Old Ones Dream

Our Berkshire Pigs Go to Georgia for Sunday School

On Monday evening T and I went out to Oskar Blues to listen to one of our favorite local "Old Time" music groups, the "Hogtown Squealers". They delivered a spirited and driving rendition of "Thunder Road" which reminded me of the movie Thunder Road (1958) which reminded me of the... Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: Scalloped Oysters

If you Google "Miss Jane Christie Hammond" you will find her wedding announcment in the November 1, 1953 edition of The News and Courier. You won't find her recipe for "Scalloped Oysters" that appears on page 66 of my yellowed and disintegrating copy of the original 1952 edition of Charleston... Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: Cowboy Beans Recipe Revised

I recently made some adjustment to the original recipe that, I think, resulted in better flavor - and decreased the cost of the meal. The primary adjustment is to remove the beer. I'm sure that some food chemist can tell me why less flavor in yields more flavor out but... Read more →

The Best I Ever Had - Compared to What?

A reader asked what made the Alamo Springs Cafe hamburger better than all the rest. That comment will inform my future writing about food. It caused me to realize that I had not, in all cases, done more than to say "just take my word for it". This post will... Read more →

Alamo Springs Cafe Hamburger: The Best I Ever Had

In the shade of an oak down by the River, Tanne and I camped at Blanco in the Texas Hill Country. That was April 2011 and our trip, originally dubbed the Blue Bonnet tour, had been renamed the Brisket Tour because of the extreme drought - no Blue Bonnets in... Read more →

Charlene's Famous Seafood Chowder: The Best I Ever Had

On August 29, 2012, the day that we returned from Newfoundland to Baddeck, our new Canuck good friend and Cape Breton promoter, William Jr. "Banjoman" Johnson called us and we met for supper on, that, our last night in Nova Scotia. He asked if we had tried Charlene's Famous Seafood... Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: Liver and Onions

One of the reasons that we chose Freeport Whale and Seabird Tours at Freeport NS for our whale watching excursion was that we had seen it written that one of the really good restaurants in Nova Scotia is located at the dock and that the ticket office for the whale watching tour is located in the restaurant, Lavena's Catch Cafe. Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: BBQ

As our knowledge of Texas "Q" grew, we learned that we had stumbled blind into the holy of holies - a shrine for many Texas BBQ purists; City Market, 633 E. Davis St. Luling, Texas 78648. We learned that Texas Monthly magazine has a BBQ web site and a smart phone BBQ Finder App. We learned that Central Texas BBQ is (of course) BIG - The New York Times recently ran a feature announcing that Texas Monthly had named a full time BBQ Editor. We learned that, identity theft being the sincerest form of flattery, there is a BBQ joint in Houston named Luling City Market that sells Luling City Market BBQ sauce (so be careful when you Google - but you already knew that). Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: Cowboy Beans

Also known as Ranch Style Beans or Texas Style Pinto Beans, among other things, they can be cooked in a large crock pot or in a dutch oven on the stove, in the oven, over the coals, or on the smoker. If you cook them in an earthenware pot over... Read more →

The Best I Ever Had: Indian Tacos

Debo took us for a drive up Spearfish Canyon in a cool drizzle and we stopped in at Cheyenne Crossing for brunch. He recommended the Indian Tacos and it was good advice. Read more →