Food Adventures in a Downturn

It's been a decade since I have eaten in a bar. You know the place that sells beer and cocktails. So it has been wings, burgers, and the occasional fried pickle since the downturn. Tonight, I went to Nanny's for fried pickles and hot dog with chili. Fried pickles, not pickle slices but wedges of deli pickles in a tempura batter. It wasn't a heavy batter, it was just enough for a good crunch. It came with ranch which is gross. Ranch should be left for veggie trays. I think a mild blue would have been better or maybe a sweet lemon poppy to offset the savory pickles.

Chili dogs, I like hot dogs. Eating them when i was young was the best. We had tons of onions, great yellow mustard and my mom's chili which was always the perfect meat and bean ratio. These hot dogs moved to 7-11 after a day in the surf, a chili dog hit the spot. The best was just gnoshing in front of the store with a slurpee. I would eat chili dogs at all hours but it never tested better than a day with chest high waves, salt in my hair and on my lips and sandy board shorts. Chili dogs never made me sick, they never gave me heart burn, it was just a moment of great food. The snap of a hot dog, crisp sweet onion, a spicy brown mustard with hearty chili all on a great warmed through bun. They always hit all the senses and tastes.

Wash it down with a three dollar sierra nevada and a Villanova in a great NCAA tourney game and it was a great dinner.

A few days earlier we went to Cheesecake Factory we had gift card. The food is always massive but also on the pricey side. During the downturn Cheesecake Factory in order to stay competitive has a small plate menu. I had roasted artichoke hearts and a Big Mac type burger. The burger sucked. But the roasted artichoke dish for $3.95 was pretty awesome. Ten thick artichokes, slightly fried with a spicy blue cheese. During the meal I was drowned in ice tea, I must have had a gallon of it, the server never let the glass go empty.

Eating out during the down turn returns me to some old haunts. Eating at these places makes me feel old.