Off Topic... Waaay Off Topic-I'm A Closet.........

[Majordave]

Chef.

I recently worked a night as a guest chef (without pay except eat what I cooked) for a local restaurant/watering hole where I live. I lunched here for years and the owner took a leap last fall to obtain a liquor license and open in the evenings for dinner. I now teach a Hospitality Marketing business class that introduces high school students to the restaurant, catering and hotel/motel industries. Anyway, I cook a lot and teach cooking. The owner, Joe and I were discussing ways to get people into his restaurant in the evenings, especially on Mondays and Tuesdays. I suggested guest chef night as I had read about it somewhere. He liked the idea and asked me if I would.

The local newspaper got a hold of it and came to take pictures and write a story.

I'm now semi-famous in the little burg I live in for something other than putting people in jail and the dumbass that quit law for teaching and umpiring. (grin)

Links to the story and photos

Story link

http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=47454&format=html

Pictures link

http://amnews.mycapture.com/mycapture/enlarge.asp?image=22049649&event=679670&CategoryID=45425&picnum=10&move=F#Image

Don't laugh. I really can cook. Everyone's plates were completely clean that night.

[BrianC14]

Pretty cool, Dave!

There's no shame in showing off one's culinary skills.

I'm a home-bound cook myself - there's NEVER been a jar of Ragu or other store-bought sauce in my house since we moved here 16 years ago.

Lately I"ve been working on my BBQ skills (that's REAL BBQ, not grilling) and smoking. I'm not fantastic at it, but it's a fun journey, and it goes well with my beer-brewing. :(

[Majordave]

That is my other passion after umpiring. I can help you there if you need it. I regularly smoke meats in the spring/summer/fall. I have some folks wanting to bankroll me for a restaurant as there is no real BBQ here.

I don't think I really want to run a restaurant as I have too many other interests and it would essentially enslave me.

I have a name picked out though. "Q" . I envision it to be a upscale sort of a rib shack with barn wood, stools, a bar, private party room with 70" big screen and a weekly "chef's table" of other items, small bandstand with blues bands on weekends. Wings and things in bar area with lots of sports on TV, contests, etc.

Not ready to give up my day job yet.

[Umpire in Chief]

That's great Dave. I worked my way through college working at a few restaurants. I even made it all the way to lead cook at a locals favorite in Virginia Beach I worked at for 6 years. I considered cooking for a living, but hated the hours.

As for BBQ there's only one real BBQ, NC pulled pork. You can keep your saucy Memphis, St. Louis, Texas, Kansas City... And if you go any further north than say Richmond, VA there's no such thing as real BBQ. And some of the best NC BBQ is in Greenville. Mmmmm, Mmmmm. I'm drooling thinking about that. Or maybe I'm drooling b/c Brian mentioned beer, either way... :(

[Majordave]

There are plenty of good BBQ dishes that do not drown the meat in sauce. In fact, the best BBQ barely needs any sauce.

I inject whole slabs of pork ribs with a solution by using a turkey injector, dry rub and smoke with hickory for hours til I can slide the bones out of the meat.

I make a sauce that would make a dog turd taste good but I don't let anyone drown the meat in it. It goes on the side via a squirt bottle.

The carolina style pork I make is chopped "bark" from pork shoulder "butts" which has been injected, dry rubbed, smoked and pulled apart. I use mostly the outer dark, dark, brown bark and chop it with two cleavers on a cutting board then drown it in hot spicy apple cider vinegar sauce with black, red crushed peppers, salt, celery seeds, garlic and onion powders soaked in the vinegar for a few days/weeks. It is a crowd pleaser.

The "pulled", never sliced or chopped remainder of the shoulder is served dry with sauce on the side.

The texas beef brisket is a whole 20 lb plus brisket that has been cut into three or four large hunks to get more bark, dry rubbed, smoked for 14 or more hours over mesquite and charcoal then sliced thin and served with sauce on the side. Better than steak.

I smoke chicken wings with seasoning rubbed on the whole wing and smoke them over mesquite for three or four hours. No sauce required but they do taste good with sauce. This is my "chicken wings with a tan".

I am bragging but I do know what I am doing.

I am an equal opportunity BBQ lover/cook.

Just Smoke it!

That's great Dave. I worked my way through college working at a few restaurants. I even made it all the way to lead cook at a locals favorite in Virginia Beach I worked at for 6 years. I considered cooking for a living, but hated the hours.

