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Actually the more alcohol I drink the more I tip! So I've stopped ordering drinks when we go out for family dinners. What I spend in scotch at a bar for 2 drinks, will usually buy me a nice bottle for home.

I have expensive tastes for my whiskey, wine and martini desires. My alcohol component can run as much as $20 - 30 dollars - for drinks before dinner, throw in a bottle of wine and now I'm close to $70 / $80 dollars before any food comes to the table....Oy!

And yes I tip on alcohol. Good bartenders and wait staff need to compensated for their talents.

Now I enjoy a glass of water with a lime. I do reserve a few bucks for special meals out (anniversary, birthdays, big commission check etc. etc).

There's lots of ways to look at this situation. My favorite quote is 'every Chef has a bad night'!.

So many will say "send it back", "you paid for the product it should exceed your expectations", "they can't improve unless they know something's a problem...." etc. etc. yada yada yada.

And they are correct.

Others will say be sympathetic, patient, give them another try etc. etc. etc. and they too are correct.

I have had wonderful meals in places I swore I'd never go back and lousy meals in very top notch rated multiple star restaurants.

There is no right and wrong way to resolve your evening. It depends so much on a lot of variables. My personal approach is too just not go back for a few months. Watch the online restaurant blogs and reviews, see if it's a common problem amongst others who've eaten there. If it is, there's little chance they will survive as a business entity. If it was just a bad night and reviews are good, I'd give them another try.

It's only my two cents - have a great day.

I do chickens in my dutch oven all the time, instead of the crock pot. They come out better and are more moist due to the heat coming at it from all sides.

I set my oven temp to 150. It's surprising how heat will build up in the dutch oven.

Not as bad as a slice of pizza. I like eating them for lunch. However I usually only use half the bag of flavoring and will mix in some leftover proteins or veges from the nite before.

It's fun to eat fro .10cts/

And my pet peeve's are:
Wait staff who reach over full plates of food to pick up a glass to fill. Too many times their arm goes right between my mouth and my fork. I don't like smelling their skanky sleeves or risking hair or something dropping off on to my plate. I prefer they ask me for my glass and I will gladly hand it to them.

Also, I do a lot of business meals with customers / prospects. So while I appreciate a server asking how everything is, many times it's an interruption to very intense business conversations. I know it's a timing thing and they're looking for feedback. Sometimes I wish they would look for signs or signals that it's okay to stop by.

Otherwise great list. Thx

Been cooking since I was in grade school. Chose not to make it a profession. Have a large family, kids and grandkids and they all live with us. So I run my kitchen like a small cafe. Menus / financial analysis of supplies vs what's eaten / ongoing work to keep clean and food prepped for a variety of different schedules etc. etc.

So hanging out on the food boards helps a lot with recipes, shortcuts, new ideas. It's also very frustrating for us to all go out to eat (plus expensive) and / or call in for delivery pizza. And it's easier to produce healthier meals when done at home.

Besides all that, the whole process for me is relaxing. I take our food needs very seriously. I figure since we need to eat, I want to make it fun! Oh and by the way, with the swine flu / cold / virus season here, I have little faith in other people prepping my food. I know what my sanitation standards are.

Online user names are nothing more than the 'handles' we used to create back in the CB Radio days! Remember 'Breaker breaker 19 this is the Bandit'!

So now we're in cyberspace instead of radio wave space. I for one like to gage my online names with the nature of the site.

So for all the food sites I'm typically Ribster (extracted from the fact that I can't get enough of them) :0)

This is cool. Food Networking programmers had a deaf ear to those of us screaming out here in Cyber Space. The parent Scripps is shuffling around FLN due to it's revenue loss. Food Network I believe is there #1 revenue (at least for tv). So this makes sense and I for one look forward to it.

I hear the change won't hit till 2Q or 3Q 2010.

Cool - thought I was nuts. Am already thinking about Thanksgiving feast, along with some hearty soups, chiles and stews for the upcoming cool - cold weather.

No - I don't drink anything out of a box or carton. Even milk. If it's alcoholic needs to come out of a bottle, keg or can. No juice boxes either or soy. It's just not right. Okay the only exception and it's rare, is the occasional cup of coffee from a serving box from Starbucks - you know the ones they give you for a group of 12.

Would anyone ever consider having a good Scotch which dribbled from a box?

South Beach actually works for me.

Alton's a great guy. Have watched him for years, own some of his books and continue to be amazed by his talent.

However for those who don't watch the Food Network, people don't really know him. He's yet to jump into the mainstream media. With the exception of his books and I don't think he's got a restaurant like Bobbie, Mario and Symon. Nor the name like Giada. Nor his own national talk show aka Rachael.

The commercial interest regardless of the product, will help him draw additional coverage. Thus open up some additional opportunities for him.

I wish him well. Would be nice to see him on a few of the major network shows.