I used to love the chili fries served at a now-defunct burger place called Lucky Guys in Commerce, CA in the 80s. My siblings and I would walk there to play Ms. Pac-Man and buy a styrofoam take-out container full of chili fries. I can’t have that stuff anymore because it gives me heartburn.
I also hate Trader Joe’s habit of discontinuing the products I like. I especially miss their soy latte (why doesn’t anyone make coffee-flavored soy milk anymore?) and their Yin-Yang Peanuts - wasabi peanuts mixed with soy-sauce flavored peanuts.
Both sell products to grocery stores so you could order them by mail.
I miss Stewart’s Ginger Beer.
I also miss White Tower butter burgers (not to be confused by White Castle). In my youth I would walk over from the Oregon District to the White Tower by the main public library and sober up with a butter burger, coke and fries. The buns were toasted on the grill in butter and the burger patty was a slice of heaven.
Sunshine Golden Raisin Biscuits, a drab cracker-like thing with a raisin filling. Not exactly tasty, but I get a hankering for them cause I ate them when I was young and happy. Vermont Country Store sells them at the usual exorbitant price. Then I found a low-fat version in Aldi’s, of all places that look to be the same thing, so next time I’m there I’ll pick up a package.
Bill Knapp’s made the best hamburgers and fried chicken and biscuits with honey.
Yes, I know, for folks who grew up around them (Southern Michigan) they were the place old people went after church on Sunday. But the food was really many notches above ordinary. Their meat was all fresh - never frozen.
The hamburger patties were formed by hand and a little under-cooked, so you got the crispy seared outside, and the juicy pink center with a few drops of bloody soaking into the bun. The buns were a soft egg bun, not the standard restaurant supply bun.
The fried chicken was hand battered and perfect. I think they fried the fries in the same vat as the chicken, either way, the grease from the chicken soaked into the fries in the chicken-in-a-basket, which gave them an extra tasty edge.
When I first moved to Denver, I missed “Fluff.” Fluffernutter sandwiches were my all time favorites.
So I call my stepmom back in New England and have her send me a jar. Only, I forgot to take in to consideration the differences in altitudes - so when my plastic jar of Fluff arrived, it had swollen so that the bottom went from flat to bullet shape. I had to open that jar extra, extra carefully.
But man, that night for dinner I felt like I was feasting like a queen with 2 fluffernutter sandwiches and a large glass of ice-cold milk.
Not food but -------- Sam Thompson Rye Whiskey. If you have an old case in the basement and want someone to disappear, we can talk. I found a couple dust-covered bottles a bunch of years back and nursed them for all they were worth. They weren’t the original Mon Rye version but they were Sam Thompson.
They used to run a Thai cafeteria at the YMCA at the University of Illinois-Champaign. I’ll get some disagreement on this from the witnesses I’m sure are lurking, but their turkey and shrimp pad thai hit the spot like darn near nothing else.
Have you tried Grocery store skyline Chili? It’s not bad.
Oh yah.
White Tower update. The one on E 5th in Dayton is now a barbecue joint (good but expensive) and the one on 3rd is now a “White Lotus” that sells “yummy burgers”. Will have to see if they kept some of the old menu.
Those were what I was coming to post about! While poking around a bit, I found this recipe, which purports to be a close match to the Sunshine Bakeries cookies that I loved: http://www.bigoven.com/160333-Sunshine-Lemon-Coolers-recipe.html I haven’t tried it yet, but if I manage to survive moving, Christmas, my daughter’s birthday, and New Year’s, I’ll have to test-drive the recipe.
Another favorite of mine: Lemon Thins cookies. I don’t remember which company made them, but they were lovely little thin, thin, cookies with a darker, almost burnt ring around the outside.
And even though I’m not a huge fan of ice cream, I still miss my memories of ice cream with both of my grandfathers. My paternal grandfather and I used to eat a flavor called “Blueberry Freckle.” His favorite, not mine, but I loved it because of the association with Grandpa. Granddaddy (maternal grandfather) and I almost shared a summertime birthday, so I always requested homemade peach ice cream to go with the pound cake Grandmother made for us. It was always a group endeavor: I’d get the peaches from the orchard, Grandmother made the custard for the ice cream, and Granddaddy churned it. Mmmmm…
Rubio’s fish tacos aren’t all that. (I make them better.) But they’re not bad, and just the ticket sometimes. And I actually like their beans. Up here we have Taco del Mar, and I get my fast-food fish tacos there. Not as good as Rubio’s; and I have to get the sauce on the side, or else they’ll be soggy by the time I get back to my desk.
In-N-Out burgers are good; but I HATE their limp fries. I prefer Fatburger. (As you know, Fatburger vs. In-N-Out vs. Tommy’s will start a riot.) I just like the taste of Fatburger better, and their fries – skinny or fat – are superior. Not that it matters, because we don’t have Fatburger, In-N-Out, or Tommy’s up here.
Now I’m jonzin’ for the then-local fare: Good Thai that delivers (I liked Thai Beer on Washington – Natalie was too yup-scale for me), Roast Pork from Versailles, pastrami sandwiches from Sorrento Italian Market, the occasional Spudnut…
I’ve always wanted to try Thai Beer but have never got around to it.
But there’s about 5 or 6 Thai places withing a mile of Brotman and they’re all pretty lame. Thai BBQ is probably the best out of all of them with Natalie coming in second. Unfortunately, the dishes are way too bland for it to be any good.
And I have Tito’s, a pastrami place, Versailles and a million other places to eat during lunch. So I can usually live with missing out on the Thai food.
