jayandstacey

To be constructive: Giant/Petsmart et al should instead have little "charity" kiosks throughout the store. The kiosk or even little machine would allow you to push a button for any of the following: - a "round up" donation - a $1 donation - a $5 donation etc. Then the machine would print out a barcode you'd take to the register. Scanning that code would make the donation happen. The machines could be as small as the little coupon machines that hang from the product shelves. Yes, I get that the 'hit rate' wouldn't be anywhere near what it would be at the register. And on the whole, I bet Giant customers actually like the register thing, because for a painless $.50 or so, they leave the store feeling good about the donation.

My 2 cents: 1. I've always wondered if Giant/Safeway etc get a tax credit. Certainly a 39 cent donation won't be itemized in the shopper's next tax submission - so does Giant get that? They certainly take the PR credit... 2. I usually say "I'm glad you asked - my beautiful 4th grade daughter has a chronic disease that is likely to someday cause her death. I'm super excited about giving to other charities, including Giant's chosen charity, once my daughter is cured. Would Giant have any interest in supporting my quest, even just to round up to the next dollar?" OK, maybe in not so many words....

From the "you can't un-see that" department: The latest baconwear music video and action scenes from the SFA, the Salami Fighting Association. No, I don't know them.

Just saw a coupon in the Montgomery Gazette for 1/2 off second entree. Odd thing - no expiration on the coupon....and Gazettes are free all around the county (some say rockville, some say Germantown, etc)....hmmmm.... Page D5 if you're scoring at home.

The sweet corn cakes - from the vegetarian menu - must have crack mixed in. They are that addictive. They are like 3D funnel cakes with corn mixed in, with some spicy dips. The frying is light and the taste is sweet and corn filled but not overwhelmed. Just fabulous. I'm looking for my next excuse to go to Blackrock for a show so i can dine here first.

Amen. It can be deadly. And to those who may say "I don't remember this being an issue in my day" - you're right, it wasn't. But it is now. My kids have been in three schools recently (public and private) and all three had strong peanut restrictions. And yes, occasional mistakes are made and a kid brings in peanut butter crackers - but the key is to minimize exposure and thus minimize risk - so eliminating peanuts is really the best route. No one knows for sure the reason for the rise, the focus tends to be on immune system factors. Regardless of cause. as with Type 1 diabetes, there's been a marked rise of strong peanut allergies in the last 10-15 years.

That and HHS in rockville and NIST in Gaithersburg, plus incentives from MoCo to develop specific BioTech industries - PLUS, they were generally start-ups that didn't have a "mothership HQ" in some other city - so no need for executives to hop on a plane for in and out visits - and 270 doesn't have an airport at either end, so that's a consideration. And this impacts our MD food selections. I believe the relative lack of travelling business folks in MD limits the restaurants a bit. Not hugely, but a bit.

Interestingly, when you start in Tysons, you're kind of already starting in that "bad place" that is the beltway around NoVa and the Legion bridge. So to some degree, you improve in all directions (note, I'm talking about travel experience, not your living experience) and have to live that nasty ride no matter where you go - and thus you might be more likely to dine in MD as it isn't significantly different from the other places you might go, I do agree that MD has few 'great' or destination restaurants relative to DC or VA. I understand why we'd be 2nd to DC - but why to VA? Must be tied to the reason so many contractors moved business to NoVa over the last 20 years. (dulles? taxes? working electricity?)

I think everyone has glanced at the main reason, but not hit it directly: The only viable option between most MD and VA locations is over a bridge, and most often that's over the legion (or wilson) bridge. And the bottom line is that those are unpleasant drives. Traffic doesn't help, but it isn't always the traffic that's at issue - it is a fast, rough, boring road that is very utiltarian and not designed to be pleasant or asthetic in any way. It causes a bit of a physical reaction where senses are heightened and adreneline increased. Add the traffic back in, sometimes at unusal times (sunday night?) and you're left with an experience to which many say 'never again'. People on the VA and MD sides both have decent places to eat, shop, visit the country, etc. To go to the other side means to go to the country (or a nice place to shop or eat) but to go through hell first. Why do that? I, for one, living on the MD side, would sooner drive up 270 and out 15 into Pennsylvania than over to VA. The Chain and Point of Rocks bridges require significant 'unraveling' on the other side (they dump you into rural areas) and thus don't help much. Better to just stay MD side. DC area Public transportation is a hub-and-spoke model, not a grid model. Living near a hub (like most of downtown) would make it seem very convenient, but it isn't if you like on a spoke. It makes no sense to spend 2 hours on public transportation to go the 7 miles say from Rockville to Herndon. And of course whole batches of things are off limits, like the countryside. I've explored all of MD - out to Deep Creek Lake, down to the southern tip, eastern shore, etc. Been all through southern PA. In 15 years of such roadtrips, I've been to skyline/luray maybe 3 times and have little interest to go elsewhere in VA. I work in Herndon, so it isn't a familiarity issue - just have no desire to spend my time getting there.

I had this a few months ago and yeah, if that's your thing, go back for it. I'll be honest and say I've never had one before, and I'm no professional critic, so I don't know what the ideal is. I'd describe it this way: - Very Large - enough to share and then some. It really is a mountain of meat on a plate, it is served with the bones sticking up, kind of like a volcano or a ventworm cake. - The outside skin was dry, crispy and tough to chew into. Maybe I wasn't supposed to eat it but it tasted really good and was a good contrast to the rest of the pile - Inside was juicy, tender and fork-cuttable, almost like tenderloin, though it was 'dark meat'. The nature of the thing meant there were occasional spots of fat but not enough to cause concern when there was about 4 pounds of pure meat there. The seasoning was there with a light touch that in no way overpowered the meat. Frankly, it was hard to get past the massiveness of the thing. But once I set my mind to wrestling with it, the reward was great. It seemed the perfect complement to the Hacker-Pschorr and between the two, I had to ride home in the passenger seat. I'd split it next time - get that and the sausage sampler to split, say, amongst 3 or 4 people. 3 or 4 hungry carnivores.

I've been able to buy the spice boxes in Shopper's Food Warehouse over the years. I don't go there often - when I do I look for the boxes and when I see them I buy a few. Recently my wife has insisted I used ground turkey instead of beef. It doesn't taste right. So my last batch of purchased boxes has lasted a while now as I don't make it a home anymore. Plus at the table they have the vinegar with the chili flakes. I haven't mastered that recipe yet.

I won't miss Hogates much, and I've always thought that DC needed a 'great' waterfront. Maine street was about as close as we got, and it isn't bad - but the giant concrete barrier buildings have to go. Sadly, the new design seems to sterilize out the few charms of the area - the fish market, the marina and the bar or two out on the docks. I'm sure in a few years we'll be talking about the new high-end places that have opened in the revamped area. But when will someone actually build a new Eastern Market, or a place like Pittsburgh's strip district? Alas, I've strayed off topic - but now that Hogate's is gone, we can talk openly in this thread, right?

And they taste it

Well, technically the fair is advertising, not selling, Bloomin Onions. I suspect the actual seller has a different name, and that if told, the fair people would change their ad verbiage. From the Outback standpoint, it is another bit of evidence that their trademark has become a standard name and offering. I wonder if the fried Oreos actually include Oreos, or the evil Hydrox wannabes. I lose sleep on this issue.

Also at Jimmy's Tavern in Herndon. (edit - nevermind - when I first posted this comment I didn't see the whole thread somehow. This is a known and previously posted fact.)

yeah, what happened? Was the place bad, or your MIL? Or both? If you had to do it again (and I'd think you likely will) what would be your next choice?

Buca de Beppo. Or, That's Amore Macaroni Grill Maggiano's Caraba's Olive Garden. If you went someplace decent and she basically insulted you, return the favor. She won't get it, but you will. Besides, people don't like to think their taste is inferior to another's. Appease her by letting her think you don't know where to find a special meal - or more likely, these places do represent a decent meal to her, just a shade less quality than whatever her hometown fave is. I tried taking such folk to fancy places. I learned that they hone in on the token cheeseburger offering. So why bother? Off we go to Appleby's, Bob Evans, Friday's, etc. Whatever doesn't have a line.

The lesson here is clear. A flute without holes is not a flute. A donut without a hole is a danish.

Dunno - I like the Don Pepinos and that's pretty commonly available in Giant and Safeway type places. Maybe its the same glop in a different can.

I should patent this idea, but will throw it out there: Make two English Muffin Pizzas and put a burger between them. What's not to like? On my list for this weekend.

I had a decent bloody mary at the DC location about 10 years ago after a charity walk. If at any point in the next 10 years I finish a charity walk and have a hankering for a bloody mary, I'll think "oh darn, the ESPN zone is no longer an option". Then I'll go elsewhere.

Mystic Pizza Breakfast Club - nothin beats a bologna and pixie stick sandwich! Moonstruck War of the Roses - dog pate (woof) Lady and the Tramp

So this raises two questions: 1. How can one say they are the first of a franchise? Isn't every place, even if the owner has no expansion plans, technically the first of a potential franchise? Isn't that like a baseball player saying this is the first hit of a hitting streak? Just a little hopeful maybe? Or maybe they have funding and agreements and openings in progress for the other locations already. Does that really happen very often? And wouldn't an owner rather have the customers thinking, in week 2, that the focus is on sustaining quality and service, not on the next opening (even if that really is the focus)? 2. Why would one open such a place when another like-named company is so local and so relatively similar in offering? Yeah, I know coffee and yogurt are different. But not that much different. I could see if there was a greenberry cleaning service - no problem. But why create the potential problem right off the bat? Maybe they are related to Greenberry coffee in some tangential way? That might answer both questions. But the store mentioned the opposite of this.... I haven't been or even seen the place. So I this isn't meant as criticism, rather just curious how this stuff works.

OK, so technicalities, corrections and debates aside.... My original point was going to be that Kentlands had an edge over Rockville TownSquare as an area that was a kind of incubator for local, creative restaurants. I'm happy to be proven wrong, and concede that both have their charms. I was going from memory, where I read when Bobby's opened it was the only non-chain in the place (maybe that wasn't true) and a more recent article where the owners of the buildings were more comfortable renting to chains for a number of obvious reasons. So "edge" isn't the right word, and Kentlands has a handful of chains. I'm just happy to have both as options that didn't exist 10-20 years ago.

No!! Mr Haeringer introduced me to food as an experience, not just something to fill the belly. This included part quality of the dish and part quality of the surrounds - people, service, location, etc. For about 7 years running I was the DJ at Chez Francois. Yes, they had entertainment - new years eve only. I was a young guy who hadn't ever been in such a place; I grew up on Friendly's and McDonalds. Although I was just the 'hired help', "Monsieur" Haeringer ensured I was made to feel at home, fed a proper meal (including all courses) and always left with a bottle of champagne who's pedigree far exceeded my ability to appreciate it. I'd start the evening with some classical violin music for Monsieur. I'd later play Louie Louie for Jacques, and requests for Mark, Fred, James and the rest of the friendly and familiar staff. By the end of the night, we'd have people dancing to motown hits around the fireplace and into each of the rooms. A few years included a conga line around all of the tables, with guests and staff alike joining the revelry. At the risk of sounding cheesy, the scene really seemed to transcend time and space. It could have been in Alsace as much as Great Falls and was a great chance for the regular patrons to dress up a little more while at the same time letting their hair down a little further. But alas, it didn't really transcend time. This day was bound to come and we can only be thankful for the long, engaged life of Monsieur, where his family was yours for the evening and his home took reservations. Thank you Monsieur for showing me how dining should be, a celebration. Thank you.