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I grew up in Oklahoma and think that we often get overlooked in regionaist culinary scene. BBQ is a perfect example. I know of no other place where you can get equally good pork and beef barbeque or ANY place that does beef ribs as well. When I lived in North Carolina I had a hard time convincing anyone that it was even possibe to barbeque a beef rib. I still remember Elliots Original on Brookside. Best beef ribs ever. Hickory sauce came warm on the side in one of those diner style metal creamers. And what about bologna? I love bbq'd bologna (as do a lot of folks in Oklahoma) but I've never seen it available outside of the Sooner State.

I'd NEVER be able to be a waitress. I have a hard time being pleasant over the phone at my calling center job. Definitely at least partly introverted.

Raw oysters. After 2 or 3 dozen, it's like a monster gets in me! I can go till I drop.

Brunch? I like the idea of it. But in execution it always is exactly what's up above. Crowded, rushed, and loud. Why head to a "nice" place. The staff often thinks brunch is beneath them and the food is less than compelling.

It's better to just head to a diner. You can have breakfast, lunch, or whatever at any time during the day. And If it's BYOB you can have your mimosas ten times cheaper than what you'd pay anywhere else.

If you want to stay awhile, slide the dude a little cash so he knows he's not going broke by letting you sit there!

Lets see, all you can drink wit ha burger or omelet included for $18. Nto a bad deal. I like to drink, so count me in. The way I see it, a standard tip for the food and three drinks. Every drink after that, if brought to me in good time, I will add a fair amount to the tip for each one.

Screwdrivers and Greyhounds for me. At least seven. Where I live, that's a good $28 to $30 in drinks alone. Add a burger for $7.00, so the normal bill without tip would be near $40. I would fell that at the very least, leave a $10 tip. With six in the group, a $50 to $60 tip shouldn't be too shabby.

Just don't rush me, and keep the drinks coming at a brisk pace.

Solution: tip up front.

Love brunch! But having been a waiter intermittently for 7+ years in NYC, I feel for the waitstaff. Even if your restaurant does not serve All You Can Drink, brunch is the most horrid of all shifts. There are a lot of reasons!

1) You probably worked the night before, late at that, OR you are about to work a double. Possibly both. You make your money on weekends but brunch makes you pay the price. When I worked at one "hip" restaurant, between Friday dinner, Saturday brunch and dinner, and Sunday brunch and dinner, most servers worked 3 or even 4 of the possible 5 shifts. Usually that meant you worked until 2 am Saturday night, got a few drinks after work and home at 4 am, and then up at 8 am to get ready for Sunday brunch. Bad mood!

2) Brunch is turn and burn. Even leisurely brunches. The check average per costumer is lower, so there are less waiters with larger stations. A lot of people get only 1 course and the tables turn faster. I often operated under the pretense that is is impossible to accomplish *everything* in a timely manner so surviving brunch is entirely about prioritizing - which tables can afford to wait an extra 5 minutes at their stage of the meal and not get pissed.

3) Managers don't like to work brunch either. There are less of them working, rarely a GM, and if you need a mistake taken off the check, you are going to get majorly backed up. Because of the fast pace, a small mistake can snowball pretty quickly and toss you further into the weeds.

4) The money vs. stress ratio sucks. If you work someplace where you can actually make pretty good money, you probably worked twice as hard for half the money of a weekend dinner shift. If you work someplace where the money sucks, your day drags on and there is little to show for dragging your ass out of bed that early.

This is why your server seems rude, frazzled, or asleep. Or drunk! I made a point of draining Bloody Marys at no less than half of my brunch shifts. Staying mellow and prioritizing offers your best chance of survival!

I think that dry spicy red peppers do it for me. One time I went into a pepper shop in Italy and was sampling the different products. Immediately after I was all over my boyfriend (at the time). Certainly increases circulation.

I can think of a handful off the top of my head: Pomegranate, bananas, celery (for females), peach (more for the vitamins & minerals than the shape), herbs -- basil, black pepper, cloves, ginger, cardamom...the list goes on.

I'm sure it says something about me, that this is the first time I am logging on to leave a comment! I belly laughed at the cherry stem postings...I entertained far too often in the pub of the restaurant my (ex) owned with my stem tying abilities. Two knots was my max! I have found that personally any food can be an aphrodisiac under the right circumstances....mood, your companion, atmosphere, ambiance, wine (have to stay away from the whiskey) or cocktails, just as long as I have been in on the cooking! It is the preparation that is sensual in my personal world.....

olddad is 100% right, womans brain is the basis for the sex drive. convince her that champagne and lobster will make her hot and it will work. old chef

the most sexual organ of a male is between his legs, for a woman, it's between her ears. if some of you males don't learn to understand this, you're doomed to locking yourself in the bathroom and doing it yourself.