scott hutcheson

Best Day Ever?

This morning, Henry (age six) asked me what my "best day ever" was. I told him I had three best days - the day I married his mother, the day he was born, and the day his brother was born. He then replied, "My best day ever was the first time I went to Chuck E. Cheese but when I'm older and have more days to choose from, that probably won't be my best day anymore."

BTW, I've decided Chuck E. Cheese is to preadolescence males what Hooters is to post-adolescent males - all the things we love most under one roof. I didn't say I actually GO to Hooters, I just said they have all the things we love - beer, hot wings, big-screen TVs, and...owls...we're quite fond of owls.

What about you? What's your best day ever?

Corporate Merger/Slider: White Castle, Now Featuring Krystal Hamburgers

I'm in Georgia and I am so near Krystal hamburgers I'm dreaming about them. I went to college in this part of the U.S. and Krystals were an important part of my extra-curricular activities - late night/early runs to bring a bag full back to the dorm. I now live in White Castle territory with no Krystals in site. I like White Castle but I love Krystal.

My dream was about the merger of these two institutions. Like when BP bought Amoco and went with the "BP now featuring Amoco fuels" co-branding campaign, my dream merger went with a "White Castle, now featuring Krystal burgers" slogan. It was so real, but alas, merely a dream.

Big Breakfast

Man, it's hard to beat a good BIG BREAKFAST! Lisa and the boys made a quick overnight trip to Ohio to pick up Lisa's mom and bring her back to our house for Christmas. Lisa, being the supporting partner she is, said, "Why don't you stay home so you can have some quiet time to work on your book." That is undoubtedly the best Christmas present she could have given me - eighteen hours to write (I also managed to squeeze in some housework, some sleep, and that aforementioned BIG BREAKFAST.

I've not had a big breakfast in about three months. I've been dropping weight (30 pounds since October 1st) so the BIG BREAKFAST has been off limits. Instead I've been eating whole grain cereals and the occasional egg. I decided to take a break from the routine and indulge a bit. For me, my ultimate breakfast splurge is hash browns. I like 'em extra-crispy with onions and I use lots of ketchup. So, my BIG BREAKFAST included hash browns, scrambled eggs, sausage, sourdough toast and strawberry jam. I washed it down with about four cups of decaf and real half and half. Wow, it was good. This particular breakfast was consumed at Flap Jacks in Lebanon. My server, Steph, took good care of me.

What about you? Do you enjoy the occasional, or frequent, BIG BREAKFAST? What's your favorite - pancakes, biscuits and gravy, corned beef hash? Do tell! 

The Teen Burger

When I was three years old my quiet life, with just a mother, sister, and a small dog, turned on a dime when my mother married a widower Baptist preacher with eight kids of his own, and a big dog! Some of my earliest memories of my step siblings are of visits to the A&W drive in. At the time, the A&W menu featured the Burger Family with Mama Burger, Papa Burger, Teen Burger, Baby Burger, and the patriarch - Grandpa Burger (Nobody knows why there was no Grandma Burger and Grandpa ain't talkin').

During A&W visits these first few years, the Baby Burger was just fine with me. I was just happy to be cruising around with the big kids in our Dodge Dart. Soon, however, I began to look to my older siblings and long for the day when I too could order the Teen Burger. It seemed so sophisticated with the bacon and the Teen Sauce (yes, it was actually called Teen Sauce). The Teen Burger became a real part of my vision of what being a teenager was all about. Unfortunately, the Burger Family disappeared from the A&W menu before my voice changed. Today the Papa Burger is the sole survivor. Maybe he's the one who knocked off Grandma as well as the rest of the family. Today's menu does include a Bacon Cheese Burger with "special sauce." Still, its just not the same as calling it the Teen Burger.

Apparently the Canadian A&W restaurants still offer the Burger Family. Maybe the whole clan was a bunch of draft dodgers and headed north to avoid the Vietnam draft. 

I Love a Good Cuban

Not the cigar but the sandwich - THREE kinds of pork, cheese, pickle, mustard and mayo - all pressed between crusty bread. This is great stuff. Unfortunately I've had many more mediocre versions than truly exceptional ones. I've yet to find a great one in my home state of Indiana. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places.

A couple of weeks ago I was traveling in Leesburg, Florida and looked up while driving to see a tiny little place called the Latin Cafe. The hand-painted cinder block mural said "Home of the Authentic Cuban Sandwich." I slammed on the breaks and made a quick right-hand turn with the reflexes of a Formula One driver. This place was just what you might expect - family run, no frills. The menu on the wall included some great Cuban favorites you would expect to see much further south in Florida - Devil Crabs, Stuffed Potato Balls, lots of black beans. What I was after, of course, was the sandwich. It sells for just $5.00 or you can get a cold version for $5.25 (I can't quite figure that one out). Anyway, I ordered the hot one and it came post-haste wrapped in white wax paper.

Man, this was a good sandwich. The crusty bread was as fresh as can be and the ham, roasted pork, and salami worked together like a Cuban Rumba. The tangy pickle and the mellow cheese added extra layers of flavor and texture. I've so often paid so much more for so much less!

If you find yourself in Leesburg, Florida, don't miss the Latin Cafe. You can get all the details and the menu here.      

