Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Saturday, October 28, 2006

Only Ones, Lonely Ones, Ripped up like Shredded Wheat...

This morning I had to do a catering order for some people at the University.

It always gets to me how creepy that place can be when it's deserted. At first, I got this eerie "Last Man On Earth" vibe.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!!

I was in the Main Kitchen, locked away from anyone or anything that might be lurking around - or so I thought. Imagine my surprise when I heard some rustling around in the back of our deli. And for all the horror movies I've ever watched, I did the stupid thing of going over to investigate. Sure, it was just a maintenance guy collecting the trash but if it were a mutant vampire or, say, a ZOMBIE - I'd be fucked.

Annnnd I'm fucked!

But let's face it. I realized I was being paranoid, and got my act together. I made my special hot Cocoa (Three gallons of it) and filled up the coffee pots. I loaded up the cart and headed over across campus.

The room the catering event was being held in was literally THE furthest point possible from the Main Kitchen. After a lengthy jaunt across campus I was finally on the floor I needed to be on. And here is where it gets good...

While on the elevator, I was thinking about how Kerrie has graciously rented both Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead on DVD for me. Two excellent movies, but movies that tend to leave a unsettling feeling about the "what-if" factors of life. Still half-asleep and thinking of Zombies and Mutant Vampires, the doors of the elevator opened and I pushed my pastry filled cart out into the hallway. A hallway with one lone soul, dragging his right leg and limping. Yup - just like every stereotypical George Romero zombie ever created. What can I say? I froze and thought: You gotta be fricken KIDDING me!

This lone soul, incidentally, is a professor as the University. And as I started moving down the hallway, he smiled politely and said "goodmorning" to me. I stepped away from my cart and held a door to a classroom for him as he gimped around, but my initial thoughts were to "Just shoot them in the head! They seem to go down permanently if you shoot them in the head."

After I was done setting up, more and more people began showing up. Slowly wandering around, mostly lost and disoriented. It was seriously disturbing...

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was my zombified morning.

Look! Here comes one of them now!

zombiegroove:
Misfits - Night of the Living Dead
Jay-Z vs Beatles - 99 Problems (Dangermouse Mix)
Lenny Kravitz - Always on the Run
White Zombie - I'm Your Boogieman

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Do you or Don't you want me to love you?

Alright, because of THIS my work-week has turned to THIS.

The "plant" described in the article was none other than U.S. Foods. Yup, U.S. is our sole provider of everything from Frozen Pizza Dough and French Fries to Cilantro and Eggplant. This crap has screwed up my whole week because NO deliveries went out Monday, and the Tuesday and Wednesday deliveries didn't have ANY frozen items. This, by the way, is in addition to the generally lousy service we get from these Asshats anyways. So yeah, it was real fun trying to make every backward ass thug and hillbilly who'sah lookin' fer sum uh that there high'er ed-ya-kay-shun understand that NO FOOD DELIVERY = LIMITED FOOD SERVICE. And NO, dumbass, we CAN'T send someone to the grocery store for some Soy Milk.

I suppose it's my own fault, too. I order mean and lean. If we don't need it, I don't order it. I don't over order and I never let stock build up. Hmmm... It's weird but since our Exec left for his Chemotherapy and I started doing ALL of the ordering, FLC and Inventory cost have dropped by almost 20%. Hmmm...

Moving on...

Tonight I made Linguini and Arugala with Fennel & Cabernet Tomato Sauce. It is a chilly rainy crappy night here in Cinci so a good bottle of wine and a plate of pasta never seems to fail me.





Recently, Kerrie and I have been enjoying a variety of wines from Wisteria Cellars. Basically, a good wine for a good price that holds up well for drinking and cooking. I write more about them as we sift through the stock. Yay!

amonnialeakgroove:
The Beatles - Helter Skelter
Misfits - Night of the Living Dead
Massive Attack - Protection
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - Bad Reputation

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Every time I see you falling....

Vanilla Fudge Milkshakes with Nestle Crunch Pieces







vanillafudgegroove:
New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle
Sweet - Little Willy
Sugarbang - Kiss Me
Paul Oakenfold - Starry Eyed Surprise
Tom Tom Club - Genius of Love

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

I can't forget this evening...

This has been a bit of a crazy week.

It started with the EgoCook getting fired, and escalated into a weird pseudo-drama involving a bald ex-con pizza cook, a sexual harassment claim, and a Tranny selling a bunch of illegal DVDs.

What does all of this have to do with me? Nothing. But I still have to deal with it every day because this crap has all taken place in the kitchen that employs me. I miss the days of Garde Manger where I didn't have to deal with all this shit. Yes, the days when all I had to do was show up, make a few terrines, drink espresso, and talk about music by the likes of Dean Martin, The Crystal Method and Badfinger.

It's weeks like this, though, that impede my ability to create a really groovy dinner experience at home. Tonight, however, was really good: General Tso's Chicken with Red Peppers & Juliened Snow Peas




What I would really like right about now is the Princess Chicken from Hunan back in Bowling Green. Princess Chicken is a very easy and plain recipe and -shock!- not like Hunan's. Dammit...

Also, it's going to be November soon and I'm getting in the mood for some of those rainy/snowy/roaringfireplace kind of meals.
- Pasta Bolognese
- Beef Barley Soup/Stew
- Beef Burgundy
- Coq au Vin
- Baked Pasta

Hmmm... What else?

generaltso'sgroove:
Badfinger - Without You
Dean Martin - Remember Me, I'm the one who loves you
ELO - Do Ya?
Crystal Method - Trip Like I Do


Monday, October 09, 2006

Black Betty had a child, the damn thing gone wild...

So, I had Columbus Day off. Even though no one else had the day off, and even though I'm pretty sure Columbus was a huge prick, I had myself a great day off.

CHECKLIST FOR COLUMBUS DAY


1.) Wandered around in my pajamas till 9:00AM. Check

2.) Went tooling around in Jungle Jim's for almost two hours soaking up all the foodie goodness. Check.

3.) Told two different reps to sod off for calling me on my day off. Check.

[Caught a little hell from Pepsi today for telling their rep to sod off, but since my boss was gone I got to do it again. Sweeeet...]

4.) Grilled some baby lamb chops for lunch. Paired with a hunk of French bread, this was the best lunch I have made for myself all year. A little salt, a little pepper, and 2 minutes on each side over low heat for a nice med-rare. CHECK!










babylambgroove:
Ram Jam - Black Betty
Kiss - I was made for loving you baby
The Cramps - Get your kicks on Route 66
Harry Nilsson - Jump into the fire

Saturday, October 07, 2006

...Cuz that's what being a superhero is all about!

Tonight: Dinner: Menu:

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Creme Fraiche

Grilled Flat Iron Steaks
Roasted Potatoes
Asparagus Tips

Assorted "Butler's Irish" Chocolates
Red Table Wine

We Need To Put That Man Back In the Pulpit!

dinnergroove:
Fingathing - Superhero Music
Los Lobos - One Time, One Night
The Hollies - Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress