LUBBOCK, TX (Nov. 2, 2010) – InStore Buyer magazine, the only national business-to-business magazine covering the in-store bakery, deli and foodservice markets, announced today that United Supermarkets has received the 2010 InStore Deli Operator of the Year award.
InStore Buyer Assistant Editor Anna Comstock presented the award during a special ceremony today at the company’s headquarters in Lubbock, Texas. United’s Diane Earl, director of deli/foodservice, and Corporate Chef Chris Wilson accepted the award on behalf of the company.
United was chosen for the award based on recommendations from in-store bakery/deli executives across the country and the publication’s own panel of supermarket industry experts, Comstock said.
“We are extremely proud to honor United Supermarkets with this award – our highest honor and one that is bestowed upon the recipient by supermarket industry peers,” said John Unrein, executive editor of InStore Buyer magazine, based in Kansas City, Mo.
United was cited for its innovative marketing program, superior merchandising efforts at store level and dynamic multi-faceted approach to offering high-quality, innovative deli products geared for today’s consumers.
It's no secret I'm a huge fan of Rahr & Sons beer. We first discovered it when we moved (back) to Fort Worth in 2006 and our friends led us to this dream world where an unmarked brewery in a sketchy urban neighborhood opens its taps every Saturday afternoon and serves free beer to TCU frat boys, bikers, homeless men, gals like me, and the occasional dude dressed like Jesus.
Rahr has come a long way since then, while its grass roots marketing (free beer every weekend creates a fiercely loyal customer) and local sustainability keep it from expanding faster than it can pour.
I could go on, but this blog is called Dining Out in the Big Country, so let's get back to business!
Last night, The Turtle Restaurant in Brownwood hosted an Octoberfest paired beer dinner, featuring German cuisine by Chef Curt Sassak and four of Rahr's brews (my favorite four, mind you!). I've only been fortunate enough to eat at The Turtle once before, so I'm not sure what the regular Thursday crowd size is, but last night nearly every table in the small, brightly colored, eclectic eatery was filled. Let's get to the food, shall we? Course #1 (pictured above) was a large portion of a mild Camembert cheese served with a pear and dried cranberry chutney, arugula, and a buttery baguette toast with a sweet balsamic drizzle. This course was paired with a 6 oz. serving of Rahr's Blonde Lager. The Blonde is a very tasty but light golden beer, malty and sweet. It went very well with the likewise mild and sweet first course. The food was delicious, although the portion was too large, considering we had three more courses to go! Beer No. 2 was what made the 90-minute drive worth it: our only taste of Rahr's delicious Oktoberfest this year. Fritz Rahr (Rahr rhymes with bar) was there and visited our tables during each paired course to talk to us about the beers. We were very familiar with the tastes and with the brewing process, having toured the brewery more than once, but talking to the owner one-on-one was great.
Everyboy's doing an Octoberfest these days, and they're doing it earlier and earlier each year, Fritz said. So Rahr had to ramp up its recipe this year by increasing the alcohol content from 5.5 percent to ?? percent. I can't remember. Ha. The beer was a classic Oktoberfest, not too heavy, with its amber color and sweet, bready taste. Isn't it amazing when you don't know what you're tasting, then someone puts it into words for you, and "Aha..."? That's what happened when Fritz told me he couldn't overemphasize the breadiness of this brew. I got it.
The course was a Pederson-brand bison Polish smoked sausage with a warm, buttery potato salad. It was delish! Course No. 3: A pork schnitzel served over braised red cabbage with spatzel. New word for me! It was a tender pasta with a bit of a mac-and-cheese nod. If I'm somehow defiling it with that description, please forgive me. And forgive the fact that I kept tearing into the food before remembering to take a photo!
This course was paired with Buffalo Butt, a red beer that compliments meats. "A burger and a Butt is what we always recommend," Fritz told a nearby table. Buffalo Butt is a dark amber, caramel-y beer that I like with spicy foods. The schnitzel, while very tasty, wasn't spicy. I actually don't know that I've ever eaten spicy German food. Oh, the epiphanies. Hello, Gorgeous. Here, my friends, you have my favorite beer of all time, Ugly Pug. It's dark, somewhat sweet, chocolaty, with a bit of coffee. It's not as heavy as a lot of black lagers, but if I'm not careful I can accidentally make a meal out of this beer. And apparently it's great served over vanilla ice cream. YES, please.
The fourth course here is probably the most beautiful cupcake I've ever eaten, called a Macho Chocolate Cupcake, which is very cute considering a leopard-print chocolate medallion is far from macho. This doozie had a truffle baked inside and was swirled with a layer of buttercream icing. Tiny bites and tiny sips allowed this course to last a good half hour. My mouth said thank you.
And I say thank you to The Turtle and to Rahr & Sons for an amazing paired beer meal, which may have been my first ever! It was definitely my first Rahr pairing.
Turtle, I will return.
PS - Rahr is available at Brookshires grocery stores in the Central Texas area, at many locations in North Texas, and I believe at all Central Markets in the state. And apparently, it may be sold in Abilene and Lubbock sooner than later, but not all distributors live up to the standards Rahr & Sons holds for itself... so for now we'll continue to stop at World Market in west Fort Worth to stock up.
Remember when the restaurant at Sayles and Danville was called Enrique's? Well those owners are back and have opened a new restaurant there called Don Enriques.
They've owned the building all along, and most recently leased it to Amanda's which closed its doors earlier this year.
If you've ever been to Henry's in San Angelo, which gets fantastic reviews, you'll already be familiar with what the same owners are going for here in Abilene.
I don't make it down to the Abilene Regional Medical Center area very often, but did today and discovered a brand spankin' new Subway restaurant (with a drive-thru!) on Antilley Road right next to American State Bank and across the street from the hospital.
It opened on Sept. 9 and was sparkling clean and had a very friendly batch of Sandwich Artists. The new location is a stand-alone building and is very spacious with lots of windows.
(Aside: There is no Subway assembly team faster or more efficient than the crew at the Subway on South 14th. Next time I'll take my stop watch. I love them.)
The best part was we discovered the Subway Club Footlong is on sale for $5 right now! Can you say cheap eats?
I like the idea of a drive-thru, but all the options are so specific that I think I'd rather watch it be made.
We received this email from a KRBC viewer named Trish and I thought I'd share. I changed a few parts to make it a little shorter and easier to follow:
I contacted the Jack-n-the-Box manager about 3 months ago and informed him that his price on the drive thru sign ($2.49) didn't match what the register was charging ($2.59) for their Bacon Cheddar Potato Wedges. I visited the restaurant a couple more times that week and spoke with 2 other people that said they were the managers. All three time I refused to pay the higher price and twice they gave me the lower price but the 3rd time they wouldn't honor what the sign said so I left and didn't purchase anything.
I finally sent a letter to the corporate office and received a letter apologizing for the problem and they would notify the store. I went out there again a month ago and the problem was the same.
I again notified the corporate office and as of today I have not heard from them. On Friday evening I was out there again and the problem still has not been fixed.I know 10 cents is a minor problem but I am wondering how many other items they have prices displayed yet are charging a higher price. This is false advertising and with the economy like it is, is this Jack-in-the-Box's way of making people feel they are not paying high prices for food.
So what do you think? Would you keep going back? Would you care if an item was a dime off? Is it customer manipulation or an honest mistake?
LUBBOCK, TX (Nov. 2, 2010) – InStore Buyer magazine, the only national business-to-business magazine covering the in-store bakery, deli and foodservice markets, announced today that United Supermarkets has received the 2010 InStore Deli Operator of the Year award.
I've only been fortunate enough to eat at The Turtle once before, so I'm not sure what the regular Thursday crowd size is, but last night nearly every table in the small, brightly colored, eclectic eatery was filled.
Let's get to the food, shall we? Course #1 (pictured above) was a large portion of a mild Camembert cheese served with a pear and dried cranberry chutney, arugula, and a buttery baguette toast with a sweet balsamic drizzle. This course was paired with a 6 oz. serving of Rahr's Blonde Lager. The Blonde is a very tasty but light golden beer, malty and sweet. It went very well with the likewise mild and sweet first course. The food was delicious, although the portion was too large, considering we had three more courses to go!
Beer No. 2 was what made the 90-minute drive worth it: our only taste of Rahr's delicious Oktoberfest this year. Fritz Rahr (Rahr rhymes with bar) was there and visited our tables during each paired course to talk to us about the beers. We were very familiar with the tastes and with the brewing process, having toured the brewery more than once, but talking to the owner one-on-one was great.
Course No. 3: A pork schnitzel served over braised red cabbage with spatzel. New word for me! It was a tender pasta with a bit of a mac-and-cheese nod. If I'm somehow defiling it with that description, please forgive me. And forgive the fact that I kept tearing into the food before remembering to take a photo!
Hello, Gorgeous. Here, my friends, you have my favorite beer of all time, Ugly Pug. It's dark, somewhat sweet, chocolaty, with a bit of coffee. It's not as heavy as a lot of black lagers, but if I'm not careful I can accidentally make a meal out of this beer. And apparently it's great served over vanilla ice cream. YES, please.
I visited the restaurant a couple more times that week and spoke with 2 other people that said they were the managers. All three time I refused to pay the higher price and twice they gave me the lower price but the 3rd time they wouldn't honor what the sign said so I left and didn't purchase anything.
I know 10 cents is a minor problem but I am wondering how many other items they have prices displayed yet are charging a higher price. This is false advertising and with the economy like it is, is this Jack-in-the-Box's way of making people feel they are not paying high prices for food.