The Owl - Feedback

You all know I'm opening a place soon. I've got lots of things I'd like to bounce off y'all. I figured I'd just make a thread to keep it all contained.

I think this is the opening burger menu:

*unless otherwise noted, all burgers use a beef patty.

san sebastian
- chorizo patty, romesco ketchup, asparagus puree, egg 63º, goat cheese

cuban
- pork shoulder, spiral ham, pickle, garlic mayo, mustard, swiss

old fashioned
- tomato jam, pommery mustard, lettuces, aged cheddar

blt
- avocado, egg 63º, bacon/tomato jam, lettuces

spicy
- pork shoulder, apple/chili compote, pommery mustard, lettuces

black & blue
- blackening spices, bleu cheese cremé, lettuces

german
- ale onions, sauerkraut, mushroom, gruyére

breakfast
- bacon jam, egg 63º, hash brown, aged cheddar

veggie
- beet root patty, romesco ketchup, goat cheese, lettuces

build your own
- anything

The spicy one sounds good.

All that sounds pretty good! I want them now!

They do sound pretty interesting even if I don't know what some of the ingredients are (what constitutes and ale onion?)

Can't wait to try your grub someday sir!

Ale onions are sauteed onions deglazed with ale.

can I get mine rare?

If you really really want it rare, we'll do it.

But I don't recommend it.

I was kinda joking cause a number of burger joints wont do it as the health department prohibits it here.

The default temp is medium - it's how I recommend eating a burger.

Some things like the chorizo burger will be cooked well done by default - it'll freak people out at anything less.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

Ale onions are sauteed onions deglazed with ale.

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This sounds wonderful. :tu:

Holy Nuts! at the Black&Blue!! Can't wait.

Talk to me about this beet root patty, I'm curious.

Great menu. I love that there isn't tomato slices on everything. Aside from not liking the texture, they cause a tectonic shift in burgers and slide everything out of balance.

I would eat the shit out of these burgers.

It's grated beet root, carrot, bulgur wheat, and panko. Possibly corn.

edit: celery root for some saltiness.

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Originally Posted by arjue

Great menu. I love that there isn't tomato slices on everything. Aside from not liking the texture, they cause a tectonic shift in burgers and slide everything out of balance.

I would eat the shit out of these burgers.

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Thanks. I really tried to look at the burger and address some problems I saw with them. Like bacon. We're making it into jam so that we can get even coverage over the entire bun and not have to deal with mushy flabby bacon. For tomato, we'll definitely use slices when they're in top shape during the summer. But putting a shitty, flavorless, half-green slice on a burger in the middle of winter is useless. For the rest of the year we'll make jam out of ripe canned tomato. - and it's only on the burger if the flavor profile calls for it.

Do your burgers come with fries?

No, everything is a la carte.
Burgers should be 8 or 9 - whichever it is they'll all be the same price.
Potato fries should be about $3 and will be free refills.
Sweet potato fries with brown sugar butter dipping sauce in fall/winter, and zucchini fries w/ citrus mayo in spring/summer - $4.

Everything we can make we'll make ourselves - and that makes things cost a bit more. I think the tradeoff is worth it for the things we're offering. You don't come here for bullshit food. It may just be a burger, but we've put some real time and effort into making this stuff - and making it well.

The beer/cider list is looking pretty serious so far. I'll post that when it's finished.
For the bar we're only stocking one variety of each spirit. It's the one we think is the best for your money. Don't like Original Gin? Too fucking bad - it's SC made and we think it's great.
"But it's expensive!"
Right. Come here to enjoy food and drink. Not shove shit in your face.

What's the weight of the burger? An 8oz or is it larger?

6oz patties. It's the optimum size for the meat to bun to condiment ratio. As you're aware from my blog posts I hate what I think of as "Fat Food" - a 1lb burger slathered in butter and mayonnaise between 2 grilled cheese sandwiches between 2 donuts. DEEP FRIED!!! Anything above a half pound and you're in that territory.

I was more concerned for the Cost/Profit ratio. 6oz for 8-9 is good pricing.

If any of y'all want to read the blog about the restaurant, the dick in my sig is a link to it.

I don't work in the restaurant industry, and I don't go out to eat a lot, so I'm not that well-versed in menu language. Perhaps this will help you.

If you state in the first line that all burgers are beef unless otherwise noted, I would list the beef patties first, so that you are starting with the rule, rather than the exception. It's not so much to establish a hierarchy, but rather to organize the menu. Beef, then meat, then non-meat. Order the items from the most conventional to the more experimental. The person who wants a standard hamburger will probably want to know where it is first. Some people just want what they want; no worries; that's just how some people eat. The person who wants the most off-the-wall selection would probably benefit from some sort of subliminal suggestion of which one is the most off-the-wall.

Tell me about your bread. Who bakes it? What is the texture? How does it set you apart?

I am also a bit unclear about the "unless otherwise noted." If you said "unless otherwise noted by an asterisk," it would be much more clear about what is beef, what is beef and supplemented by other meat, what is only other meat, and what has no meat, without having to muck up the menu with funky fonts or unnecessary verbiage.

I would also like a little more details about preparations. I want to be surprised by your amazing flavor combinations, but not necessarily how it is prepared. For example, is the Cuban a Cuban sandwich or a hamburger inspired by a Cuban sandwich? Is it pressed? Does it use the same bun?

If you are going to be specific about the types of cheese in "Gruyere" vs. "Swiss cheese," I would use the same specificity for the other cheeses. People like me are totally gay for that kind of stuff. Is it "aged cheddar," or is it two year aged reserve Vermont cheddar?"
Change the accent on the e in "Gruyère"

That's all solid stuff Tones. This was just a list from my notes. Although I'm adamantly against menu descriptions other than a list of ingredients/preparations. I don't like to flower things up at all.

What we will have on every table is a list of our purveyors and their products we use - that'll have some of the flowery descriptions in it.

This is about half of the beer list so far. I've still got things to taste and other to write up from the tasting notes.
But to give y'all an idea:

the menu will have the tasting notes as below, with recommended food pairings. Below each item on the burger menu I'll have drink recommendations - and why we think that's a solid pairing.

Allagash
Curieux - unique barrel aged ale, touch of sour, complex, balanced
german
Odyssey - dark, complex, woody, malts, nice bitterness.
black & bleu
Black - very dark, chocolate, coffee grinds, bitter, viscous
sweet potato fries
White - light, easy drinking, touch of spices, great with nearly anything
veggie, old fashioned, salads, san sebastian

Dogfish Head
Midas Touch - very complex, grape, honey, spice notes, good mouthfeel, vinous
blt
Palo Santo - unique. boozy, woody, thick, borders on a liquor taste. when you want something different

Abita
Harvest Pecan - wheat, nuts, malt, light bitter, long finish
veggie, sweet potato fries
Amber - lighter style, balanced bitter/sweet, nice and easy but not boring
veggie, old fashioned, spicy
Andygator - complex, malty, long finish of nuts and wheat
german, breakfast
Abbey Ale - Abita example of a Belgian style ale - I like it
cuban, breakfast

Thomas Creek
Cat 5 IPA - local ipa. hoppy, resinous, piney
san sebastian
Stillwater Vanilla Cream Ale - not your normal "dessert beer", just a hint of vanilla, light and easy to drink. recommended.
sweet potato fries

Mikkeller
Ris a la M'Ale - medium bodied, light cherry taste, touch of nuts on the finish, great balance
black & bleu, san sebastian
Big Worse Bourbon Barrel - serious stuff - dark, complex, all the whisky flavors and aromas without the whiskey burn. really like it.
black & bleu, old fashioned

Southern Tier
Creme Brulee Stout - burnt sugar, vanilla, cream, caramel. dessert style beer.
on its own

For the record i read your blog regularly and its great. Please keep it up.

That German sounds awesome. I love Black & Blue too, but it's not as unique.

Somewhat related question: Is chorizo always pork? And specifically is yours?

I love the sound of that breakfast burger.

I was having a thought, since I noticed how much you like making french toast, how would a french toast burger fare? There's a food truck down here that has a french toast hot dog that's really good, it has a lightly battered bun, topped with a shredded apple slaw, spicy mustard and maple syrup. I bet you could make something neat with a burger.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

The default temp is medium - it's how I recommend eating a burger.

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Good man. The health department here won't let you make a burger any less than "medium well." For the most part, "medium well" is slightly charred, and "well done" is a blackened hockey puck. Although if you are lucky, a "medium well" might be pink and mooing! I'd kill for a good burger place around here.

