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Restaurant stories
doubledragon
Posts: 23,013 ✭✭✭✭✭
in Sports Talk
I was inspired to do this thread because of a restaurant story I read on the John Madden thread told by galaxy27. I enjoy a good restaurant story, so if you have one, please share it with us, this thread will be open 24 hours a day!
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I remember back in the mid 90s, I was in Colorado and we went white water rafting, there were 7 of us, a mix of friends and family, and most of the terrain out there is mountains and isolated roads. We were hungry, it was about 6:30 p.m and we had been traveling on the road all day and we came upon a little diner called "Steak and Egg" and we went inside and sat down. I remember we started ordering our food, and I said I wanted a steak and the waitress immediately cut me off and said, "I'm sorry but we're out of steak and eggs." I couldn't believe that a diner called "Steak and Egg" was out of both steak and eggs. I never forgot that.
From My Cousin Vinny
Another story I've told before, we were at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond Virginia in the mid 90s, it's a real fancy hotel and my uncle had just gotten married and we were staying the night at the hotel, and inside the hotel there is a really nice restaurant. We were all checking in and standing around talking, and some whispers started up about Linda Hamilton from Terminator eating in the hotel restaurant. So we walked over to the entrance to the restaurant and peeked inside and sure enough, in the very back of the restaurant in a private area sat Linda Hamilton and a friend quietly eating her dinner. We stared in disbelief for a few moments and then left. I remember, I went and sat on the hotel steps that led down to the main part of the hotel, and I sat there for about ten minutes waiting for my grandparents and my uncle to finish checking in, and I was sitting there and I notice a lady approaching from behind me to walk down the steps. So I move over to let her by, and I glance at her and it was freakin Linda Hamilton, we made eye contact and she continued walking and proceeded out the side exit of the hotel. I couldn't believe it, I sat there in disbelief for about ten more minutes, just trying to comprehend it. I had just encountered Sarah freakin Connor!
The Jefferson Hotel
Inside the Hotel, you can see the red steps, those are the steps I was sitting on when I had an encounter with Sarah Connor.
I still remember when the McDonald's at my local mall got closed down for sanitation issues back in the early 2000s, the place was disgusting. It had a bronze statue of Ronald McDonald in front and fountain where people would throw coins into it. Of course, you couldn't help but swipe a few quarters from it. That place was disgusting inside. I remember one time, I walked into the bathroom and held my breath as usual, and there were opened packs of ketchup in the urinals. Try eating a Big Mac after seeing something like that! Man that place was a mess.
I remember back in the mid 70’s when I was a kid, probably 6-8 years old we used to go to a Chinese Restaurant called the “Tiki Lau” we always got the Pu Pu Platter and I remember always grabbing the terriaki steak on a stick and putting it over the blue gel fire in the middle of the platter, but on to the best part of a memorable time there.
One time we were waiting for a table and in the front entrance they had a rock lagoon where people would throw coins, back then 50 cent and dollar coins were heavily in use and the lagoon was filled with them, I remember climbing around in there and grabbing a handful of the 50 cent and dollar coins, my parents saw me after a few minutes and yelled at me to get out of there, I stuffed my pockets without them realizing and made off with a nice haul 😂😂😂
about 20 years ago i was eating at Pappadeaux's Seafood Kitchen here in Houston (my all-time fav place to eat) and i looked up to see none other than Dexter Manley sitting at the table next to me. he was with an older female. he grew up here, so i figured her to be his mom. anyway, remember it coming to light that he was functionally illiterate in college? well, when the server handed Dexter the check he could not read it. i watched him struggle with it, then he passed it along to the female he was with and asked multiple questions. he then pulled out a card, handed it to her, and paid for the meal.
Dexter Manley is a name that is absolutely NOT mentioned enough!
One place that I used to love to eat was at my local bowling alley snack bar, you could place your order and it would take about ten minutes and you can bowl while your waiting. I would always get the grilled cheese sandwich with a side order of fries and a Coke. They put butter on the toasted grilled cheese bread, it is delicious!
