- Jun 12, 2014
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Just read @crosscreekcooter thread about the chicken joint in Jax and @AuggieDosta comment about the condition of the restaurant and it made me think of several places that I've "dined" that had great food and drink, but the condition of the place, the service or something else was lacking. The food, however, was able to overcome the 'what else' that wasn't up to par. We've all gone to these places (and didn't end up with ptomaine poisoning) and may have been a regular. Here's a couple from my lifetime...
Buffalo Wings and Things (the original) in Tallahassee - Think CJ's, only greasier. You could literally skate to your seating the floor was so slick and if you had on a long sleeve shirt, it would stick to the table top. The waitresses were all young and sorta trashy looking, but they could've been fashion models around 11:00 after they had sweated down in their white tank tops and jorts. The aroma of hot sauce and hot grease wafted through the entire restaurant. Your only respite was on the deck where the temperature usually pegged around 110 during the summer until the sun started setting. But the wings were fantastic and the beer was ice cold. On Thursdays they had .10 wings and 1$ pitchers. If you didn't mind fighting the crowd, you could do some serious damage. One of the best things they had were the curly fries. Made fresh, not frozen. First time I'd ever seen fries like this. Any wing order came with a basket. This was the only dump like this my wife would go to. We went with a group one night during the winter time and one of the ladies with us wore a white sweater. She looked like she had swabbed down with Merthiolate when we left. Sadly, the owner of the place got into some trouble with the law and they sold it and it's now some sort of Caribbean grill. I miss it, but my heart and arteries are probably glad.
Luten's Drive-In in Quincy was a long time fixture when I was growing up and until it closed back in the '90's. The food was fantastic! Best hamburger around and a barbecue sandwich that wouldn't wait. Always had a Blue Plate Special if you ate inside. You could even get a ham and egg sandwich with mayo that was really good. Their barbecue was the best, however. Had two pits on either corner of the building with a rotisserie in each. An old black guy with a wooden leg named "Booster" worked the pits and they only used fresh ham to be smoked and then sliced very thin. A sandwich on toasted bread with their homemade barbecue sauce was unbeatable. Where they fell short was in the service. Ms. Hasty Luten was about as crusty as they came and when she waited on your table, she'd throw the menu at you and then bark "What you want?" None of the other waitresses that they hired had a full set of teeth and one, named Polly, was short, fat, and mean. One of the big shots in town was in one morning for breakfast and was leaned up against the table top when Polly yelled at him "Get your @ss off the table top! You don't put your @ss on the table at home, do you?!" He quickly took a seat. Shirley, the car hop, was the best however. She was right homely, but could take orders from three cars without writing a thing down and get the orders right every time. In between orders, she sat on a bench reading a novel of some sort. Always heard she was the Valedictorian of her graduating class. Only problem she had was she'd get in the back seat with a drunk from time to time and if we were beside them, my grandma would make me eat with her hand over my eyes.
If you've a mind, let's hear about some memorable joints you might have happened by or even frequented.
Buffalo Wings and Things (the original) in Tallahassee - Think CJ's, only greasier. You could literally skate to your seating the floor was so slick and if you had on a long sleeve shirt, it would stick to the table top. The waitresses were all young and sorta trashy looking, but they could've been fashion models around 11:00 after they had sweated down in their white tank tops and jorts. The aroma of hot sauce and hot grease wafted through the entire restaurant. Your only respite was on the deck where the temperature usually pegged around 110 during the summer until the sun started setting. But the wings were fantastic and the beer was ice cold. On Thursdays they had .10 wings and 1$ pitchers. If you didn't mind fighting the crowd, you could do some serious damage. One of the best things they had were the curly fries. Made fresh, not frozen. First time I'd ever seen fries like this. Any wing order came with a basket. This was the only dump like this my wife would go to. We went with a group one night during the winter time and one of the ladies with us wore a white sweater. She looked like she had swabbed down with Merthiolate when we left. Sadly, the owner of the place got into some trouble with the law and they sold it and it's now some sort of Caribbean grill. I miss it, but my heart and arteries are probably glad.
Luten's Drive-In in Quincy was a long time fixture when I was growing up and until it closed back in the '90's. The food was fantastic! Best hamburger around and a barbecue sandwich that wouldn't wait. Always had a Blue Plate Special if you ate inside. You could even get a ham and egg sandwich with mayo that was really good. Their barbecue was the best, however. Had two pits on either corner of the building with a rotisserie in each. An old black guy with a wooden leg named "Booster" worked the pits and they only used fresh ham to be smoked and then sliced very thin. A sandwich on toasted bread with their homemade barbecue sauce was unbeatable. Where they fell short was in the service. Ms. Hasty Luten was about as crusty as they came and when she waited on your table, she'd throw the menu at you and then bark "What you want?" None of the other waitresses that they hired had a full set of teeth and one, named Polly, was short, fat, and mean. One of the big shots in town was in one morning for breakfast and was leaned up against the table top when Polly yelled at him "Get your @ss off the table top! You don't put your @ss on the table at home, do you?!" He quickly took a seat. Shirley, the car hop, was the best however. She was right homely, but could take orders from three cars without writing a thing down and get the orders right every time. In between orders, she sat on a bench reading a novel of some sort. Always heard she was the Valedictorian of her graduating class. Only problem she had was she'd get in the back seat with a drunk from time to time and if we were beside them, my grandma would make me eat with her hand over my eyes.
If you've a mind, let's hear about some memorable joints you might have happened by or even frequented.