It'sFoodTime!

Tasty Toledo

My parents are originally from Toledo, so we’ve had ample opportunities to visit Toledo and become accustomed to many of the food joints frequented by my parents during their childhood.  My Grandfather passed away just a few weeks ago, and since he made it to 96 years old, and was independent for 95 of those years, his funeral was more a celebration of his life than a mourning of his death.  But being in Toledo, possibly for the last time with the extended family, I was reminded me of the many culinary institutions to which I’ve become attached.

At the top of the list, of course is Rudy’s Hot Dogs, which serves the world’s greatest chili-dogs, bar none.  Rudy’s is the one place where I have NEVER failed to eat during a visit to Toledo.  My standard gig when visiting my grandparents was to stop over for a day or two at the end of a business trip.  I’d fly in to Detroit, pick up a bag of Rudy’s for the three of us, get a six pack of Labatt’s, and make my appearance.  Grandpa & Grandma, and me, really enjoyed that.  As a memorial to them both, we made a family sojourn to Rudy’s after Grandpa’s funeral, and enjoyed our memories.

Next has to be Uncle John’s, a local pancake house that also serves a mean all-you-can-eat fish fry at certain unpredictable times.  When they have the fish, it’s killer.  We’ve also had many a family breakfast at John’s and a stack of cakes can hold its own!

My Mom’s childhood favorite is Red Wells, famous for its roast beef.  Mom recalls eating at Red Wells with her Dad, who would kibbitz with Red while eating.  A lot of years later, the food is still terrific.

There are a handful of restaurants in the area that have all-you-can-eat Walleye when it’s in season.  I don’t remember any of these places, but my grandparents always seemed to know how to find the friendly little diners that would load up your plate with fish for under four bucks.  I miss that.

Let’s not forget White Castle’s, another venerable favorite where I used to regularly stop. I remember Grandpa deciding he needed some Sliders as a late night snack, and off we’d go. Not so much in recent years, but I have fond memories.

Of course, there’s Dairy Queen, which has a place on my Toledo list since Grandpa would walk with us kids and Jaegar, his Weimerauner dog, down to the local DQ and get each of us an ice cream cone, including Jaegar.  That dog LOVED those cones, and it created quite a stir at the Dairy Queen besides!

And no mention of Toledo food is complete without mention of the hundreds of bologna and American cheese sandwiches my Grandma would make for me.  It’s all I ever wanted, and she was happy to oblige.  I pretty much can’t stand those sandwiches now, but sure did love Grandma’s.

I guess no discussion of food in Toledo is complete without a mention of Tony Packo’s, the Hungarian sausage eatery that Klinger, from MASH, used to remember so fondly.  I’ve never been there – I’m incapable of turning down Rudy’s as the alternative!

Finally, there are Grandma’s infamous Lamb Burgers, which my Dad insists Grandma tricked him in to eating by misrepresenting them as beef.   Grandma would get spun up when this topic would come up, typically after quite a few beers, and denied that story to her last day.  As of a few weeks ago, Dad is still sticking to his version.

– Chris

Dinner at Josiah’s

Josiah Slone is the Chef and owner of Sent Sovi, a high end restaurant in Saratoga, CA that was previously owned by David Kinch, now of Manresa in Los Gatos.  One of the angles Josiah uses to put his own mark on the place is to hold “theme dinners” every few months.

Laura and I tried our first of these dinners last year on Halloween when we went to the Bring Your Own Big Scary Bottle event.  The idea is for each person or couple to bring a Magnum or larger of wine and then to share the wine amongst the 30 or so people at the dinner.  The menu is pre-established, so this is mostly a social event and gives fans of the restaurant and the chef a chance to mingle and chew the fat, so to speak.  We went with our good friends Mer & Dave and didn’t know any of the other patrons.  But, thirty minutes into the dinner, with the wine beginning to flow, the place just turned on!  People began to bring their bottles around to each table to offer samples (and to get some samples, too) and it turned out to be more of a party than a dinner.

This year, we happened to have the chance to catch Josiah’s Heirloom Tomato night with our other good friends, Pat & Jennifer.  Like the Magnum night, it was a smallish group, which was perfect for creating an intimate, personal atmosphere with lots of attention from Chef Josiah.  What’s amazing is that every course on the menu included heirloom tomatoes in some form.  On Food Network’s The Iron Chef, competing Chef’s must make a complete menu and utilize the “surprise ingredient” in every dish.  Josiah pulled it off with everything from Heirloom Tomato Bellinis, lots of bite size appetizers showcasing different types of Heirlooms, a most excellent gazpacho, some fine sea bass, heirloom tomato granita, absolutely rockin’ pork tenderloin with tomatoes, and finally, a fabulous brownie-like dessert incorporating a sweet heirloom tomato paste.

We’ve been lucky to have great friends along with us for our two visits, but the people who attend these events are friendly and open, and the Chef and his team clearly enjoy the special nature of cooking for a group of people who have come to Sent Sovi for more than satisfying hunger pangs.

Sent Sovi, Chef Josiah Slone, www.sentsovi.com, 408-867-3110.  Maybe we’ll see you there next time!

– Chris