Realist or Hypocrite?

A guest post by Andrew ----

I always celebrate when I see local protests against Wal-Mart. The protestors always make the point, a point with which I wholly agree, that Wal-Mart and its imitators have destroyed much of the local flavor and life of American towns and cities. I concur and then heartily proclaim “stick it to the man!”

I am always upset when I see another huge Wal-Mart pimple being constructed in a city. I always think, “ughhh, what are we doing!?” I do the same thing, in fact, when I see a new shopping center built with the typical slew of chain restaurants: Chili’s, Olive Garden, Outback, Starbucks, Ruby Tuesday’s, McD’s, etc... Those who know me will also attest to my undying dislike of freeways and their by-product, suburban sprawl. I will repeat, ad nauseum, to anyone and everyone how much better high-density, urban cities are to the suburban mediocrity of most American cities. I will then pontificate about how much we have lost in the past fifty years due to our over-consuming, over-convenient way of life.

I am, however, a horrible hypocrite. Every morning on my way to work I stop and buy a cup of coffee. I have two options every morning: the local mom-and-pop coffee shop or McDonalds. Without fail, every morning, I look at the mom-and-pop and I think “I should go there.” I never do. The reason is that every time I have gone there, the service is slow and the coffee is no better than McDonalds. It’s not worse but it isn’t better. The Mom-and-Pop doesn’t have much business, I think, because most everyone has made the assessment I have: it’s no better and it is less convenient. So McD’s will win and I will build up the very thing which I scour.

So as Don Corleone says in Godfather II: “Senator, we’re all part of the same hypocrisy”

Food and Faith Sunday

Today's Gospel reading from St. Luke's Gospel speaks for itself --

Jesus addressed this parable
to those who were convinced of their own righteousness
and despised everyone else.
"Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.
The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity --
greedy, dishonest, adulterous -- or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’
But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.'
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted."

Pei-Wei is genius!

Guest post from a friend of Food and Fort Worth: food critic and gourmand, Andrew. He is a teacher in San Antonio, Texas
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waiters are annoying. They either insert themselves far too often, interrupting the natural flow of conversation with inane questions and ‘upsells’, or they are totally absent leaving the table messy and the drinks empty. Rarely, if ever, does a waiter strike the right balance.

It is often hard for me to understand why waiters are necessary at all. The only thing they do that I can’t is type in the order on the computer. Everything else I can do. Fill up drinks at a fountain? Check. Grab napkins? Check. Put my food in a to-go bag? Check. I can think of plenty of reasons why I don’t need them: they might spit in my food, they might not wash their hands, they might not ever fill my tea up, they might mess up my order, and they might forget to put my order in and then tell me twenty minutes later that they are ‘in the weeds’.

The annoyed consumer, however, has generally had to suffer through them if he wanted a convenient meal above the quality of Taco Bell. Some restaurant groups have picked up on the market opportunity and have started the hybrid “fast-casual” concept. One of my favorites among these “fast casual” restaurants is Pei-Wei. Pei-Wei has perfected the fast-casual scheme. I’ll run down the list of why I think they run this scheme so well.

1. The no-waiter scheme means they never have more than 12-14 people working during a shift. Most typical casual restaurants have probably 30-40 for any given shift. This means that Pei-Wei can hire the best people that apply and not just whoever walks in the door. It also means less overhead, less liability, and less chance that things will get screwed up.
2. They don’t need “waiter space” and so can have more room for tables. They are able to be in smaller spaces than most casual restaurants, reducing the cost of rent.
3. They have 2 people on a shift who are wholly dedicated to food-running. There is no food languishing under hot lamps at Pei-Wei. I’ve never received a cold dish. The food-runner scheme also prevents a gridlock of people at the front of the restaurant grabbing their own food.
4. The atmosphere is welcoming and comfortable unlike most fast-food restaurants.
5. The food is very good. All the rest would be useless if the food stank but Pei-Wei actually has really good food. It’s not gourmet but it is simple and tasty.
6. They seem to pass the savings on. A big plate of Pad Thai is only 6 bucks.That’s only a dollar more than a typical visit to McD’s but significantly cheaper than Chili's.