a chain, right? The smoked salmon dip there is excellent. And I also like a cheesesteak from Pepperjax! I think that's about it for ones that I really enjoy going to, but it's nice to know that some of you are everyday people after all!

I'm kind of surprised to see Wolfgang in that category. I have to admit that I don't get annoyed often from over-exposed celebrity chefs, like a lot of egulleters, but... I was a little frustrated at the grocery store the other day when all the lettuces had Emeril's face plastered all over them! Come on... how much does he really have to do with lettuce? Did you try anything?

I provided examples in the letter, but I honestly just think she doesn't want to give up her recipes! I know my grandma and my other aunts will come through for me though, so I'm not too worried! I know what you mean about Grandma's house... everything just tastes better there!

Well, I got my first reply, and I'm rather disappointed... maybe I expect too much of people??? It was from one of my great aunts and I know she sent it on Friday so she wouldn't have to pay the two extra cents when postage went up! That's terrible, I shouldn't say that, but she is stingy! She was stingy with the recipes too... only two recipes, and they were ham loaf, her particulary disgusting version of meatloaf with ham, and sausage loaf, which I haven't had the pleasure of! No pictures and no stories, and neither one of the recipes were hers, they were her mother-in-laws! I know she has a ton of recipes and pictures from my great grandma! GRRRRR! Hopefully, there's better things to come!

Definitely!! I'm notorious about starting projects and never finishing them! Or having the ideas, but not following up... now, where is that handmade paper kit I bought years ago?!? Fortunately, I have people depending on me, so that should help! I saw a calendar where she did this a while ago, and thought it was gorgeous, but I kept forgetting some months, so I would have had to have a 3-month calendar!

Rock chalk chickenhawk. . . (ahem) I've never even heard of Coco Bolo's, but it's not a stretch for me to believe there's a truly excellent restaurant in Manhattan. When I went to school there, JD's Pizza was incredible. Their blue cheese salad dressing was to die for. Unfortunately, JD's is long gone, but fondly remembered. Now where was I... Rock chalk chickenhawk... (Judy, if you'd gone to a GOOD school, I bet you could spell derogatory.) ← I'm afraid I didn't get to try JD's Pizza... the pizza scene is a sorry one in Manhattan now! So Long Saloon is also a good restaurant... I love the patty melts! And I hate to admit this, but even though I went to K-state, I'm a KU fan! My dad made me take my KU license plate cover off before I went! Sorry Jenny!

I would have to politely disagree! It certainly is groundbreaking for Manhattan, KS, or the rest of Kansas in general for that matter... excluding Lawrence and Kansas City. I've always had excellent food there. Judy, I wouldn't exactly call it Tex-Mex... it's no On the Border! I don't really know how to describe it... there's a little bit of Caribbean/ Jamaican influence, but some Mexican as well. Their specials are always outstanding, and my boyfriend claims the best steak he ever had was at Coco Bolo's! Their taters are TO DIE FOR! It's definitely worth the trip to Manhattan, for us. Of course, then we have to go to Chapman Fly Shop, but I'll suffer for the food! No info yet... I just need to call them... might do that this afternoon!

I think the letter I wrote will hopefully do the trick... I think I did enough threatening and enough "heartwarming" sentiment to encourage response. Also, I provided a self-addressed stamped envelope, so there would be no excuses. I think I'm also going to send out a reminder postcard. Thanks for all the advice everyone! I'll post when I'm finished... won't be for a while I'm sure, but hopefully I can post pictures of it too!

That sounds like it could be a good option, because I think handwriting is a part of why I love some of our family recipes so much. I can't help but feel like my Great Grandma is in the kitchen with me when I see her handwriting on a recipe card. I'll probably only give out about 10, or 20 at the most. And you just reminded me... my ex-uncle owns a print shop, so I may just have to chat with him! Thanks!

This year, for Christmas, I made my Great Grandma's butter almond cookies (stamped with a tulip cookie stamp) and gave them to family members, along with a letter describing my idea for a family cookbook. Next year's present will be the cookbook. I've asked them to send me at least one recipe that they are known for in the family, one recipe from the other side of their family, and one recipe that they make at home on a regular basis. I've also asked them to send any of my Great Grandma's recipes they may have... I'm hoping that the cookbook can be sort of a dedication to my grandma. Along with that, I've asked for pictures and stories revolving around food, i.e. the first time my Great Grandpa had tacos and didn't know what they were called, and the time my dad chucked a roll at my mom's head, etc. I'm torn between sort of making it look homemade and scrapbooky or making it more of a professional presentation. I have a design background, so either method would probably work. What I'm wondering, is if anyone had done this and has any suggestions or tips? Also, if I do go for more of a professional look, does anyone know of resources for printing, paper, or that sort of thing? Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

I had good BBQ at Cox Brothers and bad BBQ at Cox Brothers... it was very inconsistent. I might just have to call and ask about future plans!

And that's Wichita! I grew up in Topeka, which is so much worse! A lot of times, people want to resist something just because it is popular. I like what I want to like and that's all there is to it for me!

well, i don't know if i would say they're trying to "trick" consumers as much as they're perhaps trying to cater to diners' preference for a more "homey"/boutique restaurant feel... but overall, in my experience, chains are rather recognizable - usually easily identified by large colourful signage (usually lit and abnoxiously festive - sometimes with kitschy titles or logos) and a sophisticatedly printed menu. large staffs and impossibly expensive fixtures complete the look. oh, and who could forget the often wal-mart-sized parking lots and kiddie crayon and colouring mats... sigh... (polished t.v., print and radio ads are another dead-ringer) ... i don't know, perhaps i'm more sensitive than others (or perhaps i've dined at more than my fair share of chain restaurants ), i can usually smell (no pun in tended) the "cookie-cutter" establishment from miles away... that all being said, since we are on the topic, where do you all think the definition of a chain begins and ends? there are such things as local chains... do you think their quality can be discounted by their choice to broaden their geographic scope? (see zeemanb-initiated thread on arthur bryant's new west village locale). does bo ling's count as a "chain," (though originated in kansas city, they've now got an outpost in miami)? what about the pbj group (ie. yia yia's, yahooz, grand street cafe, etc...)? what about lidia's (ie. filidia's in new york, and another lidia's in pennsylvannia?)... u.e. ← I think I can generally "smell" a chain too, but I do have to admit, that I was tricked in Boulder, CO this summer. We were attempting to eat at only local places, but were fooled twice, once by a more national chain (I think) and another by a local chain. Just because a company is a chain, doesn't necessarily mean it has bad food, but of course, that's always subjective. If I have good food somewhere, I'm likely to go back, whether it's a chain or not. Bo Ling's just counts as bad food... not just chain food! I've always had good experiences at all of pb&j, though I could do without Red Robin. And, don't shoot me, but I love Panera... I just feel comfortable there and I always enjoy my food, and it's convenient. Then, of course, there's the whole political side of things... I think there are "bad" chains and there are "good chains," but I am much more likely to support a local chain.

joiei i too have a hard time empathizing, but i do understand why people would "wait for mediocre food." even a food snob like me would admit that there is something to be said for consistency - which chains, in my experience, are able to deliver pretty well. as many of our discussions on egullet have shown, dining at the higher end of the food chain is often plagued by disappointments (sometimes huge ones) that come with substantial fiscal loss. i have to admit, when i get "dining-out fatigue," or am "burned" by a tremendously disappointing upmarket experience, i am tempted to dash to my local chain for some predictable "comfort food." ... sometimes, predictably mediocre is better than unexpectedly deficient! ulterior epicure. ← And sometimes I think it's hard to distinguish a chain... for instance, I've never heard of Abuelos and so would not automatically assume it was a chain. I think newer chains are also trying to "trick" the consumer and make them seem less chain-like.

Christopher, I'm sure you are much too busy most of the time, but do you or have you ever thought of offering classes on how to make chocolates, caramels, etc.? I would be the first to sign up if you did! Thanks, Katie ← As for the classes, I got a new building this past summer that I have been working on and hopefully it will be big enough to hold classes. We will be going from about 800 square feet to 3000 square feet, plus an additional 700 square feet for a new retail shop. Once we get up and running in that space, which should be this summer sometime, then I can start planning some classes or events. I will keep everyone here posted for sure. Christopher ← That sounds great! Thank you!

Just for the record, the recipe for Pasta and Chicken Gratin (macaroni and cheese with chicken) in last month's Gourmet was very good! It reminded me of a dish called Huntington Chicken my grandma used to make all the time, but I can't seem to duplicate even with her recipe! Love the crunchies on top! http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/233254

One of my all time favorite restaurants is located in Manhattan, KS... yes, I said Kansas! Coco Bolo's, owned by the Cox brothers, who also owned Cox Boys BBQ in Manhattan, is a great restaurant! This weekend, I heard from a not so reliable source that they have closed the BBQ restaurant, but Coco Bolo's is still open. My source also said that they are hoping to expand into Topeka and they already have a restaurant in Kansas City. My searches turned up nothing... I guess I could call them, but does anyone know the scoop? Oh, how I would love it if the KC location were true!

Yes, I'm starting to see the writing on the wall myself but, given they only open 2 nights a week for dinner (at least I think that's still the case), it may take me a while to research this further. ← Yep, lunch it was! Perhaps we both should try again with dinner!

UE, you and I must be on opposite biorhythmic dining cycles or something. My last visit there was pretty disappointing, both in terms of food and service. I felt particularly bad as I subjected another Society member (joiei, visiting from Tulsa) to a very lackluster meal and lamented throughout that we had diverted from the plan to return to Room 39. It's funny that we seem to have 180-degree different experiences at the same places. I can't decide if we should try dining together or avoid one another at all cost. Either way it seems one of us would have a good meal and the other not-so-much. ← I have to agree with you on this one. While I've only eaten at Cafe Sebastienne once, I was not wowed in the least. It was quite a while ago, so forgive me if my memory is foggy... I had a reuben sandwich and it came with a fruit salad. By the time, I got my sandwich, it was soaked with strawberry juice and was so soggy I had to eat with a fork, and I could barely eat it because it was so sweet! The fruit salad was fruit salad. My boyfriend had a seafood chowder of some sort and it was unbearably bland. Service was slow and inattentive... we never got a drink refill and my boyfriend, on all occasions, can consume pitchers of soda all by himself. Haven't been back, but I haven't completely written it off yet.

Perhaps you should mention this discussion to the chef or owner... I'm sure it would help them to have some feedback and constructive criticism at this point.

Too bad... if you would have eaten at my table, I would have let you tried mine... just a bite, mind you! Better luck next time!

I tried going to City Tavern just now... They refused to serve me lunch because they stop lunch service at 2:00PM. The time was 1:45 and I looked in the dining room where I could see people with opened up menus, ordering food. Not a very good first impression on my part and it sounds like people are being lazy. Man, you have been busy! Must of been a nice paycheck! How was 1924 Main? I'm dying to try the lobster pot pie on the menu this week! Edited to add: Sorry, just saw your post further on down! I'll go read that now! ← Sometimes I wish it was as nice as you may think but the paycheck is just an added bonus to what really matters and that's doing something you love to do. As far as where I work, the place is called "Restaurant Kevin Taylor's" in Denver, I most recently worked at Adega(Denver) and Frasca(Boulder), both of which I would be more prouder to speak about. ← We almost went to Frasca this summer, but I'm afraid after a day of hiking, we didn't look quite like the rest of the clientele! I guess there's always next time!