When is The Owl actually opening? The NC contingent could come test it out to make sure it's safe for the rest of TNL. ;)

I can't get fries included with a $9 burger. That's bummy.

Menu looks good and different.

RE: Cuban,

Using a panini press? What type of bread?

1 all burgers the same price? The cost can't all be the same. I mean no one will buy a $9 BLT. Even a gourmet one can't fetch more than double the price of a regular one and here I can get a BLT with avocado for $3.50. So, I'd suggest dropping that from the menu.
2 tell us more about your chorizo? I've had great chorizo and really bad chorizo and I'm not versed, but I'm sure region has something to do with it. From whom did you learn how to make chorizo and where are they from? This may be my favorite... but I know what the black & blue is, so I know I'll like it.
3. What happens to an egg at 63º?

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Originally Posted by Doc Holliday

3. What happens to an egg at 63º?

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It reaches Iceland.

I would love to try this place.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Yoshi

That German sounds awesome. I love Black & Blue too, but it's not as unique.

Somewhat related question: Is chorizo always pork? And specifically is yours?

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Unless someone's doing it beef somewhere I'm unaware of, it's always pork.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Yoshi

When is The Owl actually opening? The NC contingent could come test it out to make sure it's safe for the rest of TNL. ;)

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Unfortunately, we're going to have to push the opening back by 2 weeks. Initially the idea was "by halloween" - but the surgery I'm supposed to have on my sinuses can't be done until Sep 29th. The day before we take possession. I'm not supposed to do anythign strenuous for 2 weeks after it. So now we're thinking mid November.

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Originally Posted by Razor Ramon

I can't get fries included with a $9 burger. That's bummy.

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We're trying our best to keep the prices reasonable while still using grass-fed beef from local ranchers as much as we can. It's more expensive, but it's better for the world.

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Originally Posted by Type Ryan

Menu looks good and different.

RE: Cuban,

Using a panini press? What type of bread?

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In this instance I'm adapting my normal pressed Cuban to a burger version. It's going to come on a regular roll. We're looking at all the bakeries in town to see if we can use one of them for our rolls.

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Originally Posted by Doc Holliday

1 all burgers the same price? The cost can't all be the same. I mean no one will buy a $9 BLT. Even a gourmet one can't fetch more than double the price of a regular one and here I can get a BLT with avocado for $3.50. So, I'd suggest dropping that from the menu.
2 tell us more about your chorizo? I've had great chorizo and really bad chorizo and I'm not versed, but I'm sure region has something to do with it. From whom did you learn how to make chorizo and where are they from? This may be my favorite... but I know what the black & blue is, so I know I'll like it.
3. What happens to an egg at 63º?

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1 - We lose a little profit on one and make it up on another. The BLT includes a burger patty - it just has blt toppings. Same with the breakfast, there's a patty on there. I'll have to explain that better.
2 - My chorizo is not like Mexican chorizo - it's more similar to the Spanish version. Less greasy, not as aggressively spicy. I didn't learn how to make it from anyone in particular. It's just my interpretation.
3 - At 63ºC the yolk of an egg turns into pudding. It's thick, custardy, and amazing. I have an immersion circulator that can hold water at a steady temp, so we just toss the eggs in there whole for 15 minutes - but they'll never overcook, so they can be held like that for hours. You'll only get the yolk on the burger, the white is still loose and runny at that temp.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

If you really really want it rare, we'll do it.

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Hooray! I often hate getting burgers from any moderately priced or higher place since they almost never allow rare. Medium is acceptable but well done makes me cry inside. (This does not apply to any of your burgers that include pork products, since I don't trust pig that isn't cooked all the way through.)

Bacon jam sounds amazing, I think I'm gonna make some of that this week.

It's one of those things that's like "This is on you now. If you get ill, we're not responsible. You insisted." Anyone eating rare burgers is aware of the risks - and it's not like you're going to die from it. You'll just get an upset stomach for a day. The server will be instructed to ask them twice:
"How would you like that prepared?"
Rare
"You're sure?"
Yes.
"Excellent"

And honestly, it's unlikely that you'll actually get sick.

And I forgot to mention that iceberg lettuce isn't an option. We won't even have any for the salads. The reason it's listed as "lettuces" is because we'll be getting whatever looks the best. One day it might be frisee, the next boston bib, after that a mix of 3, etc.