As for BBQ there's only one real BBQ, NC pulled pork. You can keep your saucy Memphis, St. Louis, Texas, Kansas City... And if you go any further north than say Richmond, VA there's no such thing as real BBQ. And some of the best NC BBQ is in Greenville. Mmmmm, Mmmmm. I'm drooling thinking about that. Or maybe I'm drooling b/c Brian mentioned beer, either way...

[BrianC14]

That is my other passion after umpiring. I can help you there if you need it. I regularly smoke meats in the spring/summer/fall. I have some folks wanting to bankroll me for a restaurant as there is no real BBQ here.

I don't think I really want to run a restaurant as I have too many other interests and it would essentially enslave me.

I have a name picked out though. "Q" . I envision it to be a upscale sort of a rib shack with barn wood, stools, a bar, private party room with 70" big screen and a weekly "chef's table" of other items, small bandstand with blues bands on weekends. Wings and things in bar area with lots of sports on TV, contests, etc.

Not ready to give up my day job yet.

Get the book "Peace, Love and Barbecue" by Mike Mills. He's the only 3-Time World Grand Champion of "Memphis in May". He gives away most (if not all) of his secrets.

http://www.peaceloveandbarbecue.com/

His first restaurant (17th Street Grill) is located in Murphysboro, Illinois (my wife's hometown) - your description of your dream restaurant is just what his is like! Anytime we're visiting her parents, we stop in there. I haven't had the chance to meet him yet, but next time I'll have his book with me for an autograph. The book is combination biography / cookbook - and the anecdotes he writes are hilarious! My fave: "For every beer you drink, throw on about six lumps of charcoal or one small stick of wood." :)

Edited February 17, 2009 by BrianC14

[BrianC14]

Heck, Dave, if you have people ready to bankroll you, let me have the name of a good realtor, and I'll move there! I've got some restaurant experience (own a part of a place here that's been humming along for 7 years now) and I worked my way up in a couple during my college days.

:)

[scobes7]

I own a weber smoker myself and can't wait till spring....I am hungry..:)

[Umpire in Chief]

The carolina style pork I make is chopped "bark" from pork shoulder "butts" which has been injected, dry rubbed, smoked and pulled apart. I use mostly the outer dark, dark, brown bark and chop it with two cleavers on a cutting board then drown it in hot spicy apple cider vinegar sauce with black, red crushed peppers, salt, celery seeds, garlic and onion powders soaked in the vinegar for a few days/weeks. It is a crowd pleaser.

The "pulled", never sliced or chopped remainder of the shoulder is served dry with sauce on the side.

With the exception of the injecting it and sauce on the side this is similar to how my grandmother makes it.

I made it once and it wasn't as good, but I cheated using some liquid smoke in the crock pot, and only made it in a few hours.

I was probably 15-16 before I knew there was anything other than Carolina style BBQ. I went somewhere while my grandfather and I were out of town and ordered a BBQ sandwich, and was given this "thing" with minced meat I couldn't honestly tell if it was pork or beef, it was redish with sauce. I honestly asked my granddad what the hell was this?

Over lunch he explained to me there were different types of BBQ. I ate it and it was okay.

That being said I have very much taken to a place not too far from HokieUmp's neck of the woods called Pierce's BBQ it is saucey but the best saucey BBQ I've ever had. Any time I have to go to Williamsburg for work I try to conveniently schedule it around lunch there.

[BrianC14]

I own a weber smoker myself and can't wait till spring....I am hungry..

Who waits for spring? I make sure to keep a good-sized plastic shovel on the deck, just outside the door. That allows me to shovel a path to the smoker/grill all year 'round. Cold? Go stand next to the fire box - it'll drive you back into the cold!

I use a Char-Griller Pro with a side-fire box. www.chargriller.com It's worked really well now for (knock-on-wood) 5+ years. Secret learned from Mike Mills: Never, never, never, EVER use charcoal briquets. Only hardwood lump charcoal. Cost more, but it doesn't have all those chemicals that briquets have.

Edited February 17, 2009 by BrianC14

[BrianC14]

Warren: Get a copy of Mills' book. 17th Street never over-sauces their meats. The best seasoning in the world comes in a single shaker-bottle: "Magic Dust". Mmmmmmm.... I may have to get some ribs going for this weekend. Now, where can I find an apple tree with a few broken limbs? That might go well with the Trippel I kegged this past weekend....

Edited February 17, 2009 by BrianC14

[jjb]

Dave, I'll see your cider vinegar sauce, and raise you my spiced apple bourbon sauce. You make your standard tomato-based BBQ sauce, then add a jar of chunky apple sauce, cinnamon, allspice, clove, and bourbon.

