Many a president has had a regretful dalliance. For Kennedy, it was Marilyn. For Clinton it was Monica. And for Obama: a cornmeal pancake. In 2001, Obama appeared on Chicago’s citizen reviewing program Check, Please! and talked about gorging on the complimentary basket of Hyde Park restaurant Dixie Kitchen’s johnnycakes saying, “Although those are pretty dangerous ... I’ve learned from my, some past mistakes, you know, that I’ve got to be cautious.... Those Johnnycakes, you know, they’ll get you early, and then you won’t have time, you know, room for the peach cobbler.” Although they killed his appetite for dessert, you could see a glint in the young senator’s eye, a shine in his smile, regarding that brief affair. He...
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The Barack Obama–Dixie Kitchen episode of Check, Please! is now available for viewing online at WTTW's website. So if you missed it on Friday evening or don't live in Chicago, there you go. Check Please! puts average Joes and Janes together, with each recommending a restaurant for the others to check out. The producers never aired the Obama episode because he was considered too polished and professional and was thought to have dominated the show. Dixie Kitchen: 5225 South Harper Avenue, Chicago IL 60615 (map); 773-363-4943; dixiekitchenchicago.com...
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The folks behind popular Chicago restaurant review show Check, Please!, just released a video teaser for a show they taped in August 2001 with then state senator Barack Obama. He talks about visiting the Dixie Kitchen, where 3 or 4 pancakes are "pretty dangerous," he says because they'll give you a food coma. "I've learned from some past mistakes that I have to be cautious." He also says he prefers simple food that tastes good—and is a good value—to fancy-pants settings. The full episode will air Friday January 16. The video, after the jump....
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