Nickel and Dimed

I take great pleasure in recommending others, raving about their services and/or products and telling others how great it is.  I really do love that.  There's a restaurant (locally owned; my fave) that I've told you all about in the past and I've always been very favorable and enthusiastic about.  But, today, I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy.  In fact, I'm pretty irritated.

My mom and I stopped in there for lunch today.  I ordered one of the specials, which was a turkey Philly.  Neil's a big fan of chicken Phillys, so I reasoned, it must be good with turkey too.  I asked the waitress what kind of peppers they use on the sandwich and she said "bell peppers."  I then asked if they had hot cherry peppers. 

She went to the kitchen and asked and I actually heard the answer "yes."  Ok, great.  I'd like the Philly but ask them to add some hot cherry peppers to the bell pepper please.  No problem.

It was a bit odd to me that the cherry peppers had been battered and fried.  What?  But, they were tasty this way, although I've never, ever seen them cooked this way.

For my side dish, I got fried green tomatoes, which come with a sauce.  Mine turned over and started filling up my sandwich basket.  I asked for an additional sidecar of the sauce. Turns out the sauce was pretty good dabbed on the sandwich.

So, it's all good.  Mom and I were both pleased with our lunch.  We had a really attentive and pleasant waitress.  Then we looked at the check.  They charged us $.50 for the cherry peppers and $.50 for the replacement dressing.  Are you freakin' kidding me?  

First, in the modern world of rip-off tea that we live in (see this post), it is inexcusably tacky and in poor taste for ANY restaurant to nickel & dime their customers on an extra piece of cheese, more salad dressing, adding onions to a burger, putting jalapenos on whatever I say to put them on, or whatever.  It was all I could do not to blow my stack over this check.  Let's break this down, shall we?

So, from this previous post, we know that a glass of iced tea costs (give or take) a whopping $.11 to make.  I don't have supplies on hand tonight to conduct one of my super-scientific studies, but I feel confident in these statements. 1) If salad dressing costs $.50/Tablespoon, we'd all be eating dry salad because we simply couldn't afford a bottle of dressing to keep in our fridges, and 2) $.50 worth of hot cherry peppers would easily fill up a shoebox, which as any idiot can surmise, is way too much for one, a dozen or even 45 Philly sandwiches. So, to the owners of "XXXX" restaurant in Cayce (names changed to protect the innocent), please explain the logic behind charging me for these miniscule additions to my lunch order.  

Other than petty, arbitrary and capricious upcharging that does nothing but piss off a previously happy-to-praise-and-rave-about-you customer?  Huh? Hell, if you need the dollar that bad, take it out of your insanely inflated tea revenue!

Big Easy on the Mountaintop

You know how when you learn a new word, all of a sudden it seems you hear that word every time you turn around.  I had this experience this weekend with a recipe, or rather, with a dish.

On a food blogger page that I'm a part of, someone posed the question of taking the Ruth's Chris recipe for New Orleans BBQ shrimp and turning it into a cream-based pasta sauce.  She asked for advice, opinions, batted around some ideas of other ingredients to add, et cetera. I've read this Ruth's Chris recipe before but haven't gotten around to making it myself.  It looks and sounds awesome so I need to just quit thinking about it and make it happen.  

So, this past weekend I took my little Wunderkind to visit my sister up in Asheville.  It's that time of year again, so we were making a trip to the apple orchard.  (Now I've got apples up to my ears and need to start up all the apple recipes.) My sister says to me on the evening that we arrived, "Hey I was going to make this for dinner.  I made it not long ago when we had a friend over and he went crazy over it."  She hands me a recipe for New Orleans BBQ Shrimp.  To quote Shatner in Airplane II, "irony can be pretty ironic sometimes."  Now it seems this shrimp recipe is really making the rounds and I'm running into it everywhere!

So, Katherine's version was, in a word, delicious.  If you aren't familiar, the shrimp is left in the shell and covered in this New Orleans style sauce and baked.  Since everyone at the table peels their own shrimp, this makes life really easy on the cook. It's loaded with spices and herbs and creates a fantastic sauce.  So make sure you have a good crusty loaf of bread and sop that stuff up like a starving Frenchman. Didn't expect to be transported from the mountains to New Orleans! Take a look at how beautiful this turned out...

Just gorgeous and tasted divine.  I'm not sure exactly which recipe it was that Katherine used, but the Ruth's Chris recipe is posted below, if you want to give it a try.  This would be a great dish to serve to a crowd at the beach; a nice alternative to the ubiquitous Frogmore Stew. 

Ruth's Chris New Orleans-Style BBQ Shrimp

Ingredients:
-Makes 4 servings
-20 large (16/20) shrimp, peeled and deveined
-1 ounce canola oil
-1 tablespoon plus 5 teaspoons green onions, chopped
-2 ounces dry white wine
-1 teaspoon fresh chopped garlic
-4 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
-1 teaspoon Tabasco
-1/2 teaspoon cayenne
-1/2 teaspoon paprika
-8 ounces (2 sticks) salted butter

Directions:
Place a large cast iron skillet on a burner and heat over high heat. Add oil and cook shrimp until they are just done. It's best to prepare shrimp in batches if you do not have large skillet. Remove shrimp and set aside on a large platter.

Add green onions to the oil in the skillet and cook for 1 minute. Add white wine and let simmer until it is reduced by half.

When the wine is reduced by half, add chopped garlic, Worcestershire, Tabasco. cayenne pepper and paprika. Shake the pan well and cook for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low.

Cut butter into small chunks with the knife and slowly add into pan, shaking fast to melt butter.

Continue to add butter and shake until all butter is melted. Add shrimp back to pan and toss well to coat shrimp with butter and seasonings and to heat the shrimp. Place shrimp on four plates and enjoy.

Cornucopia

I know I go off all the time about how much I love the Brown Box Veggies folks, but here I go again.  I have been jonesin' for my veggies big time after I committed the cardinal sin two weekends ago.  Yes, I admit it.  I ordered a box and <gasp> forgot to go pick it up. To say I was devastated is an understatement the size of Texas. If I must force myself to find a bright side, it's that the Veggie Gals, as they like to call themselves, donate any unclaimed boxes to a charity.  But, dammit, that weekend, I wanted to be my own charity and I forgot.  

So, as you can probably guess, I've been pining away for veggie weekend ever since. I mean, we've been eating <again, gasp> grocery store produce.  But today was the day!  I wasn't going to have a repeat of last time.  I had a reminder and alarm set on my phone, a sticky note on the inside of the front door, and I had a small carrot tattooed on my index finger to remind me.  I even arrived early.

Yowza is all I can say.  When the Veggie Gal handed over the box, it was all I could do to carry that sucker to my car.  It was heavy.  Really heavy.  But I bolstered my strength with the eager anticipation of opening this treasure chest and carried that bad boy to the car. Once home, I cracked it open and it was like that scene when Vincent opens up Marcellus' briefcase.  

The golden light shone upon my face.  

So, getta load of this y'all:

I got squash, zucchini, parsley, Roma tomatoes, onions, over a dozen jalapenos (Neil is in heaven), cabbage, cucumbers, pea pods, peaches, apples, pears, and the largest head of romaine I have ever seen in my life.  Seriously, in the romaine world, you wouldn't want to pick a fight with this big guy. See for yourself.

Perfect lunch box sized pears & apples

Cabbage: the red-headed stepchild of the vegetable world. Undeservedly so. I see eggrolls and stuffed cabbage rolls in our future.

The largest head of romaine I've ever seen

Neil's dietary staple

Uhh, I'm thinkin' salsa? 

This amount of pea pods in the grocery would probably cost half of what I paid for my glorious Brown Box Veggies!

If you know me and my addiction to anything pickled, guess what I'm gonna do with these little cuties?

 Tonight we took advantage of yellow squash, pea pods (snow peas, you may call them) and coconut shrimp. I'm thinking it was a hit since there was NOTHING leftover.  As the cook, that's always a good sign. As a hater of leftovers, that's always a good sign! 

Ok, I realize I'm repeating myself, but if you haven't ordered from Brown Box Veggies before, get online RIGHT NOW! It's a killer deal, it's local produce and it is simply a joy to open that box and see what surprises you'll find inside. Oh, by the way, I was just jerking your chain about that carrot tattoo.  I doubt that even Peter Cottontail would pay money for that!  :-)

Riverfront Revival

As a Realtor, it pains me to see empty buildings around town.  One in particular has been the former New Orleans restaurant.  This building occupies one of the most prime locations and views of the city than anywhere else in town.  Sadly, since January 2010 the building has sat empty and lonely. Until now.

Stone River has recently (like 3 weeks or so) opened.  They are touting themselves as Columbia's premiere wedding and event hall. Extensive renovations/changes have been made to include new stacked stone accents inside and out, new big beam timbers framing the entrance and what appears to be an outdoor covered space, walls have come down to open up the building and the decor is sharp & modern (lots of wood, black & white.) And, they also serve lunch. 

I headed over there today with my mom and dad to try out the lunch menu and to check the place out.  I really like the upfitting that's been done to the building. It's very attractive.  While at first glance, the new openness may seem too open, when you consider what they've designed the place to be (events) it really makes sense. The dining areas have all been pushed out toward the windows, overlooking the Saluda river and downtown Columbia.  And of course, there is dining on the porch. Where previously there had been rows of tables in the center of the room, there is now open space for dancing, cocktail mingling and bouquet throwing.  The tables are dressed with white tablecloths under black, simple black chairs and I know you may think I'm nuts to say this, but I even like the water glasses.  They are a highball size rather than a giant milkshake sized glass.  I rarely drink a whole glass of water during any meal and I really hate it when this huge vessel of water ends up just flooding my table with condensation.  (Does anybody remember the simple little "bev-nap"?)  Valuable little square of paper, in my opinion but today, you have to request them if, like me, you hate a drippy, wet table. With this shorter glass, I don't feel like my table is so cluttered nor is there as much surface area to sweat all over my placesetting!

So, how about if we talk about the food?  Yes, let's.

My mom ordered the club sandwich with baked potato salad. Like a lot of clubs, it is huge.  Nice, homemade looking bread loaded with turkey, ham and bacon, pretty red tomato and a little mayo.  Mom really liked the potato salad, which is noteworthy because usually potato salad (of any kind) is the last side dish she orders.  But she opted for this rather than fries and was pleasantly surprised.  The salad was warm and had gooey melty cheddar in it.  I tried a bite and it really had that baked potato flavor.  I'd order that myself.

I love the way they stand the sandwich up! Side of baked potato salad.

My dad chose the three salad plate (chicken, tuna and shrimp.)  In a nutshell, he said his tuna and chicken salads were very nice, but the shrimp salad, and this is a direct quote, "is a total disaster."  I knew the answer, but I asked it anyway.  Pre-cooked and/or frozen shrimp.  You know the kind.  They end up looking translucent, feel slick & rubbery in your mouth and have zero flavor.  I tried a bite.  No bueno.  Here's my thing about this.  We live in a coastal state.  The shrimp is only a couple hours away.  Hell, you can find a fisherman in Charleston who would meet you halfway on I-26 every morning with fresh shrimp, crab and fish. So what in the world is any restaurant in Columbia doing buying sub-par shrimp from a freezer?  If the Stone River guys take this piece of advice, throw out that junk and serve SC shrimp, this dish will improve exponentially. 

Chicken, tuna and shrimp salads with homemade pita chips.

I ordered the Cobb salad.  I always joke about installing a salad bar in my house right after I win the Powerball.  I am a salad junkie.  I love them, I crave them.  Cobb salads are one of my favorites because I am also addicted to bacon and blue cheese.  This is one righteous salad, friends.  It was served with a very generous amount of fresh blue cheese crumbled on top, pinwheels of smoked turkey and ham, fresh bacon pieces, avocado chunks and bright red, tasty tomatoes.  Traditionally, a Cobb is served with hard-boiled egg, which I loathe.  So, I always request no egg.  However, unless I really missed it big time, the menu didn't list egg, so I said nothing.  Yep, egg was on the plate.  However, since the salad was laid out in rows as a Cobb should be, it was a piece of cake for me to just eat around the egg. No big deal.

Cobb salad-isn't that pretty?

As for the people, everyone we encountered was very pleasant.  We were welcomed by the owner, Chris and later greeted by the GM, Jay.  Our waiter was Cameron and he was very personable, knew the specials and was attentive to us. It's so exciting to see something happening in this space after sitting vacant for so long.  As far as using it for an event hall, I can see loads of potential there.  You overlook the river and the riverwalk, have an awesome view of the ornate Gervais Street bridge and enjoy a great view of Columbia's skyline.  How could you not be happy sipping champagne at your cousin's wedding or enjoying lunch with friends while a couple of kayaks glide by? 

It's such a prime spot for a restaurant and an event space.  I wish Stone River well.  I think they've put together a great multi-purpose venue and they serve a nice lunch as well.  

Thank you Pinterest

Since joining Pinterest a couple years ago, I've pinned many, many recipes.  I think the exact number is one zillion and two.  And I know I'm not alone here. In that time, I've made some of them.  Some have been successful, some lackluster, some not good at all.  But tonight changed all that.  Tonight I made a crock pot of creamy tomato soup that I've been eyeing for months and as cliche and juvenile as it is, all I can say is "OMG."  (It's like Moon Unit Zappa's horrible 80's "oh ma god, like gag me with a spoon.")

So, in full disclosure, the recipe came from here. I didn't grow up eating tomato soup because my mom can't stand it.  And, that crap in the can tastes like some weird sugary tomato concoction that can only have originated in Willie Wonka's factory. For quite some time now, I've been on the look-out for a homemade tomato soup.  The photo of this recipe lured me in. As soon as I read the recipe, I've been dreaming of making it and pairing it with a gooey grilled cheese sandwich.  However, the hubinator has been craving baked potatoes lately and that sounded like a pretty good combo.  So, today was the day.  I whipped this soup up in my trusty crockpot and I am so happy that I did, that...well, I just felt compelled to write about it and tell you. So, as I type this post, I have a warm belly full of the most awesome, rich, fresh, flavorful tomato soup and the happiness that this entails.

Even if you never fancied yourself a lover or even a liker of tomato soup, if I were you, I'd venture out and try it.  The ingredients are cheap, so if you hate it, throw it out and it'll be no biggie. I bet you won't though.  In fact, I think even my mom would eat this soup and like it.

Baby's First Dish

As you all know, it's always been my goal to engage my child in cooking, food and nutrition.  As soon as she was old enough, I've had her in the kitchen.  Starting at things like pushing the buttons on the food processor, to measuring ingredients, mixing stuff up and even some beginner knife work.  But, tonight was the culmination of it all...my baby COOKED!

She's ready to roll!

 That's right.  She cooked an entire dish all by herself.  Of course I was standing right there overseeing, and I did all the prep work (chopping) but she cooked all by herself!  We decided to go with a Chinese flair tonight, so I worked on beef with broccoli while Viv worked on the veggie fried rice.  

So, this is onion, carrot, broccoli and ginger (which I think is nectar of the gods!)

I was so proud of her.  One: because she actually listened to and followed all of my directions.  Two: because she was talking constantly about her observations and her technique of stir-frying the veggies.  Three:  she sloped the rice up the sides of the wok like I told her and scrambled the egg down in the center. She did it all and we ended up with a great batch of fried rice. The real joy of it all was, of course, her pride in her creation and the excitement of being allowed to work with the stove and just do it.  Like all cooks though, at the table she kept insisting that my dish was better than hers while Neil and I insisted that the rice was the best.  

The beef with broccoli did turn out well too.  I used a flatiron steak, sliced really thin. Marinated in soy sauce, a little flour, a tiny bit of sugar and sherry cooking wine.  Stir-fried broccoli then cooked the steak with its marinade, which creates the sauce. 

I can't ever give Viv the plate that was chipped by the dishwasher. Ever.

  I may have said this to you all before, but I'm going to say it again. The beauty of Chinese cuisine is quantities.  Over dinner, we talked about this.  People walk into a place like Longhorn and order a 12 oz. steak.  That's a hell of a lot of meat.  That's more meat than a person is supposed to eat at any given sitting. Our dinner tonight was made with 8 oz. of steak and it was more than enough for the three of us.  What the Chinese know and have known for thousands of years is that you can take a little bit of a lot of things and make a satisfying meal.  


Think about this for a minute.  Fried rice is loaded with vegetables and tiny cubes of pork, chicken, tofu, or shrimp, right?  But, it's plenty for you.  MooGooGaiPan is thin slices of beautiful white chicken surrounded by tons of veggies.  Sweet and sour pork uses about 8 oz. of meat and the rest is all veggie.  And for those people who always say after eating Chinese food, they are hungry an hour later...all I can say is vary your selections.  You can't eat a wheelbarrow-load of fried rice, fried wontons or egg rolls and escape the carbohydrate coma and hunger that comes quickly.  You simply must treat this cuisine like any other.  Incorporate a salad, a main dish with protein, a veggie side and yes, carbs too.  But don't lump all Chinese in with your starch/MSG stupor and subsequent hunger.  Don't do it, I say!

My happiness tonight isn't stemming from the fact that I made beef and broccoli that Neil, the Vivver and I loved, but rather from the fact that my baby got in the kitchen tonight and OWNED  it!  I've waited for this day. Having her cooking alongside me, not having to worry about her getting hurt or spilling some hot something all over herself.  It was wonderful! If you have kids, bring them into the kitchen.  It will prepare them, in many ways, for their future life but also will bring so much joy to the here and now.  For you both.