My biggest grumble is lunch cafes that charge for water. I went to a sushi stand at a mall not so long ago with my daughter and we spent $20 on sushi and I asked for a glass of water for my daughter. That was fine they provided the water but wanted to charge me for a single glass of water. Hummpph water is free over here, aside from the washing of the glass there is no outlay for the restaurant. I grumbled to the girl and we won't go back there
My friend Adam can easily finish a 12 oz steak and then polish off the rest of my meal as well!! ;D
My friend Adam can easily finish a 12 oz steak and then polish off the rest of my meal as well!! ;D
Kerry? Have you tried sushi? How did you like it?
It's inattentive service that bugs me. I expect to be greeted (with water, perhaps) and asked for my drink order as soon as I am seated. I'm not too fond of the "My name is Jason and I'll be your server" routine, but I don't much care if Jason gets the job done.
Have you noticed this tendency for the server to seat him/herself across from you to take your order? After they've introduced themselves, naturally. Maybe I'm being snobby, but this seems overly familiar. Though in sympathy, you know their feet hurt, but it's not enough of a break to make a difference. Plus, in my day, I would have been fired!
Lynne, you're far from snobby! No, I've never encountered this. Yes, that's way overly familiar. If that happened to me, I'd probably ask, "Oh, are you joining us? How lovely!"
Around here the problem isn't small portions. The portions are much too large. I always have to ask for a doggie bag and I end up bringing half of my dinner home with me. I suppose that really isn't a problem, but it mystifies me why they want to serve such massive amounts of food. :-\
Hoovering waiters can be annoying too, unless they are cute... and single! ;)
:laugh:
I wonder if they are one and the same Lee?!
They have the same appetite at least, don't they?
Adam on the Travel Channel is a bit pudgy, but he looks very cuddly and huggable... like a teddy bear. I'd go for him. He has a cute personality too, which is very important.
We have some of those restaurants around here too Kerry. Most of them are either located downtown or in the more ritzy areas of Indy such as Carmel, Zionsville and Broad Ripple. But I know what you mean about the "three bites and it's gone" deal.
Since Indianapolis is a Midwestern city, meat and potatoes tend to be the most popular types of fare around here and restaurants in this area often serve landlubber dishes, or surf and turf. We have lots of very high class steak restaurants, although there are other types of restaurants too. But the size of those steaks are unbelievable. I can't finish something that big!
I was watching a show on the Travel Channel called "Man vs Food" and Adam (the star of the show) sat down and ate a 72 oz steak, along with a baked potato, rolls and a salad in 29 minutes. I'll never understand how he did it. I have a difficult time finishing a 12 oz steak! :P
Adam is quite cute btw! :D
Around here the problem isn't small portions. The portions are much too large. I always have to ask for a doggie bag and I end up bringing half of my dinner home with me. I suppose that really isn't a problem, but it mystifies me why they want to serve such massive amounts of food. :-\
Hoovering waiters can be annoying too, unless they are cute... and single! ;)
I agree David that the portions are much too large, but it is true that you can also end up with two meals.
At one point in time I was going out to lunch pretty much every day with a group from work . . . The portions were huge. I quit doing that a few years ago. It saved me a lot of money too since that was a good $12 a day or more for lunch usually.
But the only thing I dislike is that if you're a single diner and you go out to eat, you run headon into the capitalist system at its ugliest. In the U.S. waiters make a lot of their money on tips, which means the more they turn over a table the better.
I voted 'other'.
I don't really have big problems - unless I spot signs that things are none too clean :P
But the only thing I dislike is that if you're a single diner and you go out to eat, you run headon into the capitalist system at its ugliest. In the U.S. waiters make a lot of their money on tips, which means the more they turn over a table the better. I want to go out to eat and sit at my table for an hour enjoying a leisurely meal. I'm paying for it, I tip well, why am I being rushed out the door? Why am I looked down on because I didn't take a seat at the bar and leave the tables for real diners? >:(
I've had people in restaurants yell insults to me for doing this. WTF?!?!?
Never been yelled at, but yes I can sometimes definitely sense the disapproval. Most of the time I don't mind sitting in the bar (or sometimes I go at odd hours, like early dinner on weekends)...whatever it takes so I can read in peace.
That's happened to me too, and I wasn't even dining alone.
I'd gone with a work colleague to an unfamiliar (snooty) part of town to buy a farewell gift for a fellow workmate. The departee collected a particular brand of porcelain and we'd gone to a specialty outlet to choose a gift for her. But I digress. We thought we'd make an outing of it so dropped into a little place for coffee. We took one of the tables under an umbrella on the pavement and ordered two coffees from the waiter. The waiter gave us a quizzical look and suggested we try some place else, because they didn't serve just coffee alone. She wasn't rude about it, but very definite about us having to order food with our coffee if we wanted to stay.This place looked more like a cafe than a restaurant, with tables on the pavement. Coffee was on the menu. We had come from work and were dressed in business clothes so didn't look like a couple of hobos. It was a first for me. I was literally speechless. And embarrassed. We just skulked off and vowed never to return. Afterwards, you think about all the bitchy things you should said to the waiter, but at the time we were both so mortified, we just wanted to get out of there. Needless to say, we've not been back.
that must be american. You dont really do doggy bags in the UK.
What no doggy bags?? We do it all the time here unless its a really exspensive restaurant. The ONLY thing I don't like about doggy bags is if the waiter leaves the bag and box for me to fill. Thats a bit too tacky for me.
The only problem I have sitting at the bar is that
1) smokers sit at the bar. I don't smoke and don't like the smell when I'm trying to eat
2) I'm short. The bar stool and bar are normally higher than I can comfortably sit and eat (I'm not reaching down for my food and drink, I'm practically reaching across)
What no doggy bags?? We do it all the time here unless its a really exspensive restaurant. The ONLY thing I don't like about doggy bags is if the waiter leaves the bag and box for me to fill. Thats a bit too tacky for me.
Yes, I'm all about the doggie bags too. I've got mixed feelings about who does the preparation. I don't mind preparing it myself. Only higher end places prepare it for you, in my experience, so I guess I'm used to it.
You mean you trust them with the cooking but you don't trust them to place your leftovers in a bag Lynne?
Good lord! The cooking part is the scariest part (in my opinion). Putting it into a bag is the least of MY worries! :laugh:
No, it's not a matter of trust. The whole process is an act of faith. ;)
It's just can be awkward to do it yourself, but most places don't pack it for you, so I guess I don't expect it.
I love the concept of doggie bags. We have a dog, and he gets very upset if we go out to eat, and dont bring him back a treat. He is spoilt, what can I say?
that must be american. You dont really do doggy bags in the UK.
My Mom used to say "there are starving people in China" when I was young.
I had to look up "swede": in American, it's rutabaga. Yum.I have never heard of it being called rutabaga before and you are welcome to have my portion ;)
Maybe we should rename this thread Dining IN - Pleasurable or Painful? Why, didn't you know, Matt, that rutabaga is a legendary aphrodesiac? When you almost passed out, did the chef carry you to the bed and fanned/massaged you to revive you? Did he have to apply mouth to mouth resucitation? No, you don't have to answer...I'm just funning with you!!
Maybe we should rename this thread Dining IN - Pleasurable or Painful? Why, didn't you know, Matt, that rutabaga is a legendary aphrodesiac? When you almost passed out, did the chef carry you to the bed and fanned/massaged you to revive you? Did he have to apply mouth to mouth resucitation? No, you don't have to answer...I'm just funning with you!!
:laugh:
Have you ever noticed how nearly EVERYTHING that tastes bad is an aphrodesiac? If it tastes terrible it will improve your love life, although I really don't have a problem with rutabaga. ;)
I guess I must be lucky, I don't remember having the issues that some of you have had.
One thing that will make me leave a joint is if I see a bug somewhere.
Ewwwwwwh.
Did they ever air the Green Acres series in Australia, Kerry? They were always talking about rutabagas on that show. I think Oliver and Lisa were obsessed with them. :-\
Kerry, one time I walked into a cafeteria, and grabbed a small bottle of diet coke, and was waiting on line to order a sandwich. I happened to glance to the left, and saw a roach crawling on the countertop.
I just paid for my soda, and left.
How is rutabaga pronounced? Is it root-uh-bay-guh ("root" as in "shoot") or rut-uh-bay-guh ("rut" as in "cut")?
I do remember Green Acres, David. I can even hear the theme tune in my head. Can't remember any of the dialogue, though, so don't remember them mentioning rutagagas. Gosh, that was a long time ago. That show was in black & white!
How is rutabaga pronounced? Is it root-uh-bay-guh ("root" as in "shoot") or rut-uh-bay-guh ("rut" as in "cut")?
It's the former, Kerry.
Hey, I remember Green Acres being in color? Kerry, was your set black and white? ;)
[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrbPAt1_vc4[/youtube]
The first one Kerry. ROOT-uh-bay-guh. At least that's how we say it around here.
Although I started thinking about it, and it would be very "Hoosier" to pronouce it RUT-uh-bay-guh. We have a tendancy to shorten certain long vowel sounds around here. For example it's often "fut" instead of "foot".
But as far as rutabagas are concerned, I've only heard it pronounced ROOT-uh-bay-guh. Although I'm sure there are some around here say it the other way! :laugh:
Man! We've really sent this thread OFF topic haven't we? From dining, to doggie bags, to rutabagas and Green Acres, and now Midwestern dialects! :P
:laugh:
Gash, I was having so much fun, I hadn't even noticed we'd gone off topic. :laugh:
(What was the topic again?) ;) ;D
There's a cafe near my place of work. I used to go there a lot and I introduced lots of new custom to them over the years. They made the best, to-die-for lasagne in town and had a scrummy selection of fabbo salads to choose from.
I was having lunch there on this particular occasion with a work colleague. I'd ordered my usual lasagne with Greek salad. We were half way through our lunch when I noticed something alien in my salad. It was just a tiny speck but had unmistakably once had a heart-beat!
Because I'd eaten there so many times before and knew how squeaky clean the proprietors were, I didn't make a big fuss about it. Needless to say, I didn't eat any more salad but I did finish my lasagne. I also didn't want to distress my companion, and put her off her lunch. I made sure the little critter was out of sight. It was just a tiny speck.
After the meal, I collected our plates and took them to the counter, telling my friend that I would order coffee in the process.
The proprietors knew me very well. We weren't buddies exactly, but I had been eating lunch there for years (not every day, but certainly a couple of times each month). I showed them the bug (a husband and wife Greek couple run the place) and they hit the roof. They were angry . . . at ME! The man denied it being a bug (it did look a bit like a speck of salad herb) until I said, "It's got legs!" At which point he begrudgedly offered me the coffee for free.
I haven't been back. They're loss. There are lots of other restaurants and cafes around St Leonards and Crows Nest, where I work.
Know the feeling. I've found bugs in my Chinese food - a caterpillar that looked like a piece of broccoli, but I kept putting off eating until I got to the bottom of my dish and realized what it was, half of something with legs in my chiliburger, knocked a roach off a friend's shoulder in a Chili's restaurant, things like that until people stopped wanting to go out to eat with me. I was eating in a famous Tex-Mex cafe, food was great, salsa scorching and then, across the room, under a table, I saw half of a roach. Dying, he kicked his legs throughout my meal. Not sure what cut him in half, but my eyes kept drifting to him. I've never eaten there again.
In order to manhandle this thread back into place, I would like to mention that EDelMar and I always like to get our share of vegetables when we go to the New York Deli across the street from our place of work. We always order the celery soda!
I was eating in a famous Tex-Mex cafe, food was great, salsa scorching and then, across the room, under a table, I saw half of a roach. Dying, he kicked his legs throughout my meal. Not sure what cut him in half, but my eyes kept drifting to him. I've never eaten there again.
We always order the celery soda!
In order to manhandle this thread back into place, I would like to mention that EDelMar and I always like to get our share of vegetables when we go to the New York Deli across the street from our place of work. We always order the celery soda!
(http://www.rootbeerreviews.com/others/images/celray.jpg)
I've seen this soda, and never tried it. I always say "Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwh" when I see it. :laugh:
nobody call suedes turnips?
Suede turnips? ???oops spelling!!
(http://www.rootbeerreviews.com/others/images/celray.jpg)
I've seen this soda, and never tried it. I always say "Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwh" when I see it. :laugh:
Maybe you should buy a can and taste it for us Chuck. If it makes you ralph, I'll send you a bottle of Pepto Bismol compliments of moi. ;)
Funny, I was just at Rein's, a wonderful deli just outside of Hartford, CT, this past weekend, and they had Cel-Ray soda (not to mention killer pastrami). Dr. Brown's also makes root beer, black cherry, and cream soda. Here's what Wiki has to say:
"Dr Brown's Cel-Ray soda is a soft drink with a celery flavor. It is fairly easy to find in New York City. Outside the New York City region, it is rather obscure but can sometimes be found at Jewish delicatessens and restaurants. In addition, it can be found at certain grocers that specialize in American food in Israel, and other specialty grocers.
The flavor is reminiscent of ginger ale, but with a more pronounced celery flavor that is more pungent or peppery, derived from celery seed extract."
swedes = turnips = rutabagas
V-8 juice is the work of the devil!
V-8 juice is the work of the devil!
I like turnips. :D Never had rutabagas, though.
umm...I think that's just when you add vodka and tabasco, bud! :-* :-*
I have never had a rutabaga, but I love turnips. I love most all root vegetables. I prefer
veggies to meat over all. Even tho I am close to it, I am not yet a vegetarian. Probably never
will be one.
I have never had a rutabaga, but I love turnips. I love most all root vegetables. I prefer
veggies to meat over all. Even tho I am close to it, I am not yet a vegetarian. Probably never
will be one.
V-8 juice is the work of the devil!
Hunh? ???
I hate that shit.....it's sooo nasty tasting!
I've had several flirtations with vegetarianism through my life. I'm fortunate in that my favourite foods are fruit and vegetables. For many years, the only meat I ate was poultry. Relatively recently, over the past couple of years, I've returned to eating red meat again, albeit sparingly. I still prefer to get my protein from poultry, but also eat lean cuts of red meat also nowadays. I continue to love my fruit and vegies best but occasionally treat myself to something overtly carnivorous, like goulash, which I thoroughly enjoy. Like you, Janice, I'll never be a complete vegetarian, nor would I wish to be these days. I now believe it's wise, for the sake of one's health, to maintain a well balanced diet, consisting of choices from all the major food groups. This is particularly true, I believe, as one reached seniority, like me. We humans are, through evolution, omnivorous.
Kerry, with a diet like yours, you probably have the healthiest heart in all of New South Wales - perhaps even in the entire country! :D
Kudos to you buddy! :-*
I love V8 juice! I think I mostly like it because it has a salty taste. But the fruit flavored V8 just sounds wrong. Fruit flavored vegetables. Yuck. :P
Umm, the tomato is a fruit. It is a fruit of the tomato plant, a member of the nightshade family. Pour moi, the idea of a salty drink just sounds wrong, like drinking sea water. I don't even have salt on my margaritas!!
I do like V8 juice though, as a sauce or soup base. It makes a lovely jambalaya!! I used it to make alligator soup for the 2007 Brokeback BBQ. There were no leftovers!
Now, how can the tomato be a fruit if President Ronald Reagan said ketchup is a vegetable? What kind of witchcraft is that? ???
Voodoo bionomics. ::)