Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Cute... Did not know that lil fact but another good reason to make my one and only trip there my one and only trip there...

I might be in the minority but I sure don't mind paying the same money for quality over quantity...within reason l would pay more...

I have also only been there once, Frank, and I am just guessing about the chili, given the other sun-standard food I had. Some friends wanted me to go with them, when the place first opened up, figuring I would like it, given the name.

One good thing - we had coupons, so we only paid for half the food.

All,

One: Actually, they didn't list the grand champion of calorie density: Claim Jumper. Someone took me to the one in Anaheim and I was startled to see entrees costing $25 to $30 at what was obviously a chain restaurant. But then they brought the dishes, and I realized that each entree could feed two adults and a child, with a little for the dog.

Two: A good friend of mine waited tables at Cheesecake Factory in Union Square for three years. It paid quite well, but the clientele was horrible. She actually lost weight while working there, because after a couple of weeks she wouldn't go near the food, free or not. Her "favorite", not mentioned by CSPI: the cheesecake milkshake. Yes, really. 3000 calories in an oversized glass.

Three: sadly, this is an "American" thing, to prefer quantity over quality. Think of the number of times you've heard the following two phrases from friends, relatives or coworkers:

"It wasn't great, but they sure give you a lot for the money"
or:
"Really good cooking, but boy the portions were small."

Pundits blame our frontier/blue collar heritage for the quantity-over-quality value system. I think it's more complex than that, and that large-scale commerical advertising plays a strong part.

Four: My first trip to Germany was to a conference in an industrial park in Frankfurt. Despite being there during cider season (November), we only had one night to visit a cider pub and take in some serious Frankfurt cuisine. As a result, we ordered half the menu.

"You know, those are full meals," warned the waiter. "You're ordering a lot of food."

Can you imagine an American waiter doing that?

Wait until your friends get old and only want to eat at places that serve large portions so they can "take some home for tomorrow." Then they all trek out with bags in hand and smiles on their faces. Sometimes I just have coffee and say I have a doctor's appointment and can't stay for lunch. There's only one place they go willingly that serves excellent food and they bitch about the price and the quantity all through the lunch.

fitzie

Oh, and:

Five: a work associate was visiting the Bay Area from Oxford for the first time. The boss took him to Left Bank because there weren't many choices near the office, and they had a good tequila bar (why not?). He was rather stunned by the size of his "steak frites" and ate about a third of it.

"Do you want a box?" asked our attractive female server.

"DO I WANT A WHAT?" he roared.

The waitress practically jumped out of her uniform and ran off. We fell off our chairs laughing.

The misunderstanding was dual: first, they don't do doggie bags in Oxford. Second, in British English, "box" is slang for a certain part of the female anatomy. Once we got our breath back, we explained it to him.