I spent years and years eating hilariously rare cow, I only got ill from it once... and I'm still not sure if the cow can be blamed for it.

That menu sounds excellent. Bring one to the west coast some day!!

Sounds pretty tasty overall. I must know what the hell tomato jam is. FANCY KETCHUP LOLOL.

If I were to open a restaurant, I would have an option for the "I Trust You burger". The description would read: Put your meal in the hands of the chef and whatever he feels like making. Special ingredients, adventure, possible danger abound. No complaining! The customer may state if they're vegetarian or if they have some crazy allergies, but other than that it's up to the chef as to what goes on the burger. I always thought that'd be kind of a neat idea.

I feel like that's what the special usually is when you're at a restaurant with a real chef.

I mean... all the burgers are the "I Trust You" burger, really. I think that is a cool idea though. I like eating at places where the menu doesn't exist, and the chef brings you whatever the fuck he feels like cooking.

Beet Root Patty!

True. But with the I Trust You idea you don't actually know what you're getting, whereas the daily special is (usually) either on a menu or some sort of signage up front.

Icarus - all your answers were satisfying. I shall try these burgers.


also: kudos for no iceberg lettuce, it is the bane of the common diner.

Everything on your menu looks really tasty. However, it tends towards the heavy/rich, which while awesome (and exactly what I want in a burger), you might want to have something, toppings wise, on the lighter side. I know you will have salads which can fill this niche, but it would be nice to have that option for a burger as well.

I'm not even sure I know how to make a burger that isn't rich.

Any ideas?

Veggie Burger?

Turkey burger with dried cranberries (maybe) and a slice of tart apple (definitely). Use a smelly cheese that will pair well with citrus, and serve it with a wheat beer.

No poultry allowed.

hmm. I don't think it would work very well with your beet burger. I've never tried it with beef... but maybe you should?

Maybe you should wait until the spring though... I can't imagine eating something like that when it is cold out.

Can I have goat cheese on any burger?

Build your own motherfucker, anything means anything.

But, Razor wants to feel special.

No snowflakes here.

A beef burger is always going to be a bit rich, but you can counter that with toppings. Apple slaw, citrus, cucumber and yogurt. Something bright and crunchy. These flavors often pair well with lamb or some type of game if you want to go down that route in the future.

I've got a lamb burger with gyro spices, tzatziki, tomato jam, and lettuces planned for the spring when the ranchers are doing fresh lamb.

I'll try to think Mediterranean for some inspiration.

Make a burger out of orphans.

So we're only planning on stocking one type of each liquor. We want to stock things that we think are a good bang for the buck and not the normal offering. IE no Bacardi or Smirnoff. Not being much of a drinker, this is the best I could come up with.

Gin - Cardinal Gin*
Tequila - Espolon, blanco and reposado varieties.
Vodka - Firefly Straight*
Spiced Rum - Kraken
Bourbon - Buffalo Trace
Moonshine - Dark Corner Distillery*

Various outlier liquors - Canton, Midori, Chambord, Gran Marnier, etc.

We need a Tennessee Whiskey, a Scotch, a Light Rum, and... what?
Things with an asterisk are not changeable. They're SC products. Open to recommendations on others.

I also invented a cocktail:
1 part Canton
1.5 part limonata soda
On the rocks.

For the moonshine, I suggest Kings County Moonshine. I'm not sure if they distribute that far but they're awesome and a Brooklyn favorite.

I think LOL Daniels is the only Tennessee whiskey. If you change Buffalo Trace to Evan Williams Single Barrel I would be your friend. If not, infuse that Buffalo Trace with roasted pecans to balance the nasty bite it has.


edit 1: don't trust that recipe, a local bar owner here does it and I have no clue what he puts in it minus the pecans, obviously
edit 2: Bulleit Bourbon may be less pricey than EWSB and is a close second for me, Knob Creek would be third

I can deal with an 8 dollar burger once in awhile, but it wouldn't be an every day lunch. That's for sure. Your beer selection is great. There is no burger on your menu I wouldn't try. But the breakfast and blt seem most enticing.

As for the rare thing... I eat my steaks rare. But hamburgers? Not as a rule, considering the meat that goes in to hamburger ground isn't always the top cuts I don't much see the point. If you're grounding your own meat and patties on premises it's a different story. Even then I'd just do whatever the house recommended.

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Originally Posted by Razor Ramon

For the moonshine, I suggest Kings County Moonshine. I'm not sure if they distribute that far but they're awesome and a Brooklyn favorite.

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Dark Corner Distillery is literally down the street from us. It's the first legal shine distillery in SC - and this area is known for shine. Perhaps more-so than anywhere in the country. We're going to be using their pot distillate for our own flavor infusions.

Doc, Buffalo Trace doesn't have to be the one - it just had some good reviews. But Evan Williams is a bit of a big boy on the block. Any lesser known?

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Originally Posted by Doc Holliday

I think LOL Daniels is the only Tennessee whiskey.

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There are other less known Tennessee whiskeys. They aren't high-end by any stretch but they're local favorites and damn good. I used to have a list but no more.

On EW: the table variety is dirt cheap ($12 per fifth), but the single barrel is dated by year and respected by it's peers ($23-$30). Some clowns may clown you by offering the frat-house Coors Light of whiskeys, not paying attention that it's the single barrel bottle up there. This may be why I have never seen it in a bar or restaurant. I have given two other cheaper options in the edit.

Razor is right, turns out George Dickel is a Tennessee whiskey and I'd drink it.

And your Tequila choice is good.

I was eyeing the Bulleit today, but didn't bite at the price. I'll grab some to compare to the Buffalo Trace.

Any place that doesn't serve a rare burger isn't a real burger place. If anyone asks for well done kick them out. I love it when the beef is the consistency of play-doh. I live 3 blocks from one of the best burger spots in LA. They are the shit. They have a great cucumber salad side option instead of fries. It is very refreshing and complements the rich burger perfectly.

Josh came pretty close to my preferred burger on the make your own places: grilled onion, blue cheese, and dried cranberry.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

If you really really want it rare, we'll do it.

But I don't recommend it.

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I insist on rare burgers whenever at a remotely decent burger joint, I have never, ever gotten sick as a result. There is no reason to be afraid of a properly cooked rare burger.

If I see a place that doesn't cook rare burgers, I assume they either use low quality meat or don't know how to cook.

Honestly, the county makes it pretty difficult.

If you were to sue me from getting food poisoning, you'd win. Restaurants refuse rare to shield themselves from lawsuits. I'm doing it since I believe in our food, know how to prepare it, and believe that people who are ordering rare know the risks involved. And there are risks. I'd wager you've had food poisoning dozens of times without knowing it if you're eating rare meat on the regular. But in the odds world, it's unlikely you'll get anything more than an upset stomach. Probably not even enough to throw up.

Also: my preference is for a medium burger. It's how I think a burger tastes best, so it's the default at the owl. To get a good sear on a rare burger is more difficult - often we'll sprinkle a little sugar on the meat to get a better crust on a rare order.

Going to see about buying this kitchen stuff.

http://greenville.craigslist.org/bfs/2604800917.html

I made another batch of the ginger brew - this time with meyer lemon and honey.

It's even better than the last batch.

I may have to offer this as a secret off-menu item. Make it ridiculous expensive - like $5 a glass. It's pretty costly to make.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

Honestly, the county makes it pretty difficult.

If you were to sue me from getting food poisoning, you'd win. Restaurants refuse rare to shield themselves from lawsuits. I'm doing it since I believe in our food, know how to prepare it, and believe that people who are ordering rare know the risks involved. And there are risks. I'd wager you've had food poisoning dozens of times without knowing it if you're eating rare meat on the regular. But in the odds world, it's unlikely you'll get anything more than an upset stomach. Probably not even enough to throw up.

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How can a sushi joint even operate, then? (not sarcastic, I'm curious) I mean I appreciate that rare meat is a statistically higher risk (though I maintain if it's fresh and it's cooked properly, that risk is very low), but it's across the board safer than any sushi.

I eat beef sahsimi at sushi joints too. I really do just enjoy raw beef.

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Also: my preference is for a medium burger. It's how I think a burger tastes best, so it's the default at the owl. To get a good sear on a rare burger is more difficult - often we'll sprinkle a little sugar on the meat to get a better crust on a rare order.

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Cooking a rare burger is hard(er). When I make my own I usually go medium rare because I'm lazy, I'm not a good cook, and meat that's been in my fridge a few days isn't the best. I'm not getting rare burgers off the grease trucks on the street either.

But if I'm at a restaurant it's something I expect to be available. Like a rare steak. Anything cooked past medium rare just tastes dry to me and it loses that flavor that the juice has. Makes me sad. I appreciate it's not everyone's taste, but it's one of those perks of eating at a decent place that makes me want to sit down and pay more than I would to go to the short order joint on the corner.

There's a world of difference between fish and meat. It's really about the fat that's in the meat. A land animal's fat goes rancid in a much different way than an ocean creature. You're far more likely to notice off fish than off beef. The fish fat starts to turn into ammonia when it oxidizes and gives it the distinctive "off fish" scent. Beef fat doesn't go rancid the same way - it starts to smell 'sweeter' before it smells off. Then you take into account meat sometimes having a "gamey" scent from the beginning and it's harder to tell with a quick sniff. It just takes a more trained nose.

Also, a sushi joint is more geared to storing protein below 40º at all times. Opening and closing a fridge during service makes it warm up some. It's not uncommon to find your reach in at 50º at the end of the night. The refrigeration fish joints use is a bit more on the high end. And they can literally keep the product on ice until the moment it hits a plate. There's no cooking to take into account, so the fish never even hits the temperature for bacterial growth.

When you're dealing with pre-ground beef the dangers increase dramatically. The beef has now been handled 3 times before it gets to your table. We'll be using pre ground beef for many reasons (mainly that we don't have the space to be grinding our own), but I'm confident in our purveyors and the quality of the beef we're using. Especially the local rancher stuff. I've been to the rancher's operation an know them personally - they can't hide behind a lawyer, so their product has to be fantastic to start with. Even when we do use SYSCO or Us Foods to source, we're using the grass fed higher quality option they sell.

Meat is only graded according to its fat content (select, choice, prime, and no-roll), but you can imagine that this doesn't tell the whole story. Just because a steak is well marbled doesn't mean it's quality meat. If an animal led a tough life the muscles will be tougher and less resilient than those on a pasture raised cow. Diet is a factor as well. Cows don't digest corn well and it basically just bloats them to market weight. A purchaser doesn't buy beef based on the finished poundage, they buy it based on the "hanging weight" which is what the cow weighs immediately after evisceration.

All this is a long winded way of saying you're much more likely to get fresh, quality fish than high grade beef. And the fish is more likely to be less handled, and better refrigerated.

Well that was a surprisingly detailed and informative answer.

Still, though, a rare burger is red inside, not raw pink. It's been cooked, that has to help when compared to sushi, which is just raw, no?

Rare beef is really just warmed up. It's not what I'd call cooked and hasn't reached an internal temperature capable of killing anything. There's a ring of searing around the inside that has killed any surface bacteria which is where the majority of any accumulated horror lives.

That's why ground beef is more dangerous than steak - crevices. Ground beef is like play-doh noodles all pushed together in a patty. There's a lot of surface area throughout the whole web for evil to grow.

It really just comes down to the quality of the product and the quality of the people handling it. If it's a good place you're very unlikely to get ill on a statistic level - though you most likely have been the victim of the shits many times from mild food poisoning.

I mean if I have, I've never noticed. And I've had some burgers that would be worth a shift on the bowl even if I had.

My fear of undercooked meat stems from that X-Files episode about the liver fluke people.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

Rare beef is really just warmed up. It's not what I'd call cooked and hasn't reached an internal temperature capable of killing anything. There's a ring of searing around the inside that has killed any surface bacteria which is where the majority of any accumulated horror lives.

That's why ground beef is more dangerous than steak - crevices. Ground beef is like play-doh noodles all pushed together in a patty. There's a lot of surface area throughout the whole web for evil to grow.

It really just comes down to the quality of the product and the quality of the people handling it. If it's a good place you're very unlikely to get ill on a statistic level - though you most likely have been the victim of the shits many times from mild food poisoning.

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Wouldn't you also agree that more of the meat comes in contact with more surfaces during the grinding process? If I grind my own, I'll eat it med rare.

Can I get my rare burger cooked at 92 F for six hours? Can you cook the egg at that temp, too?

Make me a sandwich with that 72 hour pastrami that the Modernist Cuisine guy served to Colbert.

Hub: Totally agree.

Doc: I know you're joking, but outside of the restaurant I can - I don't know what the benefits would be, though. It's like vertically aligned meat thread - I just don't feel like the trouble is worth it.

FB:I actually have the Modernist Cuisine set and could make the pastrami.

Without any facts, I was trying to concoct the perfect food poisoning recipe, which seems to be raw meat and eggs left out on a summer day. Turns out mayonnaise contains vinegar which is a preservative and not the culprit of many cookout food poisoning cases people claim it is.

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

Going to see about buying this kitchen stuff.

http://greenville.craigslist.org/bfs/2604800917.html

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This worked out awesome. He was including all the booth and chairs, art, water heaters, everything in the place but the hood and POS. And we don't need either of those!

9K to outfit the restaurant is ludicrously low.

Sweet! Just don't do like the burger joint near me that bought out a seafood place decorated with sailor shit.

Or do do it and leave everyone wtf!?!?ing.

No, we've already got some big pieces to hang - they're keeping all the "decor."

Except a Jim Beam bottle that's shaped and painted like an owl - I insisted.

The dude also showed us a nice trick about building a new bar with wood flooring pieces.

The rest of the menu?

Salads 4 / 6

mixed greens, beet root, pecan, dried cranberry, goat cheese, apple vinaigrette

mixed greens, shaved carrot, celery root, orange, olive oil, sesame vinaigrette


Snacks - 4

house dried beef jerky

egg 63º, lemon asparagus

marinated mixed olives

chef's choice cheese plate


Fries - 2.5

potato

sweet potato - brown sugar, butter sauce.


LN2 Shakes - 5.5

coffee / popcorn / malt

carrot cake

peanut butter / burnt marshmallow

stout / malt (21+)

vanilla

chocolate

You might be opening the best restaurant ever. Kudos recuerdos a todos.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

chef's choice cheese plate

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Yes please.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hubbitron

You might be opening the best restaurant ever. Kudos recuerdos a todos.

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Seriously. I hate how far away you are from me. You don't even know.

Thanks!

I know we're trying to do everything we can to make this place as awesome as we can with good music, food, and spirits. Not like every other place that says that though. It's not marketing speak to us - we're going way out of our way to connect with other local businesses, purveyors, and bands.

Have you considered putting recommended wines/beers on the menu to go with the entrees? I was just thinking that would not only be a good way to get people to try stuff they might not normally, but if done right, pairing can really, really enhance a meal.

The pairings are on the beer menu. I figure we shouldn't confuse people who aren't drinking.

I want to try that bacon purée you're topping on some burgers. Curious to see if it's as satisfying as the real thing.

I'd suggest adding a rye to your alcohol menu. I prefer crown, forty creek, or just about anything to canadian club.

I just read this thread from start to finish, haven't eaten yet, and my mouth is watering. Awesome stuff man. If / when I ever get over to the US I will definitely come spend a lot of money there.

Spent - We picked up a bottle of Bulleit Rye and I think it's pretty good. Mellow.


In other News, I posted this idea on the facebook page. What do you guys think?

People of The Owl Army - What do you think of having an indie/art-house/music-film night every once in awhile?

Like a $2 door charge and we play films that you can't see on big screens around here. Maybe once a month - we're looking at getting a 100" screen and a blu ray projector. But they're expensive and we want to gauge some interest.

I fucking hate you.

Send me a disc and I'll do it as part of a shorts night at some point in time. We can skype you in.

:O That would be awesome!!

No, I just mean we have nothing to compare to this - high quality art-burgers, fancy beers, and now movies?!? I may never move to SC but I'll find a way to end up there every year.


What do we have in Dallas? a burger joint that will feed you for free if you weight over tree fiddy.

Mr K, Dole, and any other movie nerds, is there a horror film with an owl(s)?? If not, the first movie should be The Birds!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by icarusfall

People of The Owl Army - What do you think of having an indie/art-house/music-film night every once in awhile?

Like a $2 door charge and we play films that you can't see on big screens around here. Maybe once a month - we're looking at getting a 100" screen and a blu ray projector. But they're expensive and we want to gauge some interest.

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Big projectors are always a good idea for a bar/venue/restaurant trying to push social events.

Hell even just for shows, having a screen/projector available for bands is pretty nice.