[Majordave]

I smell a Ribs/BBQ throwdown coming on. IF we could only find a place convenient for all of us to meet, work some games and get our Beer, BBQ and umpire thing on.

I do have an idea. Just a thought. The local program that I work and assign umpires for here in Danville has bid on a USSSA World Series to be conducted on about six fields in this area. IF they get the bid and IF you guys are interested, I can assign anyone I want to games..... The Tourney Director mentioned comped rooms for umpires at local motels...... Sooo, just maybe, we can call game on, Q on, Brew on. Whaddya Think?

An outside chance we might be putting on an umpire clinic on to try and train newer umpires for local youth leagues and offer them professional instruction. We have the former #2 at Evans living locally and he has expressed some interest in umpire clinics and training for amateur umpires although he has no desire to work games anymore and a couple of other former professional umpires that live locally that work college in my college association. One is former AAA and now an SEC/ACC/Sun Belt umpire and the other is a former AA, now a Big East, MAC and OVC umpire.

I am waiting to hear on the WS bid before I pull the trigger and start planning this thing.

Anyway, just a thought.

[Majordave]

Dave, I'll see your cider vinegar sauce, and raise you my spiced apple bourbon sauce. You make your standard tomato-based BBQ sauce, then add a jar of chunky apple sauce, cinnamon, allspice, clove, and bourbon.

Beer, mustard, spices, brown sugar, soy, lemon, ......... I used to call it Nancy's Sweet Stuff because I did it tangy without the sweet and it was good. My wife asked me to make it sweeter so I tried brown sugar and Nancy's Sweet Stuff was born. We had to change the name due to conflict of interest. That title was already taken by something else.......

We renamed it Cassi's Sweet and Sassy after our daughter.

Brian-Apple tree? Hickory for pork baby! I do use apple juice and some other stuff in the injection blend.

[BrianC14]

Beer, mustard, spices, brown sugar, soy, lemon, ......... I used to call it Nancy's Sweet Stuff because I did it tangy without the sweet and it was good. My wife asked me to make it sweeter so I tried brown sugar and Nancy's Sweet Stuff was born. We had to change the name due to conflict of interest. That title was already taken by something else.......

We renamed it Cassi's Sweet and Sassy after our daughter.

Brian-Apple tree? Hickory for pork baby! I do use apple juice and some other stuff in the injection blend.

Yep, hickory is standard, and I have plenty of that on hand, but I cannot and will not be without my apple tree clumps. Apple & pork = bread & butter.

I haven't delved into too many of my own BBQ sauces, but that is a project for this spring/summer. I am stirring around an idea with some of my own Irish Ale, but I'll be darned if that's as far as the recipe gets! I do like like to use the injector marinades, though, and those are usually done up on spur of the moment... bit o' this, some o' that sort of thing.

[BrianC14]

I smell a Ribs/BBQ throwdown coming on. IF we could only find a place convenient for all of us to meet, work some games and get our Beer, BBQ and umpire thing on.

I do have an idea. Just a thought. The local program that I work and assign umpires for here in Danville has bid on a USSSA World Series to be conducted on about six fields in this area. IF they get the bid and IF you guys are interested, I can assign anyone I want to games..... The Tourney Director mentioned comped rooms for umpires at local motels...... Sooo, just maybe, we can call game on, Q on, Brew on. Whaddya Think?

An outside chance we might be putting on an umpire clinic on to try and train newer umpires for local youth leagues and offer them professional instruction. We have the former #2 at Evans living locally and he has expressed some interest in umpire clinics and training for amateur umpires although he has no desire to work games anymore and a couple of other former professional umpires that live locally that work college in my college association. One is former AAA and now an SEC/ACC/Sun Belt umpire and the other is a former AA, now a Big East, MAC and OVC umpire.

I am waiting to hear on the WS bid before I pull the trigger and start planning this thing.

Anyway, just a thought.

Dates? My season's just starting (first scrimmages 2/28 - - WOO HOO!) and will run from now to September.

[Majordave]

Dates? My season's just starting (first scrimmages 2/28 - - WOO HOO!) and will run from now to September.

I believe it is the middle two weekends of July.

[mstaylor]

I'm up for a clinic/tournament/ BBQ. It may coincide with part of DSF but I would love to make at least some of it.

In my considered opinion, tomato based sause has no business anywhere a BBQed anything, vineger is the only way to go. I would take exception to UIC's assertion that there is no BBQ above Richmond. While it is hard to beat NC pork, you guys can't touch MD chicken. I don't eat pulled pork around here because everyone does tomato based sauses. The same for most beef. However, it is 80/20 on chicken. Any born heres do vinegar. Come heres do tomato.

[Majordave]

Sauce on your meat is an option not a requirement with my BBQ. It does not need sauce but sauce surely enhances the experience. I alternate between sauce and no sauce bites.

[BrianC14]

Mike Mills is a partner in a restaurant called "Blue Smoke".

It's on Park Avenue in - yeah - NEW YORK CITY.

As they say: The Big Apple's only barbecue pit with jazzy tunes.

[jjb]

HMM: We just backed out of a U-trip WS those very same weeks. It seems my calender might be clear.

Beer, BBQ and Baseball: sounds interesting

[BrianC14]

HMM: We just backed out of a U-trip WS those very same weeks. It seems my calender might be clear.

Beer, BBQ and Baseball: sounds interesting

I'm going to give this some serious thought. I won't know my summer sched until early-mid May but I might be able to ensure that I've got some time free at that time... I wonder if I could talk SWMBO into a visit to her parents in S. Illinois... I see it's about a 5 hour drive from there to Danville.... HMMMM..... Dave, are you getting worried yet? :nod:

[UmpJM]

I smell a Ribs/BBQ throwdown coming on. IF we could only find a place convenient for all of us to meet, work some games and get our Beer, BBQ and umpire thing on.

I do have an idea. Just a thought. The local program that I work and assign umpires for here in Danville has bid on a USSSA World Series to be conducted on about six fields in this area. IF they get the bid and IF you guys are interested, I can assign anyone I want to games..... The Tourney Director mentioned comped rooms for umpires at local motels...... Sooo, just maybe, we can call game on, Q on, Brew on. Whaddya Think?

An outside chance we might be putting on an umpire clinic on to try and train newer umpires for local youth leagues and offer them professional instruction. We have the former #2 at Evans living locally and he has expressed some interest in umpire clinics and training for amateur umpires although he has no desire to work games anymore and a couple of other former professional umpires that live locally that work college in my college association. One is former AAA and now an SEC/ACC/Sun Belt umpire and the other is a former AA, now a Big East, MAC and OVC umpire.

I am waiting to hear on the WS bid before I pull the trigger and start planning this thing.

Anyway, just a thought.

Dave,

Did I understand you to say Baseball, BBQ, and Beer?!?! Certainly 3 of my favorite things!

What age(s) did you "bid" on for the USSSA tourney. Looks like under a 7 hr. drive for me. Keep us posted. I think I could go for that!

John

[Majordave]

the guy setting this up from the teams/coaches side, the "TD" if you will.

It is a USSSA sanctioned 10u World Series. Dates are July 8-12 with main host area, Danville and Harrodsburg, KY.

I prefer bigger boy ball but my understanding is that these guys play real baseball (OBR rules) with some NFHS style safety rules overlayed (FPSR, collision rule, pitcher innings/pitch counts, etc.)

Games usually go quickly and they start early in the day but do not play into the wee hours of the morning.

He confirmed the comped rooms for umpires thing.

Still a lot of details to work out but we now have a green light and a set of dates.

He mentioned some other USSSA state tournaments but will provide that info to me in a detailed e-mail sometime this weekend.

All that being said, HELP! If you think you want in, let me know. (PM would probably be best-include contact info like phones and e-mails and short resume of umpire experience) I will start making a list and contact all who are interested.

Don't know pay scale yet but I am sure it won't be all that much.

I think the real deal is the potential for an umpire camp run by (Ex-)Professional and NCAA umpires for youth umpires held the two or three days before the tournament and then early games worked by campers earning back their camp fee with evaluations by the camp staff and rapid improvement potential.

I will need an umpire equipment vendor and t-shirts/polos for instructors, etc., etc., etc....

Sounds like a big undertaking. I will focus on the BBQ throwdown/showdown, Brian's beer making lessons/class (with samples?) and the camaraderie to get me (us) through.

Ideas? Suggestions? Volunteers? Fire away.

[scobes7]

Who waits for spring? I make sure to keep a good-sized plastic shovel on the deck, just outside the door. That allows me to shovel a path to the smoker/grill all year 'round. Cold? Go stand next to the fire box - it'll drive you back into the cold!

I use a Char-Griller Pro with a side-fire box. www.chargriller.com It's worked really well now for (knock-on-wood) 5+ years. Secret learned from Mike Mills: Never, never, never, EVER use charcoal briquets. Only hardwood lump charcoal. Cost more, but it doesn't have all those chemicals that briquets have.

I use the hardwood lump charcoal myself...it burns hotter also but requires more. As far as the cold goes...My theory is...." I'm to old to be cold" :HD: