Food Deals Galore!

With the economy in the shitter, food deals have become all of the rage. From Muncharoo, to Living Social, to Find Specials, etc., deals are in. The premise is basic. Pay a certain amount, get a coupon (typically for double your purchase price) and eat away. I've used them on a number of occasions. Some have been great deals (Room 39... 25 bucks got me 50 bucks worth of grub), some have been not so good (I won't mention names but some of these deals require you to read the fine print as they may only be usable during obscure times).

The downside to consumers is that the gift certificates must be kept around for that special time you wish to use it. I've got a Le Fou Frog gift certificate gathering dust right now because I haven't made the time to use it yet.

There is also a downside to the restaurants as well. I spoke to one owner about the deals and he admits that they probably lose money on the deals, but they hope that it leads to new customers. The worst situation is when they see a regular customer using one of the coupons. Owners also sometimes get burned when users only tip on the final bill amount disregarding the coupon's inclusion.

My personal take is that these deals are great for the consumer, so-so for the restaurants, and ultimately will lose their appeal. Restaurants don't mind doing one of these deals a year. However, since these deals are sent out on a daily basis, you have to sift through the crap to find the good deals (Every other day features some sort of spa or hair salon... my "fro" doesn't need that shit).

Once folks have a chance to try out a few new places, all but the hard-core savers will begin to lose interest. Until then, suit up and coupon up!

Ah..... memories of green bean casserole

Check it out dude. 69, that's right, 69 pages full of pictures of our parents entertaining each other. You can almost smell the fondue and doobies while looking at these photos.

The Winter of Cheese

Some who know me are familiar with my habit of naming a season after an ingredient or dish. Throughout that season I try to use that ingredient or make that dish in many different ways. Last summer was the Summer of Lemons. I declare this to be the Winter of Cheese.

Check out this list of cheeses! Damn, that's a lot of cheese.

Are you a Turophile?

I am, and this is where I learn the terms to impress people with my turos vocabulary. It's a glossary of cheese terms. They also have a nifty Cheesecyclopedia.

Get your fail on

Since the boom of food television some folks think it is glamorous to be a chef. This is correct if you relate glamor to being over-worked, under-paid, hot, greasy and generally anonymous.

Are you looking for a school that teaches the cooking stuff? Here is a terrific website to help you on your way to failure. http://www.culinaryartscollege.org
I hear the kids out at JOCO are making some noise in the field. It's not listed yet, but I bet it will be soon. I'll let Cindy know about them. Oh.... wait... I just did.

Here is what Bourdain has to say about getting started in the field of cooking stuff for people. You know, being a cookerperson. This article is taken from his new book Medium Raw you gotta read it.

"I am frequently asked by aspiring chefs, dreamers young and old, attracted by the lure of slowly melting shallots and caramelizing pork belly, or delusions of Food Network stardom, if they should go to culinary school. I usually give a long, thoughtful, and qualified answer.
But the short answer is “no.”"  -Anthony Bourdain

I hope you are now even further inspired to prove everyone wrong. Now get over here and get your cook on! http://www.culinaryartscollege.org

Gin for the win!

You know I loves my Gin. This stuff looks awesome. Citadelle Gin.

"The unique flavor profile is the result of 19 botanicals sourced from around the world, ranging from Sri Lankan cinnamon to almonds and lemon rind from Spain, Grains of Paradise from West Africa and Moroccan coriander to licorice from China. But this heady mix is only introduced after the fourth intensive distilling process—which involves heating whole grain wheat from the Beauce region (the same used to make classic French bread) over a naked flame, and brewing with natural spring water to create the neutral spirit."