Has anybody noticed that there have been an inordinate amount of restaurant closings over the last 6 months?  I can only imagine how much worse it's gonna get given the downward spiral of the economy.  My guess is that the restaurants who show the best value and execution will survive while the rest struggle to keep their heads above water.

(The title of this blog post is from Anchorman. If you haven't seen it, I suggest you stop whatever you're doing in life and go buy it immediately)

 

The beer & food blog post seems to have gotten a good amount of hits, so let's stay on the topic of alcohol and talk about my favorite whiskey of them all. For those that aren't familiar with how scotch is made and what differentiates the different types, the wikipedia page on scotch is fairly accurate:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotch_whisky

 

Here are some scotches you should try if you haven't yet:

 

- Lagavulin- The smokiest of the smokey. This was actually just bought buy a Japanese company who now imports most of it into Japan. It's much harder to get than it once was.

- Macallan Cask Strength- Much better value than the 12 or 18 year old.

- Glenmorangie- This is my favorite. Very well-balanced with a little bit of smokieness.

- Bunnahabhain- I'm not sure how to pronounce it, but this is another good smokey one.

- Oban- Very underrated and tough to find.

 

 Any I'm forgetting?

Prime rib medium rare with the bone in.  Nuff said.  I just put up a video in the Foodservice Videos section that shows how to make prime rib if you're interested.

 If you haven't seen it yet, there's a great Sam Adams commercial where a guy says something along the lines of "Sometimes people order what they think they should get to drink rather than what they really want.  Sometimes you just want a beer."  I couldn't agree more, so in lieu of all the wine talk everywhere, I'd like to give my favorite beer and food pairings since I'm somewhat of a brew conissuer.

- Since the commercial inspired me to write about this, let's start with:  Sam Adams Boston Lager and a Burger and Fries-  Can't get much more American than this can you?  You want a beer that has a strong enough backbone to stand up to a greasy burger, but you don't want one that is filling because you're gonna need all that stomach space to hold those last three fries.  Sam Adams is the perfect beer to fit the bill.

- Guinness and Belgian Waffles- Most folks don't think of Guinness as a breakfast beer, but it's so creamy that it really goes well with breakfast foods, especially waffles and syrup.

- Stella Artois and Grilled Chicken- Stella is one of my favorite lighter style beers, and it really matches well with any grilled chicken preparation.

- Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA and a Juicy Steak- It's a bit obscure, but Dogfish Head has an incredibly rabid following amongst its fans.  This alcohol bomb (9% alcohol!) needs a big hearty dish to go with it, so I would recommend a nice prime rib or NY Strip.  A hearty beef stew would work too.

- Coors Light and Hot Wings- OK, I admit it: I enjoy Coors Light.  To me it's like water, and goes down even easier.  When I'm eating spicy wings, I need a beer I can chug to put out the fire in my mouth.  With Coors Light, you can polish off 3 or 4 with your wings without even thinking about it.

These are my suggestions.  Feel free responding with some of your own. 

I just wanted to talk on this topic and mention that I am a GM and let you guys know how tough it can be sometimes, especially if you've worked your way up from a server and are now the boss of people who were previously your peers. A lot of times, the perception is that people change when they become a manager. This isn't necessarily true, although they might handle situations in the restaurant differently, mainly out of necessity. The problem is that sometimes these newly appointed managers take it a little too far because they are of the (mis)understanding that they need to assert their authority right away and let it be known that they are now the boss and cannot fraternize with the 'help'. These are usually the lower level managers and will usually figure things out as they gain more experience. By the time they become GM, they should be well-adjusted and deal with the service staff effectively. We all know that this doesn't always happen which is unfortunate.

It has been my experience that a good GM can have fun with his/her staff, make jokes, and even be friends with some of them without compromising the operations of the restaurant.

I worked in a crazy Greek-owned seafood restaurant about 5 years ago. On Fri/Sat the place was packed with people everywhere.

One Friday, I had a 6-top with this family- 1 old guy (Grandpa) who looked in his 90s, but could have been over 100, and the rest of his family (son, wife, grandkids, etc.). At one point, Grandpa had to go to the bathroom and slowly got up from the table. The rest of his family continued to eat as he teetered away. They seemed to be irritated by his presence anyway and this might be the moment they had been eagerly waiting for as it looked as though he could break a hip or die at any moment. So I offered to help him make his way through the crowded aisles. He grabbed onto my arm for dear life.

It took about five minutes (felt like 45 minutes) to weave him through the club-like atmosphere of at least 50-60 people. We did not speak and I could feel the rest of my section plummeting into the weeds as I did my good deed and we took shuffling baby steps to the bathroom.

I actually waited for him to come out, as I knew he would not be able to make it back on his own and feared a wrongful death lawsuit for my employer. At this point we're talking at least 10-12 minutes of my time and a disaster when I get back to my station. So off we go again, carefully weaving through the bar area, jammed with people who could care less about me and this geezer who probably stands about 5'4 and smells like old pee and mothballs. Upon reaching the table again, he reached into his pocket (I was surprised and excited he was actually going to tip me for helping him!). However my surprise quickly turned to shock as he offered out money, I put out my hand and he placed a dime in my palm.