The population of my hometown is maybe about 50 people and 30 dogs but we've had a fair share
of sports stars drop in. Most recently Chipper Jones because he came out to hunt and ate at the cafe.
When I was a kid Amos Otis stopped at the gas station and talked to the farmers for 30 minutes or so
as the gas station was their place to play cards and talk about the weather my Dad included.
Local boys Mitch Webster and Dean Wade (Cavaliers) have ate at the cafe.
Chiefs radio announcer Mitch Holthus (not sure about the spelling) has dined there as well.
If you've ever seen Chiefs highlights on NFL network or ESPN and hear a really excited voice that's him. He's great.
A lot of times they will add his radio call of the TD or highlight to the video.
The cafe is called Mom's cafe and sadly she is now sick with covid and last I heard she was on a ventilator.
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I definitely did that with the teriyaki stick. Same thing. When I was young enough I remember thinking I was like an ancient man, cooking my meat over an open flame.
Moved to a small town, Marshall, Texas in 1987. Y.A. Tittle ate lunch in the same BBQ restaurant everyday. For you youngsters he was a football player. 😉
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
I have so many weird and funny restaurant stories that I can't remember them all. Most of my working life was spent traveling coast to coast. Gone from home 6/7 months a year. Eating in restaurants. I hate restaurants.......here's a good one......It was in some chain restaurant in Deleware or Rhode Island or somewhere around there. The joint had a shelf above my table and on the shelf was toy trucks, cars, trains, etc. I'm eating dinner. I drop my fork onto the floor. The waitress comes over, picks my fork up off the floor and hands it to me. I thought that was strange. As in unsanitary? But.....it gets better....She then proceeded to climb up onto the table and WALK AROUND inches away from my food so she could dust off the toys on the shelf. I can never get the picture of her dirty shoes out of my mind! I don't think I left a tip.
Actually I could write a book on this topic. Part of the Hydrant family business is installing and servicing restaurant kitchen fire suppression systems. We have people working in restaurants 24/7 -365. Oh, the stories I could tell. I'll try to make it simple. There is a certain type of restaurant where you have no idea what critter supplied the meat on your plate. Or in those cute little take out boxes with the little wire handles. I've seen things with my own eyes and talked to health code and fire code inspectors from sea to shining sea about it.......and if there is anything they all agree on,.....they don't eat at those places. I don't either. Draw your own conclusions.......On the bright side?.......Mom and Pop Italian restaurants have the cleanest kitchens and Momma ALWAYS feeds the crew...FOR FREE!.....MOMMA MIA!
WARNING!......It's best to avoid restaurants that have flocks of pigeons hanging around in the parking lot or nesting on the roof! Or restaurants in neighborhoods with an unusual amount of flyers on telephone poles asking for help to find missing house pets.
There wasn't on pole on the table?
Unfortunately not.....but if there had been a pole......I still wouldn't have "LEFT" a tip......If there was a pole I would have been tipping during her performance......and then.......I would have "LEFT!"......come to think of it..... she wasn't all that bad looking.........BUT THOSE SHOES!!!!!!
My life is RESTAURANTS!!!!!........You did this on purpose to me....didn't you, DD? You're evil! 👹
we had a chinese buffet in town a number of years ago that seemed fairly popular, and then all of a sudden it was closed. we found out later that immigration shut them down because of working conditions/workers undocumented. the owners were recruiting people from asia to come over and work. they were housed in a slumlord like apartment all cramped in together and were bussed to the restaurant everyday to work. very long hours, all under the table and less than minimum wage, then bussed back to the ghetto.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
This was about 1995. Had been dating a gal a couple months when we did our first get-away weekend. Nice B&B in Carmel, CA. Go out to a nice Italian place for dinner. Half through our meal they ask if they can take half our table (it was two two tops put together) which was fine as we didn't need it. Who sits down next to us? The most famous man in Carmel... Clint Eastwood along with his lady! I have been involved with a fair amount of celeb sightings but the setting made that one most memorable.