The   

Dinner with the Fab Four

Originally published in the Lebanon Reporter on November 30, 2006

Gas to Orlando and Back - $200. Single-day tickets to the Magic Kingdom - $190. “Character Dinner” with the gang from the Hundred Acre Wood - $120. The joy on my youngest son’s face when he got hugs from the Pooh, Tiger, Eeyore, and Piglet - Priceless

Nearly two years ago my wife’s mom joined the ranks of the other snow birds by taking up winter-time residence in Central Florida. With a free place to stay near Orlando our family has made Walt Disney World a frequent vacation destination. A few months ago, we decided to spend Thanksgiving with her and to take in yet another visit to Disney.

My youngest son Oliver, who will be two in January, has no knowledge whatsoever of the original Fab Four but screams like a Banshee at the sight or sound of Winnie the Pooh and his pals. We had tried to get a reservation at The Crystal Palace where you can dine for breakfast, lunch, or dinner while Pooh, Tiger, Eeyore, and Piglet work the crowd, table-by-table, signing autographs, hugging kids, and posing for photos.

We were not able to get reservations but my wife was determined to somehow get us in. Her persistence paid off and we took advantage of some no-shows and got a table for dinner. A couple of years ago before Oliver arrived on the scene, we had breakfast at the Crystal Palace with a then three-year-old Henry. but he was really an Elmo man and had only a passing interest in Christopher Robin’s friends.

Oliver, on the other hand, reacted as we expected. He greeted each of the characters with glee, squeals, and unbridled joy. We had the video camera rolling and were snapping digital pics as well but I don’t think my wife and I will need these images to remember the occasion. It was one of those parental moments that gets burned into your brain.

Even with these big-headed distractions, Oliver and the rest of us managed to enjoy our meal. The Crystal Place is a high-end buffet with lots of choices to accommodate just about anyone. Selections range from PB&J, mac-and-cheese, and chicken fingers to very sophisticated offerings like Ancho Chili Rubbed Atlanta Salmon and Broccoli tossed in Puri Puri and topped with Key Lime Ponzu. Food at Disney has certainly changed since I was a kid.

We were also surprised at some of the healthy food options at even the most affordable eateries. The burger joint in Tomorrow Land where we ate lunch includes veggie burgers on the menu and kid’s entrees come with milk to drink and carrot sticks as a side item. If you want soda and fries instead, you have to ask for it. At $3.99, the kid’s meals cost just a little more than the typical interstate-exit fast-food joint.

Although I never participated in any boycotts, in my younger days I had some anti consumer-culture leanings and thought giant corporate conglomerates like Disney were symbols of much that was wrong with the world. Fast forward a couple of decades and I’m a mini van-driving dad gladly shelling out a few hundred bucks to provide my boys with memories that will last a lifetime. You probably won’t catch me wearing any Mickey Mouse attire but Pooh, Pirates of the Caribbean, and all the rest are likely to be part of my life for quite some time.

On the Friday after Thanksgiving when most of the rest of the US was nursing a L-trypotophan-induced hangover and grazing on hair-of-the-dog leftovers , my wife and I, our two boys, and my mother-in-law were braving the crowds at the self-proclaimed “Happiest Place on Earth.”

America's Best Restaurant Families

Jones Dairy Farm has once again sponsored a contest that seeks out the best family-owned restaurants in the U.S. You can check out the results here. Also, here are a few stats about family-owned businesses in the U.S. U.S. Family-owned firms comprise 80 to 90 percent of all business enterprises in the U.S., employ 15% of the workforce and contribute 19% of all new jobs.  However only 30 percent of family-owned businesses continue to the second generation, 12 percent to a third generation, and only 3 percent operate into the fourth generation.

The De Licious Code

This week's Lebanon Reporter column is posted over at my Hungry Hoosier blog. You can find it here.

They Pre-Bake Biscuits Don't They

You know that feeling you get when you sense something dreadful is occurring and it is so hideous that you pray you won't have to see it with your own eyes? Just knowing about it is bad enough? Like in the closing scene in Seven when you know what's in the box but you don't want to see it. So it is for me with prebaked biscuits. I knew they were out there, I've had a few. They are awful. Dry and heavy. Sure, they get camouflaged with ladles of gravy or dressed up as "breakfast sandwiches" but they are still terrible.

The other day, while getting a cup of coffee, I saw them in their natural state - thawing from their frozen tomb, assembled by the dozen in cardboard trays, hermetically encased in plastic wrap. Oh the humanity, oh the shame of it.

What is it about these restaurants that don't actually cook anything? They merely assemble pre-prepared institutional foods and pass them off as something more.

Porter, Coltrane, Armstrong, Parker, & Redding

It sounds like a standards-jazz-soul lover's answer to the question, "Who do you want to meet in heaven?" but it is actually the sandwich line-up at the Vienna Espresso Bar and Bakery. This place has been an institution in West Lafayette, Indiana for as long as I've been around the area, so at least ten or 11 years. The sandwich selections have been the same that whole time as well. The Cole Porter, the John Coltrane, the Louis Armstrong, the Charlie Parker, and the Otis Redding. They don't print a menu, so I snapped the photo of the whiteboard to give you an idea of what they have to offer. Besides the sandwiches, they've got a few salads, some great baked goods, and a full espresso menu.

They also offer free WiFi so it is a great place to semi-escape and still get some work done. On my last visit I took some work-related reading material and settled in with a lemon bar and a mug of java. This place is laid back and you can while away the hours with no pressure to vacate your seat. You'll see an eclectic mix of students and faculty of all ranges and seating is available at tables, couches, or outside.

Vienna is located at 208 South Street in West Lafayette, Indiana. They are open Monday - Friday from 8 am to 1 am and Saturday and Sunday from 8 am to 1 am. They can be reached by phone at 765-743-4446.