This year I'm in charge of Thanksgiving and I'm using it as a chance to show my family that everything on the table can be organic. They'll probably not care as long as it tastes good, but with all that butter being used I at least want it to be free of hormones and chemicals. Anyone else attempting this?
Almost any music that isn't too distracting is good. Just please don't seat me near loud people who talk about their latest "health issues" or those with screaming brats!
When i hear The "Lion's Song" from Lion King - I'm lookin for the 1st Tray of Wildebeast to arrive from the Kitchen --- :)
Why is it when I hear Brittany all I want to do is Drink ? Mario is great!
I couldn't love Mario Batali more, I realy couldn't. I've never put much thought into the kind of music I listen to when I eat, but when I cook it's got to be loud: The New York Dolls, Iggy and the Stooges, The Ramones- you get my drift.
Mario is the man! and he loves his music too! We're forever Mario fans now.
Loooooveeeeee this guy, love your cooking and love your passion for good food
I'm a musician and always aware of music in the background. Have you ever seen a movie without the background music? You don't realize how it sets the mood, increases tension. Sometimes it is just sound, like a beating heart, and it affects you, probably even more when you are unaware you are listening. Music is used in marketing, in grocery stores, amusement parks, cooking shows, restaurants. Case in point....I love Mario's cooking, but the screaming opera that he played on his show made me run for the remote. It assulted my ears. He must love it, because it was his theme song, but for me........pure terror. I love you Mario, and your cook books. ;)
Buschman.....Are you sure it was a Cajun Grocer issue, or a Fedex issue? Unfortunately packages end up in the wrong places too many times because they were put on the wrong truck...I know...I used to work for UPS.
About the Turducken....I worked for a doctor who, as a point of pride, makes his own Turducken for the holidays....he says it's great.
Turducken is one of the more repulsive combinations I have been subjected to over a long span of holidays. Dry turkey stuffed with greasy duck stuffed with undercooked chicken, all overspiced with sage. Yucccccch!
OMG Buschman! I'm glad you were able to regroup and that your kids understood. Thanks for that information - it's not like I'd order a Turducken without some serious interest from friends or family but now I know where I won't be ordering one.
As far as "local" purveyors...I have a horror story as well. I'm going to start a topic called Price Gouging. (Can ya tell where that's going????)
1.
I had my Christmas Eve dinner almost ruined by the Cajun Grocer’s incompetence.
I ordered a complete meal from them on December 13. They had said on their web site that they ship on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays so that orders will be received on the following weekend. Christmas Eve was a Monday so that left me with the entire weekend to make sure that the turducken would be completely thawed by Christmas Eve.
They shipped my order on Wednesday, December 19. I took a day off of work on Friday, December 21 since that was the day that the Fedex web site said was the delivery date.
I was nervous about shipping it with only two days to get from Louisiana to Chicago but I trusted that they knew what they were doing .. even at the busy holiday season.
When Friday came and went with no update from Fedex as to the progress of my package other than it had left Louisiana on December 19, I began to get nervous.
Saturday morning, I saw that my package had arrived … in St. Paul, Minnesota!! Now, Chicago is not like a small town where you can easily miss the exit on the interstate for us.
I tried to contact the Cajun Grocer on Saturday to see what they could do to help me. They had been promoting their products for holiday dinners, so, on the weekend just before the big holiday, of course, they were not working at all.
I saw later on Saturday that my package had left Minnesota on Saturday morning at 5am. It had arrived somewhere in Chicago on Sunday evening but, after that, there was no further information. By 11:30am on Christmas Eve, when there would be no time to defrost the bird for dinner, I called Fedex to tell them that I would refuse delivery of the package and then called American Express to dispute the charge for the dinner that I never had.
I had to throw something together at the last minute for my kids and their dates. Because my guests were my kids, they understood. But, as for the Cajun Grocer, they will never get my business again. As far as I am concerned, they are an outfit that is not big enough or organized enough to handle a large volume of orders in a time crunch.
I will stick to local food providers from now on. I advise you to do the same.
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Location: Bay City, Michigan
About: Former About.com guide to French Cuisine, food writer, web designer who recently met and fell in love with her husband via the Internet.
Favorite foods: fresh, local, made with love
Last bite on earth: really great bread